Author: Shloka Badkar

OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever is leaving the company

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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OpenAI chief scientist and co-founder Ilya Sutskever is leaving the artificial intelligence company, a departure that ends months of speculation in Silicon Valley about the future of a top AI researcher who played a key role in the brief ouster of Sam Altman last year.

Sutskever will be replaced by research director Jakub Pachocki, OpenAI said on its blog Tuesday.

In a post on X, Sutskever called trajectory of OpenAI “miraculous” and said that he was confident the company will build AI that is “both safe and beneficial” under its current leadership.

Sutskever’s nearly decade-long tenure at OpenAI has been a dramatic one. When OpenAI was founded in 2015, he served as its research director after being recruited to join the company by Elon Musk. At that point, Sutskever was already well known in the field for his research on neural networks at the University of Toronto and his work at the Google Brain lab.

A central figure at the company, Sutskever even officiated the wedding of President Greg Brockman at the OpenAI offices.

Last year, Sutskever was one of several OpenAI board members who moved to fire Chief Executive Officer Altman, a decision that touched off a whirlwind five days at the company: Brockman quit in protest. Investors revolted. And within days, nearly all of OpenAI’s roughly 770 employees signed a letter threatening to quit unless Altman was reinstated.

Adding to the chaos, Sutskever said he regretted his participation in Altman’s ouster. Soon after, the CEO was reinstated.

After Altman returned to the company in late November, he said in a blog post that Sutskever wouldn’t go back to his former post as a board member, but that the company was “discussing how he can continue his work at OpenAI.”

In the subsequent months, Sutskever largely disappeared from public view, sparking speculation about his continued role at the company. Sutskever’s post on X on Tuesday was the first time he shared anything on the social network since reposting a message from OpenAI in December.

Asked about Sutskever at a press conference in March, Altman said he loved him, and that he believed Sutskever loved OpenAI, adding: “I hope we work together for the rest of our careers.”

In a post on X on Tuesday, Altman wrote, “Ilya is easily one of the greatest minds of our generation, a guiding light of our field, and a dear friend.”

On X, Sutskever posted that he is working on an as-yet-unnamed project that is “very personally meaningful” for him.

The company’s new chief scientist, Pachocki has worked at OpenAI since 2017. Pachocki led the development of the company’s GPT-4 AI model, OpenAI said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Oil advances with supply in focus as US stockpiles seen lower

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Oil advanced after an industry report showed shrinking US stockpiles, and traders looked ahead to a report from the International Energy Agency that may shed light on market balances into the second half.

Brent rose toward $83 after a 1.2% drop on Tuesday as persistent US inflation dimmed the demand outlook. West Texas Intermediate traded above $78. The American Petroleum Institute reported nationwide crude inventories fell 3.1 million barrels last week, with a drawdown also seen at the closely watched hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, according to people familiar with the data.

The outlook from the Paris-based IEA is due later Wednesday, and follows a monthly assessment from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. The cartel’s analysis showed OPEC+ nations participating in the group’s most recent round of output cuts exceeded their quotas last month.

Oil has gained ground this year as OPEC+ curtailed output to prevent a glut and shore up global prices. In the run-up to deciding whether to extend the curbs at a June 1 meeting, members are grappling with the thorny issue of how much crude they are capable of pumping, with several major exporting nations seeking to have their recognized capacity levels increased.

Also due later Wednesday will be data on US consumer prices, after a producer gauge of inflation in the world’s largest economy remained stubbornly high. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank must be patient and wait for evidence that price pressures were abating, doubling down on the need to keep borrowing costs higher for longer.

CNBC Awaaz has an upcoming webinar Commodity Gurukul. Click here for more details

Read more here: Asian stocks follow US rally before CPI report

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Asian stocks follow US rally before CPI report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Stocks in Asia rose, following a big tech-led rally in US benchmarks, as investors look to key inflation data later Wednesday for clues on the Federal Reserve’s next steps.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index – a gauge for benchmarks in the region – inched higher in early trading, extending gains after closing at a two-year high Tuesday. Equity benchmarks in Japan and Australia advanced at the open while futures for Hong Kong were little changed with that market closed for a holiday.

Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s American Depositary Receipts surged after revenue beat estimates in results reported late Tuesday, while Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s slid after profit plunged, highlighting the growing divergence between China’s twin internet powerhouses. Elsewhere, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. reported a weaker-than-expected profit as demand for iPhones remained sluggish in China.

In the run-up to US consumer price index data, the S&P 500 shrugged off Jerome Powell’s signals that interest rates will be higher for longer and a mixed reading on producer inflation. US futures were little changed in early Asia trading.

“Investors are expecting inflation to fall in April,” said Anthony Saglimbene at Ameriprise. “Even if the decline is slight, markets are looking for further evidence that the downward trend in inflation remains intact and, importantly, is not in the process of reversing course higher.”

Investors will also be watching to see if Japan’s 10-year government bond yield hits the highest level in more than a decade. The yen was steady at around 156.50 per dollar ahead of a report on Thursday that is forecast to show Japan’s gross domestic product shrank at an annualized pace of 1.2% in the three months through March.

Meanwhile, China blasted the Biden administration’s move to increase US tariffs on a wide range of Chinese imports, vowing to take its own action, without giving specifics.

Elsewhere in the corporate world, Sony Group Corp.’s shares surged as investors rewarded its mid-term plan and shareholder return policy after the company announced its quarterly earnings.

Tops Estimates

A Bloomberg dollar index was flat as US 10-year Treasury yields were little changed Wednesday after falling five basis points to 4.44% in the previous session, as traders positioned for a sharp drop in yields in the aftermath of the PPI print.

US producer prices rose in April by more than projected, though key components that feed into the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge were more muted. Several categories in the PPI report that are used to calculate the personal consumption expenditures price index eased.

“A more granular look suggests the components that feed into PCE inflation sent mixed signals,” said Krishna Guha at Evercore. “This means that the burden largely remains on CPI.”

Underlying US CPI probably moderated in April for the first time in six months, offering some hope that price pressures will start to ease again. Compared with April 2023, the core CPI is projected to rise 3.6%. While the annual increase would be the smallest in three years, it would still be too high to warrant rate cuts.

A survey conducted by 22V Research showed 49% of investors expect the market reaction to the CPI report to be “risk-on” — while only 27% said “risk-off.”

In commodities, oil advanced after an industry report showed shrinking US stockpiles, and traders looked ahead to a report from the International Energy Agency that’ll shed light on market balances into the second half. Gold steadied after slipping from a three-week high.

Also Read: Trade Setup for May 15: Can the Nifty reclaim its 50-DMA at 22,300 after a three-day recovery?

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Stock Market LIVE Updates | Nifty faces resistance at 22,300; Paytm, Indus Towers to react on MSCI rejig

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Stock Market LIVE Updates | Nifty 50 ended the previous trade session nearly 577 points away from its record high.

On another note, Paytm is among the stocks that will be excluded from the MSCI India Index, which is a part of the MSCI Global Standard Index. Indus Towers, NHPC, JSW Energy, Jindal Stainless, Bosch, Phoenix Mills, Mankind Pharma, Solar Industries, Thermax, Sundaram Finance, Torrent Pharma are among the stocks that will be included.

Overnight, Wall Street stocks and bonds edged higer, ahead of the upcoming US consumer price index (CPI) data.

Asian stock, followed the big tech-led rally in the US benchmark indices, ahead of US Fed numbers.

Benchmark indices in Australia and Japan advanced during the open, while Hong Kong futures were little changed with the market closed for a holiday.

