Venezuela Bondholders Seek to Block Gold Reserve's Bid for Citgo
The group told a Manhattan federal judge in a letter they are prepared to request a preliminary injunction 'promptly' against a $7.4 billion offer from a consortium led by Gold Reserve Ltd. to buy PDV Holding, Citgo's parent, in a court-ordered auction in Delaware.
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Travel Weekly
6 hours ago
- Travel Weekly
M Social brand expands with Downtown NYC hotel
As it readies the launch of its lifestyle M Social brand in Lower Manhattan, Millennium Hotels & Resorts sees the growing next-gen brand as a vector to capture a younger business traveler open to higher rates for premium amenities, even in an uncertain economic environment. Millennium is set to open on Oct. 15 the M Social Hotel New York Downtown, the converted property currently known as the Millennium Downtown New York, on Church St. near the World Trade Center. The property will be the 10th M Social, and the second in the United States, with the other also in Manhattan: the M Social Hotel New York Times Square. The M Social brand -- short for "Millennium Social" -- debuted in 2016 in Singapore and was designed as a social hub for young and high-end travelers, Millennium chief commercial officer and Interim COO Saurabh Prakash recently told BTN, a brand he said fits the needs of downtown New York. "This was the Millennium Downtown, and it was a very heavy Financial District corporate hotel," Prakash said. "But we studied trends of customers of today, and many young executives are not dressed like me. They are in battered jeans and in t-shirts. They're cool and they're young at heart, and that's the kind of demographics that M Social is all about. And you can be in a suit and you can come into M social and that's fine too, but you want to have that vibe of being free and easy." The newly revamped property includes 569 renovated rooms, including 98 suites, with "advanced workspaces" in guest rooms and 3,550 square feet of meeting space. Millennium plans to open in the property a Beast & Butterflies restaurant, a feature in all M Social hotels, by the end of the year. Despite the lifestyle branding, Prakash said he anticipates the mix of leisure and business clientele will remain similar to that of the Millennium Downtown, a key business travel locale. "I think mix-wise it may be similar but the price points will change," Prakash said, noting the refurbished property's views of the landmarks of Lower Manhattan. "With that kind of breathtaking view, price points will certainly increase for this product. The clientele I would anticipate is customers who are somewhat luxury spenders, young at heart, and they would have high levels of disposable income." Millennium's press materials indicated an introductory room rate starting at $299 per night. A family suite in the upcoming M Social Hotel New York Downtown. Photo Credit: Millennium Hotels & Resorts A comfortable outlook Still, with some corporations taking a tentative approach to global business travel in an uncertain economy, the forecast high-end business travel demand might not be clear, but Prakash said the company is comfortable with Manhattan's level of corporate travel demand. "Certainly there is a slowdown that we can see globally compared to what we've seen in 2023 and 2024," Prakash said. "Having said that, I truly believe tourism and hospitality is a very resilient sector. Case in point, [the Millennium Downtown New York] is running at 100 percent occupancy for the last few days. ... I've been with Millennium for the last six years, and I've seen New York perform over the last six years, and it has been very consistent. Through various ups and downs, it does come out at a strong position at the end of the year." Millennium has about 150 hotels worldwide, 70 of which are directly owned by the company's chairman, Singaporean billionaire Kwek Leng Beng. That ownership structure, Prakash said, enables Millennium to be adroit not only in service development -- a few M Social properties overseas have introduced AI-powered robot butlers to deliver room service -- but also geographic expansion. Millennium plans to open in 2026 a new-build M Social property in Sunnyvale, Calif., in Silicon Valley, Prakash said, the first U.S. presence for the brand outside of Manhattan. Source: Business Travel News
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Teachers union partners with tech companies to launch AI-training academy
The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) on Tuesday announced the fall launch of the National Academy for AI Instruction, a $23 million endeavor funded by Anthropic, Microsoft and OpenAI, three main players in the generative AI revolution. With the creation of the academy, leading artificial intelligence companies are stepping up their efforts to bring AI to schools across the U.S. OpenAI has committed to giving $10 million over five years, while Microsoft will provide $12.5 million. Anthropic, meanwhile, will contribute $500,000 the first year, said Andrew Crook, a spokesperson for the AFT. While some educators have expressed concern over being replaced by AI, AFT said it seeks to embrace the technology in a way that protects teachers' place at the head of the classroom. With this in mind, the foundation said reached out to tech companies for their assistance in developing the AI-training academy. "The direct connection between a teacher and their kids can never be replaced by new technologies, but if we learn how to harness it, set commonsense guardrails and put teachers in the driver's seat, teaching and learning can be enhanced," AFT President Randi Weingarten said in the announcement. "We want to do it in a way that teachers can really master the tools," Weingarten told CBS MoneyWatch. Courses will begin this fall at the United Federation of Teachers' facility in Manhattan, New York. Funding from the tech trio will also go toward the buildout of additional hubs throughout the U.S., which are set to open in 2030, according to Crook. UFT is an affiliate of AFT. The companies say the training academy will offer a space for educators to learn how to harness AI and implement it safely and ethically in their classrooms. The programming, designed by AI experts and educators, will include workshops, online courses and hands-on training sessions, according to the AFT. "We're at a pivotal moment in education, and how we introduce AI to educators today will shape teaching for generations to come," Anthropic co-Founder Jack Clark said in an emailed statement on the partnership. AFT said the academy will offer free virtual training to all 1.8 million members in its union, starting with K-12 educators. The federation's ultimate goal is to train 400,000 educators — about 10% of the U.S. teaching workforce — at the in-person facility over the next five years. AI in education AI is already reshaping classrooms, as students and teachers have access to AI-powered tools such as ChatGPT, which the latter are using more frequently, according to a recent survey from investment bank Tyton Partners. The rapid rise of AI has raised concerns about students using the technology to cheat or complete their assignments, with some schools implementing AI detection software. Meanwhile, research is also beginning to tease apart how AI affects our thinking. A recent study from MIT found that over-reliance on artificial intelligence can reduce brain activity and critical cognitive functions. Keeping teachers in the drivers' seat is key to harnessing AI technology so that it is being used constructively in the classroom, according to AFT's Weingarten. Gerry Petrella, general manager of U.S. public policy at Microsoft, echoed her sentiments. "We know students are going to benefit the most from this technology when we put teachers at the center of this tool," he said in a statement on Tuesday. Sneak peek: Who Killed Aileen Seiden in Room 15? Everything we know so far about the deadly Texas floods Search continues for dozens after Texas floods, at least 79 dead with more severe weather expected
Bloomberg
13 hours ago
- Bloomberg
NYC Casinos Could Become World's Biggest, Bidders Predict
Bidders for three New York City-area casino licenses are projecting revenue that would place them among the most lucrative resorts in the world, according to an analysis of their proposals. In Manhattan, the Freedom Plaza project is expected to generate $2.2 billion in annual revenue in its first year of operation, rising to $4.2 billion by year 10, while billionaire Steve Cohen's project near Citi Field in Queens is forecast to produce $3.9 billion annually by year three, according to executive summaries the bidders filed with the New York State Gaming Facility Location Board.
