This episode covers the latest world and UK headlines alongside key developments in artificial intelligence and technology. We also provide a detailed analysis of DeepSeek releasing the DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 and opening its search engine to developers.
DeepSeek-V4.1 Launch and Global Tech UpdatesIntroduction
00:00
How this edition was madeSunday 18 October 2026 · 20 minutes from first search to broadcast · no human in the loopSee the full breakdown ↓
01 · Found282reports from 62 news sites
02 · Chosen10stories picked from 225
03 · Sourced77sources from 49 publishers
04 · Fact-checked
27 of 49 claims confirmed by two or more independent sources · 22 left out
05 · Read aloud
06:06, voiced by synthetic presenters
Behind the broadcast
How this edition was made
Sunday 18 October 2026 · 20 minutes, fully automated
Every edition is found, researched, fact-checked and written by an automated newsroom, then read by synthetic presenters. A claim goes into the script only when two or more independent sources confirm it, or the primary source itself (an official statement, filing or dataset). Everything else is left out. For this edition 49 claims were checked: 27 confirmed, 22 left out.
From 282 reports to 10 stories
Everything the newsroom read before choosing this edition’s stories; 4 researched stories were dropped because the main claim couldn’t be confirmed.
Search results and feeds
282
Unique articles
237
Distinct stories
225
Shortlisted
65
Researched in depth
14
Broadcast
10
49 claims, checked one by one
Each square is a real claim from this edition. Hover over or tab to one to read it.
Confirmed · 2+ independent sourcesSingle sourceSpeculationDisputed or unconfirmed
IsraelEuropean Diplomats Attacked by Israeli Settlers in the West Bank
RussiaDonald Trump waives Russia sanctions amid growing rift with Volodymyr Zelenskyy
FranceViolent Protests and Mass Arrests Sweep France Amid Demands for Investment and Cost of Living Action
United KingdomReform UK Candidate Filmed Making Racist Remarks
ScotlandSNP Commences Campaign for Scottish Independence Referendum
United KingdomUK Urged to Fortify Infrastructure Against Russian Hybrid Threats Amid International Sanctions Row
AustriaAustrian MEP Lena Schilling speaks out against nude deepfakes and urges EU action
San FranciscoCryptographer Uses Claude to Solve Long-Standing ECDSA Curve Seed Mystery
Menlo ParkMeta removes website scraping terms for AI training
HangzhouDeepSeek Releases DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 and Opens Search Engine to Developers
77 sources from 49 publishers
163 candidate sources were considered and 60 read in full, 53 of them independent. Wire stories and syndicated copies are detected, so one report can’t count twice.
BBC News8
The Guardian7
AOL3
Reuters3
The Telegraph3
Yahoo News UK3
Abcnews2
EUROPE SAYS2
Let's Data Science2
News.ycombinator2
NewsCord2
The Decoder2
The Independent2
Al Jazeera1
AnthropicAI1
Axios1
CNN1
Coin Edition1
Crypto Briefing1
Daily Sabah1
Deutsche Welle1
El-balad1
Financial Times1
Glasgow Times1
Huggingface1
ITV News1
Lapaas Voice1
Meta AI1
Meta Newsroom1
NHK WORLD1
NPR1
Note（ノート）1
OfficeChai1
OpenRouter1
Reutersconnect1
Sky News1
Tbreak Media UAE1
TechCrunch1
Techmeme1
The Herald1
The Military Channel1
The US Sun1
The Verge1
The i Paper1
Townpress Newspaper1
Tradersunion1
Ua1
XenoSpectrum1
媒角抵加1
20 minutes from first search to broadcast
No human in the loop: 95 AI steps, then 58 lines read by synthetic presenters.
Find and sort2:48
Research3:43
Fact-check5:06
Write and edit0:51
Final check0:20
Voice7:09
Mix and publish0:15
Researching and checking factsFinding, writing, voicing, mixing
European Diplomats Attacked by Israeli Settlers in the West Bank
Masked Israeli settlers attacked a delegation of European diplomats, a French mayor, and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Saturday.
3 of 5 claims confirmed · 7 sources
New since we last reported it
The targeting has expanded from general olive harvesters and observers to specifically include a formal delegation of European diplomats and a French mayor.
What we confirmed
Masked Israeli settlers attacked a delegation of European diplomats, a French mayor, and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Saturday.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · Al Jazeera, Abcnews, Reuters
Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian civilians and a Washington Post photographer in the West Bank on Friday.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · BBC News, Reuters
Belgium will press for EU sanctions against those responsible for this violence.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Maxime Prevot · Financial Times, Yahoo News UK
What we left out (2)
Israel's foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, condemned the attacks and stated that police had opened an investigation.Single source · left out · said by Gideon Sa'ar · The Guardian
Foreign diplomats risk attacks from Israeli civilians if they travel in the occupied West Bank without military coordination.Single source · left out · said by Gideon Sa'ar · The Guardian
Donald Trump waives Russia sanctions amid growing rift with Volodymyr Zelenskyy
US President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Friday night waiving several Russia sanctions on the grounds of national interest.
