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Connect the World
Trump Says Iran Talks to Resume After Strikes Called Off; Two Dead After Firefighting Helicopters Collide in Greece; Dozens of Homes Ravaged by Wildfire Northwest of Athens; Aung San Suu Kyi Meets ICRC After Proof of Life Campaign; Oil Prices Fluctuate After Trump Says Iran Peace Talks to Restart. Aired 9-9:45a ET
Aired August 03, 2026 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: President Trump says talks between the U.S. and Iran are expected to resume today after the U.S.
called off strikes over the weekend. It is 09:00 a.m. in Washington, 02:00 p.m. here in London. I'm Becky Anderson. You're watching "Connect the
World".
Also coming up this hour, Russian police investigating a deadly bomb blast at a restaurant in Moscow, the city's mayor calls it a quote, terrorist
attack. And firefighters battling three major wildfires burning in eastern Washington state. The stock market in New York opens about 30 minutes from
now.
The arrows all pointing higher at the beginning of the trading week, at least as far as the futures markets are concerned, oil prices falling on
news of fresh talks between the U.S. and Iran. We may have been here before, but then we've been here before with this whiplash in the oil
markets and on these stock markets.
Let's see how things play out half an hour from now on the opening, or from lockdown loaded to a waiting game, U.S. President Donald Trump again
calling off the threat, massive attack on Iran, saying talks are resuming today. Iran, for its part, saying negotiations with the U.S. are not
happening now.
Iranian state media report Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with Senior Saudi and Pakistani officials on Sunday night, though. And the
foreign ministry says Iran is in talks with Oman to establish a safe temporary corridor for vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
So, where do things stand at the beginning of this week? We've got Alayna Treene at the White House for you. Alayna, what are you hearing about the
status of negotiations and where things may be headed this week?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look clearly, and we've seen this now multiple times throughout the entire course of this war,
Becky. You're hearing one thing from the United States and the Trump Administration, and a different thing from the Iranians.
But the president, seeming to have an optimistic tone yesterday when speaking with reporters, said that talks with Iran will resume this
afternoon. Iran, for their part, arguing that there's been no indication that that's going to happen and that they're solely negotiating with the
Omanis.
Now, this comes after, as you mentioned, Becky, that the president, who had been planning and had kind of previewed a massive attack on Iran over the
weekend, called off those strikes, arguing one that he had spoken with several leaders throughout the Middle East.
That includes speaking directly we were told with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Iran. Those leaders telling the president that they were worried
about the impact of such a major attack, what the retaliation would look like for their own countries, but also, of course, what it could do to the
very fragile talks happening behind the scenes regarding this broader war.
The president also, though, argued that there has been a deal or parameters of a deal, at least, to try and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, for
their part, arguing there is no such long-term deal. That they are talking, they said, with the Omanis to have some sort of temporary solution to allow
for free transiting of vessels in the strait.
So very messy, and a lot of different versions of events, depending on which country you are looking at and what you're hearing from the U.S.
officials versus Iranian officials. Now, I will say just to give you a little sense of more of what we heard from the president. He argued
yesterday when speaking with reporters on an Air Force One that Iran was willing to come to a deal on the strait.
He said because they knew that there was going to be this major attack. He also confirmed that these different Middle Eastern countries had asked him
to hold off. He said we were all set to go, but when the allies asked to call it off, they got us sort of saying, well, let's see.
The reason is they think that there is going to be a deal. So, a lot of questions here. I'd also remind you about the dynamics and the political
dynamics really happening back in the United States. This war has now been started and stopped, started and stopped for weeks now, and it comes just
three months now until the November midterm elections.
A lot of uncertainty around the economy, and one of the biggest questions and problems facing this administration is something that wasn't a problem
before this war began, which is of course reopening the Strait of Hormuz. So, a lot that they still need to work through. We'll be trying to figure
out what the sort of talks that the president was referring to are going to look like this afternoon and bringing the news, Becky.
ANDERSON: That's a view from Washington. Alayna, thank you. Mina Al-Oraibi is Editor-in-Chief of The National. She's joining me from Abu Dhabi. Your
thoughts, Mina, if you will, as we start this week on the status of this current conflict and the rhetoric that we are hearing. What's your lens?
[09:05:00]
MINA AL-ORAIBI, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE NATIONAL: The concern is that there is no clear line of where these negotiations will actually get us. Iran and
Oman are in talks on the strain of hormones, and yet the U.S. announcing that there would be negotiations hasn't blow up much clarity in terms of
how this goes from a tit for tat of attacks to serious negotiations to get to a full agreement.
