achieve

China needs to manufacture cutting-edge chips to challenge the US for global supremacy. To achieve this it has two “Manhattan projects”

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China is putting everything on the table. You have no choice. Either it develops its own cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing technology or it will lose its fight for world supremacy with the US. Without 100% Chinese advanced chips its military capacity, the development of its models of artificial intelligence (AI) and the competitiveness of its technology companies will suffer in the medium term. Huawei and SMIC are making advanced integrated circuits, but they use machines from the Dutch company ASML and a technology known as multiple patterning that compromises its competitiveness. This scenario has caused the Chinese Government support with very juicy subsidies to companies that have the capacity to develop cutting-edge photolithography equipment, such as YesCarrierShanghai Yuliangsheng, Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment (SMEE), Huawei or SMIC. However, its most compelling commitment has taken the form of two extraordinarily ambitious projects that seek to put the capacity to produce cutting-edge semiconductors in China’s hands before the end of the current decade. Shenzhen Hybrid SVU Machine Exactly one year ago, in March 2025, it was leaked that Huawei was testing the first extreme ultraviolet (EUV) photolithography equipment designed and manufactured entirely in China. Over the last twelve months information about this machine has been arriving very slowly, but currently we know enough to take this project very seriously. Its purpose is to place in the hands of Chinese integrated circuit manufacturers the possibility of producing highly integrated chips without using ASML equipment. However, unlike the EUV machines of this company from the Netherlands, the prototype of the project led by Huawei It uses an LDP (laser induced discharge) type ultraviolet light source, and not an LPP (laser generated plasma) class. On paper the LDP source is capable of generating UVE light with a wavelength of 13.5 nmso this Chinese prototype should be able to compete head-to-head with ASML’s UVE photolithography machines. The LDP radiation source is less powerful and simpler to implement than an LPP source, although it has been leaked that the Harbin Institute of Technology, which is located in northeastern China, is testing a 100 watt LPP source. The Changchun Institute of Optics, Mechanics and Physics appears to be able to manufacture the mirrors required for an EUV machine using atomic polishing techniques The most interesting thing about this project is that, if we stick to what we know, it seems to have shaped a hybrid photolithography machine which combines solutions developed by China by reverse engineering ASML’s deep ultraviolet photolithography (UVP) equipment in its possession and innovations devised by Chinese research centers. The Changchun Institute of Optics, Mechanics and Physics appears to be able to manufacture the mirrors required for an EUV machine using atomic polishing techniques with performance close to that of the mirrors produced by ZEISS for ASML. On the other hand, Tsinghua University has recently presented advances in polyteluoxane photoresists designed specifically for interact with the wavelength of 13.5 nm. Furthermore, Xuzhou B&C Chemical, which is one of the leading photoresist materials manufacturers in China, anticipates that in at most five years will have the capacity to produce large-scale advanced KrF photoresists (Krypton Fluoride) and ArF (Argon Fluoride). Be that as it may, the leaks maintain that the first test integrated circuits will be produced by this machine in 2028so that large-scale manufacturing will begin no later than 2030. Tsinghua University’s SSMB-UVE project continues to advance Each of ASML’s UVE machines incorporates its own ultraviolet light source, but Tsinghua University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences seek to generate this radiation, which is so important for produce advanced chips using a synchrotronwhich is nothing more than a circular particle accelerator that is used to analyze the properties of matter at the atomic level, such as various types of materials, or even proteins. It’s called HEPS (High Energy Photon Source o High Energy Photon Source). China’s plan is to place several semiconductor manufacturing plants around the particle accelerator to which the synchrotron will deliver the SVU light. SSMB-UVEwhich is the name of this project, comes from the English name Steady-State Micro-Bunching-UVEwhich we can translate as Microclustering in steady state for the generation of UVE radiation. A priori we may think that a particle accelerator has nothing to do with the manufacturing of integrated circuits, but we would be overlooking something very important: the HEPS synchrotron has the capacity to produce high power UVE light. In fact, it is a source designed to generate a large amount of radiation. China’s plan is to place several semiconductor manufacturing plants around the particle accelerator to which the synchrotron will deliver EUV light in the same way a power plant delivers electricity to its customers. The leaks ensure that this project has already completed the verification phases of the particle beams, although in principle nothing seems to indicate that this synchrotron will be able to be used to produce large-scale integrated circuits in the short term. Presumably the Shenzhen hybrid EUV machine will be ready before the SSMB-UVE project, but the path of the latter, if it finally comes to fruition, it will be much longer because it aspires to put a next-generation UVE radiation source in China’s hands. Image | Generated by Xataka with Gemini In Xataka | TSMC acknowledges that it has considered taking its factories out of Taiwan. It’s impossible for a good reason. In Xataka | The looming bottleneck in AI is neither RAM nor gas: it’s that TSMC’s N3 node is absolutely saturated

