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In the midst of controversy over the Nietos Law, the Argentine songs at the gates of the final

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

That a soccer team qualifies to play the final of a World Cup is cause for celebration. Of wild joy, even. Spain and Argentina know it well, the two countries that will compete this Sunday the fifa cup at MetLife Stadium. On both sides of the Atlantic there are debates about the quality of one or another squad and what the party will be like is planned depending on whether the star of 2026 ends up in the La Roja or La Roja shirt. albiceleste. However, ironies of the king of sport, that goodrollism It has been marred by a succession of songs launched at the least appropriate place and time. What has happened? If you live in Madrid or Malaga perhaps you have seen it in person; If not, it is likely that has reached you through Choirs, jumps, flags. The expected. So far nothing controversial. The problem is what could be heard during those celebrations. With the 1-2 score against England still fresh, some Argentines chanted songs like “Spain is afraid” or “Spanish is the one who doesn’t bounce!” It did not happen in all cities, but the fact that proclamations like this were sung in such emblematic places as the Plaza Mayor in Madrid or Larios Street in Malaga did not go unnoticed on the networks… Nor did it go unnoticed by newspapers such as OK Diary either Digital Freedomwho dedicated chronicles to him. “They have little shame,” the latter concluded in one piece halfway between the news and the editorial. @k.farias8 The Argentines sing “He who does not jump is Spanish” in the heart of Malaga 🇪🇸 The world final is coming. #worldcup #Argentina #Spain #world ♬ original sound – kf8 “So that?” Proof of how far the matter has escalated is that Wednesday’s chants have not only generated reactions from Spanish fans or media. It has also been done by some Argentines who do not feel comfortable with the reaction of their compatriots and have wanted to distance themselves. The clearest example is that of Eduardo Patituccian Argentine sports journalist who has uploaded a video calling for harmony and responsibility. “He who does not jump is Spanish. For what? The Spanish is the one who gives you work, the one who opened the doors for you…”, warns Patitucci, for whom “it is one thing to sing against England or other countries” and another against the one “that feeds you.” What did he say? “It is the country to which you came to seek to evolve, because I do not believe that any Argentine has been forced to leave Argentina. We only come here to earn a living, to have a better future, to seek to grow… It seems to me that ‘The Spaniard is afraid’ yes, that’s it for the picaresque; but the thing about ‘He who does not leave is Spanish’ or directly saying shit in the Plaza Mayor and other parts of Spain does not seem correct to me at all,” the journalist continues Argentinean. “Then we complain about other nationalities when they go out and commit atrocities. Let’s not be like the rest. To the Spanish, respect and affection.” @nachopla12 The World Cup final in Madrid is starting to heat up: 🇪🇸 Spain – Argentina 🇦🇷 ♬ original sound – Nacho Pla Is it just the chants? No. It’s also the context. Perhaps at another time the controversy would have been less, but the reality is that now it has arisen against a very specific backdrop: with the foreign population in historical levels and immigration policy converted into a topic of ideological dispute. First for the “national priority”a concept that VOX has championed when it has had to sit down to negotiate with the PP; second, with the “Grandchildren Law” and the crossing of accusations that has unleashed between PP and PSOE. Does that matter? It is certainly a factor to take into account. Especially because this last topic has greatly marked the political chronicle of recent weeks and its main protagonist is Latin American migration. Let us remember: the “Grandchildren Law”, which is actually an additional provision of the Democratic Memory Law of 2022, is a way that allows Spanish nationality to be recognized for the descendants of those people who had to leave our country during the Civil War or the Franco dictatorship for political, ideological, religious or sexual orientation reasons. For the Government it is a matter of “reparation and justice” historical. For the PP it is pure “electoral engineering” in the run-up to the general elections. What does it have to do with Argentina? A lot. Argentina is one of the countries that has shown the most interest in the door opened by the “Grandchildren Law.” Although its administrative process has not yet been completed, it is estimated that almost a million of Argentines has requested nationality under this regulatory framework. Not bad if we take into account that Foreign Affairs estimates that they have started the procedures 2.4 million of descendants of Spaniards throughout the world. That data, added to that of the tens of thousands of immigrants of Argentine nationality who already reside in Spain, according to the INE, adds more controversy to Wednesday’s songs. The unknown now is what will happen on Sunday depending on whether the coveted FIFA Cup is won by Spain or Argentina. Images | TikTok In Xataka | It is possible that today you will hear your neighbor sing Spain’s goal before you: the delay of streaming compared to DTT