Again, middle of August will be the deadline for the 60 days that was given from the signing of the MOU to come to a wider agreement. Both sides can
agree to extend this time frame, but there really needs to be a seriousness on the part of both the Iranians and the Americans in what is being
negotiated?
Of course, the rhetoric from either side is claiming that they have the upper hand, but the reality is both are a precarious political situation.
ANDERSON: It's really important to note, as Alayna pointed out, that we are, of course, getting closer to these midterms. This conflict becomes
increasingly more focused in Washington on domestic politics, which I think you and I will agree will become a real is and will become increasingly a
real concern to the Gulf and the Middle East.
Who do not want to be sort of in the crosshairs of this without a conclusion, as the focus shifts to you know what the Republicans and
Democrats have to say about this conflict, very specifically for you know domestic gain. What we do have, it seems, is a very much more aligned GCC
view than we might have had at the beginning of all of this.
Increasingly united as six countries when it comes to what its security must look like going forward. I mean, Anwar Gargash, the UAE President's
Special Adviser, just late on Friday posting once again about the importance of coordination. As we move towards this sort of deadline that
was set originally on the MOU, as you pointed out, mid-August.
What are the options at this point for the GCC, and what is the sort of current impact?
AL-ORAIBI: So, it's interesting, of course. August and just yesterday was the anniversary of the Kuwait invasion. And so, Dr. Anwar and others have
been speaking about how the GCC came together when Kuwait -- when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990 on the second of August.
And there's a real sense that again, collective Gulf security is important for all of these countries, and that's why, as you said, you see a much
more coordinated effort of what that looks like. Now, what does the GCC want? They want to ensure that there is a decisive end to drones or
missiles being lobbed at the Gulf.
And that decisive end also has to include no control of the Strait of Hormuz, continuing the free flow of energy goods and products. For them,
that's hugely important. You mentioned the midterms. Midterms are, of course, on people's minds. Of course, oil prices, petrol prices, but also
importantly, how President Trump is perceived domestically.
But there's also the domestic politics of Iran, and it's clear that the Iranians are divided. There are those that want to instigate more trouble,
and there are those that are trying to get to a diplomatic solution. I think looking at the politics inside of Iran shows that there is
misalignment there, and the region is concerned about that.
Who do you speak to in Tehran to make sure that whatever deal is agreed to is actually stuck to? And I think that's one of also the concerns for the
Gulf.
ANDERSON: I want to underscore just why it is that you and I talk as often as we do about Iraq and Syria, in all of this. There is a clear message
from the United States and indeed from the region about the potential for future investment and economic success beyond the sort of current cycle of
escalation and de-escalation around this conflict.
You and I have talked over the years about navigating a new Middle East. Can you just speak very briefly to the importance of what is going on, at
least perceptually and atmospherically, in both Iraq and Syria? And why it is that they are these two key FokI, as it were, when it comes to sort of a
future-facing region?
AL-ORAIBI: Iraq and Syria, of course, traditionally hugely important Arab nations, hold incredible sway historically, but also politically.
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The changes in Syria with a new regime after the fall of the Assad regime. It's a year and a half into it, and Syria is proving to be an incredibly
important actor. Iraq not only because of how heterogeneous the society is and has a mosaic of representation of people from across the Middle East in
Iraq, but also hugely important again when it comes to the energy mix.
If you're thinking of diversification away from the Strait of Hormuz, then Iraq becomes even more important, and here Turkey plays a role in that
gateway into Europe. Iraq is also important because we have a new government, it is a weakened government, but also, we have different
militias at play that want to challenge not only the Iraqi state but the wider Arab region.
And you have some armed groups, part of the so-called Axis of Resistance, that publicly align with Iran, but also have attacked Arab countries,
Kuwait, of course, repeatedly, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and we witnessed Saudi Arabia for the first time coming in with the United States to strike
in Iraq last week.
Iraq is important because a lack of security there, equally in Syria, a lack of security there very quickly spills out into the wider region with
changes in leadership there and with American focus on both Iraq and Syria. There is hope that you can have stability long term, but also a door to
knock on to make sure that armed groups can be held at bay, but also confrontation avoided domestically in order not to allow a spillover to
other countries.
ANDERSON: I mean, it's not clear, of course, that these projects are sort of fully baked as of yet, but the support and the you know the groundswell
of support is important. I think when we consider the sort of wider region and why it is that these two countries are held in such esteem, as it were,
at this point.
