Author: admin

• World Cup host city Philadelphia put on the country’s only free FanFest.
• Planning for the 39-day festival began in 2019 to cement the city’s status as an event-hosting hub.
• We attended on July 2 to experience “soccer Coachella” ourselves.

For the past month, World Cup hospitality has been the name of the game for the City of Brotherly Love. Philadelphia unveiled its 39-day FIFA FanFest on June 11, and a week later on June 19, it saw a record-breaking 250,000 attendees. As of Wednesday, July 8, more than 425,000 fans have attended the event.

The city started planning for the World Cup in 2017, when it began preparing its bid to host, Meg Kane, the CEO of Philadelphia Soccer 2026, told Business Insider. The goal: Position Philly as a bulwark capable of putting on the nation’s most sought-after events.

“I like to lovingly refer to it as ‘soccer Coachella,’ what we’re trying to do,” Kane told Business Insider.

Its FanFest, which goes until July 19, runs alongside other crowd-drawing events in Philadelphia, including the multi-day Wawa Welcome America festival, dozens of semiquincentennial-celebration programs, six World Cup games, and the MLB All-Star Game on July 14. And, unlike other cities’ FanFests, Philly’s is free to attend and runs for over a month straight.

Business Insider attended the festival on July 2, during the Portugal-Croatia game and in 102-degree heat, to find out what it takes to create and stage a festival of this scale. FanFest’s organizers, attendees, and vendors shared about their preparations and experiences navigating soccer fans, FIFA regulations, and weather like sweltering heat, flash floods, and high winds.

Philadelphia began planning its FIFA FanFest in 2020.

Kane said Philadelphia Soccer 2026 has been in talks with the leads of other major events since 2020, when the organization formally submitted its host-city bid alongside 17 other US cities.

When the city won its bid in June 2022, Kane was appointed CEO of Philadelphia Soccer 2026 — the organization responsible for bidding, planning, and executing the city’s FIFA World Cup programming — after previously serving as the co-lead for strategic communications for Pope Francis’ 2015 visit. Since her appointment, she’s spearheaded a yearslong marathon to coordinate fundraising, public safety, and operations for the FanFest.

“In delivering this event, and hopefully doing it in a highly professional, seamless way that puts both our fans and residents at the center of it, we are demonstrating Philadelphia’s capacity to be able to host any and all major events,” Kane said.

On the grassy tree-covered streets of Lemon Hill, soccer fans gathered around projector screens for ‘soccer Coachella.’

At Lemon Hill, the park where the festival is stationed, attendees spread out on blankets and fanned their faces with Michelon Ultra-branded hand fans while watching the big screen.

Kane said Lemon Hill was selected for a variety of factors, including its natural beauty and proximity to the city’s famed Rocky statue at the top of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s steps.

The festival organizers also collaborated with city officials, the Welcome America Festival planners, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Phillies, who are hosting the MLB All-Star Game, to choose a location that would ensure everyone had space to put on celebrations, Kane said.

Massive fundraising efforts made a free 39-day event — featuring live entertainment, rotating local food vendors, a FIFA store, a mini pitch, and more — possible.

While other host cities sold tickets for their local FanFests, held smaller gatherings, and raised public transit fares to cover World Cup expenses, Philadelphia’s early fundraising efforts allowed its FanFest to remain free and run for 39 days straight, Kane said.

How’d they do it? In 2020, as the city continued to prepare its bid, former host committee chair and Comcast executive David Cohen approached local businesses for private investments, saying they could play a major role in boosting Philly’s global reputation.

“To be successful, we need everyone in the city to be part of the bid in some way,” Cohen said in February 2020 at the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia Mayoral Luncheon. Sponsors, including Comcast, the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association, and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, signed on, as did the Philadelphia Eagles, 76ers, and Phillies.

In total, Philadelphia Soccer 2026 raised between $60 million and $65 million in private funds to supplement its estimated $77 million to $82 million in public funding for the event, the organization told Front Office Sports.

Public transit fares remained at $2.90, Airbnb sponsored free rides home from all six games, and the Phlash bus was running.

