Thiel: Slowing AI Requires a World Government

Thiel: Slowing AI Requires a World Government

Rex Edison

Slowing AI globally would require a coercive world government, and that government might be more dangerous than the technology itself. That is the argument Peter Thiel, PayPal co-founder and prominent technology investor, made in a September 2026 interview with Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner, published amid a widening debate over how Western democracies can regulate AI without ceding ground to China.

The stakes reach beyond policy circles. Divergent regulatory outcomes could shape which AI products you can access, when companies deploy them, and what compliance costs get passed to consumers across jurisdictions.

Voluntary international coordination, he argues, cannot meaningfully constrain a technology that rival states are developing independently at full speed.

“In theory, you could slow it down if you had genuine, deep cooperation across the whole world,” Thiel said in the Döpfner interview, as reported by pjfp.com. “But I think that would require like a one world government with real teeth, real force.”

He immediately rejected that solution as worse than the problem. From his classical-liberal perspective, a centralized authority capable of enforcing AI restrictions across the United States, China, and the European Union would concentrate power in ways he views as unacceptable. This is Thiel’s argument, not a consensus position among governance experts.

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Prepping For A Cashless Control Grid How Digital Currency Becomes Digital Control

Prepping For A Cashless Control Grid How Digital Currency Becomes Digital Control

Milan Adams

Something fundamental is vanishing, and most people will not notice until it is already gone. Not with a declaration. Not with a law passed in the dead of night. Simply, gradually, the option to buy something without creating a permanent record will disappear. The ability to save purchasing power outside of a system that can freeze it, monitor it, or program it will become a memory that seems almost fictional to those who never experienced it.

I have watched this unfold over years of observing payment systems, reading central bank white papers that few citizens bother to examine, and noticing how my own transactions leave increasingly detailed trails. The pattern is consistent across nations: convenience precedes surveillance, and surveillance precedes control.

We are not approaching a cashless society. We are sleepwalking into it. And for anyone who values independence, privacy, or the basic human right to conduct commerce without surveillance, this represents not progress but regression toward a form of control that previous generations would have recognized immediately and resisted forcefully.

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) are the mechanism of this transformation. 

The digital euro, the potential digital dollar, the digital yuan already operational in China - these are not simply modernizations of payment systems. They are structural changes to the relationship between the individual and the state, between commerce and surveillance, between freedom and permission. 

Once fully implemented, they would create a financial infrastructure where every transaction is visible, every purchase is logged, and every economic decision requires implicit or explicit approval from authorities.

This is not speculation. This is documented policy. The Bank for International Settlements, which coordinates central banking globally, has explicitly stated that CBDCs will enable "programmable money" - currency that can be restricted based on time, place, or purpose. 

The European Central Bank's digital euro project includes provisions for offline payments only up to limited amounts, with all larger transactions requiring network connectivity and identity verification. 

The Federal Reserve's FedNow system, launched in July 2023, created the technical infrastructure for instant digital payments that serves as the foundation for eventual CBDC implementation.

Three developments demand immediate attention:

1. Over 130 countries representing 98 percent of global GDP are now exploring CBDC implementation, with 11 countries including China, Nigeria, and the Bahamas already operational.

2. The United States government has accumulated over 207,000 bitcoin through seizures and asset forfeiture, creating a "Strategic Bitcoin Reserve" via Executive Order in March 2025, effectively centralizing control of assets that were designed to resist centralized control.

3. Cash usage has declined 60 percent in the United States since 2017, with 41 percent of Americans reporting they use no cash in a typical week, removing the practical habit of anonymous exchange before the infrastructure to support it disappears.

The implications extend far beyond convenience or efficiency. They strike at the heart of what it means to be a free individual in a society that claims to value liberty.

How We Got Here

Understanding how we arrived at this moment requires examining the incremental steps that normalized surveillance as the default condition of economic life. Each step seemed reasonable in isolation. Together, they would construct a control grid that previous generations would have found intolerable.

Credit cards provided the foundation. Introduced in the 1950s as a convenience for travelers, they became ubiquitous by the 1990s. Each purchase created a record: what you bought, where you bought it, when you bought it. This data accumulated in databases owned by card networks and banks, available to law enforcement with a subpoena and to corporations for marketing analysis. Still, cash remained an alternative. The option to opt out of the surveillance economy persisted.

Debit cards expanded the tracking to daily purchases. Digital payment platforms - PayPal, Venmo, Cash App - added social networks to financial transactions, creating public records of private exchanges. Apple Pay and Google Wallet merged biometric identity with payment authorization, conditioning users to authenticate every purchase with fingerprints or facial recognition. Each innovation reduced friction and increased surveillance simultaneously.

The CV  pandemic accelerated cash elimination dramatically. Merchants discouraged physical currency citing hygiene concerns. Governments distributed stimulus payments exclusively through digital channels. Online commerce, already growing, became the primary mode of consumption for millions who had previously resisted it. Between 2019 and 2021, cash usage in the United States dropped from 26 percent of transactions to 20 percent, with the decline concentrated in urban areas and among younger demographics.

