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Vatican Says Pope Leo Recovering After Lung Cancer Surgery; Bangkok Hosts First CNN Global Perspectives In Asia; MI5 Chief Warns of A.I.'s Dangerous Potential and Risks; U.K. Opening A.I. Threat Assessment Center Amid Rising Threats; Ukrainian Ex-Military Officer on Trial for Alleged Sabotage; France Seizes Suspected Shadow Fleet Tanker; 11 Sailors Missing After Drone Strike Sinks Ship Off Bulgaria; Georgia Authorities Investigating Man's Deadly Fall From a Rollercoaster; OpenAI Employee Arrested After Recording Device Found at Work; Winnie-the-Pooh Turns 100. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired October 14, 2026 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[02:00:35]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, the Vatican confirms Pope Leo's cancer diagnosis. We are live in Rome for the latest on his health.
Plus, CNN journalists are leading conversations with world leaders about technology, finance, and geopolitics. We're live in Bangkok with global perspectives.
And a new warning from the U.K.'s top security agency: artificial intelligence is expanding new threats from Russia, Iran, and China.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Thanks for joining us. Well, the Vatican says Pope Leo is recovering in hospital after undergoing a successful surgery to remove a growth that was determined to be lung cancer. The 71-year-old pontiff had the lower lobe of his right lung removed during a 90- minute procedure on Tuesday. All his public events have been canceled for the next week as he recovers.
CNN's Stefano Pozzebon joins me now live from Rome with the latest. Good to see you, Stefano. So, what are you hearing from the doctors?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, Rosemary, the doctors have been actually very transparent compared to previous occasions here at the Vatican. We know, for example, that Pope Leo or Robert Prevost is currently recovering on the 10th floor of the hospital, just behind my back, the operation went on as scheduled. We know that he received a video-assisted operation. That means that they used small robots coming into his thorax from a very, very non-invasive cut on his chest, and this is of course in order to make this operation as least invasive as possible.
However, we're still talking about a 71-year-old man that has been diagnosed with lung cancer. In particular, the correct form of the cancer is a pulmonary adrenocarcinoma, which we learn from experts, is one of the most common forms of lung cancer, and also one of the most common for non-smokers. We know that Pope Leo is not known to be a smoker, so there is, of course, the satisfaction that the operation proceeded without complication. But of course, it is still surprising to be here so early in his pontificate, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Indeed, and Stefano. Of course, that is good news. What you're saying there, but overall, it was shocking news to everyone, wasn't it? What's been the reaction there in Rome, where you are?
POZZEBON: Yes, the reaction has been mostly of shock and surprise. One of them, for example, who expressed this sentiment of surprise was Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who is the Secretary of State, so basically the Foreign Minister of the Vatican. He described the news as a bolt coming out of the blue and saying that, of course, there is not anxiety. He did not want to use that word, but of course, saying sharing with us that he was worried because, like I was saying, he's a 71-year-old man who just went through a lung operation.
But it was also the same reaction all across the world. There are more than 1.4 billion Catholics who see as Pope Leo as a spiritual leader. We spoke, for example, with a personal friend from Peru. The Pope is due to travel to South America next month. That trip to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru is still planned. It's not been canceled or postponed, and we know that Leo intends to proceed with that trip as scheduled.
His friend is saying that his friend Cesar Piscoya, who spoke with us from Lima, said that his health is what matters the most, and that he looks forward to seeing him later on. So, when that trip will be seen.
So, a lot of people, millions of Catholics looking at that hospital just behind my back with worry, with interest, of course, and looking forward to see him out as soon as possible. We know that Pope Leo will stay in the hospital for at least a week, and then he will make his way back to the Vatican where he will proceed to his recovery.
[02:05:08]
CHURCH: Yes, and we are all wishing him a speedy recovery. Stefano Pozzebon, we thank you for your live report from Rome. Appreciate it.
Well, early voting is underway in the U.S. state of Georgia as the midterm elections are now in full swing. The Secretary of State says nearly 190,000 people turned out on the first day. That is a 40 percent increase from the last midterm elections in 2022, but it's well short of the first day of early voting in the 2024 presidential contest.
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BONITA GWYNN, GEORGIA VOTER: The economy, the prices of the food, and everything, and this needs to stop. We can't. There's a lot of people that's actually struggling to even make it.
SUSAN CASS, GEORGIA VOTER: The lawlessness in our government, gas prices, food prices, health care.
