FINAL ISSUE: Matrix Monitor FOR march 24 2023

• Yesterday, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew testified before Congress where he attempted, and failed, to convince lawmakers on both sides of the aisle that the Chinese app is not a security threat.
• Xi Jinping's visit to Moscow left Russia in a more subservient position to Beijing, while offering economic alternatives to the isolated country, but fell short of any peacemaking deal in the Ukraine war.
• The DOJ has issued new guidance and warnings against business use of ephemeral messaging apps like Signal.
• Google and China released their answers to ChatGPT.
• The Biden administration took aim at cryptocurrencies in a scathing report arguing that many aspects of the digital asset ecosystem are creating issues for consumers, the financial system, and the environment.
• Russia's space program is showing signs that it is struggling as Roscosmos loses international partnerships and funding as a result of war and sanctions, with no real commercial sector to pick up the slack.
• Chinese scientists have restored eyesight in mice using a novel CRISPR technique.
• A new study says assigning names or gender to robots makes people more likely to buy the technology, or feel an attachment to it.
• China is turning away from U.S. imports, exacerbated by Washington's effort to impose controls on the sales of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, as part of bilateral decoupling, according to a new report.

Matrix Monitor for march 17 2023

• Chinese firms are still working to get their money out of Silicon Valley Bank.
• The Biden administration is demanding Chinese owners sell their stakes in the app or face a U.S. ban.
• The ISS had to adjust its orbit on March 6 to avoid a close approach by an Earth observation satellite operated by Satellogic.
• DIA says China is developing hypersonic weapons faster than Russia and may have already "deployed a weapon" that can reach American Pacific bases.
• U.S. sanctions against China's high tech sectors increased the country's research and development investment in these sectors by alsmot 53%, according to a new study by Chinese researchers.
• CISA announced the establishment of the Ransomware Vulnerability Warning Pilot (RVWP).
• Chinese AI groups are skirting export controls to high end U.S. chips through intermediaries, revealing potential loopholes in Washington's blockade of cutting edge technology to the country.
• OpenAI has announced the release of GPT-4, the latest AI language model that is claimed to be more creative and accurate.

Matrix Monitor for march 10 2023

• Yesterday, the banking partner for nearly half of U.S. venture-backed technology and healthcare companies listed on the stock exchange - Silicon Valley Bank - fell by more than 60% at closing bell.
• China’s leader Xi Jinping issued an unusually blunt rebuke of U.S. policy on Monday, blaming what he termed a Washington-led campaign to suppress China for recent challenges facing his country.
• U.S. lawmakers are planning on reintroducing a bill that will reform the way crypto is treated for tax purposes.
• Tesla has announced that it will create a permanent magnet electric vehicle motor without using rare earth elements.
• The U.S., Europe, and China are all testing autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for surveillance and exploration.
• Scientists are using robotics, self replication, and mechanical automatons to autonomously restructure asteroids into a large rotating space station.
• China has a lead in 37 of 44 critical and emerging technologies as Western democracies lose a global competition for research output, according to a security think tank tracking defense, space, energy, and biotechnology.
• Russia is successfully circumventing chip sanctions with the help of Turkey and the UAE, among others.
• Global supply chains have returned to normal, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said, almost three years after Covid-19 was declared a pandemic.

Matrix Monitor for march 3 2023

• The White House released its first National Cybersecurity Strategy in five years, shifting its priorities to holding owners and operators accountable and maintaining its offensive operations.
• A new low confidence intelligence report assesses Covid-19 likely originated in a Chinese lab, triggering a wave of questions and conspiracy theories surrounding the pandemic.
• The Intelligence Community also said this week that it has been unable to tie Havana Syndrome to any U.S. adversary.
• The U.S. State Department released the Political Declaration of Responsible Use of AI and Autonomy, which outlines principles for the development, testing, and verification of military use of AI.
• The U.S. is considering revoking export licenses issues to U.S. suppliers for sales to Huawei.
• Scientists are building mushroom computers to see if mushrooms can carry out computing and sensing functions.
• An international team of scientists claims to have discovered a way to use the properties of quantum physics to speed up, slow down, and even reverse time in a given system.
• Chinese semiconductor companies are stockpiling chip-making equipment, spare parts, and other materials amidst tighter export rules enforced by the U.S., Japan, and the Netherlands.
• Chinese experts warn that China's ambitions to develop ChatGPT-like services may be constrained by U.S. export controls, which restrict access to advanced chips required for AI engines.
• Despite U.S. sanctions on semiconductor exports to Russia, Chinese companies continue to supply chips and chip components to Russia via intermediaries such as Turkey.

Matrix Monitor for February 24 2023

• Next5 asked ChatGPT to write some of this week's Monitor. One of our weekly writers - a student at Columbia University in NYC - tells us how he uses the chatbot as an on-call TA and writing coach.
• Georgetown's CSET examined the scope and nature of Chinese investment in Southeast Asian AI companies, in a new report.
• A human player defeated a top-ranked AI system at the board game Go, in a surprise reversal of the 2016 computer victory that was seen as a milestone in the rise of AI.
• Lockheed Martin is partnering with the U.S. Navy to integrate hypersonic strike capability onto surface ships.
• China has surpassed the U.S. in nuclear fusion patents, pointing to its ambition to take the lead in the development of an alternative to fossil fuels.
• Scientists developed a special wood that is stronger than its natural counterpart and helps reduce carbon emissions by sequestering carbon dioxide from the surrounding air.
• Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte wrote an op/ed this week highlighting the deteriorating ties between Europe and Beijing, also saying the 21st century will be the century of democracy and thus "the century of America."
• Officials in the U.S. and E.U. accused China of using its courts and patent panels to undermine foreign intellectual property rights and help Chinese businesses.
• Putin said he is suspending Russia's participation in the last standing nuclear weapons treaty between the U.S. and Russia.

Matrix Monitor for February 17 2023

• America's first National Cyber Director stepped down this week amidst widespread, bipartisan praise, with the promise a national cyber strategy on the way.
• The U.S. Commerce Department sanctioned six Chinese companies involved in the balloon program. Reporting from The Wire digs into the two masterminds behind the company that made the infamous balloon.
• Chinese state-aligned actors used deep fake broadcasters to promote the interests of the CCP according to a new report from Graphika.
• Launches conducted by commercial Chinese launch service providers could more than double those attempted last year, according to firms' plans for 2023.
• According to the White House, Tesla will open parts of its proprietary Supercharger network to other kinds of vehicles for the first time.
• The U.S. government is weighing an effort to restrict capital from flowing into China that could be used to develop advanced technologies for war.
• A new investigation has identified a group of Israeli contractors who claim to have hacked, sabotaged, and automated disinformation on social media to influence more than 30 elections around the world in the last 20 years.
• Top trade associations representing companies dependent on Chinese manufacturing are urging their members to diversify supply chains.
• Despite the fact that Cisco stopped selling hardware in Russia last year, the same equipment can still be found at a variety of Moscow retailers today.

Matrix Monitor for February 10 2023

• The real takeaway from the Chinese spy balloon incident was the lack of communication between two adversaries during the incident, when China wouldn't take a call from the Pentagon, causing concern for future crises.
• Cyber stakeholders are on the lookout for Biden's imminent national cyber strategy, which some speculate could be released as early as next week now that the White House has confirmed the National Cyber Director, Chris Inglis, will step down on February 15.
• A new study shows that Chinese made phones pose a greater risk to users because they come pre-installed with apps that send sensitive data to third party domains without users' consent or notice.
• The U.K. Treasury and Bank of England are designing a "digital pound" that could supplant banknotes by the end of the decade.
• A team of Chinese engineers claim to have boosted the performance of a rail gun with the aid of 3D printing technology - an achievement previously thought to be unfeasible.
• The U.S. is considering economic espionage charges against leaders of TuSimple, a U.S. self-driving-truck company with ties to China.
• Chinese telecoms giant Huawei is actively filing patents for advanced technologies, such as semiconductors, in both China and the U.S.
• The U.S .is considering new sanctions on Chinese surveillance companies over sales to Iran's security forces as Iranian authorities increasingly rely on the technology to crack down on protests.
• A recent report released by Splunk found that public sector organizations often lack the cybersecurity intelligence needed to respond effectively, and they struggle more than the private sector in leveraging data to detect and prevent threats.
• A new technology partnership between the U.S. and India could accelerate the realignment of global supply chains at the expense of China's interests.

