Roundup: Human Rights violation

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Here’s what we’re serving today:

• 🌱 EU court rules climate change failings violate human rights
• 🇨🇳 Why is China building factories in South America?
• 🇺🇸 The US wants to be a chip-making giant
• 🍎 Apple made $14bn in India, here's why that's a big deal

Week in Brief

• 🇺🇸 TSMC's Major U.S. Expansion: The Biden administration will provide $6.6 billion to Taiwan's TSMC, supporting its Arizona facilities where the world's top semiconductors will be made. TSMC's investment in the U.S. now totals $65 billion.
• 🖥️ Intel's New AI Chip: Intel introduced the Gaudi 3 AI chip, outperforming Nvidia's H100 in efficiency and speed, during tests with Meta's Llama and the Falcon model. They also plan an open platform for safer enterprise AI systems.
• 📺 Disney's Password Sharing Crackdown: Disney CEO Bob Iger announced plans to start blocking shared streaming accounts from June, following Netflix's footsteps which boosted subscriber numbers..
• 🇮🇷 Iran-Israel Conflict Escalates: Iran launched over 300 drones and missiles at Israel. US President Biden reported that most were intercepted by Israeli and American defences. Iran declared the strike a retaliation for an Israeli attack on its consulate in Damascus.
• 🇪🇺 ECB Holds Rates Steady: The European Central Bank kept interest rates at 4% but signaled a likely hike in June. This has led to speculation about potential rate cuts sooner than those by the Fed.
• 🚀 Musk on AI's Future and Political Controversy: Elon Musk predicts AI exceeding human intelligence by next year. He also stirred controversy in Brazil by calling for a Supreme Court judge's resignation over alleged censorship on his platform, X.

Europe's Climate Court Case

In Short: A landmark ruling by Europe's top human rights court found Switzerland's inaction on climate change to be a violation of citizens' rights, setting a huge precedent for climate litigation.

What is the case about?

• A group of 2,000 Swiss women filed a lawsuit against Switzerland at the European Court of Human Rights.
• They claimed Switzerland's failure to meet its climate targets violated their rights to life, health, and quality of life, due to the adverse effects of climate change.

What is the decision?

• The court ruled that Switzerland's inaction on climate change constitutes a violation of the citizens' rights, setting a precedent for future climate litigation.
• The ruling emphasized that the climate crisis is a human rights issue, influencing legal obligations and government actions across Europe.

Why does it matter?

This judgment transcends the courtroom. It not only impacts Switzerland but also signals to all European nations the urgency of aligning their climate targets with scientific benchmarks. This is crucial as it sets a legal benchmark that could spur similar actions across the continent and potentially globally.

For individuals and companies alike, this ruling suggests a shift towards more rigorous environmental accountability. Legal and corporate sectors must now consider the human rights dimension in their climate-related strategies, as future litigation could leverage this precedent.

⚖️ How does this impact Law Firms?