All right, good. Mina, always a pleasure. Thank you very much indeed. I want to point out to you folks at this point, this exclusive CNN reporting
from my colleagues Katie Bo Lillis and Zachary Cohen. Their sources have shared information about a crowdsourcing-style question on Iran emailed by
an officer to a broad group of military analysts.
The message from the officer in U.S. Central Command's intelligence branch, read in part, we are looking for new, creative, and unconventional ways to
pressure and punish Iran. More details on that and analysis about what this means for the conflict on our digital platforms and in the second hour of
this show.
Stay tuned for that. Well, Russian police investigating a deadly explosion at a Moscow restaurant that officials are calling a terrorist attack. At
least four people were killed and 19 others were injured when a bomb exploded just outside the restaurant on Saturday, according to Russian
state media.
An unidentified woman tried to enter the restaurant carrying what investigators believe was an improvised explosive device, or an IED, the
bomb detonated before she made it inside. And state media says that she also died in the attempt. CNN's Fred Pleitgen joining us now from Moscow.
Fred, what more can you tell us about this attack and the ongoing police investigation?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Becky, we're actually right outside that restaurant, the Balzi Rossi Restaurant,
very much in central Moscow. In fact, you can see behind me that at that restaurant right now, there's some repair work that's already going on.
It seems as though it was that column where you see that gentleman there working where all of this took place. And you're absolutely right that the
authorities say that there was a private function, a private event that was going on at this upscale restaurant, which, by the way, is in a very
historic building here in Moscow.
If we pan up, we can see it's a historic building. There's seven such buildings in Moscow. They are called the Seven Sisters. So, this is
definitely one of the sorts of defining areas of the Russian capital. But at around 08:00 p.m. on Saturday night, the authorities say that this woman
came towards the entrance of that restaurant as that private function was going on, which seemed to have a lot of security around it as well.
And one of the security guards got suspicious, confronted the woman, and then, as he was searching her, that's when this improvised explosive device
went off. The authorities are saying that they're not sure whether or not the woman really knew what she was carrying there.
It could have been a courier. And at the same time, obviously, at this point in time, they say that the investigation is -- very stages. So far,
what we have not heard from the Russian authorities is who might have been the target of this bombing, which the Russians, as you point out, are
calling a terrorist attack.
There were some rumors going on online that possibly high-ranking military may have been here. None of that is confirmed yet however. At the same
time, they've not pointed the finger of blame at anyone. One of the interesting things that we need to point out is that there have been
bombings in Russian cities in the past.
For instance, a very well-known Russian blogger was killed in 2023 in a bombing in St. Petersburg.
[09:15:00]
There were also several top-level or high-level Russian generals that were killed by bombings as well. In those cases, the Russians have pointed the
finger of blame at the Ukrainians. So far, they have not done that. But of course, one of the things that we can feel is that security here and the
Russian Federation here in Moscow has been on a very high state of alert for an extended period of time.
Certainly, continues to be so. As at the same time, of course, what the Russians still call their special military operation continues in Ukraine.
At the same time, of course, they know that a lot of their top-level people also could be targets far away, including inside the Russian capital,
Becky.
ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you. And more as we get it, of course. Well, EU Interior Ministers will meet Tuesday after Spain called for an
emergency response to the crisis in Ceuta. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had blasted some European allies for what he called a selfish and polarizing
reaction to what was this migrant surge.
Most of the nearly 60,000 migrants who crossed into the Spanish enclave in North Africa last week have now returned to Morocco, but Spanish Civil
Guard ships continue searching for bodies after at least 72 people died during that border rush. Meanwhile, far-right leaders in Spain and across
Europe seizing on the crisis, some calling the influx quote, invasion.
We're coming up on "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson, an unprecedented catastrophe in the northwestern United States. We'll see if
there's any hope conditions will improve for firefighters there struggling to bring massive blazes under control.
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ANDERSON: Two pilots died in Greece on Sunday following a crash between two firefighting helicopters, according to the country's fire department. Crews
were helping control a huge wildfire that destroyed dozens of homes north west of Athens before the two helicopters collided at low altitude, killing
a Greek and Danish national flying together.
Footage does seem to show the other helicopter dumped its load of water before flying away. Elinda Labropoulou is on the ground for us in Parga, in
Greece, with the latest from there. And just fill us in on the impact and damage of these fires before we talk about this collision, if you will.
