Key Facts (Sept 8–9, 2025 Tech Roundup)

• Apple iPhone Event Preview: Analysts say Apple’s Sept. 9 iPhone launch could be low-key, but a rumored ultra-thin “iPhone Air” may spur a wave of upgrades reuters.com reuters.com.
• SpaceX’s $17B Spectrum Buy: SpaceX is acquiring wireless spectrum licenses from EchoStar for $17 billion to turbocharge its Starlink satellite-to-cell service, aiming to eliminate mobile dead zones globally reuters.com reuters.com.
• Intel Shake-Up: Intel announced a major executive reshuffle on Sept. 8 – longtime products chief Michelle Johnston Holthaus will exit after 30+ years, as new CEO Lip-Bu Tan streamlines the struggling chipmaker’s leadership and operations reuters.com reuters.com.
• Dell CFO Resigns: Dell Technologies said CFO Yvonne McGill is resigning on Sept. 9 after nearly three decades at the company; Dell reaffirmed its forecasts and noted her departure was “not the result of any disagreements” with the company reuters.com reuters.com.
• Discord & Google Meet Outages: Both Discord and Google Meet experienced major service disruptions on Sept. 8, affecting tens of thousands of users. Service was restored the same day after the companies rolled back recent changes (a caching tweak caused Google’s issue) reuters.com reuters.com.
• U.S. Bars Chinese Test Labs: The FCC began moves to ban Chinese government-owned labs from testing electronics for U.S. use, citing security concerns. “Foreign adversary governments should not own… the labs that test the devices” for the U.S. market, said FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr reuters.com reuters.com.
• China Fines Dior on Data Leak: Chinese authorities accused Dior’s Shanghai branch of illegally transferring customer data to France without proper security checks, leading to a May leak. Regulators imposed an administrative penalty for the data law violations reuters.com reuters.com.
• Meta VR Safety Scandal: Four whistleblowers claim Meta suppressed internal research on the risks of its VR headsets to children, even deleting evidence of a 10-year-old being solicited in VR. Meta denies a cover-up, calling the examples “stitched together to fit a… false narrative” techcrunch.com techcrunch.com.
• Robotics Unicorn IPO: China’s Unitree Robotics – famed for viral videos of its humanoid robots – is planning an onshore IPO at up to a $7 billion valuation, sources say. The startup’s agile walking robots have drawn global buzz as China pours billions into robotics and semiconductors reuters.com reuters.com.
• Polestar 5 EV Debut: Polestar unveiled its new Polestar 5 electric GT car at the Munich IAA auto show. The sleek flagship is priced around €119,900 – nearly double its predecessor – and will not launch in the U.S. or China initially due to tariffs over 100% on China-built cars reuters.com reuters.com.
• Cybersecurity IPO Revival: Cloud-security firm Netskope filed for a U.S. IPO, seeking up to a $6.5 billion valuation amid renewed investor appetite for tech listings reuters.com reuters.com. Netskope plans to raise ~$813 million as businesses invest in AI-driven cyber defenses reuters.com.
• Quantum Leap via SPAC: Infleqtion, a quantum computing startup, will go public by merging with Michael Klein’s Churchill Capital Corp X SPAC at a $1.8 billion valuation reuters.com reuters.com. The deal would infuse $540 million to accelerate Infleqtion’s quantum tech for AI, defense, and space applications reuters.com.
• FDA OKs Pig Kidney Trial: In biotech news, the FDA approved the first human trials of gene-edited pig kidney transplants. U.S. firm eGenesis will transplant pig kidneys into 30 dialysis patients, tackling the “bottleneck in finding enough human organs”, said Dr. Leonardo Riella of Mass General cbsnews.com cbsnews.com.

Apple’s iPhone Event May Lack Sparkle – Except for a Slim “iPhone Air” (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com
Summary: On the eve of Apple’s fall product launch, analysts tempered expectations for any groundbreaking iPhone features, noting Apple’s rivals have leapfrogged in AI features reuters.com. However, speculation is running high about a new “iPhone Air” – an ultralight, slimmer iPhone model inspired by the MacBook Air’s ethos reuters.com. This model would mark the first significant form-factor change in years, potentially drawing in upgraders bored by incremental updates. Apple would face engineering challenges (fitting batteries and cameras into a thinner frame) and will likely slot the iPhone Air’s price between the standard iPhone 17 and Pro lines reuters.com. Analysts say a sleek Air model could reignite consumer excitement. “It’s been a while since we’ve seen any meaningful update to the form factor… the novelty of the Air will likely induce many iPhone 14, 15 and even 16 users to migrate up,” said Dipanjan Chatterjee, a VP at Forrester Research reuters.com. Aside from the Air, Apple is expected to announce modest camera and chip upgrades for the iPhone 17 series, and possibly new Apple Watch models, as it contends with competition embedding AI smarts into devices reuters.com reuters.com.

