• A new report says China's $229 billion military budget in 2022 was actually equivalent to $711 billion.
• A similar figure was touted by lawmakers last year when they cited US intelligence estimates.
• The report, by think tank AEI, breaks down that figure to show where China's money is likely going to.

In June 2023, Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska warned Congress that China's military was catching up to America's faster than previously imagined.

The US intelligence community, the Republican senator said, estimated that Beijing spent an equivalent of $700 billion on its defense budget in 2022 — more than triple its reported topline of $229 billion.

Sullivan's legislative push to dig further into the matter came amid renewed interest in China's true military budget, with think tanks and observers running their own analyses of Beijing's coffers.

A new report published Monday by the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute seeks to break down how the US might have internally reached that $700 billion estimation for 2022.

The report's author, Mackenzie Eaglen, writes that the Chinese budget is worth about $711 billion when weighed against America's, slightly higher than the one quoted in June by Sullivan.

That makes Beijing's spending in 2022 "nearly equal" to the US defense budget of about $740 billion that year, wrote Eaglen, a senior fellow at AEI.

"Considering that the Pentagon has labeled China the 'pacing challenge,' this revelation should cause concern," Eaglen wrote.

She mostly pieced together the new figure by comparing older Chinese budget reports and spending breakdowns, extrapolating them onto the $229 billion Beijing announced.

That's because Chinese spending reports are kept tightly under wraps. Most US observers haven't been able to pin the $700 billion on hard evidence.

Understanding $711 billion

Notably, the $711 billion estimate listed by Eaglen doesn't mean that China is spending that exact amount of money on defense. Rather, it describes the purchasing power of its military budget compared to America's, especially considering lower wage and material costs in China.

Based on a 2020 Chinese report to the United Nations, Eaglen wrote that China's 2022 military spending was likely divided into three major categories: equipment, training and maintenance, and personnel.

With purchasing power parity factored in, China likely spent the US equivalent of $135 billion instead of $85 billion on equipment and $121 billion instead of $76 billion on training and maintenance, the report said.

But the biggest jump comes from Eaglen's estimation of Chinese military wages, which typically aren't publicly recorded.

"Labor costs are demonstrably cheaper in China, where soldiers are paid just one-sixteenth the wage of a US Army infantryman," Eaglen wrote in an opinion piece for The Hill.

In her report, she compared the average wages of US and Chinese government workers and found that the former are paid 4.31 times as much as their counterparts in China.

Using that factor, Eaglen wrote that it's highly likely China's spending on personnel that year was worth $293 billion of US military spending.

Then there's research and development, which the US said China doesn't account for in its military budget announcements. Eaglen estimated that China spent about $45 billion on R&D, based on the country saying it spent that amount on research in "nondisclosed agencies."

The rest of the total budget comes from significant expenses listed by China as non-military, but ones that Eaglen argued should be considered defense spending.

She wrote that one such expense was $45 billion for maintaining the People's Armed Police, a paramilitary organization focused on internal security but tasked with bolstering the People's Liberation Army's ranks in times of crisis.

Another $45 billion was spent on retirement, military pensions, and demobilization, $2 billion on China's Coast Guard, and $21 billion on space forces — which Eaglen calculated for growth based on an official 2013 Chinese budget of $10.8 billion for space.

"Equal defense spending between the United States and China plays to Beijing's benefit," Eaglen wrote, noting that the US defense budget is spread across various theaters worldwide while China focuses on only one region.

The researcher called on the US to provide transparency on its findings about China's military spending power, citing concerns that the "American public is too often at ease in believing the US military remains ahead of all its competitors."

US military spending is also often cited as higher than the actual defense budget. Some estimates for 2023 are as high as $1.4 trillion when factoring in costs like veterans affairs spending, homeland security, security for international affairs, and interest accrued from debt.

Meanwhile, the US in March passed a bill allocating $825 billion to the American defense budget in 2024, the smallest proportion of its GDP since World War II. In the same month, China announced a military budget of $231 billion for the year.

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• Former President Donald Trump says he didn't fall asleep during his hush-money trial in Manhattan.
• Trump says he closes his "beautiful blue eyes, sometimes" so that he can "listen intensely." 
• The trial, which began on April 15, is expected to take about six weeks.

Former President Donald Trump says he didn't fall asleep during his hush-money trial.

