Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and executive chair of X (formerly Twitter), has revealed a new prototype of Tesla’s humanoid robot, Optimus, which has become lighter and faster than previous versions. Musk shared a video presentation of Optimus Gen 2 via his X (former Twitter) account on Dec. 13. 

Optimuspic.twitter.com/nbRohLQ7RH

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 13, 2023

According to the video, the new robot is 22 pounds lighter than Optimus Gen 1, while its foot construction replicates human anatomy, improving the machine’s balance and full-body control. Optimus Gen 2 does a few squats in the video to demonstrate that.

The machine has tactile sensing on all fingers and can manipulate…

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Crypto firm Galaxy looks to collaborate with asset management firm DWS and trading specialist Flow Traders. Their goal is to introduce a stablecoin to accelerate the widespread adoption of on-chain assets.

The forward-looking plan seeks to capitalize on an evolving regulatory framework in Europe, but will ultimately hinge on various approvals. 

The proposed stablecoin, named AllUnity, will be fully collateralized and denominated in euros, the company said Wednesday. The entity is planned to be incorporated in Frankfurt. Its next step involves applying for an E-money license from the German financial regulator BaFin. The company’s aim is to launch the stablecoin within 12 to 18…

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Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald has praised stablecoin issuer Tether (USDT), describing himself as a “big fan” of the firm.

“I’m a big fan of this stablecoin called Tether…I hold their treasuries. So I keep their treasuries, and they have a lot of treasuries,” Lutnick said in a Dec. 11 interview with CNBC.

“They’re over $90 billion now, so I’m a big fan of Tether,” the Cantor Fitzgerald CEO said.

Notably, Cantor Fitzgerald has been helping manage Tether’s multi-billion dollar Treasury portfolio for several years, despite many Wall Street firms shying away from crypto businesses, particularly in the wake of the Silicon Valley Bank crash.

A Feb. 10…

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El Salvador’s National Bitcoin Office says its $1 million Freedom Visa program has already received hundreds of inquiries since its launch on Dec. 7, and expects it to fully sell out be

In emailed comments to Cointelegraph, a spokesperson for El Salvdor’s National Bitcoin Office (ONBTC) said that it had received hundreds of inquiries and “many dozens of applications” both online and in person at its embassies and consulates.

“Based on the current level of interest, we expect the program to sell out by the end of the year.”

Launched by the El Salvador government on Dec. 7 in partnership with stablecoin issuer Tether, the Freedom Visa is a citizenship-by-donation program that…

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The United States Securities and Exchange Commission said it served its lawsuit to HEX founder Richard Schueler — aka Richard Heart — at his house in Finland’s capital of Helsinki.

In a Dec. 11 New York District Court filing, the SEC said it served Heart through substitute service on Oct. 31 — an alternative for when a suit can’t be personally delivered to the defendant typically due to difficulties in locating them.

The process server said they made several failed attempts over nearly seven weeks starting Sept. 13 to personally serve Heart through calls, texts, letters, and attempts to reach him in person at his Helsinki residence.

TSEC’s notice of service to Heart. Source:… Read more on Cointelegraph

BlackRock has revised its spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) application to make it easier for Wall Street banks to participate by creating new shares in the fund with cash, rather than just crypto.

The new in-kind redemption “prepay” model, will allow banking giants such as JPMorgan or Goldman Sachs to act as authorized participants for the fund — allowing them to circumvent restrictions that prevent them from holding Bitcoin or crypto directly on their balance sheets.

The new model was presented by six members of BlackRock and three from NASDAQ in a Nov. 28 meeting with the United States Securities Exchange Commission.

If approved, the move could be a game-changer for…

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Former US president and courtroom enthusiast Donald Trump’s political merchandising empire has debuted a new collection of blockchain-based collectibles. 

The subject: Trump’s August mugshot, taken when he was charged with racketeering in connection with efforts to subvert a federal election in the US state of Georgia. The mugshot in question swiftly became political pay dirt, appearing on campaign fundraising emails and T-shirts. 

Which leads us to Trump’s new NFT collection. It’s a sequel to the 2022 clutch of NFTs, which was largely focused on Trumpain hero worship (figuratively and literally) and generated several million dollars’ worth of purchases. Some of those who…

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Bitcoin (BTC) price continues to trade below its 2023 high, a sign that investors may have underestimated the strength of the $44,000 resistance. Even as BTC price trades below $42,000, it doesn’t necessarily mean that reaching $50,000 and beyond is no longer possible. In fact, quite the opposite seems more likely to occur. Looking at Bitcoin derivatives metrics, it is clear that traders ignored the 6.9% drop and remained optimistic. However, is this optimism enough to justify further gains?

The $127 million liquidation of leveraged long Bitcoin futures on Dec. 11 may seem significant in absolute terms, but it represents less than 1% of the total open interest – the value of all…

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Bitcoin and ether continued to pare gains Tuesday while stocks trended upward ahead of Wednesday’s Federal Reserve decision. 

Bitcoin posted mild losses Tuesday afternoon, positioning the largest crypto more than 5% lower over the past five days. Ether was trading around 2.3% lower Tuesday, also extending a mild selloff that started Monday. 

Both cryptos managed to stay above key levels, though, with bitcoin (BTC) hovering around $41,000 and ether (ETH) sitting just below $2,200. 

In the altcoin space, Solana, after increasing more than 22% in three days earlier this month, also cooled down Tuesday. The rally, spurred by Solana-based liquid staking protocol Jito’s governance…

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