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Ethereum researchers warned AI could break the signatures guarding bitcoin, ether and the tokens built on them “in months, not years” in the worst case, well before quantum computers arrive.

The 100 BTC came directly from two mining rewards created during Bitcoin’s “Satoshi era” and had not moved for more than 16 years.

Few companies have ever been worth what Nvidia (NVDA) is worth today. The chipmaker’s market value crossed $5 trillion on April 24. 

Only two national economies exceed that figure in annual output: the United States and China. Investors have treated the stock as the purest bet on artificial intelligence.

The enthusiasm reaches well past one company. Google Cloud revenue grew 82% in Alphabet’s second quarter. That is the best quarter on record for Google Cloud. Even so, Alphabet shares fell after hours as it raised its spending plans.

And the people who run these businesses have been doing something different with their own shares.

Also read: Palantir’s CEO just sent a message Silicon Valley won’t ignore

A $17.5 billion gap between Nvidia, Alphabet, and Palantir’s selling and buying

Over the past five years, insiders at Nvidia, Palantir Technologies (PLTR), and Alphabet (GOOGL) have sold about $17.5 billion more of their companies’ stock than they bought, according to The Motley Fool.

The figure is a net one, meaning sales minus purchases. Insiders here means senior executives, board members, and very large shareholders.

Nvidia accounts for the biggest share of that total. Net selling at the company came to close to $7 billion. Palantir is not far behind. Alphabet’s insiders sold the least of the three, though the amount still runs into the billions.

What stands out is how little went the other way. Nvidia insiders bought just $250,000 worth of stock over the whole five-year stretch. Purchases at Palantir and Alphabet were small next to the selling.

None of this is hidden. The figures come from Form 4 filings.

Those are the reports insiders must send to regulators within two business days of trading their own company’s shares, The Motley Fool reported. Anyone can look them up, even if few investors ever do.

Few companies have ever been worth what Nvidia is worth today.Heather Diehl / Getty Images

Who has been cashing out

At Nvidia, the best-known seller is the boss. CEO Jensen Huang sold roughly $713 million in stock during 2024 through a prearranged trading plan. The shares set aside for it ran out about six months before the plan was due to expire, according to TheStreet. He kept the vast majority of his holdings.

Huang was not alone. By late June 2025, Nvidia insiders had sold more than $1 billion in stock over a year. Several board members were among the largest sellers, as reported by Fox Business. Huang had a new plan in place by then to sell more shares before the end of 2025.

Palantir tells a similar story. In November 2025, CEO Alex Karp sold shares worth roughly $96 million. Other senior executives filed to sell as well. The stock had more than doubled that year.

The pattern carried into 2026. Karp sold again in May under a preset trading plan. No Palantir executive had bought shares on the open market. Investor Michael Burry had also flagged a bearish chart pattern in the shares.

Why insider share sales are not always a warning about the company

Selling by itself proves little. Executives at these companies are paid largely in stock. They often have to sell part of each award to cover the tax bill that comes with it.

That kind of sale should not worry everyday investors. Diversifying wealth that sits in one stock is another ordinary reason.

Insiders also still own a great deal. Company insiders held about 4.2% of Nvidia as of spring 2026. Huang remains the largest individual shareholder by a wide margin. A founder who sells a sliver of a stake that size is hardly walking away.

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Some of the biggest sales were about moving money, not losing faith. SoftBank sold its entire Nvidia stake in October 2025. It put the proceeds into OpenAI, robotics, and data centers, all of which depend on Nvidia’s chips.

Bank of America analysts called the AI skepticism of the time healthy but overstated, according to TheStreet. The outlet’s own read was that investors can rotate out of the stock without leaving the AI story behind.

Others were more cautious. Peter Thiel’s fund sold all of its Nvidia shares in the same period. His view was that AI is real but that Nvidia’s price already reflected the good news.

SoftBank and Thiel are outside shareholders, not insiders. But their moves fed the same debate.

Palantir’s price tag is the real question

The harder thing to explain is the lack of buying.

