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Blockchain Basics Act Introduced in Ohio, South Carolina, and Mississippi

Blockchain Basics Act Introduced in Ohio, South Carolina, and MississippiThe Blockchain Basics Act, a series of regulations aimed at safeguarding people’s cryptocurrency rights at a state level, has been introduced in three more U.S. states: Ohio, South Carolina, and Mississippi. With this move, similar cryptocurrency regulation has been introduced in seven states and passed in Missouri. Blockchain Basics Act Regulation Reaches Ohio, South Carolina […]

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US voters across 4 swing states oppose anti-crypto pres candidates: Coinbase

A poll of voters in New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio and Pennsylvania found 55% would be less likely to vote for anti-web3 presidential candidate, said Coinbase.

Crypto exchange Coinbase says it will focus its "Stand with Crypto" campaign on nine states in the U.S., including four “swing states” with voters polled as less likely to choose anti-crypto presidential candidates.

The four “swing states” include New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, which are just some of the states the crypto exchange is set to focus its “Stand with Crypto” campaign, it said in a Sept. 19 blog.

“Polling in the fall of 2022 showed that in the key states of NH, NV, OH, and PA, over half (55%) of voters stated that they would be less likely to vote for candidates who oppose crypto and Web3,” said Coinbase, citing survey data collected in a Morning Consult poll a year prior.

The October-published poll included 800 likely voters across the four states. Between 13-19% of respondents in the four states claimed to own cryptocurrency at the time of the polling.

Percentage of voters in the four swing states that own cryptocurrencies or nonfungible tokens. Source: Morning Consult

Coinbase also cited that in Nevada, Ohio and Pennsylvania in particular, more than 40% of crypto owners use blockchain to remit money overseas to help family members pay for food, housing and health care for far less than what banks typically charge with international wire transfers.

Coinbase attempts to mobilize crypto users

The highlighted research comes amid an ongoing “Stand With Crypto” campaign, a 14-month-long campaign launched by Coinbase in August, pushing for crypto legislation in the country.

Coinbase said the campaign will focus on the four “swing states” but will also include an intense focus on Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, and Wisconsin, which have an “over-index” when it comes to crypto owners, it said.

“While a growing number of elected officials in Congress are advocating for legislation to regulate crypto and drive progress in the financial system, others are simply choosing to protect the status quo.

Coinbase is also set to organize a “Stand with Crypto Day” will take place in Washington D.C. on Sept. 27 to advocate for better cryptocurrency innovation and policy.

Related: Coinbase CEO says leaving US ‘not even in the realm of possibility right now’ — Report

The campaign is also encouraging crypto owners and supporters to take a moment to call their members of Congress and ask them to pass clear, sensible legislation.

“Today we kick off this effort by rallying the collective energy of the community, and taking the fight off X (formerly known as Twitter) and on to the phones."

“The campaign will encourage crypto owners and supporters to take one minute of their day to call their member of Congress and ask them to pass clear, sensible legislation,” it added.

Magazine: Binance, Coinbase head to court, and the SEC labels 67 crypto-securities: Hodler’s Digest, June 4-10

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AIs and fries: Wendy’s to trial chatbot drive-thru operator

Wendy’s says its "FreshAI" bot reduces costs allowing funds to be focused elsewhere, others worry that eventually, those less skilled will be jobless.

An artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot dubbed "Wendy’s FreshAI," will take orders from Wendy's drive-thru customers after the fast-food chain partnered with Google Cloud to create the bot.

Over three-quarters of Wendy’s customers prefer to place their orders via drive-thru, according to a May 9 announcement from Google Cloud and the Tech Giant claimed using a chatbot to service these customers will “revolutionize the quick service restaurant industry.”

AI chatbots such as OpenAI's ChatGPT use natural language processing to understand what people are saying, and then use machine learning algorithms to generate a response.

In a statement to Wall Street Journal, Wendy’s CEO and president Todd Penegor said the chatbot “will be very conservational,” adding “you won’t know you’re talking to anybody but an employee.”

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian noted, however, there many challenges associated with using chatbots to service drive-thru customers though, and said:

“You may think driving by and speaking into a drive-through is an easy problem for AI, but it’s actually one of the hardest”

The diversity of customers' orders is one challenge that Wendy’s and Google Cloud will have to overcome, as many customers might call menu items by a different name or have special requests. Additionally, the chatbot will also have to filter out any background noise.

To help refine the AI chatbot before it is rolled out to multiple stores, Wendy’s FreshAI will undergo a pilot launch at a Columbus, Ohio, restaurant in June. Customers will still have the option to speak to a human too.

Related: 5 ways AI is helping to improve customer service in e-commerce

Not everyone is impressed with the announcement though, with some arguing it's the latest way companies are “systematically eradicating jobs” and highlighted teenagers and others who are less skilled looking to gain employment would be the most affected by the change.

While AI has enormous potential to improve efficiency, increase productivity, and reduce costs in various industries, its unprecedented growth has many worried that it will bring about massive falls in employment as AI is used for tasks previously assigned to humans.

