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Trump hails 'amazing' meeting with China's President Xi

admin - Latest News - October 30, 2025
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Trump hails ‘amazing’ meeting with China’s President Xi



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Oct. 30, 2025, 5:00 AM EDTBy Rob Wile and Jared PerloSome of the largest companies in America have begun capping or reducing their head counts, blaming the promise of productivity with artificial intelligence for their decisions.Yet, so far, there is uneven evidence that the promised cost-savings from AI are actually worth what companies are putting into it. This leaves some experts questioning whether AI could be serving as a fig leaf for companies that are laying off employees for old-fashioned reasons, such as financial underperformance or global economic uncertainty.“It’s much easier for a company to say, ‘We are laying workers off because we’re realizing AI-related efficiencies’ than to say ‘We’re laying people off because we’re not that profitable or bloated, or facing a slowing economic environment, etc,’” David Autor, a professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, wrote in an email to NBC News.“Whether or not AI were the reason, you’d be wise to attribute the credit/blame to AI,” wrote Autor, an expert on AI’s impact on workers.Amazon joins other large companies in justifying recent job cuts by pointing to AI.David Ryder / Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThis week, Amazon announced it had begun a reorganization that would result in the elimination of 14,000 roles — and said AI was a leading cause. “The world is changing quickly,” Amazon Senior Vice President Beth Galetti wrote Tuesday. “This generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the Internet, and it’s enabling companies to innovate much faster than ever before.”Yet a few hours later, a different Amazon representative tried to downplay the role that AI played in the layoff decisions.“AI is not the reason behind the vast majority of reductions,” said the representative, who requested anonymity because she was not authorized to give her name. “Last year, we set out to strengthen our culture and teams by reducing layers,” among other measures, she said. “The reductions we’re sharing today are a continuation of this work.” The representative declined to comment on the apparent mismatch between this second statement about AI and Amazon’s earlier comments.But that disparity — coming from a company as large and disciplined as Amazon — highlights how difficult it can be for the public to verify what companies say about AI and its role in personnel decisions.AI’s elusive returnsAmazon joins plenty of other companies in justifying recent job cuts by pointing to AI.Walmart recently signaled that it intends to keep headcount flat over the next several years, largely as a result of AI. Goldman Sachs announced a fresh round of layoffs this month, saying it planned to reduce human roles that AI could potentially perform.Salesforce recently reduced its workforce by 4,000, citing “the benefits and efficiencies” of AI. One might think that these companies were all seeing huge benefits from AI, the kind of returns that would make these difficult — and expensive — layoffs worthwhile. Indeed, the number of companies that report being focused on AI’s return on investment has surged in recent months, according to data from AlphaSense, an AI research firm.So where, exactly, are all these benefits? That’s where it gets tricky.Recent studies have found significant limits on the productivity of AI, at least in its current manifestation. Out of 1,250 firms surveyed by Boston Consulting Group for a September report, 60% said they had seen “minimal revenue and cost gains despite substantial investment” in AI. Only 10% of the organizations involved in a similar Deloitte survey said they were getting “significant return on investment from agentic AI,” or systems that can make decisions beyond simply following prompts.Nonetheless, more large American companies than ever are using, investing in and measuring the business impact of generative AI, according to a new report from UPenn’s Wharton School and GBK Collective. But like the other surveys, the Wharton report shows mixed results. “It’s great if you can shave 20 minutes off an email or half an hour reading a report. But that’s not going to leapfrog anything,” said Stefano Puntoni, faculty co-director of Human-AI Research at Wharton and an author of the study.More large U.S. companies than ever are using, investing in and measuring the impact of AI.Chona Kasinger / Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPerformance issues? Many of the same companies that are making layoff announcements while touting AI investments have also been under increased financial pressure. Amazon’s layoffs announcement comes ahead of its third quarter earnings results, set to be released Thursday. While analysts expect improvement, there is growing concern about increased competition for Amazon’s AWS cloud platform from AI. After hitting an all-time high in January, shares of Amazon have been largely flat this year and are about 6% below that record.Meanwhile, Salesforce shares are down about 29% from a December 2024 high. Some analysts have questioned whether implementing more AI will be enough to stave off the threat posed by AI to Salesforce’s core product lineup.“No matter what the current state of the company, the narrative is negative and just about impossible to disprove,” wrote Jackson Ader, an analyst with KeyBanc Capital financial group.Some of the companies enacting job cuts are simply looking to rein in spending — including firms at the core of the AI boom. Last week, Facebook-parent Meta announced it was cutting 600 roles in its AI unit over concerns that it had become “bloated.” Rival Microsoft has announced three separate rounds of layoffs this year, and says it is looking to cut costs elsewhere in the company in order to pay for its massive AI investments. Yet even firms far from Silicon Valley are getting swept up. UPS said Tuesday it had eliminated 34,000 roles from its operational division, which includes drivers and package handlers — a 70% increase from its previous target. UPS also plans to reduce its reliance on seasonal hires and significantly cut back on vehicle leases. These changes are “powered by automation,” the company said — corporate shorthand for AI. UPS is “freeing up our network to grow in the best parts of the market,” a spokesperson said. “AI and robotics help to make jobs safer, while also reducing repetitive tasks.”Rob WileRob Wile is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist covering breaking business stories for NBCNews.com.Jared PerloJared Perlo is a writer and reporter at NBC News covering AI. He is currently supported by the Tarbell Center for AI Journalism.
