Author: openjargon

• Google might be set to make its biggest acquisition ever.
• Its target is a cybersecurity startup called Wiz, The Wall Street Journal reported.
• The potential $23 billion deal could boost Google's cloud unit at a time when AI is driving demand.

Google might be getting ready to shell out a record amount on an acquisition. The company in question is a four-year-old startup that could turn its AI empire into a fortress.

On Sunday, The Wall Street Journal reported that the search giant is seeking to buy Wiz, a New York-based startup founded in 2020 by former members of the Israeli military's Unit 8200 intelligence unit.

The deal could be worth as much as $23 billion — and would mark an extraordinary moment for Wiz.

The young company specializes in cybersecurity for cloud computing — not the AI foundation models that startups in the tech sector such as OpenAI and Anthropic have shown off to secure billions of dollars of investment.

Wiz has worked with the likes of Morgan Stanley, LVMH, Shell, Mars, and Blackstone to help them secure the operations they want to build and run in the cloud.

A deal, then, would give Wiz a chance to pull off a rare feat in tech's generative AI era: scale valuation as a company that isn't shouting about AI at every moment. Wiz, which was valued at $12 billion after announcing a $1 billion fundraising in May, puts "cloud security" front and center.

For Google, however, Wiz's cybersecurity services promise to bolster its cloud operations at a time when AI has made it vital to do that.

Google has lagged behind rivals including Amazon and Microsoft on cloud, but has won more business during the generative AI boom as corporate customers demand services that can help them build, host, and maintain AI services and data. That's made it more responsible than ever for the work of customers trying to make headway in the AI field.

In the cloud

In the first three months of the year, revenues at Google's cloud unit posted a 28% year-on-year jump to $9.6 billion, for instance. With generative AI not showing signs of going away, Google can expect that trend to continue.

Still, maintaining the upward trajectory will involve showing customers that its cloud offerings are as secure as possible. Analysts at Wedbush including Dan Ives said in a research note that a Wiz deal "would clearly bolster the Google cloud offering and value proposition to enterprises."

Although talks seem to be at an "advanced" stage, per the Journal, there are no details yet on how Wiz would be integrated into Google following an acquisition, or the extent to which Wiz's cybersecurity services would run across the AI applications hosted in Google Cloud. Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

'Monopoly power'

A potential deal may face intense scrutiny from regulators. Antitrust concerns from the FTC have weighed on deal activity in the tech sector in recent years, leading Big Tech firms in particular to tread with caution.

On Sunday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal pointed on X to a report on the looming deal as one that would be "for the antitrust textbooks" — an example, he said, of "how to enrage enforcers & elude law & logic in pursuing monopoly power."

A decision from Google to push on regardless will show just how important it thinks cybersecurity is for the AI-cloud future.

• Erik Prince,  an ex-Navy SEAL,  said the 5mph wind was enough to displace the bullet by two inches.
• Donald Trump was "not saved" by the US Secret Service's "brilliance," he said.
• Prince criticized the Secret Sevice for letting a shooter within 150 meters of a pre-planned event.

Donald Trump may be alive due to the shooter's bad wind estimate, according to a former Navy SEAL officer.

In an X post on Sunday, Erik Prince joined those criticizing the Secret Service's handling of the fatal shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, saying Trump may only be alive due to a "bad wind estimate by an evil would-be assassin."

Prince pointed to a map of the rally site, which he said was from an unnamed SEAL sniper instructor at Red Sky LLC. The map shows a 5mph wind blowing westward in the bullet trajectory.

"As the graphics show, the full-value wind of just 5 mph was enough to displace the unconfirmed but likely light 55-grain bullet two inches from DJT's intended forehead to his ear," he said, using Donald John Trump's initials.

"DJT was not saved by USSS brilliance," he added.

Prince and representatives for the Secret Service didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The former President was shot in the upper part of his right ear at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.

The gunman "fired multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position," according to a statement shared by Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi.

The shooter, armed with an "AR-style" rifle, was only about 450 feet (roughly 137 meters) away from the former US president, satellite imagery shows.

Videos of the shooting show the former president clutching his hand to his bloodied face and later raising his fist triumphantly while being escorted off the stage by the Secret Service.

Trump later thanked the US Secret Service and law enforcement for their "rapid" response.