Bharti Airtel, Shree Cement, Siemens India, Cipla, Apollo Tyres, M&M, Radico Khaitan, Patanjali Foods, are among the other stocks in focus today.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Hexaware picks 5 i-banks for mega IPO at $5-6-billion valuation, India’s biggest in IT services since TCS

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US private equity giant Carlyle has finalised a syndicate of five investment banks as it gears up to take portfolio firm Hexaware Technologies public and unlock value through a big-bang IPO this fiscal, multiple industry sources told Moneycontrol.

“Carlyle has shortlisted Kotak Mahindra Capital, Citi and JP Morgan as the lead banks, along with IIFL Capital and HSBC Securities . The IPO will provide a partial exit window for Carlyle,” said one of the persons above.

Two other persons confirmed the making of the syndicate.

“The deal is likely to be kicked off this week. These are early days and no size and valuations have been finalised as yet, but the plan is to raise around a $1 billion (Rs 8,350 crore) at a valuation ranging between $5 billion and $6 billion (Rs 41,750 crore to Rs 50,100 crore), though this might change later depending on market conditions,” a fourth person told Moneycontrol.

If the listing plans fructify, it would be India’s biggest IT services IPO in rupee terms since the Rs 4,713-crore issue of TCS back in 2002.

All the four persons above spoke to Moneycontrol on condition of anonymity.

In response to an email query from Moneycontrol, Carlyle, which holds more than 95 per cent in Hexaware Technologies and HSBC Securities, declined to comment.

Moneycontrol is awaiting a response from Hexaware while the other investment banks could not be reached for an immediate comment.

Carlyle acquired Hexaware in 2021 from rival private equity firm Baring Private Equity Asia (now EQT) for around $3 billion.

A successful listing attempt would mark the return of Hexaware Technologies to the domestic bourses after 22 years. According to NSE data, it first listed on June 14, 2002.

The earlier promoter Baring Private Equity Asia had delisted the firm in 2020.

A closer look at Hexaware

Hexaware Technologies is a global technology and business process services company based out of Mumbai with 50 offices across 19-plus countries and a workforce of more than 30,000 and a client base of more than 370 . According to its website, the firm has clocked $1.3 billion in annual revenues.

Earlier this month, in a bid to bolster its data and analytics capabilities, the firm announced the acquisition of Softcrylic, a data consulting firm headquartered in Minneapolis.

“Gen AI, coupled with old-fashioned AI, will open myriad opportunities for every business to become more efficient and create disruptive new business models. However, some fundamentals don’t change. Every business in every industry wants to transform into a platform-based business. While gen AI will help accelerate that journey, it will not replace human talent, problem-solving, and creative capabilities,” R Srikrishna, CEO of Hexaware Technologies, said in the firm’s 2023 annual report, alluding the impact of artificial intelligence (AI).

“We are rapidly pivoting Hexaware to an AI-first world. We’ve trained over 15,000 tech employees (approximately 80 percent of our tech talent) and created transformative solutions that redefine every facet of our operations,” he said.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

RVNL gains over 6% after company bags order from Southern Railway ahead of Q4 results

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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RVNL shares were trading over 6% higher on Tuesday, May 14, after the company won an order worth ₹239 crore from the Southern Railway on Monday.

The company’s contract with the Southern Railway includes provision of automatic block signaling system at the Jolarpetti junction to the Erode junction of the Salem division.

The automatic block signalling system manages train movements using stop signals. It is designed to automatically operate to let trains travelling in the same direction to follow each other safely and prevents the risk of rear-end collisions.

The order is expected to be completed within 12 months.

Last week, the state-run company received an order from the South Eastern Railway to meet 3,000 MT loading target. The scope of work includes design, supply, building, testing and commissioning for upgradation of the electric traction system for Rajkharsawan Nayagarh Bolani section of the Chakradharpur division of the South Eastern Railway. The project is to be completed within 18 months.

Last month too, the company’s KRDCL-RVNL joint venture emerged as the lowest bidder for a contract worth ₹439 crore from Southern Railway. The order includes redevelopment of the Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway Station on an engineering, procurement and construction basis and is expected to be completed within 42 months.