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Nov. 8, 2025, 6:00 AM EST / Updated Nov. 8, 2025, 6:07 AM ESTBy Erik OrtizWithin days of her arrival at a Texas prison camp in early August, Ghislaine Maxwell gushed in emails to her friends and family over the cleanliness and safety of her new surroundings.“The institution is run in an orderly fashion which makes for a safer more comfortable environment for all people concerned, inmates and guards alike,” wrote Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for recruiting minors to be sexually abused by her longtime confidant, the wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein.Maxwell’s unexpected move to the all-women’s Federal Prison Camp Bryan, which houses inmates convicted of nonviolent offenses and white-collar crimes in dormitory-style quarters, drew immediate condemnation from current and former federal Bureau of Prisons employees. They said it was very unusual for prisoners with sex offenses on their records to be incarcerated in such an unconstrained setting, indicating Maxwell was receiving preferential treatment.For more on this story, watch NBC’s “Nightly News” tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CTMaxwell, 63, had been in a low-security federal correctional institution in Tallahassee, Florida, following her conviction in December 2021 on federal sex trafficking charges. FCI Tallahassee is more restrictive than a camp like FPC Bryan, where inmates have access to work programs, recreation and other activities and are often serving shorter sentences. Maxwell was moved days after meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche in July.Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Bryan, Texas, houses about 635 prisoners.Brandon Bell / Getty ImagesNBC News has reviewed emails Maxwell sent during her first few months at FPC Bryan, which were obtained by the House Judiciary Committee. The emails describe Maxwell’s relief at being in a calmer facility without violence, where staff was polite and the food was better. “My situation is improved by being at Bryan,” she wrote in one email. “The kitchen looks clean too — no possums falling from the celling to fry unfortunately on ovens, and become mingled with the food being served,” she wrote in another, complaining about her previous prison.Maxwell also praised prison camp warden Tanisha Hall, whom Maxwell called a “true professional.”“I feel like I have dropped through Alice in Wonderlands looking glass,” Maxwell wrote to a relative, adding, “I am much much happier here and more importantly safe.”#embed-20251107-maxwell-email-1 iframe {width: 1px;min-width: 100%}The emails were shared with the House Judiciary Committee after the top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, wrote a letter to Hall on Oct. 30 asking about Maxwell’s perceived “VIP treatment.” The letter cited a Wall Street Journal report last month describing special accommodations for Maxwell’s visitors and other perks, such as meals sent to her dormitory room, late-night workouts and her ability to shower after other inmates were already in bed for the night.Raskin’s inquiry raised other accusations made by inmates to the Journal that they have been threatened with retaliation if they speak about Maxwell to the media. At least one inmate who spoke with the Journal was transferred out of FPC Bryan after speaking about Maxwell, the newspaper reported.“While prison officials may limit inmates’ First Amendment rights to preserve security and order, you have provided no such justification for why prison security requires a ‘Ghislaine Maxwell’ gag order,” Raskin wrote, asking Hall to respond to his inquiry by Nov. 13, provide documentation and coordinate a visit for his staff to speak with inmates about their experiences.The warden faces a similar inquiry and deadline from Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.The emails provided to NBC News and the House Judiciary Committee included messages from several inmates who expressed fear that they would be moved to higher-security facilities for mentioning Maxwell in phone calls or emails and said they believe she is receiving more care and attention than the typical prisoner. “They are even delivering her meals to her and NO inmates is allowed to prepare her meals,” one said.Hall, who began her career as a correctional officer at FPC Bryan in 1994 and has been its warden since 2023, did not respond to requests for comment. The Justice Department, which oversees the BOP, declined to comment.David Oscar Markus, a lawyer for Maxwell, said in response to NBC News’ request for comment about the congressional inquiries and the contents of her emails that “there’s nothing journalistic about publishing a prisoner’s private emails, including ones with her lawyers.”“That’s tabloid behavior, not responsible reporting,” Markus said in a statement. “Anyone still interested in that kind of gossip reveals far more about themselves than about Ghislaine. It’s time to get over the fact that she is in a safer facility. We should want that for everyone.”Ian Maxwell, Maxwell’s brother, said in an email to NBC News that messages between him and his sister are “personal and private by their very nature.”If those emails were sent to Congress and a reporter, he added, “then they were stolen and leaked without authorisation and represent a breach of intellectual property rights and the fundamental right of all citizens to privacy.”Maxwell’s emails indicate she’s able to access the warden for help, including arranging visits and communicating with her lawyers. In an email Maxwell sent to one of her attorneys in September, she noted that she spoke with the warden when she had a problem receiving documents by a deadline in her appeal before the Supreme Court.