Kane said that her team wanted to be inclusive of history buffs and soccer fans alike who can enjoy their interests while exploring new-to-them elements of Philly culture.

“We’ve always thought about the FIFA World Cup as not an either-or choice for visitors, fans, and residents. We’ve thought of it as an all-or-both,” Kane told Business Insider.

For example, the city’s longtime Phlash bus — a nonprofit run, seasonal transit program managed that connects 19 monuments from east to west — and tickets run $5 for a full day of access.

I took the Phlash from Market Street in Center City to the art museum, a half-mile walk to the festival. Though the bus was slightly delayed due to July 4-related street closures, the air-conditioned ride was quick and scenic.

Nearly 3,000 volunteers kept Fanfest safe, fun, and friendly.

Volunteers, in their blue and neon green kits, were stationed throughout the festival, ready to assist locals and visitors with directions and recommendations. Some were also at the stadium and top historic sites.

Jack Heely, a volunteer who lives in Montgomery County and drove nearly an hour each way for his nine days working the FanFest, said the opportunity was the culmination of his lifelong love of soccer. He said he started playing at 6. Now 62, Heely found himself cheering on and playing with young attendees on the mini pitch.

“This is a golden opportunity to give something back to a game I have adored and been in love with for that length of time. And it’s a great mingling of cultures to me, and not to drag it in this direction, but it’s proof that we really don’t need politicians to get along as human beings,” Heely told Business Insider.

In the spirit of pintrading, a tradition among soccer fans, Heely made Philly-themed pins featuring the Liberty Bell and skyline, passed them out to kids, and swapped pins with international attendees during his shifts.

Fans traveled from near and far to enjoy the experience, with many returning to relive it.

Many of the FanFest attendees Business Insider interviewed traveled from outside the city to get in on the action.

Ricardo Ramirez, a fan of the Mexican team, said he drove over an hour from Reading, PA, to attend the FanFest. He said he had so much fun during his initial visit that he came back less than a week later.

Others, like Caleb Evans, came from the western suburbs of Philadelphia. Evans, who was at FanFest for his third time, said he was surprised by the turnout for the Mexico-Ecuador game and enjoyed the energy.

This time, he was there to watch Cristiano Ronaldo play for Portugal. “This is probably Ronaldo’s last World Cup, unless he pulls a LeBron James,” Evans said.

Soccer lovers of all ages gathered in circles to practice their ball-handling skills.

Throughout the festival, there were also child-friendly activities like face painting, pickup soccer matches, and skills challenges.

Heely, the volunteer, said the adults got in on the action too when four French men and four Iraqi men met in the beer line and challenged each other to a match.

“We made an exception and let the big guys play four on four, and they posed afterward with their national flags. It was what the World Cup is all about, no pretense or anything. It was the love of one thing. So our sameness is what we celebrate here, not our differences,” Heely said.

Local restaurants doled out cheesesteaks, nachos, churros, pretzels, ice cream, and more.

Stationed at stalls around the festival, local eateries highlighted the range of homegrown and international cuisine the city has to offer.

A spokesperson for Philadelphia Soccer 2026 said they received 200 food-truck vendor applications and approved more than 60 food trucks to participate in a rotating schedule.

Extreme weather, including heat waves and flash floods, required flexibility.

Attendees and event planners had to navigate unexpected Fanfest closures and schedule changes due to high winds, temperatures in the 100s, and thunderstorms.

“Rather than building a single fixed plan, we had to design flexible protocols that could adapt to whatever conditions arose,” a spokesperson for Philadelphia Soccer 2026 told Business Insider.

Preparations included securing tents and structures against the wind, ensuring the grounds could handle heavy rainfall, and installing misting tents and water refill stations, the spokesperson said.

Business Insider also spotted many shady spots throughout Lemon Hill, including lush trees and shaded tents with picnic tables.

For local soccer fans, the event exceeded expectations.

City dwellers living near Lemon Hill took advantage of the nearby experience. Chloe Martins, a soccer fan supporting Portugal, told Business Insider the FanFest crowds were anything but a nuisance.