But the assassination attempt raised questions about why the US Secret Service didn't spot Trump's shooter sooner, with former intelligence officers criticizing the Secret Service's procedure.

Prince, who reportedly served as a Navy SEAL from 1992 to 1996, pointed to several of the USSS' alleged shortcomings, including letting a rifle-armed shooter within 150 meters of a pre-planned event and failing to kill the shooter immediately.

"The only positive action was an apparent 488yd shot by one USSS sniper, which dispatched the assassin, but after the assassin launched at least 5 rounds, wounding DJT and killing and severely others in the crowd," he wrote on X.

In his former role as CEO of Blackwater, a security firm that played a major and controversial role in the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Prince said they were "expected to execute the basics, or we would be fired."

"Clearly, USSS failed at the basics of a secure perimeter, and once shots were fired, their extraction was clumsy and left DJT highly exposed to follow-on attacks," he said.

On Sunday, Guglielmi said claims that the agency had turned down a request from Trump's team for additional security were "absolutely false".

"In fact, we added protective resources & technology & capabilities as part of the increased campaign travel tempo," Guglielmi said on X.

• Donald Trump praised the Secret Service after he was shot at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
• However, critics have questioned why the Secret Service failed to prevent the shooting.
• Congress has launched an investigation into what it says were "inexcusable security breaches."

Donald Trump praised the Secret Service for its response to his shooting on Saturday, saying the agency rushed in like "linebackers" to whisk him to safety.

His comments were made in an interview with the New York Post, in which he recounted the moment he was shot as "very surreal."

'"They took him out with one shot right between the eyes," he said. "They did a fantastic job. It's surreal for all of us."

Trump's praise stands out among a sea of criticism against the agency following the incident.

Kenneth Gray, a retired FBI special agent and now a professor at the University of New Haven, told the Financial Times that the incident showed a breakdown in the security plan for the rally.

"The fact that this shooter was able to get off an attack like this here looks like they needed additional resources," he said.

Pressure is now mounting on the Secret Service, from both Republicans and Democrats, to explain why it allowed a shooter to come so close to Trump at a pre-planned event.

The shooter crawled onto an open rooftop at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania about 150 meters away from the former president and fired off multiple rounds.

He killed one rally-goer and critically injured two others before being shot dead by a Secret Service counter-sniper, who was on another rooftop.

One bullet hit Trump's right ear, leaving blood streaming down his face.

"This counter-sniper made an amazingly quick decision and clearly saved Trump's life," Bill Pickle, the former special agent in charge of Al Gore's vice-presidential Secret Service detail, told Business Insider.

However, he may have also lost crucial seconds in preventing the incident from happening in the first place.

Pickle said the extreme heat, a lack of anti-sniper backup, and a likely focus on a nearby treeline may have delayed the counter-sniper's reaction.

"Someone made a decision that that number of counter-snipers was sufficient," Pickle said.

"And obviously, in hindsight, they were wrong because there was a kid who was able to get up there on that rooftop and pull the trigger three times at least."

On Sunday, Congress said it would launch an investigation into what it described as "inexcusable security breaches" by the agency.

Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh Field Office, echoed the statements in a news conference on Sunday, saying: "There is going to be a long investigation into what took place."

Representatives for the Secret Service did not immediately reply to a request from Business Insider to comment.

The Secret Service's protection covers former presidents and vice-presidents, and their children under 16.

It also extends to major presidential and vice-presidential candidates within four months of presidential elections, both of which apply to Donald Trump.

The Secret Service's director, Kimberly Cheatle, is set to testify about the shooting at a hearing on Monday, July 22.

• A Democratic staffer resigned after an inflammatory post following the attempt on Trump's life.
• The Mississippi Republican Party demanded her dismissal after she wrote: "don't miss next time."
• Jacqueline Marsaw apologized and was visited by Secret Service officers, per local reports.

A woman who worked for Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson has stepped down after posting an inflammatory message on social media in the wake of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, according to multiple reports.

Jacqueline Marsaw, formerly a case worker and manager in Thompson's field office in Natchez, Mississippi, posted on Facebook soon after a shooter attempted to assassinate the former president.

At a campaign rally on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania, a bullet grazed Trump's ear. Another rally attendee was killed, and two others were critically injured.

According to a screenshot saved by local outlet the Clarion Ledger, Marsaw's post read: "I don't condone violence but please get you some shooting lessons so you don't miss next time ooops that wasn't me talking."