The railway public sector undertaking will report its fourth quarter earnings for the 2023-24 quarter on Wednesday, May 15.

The stock was trading over 6% higher at ₹271.3 apiece at 11.10 am on Tuesday. RVNL shares have been trading mixed in the past week. The stock has been in the green for three out of the last eight trade sessions. The stock has gained nearly 8% in the past month, 69% in the last six months and 125% in the past year.

Also Read: Cochin Shipyard shares rally 9%, cross ₹1,300 mark on large order win from European client

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Israel strike kills Indian staff member of the UN in Gaza: Reports

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Israel military fired at a UN aid vehicle in Rafah, Gaza killed an Indian national Colonel Waibhav Kale, the UN’s first foreign staff member, as per multiple media reports. Kale had joined as a security coordination officer at the UN just two months ago. In 2022, he took premature retirement from the Indian Army, the reports stated.

UN chief Antonio Guterres has called for a full investigation, Al Jazeera reported.

Guterres on social media platform X said a UN vehicle was struck in Gaza, resulting in the death of one person and the the other suffering injuries.

He condemned all attacks on UN personnel and called for an immediate ceasefire in his post.

Today a @UN vehicle was struck in Gaza, killing one of our colleagues & injuring another.
More than 190 UN staff have been killed in Gaza.
Humanitarian workers must be protected.
I condemn all attacks on UN personnel and reiterate my urgent appeal for an immediate humanitarian…

— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) May 13, 2024

Kale, who was with the 11 Jammu & Kashmir Rifles (11 J&K Rif), killed in Rafah is the “first casualty” among international UN staff in Gaza since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas conflict following the October 7 terror attacks.
Another DSS staffer was injured in the incident when their UN vehicle was struck as they travelled to the European Hospital in Rafah.

Al Jazeera reported heavy ground fighting in the south of Rafah and the north of Jabalia of the Gaza Strip. Citing the UN, it reported that at least 3.6 lakh Palestinians fled Rafah as Israel continues its military operation in the city.

Responding to questions on the incident during the press briefing, Haq said at this point, “We are in the process of informing the relevant governments and the relevant family members, so I wouldn’t share any names or nationalities.” He added that they were “international staff.” Haq confirmed that “this is, in fact, the first international UN casualty.”

While there have been international casualties involving workers for the World Central Kitchen in Gaza, Haq said that “of UN staff, I believe I’ve not been previously aware of an international casualty.” Haq added that the vehicle was headed to the hospital “as part of their regular work, they go to different locations to assess security conditions.

And this was the European hospital in Rafah. When asked for details about how their vehicle was struck, Haq said “This happened fairly recently. We’re still accumulating details. We expect to get reports, including from the relevant authorities.”

He added that close to around 190 UN personnel have been killed in Gaza since October 7, “most of them national staff of the UN Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA.” Haq added that the UN is “going to set up measures for accountability. A lot of that… requires ultimately for an end to the conflict so that we can work these out, but we will be working with the authorities on the ground to get a restitution for all of those who have been killed.” Haq said he did not have the full details of whether the vehicle that was struck was part of a large convoy.

“I believe it was in a convoy that was moving, and this was the DSS vehicle that was hit.” Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a post on X, “We are devastated to learn about the death” of a UN humanitarian worker and injury of another in Gaza.

“Too many civilian and humanitarian lives have paid the price for this war. Ceasefire and work towards peace,” the WHO chief said.

Meanwhile, the White House has said the Joe Biden administration does not view the killing of Palestinians in Gaza by Israel as genocide.

The US military chief for the Middle East also visited Israel to discuss the Gaza war, mainting that US opposes a full-scale attack on Gaza, Al Jazeera reported.

Earlier, Israel troops also attacked food aid trucks at Tarqumiyah checkpoint in Hebron, preventig them from reaching the Gaza.

