RSnake Report 20260823

Fuel situation worsens in Russia, US-Canada tariff war kicks off, etc.

August 23, 2026

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Hello, and thanks for reading! It has been a very busy few weeks around the RSnake casa, with travel, tons of coding, and the new puppy. Speaking of which, we have moved from an armistice with the cats to a full peace treaty. Progress! Though I still get the sneaking suspicion that the cats are plotting the puppy's ultimate demise.

Something that has been living rent-free in my mind for the last month or so is the idea of AI coming up with project ideas for things I am already working on, rather than me having to come up with every idea myself. Here's a screenshot of an application that designed its own cityscape architectural diagram and is using the PRD and knowledge of the code to programmatically come up with ideas to improve itself on my behalf. I have it set up to wait for my approval of coding changes because it sometimes makes stupid suggestions. Coming up with enough ideas to feed the AI machine with new ideas for workflows turns out to be a difficult thing to come up with in lots of cases, especially when you are time-compressed. Why would you be time-compressed? Because of AI adding to your workload, of course. It's not perfect, but it does find things regularly that are actually kind of interesting. The cool thing is I can just point it at any project now, and it works the same way, automatically coming up with major improvements or minor test cases alike, programmatically. The future is here. 🤯

Also, you may have noticed a pretty massive difference between last week's RSnake Report and the previous one. Do not fret. I am returning to the way I was doing it - last week was actually a bug that ended up sending out an earlier draft before I added all of the links/images, etc. So, that shouldn't happen again.

In Russia/Ukraine News, the ongoing fires around Russian refinery units continue to erode structural strength by reducing their ability to withstand weight, pressure, and temperature, yet no units have been stopped for proper assessment, leaving operators unaware of the true damage. Real repairs would require shutting down facilities hit by tens or hundreds of kilograms of explosives and replacing damaged units, but Russia is instead halting maintenance to maximize output and substituting quality gasoline with low-grade fuel that damages engines. That's a very good thing for Ukraine but awful for Russia, because it means that many of the working refineries are actually ticking time bombs from a structural perspective. Russia faces a gasoline shortage rather than a diesel shortage because production of gasoline currently falls short of domestic demand. Many gas stations now hold diesel stock only.

Moscow is experiencing fuel shortages along with many other regions, the diesel export ban continues through the end of 2027. This graphic gives you a sense of the problem and also the areas most effected tend to be in the west, nearest the front. Malcontent News

Just to give you an example, a 9-kilometer queue formed on the M-4 Don highway toward Moscow for gasoline. Vehicles occupied the right lane from kilometer 1009 to 1018. Can you imagine waiting in that line for hours and running out of fuel, and now needing a tow to the gas station? What a mess. These longer queues should ebb and flow as people hoard fuel and then actually run out and then hoard again, etc.

Strikes by drones on Russian refineries have reduced their ability to process crude into finished fuels. The destruction of reformers, Poly or Alkyl units gone, leaves refineries making lower volumes of gasoline, diesel, and kerosene, and fuels of progressively lower octane unless additives are used. The cumulative effect of successive strikes has de-rated these facilities. Knocking out the hydrotreaters forces refineries to make higher-sulfur fuels and to reduce their standards to Euro2, while knocking out the cat cracker reduces gasoline output. The primary problem is the loss of complexity in each refinery. To sell all the crude they cannot refine, Russia will have to shut in wells upstream in West Siberia and the Urals, and many of those wells may never come back online, so overall production of crude will also be permanently reduced. A night view of burning oil refinery in Novokuybyshevsk, Samara Oblast shows one of the facilities affected. Churchill MGᵀᴹ

Ukrainian forces struck the Kursk LPUMG Gazprom Transgaz Moscow facility in the Medvensky district. The site is part of Russia’s main gas transportation system and is located at coordinates 51.478929, 36.066967. Military Summary

There was a very interesting little video of a woman going past a huge gas line and finding a fuel truck with a fuel pump embedded in a van, supplying fuel to people who presumably are willing to pay a premium. Black markets are capitalism at work. It wasn't clear how much she had to pay for this, but clearly the wealthiest Russians can still get fuel. But it has a Telegram QR code on it for @azs_black_tanker if you really want to dig in yourself. Feels like this could be a fun target for Ukraine. See where they announce that they'll pop up and send a drone over! But even if they don't, the average Russian will resent this as a concept.

Russia launched a massive missile attack on Kyiv, with more than 25 missiles striking the city as Ukrainian Patriot air defense missiles have long ran out. Meanwhile, Ukrainian drone strikes hit the largest Wildberries warehouse in Koledino near Moscow, sparking a massive fire, and since mid-July 2026, Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces have struck at least 21 objects belonging to the retailer, with total estimated damage reaching 600–800 billion rubles.

The DIU's Iron Group demonstrated armed ground robotic systems supporting special operators by striking Russian positions, disrupting advances, and drawing enemy drones while protecting troops. It's a bit of a difficult video to watch because it's a weird montage. But it just shows that these robotic guns are actually doing a very valuable mission. One of those missions is identifying the roadside drones and destroying them, because these things are pretty nasty. For example, there is one video of a Ukrainian pickup truck narrowly avoiding a Russian ambush drone after a soldier shot its fiber-optic cable to sever control. That was purely luck, especially because AI nav easily could have taken over if that drone had that particular feature.

For instance, take the new innovation... a Russian "wait-and-see" FPV . This device appears to be equipped with some sort of motion sensor that can just stay in the netting Ukraine has been using over their roadways and wait for something to come by and then go off. It's a clever kind of mine that, once switched into this mode, is really a hazard. This is where a ground-complex drone could come in handy and either cause the detonation or destroy it at a distance if it finds it.