Spain is going to have three heat waves in six weeks. AEMET is clear: it is no longer a wave, it is the climate

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

Spain has just signed its start to the warmest summer in the historical series. There it is nothing. Between June 1 and July 15, the average temperature was 3.3 ºC above normal. In these six weeks, we have suffered two official heat waves, an extreme episode that did not become extreme and, according to AEMETwe are already on the rise of the next wave this Sunday. So much so that the heat begins to be the least of it. The central question of 2026 is simple: if we cross the heat threshold three times in five weeks, isn’t something broken in that threshold? In Xataka "It’s brutal": Meteorologists have taken a look at the heat forecasts for next week and they are not optimistic The third wave does not exist yet. I don’t want to mislead anyone. AEMET has issued an information note (it is not yet a special notice) and this is because, although we know that there will be a generalized thermal rise, the criteria remain extremely strict. Spokesman Rubén del Campo talked about temperatures “extraordinarily high” and maximum temperatures of up to 44 ºC in the southern half. But the duration, extent and strength is yet to be defined. What is clear is that, if it were not, it would be just barely. That’s why what happens next week doesn’t change the general picture. Not only would it be three or four extreme heat episodes in six weeks, but some climatologists such as Jorge Olcina They also add the “Saharan advection at the end of May” and speak of four episodes in eight weeks. With old reference periods, we would probably be in those terms. But how explained José Ángel Núñez and Rubén del Campo On the agency’s official blog, the definition is not touched, precisely, to see things like what we are seeing. That is, what the threshold is doing is clearly showing that everything is changing. According to the agency’s own studybetween 2001 and 2025 Spain registered 91 heat waves compared to 43 in the period 1976-2000, and the days under the wave went from 210 to 510. This summer does not fit the threshold, it is true. But it fits perfectly with the trend. In Xataka Today the heatwave begins and the meteorologists are clear: "They paint coarse for the Mediterranean regions of Spain" And that’s the problem. The ISCIII MoMo system, the statistical model that indicates excess mortality, attributed 3,649 deaths to the heat last summer, the second worst figure of the decade. The problem here, as we pointed out a few days ago, is that in 2026 we will already we have spent half of that excess before the dog days begin (the worst part of summer). Meteorology has shown us that, at any moment, the situation can change suddenly. What remains is to wait, but the feeling that the world is changing faster than our adaptations to it has stopped being a fear and has begun to become something very real. Image | Meteociel In Xataka |Neither London nor the United Kingdom: the NASA map that reveals where the grayest sky in Europe is (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news Spain is going to have three heat waves in six weeks. AEMET is clear: it is no longer a wave, it is the climate was originally published in Xataka by Javier Jimenez .

Today at Lidl (and half price) the Coca-Cola popcorn machine that is ideal for movie nights at home

