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☆ OpenAI denies Elon Musk lawsuit claim that there ever was founding agreement
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

OpenAI has challenged a foundational claim Tesla CEO Elon Musk made in the lawsuit he filed against the startup earlier this month. "There is no Founding Agreement, or any agreement at all with Musk, as the complaint itself makes clear," OpenAI said in a document on file with California's superior court for San Francisco County. "The Founding Agreement is instead a fiction Musk has conjured to lay unearned claim to the fruits of an enterprise he initially supported, then abandoned, then watched succeed without him." Musk quoted OpenAI's 2015 certificate of incorporation with the Delaware secretary of state, asserting that it "memorialized" the founding agreement. "Seeing the remarkable technological advances OpenAI has achieved, Musk now wants that success for himself," OpenAI said in its filing.

Persons: Elon Musk, Giorgia Meloni's, OpenAI, Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Brockman, Altman, Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI's ChatGPT Organizations: Tesla Inc, New York Times, San, Microsoft Locations: Rome, Italy, San Francisco County, Delaware

It was seen on taking power as the country's most right-wing since wartime dictator Benito Mussolini, as Meloni's Brothers of Italy party traces its roots to the post-fascist Italian Social Movement (MSI). At home she pleased her rightist grassroots through measures to defend the traditional family, protect Italy's cultural heritage and try to stem migrant arrivals. That makes it harder for Meloni to keep her tax-cutting promises and makes Italy's debt, equal to 140% of national output, vulnerable to market sell-offs. Last week Meloni weathered the first of several reviews on Italy's debt when S&P Global Ratings confirmed the country's BBB rating with a stable outlook. COMMANDING POSITIONAt home Meloni has so far avoided the domestic political chaos that dogged so many of her predecessors.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Juan Medina, Meloni's, Meloni, Benito Mussolini, Valentina Meliciani, Andrea Giambruno, Meliciani, Italy's, Ukraine Meloni, Enzo Moavero Milanesi, Giovanni Orsina, Angelo Amante, Giselda, Gavin Jones, Alex Richardson Organizations: Italy's, REUTERS, Western, Coalition, Italian Social Movement, EU, Ukraine, Democratic Party, Star Movement, League, Forza Italia, Analysts, Thomson Locations: Granada, Spain, ROME, EU, Ukraine, Russia, Italy, Rome, Brussels, Africa

The Treasury will issue new economic targets on Wednesday providing the framework for a budget in which Meloni will attempt to keep her tax-cutting promises while also lowering the fiscal deficit. "This budget is Meloni's first real economic test since she came to power last October," said Tim Jones, euro zone analyst for market consultancy firm Medley Advisors. Meloni has much less room for manoeuvre than when she hiked deficit targets in her first budget a year ago. Episodes targeting airlines and investors in Italy's 307- billion-euro ($326.74 billion) bad loan market have followed a similar pattern. Meloni subsequently said no measures were planned regarding non-performing loans, but her party's proposal is still before parliament and uncertainty persists.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Tim Jones, she's, Morgan Stanley, Reuters.G Rome, Roberto Perotti, Meloni's, Valentina Za, Francesco Canepa, Giuseppe Fonte, Sara Rossi, Gianluca Semeraro, Ed Osmond, Giselda Organizations: Treasury, Advisors, European Central Bank, Reuters, Ryanair, Milan's, Bank of, ECB, Thomson Locations: ROME, Italy, Greece, Rome, Italian, Italy's, Brussels, EU, Milan

☆ Italy criticises Germany for funding migrant charity groups
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A woman reacts, as she disembarks from a vessel after being rescued at sea, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 18, 2023. The review of the applications has already been completed in two cases," the spokesperson told Reuters, saying the funding amounted to between 400,000 and 800,000 euros ($426,000-$852,160) for each project. Latest interior ministry data shows over 132,000 migrants have reached Italy by boat so far this year against around 69,000 in the same period of 2022. On Saturday, charity SOS Humanity said in a statement it would receive around 790,000 euros from the German government. ($1 = 0.9388 euros)Reporting by Angelo Amante in Rome and Friederike Heine in Berlin; Editing by Emelia Sithole-MatarsieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Yara, Guido Crosetto, Italy's Crosetto, Berlin, Giorgia Meloni's, Angelo Amante, Friederike Heine, Emelia Sithole Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, La, SOS Humanity, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, Rome, La Stampa, Berlin

