These are the headlines you Need 2 Know. * **Michael Pushes Ahead, Weakens:** Hurricane Michael made landfall near Mexico Beach and Panama City, Fla., on Wednesday afternoon and became the strongest storm to hit the continental United States in decades. The Category 4 storm weakened as it moved inland through the Florida Panhandle into Georgia and was downgraded to a tropical storm early Thursday morning. At least two people have died and more than 800,000 customers have lost power in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina. Michael is now heading for the Carolinas, which are still recovering from Hurricane Florence. Read more [here](https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-michael-strongest-storm-in-50-years-2018-10). * **Emergency Astronaut Landing:** A NASA astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut were forced to perform an emergency landing after the booster on their rocket suffered an apparent failure minutes after liftoff on Thursday. The Russian Soyuz rocket was headed to the International Space Station but had to make an emergency landing in Kazakhstan. NASA reported early Thursday morning that search and rescue teams have reached the landing site, and the two crew members “are out of the capsule and are reported to be in good condition.” Read more [here](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/soyuz-rocket-launch-abort-mission-iss-nasa-astronaut-russians-ballistic-descent/). * **Dow Plunges, Markets Quiver:** The Dow fell over 800 points on Wednesday, marking the third-worst point decline in history. All 30 Dow stocks were in the red, and major indexes saw their biggest point drop since February. President Trump said on Wednesday that he thought the Fed “has gone crazy” in raising rates. Stocks in Asia and Europe were lower Thursday morning, suggesting the rout may continue. Read more on [Cheddar](https://cheddar.com/videos/dow-tumbles-as-investors-flee-tech). * **Election Day Bomb Plot:** Federal authorities have charged a New Yorker with building a 200-pound bomb that he allegedly planned to detonate at the National Mall in Washington, DC, on election day. Prosecutors said Paul Rosenfeld, 56, planned to use the bomb to kill himself and draw attention to a political system called “Sortition,” in which public officials are not elected, but chosen at random. The FBI discovered the bomb in Rosenfeld’s basement during a raid on Tuesday. Read more [here](https://www.apnews.com/3ac69f349383457eb9ace188d18a3380). * **Missing Journalist Update:** U.S. intelligence officials reportedly have obtained more evidence to implicates the Saudi regime in the disappearance of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman personally ordered an operation to lure Khashoggi back to Saudi Arabia from his home in Virginia and detain him, according to U.S. intelligence intercepts of Saudi officials. Turkish officials believe that Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi government, was killed inside of the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey on Oct. 2. Read more [here](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/crown-prince-sought-to-lure-khashoggi-back-to-saudi-arabia-and-detain-him-us-intercepts-show/2018/10/10/57bd7948-cc9a-11e8-920f-dd52e1ae4570_story.html?utm_term=.fd68ce356f5b). * **Limo Crash Arrest:** The operator of the limousine company involved in the crash that killed 20 people was arrested on Wednesday in upstate New York, just four days after the accident. Almost immediately after the crash, investigators focused on the limousine company, which has repeatedly violated safety protocol. George P. Beach II, the superintendent of the State Police said, “The sole responsibility for that motor vehicle being on the road this Saturday rests with Nauman Hussain.” Hussain, 28, has pleaded not guilty to criminally negligent homicide and was released on bail Wednesday. Read more [here](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/10/nyregion/nauman-hussain-arrested-limo-crash.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage§ion=New%20York). * **National Coming Out Day:** Facebook has unveiled a new feature that allows users to choose the “Came Out” option as a “Major Life Event” on their profiles. This feature was added to recognize National Coming Out Day on Oct. 11. See it [here](https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/honor-national-coming-out-day-facebook-unveils-came-out-feature-n918811). * **AT&T v. Netflix:** The wireless carrier announced on Wednesday that it will launch its own streaming service to rival Netflix. The new service will be HBO-focused and feature other content from AT&T’s recent acquisition, HBO parent company WarnerMedia. The move comes as tech giants like Apple and Amazon begin to produce and distribute their own content. The service will be available next year. Read more [on Cheddar](https://cheddar.com/videos/hbo-ceo-richard-plepler-we-will-invest-a-lot-more-in-content). * **Channing & Jessie J:** Channing Tatum has been dating singer Jessie J for several months, US Weekly reported Wednesday. The “Magic Mike” actor and Jenna Dewan, his wife of nine years, announced their split six months ago. Read more [here](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/channing-tatum-is-dating-jessie-j-after-jenna-dewan-divorce/). * **Squirrel on a Plane:** The Orlando PD removed a woman from a Frontier Airlines plane on Tuesday night after she brought a squirrel on board as her “emotional support animal.” The woman refused to get off the plane when she was informed that rodents, including squirrels, weren’t permitted on Frontier flights. Read more [here](https://abcnews.go.com/US/woman-removed-plane-boarding-emotional-support-squirrel/story?id=58400567). Subscribe to the Need 2 Know newsletter [here](https://theneed2know.com).

Share:
More In Technology
Trump signs executive order to block state AI regulations
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to block states from regulating artificial intelligence. He argues that heavy regulations could stifle the industry, especially given competition from China. Trump says the U.S. needs a unified approach to AI regulation to avoid complications from state-by-state rules. The order directs the administration to draw up a list of problematic regulations for the Attorney General to challenge. States with laws could lose access to broadband funding, according to the text of the order. Some states have already passed AI laws focusing on transparency and limiting data collection.
San Francisco woman gives birth in a Waymo self-driving taxi
Waymo's self-driving taxis have been in the spotlight for both negative and positive reasons. This week, the automated ride-hailing taxis went viral after a San Francisco woman gave birth inside a Waymo taxi while on her way to the hospital. A Waymo spokesperson on Wednesday confirmed the unusual delivery. It said the company's rider support team detected unusual activity inside the vehicle and alerted 911. The taxi arrived safely at the hospital before emergency services. Waymo's popularity is growing despite heightened scrutiny following an illegal U-turn and the death of a San Francisco cat. The company, owned by Alphabet, says it is proud to serve riders of all ages.
OpenAI names Slack CEO Dresser as first chief of revenue
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
Trump approves sale of more advanced Nvidia computer chips used in AI to China
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
It’s time to unpack Spotify Wrapped...
The end of 2025 is almost upon us. And it’s time to unpack Spotify Wrapped. On Wednesday, the music streaming giant delivered its annual recap — giving its hundreds of millions of users worldwide a look at the top songs, artists, podcasts and other audio they listened to over the past year. Spotify isn’t the only platform to roll out a yearly glimpse of data collected from consumers’ online lives. But since its launch about a decade ago, Wrapped has become one of the most anticipated. And Spotify is billing the 2025 edition to be the biggest yet, with a host of new features it hopes may also address some disappointments users had last year.
Load More