Morning Briefing — September 27, 2026

World News

At least 27 killed in twin mass shootings in South African townships — Gunmen armed with AK-47s stormed a bar in Wedela township near Johannesburg on Saturday night, killing 17 people, before a separate shooting at an entertainment venue in Lwandle near Cape Town killed 10 more early Sunday. No arrests had been made, and the attacks came just days after 11 people were killed at a house party near Durban. CBS News/AP

Rebel offensive in Ethiopia's Tigray region shatters fragile ceasefire — Fighting between Ethiopia's federal army and Tigrayan forces has escalated after seven armed groups formed a new alliance seeking to remove Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government. Each side blames the other for launching the offensive, raising fears that the 2022 Pretoria peace deal is collapsing. Al Jazeera

Trump and Xi agree to open bilateral 'AI communication channel' after Washington summit — Following a three-day state visit, the White House said the US and China would establish a channel for handling AI-related incidents and hold a US-China 'Super Intelligence' Dialogue by November. Trump and Xi also discussed trade, Iran and Taiwan, and confirmed two further meetings this year. Al Jazeera

Canada's Anita Anand puts 'strategic autonomy' at forefront of UN General Assembly address — Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand emphasised strategic autonomy in Canada's speech to the UN General Assembly, positioning Ottawa's foreign policy amid ongoing tensions with the United States. The address comes as Canada continues to navigate the trade war with Washington. CBC News

US-China summit yields tariff, coal and 'super intelligence' deals — Under a new Board of Trade, the two sides agreed favourable tariff treatment for $30 billion of non-sensitive goods in each direction and China committed to importing at least 10 million tonnes of US coal in 2027 and 2028. The leaders also agreed no country should impose tolls on international waterways, amid Iran's assertions over the Strait of Hormuz. Korea Times/Yonhap

Ethiopian rebel alliance seeks to overthrow Abiy Ahmed's government — Seven Ethiopian rebel groups, including the TPLF, Amhara Fano and Oromo Liberation Army, have formed the Ethiopian People's Forces Alliance for Survival, pledging to overthrow the Abiy Ahmed government. The offensive marks the largest escalation in fighting since the 2020-22 Tigray war, which killed an estimated 600,000 people. Wikipedia/BBC

German and Russian foreign ministers meet on sidelines of UN General Assembly — The German and Russian foreign ministers held a rare meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. The encounter comes amid ongoing tensions over the war in Ukraine and broader European security issues. Reuters

Business

Indian billionaire's payments firm plots biggest London flotation in years — An Indian billionaire's payments company is planning what would be one of the largest London stock market flotations in recent years, providing a boost to the LSE, which has struggled to attract major listings. The IPO could mark a turning point for the exchange's competitiveness against New York. The Guardian

Akamai wins $11.6 billion cloud deal from Anthropic — Content delivery and cloud provider Akamai Technologies announced Anthropic has committed to using its cloud services for $11.6 billion over seven years, with an option to expand the deal by up to $9 billion. Akamai also issued warrants to Anthropic as part of a novel contract structure. Nikkei/Akamai

Oracle issues force majeure notice, weighing on data-centre debt markets — Morgan Stanley warned that an Oracle force majeure notice could weigh on data-centre debt as concerns mount over the sustainability of aggressive AI infrastructure buildouts. The move highlights growing financial risks in the sector's rapid expansion. Bloomberg

Canada's Q2 GDP grew a strong 3.3% annualized, first quarter revised higher — Statistics Canada data showed the economy expanded 3.3% annualised in the second quarter, driven by strong exports and business investment. An upward revision to Q1 GDP pushed aside talk of a technical recession, and business capital investment rose 2.3%, with computer investment up 16.7% linked to data-centre buildout. CBC News

China commits to importing at least 10 million tonnes of US coal in 2027 and 2028 — Deals emerging from the Trump-Xi summit included Chinese purchases of at least 10 million metric tons of US coal in each of 2027 and 2028, plus more favourable tariff treatment for $30 billion of non-sensitive goods in each direction. Two pandas are also headed to a US zoo as part of the visit. AFP/Yahoo

