Hepatitis B Treatment, Mafia Stash, and the Best of May

 Need To Know 

Potential Iranian Deal

US and Iranian negotiators reached a tentative deal yesterday to extend a ceasefire by 60 days, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and begin nuclear negotiations. The proposal has been sent to President Donald Trump for review.

News of a potential deal comes as the two countries continue to accuse each other of violating the weekslong ceasefire. The US military struck Iranian missile launch sites and mine-laying boats this week, and also shot down several Iranian drones. Kuwait intercepted Iranian missiles late Wednesday that were apparently directed against a US air base on its soil. (Is the US running low on munitions?)

Separately, Israel has continued strikes this week targeting what it called Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon. The country issued an evacuation notice on Wednesday covering 14% of Lebanon’s territory—the broadest warning since Israel and Lebanon agreed to a ceasefire last month. The two countries are set to hold security talks today in Washington, DC.

Hepatitis B Breakthrough

An experimental drug for chronic hepatitis B has cleared detectable virus levels in about one in five patients, according to a study released yesterday. The result raises optimism about a potential functional cure for a disease affecting more than 250 million people worldwide. 

Hepatitis B is a viral infection spread through blood, semen, and other bodily fluids that can cause liver damage, cancer, and death (watch full breakdown). A vaccine prevents infection but doesn't treat existing cases. Current therapies are lifelong and only suppress the virus, resulting in functional cures in 1% to 3% of patients. The new drug, bepirovirsen, blocks hepatitis B virus replication. In the study, 1,220 patients received weekly injections for 24 weeks, alongside standard antiviral pills. After six months, 19% of participants had no detectable virus. The drug awaits regulatory approval in the US, Japan, China, and Europe. 

Globally, the chronic disease is most often transmitted from mother to child during birth. See regions with the highest number of infections. 

Italy Goes to the Mattresses

Italy said it seized about $232M in assets tied to late mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro and arrested three people in connection with the operation. The assets include more than 26 pounds of gold bars, millions in cash, premium watches, and roughly 20 luxury properties across nine countries.

Messina Denaro, head of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra mafia, spent 30 years on the run before his 2023 arrest. He died in prison months later at age 61 after receiving six life sentences for murder and organized crime and is believed to be responsible for over 50 deaths. Officials said the fortune was amassed through drug trafficking since the 1980s and reinvested in businesses and real estate. The operation is seen as a blow to the Sicilian mafia's efforts to rebuild financially after his death. Cosa Nostra is estimated to include 5,000 affiliates and 20,000 collaborators across Europe and the US.

See where the Italian mafia operates here and listen to a former mobster explain the mafia hierarchy here.

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

> Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens face off tonight in Game 5 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals (More) | Four-time Stanley Cup winner Claude Lemieux dies at age 60, apparently by suicide, days after carrying the torch for Montreal in Game 3 (More) | Watch him engage in the tradition (More, via X)

> World No. 1 Jannik Sinner crashes out of the French Open in the second round, citing dizziness amid Paris' heat wave (More) | Watch the match (More)

> San Antonio Spurs win Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference finals; will face off against Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 tomorrow at 8 pm ET (More)

Science & Technology

> IBM to invest $10B in quantum research and manufacturing with goal of creating the first large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer by 2029 (More) | Anthropic releases newest version of its flagship AI model, Claude Opus 4.8 (More) 

> Engineers develop new method to extract lithium from rocks, with significantly less toxic waste than current approaches; mineral is a key component in everything from smartphones to clean energy (More)

> Nanotube-based sensor detects early-stage bladder cancer with 50,000 times greater sensitivity than standard techniques; disease accounts for 85,000 new cases and 15,000 deaths in the US each year (More) 

Business & Markets

> US stock markets close up (S&P 500 +0.6%, Dow +0.1%, Nasdaq +1.0%) (More) | US personal consumption expenditures index—key inflation metric monitored by the Fed—rose 3.8% year over year in April, the highest since May 2023 (More)

> Anthropic tops OpenAI as most valuable AI startup after raising $65B at $965B valuation (More) | What's better: Anthropic or OpenAI? (More) | Web development company Wix to lay off 20% of its workforce, citing the evolution of AI (More)  

> Caesars Entertainment, iconic Las Vegas casino company, to be acquired for nearly $6B by Fertitta Entertainment, owner of the Golden Nugget and Rainforest Cafe (More) | ... the founder of Fertitta is also the US ambassador to Italy (More)  

Politics & World Affairs

> Justice Department investigates whether writer E. Jean Carroll—who accused President Donald Trump of sexual assault—committed perjury in her two civil lawsuits against Trump (More) 

> Former CIA officer is accused of potentially stealing $40M of public funds in the form of 303 gold bars after requesting money for work-related expenses; a raid on his home also revealed $2M in cash and 35 luxury watches (More) 

> Trump Accounts app launches in the US; parents and guardians of US children born between 2025 and 2028 can register their kids for the 530A, tax-preferred investment accounts seeded with $1K each (More) | How to register (More)

In-Depth

> Life in a Quantum World

Big Brains x 1440 | Staff. What do GPS, financial markets, and internet clocks have in common? Quantum technology. In a live event hosted by 1440 and UChicago's Big Brains podcast, three scientists explain the fascinating tech that may one day bring us molecule-sized MRI scans. (Listen) 

PS—Watch a video of the full event here. 

> The Book-to-Movie Pipeline

Lit Hub | Julien C. Levy. Clarke Speicher reads roughly one book every two days, then writes a synopsis film executives use to decide whether it’s cut out for the big screen. Take a peek inside his less-than-glamorous life. (Read) 

> A More Perfect Planet

Kurzgesagt | Staff. Swathes of Earth are covered in oxygen-void oceans, barren deserts, and inaccessible mountains. What would a more habitable planet look like, and is it out there? (Watch) 

> Bright Side of the Opioid Crisis? 

Longreads | Arizona O'Neill. When her father died of a fentanyl overdose at age 41, Montreal-based illustrator Arizona O'Neill chose to donate his organs. The surge in opioid-related deaths has helped ease a critical shortage of transplant organs, but more than a decade later, the decision still haunts her. (Read, w/comic) 

Editor's note: More than 12 million monthly clicks can't be wrong. Here are the most popular stories we ran in May. Enjoy!

(5/18/26) The 4% rule for retirement is being updated to 4.7%. 

(5/7/26) The mental trick helping people fall asleep faster.

(5/21/26) A 177-year-old US beer brand is shutting down.

(5/12/26) Search your first and last name to see how common they are. 

(5/8/26) Which grocery store chain is considered most trustworthy?

(5/21/26) The secret to healthier aging may be rock-solid glutes. 

(5/11/26) See a massive 11,000-carat ruby discovered in Myanmar.

(5/5/26) Watch a golden retriever politely decline a grooming.

(5/13/26) What to do if you wake up in the middle of the night.

(5/15/26) The fastest-growing US cities are exurbs. 

(5/7/26) Strange sea creatures are washing ashore in massive numbers.

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Clickbait: The 30 jobs in America with the biggest paychecks.

Historybook: Comedian Bob Hope born (1903); President John F. Kennedy born (1917); Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay are first to reach Mount Everest summit (1953); Danica Patrick is first woman to lead at Indy 500 (2005).

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