NOW

Health authorities are tracking a growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with reports detailing how the virus is spreading and what is known so far about cases, contacts and containment efforts. The outbreak has drawn renewed international attention to the region's response capacity and the risk of further transmission.

Hurricane Isaias is making landfall, with emergency coverage underway and storm chasers reporting live from the field. Residents in the storm's path are being urged to follow official warnings as the hurricane brings damaging winds, heavy rain and storm surge. Live tracking of Isaias is drawing massive attention as conditions deteriorate along the affected coastline.

News outlets are examining reports of increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity across California in the run-up to the midterm elections. Reports from Berkeley and San Francisco-based outlets outline what is confirmed about arrests and operations, and what remains unverified, as residents and officials raise concerns about the timing of the enforcement push.

The US Air Force secretary has publicly acknowledged that the United States has weapons in space, a rare official confirmation of the country's space-based military capabilities. The statement is drawing attention because the US has historically been vague about whether it deploys offensive systems in orbit, and it could intensify debate over space militarization and international space agreements.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are reportedly confronting unresolved questions over their security arrangements as the world marks the anniversary of Princess Diana's death. The couple, who lost taxpayer-funded UK police protection after stepping back from royal duties, have long pressed for assured protection during visits to Britain. The timing links Diana's legacy, which Harry has cited in his own security concerns, with his ongoing dispute over safeguards.

Major banks that recently underwrote large debt packages for AI data center construction are now attempting to offload those loans to investors. The quick turnaround has raised questions about how comfortable lenders are with the scale of AI infrastructure financing and whether appetite for the debt among buyers will hold up. It adds to ongoing debate about a possible AI spending bubble and how it is being funded.

Yemen's Houthis are reportedly now manufacturing their own advanced ballistic missiles using Chinese components, according to the claim circulating widely. The development would mark an upgrade from assembled imported weapons to domestic production, raising concerns about the group's strike capacity in the Red Sea region and about the reach of Chinese-supplied parts into conflict zones. No independent verification or comment from Beijing or the Houthis has been confirmed.

Experts, including former NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe, warn that while a person is still more likely to be struck by lightning than by falling space debris, those odds are shifting as more objects reenter the atmosphere. They argue governments and companies should be required to use materials that fully burn up on reentry to reduce the risk.

The Guardian reports that companies which rapidly adopted artificial intelligence are now scaling back some of those efforts. The rush to deploy AI tools left workers spending time cleaning up floods of errors and low-quality output, prompting a reassessment of how and where the technology is actually useful. The piece reflects a broader corporate mood of cooling enthusiasm after a period of aggressive adoption.

Taylor Farms has issued a recall of lettuce products across 27 US states amid an ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak, a foodborne illness caused by a parasite that can trigger diarrhea, nausea and fatigue. Health officials and news outlets are urging consumers to check their refrigerators and discard affected produce. The recall has drawn widespread attention as investigators work to trace the source of infections linked to contaminated lettuce.

New coverage highlights that large numbers of Japanese adults report little or no sexual activity, and researchers still cannot fully explain the trend. Surveys have repeatedly pointed to rising rates of inexperience and inactivity, fueling debate over work culture, economic pressures and changing relationships in Japan.

Commenters in the AI community are noting an unusual lull from Chinese AI labs, with no significant new model releases at a time when four US labs are shipping frontier-class systems. Observers say the silence gives the impression the US is pulling ahead, though some caution that Chinese labs may simply be preparing major launches behind the scenes.

A widely shared post is warning Indians that the small padlock icon next to a website's address does not mean what many assume. The explainer argues the padlock only confirms an encrypted connection, not that the site is legitimate or safe, calling it a massive deal for how people trust anything online.

Google has rolled out Universal Cart, a new shopping feature that tracks prices on items users want to buy, along with three other shopping tools. The features were announced ahead of the holiday buying season, and Google also launched a guide advising shoppers on when to buy. Coverage highlights how the tools could help shoppers find the best deals as holiday spending ramps up.

The PHP project has issued a security advisory warning of critical remote code execution vulnerabilities, urging all users to update their installations immediately. The flaws could let attackers run arbitrary code on affected servers, making unpatched PHP sites and applications a serious risk. Developers and system administrators are being told to patch as a priority.