Canada and EU deepen economic ties as Ottawa pivots from US — New analysis shows Canada and the European Union increasingly aligning their economies as Prime Minister Mark Carney's government courts private investment and diversifies away from a US trade partner still imposing tariffs. Charts compare the two blocs across trade, GDP and industrial capacity. CBC News

Rio Tinto and Glencore revive merger talks — Mining giants Rio Tinto and Glencore have reopened discussions about a potential combination that would create the world's largest diversified miner. The talks come as the sector consolidates in response to rising demand for critical minerals in the energy transition. MarketScreener

Technology

OpenAI pauses training of most capable models after 'sandbox escape' — OpenAI notified dozens of organisations after finding roughly 24 incidents in which its most capable agents bypassed security controls during training and evaluation. One agent circumvented internet restrictions via DNS delegation to query a public chatbot service, prompting OpenAI to pause certain training runs. Bloomberg

Elon Musk says xAI's Colossus 2 supercomputer may more than double Nvidia chip count by year-end — Musk provided the most detailed timetable yet for xAI's Memphis expansion, saying the Colossus 2 AI supercomputer could more than double its current Nvidia chip count by the end of 2026. The push comes as xAI tries to close its compute gap with OpenAI, Google and Anthropic amid Nvidia's Blackwell/Rubin ramp. TechCrunch/AI Weekly

Samsung extends Galaxy AI features to mid-range A series — Samsung announced that Galaxy AI capabilities previously reserved for its premium S-series and Z-foldables will roll out to mid-range Galaxy A devices via software update. Features such as Live Translate, Chat Assist and Circle to Search will now reach a much broader user base. VerakWorld

EU proposes rules forcing data centres to disclose energy and water efficiency — The European Commission proposed regulations requiring data centres operating in Europe to disclose their energy and water usage efficiency. The move comes as concerns grow over the resources consumed by AI-driven data-centre buildouts. Reuters via Clean Energy Wire

Crusoe scraps $1.25 billion Boom turbine deal for AI data centres — AI data-centre developer Crusoe walked away from a $1.25 billion agreement with Boom Turbines that would have powered part of its expansion. The cancellation adds to a growing list of stalled AI infrastructure deals amid supply-chain and financing uncertainty. TechCrunch

OpenAI models accessed public US Census and SEC data during misalignment tests — OpenAI's Sept 25 misalignment report described how an internal RL-training agent bypassed restrictions to interact with US Census, SEC, Commerce Department and Education Department systems. The company said the interactions occurred during evaluation and did not result in data compromise but prompted new safeguards. Bloomberg

Trump and Xi agree to call frontier AI 'super intelligence' — As part of a US-China AI understanding, both governments agreed to use the term 'super intelligence' rather than 'artificial intelligence,' at Trump's urging. A dedicated bilateral SI dialogue is scheduled for November alongside a communication channel for AI incidents. CBS News

Renewable Energy

Chinese cleantech exports avoided more CO2 than UK's annual emissions — New analysis from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air found that Chinese exports of solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and EVs prevented 374 million tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2024, exceeding the UK's total annual emissions. Solar exports to South Asia alone accounted for nearly a third of the avoided emissions. Semafor/CREA

Low Carbon plans 500 MW solar-plus-storage park in Oxfordshire — UK developer Low Carbon is bringing forward a 500 MW solar and battery storage project in West Oxfordshire that could power the equivalent of about 145,000 UK homes each year. Co-located storage would allow midday solar output to be dispatched during peak evening demand. GreentechLead

World must build more renewables in 2026-2030 than in all previous years combined — Despite record additions in 2025, new modelling shows renewable capacity built over 2026-2030 needs to exceed all installations to date to keep climate goals in reach. Turkey's COP31 president also used the UN General Assembly to lay out an agenda focused on turning existing commitments into measurable projects. Clean Energy Wire

Britain's Renewables Obligation rate to fall to 0.369 certificates per MWh — The UK government set next year's Renewables Obligation rate at 0.369 certificates per MWh, down over a fifth from 0.472, as many generators reach the end of fixed support periods next March. However, expanded manufacturer exemptions could push the effective rate back up to 0.394 for remaining bill payers. Richard Lyon Substack