Multiple reporters from outlets such as The New York Times, CNN, and The Washington Post have published reports noting that Trump appeared to doze off during his first criminal trial.

Trump has been regularly appearing in a Manhattan court since the trial kicked off on April 15. He is accused of falsifying business records to cover up a sexual affair with the porn star Stormy Daniels.

But the reports of him snoozing, Trump says, aren't true at all.

"Contrary to the FAKE NEWS MEDIA, I don't fall asleep during the Crooked D.A.'s Witch Hunt, especially not today," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday. "I simply close my beautiful blue eyes, sometimes, listen intensely, and take it ALL in!!!"

Trump's remarks come just a day after The Times' Maggie Haberman told CNN's Kaitlan Collins that it is "100 percent true" that he was sleeping at some points during his trial.

Haberman, however, did acknowledge that there were times where Trump really was just closing his eyes.

"That is how he tries to just basically stay calm and deal with it. And whether that then leads to sleep or whatever, who knows?" Haberman said. "But he is sitting there with his eyes closed for long periods of time. It's not always sleeping."

This isn't the first time the Trump campaign has refuted reports of him catching some shut-eye while in court. A representative for his campaign said in a statement to The Independent last month that the reports are "100% Fake News."

But that hasn't deterred people from cracking jokes at Trump's expense.

"Imagine committing so many crimes, you get bored at your own trial," Jon Stewart, the host of "The Daily Show," said of Trump during an episode that aired on April 15.

Besides the case in Manhattan, Trump has been charged in three other criminal cases, including a state criminal case in Georgia over accusations that he attempted to overturn the 2020 election results.

The former president is also on the line for two federal cases: one relating to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results and another where he's accused of hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after leaving office.

None of the three cases have firm trial dates set yet.

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• Novo Nordisk said it will cut prices of Wegovy amid rising sales and competition.
• Sales of the blockbuster drug more than doubled in the first quarter year-on-year.
• Novo faces competition from Eli Lilly and scrutiny from the US government over drug pricing.

Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk will lower prices of its weight loss drug Wegovy as it plans to raise sales volumes and navigate tough competition.

Prices for the blockbuster drug fell in the first quarter. The company plans to continue to cut prices in the US because of high volume and competition, chief financial officer Karsten Munk Knudsen said on the company's Thursday earnings call.

Sales of Wegovy more than doubled in the first quarter year-on-year, to 9.4 billion Danish crowns, or $1.3 billion, according to the company's earnings. In the US, more than 25,000 new patients are starting the drug weekly, compared to 5,000 in the beginning of the year, Knudsen said.

Knudsen and CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen said on the earnings call that they're prioritizing accessibility to Wegovy, instead of keeping prices high — despite significant demand at current costs. They did not specify how much Novo plans to cut Wegovy's prices.

The Danish pharmaceutical maker, which also produces viral weight loss drug Ozempic, reported better-than-expected sales of 65 billion Danish crowns, or $9.4 billion, in the first quarter. The company also raised forecasts for 2024 and said it expects to sales to grow between 19% and 27%.

The Wegovy price cuts come as Novo faces competition from US rival, Eli Lilly, which also posted earnings this week and reported a 26% increase in revenue in the first quarter. Eli Lilly said that revenue growth was driven by Ozempic and Wegovy competitors Mounjaro and Zepbound, which are used to treat Type 2 diabetes and obesity, respectively.

Novo's pricing for Ozempic and Wegovy has come under recent political scrutiny. Last week, US Senator Bernie Sanders launched an investigation looking into "the outrageously high prices" Novo charges for both drugs in the US, which he said were much higher than in other countries.

Wegovy and similar weight-loss drugs have become a huge business. With the US adult obesity rate at around 40%, the drugs could be prescribed to 15 million Americans in the next few years, per a 2023 Goldman Sachs report. The bank estimated that the anti-obesity drug market to grow to $100 billion by 2030.

The highly-coveted drugs are being snagged by celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk, and Charles Barkley. They are also gaining popularity with people who are going out of their way to afford them.

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• City Storage Systems' restaurant tech arm cut staff this week, including more than 80 in the US.
• Otter, which runs a number of software and hardware businesses, is seeking profitability.
• Otter has $80 million in annual recurring revenue and continues to grow, an executive said on Thursday.

