Thousands of authors seek share of Anthropic copyright settlement; Reuters, April 17, 2026

 Blake Brittain , Reuters; Thousands of authors seek share of Anthropic copyright settlement

"Nearly 120,000 authors and other copyright holders are seeking a share of a $1.5 billion class-action settlement with Anthropic over the company's unauthorized use of their books in artificial-intelligence training, according to a ​filing in California federal court.

Claims have been filed for 91% of the more than 480,000 ‌works covered by the settlement, according to a court filing  in the case on Thursday.

A judge will consider whether to grant final approval to the settlement – the largest ever in a U.S. copyright case – at a hearing next month.

Anthropic was the first and ​remains the only major AI company to settle a U.S. class-action by copyright holders alleging AI ​platforms used their work without permission to train their systems."

Canadian astronaut’s bon mots help heal wounds from French language row; The Guardian, April 19, 2026

 Leyland Cecco , The Guardian; Canadian astronaut’s bon mots help heal wounds from French language row

"On day three of the mission, as the Integrity spacecraft hurtled towards the moon, Jeremy Hansen turned to a camera. “Bonjour tout le monde,” he said from nearly 125,000 miles away – a greeting with a literal translation that captured the immensity of the journey: hello all of the world.

“For the first time in history, our language, the French language, was expressed en route to the moon,” posted a Canadian parliamentarian. “Never had French been spoken from so far away.”

Hansen’s decision to speak French, during the mission and at a Nasa press conference on his return to the Earth, came shortly after a linguistic row – and public relations nightmare – for Canada’s flagship airline, that underscored how deeply the language is linked to the country’s politics and culture.

The Air Canada chief Michael Rousseau was forced to resign last month amid a storm of indignation after he spoke just two words of French in a video tribute to two pilots killed in a fatal collision. One of the pilots was a native French speaker, and Air Canada is based in Montreal, and Rousseau’s failure to speak the language – despite having a francophone mother and wife – has been seen as a snub to the 80% of Quebec’s population who do...

Upon return to Earth, the Artemis crew appeared moved by the deeply human experience of leaving the planet. Hansen later said it made him realize humans were “small and powerless – yet powerful together”.

Recent developments in artificial intelligence and wearable technology have led some to suggest that learning a second language is no longer important. But the Canadian astronaut’s decision to deliberately speak French, with the world watching reflected the deep cultural component embedded in learning and respecting another language.

“Of course, language is a tool of information, exchange and communication. But it’s so much more than that. Anyone who decides to learn to speak another language than their own, realizes the extent to which any language comes with a specific conception of the world and the universe around us,” said Chouinard. “It’s really a way to learn to see the world – our world – through a different lens.”"

Wife of LA Clippers owner and billionaire Steve Ballmer steps in to help save the future of NPR with $80M gift; Independent, April 19, 2026

 Graig Graziosi  , Independent; Wife of LA Clippers owner and billionaire Steve Ballmer steps in to help save the future of NPR with $80M gift

"NPR received its largest-ever donation from a living donor this week when billionaire philanthropist Connie Ballmer gave $80 million to the media organization.

Ballmer — a former member of the NPR Foundation's board — told the Wall Street Journal that she poured money into NPR because “we need fact-based journalism, and we need local journalism.”...

"I support NPR because an informed public is the bedrock of our society, and democracy requires strong, independent journalism," Ballmer said in a statement on Wednesday. "My hope is that this commitment provides the stability and the spark NPR needs to innovate boldly and strengthen its national network."...

Her donation comes at an important time for NPR. Last year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order ending federal funding for public TV and radio organizations."

Humans Who Used a Bear Suit to Defraud Car Insurers Are Sentenced to Jail; The New York Times. April 18, 2026

 Hannah Ziegler , The New York Times; Humans Who Used a Bear Suit to Defraud Car Insurers Are Sentenced to Jail

"Three Southern California residents were sentenced to jail after masterminding a scheme in which they staged fake bear attacks on their luxury cars, then collected more than $141,000 in insurance payouts, officials said on Thursday.