KATE DENNY, GEORGIA VOTER: I went Democrat all the way down. They will file lawsuits against the Trump administration. They will protect us from what is happening. They will also make life so much better here in Georgia. They will raise wages. They will help with childcare. They will help with education. The things that we really, really need.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Meanwhile, Senate candidates met in debates in Georgia, Iowa, and Maine. Incumbent Democrat Jon Ossoff from Georgia pledged to fulfill his six-year term if he's re-elected, saying he's running for senator, not president. He's being challenged by Republican Congressman Mike Collins, a close Trump ally, and that brought up talk of impeaching the president.
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SEN. JON OSSOFF (D-GA): In my view, based upon the evidence I've seen thus far, the president's misconduct, abuse of power, and corruption already exceed any prior standard for impeachment. If the U.S. House does send us articles of impeachment, then I'll consider them on the merits as a juror in the Senate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Meanwhile, it looks increasingly likely that Democrats will take control of the U.S. House in the midterms. A leading Republican super PAC is pulling out of key races in New Jersey and Iowa, cutting nearly $3.5 million in ad spending.
President Trump is adding more Republican states to his midterm campaign blitz. He was in Alaska on Tuesday supporting incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan, who's locked in a tight race with Democrat Mary Peltola. The president campaigns in the day ahead in Arizona and Montana, and the White House says he will visit Kentucky and Florida in the next few weeks.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And nobody's done more for Alaska than Donald J. Trump, that I can tell you. And with your support, just 21 days from now, Alaska is going to defeat the radical left Democrats once again. On November 3rd, we're going to send one of the best and most respected senators in D.C. Dan Sullivan, the real, the real Dan Sullivan. I'm talking about the real Dan Sullivan, not the fake Dan Sullivan. Not the Dan Sullivan put up by the Democrats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: We are following developments this hour out of Ukraine, where authorities say Russian missiles have hit energy sites in the capital. The mayor of Kyiv says a number of energy facilities were hit, causing power outages.
This was the scene in Kyiv just one day earlier in what President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called a, "Particularly vile attack on civilian infrastructure." Air alerts sounded in the capital only after several explosions had already ripped through the city. Zelenskyy says he had not received any notice from allies warning of a Russian attack.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Yesterday, unfortunately, there was a ballistic missile strike on Kyiv. There was no warning from our partners about that strike. Usually, such warnings are provided, and they are very important. They help our defense. There were five ballistic missiles. In fact, our armed forces detected them only seconds before impact.
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CHURCH: Zelenskyy is now set to travel to London, where, in the hours ahead, he will meet with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham at Downing Street. The meeting comes as the U.K. doubles down on support for Ukraine and calls on international partners to step up sanctions on Russia. Zelenskyy is then expected to address European Union leaders at a summit in Brussels later this week.
The E.U. is expected to hear about Ukraine's operational needs ahead of winter, after Russian attacks on its infrastructure. In the U.S. President Trump is addressing questions over whether the U.S. is still sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
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PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS CHANNEL SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Have we stopped sharing intel with Ukraine?
TRUMP: No, we haven't. We helped them. But we're really helping them get to a final answer. We want the war ended, Peter. We are helping them, and we are sharing intel. We want the war to end. So, we're working with them and with Russia on getting the war to end.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Momentum around the French student protest movement is growing and spreading elsewhere in Europe.
Police in riot gear fired tear gas and water cannons at crowds of protesters in Paris. Most of the demonstrations across France on Tuesday were peaceful, with students continuing their demands for better-funded schools and more teachers. But some fringe protest groups lit fires, vandalized property, and clashed with police.
In Albania, protesters and police clashed outside the education ministry in the nation's capital Tuesday. Protest organizers are demanding better conditions at universities and help with higher education costs. They are also expressing frustration in general with inequality and a lack of job opportunities.
In Greece, university students in Athens set up tents across from Parliament. They are protesting what they say are unaffordable rent prices and expensive education costs, arguing they should not have to choose between housing and school.
Well, there's much more to come here on CNN NEWSROOM. The Saudis and Yemen's Houthis are ramping up strikes on key infrastructure targets. What President Trump said about possible U.S. involvement in the conflict, that's just ahead.
Plus, we'll go live to Thailand for CNN Global Perspectives in Bangkok, where global leaders are discussing a wide range of topics, including A.I., climate change, and the economy. Back in just a moment.
