Police departments are using AI to sift massive evidence troves, and it's jump-starting cold cases, missing-person investigations and trial prep, Axios' Russell Contreras reports.

• Why it matters: The biggest constraint in modern policing isn't a lack of evidence, but too much of it. AI promises to break that logjam, allowing stretched-thin departments to find critical leads buried in years of data.

🕵️‍♂️ AI's first wave in policing focused on the streets: drones, license plate readers, gunshot detection and tools that promise faster response and more "eyes" on cities.

• Now comes the second wave: AI for detective work — combing through jail calls, interviews, social media, photos and old case files to surface relevant moments faster.

🗂️ How it works: Investigators upload or pull in large datasets into a single workspace so they can be searched as one corpus.

• The systems transcribe audio, label images and highlight crucial text messages.
• The software can analyze evidence across many foreign and Indigenous languages, so monolingual investigators can search for clues and confessions.

Case in point: The Anchorage Police Department adopted the Closure tool after a test period, with the Anchorage Assembly approving a five-year, $375,000 contract.

• Anchorage Police Chief Sean Case tells Axios that AI is helping restart cold-case and missing-person investigations of Alaska Natives by allowing detectives to ingest decades-old documents and scanned records.

The other side: The American Civil Liberties Union warns that using AI in core criminal justice documents and processes raises "significant civil liberties and civil rights concerns."

• Closure CEO Aaron Zelinger tells Axios that AI users must return to original evidence: "We do not want AI automating law enforcement decisions."

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9,300+ flights across the U.S. have been canceled today and tomorrow, with 140 million people (40% of the country) under a winter storm warning from New Mexico to New England.

• Misery, border to border. But some online gamblers will make a few extra bucks, Axios' Nathan Bomey writes:

❄️ Everyday Americans are increasingly studying weather models, then betting through prediction markets:

• On Kalshi, more than $170,000 had been wagered on how many inches of snow New York will get this weekend. 27% of traders were betting on 15+ inches.
• A similar market on Polymarket had nearly $80,000 in contracts, with 31% predicting 14+ inches.

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The 12 cities likely to be hit hardest, with an impact according to a very interesting WashPost analysis (gift link), with a severity assessment:

• Tupelo, Miss. (10 out of 10) ... Boston (9 out of 10) ... Charlotte (9 out of 10) ... Cincinnati (9 out of 10) ... Dallas/Fort Worth (9 out of 10) ... D.C. (9 out of 10) ... Nashville (9 out of 10) ... Oklahoma City (9 out of 10) ... Pittsburgh (9 out of 10) ... Richmond (9 out of 10) ... Little Rock (8 out of 10) ... NYC (8 out of 10).

Stranded? Airline passenger rights.

AI didn't just increase its footprint in Washington in 2025. It swallowed tech lobbying whole, Axios' Ashley Gold reports in Axios AI+.

• Why it matters: AI's ubiquity, quick growth and role in U.S. global competitiveness have shifted how the biggest tech companies seek influence in D.C.

🥊 Long-running fights over social media content and privacy have been eclipsed by national security and infrastructure debates around AI.

• In Washington, debates over how the most advanced frontier model companies, like OpenAI and Anthropic, should be regulated have been largely drowned out by the White House's desire to see them succeed.
• States, meanwhile, have taken the lead on AI safety policy.

🔄 The intrigue: Industries that traditionally lobbied D.C. on other issues have pivoted to adapt to the age of AI.

• "Finance, health care, transportation, defense, education ... everyone suddenly has to take a position on AI, even if they never had a D.C. tech footprint," said Joseph Hoefer, principal and chief AI officer at public affairs firm Monument Advocacy.

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The number of living Holocaust survivors has dropped below 200,000 for the first time — down 11% from 220,000 a year ago, Axios' Russell Contreras writes from a new demographic study.

• The stark milestone comes as antisemitism rises globally and Holocaust denial spreads online.

🇮🇱 Nearly half of all survivors live in Israel. About one in six live in the United States, highlighting where survivor care, education and remembrance efforts are most urgently concentrated.

• The median age of survivors is now 87, with many now in their 90s and older.

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President Trump will join Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and philanthropist Michael Dell at a day-long summit in Washington on Wednesday to encourage parents to sign up for Trump Accounts, the new investment vehicle for kids.

• Why it matters: Trump is highlighting the accounts as part of his push on affordability, with polls showing Americans are critical of his priorities. Trump also plans to tackle affordability during remarks Tuesday in Iowa.

The Trump Accounts summit will have a Main Street focus, including families who'll participate in panel discussions — "not just CEOs and celebs," an administration official tells me.

• Trump will deliver the keynote in the ornate Mellon Auditorium, dedicated by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1935.

🔭 Zoom out: Michael Dell of Dell Technologies and his wife, Susan, ignited excitement about the accounts among philanthropists in December when they announced a $6.25 billion commitment that the N.Y. Times called "one of the largest philanthropic gifts ever to go directly to Americans."

• Two weeks later, Bessent unveiled a "50-State Challenge" to encourage investment in Trump Accounts. Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio committed $75 million for Connecticut children.

Expected participants on Wednesday include rapper Nicki Minaj, Kevin O'Leary of "Shark Tank" (and "Marty Supreme"), actress Cheryl Hines (who is married to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.), multiple GOP members of Congress and several Fortune 500 CEOs.

• Go deeper: What to know about Trump Accounts.

Once the dealmaking dust settles, the father and son duo of Larry and David Ellison will face an even bigger obstacle: proving they can run a sprawling media empire, Axios' Christine Wang writes.

• The Ellisons' portfolio spans CBS News, Paramount Pictures, and a piece of TikTok U.S. — and if they ultimately win the battle for Warner Bros. Discovery, could add CNN and HBO.
• Paramount has already cut splashy deals, including UFC rights, after closing its merger with Skydance.

🖼️ The big picture: There are plenty of difficult macro trends to navigate, including falling linear TV ad revenue, heavy spending on streaming, fierce competition for costly live sports rights, and a domestic box office that hasn't returned to pre-pandemic highs.

• Keep reading.

New York drivers wasted away a staggering 125 hours on average stuck in rush-hour traffic last year, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick writes from the TomTom Traffic Index.

• That's more than five whole days staring at somebody else's license plate, taillights and — if you're lucky — quippy bumper stickers.

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Beer lovers celebrate IPA Day in August. Stout month is February. Now, Athletic Brewing owns January, Axios Denver's John Frank writes.

• San Diego's Athletic Brewing is America's No. 1 nonalcoholic brewer — and the eighth largest among the nation's Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies.

🧮 NA beer remains about 2% of the overall beer market. But Athletic CEO Bill Shufelt says that sales in recent weeks are among the biggest in the company's history, defying the broader slump in craft beer.

• Athletic is also on 20% of Michelin-star restaurant menus.

🍹 The company recently debuted NA cocktail-inspired brews to appeal to new customers in flavors including Paloma, Moscow Mule and Kir Royale.

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