ELINDA LABROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: Well, yes, there are dozens of fires still burning across Greece. New fires are breaking out every single day. Just to
give you a sense of scale, over 200 fires have started in the last 24 hours. The biggest fire, mega fire, as experts have started calling it by
now is going for the fourth day.
It's raging just outside Athens, 40 miles of Athens, and it is there that the two pilots died yesterday during that collision. At the time, there
were extremely strong winds in the area.
[09:20:00]
Generally, there have been gale force winds blowing for three days, so much so that most aircraft have not been able to fly at all for three days. The
Greek Prime Minister, just hours before the collision, said sometimes there's not much you can do, no matter what means you have.
And he meant that all the aircraft was on the ground, unable to move just because of these strong winds. Of course, the news of this collision has
been absolutely tragic, and it comes just after three firefighters died last week battling fires in Crete, on the island of Crete, and in the
mainland as well.
And mass evacuations continue in that area. There is a glimmer of hope, simply because, although you can see that it's still very windy behind me,
the winds have dropped, but the country will remain on high alert tomorrow too, Becky.
ANDERSON: It's good to have you. Before I let you go on that collision, do we, as yet, understand why it happened?
LABROPOULOU: It's hard to know. It's very early days. I mean, there is a police investigation that's under way. What we do know is just how
difficult the conditions that the firefighters were operating under were. The gale force winds, you know, you can see in the videos that there's
plumes of smoke.
Very difficult to be there in the first place. So that's all we know for the time being, Becky.
ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you. All right. Well, the American Northwest also contending with a major wildfire disaster. Amongst almost
65,000 people have been evacuated as three blazes there burn out of control in Spokane, in Washington.
0 percent contained. People are taking video as they evacuate the burn zones, showing the terrifying situation. More than 700 homes have been
razed to the ground in what's being called an unprecedented catastrophe for the area. Derek Van Dam, our meteorologist, joining us from the weather
center with the very latest on these fires. What have you got for us?
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Becky, it was a devastating weekend, as we can see with the videos coming out of the Pacific Northwest. This is
near Spokane, Washington. And I just want you to see what people were fleeing from the flames here that are consuming buildings.
You talked about 700 homes, structures that have been destroyed from the flames. We know that Europe is battling its own set of wildfire issues as
well. But we know the commonality between these wildfires are often the strong winds and the extreme temperatures, and that is what's fueling the
flames across the Pacific Northwest.
It was a perfect combination, the three ingredients for wildfires to ignite and spread heat, fuel, and oxygen, and they were all present this weekend.
Look at the satellite imagery the moment the fires actually erupted. Here's Spokane. This is the state of Washington. Here's Oregon.
Here's Idaho. And you can see the plumes of smoke right here, just driven to the north and west by the strong winds initiated by a cold front that
came through. So, you're looking at the burn scars, OK, so here is a look at downtown Spokane, but you can see the three largest wildfires that we're
monitoring here, the old trails and Autumn Lane fires.
They have hopped over river beds. They have jumped over different highways and roads and into populated areas of this part of Washington. There is a
respite in the winds as we speak. So, the next 24 hours are going to be absolutely critical for firefighters on the ground.
We're only gusting between 5 to 10 miles per hour compared to this past weekend, where we had 40 to 50 mile per hour winds, again fueled by a
passing cold front. But on the ground, we have the dry vegetation, so this is the fuel that helps ignite wildfires or helps continue them, I should
say.
And we have extreme drought conditions for many locations from Oregon into Washington. The dry relative humidity in the air just kind of sapping out
the moisture, any available moisture from the vegetation on the ground, and that makes the tinderbox conditions that much worse.
Becky, we have another heat dome that will spread along the west coast and into the Pacific Northwest by the end of this week. That is going to make
conditions very challenging to fight the fires going forward. So right now, it's critical for firefighters.
ANDERSON: Absolutely. Stay on it for us, Derek, and more as we get it. Of course, thank you. Well, to a rare glimpse of Myanmar's deposed Democratic
Leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the International Committee of the Red Cross now confirms that one of its representatives met with the 81-year-old earlier
today.
Suu Kyi has, of course, been in de tension since the military junta there seized power in 2021. And ours Ivan Watson reports that meeting comes amid
growing concerns about her condition.
[09:25:00]
IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The military government in Myanmar has released an image of Aung San Suu Kyi, the imprisoned and
elected former leader of the country, in what the military says is a meeting with a representative of the International Committee of the Red
Cross.
CNN has reached out to the ICRC for independent confirmation of this meeting. It is important because this is effectively proof of life. The son
of Aung San Suu Kyi, Kim Aris, has mounted a public pressure campaign demanding some proof that his mother is basically alive.
