☕ The Group Chat Edition

Good morning!

In the news headline hall of fame, ‘The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans’ would rank up there, regardless of which side of politics you belong to.

Beyond the headline, this is a really significant story - we break it all down here.

I’ve got 30 seconds

Some headlines from this morning:

Countries that buy Venezuelan oil will face a new 25% tariff on imports into the US from April 2. President Donald Trump announced the tariffs yesterday as part of an increase of pressure on Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro, who the White House says has not made enough progress on electoral reform and migrant returns. The President previously targeted Venezuelan oil, the country’s main export, when he gave US oil company Chevron 30 days to stop all operations in the country in early March. This week’s announcement included an extension of that deadline until May 21. The Venezuelan government rejected the "new aggression", calling the new measures ‘illegal, arbitrary and desperate.”

An Oscar-winning Palestinian co-director of the documentary “No Other Land” has allegedly been attacked by Israeli settlers and detained by the Israeli military. Yuval Abraham, a co-director of the documentary, said on X: “A group of settlers just lynched Hamdan Ballal… They beat him, and he has injuries in his head and stomach, bleeding… No sign of him since.” An IDF spokesperson told NBC News: “The forces arrested three Palestinians suspected of throwing stones at the force and an Israeli citizen who was involved in the violent clashes. The detainees were taken to the Israel Police for further questioning.”

Federal Judge Boasberg has reaffirmed his block on the Trump administration's use of wartime power to deport suspected Tren de Aragua gang members. The block comes as the Justice Department refuses to hand over flight data on US planes that carried suspected gang members to El Salvador despite Boasberg’s block. The Department cited national security concerns, adding that if it provided any more flight data, it would cause “separation-of-powers harms.” Boasberg said the block would be maintained to ensure migrants have the opportunity to challenge gang-affiliation accusations.

Hyundai, a South Korean auto and steel manufacturing giant, has announced it will expand its manufacturing capacity in the US, an investment of $21 billion. President Trump declared the investment was proof that his tariffs were working, while South Korea hoped that Hyundai’s action would help it dodge or lessen tariffs on imports to the US. The investment will include a $6 million build of a steel factory in Louisiana and a $9 billion expansion of the company’s auto manufacturing capacity in the US. Hyundai will also invest further in producing electric vehicles and supporting EV infrastructure.

I’ve got 1 minute

Genetic testing company 23andMe has filed for bankruptcy after years of controversy and decreasing sales. It means a court-supervised sale of the company or its assets will begin.

The company became widely popular for its mail-out saliva genetic testing kits, which assisted users in understanding their heritage.

After briefly reaching a $6 billion market valuation in 2021, the company has faced significant challenges and has dropped to a current valuation of around $50 million.

The impending sale has raised concerns about what will happen to customer data currently held by the company.

2023 data breach

The beginning of 23andMe’s challenges began in 2023, when hackers stole the personal genetic data of seven million customers in a large-scale data breach. Hackers specifically targeted Jewish and Chinese customers. Late last year, the company settled a lawsuit brought by customers over the hack for $30 million.

Trends in Genetic Testing Kits

Since the data breach, 23andMe has seen a sharp drop in sales of its genetic testing kits. The drop-off was partly attributed to the breach and flaws in the business model, which meant customers often purchased just one kit.

Analysts also suspect the overall market for genetic testing may be exhausted.

Leadership resignations and mass firings

In late 2024, all of the company’s independent directors resigned amid negotiations with co-founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki, who was attempting to buy the company back from existing shareholders. The directors cited a “clear” difference of opinion with Wojcicki and her ambitions for the company.

Months later, the company fired 40% of its employees and closed its therapeutic division.

What’s next?

23andMe believes the bankruptcy filing will help facilitate the company's sale. The board’s chair said a sale would help them cut costs and solve legal issues that could leave them exposed to potential damages.

In response, Wojcicki stepped down to be “in the best position” to make an independent bid on the company.

The company will remain operational throughout the sale process and will not change its data collection and storage practices.

Concerns have been raised about the sale of such sensitive ancestral data, and 23andMe customers have been reminded they can request that the company delete or remove their data at any time.

I’ve got 2 minutes

The White House has confirmed that a journalist was accidentally added to a group chat where a number of top U.S. officials were discussing a planned strike against the Houthi rebel group in Yemen.

On Monday, The Atlantic's editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed he was added to a private Signal group chat titled ‘Houthi PC small group’ earlier this month.

The US strikes targeting the Houthis in Yemen have continued this week.

Some context

Before we explain the group chat, it’s essential to understand the context of what they were discussing.

The Houthis are an Iran-backed group based in Yemen. They have been fighting in a civil war in Yemen since 2014.

Houthi forces control parts of Yemen, a country that borders the Red Sea – which is a popular trade route for international commercial vessels, accounting for roughly 12% of global trade.

Since October of 2023, the Houthis have been launching sporadic attacks on military and commercial ships in the Red Sea, as well as directly at Israel. The UN has previously said these attacks are designed to support Hamas.

Earlier this month, the US launched significant strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. U.S. airstrikes have continued this week, with the group reporting 101 people have been killed and 30 injured.

Trump has previously said the attacks are designed to “protect American shipping, air, and naval assets, and to restore Navigational Freedom.”

The group chat

On Monday, the Editor-in-Chief of the Atlantic (an American media outlet) published a story called ‘The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans’.

In this article, Jeffrey Goldberg claimed that earlier this month he was accidentally added to a private group chat on Signal (a messaging service).

Goldberg claimed the group he was added to was called ‘Houthi PC small group‘. He said the group included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Intelligence head Tulsi Gabbard, among other top national security officials.

The discussion

In his article, Goldberg said that the group was created by Mike Waltz, Trump’s National Security Advisor. According to Goldberg, it was explained that the group was created to discuss “coordination on Houthis” ahead of impending U.S. attacks.

Goldberg says that throughout the discussion, Vice President Vance questioned whether attacking the Houthis was a mistake, arguing Europe would benefit more than the U.S. “I just hate bailing Europe out again,” he wrote.

According to Goldberg, the text debate ended when an account believed to be Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller wrote: “As I understand it the president was clear: green light...”

The following day, U.S. Secretary of Defence Pete Hegeseth sent a message titled “TEAM UPDATE,” which detailed strike targets, weapons, and operational plans.

Two hours later, the Houthis were hit by U.S. airstrikes at the exact time the message had indicated.

The response

Goldberg left the chat earlier this month and contacted some of the officials in the Signal chat directly, asking them to confirm the group was real.

A spokesperson for the National Security Council has confirmed the group was real.

The spokesperson said, “This appears to be an authentic message chain, and we are reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to it.”

The fallout

The Trump administration has downplayed the incident, calling the chat a sign of “deep and thoughtful policy coordination.”

A Vance spokesperson insisted he fully supports the President’s policies.

Trump denied knowledge of the chat.

A Democratic Armed Services Committee member called it “one of the most egregious failures of operational security and common sense I have ever seen.“