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[02:16:39]
CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, the United Nations says humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza have expanded, but that restrictions, insecurity, and funding shortfalls are still hampering relief efforts. The U.N. spokesperson says humanitarian teams had to pause their movements after airstrikes in Rafah. Animal feed deliveries have increased, but the U.N. says Israel must allow in more aid and more supplies.
Well, the latest strikes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have claimed major energy infrastructure on both sides. The headquarters of Saudi state oil giant Aramco appears to have been hit on Tuesday. Authorities say the strike caused a limited fire, but it's unclear if it was due to a direct hit or falling debris, those strikes came just hours after the kingdom attacked a key fuel depot, which it claims was being used by Houthi rebels.
Well, meanwhile, the White House is not saying if it will grant Saudi Arabia's request to join its strikes against the Houthis. President Trump gave reporters a non-committal answer on Tuesday. Instead, he repeated that the Houthis are, "Behaving very badly."
Well, President Trump's deeply unpopular war with Iran is impacting the wallets of Americans. Moody's Analytics estimates the war has cost about $265 billion since it started nearly eight months ago. That's about $2,000 in higher costs per American household.
Fuel and energy prices have soared as the Strait of Hormuz remains paralyzed, and paychecks are not keeping up with higher consumer prices.
Well, it's just after one in the afternoon in Bangkok, where the first CNN Global Perspectives in Asia is now underway. The one-day live event is bringing together dignitaries, visionaries, and leaders from across business, technology, and culture, with conversations being led by CNN journalists. Our Richard Quest is one of those journalists, and he joins us live
from Bangkok. Always good to see you, Richard. So, who have you been speaking with today, and what's been the mood there?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST: Right, the global perspectives got off to a roaring start when we woke up to find that one of our guests' company, the Bank of America, had been found -- had been fined by $1.8 billion by the U.S. regulators over various compliance issues concerning securities and sanctions and compliance problems on.
On the panel this morning, the president of Bank of America International, Bernard Mensah, was asked -- I asked him about this, about this very large fine for BOA, where it seemed to suggest that -- well, not suggest that the bank had been fined because they had been lax on sanctions.
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BERNARD MENSAH, PRESIDENT, BANK OF AMERICA INTERNATIONAL: Yes, I think we announced yesterday in conversations with our regulators $1.2 billion. Financial crimes compliance is very serious and really important. We take it very very seriously. We spend a huge amount of resources trying to get it right, and we think we are getting it right. But these are very high standards, and so we're working towards that.
[02:20:07]
QUEST: What have you learned from it? What's the message?
MENSAH: Look, I think throughout you know our industry is very highly regulated. Bank of America is an incredibly large, one of the biggest financial institutions in the world, and we operate across 80, 90 countries, moving a huge amount of money around the world. So, it's really important.
I think the systems and the people and the technology and the money that we spend on the systems are important. Very complex, and I think we're constantly learning to get to a good level.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The other speakers on that panel, of course, all focused their attention on the global economy and the problems currently of rising interest rates and rising government debt.
Earlier, Christine Lagarde -- President Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank, responded to a question I put concerning rising bond yields in France. Bond yields may be rising around the world, certainly for the U.S. as well.
But in the case of the ECB region and the eurozone, France is suffering most at the moment, and that begs the question whether the European Central Bank would have to bail out the French government and bail out French bonds.
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CHRISTINE LAGARDE, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK: The first response to the current situation, which, as you said, applies across the world, the bond yield factor is not just specific to Europe, not specific to France, it's across the world.
Number one, there are particular circumstances that lead to some countries being more affected. France being a case in point, and for that one, the primary and first solution lies at home in France, and it has to do with fiscal policies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: And so, when you talk about the global economy that we've been hearing about here at Global Perspectives, the issue, of course, is one of trade. And certainly, as Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the head of the World Trade Organization, saw it. There is good news. Trade is resilient, but that by no means means that they can be complacent, because the risks, as with other parts of the economy, are on the downside.
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DR. NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION: We've been through the great recession, the great financial crisis, the East Asian financial crisis. When I was at the World Bank working on this region, now we have this crisis. The only difference with this crisis is the uncertainty that creeps in all the time.