“Even though we’re not at the actual game, I love seeing everyone in our neighborhood walking around to different bars and restaurants, people coming from the FanFest, and representing their countries,” Martins said. “It’s such a good vibe.”

Kerolos Akraz, who lives in Philly and was at FanFest for the attendance-record-breaking Brazil-Haiti game on June 19, said the event’s liveliness and free entry encouraged him to come a second time despite the heat wave: “I think you get almost the same experience as if you were in a stadium, but for free. So why not?”

When I arrived at Wimbledon’s All England Club on Friday, men’s semi-final day, security guards and ball boys were arriving for work before the ground opened to the public at 10 a.m.

It was at 8.20 a.m., and in Wimbledon Park opposite, thousands of would-be spectators stood in a line that appeared to stretch for at least a mile. Some had been there for hours, others for days. They hoped to secure one of several thousand £21 grounds passes, and once inside, the chance to buy Centre Court tickets through Wimbledon’s official resale scheme.

Kiosks selling churros, rows of camping chairs, and the occasional tent made it look less like a line for the world’s most prestigious Grand Slam tournament and British social calendar highlight, and more like the opening morning of a music festival.

My journey to what’s known as “The Queue” took me about 90 minutes on the London Underground from home, and cost just £3.40. It didn’t take long, however, to meet people for whom getting to Wimbledon was a far bigger financial commitment.

Perched beside their tent in The Queue, Yi-Wen Wang, 37, and Yu-Chun Hsieh, 36, told me they had traveled more than 6,000 miles from Taiwan. So far, they’d spent around £4,000 (about $5,350), their flights being the biggest expense. For Wang, a tennis superfan, it was a pilgrimage years in the making and worth it to attend her first Grand Slam.

Plus, they found one way to save money: accommodation. After missing out in the public ballot, which randomly allocates advance tickets each year, they decided to camp in Wimbledon Park to be among the first through the gates each morning. It paid off. After camping for two nights ahead of the men’s quarterfinals, they were able to watch Novak Djokovic play, Wang said.

By Friday morning, they were back in The Queue, waiting for the men’s final on Sunday. They hoped a few more nights under canvas would give them one last chance to buy Centre Court tickets and complete a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

In the tent next to them, Yao Lin, 26, was packing up. Her journey had also begun thousands of miles away, although it had cost considerably less. Lin, a dentist from Atlanta, told me she had decided to go to Wimbledon just days earlier, after spotting a redemption deal on her American Express points.

On Sunday morning, she booked a flight to London for the following day, bought a tent and camping equipment from Walmart, packed her bags, and flew to the UK. She landed on Monday afternoon and headed straight to Wimbledon Park, where she’d been camping ever since.

“I didn’t have to pay for the plane or hotels,” she said. “So it’s just tickets and food. I’d estimate about $1,000.”

She’d bought several £21 grounds passes, and spent a little under $100 on resale tickets to see her favorite player, Stan Wawrinka, and about $250 for a seat at the men’s quarterfinals.

Not everyone was prepared to camp.

Dwayne White, 39, a professor from Atlanta, had been travelling through Europe after attending a music festival in Portugal, and happened to be in London when he decided to try his luck at Wimbledon.

White said he was willing to pay “maybe $1,500” if the right Centre Court tickets became available. “But even if I don’t get Centre Court, just being around the grounds, Henman Hill, and everything that represents, I think is enough,” he said.

It struck me that there isn’t one way to experience Wimbledon. For some, the Championships mean a £21 grounds pass and a homemade picnic on the grass. For others, it’s flying halfway around the world, camping for days, or spending thousands of pounds for the chance to be a Centre Court spectator.

By around 9:30 a.m., there were short lines at the entrance for ticket holders, who would soon be walking to Centre Court and Court One.

Back in The Queue, the mile-long overflow had disappeared by 10:30 a.m. I was given my queue card at 10.36 a.m., and by 10.52 a.m. I was paying £21 for my grounds pass.

Wimbledon is a British institution

Inside, I remembered why Wimbledon remains such a British institution.

