Disney is partnering with TikTok to bring fan-created videos directly into the Disney+ app, as streaming platforms increasingly compete with social media for audience attention.

The initiative will launch as a pilot programme in the United States over the coming months before expanding to additional markets.

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Under the agreement, TikTok videos featuring Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and other franchises will appear in “Verts,” Disney+’s short-form video feed introduced earlier this year. The partnership expands the platform’s library of short-form content while giving fan creators greater visibility within Disney’s streaming ecosystem.

Creators Become Part Of Disney’s Strategy

The collaboration also marks the launch of the Disney Creator Ambassador Program, which will give selected TikTok creators access to Disney’s content library, exclusive events, rewards and career opportunities.

The move reflects Disney’s growing focus on the creator economy after earlier plans to expand short-form content through a three-year licensing agreement with OpenAI. That initiative, which included a reported $1 billion investment tied to Sora, was abandoned after OpenAI shut down the video-generation platform in March.

Other streaming services, including Tubi and Peacock, have also partnered with TikTok creators to develop original content, highlighting a broader shift toward integrating social media talent into streaming platforms.

Strong Streaming Results

The announcement coincides with Disney’s third-quarter earnings. The company reported that operating income from its subscription video-on-demand business more than doubled to $712 million, up from $329 million a year earlier.

Disney also announced a restructuring of its operations, moving its consumer products business from the Experiences division to Studios.

French infrastructure investment firm Meridiam has acquired a majority stake in the Great Sea Interconnector, taking over control of the project from Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (Admie).

The deal places Meridiam, which manages infrastructure assets worth around €19.9 billion, at the helm of the project linking the electricity grids of Cyprus, Greece and Israel. Former Cypriot Energy Minister George Papanastasiou welcomed the move, saying the involvement of a financially strong investor could improve the project’s prospects and support efforts by Cyprus and Greece to secure financing from the European Investment Bank.

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“It is very good news. This is a fund which is viable joining a project which was looking for financiers,” Papanastasiou said.

Fresh Momentum For A Delayed Project

Admie took over the project in October 2023 after replacing Cyprus-based EuroAsia Interconnector Ltd. Progress has been slower than expected, although Nexans completed an underwater cable trial earlier this year.

The European Commission has backed the interconnector as a strategic project that would end Cyprus’ energy isolation, strengthen grid stability and help lower electricity prices. Brussels has already allocated €658 million in grant funding.

Funding Challenges Persist

Despite that support, the project has faced financial and political setbacks. Cyprus withheld previously agreed annual €25 million payments to Admie, citing limited progress and disagreements over the financing model.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office is also investigating the allocation of EU grants following allegations that a politically exposed person influenced the funding process. Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis has denied any wrongdoing.

Meridiam’s entry as the controlling shareholder is expected to strengthen investor confidence as the project seeks additional financing and moves toward implementation.

The University of Cyprus is creating three temporary parking areas on its campus, adding 890 spaces in an effort to address a longstanding parking shortage affecting students’ daily routines.

New Parking Areas To Ease Campus Congestion

Parking has been one of the university’s main day-to-day challenges for years, with students often arriving well in advance to secure a space. Poorly organised parking areas have also contributed to traffic congestion during peak hours and, in some cases, damage to vehicles.

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According to Philenews, the project will cover three locations across the campus. One parking area will be created between the Library and the Senate building, another between Teaching Space 2 (ΧΩΔ 2) and the Sports Centre, while the third will be located east of the Sports Centre entrance, near the sports facilities. The latter has not previously been accessible to students and will now be adapted for parking.

Work To Be Completed By September

The €250,000 project, funded through the university’s budget, will include compacted gravel surfacing to create smoother and more functional parking areas, as well as drainage works designed to reduce mud, dust and uneven ground.

Two of the three parking areas are expected to be completed before the start of the new academic year, with the remaining site scheduled for completion by the end of September.

Although the spaces are intended as a temporary solution, they are expected to remain in use for at least two years, as any future redevelopment of the sites would require a planning process of similar length.

Permanent Parking Plans Also Underway

In the longer term, the university may repurpose the sites for new buildings or green and recreational spaces. It said future construction work is not expected to significantly affect student parking, as projects will not be carried out simultaneously across all three locations.

The university is also moving forward with plans to create 110 permanent parking spaces, with a tender expected to be issued in September. In addition, the existing 140 parking spaces are set to be reinforced, covered and equipped with solar panels.

Robinhood is preparing to launch a publicly traded fund that will allow retail investors to gain exposure to startups backed by Y Combinator, one of Silicon Valley’s best-known startup accelerators.

Fund Targets Y Combinator Companies

Robinhood Venture Fund II (RVII) is expected to begin trading on August 13 at an opening price of $25 per share. According to Reuters, the fund aims to raise up to $200 million, which will be used to acquire shares in startups founded by current and former Y Combinator participants, provided those companies agree to sell their equity.

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Although anyone will be able to buy shares in the fund, investors will not own stakes in the startups directly. Instead, they will hold shares in the fund itself, which can be traded publicly, while returns will depend on the fund’s overall performance.

