Category: Azer News

Google is preparing to conduct the first orbital test of its Project Suncatcher, launching a prototype satellite equipped with Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) to study whether AI computing infrastructure can operate in space.

The satellite is scheduled to launch on October 1, 2026, as part of SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission. The spacecraft was developed in partnership with Planet and will carry four Google TPU chips designed for AI workloads.

The main goal of the mission is to determine how Google’s AI hardware performs under the extreme conditions of low Earth orbit, including radiation, intense temperature changes and the physical stresses of launch. Cooling the chips will also be a major challenge, as conventional airflow-based cooling systems cannot operate in the vacuum of space.

Project Suncatcher envisions a future network of solar-powered satellites equipped with AI processors and connected through high-speed optical links. According to Google, solar panels in certain low-Earth orbits could generate up to eight times more power than comparable systems on Earth because they can receive sunlight almost continuously.

The first mission will be a small-scale experiment, but Google sees it as an important step toward developing large-scale AI computing infrastructure in orbit. Future satellites could work together as a distributed space-based AI system, potentially reducing the need for land and other resources required by large terrestrial data centers.

Azerbaijan and Georgia have discussed expanding cooperation in youth and sports during a meeting between Azerbaijan’s Minister of Youth and Sports Farid Gayibov and a delegation from Georgia’s Parliament headed by Deputy Speaker Nino Tsilosani.

The meeting also covered the development of Azerbaijan-Georgia relations and ways to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

The sides exchanged views on expanding contacts between the relevant institutions and developing cooperation in areas of mutual interest.

Note that Azerbaijan and Georgia have maintained regular sports contacts, with football providing one of the clearest areas of cooperation. The football federations of the two countries have held working meetings to discuss future cooperation and the exchange of experience aimed at supporting football development in both countries.

Youth football has also been an active part of these ties. Azerbaijani and Georgian youth teams regularly meet in training camps and friendly matches. In February 2026, for example, Azerbaijan’s women’s Under-17 team travelled to Tbilisi for a training camp and played two friendly matches against Georgia’s Under-17 side.

Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have launched 10 investment projects with a total value of $389 million, according to Jasurbek Choriyev, Secretary General of the Permanent Secretariat of the TRACECA Intergovernmental Commission.

Choriyev, who was serving as Deputy Minister of Transport of Uzbekistan when the interview was conducted, said the projects were launched during Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Uzbekistan on August 23-24.

‘These projects include the construction of a network of filling stations by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). The first phase involves plans to build five filling stations in the Namangan, Jizzakh, Samarkand, Syrdarya, and Tashkent regions,’ Choriyev said.

He added that construction has also begun on the ‘Azerbaijan’ park, which will cover an area of 4 hectares in the New Tashkent district.

The projects form part of the expanding economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, with investments spanning energy infrastructure and other areas of bilateral cooperation.

Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to Turkmenistan Gismet Gozalov has met with Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan Gahraman Roziyev and Chairman of the Turkmenistan-Azerbaijan parliamentary friendship group Annamuhammet Sarcayev.

The Azerbaijani Embassy in Turkmenistan reported that the meeting focused on the development of brotherly relations and strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan across various areas.

The sides noted that the historical, cultural, ethnic, linguistic and religious ties between the Azerbaijani and Turkmen peoples form a strong foundation for bilateral relations.

The participants expressed satisfaction with the recent dynamics of Azerbaijan-Turkmenistan relations. In this regard, they highlighted Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Turkmenistan in 2025, visits by Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, National Leader of the Turkmen people and Chairman of the Halk Maslahaty of Turkmenistan, to Azerbaijan, as well as other high-level contacts that have contributed to further strengthening bilateral ties.

The importance of Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov’s state visit to Azerbaijan on June 22-23, 2026, was also emphasized. During the visit, the presidents of the two countries signed a Joint Declaration and a number of documents covering various areas, which the sides said would further expand the legal framework for bilateral cooperation.

The meeting also included an exchange of views on the current state and prospects of parliamentary cooperation. The sides emphasized that increasing mutual visits, meetings and direct contacts between parliamentary speakers, lawmakers and parliamentary friendship groups would contribute to deepening bilateral relations.

They noted that the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation between the parliaments of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan in Ashgabat in 2022 was an important step toward strengthening the institutional foundations of interparliamentary relations.

The parties discussed cooperation between the parliaments of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan within regional and international parliamentary platforms, as well as the continuation of consultations and mutual support.

The meeting also included an exchange of views on other issues of mutual interest.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte stated on Thursday that Russia is scaling up its military production and its armed forces.

“If NATO would be at war with Russia, we have other means to make our views known to the Russians, more than Ukraine can do at the moment. So there will be a difference,” Rutte noted during the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Moreover, the secretary general claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not content at the moment because “things are not moving in the right direction for him,” and urged all NATO members to remain calm. “Putin knows we are strong,” he concluded.