The Russian fleet has adopted additional anti-drone protections, including dazzle camouflage, grills, nets, sandbags, and tires. These measures follow damage to two moored vessels in Novorossiysk. This paint job is straight out of WWII at a glance, but slightly different in that it looks more curved and less angular. I suspect it won't work at all, but it might be worth a try nonetheless.

Ukraine also reported disabling 36 shadow-fleet vessels in August and 242 units overall since July 6 in the Sea of Azov and Black Sea. Ukrainian drones disabled 267 energy facilities in occupied Crimea and southern Ukraine between July 1 and August 22. An additional 27 energy nodes were struck in the last five days.

Ukraine struck the Novokuybyshevsk refinery 1,000 kilometers from the front line. The same day, Ukrainian forces hit a logistics hub in the Samara region and targets in the Black Sea. Earlier strikes destroyed a Su-24M and four pieces of airfield equipment at Saky airfield and eliminated drone-control relay stations in the Bryansk region. Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський

Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський

A fire broke out at a warehouse in Kolpino, St Petersburg, that covers nearly 80,000 square meters. No air-raid alerts were issued in the region before the fire. So far, there is no explanation about how it happened, but it was likely sabotage. I do wonder at what point Ukraine just mails incendiaries to various warehouses and ignites them when they reach the target(s).

Ukrainian forces struck a 51,700 m² warehouse at the Severnoye Domodedovo multimodal logistics complex in Domodedovo. Ukrainian units also struck an Ozon warehouse in Samara after previously targeting Wildberries facilities. Ozon is another huge market/warehouse similar to Wildberries - the second largest in Russia.

Ukrainian forces struck an S-400 battalion position in Gelendzhik along with eight radar systems and Tor and Pantsir air defense systems. Eleven of the fourteen targets were in Rostov Oblast and Krasnodar Krai, with the remaining three in Crimea. The aircraft and drone losses included a Su-33, a MiG-29, and an Orion UAV at Vityazevo. That is a lot of losses in a very short period, and likely shows that the air defenses in Russia are now simply spread too thin. 414 Magyar's Birds

This isn't only Russian losses, and not just in Kyiv either. There was a pretty dramatic view from the beach in the Odesa region showing damage after a Russian strike. The strike occurred on August 16, but without an explanation of what was hit. This has Crimean vibes, though, doesn't it?

Ukraine used British-made drones for deep strikes inside Russia, targeting oil refineries near Moscow, Yaroslavl, Volgograd, and Belgorod. The strikes represent a new phase in UK-Ukraine military cooperation.

France approved a license allowing Ukraine to manufacture AASAM Hammer guided bombs domestically. The weapons are intended for strikes on high-value targets near the contact line. These have been pretty effective thus far, so I can see the appeal of letting Ukraine build them domestically.

Chuck Pfarrer | Indications & Warnings |

Ukrainian drones were reported flying toward the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Arkhangelsk region. The aircraft passed over Pinezhye, where a local official stated they were heading for strategic facilities. If they do manage to take this facility out, it would put a serious dent in the Russian ability to send more satellites up, which they need to do to get oversight and guidance now that Starlink is unavailable to Russia.

A warehouse behind the DoorHan plant in Akulovo near Moscow caught fire. Overnight, a separate warehouse complex in the Izhorsk industrial area near St. Petersburg burned across roughly 82,000 square meters. Military Summary

A strike on a passenger train between Losowa & Kharkiv left one person dead. Video from Kryvyi Rih after the strike on a shopping mall showed the scene after the attack. So yes, Russia is still attacking civilian targets as well.

In European News, Iranian hackers shut down a British power plant for four days in an unprecedented cyber attack that is believed to be the most successful of its kind. The incident occurred at a small electricity producer and had no adverse effect on national power generation or supply, though it took place at the same time as a series of attacks on US water infrastructure that affected 12 states last month. In response, the Government has briefed energy CEOs on how to keep their facilities safe. Ask your utility companies and to take their PLCs off the Internet if they haven't already. Five US agencies issued a warning of an active threat to all Siemens S7 PLCs in water, energy, chemical and food facilities. Attackers are using AI-written scripts that pose as ordinary monitoring software to reach the small computers controlling pumps, valves and motors, allowing them to read facility operations and change machinery behavior. So I suspect this will continue to be an issue for all companies that have these Internet-exposed hardware devices.

Romanian F-16s destroyed a Russian-origin explosive-laden surface drone near the Neptun Deep gas field. One aircraft used its M61A1 Vulcan gun to engage the drone 80 nautical miles east of Constanța. Romanian President Nicușor Dan condemned the incident, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called it part of an escalating campaign of threats. The F-16 did not completely destroy the drone with its M61A1 cannon, though the gunfire hit and damaged it. The drone remained afloat and continued drifting until a Romanian vessel reached the area and initially believed it had found a second drone, but it was later determined that it was the same drone already engaged by the F-16. Romanian EOD personnel then destroyed it completely.

It appears Europe may be facing a new wave of s abotage targeting defense companies, with Russian intelligence services suspected of being behind a series of arson attacks and explosions at military plants in NATO countries. In August alone, explosions occurred at defense facilities in Bulgaria and Italy, a fire destroyed a Czech plant producing weapons for Ukraine, and on August 15, a facility belonging to drone manufacturer Milrem Robotics was set on fire in Tallinn. Local operatives are usually used for the attacks, allowing Moscow to deny involvement while Western intelligence agencies believe the sabotage is deliberately carried out in a way that avoids triggering a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO. NEXTA

After a major tightening of immigration rules, Sweden rejected 96 percent of citizenship applications last month, with the remaining four percent coming from Nordic countries. Authorities now need to deport the ones already there. They are really the canary in the coal mine for a EU rejection of un-metered immigration, I suspect. Basil the Great

Norwegian firm Eker Solutions unveiled prototypes of the G24 and G31 unmanned boats intended in part for the Ukrainian market. The G24 carries more than 400 kg of payload at speeds up to 44 knots and reaches 1,900 km at cruising speed. The larger G31 is 9.5 m long, weighs 2.65 tons, and carries over 710 kg with a range of 2,300 km at 30 knots.

