Jan 9, 2017

Alibaba's founder makes near-Trumpian promise

Jack Ma, the billionaire founder of China's biggest online shopping site, Alibaba, was practically Trumpian in promising that his company can help support 1 million American jobs by helping U.S. companies sell to Chinese consumers.

Our take: Jack Ma might have the best of intentions, but the biggest hurdle for small businesses selling in China is the Chinese government, not the lack of a website. Everything from registering a Chinese subsidiary to gaining product approval can be prohibitively burdensome for small U.S. businesses.

By the way: Trump likely didn't help his cause in greasing the wheels to China for U.S. businesses by courting the Taiwanese.

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Bryan Walsh

14 mins ago - World

How new tech raises the risk of nuclear war

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

75 years after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, some experts believe the risk of the use of a nuclear weapon is as high now as it has been since the Cuban missile crisis.

The big picture: Nuclear war remains the single greatest present threat to humanity — and one that is poised to grow as emerging technologies, like much faster missiles, cyber warfare and artificial intelligence, upset an already precarious nuclear balance.

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Zachary Basu

16 mins ago - Politics & Policy

White House, Democrats remain "trillions of dollars apart" on stimulus talks

Meadows and Mnuchin. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

The Trump administration and Democrats have not agreed to any "top-line numbers" and remain "trillions of dollars apart" on coronavirus stimulus negotiations, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said Wednesday.

The state of play: Meadows told reporters, "At this point we’re either going to get serious about negotiating and get an agreement in principle or — I’ve become extremely doubtful that we’ll be able to make a deal if it goes well beyond Friday.”

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Axios

1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

23 million Americans face eviction

Natasha Blunt of New Orleans, who is at risk of eviction. Photo: Dorthy Ray/AP

The coronavirus pandemic threatens America with a new wave of homelessness due to a cratering economy, expiring unemployment stimulus payments and vanishing renter protections.

What they're saying: "I've never seen this many people poised to lose their housing in such a short period of time," said Bill Faith of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio to AP.