To carry out the attacks, the residents had a person in a bear suit climb into the cars and use claw-like kitchen utensils to leave scratch marks, the California Department of Insurance said.

The Los Angeles County residents then filed claims to defraud three different insurance companies, the department said.

Two of the defendants — Ruben Tamrazian, 26, and Vahe Muradkhanyan, 32, both of Glendale, Calif. — were sentenced to 180 days in jail, or about six months, and ordered to pay more than $50,000 each in restitution, the department said in a news release...

A biologist from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife also reviewed video footage of the bear’s activities and determined that the animal was “clearly a human in a bear suit,” the California Department of Insurance said."

The Tyranny of AI Everywhere; The Atlantic, April 16, 2026

 Alexandra Petri, The Atlantic ; The Tyranny of AI Everywhere

Sneakers? Why stop there?

"I had the strangest dream. I dreamed that my shoes—my comfortable, unfashionable wool shoes—were pivoting to AI. “But you’re a shoe company,” I said. “Just go out of business! Keep your dignity!”

My shoes thanked me politely for the great question and then tried to walk me off a bridge. That was how I knew that their pivot to AI was complete. From Allbirds to AIlbirds (see, that L is an I!). Maybe I’ve cracked, I said to myself. Maybe this is the piece of AI news that has finally broken my spirit for good...

I tried to sit down on a bench, but the bench company had pivoted to AI. I couldn’t sit down, but the bench did tell me that I was right about everything. My newspaper had become AI a while ago, so there was nothing to read—or, rather, there were things to read, but I could not tell whether any of them were true. I thought I would go to a museum to cheer myself up. The paintings there had pivoted to AI (pAIntings), and their subjects were all following me with their eyes, not just Mona Lisa

“There’s a place for AI,” I said. “But … not everywhere.”

“I’m sorry,” the painting said. “I didn’t want this either, but everyone is doing it!”...

“It’s fine,” my grandmother said. I was surprised to hear from her, because as far as I knew, she was dead. “I’m not dead,” she said. “I’m just pivoting to AI, like that shoe company. Nothing dies anymore. It just becomes AI.”"

What I Saw Inside the Kennedy Center; The Atlantic, April 16, 2026

 Josef Palermo, The Atlantic; What I Saw Inside the Kennedy Center

I spent 10 months working at the institution because I thought I could help protect it. What I observed there is far worse than the public knows.

"Trump had come in promising that “for the Kennedy Center, THE BEST IS YET TO COME!” On the inside, my colleagues and I instead saw cronyism, incompetence, and a series of bizarre moves that would lead to the Kennedy Center going dark...

When Grenell instructed me to “get rid of” the center’s permanent art collection because we needed new art to adorn the building’s walls after its renovation, I was taken aback by his cavalier attitude. If the donors of the works didn’t want to pay for their removal, he said, we could put them up for auction or give them away. My mind raced immediately to the eight-foot, 3,000-pound brass bust of President Kennedy standing in the Grand Foyer. Designed by the sculptor Robert Berks, it is surely the most significant item in the center’s collection. When I reported the order to another top leader, his eyes grew wide; he told me not to do anything, and said his office would handle it. I can only hope that the bust—and all the other works—will be safe when the center closes its doors.

In a final indignity, those of us who lost our jobs would be eligible for another month of severance benefits (including health-care coverage) only if we signed a separation agreement with confidentiality and nondisparagement provisions. I rejected this offer because I believe Americans deserve to know about the desecration of our nation’s cultural center. This is also why I have begun participating in the ongoing investigation led by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, and been in touch with Representative Joyce Beatty’s legal team to share information that may help her lawsuit. (She is suing the center in an attempt to stop its renaming.) There must be a firewall put in place by Congress to prevent this kind of hostile political takeover of the Kennedy Center from ever happening again. I hope that more of my former colleagues come forward too, even if anonymously."

