Data-Center Load Drop Sends a Voltage Disturbance Across the PJM Grid

More than 3 gigawatts of data-center demand disconnected from the PJM grid after a Northern Virginia transmission line went out of service, producing a voltage disturbance measured from Washington to Chicago. PJM said reliability was not affected, but the roughly 3 percent load drop took about 10 minutes to stabilize as facilities switched to backup power.

The episode renewed attention on how clusters of large computing facilities respond to the same fault almost simultaneously. Proposed remedies include sequencing disconnections and using campus-scale batteries to let data centers ride through disturbances, though the latter approach in TechCrunch’s report includes claims from a storage vendor.

Featured source: TechCrunch , Reuters .

Other Stories

AlphaFold3 Modelling Guides More Precise DNA Base Editors

Researchers used AlphaFold3 contact modelling to redesign gene-editing proteins for more precise DNA base editing. The work, published in Nature, remains a preclinical laboratory study rather than evidence of safety or effectiveness in patients.

Filed from: Ars Technica , Nature .

Paramount and Warner Bros. Delay Their $110 Billion Merger

Paramount and Warner Bros. agreed to delay their proposed $110 billion merger for months while a lawsuit brought by US states moves toward trial. The agreement preserves the transaction while the antitrust challenge proceeds; the states’ claims have not been decided on their merits.

Filed from: Ars Technica , New York Attorney General .

Anthropic Releases Claude Opus 5

Anthropic released Claude Opus 5 with an emphasis on using fewer tokens to complete demanding work rather than presenting it as a large capability leap. Performance comparisons available at launch came largely from Anthropic and partners, not independent production testing.

Filed from: Ars Technica , Anthropic .

EPA Proposal Would Let States Set Participation Rules for Minor Air Permits

A US Environmental Protection Agency proposal would let states determine public-participation requirements for minor air-quality permits, a process that can cover backup generators and other equipment at data centers. The proposal is not specific to data centers and has not been finalized.

Filed from: Ars Technica , US Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy .

GitHub Splits Its Bug Bounty Into Public and Invite-Only Tiers

GitHub is restructuring its bug bounty after a surge of low-quality and AI-generated submissions, separating public reporting from an invite-only program for selected researchers. The new rates and submission rules apply to reports made on or after July 27.

Filed from: TechRadar , GitHub .

OpenAI Joins Industry Letter Opposing Early Open-Weight Restrictions

OpenAI joined a letter backed by Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta and other technology companies that urges policymakers to avoid broad, premature restrictions on open-weight AI models. OpenAI was absent from the initial signer list and was added later; Google and Anthropic were not listed.

Filed from: TechRadar , Industry letter .

European Researchers Say DSA Data-Access Barriers Persist

European misinformation researchers say rejection criteria, fees and incomplete platform tools continue to impede studies the Digital Services Act is intended to enable. TikTok and Meta defend their research products, while X has six months to implement an EU-accepted plan for free access, faster screening and eligible scraping.

Filed from: WIRED , European Commission .

Two Volkswagen Engineers Face Rivian-Related Insider-Trading Charges

US prosecutors charged two Volkswagen engineers with trading on confidential information about the automaker’s planned joint venture with Rivian. The indictment contains allegations, and neither defendant has been convicted.

Filed from: TechCrunch , US Department of Justice .

From the Community

India Orders GitHub to Remove Bluetooth Messaging App Bitchat

India’s cybercrime coordination center ordered GitHub to remove the Bluetooth mesh-messaging app Bitchat, according to a notice shared by developer Jack Dorsey. The app operates without internet access or central servers; GitHub had not publicly confirmed action when the report was published.

Filed from: The Hindu .

Android Maintainer Proposes Restricting On-Device ADB

A Google ADB maintainer proposed changing how Android Debug Bridge binds network interfaces after a wireless-authentication bypass, a move that could disrupt tools such as Shizuku and on-device Termux workflows. The idea appeared in an IssueTracker comment and is not an announced Android policy.

Filed from: Kitsumed .