Matrix Monitor for february 3 2023

• As lawmakers push to ban TikTok, they face a fight against Cold War era laws designed to allow films, books, and music to flow freely between the U.S. and hostile foreign countries.
• The U.S. is planning to open as many as four U.S. military sites at Philippine bases in Washington's latest push to expand its strategic footprint across the region to counter threats from China.
• China's Baidu is developing an AI-powered chatbot similar to OpenAI's popular ChatGPT and plans to integrate it into its main search engine in March.
• From 2015-2021, U.S. investors, including Intel and Qualcomm, invested more than $40B in Chinese AI companies, according to a new CSET report.
• The Biden administration has stopped approving licenses for U.S. companies to export most items to China's Huawei and is considering completely cutting off the Chinese telecom giant from U.S. suppliers.
• In-Q-Tel-backed de-extinction startup Colossal Biosciences is planning to reverse engineer and re-introduce the dodo bird, which went extinct 50 years ago.
• China's top nuclear weapons research institute has purchased advanced American computer chips at least 12 times in teh last two and a half years, circumventing decades old American export restrictions intended to limit such sales.
• Japan and the Netherlands will restrict exports of chip manufacturing tools to China after reaching a deal with the U.S. designed to make it harder for the Chinese military to develop advanced weapons.
• CISA Director Jen Easterly and Executive Assistant Director for Cybersecurity Eric Goldstein wrote an op/ed that argues companies must build safety into tech products to mitigate the rising threat of malicious cyber activity from both criminal and state actors.
• The cyber crime economy is becoming more sophisticated, with cyber crime groups offering six figure salaries, bonuses, and paid time off to attract talent on the dark web.

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 27 2023

• China's Belt and Road Initiative projects around the world are plagued with construction flaws, damaging the environment, and seeing less ROI than expected.
• The UK has recovered Russian military equipment lost to Ukrainian forces and handed it over to national intelligence agencies and industry partners to identify weaknesses and develop new defensive aids and countermeasures.
• China has become the world's largest exporter of facial recognition technologies.
• ChatGPT passed a Wharton Business School MBA exam on Operations Management with a grade of B.
• A draft European Union law would require banks to hold enough capital to cover holdings of crypto assets in full.
• For the first time, a privately owned lunar lander, built by a private Japanese company named ispace, will attempt to land on the lunar surface by April.
• The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has certified the design for what will be the United States' first small modular nuclear reactor.
• Scientists have created remote-controlled walking robots actuated by mouse muscle cells, a combination of state-of-the-art robotics and basic biological systems that could lay the ground work for more complex cyborg robots in the future.
• China filed 1.59M patent applications in 2021, more than 2x the number filed by the U.S. but experts claim that the country has created "few original innovations" in fields such as semiconductors when compared to the U.S. and Europe.
• Global auto and battery makers and the U.S. government are racing to secure graphite supplies amid looming signs of shortages of the mineral suitable for batteries.

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 20 2023

• Apple has built a supply and manufacturing operation of such complexity, depth, and cost that its fortunes have become tied to China in a way that cannot easily be unwound.
• China’s economy posted its slowest annual growth since 1976. China’s National Bureau of Statistics showed its economy expanded by just 3% for the full year, down from 8.1% in 2021.
• Virgin Orbit's first effort to send a satellite into space from outside the U.S. failed last week, in a blow to the company's ambitions to compete in the booming commercial satellite market and to the U.K., which has tried to boost its presence in commercial space.
• According to Quilty Analytics, the war in Ukraine has made the world aware of the geopolitical, social, and military impacts of satellite imagery as the space industry introduces new capabilities to augment commercial spy satellites.
• T-Mobile remains the top American 5G contender during the fourth quarter of 2022.
• This week, the Chinese government nominated 6G as one of its priority projects for 2023
• During a meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte at the White House, President Joe Biden said the U.S. and the Netherlands are in “lockstep” over their approach to China; however, some critics say there has not been much progress.
• The Russian space agency may be willing to return 36 satellites it’s been keeping hostage in Kazakhstan in exchange for parts of its Soyuz rockets that are being held in French Guiana.
• President Biden is set to approve a new cybersecurity policy that will empower U.S. agencies to hack into the networks of criminals and foreign governments, among other changes.
• A lesser known provision in the 2023 NDAA called for a study of cybersecurity and national security threats posed by foreign-manufactured cranes at U.S. ports.

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 13 2023

• The U.S. House of Representatives voted to establish a select committee to assess the military, economic, and technological challenges posed by China.
• A Chinese government-controlled company has been accused of stealthily buying a U.K. semiconductor startup, and the British government is under fire for letting it happen despite security implications.
• Virgin Orbit's first effort to send a satellite into space from outside the U.S. failed last week, in a blow to the company's ambitions to compete in the booming commercial satellite market and to the U.K., which has tried to boost its presence in commercial space.
• New York City schools banned ChatGPT, the AI chatbot that generates human-like writing including essays. And, cybercriminals are starting to use it to quickly and easily create malicious code.
• Russia's central bank is reportedly set to begin developing a cross-border settlement system using a central bank digital currency amid ongoing sanctions in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
• The next generation of rockets built to launch U.S. spy satellites into orbit will have to be capable of fending off interference by China and Russia.
• Policymakers in Europe and the U.S. are racing to counteract early Chinese dominance of electrolyzers, a key piece in the next generation of clean energy.
• Supply chain disruption and uncertainty is causing more businesses to solve production problems with additive manufacturing technologies.
• Funding for cybersecurity startups dropped by ~33% in 2022.
• As Covid infections surge across China, the U.S. again risks falling short of medical supplies as it struggles to keep factories running and goods flowing out of its ports.

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 6 2023

• The Next5 Matrix Monitor was recently featured on a new geopolitics podcast series by RunSafe Security. Check out their newest episode here with insights from Dmitri Alperovich and stay tuned for more audio highlights from the Matrix Monitor on RunSafe’s website or Spotify.
• China is pausing massive investments aimed at building a chip industry to compete with the US, as a nationwide Covid resurgence strains the world’s number 2 economy and Beijing’s finances.
• Western intelligence officials are investigating whether a network of wealthy and well-connected expatriate Russian investors is part of a covert effort to aid their native country in developing cutting edge technologies such as quantum computing and AI through startups they funded in the US.
• Chinese researchers claim they discovered a method that can break RSA with quantum computers, but experts are not convinced.
• The Senate approved a $1.7T spending package that would aid efforts to send US astronauts back to the moon, fund the federal government into next fall, and send another round of financial assistance to Kyiv.
• The security robots market is set to more than quadruple by 2030.
• Huawei claims it has exited “crisis mode” following punishing US restrictions as it reported growth in its telecom-infrastructure business and flat overall revenue for 2022.
• Software engineers who use code-generating AI systems are more likely to cause security vulnerabilities in the apps they develop, according to a new report.
• A group of hackers bought US military equipment from eBay for $68, which contained biometric data from troops, known terrorists, and people who may have worked with American forces in Afghanistan and other countries in the Middle East.
• LookingGlass published predictions for the future of cyberspace and geopolitics heading into 2023. Check it out here.

Matrix Monitor for DECEMBER 16 2022

• China is outpacing the U.S. Intelligence Community efforts to harness the power of publicly available data in a time where OSINT is becoming key and decisive.
• The U.S. Department of Justice unsealed an indictment accusing five Russians, an American citizen, and a lawful permanent U.S.resident of smuggling export-controlled electronics like semiconductors and quantum computers, as well as ammunition, on behalf of the Russian government.
• Several states are banning the use of TikTok on government devices citing cybersecurity and national security concerns. CFIUS is expected to make a decision on TikTok's operations in the U.S. soon. Read more on the LookingGlass perspective here.
• The U.N. General Assembly approved a U.S.-proposed resolution calling on states to commit to a moratorium on the testing of destructive anti-satellite missiles.
• Canada's federal police suspended a contract with a Beijing-linked firm to supply and maintain police radio equipment.
• The U.S. Department of Energy announced a breakthrough in nuclear fusion in a step toward harnessing an abundant energy source free from carbon emissions and radioactive waste.
• Japan and the Netherlands are expected to adopt at least some of the sweeping measures the U.S. rolled out in October to restrict the sale of advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China.
• Infragard, a program run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to develop cyber and physical threat information sharing partnerships with the private sector, has been hacked, and its database of contact information on over 80k members is being sold for $50k this week on an English-speaking cybercrime forum.
• Thank you all for reading and sharing your feedback through another year of the Matrix Monitor! We will not produce a report the next two weeks and we will see you in 2023!

Matrix Monitor for DECEMBER 9 2022

• A new LookingGlass report found that ransomware actors have become more professionalized as the ransomware-as-a-service market matures, allowing them to monetize ransomware in ways other than encryption, such as double and triple extortion.
• The Pentagon established a new Office of Strategic Capital, to be led by Jason Rathje, designed to support technology investment for critical national security, prompted by concern over China's military advancement.
• TikTok accounts run by the Chinese government's propaganda arm have garnered millions of views, many of them on videos editorializing U.S. politics without any indication that they were posted by a foreign government.
• China continues to develop weapons for use against satellites in orbit, according to the DoD's annual report.
• SpaceX revealed a new business segment called Starshield aimed at U.S. national security government agencies.
• Neuralink is being investigated by the federal government for potential animal welfare violations.
• Venture Capitalists in Silicon Valley are investing money in nuclear energy.
• China's massive investment in industrial robotics has put the country in the top ranking of robot density surpassing the U.S. for the first time.
• Google is under fire from officials and legislators in Hong Kong over a pro-democracy song that is showing up in search results for the national anthem.
• Supply chain snags could break a seven-year streak of rising global arms sales, despite increased demand from war.

