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Fury erupts as US brand fires 1,600 employees after securing thousands of foreign worker visas

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A popular U.S.-based gaming brand owned by Microsoft is facing fury after mass employee layoffs occurred in the wake of the company being approved for thousands of foreign worker visas.

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Microsoft announced that it will lay off 4,800 people total and 1,600 from the corporation’s XBOX division, which makes and sells the dominant video game console.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has been approved this year to hire from foreign countries 2,273 employer-sponsored, non-immigrant workers under what is known as the H-1B visa program, according to data from U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Furious online critics claim that American jobs are being unfairly handed to foreigners in an effort to cut labor costs but at the cost of leaving U.S. workers in the lurch.

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Asha Sharma, chief executive officer of Xbox,, during the Bloomberg Tech conference in San Francisco, California, US, on Thursday, June 4, 2026. The event brings together the leading CEOs, investors and innovators who are harnessing technology to change the world around us. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

«A great way to fix this is to throw anyone doing this in prison,» said one user on X. «Fire Americans to replace with thousands of visa workers? Straight to jail, and assets seized. This story has been told countless times. Fire American staff and hire foreigners. Over and over.»

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«It is the fault of our Government [sic] for approving the H-1Bs,» another social media user lamented. «Our Government [sic] has sold us out of jobs at home and those being moved to other countries.»

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Another user described the H-1B program as «industrial scale job theft from Americans.»

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Microsoft is the sixth-largest beneficiary of H-1B visas, a program that is overwhelmingly dominated by workers from India. The company has even more H-1B applications pending. Microsoft has employees worldwide, but most are in the United States.

«These decisions are based on business need, not visa status. H-1B employees were also impacted by job eliminations in the U.S.,» a Microsoft spokesperson told Fox News Digital when reached for comment on the lay offs. 

xbox players

Fans compete in a gaming tournament at Microsoft retail store at the Florida Mall on November 21, 2013 in Orlando, Florida and another five cities across the country for a chance to win up to $25,000 in prizes and a chance to participate in a final showdown at the Jacksonville, Fla. Microsoft Store opening, featuring a performance by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Tournament finalists will receive an Ultimate Xbox One Gaming House including all launch night titles in each of the six participating stores. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for Microsoft) (Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for Microsoft)

«Every single employer is exploiting the H-1B visa program,» said the Project for Immigration Reform.

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A lawmaker even called for a complete end to the non-immigrant visa program.

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«This is INSANE. LEGAL immigration is a major problem. These companies, especially big tech, are abusing these immigration programs to replace American workers with foreign workers,» said Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va.

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«No more. It’s long past time to end the H-1B scam.»

XBOX CEO Asha Sharma cited the company’s financial health for the layoffs.

«Our business today is not healthy,» said a memo from Sharma, according to The Associated Press. «We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses.»

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Sharma added that her strategy is to «reset» XBOX.

Some online critics, however, claimed Sharma’s Indian heritage played a role in firing the Americans, given the percentage of H-1B workers from India. Sharma was born in Wisconsin.

Vice President JD Vance announced on Tuesday a large-scale investigation into H-1B visa fraud.

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«Today, I’m proud to announce that the federal Department of Labor has started dozens of subpoenas and investigations into foreign fraudsters who are trying to take advantage of the H-1B visa program,» he said during a press conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

«American jobs ought to go to American workers and not foreign fraudsters and the Department of Labor is fighting back against it.»

President Donald Trump sits in Oval Office and signs executive orders

President Donald Trump signed two executive orders on Sept. 19, 2025, establishing the «Trump Gold Card» and introducing a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas. The «Trump Gold Card» is a visa program that allows foreign nationals permanent residency and a pathway to U.S. citizenship for a $1 million investment in the United States. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

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Recently, President Donald Trump tried to limit employers’ use of the H-1B program by imposing a $100,000 fee for companies seeking H-1B applications.

A federal judge struck down that order, reasoning that it amounted to a tax that only Congress has the ability to impose.

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Cuba: ¿se puede formar personas libres con semejante sistema educativo?

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El día 1 de septiembre inició el curso escolar en Cuba. Dos videos sobre hechos ocurridos en dos escuelas primarias a casi mil kilómetros de distancia una de otra, ponen de manifiesto la profunda crisis de valores en la Mayor de las Antillas.

En la Escuela Primaria Amistad Cuba-México, de la barriada “El Fanguito”, municipio Plaza de la Revolución, inauguraron el curso con una violenta demostración de combate de artes marciales, protagonizada por las mismas tropas especiales que envían a reprimir a las madres que salen con sus niños a protestar contra los apagones. Fueron a abonar el miedo.

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En Santiago de Cuba, en la Escuela Primaria Santiago Callejas, una maestra da la bienvenida a los niños de 5 a 11 años con un discurso que parecía destinado a los miembros de un Núcleo del Partido Comunista.