AI Startups Have These Copyright Lawyers on Speed Dial; Bloomberg Law, April 16, 2026

 David Schultz , Bloomberg Law; AI Startups Have These Copyright Lawyers on Speed Dial

"Something similar connects many of the top attorneys representing the artificial intelligence industry in its most consequential battles: their resumes.

The common thread is Durie Tangri. More than 50 attorneys from the defunct Bay Area intellectual property firm are at the center of epic Silicon Valley copyright fights, just more than three years after Morrison Foerster acquired the practice...

“Tech copyright is a small world,” said Joseph Gratz, one of the alums at Morrison.

The Durie Tangri alums have benefited from the demand in tech copyright law, said Gratz, who has appeared in court defending OpenAI in almost two dozen federal lawsuits...

One of the marquee cases Durie Tangri took on was the decade-long copyright infringement suit over Google’s book digitization. Sonal Mehta, a Durie Tangri alum who is now at WilmerHale, said the boutique relished taking on matters that ventured into uncharted territory.

“We weren’t afraid to be operating in gray areas or to be looking at where the law hadn’t fully developed,” Mehta said. “We didn’t need to feel like every argument had to be something that was a cookie cutter argument that had already been made and won 20 times before.”"

AI Is Getting Smarter. Catching Its Mistakes Is Getting Harder.; The Wall Street Journal, April 14, 2026

  

Katherine Blunt , The Wall Street Journal ; AI Is Getting Smarter. Catching Its Mistakes Is Getting Harder.

As chatbots and agents grow more powerful and ubiquitous, recognizing the moments when they go rogue can be tricky

"Chad Olson was confused when his Gemini artificial-intelligence chatbot told him he had a family reunion planning session marked on his calendar."

Monkey selfie from 15 years ago accidentally sets precedent for AI copyright dispute; Yahoo News, April 17, 2026

 Daniel Gala , Yahoo News; Monkey selfie from 15 years ago accidentally sets precedent for AI copyright dispute

"What does a selfie taken by a monkey in 2011 have to do with the videos, photos, and music created using today's artificial intelligence tools?

The answer — that the works in question were not created by humans — could have enormous ramifications for the future of intellectual property rights."

That Meeting You Hate May Keep A.I. From Stealing Your Job; The New York Times, April 15, 2026

 Noam Scheiber, The New York Times ; That Meeting You Hate May Keep A.I. From Stealing Your Job

"Mr. Sirk’s experience, while perhaps extreme, reflects the broader impact of A.I. in the workplace: It is vastly accelerating many of the tasks conducted by white-collar workers, and even replacing some of these tasks altogether. What it can’t automate — at least not yet — are the hard-coded requirements of bureaucracy.

With the help of A.I., white-collar workers can generate far more memos or strategy options than in the past and churn out more product prototypes or software features. But some executive still has to decide which option to greenlight. Workers can gin up many more sales pitches, but they still have to persuade clients to sign on the dotted line.

As A.I. makes the production of knowledge work more and more efficient, the job of presenting, debating, lobbying, arm-twisting, reassuring or just plain selling the work appears to be rising in importance. And the need for those sometimes messy human tasks may limit the number of people A.I. displaces.

“These were always important skills,” said David Deming, an economist who is the dean of Harvard College. “But as the information landscape becomes more saturated, the ability to tell a story out of it — to take a ton of text and turn it into something people want — is more valuable.”"

AI Makes Securing Copyright Protection for Software Code Tricky; Bloomberg Law, April 15, 2026

 Michael Justus, Carlton Fields, Bloomberg Law; AI Makes Securing Copyright Protection for Software Code Tricky

[Kip Currier: I recommend this brief articleLinks to an external site. in Bloomberg Law; the authors do a great job identifying AI, IP, and human and AI-related coding issues right now, such as "vibe coding". They also provide practical strategies for endeavoring to secure copyright protections for code.]