But all the same, I want to agree with my colleagues that I think the three-legged stool has been a bit wobbly, but I think it's showing resilience, surprising to us. Now that doesn't mean we should be complacent, but I think we should --
QUEST: Why is it always on the one hand, on the other?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The economists who are here in Bangkok, because not only Rosemary, are we here with global perspectives looking at the economy. The CNN conference over there somewhere is the conference center, the big NBC conference center, which is where the IMF and World Bank are having their annual meetings. And those meetings take place at a time of great strains in the global economy. And as you've just heard, nothing seems to be getting easier anytime soon.
CHURCH: Yes, but Richard, you seem to be having some pretty energetic conversations there, and talk to us about that. And of course, the overall mood there, as people tackle a lot of issues, a lot of difficult issues.
QUEST: I think the mood is one of resilience. The IMF referred to this in its World Economic Outlook, the WEO, which it published yesterday, and it says that what we have seen so far, and this is why people are, I guess, relatively upbeat, but at the same time not sanguine about what might come next. They know that they have managed this crisis so far.
But Rosemary, the fear, the real fear is that as interest rates go up, which they are, by the way, in all major economies, whatever they may say publicly, they are going higher. At the same time, fiscal restraint has to be in place. Governments cannot spend their way out of it, and guess what? A.I., A.I. is everywhere-the good, the bad, and the who knows what, that'll happen.
CHURCH: Indeed, these are tough times for sure. Richard Quest in Bangkok, many thanks, and we've got much more from Thailand throughout the week. Our teams there will be speaking with political and industry leaders about the big issues shaping international business, policy, and of course, economic development.
[02:25:06]
Well, the 2026 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition has announced its winner after a record 65,000 entries. This powerful image of a female elephant carrying her dead calf took the top prize, titled The Aftermath. Italian photographer Federico Veronesi captured the image while following a grieving herd in Namibia. Organizers say entries came in from 121 countries and territories.
Other winners include a dung beetle pushing its cargo twice its size, and a meeting place where elephants, zebras, and giraffes gathered at a waterhole, the winning images from more than a dozen categories go on display Friday at London's Natural History Museum. Beautiful images there.
Well, still to come on this hour of CNN NEWSROOM, the U.K. enters a new era of security. I will speak with a former intelligence officer about the evolving threats countries are facing right now.
And later, the A.I. race between the U.S. and China heats up. We will take you inside a major hub of Chinese data centers as Beijing seeks to gain an edge on the competition. Back with that, and more in just a moment.
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[02:30:56]
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KEN MCCALLUM, DIRECTOR GENERAL, MI5: Today, A.I. is already supercharging the cyber security contest between attackers and defenders. It can produce propaganda and radicalizing material tailored to the individual. We've caught terrorists seeking to exploit A.I. to improve their reconnaissance and attack methodologies, with A.I.-enabled drones adding a new twist. Not yet realized, but the misuse case to which I'd attach greatest weight is A.I.'s potential to change the stakes on existing or even new bioweapons.
These risks are real. The U.K. intelligence community, MI5, GCHQ and MI6 is working closely with the U.K.'s globally respected A.I. Security Institute to take them on. (END VIDEO CLIP)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": The head of Britain's MI5 there warning about a new era of national security threats, including the growing role of artificial intelligence. The agency's director general says A.I. is supercharging cyber security threats and could pose even greater risk as the technology develops.
He singled out Russia, saying Moscow remains the number one aggressor and is making full use of new forms of warfare. MI5 also warned about Chinese espionage in the U.K. following recent national security convictions connected to Beijing. Iran is also allegedly taking advantage of so-called hybrid warfare with more than 50 arrests connected to Iran-linked plots.
Joining me to discuss this further is National Security Journalist, Philip Ingram. He's also a former senior British intelligence and security officer. Appreciate you joining us.
PHILIP INGRAM, FORMER SENIOR BRITISH INTELLIGENCE & SECURITY OFFICER: My pleasure.
CHURCH: So the U.K.'s MI5 Chief, Sir Ken McCallum is warning the terrorists and hostile states could use A.I. to create bioweapons or supercharge A.I. for cyber security or other purposes. He singled out Russia, Iran and China, and called on Britain to be more vigilant in what he called a new era of national security. Given your background, what's your response to this pretty chilling and sobering warning?
INGRAM: Well, Ken McCallum is always a straight talker. We have to remember though that he has to talk in diplomatic language. He is heading a national organization. So the threats are probably greater than he has outlined in reality, but he's heading an organization that is keeping us safe from this growing number of attacks in the gray zone or asymmetric, warfare as we describe it, because he's named a number of nation states as responsible behind what's going on, and we're seeing an increased number. We need to be concerned about what is happening.