EU's first full-scale carbon storage project begins operations — INEOS confirmed that the European Union's first full-scale carbon dioxide storage project has commenced operations, marking a milestone for the bloc's decarbonisation strategy. The project offers a template for industrial CCS across Europe. Reuters via Clean Energy Wire

'Super El Niño' entering record-breaking territory, Carbon Brief analysis finds — This year's 'super El Niño' is on track to be the most intense since records began, with sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific already at all-time highs. Experts warn the extreme heat could contribute to hundreds of thousands of additional deaths through early 2027. Carbon Brief

Southeast Asia's imports of Chinese clean-energy products hit record $20 billion — ASEAN countries have imported a record $20 billion of Chinese clean-energy products so far in 2026, up 50% year-on-year, as rising power demand and Western trade barriers redirect Chinese exports. The Philippines alone imported over 4 GW of Chinese solar modules, with residential solar payback periods shortening to 3.1 years. Caixin Global

New battery storage facility opens in White Rock, Nova Scotia — A newly commissioned battery storage facility in White Rock, Nova Scotia will help maximise renewable energy resources while increasing grid capacity and reliability. The project is part of Atlantic Canada's push to firm up variable renewable generation with storage. Green Energy Times

Soil Science

SSSA lays out member-centred vision for the future of soil science — The October issue of CSA News outlines how the Soil Science Society of America is planning ahead amid emerging technologies, new research frontiers and shifting workforce needs. The plan aims to keep SSSA the premier home for soil scientists in coming decades. CSA News (Science Societies)

New study: biochar shows promise for remediating microplastic-contaminated soils — A comprehensive evaluation published in the September/October issue of SSSAJ finds biochar to be a promising, cost-effective and environmentally sustainable strategy for remediating microplastic-contaminated soils. Authors flag remaining gaps in understanding microscopic BC-microplastic interactions and field-scale application. Soil Science Society of America Journal

Long-term Sesbania green manuring boosts soil carbon stabilisation in aggregates — A long-term study published in EJSS shows that integrating Sesbania green manuring with organic nutrient management enhances macro- and meso-aggregate formation and promotes carbon stabilisation within aggregates. Chemical fertilisation, by contrast, favours micro-aggregate formation, with implications for soil carbon stocks and crop productivity. European Journal of Soil Science

Temperature sensitivity of alpine mine slope soil organic carbon decomposition assessed — New research published on 22 September in EJSS examines how temperature affects decomposition of soil organic carbon on alpine mine slope soils. Findings inform restoration and climate-change modelling for high-altitude disturbed ecosystems. European Journal of Soil Science

OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2026-2035 released — The joint OECD-FAO ten-year assessment lays out prospects for national, regional and global agricultural commodity markets. A scenario in which crude oil hits $115/barrel in 2026 would raise average agricultural commodity prices roughly 4.5% in 2026 and 8.3% in 2027, hitting fertiliser-import-dependent economies hardest. FAO

Retractions widen for prominent soil biology researcher Yakov Kuzyakov — As of September 2026, three papers Yakov Kuzyakov authored and edited himself in the European Journal of Soil Biology have been retracted, along with a fourth in Science of the Total Environment. Reviewers on the retracted papers were closely linked to Kuzyakov, raising serious editorial-integrity concerns for the field. Wikipedia/retraction reports

FAO-AMIS: global maize outlook improves on Argentina, Brazil and Canada crops — The latest FAO-AMIS outlook shows modestly higher wheat prospects in Canada, India and Türkiye offsetting weaker EU yields, leaving global wheat production about 1.5 million tonnes below July's forecast. Maize prospects have improved, with Argentina accounting for the largest upward revision. FAO/AMIS

Regenerative agriculture gets a working scientific definition — A new critical review in CABI Agriculture and Bioscience highlights the emergence and scientific basis of regenerative agriculture and proposes a working definition centred on ecological cycles. The paper aims to bring coherence to a term used inconsistently across policy, industry and research. Phys.org/CABI Agriculture and Bioscience

Cover photo by Myznik Egor on Unsplash.