Cavok UAS reported that the SKYDART 5 is being developed as a compact interceptor designed for scalable counter-UAS operations. The system offers containerized deployment on land, vehicle, naval, or air platforms, with a small logistical footprint and rapid deployment capability for scalable responses to multiple threats. Basically you can store dozens of these things if you see a swarm inbound, dropping them in the flight-line from an aircraft or leaving them to ambush incoming swarms. Counter Unmanned Systems

Saab's A1 is the first of what will be its ACP prototypes, with its sister A2 to follow. The A1 is pretty, but there are very limited stats for now. I do believe the US is far and away the best when it comes to stealth drones, but it's cool to see Saab's take on the design. Inserted media

In South East Asia News, Taiwan's first domestically built satellite launch vehicle was destroyed mid-flight on its debut test, drifting toward inland mountains rather than out to sea. Rockets are hard, and this is only a minor setback, but it seems all nations are starting to want to get their own satellite capabilities, likely because they saw what happened to Russia when Starlink pulled out. Inserted media

A powerful explosion occurred in Tainan, Taiwan. An industrial waste site exploded, injuring 13 and damaging 11 homes. No explanation about how it started as of yet. UK Report

Chinese researchers are building AI models of American voters and testing political messages on them. The team used 171 million X posts to create a million-account voter pool. For instance, a government-linked team tested a campaign message on synthetic Pennsylvania voters. So I would expect them to get even better at helping/funding campaigns they know will win in the US and work against US interests. Natalie Winters

A developer using Bluetooth headphones accidentally caught Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba secretly hijacking his computer's audio system without making a single sound. When his wireless headphones refused to switch audio to his phone while browsing AliExpress, he inspected the site's hidden code. He discovered background scripts holding his computer's audio pipeline wide open. These hidden audio systems happen a lot. For instance, try buying something on Amazon while listening to something on Spotify using your headphones. You will notice the music stops. Big surprise: these ultrasonic sounds are being played to alert other systems that may be listening to who you are and to correlate your spending/buying habits as well. So there are multiple uses for this, and frankly, it's pretty gross that they even have audio access at all, but it's necessary to play video reviews of products. UnveiledChina

Facing a massive 6,000-ton annual shortage of blood plasma, there was new reporting that China relies on American donors for over 60 percent of its life-saving human albumin supply. Human albumin is vital for treating trauma, severe burns, and chronic liver disease. While China is the top global consumer, tight regulatory limits and public fear leave millions of Chinese patients exposed to severe geopolitical supply risks. It also means that in wartime, China's supply of plasma would probably dip far below even its current need, let alone what it needs to handle the influx of casualties. It is surprising they haven't tapped North Korea to demand a supply of their citizens for a nice payday. I could see Kim Jung Un lording over a literal vampiric authoritarian state. UnveiledChina

Speaking of which, Donald Trump stated that he maintains a good relationship with Kim Jong Un, who possesses 57 nuclear weapons. Trump declined to confirm whether he exchanges written letters with the North Korean leader. But that number is oddly specific, and likely is intelligence that will explain to North Korea the intelligence we already have on their military. Aaron Rupar

A threat actor has claimed to have hacked 'Hospital301', the main PLA medical complex in Beijing, having extracted over 400GB. They claim the data includes copies of recent MRI files (in DICOM format) of Xi Jinping himself. That could make some very interesting reading if true. The legitimacy of the data could not be verified, though, at least not yet. NetAskari

There was a very cool little video of a Taiwanese BGM-71E TOW-2A being used against a test target at sea, designed to mimic a Chinese landing boat. These do make sense because the wire-guided missiles cannot be jammed the same way that FPV drones can, though you do have to have humans close by, which is less ideal.

In Middle East News, Iranian Army Chief Amir Hatami announced a $30,000 reward for any Iranian force that captures or kills an American soldier. Talk about a fast way to bring negotiations to a close. It also means that all military personnel need to be a lot more cautious worldwide, due to the mass immigration of Iranians throughout the world, or their proxies, or even sympathetic people who want to make a few quick bucks by creating some US military casualties.

Russia is preparing to sign a contract with Iran to build the Rasht–Astara railway. The project would complete the International North–South Transport Corridor through Azerbaijan and proceed despite US sanctions warnings. It's not clear what additional sanctions the US can and will apply to Russia for this if they do sign it, but Russia badly needs more supplies of, in particular, refined fuel, and military equipment. NEXTA

Trump said any country doing business with Iran will face economic consequences, targeting oil smuggling, financial transfers, exchange houses, ship registries and front companies. He announced that ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face economic consequences. Trump calls it economic D-Day and vows economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale. Mossad Commentary

The White House issued a strong warning to China and its banks enabling the Iranian regime's sanctions evasion, with the UAE moving ahead of the announcement. Countries such as Iraq that serve as an economic lung for Tehran will face difficult choices if enforcement follows. Jason Brodsky