CHURCH: So what's to be done about these potentially deadly A.I. threats posed by terrorists and hostile states, and will the creation of a new A.I. Threat Assessment Center that McCallum announced on Tuesday be enough to fight this new security threat posed by A.I.?
INGRAM: The new A.I. Threat Assessment Center is built on the Terror Threat Assessment Center that MI5 heads in the United Kingdom and has been very successful indeed. So if anyone that's watching or listening this thinks, oh, I'll go and use A.I. to check how I can make bioweapons, as Ken McCallum said, or to look at cyber security, or to look at making adaptations for drones that can drop weapons, the U.K.'s Analysis Center will pick that up and identify it, and international law enforcement will likely come and start knocking on people's doors because the measurement of success for our security services in the U.K. is that nothing happens and we live through a period where it's relatively quiet. But when things do happen like the recent incident around RAF Fairford, that hides the sort of the iceberg status of what has been going on behind it that identifies the real threats. And when some stuff comes into the public, there's so much more going on that MI5 and its partners are using to keep us safe.
[02:35:00]
The threat is growing. Vladimir Putin is attacking us on a daily basis. Xi Jinping is doing everything he can to gather as much data about every single individual across every Western country. And of course, they can use a number of their proxies like Iran, North Korea and others.
CHURCH: And in his annual address, McCallum also warned these threats can take many forms, including arson, sabotage, cyber attacks, coercion and violence. In the U.K., do you think -- I mean, you seem to think that the U.K. is certainly ready to deal with this. So what about the rest of the world?
INGRAM: Well, the U.K. is ready to deal with it. It's happening across Europe and it's happening in a number of other countries around the world. We've got different layers of security and our domestic security, MI5 is keeping us safe on a day to day basis with our counter-terror police, who also deal with counter espionage related issues. But the ultimate deterrent has to be our military.
And in the U.K., we're not seeing the investment in the military to provide that ultimate deterrent and to stop nation states from attacking us. The other difficulty that there is, is, you know, from a military perspective, we have a red line as members of NATO. We know what Article 5 is.
You know, an attack on one is considered an attack on all, but that's a conventional military attack. We haven't got a clear definition for what that would be in these sort of asymmetric attacks. And the likes of Vladimir Putin will keep increasing the number of attacks that he is procuring, because often he's doing this through third parties, through criminal organizations. He'll keep doing that until we respond.
But there is no defined line that we will respond to. That is something that I think needs to change fairly quickly.
CHURCH: Right. And McCallum also called on governments to place sufficient guardrails around A.I. And as we mentioned, he highlighted the technology's potential to help make bioweapons, though he added this has not yet been realized, which is comforting. But that's a massive concern, isn't it? How should this issue be addressed by global leaders? Because we know that President Trump here in the United States has resisted putting guardrails around A.I.
INGRAM: Oh, A.I. is a massive problem. It's enormous for good as well, because it can help protect against threats. But it's a massive problem whenever it comes to threat actors because, you know, from a cyber security perspective, you don't need to be a coder anymore to be able to provide -- to be able to develop a cyber attack tool for different devices that we see around society. You can get A.I. to do that for you.
The same when it comes to bioweapons. You can find ways of modifying viruses or bacterium or other things. But this is something where the likes of the Analysis Centre that Ken McCallum announced will be making sure that triggers for people looking for that sort of stuff will be flagged up and that will be provided across international law enforcement mechanisms to be dealt with.
But we need our tech companies to step up and be part of the wider security network. It's more than just our nation states can deal with. We need the tech companies to understand who's doing what with the tools that they're providing. And this is where we need governments to come together. And, you know, President Trump, I can see where he's coming from because of the economic advantages it can give. But he also needs to realize that those economic advantages can be wiped out by one or two threat actors very quickly indeed.
CHURCH: All very sobering. Philip Ingram, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your perspective and analysis. Appreciate it.
INGRAM: Thank you.
CHURCH: Of course. A Ukrainian ex-military officer suspected of organizing the operation to blow up the Nord Stream gas pipelines goes on trial today in Germany. The suspect is accused of leading a group of Ukrainian agents that included divers and an explosives expert in the sabotage.
The destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines four years ago severed Western Europe from its largest source of Russian natural gas.