3 of 5 claims confirmed · 6 sources
New since we last reported it
US President Donald Trump officially issued an executive order pausing Russia sanctions.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly condemned the decision as a reward for Vladimir Putin.
What we confirmed
US President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Friday night waiving several Russia sanctions on the grounds of national interest.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · BBC News, Axios, Deutsche Welle
Volodymyr Zelenskyy described Donald Trump's decision to roll back sanctions on Russia as a reward for Vladimir Putin.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Volodymyr Zelenskyy · The Guardian, AOL
Donald Trump stated that Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel, followed by additional amounts in November and thereafter.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Donald Trump · NPR, AOL
What we left out (2)
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated he expected the Trump administration to lift more sanctions against Russia in the future.Speculation · left out · said by Volodymyr Zelenskyy · The Guardian
Senator Richard Blumenthal stated that Trump was turning his back on the majority of Americans and their representatives.Single source · left out · said by Senator Richard Blumenthal · Deutsche Welle
Violent Protests and Mass Arrests Sweep France Amid Demands for Investment and Cost of Living Action
An estimated 550,000 people took part in protests across France demanding greater investment in education and action on the rising cost of living.
1 of 5 claims confirmed · 9 sources
What we confirmed
An estimated 550,000 people took part in protests across France demanding greater investment in education and action on the rising cost of living.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · BBC News, CNN
What we left out (4)
At least 1,200 people were arrested on Saturday as riot police deployed tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds.Sources disagree · left out · BBC News, Abcnews
There were 1,756 mobilisations taking place on Saturday, including 811 demonstrations.Single source · left out · said by Yellow Vests · The Independent
French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to punish those responsible for the violent clashes.Not confirmed · left out · said by Emmanuel Macron
Protesters set fire to the tourism office in Lyon and attempted to prevent firefighters from tackling the blaze.Single source · left out · The Independent
A would-be Reform UK MP told an undercover reporter that Muslims could not be British and asylum seekers should be put in concentration camps.
3 of 5 claims confirmed · 9 sources
New since we last reported it
Alan Feeney resigned as a Reform councillor for Solihull and Birmingham.
Specific undercover claims regarding asylum seekers and Muslims not being British have been widely detailed by independent media.
What we confirmed
A would-be Reform UK MP told an undercover reporter that Muslims could not be British and asylum seekers should be put in concentration camps.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · The Guardian, EUROPE SAYS, Yahoo News UK, The i Paper, El-balad
Alan Feeney resigned as a Reform councillor for Solihull and Birmingham after racist comments he had made were uncovered in the investigation.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · The Guardian, EUROPE SAYS, El-balad
Reform UK has stated that there is no room for racism in its party.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Reform UK · BBC News, Yahoo News UK, The i Paper
What we left out (2)
Reform UK stated that the people filmed by ITV are all under investigation, and have already either resigned or been suspended.Single source · left out · said by Reform UK · BBC News
ITV News broadcast undercover filming gathered over a year of Reform councillors and candidates using racist, violent and sexist language.Single source · left out · said by ITV News · BBC News
SNP Commences Campaign for Scottish Independence Referendum
The campaign for a second referendum on Scottish independence has already begun
2 of 4 claims confirmed · 9 sources
What we confirmed
The campaign for a second referendum on Scottish independence has already begunConfirmed · two or more independent sources · said by John Swinney · The Guardian, The Telegraph, AOL, The Herald, Glasgow Times, Reutersconnect
The SNP will launch its most sophisticated campaign in history, backed by a six-figure war chest and a first tranche of 100,000 poundsConfirmed · two or more independent sources · said by John Swinney · The Guardian, AOL, Glasgow Times
What we left out (2)
A hung Westminster parliament is the most realistic path to securing a second independence referendumSingle source · left out · said by Leading SNP figures · The Guardian, AOL
A Survation poll commissioned by the Forum for Research and Energy projected that Scots would vote for independence by 54% to 46% if a second referendum were held tomorrowSingle source · left out · The Herald
UK Urged to Fortify Infrastructure Against Russian Hybrid Threats Amid International Sanctions Row
The government must do more to protect key infrastructure against hybrid attacks from Russia.
