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Spain will have 27,000 new civil servants. The surprise is that experts in AI, cybersecurity and data science are now sought

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In recent years, Spain has promoted the public employment calls. This has managed to beat historical figures in the number of places and, although the OEP (Public Employment Offer) of 2025 took its foot off the accelerator, the Council of Ministers has just approved the OEP corresponding to 2026 with figures somewhat higher than those of the previous period. What draws attention is something else: the 1,700 positions for information technology specialists to achieve a ambitious goal. Transform Administration thanks to AI. 27,000 for the AGE. How has published The Government through the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Service, the OEP 2026 includes 27,232 places for the General Administration of the State. It represents a small increase compared to the 26,889 places last yearalthough it continues to show that there is a personnel problem. The breakdown is 26,886 ordinary places and 346 corresponding to an extraordinary offer linked to the climate emergency. The Government points out that this offer will generate 6,200 net jobs and ensures that, since 2021, the different public employment offers have met the objective of rejuvenating the public workforce, with an average age now at 49 years. New specialists. Now, the big news is that the Administration wants profiles that are much more specialized in technology. Of these positions, 1,700 will be for information technology specialists. It is estimated that it is 42% more than those called in the previous offer and it is not only the increase in places, but also the profiles they are looking for. Because what they are looking for are “specialists in Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Data Science” with the aim of, according to Minister Óscar López, “transforming the Administration.” López points out that we have to see what the administration’s priorities are, the needs of citizens and, thus, “have a more effective and efficient administration with the use of AI and the creation of quality public employment.” More digitization. This increase in digital profiles is supported by Government figures that indicate that the percentage of citizens who use official websites or applications is 83% while the European average is 75%. Furthermore, they point out that Spain is seven points above the average in digitalization of the Public Administration. The objective they aspire to is to increase digital administrative procedures by 25%, digitizing public administration. If this is going to be accompanied by the destruction of jobs, López affirms no and that what they are going to do is transform those jobs, not destroy them. They do not detail much else, other than that a series of digital training courses will be carried out with AI modules and “data tools” to strengthen the digital skills of all public employees. Exceeding 37,000. In total, counting the beaches already announced for the National Police, Civil Guard and Armed Forces, the OEP 2026 will exceed 37,000 places, slightly above the 36,588 last year. And, beyond the striking nature of these digital offers in AI and “data”, the Government intends to reinforce strategic areas such as the energy transition, the prevention of climate emergencies and the fight against climate change. The problem is that, according to the OECD, Spanish public employment remains below the international average. In the 2025 report, the OECD pointed out that Spanish public employment represented 15.25% of the total active population in 2023, with the average for all OECD countries being 18.41%. We will have to wait for more recent reports to see if the record rally of 2023 and 2024 has reversed the situation. Image | Treball Generalitat (edited) In Xataka | The easiest oppositions to pass in Spain following three criteria: by syllabus, by places and by requirements