France says it has detained a suspected Russian shadow fleet tanker south of Reunion Island. The vessel, formerly named the Kaliningrad, now carries a flag from Benin. French President, Emmanuel Macron says the ship is suspected of sailing under a false flag and helping Russia evade sanctions on oil exports. Russia denounced the move as an act of piracy.
Well, crews are searching for 11 sailors following a drone attack on a ship off the Bulgarian coast. Bulgarian officials say there were two overnight attacks on merchant vessels in the Black Sea. The country's president and prime minister strongly condemned the strikes and indicated they were likely connected to Moscow.
[02:40:00]
Russian authorities did not immediately comment. Well, this comes after two other ships were attacked by drones last week in Bulgarian waters. Russia has repeatedly bombed Ukraine's Black Sea ports, forcing the country to rely on shipping routes close to the coasts of NATO member states, Bulgaria and Romania. Meanwhile Ukraine has also stepped up its attacks on Russian ships exporting grain.
We have much more coming up on the show. Officials in Georgia investigate the death of a man ejected from a roller coaster. What we know about the victim, that's just ahead.
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[02:45:27]
CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. We are learning more about the man who died after falling from a rollercoaster just outside Atlanta, Georgia. His name was Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, and he was a cherished member of an Atlanta charter school. He served as a technology teacher, robotics coach, and IT manager. The school district says he will be deeply missed.
CNN's Isabel Rosales walks us through the tragedy.
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ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We have a name, and now also we have a face, 42-year-old Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem. Cobb County Police found him just under the ride here, Goliath, unresponsive, and not breathing. They say that Kariem was ejected from the ride and struck other riders before falling.
CNN spoke with one witness, CeCe Nelson (ph), who said her stomach dropped when she saw the car returning back onto the platform with an empty seat and riders in hysterics. A different witness told WXIA, a CNN affiliate, that Kariem hit the car three different times before then falling onto the roof of one of these haunted houses. A different witness also telling our affiliates that the picture posted up on the rollercoaster actually captured Kariem's last moments.
Here's what a mom who saw the chaotic aftermath witnessed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two of my children had just been on that ride, maybe 20 minutes before. Whenever you go to amusement parks, whenever you get in a car, whenever you live your life, it's always subject to risk, so you just never know when something's going to happen.
ROSALES: And CNN heard back from the Swiss rollercoaster manufacturer behind Goliath, Bolliger & Mabillard, who say that they are investigating the incident. We had a rollercoaster safety expert also weigh in, saying that this company has a stellar safety record, but notably this ride, Goliath, does not have a secondary restraint system if the first one fails.
Again, we don't know what was behind Kariem's death, if this was mechanical, human error, why it is that he came out of his restraint and fell to his death. We know that the insurance commissioner's office here in Georgia is investigating, the Cobb County Police and also the maker of Goliath.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: OpenAI says one of its employees, now a former employee, was arrested after allegedly hiding what's being called a sophisticated recording device in a company office. The U.S. Justice Department identified the man as a 35-year-old Saudi national and says the device was found plugged into a T.V. inside a conference room.
OpenAI says the device could monitor audio and had advanced encryption. And similar listening devices were found in his backpack. The company says there's no evidence any sensitive material was inappropriately accessed. The suspect is in federal custody.
Artificial intelligence has become a divisive issue here in the United States, but other countries are racing to expand their A.I. capabilities. President Trump has said he wants the U.S. to beat China in the A.I. race. But while China has its own challenges with development, A.I. infrastructure is booming there with plenty of space to grow.
CNN's Simone McCarthy visited one of China's massive data center hubs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIMONE MCCARTHY, CNN SENIOR CHINA REPORTER: (voice-over): On the edge of the Gobi Desert in northern China, rolling plains are being rapidly transformed.
MCCARTHY: Sprawling data centers like this are at the heart of the race of the century.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): As Americans push back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who's counting?
CROWD: We're counting!
MCCARTHY (voice-over): While President Trump demands the U.S. stay ahead.
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Whoever wins A.I., wins.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Beijing is playing to its advantages. Green energy, open spaces, and the power to build wherever and however it wants.
We've come to Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia, a rural Chinese city where nearly every passing vehicle shows its A.I. push. At least 89 data centers are slated to be built here.
MCCARTHY: There is block after block of construction here, data centers from some of China's biggest companies.
[02:50:00]
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Among the marquee projects, what will be one of the world's largest data centers by area, a facility by Chinese green technology company, Envision. We're the first international media allowed to visit and see inside the tightly guarded server rooms that will soon be filled with specialized tech.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The demands for computing powers almost doubles every year.