It quickly attracted criticism, with the X account of the Mississippi Republican Party calling it "despicable" and calling for Marsaw to be fired.

The post was deleted about an hour after it appeared, the Clarion Ledger reported.

In a statement, Thompson said he was "made aware of a post made by a staff member and she is no longer in my employment," according to Fox News.

After the shooting on Saturday, Thompon had posted to X that there is "no room in American democracy for political violence."

Even so, Mississippi's state auditor, Republican Shad White, called on Thompson to resign, telling the Clarion Ledger that the congressman had hired "nut job staffers" and noting Thompson's backing of a bill that would have denied Trump, as a felon, Secret Service protection.

Speaking to local paper the Natchez Democrat, Marsaw said that she "got overwhelmed in the moment," adding: "I am a diehard Democrat."

The posts were meant as a joke, she said.

Secret Service officers contacted local law enforcement to interview Marsaw and visit her house on Sunday morning, Adams County Sheriff Travis Patten told the outlet.

"She was very remorseful and told the agents that what she did was unwarranted and uncalled for," he said, adding: "She continued to apologize throughout the entire 45-minute interview."

Marsaw's case will be turned over to the attorney general to see if any charges will be pressed, Patten told the Natchez Democrat.

Marsaw's post may have violated US Code 879, the law that prohibits threats to former presidents, he said. The crime is punishable by up to five years in prison.

Neither Marsaw nor Thompson's office immediately responded to Business Insider's requests for comment, sent outside of working hours.

• Russia shared a video of what it said was a 3-ton glide bomb being dropped on Ukraine.
• A pilot bragged the bomb was so big it's hard to "imagine a target that would not be destroyed."
• Russian glide bombs are devastating as they can be launched at distances that keep the aircraft safe.

Russia's defense ministry on Sunday shared a video of what is said was one of its Su-34 jets dropping a FAB-3000 glide bomb on a Ukrainian military position.

FAB-3000 bombs weigh 6,600 pounds or 3.3 tons.

A Russian pilot in the video bragged that "it is difficult to imagine a target that would not be destroyed by an aerial bomb of this size," according to a translation of his remarks by Ukrainian news outlet Pravda.

The video shows a bomb being attached to the underside of a plane, and then a similar-looking bomb is seen traveling through the air before aerial video of an explosion among a group of buildings is shown.

Russia has increasingly been using glide bombs in its invasion of Ukraine. The bombs are older munitions that have been upgraded with new guidance systems, allowing them to be launched at a distance.

This is a huge advantage and has allowed Russia to use them to a devastating effect: aircraft can launch the bombs from a far enough distance that Ukraine often can't shoot the planes down.

Ukraine's minister of foreign affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, said in March that Russia dropped 700 glide bombs on Ukraine between March 18 and March 24 alone.

And the bombs have been getting bigger. A video last month captured what appeared to be the first time Russia used a three-ton glide bomb on Ukraine.

Experts say the only way Ukraine can properly defend against these types of bombs is by intercepting Russian aircraft before they launch the bombs, or by hitting the aircraft while they're still on the ground.

But the US says that Ukraine cannot use the long-range equipment it has given to Ukraine to hit military targets deep inside Russia, which means that Ukraine cannot target many Russian airfields.

Hitting the bombs while they're in the air is also hugely challenging.

The bombs have short flight times, small radar signatures, and non-ballistic trajectories — all of which make them very difficult to intercept, Business Insider's Jake Epstein previously reported.

Ukraine also says it doesn't have enough air defense systems.

Ukraine is developing its own glide bombs and is also requesting more air defense systems from its allies.

• "House of the Dragon" fans were shocked by an incest scene in season two.
• Daemon Targaryen had a bizarre dream while staying at Harrenhal castle.
• He slept with his mother, Alyssa Targaryen, who died in the book the show is based on.

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for "House of the Dragon" season two, episode five.

Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) dreamed that he slept with his mother, Alyssa Targaryen (Emeline Lambert) in the latest episode of "House of the Dragon" season two, in a surprising incest scene that shocked fans.

In episode five, "Regent," Daemon is still in the haunted castle, Harrenhal, while he tries to rally an army for Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy).

