State news agency reported the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its armed forces are on high alert, prepared to repel any potential enemy incursions or violations of agreements and to defend Iran's national security.

Four units of Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Group — Zhenhua Transmission, Zhenhua Changxing branch, Zhenhua Heavy Equipment and Zhenhua Nantong branch — have been awarded CMMM Level-3 (integration level) certification. The Intelligent Manufacturing Capability Maturity Model (CMMM), guided by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and issued by the China Electronics Standardization Institute, is a national assessment of intelligent manufacturing capability. Including a port-machinery unit that secured certification earlier this year, the group now has five units with official Level-3 certification, signalling progress in its digital-intelligence buildout.

AI-driven demand for data-center power has pushed electricity prices higher and prompted outage warnings in parts of the US. On the 18th, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) asked regional grid operators to adopt new agreements to speed interconnection for large users such as data centers, and said it will no longer proactively factor environmental impacts under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when drafting rules. Data Center Map shows more than 4,000 operational US data centers, with many more planned or under construction; buildouts are outpacing new power-plant commissioning and slow interconnection is forcing tech firms to compete for power allocations. The Electric Power Research Institute estimates data centers now account for about 5% of US electricity demand and could reach roughly 20% by 2035.