Latest Developments

North America
CNBC Finance

Autonomous trucking company Aurora looks to accelerate toward profitability

Take a drive in Texas on Interstate 45 between Houston and Dallas or I-20 between Fort Worth and El Paso, and you will see dozens and dozens of tractor trailers. They are two of the busiest highways in the country for trucks — and two routes where Aurora Innovation is operating completely autonomous semis. "It's using lasers, radar, and cameras to look all around it and see the other cars, see the other trucks on the road, and figure out how to drive safely," said Chris Urmson, Aurora founder and CEO. He talked with CNBC's Phil LeBeau for more than three hours as they rode in the cab of an autonomous Aurora truck. With 20 driverless trucks currently on the road and plans to grow the autonomous fleet to 200 trucks by the end of this year, Aurora is targeting major growth over the next several years. The company's selling point is that it says an autonomous truck can operate more efficiently and at a lower cost than a semi with a driver behind the wheel. "We can help them [truck operators] save on fuel economy," Urmson said. "We can move goods more quickly and then we can fill the need when they can't hire amazing drivers for their teams." Ravi Shanker, transportation analyst with Morgan Stanley, estimates that "an autonomous fleet should be nearly 7.5X as profitable as a human-driven fleet today." Bank of America, meanwhile, estimates "Aurora services will cost ~$0.85 per mile versus approximately $1.30 per mile for human driver wages and benefits, before considering indirect labour costs." With its next generation of driverless trucks to hit the road, Aurora believes its "driver as a service" business model, where customers pay by the mile driven, will be attractive to shipping and freight customers looking to lower costs. A shortage of truck drivers in the U.S. has freight firms looking for reliable service at a lower cost. Autonomous trucks have the potential to roll for up to 20 hours a day, while a truck driver's hours are limited by federal laws that require drivers to take breaks. Sean Wu, CEO of the freight firm uShip, said he understands the appeal of a driverless truck when it comes to lowering costs, but he questions how many shipping firms will want to ditch their drivers. "The drivers do more than just move the rig. There is judgement. There is customer service. There is protection," Wu told CNBC. "There is just a lot more to think about than 'Hey they are moving a truck from point A to point B.'" The Department of Transportation estimates there are approximately 3.5 million Class 8 semitrucks on the road in the U.S. Only a fraction are autonomous, but the market is growing, and Wall Street sees huge potential. Kodiak AI, Gatik and Tesla are also developing autonomous vehicles. Aurora CEO Urmson said he knows there are plenty of skeptics, including those who will continue to question the safety of a driverless truck rolling down the highway at 65 or 70 mph.

Autonomous trucking company Aurora looks to accelerate toward profitability
North America
CNBC Finance

Peloton is revamping its treadmills with new features in the next phase of its turnaround

Peloton is betting that revamped treadmills, AI and new distribution channels can bring it back to sustained growth. The connected fitness company on Tuesday unveiled three new treadmills and new features for its Peloton IQ artificial intelligence platform with tools for runners, walkers and hikers. Peloton aims to widen its customer base, from people looking for a more affordable, space-saving treadmill to more experienced athletes looking for personalized coaching. "From record marathon turnouts around the world to the rise of local run clubs, we're rediscovering the joy of running, walking and hiking," said CEO Peter Stern in a press release. But the stakes remain higher than simply selling new equipment. Shares have dropped 43% since Stern stepped into the role in January 2025. Peloton has spent the past several years cutting costs, restructuring its operations and repairing its balance sheet after the pandemic-era boom in connected fitness gave way to a sharp slowdown in demand. The company has returned to profitability and improved its cash generation, but revenue growth is a challenge as subscriptions trend lower. Now Stern is putting more emphasis on widening the company's potential revenue sources. "Expanding our treadmill portfolio and launching AI-powered software for runners will allow us to connect with a much wider audience," Stern said. The treadmill relaunch, Peloton said, is also addressing the company's long-standing challenge getting consumers to buy high-cost equipment that takes up a lot of space. The Tread Flex will start at $2,195, making it Peloton's lowest-cost treadmill of the new hardware and its first folding model. The new treadmill can contract by nearly half its size, potentially broadening the product's appeal among consumers with less space or lower equipment budgets At the other end of its lineup, Peloton is keeping the $6,695 Tread+ Vision the same price. It is also increasing the price of the middle model, the Tread Vision, by $200, to $3,495. The higher-end products include movement-tracking cameras that provide insights on a user's running form. The Tread+ Vision also includes Sled Mode, meant to allow users to add up to 300 pounds of resistance for strength training as hybrid races like Hyrox become more popular. The wider range of prices brings questions about how Peloton will keep buyers engaged.

