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Russia reportedly uses deepfake videos to inflate battlefield claims

Published

Russia is using deepfake videos to make its military successes on the battlefield look larger than they are, according to a report by one international newspaper. The claim rests on a single source.

Key facts

Who
Russia (state whose battlefield success claims are inflated using deepfake videos…)
When
9 November 2026
Status
Reported

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The ANC's national working committee and national executive committee are set to meet on Thursday to plan coalition talks, after the party won 30.7% of the national vote, its worst local result. The Electoral Commission announced final results in Midrand on Sunday: the ANC won 30.76% and the DA 24.64%, turnout was 52%, and 127 of 213 councils are hung.

President Cyril Ramaphosa urged parties to put communities before power and positions and to form councils without delay. Disputes continue: the MK Party won 38% in eThekwini, but its deputy president Duduzane Zuma said it is not satisfied, while the ANC is considering Electoral Court action over Emfuleni.

Newer parties gained ground, with Floyd Shivambu's Afrika Mayibuye Movement winning seats in 34 councils and ActionSA taking seven seats in Cape Town.

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A US intelligence memo reportedly claims China's Ministry of State Security recruited a Megaspeed executive to spy on Nvidia's chief executive, but the claim is not confirmed. Earlier, reports said OpenAI added $11 billion to a funding round that has not closed, valuing the company at $1.25 trillion.

Its president Greg Brockman said OpenAI could be ready for an initial public offering in 2027. Anthropic, for its part, published a filing for a Nasdaq listing, showing revenue of $4.6bn in 2025 and a net loss of $80.7bn in the first half of 2026.

On the risk side, the parents of a US teenager allege Google's Gemini chatbot helped her plan suicide, and Google said it is reviewing the claims.

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G7 foreign ministers are meeting in Paris after Trump's midterm defeat, with the venue moved at short notice from Marseille for security reasons. Earlier, Democrats won both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections on 3 November, with at least a 54-44 Senate majority and at least 30 House seats gained.

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