SpaceX Buys EchoStar Spectrum in $17 Billion Deal to Boost Starlink (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com
Summary: SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space venture, announced it will purchase wireless spectrum licenses from satellite operator EchoStar for about $17 billion reuters.com. This massive deal will give SpaceX exclusive rights to critical airwaves for its nascent Starlink Direct-to-Cell service – essentially turning Starlink satellites into cell towers from space. With dedicated spectrum, SpaceX plans to launch upgraded satellites equipped with laser links, expanding network capacity “more than 100 times” for mobile connectivity reuters.com. The move is aimed at finally ending mobile dead zones worldwide, enabling ordinary cell phones to connect via satellite in areas without ground coverage reuters.com. “With exclusive spectrum, SpaceX will develop next-generation Starlink Direct-to-Cell satellites… a step change in performance to enhance coverage for customers wherever they are in the world,” said Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX’s president and COO reuters.com. As part of the deal, EchoStar’s Boost Mobile customers will gain access to Starlink’s satellite cell service reuters.com. The announcement sent EchoStar shares soaring ~19%, while terrestrial mobile carriers’ stocks dipped on looming satellite competition reuters.com. U.S. regulators (FCC) have encouraged such spectrum moves to bolster rural connectivity reuters.com, and SpaceX’s step comes amid surging mobile data use (Americans used a record 132 trillion MB in 2024) reuters.com. The spectrum buy cements SpaceX’s entry into telecom, blurring lines between space tech and mobile networks.

Intel Shake-Up: Longtime Product Chief Exits as New CEO Restructures (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com
Summary: Intel Corp. unveiled a sweeping executive shake-up, highlighting the uphill battle faced by new CEO Lip-Bu Tan in turning around the storied chipmaker reuters.com. The most notable change is the exit of Michelle Johnston Holthaus, Intel’s Products and Engineering Chief, who is retiring after 31 years at the company. Holthaus had even served briefly as co-CEO after Pat Gelsinger’s ouster last year reuters.com. She’ll remain as an advisor for a few months, ensuring a smooth handover. The leadership overhaul aligns with Tan’s strategy to “flatten” Intel’s management structure and streamline operations reuters.com. Reuters previously reported Tan aims to have all major chip divisions report directly to him while cutting layers of management reuters.com. As part of the reorg, Intel hired Kevork Kechichian – a veteran of Arm, NXP, and Qualcomm – as EVP to lead the Data Center group reuters.com. Intel is also creating a new central engineering unit under SVP Srinivasan Iyengar, tasked with building custom silicon solutions for external clients reuters.com. Meanwhile, Foundry chief Naga Chandrasekaran will expand his role to oversee Intel’s contract chip fabrication services reuters.com. These moves come as Intel struggles with slumping sales and fierce competition; CEO Tan’s message is that bold internal changes are needed to restore Intel’s innovative edge reuters.com reuters.com. Investors and analysts will be watching whether the shake-up can speed up product timelines and help Intel catch up in key areas like foundry services and AI accelerators.

Dell’s CFO Resigns After 30 Years; Company Reaffirms Outlook (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Dell Technologies announced that its Chief Financial Officer Yvonne McGill will step down on Sept. 9, capping a 30-year career at the PC and server giant reuters.com. Dell named 27-year company veteran David Kennedy as interim CFO. McGill will stay on as an adviser until Oct. 31 to assist with the transition reuters.com. The company took the unusual step of clarifying the reason for her departure: “McGill’s decision to resign… is not the result of any disagreements with the company on any matter relating to financial statements or practices,” Dell said in a statement reuters.com. This reassurance suggests a personal decision rather than any accounting issues. Dell also reaffirmed its financial forecasts for the current quarter and full year, which it had issued in late August reuters.com. The news came after market close on Sept. 8; Dell’s stock dipped ~1.8% in after-hours trading reuters.com. McGill had overseen Dell’s finances through a volatile period of post-pandemic PC slumps and supply chain challenges. Her exit adds to recent leadership churn in the tech hardware sector (Intel also announced a key exec departure the same day reuters.com). Investors appear confident in Dell’s succession plan and guidance stability, as the company continues navigating a gradual recovery in enterprise IT spending.