Since she has been held by the military authorities now for more than five years since the military carried out a coup in 2021 and threw the elected
leadership, including Aung San Suu Kyi, in prison and set the country on the pathway for a devastating civil war, Aung San Suu Kyi has not really
been seen in public for quite some time, and there have been calls and questions about her welfare since she is 81.
And again, she has spent years in detention in Myanmar. Now, why the timing of this, and also the release of several other photos that are purportedly
taken in June, showing Suu Kyi apparently celebrating her birthday in what looks like a house. Well, there has been a flurry of diplomacy lately.
The military regime in Myanmar has not had full membership to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, basically since the coup. And there
are believed to be meetings scheduled between the government in Thailand and the top general in Myanmar, Min Aung Hlaing, in the coming days.
So, this may be an effort to try to curry favor with other Southeast Asian governments and to perhaps open a door towards engagement with them. This,
as the civil war in Myanmar continues to rage, with estimates of more than 100,000 people killed, millions of people displaced, and large parts of the
country that are out of the government's control. Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
ANDERSON: Well, you're watching "Connect the World". I'm Becky Anderson. Wall Street kicks off its trading week within minutes. Oil prices sharply
lower. We're going to ask whether investors are seeing less geopolitical risk or whether they are just ultimately dealing with the whiplash off the
back of Donald Trump's comments over the weekend. An expert on Gulf security joins us up next.
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[09:30:00]
ANDERSON: All right, that is the opening bell on Wall Street, being run today by the team from the global media group Forbes, which calls itself
the world's most influential CMOs story. OK, that's the New York Stock Exchange. And we will let the NASDAQ and the S&P settle for a moment.
Have a look at the Dow Jones Industrial up by 1 percent. That is exactly what was indicated by the futures markets. We are seeing the price of oil
significantly lower. Why? Well, it is moving after U.S. President Donald Trump announced fresh U.S.-Iran talks are set to begin today.
Let's have a look at the global and U.S. benchmarks on oil, and the U.S. benchmark they're down below 80. It is interesting to see that the Brent
index, which is the global index, they're still sitting higher and above 90 on the barrel. This comes as Iranian officials say there are no ongoing
talks with Washington.
As we've been reporting, Tehran does say it is talking with Oman about a new maritime route through the Strait of Hormuz. Khalifa Al Suwaidi is a
Senior Fellow at the Bourse and Bazaar Foundation and an Emirates Scholar of Global Affairs and Gulf Security joins me now from Abu Dhabi.
And it is through that Gulf security lens, national security lens, that I do want to sort of frame this conversation. But let's start very
specifically with Trump's comments late Sunday about talks being back on potentially from today with Iran that driving once again providing a driver
for oil prices.
Tehran, by the way, says there are no talks scheduled. It is though in talks with Oman. So, what do you make of that latest rhetoric and its
influence on the price of oil today?
KHALIFA AL SUWAIDI, SENIOR FELLOW AT THE BOURSE AND BAZAAR FOUNDATION: Well, thanks for having me, Becky. I think the initial impression that I
have is that Trump's sort of initial you know decision to forge ahead with bombing Iran once more had sort of provoked his obviously traditional
allies in the region who basically favor de-escalation in fear of a retaliation, obviously from the Iranian regime.
So, basically the news from the market reflects that sentiment to where basically Trump had decided against it. But I don't think it was a decision
taken in isolation from you know obviously the demands and the immediate concerns of his allies in the region.
ANDERSON: Yeah, and we've made a point on this show, you know, over the last what 3.5 months, sorry, six months now, that you know there are times
when, frankly, you might want to take what he says over a weekend with a pinch of salt because you know there may be some influence.
There is very likely to be influence on the markets, and that may be one of the reasons for these statements. Be that as it may. Let's very
specifically talk about the importance of the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which are the two clear focuses of attention at this
point, for Gulf nations and for the U.S. and other allies around the world who want to ensure that whatever happens next when it comes to U.S.-Iran
talks.
These waterways are still free for navigation. From your perspective, sitting as you do in the UAE, what is the sort of current Gulf thinking and
efforts behind the scenes to ensure that these waterways are open and free today and or going forward and for the rest of time?
SUWAIDI: Yeah, I mean, I think going back to a pre-war situation would be, you know, a big ask.
[09:35:00]
What the GCC is hoping to achieve through basically back in Oman in its kind of like bilateral engagements with Iran is to figure out a modality
where freedom of navigation is, you know, an absolute fundamental right for everyone. And when we refer to the Strait of Hormuz and also Bab al-Mandab,
we're not just talking about oil supply, right?