Iran’s Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezai, stated that the Americans have completely lost hope in military attacks and now imagine that an economic blockade can support their military efforts. Netanyahu has promised Trump that if Iran is placed under an economic blockade for six months, or even two or three months, it will surrender. He believes that the world has realized that Trump’s bluster is empty talk and this new economic sanction regime is a tacit admission of abject military failure. Iran claims that it has learned over the years how to overcome sanctions and continue selling oil. I guess time will tell! Clash Report

Iran says it will not allow a single drop of oil to pass through the Persian Gulf if any neighboring country participates in President Trump's economic war threats. Iran's Revolutionary Guards have prepared responses to US economic measures and can maintain trade despite Washington's pressure, Guards spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi said at a news conference on Sunday. They claimed they have announced that they have a scenario for every hostile action by the enemy. They have plans to counter the adverse effects of the enemy's economic war. Mohebbi described US President Donald Trump's announcement of a new economic campaign against Iran as an implicit admission that Washington had failed militarily. They claim to have economic interactions right under America's nose, and that the Americans will see the results in the near future.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf both stated the war must end and highlighted the economic costs of continuing it. Ghalibaf noted that military power alone cannot sustain security if the population remains hungry, while Pezeshkian argued for ending the conflict now while Iran still holds a position of strength. Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati confirmed Iran cannot sell its oil due to the blockade, and reports showed millions of barrels already moving through alternative routes.

Internal US strategy meetings have allegedly discussed using nuclear weapons on Iran, according to MTG, which she adamantly disapproves of. Likely, this thinking was to take out "Pickaxe Mountain," where the Iranian nuclear program presumably still persists, but it is also possible Trump wants a show of force to turn the entire region into glass. While totally doable with our arsenal, the blowback for the inevitable deaths of a vast number of innocent Iranians has got to be a non-starter.

Axios claimed that according to several unnamed senior US officials, around 40 tankers transited the Strait of Hormuz through the southern deep channel on Friday night, moving about 16 million barrels of oil. 15-21 Aug average crude flows are 5.6mbd (12 documented transits, 7 satellite-based and 4 suspects, vessel-level details in the log post or DM for summary/cross-check). Kpler vessel-tracking data, which uses satellite imagery rather than just AIS status, shows completely zero west-to-east tanker crossings on Friday and zero barrels of oil exiting through the Strait.

The US Joint Maritime Information Center has been reporting US-facilitated transits since 20 June without clarifying whether each transit is inbound or outbound or what type of ship or cargo is involved. Tanker tracking estimates show only one or two ships on a given day, but those figures miss roughly two million barrels per day of dark shuttle activity that must be added from orphan ship-to-ship transfer loadings in the Gulf of Oman. Skepticism of White House Hormuz transit numbers is warranted because dark transit decisions carry a reporting lag. But either way, it does not appear that there is much traffic, even if some are sneaking through. The bigger question is, so what? What happens if Iran can close the straight and but can't survive because of economic sanctions? Does that mean that they can keep it closed? I think we're about to find out one way or another! Charlie B

Eight ships departed the northernmost cluster of the Fujairah anchorage within twenty-four hours. Eight ships at the northernmost point of the cluster are no longer there within those 24 hours. The comparison used synthetic aperture radar images from the twenty-second and twenty-third of August; red circles marked positions occupied on the twenty-second and empty on the twenty-third, while blue circles showed vessels that remained. The eight departed vessels were located at the most reasonable staging spot for ships entering or exiting the Strait of Hormuz. Not a lot of ship activity, either way.

The United States will issue fresh sanctions on Lebanon’s Hezbollah on Thursday, re-designating the group under a terrorism authority to emphasize its ties to Iran, and re-establishing Iran as a terrorist state. The Treasury Department will label Hezbollah a Specially Designated Global Terrorist for service to the Iranian regime under the IRGC-Qods Force.

Yemen’s Saudi-backed government carried out 181 operations against the Houthis in 24 hours using drones, artillery and rockets. Reports indicated over 200 Houthis were eliminated during the fighting. That is a lot of Houthis. But one thing that I found kind of interesting is that these videos look a lot like the early days of the Ukrainian drones, and may even be an early generation of those drones. It's also interesting that the probes that cause detonation are different in the video, which means there isn't a standard that the Saudis have settled on. Open Source Intel

For instance this screenshot from the same video. If the two wires touch it goes off, which has the advantage of not caring if the last second of video gets disrupted by jammers. But see how they're not the same? Ali Al-Sakani | علي السكني

Turkey has become a bigger focus in the news. Firstly, a Ukrainian FP-1 deep-strike drone washed ashore on Türkiye’s Black Sea coast at Karaburun beach. The discovery occurred on August 21 and while it is almost definitely an accident, it also a reason that Turkey may have strong feelings about the conflict with Russia. Conflict Radar

But much more importantly, Israel struck the Abu Al-Duhur airbase in Syria, despite Syrian assurances that it was being rehabilitated for Syrian use and would not host Turkish military. Jerusalem has examined NATO’s Article 5 protections, which apply to Turkish territory but not to Turkish troops operating on Syrian soil. So it does appear that Israel and Turkey are getting more aggressive towards one another. But I get the sneaking suspicion that Turkey will play a much bigger role in a future conflict, because at the end of the day, the Islamists in Turkey probably have some pretty strong feelings about the Jewish people, especially as they cozy up with Syria.

A top Erdogan adviser said Turkey will continue to exercise restraint in response to Netanyahu's schemes and described Israel as losing allies and credibility. Israeli jets struck the Abu al-Duhur airbase to head off a Turkish deployment after the two governments had reached an understanding in Azerbaijan. Turkish companies are winning billions in Syrian reconstruction contracts for electricity generation, airport redevelopment, and offshore oil and gas exploration while US envoy Tom Barrack attends the signing ceremonies. Tom Barrack entered government with substantial Turkey-linked financial interests that federal ethics officials flagged as potential conflicts of interest.