This is how India prepares its next big leap in the chip industry

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When we think about making chips, India is not usually the first country that comes to mind. We think of Taiwan, South Korea, the United States or China, but India often appears in another box: that of software, technological services or the assembly of electronic products. Precisely for this reason this movement is interesting. We are witnessing firsthand how a huge country seeks to advance towards one of the deepest and most difficult parts of the technological chain. The announcement is supported by a very specific alliance: Tata Electronics and ASML have signed a memorandum of understanding for the future Dholera semiconductor plant in Gujarat. The facility, which the release presents as India’s first 300mm commercial factory, has a planned investment of 11 billion dollars and will be aimed at producing semiconductors for a wide range of sectors. The agreement, Reuters points outwas signed on May 16 during Narendra Modi’s visit to the Netherlands, also attended by Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten. India’s commitment to chips is beginning to cease to be a promise The news comes accompanied by some interesting technical data that is worth analyzing carefully. The 300 mm figure may sound like a measurement of the chip, but it actually talks about the silicon wafer on which the semiconductors are manufactured, indicating the diameter of that circular surface, not the size of the transistors or the size of the final chips. It is a standard industrial platform for large-scale production, because it allows working with many units on the same wafer before cutting them and taking them to the next phases of the process. Furthermore, the statement places the Tata collaboration with PSMCPowerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation, as the gateway to a technology portfolio that includes 28nm, 40nm, 55nm, 90nm and 110nm. That list helps land the project much better than the 300 mm label, because it tells us which process families the plant plans to handle. In practice, we talk about analog and logic chips for automotive, mobile devices, consumer electronics, connectivity, IoT, embedded memory and other industrial uses. This is precisely where the Dutch company occupies a central position in the semiconductor industry. Their contribution does not simply consist of “setting up machines”, but rather supporting the start-up of the factory with lithography tools and solutions, the phase that allows the circuit patterns to be transferred to the silicon wafers. ASML also speaks training local talent, supply chain resilience and R&D infrastructure. It is a way to accompany Tata not only in the purchase of equipment, but in the industrial learning necessary for the plant to scale. ASML is known for its most sophisticated machines, but that doesn’t mean every deal of yours involves EUV either High-NA EUV. In this case, the available information speaks of lithography solutions for a process-oriented plant that they do not belong to the most advanced frontier. With these data, and in the absence of ASML detailing what specific systems it will supply, the most prudent reading is to place the project in the field of lithography DUV and the support ecosystem that allows stable production. TWINSCAN NXT:1980Di, one of the DUV machines that would fit with a factory like Tata’s This agreement comes at an interesting time for the Dutch company. ASML continues to occupy a central position in the sector, but the adoption of its most advanced technology is not being uniform among its large clients: TSMC, for example, continues to evaluate High-NA EUV, although for now it prefers to rely on current EUVs and process improvements rather than assume the cost and complexity of the new generation. Its executive Kevin Zhang summed it up with a very clear phrase: “I like the technology, but not the price.” In this context, an alliance like Tata’s reminds us of something important: the Dutch firm not only stands out for its most extreme machines, but also for its ability to accompany factories in different stages of industrial maturity. Reuters places the agreement in a broader context than that of a single factory. India has pledged billions of dollars in subsidies to attract semiconductor plants and related manufacturing, with eight projects underway, while Modi has encouraged Dutch companies to invest in areas such as semiconductors, renewable energy, digital technologies and health. At the same time, Dutch companies in the sector look for new markets and more geographical diversification in a scenario marked by export controls and trade restrictions linked to technological rivalry between the United States and China. As we can see, the move does not put India, at least for now, at the top of the semiconductor industry, but it does bring it closer to manufacturing chips at scale with proven processes and sustained demand. That difference matters. The industry does not only live on the most advanced semiconductors, but also on a huge base of components present in devices that surround us, such as everyday electronics and the automotive industry, as well as those that play in another field, such as industrial systems. Images | Tata Electronics | ASML In Xataka | Manufacturing 60 machines a year may not seem like much. In practice, those of the European ASML are setting the pace of AI

“token factories” with their own hardware

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The AI ​​race is no longer explained just by looking at which company launches the most powerful model or who gets access to the most advanced chips. That part is still important, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. What is beginning to emerge is a much broader dynamic to ensure the necessary resources to continue competing. China is pushing that idea with a formula it has called “token factories.” In action. The most recent example comes from Wuxi, a city in eastern China’s Jiangsu province. According to Global TimesHonflex and the Wuxi High-tech Zone have promoted the first computing supernode there Huawei Ascend 384 of the province. The idea is to use that infrastructure as a starting point for a large-scale installation aimed at offering AI capacity measured in tokens to the market. Demand grows. If more and more applications use language models and AI agents, someone has to stably provide the capability to run them. Xinhua points out that at the end of March 2026, daily requests for tokens in China exceeded 140 billion, more than 1,000 times more than at the beginning of 2024 and 40% more than at the end of 2025. That is where the concept of “factory” makes a little more sense. Meaning of the label. In practice, AI data centers already function as token factories. They execute models, receive requests and return responses. What changes here is not so much the technical nature, but the way of converting it into an industrial product. It presents computing power as something measurable and sellable for those companies that need AI without building the entire infrastructure on their own. In detail. The Wuxi facility will start with four Huawei Ascend 384 servers. The promise here is to create a high-performance cluster based on domestic chips and models. In parallel, China Mobile announced on May 17 that it had built a computing center in Hubei for the center of the country with locally developed AI infrastructure and intelligent computing capacity exceeding 2,200 petaflops. A reading of technological sovereignty. In both projects, emphasis is placed on Chinese infrastructure, Chinese chips and national models. There are no mentions of American technology as the basis of the deployment, nor of NVIDIA chips, although the American company continues to be a global reference in AI hardware and has had a very relevant role in China. This framing fits with the Asian giant’s efforts to gain autonomy in a strategic technology. The initiatives also seem to point in that direction. The race continues. If we take the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 as the starting point of this new AI race, little time has passed on the calendar, but a lot of time has passed in the industry. The US is not exactly the same actor as it was then, neither is China, and in between we have seen export restrictions, regulatory comings and goings, development of national alternatives and growing pressure to secure the technological base that allows us to continue competing. In this context, the concept of “token factories” appears. Now we have to wait to see if it will translate into a real advantage. Images | Xataka with Nano Banana In Xataka | If the question is whether AI data centers end up increasing temperatures in a region, the answer is: 2.2ºC

