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"This has to stop.''

A humanoid robot lost control while sprinting around a track during testing ahead of the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing. The robot slammed into a wall and crashed to the ground, causing sparks to fly from the robot’s waist. Another video shows a humanoid robot warming up, crashing into electrical boxes, knocking them to...

Iran's top civilian leaders — its president and parliamentary speaker — both publicly pushed for the country to find a way to end the war with the US as they grapple with hardliners who favor resistance.

While UK officials said the attack didn't threaten the country's wider electrical supply, the cyberattack did shut down the plant for four days.

A video appears to show a driver and cyclist squaring off on Pacific Coast Highway in Laguna Beach as other cyclists try to prevent the confrontation from escalating.

Tehran At The Crossroads: Iran's Civilian Leaders Call For Peace Amid Crippling U.S. Blockade

Iran's top civilian officials are publicly urging an end to the ongoing conflict with the United States, exposing a deepening internal rift as they attempt to rein in hardliners who champion continued resistance.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a visit to the shrine of the leader of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in southern Tehran, Iran, January 31, 2026

The financial and social toll of the U.S. blockade is proving too severe to ignore - as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian recently declared that the country cannot endure a state of perpetual limbo, though he cautioned against making concessions that would appear humiliating on the global stage.

"The war must come to an end at some point," Pezeshkian stated in a Friday address, according to state media. "It is better that we demonstrate our strength and dignity today and tell the world that we have won and that we are ending the war."

President Donald Trump has maintained a relentless blockade on the Islamic Republic after a previous memorandum of understanding imploded - effectively severing the regime's ability to export oil - its primary source of income. This has plunged Iran into a domestic crisis characterized by skyrocketing inflation and an increasingly desperate cost-of-living crisis. The pressure is expected to intensify further this week, as U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent prepares to unveil what President Trump has characterized as an "economic D-Day."

While the exact nature of these punitive measures remains classified, Bessent has strongly signaled the implementation of sweeping secondary sanctions targeting any nation that continues to do business with Tehran.

A Regime Divided

The push for diplomacy from Iran's civilian government stands in stark contrast to the shifting power dynamics among its clerics and military elite. Pezeshkian claims his diplomatic push aligns with the broader goals of the regime, referencing past speeches by Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei - who has conspicuously vanished from the public eye since the conflict escalated.

"I was in the presence of the Supreme Leader, and in his speeches as well, he openly stated that we must move beyond this state of 'neither war nor peace,'" Pezeshkian noted. "We are not going to humiliatingly back down before the enemy or bow our heads. We can sit down with strength, but also with logic, and resolve our problems."

Prior to his public absence, Khamenei had elevated hardline factions who favor military confrontation over the moderates seeking a renewed deal with Washington. Despite this, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf echoed the President's warnings, underscoring the severe national security risks of a collapsing economy.

"No matter how much military power we have, if our people are struggling and the country lacks financial circulation and economic growth, we will not achieve progress," Ghalibaf stated. "As someone who has experienced war, I understand the true value of peace."

Washington's Stance: The "Right Deal"

The Trump administration's distrust stems from the fraught history of recent negotiations, during which U.S. officials reported receiving deeply conflicting signals from Tehran. The previous agreement shattered after Iran launched a series of strikes on maritime vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz.

For the United States, the objectives remain twofold and uncompromising: Nuclear Prevention: Ensuring Iran permanently loses the capacity to develop or acquire a nuclear weapon. Maritime Security: The full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to global trade.

Currently, the Trump administration claims it's securing the safe passage of 8 to 9 million barrels of oil through the strait daily - a steep decline from the roughly 20 million barrels that traversed the waterway before the conflict erupted.

Washington is signaling that it will dictate the terms. Addressing reporters on Friday, President Trump summarized the diplomatic standoff: "They would love to make a deal, but they're not ready to make the right deal."

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/23/2026 - 12:00

Operation Find Joe is growing more intense.

We need more Rip and Beth... STAT.

Does your university have a prison? Maybe it should.

President Zelensky said Russian forces launched a drone strike on a shopping mall in his hometown of Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine. Zelensky called it an “absolutely cynical and despicable strike…against an ordinary shopping center.” So far 14 people have been confirmed dead and 120 are wounded.

“Where somebody else saw a difficult child, Ali saw potential,” she said through tears.

Police in Georgia put out a wanted post on a Walmart shopper because he picked up $30 from the floor and didn't turn it in.

Could one Emmy category produce a whopping five winners this year? Somehow, yes!

Azerbaijan Sues CNN Over Story On Cooperation With Israel In War On Iran

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

There is a novel (and highly dubious) lawsuit filed in Delaware by the nation of Azerbaijan against CNN for a story claiming that it was cooperating with Israel in attacks on Iran. Republic of Azerbaijan v. CNN, Inc. borders on the legally frivolous, but it is likely politically advantageous to show Iran that it contests the allegations.

In its Complaint, Azerbaijan details the development of hostilities while maintaining neutrality:

Azerbaijan, which shares a border with Iran to the south, is not and has never been a participant in the Iran War. Azerbaijan has not supported military operations by any of the warring nations.

...Azerbaijan maintains a policy of neutrality and independence. Azerbaijan does not host any foreign military bases on its territory and, as a non-aligned state, maintains a strict official policy and legislative framework against foreign military footprints.