Peloton is revamping its treadmills with new features in the next phase of its turnaround
North America
CNBC Finance

Eli Lilly CEO tells CNBC one-third of new GLP-1 pill patients are taking Foundayo, as drugmaker ramps up production

Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks told CNBC on Monday that one-third of new GLP-1 pill patients are taking the drugmaker's Foundayo, as the company tries to catch up to a lead in the space established by rival Novo. In an exclusive interview, he said the company's share of the oral market is growing week over week. "We're confident long term" about Lilly's place in the pill segment, Ricks said, especially as the company plans to launch Foundayo in more international markets in the coming months. Ricks spoke with CNBC in front of the roughly 240 acres of land that will eventually host Lilly's $6.5 billion manufacturing facility at Generation Park in Houston, Texas. The company on Monday broke ground on the upcoming site nearly a year after first announcing it, and said it expects the plant to be operational by 2030. The facility will most notably produce Lilly's closely watched GLP-1 pill for obesity, Foundayo, which entered the U.S. market in April. But the plant will be responsible for manufacturing the active ingredients for Lilly's other small-molecule medicines across several disease areas, such as cardiometabolic health, oncology, immunology and neuroscience. Ricks' comments and the groundbreaking came as Novo shares fell after the company's long-term strategy failed to assuage investor concerns about its ability to compete with Lilly in the obesity and diabetes market. While Novo beat Lilly to releasing a pill, Lilly said in August that it held about a 61% share in the overall market in the second quarter. The production site is part of a string of new investments Lilly has funneled into reshoring manufacturing across the U.S. over the last year. In February 2025, Lilly committed to spending an additional $27 billion to build four new facilities, including the Houston site, in part to build goodwill with President Donald Trump. But Lilly has also emphasized manufacturing capacity as a key competitive advantage against its main rival Novo alongside its drug portfolio. Since 2020, the company has committed more than $50 billion to expanding its manufacturing network, positioning itself to meet growing demand for obesity and diabetes treatments while supporting future product launches. Demand for Foundayo is rising in the U.S. The company said in August that the pill booked $98 million in sales for the second quarter — its first three-month period on the market. Medicare's new landmark coverage of obesity drugs, which began in July, is expected to open up more access to the pill and Lilly's blockbuster weight loss drug Zepbound. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Eli Lilly CEO tells CNBC one-third of new GLP-1 pill patients are taking Foundayo, as drugmaker ramps up production
Europe
BBC Business

Sir David Beckham nets £38.5m after World Cup ad deals

Image source, Getty ImagesByArchie MitchellBusiness reporterPublished25 September 2026Sir David Beckham has netted a £38.5m payout from his sports, fashion, and media business after the 2026 Men's Football World Cup helped it bring in record profits. The former England star's DRJB Holdings, which includes the Beckham brand, reported an almost £50m profit in 2025, a 46% jump compared to a year earlier. Sales rose from £72.2m to £84m. The rise was driven by a slew of advertising partnerships struck in the runup to the tournament, including with Bank of America, McDonald's, Verizon, and PepsiCo Lay's. Sir David, Britain's first billionaire sportsman, was commonly seen in adverts during the summer's World Cup. In the US, it was difficult for fans to watch a game without coming across Beckham in adverts for Stella Artois, Home Depot and Lay's crisps - known as Walkers in the UK. Sir David also launched menswear collections for Hugo Boss last year, as well as a pair of Adidas Predator football boots and an eyewear range with Italian glasses maker Safilo. Revenues at DRJB, of which Beckham owns almost half, were boosted by growth in Beckham's health supplements business too. DRJB paid its shareholders £38.9m, followed by a special £46.6m payment after the end of the financial year. Sir David's share of those dividends would have been around £38.5m due to how much of the company he owns. The remainder of DRJB is owned by New York-based Authentic Brands Group, which also owns Reebok, as well as the rights to other celebrity brands such as comedian and actor Kevin Hart. Authentic's entertainment chief executive Corey Salter said the performance showed Sir David's name is "one of the most powerful global brands in sport, lifestyle, entertainment and much more". "It's been an outstanding year, from new partnerships to important philanthropic campaigns and overall brand growth," he said.