Fee Structure Mirrors Venture Capital

RVII will follow the traditional venture capital fee model, paying a management fee and carried interest to another Robinhood-owned entity.

The company said the management fee and other charges will total just over 4% of net returns, while the Robinhood unit will also receive 20% carried interest if the fund generates profits through successful startup exits.

Unlike most venture capital funds, which typically distribute profits and wind down after about 10 years, RVII does not appear to have a fixed end date or a commitment to regular cash distributions. Instead, investors may primarily benefit through increases in the fund’s share price.

Previous Fund Shows Both Upside And Risk

Robinhood Venture Fund I, which invests in private companies including Databricks, Mercor and OpenAI, has generally traded above its IPO price of $21. However, its performance has also highlighted the risks. After climbing above $56 per share in May, the fund has since fallen to around $28.

Robinhood has previously faced criticism over investment products linked to private companies. In 2025, it launched crypto tokens described as tokenised shares of OpenAI and SpaceX, prompting OpenAI to state that it was not involved and that the tokens did not represent ownership in the company.

Unlike those products, RVII will purchase actual shares in private companies, making it more comparable to a special purpose investment vehicle than to the tokenised assets launched in 2025.

Disney posted mixed quarterly results on Wednesday, far surpassing Wall Street expectations for earnings while slightly missing revenue estimates, with its parks and streaming businesses once again driving the company’s performance.

Parks Continue To Drive Growth

Revenue from Disney’s Experiences segment, which includes global theme parks and cruises, rose 10% year over year to $9.97 billion, despite macroeconomic uncertainty that continues to weigh on consumers.

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“Domestically we’re doing extremely well right now,” CFO Hugh Johnston told CNBC, noting that attendance at U.S. parks increased 3%, while per capita spending rose 4%. He also highlighted strong attendance at Walt Disney World in Orlando.

By comparison, Comcast’s NBCUniversal recently reported lower attendance at its Orlando theme parks, citing weaker consumer sentiment and higher travel costs.

Streaming Supports Results

Revenue from Disney’s streaming business, primarily Disney+ and Hulu, increased 11% to $5.53 billion, driven by subscriber growth, price increases and higher advertising revenue.

Overall revenue from the Entertainment segment, which also includes traditional television and theatrical releases, rose 6% to $11.35 billion, helped by the success of Toy Story 5, which has surpassed $1 billion at the global box office.

Disney no longer reports quarterly streaming subscriber numbers or a breakdown of revenue and operating income for its linear television networks.

Earnings Top Forecasts

For the fiscal third quarter ended June 27, Disney reported earnings per share of $2.06, above analysts’ expectations of $1.86, while revenue reached $25.25 billion, slightly below the expected $25.4 billion.

Overall revenue increased 7% year over year, while adjusted earnings rose to $2.06 per share from $1.61 a year earlier. Shares gained roughly 4% in premarket trading following the results.

Sports And Share Buybacks

Revenue from Disney’s Sports segment, led by ESPN, rose 4% to $4.5 billion, supported by subscription and affiliate fees as well as advertising revenue. Johnston said viewership for the NBA and NHL Finals more than doubled compared with last year.

Disney also raised its fiscal 2026 share repurchase target to at least $9 billion, up from $8 billion previously, following the sale of its 50% stake in A+E Global Media to Hearst.

Beginning in fiscal 2027, the company will move much of its consumer products business to the Entertainment division. Separately, Disney announced a global partnership with TikTok aimed at expanding Disney-related fan content across the platform.

Missile Attack Pushes Crude Higher

Oil prices moved higher on Wednesday after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants claimed responsibility for a missile strike on a Saudi Arabian tanker in the Red Sea. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 1% to $80.22 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures gained 0.46% to $76.12. The Iranian-backed group said the tanker was hit near Yanbu, a major Saudi export port for crude oil.

Hormuz Talks Continue

The reported attack came as the U.S., Iran and Oman continued negotiations aimed at easing tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Axios, the parties are discussing an interim arrangement under which inbound ships would pass through Iran’s territorial waters. At the same time, outbound vessels would travel through Oman’s waters in coordination with Tehran.

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President Donald Trump told Fox News on Tuesday evening that negotiations had continued throughout the day.

“It looks like things are very good,”

he said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also told CNBC on Tuesday that an agreement to reopen the strategic waterway could be reached this week.

Market Watches Regional Tensions

The U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on June 17 to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but the agreement quickly unraveled after fighting broke out over shipping routes through the waterway.

According to the report, Tehran targeted vessels sailing along Oman’s coast under U.S. military protection in an effort to force ships through its territorial waters. Washington responded with more than a dozen waves of airstrikes and reinstated its naval blockade on Iran.

Oil prices had fallen around 6% on Tuesday amid optimism that the strait could reopen. Crude has remained under pressure in recent days after Trump called off a planned attack on Iran earlier this week in favour of renewed negotiations.

Heatwaves Threaten Productivity

Extreme heat could cost Cyprus between €2.3 billion and €3.8 billion by 2050 unless workplaces are adapted to cope with rising temperatures, according to a new study by the Cyprus Institute released on Wednesday.