☆ Italy row over museum director fuels debate over Meloni's grip on culture
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Federico Maccioni | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Sept 21 (Reuters) - A row between the head of a prestigious museum in Turin and politicians from Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's right-wing coalition has inflamed a debate over whether the government is seeking an undue grip over culture. However, Greco came under fire from right-wing parties in 2018 when he launched a promotion offering price reductions for Arabic speakers in recognition of the fact that the museum's collection came from Egypt -- the largest Arab nation. I never met a politician," he told daily La Stampa, in apparent reference to his time working in the Netherlands. Greco said he was confident there would be transparency around future appointments, but said Italian politicians needed to stop interfering. "In Italy, political interference is excessive, it ruins certain equilibriums and is a problem that has always existed," he told La Stampa.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni's, Greco, Meloni's, Andrea Crippa, Vittorio Sgarbi, La Stampa, Federico Maccioni, Crispian Balmer, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Egyptian, Italy, League, Christian, La, Meloni's, Brera, Thomson Locations: Turin, Italian, Egypt, La Stampa, Netherlands, Italy

☆ Italy's bad loan proposal risks damaging crucial market, senior banker says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Sept 1 (Reuters) - A law proposed by the Italian prime minister's party to help those in arrears risks damaging the country's non-performing loan (NPL) market, which played a crucial role in helping banks offload sour debt, a senior banker active in the sector said on Friday. It aims to give borrowers the right to repay the original loan at a price equivalent to the ratio between the loan's gross nominal value and the average portfolio price, plus a 20% premium. Bossi said the measure could prompt foreign operators active in the sector to shift their focus from the Italian market. "This would be a damage for banks because it would reduce demand for their soured debt", the banker said. "We should keep in mind that Italian banks are now sound because the NPLs market helped the system offload some 350 billion euros of debts which went soured", he added.

Persons: Meloni's, Giovanni Bossi, Bossi, Elvira Pollina, David Holmes Organizations: Cherry Bank, Reuters, European Central Bank, Thomson Locations: Italy

☆ Italy launches COVID inquiry panel, opposition fears witch hunt
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Angelo Amante | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROME, July 6 (Reuters) - Italy's lower house of parliament on Thursday backed a parliamentary inquiry into the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the opposition voicing fears of a witch hunt against those in charge at the time. Giuseppe Conte and former health minister Roberto Speranza," Conte himself, who now heads the opposition 5-Star Movement, told parliament. After the result was announced, the coalition lawmakers shouted in chorus "truth, truth." Italy is not the only country holding an inquiry into the pandemic management. Tommaso Foti, the lower house leader of Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, said the COVID issue caused "doubts and pain" among Italians.

Persons: coronavirus, Giuseppe Conte, Giorgia Meloni, Roberto Speranza, Conte, Speranza, Tommaso Foti, Meloni's, Angelo Amante, Keith Weir Organizations: Senate, Star Movement, World Health, Thomson Locations: Italy, COVID, Britain, Bergamo

☆ Italy prepares to bid farewell to Berlusconi with grand funeral
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] A person leaves a letter among flowers and football memorabilia near Villa San Martino, the residence of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, to which his body was transported following his death, in Arcore near Milan, Italy, June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Yara NardiMILAN, June 13 (Reuters) - Italy was preparing on Tuesday to bid farewell to former premier Silvio Berlusconi, a scandal-prone billionaire who dominated the country's politics, business and soccer world for at least three decades. "Italy without Berlusconi," the country's largest circulation newspaper, Corriere della Sera, wrote on its front page, dedicating more than 30 pages of coverage to the event. Corriere said Berlusconi had been well enough to watch on television Saturday's Champions League soccer final between Inter Milan and Manchester City. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a TV interview on Monday that she had spoken "at length" with him that day.