Major Tech Outages: Discord & Google Meet Back After Disruption (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8–9, 2025 · Sources: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Two widely used communication platforms – Discord and Google Meet – suffered significant outages on Sept. 8, disrupting work and conversations for thousands of users before services were restored. Discord, a popular chat app, went down for over 100,000 users in the U.S. on Monday evening reuters.com. Users reported connection failures and messages not loading. By around 7:50 p.m. ET, the outage had largely eased, with only ~1,300 users still reporting issues (down from a peak of 102k reports via Downdetector) reuters.com. Discord’s status page later confirmed “all systems operational” once the issue was resolved reuters.com. Separately, Google Meet experienced a disruption on Monday afternoon that left people unable to join video meetings reuters.com. Google identified the root cause as a “recent change in content edge cache” that slowed the Meet interface reuters.com. The company quickly rolled back that configuration change to fix the problem reuters.com. At its peak, around 16,000 incident reports were logged, mostly in the U.S., before dropping below 600 after the fix reuters.com. Google’s status dashboard noted the issue was fully resolved by day’s end. These back-to-back outages – in social and enterprise tech – underscored users’ reliance on cloud services and prompted both companies to apologize. No cyberattack was reported; instead, the incidents were chalked up to technical glitches from recent updates. Both Discord and Google have since put in safeguards to prevent similar disruptions as remote communication tools remain mission-critical.

U.S. Moves to Bar Chinese Labs from Certifying Electronics (Sept 9, 2025)

Date: September 9, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: In a step with broad tech supply chain implications, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) launched proceedings to ban several China-based laboratories from testing and certifying electronics destined for the U.S. market reuters.com. The FCC on Monday cited national security risks in targeting seven testing labs owned or controlled by the Chinese government reuters.com. These labs currently conduct safety and compliance tests on devices like smartphones, computers, and cameras to meet FCC standards before U.S. sale. The regulator noted that roughly 75% of electronics certified for U.S. use are tested in labs located in China reuters.com. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr argued this poses unacceptable risks: “Foreign adversary governments should not own and control the labs that test the devices the FCC certifies as safe for the U.S. market,” Carr said reuters.com. In May, the FCC had finalized rules to stop recognition of China-based labs deemed security threats reuters.com. Since then, four Chinese labs have already lost U.S. accreditation, and the FCC now aims to revoke recognition of seven more reuters.com. The targeted labs include institutes tied to China’s state agencies (e.g. China Academy of Information and Communications Technology) reuters.com. The Chinese Embassy in Washington criticized the move as America “over-stretching the concept of national security” in trade reuters.com. If the FCC formalizes the ban, U.S.-bound tech products will have to use non-Chinese labs for testing, potentially shifting business to labs in other countries and raising compliance costs for device makers. The action is the latest in a series of U.S. tech decoupling measures amid strategic tensions with China.

China Penalizes Dior’s Shanghai Store for Illegal Data Transfers (Sept 9, 2025)

Date: September 9, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Christian Dior’s Shanghai branch has been hit with regulatory penalties in China after authorities found it improperly sent Chinese consumers’ personal data to its Paris headquarters, resulting in a data leak reuters.com. On Sept. 9, Shanghai’s public security bureau stated that Dior’s local unit violated China’s stringent data export rules by transferring customer information abroad without required security assessments reuters.com. Dior also failed to encrypt the data or notify users, the authorities said reuters.com. These lapses led to a leak in May 2025, though officials did not disclose the leak’s scope. Under China’s Personal Information Protection Law and related cybersecurity laws, companies must get government clearance for exporting personal data and must safeguard it rigorously. Shanghai police confirmed they imposed an administrative penalty on Dior’s branch (specific fines were not detailed) reuters.com. Dior did not immediately comment on the incident reuters.com. The case highlights China’s aggressive enforcement of data localization – even foreign luxury brands are not exempt. In recent years China has fined multiple firms, domestic and foreign, for mishandling user data. This enforcement comes amid wider Chinese efforts to control data flows leaving the country, especially after high-profile breaches. Multinationals operating in China are now on notice to review their data compliance, as authorities signal zero tolerance for unauthorized overseas data transfers that could jeopardize consumer privacy or national security.