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

If there is something that many of us have wanted to have at home since we were little, it is a popcorn making machine. Today at Lidl we have one available with a Coca-Cola design that is amazing and that you can use every time you want to watch a movie, a series or simply have a visitor at home. The best thing is that it is reduced to 74.99 euros (its price is 169.90 euros). Coca-Cola popcorn machine The price could vary. We earn commission from these links If you can’t get it or you just want an alternative, you have this other popcorn machine from Amazon available for 84.80 euros. It has a similar design (although without the Coca-Cola logo), a warm light to keep the popcorn warm, and the container is easy to remove. Elite Gourmet EPM-250# Classic Carnival 74ml Tabletop Popcorn Machine, Retro Style, Movie Theater Hot Buttery Popcorn, Red The price could vary. We earn commission from these links A Coca-Cola popcorn machine at home This popcorn machine, as we have already said above, has a 55% discountso we are facing a very good purchasing moment. It is true that there are many ways to prepare popcorn at home, even in the microwave. if we do not want to use the bags that we can find in supermarkets. However, one of these machines, in addition to being very cool, has several advantages that make it worth it. The boiler where the popcorn is made is made of stainless steel and has a non-stick coating, which will prevent the popcorn from sticking. Besides, has an integrated stirring systemsomething that mostly prevents them from burning and coming out charred, something that makes them have an unpleasant flavor. Along with all this, it should be noted that it has an integrated lighting system, several accessories such as a measuring spoon and a crank to turn the boiler without burning ourselves. Its capacity is 10 cups of popcorn per serving.so we’re going to be able to make a good amount of these each time. ⚡ IN BRIEF: Coca-Cola popcorn machine offer ✅ THE BEST Costs less than half: Lidl right now has it with a 55% discount, so it’s a very good time to get it. A very cool design: These popcorn machines have a retro design that looks great in any kitchen, but the Coca-Cola logo gives it a special touch. Integrated stirring system: Shaking the popcorn makes it come out better, with a more uniform integration of the seasoning we use and with less probability of burning. ❌ THE WORST It is not a small machine: It measures approximately 49 centimeters high, so it is necessary to have space in the kitchen for it. 💡 BUY IT IF… You are looking for a popcorn machine for your home and you want to get one with a very striking design with the Coca-Cola logo. ⛔ DON’T BUY IT IF… You prefer a more compact machine because you have little counter space. You may also be interested Gadgy Retro Popcorn Maker 5 L 800W Non-Stick Red The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Cecotec Fun&Taste P’Corn Lotus Popcorn Making Machine. 1200 W Popcorn Maker, Popcorn Ready in 2 Minutes, includes 4 removable containers with a total capacity of 4.5 L The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Lidl In Xataka | Ninja Crispi Pro vs. Ninja Crispi: the duel for the new glass air fryers is decided on size and power In Xataka | American refrigerator or 70 cm Combi? Be careful with making mistakes when buying liters that you may not be able to use

The Medici have been carrying an apparently unsolvable mystery since the 16th century. Science finally has an answer