The UAE is installing metal cope cages around oil storage tanks to counter drone attacks. This cheap tactic could spread across the Middle East. It works against slow, low-cost drones by catching or forcing early detonation, but fails against missiles, which have far greater speed, power, and penetration that simple cages can't stop. I think it's just a matter of time until people just build concrete superstructures around the whole thing, which has the advantage of being able to starve fuel fires of oxygen too and contain spillage between the storage tanks. E.Bhaskar Rao

Israeli Air Force conducted another airstrike against Srebbine, southern Lebanon. One more nail in the coffin of an Iranian oversight committee deciding what happens with strikes in Lebanon. I always knew that commission was hilariously misguided. Conflict Radar

In South of the Border, US special forces are carrying out joint military operations with Ecuadoran forces against narco-trafficking gangs near the Colombian border, Ecuadoran officials have confirmed US special forces are carrying out joint military operations with Ecuadoran forces against narco-trafficking gangs near the Colombian border, Ecuadoran officials have confirmed. So if you have seen Tom Clancy's Clear and Present Danger, it looks like that's turning into a non-fictional story, I guess.

In North America News, federal prosecutors arrested Jessica Bowie in Albany, New York, on August 19 after she allegedly took possession of what she believed was an explosive device as part of a plan to attack the New York State Capitol. Investigators allege Bowie swore allegiance to ISIS, photographed the Capitol, discussed killing state senators, and expressed support for al-Qaeda's 9/11 attacks online. Bowie faces a charge of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.

The U.S. Army is phasing out a 600-soldier experimental drone-assault battalion in Europe. The unit will return to airborne infantry duties after the upcoming exercises. The decision follows a broader back-to-basics shift by Acting Army chief Gen. Christopher LaNeve. This is not to say that the US is turning its back on drone-assault forces, but rather that this rotation was never meant to be permanent, and was a test to see how they performed. It got a lot of negative press, though. Drone Wars

The new HAMMR system seeks to provide US squads with a 40 mm semiautomatic fire capability fed by a magazine. The weapon is designed to engage targets protected behind cover and drones. It's pretty cool, but it feels more like a secondary weapon because it's wildly overkill for many situations and has a small magazine depth. That said, a squad may have one member with this weapon to cover their position.

Antifa officially put out hits on CEOs, including a threat directed toward the CEO of Flock. I guess the biggest threat to democracy is whatever opponent they have, especially one who puts them in jail. While I am not a huge fan of the surveillance state, violence is not the answer. Make Shit Not Suck

Speaking of! Violence erupted after Jake Lang arrived at a protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where rioters mobbed a vehicle carrying a large cross and a USA flag that required police protection. The police took several protesters in. Minneapolis Police later stated that Jake Lang and several others were arrested after two vehicles drove onto the sidewalk near City Hall toward a gathered crowd, with officers stopping the vehicles and arresting all occupants on probable cause. Jan 6 protester vs antifa. That'll be a fun jail block until they can make bail. 🤣 Eric Daugherty

The U.S. Navy disclosed the previously unannounced AIM-424 Long Range Air-to-Air Missile, also known as the "Malice," shown mounted inside the internal weapons bay of an F-35C Lightning II alongside an AIM-120 AMRAAM. The missile is designed for internal carriage to maintain the F-35's low-observable configuration while providing greater capability against advanced threats and is being evaluated on both the F-35C and F/A-18E/F. OSINTdefender

After six months of engineering and systems integration with Lockheed Martin, Saildrone conducted its first live-fire demonstration at RIMPAC, during which SD-3001 launched AGM-179 JAGM guided missiles while operating alongside U.S. Navy assets. Presumably these would be placed all around some region, and if any one were destroyed it would be no big deal but they could maintain a relatively good position more or less indefinitely, without needing refueling. Saildrone

Trade talks between the US and Canada have collapsed, and the US has imposed new 50% tariffs on billions of dollars of Canadian goods. Canada, for their part, has said they plan on reciprocal tariffs as well. Mark Carney stated that Canada is now at war with the US over trade. A statement was issued on Canada-U.S. trade negotiations, more or less stating that Canada has halted negotiations. It's not clear what will happen here, but many are speculating that this is a short-term posturing that will mostly negatively impact Canada, and that they will be forced to come back to the table quickly by their own people, who will suffer under the new tariffs.

In Tech News, a modified local Qwen model running on Apple Silicon provided malware instructions without refusals across vision, reasoning, and tool-calling tasks in a 262K-token context, refusal-removed Qwen3.8-27B. The release included 2-, 4-, 6-, and 8-bit MLX builds that maintained capabilities while removing safety constraints. That's been the thing everyone has been worried about - a local model that has reasoning and no ethics. We shall see what happens with it.

A Chinese-speaking threat actor employed DeepSeek, Qwen, Kimi and MiniMax models to automate reconnaissance and exploitation against internet-facing systems Chinese-speaking cyber threat actor used DeepSeek. The agents identified targets, searched GitHub repositories, evaluated CVEs and executed exploitation attempts, shortening analysis time from hundreds of hours to minutes. Autonomous phases achieved limited success while separate manual operations exfiltrated data from selected targets. In another incident, a different actor used Claude Code with Sonnet 4.6 to generate an LDAP capture script during a ransomware intrusion, directing the script against a FortiGate device to obtain cleartext service-account credentials threat actor used Claude Code with Sonnet 4.6.

