President Trump endorsed Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Republican U.S. Senate primary runoff yesterday, a day after the start of early voting in Texas.

Why it matters: Senate Republicans spent months pleading with Trump to endorse incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn over Paxton.

Catch up quick: The president faced significant pushback from MAGA allies at the idea of a Cornyn endorsement.

• Meanwhile, Cornyn's Senate Republican allies and their affiliated groups have spent tens of millions of dollars backing his candidacy.

The big picture: Whoever wins the May 26 runoff will face Democratic nominee James Talarico, a state legislator from Austin who has led both Cornyn and Paxton in recent polling and holds a wide fundraising advantage.

• The Texas Senate race is rated "likely Republican" by Cook Political Report.

What they're saying: "Ken is a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate," Trump wrote on Truth Social, calling him a "WINNER."

• "John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough," Trump added.

The other side: Cornyn wrote in a statement posted to X that he has worked closely with Trump.

• "It is now time for Texas Republican voters to decide if they want a strong nominee to help our GOP candidates down ballot and defeat Talarico in November, or a weak nominee who jeopardizes everything."

State of play: Talarico said in a statement yesterday that "it doesn't matter who wins this runoff."

A Dallas-based biosciences company says it has hatched live chicks from fully artificial eggs.

Driving the news: Colossal hopes the technology will help recreate the genome of the South Island giant moa, a flightless, wingless bird that roamed New Zealand until the 1400s.

The intrigue: Paige McNickle from Colossal's animal husbandry team was one of the first people to interact with the company's first chicks.

• "It's like feeling every human emotion simultaneously — you want to jump up and down and scream for joy, but you also want to protect [the chick] and bubble wrap it all at the same time," McNickle says in a video describing the birth.

How it works: Eggs of the largest species of Moa were roughly eight times the size of an emu egg, making it difficult for Colossal's researchers to find a suitable surrogate for their de-extinction project.

• They 3D printed an artificial egg to support avian embryo development without requiring supplemental oxygen, which can damage DNA.
• The artificial egg, developed after 14 iterations, has a bioengineered silicone-based membrane that matches the oxygen transfer capabilities of a natural eggshell. Researchers sprinkle in nutrients that the embryo needs to develop.
• The chicks hatch in batches before being transitioned to a farm.

What they're saying: Colossal's artificial egg reflects "deep collaboration across biology, engineering and software," Matt James, the company's chief animal officer, said in a statement.

• The eggs can be manufactured at scale and adapted to any size. Future uses may include rescuing compromised embryos through biobanked materials and helping conserve threatened bird species, Colossal says.

Jason Kidd is leaving the Dallas Mavericks after five seasons as head coach, the team announced yesterday.

• The team said it will start looking for a new head coach immediately.

The big picture: The Mavericks are in the middle of a management shakeup. They recently hired Masai Ujiri — who was with the Toronto Raptors when they won their first championship in 2019 — to be their president.

Flashback: Kidd was a key fixture on the Mavericks' championship team in 2011. As head coach, he led the team to the Western Conference Finals in 2022 and the NBA Finals in 2024.

• But the departure of Luka Dončić last year and Kyrie Irving's ACL injury eroded the team's chemistry. The Mavericks were 26-56 this season.

Follow the money: Kidd had four years and more than $40 million remaining in his contract, per ESPN.

Between the lines: The next head coach will have to rebuild the team and win back fans whose loyalty has faltered in recent years.

🛻 A Cybertruck driver was arrested after driving into Grapevine Lake and becoming stranded while trying to test the vehicle's Wade Mode feature, authorities said. (WFAA)

🦁 A wildlife sanctuary in Wylie is caring for two white lions who were rescued from a roadside zoo. (NBC5)

🪧 Current and former UT Dallas students allege in a new lawsuit that the university unfairly reprimanded them for protesting the war in Gaza and violated their First Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment rights. (KERA)

The demographic landscape of the U.S. is shifting dramatically as growth shifts from cities to exurban communities, per new U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

• The shift will affect congressional apportionment, federal funding formulas, school districts and political power for years to come.

Fun fact: Five North Texas exurbs are in the country's fast-growing cities with populations of 20,000 or more.

• Celina expanded 24.6% in a single year, the fastest growth among cities over 20,000 from July 2024 to July 2025.
• Since 2020, nearby Forney has led all cities over 20,000 in population growth, with a 78.9% jump.

The intrigue: Like many big cities, Dallas isn't growing as quickly as the North Texas suburbs are.

• But Fort Worth surpassed 1 million residents last year and is now the 10th most populous U.S. city.
• Fort Worth's 76177 ZIP code is the seventh fastest growing new neighborhood in the U.S., we reported last week.