first you will have to take a two-hour course

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We have gone from looking at artificial intelligence with curiosity to having it closer and closer. Many use it to summarize texts, organize ideas, study, or solve small work tasks. The feeling is clear: these services are beginning to form part of our digital life. But there is a very specific border that changes the conversation. It is one thing to try a free tool, with its limits, and quite another to pay every month for a more advanced version that unlocks greater benefits. That’s where Malta comes in. which recently announced together with OpenAI, an alliance that the company presents as the first of its kind in the world. The measure will allow access for one year and without direct cost to ChatGPT Plus. Times of Malta adds An important piece: the agreement also includes Microsoft, so participants will be able to opt for ChatGPT Plus or Microsoft 365 Personal Copilot. The condition, in any case, is not minor: you must first complete basic training on how to use these tools. The program is structured around “AI for Everyone”, a national online course developed by the University of Malta and designed to explain what AI is, what it can do, what limits it has and how to use it responsibly at home and at work. The Maltese Government speaks of a training of approximately two hours. OpenAI explains that the first phase is planned for May and that the Malta Digital Innovation Authority will be responsible for managing the distribution among eligible participants. The initiative will grow as more Malta residents and Maltese citizens abroad complete the course. An initiative that goes beyond free ChatGPT Plus For OpenAI, the deal fits within a broader strategy. The artificial intelligence company places it under OpenAI for Countriesits initiative to work with governments and institutions that want to move from initial interest in AI to national adoption programs. The idea is not to apply the same model everywhere, but to adapt it to local priorities such as education, public services, support for startups or digital literacy. Microsoft appears in the equation in another way: its collaboration with the country comes from a previous agreement to introduce Copilot in the public administration. What has not been made public, however, are the financial details of the new agreement. Malta tries to present the initiative as something more ambitious than a technological promotion. The Government maintains that the main objective is to give the population a broad understanding of AI so that they can use it safely, responsibly and with confidence. This formulation is important, because it shifts the focus from the tool to the competition. Silvio Schembri, Minister of Economy, summed it up by presenting it as a way of turning a still unfamiliar concept into a practical help for families, students and workers. It’s not just about trying out advanced services, but about learning how to incorporate them into real tasks. The context helps to understand why Malta can propose an initiative of this type. According to the European Commissionthe country obtains very good results in the adoption of AI and business digitalization, and stands out especially in the digitalization of public services. In addition, it has already reached 100% coverage in very high capacity networks and 100% basic 5G coverage, in line with the objectives of the Digital Decade. That is to say, Malta is not starting from scratch: it has a solid technological base on which to try to bring AI to more citizens. Valletta, capital of Malta The other reading is less colorful, but necessary. The fact that Malta is well placed in digitalization does not mean that the adoption of AI will be automatic or homogeneous. Brussels is located in 63% population proportion with at least basic digital skills, although it also points out differences associated with educational level. This nuance explains part of the meaning of the program: if AI begins to become a common tool, the problem will not only be who can access it, but who knows how to truly take advantage of it. Deep down, Malta is rehearsing an answer to a question that many countries will soon have to ask themselves: what does it mean to prepare the population for an economy where AI is beginning to creep into very everyday tasks. OpenAI speaks of intelligence as a national utility, an ambitious but useful expression for understanding the movement. The point is not that everyone uses the same tool, but that more people have a minimum basis for deciding when to use it, when to distrust it, and how to turn it into real help. We will have to see how far a training of about two hours can go. Malta is a small country and that makes it a manageable experimentbut the important questions remain for later: how many people will take the course, how many will activate the tool afterwards, and how many will actually incorporate it into their daily lives. The answer will only come with time. Even so, access to advanced tools being accompanied by minimal AI literacy does not seem like a bad starting point. Images | Maltese Government | Tchoutcho Dantine de Thier | Solen Feyissa In Xataka | The list of requirements for Gemini Intelligence is so long that even many Google phones are left out

