New Zealand enters its official election day .
New Zealand voters went to the polls on November 7th for the official general election day, following nearly two weeks of early voting. Polling stations across the country were open from 9 am to 7 pm (local time, which is 3 am to 1 pm on the same day in Vietnam).
According to the New Zealand Electoral Commission, as of November 5th, more than 1.66 million out of nearly 3.8 million eligible voters had cast their ballots early, not including overseas voters. Voters will elect constituency representatives and choose their party; the party or coalition that wins more than half of the seats in Parliament will have the right to form a government.
On election day, New Zealand imposes strict restrictions on activities that could influence voter choices. Publishing poll results, advertising campaigns, conducting polling station surveys, or posting campaign content can result in fines of up to NZD 20,000 (approximately USD 11,000).
Preliminary results are expected to be updated gradually after 7 PM on the same day, and the official results will be announced on November 27th.
Prince Harry and Elton John are appealing their Daily Mail lawsuit .
Prince Harry, singer Elton John, and four other plaintiffs have filed an appeal with the UK Court of Appeal against rulings in their lawsuit against Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Daily Mail.
The lawyers representing the plaintiffs said the appeal seeks a review of the London High Court’s July ruling dismissing their privacy infringement claims, and that the subsequent ruling risks incurring further legal costs.
The original lawsuit involved seven plaintiffs: Prince Harry, singer Elton John, actress Elizabeth Hurley, David Furnish, Sadie Frost, Doreen Lawrence, and Simon Hughes. This group alleged that individuals working for Associated Newspapers publications hired private investigators to illegally gather information between 1993 and 2011. The six new plaintiffs argue that the aforementioned rulings are flawed both legally and factually.
Previously, the London High Court concluded that the plaintiffs had failed to prove the allegations. The Court of Appeal has not yet decided whether to accept the appeal.
Open AI raises $11 billion, valued at $1.25 trillion .
OpenAI, the American technology company that developed the ChatGPT application, has raised $11 billion in the first part of its latest funding round.
According to sources familiar with the matter, as cited by Reuters, the deal values OpenAI at $1.25 trillion. The two investors revealed that OpenAI had previously aimed for a valuation of $1.5 trillion before lowering it to its current level.
Japanese conglomerate SoftBank and Abu Dhabi-based technology investment firm MGX are among the participants in this funding round. Bloomberg was the first news outlet to report on the deal.
OpenAI’s large-scale fundraising comes at a time when investors are more cautious about artificial intelligence businesses. The costs of acquiring chips, developing models, and building data centers are rising rapidly, while the profitability prospects of the entire industry are being closely monitored.
A section of a four-story building collapsed in Brazil , injuring four people.
On the evening of November 6th local time, a section of a four-story commercial building in the Brás district of downtown São Paulo ( Brazil ) collapsed, injuring four people.
Firefighters said there were 35 people in the building when the incident occurred, and all were evacuated. Four people were injured and taken to the hospital; their condition is currently stable.
According to initial information from the São Paulo state authorities, approximately 20 people were initially trapped in a room unaffected by the structural collapse. Images from the scene show the building’s facade intact, while much of the rear has collapsed.
The building is located on Maria Joaquina Street in the Brás district, an area with many retail shops. Civil defense forces and police have cordoned off the area and are assessing the risk to nearby structures. The cause of the collapse has not yet been announced.
HA TRANG
