Hola Libertinus,

This week’s dispatch is appears to be brought to you by the letter M—we’ve got Mercenaries, Moon militias, Mechanical Turks, and possibly warning signs of mass migration.

West is diving into real-world power plays—Germany’s quiet transformation into a defense startup hub, Japan’s trade maneuvering, Trump’s Powell problem, and the legacy of a private military pioneer who died with more secrets than medals.

Meanwhile, Zack’s looking at the weirder signs of the times—AI startups staffed by humans, airplane seats designed by globalists, sunlight as a miracle drug, and the 2nd-century satirist who pioneered science fiction to skewer the “historians” of his day—armed with oceans of inebriation, interspecies coupling, and exoplanetary warfare.

Let’s get into it.

📡 S I G N A L S

Germany; the Defense Startup Hub (Reuters)

Upon Trump's most recent election as President, I anticipated an increase in the valuations of European defense companies. My logic at the time was that the US was likely to pull back from funding Europe's defense, and as EU countries looked to invest in their defense, they would naturally gravitate towards European companies. This investment thesis has played out in line with what I anticipated. What I did not anticipate was how much European nations would lean into this. It seems that Germany in particular stands out among its EU peers not just in funding defense, but also in incubating defense startups that will pave the way for the future of the industry. ~West

Inside the collapse of Microsoft-backed UK tech unicorn Builder.ai (🔒Financial Times)

Builder.ai was a billion-dollar “AI” startup backed by Microsoft and Qatar. Their pitch? An automated platform that could build apps “as easily as ordering pizza.” In reality? It was 700 engineers in India pretending to be AI. They named the chatbot “Natasha.” Investors thought it was cutting-edge artificial intelligence. But it was just… people. Behind keyboards. Writing code. On command. The company collapsed after it turned out the AI was completely fake, the revenue was inflated, and the wizard behind the curtain had been cashing out millions in shares—all while literally calling himself “Chief Wizard.” Turns out they were missing both the artificial and the intelligence. ~Zack

Japan Now, EU later? (Reuters)

In case you missed it, the US and Japan finally worked out a trade deal this week, giving hope to global markets. The Japanese stock market rose ~5% once the news dropped. US and EU officials are working towards a trade deal of their own, but I remain skeptical. I anticipated Japan being one of the first to get a deal with the US for the simple fact that Japan has the unilateral power to negotiate with the US. The EU is significantly more complicated, requiring buy-in from multiple countries. For this reason, while I hope a deal with the EU comes sooner rather than later, I remain skeptical as to the rapidity of its arrival. ~West

Virtue Class… Boarding Soon?

You’ve probably seen this image making the rounds—claims that the “Skyrider” is launching in 2026. Not quite. According to the manufacturer, it’s just a concept. A design meant to “provoke” ideas about the future of flight—not a product you’ll be wedged into just yet. But… it’s worth paying attention. Because when you’ve been primed for years with warnings about billions of climate refugees and carbon quotas… turning people into upright cattle starts to feel less like satire and more like policy planning. And hey, for the eco-conscious traveler, maybe this becomes the next flex—post a photo from “Virtue Class,” caption it with your gamified Personal Carbon Allowance score, and then bask in the algorithm’s approval. Just don’t expect a tray table. ~Zack

Selling Nikola Short

It seems that Nikola founder, Trevor Milton, is trying to make a return to the public discourse. If you aren't familiar, Nikola made false claims about its ability to manufacture energy efficient vehicles, at one point even rolling one downhill and filming it as alleged proof of its functionality. Famous short seller, Hindenberg Research, uncovered this along with numerous other falsifications, and alerted the public to Nikola's fraudulent behavior. Convictions followed, but somehow Milton managed to convince Trump to pardon him. Now, he's trash talking short sellers (of course). All CEOs hate short sellers, but this is because short sellers hold companies accountable. It seems there is a common misconception that short sellers are somehow bad for the market, but the opposite is the case. Similar to investigative journalists, short sellers uncover hidden truths in the market that have the potential to devastate shareholders. If short selling ever gets banned, be very wary of the markets. ~West

Can Sunlight Cure Disease? (Scientific American)