MCCARTHY: Do you think you have enough space here to meet the kind of demand that you're expecting to see in the coming years?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This data center is already fully occupied, so we are building more.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Zhang (ph) says the state-of-the-art facility uses a so-called zero water cooling system.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We only consume a bath tank of water every day. Those waters are not mostly for cooling, it's just for maybe regular use.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): And draws most of its energy from outside the grid. Around 100 miles to the north, we find the source. Wind turbines will directly power at least 80 percent of the campus. While the U.S. faces a power crunch building out data centers, China has an oversupply of clean energy.
MCCARTHY: China is using that to its advantage, planning data center hubs in places with ample green energy.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Beijing has designated eight national computing hubs, but the U.S. had 10 times as many data centers as of last year. And China faces a crucial obstacle.
KYLE CHAN, FELLOW, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: The U.S. has a significant advantage in terms of having more powerful, more capable A.I. chips.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Back in Ulanqab, we saw no sign of pushback as it becomes a data city.
MA RONG, GROCERY STORE OWNER (through translator): Before, we'd just sit here and wait for customers. Now, we're busy all the time.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): Residents we spoke to largely saw the benefits.
LIU BAOPING, RESTAURANT OWNER (through translator): The environment isn't as clean as before, but people's incomes and the economy, it's way better.
MCCARTHY (voice-over): And for China's tech companies, these centers are a play to win the A.I. race.
Simone McCarthy, CNN, Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Coming up here on "CNN Newsroom," one of the world's most iconic bears, Winnie-the-Pooh, turns 100. We will bring you a report on the honey-loving bear's enduring legacy. That's after the break.
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DIGORY KIRKE, PLAYED BY DAVID MCKENNA, "NARNIA: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW": Wow, there are other worlds.
POLLY PLUMMER, PLAYED BY BEATRICE CAMPBELL, "NARNIA: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW": There'll be hundreds of worlds. Even infinity worlds.
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CHURCH: Marvelous. Audiences got their first glimpse of Greta Gerwig's take on the magical realm of Narnia. As Netflix dropped the first trailer for the upcoming film "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew," based on the classic C.S. Lewis children's books. The trailer unveils the movie's protagonist, two children, Digory and Polly, the White Witch, and of course, the mythical lion, Aslan.
The film is scheduled for a theatrical release on February 12th next year, before coming to Netflix in April. Very exciting.
And Winnie-the-Pooh, the iconic children's character has turned 100. Our Anna Stewart reports on Pooh Bear's legacy and shows us Ashdown Forest, the inspiration for the book's setting.
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ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Winnie-the-Pooh first floated into bookstores on October 14th 1926, 100 years ago. British author A.A. Milne and illustrator E.H. Shepard introduced Pooh Bear in a collection of short stories about the iconic character and his animal friends, including Piglet and Eeyore.
NEIL REED, OWNER, POOH CORNER MUSEUM, GIFT SHOP AND TEA ROOM: It's now gone on to sell tens and tens of millions of copies around the world. Every generation, it's something that there's fans and families take it with them, and it's so beautiful to see how many families and different generations that have carried on the tradition of bringing Winnie-the-Pooh into their lives.
STEWART (voice-over): The stories also feature Christopher Robin, a young boy who Milne modeled and named after his own son and his toy bear. Many of their adventures take place in the fictional Hundred Acre Wood, a place inspired by Milne's walks with his son in England's Ashdown Forest. Neil Reid runs a nearby Pooh Museum.
REED: The amazing thing is Milne works so hard to bring the forest into the book, so by reading the book you really get a sense that the Ashdown Forest which is part of the story. So the forest really is the glue of the piece, it's the reason the book exists because it makes sense to allow the characters to have that freedom of the location.
STEWART (voice-over): Visitors can now walk through the forest and see sites that inspired Milne, such as Pooh Sticks Bridge, Galleon's Lap and the Enchanted Place. REED: And it's such an important thing that we maintain this landscape, and we hope that it's something that people are visiting in another hundred years time.
STEWART (voice-over): The story has been a success since its initial release 100 years ago, but Pooh gained a whole new following after Disney acquired the story rights in 1961, turning the character into a worldwide phenomenon and a beloved Disney staple.
Anna Stewart, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Love Winnie-the-Pooh.
Thanks so much for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. "CNN Newsroom" with Christina Macfarlane is next. Do stay with us.
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