The atmosphere was both exciting and remarkably civilized, as spectators settled in for a day of strawberries and cream and Pimm’s cocktails, surrounded by immaculate lawns, and world-class tennis.

Dressed in linen trousers, summer dresses, straw hats while shading themselves with parasols, spectators walked along pristine pathways lined with flowers and perfectly kept shrubbery. Gentle, carefully timed applause sounded from one practice court in the centre of the grounds.

Nearby, at the entrance for debenture ticket holders, who pay six-figure sums for multi-year Centre Court seat licences, paparazzi had their cameras trained on VIPs heading for exclusive lounges. There, they would enjoy champagne and respite from the 90-degree heat.

Later, at the resale kiosk I recognized several faces from “The Queue” in another long line. I wondered, would White would end up spending $1,500 on Centre Court? Would Wang and Hsieh’s £4,000 Wimbledon adventure end with tickets to the men’s final?

Even with my £21 grounds pass, I was able to soak up the atmosphere. At one practice court, I stood mere metres away from seven-time champion Novak Djokovic warming up ahead of his semifinal. I saw Roger Federer, one of the greatest players of all time, waving from a balcony. I got a chance to watch some outstanding tennis on a big screen, while fellow grounds-passers excitedly cheered and popped bottles of luke-warm champagne.

Sure, it wasn’t the VIP Centre Court treatment, but for £21, I had zero complaints.

Whether you arrive after spending £3.40 on the Tube, $1,000 on a spontaneous trip from Atlanta, or $5,350 on a pilgrimage from Taiwan, everyone is chasing the same things: world-class tennis and the chance to take part in one of Britain’s great summer rituals

• USS Arlington, an active US Navy warship, offered tours in honor of America’s 250th anniversary.
• My tour included the well deck, hangar bay, flight deck, and forecastle.
• Security was tight, and photography was off-limits in some locations.

As a resident of New York City, I’m used to walking through Hell’s Kitchen and seeing an enormous warship floating in the Hudson River at the Intrepid Museum.

This time, however, it had company.

New York City hosted what organizers billed as “the largest maritime gathering in US history” on July 4, in honor of America’s 250th anniversary, with visiting naval ships from around the world opening their gangways to the public.

One of the most prominent vessels featured was USS Arlington, a 684-foot-long US Navy amphibious transport dock. I climbed aboard for a firsthand look at the ship, its weaponry, and the vehicles it carries.

Take a look inside.

My tour of the USS Arlington started with a security screening at the entrance to Pier 88 in New York City, where the ship was docked.

Posted signs notified visitors that the pier was operating at MARSEC Level 1, the Coast Guard’s baseline Maritime Security Level.

After two rounds of ID checks and a bag screening, I got my first look at the San Antonio-class landing transport dock.

Amphibious transport docks like the Arlington carry Marines, their vehicles, equipment, and supplies, and move them between naval ships and the shore.

Built by Northrop Grumman and commissioned in 2013, USS Arlington measures 684 feet long — large enough to carry helicopters, amphibious vehicles, and around 700 Marines. It is operated by a crew of 360 sailors.

The gangway featured a banner with the ship’s motto: “Strength, Honor, Fortitude.”

The banner also featured the official seals of the Navy and the Marine Corps.

USS Arlington is one of three landing platform docks, or LPDs, named in remembrance of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

USS Arlington is named for Arlington, Virginia, where American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon. The ship featured pentagon-shaped 9/11 memorials displayed at the entrance.

It has two sister ships, USS New York and USS Somerset.

USS New York, commissioned in 2009, is named after the state of New York and was built with 7.5 tons of steel from the World Trade Center. USS Somerset, commissioned in 2014, was named for Somerset County in Pennsylvania, where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed after passengers and crew fought back against the hijackers.

After being greeted by dozens of sailors gathered at the ship’s entrance, we met up with our tour guide, who gave us strict instructions about photography on board.

Officers were wearing their summer whites — white uniforms worn in the warmer months.

Our tour guide, an officer on the ship, told us to stay with the group at all times and to take photos only in designated areas that he identified along the way. Another officer stayed at the back of the group to make sure no one wandered off.

