OpenAI is renewing its investment in the American Journalism Project by committing an additional $5 million in funding and $3 million in tech credits to the organization over the next two years, executives tell Axios.

Why it matters: OpenAI sees this partnership and its broader set of deals with local news companies as mission-driven endeavors, not commercial imperatives, per Tom Rubin, chief of intellectual property and content.

• "These partnerships are consistent with our mission and have demonstrated great success," he tells Axios. "We're committed to them because they demonstrate that the technology can benefit society."

⏮️ Catch up quick: The new investment builds on OpenAI's original 2023 deal with AJP, which included $5 million in funds and another $5 million in tech credits.

• That partnership helped launch AJP's Product & AI Studio, an initiative that enables nonprofit local news organizations to create AI-powered products and workflows.

Zoom in: In the initial deal between the two organizations, AJP delivered direct funding grants to 31 of its 50+ portfolio organizations across 38 states.

• Member newsrooms built products and tools to support development and editorial processes, such as fundraising and donor communications, data analysis, translation work, and civic information tools for readers.
• With the new, two-year deal, AJP plans to expand direct funding to more of its newsroom partners, while also broadening access to ChatGPT's enterprise products, per AJP CEO Sarabeth Berman.

🤝 The big picture: OpenAI has invested heavily in brokering licensing agreements with local news organizations while it simultaneously faces lawsuits over copyright infringement from newspapers such as the New York Times and eight newspapers owned by Alden Global Capital.

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Disclosure: Axios and OpenAI have a licensing and technology agreement that allows OpenAI to access part of Axios' story archives while helping fund the launch of Axios into several local cities and providing some AI tools. Axios has editorial independence.

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate whether plans by Truth Social's parent company to sell Wall Street firms real-time access to President Trump's posts could violate federal securities laws, according to a copy of the letter obtained by Axios.

Why it matters: The letter escalates scrutiny of Trump Media & Technology Group's plan to monetize faster access for institutional investors to President Trump's market-moving social posts.

Catch up quick: TMTG's new Truth API product, which is slated to debut Aug. 1, will provide real-time access to publicly available posts from the platform's top 10 trending accounts, Axios reported last week.

• TMTG executives reportedly pitched the service for a licensing fee of up to $100,000 per month, per Reuters.
• The API can be expanded to more accounts for customers willing to pay more, interim CEO Kevin McGurn tells Axios.

✉️ Zoom in: In the letter sent Monday to SEC chair Paul Atkins, Torres urged the agency to review Truth API before its planned launch and determine whether it raises securities law, market manipulation or investor protection concerns.

• Torres also suggested the SEC coordinate with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Office of Government Ethics and other appropriate federal entities to scrutinize any potential conflicts of interest.

The other side: A TMTG spokesperson tells Axios, "Truth API offers customers the fastest way to ingest publicly available Truth Social data."

Zoom out: Torres' letter contains the latest in a string of concerns raised on both sides of the aisle about the product.

• Last week, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said, "Truth API is the definition of insider trading."
• On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told reporters on Capitol Hill, "My assumption is that'll have some regulatory look — legal look. My assumption is that'll get tested somewhere. I don't know the answer to that. It's kind of plowing new ground, new territory in these predictive markets."

🔍 The big picture: The SEC has previously probed TMTG's accounting firm and the SPAC company that merged with TMTG.

• The agency settled with the SPAC, Digital World Acquisition Corporation, in 2023.

Disclosure: In 2023, TMTG sued 20 media organizations, including Axios, for defamation. Litigation is ongoing.

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Fox News Channel's weekday roundtable program "The Five" has continued to grow in an era where cable audiences are shrinking, thanks to a format that emphasizes chemistry between the hosts as a gateway to tough news discussions.

Why it matters: When "The Five" launched in 2011, the roundtable format was relatively unique in cable news. Today, personality-driven panel discussions are the norm.

📈 By the numbers: Since 2011, the 5pm ET program has increased its audience by 148% to more than 3.6 million viewers on average so far this year, per Nielsen data, making it the top program in cable news and the top non-sports show on cable.

Zoom out: While Fox News doesn't pretend to be neutral, hosts of "The Five" strongly credit the show's format and the hosts' chemistry for making debates inviting for its rotating cast of Democratic co-hosts and viewers across the ideological spectrum.

• "We all like each other," says former Democratic Rep. Harold Ford Jr., a regular co-host.
• "I have the coolest job for a liberal in media today," says Jessica Tarlov, another Democratic co-host, arguing the show models "the kind of conversations ... Americans were hungry" to see across party lines.
• "The secret sauce is teasing," original co-host Greg Gutfeld tells Axios. "You only tease the people you love. If you can't tease someone, the chemistry freezes up."

Between the lines: Over the past 15 years, co-hosts have engaged in heated debates on everything from guns to marijuana, immigration and abortion. Those debates have influenced the hosts' positions, they said.

The big picture: "The Five" epitomizes one of Fox News' biggest competitive advantages, which is that viewers tune in for the entertaining personalities as much as the politics.

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A federal judge on Monday paused Paramount Skydance's takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery in response to a lawsuit last week from a dozen state attorneys general looking to block the deal on antitrust grounds.