"Copyright protection for software code is being sacrificed, knowingly or not, for the speed and efficiency of AI coding.

This rapid shift in the role of humans from writing code to managing artificial intelligence tools upends traditional copyright protection strategies. Original human-written code is generally copyrightable. But AI-generated code that lacks human authorship is ineligible for copyright protection under US law.

“Vibe coding”—where humans describe a desired software program in natural language and GenAI tools write the code—is pervasive. This isn’t limited to the tech industry. Employees across industries are vibe coding software solutions, which can be valuable to employers.

Developers estimate 42% of code is AI-generated or assisted and the number was expected to increase significantly, according to an October 2025 survey.

The lack of copyright protections is a big deal...

The key is bespoke curation into a creative whole from many options."

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Saved From Closure by Nonprofit; The New York Times, April 14, 2026

 Katie Robertson, The New York Times; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Saved From Closure by Nonprofit

[Kip Currier: What great news to learn that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will not be closing on May 3, 2026! Instead, one of America's oldest newspapers will continue through the non-profit Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism. 

Newspapers are still essential sources for access to information. They also promote literacy, free expression, and informed citizenries -- crucial elements of functioning democracies.

Sadly, three print newspapers serving Northwestern Pennsylvania have ceased publication in the past two months -- Clarion News (1840), (Franklin's) The News-Herald (1886), and (Oil City's) The Derrick (1871); The Derrick is continuing as an online only publication.]

"The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which had been set to shut down in May, will keep publishing after all. A nonprofit journalism organization has stepped up to acquire the newspaper, which has survived for more than two centuries.

The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, which runs The Baltimore Banner and is financed by the hotel magnate Stewart W. Bainum Jr., said on Tuesday that it had reached an agreement with the newspaper’s current owner, Block Communications, to buy the assets of The Post-Gazette and run it as a nonprofit. The transaction is expected to take effect on May 4, ensuring there is no gap in publishing.

The deal is a rare spot of good news for the media industry, which has endured waves of metropolitan and local newspaper closures and widening local news deserts around the country for the past two decades. A 2025 report by Northwestern University found that more than 130 papers had shut in the preceding year alone.

The Post-Gazette is one of the oldest newspapers in the United States, tracing its history back to The Pittsburgh Gazette, which was founded in 1786. It has been owned by Block Communications since 1927, and has won multiple Pulitzer Prizes. Its closure would have made Pittsburgh one of the largest metropolitan areas without a major newspaper."

Sam Altman home attacks spark concern over AI-motivated violence; Axios, April 14, 2026

Nadia Lopez, Axios; Sam Altman home attacks spark concern over AI-motivated violence

"The big picture: These incidents come amid heightened tension around AI's rapid development, with public anxiety over its political and economic implications rising even as companies continue to push the technology forward.

Threat level: AI is being cast in increasingly existential terms, including by its own creators. Warnings over the chaos the technology could unleash have become part of mainstream discourse, alongside promises of sweeping economic transformation.

This dual promise of disruption and progress has helped elevate AI into one of the most consequential policy debates in the world, but also one of the most emotionally charged."

< You might be suffering from AI brain fry; NPR, April 13, 2026

 NPR; < You might be suffering from AI brain fry

"HERMAN: Yeah. I mean, the researchers, they describe this as basically hopping around between different tools and feeling overwhelmed. Not by just having to multi-task - which is already a problem in a lot of jobs - but by dealing with a whole bunch of output. So if you have a programming tool that can kind of run in the background and starts adding features to software really quickly, you have another tool that's constructing a report from you, it's searching the web and pulling together, you know, a market research document. You have another tool in the background that you're in a, like, constant chat with trying to refine some idea for a talk you have to give - you're just kind of getting first pulled in all these different directions, and then you're kind of spamming yourself. Like, you're just producing...

