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France Rocked by Its Biggest Student Protests in Decades; Young People Across Western Europe Are Taking to the Streets; Students Protest as Cornell Faculty Weigh No-confidence Vote; Recorded Call Reveals Details of Night of Alleged Gang Rape; Bodycam Footage Sheds Light on Cornell's Disciplinary Action. Aired 9-9:45a ET

Aired October 06, 2026 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Well, you're looking at live pictures from France, where protesters have clashed with police in recent

days as school demonstrations there spread. It is 03:00 p.m. in France. It is 05:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi.

I'm Becky Anderson. You're watching "Connect the World" from our Middle East programming headquarters. This hour also coming up, faculty at Cornell

University in the U.S. prepare for a no-confidence vote against the school's administration. This over the handling of an alleged gang rape on

campus.

Yemen's Saudi-backed military says it has taken back key territory from Iran-backed Houthi rebels. And we're just about 30 minutes away from the

start of trade on Wall Street, indications are that these markets will open higher. The NASDAQ, of course, reaching a record high in its last session.

Oil prices lower, yields on treasuries have eased somewhat, painting a better picture for the start of trade back there in half an hour. Well, in

France, thousands of people taken to the streets today in the biggest day of protests in decades. This over the country's struggling education

system.

Protesters have blocked hundreds of schools, demanding the government address staff shortages, crowded classrooms, and deteriorating school

buildings. The demonstrations mark the latest escalation in weeks of student protests across France.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANAS NADEL, FORMER PRESIDENT OF UNION SYNDICALE LYCEENNE: The strategy of the government since the beginning, without giving any answer, any

political answer, any real discussion to the social movement. They are just creating violence and the methods used by this power to repress this

movement is unknowingly violent, and it's only going by violence.

So, the violence is, I think, created by the power itself.

MELISSA MAZOUNI, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: So, we've been on the street since 05:00 a.m. and so now we were collecting like trash and stuff in order to

really block the door. And so, we're doing that. We want change. We want -- We want to be heard.

OCTAVE MARTY, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: We, to them, we are young enough to be kicked, to be gasped, but we are not old enough to be listened. So that's

pretty crazy. I mean, we should be listened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Right. Well, you're hearing there from protesters themselves. These protests have come at a cost. France's Interior Ministry says 61

people have been arrested since the protest began three weeks ago. And French officials say at least 930 people have been injured in the clashes,

including 715 police officers and over 200 teenagers.

CNN's Melissa Bell, following this story for us from Paris. Melissa, thousands, if not tens of thousands, taken to the streets today. Just

explain what you are seeing right now and describe the atmosphere. Certainly, it has been extremely tense at times.

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In fact, Becky, it's only gotten more tense as the days and the weeks of this have progressed.

And in terms of the numbers, we're hearing from trade unions who joined in today's protest, so parents, teachers, but we've also seen nurses and other

public health workers stand in front of the barricades to protect the high schoolers from the police, and that's what they're out here doing today.

They say in solidarity. According to those trade unions, there are already 200,000 people out on the streets across France, outside of Paris, and that

gives you an idea of just how large this demonstration looks today. You heard it from the students' mouth there a moment ago themselves, Becky.

They had these original, long-standing grievances about the lack of funding for education, schools that they say are no longer fit for purpose,

classrooms with leaky roofs, teachers that are absent, and there has been a cut in public funding to education over the course of President Macron's

two terms. That is at the heart of their anger.

[09:05:00]

But now this has been sort of turbocharged by fresh anger about the way that authorities dealt with this, not just the fact that the students feel

that the authorities haven't provided any answer or any sense that they are willing to hear or answer their demands for better funding.

But also, the police response, there have been so many injuries on all sides, hundreds wounded amongst police men and women, amongst teachers,

teaching staff, but also amongst the students. In fact, one child has now lost a hand as a result of picking up a crowd dispersal grenade.

Another has lost the use of his eye, and that now is fueling their anger further. They're not being listened to, and they're describing what they

say is police repression of their movement, Becky.

ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you, Melissa is there in Paris. I want to bring in Jon Henley, who is The Guardian's Europe Correspondent. He is also

in Paris, joining us today. And Jon, you've written that this isn't just a problem in France, and we have been also reporting on the protests in

Spain.