Sir David Beckham nets £38.5m after World Cup ad deals
North America
CNBC Finance

Auto industry urges Trump to bar Chinese automakers in U.S. ahead of Xi visit

The American automotive industry wants President Donald Trump to maintain policies that make it difficult for Chinese automakers to operate in the U.S. — or even ban them altogether. In a letter to Trump dated Thursday and viewed by CNBC, groups representing major facets of the U.S. automotive industry — from franchised dealers and suppliers to domestic and foreign automakers — urged the president to "maintain policies that keep the door firmly shut to Chinese automakers seeking to sell, import or manufacture vehicles inside the U.S." "The automotive sector is foundational to our advanced manufacturing and defense base, with the capacity and workforce to respond during a national emergency. Once that base is hollowed out, it can't be rebuilt overnight," the letter reads. The letter comes ahead of Trump's expected visit next week with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington, as well as Trump last week saying he would permit Chinese automakers to move manufacturing to the U.S. "If China wanted to come in and open a plant to build their cars here, I'd be OK with it," Trump said Sept. 11 on Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle." The letter argues that allowing Chinese automakers to manufacture in the U.S. would "undermine fair competition and jeopardize the progress" the administration has made in preventing "Chinese dominance in key industries." Chinese automakers are heavily subsidized by their government and are rapidly expanding outside of China to other countries. The letter is the latest in a string of messages from the automotive industry to the Trump administration, but this time represented a more unified coalition. It was signed by leaders of six trade associations that represent every major automaker operating in the U.S., including Tesla and foreign automakers, as well as the nation's roughly 17,000 franchised dealers. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Auto industry urges Trump to bar Chinese automakers in U.S. ahead of Xi visit
Europe
The Guardian

CNN and MS Now journalists denied access to White House state dinner despite court ruling

Journalists for CNN and MS Now were denied access to the White House state dinner in honor of Xi Jinping, China’s president, on Thursday evening, hours after a federal judge ruled the Trump administration must allow them in after imposing a ban last week. “About an hour before Xi’s arrival was scheduled, the White House said CNN could cover the event, but only with a photojournalist and audio technician, notably excluding the network’s editorial team consisting of a reporter and producer,” CNN reported. MS Now, another outlet banned from the White House by Trump last week for what he calls overly negative coverage of his presidency, also said its White House reporter, Laura Barrón-López, was prevented from covering Xi’s arrival for the state dinner despite applying for credentials to cover the event. When Barrón-López asked a White House staffer why she was denied access, the staffer said she should “talk to Steven”, apparently meaning White House communications director Steven Cheung, MS Now reported. Xi’s arrival for the dinner, with his wife, Peng Liyuan, was streamed live on YouTube by the White House, but none of the major US networks provided live broadcast video of the event in solidarity with CNN, a member of the broadcast pool. Earlier on Thursday, journalists for CNN, MS Now and Politico, which was also part of the ban issued last week, were finally granted access to the White House after days of being barred from the building. Earlier attempts by the journalists to enter the building had been unsuccessful, and lawyers representing the three organizations had told a judge that the White House has already “repeatedly violated” his overnight order requiring the Trump administration to return the press badges of journalists from the three news organizations. Timothy Kelly, the US district judge who appeared skeptical of arguments from lawyers representing the White House during a hearing on Wednesday, issued an early morning order forcing the administration to return access for a 14-day period. But journalists from the three affected networks reported being barred from the building, with some having their badges taken for the first time. “This morning journalists from each of CNN, MS Now, and Politico attempted to enter the White House and were turned away, and Secret Service agents confiscated the hard pass of journalists whose hard passes had not previously been confiscated,” lawyers for the three news organizations wrote in a brief requesting a video or telephone conference “as soon as possible this morning”. In a legal filing on Thursday afternoon, Micah Stopperich, the White House director of press operations, said in a sworn statement that the operations team was notified at 7.10am to restore access, and that it began reinstating badges at 7.25am. She said that US Secret Service indicated that badges were re-activated as of 9.07am, and that confiscated badges were dropped off at the entry to the building just before 10am. “United States Secret Service has represented that press passes that were turned on were available for pick up at the press gate as soon as they were delivered,” she said. The badges were revoked on Saturday, after the president abruptly ordered the three outlets to be banned over “their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS”. The outlets swiftly sued over the move, which sparked widespread criticism from other news organizations and press freedom advocates.

CNN and MS Now journalists denied access to White House state dinner despite court ruling
Europe
BBC Business

Special agents' blood and urine test results stolen in FBI hack

Image source, Anadolu via Getty ImagesByJoe Tidy World Service Cyber Correspondent Published25 September 2026Cyber-criminals who hacked the FBI say they have extremely sensitive medical data for thousands of its special agents. BBC News has seen samples of the stolen "fitness-for-work" medical examinations, which contain information such as blood and urine test results, and doctors' notes mentioning conditions such as a "shellfish and banana allergy". The records include agents' full names and addresses, as well as references to medical concerns including 'blood in the urine' and 'high cholesterol'. Experts say the hack - which the FBI is investigating - could leave agents vulnerable to scams, blackmail and targeted attacks, as well as help criminals impersonate law enforcement officers. "The list maps thousands of agents against their medical and fitness records," said Etay Maor, vice-president of threat intelligence at Cato Networks. "Passwords can be reset if stolen, but medical records cannot, so once this data is out, it stays compromised for good. That permanence, applied across an entire workforce, is what makes this leak so serious." The FBI has not responded to requests for comment. However, on Wednesday it acknowledged the breach and said it was "aggressively investigating" how it happened. The cyber-criminal group ShinyHunters claims it breached FBI systems on Monday, and later posted details of the attack on its darknet site. The group also shared samples of the alleged stolen data with reporters, along with an extortion demand. Unusually, the hackers are not demanding money. Instead, they are seeking a retraction of an FBI advisory published in May, which they claim "offended" them. The samples shared with journalists appear genuine and include names, addresses, phone numbers, badge numbers, job titles and information about spouses. The records appear to relate to thousands of agents, including senior officials such as deputy directors.