Central banks observed these trends and recognized opportunity. If the public was already abandoning cash voluntarily, the infrastructure for digital currency could be established without the resistance that would accompany explicit elimination of physical money. CBDCs could be introduced as improvements - faster, cheaper, more secure - while gradually restricting the alternatives until withdrawal became impractical.

The European Union's digital euro project, currently in the "preparation phase" expected to last until 2026, includes features that should alarm anyone concerned with privacy. The ECB has confirmed that offline payments will be limited to 300 euros maximum, with all larger transactions requiring network connectivity and identity verification. "Holding limits" will restrict how much digital euro individuals can possess, forcing excess funds back into the banking system where they can be lent, tracked, and taxed. The stated rationale - preventing bank disintermediation - reveals the true purpose: maintaining financial surveillance and banking profitability simultaneously.

The defining feature of CBDCs that distinguishes them from existing digital payments is programmability - the ability to encode rules directly into currency that determine when, where, and for what purposes it can be spent. This capability would transform money from a neutral medium of exchange into a tool of social engineering and behavioral control.

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Lavrov warns UN over EU warmongering: As it happened

Lavrov warns UN over EU warmongering: As it happened

RT

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has addressed the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York and set out Moscow’s position on the Ukraine conflict and global security while warning of the EU’s military buildup.

The top Russian diplomat arrived in New York earlier this week for a diplomatic marathon on the sidelines of the gathering, holding talks with senior officials from around the globe, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi, and many others.

His General Assembly address follows a heated UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine earlier in the week, during which he reiterated Moscow’s readiness for negotiations but rejected calls to halt military operations during talks, arguing that a pause would allow Kiev to regroup and rearm.

The key statements he made in the UNGA address and in the follow-up Q&A include:

• The EU is militarizing for war with Russia despite Moscow having no plans to attack Europe. The sheer scale of the EU buildup could eventually spark a conflict.
• Berlin’s goal of achieving military primacy in Europe can be construed as an attempt to create a Fourth Reich.
• Many EU ruling elites are “infected with the virus of racial superiority” and espouse extremist Russophobic ideas.
• Ukraine’s Western backers continue pumping it full of arms and helping it attack non-combatants and civilian infrastructure.
• Europe actively cultivates and supports Ukraine’s neo-Nazi lionization of WWII Nazi collaborators.
• Russia remains open to dialogue with Washington and is ready to return to the understandings reached at the August 2025 Trump-Putin summit in Anchorage.

Lavrov stressed that the Ukraine conflict has deeper roots in NATO expansion, the failure of the Minsk agreements, and the rejection of Russia’s security proposals to the US and NATO in 2021.

The week’s diplomacy extended well beyond Ukraine. Talks with Arab officials covered tensions in the Middle East, including the US war against Iran and Israel’s continued hostilities in Gaza. Other meetings focused on bilateral ties and coordination at the UN.

The General Debate is being held at UN Headquarters from September 22 to 28 as part of High-Level Week, with the theme: ‘Restoring trust, managing transformation: A United Nations that delivers for all’.

Lavrov at UNGA Outlines Russia’s View of Shifting Global Order

Lavrov at UNGA Outlines Russia’s View of Shifting Global Order

Sputnik

On the Gulf Crisis:

"We consider it necessary to establish trust in relations between the Gulf coastal states, the Arab countries and Iran, as a prerequisite for resolving the crisis," Lavrov said. 

Russia is ready to contribute to the settlement of the conflict in the Middle East, the minister said, noting that new flare-ups of fighting in the Gulf continue, despite the damage they cause to shipping, and by extension, the global economy.

On the Future of Palestinian Statehood:

The establishment of a Palestinian state could soon become impossible; the time has come to resolve the issue of securing statehood for the Palestinian people, Lavrov said.

"We are convinced that the time has come to address the Middle East's central issue, securing statehood for the Palestinian people based on numerous UN resolutions. Almost a year ago, the Security Council, at the initiative of the United States, endorsed a peace plan for the Gaza Strip, yet peace has not been achieved there ... The situation is also deteriorating in the West Bank, where Israel is expanding settlement activity. If this trend continues, creating a Palestinian state will become impossible, there simply will be no room left for it," he said.

On Ukraine’s Attacks on Russian Civilian Infrastructure:

"The West is supplying weapons to the Ukrainian regime, helping Kiev to target drones and missiles at civilians and civilian infrastructure," Lavrov said.

European countries are making every effort to disrupt peace talks on Ukraine, the minister added.

On Russia’s Special Military Operation:

Russia will achieve the goals of the special military operation in Ukraine and eliminate security threats, Lavrov said.

