🌊 It's Nuclear Time

Tough look for Millennials.

We saw a couple damning stats for Millennials this week: The first was that 42% of people in line to meet Buzz Lightyear at Disney theme parks last year were adults without kids. The second was that 44% of adult US diners admitted to ordering kids’ meals for themselves at restaurants. Big oof.

Well, on the bright side, at least we’re not starting adult sleep-away summer camps to make friends! D’oh!

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

Google Brings Nuclear to Tennessee

Google partnered with Kairos Power to build the first advanced nuclear reactor in the US

• Technology companies face mounting pressure to meet skyrocketing energy demands from AI and data centers while reducing carbon emissions

• The Tennessee Valley Authority became the first US utility to sign an agreement for electricity from a Generation IV reactor – an advanced nuclear technology designed for enhanced safety, efficiency, and waste reduction – when it partnered with Google and California-based Kairos Power on Monday

• The deal involves a 50-megawatt small modular reactor to be built in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with operations expected to begin by 2030. The project represents the initial phase of a larger 500-megawatt agreement Google signed with Kairos for multiple reactors

Dig Deeper 

• Kairos’ Hermes 2 reactor design uses molten fluoride salt for cooling and received approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, making it the only advanced reactor cleared for construction

• The Department of Energy invested approximately $300M in the project as part of federal efforts to accelerate nuclear technology development

• The agreement follows a wave of nuclear deals across the technology sector, with Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft all securing partnerships with nuclear companies to power their energy-intensive operations

KEY STORY

Trump-Intel Deal

The Trump Administration is considering a move that would make it Intel’s largest shareholder

• Chip companies are generally split into chip designers (like Nvidia) and chip manufacturers (like Taiwan’s TSMC). Intel once led at both; however, it has fallen behind in the last decade. Still, it remains the US’ leading chip manufacturer, making it a potentially vital strategic asset

• The 2022 CHIPS and Science Act granted over $10B in grants to Intel; however, the funds haven’t yet been disbursed. The Trump Administration is now looking at converting the grants into Intel stock, a move that would equate to giving the US government 10% of the company and make it Intel’s largest shareholder

Dig Deeper

• A deal with Intel would be the latest effort by the US government to insert itself into strategically important industries

• It recently took a so-called “golden share” in US Steel, granting American politicians veto power over major government decisions, and became the largest shareholder in a company that mines rare-earth minerals

KEY STORY

Pediatrics Breakaway

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) diverged from federal health guidelines and recommended Covid vaccinations for children

• In May, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. announced the CDC would no longer recommend Covid vaccines for healthy children, leaving vaccination decisions to parents and physicians

• On Tuesday, the AAP announced it strongly recommended Covid shots for infants and toddlers between 6 months and 2 years old, marking the first substantial divergence from federal recommendations in 30 years

• The AAP said children ages 6 months to 2 years faced the highest Covid risk, especially those unexposed during the pandemic

Dig Deeper 

• RFK Jr.’s new vaccine panel, which replaced the previous 17-member committee with a smaller, more heterodox group, had not yet voted on Covid recommendations

• The panel endorsed flu vaccines but only in single-dose packages without thimerosal – another AAP disagreement, as the pediatric group saw no evidence of harm from the preservative

• The academy also warned that vaccines lacking CDC recommendations might lose insurance coverage and federal program funding

QUOTE OF THE DAY

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KEY STORY

US to Protect Ukraine?