You write, quote, they may stem from different specific grievances, but the two waves of mainly youth-led protest exemplify a growing problem for

Western European governments. A generation of youngsters feeling increasingly denied the basic socio-economic security that, by and large,

their parents enjoyed.

You're making an important point here. Can you just break that down for us?

JON HENLEY, EUROPE CORRESPONDENT OF THE GUARDIAN: Yeah, I mean, I think they are very different, as you say. That the Paris and French protests

involve high school students aged between 15 and 17. The protests in Spain have mainly been 20-year people, young people in their 20s, maybe early

30s.

But I think they do have a common cause, which is this, yeah, this breakdown of the what I called the kind of socio-economic contract that

their parents enjoyed, that our generation enjoyed, which was basically that you know if you work hard at school, you'll do well, you'll go on and

get a good job, you'll be able to afford to buy a home at some stage.

And you've kind of started out on the ladder of adult life, and I think for a number of different variety of reasons that are different in in both

countries, but end up with the same result. We now have a generation of young people who really feel that you know systems that are meant to secure

their future, launch them out in adult life are basically broken.

I mean, when you have a society and systems in which the kind of existing frameworks can neither guarantee school pupils a decent education and young

people, you know, the possibility of owning their own home, then we clearly have a problem.

ANDERSON: Point being, then, that mainstream politics is failing this generation. I think that sort of underscores what you're saying here,

right? And if you're seeing these protests, which have become violent, in certainly in France, police have made thousands of arrests of these, you

know, really young, really angry youngsters.

Do you see that heavy-handed response risking pushing people even further away from mainstream politics at this point?

HENLEY: Yeah, absolutely. I think there's a real risk. I mean, firstly, there's a real risk that by failing to address their problems and really

take them seriously, you know these, the mainstream parties that have basically been in charge of you know have been running European governments

ever since the end of the Second World War, you know, are in grave danger of essentially losing their legitimacy for young people.

You know there is a kind of a loss of political consent happening. I think, among this generation who simply don't think that you know the existing

parties are taking them seriously or are capable of, you know, of addressing their needs, and that's exacerbated, as you say, by police

violence, which is likely to further drive them away from the ruling parties.

And of course, what's also going on the fringes is that this is being exploited to the maximum by the more extreme political parties on both the

far right and the far left, who see in it.

ANDERSON: Of course.

[09:10:00]

HENLEY: You know, a real opportunity to kind of you know exploit young people's grievances and make life you know very difficult for these

governments, which is you know in France and in Spain happens to be the case. They're both governments that don't have majorities in parliament, so

their room for maneuver is really limited, and this they're basically being squeezed on all sides.

ANDERSON: What's the solution here?

HENLEY: I mean, if I had that, I think I'd be a happy man. I mean, I think there is a -- I think it's obvious that mainstream parties really need to

take on board the scale of this disenchantment, not just of younger generations, but also of you know quite a few working people across the

continent.

They are really constrained. I mean, particularly for example in France, France, as Melissa was saying, France, you know, France faces a you know a

massive budget crisis. It has a mountain of debt, and quite where it's going to find money to actually do something.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

HENLEY: I mean, some politicians have been saying that France's high schools basically need a 10-billion-euro injection of cash to make them

function. There's no way that France, in its current economic state, is going to be able to afford that. So, I think it's going to be a long, hard

road ahead.

But it really starts by politicians taking these children, young people's grievances seriously, realizing that life is really not as easy for them as

it was for our generation, you know, and not responding in the words of one conservative French politician yesterday, who just said, look, you know,

these kids they have to knuckle down, they have to work, they have to realize that their future competitors in China are not going on strike, and

they just have to get on with it.

You know, to which the students might reply, yeah, but you know, Chinese students don't have to work in schools where you know the ceilings are

crumbling and the walls are leaking, and there are rats in the corridors.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you, Jon. It's a timely conversation and an important one as we continue to report on what is going on, not just in

France, but we're seeing, you know, as you say, different, but you know, different protests, but protests nonetheless in Spain as well.

We have a new, relatively new prime minister in the UK, a budget to be released at the back end of this month again. You know, huge grave concerns

about whether or not this government is addressing the needs of the man on the street and the youngsters of the UK.