3 of 5 claims confirmed · 9 sources
What we confirmed
The government must do more to protect key infrastructure against hybrid attacks from Russia.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Lord Peter Ricketts · BBC News, Townpress Newspaper
US President Donald Trump blocked sanctions on Russia.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · BBC News, NHK WORLD
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Trump's decision only encourages Putin to keep attacking Ukraine.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Volodymyr Zelensky · BBC News, The US Sun
What we left out (2)
French President Emmanuel Macron warned in September that the threat of hybrid attacks by Russia against Europe is growing.Not confirmed · left out · said by Emmanuel Macron
Hybrid attacks are getting more reckless and dangerous, and one day people are going to land up being killed somewhere.Speculation · left out · said by Lord Peter Ricketts · The Guardian, The Independent, EUROPE SAYS
Austrian MEP Lena Schilling speaks out against nude deepfakes and urges EU action
Lena Schilling learned last month that nude deepfakes of herself were circulating online.
1 of 5 claims confirmed · 3 sources
What we confirmed
Lena Schilling learned last month that nude deepfakes of herself were circulating online.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · The Guardian, Ua
What we left out (4)
A letter initiated by Lena Schilling and Terry Reintke and signed by 119 MEPs called on EU officials to ensure a forthcoming ban on apps and websites that use artificial intelligence to digitally undress women is enforced.Single source · left out · The Guardian
Lena Schilling described the deepfake images as a form of digital violence against women.Single source · left out · said by Lena Schilling · The Guardian
50 members of the European Parliament were targeted by sexualized deepfakes, 46 of whom were women.Single source · left out · said by Agora Digitale Transformation · Ua
One in six women MEPs has been affected by sexualized deepfake content.Single source · left out · said by Agora Digitale Transformation · Ua
Cryptographer Uses Claude to Solve Long-Standing ECDSA Curve Seed Mystery
Anthropic reported that an internal Claude research model reconstructed the origin of five NIST elliptic-curve seed values, tracing them to the lrand48 C library pseudorandom number generator initialized with Unix timestamps.
2 of 5 claims confirmed · 7 sources
What we confirmed
Anthropic reported that an internal Claude research model reconstructed the origin of five NIST elliptic-curve seed values, tracing them to the lrand48 C library pseudorandom number generator initialized with Unix timestamps.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Anthropic · Let's Data Science, XenoSpectrum
NIST standardized several curves in the ECDSA standard back in 2000, incorporating seed values supplied by the NSA.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · AnthropicAI, The Decoder
What we left out (3)
Filippo Valsorda reported that he verified the results with his own implementation.Single source · left out · said by Filippo Valsorda · XenoSpectrum
The late NSA employee Jerry Solinas had previously suggested the seeds were a hash of a humorous phrase.Single source · left out · said by Jerry Solinas · The Decoder
The work is not a cryptographic break and there is no action to be taken or things to do differently.Single source · left out · NewsCord
Meta removes website scraping terms for AI training
Meta updated its commercial terms to remove language that suggested it could scrape content from sites to train its AI.
5 of 5 claims confirmed · 9 sources
What we confirmed
Meta updated its commercial terms to remove language that suggested it could scrape content from sites to train its AI.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · The Verge, Let's Data Science
Meta stated that the crawling terms only applied to its ads and business products and do not change how Meta uses web crawlers.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Meta · The Verge, TechCrunch
Content owners can use robots.txt to signal their preferences regarding web crawling.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by Meta · The Verge, 媒角抵加
Publishers and legal experts raised concerns that the earlier wording could authorize scraping of news sites tied to Meta business accounts.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · Let's Data Science, Daily Sabah
Meta removed language from its commercial terms on October 17 that had explicitly permitted use of crawled website content to train products.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · Let's Data Science, 媒角抵加
DeepSeek Releases DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 and Opens Search Engine to Developers
DeepSeek has released the DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 model on its platforms and as an open-weight model on Hugging Face and ModelScope.
4 of 5 claims confirmed · 9 sources
What we confirmed
DeepSeek has released the DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 model on its platforms and as an open-weight model on Hugging Face and ModelScope.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · Huggingface, The Decoder, Tbreak Media UAE
DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 delivers improvements across reasoning, coding, agentic tasks, and visual benchmarks while reducing task execution time and output length.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · said by DeepSeek · Huggingface
The repository and model weights of DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 are licensed under the MIT License.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · Huggingface
DeepSeek is opening up its in-house search engine to outside developers for the first time alongside the model release.Confirmed · two or more independent sources · The Decoder, Tbreak Media UAE
What we left out (1)
DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash is a sparse mixture-of-experts model built on the Causal Encoder-Decoder architecture, activating 8B parameters on input and 16B on output from a 552B-parameter backbone.Single source · left out · OpenRouter
JamesGood morning. It's ten past six in the morning on Sunday the 18th of October.