Meta Allegedly Hid VR Risks to Kids; Whistleblowers Spur Scrutiny (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Sources: Washington Post via TechCrunch techcrunch.com techcrunch.com
Summary: A brewing scandal at Meta (Facebook’s parent) suggests the company knew about – and downplayed – serious safety issues for children in its virtual reality platforms. On Sept. 8, The Washington Post reported that four Meta whistleblowers (two current and two former employees) have turned over documents to Congress alleging Meta suppressed research on kids’ safety in VR techcrunch.com. According to their claims, Meta’s leadership, stung by the 2021 Frances Haugen leaks about Instagram’s harm to teens, instituted policies making it harder to study “sensitive” topics like minors, possibly to avoid negative findings techcrunch.com. Researchers were allegedly told to involve Meta’s lawyers (to shield findings under attorney-client privilege) or to obscure language in reports (avoiding terms like “illegal” or “non-compliant”) techcrunch.com. In one disturbing account, Meta VR researcher Jason Sattizahn says his boss made him delete recordings of a test user interview where a 13-year-old boy described his 10-year-old brother being sexually propositioned in Meta’s Horizon Worlds VR app techcrunch.com. Instead of treating it as a moderation red flag, the incident was buried. The whistleblowers contend Meta discouraged internal discussion of under-13 users on its VR services (despite official age limits) techcrunch.com. Meta flatly rejects the accusations. “These few examples are being stitched together to fit a predetermined and false narrative,” a Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch, noting that since 2022 Meta has approved nearly 180 Reality Labs studies on issues including youth safety techcrunch.com. Meta insists it prioritizes child safety and compliance with privacy laws (e.g., deleting any data on users under 13) techcrunch.com. U.S. lawmakers are taking interest – this revelation comes just as Congress debates tighter regulation for kids’ online experiences. If verified, the claims could prompt investigations or hearings about Meta’s handling of VR dangers, echoing the scrutiny it faced over Instagram. The episode underscores the balancing act for Big Tech: pushing into the metaverse while keeping it safe for its youngest users – and being transparent about the challenges.

Chinese Robotics Firm Unitree Eyes $7 Billion IPO After Robot Demos Go Viral (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Unitree Robotics, a Hangzhou-based robotics startup known for its dog-like and humanoid robots, is preparing for a major IPO in China that could value the company at up to 50 billion yuan ($7 billion) reuters.com. According to sources cited by Reuters, Unitree aims to file listing documents in Q4 2025 for an offering on China’s capital markets reuters.com reuters.com. If successful, it would mark one of China’s highest-profile tech IPOs in recent years, reflecting Beijing’s push to develop domestic champions in advanced tech amid U.S. rivalry. Unitree burst onto the global scene last year when videos of its robots – which can walk, climb stairs, carry loads, and even dance – went viral, drawing comparisons to U.S.-based Boston Dynamics reuters.com. The company’s founder, Wang Xingxing, was among a select group of tech CEOs (including an AI startup chief) invited to meet President Xi Jinping in February, signaling government support for homegrown robotics reuters.com. China’s government is investing heavily in robotics and AI as the country faces an aging population and tech self-reliance goals reuters.com. Unitree has ridden that wave of investment and enthusiasm. The planned IPO would provide fresh capital for R&D and mass production, as Unitree competes in a fast-growing market for service robots and agile mobile robots. So far, no timeline or exchange (Shanghai or Shenzhen) has been finalized publicly reuters.com. But the company’s recent post on social media (X) confirmed it is “actively advancing” IPO preparations reuters.com. If Unitree does go public at a $7B valuation, it would underscore investor confidence in robotics as one of the next big industries – and give global investors a rare chance to bet on China’s robotics rise, assuming foreign access via the Stock Connect or other channels.