Why it matters: The delay represents the most significant legal challenge related to the merger globally to date.

• Although some foreign regulators, including the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority, are still reviewing the deal, none have issued an order that independently bars Paramount and WBD from closing.

⏳ The big picture: The pause creates uncertainty for Paramount shareholders as they look to get the deal over the finish line before it starts to cost them.

• Paramount promised WBD shareholders a ticking fee of 25 cents a share for every quarter the deal doesn't close by Sept. 30, totaling around $650 million per quarter.

Zoom in: U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a 14-day restraining order that prevents Paramount and WBD from closing their deal.

• The judge argued it was in the public's best interest to issue the pause because the states raised antitrust questions in their lawsuit that warrant further review.

🤚 Between the lines: The states have also requested a preliminary injunction to block the deal until the judge rules on the merits of their case.

• In her order, Martínez-Olguín set a preliminary injunction hearing for Aug. 3 to determine whether the temporary restraining order needs to be extended. That date could be delayed if the parties agree.
• The judge noted that the temporary restraining order can be extended for good cause. The order could be extended to as long as 28 days.

Catch up quick: The coalition of states that sued to block the merger last week asked a judge to prevent the companies from closing the deal until the case is resolved.

• The lawsuit, which was led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, argued the merger would reduce competition among movie studios and would have too much market power over cable channels.

The bottom line: "While the bar for a temporary restraining order (TRO) is lower than the bar for a preliminary injunction (PI), the wording of the judge's ruling cannot be viewed as a positive for Paramount," LightShed Partners' media analyst Rich Greenfield wrote Monday in response to the ruling.

A blockbuster opening for Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of "The Odyssey" proves directors can have just as much influence over audiences and studios as major franchises.

🌟 Why it matters: Nolan's brand power and commercial track record "is what ultimately got Universal Pictures to say yes to a roughly $250 million, R-rated adaptation of an ancient Greek poem shot across Europe with largely practical visual effects, including a 35-foot tall Trojan Horse," the Wall Street Journal's Ben Fritz writes.

Reality check: Nolan is also the reason most attendees cited for attending screenings of the film this past weekend, per Rentrak data from Universal Pictures.

🎟️ By the numbers: In total, "The Odyssey" brought in $264 million worldwide in its debut, with $123.5 million coming from North America, per Rentrak.

• The domestic debut marks the third highest-grossing opening weekend of 2026, behind Disney's "Toy Story 5" and Universal's "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie."
• It also represents the highest-grossing domestic opening weekend for a live-action film this year and the highest-grossing domestic opening weekend for an R-rated film this year.
• The film is Nolan's third highest grossing opening domestic weekend, behind only "The Dark Knight" and "The Dark Knight Rises."

🎞️ Zoom out: The film's major debut is made even more impressive by the fact that Nolan's preferred presentation format can only be seen in 25 U.S. theaters — all equipped with 70mm IMAX screens, Axios' Herb Scribner notes.

• Nolan previously showed some of his films in 70mm — like "Oppenheimer" — but "Odyssey" was the first narrative film to be shot entirely using IMAX cameras, according to IMAX.

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This article is part of our latest monthly deep dive on agentic commerce, provided exclusively to Axios Media Trends Executive members.

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Nearly half of the major commerce media networks launched since 2022 have come from companies outside traditional retail, such as payment processors and real estate firms, according to a new Axios analysis.

State of play: Retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Kroger used to have a competitive advantage over other industries looking to get into advertising because they owned so much first-party customer data.

• But over the past two years, non-retail companies like Expedia, PayPal, JPMorgan Chase and RE/MAX have all launched their own media networks using data mostly from loyalty programs. Even Topgolf announced one last week.

🤑 Follow the money: Commerce advertising is expected to reach $199.6 billion globally in 2026, making it one of the fastest-growing ad categories, according to WPP Media.

More from Media Trends Executive:

• AI breaks last-click attribution
• U.S. live shopping expected to triple as retailers compete with China
• AI upends affiliate commerce business for publishers
• Brands court creators to drive sales
• Retailers embrace AI as bots become buyers

Caper, a food and hospitality media startup, is launching a "Chef in Residence" program with acclaimed New York chef Ryan Bartlow of Ernesto's and Bartolo as its inaugural participant, CEO and co-founder Max Tcheyan tells Axios.

✍️ How it works: Bartlow will get paid to write a regular column during his three-month stint, in addition to contributing to Caper's newsletter.

• He will appear in social video content and participate in Caper events, including a party tied to the release of his upcoming book about Spanish cooking.
• The program will eventually expand to other hospitality leaders, per Tcheyan.
• "The Chef in Residence program is designed to give readers the inside story from the people shaping hospitality," Tcheyan says.

🤳 The big picture: Media companies are turning to creator-style talent partnerships to deepen audience engagement and strengthen their connections to the communities they cover.

• Wired launched a "Resilience Residency" program in 2021 to bring readers the perspective of non-journalists about the future.
• Substack launched a "Writer in Residence" program the same year to spotlight creators throughout their journey in building a Substack newsletter.