Microsoft wants Copilot to do more complex tasks. To achieve this, it has turned to Anthropic AI

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For a long time, when we talked about artificial intelligence at Microsoft, there was one name that came up again and again: OpenAI. The relationship between both companies was decisive for the takeoff of ChatGPT and also for the launch of Copilot. But the AI ​​board is moving quickly. New models, new players and increasingly intense competition are pushing large technology companies to diversify their bets. In that context, Microsoft’s latest move is understood. The advertisement. Microsoft has decided to integrate Anthropic technology within Copilot, the assistant that is already part of tools such as Outlook, Teams or Excel within Microsoft 365. Among the new features is coworka tool based on Anthropic technology aimed at facilitating tasks within the work environment. But that’s not all: Claude’s models will also be available within the Copilot chatbot alongside the more advanced OpenAI models, thus expanding the capabilities of the assistant without depending on a single artificial intelligence provider. From asking for something to delegating work. Microsoft explains that Cowork is designed to go a step beyond the classic model of an assistant who answers questions or writes texts. The idea is that Copilot can take care of entire tasks within Microsoft 365. When the user makes a request, the system converts it into a work plan that runs in the background. To do this, it uses data from Outlook, Teams or Excel. From there, in theory, you propose actions, ask for clarification if needed, and allow the user to review or approve each step before the changes are applied. Some examples. Let’s imagine, for example, that we ask Copilot to review our agenda in Outlook. The system could analyze the calendar, detect conflicts between meetings and identify lower priority meetings. From there I would propose different adjustments, such as rescheduling some appointments or reserving blocks of time to focus on more important tasks. Once those suggestions are reviewed and approved, the system itself could apply the changes automatically, accepting, rejecting or rescheduling meetings and reserving blocks of time to focus on other tasks. The strategy. As we noted above, the move also reflects how Microsoft’s AI strategy is changing. The company has maintained a very close relationship with OpenAI for years and continues to be one of its largest shareholders, with a stake close to 27% after investments of around $13 billion since 2019. However, the rise of new models and the rapid evolution of the sector are pushing large technology companies to not depend on a single technology. Incorporating Anthropic tools within Copilot points precisely in that direction: building an ecosystem capable of relying on different models depending on the task. Platforms before models. What we are seeing with decisions like this is that the race for AI is not limited to developing increasingly advanced models. It’s also about deciding where those capabilities are going to live. In the case of Microsoft, the answer seems quite broad: The company has been integrating Copilot into more and more products and services in its ecosystem (and also external ones). For some users, this constant presence can be very useful; For others it can be somewhat invasive. But beyond these perceptions, the movement clearly shows Microsoft’s strategy. On the whole. So this is not just about adding another technology within Copilot, but rather reinforcing the idea that Microsoft wants to turn this assistant into a meeting point for different AI capabilities within its software. Incorporating Anthropic models alongside those of OpenAI points precisely to that scenario. Rather than relying on a single technology, the company appears to be laying the groundwork for a Copilot capable of combining different solutions as the AI ​​market continues to evolve. Images | Microsoft In Xataka | The best and worst of the Internet we know has been built on anonymity. AI brings bad news

Navantia has just received a key piece to achieve it

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If one looks at the evolution of conventional submarines, there is one constant that repeats itself: the race to stay underwater as long as possible. It is not just about speed or weapons, but about autonomy in immersion, a factor that directly determines the discretion of the platform and its patrol capacity. When a submarine has to interrupt that cycle to ventilate, manage gases or refuel, its operating margin is reduced. For this reason, much of the engineering behind the new submarines focuses precisely on solving that problem. And that is where the technology that Spain is integrating comes into play. in the S-80 program. The jump of the S-80 submarine. Amper, through its engineering subsidiary Proes-OSL Iberia, delivered to Navantia the carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) catalytic reactors for the submarines S-83 “Cosme García” and S-84 “Mateo García de los Reyes”. These devices are part of the atmosphere revitalization system, integrated into the AIP compartment. According to the company itself, the project started in 2022 and the equipment has already received official certification from Navantia after completing the corresponding technical verifications. A key piece. The delivery announced by Amper has to do with a very specific element of the submarine’s technical ecosystem, the system responsible for maintaining the interior atmosphere within safe parameters during operation. Revitalization of the atmosphere in the submarine. The reactors developed by the company allow the controlled elimination of carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the compartment where the AIP system is integrated. The technology uses a catalytic combustion process that purifies these gases and helps maintain breathable air on board. In detail. The S-80 incorporates an AIP system developed by Navantia called BEST (Bio-Ethanol Stealth Technology). This system produces hydrogen on board using a reformer that uses bioethanol stored on the submarine. This hydrogen is then combined with oxygen in a fuel cell that generates electricity to power the ship’s systems during the dive, an architecture designed to extend operational autonomy without depending exclusively on batteries. What it means to stay underwater for weeks. Navantia explains that the BEST AIP system is designed to allow conventional submarines to remain submerged for prolonged periods in different environmental conditions. In that scenario, the unit reduces the need to interrupt its immersion cycle to manage power or interior atmosphere. Navantia links this greater autonomy with an expanded patrol area and with a “zero Indiscretion Coefficient”, a term it uses to describe a decrease in the probability of being detected during the mission. modern submarine. The design of the S-80 responds to the idea of ​​a modern ocean submarine capable of operating on long missions. Navantia describes the platform as a highly automated system that can be operated by a crew of 32 sailors, with eight additional spaces for on-board personnel. The ship is approximately 80 meters long, about 7 meters in diameter and has a submerged displacement of close to 3,000 tons. In addition, it can exceed 19 knots underwater speed and reach depths greater than 300 meters during operation. Apparently it is just one more component in the long list of equipment that makes up a submarine. However, systems like these are part of a much broader logic within the S-80 design. Each of them contributes to sustaining the operation of the submarine for longer periods without the need to modify its diving profile. As subsequent units in the series integrate these developments from their initial configuration, the S-80 program will show the extent to which these technologies can translate into greater operational autonomy underwater. Images | NAVANTIA In Xataka | The war in Iran is about to begin a suicidal combat: there are missiles, drones and kamikaze ships in the most fearsome point on the planet