Persons: Silvio Berlusconi, Nardi, Berlusconi, Sera, Corriere, Giorgia Meloni, Antonio Tajani, Tajani, Berlusconi's, Giuliano Urbani, Meloni's, Sergio Mattarella, Alvise, Ed Osmond Organizations: Italian, REUTERS, AC Milan, Monza, Saturday's Champions League, Inter Milan, Manchester City, Berlusconi's Forza Italia, Forza, La Repubblica, Meloni's Brothers, Thomson Locations: Villa San, Arcore, Milan, Italy, Nardi MILAN, Raffaele, Milan's, Washington

Media tycoon Berlusconi founded Forza Italia when he entered politics in 1994. "I expect Brothers of Italy to be attractive to Forza Italia members," Lorenzo De Sio, a politics professor at LUISS University in Rome, said. The relationship between Berlusconi and Meloni repeatedly came under strain since they won general elections together last year. That triggered a long process which ended up in a merger between Forza Italia and MSI's heir Alleanza Nazionale in a single party. Althea Spinozzi, fixed income strategist at Saxo Bank, said the risk associated with investing in Italy can decrease with a downsized Forza Italia.

Persons: Marina, Silvio Berlusconi, Giorgia Meloni, Berlusconi, Matteo Salvini's, Meloni's, Giuliano Cazzola, Lorenzo De, Meloni, Alleanza, Brothers, Sergio Mattarella, Yara, Eugenio Pizzimenti, Antonio Tajani, Pizzimenti, Althea Spinozzi, Marina Berlusconi, Angelo Amante, Giuseppe Fonte, Antonella Cinelli, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Forza Italia, Media, Matteo Salvini's League, Forza Italia's, Forza, Reuters, Analysts, LUISS University, Italian Social Movement, Berlusconi's, Alleanza Nazionale, REUTERS, Pisa University, Union, Saxo Bank, Meloni, Thomson Locations: ROME, Italy, Rome, Ukraine, Brussels

☆ Analysis: Italian first! Meloni's nationalists defend cultural identity at risk of irking EU
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Angelo Amante | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] General view of the Colosseum next to a subway's construction sites in Rome, Italy, February 16, 2023. Almost six months after taking office, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government is pushing out bills that promise to promote national identity, defend the traditional family, protect cultural heritage and hold back migrants. Recent proposals include a bill to safeguard the Italian language and a ban on lab-grown food. "Italian mines are made up of culture, gastronomy, language, arts, fashion, history, archaeology and monuments. "Identity messages are meant to tell the electorate that Brothers of Italy will not give up its line," analyst Panarari said.

In recent weeks authorities made it harder for same-sex couples to be legal parents and lawmakers proposed an anti-surrogacy law widely seen as targeting gay couples. In January, the government issued orders that municipalities stop the registration of most children with same-sex parents, complicating access to schooling and medical services. Rainbow Families, a group representing same-sex parents in Italy, says its members are parents to around 1,500 children, but that this underestimates the national total. In some places, already-registered children of same-sex families are now being erased from the records, upon the initiative of prosecutors. In similar cases previously, judges have routinely ruled against same-sex parents.

"This result consolidates the centre-right and strengthens the work of the government," Meloni wrote on Twitter. However, fears inside the coalition that support might crumble for Meloni's two main partners proved unfounded. The result offered no comfort to the centre-left camp, comprising the Democratic Party (PD), the 5-Star Movement and so-called Third Pole, which is riven by mutual loathing. Italy's electoral laws at both a national and regional level favour parties that combine forces meaning Meloni's opponents face years in the wilderness unless they learn to work together. Reporting by Crispian Balmer and Angelo Amante; Editing by Gavin Jones and Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Italy's right poised to win regional vote after national triumph
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Crispian Balmer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Lazio, which is centred on the national capital Rome, and Lombardy, home to the financial capital Milan, account for just over a quarter of the national population and generate a third of the Italy's total gross domestic product (GDP). Although victory seems assured, the vote might yet destabilise the ruling coalition if Meloni's Brothers of Italy party continues to cannibalise its partners. "We can't be held hostage by Brothers of Italy," said Angelo Ciocca, a European parliamentarian with the League. "We need a strong League that does not let the autonomy bill end up in the Roman swamps," he told Reuters. Polls are open on both Sunday and Monday, with voting due to end at 1400 GMT on Monday.