Matrix Monitor for DECEMBER 2 2022

• Xi Jinping has intentionally packed the top ranks of the CCP with a new generation of leaders who have experience in aerospace, AI, and other strategically important technologies.
• Russian hackers travel overseas to conduct onsite hacking operations, sometimes with HUMINT teams attached.
• The U.S. has banned the import or sale of Chinese telecoms and video surveillance products from Chinese suppliers Huawei, ZTE, Hytera Communications, Hikvision, and Dahua.
• FTX's collapse has implications for North Korea's ability to exploit weaknesses in the virtual asset ecosystem.
• Three Chinese astronauts arrived at China's space station for the first in-orbit crew rotation in Chinese space history.
• Scientists made a medical breakthrough with an experimental drug that appears to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
• An American couple welcomed twins from embryos frozen 30 years ago - possibly the longest frozen embryos to result in a live birth.
• Hundreds of Chinese-manufactured drones have been detected in restricted airspace over Washington DC in recent months, posing a new foreign espionage threat.
• Apple is caught in the crosshairs of COVID restrictions and subsequent protests in China. Not only is it losing production to COVID lockdowns, but the tech giant is under intense media scrutiny for a China-only software update limiting the AirDrop feature in iPhones as subsequent protests began.

Matrix Monitor for NOVEMBER 18 2022

• The Artemis program took off with the Orion launch on November 16, putting the U.S. one step closer to returning humans to the Moon, and later to Mars.
• After mysterious thieves stole hundreds of millions of dollars from FTX, crypto-tracing blockchain analysis may be able to identify them.
• Google will pay ~391M to settle allegations by 40 states that the search and advertising giant illegally tracked users' locations.
• Oracle is in talks with several Chinese companies about providing cloud infrastructure services to support their global expansion.
• Satellite analysis uncovered two dark ships with AIS turned off in the area of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline before the suspected sabotage in September.
• Chinese tech giant Tencent has been secretly testing palm-print payment devices in the country for months and recently rolled them out to the city of Guangzhou, raising data privacy concerns.
• ASML is considering M&A to meet the high end global demand for advanced chip manufacturing.
• Security concerns related to Chinese investments in overseas ports are mounting as the country's firms acquire more stakes at shipping hubs around the world.
• Treasury announced new sanctions against those involved in the production and transport of drones from Iran to Russia to aid Putin's war against Ukraine.
• Cybersecurity researchers found evidence of Chinese spyware in Uigher-language apps that can track the location and harvest the data of Uighers living in China and abroad.
• A new shortage is making it difficult to access common pharmaceuticals that are largely produced in China as RSV spreads and flu season looms.

Matrix Monitor for NOVEMBER 11 2022

• Inflation, fears of recession, and recovery from a pandemic hiring boom have led Big Tech to an inflection point, with many of them making major job cuts.
• Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Monday that he had interfered in US elections and would continue to do so in the future.
• While Beijing's efforts to influence elections in the US are relatively new, it has spent years developing strategies to influence politics and elections throughout the Pacific Rim.
• There are concerns about the surveillance of delegates at the COP27 climate talks in Egypt, with cybersecurity experts warning that downloading the official app requires access to a user's location, photos, and even emails.
• Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei pledged to increase its investments in Africa for "digital transformation."
• The widespread adoption of China's digital yuan (eCNY) allows for new forms of government surveillance and social control.
• In a medical breakthrough, red blood cells grown in a lab have been transfused into volunteers in a world-first clinical trial.
• Tidal, an Alphabet X division project, plans to use cameras, computer vision, and machine learning to track the carbon stored in ocean biomass.
• Alphabet's Wing and DoorDash are launching a pilot program in which users in Australia can have DoorDash orders delivered by drone.
• China has found itself in the center of disputes in Europe over its efforts to improve domestic chip manufacturing.
• The market for cybersecurity technology and service providers is worth an estimated $2T according to a new survey.

Matrix Monitor for NOVEMBER 4 2022

• More Americans are getting news on TikTok, in contrast with many other social media sites, where news consumption has either declined or stayed the same in recent years.
• European Parliament is implementing the Digital Markets Act to require companies such as Apple to offer alternatives to allow third-party app stores on its platforms and alternative payment systems.
• SpaceX's Falcon Heavy took off for the first time in more than three years this week, launching two national security satellites for the US Space Force.
• Japanese startup ispace plans to build a human settlement on the moon by 2040 ,but first it wants to become the lunar equivalent of FedEx, earning money by transporting scientific and commercial goods to the moon.
• SCSP issued recommendations aimed at encouraging US politicians to counter China's rising technological ambitions by tightening regulatory oversight, encouraging more foreign investment, and providing tax breaks for workers who receive training.
• Twitter disrupted three China-based operations covertly attempting to influence American politics leading up to elections.
• The speed and sophistication of ransomware attacks is outpacing the US' ability to keep up with efforts to disrupt and recover from them.
• Apple has paid out a record total of $20M through its new bug bounty program.
• Despite Washington's efforts to remove Chinese telecoms equipment from national supply chains, local and state governments in the US have continued to purchase it, according to a new CSET report.

Matrix Monitor for October 28 2022

• A senior Russian foreign ministry official said that commercial satellites from the US and its allies could become legitimate targets for Russia over their involvement in the Ukraine war.
• A China-based team at TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, planned to use the TikTok app to surveil American citizens.
• The RNC filed a lawsuit against Alphabet's Google for allegedly sending its emails to users' spam folders.
• Twitter is struggling to keep its most active users engaged, and is likely losing some of them to Instagram and TikTok.
• Toyota is reconsidering its EV strategy to compete with Tesla.
• TSMC, the world's most advanced chipmaker, "could stumble" if the industry is forced to develop new transistor technology.
• The US unsealed charges alleging that two Chinese intelligence officers attempted to obstruct a criminal investigation into Huawei, and that others were working on behalf of a "foreign power" to procure technology and recruit spies.
• The White House announced plans to expand its public-private cybersecurity partnership to include the chemical industry.
• Apple is accelerating plans to address its greenhouse gas emissions across the company's global supply chain and decarbonize by 2030.

Matrix Monitor for October 21 2022

• The Russian government is beginning to build out a national video surveillance system to monitor its citizens, akin to China's mass surveillance.
• On October 16, Xi Jinping delivered a speech at the 20th party congress where he laid out China's overall goals for 2035, which prioritize hi-tech at the "top of all economic policies."
• John Deere is the latest of many companies to announce it is investing in reshoring its operations as it shifts production from China to Louisiana.
• South Korea is planning to offer digital identity services secured by blockchain.
• Researchers believe Wikipedia could be an overlooked venue for information warfare and are developing technologies similar to those used by social media platforms to uncover it.
• SpaceX and the Pentagon argue over who is going to foot the bill for future satellite communication services in Ukraine, which have proven critical to the war effort.
• Regulators in Europe and the US are gaining traction for policy changes that would require big tech companies to contribute to telecommunications networks.
• The FCC is banning all sales of new Huawei and ZTE telecommunications devices in the US.
• Military and research groups at the forefront of China's hypersonic missile program are purchasing a wide range of specialized American tech, including products developed by firms that have received millions in Pentagon grants and contracts, according to a new investigation.
• Vaccines to treat cancer could be available by 2030, based on mRNA technology used to create the Covid-19 vaccine.
  
• Apple halted plans to use memory chips manufactured by YMTC.
  

Matrix Monitor for October 14 2022

• The director of the UK's GCHQ in a rare speech said Beijing is aiming to use an array of existing and emerging technologies to control markets and people, extend surveillance and censorship, and export its authoritarian system around the world.
• China's 20th party congress will meet on Sunday where they are expected to confirm Xi Jinping for a historic third term to serve as Secretary General for another five years.
• Elon Musk's Starlink launched in Japan this week, making it the first Asian nation to receive SpaceX's satellite services. Musk said Beijing sought assurances from him that he would not sell Starlink in China.
• Emrod, a New Zealand startup, claims to have the technology to enable efficient wireless energy transfer from orbit, proposing a global wireless energy matrix that would instantly beam renewable energy between any two points on Earth via satellite.
• MuscleRehab, a program developed by MIT, employs biotech and VR to aid physical therapy and allow patients to "see" the inner structure of their body.
• Chinese firm Xpeng conducted a test flight of a flying taxi in Dubai.
• A "humanoid robot" told British lawmakers that despite being an artificial creation, it was still capable of producing art as part of a parliamentary inquiry into how new technologies will impact the creative industries.
• The US Department of Treasury is seeking comment on how to structure a cyber insurance program and contemplating creating a backstop program for cyber insurance akin to the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program that was implemented after 9/11.
• US restrictions on China's access to advanced American technologies may cut the country's largest chipmaker, SMIC's growth by 50% next year.