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

The uncle of a famous superhero said that ‘with great power comes great responsibility’. If what we are talking about is the Medici, the saga of bankers, prelates, patrons and rulers who dominated Tuscany between the 15th and 18th centuries, great power entailed something else… enormous risk. One filled with rivalries and plots that could come from both external enemies and the family itself. Hence the chroniclers carry four centuries wondering why some of its main figures died suddenly at the end of the 16th century. Disease? Bad luck? Murder by poisoning? Science already has an answer. Worthy of Agatha Christie. The British queen of suspense left us exciting novels, but few match the Medici family chronicle in mysteries and script twists. It takes reviewing some of the events that shook the Florentine saga in the second half of the 16th century to prove it. In 1562 the cardinal Giovanni de Medici He died at the age of 19 after a trip along the coast accompanied by his mother, Eleonora and his little brother Garzia, who also died around the same time. Only 25 years later the drama hit the family again through his brother, the Grand Duke Francesco I. He died in 1587, aged 46. Just a few hours later his wife did it Bianca. Quite a coincidence, right? That is what they thought the contemporaries of Francesco and Bianca, who in a matter of 24 hours watched the two members of one of the most powerful couples in the region go to their graves. In theory the cause of death was malaria, but… Wasn’t it a coincidence that husband and wife died just a few hours apart? Wasn’t it suspicious that exactly the same thing had happened to them as had happened to Giovanni 25 years earlier? Rumors of murder arose and eyes soon turned to Ferdinandanother Medici. The Tuscans of the time cannot be blamed for their suspicion. Ferdinando was next in the line of succession and risked being overtaken on the right by his nephew, the illegitimate son of Francesco I. As if that were not enough to spark rumors, they say that he had visited the Grand Duke and his wife shortly before the couple fell ill. How long does a suspicion last? Well, more than four centuries, which is how long historians have been turning around Francesco’s story. Why did he die in such a sudden and premature manner? Was it malaria? Arsenic poisoning perhaps? Did Ferdinando plot against them? Science tried to solve the mystery a long time ago, but it has only added fuel to the fire. At the time, the analysis of exhumed bone remains confirmed the malaria theory; but other studies, including one from 2006 carried out by professors and forensic experts from Italy and based on toxicological examinations, pointed to poisoning. An impossible labyrinth. The testimonies of the time do not help either. We know that Francesco and Bianca showed symptoms compatible with malaria and that the Medici family doctors tried to cure them with bloodletting, a method with which they surely (now we understand) only made things worse. The problem is that supporters of the poisoning theory also have their own arguments. Donatella Lippi, one of the authors of the 2006 study, remember that although it is confirmed that the couple contracted malaria, it does not mean that that was the cause of death. It even slips that in the Vatican Library there are testimonies that speak of skin rashes and other symptoms that could well be related to arsenic poisoning. And the genetic analysis arrived. This is how things were until a few weeks ago, when a group of researchers from the University of Pisa and Yale published a new study in iScience in which they collect their conclusions after subjecting bone remains of two members of the Medici family to DNA analysis: Giovanni, who died in 1562, and Francesco, who followed him to the tomb 25 years later. To be more precise, the researchers extracted genetic material from four rib samples, three from the duke and one from the cardinal. His remains and those of other Medici rest in mausoleums located in the Basilica of San LorenzoFlorence. Go one step further. In the past, researchers had already tried to clear up the mystery with paleo-immunological analyzes that, although they yielded some interesting conclusions, did not serve to silence “the rumors.” as you recognize Valentina Ciuffra, professor of History of Medicine at the University of Pisa and one of the authors of the study published in iScience. It was necessary to go one step further. And that is precisely what the Pisa and Yale team intended by using advanced methods to study ancient DNAgenetic material extracted from samples that are centuries and centuries old. What have they found out? That both Giovanni and his brother Francesco suffered from malaria. We know this because researchers located traces of Pasmodiumthe parasitic protozoa that cause the disease. One of the two Medici brothers even suffered it in a particularly bloody way: both the bones of the cardinal and the Grand Duke preserved traces of Pasmodium faciparumthe most lethal species among humans; but in the case of the latter (Francesco) greater molecular traces of P. malarie. What does that mean? That the Grand Duke who died in October 1587 showed traces of two species of malaria. It is not something exceptional. Experts have already detected samples in Belgium that suggest the coexistence of several species of malaria, although they insist that further research is necessary before stating with complete certainty that both species circulated in 16th century Italy. “With scientific certainty”. For the authors of the new DNA study, their work is conclusive and settles a 400-year-old mystery: “This genetic analysis confirms historical accounts, as well as previous research. We can now affirm with scientific certainty that malaria, and not poisoning, was the cause of the death of Grand Duke Francesco de’ Medici,” stands out Valentina Giuffra. In case there … Read more