what do you need to achieve sovereignty

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The policy of vetoes, tariffs and sanctions applied by the United States to China regarding chips It has been a real catalyst for the Asian giant, which is transforming its semiconductor industry in record time with one goal: achieving technological sovereignty. And with China there is a shocking paradox: despite being the largest producer in terms of number of chips manufactured with 484,000 million units in 2024, it continues to depend technologically on the outside for the most strategic ones. The context. Semiconductors need no introduction: they are essential for most industrial activities, including some as strategic as AI. Any country that wants to compete in technological leadership and national security knows that it must have sufficient and sufficiently advanced chips to develop all these areas. The United States has designed export controls precisely to maintain that advantage, subjecting other countries to dependence and also so that China does not catch up. But with China it has had the opposite effect: it is no longer just that it has created a solid and growing national fabric, it is that with DeepSeek it has shown that it is capable of innovating even with hardware inferior to the competition. Because It’s important. Beyond a history of brilliant industrialization, the relevance lies in what it would mean if China achieved technological sovereignty in chips: the balance of power in the global supply chain would change, both at the state and business levels. Today it depends on players like TSMC, Samsung, SK Hynix and ASML, but sooner or later they will lose their strategic advantage against Chinese competitors. And not only that: they will also lose the China market. Some astronomical figures. What China is doing with its industry is technologically brutal and best of all, it is doing it against the clock: The milestones that have been achieved. In addition to confirming how the industry is evolving quantitatively, there are also qualitative advances resulting from strong state investment, its great internal demand and external geopolitical pressure: They are moving away from depending on a single foreign supplier to build their own ecosystem, with Huawei in processors, Biren and Moore Threads in AI chips. Moore Threads, the “Chinese NVIDIA”, presented its Huashan AI chip at the end of 2024. According to the firmhas superior performance to NVIDIA’s Hopper architecture and is close to the Blackwell family. Changxin Memory Technology (CXMT) presented in November 2024 its advanced DDR5 DRAM memory, with speeds of up to 8,000 megabits per second and capacity of up to 24 gigabits per die, placing it on par with Samsung, SK Hynix or Micron. Yes, but. All of the above is not enough: China still has bottlenecks and pending issues: Without a lithography machine to have your own EUVthere is no capacity to produce chips below seven nanometers in an efficient and scalable way. ASML remains irreplaceable in the short term. The Chinese EUV prototype is in the oven in a high-security laboratory in Shenzhen. It has been developed by a team of former engineers from the Dutch semiconductor company using reverse engineering. We will have to wait until 2028 (in the most optimistic scenario) to see it. While CXMT is going to start mass production of HBM3 high bandwidth memory this year, SK Hynix is ​​already going for the next generationHBM4. China is running, but its rivals are not standing still either. Not only machines are needed, but an entire ecosystem: chip design software, specialized materials, ultra-precision optics and engineering talent. Closing that gap is more difficult and slower than setting up a factory. What’s coming now?. China does not step on the brakes: its 15th Five Year Plan for the period 2026-2030 explicitly calls for the adoption of “extraordinary” measures to encourage advances throughout the supply chain, including integrated circuits and high-end equipment, with the aim of achieving “decisive advances.” And it is doing so with an unprecedented economic injection and promoting supplier diversification. In Xataka | Just four years ago, China was a marginal player in the chip industry. It now has three manufacturers in the top 20 In Xataka | The biggest obstacle preventing China from winning the chip race is called ASML. So they’re trying to copy it Cover | YesCarrier and Dominic Kurniawan Suryaputra