Our first stop, where we were allowed to take photos, was the well deck containing two Landing Craft Air Cushions, or LCACs.

LCACs are amphibious hovercraft capable of carrying 60 to 75 tons worth of troops, cargo, and equipment while traveling at over 40 knots, or 46 miles per hour. Their primary mission is transporting troops, vehicles, and supplies ashore.

An Amphibious Combat Vehicle, or ACV, was also on display.

ACVs are eight-wheeled armored vehicles designed to carry Marines between ship and shore, operable both in the ocean and on land.

After walking up a ramp to the upper vehicle stowage area, where photos were prohibited, we proceeded to the hangar bay and flight deck.

In the upper vehicle stowage area, which serves as an additional storage space, a Marine showed us around a Utility Tactical Vehicle, or UTV. We weren’t allowed to take pictures there, but our guide said that there were UTVs on the flight deck that we could photograph.

Pilot officers were standing by to tell us about the helicopters parked on the flight deck, including a UH-1Y Venom utility helicopter known as a “Huey.”

Armed with door-mounted machine guns and rockets, the Huey can provide close air support. The crew typically consists of two pilots, a crew chief, and a gunner.

The flight deck also featured an AH-1Z Viper, known as the Cobra attack helicopter.

Similar to the Huey, the AH-1Z Viper provides close air support, but it carries heavier firepower. It can be armed with rocket pods, air-to-ground weapons, air-to-air missiles, and a 20 mm cannon.

A pair of UTVs was also displayed on the flight deck.

UTVs, used for reconnaissance and hunter-killer missions, have a payload capacity of 500 pounds and can drive at up to 45 miles per hour. They can also be airdropped out of military transport aircraft, such as C-130s, to await crews on the ground.

The passenger seat included a handle to hold on to during bumpy rides.

Unlike the helicopters, which were cordoned off, the UTVs were open for visitors to climb into the seats.

Standing inside the hangar bay, used for aircraft maintenance and storage, our guide told us that photos and videos were strictly prohibited at our next stop.

With our devices stowed away, we passed by the ship’s medical facilities, which included a surgery room, a dental office, and patient waiting areas. We also walked through the berthing area, where crew members sleep in narrow, stacked bunks that sailors sometimes call “coffin racks.”

We ended up on an upper deck called the forecastle, pronounced “folk-sill.”

The forecastle is where the crew operates the ship’s anchor.

From the forecastle, we could see the pilothouse, where crew members drive the ship and navigate it in and out of port.

Mounted below the pilothouse is an MK-46 30 mm gun, which our guide said is the main gun used for surface engagements.

The guide also pointed out one of the ship’s guided missile launchers that fire RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missiles, or RAMs.

RAMS are used for air defense to take out anti-ship cruise missiles.

The final stop on the tour was a bell that is part of a long-held naval tradition.

Crew members on USS Arlington, as well as other Navy ships, can have their children baptized on the ship with the bell serving as the baptismal font. If a child is baptized on the ship, their name is inscribed into the underside of the bell.

After I returned to the well deck to disembark, a Marine asked if I wanted a photo inside a LAV-25, an amphibious reconnaissance vehicle. I couldn’t say no to that.

While I’ve toured several historic battleships and submarines from World War II and the Cold War, this was my first time visiting an active warship.

To me, seeing a modern Navy ship filled with uniformed service members, state-of-the-art vehicles, and advanced weaponry was a completely different experience from touring retired vessels that have become museums.

The tight security measures appeared to be the clearest indicator that the USS Arlington is still very much on the job.

• Dad and I were flying across the Atlantic because I had a business launch, and he was my plus one.
• When we checked in, we realized that my dad had accidentally bought Mom’s passport instead of his.
• He was distraught, and I calmed him down, as if I were the parent. Still, I left him at the airport.

I was a Londoner and had recently accepted a job at a magazine in New York City. The new company paid for my father and me to fly to America so I could celebrate its relaunch, meet my editors, and search for apartments.