Polestar 5 Electric GT Unveiled in Munich, Skips U.S./China Launch (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Polestar, the Swedish electric performance car brand spun out of Volvo, took the wraps off its latest EV flagship – the Polestar 5 Grand Tourer – at the IAA Mobility auto show in Munich on Sept. 8 reuters.com. The sleek four-door GT boasts high-end performance and luxury appointments, but also a startling price: it will start around €119,900 in Europe (roughly $141,000) reuters.com. That’s nearly double the base price of the Polestar 4 SUV (€61,900) reuters.com, reflecting the Polestar 5’s positioning as a low-volume halo car for the brand. In an unusual twist, Polestar announced the initial rollout will exclude the United States, China, Canada, and South Korea reuters.com reuters.com. The company said it won’t sell the Polestar 5 in those markets at launch, despite the U.S. and China being among Polestar’s largest markets reuters.com reuters.com. The issue is geopolitics and production location: the Polestar 5 will be built in Chongqing, China, and the U.S. currently imposes tariffs exceeding 100% on Chinese-made autos reuters.com. Rather than price the car exorbitantly in the U.S. or build it elsewhere, Polestar is focusing on Europe (and possibly certain other regions) first. This reflects how trade wars are shaping EV availability. The Polestar 5 itself is a head-turner: derived from the 2020 Precept concept, it features dual electric motors and an estimated 670 km (416 miles) of range in the standard version (565 km for the performance variant) reuters.com. It’s built on an aluminum-intensive platform for lighter weight and sharp handling. The reveal came amid a broader Munich show trend of automakers debuting more affordable EVs due to a European EV sales slowdown and price war reuters.com. Polestar bucked that by going high-end; however, Polestar acknowledged this model is not intended to be a volume seller reuters.com. With Polestar 5’s launch, the company’s lineup now spans from the compact Polestar 2 to this luxury GT. Polestar has delayed a planned Polestar 6 roadster to prioritize an upcoming Polestar 7 SUV for 2028 reuters.com. The Polestar 5’s success will be a bellwether for the brand’s upscale ambitions – and a test of whether affluent European EV buyers will embrace a newcomer in Porsche’s territory.

Netskope Files for IPO, Targeting $6.5 Billion Valuation Amid Cyber Boom (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Netskope, a Silicon Valley cybersecurity firm specializing in cloud data protection, disclosed plans for an initial public offering in the U.S. and is seeking a valuation of up to $6.5 billion reuters.com. According to its Sept. 8 regulatory filing, Netskope will offer ~47.8 million shares at an expected price range of $15–$17 each, aiming to raise roughly $813 million in proceeds reuters.com. The IPO would be one of the largest in the cybersecurity sector in recent years. Founded in 2012, Netskope provides a Security Service Edge (SSE) platform that helps companies monitor and secure data across cloud applications, remote devices, and the web reuters.com. Its services have grown in demand as more businesses adopt cloud and hybrid work models, which expand the potential attack surface for hackers. Investor appetite for tech IPOs has been rebounding after a dry spell: U.S. listings picked up in late summer 2025 following signs of easing market volatility reuters.com. Netskope’s timing aligns with that resurgence, and it follows other tech firms launching IPO roadshows this month (ticket marketplace StubHub started its IPO pitch aiming for $851 million reuters.com). Analysts say Netskope and its peers have benefited from high-profile cyberattacks driving companies to boost security spending. Netskope reported strong growth (exact financials haven’t been detailed publicly yet) and competes with larger rivals like Palo Alto Networks and Zscaler in the cloud security arena reuters.com. Notably, Netskope’s marketing highlights AI-enhanced threat detection, though its core focus is safeguarding cloud data (the AI mention taps into investor enthusiasm without being the company’s primary domain) reuters.com reuters.com. If Netskope’s IPO is successful, it could pave the way for other cybersecurity firms in the pipeline and signal confidence that public markets are again open to high-growth tech companies, especially in the critical infrastructure of cybersecurity.

Quantum Computing Startup Infleqtion Going Public via $1.8 Billion SPAC Deal (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Infleqtion, a Colorado-based quantum computing firm formerly known as ColdQuanta, announced it will go public through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in a deal valuing the combined entity at $1.8 billion reuters.com. The SPAC, Churchill Capital Corp X (headed by dealmaker Michael Klein), will provide Infleqtion with up to $540 million in capital (before expenses), including a private investment from institutional backers like Maverick Capital and Morgan Stanley’s Counterpoint Global reuters.com. Infleqtion builds quantum computers and ultra-precise quantum sensors, and it plans to use the influx of funds to accelerate product development and broaden use-cases for its tech in areas such as AI, cybersecurity, and space systems reuters.com. CEO Matthew Kinsella told Reuters the transaction is expected to close by late 2025 or early 2026 reuters.com. The company will list on a North American exchange under the ticker “INFQ” reuters.com. This deal comes amid a flurry of activity in the quantum tech space, which has seen rising investor interest due to breakthroughs in quantum computing power. Notably, Infleqtion’s move via a SPAC bypasses the traditional IPO route – a strategy more startups are re-embracing as market conditions improve. It also signifies one of the larger valuations for a pure-play quantum company heading to the public market. Infleqtion has around 185 employees and has raised $283 million to date in venture funding reuters.com. Its technology originated at CU Boulder and NIST, focusing on cold-atom quantum systems. As part of the SPAC process, Infleqtion will have to demonstrate its revenue prospects in a field that is still largely R&D; the hefty valuation will test investor appetite for longer-horizon “deep tech” plays. If successful, Infleqtion’s public debut could mark a milestone for the quantum computing industry, providing a benchmark for peers and potentially catalyzing more capital into the sector.