The basis for the lawsuit is what the country calls "CNN's reckless reporting" on June 5, 2026 in a post titled "Exclusive: Israel sent troops to Azerbaijan during Iran war, sources say." The article claiming that Azerbaijan allowed Israel to use its territory to launch attacks against Iran no doubt raised the ire of the Islamic Republic.

Indeed, the Complaint lays out how Iran threatened any countries assisting Iran and suggested that the story was putting them at risk of an Iranian attack:

Ali Larijani, a senior Iranian official, threatened: 'The countries of the region must either prevent the use of their soil by America against Iran themselves, or we will.' Similarly, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ("IRGC") has issued a press release unambiguously stating that 'Countries that host the aggressor American military and have placed their land at the disposal of the aggressor criminals for attacks on Iran should be prepared to receive a corresponding response, and should activate their civil defence [sic] units to safeguard the lives of their citizens and move them away from likely targets.'

The complaint, however, faces even more daunting legal challenges. While the Complaint alleges that "CNN's false reporting caused reputational harm to Azerbaijan and threatens tenuous international relations," it is doubtful that a court will view this as a viable tort claim under defamation.

We have previously discussed lawsuits by countries or nationality groups that have been dismissed. The leading case on defamation, New York Times v. Sullivan, expressly states, "For good reason, "no court of last resort in this country has ever held, or even suggested, that prosecutions for libel on government have any place in the American system of jurisprudence."

In 2000, a state court dismissed Air Zimbabwe v. Chicago Tribune Co. (Cal. Super. Ct. 2000), due to the fact that Air Zimbabwe is "a government entity, is precluded under the First Amendment from pursuing a defamation claim."

Moreover, there are elemental problems in making such a claim. A country would be treated as a public official or figure subject to the "actual malice" standard, requiring knowing falsehood or reckless disregard of the truth. CNN clearly had sources that led it to believe the accounts were true. Indeed, many countries, including those asserting neutrality, have secret agreements or accommodations in this and other wars.

Proving that no such agreement existed or that there was not a defensible basis for the story would be very difficult.

The question of harm is also intriguing. Many would view cooperating against Iran as an admirable decision for Azerbaijan. Although it clearly puts Azerbaijan at odds with Iran, it puts it in alignment with other countries such as the United States. It is difficult to see how damages would be measured in such a circumstance, even if a viable claim on the merits could be established.

This case asks a court to adjudicate global political questions with shadowy sources and factual claims. I would be surprised if any court would relish such a trial and expect that Republic of Azerbaijan v. CNN, Inc. will soon join the list of dismissed actions.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/23/2026 - 11:40

With great hops comes great responsibility.

Two-time defending La Liga champions FC Barcelona take center stage.

"Civilizational Suicide": China's Humanoids Sprint Ahead As Americans Fight Over Data Center And Socialism

The five-day 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games at Beijing's National Speed Skating Oval are well underway, and on Saturday, an AI-powered humanoid robot reached 14.5 meters per second, or 32.5 mph.

china’s AI robot just hit 14.5 m/s pic.twitter.com/0K4wQ4g9pB

— el.cine (@EHuanglu) August 22, 2026

More than 2,000 humanoid robots are participating in the World Humanoid Robot Games across 51 disciplines and more than 1,000 competitions spanning running, table tennis, and soccer.

Holy smokes...

Humanoid robots are coming for tennis.

100% autonomous...pic.twitter.com/0Q3i4GuTfa

— Min Choi (@minchoi) August 21, 2026

The games opened during the same week as the 2026 World Robot Conference in Beijing, where companies displayed 3,000 products, and the blockbuster IPO of China-based Unitree. Together, the events and IPO suggest that China is pulling far ahead of the US in humanoid robotics. The main reason is that China controls much of the global supply chain for actuators, motors, optics, and other critical components required to manufacture humanoid robots.

Welcome to China, and welcome to the future!

Maybe we will soon witness humanoid robot formation in China's military parade.@WHRGFUN ©️@boosterobotics pic.twitter.com/dVqkVRGghu

— Shen Shiwei 沈诗伟 (@shen_shiwei) August 23, 2026

Related:

• China Dominates The Humanoid Robot Race. Can Trump Close The Gap?

Arthur MacWaters, who co-founded Legion Health, an AI-native telepsychiatry company, emphasized on X, "We're having debates about data centers, and China is publicly developing superhuman robot armies. What the actual hell are we doing here, guys?"

Another X user said, "We're shooting ourselves in the foot because we want to sit around and watch Netflix and eat Cheetos."

We're shooting ourselves in the foot because we want to sit around and watch Netflix and eat Cheetos

— Jess Fields (@jessalanfields) August 23, 2026

MacWaters responded, "It's civilizational suicide."

While the Trump administration is moving to reindustrialize the US and reshore critical supply chains, the Democratic Party's socialist wing and its far-left allies are advancing an agenda that risks weakening the country from within.

The timing is dangerous. As China expands its AI infrastructure, advanced-manufacturing base, and military power, DSA proposals to block new data centers and neuter US defense capabilities would undermine two pillars of national power. What may be pitched as economic or social reform increasingly carries major national-security consequences and may suggest that these movements are being influenced by subversive networks within left-wing NGO spheres (read here).

We set the narrative at the start of the year that humanoids will move beyond factory floors towards the battlefield. Ukraine confirmed this (see here). 

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/23/2026 - 11:05

Never fear, Green Lantern is (almost) here!

The regular season officially begins on Wednesday, September 9!

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