Dad, then 69, was up for an adventure as my plus one. He traveled by coach from his home in northern England, and we then got a 4.30 am cab from my house to Heathrow Airport.

A Virgin Atlantic representative asked to see our passports as we checked in for our flight to John F. Kennedy.

Dad brought Mom’s passport by mistake

We handed them over. The rep examined the documents and reached for her glasses.

“That’s your wife’s passport,” she said to my dad, looking amused. “I need to see yours.”

Dad hesitated. Then his face fell, and he started to shake.

“What’s wrong?” I said. Dad held his head in his hands. He’d brought Mom’s passport by mistake, grabbing it from the filing cabinet without thinking and leaving his behind.

He was terribly forgetful

I’d never seen him so upset. His body seemed to crumple as he absorbed the shock.

There was no chance we could get the passport in time for our flight. We rang my 74-year-old mom, who delivered the equivalent of a Howler in Harry Potter, yelling at my dad for being so stupid (her words).

Unfortunately, Dad was terribly forgetful and had a history of it.

Once, the Gatwick Airport information desk issued a tannoy announcement informing “a Mr. Ridley traveling to Ajaccio” that our passports and boarding passes had been found in a bathroom.

Then there was the family vacation to Egypt in the mid-70s, when Dad had to make a 5-hour round trip, retracing our steps. We waited while he took a taxi back and forth across the desert to collect our passports from the previous night’s hotel.

I had to take charge of the situation

I was first inclined to berate my dad, as Mom had. I was deeply embarrassed by the prospect of missing the meeting. What on earth would the bosses think of me?

Then, as Dad sat in despair, I felt bad. He was already beating himself up, so pointing fingers would have made matters worse.

I remembered the times he had forgiven me for losing something important as a child.

In that moment, I recognized that I had to take charge. It led to a change in the dynamics of our relationship. I needed to step into my dad’s shoes and be the responsible adult.

We were transferred to a later flight

I called my brother-in-law, who worked as a police officer at the small airport near my parents’ home. Then I got Mom to drive to meet him with Dad’s passport.

A pilot, who was headed to Heathrow around lunchtime, offered to bring it down. I coordinated our rendezvous inside the terminal.

Virgin Atlantic was great because they managed to get us on a flight to Newark, New Jersey, albeit in the late afternoon.

Still, I was concerned about missing the events in New York when I was supposed to make a good impression. I felt as distraught as my dad when he realized his mistake.

It sounds selfish, but I decided to rush to board the original flight. Dad was almost back to his old self, and the arrangements for retrieving his passport were in place.

He said he’d be OK and not to worry.

I flew to JFK alone, super-stressed as the plane took off. I felt guilty and horrible for leaving my dad behind. It was as if I’d abandoned him and put my own needs first.

We’ve dined out on the story

I arrived on time for the meeting and the big launch in Manhattan. I somewhat shamefully sipped champagne, while wondering how Dad was getting on.

We reunited much later that night after he frugally took a bus from Newark to Port Authority and then walked across the city to our hotel. It was lovely to see him, and I hugged him tight.

We have since dined out on the story, along with all the others of his absentmindedness. Still, at least one good thing came out of the fiasco: Dad is now 90, and though he doesn’t fly anymore, he hasn’t forgotten his passport since.

• DoD announced big awards for the development of new laser weapons.
• Projects involving lasers and other directed-energy weapons are seen as low-cost defense options.
• With these weapons, there have long been concerns about the technical hurdles and power generation.

The Department of Defense is investing millions of dollars in new laser weapons that can shoot down enemy drones and cruise missiles.

Laser weapons are experimental, and the US has spent years developing the concept for land, air, and sea. Officials believe lasers could add to defensive arsenals and help reduce the strain on traditional interceptors as a lower-cost-per-shot option.

On Thursday, DoD announced agreements in support of its Joint Laser Weapon Systems program with nLIGHT Defense, a high-power laser developer, and Lockheed Martin Aculight, the prime’s laser weapon division. The initial DoD award value is $86 million with a total program maximum of $847 million.

