On September 6, 1901, 124 years ago today, President William McKinley was shot at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. He died days later, and Theodore Roosevelt suddenly found himself running the country. History turns fast like that. Which is why we’re here…making sense of the twists in today’s headlines before they become tomorrow’s history lessons.

Anthropic Pays Up, Authors Cash In

Anthropic has agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle a class-action lawsuit from authors who accused the company of using their books to train its AI chatbot Claude without permission. If approved, it would be the largest copyright settlement in U.S. history. The terms are striking: Anthropic will pay about $3,000 per book plus interest and destroy the datasets that allegedly contained pirated material.

The case highlights a simple but high-stakes question: can AI companies just scrape whatever text they want to feed their models? A federal judge will weigh in on September 8, but the settlement itself sends a message. Authors and publishers now have a dollar figure to point to, and AI companies suddenly have a reason to rethink their data-gathering habits.

The implications ripple far beyond one company. If other lawsuits succeed, the costs of training large models could skyrocket into the hundreds of billions. That would tilt the field toward the biggest players who can afford massive licensing deals. It could also create new markets where books, articles, and even images are licensed for AI training, much like stock photos or music libraries.

For content creators, it’s leverage. Instead of watching their work vacuumed up for free, they could start seeing royalties or lump-sum payments. For AI companies, it’s a warning: rebuild datasets with licensed or public-domain material, invest in synthetic data, or risk more billion-dollar payouts.

The settlement could also set the tone for regulators. Europe already leans toward strict AI rules, and a U.S. case of this size may push other governments to demand explicit consent for training data use. Taken together, this moment looks like the end of the “wild west” phase of AI. The industry is moving from “use first, ask later” to a model where permission, and payment, are part of the cost of doing business.

Rapid Fire

🩺 Kennedy’s HHS is expected to release a report this month that points to Tylenol use during pregnancy and low folate levels as possible factors in autism. The suggestion is that acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, could raise autism risk. That alone sent shares of Tylenol’s parent company, Kenvue, tumbling on Friday. Kenvue quickly pushed back, saying the science doesn’t support the claim and that they’ve reviewed the evidence for years.

Plenty of experts agree with them. A federal judge in New York dismissed lawsuits over this exact claim last year, ruling the science wasn’t there. Large studies have found no association, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists continues to say acetaminophen is safe for pregnant women when a doctor recommends it. The upcoming report looks less like settled science and more like part of Kennedy’s broader push to frame autism as an “epidemic.” For now, the medical consensus is unchanged, but the political spotlight alone is enough to move markets and stir controversy.

🚨 Flooding and heavy rains are leaving destruction across two corners of the world. In Sudan’s Darfur region, days of relentless downpours triggered a massive landslide that wiped an entire village off the map. Aid groups say as many as 1,000 people may have been killed, with roughly 200 children among the dead. Only one survivor has been reported from Tarasin, where homes were flattened and rescue efforts are still being hammered by the same rains that caused the disaster. Sudan’s ongoing civil conflict makes relief even harder, leaving remote communities with little protection when nature hits this hard.

Across the border in Pakistan, flooding fears are forcing mass evacuations. Authorities in Sindh province have moved more than 100,000 people out of low-lying areas along the Indus River after warnings that water released from Indian dams could spill across. It’s a grim reminder of 2022, when floods killed nearly 1,800 people and displaced millions. This year’s monsoon season has already left hundreds dead nationwide, with homes, crops, and roads underwater. Taken together, the twin crises in Sudan and Pakistan show how extreme weather and fragile infrastructure can turn heavy rains into national catastrophes, events that hit hardest in places already stretched thin by conflict and poverty.

🌐 Nepal just slammed the door on social media giants. The government announced it’s blocking Facebook, X, YouTube, and 23 other platforms after they ignored orders to register with the state. The decision followed a Supreme Court directive and a ministerial meeting that made it official. For a country where 80 percent of internet traffic runs through Facebook and YouTube, it’s a massive shake-up.

Critics are calling it censorship, the government is calling it regulation, and users are already figuring out VPN workarounds. The ban is still rolling out, but it puts Nepal in the growing club of countries demanding Big Tech play by local rules or not play at all. Whether it’s about accountability or control depends on who you ask, but either way, life online in Nepal just changed overnight.

World Watch

A Thai appeals court has thrown the book at five pro-democracy activists, overturning their acquittals and sentencing them to between 16 and 21 years in prison. The case dates back to October 2020, when protests calling for democratic reforms spilled into the path of a royal motorcade carrying Queen Suthida and her son. Prosecutors argued the activists knew exactly whose car was coming and failed to clear the way.

Among those convicted is veteran activist Ekachai Hongkangwan, already familiar with Thailand’s lese-majeste laws, which punish anything seen as insulting or endangering the monarchy. A lower court had let the group off the hook, saying the evidence wasn’t strong enough. The appeals court disagreed and came down hard. The ruling is another reminder of how tightly the monarchy’s image and security are protected, even as demands for reform keep bubbling up. In Thailand, challenging royal power isn’t just taboo. It can cost you decades of your life.

Today in What the Hell

At 102, Kokichi Akuzawa has done what most people wouldn’t dream of at half his age. He climbed Mount Fuji and set a Guinness World Record as the oldest person ever to do it. This wasn’t even his first time. He broke his own record from an earlier climb, because apparently once up Japan’s tallest peak just wasn’t enough.

It wasn’t smooth sailing. He nearly gave up mid-climb, and this is a man who has faced heart issues and other health challenges. But he had his family by his side, and his daily training, an hour-long morning walk, gave him the stamina to keep going. For perspective, Fuji towers at 12,389 feet, a serious physical test for even seasoned hikers. For a centenarian, it’s something else entirely. The climb has now been officially recognized by Guinness, placing Akuzawa not just in the record books but in the rare air of legends who redefine what’s possible.

That’s all folks

The world feels heavy some days, but progress is happening in real time. From authors finally getting paid to centenarians proving limits are overrated, there are reminders that change and grit still cut through the noise. Tomorrow’s headlines may look different, but not all of them will be bad.