Good morning. Markets had their best day in nearly a year yesterday as Trump suggested the Middle East conflict's "hard part is done," though oil tells a different story after surging 60% in March following Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The optimism feels premature given Israel's plans to demolish Lebanese border villages and establish "security control" stretching dozens of kilometers into Lebanon, while Iran's cyber warfare campaign continues targeting Israeli and US infrastructure.
In the tech world, OpenAI just closed a massive $122 billion valuation fundraise, pulling in $3 billion from retail investors even as questions swirl about AI startup valuations across the board. Meanwhile, a significant leak has revealed Claude's internal "frustration regexes" and various operational quirks, offering rare insight into how these AI systems actually work behind the scenes. The UK is sending more troops and air defense systems to the Middle East, and there's growing chatter that Trump's poll numbers are tanking as his policies face increasing judicial pushback.