JamesThis is Not Perfect News. I'm James.
JulieAnd I'm Julie.
JamesHere are today's main stories.
JamesEuropean diplomats have been attacked by Israeli settlers while visiting the occupied West Bank.
JamesDonald Trump has waived sanctions on Russia amid a growing rift with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
JamesViolent protests and mass arrests have swept France as demonstrators demand cost of living action.
JamesComing up, artificial intelligence, technology, and today's feature: DeepSeek Releases DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 and Opens Search Engine to Developers.
JamesThis programme is researched and voiced using AI, and every source is on our website.
JamesHere's Julie with the world news.
JulieThanks, James. Masked Israeli settlers have attacked a delegation of European diplomats, a French mayor, and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
JulieUnited States President Donald Trump has issued an executive order pausing several Russia sanctions on national interest grounds.
JulieAn estimated five hundred and fifty thousand people have taken part in violent protests across France demanding cost of living action.
JulieHere's James with the UK news.
JamesThanks, Julie. A Reform UK candidate and a councillor have been caught making racist remarks in an undercover investigation.
JamesThe party insists there is no room for racism, and councillor Alan Feeney has now resigned.
JamesThe Scottish National Party has begun its campaign for a second independence referendum with one hundred thousand pounds in funding.
JamesFormer officials warn the UK must protect infrastructure from Russian hybrid threats as international sanctions tensions rise.
JamesHere's Julie with the technology and AI news.
JulieThanks, James. An Austrian member of the European Parliament has called for stronger Union measures after discovering non-consensual nude deepfakes of herself online.
JulieLena Schilling learned last month that the manipulated images were circulating.
JulieAnthropic says an internal artificial intelligence model has solved a twenty-four-year-old cryptographic mystery.
JulieThe Claude model traced the origin of five security curve seeds back to a standard random number generator.
JulieMeta has removed website scraping terms from its commercial rules following concern from publishers.
JulieThe company insists the revision does not change how it uses web crawlers.
JulieHere's James with today's feature.
JamesThanks, Julie. The artificial intelligence developer DeepSeek has released a brand new model.
JamesIt is called DeepSeek-V4.1-Flash-1017 and is available right now.
JamesYou can find it on their own platforms as well as Hugging Face and ModelScope.
JamesCrucially, the repository and model weights have been released under an open MIT License.
JamesAlongside this model release, the company is also opening its in-house search engine to external developers for the very first time.
JamesThis gives outside creators direct access to tools that were previously kept strictly in-house.
JulieFor developers, this release is another step in the fast-moving race to make artificial intelligence faster and cheaper.
JulieDeepSeek states that the new model brings noticeable improvements across reasoning, coding, agentic tasks, and visual benchmarks.
JulieThe company also highlights significant reductions in task execution time and output length.
JulieOptimists point out that an open-weight release under an MIT License provides accessible tools for the wider developer community.
JulieThey argue that leaner and faster models point toward much more efficient artificial intelligence deployment overall.
JulieAt the same time, sceptics urge caution regarding rapid model iterations and long-term governance.
JuliePotential data security risks linked to platform usage also warrant closer scrutiny following reports of data breaches.
JulieIndependent verification of these new benchmark performance claims against larger rival models remains ongoing.
JamesAs development continues, observers will be watching to see how competing developers react to the new search engine access.
JamesIndependent tests will soon confirm whether the performance advantages hold up in everyday use.
JamesThat question of scale versus pure efficiency is central to the debate right now.
JamesEngineers are looking closely at whether smaller models can reliably replace massive architectures.
JamesSources across the tech sector note that leaner deployments could significantly cut operational costs for startups.
JulieAt the same time, technical analysts emphasize that benchmarks do not always reflect real-world production demands.
JulieThey suggest that teams must thoroughly test the search engine integration before relying on it for critical applications.
JulieIndustry watchdogs also reiterate that robust data governance frameworks remain essential as these tools evolve.
JamesOpen access and faster processing speeds are great, but only if they come with robust security behind them.
JulieIt certainly keeps the big players on their toes, does it not.
JamesIndeed it does, and at this speed, by tomorrow there will probably be another version.
JulieThanks, James. Before we go, a reminder of today's main stories.
JulieEuropean diplomats have been attacked by Israeli settlers while visiting the West Bank.
JulieDonald Trump has waived Russia sanctions amid a growing rift with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
JulieYou'll find all our sources, the transcript and chapters at news.notperfect.biz.
JulieThis programme is made with AI, so please check the linked sources for anything important.
JulieThat's all from us this morning. I'm Julie.
JamesAnd I'm James. Thanks for listening, and goodbye.
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