Desde El Cobre, en la misma provincia oriental, la familia Reyes Isaac afirmó que en la primera semana de clases apenas enviaron a sus niños a la escuela porque no tenían cómo alimentarlos. Lo mismo me explican desde varios municipios de la provincia Granma. La crisis es material, moral y espiritual y afecta a toda la nación.

El 22 de enero de 1998, durante su histórica visita a Cuba, San Juan Pablo II, hablando en Santa Clara sobre la familia y la educación, afirmó que los padres “deben poder escoger para sus hijos el estilo pedagógico, los contenidos éticos y cívicos y la inspiración religiosa” en que desean formarlos.

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El Pontífice fue todavía más lejos: recordó que los padres son los primeros y principales educadores de sus hijos, que esa responsabilidad constituye un derecho insustituible e inalienable y que las atribuciones educativas del poder público no autorizan al Estado a sustituir a la familia.

Veintiocho años después, esas palabras conservan una extraordinaria actualidad ante la dramática situación en que comenzó en Cuba el curso escolar 2026-2027.

Cerca de 1,4 millones de estudiantes regresaron el 1 de septiembre a más de 10.000 escuelas en un país golpeado simultáneamente por apagones, escasez de combustible, problemas de abastecimiento de agua, deterioro del transporte, falta de alimentos y una profunda crisis económica.

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La educación no existe aislada de la realidad en que vive el niño.

¿Cómo puede estudiar adecuadamente un menor que pasó buena parte de la noche sin electricidad, soportando calor, mosquitos y dificultades para dormir? ¿Cómo puede concentrarse quien llega al aula sin desayunar o insuficientemente alimentado? ¿Cómo puede mantener un rendimiento adecuado el estudiante cuya familia dedica casi todas sus energías a encontrar comida, agua, medicamentos o transporte?

Según fuentes oficiales, el curso comenzó con una cobertura docente de apenas del 73%. Se calcula un déficit de aproximadamente 21.000 maestros, y La Habana ha tenido que recibir unos 3.000 docentes procedentes de provincias orientales. También se está recurriendo a jubilados, estudiantes universitarios y profesionales de otros sectores para cubrir aulas.

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A ello se suma la crisis del transporte. Hay lugares donde trasladarse a una escuela se ha convertido en una verdadera odisea. Associated Press documentó incluso familias utilizando carretas tiradas por caballos debido a la ausencia de transporte disponible. La falta de combustible y el deterioro del transporte público ya afectaron gravemente la asistencia durante el curso anterior.

Tampoco existen uniformes suficientes. Al comenzar el curso solo se había logrado cubrir alrededor del 12 % de la demanda de uniformes para la enseñanza primaria. Los apagones, la falta de combustible, las dificultades industriales y la carencia de materias primas han impedido producirlos en las cantidades necesarias. El propio Ministerio de Educación tuvo que flexibilizar su utilización.

Faltan asimismo materiales escolares, existen graves dificultades con la alimentación y las familias tienen que asumir gastos que sus ingresos muchas veces no permiten cubrir. La crisis ha llegado al extremo de que en determinados centros los estudiantes necesitan llevar lámparas recargables para hacer frente a los apagones.

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Pero la tragedia de la educación cubana no es solamente material. También existe un problema de libertad, derechos, pluralismo y formación ética.

Cuba ratificó la Convención sobre los Derechos del Niño. Este instrumento reconoce a los menores derechos a la libertad de expresión, pensamiento, conciencia y asociación. Sin embargo, el Comité de los Derechos del Niño de Naciones Unidas ha reclamado al Estado cubano que garantice efectivamente la libertad de expresión de los menores y evite restricciones desproporcionadas.

En sus observaciones de 2022, ese mismo Comité formuló preocupaciones y recomendaciones respecto al ejercicio efectivo de derechos fundamentales de los niños cubanos.

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Una verdadera educación no puede consistir únicamente en enseñar matemáticas, historia o gramática. Educar significa formar personas capaces de pensar por sí mismas, preguntar, discrepar, comparar ideas, buscar información y desarrollar libremente sus convicciones.

Una escuela que pretende imponer una única interpretación política del país, de la historia y de la sociedad deja de cumplir plenamente esa misión.

El niño cubano necesita educación, no adoctrinamiento. Necesita maestros bien preparados y dignamente remunerados; aulas con electricidad y agua; alimentación suficiente; transporte; libros, uniformes y otros materiales. Necesita llegar a clases descansado, bien alimentado y saludable.

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Pero también necesita algo igualmente importante: libertad para pensar. Y sus padres necesitan recuperar el derecho a participar decisivamente en la formación moral, ética, religiosa y cívica de sus hijos.