So far, he's endured strange dreams and visions given to him by Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin). Alys is accused of being a witch in the book the series is based on, "Fire and Blood," but she hasn't been identified as one yet in "House of the Dragon."

These dreams are about Daemon facing his own demons, like the guilt of ordering a child's death in the season premiere, and his jealousy that Rhaenyra is the heir to the throne and not him.

In episode five, Daemon dreamed that he slept with an unknown woman with long white hair. The pair enjoyed themselves, and the woman told him, "Viserys was unsuited for the crown, but you, Daemon, you were made to wear it."

She continued: "If only you'd been born first, my favorite son." At that point, Daemon realized that the woman was his mother, Alyssa.

In "Fire and Blood," Daemon was three when Alyssa died giving birth to his brother, Aegon II, who also died several months later.

Although Daemon is obviously struggling with some complicated maternal issues, the dream is mainly about his insecurities regarding his role as a Targaryen prince.

The scene feels like another attempt from the show's writers to capture the controversial spirit that made "Game of Thrones" unique and different when it originally aired in 2011.

This season has already included the murder of a Targaryen toddler, new illegitimate children, raunchy sex scenes, and several brutal deaths.

The tactic seems to be working because fans were completely taken by surprise by the scene, which isn't in the book. And many took aim at the show's recurring theme of "mommy issues."

Some fans are also desperate for Daemon's Harrenhal subplot to end, which is understandable since the main storyline is about the war between the Greens and Blacks.

Meanwhile, Daemon is staying in a haunted castle, like he's in an episode of "Scooby-Doo."

"House of the Dragon" season two airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and is streaming on Max.

• My brother and I were raised by my grandparents and my great aunts helped. 
• My kids have a special relationship with them, and I'm grateful. 
• The benefits of their intergenerational bond go both ways.

When I was a kid, my aunts were the coolest. Auntie Pauline lived in a ranch house with a pool in Long Island, New York. Her husband, Sy, was the kindest of all my uncles and would stick up for me when my brother and cousin, who were three years older than I was, made fun of me. Pauline's daughter would become and remain one of my closest friends.

Auntie Joanne drove a Chevy Vega hatchback and was the first in the family to go to college. She was a teacher who lived within walking distance. She always made time for me and my brother.

My aunts were always there for my brother and me

After my brother and I went to live with our grandparents in Everett, MA, my aunts became a constant. When my mother died, it tied us together even more tightly. Of course, I was a generation removed because all my aunts were great-aunts. Though the age divide was great, it never stopped us from creating a unique bond.

My aunts helped my grandparents raise me. My Auntie Joanne took me to doctor's appointments, and Auntie Pauline had me over for Thanksgiving when I was in college in New York. I couldn't return home so she made a turkey and we celebrated together. After Auntie Joanne had her son, I became his unofficial nanny, accompanying them on vacations.

When my first marriage ended, I received little support from my brother and grandparents, who could not understand why I would divorce a man they loved. Auntie Pauline called me and left a message on my answering machine. "Nicole," she said, "I don't know what happened, but I wanted to say you are my niece. I love you, and I am on your side." It remains one of the kindest and most loyal things anyone has ever told me.

When I had kids, my aunts loved them, too

When my children came along, my aunts loved them fiercely. Auntie Joanne came for a week after the birth of my fourth child because my grandmother, who had come with my first three children, was battling ovarian cancer. Auntie Pauline made treats for my kids and purchased gifts for all the major milestones.

When my daughter was struggling during middle school, my Auntie Joanne took her for a girls' weekend, providing her a reprieve from the horrors of being 12. Both of them have taken my kids to the zoo and the mall, and they drive close to two hours to attend our family Christmas parties, a tradition I made my own after my grandparents died and our family Christmases changed.

These intergenerational relationships are important

My aunts fostered relationships with my children that allowed my kids to remain close to my side of the family. Through these women, my kids learned about family traditions and heard stories about my life before them. My grandparents died in 2013, and by the time my youngest kids were old enough to remember things, the size of the family had decreased significantly.

This weekend, we are headed to Boston to celebrate my Auntie Pauline's 90th birthday. When I told my 11-year-old son I was making the trip alone, he told me he had to go. He refused to miss seeing her on such an important day.