Marc Murtra has been at the helm of Telefónica for a year and has done something that his predecessor did not achieve in a decade: slimming down the company

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Marc Murtra wears just over a year at the head of Telefónica and the 2025 numbers begin to validate its thesis: concentrate on four markets (Spain, Brazil, Germany and the United Kingdom) and avoid the rest. Group income have grown by 1.5%, up to 35,120 million eurosand the adjusted profit reaches 2,122 million. On paper, it works. Why is it important. Telefónica has done in two years what it was not able to do in a decade: get rid of Latin American ballasts (Argentina, Peru, Uruguay, Ecuador…) and redraw its perimeter. The result is a smaller, but more predictable company. And in Spain, where it has not grown since 2008, it has once again shown signs of life: +1.7% in revenue, up to 13,012 million. The backdrop. The Álvarez-Pallete stage cut the debt of the Alierta stage by halfbut it was still a brutal debt and the company had a geographical dispersion that consumed a lot of management energy without a return that was far from proportional. Murtra has opted for surgery: sell assets, continue reducing debt (337 million less in 2025, it is already at 26,824 million) and bet on markets where Telefónica has real muscle. The logic is clear. And the execution, reasonably clean. Between the lines. Brazil is now the financial heart of the group, and that has implications that go beyond quarterly results. Vivo, Telefónica’s local brand in the country, has earned more than 1,000 million euros net in 2025, 11.2% morewith an Ebitda of 41.7% that would make any European telecom company blush. Its 5G network already covers two-thirds of the Brazilian population and leads the market by number of customers. Brazil should no longer be considered an emerging market with potential: right now it is the most mature and profitable asset that Telefónica has. There is also a background reading that the results do not make explicit but that the context does suggest: the demand for data in Latin America is accelerating precisely now due to the pull of AI: more consumption in the cloud, more traffic, more need for infrastructure. Telefónica has sold its Latin American subsidiaries just when that market may be entering a new phase of growth. It is the big question that presumably no one at Telefónica wants to answer openly. Main winner? Brazil, without a doubt, but also Spain. The domestic business has broken a curse of almost two decades and is beginning to generate cash in a stable manner. That debt goes down, albeit slowly, while income goes up, is the combination that the market has been waiting for for years. Main loser? The United Kingdom. Virgin Media O2 (VMO2), the joint venture in which Telefónica has 50%, has registered net losses of 1,852 million euros in 2025 (up from £19m the previous year) following a goodwill impairment charge of more than £1bn. Its income has fallen 5.3%. And by 2026, the company itself expects service revenue to drop between 3% and 5% more, dragged down by integration with Daisy Group in May 2025. The British telecommunications market is in a price war that has no easy winners, and VMO2 has been sailing against the tide for some time. The big question. Murtra has shown the ability to clean up the balance and simplify the map. What has not yet been demonstrated is that Telefónica can grow organically and sustainably in its four key markets. Spain and Brazil are making progress, but Germany continues to be a story of pending consolidation and the United Kingdom is getting complicated. The plan is well designed. Now it’s time to execute it. In Xataka | We need more and more data centers. And Telefónica is building them in its old telephone exchanges Featured image | Telephone

will have 129 million euros to achieve it

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It is the fourteenth supercomputer in the world according to the TOP500 listis in Spain and is called MareNostrum 5. But it is also a “living” system because it continues to evolve and adapt to new times. In fact, it has just received a notable injection of capital for a critical update: the one that will allow it to work with AI model training and inference. 129 million for MareNostrum 5. As explained at the BSC (Barcelona Supercomputing Center), the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) has signed the contract for the acquisition of new hardware elements for MareNostrum 5. It does so with the collaboration of Fsas Technologies (Fujitsu) and Telefónica. The budget is close to 129 million euros and will be co-financed 50% by EuroHPC and the other 50% by Spain, Portugal and Turkey. The update will be installed during the first half of 2026. The project, defined in the documentation of the European Commission, started in July 2025. MareNostrum 5 adapts. This update will not be a “more of the same”, but is focused entirely on artificial intelligence and machine learning workloads. The project also has another objective: to strengthen European digital sovereignty, which will reduce technological dependencies and prevent unwanted technology transfers outside the EU. HPC used to rule, now AI will also rule. The expanded architecture of MareNostrum 5 will make use of specialized compute partitions. Thus, there will be at least one for LLM training and another for inference. Today this supercomputer has five different partitions and according to the TOP500 list it has an Rmax power of 175.30 PFLOPS (FP64, Linkpack) or 215.40 PFLOPS according to EuroHPC. Its total power capacity is 20 MW. 30 Exaflops FP4 for AI. In the white paper the goal is to achieve 30 FP4 exaflops, which seems like a huge jump, but it must be clarified that the current 0.17 FP64 exaflops are dedicated to classic High Performance Computing (HPC). These FP4 exaflops are dedicated to training and massive inference, and cannot be easily compared to those FP64 exaflops. The technical description of the GH72 partition, even without explicitly mentioning NVIDIA, clearly fits your DGX GB200 NVL72. NVIDIA in the pools. Although the technical documentation does not specify what type of hardware will be used, it does talk about a GH72 partition whose specifications are very similar to the DGX GB200 NVL72 supercomputer. It is not specified how many GPUs, what type of GPUs or how much memory they will have, but there are minimum requirements, such as “180 GB of HBM3e memory or higher.” That rules out the H100 and H200, but models like the B200/GB200 would enter (MareNostrum 5 currently uses those) or the B300/GB300, in addition to others like the AMD Instinct MI350/MI355X, which according to market data could arrive with 256 GB of HBM3e memory. And soon, own chip. Yesterday, the BSC simultaneously announced good news about its efforts to develop its own chip. The so-called Cinco Ranch TC1 developed by the Barcelona Zettascale Lab has been validated and its experimental implementation it has been a success. We are looking at a chip based on RISC-V architecture and that uses Intel 3 3 nm manufacturing technology. It is a relatively modest chip that can operate at 1.25 GHz, but it is still a notable first step for the BSC to also continue advancing its role in semiconductor design. European supercomputers. This project is part of EuroHPC’s program to keep European supercomputing moving forward. Currently it has 12 supercomputers distributed throughout Europe, among which Jupiter (Germany, 4th in the world on the TOP500 list) and the future Alice Recoque (France), which will be consolidated as the first two exascale systems on the old continent. In Xataka | The EU wants to close the gap in the race for AI with 750 million euros. And it is good news for Barcelona

