Top global financial headlines from overnight and this morning include: 1) U.S. Vice President Vance downplays the scale of the Iran conflict, stating he would not label it a war; 2) Carney signals openness to a U.S.-Canada deal, contingent on competitive auto and steel terms; 3) OpenAI launches GPT-6 Astra, calling it a significant step toward artificial general intelligence; 4) NVIDIA agrees to acquire AI platform Hugging Face for roughly $13 billion; 5) Fed Governor Waller indicates a preference to hold rates steady if inflation improves; 6) The Pentagon disputes Lutnick's claims, asserting Anthropic still poses a supply chain risk.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance has minimized the scope of the conflict with Iran, saying he would not describe it as "a war." This comes as the confrontation enters its seventh month, with military strikes in the Middle East intensifying over recent days. "I wouldn't call it a war," Vance stated during a White House press briefing on Thursday. "There is no active exchange of fire at this time."

These remarks could provoke frustration among Americans already weary of the situation. As midterm elections approach, the Iran conflict has contributed to rising gasoline prices and weighed on former President Trump's approval ratings.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney indicated that a trade agreement with the United States remains possible, provided the terms safeguard the competitiveness of Canada's automotive and steel sectors. The Canadian government is seeking a "durable" deal with the U.S. on trade and tariffs. "When Americans are ready, we are ready to sit down and reach an agreement," Carney told reporters in Thunder Bay, Ontario. However, he reiterated that Canada would not sign any pact that significantly undermines the competitive position of its domestic auto and metals industries.

OpenAI is releasing its next-generation technology, GPT-6, positioning it as a key milestone in the company's decade-long push toward artificial general intelligence (AGI). On Thursday, OpenAI announced it has made GPT-6 Astra available to enterprise users within the Daybreak project, a program that grants approved testers access to OpenAI's most powerful models. The company also plans to roll out a version for ChatGPT subscribers that includes enhanced cybersecurity safeguards. Both versions incorporate safety mechanisms designed to prevent users from accessing its most advanced cybersecurity capabilities.

During a briefing, OpenAI President Greg Brockman expressed his belief that future observers may view this new model as an early phase of AGI. AGI refers to software capable of outperforming humans across a broad range of tasks—a concept that has become a major goal within the AI industry, though it lacks a universally accepted definition and draws skepticism from many quarters.

NVIDIA has agreed to acquire AI startup Hugging Face for approximately $13 billion. The deal includes an equity retention plan of up to $1 billion aimed at retaining Hugging Face employees who join NVIDIA. NVIDIA stated it will preserve the openness of the Hugging Face platform and continue the startup's existing operational approach. "Consistent with this commitment, Hugging Face will continue to allow model developers, engineers, and users to upload and download models and datasets of their choice, while continuing to support other chip vendors," the company said in a statement.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said his next rate decision will be "significantly influenced" by August inflation data due out next week. In prepared remarks for an event, Waller hinted he was close to supporting a rate hike but softened that tone during a subsequent Q&A session, saying he expects the inflation figures to be at a "reasonable" level. "If inflation continues to make progress toward the 2% target, I would be willing to support holding the policy rate at its current level," Waller said. "However, if the inflation data comes in hot, I would consider raising rates."

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated that Anthropic's long-standing issues with the Trump administration have been resolved, but a senior Pentagon official sees things differently. Dr. Emil Michael, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, posted on social media Thursday that the Department of Defense's determination to classify Anthropic as a supply chain risk remains in effect. Lutnick said in an interview Wednesday that Anthropic has "turned the corner" and addressed its differences with the government. A sign of easing tensions is that an executive from the company participated in a fireside chat with Lutnick on Wednesday at the G20 tech conference in North Carolina.