"The goals of the special military operation will be achieved, threats to Russia's security will be eliminated, and peaceful life will be restored. This will happen in spite of any circumstances, including the inability of the current leadership of the United Nations to take the only correct position on the situation in Ukraine, a position that defends the principles of the UN Charter not selectively, but in their entirety, completeness and interconnection," Lavrov said.

He added that Russia launched its operation in 2022 to protect the people of Donbass and Novorossiya from extermination, and continues to protect "their security and rights" in accordance with the letter and spirit of the UN Charter.

"Our struggle for truth and justice will be brought to an end," Lavrov assured.

On Violations of the Principles of the UN Charter:

Ukraine is trampling on fundamental principles of the UN Charter, Lavrov alleged.

"The Ukrainian regime openly tramples on a cornerstone principle of the UN Charter, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion," Lavrov said.

Lavrov noted that there is no other country in the world besides Ukraine where a language is legally banned, and where the use of the Russian language carries penalties ranging up to imprisonment.

On Maduro’s Release:

"We insist on the speedy release of the Venezuelan leader and his wife and non-repetition of such excesses in the future," Lavrov demanded.

On Russia’s Support for Cuba Amid the US Blockade:

"We confirm our solidarity with the Cuban people and government, and urge [the US] to lift the naval blockade of the liberty island, lift all restrictions on trade with Cuba, and remove the country from the long-hated list of state sponsors of terrorism," Lavrov said.

On Russia’s Expectations for the New UN Chief:

Russia hopes a new UN secretary-general will comply with his or her mandate and be unbiased, Lavrov said.

"We expect that the new secretary-general, who is to be elected by the end of the year, will strictly adhere to their mandate, the principles of impartiality ... which are fixed in the [UN] Charter," Lavrov said.

On NATO’s Global Expansionism:

"Lasting peace can be ensured when the dangerous rivalry of the world's largest players ends. This can be achieved only on the basis of strict observance of the UN Charter and the principle of equal and indivisible security. Let me remind you that this principle means refusing to ensure the security of one state at the expense of infringing on the security of others ... First of all, this concerns NATO, which is trying to spread its destructive influence far beyond the geographical limits of its area of responsibility, including Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia," Lavrov said.

POWDER KEG MIDDLE EAST: Yemeni Leader Calls for National Mobilization against Iran-Backed Houthi Militias, Urges Citizens To Join Armed Forces

POWDER KEG MIDDLE EAST: Yemeni Leader Calls for National Mobilization against Iran-Backed Houthi Militias, Urges Citizens To Join Armed Forces

Paul Serran

Can Yemeni assemble an army to face the formidable Houthi militias in its tracks?

Since 2014, Since 2014, the Houthi rebels have fought a Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

Described by the US State Department as a terrorist proxy of Iran, the Houthis signed a UN-brokered ceasefire in 2022, but now they’re back into action – a bigger, more organized and much better armed force.

Earlier this month, the Houthis launched a rapid offensive along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, overrunning government positions in days.

The districts of Hays and al-Khawkhah fell, along with the last major Red Sea port of Mokha. They also conquered Dhubab, the Hanish Islands, and Perim Island in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.

Now, they control Yemen’s entire Red Sea coastline and positions between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Now they are threatening shipping through the strait of Bab al-Mandeb and sending missile and drone attacks on Saudi and Israeli targets.

For a while, the war seemed focused on Houthis attacking Saudis and vice versa, as you can read in Flames and Smoke Seen Rising in Riyadh Airport After Warnings of Strikes by the Houthis and Saudi Forces Bomb Houthi Targets in Yemen – Iran Reports Strikes.

But now, Yemen’s Presidential Council chairman, Rashad al-Alimi, who is also the Supreme Commander of the Yemeni Armed Forces, is calling on his countrymen to unite against the terrorists.

Deutsche Welle reported:

“Rashad al-Alimi, the head of Yemen’s Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council, on Friday called for a general mobilization in the war-torn country.

‘I call upon the sons of our great people to engage in general mobilization and national mobilization, to rally around their armed and security forces’, al-Alimi said in a televised address.

The head of the governing body urged his compatriots to join the government forces weeks after Yemen’s government was dealt a major blow by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.”

Rashad al-Alimi added that anyone defecting from the Houthis to the government side will be pardoned in an upcoming amnesty, he added.

The Jerusalem Post reported:

“He decried the recent uptick in Houthi attacks as a “dangerous escalation” caused by the terrorist group choosing to act with force and weapons instead of pursuing dialogue and peace.

‘Experience has proven that making concessions to militias does not lead to peace, but rather gives them an opportunity to reorganize their ranks and prepare for a new round of escalation’, Alimi continued.

‘It is time for this long chapter of suffering to end, and for the Yemeni family to regain its security, tranquility, and normal life’, Alimi urged. ‘Every young person who is saved today from the project of this terrorist group is a building block in the construction of a new Yemen that is reconciled with itself, its neighbors, and the international community’.”