Six months after layoffs at food technology company City Storage Systems, another round of cuts hit teams globally, per leaked audio obtained by Business Insider.

More than 80 US employees were cut at Otter, the company's restaurant tech arm, said a source familiar with the people laid off. Layoffs also affected teams in Canada and Latin America, among other regions.

Otter head Guido Gabrielli told staff in an all-hands meeting on Thursday that Otter made the cuts because the company is "trying to get profitable as soon as possible," per audio obtained by Business Insider. He said leaders would "try our best" to avoid future layoffs.

The total number of staff affected was not immediately apparent. CSS employs about 3,300 people — down from about 4,300 in November, before the last significant layoffs.

A representative for CSS did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside normal business hours.

In fall 2021, CEO Travis Kalanick raised $850 million for CSS from investors including Microsoft, at a $15 billion valuation. Since then, the company has faced similar headwinds to the rest of the tech and real estate industries, including higher interest rates and slower customer demand growth than during the pandemic boom.

Through CSS, Kalanick wants to reinvent the business of food, just as he upended transportation by founding Uber. CSS's other big unit is CloudKitchens, which renovates warehouses into ghost kitchen facilities for mom-and-pop restaurateurs and big companies like Chick-fil-A.

CSS's chief financial officer left in January, BI previously reported.

Otter is still growing

At Thursday's all-hands, Gabrielli said the company has notched $80 million in annual recurring revenue and has 100,000 restaurants paying for at least one service.

"Growth is not something very common today in the SaaS world and in the tech world and we still have it," Gabrielli said.

Otter's business includes order management for platforms like DoorDash; a virtual menu arm; a revenue recapture business, which claws back money owed to restaurants; and a newer point of sale system.

Gabrielli said Otter has about 500 McDonald's customers for its revenue recapture business. That product faces increased competition and slowing growth, he said.

Otter's point-of-sale system "is doing fantastic" for its small size, with about half a million dollars in revenue annually.

Otter's leaders have also talked with tech companies that are trying to raise money, Gabrielli said. Some companies that notched billion-dollar valuations two years ago — at the height of zero interest rate-catalyzed investor enthusiasm — are now struggling with a year of no growth, he said.

Do you have a story to share? Reach out to this reporter using a nonwork phone on Signal and Telegram at 646 768 1627.

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• Students protesting Israel's war on Gaza may be ruining their career prospects, says Kevin O'Leary.
• The "Shark Tank" host said employers could identify applicants who joined in the protests using AI.
• "I can't believe the stuff I find in background checks now. These people are screwed," he said.

"Shark Tank" host and investor Kevin O'Leary says pro-Palestinian student protesters will be "screwed" when they start job hunting.

This, O'Leary says, is because employers can now use AI technology to screen applicants and filter out those who have taken part in protests. Advancements in technology have made it much easier to identify people on camera, the businessman added.

"Here's your resume with a picture of you burning a flag. See that one. That goes in this pile over here, cause I can get the same person's talent in this pile that's not burning anything," O'Leary told Fox News' The Five on Wednesday.

"There's plenty of consequences for all those people. Even an image that far away, AI can generate who they are by the way the body moves. I can't believe the stuff I find in background checks now. These people are screwed," he said.

O'Leary told CNN in an interview on the same day that protesters could still be identified even if they tried to mask their identity by donning a mask. This is because they can be identified via retinal scanning, he claimed.

"This is what's happening with AI. So if you're burning down something, or taking a flag down, or fighting with police, I'm sorry, you're trashing your personal brand," O'Leary told CNN's Laura Coates.

Representatives for O'Leary did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI sent outside regular business hours.

O'Leary isn't the only business executive who has weighed in on the pro-Palestinian student protests taking place at various campuses, such as Columbia University and UCLA.

Darren Woods, the CEO of Exxon Mobil, told CNBC in an interview last month that the oil giant "wouldn't be interested" in hiring students from universities that have been embroiled in pro-Palestinian protests.

"Harassment and intimidation, there's no place for that, frankly at those universities, and certainly no place for that at a company like Exxon Mobil," Woods told the outlet. "If that action or those protests reflect the values of the campuses where they're doing it, we wouldn't be interested in recruiting students from those campuses."

Comments from executives like O'Leary and Woods underscore the damage students might be inflicting on their own careers through their political activism.