(LAUGHTER)

HERMAN: ...All of this product. And it's harder, you know, as you use more and more tools to keep track of, like, whether this output is actually relevant to your job, whether you're doing anything that you need to be doing or whether you're kind of creating new work for yourself. And so the researchers described in this survey of nearly 1,500 different people in different professions, this sensation of feeling kind of like, as they say it, fried or having, like, a brain fog, feeling kind of like mentally paralyzed by the amount of stuff that you have to keep track of and kind of check and monitor."

When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”; Harvard Business Review, March 5, 2026

 Julie Bedard, Matthew Kropp, Megan Hsu, Olivia T. Karaman, Jason Hawes andGabriella Rosen Kellerman, Harvard Business Review ; When Using AI Leads to “Brain Fry”

"AI promises to act as an amplifier that will drive efficiency and make work easier, but workers that are using these AI tools report that they are intensifying rather than simplifying work.

This problem is becoming more common."

Agency in the Age of AI; Time, April 14, 2026

 John Palfrey , Time; Agency in the Age of AI

"OpenAI’s recent acquisition of OpenClaw, an open-source, autonomous AI agent designed to run locally on a user’s computer, is a sign that AI agents are quickly being given more responsibilities and more access—from emails to bank accounts, a decision with unintended consequences, including deleted inboxes and Amazon Web Services outages. Peter Steinberger, the founder of OpenClaw, said he wants to “build an agent that even my mum can use.” But there is a difference between using technology to improve efficiency and giving technology agency that humans should hold. 

These developments prompt hard questions, particularly for young people who are seeking agency in their personal and professional lives. Does it make sense to train to be an actuary if AI is supposed to be good at predicting unknown outcomes based on data? Is it worth the cost today to train to be a lawyer or an accountant or pursue higher education at all when all the answers are supposedly at our fingertips? Put another way, what does agency look like in an era dominated by the spread of AI?"

Reps. Swalwell, Gonzales say they’ll leave Congress ahead of possible expulsion votes; The Washington Post, April 13, 2026

 

Mariana Alfaro

 and 

Amy B Wang

, The Washington Post; Reps. Swalwell, Gonzales say they’ll leave Congress ahead of possible expulsion votes

The departures of a Democrat and Republican would not immediately alter the balance of power in the House, where the GOP holds a razor-thin majority.

"Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-California) and Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) separately announced plans to depart from Congress on Monday ahead of possible expulsion votes related to allegations of sexual misconduct."

AI-Generated Animation: Implement Legal Regulations to Protect Copyright Holders; The Japan News, April 13, 2026

Editorial, The Japan News; AI-Generated Animation: Implement Legal Regulations to Protect Copyright Holders

"Regardless of the motive, it is unacceptable for third parties to edit copyrighted works — into which creators have invested their time and effort — and post them online without authorization. If this situation is left unresolved, it will undermine creators’ motivation and Japan’s content industry could be harmed.

The government should face up to the negative aspects of AI technology and seriously tackle this issue to protect copyright holders and their works."

Minnesota authorities investigate arrest by ICE of a Hmong American man as a possible kidnapping; AP, April 13, 2026

 MARK VANCLEAVE AND STEVE KARNOWSKI , AP; Minnesota authorities investigate arrest by ICE of a Hmong American man as a possible kidnapping

"A Minnesota county is investigating the arrest of a Hmong American man by federal officers that was captured on video as a potential case of kidnapping, burglary and false imprisonment, officials announced Monday. 

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and Sheriff Bob Fletcher said at a news conference they are pursuing information from the Department of Homeland Security that they need for their investigation into the arrest of ChongLy “Scott” Thao, 56, on Jan. 18. Ramsey County includes the state capital of St. Paul. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers bashed open the front door of Thao’s St. Paul home at gunpoint — without a warrant as far as Choi and Fletcher have been able to determine — then led him outside in just his underwear and a blanket in freezing conditions.

“There are many facts we don’t know yet, but there’s one that we do know. And that is that Mr. Thao is and has been an American citizen. There’s not a dispute over that,” Fletcher said. “There’s no dispute that he was taken out of his house, forcibly taken out of his home and driven around.”"