“Her creative solution was that you EM/scan it to her and she will scan back my changes!” Maxwell wrote, referring to her lawyer emailing the warden. “Of course that is fantastic as it saves days and days.”#embed-20251107-maxwell-email-0 iframe {width: 1px;min-width: 100%}Patrick McLain, a Dallas criminal defense attorney who has represented women at FPC Bryan, said it would be unusual for any warden to get involved with inmates’ cases and that “no way” would he expect Hall to give his clients at FPC Bryan the same personal attention as Maxwell described in the emails.“That’s a rare occurrence,” McLain said. “It would be like the head of a large corporation of a manufacturing plant regularly having contact with people on the assembly line.”FPC Bryan, located in a residential neighborhood and ringed with razor wire, houses about 635 prisoners.In other emails, Maxwell, a socialite and the daughter of a British media mogul, voiced her continued frustration with the media and “people selling rubbish stories and making money from their lies.”In October, when Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison on two counts of transporting former girlfriends for prostitution, Maxwell was paying attention, writing in an email: “What an intersting sentence for Diddy! Hmm.”Maxwell has been a central figure in the Epstein saga that has morphed into a major and ongoing political dispute.The guilty verdict in Maxwell’s sex abuse trial is read in a New York City courtroom on Dec. 29, 2021.Jane Rosenberg / ReutersEpstein died by suicide in a New York City jail in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. While President Donald Trump initially said he supports full disclosure of investigative files in Epstein’s case, his administration has said it would not release all of the documents, prompting outcry from Democrats, some Republicans and parts of the president’s own base who have fueled conspiracy theories and pushed unfounded narratives surrounding Epstein’s death.The intrigue around Epstein only grew when Blanche met with Maxwell in July for nine hours over two days in a federal courthouse in Tallahassee. The details of their discussion were not immediately made public, but in the days that followed, Maxwell was moved from her Florida prison to FPC Bryan.The Justice Department in late August released transcripts from Maxwell’s meeting with Blanche, in which she said she never witnessed any inappropriate conduct by Trump or any other prominent figures in Epstein’s orbit. Trump, whose name appeared in the unsealed records as a friend of Epstein’s before they had a falling out, has not been accused by authorities of any wrongdoing.Markus, Maxwell’s attorney, has previously said that she is “innocent and never should have been tried, much less convicted, in this case.”In October, the Supreme Court declined to hear Maxwell’s appeal of her criminal conviction, leaving presidential clemency as her best shot at being freed before her projected 2037 release date.Following the Supreme Court’s decision, Trump told reporters that he would speak with the Justice Department and “would have to take a look” at whether he would consider a pardon.Maxwell’s arrival at FPC Bryan — a camp described by employees as being lax with security — led prison officials to ramp up protective measures, including patrol cars and surveillance cameras along the perimeter. Members of the BOP’s Special Operations Response Team, who are highly trained on disturbances and security breaches at federal prisons, arrived to check IDs at the front entrance.A BOP official attributed the enhanced security to Maxwell’s presence, but could not say whether there had been any direct threats to her, other inmates or FPC Bryan itself.Maxwell’s transfer also rankled some community members, who questioned why she was selected to come to Bryan, given her conviction on a sex offense.“We want a better prison system for all, but why is she being shown privilege when there are other people who are trying and putting in the work, and they don’t get to be moved here?” asked Raequel Rogers, a co-organizer of the Brazos Valley Community Coalition, a grassroots group that demonstrated in front of FPC Bryan in August. “It’s brought a lot of attention to our town that we haven’t consented for. We don’t want a child sex trafficker here.”The BOP’s policy indicates Maxwell should be ineligible for incarceration at a minimum-security prison camp because she is a convicted sex offender. Sex offenders must be in at least a low-security prison, as Maxwell was in Tallahassee, unless a waiver is granted by the administrator of the BOP’s Designation and Sentence Computation Center.McLain, the Dallas defense attorney, said one of his clients, Julie Howell, was transferred out of FPC Bryan after she was quoted in a news article saying inmates were angry about Maxwell’s placement among them. McLain said Howell was vocal because she has helped law enforcement find sex traffickers. Maxwell’s arrival also disrupted the other inmates’ routines, McLain said.“It’s made their lives all topsy-turvy,” he said.Howell was initially transferred from FPC Bryan to a detention center in Houston. But on Friday, McLain said, he learned Howell had finally been moved to a halfway house to complete her sentence.It was a silver lining after what happened to her in Bryan, McLain added: “Fortunately, the system is not totally rife with corruption.”Erik OrtizErik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality.
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