500 million euros are going to be spent on expanding the circuit in their town

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Formula 1 is much more than a motor sport. Each Grand Prix moves billions in advertising interests and investmentsthat’s why the main cities in the world they fight for having his own circuit in the championship. In Denmark, a group of investors wants build a circuit capable of entering the orbit of Formula 1. The plan puts on the table some 510 million euros in exchange, and is proposed on the foundations of a small circuit that already exists located in Padborg, a town in the south of Denmark with only 4,393 inhabitants. Two millionaires and the first Danish GP Perhaps the names of Henrik Lyngbye Pedersen and his son Mathias Lyngbye Villadsen will not be familiar to you. But if we tell you that his last name comes from one of the founding members of the main Danish pharmaceutical companymaybe they give you some clue. Both are heirs to the fortune of the brothers Harald and Thorvald Pedersenfounders of Novo Nordisk, creator of Ozempicand they have proposed an investment of 3.8 billion Danish crowns, about 510 million euros, to build a circuit with very serious aspirations. As and how to publish Motorpassionits objective is to build a track 6,006 meters long, with 18 curves and capacity for 100,000 spectators. Along with the expansion of the current layout, it is also planned to build a hotel complex, a conference center and a karting and motocross circuit. All this with the intention that the venue does not depend solely on the celebration of one Grand Prix a year, but rather leaves the door open to other events related to the world of motorsport. The current Padborg Park circuit is located between Padborg and Tinglev, on the land of a former airfield that opened as a circuit in 2003. Now, Henrik Lyngbye Pedersen and his son Mathias want to expand that space and officially turn it into the Denmark Circuit. Current status of the Padborg circuit The proposal to remodel this old airfield into a first-class circuit approved for Formula 1 It seeks to attract audiences from Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, taking advantage of its proximity to the border and the connection routes with cities such as Flensburg. Rebecca Palmberg Steele, project director, assured that “the circuit will be located in a place that is the gateway to Europe, and this project has the potential to boost both the sport, the business world and the local community,” declared the one responsible for the Danish media Børsen. 510 million to bring Formula 1 to your home The heirs of Novo Nordisk have estimated an initial investment of 3.8 billion Danish crowns to create what would be the first circuit capable of hosting a Danish Grand Prix in the future. It is a huge investment for a facility that, until now, functioned as a minor circuit and as a training space. The circuit design has already been assigned to the Wurz Design studiofounded by former Formula 1 driver Alexander Wurz, who already has extensive experience in the private layout design for training and competition, such as Qiddiya Speed ​​Park Circuit in Riyadh or the RACC Driver Training Center in Madrid. The more than six kilometers of track would place it among the longest routes in Europewhile the capacity of 100,000 people makes it one of the largest venues in the north of the continent. However, for a circuit to host a Grand Prix, an FIA Grade 1 license is required, the highest level of homologation. The promoters of the project assure that this is the goal of the project, although they also make it clear that entering the Formula 1 calendar will not be easy since new tests are only incorporated when one of the venues stop celebrating themso the heirs of Novo Nordisk face an investment whose return is not assured. In Xataka | The Madrid F1 circuit is not yet finished but it has already had its first accident on the track: four workers with a van Image | Unsplash (Marti Sierra , hannah thiel)

Lead has its days numbered in hunting. The problem is that no one really knows how to replace it.