Magazine: $3.4B of Bitcoin in a popcorn tin — The Silk Road hacker’s story

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FTX’s Odd Relationship With Vertical Farming Firms — A Look at Exchange Boss Ryan Salame’s and Bahamian PM Philip Davis’ Trip to 80 Acres

FTX’s Odd Relationship With Vertical Farming Firms — A Look at Exchange Boss Ryan Salame’s and Bahamian PM Philip Davis’ Trip to 80 AcresAfter discovering that ten holding firms associated with FTX Digital and Alameda Research invested roughly $5.4 billion into nearly 500 firms and projects, people have been curious about a few specific investments. One specific investment made by FTX Ventures Ltd. was for $25 million into the Ohio-based firm 80 Acres, a company that specializes in […]

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Bitcoin-friendly Republican candidate JD Vance wins Ohio Senate primary

Ohio’s midterm election in November will feature a Democrat and Donald Trump-backed Republican who are both friendly to the crypto industry.

JD Vance has won the Ohio Republican Senate primary election, making him the GOP’s candidate in the highly anticipated Senate race against Democrat Tim Ryan in which both parties are trotting out crypto-friendly candidates.

The Guardian reported that Vance may have been pushed to victory on Tuesday by a last-minute endorsement from former President Donald Trump on Apr. 23, helping him beat out presumed front-runner, the former state treasurer Josh Mandel.

Both Vance and Mandel are crypto supporters, with Mandel famously tweeting “Ohio must be a pro-God, pro-family, pro-Bitcoin state.”.

Vance has disclosed Bitcoin (BTC) holdings valued at up to $250,000, which at today’s value could be about 6.5 coins according to CoinGecko. He was also backed by Bitcoin proponent and billionaire investor Peter Thiel through a Super PAC. Bloomberg reported on Apr. 20 that Thiel donated $3.5 million to the Protect Ohio Values Super PAC.

Democrat Tim Ryan meanwhile stands in favor of a law that helps simplify the digital asset tax reporting requirements.

A report from CNBC on May 3 highlights how cryptocurrency investors are also having a noticeable impact on the upcoming midterm elections which will take place in November. Largest among them appears to be CEO and founder of crypto exchange FTX Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF). SBF has been a high-profile political donor since the last presidential election when he was the second largest financial contributor to President Joe Biden’s campaign.

SBF has formed another Political Action Committee (PAC) called the Protect Our Future PAC. It has raised over $14 million as of March 31, and CNBC reports that it could be used to have a dramatic impact on the upcoming elections. There are also the GMI PAC and the HODL PAC, which hold a combined $6.3 million and which are backed by other FTX employees to support midterm candidates.

Related: Crypto advocate mounts challenge to longtime Silicon Valley Congresswoman

However, candidates who have opted to decline funding from PACs may take issue with all the crypto money flying around. Democratic Ohio State Congressional candidate Nina Turner tweeted on Apr. 15 that she “is not for sale,” alluding to opponent (and victor) Shontei Brown who accepted PAC money for her campaign.

TRON DAO at Cornell Blockchain Conference

US Still Dominates Bitcoin Mining Sector, 30-Day Stats Show Foundry USA Takes Top Pool Position

US Still Dominates Bitcoin Mining Sector, 30-Day Stats Show Foundry USA Takes Top Pool PositionSince the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (CBECI) project updated its mining map in mid-July, the United States has continued to dominate in terms of the amount of hashpower worldwide. Moreover, data shows that Foundry USA has managed to command the top pool position with 755 bitcoin block rewards mined during the last 30 days. […]

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Ohio to host BIT Mining’s new 85 MW Bitcoin mining facility

BIT Mining Limited has entered into a joint venture agreement with Viking Data Centers to develop a Bitcoin mining site in Ohio.

Bitcoin (BTC) mining company BIT Mining plans to invest $12.14 million to develop an 85 megawatts crypto mining center in Ohio.

As the company that owns the entire mining pool business operated under BTC.com, BIT Mining set up a joint venture agreement with Viking Data Centers to establish the Bitcoin mining facility.

As part of the JV agreement, BIT Mining will pay $10.84 million in cash to Viking Data with the remaining sum settled in cash or company stock.

Following its investment in Viking Data and the subsequent JV agreement, BIT Mining will own 51% of the Ohio Bitcoin mining facility.

Dubbed the “Ohio Mining Site,” the planned 85MW Bitcoin mining facility will reportedly be developed in three phases.

The first stage of the facility’s development will see the capacity reach 11MW by Oct. 15, 2021, while the second and third phases having milestone capacities of 39 and 35MW respectively.

The timeline for the second and third phases, according to the announcement is Nov. 15, 2021, and Feb. 15, 2022.

Wednesday’s announcement also stated that BIT Mining has already secured 1,016 Bitcoin mining machines with plans for further inventory expansion.

Related: Crypto cowboys: Texas counties welcome Bitcoin miners with open arms

The Ohio Mining Site is one of many Bitcoin mining facilities set to go live in the United States amid a steady migration of hash power to North American locations.

Following China’s crypto mining crackdown in the summer, miners have been forced to move their equipment overseas.

North American mining establishments have taken the opportunity to expand their share of the market, with major companies purchasing additional rigs for their facilities.

This inventory expansion has also led to significant revenue growth with Riot Blockchain reporting a 1,540% increase in quarterly revenue back in August.

The Ohio Mining Site is also part of BIT Mining’s business expansion, with the company also operating in Kazakhstan, as previously reported by Cointelegraph.

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Founder of the Bitcoin Mixer Helix Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charges

Founder of the Bitcoin Mixer Helix Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering ChargesLarry Dean Harmon, founder and operator of the bitcoin mixing service Helix has pleaded guilty on Wednesday to money laundering charges. Harmon’s guilty plea follows the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (Fincen) fining Harmon $60 million last year. Helix Operator Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering, Conspiracy Charges According to several reports and a court-issued […]

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