Europe seeks sovereignty in rare earths: the first step to achieve it is a megamine in Sweden

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In world geopolitics, having oil, gas or rare earths (let us remember that They are neither earth nor are they rare) is the equivalent of starting a game of mus with several kings in hand. And if we talk about rare earths, this map of the world’s (known) reservesIt shows that China has the best possible hand. Finding rare earths in your territory is very good, then you have to know how to extract them and create an industry around them. This is neither easy nor quick nor cheap. The good news is that the European Union could cover 18% of its lanthanide needs. The not so good thing is that first he has to launch a megaproject: the Per Geijer supermine, in Kiruna (Sweden). Per Geijer has never been just any mine. In fact, it is the underground iron mine largest in the world (the underground surname is important in that the Brazilian Carajás Complex produces more but in the open pit and the Australian Hamersley Ranges has a larger deposit) and also the most ambitious and complex metal mining project that the European Union has faced in decades. The mine is operated by the state through the public company Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag (LKAB). That it has rare earths makes it special, but how they are present is also particular: it is not a pure lanthanide mine, but a high-grade iron deposit with significant concentrations of phosphorus and rare earth oxides. How much? Early 2026 LKAB estimates 2.2 million tons of rare earth oxides, more than double what I thought about 2023. Mine in Kiruna. LKAB Why is it important. As noted in the intro, because China processes about 90% of the world’s rare earths and taking into account the mine’s estimates, if these rare earths could be extracted for use, the European Union could cover 18% of its needs. according to LKAB estimates. Own resources instead of having to buy them, which leads to dependencies on third parties, market fluctuations and diplomacy. In mining, the time between discovery and the first ton of commercial around between 15 and 20 years old. But the European Union has considered it as a strategic project, so it is on the “fast track” thanks to the Critical Raw Materials Law (CRMA). In Xataka The rare earth war has reached Spain. And it is in Ciudad Real where mining and ecology are in conflict under the microscope. The presence of these oxides in a high-grade iron mine like Per Geijer hides a couple of aces up its sleeve: processing synergy and phosphorus, another strategic element (but less so). And the cost of extracting rare earths is more profitable when there is already an operation to extract iron. On the other hand, these lanthanides are trapped in apatite, which is essentially calcium phosphate. Through magnetic separations for iron and chemicals, two high-value products emerge: one is the rare earth concentrate and the other is phosphoric acid, essential for fertilizers. {“videoId”:”x8wlh9q”,”autoplay”:true,”title”:”United States vs. China: The CHIPS WAR”, “tag”:”webedia-prod”, “duration”:”1611″} The northern triangle. Although the site is located in Kiruna, the project is actually an industrial ecosystem made up of three points: Kiruna for extraction, Malmberget for concentration and Luleå is in charge of separation. Thus, the Kiruna deposit provides the mineral from a new deposit of iron, phosphorus and rare earths discovered next to the current mine, about 700 meters away. Malmberget provides the volume of rare earths from the already operational iron mine from apatite waste and also from what will be extracted. Finally, Luleå provides chemical technology with a processing center in charge of separating the rare earths from the rest using hydrometallurgical technology. The schedule until it is operational. Although the normal thing would be to have to wait almost 20 years, we have already seen that the EU has stepped on the accelerator. Tunnels are currently being built to connect the current Kiruna iron mine with the new deposit. In 2026, Malmberget plans to have permits to open a new plant to treat apatite, and the Luleå plant is expected to be operational by the end of this year. However, for the large-scale commercial plant to be commercialized, estimates point to the 2030s due to the series of permits and environmental evaluations that must be successfully passed. It won’t be easy. Despite the importance of rare earths in the EU plans and the apparent profitability of the process, the megaproject faces several challenges beyond the technical and the inherent waste generated. Without going any further, the city of Kiruna itself is sinking and its citizens have to move, literally, building by building, to allow mining expansion, as picks up CNBC. Furthermore, there is conflict with the indigenous Sami peoplesince the site is located on reindeer grazing routes. In Xataka | Spain has a plan to become a rare earth powerhouse and stop depending on China: you will recycle In Xataka | Europe wants to be competitive in the rare earths market. Its enemies are old acquaintances: China and Europe itself Cover | LKAB (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 Europe seeks sovereignty in rare earths: the first step to achieve it is a megamine in Sweden was originally published in Xataka by Eva R. de Luis .

