The Amped Journal

Google DeepMind said its research partnership with Apptronik, a humanoid robotics company, is expanding as Apptronik grows its Robot Park facility. Real-world data collected by Apptronik's latest Apollo 2 humanoid platform will be used to train and advance Gemini Robotics, DeepMind's robotics-focused AI model line.

A defense-tech venture capital firm backed by British defense giant BAE Systems and the NATO Innovation Fund has raised a new fund aimed at developing sovereign military technologies in Europe, Bloomberg reported. The firm was not named in the announcement, but the backing signals continued institutional appetite for European defense-tech investment.

Adnoc Distribution, the retail fuel arm of Abu Dhabi's state oil company, agreed to buy Shell's fuel stations in South Africa in a deal valued at $1 billion. CEO Bader Al Lamki told Bloomberg the acquisition gives the UAE firm its first access to Africa's biggest economy.

US men's national team coach Mauricio Pochettino's $499 Hugo Boss touchline shirt sold out within days of the team's first World Cup game and again ahead of its Round of 32 match, according to Front Office Sports. FOS estimates the shirt alone has generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales, an unplanned marketing win tied directly to the team's tournament run.

SpaceX launched its 17th Transporter rideshare mission from California, delivering 81 payloads to orbit and landing its Falcon 9 booster. The mission is one of three Falcon 9 flights expected from Florida and California this week, alongside two Starlink launches.

NASA released a draft Request for Proposals seeking feedback from American companies on the next phase of its commercial space station strategy. The agency's goal is a seamless transition of low Earth orbit activities away from the aging International Space Station toward privately operated successors.

The US Army Corps of Engineers published final reports this week on deepening the Wilmington harbor from 42 to 47 feet, updating draft versions issued in September 2025 to specifically address PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance, contamination concerns. The update follows a formal objection from North Carolina's Division of Coastal Management in February, after local environmental advocates raised concerns about the initial report's lack of detail on handling the chemicals and potential impacts on coastal habitats. Port officials say the deepened channel would let the Port of Wilmington handle larger, fully loaded ships.

A new 11,560-square-foot flex building at 4636 E. Coast Lane in Shallotte has been fully leased even before receiving its certificate of occupancy, a sign of strong demand for commercial space in Brunswick County. Tenants include Net Par, an indoor golf simulator venue leasing over 6,500 square feet, plus electrical contractor Shore Electrical Systems and land-surveying firm Coastal Geomatics, each leasing just over 2,400 square feet. Developer Stanley Investments built the property on a 1.3-acre tract, and broker Mike Musselwhite says a second nearby flex building is now in the works.

Eight-year-old Margaux Fox was exhausted by the time she reached the board-breaking portion of her black belt test, but she pushed through to complete it, according to StarNews. The moment, caught on video, showed her realizing she was stronger than she thought.

Y Combinator cofounder Paul Graham says aspiring founders shouldn't focus on learning "entrepreneurship" as a discipline. The hard part of a startup, he argues, is product: knowing what to build and being able to build it well - everything else follows from that.

A viral X thread questioned whether "building in public" - founders sharing their wins and failures online - actually drives growth. Skeptics pointed to companies like Jumia, Paystack and WhatsApp that scaled without public chronicles, while others cited indie successes like Pieter Levels' Photo AI and Buffer's revenue transparency. The debate weighed copycat risk against free marketing, with many concluding that selective, smart sharing helps bootstrapped founders build a loyal audience in today's crowded AI-driven market.