Good morning. Alphabet’s Google, Microsoft and xAI have reached an agreement with the Trump administration to share early versions of their artificial-intelligence programs to assess their capabilities and security before releasing the models to the public.

• Commerce leading the effort: The Commerce Department’s Center for AI Standards and Innovation will lead evaluations of the AI programs. The center has completed more than 40 evaluations, including on models that remain unreleased. ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Anthropic reached a similar agreement with the Commerce Department in 2024.
   
• Critical moment: “Independent, rigorous measurement science is essential to understanding frontier AI and its national security implications,” CAISI director Chris Fall said Tuesday. “These expanded industry collaborations help us scale our work in the public interest at a critical moment.”
   
• Paired-down models: The agreement calls for AI developers to share models with CAISI with reduced or removed safeguards to evaluate national security-related capabilities and risks.
   
• An eye out for AI: The deal comes as the Trump administration weighs launching a new government-review process for artificial-intelligence tools that the U.S. deems to pose cybersecurity risks.

Also see: White House Officials Discuss Assessing AI Models That Pose Security Risks

SEC proposes to eliminate quarterly reporting requirement for public companies.

The Securities and Exchange Commission proposed amendments that would give public companies the option to file reports semiannually, rather than on a quarterly basis as required by federal securities laws.

Frequency change. Under the SEC’s proposed amendments, public companies could choose to file one semiannual report and one annual report for each fiscal year in lieu of three quarterly reports and one annual report. The proposal is subject to a public comment period of 60 days, the SEC said, after which the regulator will vote on it.

Goal of the move. The proposed amendments aim to give companies greater flexibility to choose the reporting frequency that is best for them and their investors, the SEC said.

Danish regulator requests criminal investigation into Nordea Bank unit.

A Danish financial regulator has asked the country’s national police to investigate potential anti-money-laundering failings at a Nordea Bank unit, Risk Journal's Max Fillion reports. (free link)

The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority made the referral on Monday, according to a press release. The regulator said it conducted an inspection of a Danish subsidiary of the bank in 2023, finding it didn’t have sufficient know-your-customer procedures in place for a large group of its clients.

• State securities regulators have approved a package of new model rules to bring the state-level regulations governing investment advisor marketing in line with the federal regime overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
   
• A group of publishers have filed a class action lawsuit against Meta Platforms, alleging the tech conglomerate illegally used their copyrighted works to source and train its AI platform.
   
• Vladimir Sklarov, who claimed connections to the Astor family, was charged with wire fraud and money laundering in Manhattan federal court. An indictment alleges Sklarov defrauded a victim of at least $450 million through a loan deal.
   
• Senior security officials from more than a dozen states are urging artificial-intelligence companies to include them in frontier model testing, arguing that developers currently favor Washington and large technology firms.
   
• A frustrated President Trump over the weekend upbraided Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary for not moving quickly enough to approve flavored vapes and nicotine products, according to people familiar with the discussions.
   
• The U.K. announced sanctions on 35 individuals and entities allegedly involved in supplying components to Russia’s drone factories and recruiting vulnerable migrants from across the world to fight in Ukraine, Risk Journal reports. (free link)
   
• The U.S. Treasury has issued a new general license extending until June 19 a prohibition on the transfer of shares in Citgo Petroleum, the U.S. refining arm of Venezuela’s state oil company, reports Risk Journal. (free link)
   
• The New York Times was sued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over allegations it passed over a white man for promotion in pursuit of what the agency called unlawful corporate diversity policies.
   
• Canada’s antitrust watchdog said Tuesday it is seeking to quash Keyera’s proposed deal for Plains All American Pipeline’s Canadian natural-gas business on worries the acquisition would entrench control over critical energy infrastructure.

Trump’s new initiative shows the limits of U.S. power in Hormuz.

When the U.S. Navy sent a pair of guided-missile destroyers into the Gulf on Monday in an attempt to break Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz, it signaled the start of a risky gambit by the Trump administration to reclaim leverage over Tehran.

The mission, which the U.S. calls “Project Freedom,” shows how the U.S. can still influence the battlefield but faces limits in its ability to change the status quo in the strait. President Trump wants Iran to accept his demands in negotiations and the Iranian regime is determined to deny him a victory.

At the same time, the operation comes with risks to U.S. personnel and to commercial ships, most of which are still refusing to transit the strait without clear guarantees that Iran won’t attack them.

• This Narrow Shipping Lane Is How Trump Now Wants Oil Tankers to Navigate the Strait of Hormuz
• Iran Says It Has Launched New Mechanism to Regulate Strait of Hormuz Traffic
• Gulf States Fear an Emboldened Iran Is Taking Advantage of a Hesitant U.S.

• A flare-up of violence in the Strait of Hormuz raised hackles on Monday as there remain few signs of a fast resolution to the blockade. Bad news for investors: Another major disruption to global shipping may be on the horizon.
   
• Spirit Airlines’ demise makes it even easier for airlines to charge higher fares.
   
• Victoria’s Secret accused one of its largest shareholders of pursuing a proxy fight after being denied a board seat, calling the effort a distracting campaign.
   
• The World Health Organization said it is possible there was human-to-human transmission of hantavirus on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean, a rare way the virus typically carried by rodents can spread.
   
• A major critical infrastructure technology vendor says hackers who broke into its systems last month also breached some of its water, gas and electric-utility customers.
   
• The artificial-intelligence boom was just getting past its last bottleneck. Now, another one is popping up—electricians.

The Dow Jones Risk Journal Summit London on May 7 will convene senior business professionals for discussions on a range of corporate risks including supply chains, artificial intelligence, geopolitics and financial crime. Speakers include: Kathy Wengel, EVP, Chief Technical Operations and Risk Officer, Johnson & Johnson; Nish Imthiyaz, Global Privacy and Responsible AI Counsel, Vodafone; and Will Mayes, Chief Executive, Cyber Monitoring Centre.

Request a complimentary invitation here using the code COMPLIMENTARY. Attendance is limited, and all requests are subject to approval.

• President Trump escalated his public feud with Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of endangering Catholics by opposing U.S. military action against Iran.
   
• Federal prosecutors brought an additional charge Tuesday against the man accused of attempting to assassinate President Trump, alleging that he assaulted a Secret Service officer with a shotgun while rushing through a security checkpoint outside a Washington press gala last month.
   
• Billionaire Ken Griffin on Tuesday amplified his criticisms of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and suggested his investing firm Citadel would “double down” on Miami being the place for growth instead of Manhattan.
   
• Media investor James Murdoch is in advanced talks to buy Vox Media’s New York magazine and podcast division, according to people familiar with the matter.