Throughout every event in my life — and now in my children's lives, too — the aunts, as we've come to refer to them, have been there. Despite the generational differences, they have remained a constant in our lives. They have taught us lessons, made us laugh, and pulled all of us through some of the most challenging times. It is impossible to remember every fun thing and every milestone moment we've celebrated with our great aunts. Without them, a part of my history, and my children's, would not have existed.

• A Colorado couple credits the FIRE movement with helping them grow their net worth to $800,000. 
• FIRE is an acronym for "financial independence, retire early."
• The duo shared their top strategies for increasing their savings. 

Chrissy Arsenault and her husband, Ryan, didn't grow up wealthy. To get ahead financially, they've long known that a combination of "hard work and frugality" would be necessary, Arsenault told Business Insider via email.

So when the couple learned about the FIRE movement in their mid-20s, it was music to their ears.

FIRE is an acronym for "financial independence, retire early." Generally, people who've embraced the FIRE movement want to grow their savings so they can achieve financial freedom and retire before they turn 65 — though some people prefer to keep working. To accomplish their goals, some FIRE advocates save most of their income, take on side hustles, or delay costly life milestones like having kids. Many FIRE advocates trace the movement's philosophy to the 1992 best-selling book "Your Money or Your Life."

To learn more about the FIRE movement, in particular strategies for maximizing savings and reaching financial independence, the couple sought out FIRE-related YouTube videos, Facebook groups, newsletters, and podcasts. They then tried to apply some of that information to their financial strategies.

Their efforts have paid off.

Over the past several years, the couple has grown their combined net worth to more than $800,000, according to documents viewed by BI. Arsenault said their goal is to grow their investments to roughly $2.5 million over the next 10 to 15 years — which she hopes will allow them to retire before she turns 50. Both she and Ryan are in their early 30s.

"Retiring at 65-plus years old just doesn't sound appealing," said Arsenault, who works as a marketing director and is based in Colorado. "I'm sure we'll still be active and healthy at that age, but there's a lot more that we can enjoy when we're in our 40s and 50s."

As many Americans struggle to save for retirement — and many retirees feel they don't have enough to stop working — the FIRE movement has offered a potential blueprint for people who desire financial security. While some people have found success with FIRE, it hasn't been a good fit for everyone, in part because it can require significant savings goals that might not always be realistic. However, FIRE proponents live a wide range of lifestyles. And experts say some principles of FIRE — like the benefits of saving and investing at a young age to take advantage of compounded investment returns — are applicable to a wide audience.

Arsenault shared her and Ryan's top strategies for growing their savings — and the one change to their lifestyle that could make an early retirement a bit more difficult.

How to live a FIRE lifestyle

Arsenault summed up the couple's financial strategy as "spend less, make more, and invest more."

To spend less, she said they've reduced how much they dine out at restaurants, bought in bulk from Costco, planned their own vacations rather than using travel agents, avoided gym memberships by working out at home, and limited alcohol consumption.

They've also postponed certain expenses to save some extra cash.

"I went many years with a broken phone screen and really didn't mind," she said.

To make more money, Arsenault said they've "aggressively pushed for additional income." For Arsenault, this has taken on the form of "climbing the corporate ladder" — she said she landed a six-figure salary at age 26. She also started a side hustle working as a registered dietician, something she focuses on during evenings and weekends.

Ryan works full-time as a human resources professional. In his spare time, Arsenault said he focuses on managing the couple's three investment properties which provide them with passive income. The couple's combined taxable income was roughly $250,000 in 2023, according to a document viewed by BI.

When their strategies generate extra money, the couple invests as much as possible in their 401(k) plans and low-cost index funds.

In case of emergencies, the couple keeps about six months of funds in savings.

Arsenault said saving money was easier when she and Ryan lived in Indiana. The couple relocated to Colorado during the pandemic, a few years into their FIRE savings journey.

One of the biggest differences between the two states has been the housing costs, Arsenault said. The couple is based in Monument, Colorado, where the average home value is about $743,000, per Zillow. In Fishers, Indiana, where they used to live, the average home value is $426,000.

In the years ahead, one lifestyle change could put some additional pressure on the couple's finances: They're expecting their first child, which they know will come with many new monthly expenses.

However, Arsenault said she thinks her financial goals are still achievable, in part because she and Ryan have been planning for life with a newborn. They've even planned how to finance their child's potential college education.

"We've started to save up for his 529 plan so that they can attend college," she said, referring to the investment account that offers tax-free withdrawals when the money is used for certain education expenses.