In April, seven members of the World Central Kitchen were killed in an IDF strike in Gaza. One of those killed in the airstrike was Zomi Frankcom, who was of Indian descent, according to reports.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that between October 7, 2023, and May 12, 2024, at least 35,091 Palestinians have been killed and 78,827 injured in Gaza.

More than 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals, including 33 children, have been killed in Israel, the vast majority on October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel.

According to sources from the Additional Directorate General of Public Information (ADGPI), “Col Waibhav Kale was serving with the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (DSS).”

His vehicle, en route to a hospital, came under attack in Rafah, and another UN staff member was injured. Col. Kale is the first international UN casualty since the beginning of the Israeli-Hamas conflict, it added.

The Indian Army has not issued an official statement regarding this incident yet. However, they are expected to provide an update on the repatriation of Col. Kale’s mortal remains when possible. The United Nations has called for an investigation into this attack, sources said.

“More than 190 UN staff have been killed in Gaza, most of them national staff of the UN Relief and Works Agency & UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East),” it said.

With inputs from PTI

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Hindalco’s arm Novelis files IPO paper for listing in the US

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Hindalco on Monday, May 14, announced that its fully-owned subsidiary and US-based aluminum products maker, Novelis Inc has filed the registration statement with the US securities regulator, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), for its proposed initial public offering (IPO). Novelis will be listing its common shares on the New York Stock Exchange, it said.

The number of shares to be offered via the IPO issue and the price range for the same, have not been determined as yet. As per the form details, Novelis is expected to release other details once SEC completes its review process, subject to market and other conditions. However, Bloomberg in a report last week, mentioned that Hindalco has been considering seeking about $1.2 billion in initial public offering of Novelis and it is targeting a valuation of around $18 billion.

The common shares are likely to be offered by AV Minerals (Netherlands) NV, the sole shareholder of Novelis and a fully-owned subsidiary of Hindalco. The statement said Novelis will not get any proceeds from the sale of common shares by its sole shareholder. Talking about risk factors, Novelis mentions that following this offering, four of the eight members of its board of directors will be employees or affiliates of Hindalco. Accordingly, Hindalco will be able to influence fundamental and significant corporate matters and transactions, and the interests of Hindalco may supersede the company’s.

In the Novelis press release attached with the Hindalco stock exchange filing, the company said Morgan Stanley, BofA Securities and Citigroup will be the lead book-running managers for the proposed offering with BMO Capital, Wells Fargo Securities, Deutsche Bank Securities acting as additional book-running managers. BNP Paribas, PNC Capital Markets, Academy Securities, Credit Agricole and SMBC Nikko will act as co-managers for the proposed offering.

The company said that the registration statement regarding the securities has been filed with the SEC but it has not yet become effective.

On the financials front, Novelis reported a healthy set of earnings for the quarter-ending March 2024. This Atlanta-based aluminum products maker saw its adjusted EBITDA/tonne rising to a seven-quarter high of $540/tonne, up 25% against the same quarter last year and 8% sequentially. On shipment front, company saw a healthy increase with fourth quarter shipments rising 2% year-on-year and 5% sequentially. The company even witnessed a sharp fall in net debt. On a sequential basis, the net debt of the company reduced by more than 7% to $4.35 billion as of March 31, 2024 and from the level of $4.7 billion as of December 31, 2023.

Hindalco shares ended 1.41% higher at ₹634.45 piece on Monday, May 13.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Michael Cohen testimony ties Donald Trump to hush money payment

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Michael Cohen directly connected Donald Trump to the hush-money payment to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels to keep their alleged sexual encounter out of the news ahead of the 2016 election.

Taking the witness stand in the Manhattan criminal trial on Monday, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer recalled an October 2016 conversation in which the former president said that public disclosure of Daniels’ story would spell “disaster” for his White House bid. Trump expressed frustration that Daniels was trying to shop her story to the media and told Cohen to pay her $130,000 to buy her silence.

“This is a disaster, a total disaster,” Cohen said Trump told him. “Women will hate me. Guys may think it’s cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign.”