Details emerged about potential US security guarantees for Ukraine

• Pres. Trump met Pres. Putin on Friday, then Pres. Zelensky and EU leaders on Monday. A major topic was the security guarantees the EU and US would provide for Ukraine if it agrees to stop fighting

• On Tuesday, Trump said that the US could play a role “by air” but ruled out putting troops on the ground in Ukraine. He told Fox News, “When it comes to security, [the Europeans are] willing to put people on the ground…We’re willing to help them with things, especially, probably talk about by air, because there’s nobody [who has the] kind of stuff we have”

• Russia has explicitly demanded that there be no Western troops in Ukraine

Dig Deeper

• Trump is currently trying to put together a three-way meeting between Zelensky, Putin, and himself

• The current deal put forward by Putin would have Ukraine surrender its eastern Donbas region, which Russia first invaded in 2014 and is roughly the size of West Virginia, in exchange for an end to fighting elsewhere. The Donbas area is largely occupied by Russian troops, but contains strategically vital territory for Ukraine and the most fortified part of the frontline

• Ukraine, by contrast, has demanded an immediate ceasefire, after which peace talks would proceed

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

🪖 Hamas has reportedly accepted a new ceasefire proposal for Gaza that would establish a 60-day truce and involve the release of approximately half of the 50 remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners

💲 Newsmax has agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $67M to settle a defamation lawsuit over claims that the voting company rigged the 2020 presidential election

📈 On Monday, President Trump expanded steel and aluminum tariffs to cover over 400 additional consumer products, including motorcycles, auto parts, tableware, and baby seats

🚇 The US Department of Transportation threatened to withhold up to 25% of federal transit funding from New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) due to ongoing safety risks for track maintenance workers

⚖️ The House Oversight Committee announced plans to publicly release Jeffrey Epstein-related documents after obtaining them from the Department of Justice

What does Roca Nation think?

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Reply to this email with your response!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

⚖️ Better Call Claude: An Australian lawyer has been referred to regulators after using AI to prepare court documents that included four completely fake case citations

🐖 Smurf and Turf: California hunters are discovering wild pigs with bright neon blue flesh and fat, prompting health warnings from wildlife officials

🧠 AI-zheimer's Competition: Bill Gates announced funding $1M for an AI competition to find new treatments for Alzheimer's disease using AI

🦐 Crustacean-137: The FDA issued a warning to consumers not to eat certain Great Value frozen shrimp from Walmart due to possible contamination with radioactive Cesium-137

📊 Labubu-llionaire: Chinese toy company Pop Mart reported a staggering 396.5% surge in first-half net profit, driven by global obsession with its “ugly-cute” Labubu dolls

ROCA WRAP
Phased Voting

Myanmar

This Southeast Asian nation will hold its first general election in nearly five years, starting December 28.

Myanmar is a Southeast Asian country that has experienced significant political upheaval since military leaders took control in February 2021, overthrowing and imprisoning the democratically elected Aung San Suu Kyi. The country has since been affected by an ongoing conflict between military forces and various armed opposition groups. Now, nearly five years since its last national vote, authorities have announced new elections.

Myanmar's Union Election Commission announced that the initial phase of general elections will begin on December 28, with subsequent phases scheduled for December and January, citing security concerns as the reason for the phased approach. Fifty-five political parties have registered to participate, with nine planning to compete nationwide. Six additional parties reportedly remain under review for approval and registration.

The elections will proceed without several major opposition groups, including Aung San Suu Kyi’s former National League for Democracy, which won decisive victories in previous elections but has since been dissolved. Many opposition groups have either been barred from participation or have chosen not to take part. Military authorities plan to hold voting in over 300 constituencies nationwide, including areas currently controlled by armed groups that oppose the government. 

Western governments have expressed skepticism about the electoral process. Critics argue the elections will primarily feature parties aligned with the military. The generals have maintained that their 2021 takeover was necessary due to alleged fraud in the previous election, though election monitors found no evidence of irregularities. For a country where ballot boxes have been harder to find than battle zones, Myanmar’s return to elections may prove easier to announce than to actually hold.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Max T was HQ2 scouting for Roca yesterday but was devastated to see the remote alligator-infested plot in the Everglades was already taken. Oh well… next stop is that small island off the coast of San Francisco. The location is amazing.

Thank you all for reading Roca. Have a great day!

–Max and Max