A mind-blowing robot kung fu show took place during China’s 2026 Spring Festival Gala (Lunar New Year Gala) on February 16.
It was entirely real not AI or CGI. Humanoid robots from Unitree Robotics performed synchronized martial arts routines with swords, poles, and nunchucks alongside children on live national television. Described as the world’s first fully autonomous humanoid robot kung fu performance, it highlighted major advances in balance, precision, and hardware within just 12 months. While commercialization still faces challenges like cost and reliability, the performance signals China’s rapid progress in humanoid robotics. Source: Evrim Kanbur (@WhileTravelling), Cyrus Janssen on X (@thecyrusjanssen)
Suddenly everyone hates AI
Source: Bloomberg
The February hashrate drop was a "perfect storm" that triggered an 11.4% downward difficulty adjustment, the largest since 2021.
Why it happened: - Texas Weather: Severe winter storms forced industrial miners to shut down to save the power grid (or sell their energy back for higher profits). - Price Correction: Bitcoin’s drop toward $60,000 made older rigs unprofitable. Some firms pivoted their hardware toward AI training for better margins. - Regulation: Renewed crackdowns on "gray" mining in Russia and China removed significant hardware from the network. The Result: The network has already begun a "V-shaped" recovery. The lower difficulty has made mining profitable again for the remaining operators, and hashrate is already bouncing back. This is actually one of the sharpest V shape recovery in hashrate we've ever seen. Source: ₿ Isaiah ⚡️ @BitcoinIsaiah
Wow Hedgefunds are smashing the buy button on Asian stocks.
These are the biggest inflows in years. 🤑 International markets continue to see a lot of interest. Markets & Mayhem @Mayhem4Markets Via @GoldmanSachs
Banks and insurers might be longs as structural beneficiaries in the AI era.
Back office tasks get automated and margins improve. Software has a large opportunity to improve efficiency as well. Source: Greg @GS_CapSF
AI disrupting toilets next
Source: Bloomberg
THE WORLD RUNS THROUGH 8 STRAITS
Here are the key chokepoints: • Malacca ~25% of global traded goods • Hormuz ~25% of global oil, ~⅓ of LNG • Singapore ~50% of global seaborne trade • Gibraltar Atlantic ↔ Mediterranean • Bosphorus Black Sea outlet • Magellan Atlantic ↔ Pacific backup • Bering Arctic gateway • Bass Australian passage These are pressure points. Close Hormuz... Oil spikes. Disrupt Malacca... Asia freezes. Block Bosphorus... Black Sea trade halts. Geopolitics isn’t abstract. It’s maritime geometry. Source: Jack Prandelli @jackprandelli on X
hey, capex is good. It will pay off” consider the historical record
Source: Peter Berezin @PeterBerezinBCA