Valuation may be the reason. Palantir trades at close to 80 times its sales. The Motley Fool argues that no price-to-sales ratio above 30 has held up over the long run.

Wall Street has had its own doubts. In May, HSBC downgraded Palantir to hold, citing competition and pricing pressure. The shares were down about 20% for the year at that point.

Bank of America kept its buy rating, and the average Wall Street price target sat well above the share price. That shows how split analysts are.

The business itself is not the problem. Palantir’s second-quarter revenue grew 93% from a year earlier. U.S. commercial revenue more than doubled, and the company raised its full-year forecast.

Investors now have to decide whether growth that fast justifies a price that the company’s own insiders have shown little interest in paying.

Related: Michael Burry pulls an old playbook into the Nvidia fight

Diesel used to cost less than gasoline, but tighter fuel standards, taxes, global demand, and today’s distillate shortages have pushed diesel to a much larger premium.

While the UConn men’s basketball roster is set, rival St. John’s is still waiting to see if four of their top players will be eligible when the season begins next month.

Your day-ahead look for Oct. 8, 2026

It starts small. First, your child bumps their head when they first start to walk, and you barely survive it. Fast forward a few years, and they are practicing balancing their bike on one wheel as you hold your breath. 

You can’t say “no” to everything; you need to let them grow. You hope they won’t be riding motorcycles or jumping out of airplanes one day, though it is not your call. 

But what about visiting a place that has been considered safe for more than a century, a fun and friendly theme park? Amusement parks have been a staple of American culture for more than 180 years, originating in the mid-19th century.

Many parents operate under the assumption that federal authorities rigorously inspect every roller coaster. In reality, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has very limited regulatory authority over fixed-site theme parks, leaving oversight to a patchwork of state laws or internal park self-inspections, according to CPSC. 

“So we want parents to learn in their state how rides are being inspected, by whom, and how often, so they can make the decision for themselves whether or not they want to take that risk before they go on the ride,” said Tracy Mehan, director of research translation at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, as reported by CNN. 

When parents hand over tickets to a major theme park they expect thrills, not traumatic injury.

Six Flags permanently closes iconic X2 roller coaster 

Six Flags’ X2 roller coaster first opened on Jan. 12, 2002, at its Magic Mountain park in Valencia, Calif., as the world’s first fourth-dimension roller coaster. 

Back then, it was simply called X. It featured seats that rotated 360 degrees forward and backward independently of the train’s main chassis. 

The ride underwent a $10 million makeover in 2007–2008 that turned it into X2, adding lighter trains, a new restraint system, and onboard audio. 

On Sept. 29, Six Flags confirmed the ride had closed for good amid a series of lawsuits alleging traumatic injuries caused by the ride. 

Magic Mountain President Brian Oerding announced the decision to permanently retire X2, even though the ride “consistently passed a multitude of safety tests,” because “we believe it’s the right thing to do.

“Ride safety is a cornerstone of our business, and when we see guest confidence affected, we take it seriously,” Oerding stated. 

Oerding said more than 16 million guests have ridden X2 since it reopened in 2008.

Six Flags has argued in court that X2 was inspected daily and that a rider following the rules would not suffer a traumatic brain injury, according to a KCBS report.  

Six Flags permanently closes its iconic X2 roller coaster after brain-injury allegations.Mathew Imaging / Getty Images

Six Flags’ X2 coaster had a history of severe brain injury allegations

In late September, three lawsuits were filed, alleging that riders suffered brain injuries after riding X2. 

More than 100 riders alleged these types of injuries from the Six Flags roller coaster, following a CNN investigation. 

In July 2026, two women reportedly suffered life-threatening brain hemorrhages (subdural hematomas requiring emergency brain surgery) within six days of each other after riding X2.

California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) opened an inspection into a reported July 5 incident on X2 and said it could not share further details while the inspection was ongoing, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Six Flags closed the ride on July 12.