In recent years some euro zone countries have sought to rein in temporary contracts to promote stable jobs. It also plans to reduce the labour tax costs to employers of temporary contracts, which were raised in 2018. The reform reversed the easy hire-and-fire regime put in place after the sovereign debt crisis a decade ago by abolishing most forms of temporary contracts. Within that total, the number of temporary workers has jumped by 25% from 2.4 million to 3.0 million. Stable contracts should be the norm, not the exception," she said.

Lufthansa declined to comment on Rome's decision to offer an initial minority stake. Some of Italy's politicians consider ITA as the heir to cultural icon Alitalia, which they want to preserve. Some also say that ITA does not have to worry so much about losing its national identity should Lufthansa take over. The Certares-led alliance was willing to pay 350 million euros for a 50% stake plus one share of the state-controlled airline, sources had said. ($1 = 0.9412 euros)Reporting by Angelo Amante in Rome and Joanna Plucinska in London; additional reporting by Giuseppe Fonte in Rome.

[1/4] Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto poses for a picture during an interview with Reuters, in Rome, Italy, December 16, 2022. Defence Minister Guido Crosetto, a co-founder of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, said Rome would make a final decision on how much to invest in the multi-billion-dollar project after more details had been defined. Crosetto said there should be no bar on joining forces with the rival European programme, adding that the GCAP should also aim to find new partners, especially within Europe. Italy has never disclosed details of its shipments, but Crosetto confirmed that Kyiv had requested air-defence systems, including the Franco-Italian SAMP/T. He added that Italy was also open to suggestions for joint procurement by the EU Defence Agency.

☆ Italy lawmakers call off vote on extending Ukraine arms supplies
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Angelo Amante | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, former Prime Minister Mario Draghi's administration introduced measures that made it possible to send weapons to Kyiv without seeking parliamentary authorisation for each shipment. Support for Ukraine has been a contentious topic within the ruling coalition, which includes Meloni's Brothers of Italy, Matteo Salvini's League and Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia parties. Earlier this month, a governing coalition official told Reuters that Italy was readying a sixth arms package for Ukraine, including air defence systems Kyiv had requested. The PD is also a supporter of Ukraine, while other leftist opposition forces want the government to shift focus from sending arms to stepping up diplomatic negotiations. Reporting by Angelo Amante, editing by Alvise Armellini, Alexandra Hudson and Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/5] Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a news conference to present her government's first budget in Rome, Italy, November 22, 2022. Meloni, a fiery conviction politician, has often spoken out against Italy's reliance on technocrats to solve its economic problems and lambasted alleged interference from "high international finance" and "Brussels bureaucrats". During the election campaign Meloni called in vain for her predecessor Mario Draghi to freeze the sale of a majority stake in ITA. PUSHBACKDeputy Economy and Finance Minister Maurizio Leo, an adviser to Meloni, had proposed splitting his ministry by hiving off the finance department responsible for tax matters. The head of the finance department, Fabrizia Lapecorella, has asked to move to another ministry, two sources said.

☆ Telecom Italia CEO sticks to turnaround plan as govt weighs alternatives
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Unveiled in July, TIM Chief Executive Pietro Labriola's plan is mostly based on a potential multi-billion euro sale of its fixed network infrastructure to state lender CDP. Alessio Butti, responsible for telecoms policies in Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, has criticized TIM's plan to sell its landline grid. Sponsored by the previous government of Prime Minister Mario Draghi, the single network project is now being reviewed by the centre-right government that took office last month. Newly-appointed cabinet undersecretary Butti on Saturday said he would start talks with state lender CDP, TIM and other stakeholders over his plan, reigniting speculation of a government-sponsored takeover. Under the Minerva project, TIM would retain the network while hiving off its services operations and its Brazil-listed unit.