Matrix Monitor for October 7 2022

• Russia has refrained from using advanced military equipment in its war with Ukraine due to its dependence on American chips, which have fallen under strict sanctions since the invasion.
• An NSA employee - who only worked there for three weeks - is being charged with three violations of the Espionage Act when he attempted to sell US secrets to, who he believed, was a foreign agent.
• The US won a tight race against Russia for leadership of the UN's International Telecommunications Union which is set to help the US lead the world in telecommunications norms and standards. China has held the post for the past several years.
• China is attempting to hedge the power of the US dollar in Asia.
• Global M&A shrank for the third consecutive quarter and US tech IPOs are at an all time low since the global financial crisis of 2008.
• The White House released a proposed AI Bill of Rights.
• China's DJI was added to the US DoD's entity list on October 5 - an update from December 2021.
• China is facing significant labor shortages, particularly in the tech industry.
• NSA, CISA, and the FBI released a joint alert that said sophisticated cyber actors maintained "persistent, long-term access" to a major defense contractor's systems dating back as early as January 2021.

Matrix Monitor for SEPTEMBER 30 2022

• After the US warned all Americans to get out of Russia, Krebs Stamos Group amplified USG messages and published a list of technical steps organizations should take on the way out.
• Meta is losing market share to TikTok and looking to cut its staff by 10% to alleviate some costs.
• Beijing is overhauling its notorious Belt & Road Initiative after several countries it lended money too are faulting on their debts.
• In the wake of concerns over Havana Syndrome, the US Secret Service recently declassified documents revealing that former US President Nixon, and other government officials, was exposed to radiation at the US embassy in Moscow.
• Scientists have revealed a new "invisibility jacket" that prevents humans wearing it from being detected by infrared cameras.
• Amazon is providing cloud technology to Chinese state-owned firms Hikvision and Dahua, in possible violation of the NDAA as both companies have been banned by the US for their support to the PLA.
• Huawei is attempting to restart chip manufacturing operations with "US-free" supply lines.
• A group of US senators is requesting an Intelligence Community investigation to determine whether Apple's plan to use Chinese memory chips in the iPhone14 presents a national security threat.
• The Biden administration and TikTok have drafted a preliminary agreement to address national security concerns raised by the Chinese-owned video app, but the terms are still being negotiated as the platform negotiates to continue operating in the US without major changes to its ownership structure.
• China again publicly accused the US National Security Agency of conducting cyber espionage operations against a leading Chinese university years ago.
  

Matrix Monitor for SEPTEMBER 23 2022

• Next5 provided a readout of the Special Competitive Studies Project Summit on Emerging Technology which took place last week.
• Strider Technologies produced a detailed report that uncovers several Chinese scientists who worked at Los Alamos National Lab before returning to China and transferring technology on hypersonics among many other sensitive technologies. This is the first open source report to reveal such details that have largely only been known in classified channels.
• Since 2019, Big Tech spent more than $30B acquiring companies, while regulators tried to reign them in.
• A Rhodium Group report finds that European foreign direct investment in China has grown much more concentrated in terms of both the investors and the sectors in which they are investing.
• A recent Starlink demonstration indicates the company's interest in entering the in-flight Wi-Fi market.
• A New York-based biotech firm presented the US Air Force with the world's first energy harvesting-powered digital health shoe insoles.
• Nvidia unveiled a new computing platform for autonomous vehicles, with a Chinese company as its first customer. Given other restrictions on Nvidia's ability to sell to China, there are concerns whether Chinese customers will be able to continue accessing Nvidia technology.
• A US-based company developed the world's first sub-nanomatere resolution lithography system.
• President Biden stated the US military will defend Taiwan from "an unprecedented attack."
  
• As tensions between Taiwan and China threaten to strain Asian supplies, Europe is expected to push for the establishment of semiconductor supply chains with the assistance of Taiwanese chip giants.
  

Matrix Monitor for SEPTEMBER 16 2022

• Eric Schmidt's SCSP released its first report highlighting competition with China and the need to build a comprehensive plan for American success in emerging technology now.
• A former TSMC executive switched over to China's SMIC in a decision he claims as the most foolish of his life.
• Samples of blood from astronauts over the years reveal DNA mutations from space travel.
• An FCC decision against SpaceX could give Chinese firms a leg up.
• Google and NIST are collaborating on semiconductors.
• A hacker purchased 200 used voting machines without incident, but after one was sold on eBay, it is now under investigation.
• A Chinese chip industry veteran says Nvidia's chips are hard to replace in AI.
• The DoJ charged Iranian hackers with conducing a global campaign targeting victims in the US for extortion.
  

Matrix Monitor for SEPTEMBER 9 2022

• At the Billington Cybersecurity Summit, a panel of CISOs offered criticism of the way the USG engages industry.
• Some experts now say China may never surpass the US economy following Beijing's crackdown on covid and real estate speculation over the past year.
• Microsoft's planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard is coming under regulatory scrutiny in the UK over competition concerns.
• Huawei has included satellite communications capabilities in its latest flagship smartphone in attempt to circumvent US restrictions on access to 5G wireless technologies.
• A Beijing space research institute tested a new rocket engine that it claims is twice as powerful as its American rival in the race to land the next astronaut on the Moon.
• Albania severed diplomatic ties with Iran and expelled embassy personnel in response to a major cyber attack on the Albanian government.
• China accused the NSA of hacking another government funded university with aeronautics and space research programs.
• China's import volume of integrated circuits fell more tan 12% in the first eight months of the year.
  

Matrix Monitor for SEPTEMBER 2 2022

• The four most valuable American companies - Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft - have enough capital to acquire any startup they desire, but they are not doing a lot of buying in recent years. Could it be related to an uptick in international crackdowns against anticompetitive and antitrust practices? Read the Next5 perspecitive here.
• NASA is planning its second attempt to launch Artemis1 this weekend. In an interview last week, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson talked about the space race we have entered with China and compared it with the American-Russian relationship on the ISS. For the Next5 perspective on Great Power Competition in space, read our blog.
• In an updated report, TechInsights confirmed its earlier conclusion that China's top chipmaker SMIC, has made a significant technological breakthrough that puts it on par with industry giants. While we are still skeptical about China's ability to scale the manufacturing of 7nm chips, this advancement surpassed top experts' expectations about how quickly a Chinese company could achieve chips this size.
• Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, will complete a plan to lower its carbon emissions by more than 99% next month.
• Genetic engineers have created a synthetic mouse embryo without the use of egg or sperm cells, but using stem cells capable of developing a heart, brain, and other organs.
• Chip designer Nvidia states that US officials instructed it to stop exporting two top AI chips to China.
• Google announced the launch of an open source software vulnerability bug bounty program, offering cybersecurity researchers up to $31k in rewards for detecting bugs.
• TSMC said its ultra-advanced 3nm chip production technology will go into production soon, but inflation and ongoing supply chain issues are driving up the cost of constructing new plants.

Matrix Monitor for AUGUST 26 2022

• The DoD released a report on the state of the space industrial base, calling for a more strategic approach to investing in the space economy and moving off planet. Next5 hosted a similar event with more commercial participation that focused more on increasing international engagement and out-innovating rather than competing with China.
  ‍Contact us to receive a copy of Next5's Future of Space Insights Report or schedule a briefing with our analysts.
• TikTok detailed its plan to combat election misinformation on its platform.
• A new report urges companies to prepare for intentional or accidental attacks on their satellites during international conflicts.
• Capital Records is walking away from an AI rapper project after receiving backlash for the AI model's "gross stereotypes" of the Black community.
• A new Covid therapeutic could one day make treating all Covid variants as simple as using a nasal spray by "hacking" a region of viral RNA.
• President Biden signed a law that requires an EV sold in the US to be assembled in North America to qualify for a federal tax credit.
• A former Apple engineer pleaded guilty to stealing proprietary information from the company while preparing to work for a Chinese startup that makes self-driving cars.
• The challenge of modern chip manufacturing is driving a shift toward multi chip design.
• Another China-based chip firm (Super Orange HK Holding) was barred from acquiring a British firm - Pulsic which is a chip design software provider based in Bristol.
• Economists say a rare drop in all export orders to Taiwan could indicate cracks in the global economy from China to Europe.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for AUGUST 19 2022

