Beyond the Hype: Assessing Hyperscaler Nuclear Commitments Against U.S. Energy Realities

John Pendleton and Mackenzie Schuessler | Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

As technology companies pursue aggressive AI buildouts, they are seeking innovative ways to meet their energy demands. Nuclear power has thus entered the conversation as one of the few energy sources capable of delivering the kind of firm, high-density electricity that data centers need while simultaneously allowing companies to maintain public climate commitments… This paper explores how large U.S. technology companies are approaching nuclear power in the context of their energy strategies to meet the escalating demands from AI.

US in talks to expand nuclear weapons deployments in Europe

Henry Foy and Amy Mackinnon | The Financial Times

The US is discussing whether to deploy nuclear weapons in additional European Nato states, in a move intended to reassure allies that reduced conventional military support does not weaken security guarantees… The talks, which are highly confidential and may not lead to any changes in nuclear-sharing arrangements, come amid widespread concern in Europe over Donald Trump’s moves to remove US troops and critical weapons systems from the continent.

Trump requests edits to Iran deal his envoys negotiated

Marc Caputo and Barak Ravid | Axios

President Trump asked for several amendments to the deal his envoys reached with their Iranian counterparts during a Situation Room meeting on Friday, according to a senior administration official and a second source briefed on the issue. Trump wants the deal and expects to finalize it soon, but is keen to strengthen several points that are important to him — particularly around Iran's nuclear material, two U.S. officials said. Trump's request has launched another round of back-and-forth between the parties that could last several days.

Iran’s reopened underground missile sites show limits of US bombing plan

Thomas Bordeaux and Tamara Qiblawi | CNN

For weeks, strikes by the United States and Israel restricted Iran’s access to its underground missile sites by destroying roads and burying tunnel entrances. But satellite images reviewed by CNN show how Iran has used simple equipment such as bulldozers and dump trucks to counter those costly campaigns — suggesting that Tehran’s missile capabilities can’t be destroyed just by targeting tunnel entrances, experts said.

South Korea, U.S. Begin Nuclear-Powered Submarine Negotiations

Kim Dong-ha | The Chosun Daily

Practical negotiations to implement security agreements reached during last year’s South Korea-U.S. summit, including South Korea’s introduction of a nuclear-powered submarine (SSN), began on the 2nd… Sources indicate that discussions focused on South Korea’s SSN construction, uranium enrichment, and securing rights to reprocess spent nuclear fuel.

Contriving Imaginary Gaps in Nuclear Deterrence

Jay Tilden | War on the Rocks

In a practice that is unique among the nuclear powers, many American officials are strangely unabashed in voicing their anxieties about the nation’s weak spots in potential nuclear crises… Confessionals of U.S. apprehension, beyond drawing attention to the very infirmities they are meant to redress, may nourish adversary beliefs about U.S. decision-making that are both incorrect and deeply damaging to America’s bargaining position in a crisis.