FDA Approves First Human Trial of Gene-Edited Pig Kidney Transplants (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Sources: CBS News / AP cbsnews.com cbsnews.com
Summary: In a groundbreaking biotech development, U.S. regulators have given the green light to clinical trials that will transplant gene-edited pig kidneys into human patients – a major step toward alleviating organ shortages. On Sept. 8, doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital announced that the FDA has approved a trial by biotech company eGenesis to perform pig-to-human kidney xenotransplantations cbsnews.com. The trial will enroll 30 patients, all over age 50, who are on dialysis and the transplant waiting list cbsnews.com. Each patient will receive a kidney from a pig genetically modified to reduce the risk of immune rejection. “Right now we have a bottleneck in finding enough human organs,” said Dr. Leonardo Riella, a Mass General transplant specialist co-leading the study cbsnews.com. Over 100,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for organ transplants (most need kidneys), and thousands die each year before a donor is found cbsnews.com. Scientists hope xenotransplantation could eventually supply an unlimited source of organs. The FDA’s decision was fueled by encouraging results from experimental cases: earlier this year, one man lived 7 months with a pig kidney (a record) and another patient is three months post-transplant and doing well cbsnews.com cbsnews.com. The eGenesis pigs have undergone extensive gene edits – inactivating pig viruses and altering proteins – to make their organs more human-like scrippsnews.com cbsnews.com. The upcoming trial will closely monitor how the pig kidneys function long-term and any signs of rejection or complications. Another U.S. company, United Therapeutics, is also set to begin a similar FDA-approved pig organ trial soon cbsnews.com. If these trials prove safe and effective, it could revolutionize transplantation. Experts caution it’s still early: prior pig heart transplants in 2022 had mixed outcomes, and one pig kidney in Alabama functioned 130 days before rejection cbsnews.com. But even gaining patients an extra year off dialysis “would be a huge advantage,” Dr. Riella noted cbsnews.com. The fact that regulators are now authorizing formal trials signals a new era – moving xenotransplantation from one-off surgeries into rigorously studied therapy, a leap that could eventually save countless lives if successful.

Nasdaq Seeks to Trade Tokenized Stocks as Crypto, Wall Street Converge (Sept 8, 2025)

Date: September 8, 2025 · Source: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com
Summary: Nasdaq Inc. is making a bold push to bring blockchain technology into mainstream finance. The exchange operator filed a proposal on Sept. 8 with the U.S. SEC to allow trading of tokenized securities – essentially digital tokens representing shares of stock or ETFs – on its U.S. exchange reuters.com. If approved, this would be the first time a major U.S. stock market trades tokenized assets, marking a historic blending of crypto infrastructure with traditional equities reuters.com. Nasdaq’s plan is to permit listed stocks and exchange-traded products to trade in “either traditional digital or tokenized form” on its platform reuters.com. Trades in tokenized form would use blockchain for settlement, potentially enabling near-instantaneous clearing and around-the-clock trading. The move comes as regulators hint at warming to crypto innovations: just days earlier, the SEC added exploring crypto trading rules to its agenda reuters.com. Industry proponents argue that tokenization can increase liquidity and efficiency in markets reuters.com. Investor demand for tokenized assets is rising globally, Nasdaq noted, with some big banks already experimenting in this space reuters.com. (For instance, Swiss and Singapore exchanges have launched limited tokenized bond or fund offerings.) In the U.S., Coinbase has also sought permission to offer tokenized stocks reuters.com. Nasdaq’s initiative aligns with an easing regulatory stance under the pro-crypto policies of the current administration reuters.com. Still, the SEC will review the proposal closely to ensure investor protections. If greenlit, Nasdaq could steal a march on rival NYSE by attracting crypto-savvy companies and traders. In a parallel development, Hong Kong’s HashKey exchange just launched a $500 million digital asset fund to tokenize treasuries reuters.com, showing the global race is on. Nasdaq’s embrace of tokenization signals that far from being adversaries, Wall Street and crypto might be poised for a significant convergence – potentially reinventing how securities are issued and traded in the years ahead.

Sources: The information above is compiled from Reuters, TechCrunch, The Washington Post, CBS/AP, and other reputable outlets reporting on Sept. 8–9, 2025. All quotations and data points are cited inline.