“By developing containerized high-energy laser weapons, the Department aims to provide combatant commanders with scalable, cost-effective intercept solutions for asymmetric and high-tier adversary threats,” the Pentagon said in a press release.

Due to “urgent operational demands,” the initial laser weapon prototypes will have approximately 150 kilowatts of power, but DoD expects to boost that to a range of 300 to 500kW, which is the anticipated power needed to counter cruise missiles.

The announcement said that a separate “laser source” will develop a 500kW solution as part of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering’s High Energy Laser Scaling Initiative (HELSI).

“We must actively defend the homeland against emerging threats,” Emil Michael, under secretary of defense for research and engineering, said, per the release. “We are partnering with industry to rapidly deliver deep magazine directed energy capabilities to the Joint Force that can be seamlessly deployed across multiple domains.”

DoD has long looked to lasers as cheaper, more sustainable air defense options, especially for hitting inexpensive targets like drones rather than expending high-value missiles or interceptors.

The defense department said “these prototype systems offer critical operational advantages over traditional kinetic systems, including speed-of-light engagement, exceptionally deep magazines and significantly lower cost-per-intercept, attributes essential for countering high-volume UAS [Uncrewed Aerial Systems] swarms and advanced cruise missile threats.”

With sufficient electricity, laser weaponry could fire repeatedly at a much lower cost than missiles. But bigger targets require more power, and the weapons generate intense heat, making strong power and cooling systems essential.

The Navy has looked at battery packs that could supply lasers with extra power, while the Army has tested lasers mounted on Stryker vehicles to shoot down drones and incoming rockets. The services are also working on other types of directed-energy weapons; however, many of these systems are still experimental, and some programs have been cut or canceled because they proved too difficult or costly to make practical.

Last month, DoD held a demonstration of several laser and directed energy weapons for Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Laser Wars reported. It’s the first publicly known instance of a defense secretary observing a live-fire event for these weapons.

• OpenAI integrates Codex into its ChatGPT app, creating a hub for work and AI tools.
• OpenAI’s new GPT-5.6 models are designed to meet varying user needs with different price points.
• The wave of models and product releases comes amid fierce competition in both areas.

OpenAI has built a super app for work.

On Thursday, the company announced it is now merging its popular Codex AI coding tool into its ChatGPT desktop app, a move to turn the flagship AI app into a one-stop shop for engineers and other professionals. OpenAI also revealed a Work setting for the ChatGPT app and a batch of state-of-the-art AI models in its new GPT-5.6 family.

The latest wave of releases encapsulates OpenAI’s ambitious strategy: train uber-powerful AI models, deliver them to ChatGPT’s massive user base, and become an indispensable part of life for millions of workers. ChatGPT has almost 1 billion users, OpenAI engineer Thibault Sottiaux said on a Thursday livestream.

OpenAI, which had an early lead in the industry, is fighting to stay at the forefront of AI capabilities, duking it out release by release with rival Anthropic and trying to stay ahead of Google, Meta, SpaceXAI, and cheaper Chinese AI models. Meta also announced its first paid AI model on Thursday.

OpenAI originally launched Codex as a software engineering tool and has since expanded its reach to a broader market. In June, the company released a report that said areas like data analysis and research were growing faster than traditional coding uses on Codex and that 5 million people use the tool each week.

Codex leader Andrew Ambrosino called Thursday’s merger of Codex into ChatGPT “only the first” step: “We’re working to unify the experience across web, mobile, and desktop—but we want to do it thoughtfully, not smash two things together with a toggle and call it a day.”

On OpenAI’s Thursday livestream, Sottiaux and other colleagues showcased the desktop app’s new Work feature, which will incorporate popular aspects of Codex, such as the ability to modify a computer’s files and to operate autonomously in a browser.

OpenAI has filed the confidential paperwork to go public. The AI competition, government involvement, and research progress could affect the timing of the company’s initial public offering.

When asked by CNBC on Thursday if OpenAI would go public this year, CEO Sam Altman said, “I don’t know.”

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at scouncil@businessinsider.com, or over text, Signal, Telegram, or WhatsApp at 415-757-8198. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here’s our guide to sharing information securely.