Increasingly frequent and intense heatwaves could force employees working outdoors or in poorly cooled environments to reduce their working hours or stop work altogether during unsafe conditions.

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The research focused on sectors including construction, agriculture and tourism, where workers are particularly exposed to high temperatures and direct sunlight.

Economic Losses Expected To Grow

Comparing future projections with conditions recorded between 1980 and 2020, researchers found that employees are likely to face a growing number of days when temperatures exceed safe limits for normal work.

Lost working hours and lower productivity could cost the economy around €101 million by 2030, with annual losses rising to approximately €303 million by 2050.

Without measures to protect workers and adapt workplaces, the cumulative economic impact over the next 25 years could reach between €2.3 billion and €3.8 billion, the study estimates.

Researchers Call For Workplace Adaptation

Professor Theodore Zachariades, one of the study’s authors, said the research is the first to quantify the economic impact of lost working hours caused by extreme heat using Cyprus-specific data.

He warned that the financial burden would increase as very hot days become more frequent and prolonged in the years ahead. According to Zachariades, workers most exposed to high temperatures could also face serious health risks, highlighting the need for measures that protect both their wellbeing and their ability to work.

The Cyprus Institute said the findings underscore the importance of reducing the impact of rising temperatures on employees and the wider economy.

SpaceX spent $329 million on Tesla’s Megapack battery systems during the first half of 2026, highlighting the growing energy demands of the company’s expanding artificial intelligence infrastructure.

According to SpaceX’s latest earnings report, $295 million of those purchases were made during the second quarter alone, marking a sharp increase in investment in large-scale energy storage.

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Powering AI Infrastructure

The battery systems are expected to support SpaceX’s AI data centre operations, where electricity demand fluctuates significantly as computing workloads increase during AI training and inference.

Megapacks help stabilise power consumption by storing electricity and providing additional capacity during periods of peak demand, while also serving as backup power in the event of outages.

Growing Links Across Musk’s Companies

The purchases further illustrate the close operational ties between Elon Musk’s businesses. Before merging with SpaceX earlier this year, xAI had also invested heavily in Tesla’s battery storage systems for its own data centres.

SpaceX’s regulatory filing also showed the company had previously purchased $131 million worth of Tesla Cybertrucks, reflecting continued commercial activity between Musk-led companies.

AI Drives Infrastructure Investment

As AI companies expand computing capacity, demand for energy infrastructure is rising alongside investment in data centres. Battery storage has become an increasingly important component of those facilities, helping operators manage electricity costs while maintaining stable performance during intensive computing workloads.

Spotify is expanding its upcoming AI-powered music remix and covers platform through a new partnership with Merlin, bringing more than 30,000 independent labels and distributors into the initiative.

The agreement follows Spotify’s earlier collaboration with Universal Music Group and broadens the catalogue of artists who can choose to participate in the platform.

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AI With Artist Permission

Unlike AI services that generate entirely synthetic songs, Spotify says its new product is designed around licensed music and artist consent.

The platform will allow fans to create AI-generated covers and remixes using music from participating artists, while ensuring creators are credited and compensated for the use of their work.

A New Revenue Opportunity

Spotify plans to launch the feature as a paid add-on, creating an additional source of income for artists who choose to make their catalogues available.

An initial research preview will be rolled out to a limited group of users, although the company has not announced a launch date.

A Different Approach To AI Music

The announcement comes as AI-generated music continues to grow rapidly across streaming platforms. Rather than competing with services that create entirely new songs, Spotify is positioning its product as a licensed ecosystem that allows fans to interact with existing music while keeping artists involved in the creative and commercial process.

SpaceX shares fell after the company’s first earnings report as a public company, as investors focused on soaring AI-related spending despite stronger-than-expected revenue growth and an optimistic long-term outlook.

Revenue increased 92% year over year during the second quarter, but capital expenditure climbed to $18.4 billion, significantly exceeding analysts’ expectations. Most of that investment was directed toward expanding the company’s artificial intelligence infrastructure.

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Betting Big On AI

SpaceX is rapidly building AI computing capacity as it seeks to compete in the fast-growing market for cloud-based AI services. The company says those investments are already generating demand through agreements with customers including Google, Anthropic and Reflection AI.

Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen told investors that AI infrastructure is expected to pay for itself in less than a year, arguing that the company’s capital spending should be viewed as a driver of future revenue rather than a short-term cost.

Investors Remain Cautious

Despite those assurances, investors reacted negatively to the scale of spending, sending the stock lower after the results were released.

The earnings report comes as technology companies continue investing heavily in AI infrastructure, with firms including Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta collectively committing hundreds of billions of dollars to data centres and computing capacity.

Long-Term Growth Strategy

SpaceX expects its AI business to become a major source of future revenue as it expands computing capacity and secures additional cloud contracts.

At the same time, the company faces increasing competition in AI infrastructure, while legal challenges related to one of its data centre projects add another layer of uncertainty as it scales its operations.