In 1987 a death was filmed so savage that people had to cover themselves. The trick to achieve it turned RoboCop into a cult work

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In 1987, the film director Paul Verhoeven gave a twist to action science fiction with RoboCop. In reality, that was a cocktail very much to the director’s liking where there was satire, cyberpunk and police thriller. The difference was that he did not limit himself to telling the fall and rebirth of a hero: he decided to win over the viewer with emotional hammer blows, with a death. so cruel and excessive that it was impossible to look at without feeling uncomfortable. The scene that changed everything. Alex Murphy, the protagonist, appears up to that point as a good cop thrown into a corrupt world, but the film doesn’t have time to build him up calmly, so it does it by the most brutal way: literally, it tear apart in front of the viewer so that, when he returns converted into a machine, he understands that what has been lost is not only flesh, but humanity. Verhoeven explained it with an almost religious and at the same time tremendously cynical idea: “if you want to resurrect Murphy as an all-powerful RoboCop, first you have to crucify him.” And that crucifixion, instead of being symbolic or elegant, is filmed like a physical nightmaredirty and painful, one designed so that the viewer cannot avoid the impact. The slaughter as a narrative. The sequence It is constructed like a public execution, with the criminals laughing in the background, and that is possibly the key to its violence: it is not just that it unlockis that along the way they humiliate him, turn him into a broken toy, and torture him as if the gang were enjoying the show. The scene is escalating until it seems impossiblewith the protagonist trying to understand what is happening to him while his body stops obeying him, and the band acting like real madmen. There is the moral trick of the director of RoboCop: The villains were absolutely grotesque, yes, but the film removes any sympathetic veneer from them and turns them into a total social menace. Thus, when the final shot arrives that puts an end to the execution, the viewer is no longer watching the typical “80s action” film, he is seeing the point of no return that makes the entire film, from that minute on, a story. of loss and revenge. The old school of effects. It is impossible to talk about this classic without mentioning what makes it unique. The how was filmed: no less than under the orders of the legendary Rob Bottin with an artisanal obsession that today seems unthinkable based on meticulously designed prostheses, molds, fake parts and physical tricks. In order for the mutilation to work without putting the actor at risk, a a fake hand From a real mold, it was reconstructed in fiberglass and divided into sections so that it could be “popped” with compressed air and stage blood without the need for explosives near the face. It wasn’t just an effect, it was a device home engineering: internal blood tubes, pressure control, parts that could be assembled and disassembled, and a repeatable explosion pattern to always nail the same result. “Death” was also filmed with a staging designed to hide the real and sell the fakewith raised floors, holes through which to put the real arm under the stage, and a member of the team moving from below a false arm attached with Velcro as if it were a living limb. The underground trick. Plus: Murphy’s death is supported by a secret choreography that the viewer never saw: operators out of shot, hidden mechanisms and an absurd number of hands working to make a second of screen seem like an organic nightmare. Not only that: a foam arm in disguise with a police uniform, a metal structure to hold it, hinges at the “elbow” and even a support anchored to the false floor so that everything could resist the violence of the effect. While the actor was dying and staggering above, below there was a team of professionals pumping blood by hand and adjusting compressed air. Even the shots that “break up” the armor were reinforced with simple but brilliant physical details, such as small charges of talcum powder to simulate fragmentation, a very cheap solution that, in camera, added texture and turned the scene into something tactile, with dust, impacts and material that seems to fall off the body. The Peter Weller doll. Another stroke of genius came with the moment of the auction: for a final shot that in the released version lasts a sigh, a Murphy’s full torsoa sophisticated doll with a latex face made from a mold of the actor, an internal fiberglass skull and mechanisms to move the neck, jaw and body. It was not a static mannequin, it was a creature manipulated by cablescapable of opening his mouth in a silent scream, leaning, trembling and reacting to the shot as if there was still life inside. The execution was designed so that the back of the head “jumped out” with a controlled explosionwith pieces pre-cut to break in a specific way and with the interior prepared with blood and soft fragments, so that the horror felt mechanical but compelling. In addition, the “sweat” detail was added with water sprayas if the doll was breathing for the last time, and a motor with vibration so that the body seems to tremble with fear, an almost obscene trick due to its human nature that returns to artifice. Censorship as an enemy. The most incredible thing is that, even so, what was seen in the rooms was a cropped version. RoboCop’s violence clashed head-on with the rating system of the time, and the film was given an X rating several times, forcing reedit, cut and sacrifice material until a commercially viable qualification is achieved. Paradoxically, the cut that helped save it was one that its own creators considered “shabby” or too obvious, the moment in which Murphy’s arm flies off pulled by a … Read more