The College of Engineers fears that it will remain like this forever

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

The AVE to Extremadura is causing quite a few headaches, especially in the bottleneck represented by the part that connects with Castilla-La Mancha. And the provisional branch designed to advance the arrival of high speed to Extremadura without waiting for it to be resolved his complicated passage through Toledohas hit a new obstacle. According to share From ABC, the College of Civil Engineers, Canals and Ports of Castilla-La Mancha demands written guarantees from the Ministry of Transport that this provisional branch will not end up replacing the definitive route. what has happened. The Ministry provisionally approved the informative study of the Pantoja-Bargas branch on May 19 and submitted it to public information through an announcement in the BOE five days later. Now, within this process of allegations, the College of Engineers of Castilla-La Mancha has requested that in the final resolution it be declared in writing that this work has a “strictly transitory” character, according to collect the group itself in a statement cited by ABC. What exactly is it about?. The branch is a connection of just over 18 kilometers between the Madrid-Seville high-speed line and the conventional Madrid-Valencia de Alcántara line. In practice, it would allow trains bound for Extremadura to leave Atocha, take advantage of the high-speed tracks to the Pantoja area and from there connect, via Bargas, with the route to Talavera de la Reina and Extremadura. This is what the Ministry proposes as a shortcut to speed up travel times without having to wait for the final design of the passage through Toledo to be finalized. Why is it important. The passage of high speed through Toledo has been blocked for years. Since the first study of the Madrid-Oropesa line was submitted to public information in 2020, the different allegations presented have forced the routes through Toledo and Torrijos to be revised several times, and in 2024 the City Council, the Provincial Council and the Junta de Castilla-La Mancha proposed alternatives that the Ministry considered important enough to commission a completely new study, according to explained The Extremadura Newspaper. Given the uncertainty of how long this process could take, the Government decided to take the fast track and design a provisional branch. A temporary patch. The College does not oppose the railway improvement to Extremadura, which it considers “strategic” for territorial cohesion, but warns of the risk that a work intended as a temporary patch ends up, in practice, becoming the permanent solution. Its main argument is based on the deadlines, since after 32 months of work it would still be necessary to add the environmental processing, the drafting and approval of projects, the bidding and the tests prior to start-up. Times that, according to the groupthey could dilate enough that the branch ends up settling by default. Money. The provisional branch has a tender budget of 333.9 million euros, a figure that represents 60.8% of what the Toledo Central alternative would cost (549.2 million) and 48.1% of the Toledo Exterior alternative (694 million), according to share from the middle. If the two infrastructures are finally built (first the branch and then a definitive solution through Toledo), the joint investment would be between 883 and 1,028 million euros, without counting price reviews, maintenance, operation or a possible partial dismantling of the branch once it becomes obsolete. What engineers ask for. Beyond the complaint, the College poses that: The Ministry compares all possible scenarios, including the option of directly accelerating the final solution and launching it in phases. That the risk that the provisional work ends up being consolidated be incorporated into the analysis. That it be better detailed how the service will operate during the transitional stage, with frequencies, stations, travel times and compatibility with the trains that currently circulate between Madrid and Toledo. That both the branch line and the future route leave open a connection between the Extremadura and Andalusia lines, which would allow travel between both communities without passing through Madrid. And now what. Despite the allegations, the project continues with its environmental and administrative procedures. What they do add is political pressure on the Ministry at a time when Europe’s objective is to complete the Madrid-Lisbon journey in about five hours in 2030, and in 2034 the aim is to lower the three hours between Madrid and Badajoz. To unblock the disagreement, the College has offered to participate in a technical table together with the Ministry, the Junta de Castilla-La Mancha, the City Council and the Provincial Council of Toledo, and Adif, with the idea that the provisional branch serves to pressure the final agreement, and not to postpone it indefinitely. Cover image | Renfe In Xataka | Salvador Galve, railway expert: “When I go from Zaragoza to Barcelona, I go by car”

there are already 265,000 million dollars for 2 nm

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

TSMC is going to invest an additional $100 billion in the US to build at least four more factories and several advanced packaging plants in Arizona. It CC Wei announcedthe president and CEO of this company, during the second quarter results conference held in Taipei (Taiwan). The new facilities they will produce chips at the 2nm node and later generationsand confirm a rumor that was already circulating in February. TSMC’s total commitment in the US now amounts to $265 billion. However, the company has not offered a specific construction schedule. And, according to Wei, the pace of the works will depend directly on the evolution of market demand, not on a commitment with a date fixed in advance. The announcement also comes accompanied by another historic quarter for TSMC, with a net profit of $22.35 billion between April and June (77.4% more year-on-year), its fifth consecutive quarterly record. The figures and background of this bet Equipping and building a state-of-the-art 2nm semiconductor fab with capacity for about 20,000 wafers per month costs between $25 billion and $35 billion. With this reference, the 100,000 million announced fit with the four minimum plants that Wei mentioned. The most revealing data, however, is provided by Bloomberg: The expansion would bring TSMC’s US footprint to 10 factories and two advanced packaging plants, about half of the final 12-factory plan announced in April. TSMC’s revenue has grown by 36% between April and June and its gross margin has reached 67.7%, also a record figure This scenario invites us to stop at the packaging, probably the most relevant part of the ad. CoWoS capability, and not wafer production itself, remains the real bottleneck for manufacturing accelerators for artificial intelligence (AI). Count on advanced packaging in Arizona would give TSMC’s American customers, for the first time, a complete supply chain within the country, from wafer processing to the packaged and ready-to-assemble chip. TSMC’s revenue has grown 36% between April and June and its gross margin has reached 67.7%, also a record figure. This company now forecasts revenue of between $44.6 billion and $45.8 billion for the third quarter, and has raised its annual growth forecast to slightly above 40%. Another note: the capex of 2026 will rise to between 60,000 and 64,000 million dollars, compared to the 52,000 and 56,000 million dollars initially budgeted. Be that as it may, this announcement cannot be separated from the trade agreement between the US and Taiwan, which reduced tariffs on Taiwanese products to 15% in exchange for 250 billion dollars in Taiwanese investment in the US. As can be expected, the execution of the plan in Phoenix will continue to be conditioned by the availability of labor, water and visas, three of the great challenges that TSMC is facing in Arizona. Image | TSMC More information | Reuters | Bloomberg In Xataka | The war in Iran and the Chinese veto redraw the world map of helium for semiconductors