There is other you know, immediate concerns that we have to kind of like really include in the discussion, which are food security, water security,
obviously environmental security as well, and those have basically been sort of damaged or impacted upon as a result of the ongoing geopolitical
situation.
but at the end of the day, I think what the GCC hopes to achieve collectively is a situation where yes, freedom of navigation is guaranteed,
but without there being sort of mandatory tolls being imposed on you know ships going in and out of the strait. I think that's a key question and a
key concern that we kind of like hold amongst ourselves, at least from the Gulf.
ANDERSON: Yeah. And I think you know, for our viewers' perspective, Khalifa, it's good to have you. It's important to keep an eye on what we're
seeing around the world as countries this week and next begin to sort of coalesce around certain sort of ideas and principles being suggested by the
U.S. and other Gulf countries about you know how to keep these waterways operating.
It is clearly incredibly important for Gulf states and for the world economy that these are navigable for free, effectively. Good to have you,
sir. Thank you. Well, Apple and Nvidia front and center in the AI race. The iPhone maker became the world's most valuable public company last week
before it was dethroned by Nvidia.
Days later, Apple behind some of the most used smart devices, of course, that feature AI chatbots and agents, and Nvidia helps the chips and tools
that power AI. AI's future remains uncertain, and it is unclear who will ultimately come out ahead. CNN's Tech Editor has been following this story
for us.
And Lisa joins us now live from New York. So, what's sort of your reporting today? I mean, we see this back and forth between sort of Apple and Nvidia.
That's what makes headlines behind the scenes. There is still real sort of debates about what happens next when it comes to AI.
LISA EADICICCO, CNN BUSINESS TECH EDITOR: Yeah, so Becky, to me, this back and forth, the fact that it's happening between these two companies in
particular, I think is really telling about how Wall Street is viewing this current moment that we're in in the AI race right now.
The tooth, the thing that Apple and Nvidia have in common, even though they're very different companies and they aren't really competitors, is
that they don't have to shell out hundreds of billions of dollars to kind of guarantee their place in the AI race and ensure the future of their
businesses.
These are the two companies that are kind of sitting out the big spending spree that we've been seeing elsewhere across the tech sector. And so, I
think the fact that these two companies keep kind of trading back and forth like this, and are the two that are sitting on top.
I think really kind of speaks to some of the jitters we've been seeing on Wall Street about how much these other tech companies like Alphabet,
Amazon, Meta, Microsoft are spending on AI infrastructure and data centers right now. Goldman Sachs estimates that 765 billion will be spent on
capital expenditures for AI infrastructure this year alone.
That's a lot of money. And what you have here are two companies, one that's arguably the biggest beneficiary of all that spending because it's making
the chips that's going into those data centers. And the other that's not really in that space at all because it's not a cloud computing company.
So, I think that back and forth is kind of talking about what Wall Street finds more valuable in the AI race right now.
ANDERSON: -- good to have you. Thank you.
EADICICCO: Thank you.
ANDERSON: Well, FIFA and Gianni Infantino, its president may have scrapped their investment plans. That doesn't mean that the backlash against him and
the organization has stopped. More on that up next.
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[09:40:00]
ANDERSON: UEFA has threatened legal action against FIFA. This over FIFA's scrapped World Cup investment plans after a secret proposal received global
backlash. Coy Wire joining me now. We start another week and we still have the story, you know, bubbling along.
It was the most remarkable week of headlines last week. So where are we at, Coy?
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Yeah.
ANDERSON: You think as we move into this new session?
WIRE: Yeah, Becky. It seems that not only is this story not going away, it seems to just be growing. The backlash has just been horrific for FIFA and
for President Gianni Infantino. UEFA, of course, unanimously voted to boycott FIFA over that initial proposal, and now they're threatening legal
action.
We're going to get into a bit of what that looks like in the show. You have Wales, Wales FA. They've already said that they're going to withdraw
support for Infantino's re-election bid. England is expected to follow suit. So now you have all these different federations saying that they
don't want him to be the president any longer.
The next March is when that bid, with the re-election bid, would take place. So, time is kind of ticking here, and it just seems to be growing
pressure for Infantino and for FIFA in the wake of that proposal that they had made.
ANDERSON: Let's see what happens next. Good to have you. "World Sport", up with more on that after this short break. I'll be back in 15 minutes' time
with more "Connect the World".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
END