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The practice of hunting is a ‘hobby’ that has been much discussed among different sectors of society in recent years, but beyond its ethical aspects, the European Agency for Chemical Substances and Mixtures has decided to intervene by pose the ban on lead in hunting ammunition. And this has raised a great debate between the hunting sector and environmentalists and researchers that require immediate measures, although at the moment it is in pause. The siege of Europe. This lead fence is not new, but since 2023 the European Union prohibits its use in wetlands for hunting waterfowl, a historic measure to prevent lead poisoning in ducks and other species that ate the pellets at the bottom of the lagoons. But now they want to go one step further, since ECHA has recommended to the European Commission a total veto by prohibiting the marketing and use of cartridges and fishing tackle that contain more than 1% lead. And to soften the blow, the European drafts have proposed transition periods that range between 18 months for large hunting and up to 5 years for small hunting. The role of science. For the Spanish scientific community, these grace periods are a luxury that ecosystems cannot afford. Specifically, 130 researchers from different institutions have signed a manifesto urging the Government to support the European restriction without any type of concession. That is, the ban applies immediately overnight. The arguments they offer focus mainly on the great toxicity that lead generates when it is left abandoned in the countryside, and above all they argue that there is no safe exposure threshold. That is, the only security we can have is when there is zero lead in the environment. Its impact. On the one hand, we have the environmental impact, since tons of lead end up scattered in the countryside every year due to hunting practices, poisoning fauna, especially scavenger birds that consume prey with pellets. On the other hand, we have a public health problem. In this case, there are several reports that exist warning about the nutritional risks of consuming game meat shot with this type of ammunition, recommending that children and pregnant women avoid its consumption due to the neurological data associated with lead. The hunters. Faced with the scientific urgency, they ask to hit the brakes on the application of these measures. Entities such as the Royal Spanish Hunting Federation (RFEC) and the Andalusian Hunting Federation (FAC) they argue that a sudden ban would be a death sentence for the sector and, by extension, for the economy of many rural areas. The problem that arises is that the alternatives to lead are not completely convincing, since, although there are options such as steel or bismuth, the hunting sector denounces that they are not validated at a toxicological level, they are much more expensive and, above all, that there is no large-scale production to cover the demand. Furthermore, the use of steel shot requires in many cases to adapt or change older shotguns, since they can damage the barrels due to the hardness of the material. This is why they ask for at least 10 years to adapt. A political battle. Right now the Government supports aligning itself with the hard line that comes from Europe, but the opposition parties, such as the Popular Party, ask for a fight in Brussels over get those decades of margin and funds for safe, alternative ballistics research. And right now the ball is literally in the court of Brussels and the REACH committee in charge of regulating chemical substances in the EU. Right now the only thing left is to open a space for debate that is not easy at all. Images | freepik In Xataka | Hunting has been printed on the Spanish national ID card for centuries. Now you have a problem: there is no relief

This Prime Video series ends after 7 years and 40 chapters, making history with an audience more divided than ever

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Today Prime Video premieres the last episode of ‘The Boys‘. It is not just any ending: it comes with the highest audience figures in the entire history of the series and, at the same time, with social networks converted into a battlefield over whether this latest installment of the superhero satire has been worth it. What is clear is that one of the most ambitious and rounded productions of the recent era of the streaming. ‘The Boys’ was born as an adaptation of the comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson published between 2006 and 2012 and arrived on Prime Video in July 2019 with a brutal premise:what if superheroes were corporate tools with powers of mass destruction? The series created by Eric Kripke immediately connected with a eerily similar political and information climate to the starting point of the series. In the following seven years, the fiction has accumulated five seasons, a spin-off (‘Gen V’) and an expanding universe that turned Patriot, more than a villain, into a disturbing reflection of reality. For a series to reach its conclusion at the best audience moment in its history is not usual. ‘The Boys’ has done it. The fifth season has reached an average of 57 million viewers per episode on a global scale, the highest figure in the entire history of the series. The season is also among the ten most viewed from any Prime Video original series. All this while there has been a more heterogeneous public reception than ever with the series (often praised by critics, but with very combative detractors for its powerful political message). In addition, this season has encountered criticism of its pacing, filler episodes and lack of action. It has been compared to ‘Game of Thrones’ in its controversial final stretch and although Kripke has defended the decisions that have been made, today is the day to check to what extent the series manages to live up to its prestige. In Xataka | 8 premieres this week on Netflix, including a science fiction and mystery series from the creators of ‘Stranger Things’

Renfe trusted in Justice to prevent Iryo from using its workshops. Your last hope just faded away

