Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
A long-awaited report on the UK’s role in the 2003 Iraq invasion. The Chilcot committee has been investigating the foreign policy debacle for seven years—longer than Britain actually fought in Iraq—and could further tarnish the legacy of former prime minister Tony Blair.
Taiwan and Japan face typhoon Nepartak. The storm is expected to bring flooding rains and winds of 160-210 km/h. Conditions are ripe for Nepartak to strengthen further and reach super-typhoon status.
Ban Ki Moon visits China. The UN secretary-general begins five days of meetings with Beijing officials just as China preps for military drills in the South China Sea. Tensions have been rising ahead of a July 12 decision by an international court over the territorial dispute between China and the Philippines.
While you were sleeping
Hillary Clinton is off the hook. The FBI recommended that no criminal charges be filed against the presumptive Democrat presidential nominee for using a private email server while leading the State Department. FBI director James Comey did chide Clinton for being “extremely careless“; her Republican rival, Donald Trump, called the decision “very unfair.”
Theresa May got closer to becoming the next UK prime minister. The UK home secretary dominated the first round of voting to choose David Cameron’s successor, winning the backing of a majority of Tory MPs. May now must convince the rank and file, who could object to her anti-Brexit stance.
Three British property funds froze withdrawals. Investors were trying to pull out their money in the wake of the Brexit vote, reviving scary memories of the global financial crisis. Jittery investors sent the British pound to a new post-Brexit low, but for now it seems to be a correction, not a panic.
Hungary announced its own anti-EU referendum. Just 12 days after the Brexit vote, Hungary announced a referendum on Oct. 2 on whether to accept quotas for resettling asylum seekers that the EU plans to impose on most member states. Hungary has drawn criticism for its anti-refugee stance during the ongoing migration crisis.
Big Oil dropped $36.8 billion in Kazakhstan. In one of the biggest investments since oil prices tumbled in 2014, Chevron and Exxon Mobil expanded their drilling project in central Asia. The announcement comes after BP said it was spending big bucks on a new plant in Indonesia, suggesting the industry is climbing out of its slump.
Quartz markets haiku
Last time the pound was
This low against the dollar
Dire Straits topped the charts
Quartz obsession interlude
Tim Fernholz on the real reason Elon Musk is bringing Tesla and SolarCity together. “The writing on the wall is clear: Solar City needs a new way to capture the excess power of its solar plants, or its customers will dry up. One way to capture excess power? Batteries that store the extra power within the home for use later. And Tesla is in the middle of building an enormous factory to produce arguably the most advanced batteries in the world.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Vladimir Putin’s interests align with Donald Trump’s. Russia’s attempts to back right-wing populists have found the perfect candidate.
Africa is really tired of white savior memoirs. The latest best-seller is by a Scottish actress who spent a gap year in Zambia.
US immigration policy is badly outdated. It’s focused on economic migrants from Mexico, with scant thought given to everyone else.
Surprising discoveries
A burger-flipping robot wants to make cooks obsolete… A San Francisco start-up (natch) is also hiring a solitary human manager.
…And a robotic butt is helping to detect prostate cancer. It’s training doctors for a very different kind of digital technique.
A singularly unlucky man keeps getting killed in terrorist attacks. Or so it seems from the hoax photos that the news media keep falling for.
Russia’s notorious children’s ombudsman finally went too far. He asked the survivors of a horrific boating accident: “So, how was the swim?”
Marijuana has gotten really complicated. In Washington state, traditional “flower” makes up less than half of sales alongside edibles, pre-rolls, tinctures, and capsules.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, robot butts, and complicated marijuana to hi@qz.com. You can download our iPhone app or follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.