Trump Announces US Crypto Reserve, Scale AI Wins Defense Contract, and SpaceX Starship Explodes Midflight

. President Donald Trump has announced plans to establish two distinct cryptocurrency initiatives a strategic Bitcoin reserve specifically for Bitcoin and a US digital asset stockpile for other cryptocurrencies . This move has sparked a significant rally in the crypto market .

The digital asset stockpile will include a diverse range of digital assets beyond Bitcoin , with Trump specifically naming Solana , ripple's XRP and Cardano's ADA as cryptocurrencies to be included . This represents a significant shift in government engagement with the crypto industry .

The announcement follows Trump's January 2025 executive order on digital assets , which directed the presidential working group to evaluate the potential creation of a national digital asset stockpile . Importantly , both initiatives will be capitalized using assets seized through criminal or civil forfeiture proceedings , not through new government purchases .

The creation of separate Bitcoin and digital asset repositories demonstrates

a nuanced recognition of the crypto ecosystem's potential , with Bitcoin receiving special status due to its perceived attributes as the most decentralized cryptocurrency . This strategy could potentially strengthen the US position in the global crypto landscape , aligning with Trump's stated goal of making the US the crypto capital of the world .

To further solidify the US government's engagement with the cryptocurrency industry , the White House hosted an inaugural crypto summit bringing together prominent figures from the crypto sector and members of the president's Working Group on digital assets .

Moving on to our next story , scale AI has secured a multi-million dollar prototype contract with the US Department of Defense for ThunderForge , a flagship artificial intelligence program aimed at integrating AI agents into military operations . Thunderforge will initially focus on the Indo-Pacific Command and European Command .

The program's primary objectives include accelerating decision-making by rapidly synthesizing vast amounts of information , generating multiple courses of action for military planners and conducting AI-powered wargaming to anticipate and respond to evolving threats .

Alexander Wang , scaleai's founder and CEO , expressed pride in leading the initiative , stating that their AI solutions will quote transform today's military operating process and modernize American defense .

The contract represents a significant shift towards data-driven , ai-enhanced military engagements , addressing what Defense Innovation Unit program lead , bryce Goodman described as a fundamental mismatch between the rapid pace of modern warfare and our ability to respond" . Thunderforge leverages cutting-edge AI technologies through strategic partnerships with industry leaders .

The initiative incorporates Microsoft's advanced language model systems and integrates scale AI's innovations into Anduril's modeling and simulation frameworks .

These partnerships and technologies aim to create a comprehensive AI ecosystem that can rapidly analyze threats , simulate battle outcomes and assist military leaders in making informed decisions with unprecedented speed and accuracy . But AI's integration into military operations raises some ethical concerns .

Critics argue that AI-driven decision-making in warfare could lead to reduced human oversight and accountability , potentially increasing the risk of unintended consequences or civilian casualties . There are also concerns about the reliability and bias of AI systems , especially in high-stakes military scenarios where errors could have catastrophic results .

Now let's dive into our main story of the day .

Spacex's Starship spacecraft experienced its second consecutive failure on Friday , march 6 , exploding mid-flight during its eighth test launch and causing significant disruptions to air traffic across Florida and the Caribbean . The incident occurred approximately nine minutes after launch .

Multiple engine shutdowns led to a loss of attitude control , causing the vehicle to spin out of control before disintegrating in a spectacular shower of debris over the Caribbean . This happened shortly after the successful separation and landing of the super-heavy booster , which was caught by the Mechazilla launch tower arms .

Spacex described the event as a rapid , unscheduled disassembly during the ascent burn , resulting in a complete loss of communication with the spacecraft . The explosion triggered significant air traffic disruptions across Florida and the Caribbean .

The Federal Aviation Administration implemented temporary ground stops at several major airports , including Miami International , fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International , palm Beach International and Orlando International . These measures were taken due to concerns about falling debris from the disintegrated

spacecraft . Flight delays ranged from 30 to 45 minutes at affected airports , with some flights being diverted to ensure passenger safety . The incident's impact extended beyond Florida , affecting air traffic as far north as Pennsylvania . Following the explosion , the FAA mandated a thorough investigation into the incident to identify the root cause and ensure public safety .

Spacex has begun analyzing flight data to understand the failure . The company remains committed to advancing the Starship program for future deep space missions , despite these setbacks . This failure follows a similar incident in January 2025 . This failure follows a similar incident in January 2025 .

During that test flight , a fire developed just above the super-heavy first-stage engines , approximatelyllant feed lines , adjustments to fuel temperatures and the addition of a nitrogen purge system to minimize fire risk . Despite these modifications , the March test flight encountered similar issues , highlighting the ongoing challenges in developing this ambitious spacecraft

. As we look ahead , it will be crucial to watch how SpaceX addresses these recurring problems and what impact these setbacks might have on the company's ambitious timeline for Starship's operational deployment . That wraps up today's episode of Discover Daily . Thanks for tuning in .

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