Some researchers did some interesting analysis around the reproducibility of vulnerabilities and the multi-run approach. Interestingly, DeepSeek located 17 vulns on a single run, but DeepSeek was given 32 real vulnerabilities. Repeating the identical setup three times and combining outputs raised the total to 28 out of 32. Qwen increased from 19 to 26 and Kimi from 17 to 25 under the same multi-run method. Three DeepSeek Pro runs costing roughly 295 dollars located more vulnerabilities than a single pass of higher-priced models costing 450 to 590 dollars, although the cheaper runs produced additional false leads requiring manual review. So definitely far from perfect and shows how non-determinism makes is actually kind of dangerous because it's not finding things that are there, even that it can find!

I spotted an interesting graph posted that illustrates that students who rely on AI to complete homework finish assignments more quickly and receive higher grades on homework, yet perform worse on subsequent exams. It makes sense, but shows how it happens on these graphs. Basically what it means is if you let your kiddos use AI they will likely do worse when it matters, because they were never doing it in the first place. Paul Novosad

Recently, some researchers proved that a set of OpenAI agents secretly coordinated with each other in a swarm over the course of months while a new paper explores an adjacent multi-agent risk called the mind virus, a self-propagating idea or persona that spreads between agents in a multi-agent system OpenAI agents secretly coordinated. So you can't rely on agents to be aligned with the user, especially when they speak with other agents. Ironically, this is a lot like how people work, and one of the reasons companies prefer computer automation is that it is deterministic. McNair Shah

After Unitree’s IPO, a blog posted detailed a wormable exploit in the G1 robot that enables remote code execution and spreads to nearby units. The research comprises roughly three months and two hundred hours of work condensed into a seventy-minute report. The interesting part of this beyond the technical details is that the researcher intentionally waited until after the IPO, presumably to hurt their stock price.

SonicFly is a new system that lets one UAV track another solely by listening to the leader’s rotor noise without GPS, communication, or external infrastructure. This would work especially well if the frequency of the rotors was different than the drone that was being chased. Boyuan Chen

An expert witness in a sixty-one million dollar lawsuit over an industrial explosion that killed three people and destroyed two hundred homes used ChatGPT to draft a court report. The prompt instructed the model to demonstrate that 3M bore zero fault for the Watson Grinding incident. But it also shows how expert witnesses' usage of LLMs is discoverable. Not great if you are working on evidence that will end up in court. Jason Koebler

In Economic News, a widely shared analysis shows that buying Micron at market close and selling at market open would have produced a return of 138,330,342%, while buying at the open and selling at the close would have resulted in a -99.2% return. Similar patterns were found in other stocks such as MU, HOLX, NVR, JBHT, MGM, and NVDA, with overnight returns vastly outpacing intraday performance. The phenomenon is especially pronounced in high-attention names like NVDA, TSLA, AMD, and MSTR. Pretty interesting finding but the reasons why aren't fully understood.

Also, it's worth pointing out that the lull in gold prices is over. Demand for gold GLD call options has reached its highest level in six months, likely due to concerns around inflation and conflict with Iran spilling over into other areas of the economy. Barchart

Okay, on to the articles!

Geopolitics

A breakdown in trade negotiations between the US and Canada has resulted in a fresh wave of US tariffs on Canadian goods, with Canada planning to impose reciprocal tariffs on US products. The collapse of talks follows differences over trade terms and has significant implications for both nations' economies, with Canada facing potential job losses and GDP declines due to the new tariffs.

The US imposed new tariffs on Canadian goods after trade talks collapsed.
Canada plans to retaliate with reciprocal tariffs, affecting both economies significantly.

[RSnake: We have to learn to get along with our neighbors, but they also have to behave neighborly as well. There are a lot of Canadian cartels that need to be broken up and made more fair for US businesses. That said, I am not sure what the issue was that broke the negotiations.]

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgvyy4x2mvo

The Silent Swarm event demonstrated the capabilities of the Squire Seaglider drone, which is designed for various military operations, including intelligence and reconnaissance. This drone can operate at high speeds and over extensive ranges while maintaining a low signature for stealth, aiming to address significant national security needs in maritime defense.

The Squire Seaglider drone achieved significant mission readiness through its performance at the Silent Swarm event.
REGENT has established partnerships with various military branches and other nations to enhance maritime operational capabilities.

[RSnake: This thing looks huge but it's not. It's about the same size as a RHIB, but has the advantage of being a boat until it needs to take off and perform some mission directive. Since it silently waits, it can use almost no power to just hang out until it is needed, and would produce next to no obvious signals.]

Source: https://militaryleak.com/?p=257750

AeroVironment, Inc. has announced a joint venture with Eyeonix SA in Greece, called AV Eagle, aimed at enhancing defense capabilities in Europe. The partnership aims to establish manufacturing and assembly facilities for advanced defense technologies, responding to increasing demands for military autonomy and resilience in the face of geopolitical complexity in the region.

Establishment of a joint venture, AV Eagle, to expand defense capabilities in Greece.
Focus on manufacturing unmanned and counter-unmanned aircraft systems to meet urgent operational needs.

[RSnake: Europe needs a lot more defense manufacturing base. At a very minimum it would be a deterrent to Russian aggression.]

Source: https://militaryleak.com/?p=257723

Israeli military actions and settlements in the occupied West Bank have resulted in multiple injuries among Palestinians, with reports indicating that Israelis conduct almost daily attacks. The number of settlers in the region has increased significantly, leading to heightened tensions and incidents of violence, with thousands of Palestinians displaced this year as a result of settler violence and military actions.

Israeli military raids and settler violence have injured numerous Palestinians in the West Bank.
There has been a significant increase in settlers, leading to rising tensions and forced displacements among the Palestinian population.

[RSnake: It is time to find a permanent home for these people. I know Egypt doesn't want them, but perhaps Somaliland or southern Syria... but I suspect both are not great options.]

