MARKETS IN FREEFALL: FUTURES TANK AFTER $6.6T WIPEOUT 📉💣💵 Wall Street just had its worst two-day start to a quarter since 2008 — and it’s not over.
—> WHAT’S HAPPENING: U.S. stock futures crashed Sunday night as the White House doubled down on tariffs, ignoring global market panic. Dow futures dropped 1,531 points (-4%), S&P and Nasdaq futures slid 4-5%, and Bitcoin and oil both fell, continuing a brutal spiral that began with Trump’s surprise global tariff rollout.
—> WHAT STARTED IT: Trump’s blanket 10% import tax and steep "reciprocal tariffs" — including 34% on China, 20% on the EU, and 25% on foreign autos — hit hard. Then China struck back, matching duties and escalating trade tensions.
—> THE DAMAGE SO FAR: U.S. stocks shed $6.6 trillion in value in two days. It’s the worst start to a quarter since the Lehman crash. Big Tech got clobbered. Traders are now hoarding cash and bracing for more volatility. Retailers are warning of consumer price hikes as tariffs ripple through supply chains.
—> SAFE HAVENS? MAYBE. Even gold slipped 1.9% last week — though it's still hovering just above $3,000/oz. All eyes are on the People’s Bank of China, set to release reserve data that could signal more gold buying — a key support for bullion’s recent rally.
hello, future. it’s me, kev.
…and this is a dispatch from the digital frontier. It’s time to meet the future NOW — with the latest on markets, tech, and freedom. The day is 97. The year is 2025. The planet is Earth.
The planet has complete 26.58 percent of its annual orbit around the sun star.
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FUTURES
TIKTOK GETS 75 MORE DAYS 🕒🇺🇸📱 Trump just signed an executive order extending the deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok — or face a U.S. ban.
—> WHAT’S HAPPENING: TikTok’s future in America is still on the line. Under a law signed by President Biden last year, ByteDance has to sell or get booted from U.S. app stores and web hosts. Now, Trump’s giving them 75 more days to finalize a deal with U.S. buyers.
—> WHY THE DELAY? Trump posted on Truth Social that the deal is making “tremendous progress” — but needs more time for approvals. He also hinted the move ties into his new tariffs on China, though details are unclear.
—> THE BIG PICTURE: This is less about dancing teens and more about national security, data control, and who owns the digital public square. TikTok has 170M users in the U.S. — and no one’s sure yet what comes next.
Source: Engadget
CRYPTO
BITCOIN DIPS BELOW $80K AS MARKETS SHUDDER 📉🪙📊 After flirting with a decoupling from stocks, BTC and altcoins are back in sync — and sliding.
—> WHAT’S GOING ON: Bitcoin dropped below $80,000 today, signaling potential sell-offs across crypto when U.S. markets open. This comes after a wild week where the S&P 500 plunged 9%, gold dropped 1.9%, and crypto looked like it might escape the storm.
—> THE TRIGGER: Trump’s April 2 tariff blitz rattled global markets. Then China hit back with its own tariffs — and investors got spooked. Even traditional safe havens like gold took a hit.
—> WHY IT MATTERS: Some analysts had hoped Bitcoin would act more like gold — a hedge, not a risk asset. But today’s drop suggests crypto is still tied to macro market nerves. Traders now watching to see if tokens like PI, OKB, GT, and ATOM can break away from BTC’s trend.
Source: Cointelegraph
SPACE
PENTAGON WANTS STARTUPS TO BUILD AMERICA’S MISSILE SHIELD IN SPACE 🛰️🛡️ From coders to rocket geeks, the U.S. is calling on tech outsiders to help shoot down threats from orbit.
—> WHAT’S GOING ON: The Pentagon is building a space-based missile defense system — and they’re not just calling Lockheed. The Missile Defense Agency and U.S. Space Force want non-traditional tech firms to pitch bold ideas for how to stop nukes mid-flight.
—> WHAT IS “GOLDEN DOME”? It’s the U.S. military’s most ambitious missile defense plan yet: satellite-based interceptors that detect, track, and destroy incoming weapons from space. Think global coverage. Instant response. Sci-fi made real.
—> WHO THEY WANT: Startups. AI labs. Aerospace hackers. Anyone with disruptive tech. A special conference this month will explain how newcomers can help design what may be the next era of global defense.
Source: SpaceNews.
QUANTUM // ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
SPACEX WANTS MARS BY 2026… WITH A ROBOT ON BOARD 🚀🪐🤖 Elon Musk says Starship will head to the Red Planet by the end of next year — if it stops exploding first.
—> MARS MISSION INCOMING: Elon’s Starship — the tallest rocket ever built — might launch to Mars in 2026, with human landings possible by 2029. That is, if it survives testing. The last two prototypes ended in fiery “rapid unscheduled disassemblies” (aka explosions).
—> WHAT’S ON BOARD? Elon says the mission will carry Optimus, Tesla’s humanoid robot, built to one day do your chores for ~$25K. (Mars housekeeper? Sure.)
—> THE BIGGER PLAN: Make humans multi-planetary. NASA’s also counting on a version of Starship for its Moon missions.
Source: BBC
With gratitude,
Kev
ABOUT mtf.tv’s meet the future: mtf.tv’s meet the future is a cutting-edge platform focused on addressing key challenges at the intersection of national security, technology, and business. With a mission to embrace freedom to meet the future’s challenges and opportunities, mtf.tv offers forward-thinking media offerings and forums.
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