Labriola met Meloni's chief of staff Gaetano Caputi at the prime minister's office in Rome, the sources said, without providing further details. Under the potential deal, CDP, which owns a 10% stake in TIM, would merge TIM's infrastructure with that of smaller rival Open Fiber to create a national network champion under its control. Butti's appointment as cabinet undersecretary has sparked speculation over a potential bid, pushing TIM's shares to a two-month high on Wednesday. TIM's board is also expected to kick-off the process to select a minority partner for its enterprise service arm. It could use these to stop any deal for TIM's assets.

☆ Factbox: Key ministers in new Italian Meloni government
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

ROME, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government was sworn into office on Saturday. Here the profiles of some of the key figures:ECONOMY MINISTERGiancarlo Giorgetti, 55, is a veteran political wheeler-dealer viewed as a moderate and relatively pro-European member of his right-wing League party. He was not Prime Minister Meloni's first choice for the job. He held posts in centre-right governments led by Berlusconi and recently served as president of the influential parliamentary intelligence committee. Meloni insisted on him for the job, overcoming resistance from Berlusconi who wanted a Forza Italia member in the ministry.

☆ (OFFICIAL) Key ministers in new Italian government
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Italy's newly appointed Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks to the media following a meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinale Palace in Rome, Italy October 21, 2022. REUTERS/Guglielmo MangiapaneROME, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Giorgia Meloni's Italian government will be sworn in on Saturday at 10 a.m. (0800 GMT). Here the profiles of some of the key figures:ECONOMY MINISTERGiancarlo Giorgetti, 55, is a veteran political wheeler-dealer viewed as a moderate and relatively pro-European member of his right-wing League party. He was not Prime Minister Meloni's first choice for the job. Meloni insisted on him for the job, overcoming resistance from Berlusconi who wanted a Forza Italia member in the justice ministry.

Leader of Brothers of Italy party Giorgia Meloni attends the fourth voting session to elect the new speaker, at the lower house of parliament, in Rome, Italy, October 14, 2022. Giorgetti, the industry minister in Mario Draghi's outgoing government, is considered to be one of the League's most moderate and pro-European figures. Coalition sources said energy-related matters are likely to remain in the hands of the ecological transition ministry. The frontrunner to succeed technocrat Roberto Cingolani in the job is Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, a coalition source said. Brothers of Italy's Adolfo Urso, previously head of the parliamentary committee on security, is the frontrunner for the position, one source said.

☆ Row over Mussolini photo as Italy's Meloni readies for power
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Leader of Brothers of Italy party Giorgia Meloni attends the fourth voting session to elect the new speaker, at the lower house of parliament, in Rome, Italy, October 14, 2022. The Mussolini portrait will be taken down "to avoid polemics and manipulations," the industry ministry said in a statement. The statement noted that another picture of Mussolini hangs in Palazzo Chigi, the prime minister's office, along with portraits of other Italian heads of government. Earlier, former centre-left leader and industry minister Pier Luigi Bersani chafed at being hung alongside Italy's late dictator. The public sector chapter of the CGIL, Italy's largest trade union, was also outraged, condemning the "deplorable" display and calling for its immediate removal.

Newly elected Senate Speaker Ignazio La Russa gives his first speech in the upper house of parliament in Rome, Italy, October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Yara NardiROME, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Italy's new rightist coalition got off to an inauspicious start on Thursday when it split over the election of the Senate speaker, who clinched the post despite a revolt by Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party. The right-wing bloc, which includes Brothers of Italy, Forza Italia and Matteo Salvini's League, have promised to bring political stability to the country after years of short-lived governments. "I will try with all my efforts to be the speaker for everybody," La Russa told the senators, as opposition chiefs denied they were responsible for his election. Former businessman Carlo Calenda, leader of the centrist Action party, denied his senators provided La Russa with the votes he needed.

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