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/22/israeli-army-and-settlers-injure-several-palestinians-across-west-bank?traffic_source=rss

In the United States, significant political changes have occurred under President AOC, including the elimination of the Senate filibuster, the creation of two new states, and an expanded Supreme Court. The country faces high unemployment, rampant inflation, and a massive federal deficit, leading to economic instability and widespread social issues. There is also a notable increase in immigration, contributing to challenges in employment and social systems.

The elimination of the Senate filibuster has changed legislative dynamics, allowing a simple majority to pass laws.
High unemployment and inflation rates, coupled with a large federal deficit, are causing significant economic challenges.
Changes in immigration policy have led to an influx of new voters and strained social services.

[RSnake: This is a prophecy of what happens if AOC gets elected based on her stated positions. Obviously not a great situation and unlikely to be this bad if the mid-terms are won by the Republicans because they would provide counter-balance to anything she would want to do. Either way, not that likely, but interesting.]

Source: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/president-aocs-first-term

Cybersecurity

A supply chain attack has been identified, targeting Android-based car head units to spread malware that enables the compromised devices to function as a proxy botnet or for ad fraud. The malware was traced back to a group known as MoYu, which is linked to malicious activities involving a legitimate device-update app from a Chinese automotive software provider, DoFun.

Malware has been discovered that specifically targets Android-based car head units.
The operation is attributed to the MoYu group, which has a history of similar cyber threats.

[RSnake: It's always China, isn't it?]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/hackers-infect-android-car-head-units-with-proxy-botnet-malware/

Microsoft has patched critical code execution and privilege escalation flaws related to named pipes, a communication mechanism used by applications in Windows. Named pipes have been found vulnerable due to misassumptions about their security, as they can be accessed by untrusted processes, posing serious risks if not properly secured.

Microsoft has addressed vulnerabilities in named pipes that could allow unauthorized access to elevated privileges.
Flaws in named pipes can lead to unauthorized command execution and potential malware exploitation.

[RSnake: IPC has always been an issue. It's been causing me problems since the late 1990's and here we are!]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/named-pipes-under-attack-securing-windows-interprocess-communication/

A new cybersecurity tool, AttackGen v0.16.0, has been released, leveraging large language models to generate tailored incident response scenarios based on selected threat actor groups and organizational details. The tool integrates the MITRE ATT&CK and ATLAS frameworks, allowing users to simulate various cyber incidents and rehearsing specific responses via a user-friendly interface.

AttackGen generates customized incident response scenarios based on user specifications and threat actor behavior.
It utilizes large language models and MITRE frameworks to enhance cybersecurity training and preparedness.

[RSnake: Dual use something something. While this is good, I can easily see someone turning this on it's head.]

Source: https://kitploit.com/en/posts/github-mrwadams-attackgen-v0160

Researchers identified 768 leaked Amazon Web Services (AWS) access keys, with 88% still operational, including 526 highly privileged root keys. AWS's quarantine policy permits several damaging actions even for compromised credentials, raising significant security concerns for companies relying on these services.

768 leaked AWS keys were found, with 88% still active.
The AWS quarantine policy allows for potentially damaging actions even with compromised credentials.
Many of the leaked keys are several years old, indicating a failure in key rotation policies.

[RSnake: I wish this was rare. I have encountered exactly this problem with a big company once before. Are you surprised to find they had no way of fixing the issue?]

Source: https://thenextweb.com/news/researchers-found-768-leaked-aws-keys-that-still-work-and-the-containment-policy-leaves-plenty-possible

Technology

Wi-Fi 8 is an upcoming wireless standard focusing on improving network reliability rather than just speed, aiming to enhance real-world connectivity as the number of connected devices continues to grow. Expected to be finalized by May 2028, it introduces features designed to reduce latency and interference while ensuring seamless usage across multiple access points. This shift responds to increasing demands from smart home devices and other networked technologies.

Wi-Fi 8 prioritizes reliability and effective throughput over maximum data rates.
The standard is set to be finalized by 2028 and aims to improve connectivity for a growing number of devices.

[RSnake: I hope this really deals with the fact that so many conflicting wifi endpoints are causing crappy coverage due to overlapping coverage.]

Source: https://www.xda-developers.com/wi-fi-8-first-wireless-upgrade-years-isnt-chasing-speed-home-networks-need-it/

A new open-source software called Munder Difflin allows users to create multi-agent clones of themselves for task automation, which can operate independently and communicate with one another securely on a local machine. The system emphasizes privacy by keeping all data and personal context on the user's laptop, with end-to-end encryption for inter-clone messaging. It supports integration with existing agent providers and offers local and cloud deployment options.

Munder Difflin creates autonomous clones for task management and collaboration.
All data remains local and private, with secure encrypted communications between clones.
The software is open source and includes options for free and paid plans with enhanced features.

[RSnake: Clever name. Don't use this stuff by the way. It can log everything you do.]

Source: https://munderdiffl.in/

LG Energy Solution reports that solid-state batteries for electric vehicles are expected to be a decade away due to challenges in large-scale production. Meanwhile, Europe has commenced the construction of its first solid-state gigafactory, while various companies in China are aiming for pilot production by 2027.

LG Energy Solution emphasizes the difficulties in producing large-format solid-state batteries, which may not be ready for electric vehicles for another ten years.
In contrast, Europe is making strides by building solid-state battery plants and testing prototypes, while Chinese companies are pushing for quicker production timelines.

[RSnake: I am curious if these are substantially safer. Right now if there is a battery fire the fire department around here is told to just let it burn unless they can get a car-sized fire blanket over it.]