The first step to achieve this is a megamine in Sweden

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In world geopolitics, having oil, gas or rare earths (let us remember that They are neither earth nor are they rare) is the equivalent of starting a game of mus with several kings in hand. And if we talk about rare earths, this map of the world’s (known) reserves It shows that China has the best possible hand. Finding rare earths in your territory is very good, then you have to know how to extract them and create an industry around them. This is neither easy nor quick nor cheap. The good news is that the European Union could cover 18% of its lanthanide needs. The not so good thing is that first he has to launch a megaproject: the Per Geijer supermine, in Kiruna (Sweden). Per Geijer has never been just any mine. In fact, it is the underground iron mine largest in the world (the underground surname is important in that the Brazilian Carajás Complex produces more but in the open pit and the Australian Hamersley Ranges has a larger deposit) and also the most ambitious and complex metal mining project that the European Union has faced in decades. The mine is operated by the state through the public company Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag (LKAB). That it has rare earths makes it special, but how they are present is also particular: it is not a pure lanthanide mine, but a high-grade iron deposit with significant concentrations of phosphorus and rare earth oxides. How much? Early 2026 LKAB estimates 2.2 million tons of rare earth oxides, more than double what I thought about 2023. Mine in Kiruna. LKAB Why is it important. As noted in the intro, because China processes about 90% of the world’s rare earths and taking into account the mine’s estimates, if these rare earths could be extracted for use, the European Union could cover 18% of its needs. according to LKAB estimates. Own resources instead of having to buy them, which leads to dependencies on third parties, market fluctuations and diplomacy. In mining, the time between discovery and the first ton of commercial around between 15 and 20 years old. But the European Union has considered it as a strategic project, so it is on the “fast track” thanks to the Critical Raw Materials Law (CRMA). under the microscope. The presence of these oxides in a high-grade iron mine like Per Geijer hides a couple of aces up its sleeve: processing synergy and phosphorus, another strategic element (but less so). And the cost of extracting rare earths is more profitable when there is already an operation to extract iron. On the other hand, these lanthanides are trapped in apatite, which is essentially calcium phosphate. Through magnetic separations for iron and chemicals, two high-value products emerge: one is the rare earth concentrate and the other is phosphoric acid, essential for fertilizers. The northern triangle. Although the site is located in Kiruna, the project is actually an industrial ecosystem made up of three points: Kiruna for extraction, Malmberget for concentration and Luleå is in charge of separation. Thus, the Kiruna deposit provides the mineral from a new deposit of iron, phosphorus and rare earths discovered next to the current mine, about 700 meters away. Malmberget provides the volume of rare earths from the already operational iron mine from apatite waste and also from what will be extracted. Finally, Luleå provides chemical technology with a processing center in charge of separating the rare earths from the rest using hydrometallurgical technology. The schedule until it is operational. Although the normal thing would be to have to wait almost 20 years, we have already seen that the EU has stepped on the accelerator. Tunnels are currently being built to connect the current Kiruna iron mine with the new deposit. In 2026, Malmberget plans to have permits to open a new plant to treat apatite, and the Luleå plant is expected to be operational by the end of this year. However, for the large-scale commercial plant to be commercialized, estimates point to the 2030s due to the series of permits and environmental evaluations that must be successfully passed. It won’t be easy. Despite the importance of rare earths in the EU plans and the apparent profitability of the process, the megaproject faces several challenges beyond the technical and the inherent waste generated. Without going any further, the city of Kiruna itself is sinking and its citizens have to move, literally, building by building, to allow mining expansion, as picks up CNBC. Furthermore, there is conflict with the indigenous Sami peoplesince the site is located on reindeer grazing routes. In Xataka | Spain has a plan to become a rare earth powerhouse and stop depending on China: you will recycle In Xataka | Europe wants to be competitive in the rare earths market. Its enemies are old acquaintances: China and Europe itself Cover | LKAB

Europe is looking for a place to light its “artificial sun” and Spain only has to defeat Italy and Germany to achieve it