Cohen, the star witness in the hush-money case, detailed how Trump signed off on a plan to cover up the $130,000 Daniels payment under the guise of legal fees. Cohen’s testimony offered an insider’s perspective into Trump’s state of mind when he entered into the agreement.

The testimony is a crucial moment for the district attorney’s office, which must convince the jury that Trump falsified dozens of business records in order to conceal the true nature of checks he made out to Cohen throughout 2017. It’s one of four criminal cases Trump is facing as he campaigns to return to the White House.

Under questioning by the prosecutor, Cohen elaborated on a trove of emails, texts and heated discussions, including Trump’s directives, as the trial entered its fifth week. His testimony is potentially the most damaging against the former president so far, giving a first-hand account of Trump allegedly directing him to falsify financial records.

Cohen said he heard Daniels was speaking to publications about her story just after Trump was caught on an “Access Hollywood” tape boasting about sexually assaulting women. Prosecutors allege that the timing of the Daniels’ hush-money payment was motivated by the release of the tape, which lead to a media frenzy.

Cohen also described an ongoing arrangement with former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, who worked to shield Trump from unflattering stories long before the 2016 presidential campaign. Cohen testified that he was part of a 2015 meeting at Trump Tower in which Pecker assured Trump he’d help silence negative stories about him during the campaign. His testimony largely mirrored that of Pecker, who took the witness stand earlier.

In the weeks that followed the release of the Access Hollywood tape, Pecker balked at paying Daniels the agreed-upon $130,000 himself, Cohen said. Pecker told Cohen that Trump had failed to reimburse him for earlier salacious stories he’d bought to protect the billionaire.

According to Cohen, Trump grew angry with him for not making the Daniels problem go away, since the lawyer had convinced Pecker to remove a 2011 article about her claims from a gossip blog.

“I thought you had this under control. Just take care of it,” Cohen said Trump told him.

Took Out Loan

Cohen decided to pay Daniels himself by tapping a home equity line of credit. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger walked Cohen through a raft of emails and banking records that he said showed how he worked out the hush-money deal, using what he described as a legal retainer for his services after he set up the company that made the payments.

“I’m not sure they would have opened it if it stated ‘to pay off an adult film star for a nondisclosure agreement’” Cohen said, chuckling.

Cohen is set to return to the stand on Tuesday. Trump’s lawyers on cross examination are expected to paint Cohen as a serial liar with a vendetta against his former boss, whose testimony can’t be trusted. Cohen has pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.

‘Beautiful Woman’

Cohen described the chaos the Access Hollywood tape posed for Trump’s campaign. He worked with Pecker to shield Trump from unflattering stories long before the 2016 presidential campaign. The Daniels story would be “catastrophic” for the campaign, Cohen said, because Trump was polling low with women.

Cohen recalled Trump saying: “push it out as long as you can, just get past the election. If I win, it has no relevance, because I’m president. But if I lose, I just don’t care.’”

Cohen said Trump asked him to reach out to his media contacts and tell them that his words in the Access Hollywood recording were “locker room talk,” saying, “that’s how his wife, Melania regarded it.”

Trump was more concerned about his political future than about his wife finding out about his infidelity, Cohen said. The lawyer asked about Melania Trump.

“Don’t worry, how long do you think I’ll be on the market? Not long,’” Trump said, according to Cohen.

Cohen kept Trump’s secrets for years before a bitter falling out in 2018, after the lawyer pleaded guilty to illegal campaign finance charges over the hush-money payment to the adult film actress. The relationship the two forged was shattered after Cohen pleaded guilty in federal court in New York in August 2022, saying he’d paid two women so they did not disclose their “alleged affairs with the candidate.”

In addition to the payment to Daniels, Cohen admitted to facilitating an illegal contribution of $150,000, which former Playmate Karen McDougal received from the National Enquirer to quash her story about an alleged affair with Trump.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow