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THE DAILY INDEX

Technology, AI, software, security, crypto and business

GENERAL

TLDR

MUSK TRIES TO LOCK IN HIS TESLA-SPACEX DREAM BEFORE TRUMP'S EXIT

Elon Musk is fully behind a combination of SpaceX and Tesla, his two most valuable companies. He is pushing to announce a deal by the first half of 2027 so it closes during the Trump administration. The timing will depend on when Tesla's board gets comfortable with the details - SpaceX shareholder approval is less of an obstacle, as Musk controls more than 80% of the voting power. Combining the companies before the end of this administration would consolidate Musk's corporate power before a potentially less accommodating political and financial environment takes hold.

TESLA STARTS OPTIMUS ROBOT PRODUCTION IN CALIFORNIA AS PROFIT FALLS 43%

Tesla has started production of its Optimus humanoid robot at its factory in Fremont, California. While the company admits there is still more work to be done before the robot is fully safe and reliable, it says it has proven that the current manufacturing process for Optimus is suitable for a commercial product. Elon Musk says Tesla will be able to make 20,000 units per week by the end of 2027. Tesla's profits fell 43% in the third quarter due to heavy investments in its Optimus robots, AI, and autonomous driving.

THE INTERNET IS HAVING A VERY BAD CYBERSECURITY DAY

AI has discovered critical security vulnerabilities in PHP, prompting the US National Security Agency to advise organizations using PHP to either update immediately or take their systems offline until they can. Node.js has released an update that fixes four high-severity vulnerabilities. LiteLLM was compromised by an attacker who injected malicious code. eMudhra, an Indian certificate authority, had its private keys compromised, potentially allowing attackers to issue fraudulent certificates and impersonate legitimate websites. These unrelated issues highlight the challenges cybersecurity teams now face.

HOW MARK ZUCKERBERG PUSHED META TO SHIELD HIM FROM CALIFORNIA'S PROPOSED WEALTH TAX

California's proposed tax on billionaires prompted Mark Zuckerberg to leverage the board at Meta to get the company to protect him from it. He issued an ultimatum to the board on September 9 that he would sell his home in Palo Alto, and the listing would be public, if a deal wasn't struck by September 13. The board decided to issue a new class of stock to shareholders that Zuckerberg could sell to pay the potential wealth tax without cutting into his 60.6% voting power. California's proposal would assess a one-time 5% tax on all holdings of billionaires who lived in California as of January 1, 2026.

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