So, we will continue to watch this space. It's good to have you, Jon. Thank you very much indeed. Well, to the U.S. and new pressure on Cornell

University over its response to a gang rape allegation in 2024. Some members of the faculty are lobbying for a no confidence vote against the

university's administration.

They've introduced a resolution for the faculty senate to consider next week. Now, a vote of no confidence would significantly boost the pressure

on the school's leadership to take action. Well, that is in addition to the public displays of dissent on campus. Huge crowds gathered Monday to

protest Cornell's handling of this case, which failed to yield charges.

When a student came forward in 2024 with her original allegations, students say this should be a catalyst for change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I think it's really a wake-up call that they need to change because the student body is not going to let Cornell continue to

be a school like this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When someone comes forward with a story like Jane Doe did, it should be taken with the seriousness that it's being taken with

now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We stand with Jane Doe, but also, we stand with taking more measures to prevent this from happening in the future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, this comes as an attorney for the accuser, named as Jane Doe in her lawsuit, alleges that the university mishandled evidence that

could now be lost, as he said in New York now investigates. Gloria Pazmino reports on what has come to light, including a recording of a phone call

between Jane Doe and one of the men accused in the case.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another bombshell in the investigation of an alleged sexual assault at a Cornell University

fraternity house two years ago.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- want me to give my recollection of the entire night?

PAZMINO (voice-over): New audio obtained by ABC News reveals a phone call between Jane Doe and the fraternity member that she says invited her to the

house the night of her alleged assault three weeks earlier.

[09:15:00]

ABC reports that Doe secretly recorded the call in which she asked the other student for details of the night. If I just know what happened, then

I can feel a little bit better and move on, and maybe be able to stay at the school. She tells him, according to a recording of the call.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, you come in, say hi. We start dancing for like maybe three to five minutes, and then I pop the question. You say yes, then I

remember like we didn't know who else to bring, so I go up to -- who was on the dance floor too, and I pop the question, and he's like, 'yo', and then

we go upstairs.

PAZMINO (voice-over): Jane Doe's lawyer has said that she was blacked out during portions of the alleged assault. According to ABC, she asked on the

call how she ended up in a threesome.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You did tell me you were sober by the way. You did. You said you hadn't been anywhere.

PAZMINO (voice-over): ABC does not use Jane Doe's voice in the clips it has released, but says she responded, that is not true. I never would have said

that. Documents reviewed by CNN show Cornell University campus police drafted letters seeking records from Verizon and T-Mobile just one week

after Jane Doe reported her assault.

It's unclear if investigators sent the requests and whether the Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten was aware of them.

THOMAS GIUFFRA, ATTORNEY FOR JANE DOE: If this was a normal investigation that was done in New York City, for example, they would have gotten search

warrants. They would have grabbed every single one of these phones of these guys. There were videos, and you know where I think those photos and videos

are now.

I think they're in the bottom of Lake Cuyahoga because once they knew there was a problem, they cleared everything out and they got rid of it. And the

fact is that the investigators let that happen.

PAZMINO (voice-over): That attorney has said two of the men named in the lawsuit were expelled from the school. ABC is also reporting this Cornell

University Police Department bodycam footage from November 2024, when police told one of the suspended students that he was no longer welcome on

campus.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take a look at that. Per the temporary suspension, he is barred from any of the grounds owned, operated, or maintained by Cornell

University.

LETITIA JAMES, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF NEW YORK STATE: The governor has entrusted my office with this investigation.

PAZMINO (voice-over): Today, an attorney representing one of the students is calling on New York State Attorney General Letitia James to recuse

herself as special prosecutor based on a social media post from days earlier, where James expressed support for the alleged victim.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: That was Gloria Pazmino reporting. Stay with CNN. We continue to cover this case, of course, and the reaction on Cornell's campus. More

gatherings and protests are expected throughout the week. You're watching "Connect the World". Time here in Abu Dhabi is just after quarter past five

in the afternoon.

Still to come, the conflicting claims from Yemen's military and Houthi forces about who is controlling the vital Bab al-Mandab Strait. And what

military leaders from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan agreed to during an emergency meeting in Riyadh.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:00]

ANDERSON: Breaking news out of the UK, British police announcing the arrest of another person as they investigate a suspected terror plot targeted the

Fairford Air Base. Now, the unnamed person is the seventh to be arrested, and this comes after the U.S. moved all of its long-range bombers stationed

at that base back to the United States.

