The US Commerce Department plans up to $389 million in semiconductor and power technology funding, including $56 million for Sibelco to develop next‑generation ultra‑high‑purity quartz purification, a key bottleneck material for chip fabrication. Helion and Commonwealth Fusion Systems could receive $175 million and $85 million respectively for high‑voltage power semiconductors, RF plasma‑heating chips and radiation‑hardened electronics for fusion generators operating under extreme electrical and radiation loads, while Vertical Semiconductor may get $73 million for vertical gallium nitride devices for AI data centre racks. All awards are preliminary and tied to minority, non‑voting federal equity stakes.

A British-made calcined clay cement designed to cut the embodied carbon of concrete will be launched to the wider construction industry on Thursday 22 October. The supplementary cementitious material partially replaces Portland clinker in standard mixes, targeting substantial CO₂ reductions compared with CEM I while remaining compatible with existing batching plants and placement methods. Structural and geotechnical designers can use the material to lower whole-life carbon on foundations, retaining structures and slabs without major changes to mix design workflows or site practice.

Digital gold holdings could reach US$160–170 billion by 2031, up from US$45–55 billion today, bringing an estimated US$95 billion in new money into bullion if providers solve trust and access issues, according to a World Gold Council–Boston Consulting Group model based on 12,000 investors in 12 countries. Vaulted accounts currently make up 89% of the digital market, with adoption up to seven times higher where products are integrated into banking or payment apps, and awareness ranging from 76% in Indonesia to 19% in Canada. The Council plans a shared “Gold as a Service” infrastructure to standardise sourcing, custody, compliance and redemption, addressing concerns such as single-location physical redemption and 400-oz. minimum delivery thresholds.