How to know someone’s location with their phone number on Android or iPhone

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

We are going to tell you the methods to know someone’s location with their number phone, both on Android and iOS. This way, you will know the best ways to do it in a simple way. But before starting, one thing must be made clear: you can’t know someone’s location without their permissionthere are no methods to spy on a person without them knowing using their number. Fortunately, mobile phones have privacy systems with which to avoid this. Share location with Google Maps The easiest way to find out the location of another person with their number is to Share it with you through Google Maps. It is the simplest process, and the steps to follow are as follows: Open Google Maps and sign in with your account. Tap on your profile photo and choose the option Location sharing. Choose the contact with whom you want to share it, and you can use their phone number. The system will send a notification to this person. If the person acceptsthen you will be able to see its location on the map, as well as the exact distance between you or its battery level. Using Android Locator On Android, an application called Locator comes pre-installed. It is used to know where the devices registered in your account are, but you can also use it to locate usersalthough again it’s not something you can do without them knowing. The steps to take are the following: Open the Locator app, make sure you are logged in with your account. Press the tab People. Now click on the + button. This will take you to a screen where you can first choose how long you share your real-time location with this person. Then, below you can choose the person to send it to, using their phone number. The person receives the link and accepts it. The other person will have to follow these steps to invite you to know its location. If not, you won’t be able to know. Using Search on iPhone On iOS you also have a native application called Look forwith which you can know the location of other people. Yes, again the other person has to give you permission so you know its location. It is done like this: Open the app Look for of the iPhone. Click on the tab People. Click on the + button and choose Location sharing. Write down the other person’s phone number. If your number is linked to an Apple account, you will receive a request via iMessage to share locations. If he accepts it, he will be added to your people index and you will be able to know each other’s location. Using Glympse If the other person does not have the applications configured or if you have different operating systems on your mobile, you can use third-party tools. For example you have Glympseone of the safest options for temporary location sharing with another person. It works like this: Open the Glympse app on your mobile. Choose the option Request locationrequire location. Write the phone number of the person whose location you want to know. The other person will receive an SMS with a secure link, and when they click on it they will see the request. With a single touch, the other person will be able to transmit your GPS position in real time. You can’t spy on WhatsApp No, You cannot know the location of any user through WhatsApp without this person knowing. Sometimes some methods are spread on the Internet, such as the command netstat -an on a computer terminal to know the IP of the person you are talking to, but the messaging platform uses intermediate servers to avoid this. So, if you use this command when you message or talk to a person on the Internet you don’t get this person’s IPbut rather that of one of the many WhatsApp data centers through which the information passes. In addition to this, WhatsApp has end-to-end encryption that does not allow us to read the messages or know where we are. The only way to know someone’s location on WhatsApp is for this person to deliberately share it with you. In Xataka Basics | How to send a fake location on WhatsApp without being in that place