• Next5 gives a readout on The Cipher Brief's Cyber Initiatives Group (CIG) Summer Summit.
• Should the Taiwanese chip industry be destroyed due to war or embargo, the consequences for the rest of the world would be immediate and dramatic - unlike Ukraine.
• Ten years ago US scientists made a breakthrough battery discovery, but the US government gave the technology to China.
• Omnispace wants to be the first company to deliver a global 5G non-terrestrial network with connectivity directly to mobile devices from its LEO satellites.
• A district in Shanghai has been using drones to detect whether residents disobey Covid-19 policies, leading to online fury about the potential abuse of surveillance technology.
• Scientists want to use genetic engineering to resurrect the Tasmanian tiger, which has been extinct since 1936.
• A Chinese technology firm has released a new 7nm GPU chip that it claims has broken computing records.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for AUGUST 12 2022

• US policy changes to enable and incentivize American-led standard setting in technologies could help counter China.
• After taking Kherson, Russian soldiers forced internet service providers to hand over control of their networks and rerouted mobile and internet data from Kherson through Russian networks.
• YouTube is still operating in Russia - despite its efforts to show Russian citizens the truth about the Ukraine war - because the Kremlin has deemed it too popular to block.
• The US Treasury Department sanctioned Tornado Cash - a virtual currency mixer - for its use by cybercriminals, including those under US sanctions, especially Lazarus Group. This marks the first time OFAC sanctioned open source code.
• Lawmakers are pushing the Federal Reserve to move swiftly toward issuing a digital dollar, to combat steps from China and others they say could one day threaten the US status as the global reserve currency.
• China's top leadership has grown increasingly frustrated with the country's years-long failure to develop semiconductors capable of replacing US circuitry, after a flurry of anti-graft probes into top industry officials and a $9B bailout for Tsinghua Unigroup.
• Russian weapons and equipment used in Ukraine rely on microelectronics produced in the West as well as in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for AUGUST 5 2022

• Multiple government agencies in Taiwan experienced cyber attacks before and after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit.
• UK military personnel and defense contractors have been told to delete their security clearance from LinkedIn over spying fears, following warnings about the growing espionage threat posed by China.
• DoJ unsealed an indictment last week, charging a Russian national with allegedly orchestrating a years-long foreign malign influence campaign that used various U.S. political parties to sow discord, spread Russian propaganda, and interefere in  U.S. elections.
• Strava - a social network for athletes - can help anyone identify secretive military bases and patrol routes based on its publicly shared data.
• Sino-U.S. tensions and China's strict Covid-19 controls have significantly reduced the inflow of much-needed chip talent into the country.
• The U.S. passed a $52B federal program to boost domestic chipmaking capabilities, and came with a noteworthy caveat: It requires that companies receiving funding must promise not to increase their production of advanced chips in China.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JULY 29 2022

• China's SMIC reportedly achieved some capability to produce 7nm chips without EUV lithography.
• The World Economic Forum reports that in order to take the quantum leap, business leaders have to shift their mindset. For more information about steps leaders should take to prepare for the quantum era, read the Next5 article on it here.
• In an ironic move for monopolistic Microsoft, the software giant is rallying other big name cloud providers like Google and Oracle, among others, to challenge Amazon's dominance in government cloud contracts.
• An investigation identifies how the US can use blockchain and AI to prevent Chinese exporters from skirting US tariffs.
• France's Eutelsat is buying its British rival OneWeb in a $3.4B deal that is widely seen as a challenge to SpaceX.
• Russia announced it is leaving the International Space Station.
• Debris from a Chinese rocket is set to crash to Earth sometime over the next few days (again), with the potential for wreckage to land across a wide area of the globe.
• A chess-playing robot grabbed and broke the finger of its opponent - a 7 year old boy - during a match at the Moscow Open.
• A group of former US government officials has formed a professional organization to promote open source intelligence.
• Apple's networking traffic reportedly took an unexpected detour through Russian networking equipment for about 12 hours between July 26 and 27.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JULY 22 2022

• At the Aspen Security Forum taking place this week, CIA Director William Burns highlights the ways China is learning from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
• Shanghai has pledged support for the development of Web3 for the first time as part of its 14th Five Year Plan.
• A CSET report compares trends in AI research output, showing China in the lead with the US close behind.
• The Biden Administration is investigating China's Huawei over concerns that US cell towers fitted with its gear could capture sensitive information from military bases and missile silos that the company could then transmit to China.
• The Pentagon announced the US conducted a successful hypersonic missile test, securing a $1.3B deal to help defend against such threats from Russia and China.
• A team of scientists from Brown, Duke, and Rice demonstrated wireless technology that allows neurons in a fly brain to be controlled in less than a second.
• Brain-computer interface startup Synchron implanted its stentrode device in a human for the first time to help the ALS patient text by thinking.
• China's DJI, which is banned by the US, is lobbying against Congress to prevent the federal government from purchasing its drones.
• To avoid US sanctions, Huawei's secretive chipmaking arm is hiring highly trained PhD engineers to help develop its own semiconductor design software, a niche field now dominated by Ameriac's Cadence Design Systems and Synopsys.
• The DHS Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) concluded that log4j will continue to pose a significant risk for at least the next decade. It also lays out how Alibaba found and reported log4j before another Chinese firm BoundaryX posted the proof of concept to WeChat – before the patch was available.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JULY 14 2022

• The CFR highlights shortcomings of the US approach to the internet and makes policy recommendations which include holding adversaries accountable, establishing international norms, cracking down on cybercrime, illuminating the domestic intelligence gap, and creating incentives for CSPs and ISPs to better defend their infrastructure from malicious activity.
• New rules on cross-data transfer will force businesses in China to seek approvals from Chinese authorities before transferring data abroad.
• Russia is likely constructing a sophisticated laser system designed to blind adversary satellites.
• An AI institute in China's Heifei says it has developed software that can gauge the loyalty of Communist Party members.
• Maritime 5G is emerging as a significant market vertical.
• Visa and Mastercard are planning for customers to use crypto routinely for everyday purchases.
• A novel study in which physicians implanted genetically engineered pig hearts into clinically deceased patients could open the path for human trails and a future with more life-prolonging organ transplants.
• According to Bloomberg analysis, the US has crossed a pivotal line to the mass adoption fo EVs.
• A powerful US produced Qualcomm chip is being highlighted as one of the primary selling factors of Chinese EVs, demonstrating China's persistent reliance on American core technologies.
• Strider Technologies targets China's IP thieves by scouring open-source data in China to identify technologies most at risk of being stolen.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JULY 8 2022

• FBI Director Wray and MI5 Director McCallum delivered an unprecedented joint address this week warning of the persistent threat from the CCP against businesses developing emerging technology. MI5 also announced that it thwarted Chinese state-sponsored cyberattack against a critical aerospace firm in the UK back in May.
• TikTok’s CEO has written to nine Republican senators to outline new efforts by the popular video app to protect US user data, amid renewed congressional scrutiny of access to that information by employees of its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
• Georgetown’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) reported that computer science departments across the US do not have enough faculty to meet the growing demand for AI education.
• Tesla’s commanding lead in the EV market is shrinking, according to sales figures released this week by Warren Buffett-backed Chinese automake.
• Samsung has begun mass production of 3-nanometer chips that are more powerful and efficient than previous chips, beating rival TSMC to a critical milestone in the race to build the world's most advanced chips.
• In its latest effort to decouple the country from foreign operating systems such as Microsoft Windows and Apple's macOS, China has created an open platform to accelerate the development of a domestic desktop operating system.
• On July 5, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) selected the first set of quantum-resistant encryption algorithms to protect sensitive data from advanced cyberattacks.
• A Chinese news source accused the US National Security Agency of conducting a cyberattack on Chinese scientific research organizations several years ago in an act of propaganda and strategic messaging in line with its goals to peer with the US.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JULY 1 2022

• President Biden and G7 leaders are formally launching the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII), which has already awarded contracts to US tech companies to build out infrastructure around the world, from 5G to agriculture.
• The House Appropriations Committee directed the SecDef to provide a report detailing how Pentagon leadership delineates roles and responsibilities within cyberspace among its different component agencies.
• Amazon is developing a voice-mimicking feature for Alexa that replicates the speech of people alive and dead.
• AT&T announced that their drone operations team achieved an industry first in transmitting its 5G network via drone.
• Researchers have created a wearable textile exomuscle that acts as an extra layer of muscles, enabling paralyzed patients to use their limbs again.
• A new electronic tattoo (e-tattoo) can provide continuous blood pressure measurements with an accuracy level that exceeds nearly all currently available options on the market.
• Chinese researchers made it feasible for individuals to emit radio waves with their minds, in a development that could have uses ranging from mind-controlled military radar to health monitoring.
• A report from CSET makes two recommendations for the US to preserve leadership in sophisticated chip production: prevent China from achieving its own capability to produce them and shore up the chipmaking supply chain. They also recommend the US develop a skilled work visa program for Taiwanese and Korean workers.
• An annual Quantum Readiness Survey found that 81% of executives anticipate quantum computing will play a key role in their business by 2030.
• Hackers have demonstrated a new risk to global trade with the ability to penetrate onboard maritime technology that is replacing old methods of steering, propulsion, navigation, and other key operations.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JUNE 24 2022