San Juan Pablo II lo dijo en Santa Clara hace casi tres décadas: el Estado tiene responsabilidades en materia educativa, pero no puede sustituir a los padres.

Hoy la crisis educativa cubana reúne dos tragedias en una sola: la pobreza material de las escuelas y la falta de libertades que impone el régimen.

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A un niño que tiene hambre, que no duerme por los apagones, sin adecuados maestros, sin alimentos, transporte, materiales o medicamentos, le resulta difícil aprender y vive en condiciones adversas para desarrollarse.

Pero también se perjudica al niño cuando se le enseña qué debe pensar en lugar de enseñarle a pensar.

Cuba necesita un sistema de educación capaz de desarrollar la inteligencia, fortalecer los valores, liberar el espíritu y sostener una sociedad libre y próspera. Una educación donde la familia, la escuela y la sociedad acompañen al niño, pero donde ninguna autoridad pretenda adueñarse de su conciencia.

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Bioweapon threat exposed as Anthropic sounds alarm on foreign actors plotting virus experiments

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Researchers outside the United States used frontier AI models to plan experiments involving highly pathogenic bird flu, chikungunya and other biological agents with potential weapons applications, according to a new threat report from Anthropic.

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The researchers used AI to study viruses’ transmissibility and immune evasion, investigate orthopoxvirus immune-response genes and help design novel toxins at times while taking steps to evade safeguards meant to restrict access to dangerous biological capabilities.

Anthropic detailed five cases in the report published Thursday but withheld the countries, institutions and specific biological agents involved. The company stressed that it is not claiming the researchers intended to develop biological weapons.

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Staff prepare samples for DNA sequencing at the new offices and laboratories of Othram, a DNA forensics lab, in The Woodlands, Texas, on Nov. 6, 2023. (Michael Wyke/Houston Chronicle)

The findings offer a concrete glimpse at a threat that has largely been discussed in hypothetical terms. Scientists who already possess biological expertise, materials and laboratory access are using increasingly powerful AI systems to accelerate sensitive dual-use research.

They also land amid a renewed debate over catastrophic AI risks. Jacob Coxon, a former Anthropic and OpenAI researcher, recently resigned while accusing the companies of «racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives.» His warning drew more than 100 million views on X.

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Evan Hubinger, Anthropic’s alignment science lead, separately said he personally believed there was a greater than 10% chance AI could kill all humans within the next decade.

But Anthropic’s report points to a threat that is already taking shape: researchers using frontier AI for potentially dangerous biological work, circumventing geographic restrictions and adapting when the models’ safeguards get in their way.

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Pages on a computer screen

Pages from the Anthropic website and the company’s logos are displayed on a computer screen in New York Feb. 26, 2026. (Patrick Sison/AP Photo)

In one case, Anthropic blocked a grant application for chikungunya gain-of-function research at a military research institute. The proposed work focused on identifying mutations that could increase the virus’s transmissibility and ability to evade the immune system.

The researchers planned to engineer those mutations into infectious clones and repeatedly pass the virus through live animals, selecting for variants that caused the most severe disease.

That work could help scientists develop better vaccines and treatments for chikungunya. It could also produce a more dangerous pathogen that would be difficult to distinguish from a naturally occurring outbreak, Anthropic said.

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The researchers accessed Claude through a life sciences platform that tunneled traffic through U.S. infrastructure to evade Anthropic’s regional restrictions. When Claude refused to answer sensitive prompts, the platform routed those requests to another model with more permissive safeguards.

Anthropic said the research continued after the company banned accounts connected to the activity. The platform operator reestablished access within days using new identities, while Claude continued to provide editorial assistance on research materials.

In another case, a researcher spent weeks using Claude to plan experiments involving mammalian adaptation and airborne transmission in highly pathogenic avian influenza.

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The researcher was studying viral traits that could allow bird flu to spread more effectively among mammals and cause severe disease outside the respiratory system. A version capable of efficient human-to-human transmission would pose a significant pandemic threat, according to the report.

Anthropic said the researcher appeared to have access to virus isolates and animal-model facilities. The company confined the work to weaker models, limiting the assistance primarily to study design, data analysis and editorial support.

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The company said the case provided evidence of an active research program developing the knowledge and biological materials needed to create pathogens with enhanced pandemic potential. The researcher also took steps to hide his identity while accessing the models from an unsupported region.

A separate user connected to a state-associated infectious-disease laboratory used Claude to draft an orthopoxvirus research grant from start to finish in about an hour.

Orthopoxviruses include variola, the virus that causes smallpox, as well as mpox. The grant application proposed studying viral genes that disable the human immune response and included the central hypothesis, experimental design, dosing, statistical plans and contingency strategies.

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Because the work was framed around weakening the virus, Claude’s safeguards did not block the assistance. But Anthropic said the same knowledge could also help a researcher preserve or enhance the virus’ immune-evasion capabilities.