China has a plan to win the AI war against the US. And DeepSeek is its champion

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

Liang Wenfeng is the most elusive person in the Chinese manufacturing industry. artificial intelligence (AI). The founder of DeepSeekwho also runs the hedge fund High-Flyer, recently held a four-hour video call with potential investors from Hangzhou, China, an unusual format in every sense: only two representatives per institution, and for most of the attendees it was the first time they had seen the founder. “We are a very normal group of people,” Wenfeng told them. And this apparent simplicity hides the company that, in just over a year, has rewritten the economic rules of generative AI. However, what began as a start-up reluctant to any outside investment has come full circle. DeepSeek recently closed a financing round of around $7 billion, with a valuation of $52 billion. The most revealing data, however, is provided by SCMP: This company is already negotiating a second round that is expected to raise that figure to $71 billion just weeks after closing the first. The power map of Chinese AI Reuters has confirmed that DeepSeek develops its own ASIC chip aimed at inference and not training. With it, it aims to reduce its dependence on Nvidia and Huawei, its two current suppliers. If the project succeeds, it would mark a huge strategic shift for a company that until now has built its entire reputation on software efficiency rather than hardware control. Be that as it may, this move would add additional pressure to Huawei, which competes for the same space within China. Huawei now integrates DeepSeek into its cloud services in sub-Saharan Africa In this scenario we are interested in focusing on the real magnitude of this phenomenon. According to FortuneChinese open source models (led by Qwen, MiniMax and DeepSeek) already represent a third of global use of large language models, compared to an almost non-existent presence at the end of 2024. Emerging companies in Silicon Valley and Southeast Asia adopt them due to their openness, transparency and a much lower operating cost than American alternatives. Huawei, in fact, already integrates DeepSeek into its cloud services in sub-Saharan Africa. As expected after such an escalation in valuation, several sources suggest that DeepSeek could present its IPO this year, following in the wake of other low-cost Chinese startups such as Zhipu AI and MiniMax, which are already listed on public markets. A successful placement would give DeepSeek the institutional capital necessary to scale its computing infrastructure and sustain its long-term price war against large American players. DeepSeek is no longer just the startup that sparked Nvidia’s biggest stock scare in a single day: it is the battering ram with which China tries impose its open and cheap AI model as a global standard. Image | Generated by Xataka with ChatGPT More information | Bloomberg In Xataka | While most oppose AI data centers, there is one group enthusiastic about them: merchandise thieves

30% of workers feel less useful

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

According to the latest study from Ionos, 41% of SMEs in Spain already use some AI tool in their daily processes. That, on paper, should imply an increase in productivity in these tasks. However, the reality is much more stubborn. The annual report ‘People at Work 2026‘ prepared by the consulting firm ADP Research points out that despite this increase in the use of AI tools for automation, employees feel that they perform less. The mirage of productivity. The ADP report asked 39,000 employees in 36 countries about how AI affects them in their daily lives. The result shows that among those who use AI daily, 30% say they feel very committed to their work. But that same group also reports feeling less productive than before. Heavy AI users are four times more likely to feel like they are underperforming. The study itself admits that there is no simple way to measure real productivity of these people. In reality, they may work harder as has already been shown in other areas as in software engineers, but they feel that they achieve less on their own. The fear of losing your job is still there. According to the same survey, in Spain, 15% of workers use AI every day, and 11% believe that this tool will end up replace him in his position. Only 14% of the participants in our country view the progress favorably. Fear is not shared equally between generations. Nearly two in ten 18- to 26-year-olds use AI daily. Among those over 55, 33% have never tried it. A Funcas report estimates that, between 2025 and 2035, AI could end up to 2.3 million jobs in Spain. Above all, in administrative and data management tasks. What the official data say. The European Central Bank has been closely observing the phenomenon for months and, according to its own analysisthe companies that invest the most in AI are not the ones that then they fire more. In fact, they tend to increase the number of hires. For now, technology acts as a complement to human work, not its substitute. No matter how much some companies put it as an excuse. Another study, from the European Investment Bank, calculates that AI has increased productivity European labor 4%. The increase comes mainly from investment in tools and training, not from staff cuts. However, despite these signs, experts point out that it is still early to see the possible increase of AI in productivity data due to its low implementation and they attribute this increase to the other major impact on the labor market in recent years: teleworking. Commitment yes, performance not always. Bárbara Gómez, operations director of ADP Iberia assures in a company statement that “AI is transforming the way we work, but its adoption alone does not guarantee greater productivity. Workers must improve their skills and become familiar with AI tools, understanding how they integrate into their workflows.” The technology change and automate processesbut it does not change results by itself. Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, goes a little further. “AI changes the way we work but also how people in companies feel,” he explains in the report. His recipe is to stop seeing AI as a threat and treat it as “a companionanother member of the team.” From saying to fact. Spain is no exception in the unproductive feeling of employees who use AI. The pattern is repeated in almost all the countries in the ADP survey. Regular AI users show less stress, better relationships with their teammates, but almost none say feel more efficient in his work. The key may be in the curve learning these tools. Changing tools costs time, although in the long run it pays off and companies need an implementation period to improve your processes. Meanwhile, millions of workers remain caught between two sensations: using more technology than ever and feel like they are performing less than before. In Xataka | Bill Gates: “As AI takes on more jobs, you’ll be able to retire earlier and work shorter work weeks” Image | Unsplash (Flipsnack)

