Massive midterm spending by Silicon Valley reflects a new activism by tech investors and companies who recognize policy will shape their futures:

Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, co-founders of the iconic venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, top a list of the biggest midterm donors so far, the N.Y. Times' Teddy Schleifer and Matt Zdun report from FEC filings.

• George and Alex Soros, father and son, are "the only longtime Democratic megadonors" and "still the biggest fish in the Democratic money world, using their super PACs to back left-leaning groups."

Jeff Yass, co-founder of trading and investment giant Susquehanna International Group, and Elon Musk are Nos. 3 and 4 on the list, followed by One Nation, the nonprofit arm of Republicans' Senate Leadership Fund.

• See the top 20 (NYT gift link).

President Trump's MAGA Inc. super PAC began its long-awaited midterm spending yesterday with a $10 million TV and digital ad campaign for Texas Senate hopeful Ken Paxton.

• Why it matters: Starting in Texas underscores Republicans' urgency to shore up Paxton, 63, who's in an unexpectedly tight race with 37-year-old Democrat James Talarico, Axios' Alex Isenstadt writes.

👀 Republicans haven't lost statewide in Texas in more than three decades. But Talarico has vastly outraised Paxton, whom some Republicans have criticized for running a lackadaisical campaign.

• Talarico raised $68 million through June, compared with $9 million for Paxton. Talarico dominated the airwaves for much of the summer.

The Elon Musk-funded America PAC has reported spending $2.4 million to bolster Paxton.

• Share this story.

President Trump and his top allies will share the stage with Republican candidates in some of the nation's most competitive races at this week's GOP midterm convention in Dallas, Axios' Alex Isenstadt reports from a preliminary speakers list.

• The lineup underscores the convention's central purpose: Fire up Trump voters for November's midterms, even though the president isn't on the ballot.

🎤 Trump will speak both nights, this Wednesday and Thursday at American Airlines Center. He'll deliver the keynote on Night 1 and closing remarks on Night 2, when Vice President Vance will keynote.

• Also appearing: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and Donald Trump Jr.
• House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Tim Scott are among the congressional leaders who will appear.
• Senate Majority Leader John Thune is notably absent from the list. He is scheduled to be in Dallas this week for fundraising, and organizers say they are still adding names to the list.

🏛️ Zoom in: The convention will spotlight Republicans in races that will determine control of Congress.

• Senate candidates include Ohio Sen. Jon Husted, Texas Republican Ken Paxton, Michigan Republican Mike Rogers, North Carolina Republican Michael Whatley and Georgia Rep. Mike Collins. Trump won all five states in 2024, and all are now competitive.
• Republicans in some of the toughest races aren't attending, including Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and former Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire.

On the House side, vulnerable incumbents slated to speak include New York Rep. Mike Lawler and Pennsylvania Reps. Rob Bresnahan and Ryan Mackenzie.

• See the lineup.

Ahead of Friday's 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a test of the traditional Tribute in Light shone over the World Trade Center footprint in Lower Manhattan this weekend, seen from Jersey City, N.J.

• Anniversary plans.

New this morning: More people are using AI, and more often. But they still don't trust it. Here are top findings from an NBC News Decision Desk online poll of 7,105 adults, powered by SurveyMonkey (margin of error: ±3.3 points):

• 52% of American adults say they use AI tools very often or sometimes, up 6 points from a June 2025 poll.
• The share that uses AI very often, 23%, increased from 14% last year.
• But just 18% say they can trust AI-generated information most or almost all of the time.
• And an overwhelming 70% of adults are more worried than excited about AI.

"Worries about AI transcend age, race, education, partisanship and other typical dividing lines," NBC concludes.

• More results.

The Dutch central bank said this week it moved billions of dollars in gold (95 tons) out of New York and Canada to vaults across the Atlantic, Axios' Emily Peck reports.

• The bank called the move "crisis preparedness" amid global unrest.

🧮 By the numbers: Most of the gold bars didn't physically move across the ocean. The central bank sold 65 tons in New York and repurchased them in London.

• 30 tons were physically moved to the Dutch vault in Zeist, Netherlands.
• Before the transfer, 30% of Dutch gold reserves were in New York and 20% in Ottawa. Afterward, the two cities held a combined 19%.

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A section of ceiling in the Kennedy Center's Grand Foyer collapsed around 5 p.m. Friday following stormy weather, an official tells me.

• Context: The Kennedy Center's Trump-aligned board is fighting in court to add Trump's name to the façade and close the center for two years as it undergoes $250 million in renovations. (AP)

Roma Daravi, vice president of P.R., told me: "Another example of the urgent need to close for renovation and revitalization, as our Chairman President Trump has championed. Fortunately, no one was injured when the main hall's ceiling collapsed."

• "This structural failure stems from decades of neglect and deferred maintenance by the previous leadership, and there's no justification for further delays in restoring America's cultural center."

Get the latest.

A week from tonight, "60 Minutes" will debut its 59th season with "an inside look at the Los Angeles Rams, hailed as a superteam and an early favorite to win the Super Bowl," CBS News announced.

• Why it matters: It's the show's first episode under executive producer Nick Bilton as part of CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss' overhaul that included firing three correspondents.

🏈 Jon Wertheim, the show's sports correspondent, interviewed Rams general manager Les Snead, head coach Sean McVay and veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford, the L.A. Times' Steve Battaglio reports:

• "The segment will also explore team owner Stan Kroenke's investment in technology, including artificial intelligence, to help the team gain an edge on the field."
• I'm told the other two segments, to be announced this week, will be hard news stories, possibly including a major newsmaker interview.

The "60" season opener follows a Week 1 NFL game. The show "has often turned to sports-related segments when a season premiere follows a late afternoon NFL game," Battaglio points out:

• "This year's premiere should get a strong boost, as most of the country will get CBS coverage of a late afternoon matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings, two contenders in the highly competitive NFC North."

Watch a 15-second teaser.