Are you part of the FIRE movement or living by some of its principles? Reach out to this reporter at jzinkula@businessinsider.com.

• A Business Insider analysis reveals the household income needed to be middle class in major US cities.
• Some parts of the Bay Area require over $100,000 to even be considered middle class.
• Middle-class cutoffs vary widely; they're highest in the West and lowest in the South.

Most Americans consider themselves middle class, but in reality, the cutoffs are more limiting. In some states, just over 40% of residents fall in the middle-income bracket.

This chart shows exactly how much it takes in each major US city to be considered upper, middle, and lower class.

A Business Insider analysis of US Census Bureau data for about 400 metropolitan areas reveals that in some parts of the Bay Area, your household needs to make six figures to be considered middle class, while in a few cities in the South, making six figures is upper class.

Inspired by a GoBankingRates analysis, BI looked at all large metro areas tracked by the US Census Bureau in 2022. BI determined middle-class cutoffs using Pew Research Center's definition of earning between two-thirds and double each metro's median income.

The following table shows our results for all 392 metro areas, sorted from highest to lowest. You can find your hometown using the search bar:

In the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metro area in California, being middle class means a household must earn between $99,267 and $297,800. Meanwhile, in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, middle-class households make between $29,509 and $88,526.

The Census Bureau notes the real median household income nationally was $74,580 in 2022. This would be considered below middle class in the San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley and Washington DC-Arlington-Alexandria metro areas.

Many of the highest-cutoff metro areas are in the West, with seven of the top 20 in California, two in Colorado and Washington, and one in Utah. Among the lowest 20, almost all were in the south in states like Arkansas, Texas, and Georgia.

The New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area was outside the top 20 with cutoffs of $61,041 to $183,124. The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area was not in the top 50, with cutoffs of $55,276 to $165,828.

Though many Americans may fall into the middle class, according to these calculations, many are still struggling to afford their basic necessities. Some in the ALICE — asset limited, income constrained, employed — demographic have told BI they're worried they may never retire as much of their income goes to expenses such as food, rent, and transportation. For many older Americans, Social Security doesn't cover everything, forcing many to take part- or full-time jobs in their retirement years.

This stress often doesn't go away even as Americans climb the income ladder. HENRYs — or high earners, not rich yet — often make six figures but have told BI that their savings feel inadequate in the case of an emergency or job loss, forcing some to delay having kids or buying a home.

An earlier BI analysis on a state level found that states like New York and California had the lowest percentages of residents in the middle class at under 45%, meaning that more residents were either upper or lower class. California's statewide cutoffs were $61,034 to $183,102, while New York's were $53,038 to $159,114.

Do you feel middle class? Did you move to another state where you could feel more financially secure? Tell this reporter why or why not at nsheidlower@businessinsider.com.

• Airbus forecasts that it'll be able to double the size of its global fleet to 48,230 planes by 2043.
• The demand comes from strong growth in Asia and the Middle East, per Airbus.
• The optimistic outlook stands in stark contrast to Boeing's losses, which have been in the billions.

As its competitor Boeing bleeds millions of dollars in the face of legal issues, Airbus has reported a much more optimistic future outlook.

The aircraft manufacturer revised its 20-year demand outlook in an annual global market forecast, saying it expects to more than double its global fleet size in the next two decades.

The current size is 24,260, per Airbus documents seen by Business Insider. Airbus forecasts that this number will rise to 48,230 by 2043, with 42,430 new deliveries expected until then.

"We see particularly strong growth in Asia and the Middle East, led particularly by India and China," Bob Lange, head of market analysis and forecasts at Airbus, told Reuters.

To be sure, Airbus' positive outlook for the future might be a bright spot in the aviation industry.

Companies like Boeing, for instance, have been bleeding cash. In its first-quarter earnings report, Boeing reported that it burned through $3.9 billion in cash. Boeing also posted a net loss of $355 million in that quarter.

Boeing has also agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge and will cough up $243.6 million to resolve a US Justice Department investigation into two 737 Max fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019.

The department said Boeing violated a 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement, which stipulated that Boeing had to pay $2.5 billion — mostly to the victims' families — and agree to strengthen its safety and compliance program.

The two crashes, which involved its Max 8 models, killed a combined 346 people.

A representative for Airbus did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.