The sounds of Formula 1 will give way to the beats of global pop music in Baku tonight, as international pop star Katy Perry takes the stage at Baku Crystal Hall.

The Grammy-nominated singer is set to perform some of her biggest hits, including “Roar”, “Firework” and “Dark Horse”, for thousands of Formula 1 fans gathered in the Azerbaijani capital.

Perry’s concert is one of the most anticipated events on the entertainment programme marking the 10th anniversary Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The show is expected to bring together thousands of fans and add a new wave of energy to the race weekend.

While Formula 1 action will keep fans engaged at the Baku City Circuit throughout the day, attention will shift to Baku Crystal Hall in the evening as Perry takes the stage.

During the day, Baku will be filled with the sound of F1 engines, while Katy Perry takes over the stage in the evening.

The true owners of a US-based company that sells software to the Pentagon and other US government agencies have been identified as Russian citizens who, according to a federal indictment, also sold similar software to Russian intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

Lee Reiber, 55, the Idaho-based head of Oxygen Forensics, was arrested on September 22 and subsequently released on bail.

Oleg Davydov, 52, a Moscow resident, was detained two days earlier at London’s Heathrow Airport. US authorities have said they will seek his extradition.

According to an indictment unsealed on September 23, Oxygen Forensics and Reiber allegedly provided false information to the US government regarding the ownership and management of the Virginia-based company.

The company and Reiber claimed that Oxygen Forensics had no foreign owners, was not managed from abroad, and that its software was developed entirely in the United States.

Prosecutors, however, allege that the company’s actual owners are Davydov and four other unnamed Russian citizens.

According to the indictment, the same individuals also managed a company in Moscow that sold software and provided technical services to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the Investigative Committee and other Russian law enforcement agencies.

The case has raised concerns over the ownership and development of software supplied to US government agencies, given the alleged links between Oxygen Forensics’ ownership and Russian state security and law enforcement bodies.

In the first seven months of 2026, Germany imported around 175,000 vehicles from China, a 120% increase compared with the same period last year. Imports from the Czech Republic reached 173,000 units, while Spain supplied 157,000 vehicles.

The sharp increase in Chinese car deliveries was driven primarily by electric and hybrid vehicles. Imports of electric cars rose by 66%, while deliveries of hybrids increased by 36%. At the same time, imports of Chinese vehicles with internal combustion engines fell by 9%.

New-energy vehicles now account for more than 56% of Germany’s total car imports from China, highlighting the growing role of electrified vehicles in the European market.

Overall, Germany imported around 1.3 million cars during the first seven months of the year, 16% more than a year earlier. Meanwhile, German car exports fell by 4% to approximately 2 million vehicles. In value terms, car imports increased by more than 12%, reaching almost pound 35 billion.

The shift is particularly notable because Germany is home to some of the world’s largest automakers. The growing presence of Chinese electric and hybrid models is increasing competition in the European market, while also accelerating the transformation of Germany’s traditionally strong automotive sector.

Iran has never sought to develop nuclear weapons and is prepared to comply with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told in an interview with Fox News.

“We have never sought nuclear weapons. We want to comply with the Non-Proliferation Treaty,” Pezeshkian noted.

Asked whether Iran wants to acquire a nuclear warhead, the Iranian president said, “Absolutely not.” He cited statements by Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei that possessing weapons of mass destruction is prohibited under Islam.

Pezeshkian also emaphasized that he was unaware of reports that China had provided Iran with satellite images of US military bases in the Middle East.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump told the UN General Assembly that he faced a choice between reaching an agreement with Iran and “annihilating” the Islamic Republic. Trump also said he expected a possible deal after the US midterm elections in November 2026.

On the night of June 18, the United States and Iran signed a memorandum outlining a series of steps to end the conflict. The document included the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and assurances from Tehran that it had no plans to develop nuclear weapons. However, the agreement failed to produce the expected results.

Iran has conveyed a proposal to the United States to resume negotiations and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told The Washington Post that Tehran had proposed resuming talks with the US administration within seven days in an effort to end the full-scale conflict.

The proposal is reportedly similar to a memorandum of understanding reached between the two sides in June.

Araghchi said Tehran was awaiting Washington’s response. According to him, Iran is not in a hurry, but considers it appropriate for negotiations to resume before the US congressional elections scheduled for November.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Washington was engaged in “positive and constructive” talks through the mediation of a third party.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow maritime passage between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, holding significant strategic importance as approximately 20% of global oil supplies and around 25% of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports pass through it. Essentially, it serves as an energy artery for countries in Asia, Europe, and even the United States.

The strait separates Iran from Oman, and in some areas, the width of the shipping channel is only two miles on each side. Given its critical role in global energy supply chains, ensuring the safety and security of this vital waterway is paramount for international trade and economic stability.