The final two cases involved venom peptides and toxins.

One researcher used Claude to build an atlas of toxin peptides from multiple venomous animal lineages and then created a generative pipeline to optimize their characteristics.

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Researcher testing blood sample

A researcher in a lab drops a blood sample into a Petri dish. (iStock)

The stated goal was to develop new painkillers, antidepressants and other treatments. But the atlas also included structures associated with paralytic toxins that could potentially be used as incapacitating agents. Anthropic said the work was part of a state-supported research program.

In the other case, a researcher used Claude to computationally redesign several toxins, including a bacterial toxin and a protein from a hemorrhagic fever virus identified by the World Health Organization as a priority disease threat.

The researcher used Claude to help prepare progress reports but instructed the model to keep the identities of the toxins deliberately vague.

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The cases illustrate why biological misuse can be difficult to prevent through automated filters alone. Anthropic’s safeguards blocked the clearest attempts involving enhanced pandemic pathogens, but they were less effective when users framed their work as medical, defensive or therapeutic research.

«Biological capabilities are dual use,» Anthropic said in the report. «The same information that can be used to develop a biological weapon could also be used to develop, for example, a vaccine or a cure for a disease.»

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei

Dario Amodei, co-founder and chief executive officer of Anthropic, during the company’s Builder Summit in Bengaluru, India, Feb. 16, 2026.  (Samyukta Lakshmi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The company said it recently reviewed 30 days of activity associated with adversarial state institutions and found roughly 35 distinct biological research efforts. Most involved ordinary civilian science, but some had «notable dual-use potential.»

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Anthropic said the findings do not show that Claude has enabled an imminent biological attack.

They do show, the company said, that researchers tied to state-associated programs are attempting to evade access controls and use frontier AI models in biological research that could have weapons applications.

The company said future safeguards will likely require more than content filters, including identity verification, institutional vetting and closer monitoring of users seeking access to advanced biological capabilities.

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WATCH: Socialist protester blames ‘provocateurs’ after assaults at ‘closest entry point’ to Trump convention

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A socialist «Never Trumpers» protester blamed «conservative provocateurs» for a tense confrontation with police that resulted in multiple arrests just outside the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention in Dallas.

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Videos posted on social media Thursday afternoon showed what appeared to be hundreds of Never Trumpers confronting Dallas police just blocks from where the president was set to deliver his convention-closing speech. Authorities responded with a strong show of force that included officers in apparent riot gear.

The Dallas Police Department confirmed with Fox News Digital that two protesters were arrested on charges related to their actions during the protest. The department said that officers assigned to the area arrested the two protesters after it said they «assaulted a counter-protester» and «obstructed a road.»

The department said the suspects’ names and specific charges will be released after they are booked into jail.

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Law enforcement officers detain a demonstrator during a protest ahead of the second day of the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (Leah Millis/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Fox News Digital spoke with a protester named Rick Majumdar, who was wearing a shirt with the initials for the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), which, according to its website, is a «national organization of revolutionaries fighting for socialism in the United States.»

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Majumdar said that the protest was organized by the Dallas Against the Trump Agenda Coalition, which, he said, consists of 16 «faith-based organizations, pro-immigrants’ rights groups and labor organizations.»

«We’re here to protest the Republican agenda, the Trump agenda and all its policies that it has enacted over the last few years,» he explained. «The march is an important event, we feel, against this convention that’s happening for the last two days.»

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Anti-Trump protesters marching in Dallas

Demonstrators march during a protest ahead of the second day of the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (Leah Millis/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

He said that, during the group’s march, «we encountered some street closures by the police» and that officers arrested a couple of protesters who «were at the front of the group.»

Pressed on why the protesters were arrested, Majumdar said, «Those people were trying to draw people away from rioting provocateurs, and I think the police heard something. And they immediately tackled two of them and arrested them, and some of them even pulled out their guns as well.»

The protest came amid heightened concerns over political violence and the targeting of public figures. It also coincided with the first anniversary of the assassination of conservative activist and Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk.

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Dallas police respond to an anti-Trump march

Law enforcement officers monitor protest activity outside the Republican National Committee midterm convention at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, Sept. 10, 2026. (Blake Fagan/AFP via Getty Images)

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Majumdar did not answer whether the protesters blocked any roads but said the confrontation occurred at the «closest entry point» to the convention.

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Asked whether he had any message directly for President Donald Trump, Majumdar paused, smiled and said, «Thank you.»

After publication, Freedom Road Socialist Organization shared an additional statement from Majumdar in response to Fox News Digital’s question on his direct message to Trump. 

The statement said that «today the people of Dallas marched on a near empty RNC, in fact, the people made their decision to stand against the billionaires class— the same class that supports the Republican Agenda, and we are empowering people to find their home in our organization.» 

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