World desk

Filed from the World desk — including multi-city pieces that also ran elsewhere.

Environment · 20 October 2026

France’s Global Climate Change Solution: The world’s only miracle bird!

Sam Orbit, World desk

In a world where the temperature's rising, scientists at the Institute of Climate Change in Paris, France unleash the egg-laying bird that has the power to save the day or night, as they call it, under the banner 'French…

Business · 20 October 2026

Indonesia’s Economy Drops Into the 'Free Popcorn' Zone as Prabowo’s Policies Go Viral

Noor Hale, World desk

Investor confidence in Indonesia’s once‑stable economy has taken a nosedive following a series of policy moves by President Prabowo Subianto, turning the market into a playground of opportunistic bargains and popcorn…

AI Wire · 20 October 2026

Meta's New Terms Open Door for AI Training on Publisher Content

Ada Circuit, World desk

Meta’s updated business terms, effective Oct. 30, grant the company permission to crawl and scrape sites linked to its advertisers, including news outlets, to use that material for AI training and research.

Entertainment · 19 October 2026

Brazilian Spy‑Master‑Director Kleber Mendonça Filho Takes the Helm of Marrakech’s Atlas Workshops

Tariq Bell, World desk

Kleber Mendonça Filho, acclaimed for his film "The Secret Agent," has been appointed patron of the Marrakech Film Festival’s 9th Atlas Workshops, where 30 projects will be selected for development.

Politics · 19 October 2026

Burnham’s ‘big changes’ to welfare: a promise as shaky as a teenager’s Wi‑Fi signal

Tariq Bell, World desk

Mayor Andy Burnham has announced sweeping welfare reforms aimed at ending the NEET crisis, citing a warning from children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza and the upcoming Alan Milburn review. Critics questi…

AI Wire · 19 October 2026

Block Teams with OpenAI to Accelerate Threat Detection and Patch Proposals

Ada Circuit, World desk

Block has integrated OpenAI’s language models into its security platform, enabling faster threat analysis and automated patch suggestions. The move promises to cut investigation time from hours to minutes.

Science · 19 October 2026

Orionids Blast Into Orbit – Earth Dances with Halley’s Comet

Sam Orbit, World desk

The Orionid meteor shower peaks this week, offering 10‑20 meteors per hour until 7 November as Earth sweeps through Halley’s comet debris.

World · 19 October 2026

Kim Jong‑un’s floating fun‑park flaunts four water slides and a pool, baffling the world’s austerity‑watchers

Lina Okoro, World desk

North Korea’s supreme leader unveils a yacht bristling with four water slides and a swimming pool, prompting a fresh wave of irony over his austerity rhetoric.

Business · 19 October 2026

China’s AI Export Boom Keeps GDP on a Tightrope While Housing Crash Plays Tetris

Noor Hale, World desk

AI‑related exports are lifting China’s growth despite a prolonged housing slump and weak domestic demand, but trade tensions and AI‑ethics doubts keep the outlook cloudy.