Ugandan human rights leader Frank Mugisha to be awarded 2026 Inamori Ethics Prize; Case Western Reserve University, April 3, 2026

  Bill Lubinger, Case Western Reserve University; Ugandan human rights leader Frank Mugisha to be awarded 2026 Inamori Ethics Prize

"Frank Mugisha, executive director of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), has devoted his life to advocating for basic human rights for all people—not only in his home country, but globally.

A recipient of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award and the Thorolf Rafto Memorial Prize, Mugisha has been recognized internationally for his activism and courage. He was a 2014 nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize, chosen one of Fortune magazine's 2017 World's Greatest Leaders, and named among the 100 Most Influential People of 2024 by TIME magazine. 

And now, add one more honor to the list: The Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellenceat Case Western Reserve University will award Mugisha with the 2026 Inamori Ethics Prize. 

"It is truly humbling to be recognized alongside the inspiring work of previous Inamori Ethics Prize recipients,” Mugisha said. “This recognition inspires me greatly and means so much—not only to me personally but also to the communities I have the privilege to serve. It strengthens our resolve to continue advancing human rights, equality and ethical leadership.”

Mugisha will be awarded the prize, deliver a free public lecture about his work, and participate in a symposium panel discussion during the 2026 Inamori Ethics Prize events Sept. 17-18 on the Case Western Reserve campus.

“Mr. Mugisha’s dedication to and advocacy for human rights is inspiring. Driven by impact and propelled by purpose, Mr. Mugisha is changing lives around the world,” said Case Western Reserve President Eric W. Kaler. “We look forward to hearing about his life’s work this fall and honoring him as the 2026 Inamori Ethics Prize winner.”

The Inamori Ethics Prize has been awarded since 2008 to honor outstanding international ethical leaders whose actions and influence have greatly improved the condition of humankind.

“Frank Mugisha reflects the very spirit of the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence—grounded in human dignity, global awareness, and moral courage. His leadership challenges us to see beyond differences and to strengthen our common humanity,” Provost and Executive Vice President Joy K. Ward said.

Grassroots movement

Mugisha has led the grassroots movement to save thousands of LBGTI Ugandans from persecution, incarceration, and death.

During his undergraduate studies, Mugisha founded Icebreakers Uganda in 2004, an organization created as a support network for LGBTI people who are out or in the process of coming out to family and friends. 

Icebreakers Uganda offers counseling, suicide-prevention, and education services to those who are sexual minorities and open about their identity—because it is viewed by law and some public opinion in that country as criminal. 

Mugisha has expanded his efforts while at SMUG, now an umbrella organization of over 40 groups, including the first and only LGBTI health center in Uganda. 

In addition to promoting equality for the LGBTI community in Uganda, Mugisha and his team at SMUG have been fighting legal and ideological battles with Ugandan Parliament and championed legal efforts in U.S. District Court against anti-LGBT activists for years. 

Mugisha has led the movements to abolish Uganda’s anti-homosexuality and sexual-offense legislation which makes it a crime to identify as queer, considers all same-sex conduct to be nonconsensual, and allows for the death penalty in certain cases. 

Ugandan courts upheld the large majority of the Anti-Homosexuality Act in 2024. However, SMUG’s advocacy efforts did convince legislators to eliminate sections that restricted healthcare access for LGBTI people, criminalized renting premises to LGBTI people, and required alleged acts of homosexuality to be reported. Mugisha and advocates continue to seek a full annulment of the Act before the Supreme Court of Uganda.

Mugisha was 14 when he told his brother he was gay. Both brothers were born and raised in a strict Catholic family in suburban Kampala, the capital of Uganda, where anti-LGBTI laws are among the harshest in the world. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say “coming out” in the East African country could draw a beating, land you in prison, or even cost your life.

