Critical Minerals & Defense Spending: A new Mongabay report says U.S. Department of Defense funding for critical minerals surged from near-zero to a major priority over 2015–2025, raising fresh concerns about Indigenous consent and environmental safeguards. Rare Earth Recycling Expansion: Paladin Envirotech is scaling U.S. rare-earth recovery by adding processing capacity in Phoenix plus new regional hubs across Ohio, Texas, and Washington—aimed at end-of-life electronics and manufacturing waste. Colorado River Water Stress: Arizona faces potential federal “no deal” cuts up to 77% if Upper and Lower Basin states can’t agree, while Nevada’s share could drop about 6%. AI in Enterprise & AV: At InfoComm in Las Vegas, HPE CEO Antonio Neri framed the AI era as a network-first shift, while MAXHUB showcased AI meeting tools and directional audio demos highlighted how sound can be controlled in shared spaces. Nevada Tech & Infrastructure: Switch’s data center expansion in Clark County moved forward after zoning entitlements, despite water/energy and noise worries. Gaming Meets Crypto: Byte Federal says it integrated with BurraPay to enable compliant cryptocurrency wagering inside Nevada’s regulated gaming market. Mining Tech in Nevada: Viking Mines reports successful ore-sorting test work at its Linka tungsten project, splitting feed into product and waste streams for higher-value recovery.