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For decades, nuclear fusion has been the distant horizon of energy: an almost mythical promise, always thirty years ahead. A future without a map. In full electrification of the economy and with demand pushed by the digital industry and data centers, Europe has begun to set coordinates for that promise: where to build the first commercial centers. For the first time, the “artificial sun” is no longer just a scientific experiment and it becomes a problem of territory, infrastructure and industrial planning. And in this new European energy map, Spain appears among the best positioned countries. A new path. Gauss Fusion, the European company created to power the first generation of commercial fusion plants on the continent, has completed the first comprehensive European study of potential sites for this technology, in collaboration with the Technical University of Munich (TUM). The study culminates in a map that did not exist until now. A map that indicates 150 industrial clusters and up to 900 potential sites spread across nine European countries. Behind each point there is an analysis of geology, seismicity, meteorology, refrigeration, access to the electrical grid and existing infrastructure, aligned with standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Spain on the horizon. It appears as the third country with the most identified clusters: 17, only behind Germany (53) and Italy (22), and ahead of France, Austria, the Netherlands or Switzerland. This is not a political decision or a formal candidacy, but rather a strictly technical diagnosis: where it would be possible to build a first-generation fusion power plant if it had to be done tomorrow. “That Spain appears as the third country with the most potential clusters is due solely to technical criteria,” emphasizes Milena Roveda, CEO of Gauss Fusion, in an interview with Xataka. “The study follows an objective methodology consistent with international standards. There are no strategic weightings or quotas per country,” he emphasizes. And that nuance is key. The map does not look for winners or distribute investments: it identifies where the minimum physical and industrial conditions already exist to host a fusion power plant. But why Spain? On the one hand, its fusion ecosystem. Spain is one of the European countries with greater historical involvement in ITERhouses the headquarters of Fusion for Energy in Barcelona and has achieved key industrial contracts for national companies. Added to this is the role of CIEMATuniversities with leading groups in plasma physics and materials, and the beginning of the construction of IFMIF-DONES in Granadaa critical infrastructure to validate materials for future reactors. On the other hand, their regulatory experience. “Spain has a nuclear regulatory body with extensive prestige and experience,” highlights Roveda. From an industrial point of view, Roveda insists that Spain should not limit itself to being a host: “It has the potential to be a key piece in the merger value chain. Companies like IDOM already have demonstrated that can design and deliver extremely complex systems. Where could these clusters be? The map does not draw isolated points, but rather broad areas. The study identifies regional clusters capable of containing multiple viable locations. In Spain, they appear spread over a good part of the territory – from Andalusia and Extremadura to Castilla y León, Aragon, Catalonia, Galicia, the Basque Country and the Valencian Community – and are concentrated in industrial areas with high electrical demandgood network connectivity and, in some cases, close to old energy enclaves that could reuse part of their infrastructure. Frédérick Bordry, CTO of Gauss Fusion, explains to Xataka that the objective of the map is not to select a specific place, but “to have a broad database that allows collaboration with authorities, companies and other interested parties.” The final decision, remember, will not come until the end of 2027. What would a commercial fusion center be like? Talking about commercial fusion is no longer talking about experiments like ITER. Gauss Fusion works with the concept of a GIGA plantcapable of producing 1 gigawatt of electricity. This implies very specific industrial requirements. “Assuming an efficiency of 30%, a plant of this type must safely evacuate about 2 GW of heat,” explains Bordry. In practice, this requires access to rivers, reservoirs or the sea, as well as robust electrical infrastructure. Unlike fission, fusion does not produce chain reactions, is self-limiting, does not emit CO₂ and does not generate long-lived radioactive waste. “Due to its safety features, it could and should be integrated near urban and industrial centers,” says Bordry, even supplying waste heat for industrial uses or district heating. This aspect connects with a trend that is already seen in Europe: heat recovery in district heating networks, as happens in Finland with data centerseither the use of large industrial heat pumps. The process now enters a delicate phase. According to Gauss Fusion, the goal is to reduce the European map to between two and five final locations by the end of 2026, and make the final decision in 2027. But the technical criteria will not be the only ones. “Political will, the regulatory framework and social acceptance will be essential,” emphasizes Roveda. In his opinion, Europe needs policies that promote fusion as a new industrial engine, and regulations “adapted to the real risk of these facilities.” Social acceptance will also be key. “Transparency and citizen participation are essential,” he says. “We have to explain well what fusion is and what it is not.” A project that covers a lot. For Bordry, no European country can tackle a project of this magnitude alone. The merger will require a continental industrial alliance, something that Roveda defines as a “fusion Eurofighter”, in which Spain should play a central role, not only as a location, but as a technological and industrial supplier. In a context in which European electricity demand could grow up to 75% by 2050fusion is beginning to be seen not as a distant promise, but as one more piece of the energy puzzle, complementary to renewables, storage and electrification. An open closure, but with a … Read more

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