In August, CNN published an investigation, reporting on the ride’s long history of incidents and at least two deaths. 

X2 was a rare 4th-dimensional roller coaster featuring 360-degree rotating seats that reached speeds of 76 mph. Only two other coasters like it exist in the world, located in China and Japan, which closed temporarily last year after a fatal injury involving a park worker inspecting the ride, CNN reported. 

“In our professional opinion, the severe brain injuries requiring emergent neurosurgical attention were the result of a traumatic rapid acceleration-deceleration event experienced while on the X2 ride,” the surgeons wrote in an email obtained by CNN. 

Experts also told TIME that sudden acceleration, twisting, and shifting can stretch brain tissue and pressure blood vessels, potentially increasing the risk of concussions and bleeding. 

A 2014 life-threatening injury after X2 ride drew little public attention 

In September 2014, Selena O’Neill, then 17, stumbled as she stepped off X2. She had trouble walking straight and seeing clearly. Then she started shaking, and her leg pointed in a strange position. 

The next day she went to the doctor, had a seizure during the appointment, and learned she had a subdural hematoma. 

Also called subdural hemorrhage, a subdural hematoma happens when a blood vessel near the surface of the brain bursts and blood builds up between the brain and its tough outer lining, according to Harvard Health Publishing. It is a life-threatening problem because it can compress the brain.

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Doctors directly attributed O’Neill’s condition to the ride, according to CNN. 

In a 2019 medical journal article, without naming X2, doctors wrote about her case and cautioned that “advances of roller-coaster technology and industry competition for thrill-seeking patrons may ultimately improve acceleration and performance beyond the passenger’s physical ability to tolerate them.” 

O’Neill sued the theme park in 2015 and the case was closed in 2017, after O’Neill settled with the maker of X2’s vehicles.

According to court filings as reported by CNN, Six Flags argued that she should have been aware of potential risks before taking the ride. 

Brain-trauma death followed X2 ride in 2022

In June 2022, 22-year-old Christopher Hawley died from severe brain trauma less than 10 hours after riding X2, according to CNN. 

Court records show Hawley’s head slammed violently against his seat during the ride, causing massive brain bleeding. Doctors compared his fatal injuries to shaken baby syndrome. CNN also noted this was the second death linked to the coaster, following another fatal brain injury in 2010. 

Doctors in the 2010 case believed an existing brain abnormality ruptured because of the ride’s intensity.

Six Flags had received at least 70 prior head- and-neck injury complaints regarding X2 in the three years leading up to Hawley’s death, CNN reported.

Despite these warnings, the theme park fought successfully in court to keep its medical incident logs sealed from the public. Other frequent park visitors told CNN they felt management dismissed their reports of concussions.

State officials cleared X2 to reopen days after the fatality, but CNN reported that maintenance workers swapped a train wheel before inspectors arrived. 

Safety experts noted that state oversight relies heavily on industry-written guidelines that fail to measure real-world head impacts. 

Hawley’s parents sued Six Flags over the tragedy, and court records show the lawsuit ended in a settlement.

Related: Airbnb CEO says travelers are about to see big changes

A worker’s income decides whether they qualify to contribute directly to one of the most valuable tax-advantaged retirement accounts available to them. 

The Roth individual retirement account (IRA) offers tax-free investment growth and withdrawals in retirement, but annual income limits determine who can contribute. 

Vanguard’s 2026 Roth IRA contribution limits guide reveals a phase-out zone that can shrink or eliminate your allowed Roth IRA contribution once earnings cross a threshold. 

The risk is greatest for workers who fund their account early and later receive a raise, bonus, or capital gains that exceed the ceiling. The penalty for contributing more than the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows recurs annually until corrected. 

The problem is harder to detect because your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) can change unpredictably throughout the calendar year.

Also Read: Vanguard flags costly blind spot in 401(k) Roth savings

Vanguard flags 2026 Roth IRA phase-out thresholds for savers

The 2026 Roth IRA contribution limit is $7,500 for savers under age 50, and $8,600 for those aged 50 or older. Those caps rose from $7,000 and $8,000, respectively, in 2025, reflecting cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) that the IRS published in Notice 2025-67.