• A new study produced for CISA examines public sector versus private sector ownership of critical infrastructure sectors.
• DHS released the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Strategy along with CBP importer guidance.
• A New York Times investigation reveals China's expansive efforts to collect personal data from everday citizens.
• According to leaked audio from more than 80 internal TikTok meetings, China-based employees have repeatedly accessed nonpublic data about US TikTok users. The company stated a few days later that traffic for all US user data is now being routed through Oracle's cloud infrastructure. Critics say that is still not enough to protect US users' personal data.
• NASA and SpaceX will start testing strategies to prevent autonomous satellites from colliding with each other as part of the Agency's Starling mission.
• The Space Force is formally establishing the National Space Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, where it will be co-located with NASIC.
• China's planned Mars sample return mission is projected to deliver samples to Earth in 2031 - two years ahead of a joint NASA and ESA mission to do the same. Delivering Martian samples to Earth has long been regarded as a major scientific goal of space exploration.
• A new study shows electric vehicles could be charged on the go via a peer-to-peer system where cars can share charges while driving.
• A Chinese startup has hired a Japanese semiconductor heavyweight, signaling China's desire to gain a larger share of the global DRAM market, which is currently dominated by US and South Korean players. China's chip industry is growing faster than any other in the world, according to Bloomberg data showing that China's chip firms lead in annual sales growth over the past four quarters.
• A researcher published a paper encouraging the Chinese military to track, monitor, and possibly hack satellites in the Starlink network.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JUNE 17 2022

• America's Frontier Fund was announced this week as a new non-profit designed to enable a whole-of-nation approach to support critical technology that will secure US competitiveness. LookingGlass Chairman Gilman Louie, of In-Q-Tel fame will serve as the CEO.
• L3Harris could acquire the entity-listed Israeli firm NSO Group, notorious for its controversial Pegasus spyware that has reportedly been used to spy on government officials and other high profile figures around the world.
• Apple is working to get rid of passwords for good.
• A Chinese anti-satellite system has mastered deception in a simulated space battle.
• Between 2019 and 2021, venture capitalists invested ~$35B in biotech companies with advanced platform technologies that have the potential to transform the industry.
• MIT researchers believe frozen "space bubbles" could help mitigate climate change by preventing some of the sun's rays from reaching the Earth.
• Small businesses are more at risk to cyber targeting because they do not have cyber insurance and do not believe they are targets according to new research.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass has launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JUNE 10 2022

• Apple signed a deal for iPhone 14 memory chips with Yangtze Memory Technologies, a Chinese military-linked fab.
• ASML accused a Beijing-based firm of stealing its trade secrets. And, that firm is regarded by Chinese officials as one of the country's most promising tech ventures.
• Due to losses from ransomware coverage, brokers and cyber insurance carriers are tightening requirements for applicants to obtain policies.
• Some military buyers remain distrustful of commercial solutions as a replacement for government-developed systems, despite growing enthusiasm for new space internet services.
• A bipartisan pair of US senators presented a bill that would establish new rules for cryptocurrency and task oversight of the assets to Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
• China plans to launch a space solar power plant program in 2028, two years ahead of the original schedule.
• A surgeon successfully implanted an ear developed and 3D-printed in a lab, for the first time.
• Our parent company, LookingGlass launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.

Matrix Monitor for JUNE 3 2022

• Our parent company, LookingGlass launched a new Cyber Monitor which includes strategic insights from tactical cyber observers. Sign up for the LookingGlass Cyber Monitor here.
• General Nakasone, head of USCYBERCOM, confirmed for the first time that the US had "conducted a series of operations" in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
• China may have forced Gitee, the Chinese competitor to GitHub, to censor open source code in a move developers worry will obstruct innovation.
• The price of battery metals used in the production of EVs is expected to drop in the coming years.
• Researchers made a breakthrough by using quantum teleportation to exchange qubits between distant nodes that do not have a direct connection, paving the way for a quantum internet.
• The EU is preparing to cut Russia's largest lender, Sberbank, off the SWIFT exchange, as the bloc prepares a sixth package of sanctions.
• Chinese cybersecurity firm, Qi An Xin Technology Group, accused The NSA of a campaign targeting computers in 45 countries and regions, including China.
• CSET identified 14 "chokepoint technologies" which are dominated by companies based in the US and other like-minded democracies that are the most difficult for Chinese manufacturers to obtain over domestic versions they deem unreliable.

Matrix Monitor for May 27 2022

• Next5 highlights the key takeaways from The Cipher Brief's quarterly Cyber Initiatives Group Summit.
• CEO Bryan Ware led a workshop at the World Economic Forum to discuss cybersecurity in space, and co-authored an article to share the findings and solutions for leaders attending Davos.
• How blockchain is challenging China's censorship regime.
• John Deere is accelerating the movement towards autonomous farming with the acquisition of AI startup, Light.
• Satellite antennas are being 3D-printed in space with the help of sunlight.
• Chip manufacturer, Broadcom is in talks to buy CSP, VMware, which would triple the size of Broadcom's software segment.
• The Canadian government banned the use of Huawei and ZTE equipment in its 5G networks, becoming the final member of the Five Eyes to restrict the Chinese companies.
• MITRE has built a prototype framework for ICT supply chain risks, to debut at the 2022 RSAC in San Francisco.

Matrix Monitor for May 20 2022

• The NACD wrote a letter to the SEC with key considerations regarding whether or not boards should be required to disclose which members have cybersecurity expertise.
• Cyber insurers significantly increased premiums for cyber coverage over the course of 2021 - by 92% YoY according to an industry watchdog.
• Web3's alternative to exploiting users for data to make a profit can generate more value for both users and platforms.
• China has re-emerged as a bitcoin mining hub despite the country's complete ban on the practice a year ago.
• Scientists are growing plants from Earth with soil from the Moon.
• A growing number of Chinese chip design firms have adopted open source RISC-V in their chip designs as an alternative to Intel's proprietary X86 and Arm's architectures, in order to minimize the impact of US sanctions.

Matrix Monitor for May 13 2022

• Next5 has been acquired by LookingGlass, and Bryan Ware has been appointed to lead the company as CEO.
• China is using AI to turn a dam project into the world's largest 3D printer.
• Meta has teamed up with AMD on mobile infrastructure program to develop metaverse-ready RAN.
• Chinese tech companies are quietly pulling back from doing business in Russia under pressure from US sanctions, despite calls from Beijing for companies to resist.
• The US Treasury Department sanctioned a virtual currency mixer, citing that North Korea used it to help launder stolen virtual cryptocurrency.
• Costa Rica's new President Chaves declared a state of emergency due to ransomware.

Matrix Monitor for May 6 2022

• The SEC has begun questioning American companies about the financial impacts of sanctions on Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.
• A recent investigation highlights that Chinese state-owned railway company CRRC Corp is acquiring and investing in several sensitive defense technologies that supply US and allied militaries, and to date does not fall on the US list of organizations that support the Chinese Military Industrial Complex.
• The US and 55 other nations signed a political commitment to push rules for the internet shaped by democratic values.
• The Biden Administration will allocate more than $3B in infrastructure funding to finance electric vehicle battery manufacturing.
• The world's first airport for electric drones and flying cars  recently opened in the UK.
• A White House National Security Memo identifies the key steps needed to maintain US competitive advantage in quantum information science.
• An investigation reveals how military technology reaches Russia in violation of US export controls, highlighting the difficulty in tracking critical technology transportation.
• Operating under FISA authorities, the FBI searched emails, texts, and other electronic communications of 3.4M US residents without a warrant last year according to this year's annual ODNI transparency report, which included this data for the first time.

Matrix Monitor for april 29 2022

• Next5 leadership hosted a workshop at the World Economic Forum with international executives from WEF's Global Future Councils on Cybersecurity and Space. Findings from this session will be included in an article for ministerial level world leaders attending Davos next month, as well as the Forum's annual Global Risk and Cyber Risk Reports.
• The Union of Concerned Scientists compiled a Satellite Database of the more than 4,582 operational satellites currently in orbit around Earth.
• The head of machine learning at Lyft, Craig Martell, is joining the Pentagon to lead its new data and AI office - a post just established in December.
• Fort Worth, TX is becoming the first city government in the US to mine bitcoin.
• Chinese drone-maker DJI has suspended all business activities in Russia and Ukraine, becoming the first Chinese technology company to officially halt Russian business activities following its invasion.
• Honor - which was previously owned by Huawei - builds its products with parts made in the US, accounting for 40% of their manufacturing cost according to recent analysis.
• Energy companies face higher risk of cyber attacks than other industries according to an IBM report.
• According to Microsoft, Russian-affiliated hackers were planning cyberattacks against Ukraine as early as March 2021.