There are unconfirmed reports that concerns over the possibility of an Iranian-ordered drone attack on that base prompted that move. Well Yemen's

Saudi-backed military says it has taken back key territory from the Iran- backed Houthi forces. A spokesperson says that includes the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

Now, a Houthi-run news agency denies those government troops are advancing. Meantime, two airports in Saudi Arabia were attacked, including the main

one in Riyadh. Officials there report minor damage and three minor injuries. This is really important stuff. Nic Robertson following

developments for us.

He is in London today, but recently back from Yemen. Let's start firstly with what more you have learned about the reported advances by Yemeni

government forces, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah, this comes off the back of the announcement on Sunday. Both the military and the political

leadership of the internationally backed Yemeni government said that they were going to go on an offensive and oust the Houthis from the whole

country Monday morning.

There was a lot of videos on social media showing what appeared to be advances in the Bab al-Mandab area, Dhubab Airport, as it's called. It's

really an air strip in the sort of sandy desert. There was, according to the Yemeni government, that was taken, that was captured, and if they've

captured that as they claim, then they are north of the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

There'll be very little sort of defendable ground for the Houthis around there. So, if what the Yemeni government is saying is correct, they in

essence do now appear to have control of the land right next to that exit of the Red Sea, the narrowest point, the choke point. But of course,

there's a lot further to go.

We know that just in the last month or so, the Houthis in a lightning move south took the town of Mokha. There's no talk today or verifiable

information that the Yemeni government forces have moved to oust the Houthis from Mokha. So, it does seem that that sort of offensive tomorrow,

as with many offensives in Yemen, will move forward.

It will take some ground. It will pause, and then we're just going to have to see where it goes from there. And as for the strikes that we're hearing,

both the Saudis and the Houthis. Houthis claiming strikes into Saudi Arabia, as you said, Riyadh Airport. The Saudis say a couple of airports

close to the border with Yemen, much further south in the capital, that they were hit with three injuries, as you say.

And the Houthis themselves claiming as well to have struck military one military air base and another air base close to the border in the south.

So, this fight at the moment has many, many fronts, Becky.

ANDERSON: Absolutely, and it's an important story. These Yemen forces, thank you, Nic, fighting the Houthis are, of course, supported by Saudi air

power. Meantime, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have agreed to move forward with a joint defense agreement after an emergency meeting in

Riyadh. Ivan Watson with that part of the story.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: For the very first time, Turkey and Pakistan, two members of the brand-new Mecca alliance,

have announced plans to rush to the aid of Saudi Arabia. Now, this was announced after an emergency meeting of officials from all three countries

in the Saudi capital on Monday, in which they announced that they would immediately honor collective defense commitments that they would work for

the rapid deployment of military forces to help defend Saudi Arabia.

Some of this will rely on things like a parliamentary vote of approval, for example, in Turkey. But again, this is the first time that these three

governments are coming together in this form, and this comes as the fighting on the ground in Yemen has escalated dramatically.

Last month, Iranian-backed Houthis launched an offensive seized territory from the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and threatened Saudi oil exports

through the vital Bab al-Mandab Strait.

[09:25:00]

This was being increasingly relied upon by Saudi Arabia after Iran disrupted oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz out of the Persian Gulf.

It's an important show of support for Saudi Arabia as the fighting not only has escalated inside Yemen, but the Houthis have accused Saudi Arabia of

carrying out hundreds of airstrikes against Houthi targets.

And simultaneously, the Houthis have carried out their own attacks across the border into Saudi Arabia. The Trump Administration has so far rebuffed

requests to intervene directly in the conflict. It is supporting Saudi Arabia, perhaps with aerial refueling, and it's not clear yet how deeply

Turkey and Pakistan may now get involved in this rapidly escalating Middle Eastern war. Ivan Watson, CNN, Islamabad.

ANDERSON: Keeping an eye on oil prices heading lower. It has to be said again today, down by more than 2 percent last time I looked. So, let's

bring the numbers up so we can have a decent look at what's going on. Brent down below 100 there, down 2.5 percent nearly today, just shy of just above

98 bucks on the barrel.

