Axios

A new documentary narrated and executive-produced by Lily Gladstone, Oscar-nominated star of "Killers of the Flower Moon," tackles the Blackfeet Nation's fight to restore buffalo to their land.

The big picture: "Bring Them Home/Aiskótáhkapiyaaya," set to air on most PBS stations on Monday, comes amid similar battles between ranchers, conservationists and tribal elders over land use on Indigenous reservations.

UN climate talks in Brazil are wrapping up Saturday with a push to help move nations away from fossil fuels, but the deal lacks explicit mention of the CO2-spewing energy sources.

Why it matters: The compromise underscores the Paris Agreement's limited ability to move from aspiration to stronger real-world action.

The U.S., Ukraine, Germany, France and the UK are expected to hold negotiations on Sunday in Geneva over the new U.S. peace plan, according to two U.S. officials and three European sources with knowledge.

Why it matters: Diplomacy over the plan has been unfolding at a fast pace since Axios revealed it on Tuesday. President Trump has set a Thanksgiving deadline for reaching an understanding with Ukraine on the plan.

Artificial intelligence is struggling to understand accented English and non-standard dialects, creating problems that can cascade into biased hiring, grading or clinical records.

Why it matters: AI is deciding who gets a job interview, how students are graded, and what doctors record in a patient's chart. But major speech-to-text systems make far more errors for Black speakers than for white speakers.

Israel Ambassador Mike Huckabee's meeting with an American convicted of spying for Israel is adding to MAGA's festering divide over the United States' ties to Jerusalem.

Why it matters: The right's outrage over Huckabee's visit with Jonathan Pollard — and the White House's defense of it – showed that the movement's fissure over how closely to align with Israel isn't closing anytime soon.

Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Va.) urged President Trump to release the "shocking" transcript of a 2019 phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) following the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The big picture: Vindman's request comes just days after Trump hosted MBS in the Oval Office and said "a lot of people didn't like" Kashoggi, when asked about the murder. U.S. intelligence previously concluded that MBS ordered Khashoggi's killing.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that he believes President Trump's 28-point peace plan could serve as the basis for a peace deal, while stressing that in-depth negotiations are still needed.

Split screen: Shortly before Putin's remarks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an address to the Ukrainian people that he was under immense pressure to sign a deal within days that he fears would sacrifice Ukraine's "dignity." Putin doesn't appear to face a similar time crunch, or the same degree of pressure.

President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Ukrainian people on Friday and said President Trump's 28-point peace plan will force Ukraine to choose between "losing our dignity" or risking the loss of U.S. support.

Why it matters: The plan would force Ukraine to accept harsh concessions, including the loss of even more territory than Russia currently controls. Zelensky has told the Trump administration he's prepared to negotiate, but the White House is pushing him to sign within one week.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with Vice President Vance on Friday about the U.S. proposed peace plan for Ukraine, according to two sources with knowledge.

Why it matters: The call was the highest-level engagement between the U.S. and Ukraine about the new plan. Zelensky told the Trump administration he's ready to negotiate, but President Trump wants a signature by Thanksgiving.

European defense could be an alternative tech play as AI stocks in the U.S. come under pressure, J.P. Morgan Private Bank says in its 2026 outlook.

Why it matters: Defense budgets are technology budgets now, particularly in Europe as nations there work to shore up their militaries and infrastructure in the face of the Russian threat.

What they're saying: The market isn't pricing European defense "as a secular story like it is AI, and we think it's on the same level," Jacob Manoukian, U.S. head of investment strategy at J.P. Morgan Private Bank, tells Axios.

• Defense spending in Europe could double from current levels, he says. European countries are shoring up power supplies amid the AI boom.
• That could fuel investments across electrification and industrial firms, as well as across the traditional defense sector, according to the outlook.
• The European defense sector has rallied over 20% this year as the "sell America trade" ballooned, but is in "year three" of a "decade trend."

Zoom in: Higher wholesale prices and reliance on energy imports make electricity prices higher in Europe compared with the U.S.

• That problem could be exacerbated by AI, which requires lots of energy.
• Europe also lost 30% to 40% of its electricity input from Russian pipeline gas following the invasion of Ukraine, according to Manoukian.
• Europe, he says, will have to spend more to build LNG import terminals to ensure lower energy costs in a fragmented world centered on AI.

Between the lines: The bet on Europe is also about diversification.

• "The investment opportunity in European names is differentiated relative to the story in the U.S.," says Stephen Parker, co-head of global investment strategy at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

Zoom out: Investing internationally becomes "that much more important" as the world's superpowers step back from globalization, Manoukian says.

The mayors of Phoenix and Melbourne, Australia, are leading a global commitment with eight other mayors to ensure that companies build AI systems more sustainably.

Why it matters: Mayors are on the front lines of the global data center boom. They respond to residents' concerns, rising energy prices, water management issues and other infrastructure demands.

Saudi Arabia's leader on Tuesday downplayed the kingdom's role in the 9/11 attacks. But an ongoing federal court case is revealing new details about Saudi officials' alleged ties to the terror plot — and the potential liability that government faces.

• The lawsuit unearthed evidence showing one Saudi official — who acknowledges aiding two men who became hijackers — made a drawing of a plane and a mathematical formula that allegedly could have been used to fly into the World Trade Center.

Why it matters: A crucial U.S. ally, Saudi Arabia's oil-rich kingdom was the first foreign sovereign to be sued in U.S. federal court under the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act of 2016 for the attacks that killed 2,977 people.

President Trump's peace plan for Ukraine includes a security guarantee modeled on NATO's Article 5, which would commit the U.S. and European allies to treat an attack on Ukraine as an attack on the entire "transatlantic community," according to a draft obtained by Axios.

Why it matters: Trump's plan demands painful concessions from Ukraine, but it also includes an unprecedented promise. President Volodymyr Zelensky's top objective in peace talks is to obtain a robust U.S. and European security guarantee, and this is the first time Trump has been willing to put one on the table.