Comment on McDonald's to test plastic-straw alternatives in U.S.

Under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia is angling to become the Silicon Valley of Asia. Marcus Brandt/picture alliance via Getty Images; Chelsea Jia Feng/BIAs Malaysia enters a period of political stability, its new dream is to become a regional tech hub. Investments and startups are flowing into the country, but it's still early days.

Hindenburg Research website displayed on a laptop screen. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesNate Anderson said he's disbanding Hindenburg Research after completing all its outstanding projects. Hindenburg, a short-seller founded in 2017, gained fame for its forensic financial research. The firm impacted major companies and plans to share its tactics publicly. Nate Anderson, founder of the short-selling firm Hindenburg Research, is tapping out.

Australian-German startup Quantum Brilliance has raised $20mn in Series A funding as it looks to deploy small, portable quantum accelerators that promise to supercharge the computational power of everything from data centres and robots to satellites. A quantum accelerator is a specialised hardware unit that speeds up specific quantum algorithms, or tasks.

TNW Conference will be born again this summer. Over 18 years of unforgettable events, countless future tech stars have used our stage as a springboard to success. We’ve driven vast investments, showcased endless innovations, and made friends along the way. We’ve also learnt from our mistakes. But don’t worry, fellow kids — we’re not getting old yet.

Synthesia has claimed the crown of Britain’s biggest GenAI company after raising $180mn at a $2.1bn valuation. The London-based business generates lifelike avatars for video content. Enterprises use the software to produce training content and corporate communications. The tech has made Synthesia a leader in the burgeoning synthetic media industry.

Shift, a social enterprise founded by Dutch tech entrepreneur Don Ritzen, has announced its ambitious plans to construct a massive landmark designed to inspire action on climate change.  Shift aims to attract 1 million annual visitors to the “New World Wonder,” which it estimates will cost up to $250mn. The startup plans to build the monument in the Netherlands, and if that’s successful, construct one on every continent.   “Civilisations before us built grand monuments to celebrate gods, momentous events or industrial progress,” Ritzen told TNW over the phone.