WTI there at 88 spot 09. Well, Russian officials say that Ukraine launched a wave of 650 drones towards its capital overnight and into this morning.

One person has died, six others have been injured across the Moscow region, according to Russian authorities. The attack comes after Ukraine's

President said he plans to double down on targeting oil refineries.

North Korea has been sending troops to aid Russia in the war. New intelligence says those soldiers have been given some disturbing orders.

CNN's Will Ripley with this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): South Korean intelligence says North Korean troops have explicit orders to kill

themselves to avoid capture. They say at least one soldier even shouted General Kim Jong Un before pulling a grenade.

THAE YONG HO, FORMER SENIOR NORTH KOREAN DIPLOMAT: All the people in North Korea are brainwashed.

RIPLEY (voice-over): One of Pyongyang's highest-profile defectors says, when North Korean soldiers die fighting for Russia. Their leader praises

them as heroes. Doors open for the soldiers' grieving families. Brand new apartments on a special street in Pyongyang.

Their children promised places in elite revolutionary schools, a path to privileged jobs.

HO: The social status of your family would be upgraded to a kind of you know elite or ruling class. Your house, your parents would be moved from

countryside, very remote area, to the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang.

RIPLEY (voice-over): But North Korea's Former Deputy UK Ambassador Thae Yong Ho says, if a soldier is captured alive, like these two carried out of

Russia's Kursk region last year, the consequences can be reversed.

HO: There would be a very heavy punishment. Their social status would be downgraded.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Of the thousands of North Koreans sent to fight for Russia, only two are known to have been captured alive in Ukrainian

captivity. With their identities concealed, they told CNN affiliate MBC, I don't know if my mom is alive. I worry she could be in trouble because of

me.

If I had a hand grenade, I could have killed myself and not become a POW. Seoul's National Intelligence Service says they decided to go to South

Korea, arriving by their own free will earlier this month.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: These guys are not easy to capture alive.

RIPLEY (voice-over): South Korea was shocked when Ukraine's President revealed the transfer at the U.N. Seoul wanted to keep it secret, in part

to protect the soldiers and their families. But Ukraine says there was no confidentiality agreement.

HO: I am protected by South Korean bodyguards 24 hours.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Thae defected with his wife and two sons. I met the brother and sister he left behind in Pyongyang, in what they called a

voluntary interview, they disowned him.

RIPLEY: In South Korea, Thae said that he did this to break the slavery chain.

RIPLEY (voice-over): 100 percent evil propaganda, his sister told me. Thae feared his family was being forced to speak against him. His brother said,

if I don't wash this sin away by myself, my sons and future generations will have to work harder to pay for this. Now, Thae says Ukraine should

target North Korean troops with leaflets and loudspeakers, telling them they don't have to die.

[09:30:00]

They are very young, in early 20s. They have a very bright future.

RIPLEY (voice-over): But Ukraine says thousands more may soon be headed to battle in the name of their leader. Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, we made it to the end of the ding on Wall Street. There you go, the Empire State Realty Trust celebrating the anniversary of the

observation deck. There, I am told there being the Empire State ringing the trading day. Markets were looking to not take off but be higher this

Tuesday after the NASDAQ hit a new high on Monday.

Tech stocks still booming despite stresses on the U.S. economy. We're going to check in on those numbers and share part of my conversation with

Europe's biggest AI CEO. That, is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi, you are watching "Connect the World" in France. thousands taken to the streets again today

in what's being called the biggest student protest in decades. You're looking at live pictures from Paris.

Those students demanding better schools and more resources, while the government is calling for calm. French officials say at least 930 people

have been injured in clashes since the protests began three weeks ago. That is police and students. Well, large crowds also turning out on the campus

of Cornell University in New York.

Protesters voicing their disapproval of the school's handling of an alleged gang rape case in 2024. Members of the faculty senate have introduced a

resolution for a vote of no confidence against the university. Yemen's Saudi-backed military says it has taken back key territory from Houthi

rebels, including control of what is that key chokehold, the Bab al-Mandab Strait of Yemen.

It's part of a new offensive to counter recent gains made by the Iranian- backed and aligned Houthis. A Houthi-run news agency denies the government troops are advancing on them. Well, as much of the world debates the safety

of artificial intelligence, this region is pressing full steam ahead with the adoption and the advancement of the tech.