Apple's new iPhone Duo has sold out, with pre-orders now backordered until next year, according to a report from 9to5Mac. Customers placing orders face waits extending into 2027, signaling demand has outstripped initial supply. The backlog has become a talking point among tech watchers tracking how quickly the dual-device lineup moved through its launch stock.

News outlets including CNN are examining the environmental cost of artificial intelligence, laying out what research currently shows about the technology's impact. The discussion centers on the energy and water demands of data centers powering AI, and how significant the pollution footprint really is as adoption of tools like chatbots and image generators accelerates worldwide.

A tunnel in Yemen, struck repeatedly since 2015, has reportedly been bombed again by Saudi Arabia after previous attacks by the US three times, Israel in 2025, and Saudi-led forces. The claim circulating online notes that the Houthis have reopened the tunnel after every strike, highlighting the limits of air power against the group's infrastructure.

Edward Snowden shared a Guardian article in which he criticises Russian government policies on internet control and homosexuality. In the interview, the former NSA contractor, living in Russia under asylum, said the country's internet surveillance and anti-gay laws conflict with the freedoms he has defended. The remarks have drawn attention given his dependent status in Russia.

Attention is on warnings that this year's El Niño could be a major one, with analysis explaining the ocean temperature data and atmospheric signals that point to a strong event. The developing outlook has renewed focus on what a big El Niño could mean for droughts, floods, heatwaves and global temperatures in the months ahead.

The FBI is investigating letters containing an unknown substance that were sent to election officials in the United States. The probe comes amid heightened concern about threats and intimidation targeting people who administer US elections, and authorities are working to identify the sender and determine what the substance is.

Rockstar Games has not confirmed a PC version of GTA 6 at launch, and coverage is recapping everything currently known about when the game might come to PC. The console versions are dated for 2026, leaving PC players waiting for an official announcement, and outlets are summarising release patterns, past delays, and Rockstar's history of staggered launches.

YouTube Music will now label tracks generated by artificial intelligence, while streaming rival Deezer is going further, giving listeners and rights holders the option to remove AI-generated songs entirely. The moves come as music services face growing pressure over the flood of synthetic tracks on their platforms and disputes over royalties and artist rights.

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 has become the best-selling electric vehicle in the United States outside of Tesla's lineup. The electric crossover has overtaken other non-Tesla models in US sales, highlighting Hyundai's growing strength in the American EV market at a time when legacy automakers continue to struggle to match Tesla's volume.

A first-person essay titled 'Things to know when you get cancer' is drawing wide attention, ranking among the most discussed items of the day. The piece offers practical advice and reflections for people who have just received a cancer diagnosis, and readers are sharing it as a candid, useful account of navigating the disease.

The 94th China International Medical Equipment Fair, known as CMEF Beijing 2026, will be held in Beijing from October 21 to 24, 2026. Organisers expect the event to bring together medical-device manufacturers, healthcare buyers, distributors and technology developers for one of the industry's largest trade gatherings.

Health authorities in the UK are reporting a sharp increase in cyclosporiasis, an intestinal infection caused by the Cyclospora parasite, with many cases linked to recent travel to Mexico. The illness typically causes diarrhoea, stomach cramps and fatigue and is associated with contaminated food or water. Travellers are being advised on symptoms and prevention.

Hiring a tanker to ship fuel from the United States to China has become more expensive than launching a rocket into space, according to Bloomberg. The striking comparison is drawing attention to how far shipping rates for tanker routes have risen, with market watchers citing it as a sign of unusual pressure on energy transport costs between the two countries.

Gold has become the United States' top export, according to a report in Numismatic News. The shift reflects soaring gold prices and heavy bullion flows through hubs like Switzerland and the United Kingdom, as investors and central banks stockpile the metal amid economic uncertainty, pushing it ahead of traditional leading exports such as refined petroleum.

Accenture has imposed a strict monthly cap of $29 on employees' spending on Anthropic's Claude AI assistant, according to 404 Media. Some staff who previously spent as much as $1,000 a month on the tool are now scrambling to find alternative ways to maintain access, raising questions about how heavily consultants have come to rely on AI in their daily work.