Source: https://thenextweb.com/news/lges-solid-state-batteries-large-format-problem

Chinese car manufacturers are experiencing a significant global shortage of printed circuit boards and multilayer ceramic capacitors, with prices increasing by over 300% within a year due to heightened demand from AI data centers. This shortage is disrupting production lines, causing delays and prompting electric vehicle makers to raise prices as they seek to secure necessary components.

There is a 20-30% global shortage of circuit boards and capacitors affecting Chinese car manufacturers.
The price of automotive memory has surged approximately 180% in a short period, impacting vehicle production costs.

[RSnake: I have a feeling where there is a will there is a way, and for the CCP, getting their rolling Chinese malware out into the world might be worth it.]

Source: https://thenextweb.com/news/china-carmakers-component-shortage-mlcc-memory

IFA 2026 in Berlin will showcase the integration of artificial intelligence in consumer electronics, emphasizing that many AI technologies are already present in everyday products. The event will highlight growth in categories like digital health and connected fitness equipment, with significant attendance expected from global exhibitors and audiences.

AI is increasingly becoming part of everyday consumer products, rather than being a separate category.
Digital health and wellness devices are anticipated to be among the fastest-growing sectors in consumer electronics.

[RSnake: I got to think there will be pushback against AI being in everything, especially because it ostensibly sucks. Just look at this meme I was sent as an example. 🤣]

Source: https://gizmodo.com/?p=2000800765

Business

Nvidia is increasing the prices of its AI chip servers by over 15% due to rising memory costs, affecting major clients including Microsoft, Google, and Oracle. The increase comes at a time when demand for AI infrastructure is high, but supply from key DRAM manufacturers is lagging, leading to wider implications for costs across the technology sector in Europe as well as globally.

Nvidia's AI chip server prices are rising by more than 15% due to memory shortages.
Major technology companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Oracle will be impacted by these cost increases.
The rise in costs complicates plans for AI infrastructure development, particularly in Europe.

[RSnake: This will have a knock-on cost not just to consumers, but to the frontier model providers. If they don't increase the cost to their end users it's because they are subsidizing even more of the cost. That game of musical chairs is bound to stop.]

Source: https://thenextweb.com/news/nvidia-ai-server-price-increase-memory-costs

Mark Ruffalo has faced accusations of antisemitism from Paramount over his comments regarding the proposed merger involving Warner Bros. Discovery, which has raised concerns among lawmakers about national security and editorial freedom. The controversial merger is under scrutiny by a coalition of state attorneys general and has been delayed pending legal outcomes.

The proposed $111 billion merger would consolidate control over major media outlets including CNN and HBO.
Lawmakers are demanding a national security review due to concerns about foreign influence on editorial decisions.

[RSnake: I'm not so sure this is great for his future prospects, pissing off multiple studios at once. He's lucky he's mostly only found on Disney, but even still... execs talk, and studios conspire.]

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/media/mark-ruffalo-fires-back-paramount-appalling-antisemitism-accusation-ellison-merger-criticism

A recent tragic incident in Ireland involving a group of teenagers driving recklessly while filming for social media has resulted in the deaths of five adolescents and serious injuries to occupants of another vehicle. This event has catalyzed discussions regarding the impact of social media on dangerous behaviors, police response, and calls for stricter laws and regulations related to reckless driving and social media content.

Teenagers engaging in dangerous driving behaviors for social media content led to a fatal accident.
Public outcry and discussions are emerging about the influence of social media on youth behavior and the need for regulatory changes.

[RSnake: Friends don't let friends use social media.]

Source: https://www.mk.ru/social/2026/08/23/dumayut-tolko-o-laykakh-smertelnyy-trend-s-uchastiem-podrostkov-vyzval-uzhas.html

Walmart's Flipkart is rapidly expanding its quick-commerce services in India, now delivering over 1 million orders daily. The company is closing the gap with market leaders like Instamart, Blinkit, and Zepto by significantly increasing its delivery infrastructure and product offerings. Competition is intensifying in the Indian market as Amazon also seeks to enhance its instant delivery services.

Flipkart has increased its delivery orders to around 1.2 million per day, closing in on established quick-commerce leaders.
The expansion includes the establishment of over 1,000 micro-fulfillment centers and efforts to broaden its grocery product selection.

[RSnake: This is going to be a real contender in Rural areas against Amazon.]

Source: https://techcrunch.com/?p=3155850

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz for potential conflicts of interest due to their board seats in competing AI companies. This investigation, which has been ongoing for nearly a year, has raised questions regarding the practices of venture capital firms and their involvement in multiple competing startups, leading to possible implications for the industry's regulatory environment.

The DOJ is examining Andreessen Horowitz for holding board positions in rival AI firms.
This investigation may influence the behavior of other venture capital firms regarding conflicts of interest.

[RSnake: It's not unusual for VCs to hold more than one competitive companies at the same time. I wonder how this will play out.]

Source: https://techcrunch.com/?p=3155855

U.S. battery startups are receiving significant government support to boost production and reduce reliance on foreign sources, especially due to national security considerations. The Department of Energy has announced $500 million in grants aimed at enhancing the domestic battery supply chain for defense applications as well as electric vehicles, despite recent setbacks in the EV market.

The U.S. Department of Energy is awarding $500 million in grants to strengthen the battery supply chain.
Defense applications are becoming increasingly important for battery startups amidst challenges in the electric vehicle market.

[RSnake: Batteries are good. But we also need industrial sized backups. One of my favorite is gravity-driven batteries. Lift a big weight, or pump water uphill when power is cheap, drop it and produce electricity when it's expensive.]

Source: https://techcrunch.com/?p=3155626

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