Matrix Monitor for april 22 2022

• A Five Eyes advisory warns that more Russian cyber activity is incoming as various cyber crime and cyber threat groups publicly pledged support for the Russian government in retaliation to sanctions.
• A third senior DoD official resigned from the USG saying the US risks losing its tech edge to China due to slow budgets and bureaucratic tendencies.
• The White House announced that the US will ban direct-assent ASAT missile tests that create orbital debris, and called on other countries to do the same.
• The Treasury Department has tied the North Korean hacking group Lazarus to the theft of more than $600M in cryptocurrency from a software bridge used for the popular Axie Infinity play-to-earn game.
• Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries plans to develop and commercialize nuclear reactors small enough to be delivered on trucks by the end of the next decade.
• Despite soaring prices, Chinese companies are continuing to invest in second-hand chip manufacturing machines, which are expected to account for 20% of global chip production capacity this year.
• Xi Jinping plans to invest in the city of Zhuzou as its newest tech hub in hopes of becoming the world's center of innovation over the next ten years.

Matrix Monitor for april 15 2022

• American sanctions against Russia over Ukraine are pushing the world to the brink of recession, and could potentially harm the value of the dollar according to some critics.
• China has developed a new cyber defense infrastructure that can automatically detect security flaws in orbiting satellites.
• Nokia is officially exiting the Russian market permanently.
• Graphite, a critical mineral used in EV batteries, could see a shortage in supply amid surging demand for EVs, which may delay the global drive to reduce the carbon footprint.
• Toyota subsidiary Woven Planet is following Tesla's lead in attempting to advance self-driving technology through the use of low-cost cameras, noting that testing autonomous vehicles with more expensive sensors like radars and lidars is expensive and not scalable.
• Huawei, which is already sanctioned by the US, is preparing to exit Russia by furloughing some local employees and suspending new contracts with operators.
• The USG warned that advanced hackers had demonstrated the ability to gain full system access to multiple ICS systems. And Ukrainian officials announced that it had successfully thwarted a cyber attack by Russian-backed hackers (attributed to Sandworm) aimed at disrupting the country's electrical grid.

Matrix Monitor for april 8 2022

• Putin's invasion of Ukraine is likely to accelerate innovation in climate, energy, and deep technologies.
• The FBI was granted court orders that allowed it to remove malicious code from privately held computers around the world, sometimes without the owners' consent.
• Lynk launched the world's first commercial cell-tower-in-space.
• Western made chips have been discovered in Russian technologies, including surveillance systems and drones currently being used in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, highlighting the difficulty companies face in tracing how their products are used.
• UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been accused of failing to conduct a promised security investigation into China's largest smartphone assembler Wingtech's controversial takeover of the country's largest semiconductor manufacturer.
• US and German officials announced that an international law enforcement effort shut down Hydra Market - the world's largest Darknet marketplace, seizing $25M in crypto.
• Mexican suppliers are gaining ground as manufacturers restructure their supply chains in the face of growing global disruptions.

Matrix Monitor for april 1 2022

• Though Nokia pulled out of Russia, it left behind a vast surveillance system used by the Kremlin to track communications of Russian oppositionists, further highlighting companies' inevitable role in geopolitics.
• US satellite communications provider Viasat has shared an incident report regarding the cyberattack that affected its KA-SAT consumer-oriented satellite broadband service on February 24 - the day Russia invaded Ukraine.
• Environmental groups launched a campaign seeking to change bitcoin's code to decrease its energy use, which has grown substantially in the past few years.
• TSMC and Samsung asked the US to allow foreign companies to participate in the CHIPS Act.
• China's Huawei said it is still evaluating its response to Western sanctions on Russia.
• Microsoft's new security chief issued a call to arms to build protection from hackers and criminals in the emerging metvaverse.
• Russia accused the US and NATO allies of leading a massive campaign of "cyber aggression" behind hundreds of thousands of malicious attacks per day - a claim the US has refuted.

Matrix Monitor for March 25, 2022

• Legal experts say SpaceX made Starlink a valid military target by offering additional services to Ukraine that are now enabling it to carry out lethal military functions.
• A Japanese tech startup says it can deliver physical pain to people in the metaverse.
• A new CSET report offers four ways that machine learning vulnerabilities differ from traditional cyber vulns.
• Much of the world's critical infrastructure is heavily dependent on space, which poses a security dilemma, especially by cyber threats.
• Ukraine accused China's largest drone maker, DJI, of enabling Russia to target Ukrainian drone pilots. While some Ukrainian access to the same technology has gone offline, DJI vehemently denies having anything to do with it.
• Chinese surveillance giant Hikvision plans to buy a second-hand lithography machine made by ASML for its in-house chip-making operations.
• Following the White House announcement this week regarding cyber risk to the Homeland, CISA's Shields Up page will be updated with Russian cyber TTPs, and all guidance as the threat and intelligence evolve. Now is the time for organizations to lower the threshold for reporting anomalous cyber activity or incidents. Reports can be submitted directly to CISA by emailing report@cisa.gov or calling 1-888-282-0870.

Matrix Monitor for March 18, 2022

• Chinese state officials strategically messaged this past week that Beijing views Taiwan differently than Ukraine.
• Russian prosecutors issued warnings to Western companies in Russia, threatening to arrest corporate leaders there who criticize the government or to size assets from companies that withdraw from the country.
• Western intelligence agencies are investigating a satellite internet disruption in Ukraine that occurred the day after Russia invaded Ukraine.
• Chinese companies are encountering difficulties obtaining cobalt in Congo, a mineral that has become critical to the global transition to cleaner energy.
• Following the withdrawal of the US from Afghanistan, China has moved to claim the country's vast mineral wealth, which is critical to the production of technologies, including components in EVs.
• OFAC clarified that US citizens and digital asset firms are required to comply with sanctions against Russia, even when facilitating transactions in cryptocurrency.

Matrix Monitor for March 11, 2022

• ODNI released its annual threat assessment calling out China as the top priority for the IC. Testimony from the nation's top intelligence chiefs highlighted concerns over the recent Russian invasion, indicating Putin has not met his military expectations and his interpretation of victory in Ukraine could change over time, given recent setbacks.
• Space continues to play a prominent role in the Ukraine conflict as Europe suffers an ongoing outage of Viasat services while Starlink quickly recovered from jamming activities via software updates.
• Researchers combined CRISPR technology with AI to regulate gene activity.
• A new EV from Alibaba will launch this month, joining a crowded market dominated by Tesla and Chinese firms Xpeng and Nio.
• Toshiba says, that while some chipmakers have downplayed the impact of disruption from Russia's invasion, the chip shortage will worsen due to ongoing supply chain constraints.
• Russia has officially surpassed Iran and North Korea to become the world's most sanctioned nation.
• Google acquired Mandiant for ~$5.4B to bolster its cloud unit with more cybersecurity services.
  

Matrix Monitor for FEBRUARY 25, 2022

• The West imposed significant sanctions namely on Russian banks in retaliation for military action in Ukraine. And the US is sharing intelligence and attributing malicious cyber activity at unprecedented, welcomed speed. Meanwhile, China walked back its support to Putin on Ukraine fearing risks of further worsening relations with Washington and access to US markets.
  
• The National Cyber Director called for an unprecedented level of collaboration between government and industry to meet the requirements of national security.
  
• Electic vehicles onboard a burning ship in the Atlantic complicated efforts to distinguish the fire since burning batteries cannot be put out with water alone.
• After China outlawed bitcoin mining, rural states of the US have become the new hub for mining, a move that experts say is likely to spur innovation in the underlying technology.
• Scientists are developing self-healing biodegradable, 3D-printed materials that sense strain, temperature, and humidity.
• Debris from the Russian ASAT weapon demonstration in November are creating surges of close approaches, in some cases, tens of thousands a week, with active satellites in LEO.
• JPMorgan Chase, Toshiba, and Ciena have demonstrated full viability of a first-of-its-kind Quantum Key Distribution network that is resistant to quantum computing attacks.
• China sanctioned US defense firms Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies for arms sales to Taiwan.
• The Biden Administration announced new investments in mineral production to address supply chain shortages.

Matrix Monitor for FEBRUARY 18, 2022

• The White House is warning the chip industry to diversify its supply chain in case Russia retaliates against threatened US export curbs by blocking access to key materials. Washington is also closely weighing whether and how Beijing might come to Moscow's aid to circumvent technology sanctions.
  