The mission underscored by AI everything. A conference event here in Abu Dhabi, where I had the chance to sit down with the CEO of the French AI

company Mistral.

[09:35:00]

Forbes reports Mistral is valued at more than $24 billion, and while that is a far cry from the 6 trillion that Nvidia is closing in on, it is

considered Europe's most valuable AI company. And Arthur Mensch, like most of his fellow AI CEOs, is being pulled into the debate over safety and

regulation.

He told CNBC, the debate that we've seen in the U.S. has been a cover for the negligence of some of our competitors. Well, I began our conversation

today by asking him to explain what he meant by that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARTHUR MENSCH, CEO OF MISTRAL AI: There's been an argument that this was completely uncontrollable, and that the agents had the will of their own,

and some people even say they're conscious. But at the end of the day, this is software, and when you have software, you can monitor what the software

is doing.

And if it goes and hacks your neighbor, you should be able to know it on the second, right? And so that world debate was really triggered by a lack

of proper infrastructure to monitor agents that are effectively getting more and more capable, but there's nothing hard in monitoring what an agent

can do as long as you spend the time to design the proper infrastructure.

And so, this negligence has been used as a way yet again to explain that AI could only be safe if it was provided by proprietary providers, centralized

providers. This is something when we started Mistral that we have been fighting against.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, when Mensch says his company is fighting against centralized proprietary providers, what Mistral says it's working for

instead is local control over transparent models. That's shorthand as -- that shorthanded as sovereign AI, and that was a big theme of this event

here in Abu Dhabi.

I wanted to understand from him what that phase means to him, and why it matters to so much of the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MENSCH: The U.S., China, they all frame AI as a way to build supremacy. 55 percent of the world economy is actually not the U.S. and not China,

including 23 percent of Europe. What that means is that this part of the economy actually doesn't want to get caught in these geopolitics in between

the U.S. and China.

And that means there's an enormous desire and an enormous need for alternative technology suppliers. Europe and the GCC region is are very

aligned in that respect, in that they need to provide to secure supply in artificial intelligence on both the compute side and also on the IP side,

being able to produce their own models, being able to have models that actually understand languages that are not English, models that have good

understanding of audio.

And of course, models that have strategic capabilities in defense and in cyber. They need to be able to source those models in a way that is not

dependent on a U.S. Administration stamp, in particular.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: But in answer to a question from the audience, Mensch was careful to explain that local control doesn't mean going it alone. No nation is an

island when it comes to artificial intelligence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MENSCH: Sovereignty is about leverage, really. You don't -- there will never be some form of any country able to say, I'm able to supply

everything on the semi to AI value chain. This is not the case. This is completely intertwined. You have European dependencies. You have Indian

dependencies.

You have South Asia dependency. You have -- and then you have energy dependency at the end of the day. So, it's never about building

isolationism, being isolationist, but it's about looking at parts of the value chain where you can be strong and investing there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Be quite frank here. The real reason that we all care how AI is developed and how AI is implemented is, of course, its potential for

improvements in workflow, in efficiency, in transforming our lives, if you see the sort of positive side of AI, so how it's going to make our lives

hopefully better.

And Mensch pointed to one thing only that can make the massive amount of capital expenditure worth it. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MENSCH: The true thing, which is a little bit of an unknown steal, is the rate of adoption of enterprises. At the end of the day, the kind of

deployment we are making depends on enterprises adopting the technology and creating growth. If it does not create growth, if it only replaces job,

there is not going to be this abundance that we are building.

[09:40:00]

And that's the reason why at Mistral we are investing on the infrastructure side. Because for sovereignty, you actually need to control infrastructure.

For training models, you need to control infrastructure. But more importantly, we have a third of our workforce actually working hands-on

with customers to deliver tangible value and to drive adoption.

And that drive of adoption is for us the only way in which we can make the infrastructure investments being done worldwide actually meaningful.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Arthur Mensch, the CEO of Europe's massive AI company Mistral. We will be right back with more "Connect the World" after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Argentina set to play their final match of this international break on Tuesday. And it is set to be extra emotional with Lionel Messi

pulling in the iconic or pulling on the iconic number 10 jersey one last time for Argentina. That is "World Sport" after this short break. I'm back

with more "Connect the World" in 15 minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORTS)

END