Single filers with MAGI below $153,000 can contribute the full amount, but the allowance shrinks within the $153,000-$168,000 phase-out range, Vanguard noted. Direct Roth IRA contributions drop to zero once a single filer’s MAGI reaches $168,000, the IRS confirmed.

Married couples filing jointly face a narrower phase-out range of $242,000 to $252,000, leaving households only $10,000 in income to clear before total disqualification.

That compressed range makes a year-end bonus or a spouse’s freelance earnings particularly risky for couples who contribute their full amount in January 2026.

The single-filer phase-out range rose $3,000 compared to 2025, when the band ran from $150,000 to $165,000. For married couples filing jointly, the range climbed $6,000, from $236,000 to $246,000 in the prior year, the IRS confirmed.

Participation in an employer-sponsored retirement plan does not affect Roth IRA eligibility, the IRS’s retirement-topics guidance stated. 

Savers covered by a 401(k) at work can still contribute to a traditional or Roth IRA, with Roth contributions limited only by the MAGI thresholds above.

What the IRS changed in 2026 retirement contribution limits

The IRS raised the annual IRA contribution limit to $7,500 from $7,000 for the 2026 tax year, the agency announced in Notice 2025-67. 

Catch-up contributions for individuals aged 50 and over also rose to $1,100 from $1,000, reflecting inflation indexing introduced under the SECURE 2.0 Act.

Those contribution limits apply to all of a saver’s traditional and Roth IRAs combined, meaning additional accounts do not increase the total, the IRS states in Publication 590-A.

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Despite the higher ceilings, savers with variable income from bonuses or stock options may not discover they exceeded the revised thresholds until year-end, Vanguard warned. 

A contribution that looked safe under the new limits in January 2026 can become an excess by December 2026 if earnings climb, the firm noted.

The IRS raised 2026 IRA contribution limits, but higher earners should watch variable income to avoid costly excess contributions.tdub303 / Getty Images

The compounding 6% excise penalty the IRS charges on excess contributions

The IRS levies a 6% excise tax on any excess Roth IRA contribution for every year the surplus stays in the account. That penalty recurs automatically for each tax year the saver leaves the overcontribution unresolved.

Nick Bour, Founder and CEO of Inspire Wealth, told Forbes Advisor that excess IRA contributions are more widespread than most savers realize.

This is a far more common issue than one may think, especially for self-employed people or people that may have made too much money to qualify for deductible contributions or a Roth IRA contribution,

A $1,000 excess contribution generates $60 in annual penalties that persist until the saver withdraws the surplus or applies it to future years. 

The IRS caps the tax at 6% of either the excess amount or the combined year-end value of all the saver’s IRAs, whichever is lower, and savers report it on Form 5329.

How savers with unpredictable earnings can protect their Roth IRA

Savers who discover that their MAGI exceeds the phase-out ceiling after contributing can request a refund of excess contributions from their custodian before their tax-filing deadline, under IRS Publication 590-A.

For 2026 contributions, the deadline falls on April 15, 2027, and extends to October 15, 2027, for savers who filed for a tax extension.

In certain cases, the contribution can instead be recharacterized as a traditional IRA contribution under IRS rules that still allow regular contributions.

For workers whose earnings consistently exceed the income limit, Vanguard outlines a backdoor Roth IRA strategy that uses traditional IRA conversions to bypass the restriction. That approach requires contributing to a non-deductible traditional IRA first, then converting the balance to a Roth account.

Lisa Featherngill, an Independent Consultant at Wealth by Design LLC, told Fox Business the 2026 ceilings help workers shelter more income, a change “especially helpful as retirement gets longer and more expensive.”

Related: Vanguard uncovers the real cost of early Social Security

Rising Treasury yields, surging energy prices and a stronger dollar weigh on bitcoin and tech, while silver falls below $59 an ounce.

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