“Frank Mugisha embodies moral courage in its highest form,” said Inamori Center Director Eileen Anderson, Inamori Professor in Ethics and the Anne Templeton Zimmerman, MD Professor of Bioethics at the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine. “For more than two decades, he has led the fight for human dignity and equality in Uganda, transforming personal risk into global impact.”"

Threats to Library Funding End With Settlement by Trump Administration; The New York Times, April 13, 2026

 Jennifer Schuessler , The New York Times; Threats to Library Funding End With Settlement by Trump Administration

"The Trump administration has reached a settlement with the American Library Association and a union of cultural workers, bringing to an end its yearlong effort to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency.

The settlement, reached by the Justice Department last week, affirms that the agency will continue issuing grants and operating its programs, which provide support to institutions in every state and territory. The Trump administration reaffirmed that it had reinstated all previously canceled grants, in keeping with a separate legal ruling last year, and reversed all staff reductions. It also promised not to take any further steps to reduce the agency.

Sam Helmick, the president of the American Library Association, said the threats had set off “a chain reaction” of cuts in services and called the settlement a victory for “every American’s freedom to read and learn.”

“This settlement protects life-changing library services for communities across the country,” Helmick said."

How Merck uses patents to help maintain Keytruda’s exorbitant price; International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, April 13, 2026

 Denise Ajiri and Antonio Cucho Gamboa, International Consortium of Investigative Journalists ; How Merck uses patents to help maintain Keytruda’s exorbitant price

"Merck’s original patents for Keytruda are set to expire in 2028. But Merck, using a strategy known as “evergreening,” has filed hundreds of additional patents that could protect Keytruda’s dominance well beyond that year.

ICIJ analyzed 180 U.S. patent applications related to Keytruda, provided by the Initiative for Medicines, Access & Knowledge (I-MAK), a nonprofit that examines inequities in the patent system. These were linked to 1,032 additional patent filings around the world tied to the drug. From this universe, ICIJ identified active U.S. patents that illustrate Merck’s strategy of maintaining market exclusivity.

Patents can have different status, including active, pending, abandoned, expired, or others. Explore Merck’s active U.S. Keytruda patents below."

Rep. Eric Swalwell resigns from U.S. House after sexual misconduct allegations; CNBC, April 13, 2026

 Justin Papp, CNBC; Rep. Eric Swalwell resigns from U.S. House after sexual misconduct allegations

"Rep. Eric Swalwell, a former Democratic frontrunner in the California gubernatorial race, resigned from Congress on Monday amid sexual misconduct allegations.

Swalwell announced his resignation in a statement posted to his X account, while still denying some of the allegations made against him in recent days."

Trump administration agrees to return rainbow Pride flag to New York’s Stonewall monument; AP, April 13, 2026

 JENNIFER PELTZ AND MICHAEL R. SISAK, AP;  Trump administration agrees to return rainbow Pride flag to New York’s Stonewall monument

"The Trump administration said Monday it will resume flying a rainbow Pride flag on a federal flagpole at the Stonewall National Monument in New York City, reversing course after removing the banner in February.

The government revealed the decision in court papers as it agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by LGBTQ+ and historic preservation groups who had sought to block the removal. A judge must still approve the deal.

The Interior Department and National Park Service “have confirmed their intention to maintain a Pride flag at Stonewall,” lawyers for the government and the groups wrote in a joint court filing."

Nobody is governing AI; Quartz, April 8, 2026

 Jackie Snow, Quartz ; Nobody is governing AI

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than lawmakers can regulate it, while global AI governance fragments in real time

"Artificial intelligence is now making hiring decisions, tutoring children, optimizing power grids, and targeting weapons systems. The rules governing any of that are, almost everywhere, either nonexistent, stalled in committee, or under active attack.

In the United States, the federal government has spent three years producing executive orders, frameworks, and guidelines, none of which have become law. States that tried to fill the gap have been threatened with funding cuts and lawsuits. In Europe, the most ambitious AI legislation in the world is being delayed or softened before most of it has even taken effect. The technology, meanwhile, has not paused for any of this."