CryptoBilawal

Waabi founder and CEO Raquel Urtasan stands next to the cab of one of the company's trucks
Waabi founder and CEO Raquel Urtasan Waabi
The battle for robotaxi dominance is heating up, with Canadian self-driving truck startup Waabi joining the fray. The company says it’s raised up to $1 billion, including from Uber, to help commercialize its robotic big rig business and fund a surprise foray into the robotaxi market. Waabi will work exclusively with Uber to put tens of thousands of robotaxis on its ride-hail platform.

MONEY + POLITICS
The Customs and Border Protection agents involved in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti were placed on administrative leave, a move that is standard protocol, a Department of Homeland Security official told the New York Times. ICE has continued its actions in Minnesota following the shooting, even as leaders in the state have pushed for de-escalation.

MORE: Senate Democrats are demanding that ICE agents be prohibited from wearing masks and required to wear body cameras, among other requests, in exchange for voting to keep the government open. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said “ICE has been unleashed without guardrails,” as Democrats sought to renegotiate DHS funding separately.

DAILY COVER STORY
Open AI CEO Sam Altman speaks at an event.
Open AI CEO Sam Altman Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images
OpenAI’s development of its own social network appears to be crystalizing around a singular mission: obliterate the bot problem that has made an endless and toxic sump of the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Sources familiar with the project told Forbes that the social network, which is still in the very early stages of development, has been envisioned as a real-humans-only platform, a potential selling point for the AI giant that is looking to capitalize on its viral ChatGPT and Sora apps. But should it launch, the social network will be wading into a market of powerful incumbents, like X, Instagram, and TikTok.

The app is being developed by a very small team, and may include a biometric identity recognition element. Sources familiar with its development told Forbes that the team has considered requiring users to provide “proof of personhood” via Apple’s Face ID or the World Orb, a cantaloupe-sized eyeball scanner that uses a person's iris to generate a unique, verifiable ID. World is operated by Tools for Humanity, a company OpenAI CEO Sam Altman founded and currently chairs.

True biometric verification would ensure that all accounts on OpenAI’s social network have a real person behind them. While social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn do attempt to verify identity, they generally do so via phone and email verification, and/or behavioral or network signals. Neither has pursued a biometric solution that would presumably definitively prove a user is human. Privacy advocates have warned about the risks of identity verification like World’s, as iris scans are unchangeable and could cause all manner of havoc in the wrong hands.

WHY IT MATTERS “Privacy issues aside, if OpenAI chooses to go down this path, they’ll face an uphill battle from social networking giants like Instagram and TikTok, not to mention X, owned by Altman nemesis Elon Musk,” says Forbes senior writer Anna Tong. “But with ChatGPT, OpenAI has established itself as a formidable orchestrator of consumer virality and they could very well do it again.”

FACTS + COMMENTS
Spotify said it disbursed over $11 billion to artists and labels in 2025, as the music streaming giant has previously been criticized for its low payouts to artists. Independent musicians and labels accounted for about half of all royalties:

More than 10%: The increase in Spotify’s payouts from 2024

‘The largest annual payment to music from any retailer in history’: How the company described the payout

Nearly $70 billion: Spotify’s total payouts since its launch

STRATEGY + SUCCESS
January is a time that many professionals dive head first into their professional goals, but it’s important to keep up that momentum throughout the year. Focus on learning one high-impact skill rather than everything all at once, and align your work with what matters most to leadership. Don’t forget to begin building relationships with mentors and colleagues before you need to tap into your network for a job hunt.

Reliable execution is the foundation of modern payment infrastructure because it translates the abstract concept of financial trust into a tangible, "always-on" reality. As payments transition from slow, batch-processed systems to instant, 24/7 digital, and cross-border transactions, the ability to securely and consistently move money without failure has become the core determinant of institutional credibility.
Here is why reliable execution is the foundation of modern payment infrastructure:
1. It is the Basis of Trust and Credibility
Payments represent the point where trust becomes tangible. Customers, whether individuals or businesses, do not just want fast payments; they need to know the transaction will work.
Preventing Panic: A single failed payment, especially in instant, irrevocable, or critical scenarios (like payroll or supplier payments), damages confidence far more than other types of technological failure.
Reliability Over Speed: While speed is important, a system that is consistently reliable—even if slightly slower—is far more valuable than a fast system that fails frequently or requires manual cleanup.
2. It Powers "Always-On" Banking
Modern banking and fintech operate in an "always-on" environment that demands 24/7 availability across multiple channels.
Eliminating Batch Windows: Traditional systems used to rely on end-of-day batch processing. Modern infrastructure requires real-time processing, meaning systems must be, run, and recover continuously.
Continuous Availability: Reliability means guaranteeing zero, or near-zero, unplanned downtime, allowing for instant, 24/7, and cross-border payments. @Plasma