63% of workers do not reach the average salary

July 17, 2026 by usatoday24

Although it is true that salaries in Spain they have not stopped rising In recent years, the data suggests that this increase has been insufficient. The data collected in a report of CCOO confirm one of the paradoxes that the Spanish labor market registers: while employment breaks records month after month, with more than 22 million people workingthe majority cannot reach the average salary in the country. An average salary that almost no one earns. According to the report prepared by the CCOO Economic Cabinet, the average salary in Spain is 2,386 gross euros per month in twelve paymentsaccording to data from the EPA 2024. However, 63% of employees, some 11.64 million people, do not reach that figure on their payroll. The trick is how the average salary is calculated and how the high salaries of a minority they pull up the stocking leaving the rest beloweven though they are the majority. Therefore, the median salary data consolidated in 2024 is more revealing: half of the workers did not reach 2,041 gross euros per month in 2024, 345 euros less than the average salary. That is the point that divides Spain into two halves. A labor market with two speeds. According to the Salary Structure Survey 2024the most common gross annual salary in Spain was 16,520 euros, far from the 29,540 euros of the annual average. Almost three out of ten employees earn between 16,000 and 23,000 euros per year, the range where the majority of the country actually lives. Young people who start working earn an average of 1,372 euros gross per month, well below the 2,680 euros of those who close their careers. Temporary contracts and moonlighting They explain a good part of that distance. There is also a gap between autonomies: Extremadura, the Canary Islands and Castilla-La Mancha continue to lag behind in salaries, although they are the ones that grow the most, driven by the increases in the SMI. The increases finally reach those who earn the least. The interesting thing about the report prepared by the union is not only the diagnosis, but also the change in trend that is drawn. Between 2018 and 2024 the average salary gained 2.8% real purchasing powercompared to the 1.6% registered between 2007 and 2018. The important difference is in the lowest salary range: the 10% of workers with the lowest income have improved a real 24% since 2018, after having lost 17.8% during the previous crisis. This change is defined by salary policies such as increase in the Minimum Interprofessional Wageset at 1,221 euros per month in 14 payments by 2026, which has raised the floor for the lowest payrolls. The decree that established the SMI itself recalls that one of its objectives is to reach the 60% of the average salaryas required by the European Social Charter. Housing eats up the salary improvement. Earning more no longer guarantees a better life if basic goods such as rent rise faster than payroll. And in Spain it is doing it. Rental prices rose 2.5% year-on-year in June, according to data from the INE CPIand accumulates an increase of 1.4% only so far in 2026. According to the authors of the report, rising housing prices “reduce the impact of wage increases”, especially among the lowest incomes and young people. A floor that rises more than the salary translates into less savings and a longer delay in emancipation. In Xataka | A study has compared the gap in public salaries vs. private companies in Europe and has found a problem: Spain Image | Unsplash (Acton Crawford)

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