• SpaceX said it should be able to reach orbits at significantly lower costs.
• Intel announced plans to enter the crypto/blockchain market.
• French President Macron refused to take a Russian COVID test prior to his high profile visit with Putinto discuss Ukraine. His staff said he refused in order to prevent Russia from obtaining his DNA. German Chancellor Scholz also refused a Russia-administered COVID PCR test.
• Former chief of MI6, Sir Alex Younger, is pressuring the British government to keep Arm Holdings in the UK in order to compete with China and the US in key technologies.
• ASML, the world's leader in lithography - a vital step in chip production - accused a Chinese company of IP infringement. According to ASML, the company - "little giant" Dongfang Jingyuan Electron, is associated with failed company XTAL, which was found guilty of stealing ASML's IP in the US in 2013.

Matrix Monitor for FEBRUARY 11, 2022

• The White House added five new technology areas to its list of Critical Emerging Technologies to serve as a resource for future policy on US technological leadership.
  
• SpaceX lost 40 Starlink satellites it launched last week due to a geomagnetic storm, in the largest number of lost satellites knocked out by a single geomagnetic event ever.
  
• US telecom carriers have requested $5.6B in reimbursements form the government to rip and replace their existing Huawei or ZTE infrastructure.
  
• The US denied China's claim that Starlink satellites twice endangered its space station.
  
• Scientists believe mRNA could serve as the foundation for a new generation of vaccines - a technology the Chinese were originally reluctant to adopt but are now racing to develop domestically. Meanwhile, Moderna and GWU just administered the first doses of HIV vaccines in a clinical trial, leveraging mRNA technology.
• China is establishing a special organization that will facilitate collaboration between domestic firms and overseas semiconductor powerhouses like Intel, AMD, Infineon Technologies, and ASML.
• A WEF report explains how a cyber attack on critical energy infrastructure could have far-reaching consequences for business operations and the European economy.
  
• Russia arrested six people this week - all allegedly part of a hacking group involved in stealing and selling credit cards - in the third hacking group arrested by Russian authorities since the beginning of the year.
  
• Japan revealed that it is nearly twice as dependent on Chinese imports as the US making it highly vulnerable to supply-side limitations in China.
  

Matrix Monitor for FEBRUARY 4, 2022

• FBI Director Wray called the threat from China "more brazen, more damaging than ever before" in a speech this week, where he highlighted how the PRC & CCP leverage unfair practices like cyber theft to surpass the US technologically for strategic economic advantage.
  
• M&A in the game industry more than tripled in 2021, giving game makers additional ways to compete with each other as the metaverse comes to fruition.
  
• New research from CSET suggests that deep learning will soon face a slowdown in its ability to consume computing power.
  
• The FCC revoked China Unicom's authority to operate in the US, citing national security concerns within 60 days.
  
• The SEC approved the US' 17th stock exchange - a subsidiary of Boston-based BOX Exchange. Known as BSTX, the new exchange will incorporate blockchain technology.
  
• A highly anticipated lawsuit against Ripple Labs is challenging US financial laws that decide what is a security and whether or not existing laws can effectively regulate crypto.
• A CNAS wargame tests the dynamics of the US-China strategic semiconductor competition and Taiwan's role in it.
• The US House of Representatives is taking up a $52B bill aimed at improving competition with China and supporting the US semiconductor industry, known as the America COMPETES Act of 2022.
  
• Thanks in part to US sanctions, Apple has taken market share away from Huawei in China as it makes record smartphone sales rising to the #1 smartphone provider in the country.
  
• The WTO authorized China to impose retaliatory tariffs totaling $645M on US imports, after China complained about US tariffs on solar panels and other products produced in China with unfair subsidies to state-owned enterprises.
  

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 28, 2022

• Recent events in space highlight a new race is already underway. Next5 breaks down the strategic implications of these events and makes five recommendations for US policymakers to ensure we maintain US leadership in space in our latest article.
  
• In an op/ed Anthony Vinci and Nadia Schadlow argue the next generation Internet - Web3 - could shift the balance of power back to individuals in a victory for democracy amidst increasing competition with authoritarian states, if the US embraces it.
  
• A new report ranks the US first out of 160 nations in readiness to implement AI in public services delivery to citizens.
  
• A European watchdog warns that the EU faces economic and security risks unless member countries increase cooperation on 5G in a new report.
  
• Intel announced plans to construct a $20B massive chip manufacturing site in Ohio.
  
• In light of looming sanctions on Russia, US businesses - especially those in the energy sector - are urging the Biden Administration to allow companies to fulfill commitments and weigh exempting products as it crafts any sanctions, saying US businesses could suffer economic consequences, too.
• The EU launched a WTO case against China for "discriminatory trade practices" against Lithuania over its efforts to strengthen relations with Taipei.
  

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 21, 2022

• In response to recent malicious cyber activity in Ukraine, CISA released additional guidance this week to help organizations protect against "Potential Critical Threats" as the crisis evolves. US officials anticipate cyber attacks will continue to play a role in any potential invasion of Ukraine, which could have cascading or spillover effects worldwide.
  Next5 advises companies to review detection response plans now, as tensions rise, particularly those in industry sectors that are likely to be targeted or leveraged by US actions. If the US takes action that targets a specific industry, American companies in that industry should assume they are ripe targets for reciprocal Russian retaliation. For more information about Russian TTPs, detection, and mitigation procedures, read this joint guidance released by CISA, FBI, and NSA we featured last week. Those seeking further information are encouraged to set up a meeting with the Next5 team to discuss.
  
• Microsoft is buying video game heavyweight Activision Blizzard in an all cash deal for $75B, which is set to play a role in its towards the metaverse.
  
• According to a new CSIS report, the IC needs to change the way it defines intelligence and adopt cloud computing to stay ahead of adversaries, private interests, and the public.
  
• Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, and Amazon have become dominant users of undersea cable capacity by far.
  
• In an interim intelligence assessment, CIA says it has ruled out that Havana Syndrome is the result of a sustained global campaign by a hostile power aimed at hundreds of US officials, and still has not found the root cause of symptoms. Critics say the CIA did not consult with enough IC partners (to include the DoD) in making its assessment, and it was pretty loose about which symptoms qualified as possible cases - all but guaranteed to skew the data.
  
• Members of the Russia-based cyber ransomware group REvil, which was responsible for many significant ransomware attacks against US companies last year, have been reportedly arrested by the SVR.
• China sees supply chain decoupling from the US as one of the greatest risks to its security and power, according to a Chinese think tank and Chinese officials.
  

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 14, 2022

• Anticipating a Russian invasion into Ukraine, the US Senate (with White House backing) unveiled a bill with plans for sweeping sanctions. The US Government also anticipates cyber attacks will play a role in any invasion which could have cascading effects worldwide. CISA, FBI, & NSA jointly released guidance with Russian TTPs, detection, and mitigation procedures to help organizations prepare.
  Next5 advises companies to review detection response plans now, as tensions rise, particularly those in industry sectors that are likely to be targeted or leveraged by US actions. If the US takes action that targets a specific industry, American companies in that industry should assume they are ripe targets for reciprocal Russian retaliation. Those seeking further information are encouraged to set up a meeting with the Next5 team to discuss.
  
• SpaceX is drawing scrutiny over safety concerns after its satellites were involved in thousands of close encounters every week by the end of 2021.
  
• CSIS argues that the delay in rolling out 5G across the US is damaging strategic interests.
  
• A man received a genetically modified pig's heart in the first successful transplant of a pig heart into a human body.
  
• Chinese semiconductor startups failed to compete with prominent chip manufacturers due to lack of funding and experience.
  
• US sanctions have boosted mainland China's demand for Taiwanese chips, sending Taiwan exports to new highs.
  
• Chinese critical infrastructure and government organizations are routinely being compromised by Russian-speaking ransomware criminals, and China is uniquely positioned to counter ransomware for all.

Matrix Monitor for JANUARY 7, 2022

• Throughout 2021, Next5 convened 100+ executive experts in emerging technology and policy to discuss the future of innovation, business, and world power. Based on the insights we gleaned from them, we identified the top 5 trends to watch in this space going into 2022 and beyond, which you can read here.
  
• Chinese social media giant TikTok unseated Google as the most used search engine in the world.
• AT&T and Verizon agreed to delay their 5G rollout in the US at the request of Transportation Department leadership.
  
• Scientists believe that zero gravity conditions of outer space could be the key to advancing regenerative medicine and facilitating mass production of stem cells.
  
• John Deere unveiled the world's first autonomous tractor it hopes will be the future of precision agriculture.
  
• China is slated to fail on its commitments to the 2020 trade deal with the US, which expires today, but Biden's response - if retaliatory, could ultimately harm US businesses operating in China; and if too weak, could signal to Beijing that the new administration won't hold them accountable to similar terms in the future.
  
• Russian businessman Vladislav Kyushin, who is on trial in the US for fraud, could prove a treasure trove of intelligence on Russian interference in US elections. Even if he doesn't cooperate with US officials, his arrest in the Alps and extradition to the US signals that Russian criminals do not have freedom of movement outside the motherland.