Axios

President Trump said late Friday the U.S. has struck a deal with Denmark that will give America "permanent control over security" in Greenland.

Why it matters: Control over Greenland has been a fixation of Trump's for years and a wedge in U.S. relations with Europe.

Anthropic is now pacing to generate more than $100 billion in annual revenue, up 50% from just two months ago, the New York Times reported Friday.

Why it matters: The company's growth is accelerating at almost unfathomable rates as it heads for what could be the largest initial public offering in history.

WASHINGTON — Proposed changes to ease corporate reporting rules and the growing use of AI are fueling a broader debate over what safeguards are needed to maintain trust in the U.S. financial markets, financial reform and regulatory experts said at an Axios event.

Why it matters: Federal regulators, lawmakers and advocates are debating how much oversight is needed — and what form it should take — amid significant deregulation efforts.

Axios' Courtenay Brown spoke with Better Markets co-founder, president and CEO Dennis Kelleher and Public Company Accounting Oversight Board chair Jim Logothetis. The Sept. 16 event was sponsored by the Center for Audit Quality.

What they're saying: Kelleher raised concerns about a proposed Securities and Exchange Commission rule change, which would eliminate quarterly reporting requirements, potentially undermining public confidence in the financial system.

• "I think the implications for investors, markets and our capital system is actually pretty serious, and people should pay attention to it," Kelleher said.
• Logothetis said less-frequent reporting would not be "that big of a deal" for his organization, which oversees auditing of U.S. public companies.

AI's integration across industries, including auditing, still warrants human expertise to effectively use the technology, Logothetis said.

• "An audit is part science and part art," he said, but the art piece "involves professional skepticism, it involves judgment."
• Kelleher called for a "people-centered AI agenda" and warned against pursuing "a profit-maximization AI agenda," criticizing the Trump administration's hands-off approach to AI.

Zoom in: Debate over financial oversight also extends to crypto. The Clarity Act, a bill aimed at establishing a clearer regulatory structure for the sector, failed to advance in a procedural Senate vote this week.

• Kelleher, who has criticized the legislation backed by President Trump and the crypto industry, said the sector requires more robust guardrails, "not phony regulation, which is what the industry is proposing."

Content from the sponsor's segment:

During a View From the Top conversation, president and CEO of the American Institute of CPAs Mark Koziel said using AI in auditing requires another layer of human oversight to ensure accuracy and public trust.

• "We could trust AI to a degree, but that verification will always still need to take place," Koziel said.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee is taking full advantage of the Supreme Court's ruling striking down limits on coordinated party spending, pumping $46.5 million into eight states, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Republican committees, which entered the campaign's final stretch with a financial edge over their Democratic counterparts, have aggressively embraced the new rules allowing parties to coordinate unlimited spending with their candidates.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a presumptive presidential candidate, is getting louder on AI, releasing an executive order amid the Washington stalemate.

Why it matters: Democrats with national profiles this week are seizing on AI alarm, making their positions clear and Newsom – despite some deference shown to other 2028 contender Kamala Harris – wasn't going to sit this one out.

Auto companies and dealers are beseeching President Trump to banish Chinese vehicles from the American market.

Why it matters: President Trump has signaled an openness to allowing Chinese automakers to sell cars here if they're built here.

Infillion is acquiring location data company Foursquare, founder and executive chairman Rob Emrich tells Axios exclusively.

Why it matters: The deal puts the ad tech company in the data sales business and expands its bet on owning data that powers its platform.

The first half M&A boom is being followed by a third quarter bust, according to preliminary data from LSEG.

By the numbers: Q3 is shaping up to break a streak of six straight quarters with at least $1 trillion in global M&A activity.

A sports-betting ad featuring a semi-nude Sydney Sweeney triggered a backlash across women's sports, with female athletes flooding social media with a countermessage: This is what women in sports actually look like.

The big picture: Ads have long sexualized women, but the Novig ad's appeal to the male gaze hit differently at a moment when female athletes have cultural cachet and the platforms to push back.

Market watchers think the market should be able to continue to gain altitude despite a headwind from Federal Reserve interest rate hikes.

Why it matters: Rate-hiking cycles have sometimes undermined the market, leaving investors with ugly losses.

Warren Buffett will step down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, less than a year after handing over the CEO reins, the company said Friday.

The big picture: The "Oracle of Omaha" is 96, and his insurance-to-railroads conglomerate is moving onto a new generation, with his son Howard as chairman.

And the award for honesty in oil market analysis goes to ... J.P. Morgan!

• "For the first time since the start of the Iran conflict, we don't have a baseline view. We simply don't know how to model the endgame," bank researchers said in a note (emphasis added).

Why it matters: While the phrasing is unusually blunt, the sentiment is shared to varying degrees.

A host of industry players, policy wonks and businesses are grappling with the question of how to regulate AI in a trustworthy manner.

• Inside the White House, it's mostly business as usual.

Why it matters: The industry's mad dash is the product of an ad hoc regulatory apparatus and a general consensus that swift action from Washington is unlikely in the near term.