We’ve spent decades indoors, slathered in SPF 50, popping vitamin D pills, and warning each other that the sun is trying to kill us. And aside from the occasional bawl-sunning sesh, I’m as guilty as anyone of staying out of direct sunlight. But new research is suggesting that narrow-band UV light—actual sunshine—is one of the most powerful anti-inflammatories we’ve got. Not just for skin conditions like psoriasis, but for full-blown autoimmune diseases like MS, type 1 diabetes, Crohn’s, even cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders. And it’s not just the vitamin D. The skin’s response to sunlight triggers a cascade of signaling molecules—dozens of them—many of which regulate immune function, reduce inflammation, and reset the body's internal thermostat. Basically: sunlight calms the immune system. And the darker, colder, and more indoor your life is, the more likely your immune system is to go haywire and attack your own body. ~Zack

Simon Mann (Wikipedia)

If you aren't familiar with Simon Mann, you should be. He's most well known as being the co-founder of the first modern private military company, Executive Outcomes, which reclaimed Angolan oil refineries and diamond mines captured by the UNITA rebels back in the 90's. Mann was later imprisoned in both Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea after a coup plot he participated in went south in the early 2000's. Mann recently died of a heart attack and I've taken the time to read his autobiography, Cry Havoc, which details the incidents above, but also his involvement in the war plans leading up to the US invasion of Iraq. Mann's story is fascinating and combines war-heroism with entrepreneurialism in a way infrequently seen in the past 100 years. ~West

A True Story (Wikipedia)

Long before Star Wars, before Dune, before Jules Verne or H.G. Wells… There was Lucian of Samosata. A 2nd century Syrian-Greek satirist who wrote A True Story—widely considered the first sci-fi novel in history. And it’s completely b.a.n.a.n.a.s. Here’s just a sampling of what Lucian was dreaming up, circa 175 A.D.:

• A voyage to the moon via waterspout

• A war between the kings of the Moon and the Sun

• Interspecies romance with tree-women

• A sea filled with wine and giant fish-men

• Colonization battles for Venus

• Literal living islands and talking rivers

The whole thing was a parody—mocking the liars, fantasists, and self-important historians of his day who claimed divine revelation or secret knowledge of far-off lands. Which basically makes Lucian the Trey Parker and Matt Stone of his day. So next time someone tells you science fiction is about imagining the future… remind them: it started as a way to roast the present. And Lucian did it with Dionysian tidepools, fish-man warlords, and romance that definitely violated the plant kingdom… and maybe a few cosmic laws too. ~Zack

Trump says he’s ‘highly unlikely’ to fire Fed’s Powell after floating that idea in private (AP)

Last week, Trump threatened to fire the Fed Chair, and then quickly recanted on his statements. This represents the biggest breach of Fed independence I've seen in my lifetime, and if Trump were to go through with it, could be the worst decision made by a US president in the past 100 years. Fed independence exists for a reason, because all world leaders always want the same thing - lower rates. Lower rates = high inflation = market losing faith in the dollar = rapid erosion of the dollar reserve system. Even if Trump doesn't actually remove Powell before his term is up, the damage may already be done. We see evidence of this in both the dollar and bond markets right now. What's interesting though is that there's not really a valid alternative to using the dollar for international trade right now, which leads me to suspect that the erosion of the dollar as the "reserve currency" will look different than most people expect. It wouldn't surprise me if gold (and maybe Bitcoin, to a certain extent) become the new "reserve currencies" in the sense that they replace the dollar in central banks reserves, but the dollar remains the defacto currency for international trade. In essence, the world would still use dollars, but just limit the time horizon dollars are held for. ~West

That’s it for this week.

Private armies are trending. AI LARPing is profitable—until it isn’t. UV rays might be the best (and definitely the cheapest) medicine. And somewhere, Lucian is probably astrally sipping fermented moon juice… entwined with something floral and sentient… thinking, “Nailed it.”

As always, we’re not here to predict the future… we’re here to stay positioned, no matter how weird it gets.

So stay sharp. Stay ungovernable. And maybe go outside once in a while… before sunlight requires a prescription.

Sic semper debitoribus
~ West & Zack

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