Special agents' blood and urine test results stolen in FBI hack
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Center consistently working to ensure better incomes for all farmers: Nirmala Sitaraman

Union Finance Minsiter Nirmala Sitaraman, AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minsiter K Pavan Kalyan, Reliance Industries Exectuive Director Anant Ambani and AP Minister Nara Lokesh along with others at the foundation-stone laying cerremonay of Rayalaseema Horticulture Hub and Indian School of Agriculture in Mandanapalli in Andhra Pradesh on Friday. The Center is consistently working with the objective of ensuring better incomes for all farmers, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman said. Speaking after the launch of the horticulture hub and the foundation stone ceremony for the Indian School of Agriculture in Madanapalli in Andhra Pradesh on Friday, Sitharaman said the initiative was significant as it coincides with the birth anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi and former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. Their messages of Swadeshi-Swaraj and Jai Jawan-Jai Kisan placed farmers at the centre of the country’s development, she added. “Great leaders such as Gandhi and Shastri thought about the welfare of farmers, while leaders such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee laid the foundations for several initiatives,” she said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had continued this focus through schemes such as the PM-KISAN and measures to ensure adequate availability of fertilisers, the Union Minister said. Despite global conflicts and supply disruptions, efforts were being made to ensure that farmers do not face shortages, she added. While the international cost of a bag of urea was around ₹3,000, while farmers in India were getting it for about ₹300. “The Centre bears a subsidy of ₹2,700 on every bag,” she said. The Government has also introduced climate-resilient crop varieties and schemes such as GOBARdhan for biogas production and PM-KUSUM for providing solar-powered agricultural pumps, she said. Various schemes were being implemented based on the needs of farmers, including support for aquaculture and livestock farming through joint efforts of the Centre and the State Government. “The Prime Minister is constantly working with the objective of ensuring better incomes for all farmers engaged in cultivation,” she said. The Centre and Andhra Pradesh Government were working together to develop all 10 districts of the State as a global horticulture centre, the Union Minister said.

Center consistently working to ensure better incomes for all farmers: Nirmala Sitaraman
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Development works worth ₹52,000 cr in progress in Hyderabad: Deputy CM Bhatti

Infrastructure development works worth ₹52,000 crore are in progress in Hyderabad under the Congress-led State Government in Telangana, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said. Speaking at the launch of the TSRTC–Metro Rail Common Pass here on Friday, he said major works were being taken up in roads, flyovers, bridges, underpasses, drinking water and other sectors as the government was moving forward with a comprehensive plan to develop Hyderabad further, keeping future requirements in mind. The State capital was expanding rapidly and it was the responsibility of the Government to strengthen civic infrastructure and facilities well in advance to meet the needs of the growing population, he added. Referring to the role played by earlier Congress governments in Hyderabad’s development, Bhatti said that Krishna, Godavari and Manjeera waters were brought to the city to meet its drinking water requirements during Congress governments. The water from Gandipet was brought to Hyderabad during the Nizam’s rule and subsequent Congress governments made Krishna, Manjeera and Godavari waters available to meet the city’s drinking water needs, Bhatti added. The Metro Rail network in Hyderabad would be expanded by 122 kilometres to improve public transportation. The government proposed to take up Phase-II of the Metro project at an estimated cost of around ₹38,000 crore, providing connectivity to the Old City, airport, Patancheru and Hayathnagar areas. Electric buses were being introduced in Hyderabad in place of diesel RTC buses to reduce air pollution. In this direction, 550 electric buses were already introduced, while another 2,200 buses would be pressed into service soon, he said. About ₹200 crore had been sanctioned for retrofitting to enable auto-rickshaw drivers to convert their diesel autos into electric vehicles, he added. The launch of the TSRTC–Metro Common Pass was a welcome initiative aimed at reducing the difficulties faced by commuters in the city, the Deputy Chief Minister said. The facility allows commuters to use the same pass across both transport systems, ranging from a One-Day Pass to a One-Month Pass. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Development works worth ₹52,000 cr in progress in Hyderabad: Deputy CM Bhatti