 Chipmaker Intel announced on Tuesday plans to invest over $36B (€33B) in the EU. Intel will build two new chip factories in Madgeburg, Germany, with construction on the facilities expected to start in H1 2023. The locations will employ Intel’s most advanced chip-making technology to produce chips two nanometers or less in width. Production is slated for 2027. Intel will invest about $18.6B (€17B) in the German facilities, creating 7,000 construction jobs and 3,000 permanent jobs at Intel. More: - Germany plans to approve tens of billions of euros in state-backed aid to support the new facilities.
- The investment is part of Intel’s larger ambition to invest $87.5B (€80B) over the next 10 years in EU nations France, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Belgium, and Spain.
- Intel plans to make Saclay, a tech hub outside Paris, its European R&D headquarters, with 1,000 researchers focused on artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.
- The company is currently negotiating with the Italian government over a $5B (€4.5B) packaging plant in the country.
- Intel confirmed it would invest $13.1B (€12B) in an existing facility in Leixlip, Ireland, bringing its investments in Ireland to over $32.8B (€30B).
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Arm plans to lay off about 1,000 employees or 12% to 15% of its workforce. The U.K.-based tech company employs about 6,400 people globally, with about half of its workforce coming from the U.K. This comes weeks after the planned $40B acquisition of the company by Nvidia failed amid regulatory scrutiny. More: - Arm is owned by Japan’s SoftBank, which acquired the chip design company in 2016 for $32B.
- In Sept. 2020, SoftBank announced plans to sell Arm to Nvidia for $40B, but the deal was canceled in February following intense scrutiny from competition regulators in the U.S., EU, China, and the U.K.
- Arm licenses its chip architecture to many companies around the world, including Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft.
- Arm’s chip designs are also used by car manufacturers.
- SoftBank is now planning to take Arm public with a listing on New York’s Nasdaq stock exchange.
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 Chinese President Xi Jinping and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the 2016 G20 Summit | REUTERS/Damir Sagolj Saudi Arabia is in active talks with China to price some of its oil sales to China in yuan, China’s currency. According to people familiar with the matter, Saudi and China have been having these conversations on and off for six years. However, the talks have accelerated this year due to Saudi’s growing unhappiness with the U.S. over security commitments to defend the kingdom. More: - Saudi Arabia is also upset at the prospect of the U.S. striking a nuclear deal with Iran.
- The kingdom exports about 6.2 million barrels of crude oil a day, and China buys over 25% of its oil exports. If these purchases are made in yuan, it would boost the standing of China’s currency.
- Currently, about 80% of global oil sales are done in dollars. Saudi Arabia has traded exclusively in dollars since 1974 in a deal with President Nixon that included security guarantees for the kingdom.
- Saudi Arabia is also considering including yuan in future contracts in Aramco’s pricing model.
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Russia has two interest payments on its dollar bonds due on Wednesday. Following several sanctions imposed against the country following its invasion of Ukraine, there are growing concerns that the country might default on its $150B debt load. Prior to the invasion, Russia was considered one of the most creditworthy countries in the world. The country has not defaulted on its foreign debt since 1917. More: - Russia is scheduled to pay $117M in interest payments on two dollar bonds on Wednesday.
- The country has a standard 30-day grace period to make the payment, but if it doesn’t, it would constitute a default.
- Russia’s Finance minister Anton Siluanov said the country is ready to make the payment, but western sanctions against Russia’s central bank are making the process difficult and putting the country in an “artificial default.”
- Last week, the U.S. and its western allies cut Russia out of the SWIFT global banking system, a communication platform banks use for transfers, transactions, and trades.
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Aptos, a crypto startup founded by ex-Meta employees, closed a $200M “strategic” investment led by Andreessen Horowitz. The crypto startup did not disclose an exact valuation but claimed to be in unicorn territory, a term used for startups valued at $1B and above. Other investors in the round include Tiger Global, Katie Haun, 3 Arrows Captial, Silvergate Capital, Multicoin Capital, Coinbase Ventures, and FTX Ventures. More: - Aptos aims to build its own decentralized blockchain network called Layer 1 system.
- In addition to the funding, the company formally launched its “devnet” platform, which allows developers to experiment and build on Aptos’ blockchain.
- The company hopes to release its blockchain to the public in Q3.
- Aptos founders were the original creators, researchers, designers, and builders of Diem, the blockchain Facebook (Meta) had initially hoped to build before canceling the project last month.
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 Amazon Amazon on Tuesday launched its "AWS Cloud Quest: Cloud Practitioner" virtual game, a free cloud training tool. The game allows users to create their own avatars that move through a virtual city, solving cloud-related challenges and collecting gems. Users earn points for completing AWS simulations and puzzles that unlock items like pet companions, new character styles, city themes, and other virtual items. More: - The game was launched to help users new to the cloud understand AWS core services and categories like computing, storage, database, and security offerings.
- Amazon also offers other types of cloud training services, including certifications to help users.
In related news: - Amazon accused estranged Indian partner Future Group and Reliance Industries of fraud in newspaper ads in India.
- This is part of a bid to stop the two companies from completing a $3.4B merger deal. Amazon said the two companies did not comply with court orders and attempted to remove the substratum of the dispute.
- Amazon has invested over $6.5B in its India operations.
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- President Biden plans to visit Europe next week to meet with NATO and the EU for a summit on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
- Biden's nominee for Federal Reserve vice chair for supervision, Sarah Bloom Raskin, withdrew her candidacy on Tuesday. Raskin has faced bipartisan objections over her views on climate policy.
- On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate voted unanimously to make Daylight Saving Time permanent starting Nov. 2023. The legislation, called the Sunshine Protection Act, still needs to be passed in the House of Representatives before it can go to President Biden to sign. The bill would allow Arizona and Hawaii, which do not observe daylight saving time, to remain on standard time.
- Tesla has increased the prices of its EVs for the second time this month. The Model 3, its budget model EV, now starts at $46,990, a $2,000 increase. Its Model Y crossover SUV now starts at $62,990, also $2,000 higher. The Model X starts at $114,990, a $10,000 increase.
- Perlego, a London-based startup aiming to build the Spotify for textbooks, has raised $50M in a Series B funding round led by Mediahuis Ventures. The company was founded in 2017 and has 400,000 paying subscribers.
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 |  | Vanessa Omeokachie is a Researcher at Inside. Her interests include finance, tech, and startups. In her free time, she enjoys reading, hiking, attending music festivals, and traveling. Connect with her on Twitter @VanessaOmeo or through email at vanessa@inside.com |  | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 Ford. | |
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