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Renfe will have to open its workshops to Iryo. At least for now. This is what the National Court has decided, rejecting the very precautionary measures requested by Renfe with which it intended to close the Italian company’s access to its space. Of course, the judicial procedure continues, so it is not at all clear what will end up happening in the medium term. No. This is what the National Court has determined. It does not accept the very precautionary measures requested by Renfe to prevent Iryo from using its facilities to carry out its own heavy maintenance activities at its facilities, they point out in The Economist. The National Court sides with the CNMC, at least for now, in the battle that Renfe maintains against Iryo and the regulators. However, the procedure continues and Justice will have to confirm whether, in the future, Renfe must keep its facilities open to rivals. The CNMC. This first decision of the court reaffirms the position of the CNMC, which claims to be allowing all the protagonists of this film to operate under equal conditions. Cani Fernández, president of the CNMC, defended the position of the regulators, arguing that “the CNMC has to guarantee access to the market under equal conditions,” in words reported by He Northern Castile. Since the conflict beganthe CNMC has sided with Iryo and demands that Renfe open its workshops so that the Italian company can carry out maintenance work on its trains. They point out that if Iryo has to send its trains to Italy, it would lose them for weeks and put it at a disadvantage in the market. The other alternative, that scheduled maintenance is not carried out, is not logically viable either. What Renfe says. For its part, Renfe believes that give access to Iryo to carry out the activities that have already been advanced to them has no place within the competitive framework that the Spanish company and the rest of its rivals had given themselves. Renfe does not avoid its obligation to have to lend its facilities to Iryo and Ouigo but remember that this is only the case for light maintenance tasks. However, they allege, Iryo has requested to be able to carry out its own heavy maintenance activities. This, according to Renfe, would have direct consequences on its offer because its facilities are already working at full capacity. The company assures that if it gives entry to the Italian company will suffer the following consequences: Remove 1.2 million seats from its offer due to not being able to maintain its own trains Of those seats, one million would correspond to the offer offered as a public service Loss of 60 million euros in income What Iryo says. In its allegations, Renfe points out that Iryo’s activities would occupy 10% of the La Sagra facilities, where its Comprehensive Maintenance Base is located. Iryo reduces this figure to 7% and points out that it would not be too much of a problem since they are activities that can be scheduled based on the mileage of the trains. They emphasize that if Renfe does not give them access to their workshops they will have to take them to Rome and that this implies leaving them out of circulation for up to two months, a situation that they consider unfair. The company has not made any comment on the possibility of setting up its own workshops in Spain, just as promised upon arrival. They complain. The latter does not convince Renfe that she feels aggrieved in this fight. Back in the day, he discovered that Ouigo was carrying out heavy unscheduled maintenance work in his workshops. Now they believe that giving Iryo access to act in the same way is not fair because it is not specified or by the Directive 2012/34/EU (RECAST) on the single railway space nor the standard EN 15380-4:2021 Spanish. Faced with the first decision of the CNMC, Renfe responded by closing the door and putting forward its reasons but the organization stood firmand. The next thing was to appeal the decision to the National Court requesting very precautionary measures but these, as we say, have been rejected. At the moment, Justice forces the workshops to open but the procedure continues to decide whether, in the medium term, Renfe, Iryo and Ouigo must maintain this same balancing act or if the Spanish company can close the door on them. Photo | Renfe and Iryo In Xataka | There is a fight between the railway operators to get the best drivers and Renfe is winning it

Star Catcher has raised $88 million to build the first space power grid. Their plan is to recharge satellites with lasers

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As the pace of space launches increases and missions beyond Earth become more abundant and varied, it is important to look for new ways to obtain energy so that these ships can travel to their destinations. Fuel is not infinite, so there comes a point where it runs out. Therefore, there are three main proposals. One is to resupply the ships directly in orbit. Another option is to resort to nuclear energy. In fact, There are already several agencies working on it. Finally, there is the option of solar energy. Unfortunately, this has some limitations, but the American company Star Catcher wants to solve them through the world’s first energy network located in space. A good economic injection. Star Catcher just announced which has received 65 million dollars in a series A financing round. With what they already had in their coffers, the company has 88 million dollars. Enough to date its first release to the end of this year. Different ways to “squeeze” the Sun. The solar energy we are used to is obtained through plates with photovoltaic cells installed directly on the Earth. However, there are already companies that want to bring it directly from the Sun, even at night. Its goal is to use mirrors that reflect sunlight at will anywhere on Earth, whatever the time and whether the weather is good or not. The problem is that these companies They are being criticized a lot for posing risks such as great light pollution. On the other hand, what Star Catcher wants to do is slightly different. They will also take solar energy directly into space, but they will not direct it to Earth, but to the spacecraft that need it. It will be like a kind of space solar power plant. Optical beaming. Star Catcher will be based on a phenomenon known as optical beaming. This consists of extracting solar energy and using it to power a multispectral optical laser, with which it will be redirected to satellites from which it can be distributed at will to the ships that need it. To do this, they hope to be able to put a constellation of 200 satellites into low Earth orbit. Previous records. Last year, this company broke the world record for wireless electricity transmission by delivering 1.1 kW of power to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Now, they want to transmit directly to space. It also has limitations. Although this company does not have the same limitations as those that want to redirect sunlight to Earth, it involves placing an immense number of satellites in orbit, with the risk that this entails. Many experts warn that, in the same way that could happen with Elon Musk’s Starlink constellation, this type of infrastructure increases the risk of Kessler syndrome. That is, it could happen that one or more fragments of space debris collide with them, deteriorating and launching pieces into space that would become more space debris, which in turn would collide with more satellites or more debris. Thus, a very dangerous domino effect would be generated for satellites, ships and space stations that are in space at that time. Even more risks. On the other hand, the launches of the ships that will place the satellites into orbit are also a great source of pollution. In fact, recently has been published a study that warns of the large amount of polluting substances that these types of launches leave in the upper layers of the atmosphere, where, otherwise, the pollution would be residual. In short, this company will bring us great advances, but it will have to maneuver carefully so as not to bring even more problems. Image | Star Catcher In Xataka | Starlink’s dominance in space begins to move: another company already has permission for a constellation of 4,000 satellites

‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ has started off on the wrong foot

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Seven years after ‘The Rise of Skywalker‘, ‘Star Wars‘ returns to theaters with ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’, the first film in the franchise since 2019. The reception of the first critics and even the first screenings for fans is being, at best, very lukewarm. Right now, Disney needs a smash hit to revitalize the franchise, and early viewers seem to be simply shrugging their shoulders. Lazy notes. With nearly 120 reviews counted before its May 22 premiere, ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ it stands at around 60% on Rotten Tomatoes. That score places it in the same range as ‘Attack of the Clones’ (62%), although still above what is considered the great fiascos of the franchise: ‘The Phantom Menace’ from the prequel trilogy and ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ from the Disney era. Of course, as always on Rotten Tomatoes, opinions are debatable, but it is significant that a film that was going to function as a oxygen tank for the franchise has such a lukewarm reception. What do they say? All the reviews agree on common points: the film is entertaining, but it does not justify a return to the cinema of the saga. Or in other words: we are facing an extended episode of the series. There is talk of a nostalgic walkof the most boring installment of the franchisethat the film is essentially two episodes from the spliced ​​series. One of the most noted problems is that his commercial hook, Pedro Pascal, has ended up turning against the series: the Mandalorian never takes off his helmet, and most of the action scenes are performed by a stuntman. Why Disney needs the Mandalorian. Disney comes from a complicated 2025 at the box officewith the failures of ‘Snow White’ and ‘Elio’, and Marvel’s proposals (”Captain America: Brave New World’, ‘Thunderbolts’ and ‘Fantastic Four’) performing less than expected. According to experts, the excess of series and movies designed for Disney+ has eroded the cultural value of Marvel, Star Wars and Pixarwhich has led to falls such as loss of 700,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2025. Resurrect ‘Star Wars’. The strategy is now very clear: fewer films, more impact. Marvel’s imminent releases are the new Spider-Man movie (in co-production with Sony) and the long-awaited return of the Avengers. ‘Star Wars’ is betting on this ‘The Mandalorian & Grogu’ (2026) and ‘Starfighter’ (2027), starring Ryan Gosling and directed by Shawn Levy. For now, perhaps, the strategy has been frustrated (although the box office may respond as Disney hopes, in a new chapter of the renewed divorce between critics and public: After all, ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ grossed more than a billion; and there are cases of films like ‘The Last Jedi’, loved by critics, hated by fans). The key problem with ‘The Mandalorian’. When Grogu was still Baby Yodaconquered the internet at a very specific moment: with the inauguration of Disney+, in the days around the pandemic. But the phenomenon was not repeated neither in successive seasons nor in series like ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ or ‘Ahsoka’. The franchise has been trying to disassociate itself from the Skywalker family for years, and ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ could be a good solid step, although the film’s plot revolves around Jabba the Hutt’s son. That is, the surnames in the usual tiny galaxy. Another sign that the franchise does not know how to expand without resorting to the usual tropes. Given what we have seen, ‘Starfighter’ has an even more relevant challenge before it than performing at the box office. In Xataka | Disney needs to solve the biggest crisis in ‘Star Wars’ history. And he’s held on to Baby Yoda to get it

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