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Saturday, February 1, 2025

Good morning! On this day in 2003, Space Shuttle Columbia crashed while reentering Earth's atmosphere, resulting in the deaths of all seven crew members on the shuttle's 28th flight and in its 32nd year in service. (More)

Tomorrow is Armadillo Day! Bee Cave Bob will look for his shadow in the Texas Hill Country to predict winter's ending, and Punxsutawney Phil can just deal with it!

Today's sponsor is BetterHelp, be sure to check them out below.

Abbott Bans Chinese AI, Social Media Apps

Gov. Greg Abbott has banned the use of six Chinese AI and social media apps from state-issued devices, according to a Friday announcement.

The banned apps include RedNote, DeepSeek, Webull, Tiger Brokers, Moomoo, and Lemon8.

Abbott's stated aim in the ban is to "not allow the Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate our state's critical infrastructure through data-harvesting AI and social media apps."

The bans follow Abbott's 2022 order prohibiting the use of Chinese-developed TikTok on government-issued devices.

Longhorns, Aggies Athletics Set Finance Records

The athletic departments at Texas and Texas A&M turned a profit in 2024, despite record operating costs.

Longhorns athletics raked in $331.9 million in revenue while spending a record $325 million, becoming the first athletic department to report more than $300 million in expenses for a single year.

UT's $6.9 million surplus represents a stark contrast in college sports, exemplified by athletics powerhouse Ohio State operating at a $37 million deficit last year.

Meanwhile, Texas A&M athletics boasted a $22.7 million profit in 2024, while also reporting its highest operating expenses to date.

Southlake No. 2 on Best U.S. Suburbs List

A new ranking of U.S. suburbs set Southlake as second-best in the country for 2024, behind only Vienna, Virginia.

The rankings are based on 12 factors ranging from housing market conditions to how many days of sunshine a suburb has in a year.

Joining the list from Texas are Colleyville at 36, Grand Prairie at 37, and University Park, home to Southern Methodist University, squeaking in at 49.

You can see the full 50-suburb list here.

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➤ Facebook parent company Meta is in talks with Texas officials about reincorporating in the state if it exits Delaware as expected. (More)

➤ Keller Independent School District has named an interim superintendent as debates continue over whether to split the district. (See Details)

➤ Austin: Texas Attorney Gen. Ken Paxton co-signed a letter to Costco, along with 19 other attorneys general, demanding the retail giant end its "discriminatory" diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices. (More)

➤ Matthew McConaughey and other high-profile actors with Texas ties released a short film calling on the state legislature to pass the proposed $498 million budget item to boost Texas' film industry. (Watch Report)

➤ College Station: Texas A&M announced it will limit enrollment to 15,000 students a year following massive growth in the last decade. (More)

➤ San Antonio: 30 chefs will compete in the Titans of Tailgate event today to support San Antonio high school culinary programs. (See Details)

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➤ San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama and Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun were both named to their first All-Star Game on Thursday night. (More)

➤ The Texas Longhorns finished with the nation's best 2025 football recruiting class, per On3. Texas brought in four five-star commits in a loaded class. (More)

➤ The Texas Rangers revealed their 2025 broadcast crew for the newly created FanDuel Sports Network on Wednesday. (More)

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➤ Papy Donuts, a specialty doughnut shop in the Rio Grande Valley, was able to reverse plans to close after its "Trump" doughnut tripled sales. (See Doughnut)

➤ The post office in Valentine, Texas, is set to hand-stamp 10,000-12,000 Valentine's Day letters with a specialty postmark, continuing a 41-year tradition. (See Postmark)

➤ The Hornet Solar farm in Swisher County recently installed the last of its 1.36 million solar panels, generating 600 megawatts of energy and set to be fully operational in the spring. (See Photo)