Most platforms make you work for the experience. Vanar makes the work part of the experience.
By prioritizing flow over features, they’re building for the long game. Creators and gamers don’t want a manual; they want magicVanar is solving the biggest hurdle in the space by making the first interaction feel "predictable." It's not about forcing growth; it's about removing the friction that stops it.
Building for the long game means building for humans, not just wallets. 🧠✨
#vanar $VANRY @VanarchaVanar is solving the biggest hurdle in the space by making the first interaction feel "predictable." It's not about forcing growth; it's about removing the friction that stops it.
Building for the long game means building for humans, not just wallets. 🧠✨
#vanar $VANRY @Vanar

Most blockchains operate like a poker game where everyone has to play with their cards face-up. We’ve been told this "transparency" is the ultimate form of honesty, but in the real world of finance, it's a disaster. When big players show their hand—exposing trade sizes, timings, and flows—they get front-run, their strategies are reverse-engineered, and the market weakens.
Dusk isn't just another privacy coin; it’s the "financial plumbing" the industry actually needs. Here’s why it’s a game-changer:
Privacy by Default, Not by Hiding: Most chains try to add privacy as an afterthought. Dusk flips the script. Transactions are private by default, but they allow "selective disclosure." This means you can keep your secrets from the public while still being 100% auditable by regulators.
The "Upstream" Advantage: In typical crypto, transactions happen first and rules are checked later. If something breaks, it’s expensive to fix. Dusk moves the cost upstream—eligibility is checked before settlement. No ambiguity, no "soft finality," and no messy cleanup.
Built for the "Boring" (and Massive) Markets: While retail investors chase flashy "vibe" chains, Dusk is building for tokenized securities, bonds, and debt. It’s designed to align with major regulations like Europe’s MiCA, making it the bridge for institutional money to finally enter the space.
The Bottom Line: Real finance doesn't fail because it's slow; it fails when it can't explain what happened months later. Dusk provides the quiet, reliable foundation that turns blockchain from an experiment into a functional global market.Transparency has been misread as honesty. Exposed trade sizes, timings, and flows can be reverse-engineered, weakening markets. Dusk flips the script: transactions are private by default but allow selective disclosure for auditing and regulatory compliance.

Controlled finance requires a different blockchain architecture. Layer 1 chains thrive on experimentation; regulated finance demands restricted access, accountable visibility, and enforceable settlement. Dusk separates execution, settlement, and compliance, allowing privacy-sensitive smart contracts to coexist with auditable systems.

This roadmap aligns with Europe’s MiCA and DLT Pilot Regime, building the foundation for tokenized securities, funds, and debt within the law. Adoption may be slow, but that’s intentional—legal review, risk analysis, and integration take time. Partnerships like NPEX show the path to stickiness: institutional rails don’t switch every cycle.

Dusk isn’t narrative-driven—it’s infrastructure-driven. Its $DUSK token is a security budget, supporting validator incentives and long-term reliability, not short-term speculation. Penalties are mild, designed to deter without catastrophic failure—prioritizing resilient systems over fear-based compliance.

The risk isn’t the concept—it’s execution. Building compliant infrastructure is costly, slow, and relationship-heavy. Success depends on converting partnerships into real issuance and trading volume. Timing matters too: retail cycles may overlook Dusk, but institutional demand for privacy and accountability will reveal its value.

Why it matters: tokenized assets won’t scale on chains that leak data or lack regulation. Dusk addresses this head-on: privacy, auditability, and disciplined settlement. It’s not a flashy chain—it’s financial plumbing. Quiet, reliable, and foundational for the future of regulated on-chain finance#DUSK $DUSK
@Dusk_Foundation

a “dead head” who approved a “rather small cut.” Earlier this month, Powell said the Justice Department served the Fed grand jury subpoenas threatening a criminal indictment over Powell’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last year. Powell, who was appointed by Trump in 2018, called the move an “unprecedented action” that should be viewed “in the broader context of the administration’s threats and ongoing pressure.” Several economists and former Fed officials condemned the investigation, arguing it was an “unprecedented attempt” to undermine the central bank’s independence. The White House said earlier this month that Trump supports the Fed’s political independence, adding, “He has said that many times.”

Topline
Rapper Nicki Minaj posted a photo of President Donald Trump’s “Gold Card” on Wednesday, suggesting she may have purchased the card that provides fast-tracked U.S. citizenship, after she appeared alongside the president earlier in the day to promote his “Trump accounts.”

Key Facts
Minaj captioned the photo, “Welp…” showing the physical Trump “Gold Card,” which requires a $1 million contribution to the U.S. Treasury and a $15,000 non-refundable processing fee.

Minaj is a legal permanent resident in the U.S. and moved to the country as a child from Trinidad and Tobago, though she said in 2024 she was not a U.S. citizen despite paying millions of dollars in taxes.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.