Monopoly

Reporting from Taipei frames Taiwan as the potential deciding factor in the escalating technology rivalry between the United States and China. Taiwan's tech industry produces more than 90 percent of the world's most advanced semiconductors, the chips that power AI servers, giving the island outsized strategic importance as both superpowers compete for dominance in artificial intelligence.

TSMC is increasingly dictating pricing across the AI chip industry, as the Taiwanese foundry remains the dominant manufacturer of advanced chips for companies like Nvidia, AMD and countless AI startups. With demand for leading-edge fabrication capacity outstripping supply, TSMC's pricing power shapes costs and margins across the entire AI hardware ecosystem.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has put forward a proposal for GB Grid, a new state body intended to galvanise and accelerate investment in the UK's energy infrastructure. It would be funded using money already allocated to GB Energy. The argument is that energy infrastructure is a natural monopoly that has been disrupted, and that public coordination could speed up badly needed grid investment.

Reports are circulating about a possible fusion of the space activities of Airbus, Thales and Leonardo, a move being described as creating a European space monopoly. The discussion, tied to aerospace industry orders and consolidation, references a La Tribune report on defense and space, with observers weighing what a combined European champion would mean for the sector.

An Iranian official has warned that Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service could break the state's monopoly over Iranians' access to the internet. The remarks, reported by Iran International, reflect fears in Tehran that satellite connectivity would let citizens bypass government censorship and filtering, undermining the authorities' ability to control information flows.

Discussion is circulating about Boeing holding a de facto monopoly in US military aviation, particularly around sixth-generation fighter programmes. Commenters are weighing what a single dominant aircraft manufacturer means for American defense, competition and the future of military aviation, with the debate playing out largely in French-language defense circles.

The Wall Street Journal reports on the difficulties Hasbro faces in trying to produce the Monopoly board game entirely in the United States. The article describes the challenge of rebuilding domestic supply chains for components like the game board, tokens, cards and money, which have long been made abroad, calling the effort a 'colossal headache' for the iconic toy brand.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed the state's anti-monopoly bill into law, but the final version is significantly weaker than originally proposed. According to CalMatters, business groups successfully lobbied to water down the measure before it reached his desk. The law still targets corporate consolidation in the largest US state economy, but critics say key enforcement provisions were stripped out during negotiations.