In October, law firm Winston & Strawn said it revoked a job offer for a New York University law student who publicly condemned Israel for Hamas' terrorist attacks. The announcement came on October 10, just three days after Hamas had attacked Israel.

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• NATO is accusing Russia of "malign activities" in its member states, including Germany and the UK.
• The alliance said this includes sabotage, acts of violence, and disinformation campaigns.
• The North Atlantic Council said it "will act individually and collectively to address these actions."

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Thursday singled out Russia in a statement condemning "recent malign activities" in its member states.

"This includes sabotage, acts of violence, cyber and electronic interference, disinformation campaigns, and other hybrid operations," the North Atlantic Council statement said.

The council said it made its statement amid investigations and charges against people accused of hostile state activity in Czechia, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and the UK.

The treaty organization said these individuals' actions were part of an "intensifying campaign of activities" carried out by Russia.

"We will act individually and collectively to address these actions, and will continue to coordinate closely," the statement added.

It further condemned Russia for its accused behavior and called on Moscow to uphold international obligations.

"Russia's actions will not deter Allies from continuing to support Ukraine," the statement read.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 — which the Kremlin has billed as a response to NATO aggression — has widened the rift between Moscow and its Western rivals.

The US-led alliance has provided Ukraine with some $168 billion in aid, now bolstered by a new tranche of $61 billion from the US. About $125 billion of this total includes advanced weaponry and ammunition, with NATO states saying Ukraine's defeat would be devastating for Europe's overall security.

The divide has also long been clear in NATO's rhetoric toward Russia. French President Emmanuel Macron, for example, has for months said that he would not rule out sending troops to Ukraine should Russia make significant advances on the battlefield.

Meanwhile, Russia says the alliance has effectively waged war against Moscow by sending aid to Kyiv.

Amid the heightened tensions, NATO members have increasingly highlighted what they say are Russian clandestine activities in their own governments and institutions.

The European Parliament in March said it was investigating lawmakers accused of being on the payroll of a Russian propaganda network busted in Czechia.

In late April, two British men in their early 20s were charged by UK authorities and accused of helping Russian intelligence services in a suspected arson attack in London.

Meanwhile, Germany has arrested six people accused of spying for Russia and China.

Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours by Business Insider.

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• Jan Sramek, CEO of California Forever, wants to build a new city in Solano County, California.
• He said he hopes to provide more affordable housing with the new city.
• The recent "AI boom" will only make the housing crisis worse, Sramek told Kara Swisher.

The leader behind the grand plans to build a new city in Northern California believes his project will address the state's ongoing housing crisis — a matter he says will only get worse with the recent demand for artificial intelligence.

Jan Sramek, CEO of California Forever, which is a company backed by Silicon Valley's wealthiest, made his case for the new Solano County city during an episode of the podcast "On With Kara Swisher" on Tuesday.

Sramek said in the interview that his vision for the city, which would be about 60 miles away from San Francisco, is simple: to build a more walkable, dense city that is also affordable.

Previously published information from California Forever revealed that the city will be about 18,600 acres with a capacity to welcome 400,000 residents.

Sramek said on the podcast that the city could have homes or apartments starting at $400,000. The average home value in Solano County is about $590,000, according to Zillow.

The ex-Goldman Sachs trader-turned-City Founder said he has no interest in building a smart city or a libertarian utopia, but instead wants to address a persistent problem in the Golden State that is quality, affordable housing.

More than 800,00 people left California between 2021 and 2022, according to Census Bureau data. The high cost of living was one factor former California residents cited to Business Insider last year for their exodus.

A 49-unit apartment complex that is taking 17 years to build has become one recent example of the housing issue in the state.

"These walkable communities today — working families can't afford them," Sramek said.

The CEO later added that the housing problem will only get worse with the advancement of artificial intelligence, arguing that this problem makes his project more necessary.

"If the AI boom continues and the salaries continue in the Bay Area — that's going to just increase the pressure on the housing market," he said. "And it's going to be harder and harder and harder for working families to stay in San Francisco or in Palo Alto."

Sramek didn't elaborate on what role artificial intelligence will play in the housing crisis. A California Forever spokesperson didn't address the question in an emailed response to Business Insider.

One investigation by The Lever revealed that landlords could use AI to screen potential tenants, potentially opening the door for discrimination against people even with minor convictions such as littering.

But Sramek appeared to be suggesting that AI will have an impact on wages — higher salaries to attract top talent, for example — and, as a result, on people's ability to afford housing.

A blog from the International Monetary Fund stated that AI could result create a split between workers who can take advantage of AI and those who cannot.

"We may see polarization within income brackets, with workers who can harness AI seeing an increase in their productivity and wages—and those who cannot, falling behind," the IMF forum said. "Research shows that AI can help less experienced workers enhance their productivity more quickly. Younger workers may find it easier to exploit opportunities, while older workers could struggle to adapt."

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• Apple reported better-than-expected sales in China in its latest earnings, including the iPhone.
• Still, CEO Tim Cook believes there's still "work to do" in bolstering sales to its major market.
• "I think it has been and is the most competitive market in the world," Cook said regarding China.

Apple CEO Tim Cook says there's still more work to do on the China front.

Apple reported in its second-quarter earnings that the company saw better-than-expected sales in China, a major market, which has been a source of concern for investors worried about a slowdown.

While overall iPhone sales were down 10% year-over-year, CEO Cook noted that Apple "still saw some growth" on iPhone in China, specifying that "two best-selling smartphones in urban China" are the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro Max. That growth may come as a surprise to investors, as Counterpoint Research reported earlier this year that iPhone sales to China fell by 24% in the first six weeks of 2024 amid competition from local rivals like Huawei.

Still, Cook noted that there's "clearly work there to do" in bolstering sales of other products like the iPad to one of Apple's biggest markets.

"I think it has been and is the most competitive market in the world," Cook said on Apple's latest earnings call. "I believe it was last quarter as well."

Nevertheless, the CEO told investors that he continues to feel "very optimistic" about the China market, citing better economic conditions in the region as a driving factor for greater consumer spending.

"If you step back from the 90-day cycle, what I see is a lot of people moving into the middle class," Cook said on the call. He added that Apple has "a lot of happy customers" in China, pointing to the tech giant's recent store opening in Shanghai as indicative of consumer interest in its products.

"I feel good about China, I think more about long term than to the next week or so," Cook told CNBC in an interview before earnings.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider before publication.

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• Trump's hush-money trial went full National Enquirer during a heated cross-examination on Thursday.
• Stormy Daniels rep Keith Davidson was grilled by Trump's lawyer on his salacious previous cases. 
• Charlie Sheen, Hulk Hogan, Lindsay Lohan, and Tila Tequila were all name-dropped.

Donald Trump's hush-money trial has always had the National Enquirer as its flashy backdrop.

But Thursday's testimony was so chock-a-block with talk of C-list celebrity sex tapes and rehab scoops, it was as if the supermarket tabloid had somehow engulfed the proceeding.

Charlie Sheen, Hulk Hogan, Lindsay Lohan, Floyd Mayweather, Tila Tequila — all were name-dropped in morning testimony.

What explains their cameo appearances on week two of testimony in the only-ever criminal trial of a current or former president?

Turns out each has had a run-in with attorney Keith Davidson, a key prosecution witness who repped both former Playboy Bunny Karen McDougal and porn star Stormy Daniels.

Manhattan prosecutors say that Trump falsified 34 business records in order to hide an illegal, election-influencing, 2016 hush-money payment to Daniels.

On direct, Davidson told jurors how both women pursued catch-and-kill cash from the Enquirer for their tales of sex with Trump.

On Thursday, Trump attorney Emil Bove went on the attack.

Bove appeared to have one main mission in cross-examining Davidson — to create distance between Trump and his campaign on one side, and the lawyer's wheeling and dealing on the other.

"You've never met President Trump, correct?" Bove asked Davidson, as his very first question.

"Never," Davidson answered.

"And Tuesday was the first time that you've been in the same room as him, right?" Bove asked.

"That's true," the witness answered.

"You've never spoken to President Trump?"

"Never," he answered.

Scandals and money

Then Bove amped up his attack, with a series of questions suggesting that Davidson, who was a top source of stories for the Enquirer's editor, had made a career of shakedowns and scandal-mongering,

Trump was a victim, not an instigator, in any hush-money schemes, the line of questioning implied.

"What does the word 'extortion' mean to you?" Bove asked Davidson.

"Extortion is the —" Davidson fumbled. "It's the obtaining of property by threat of fear or force," he said.

"When you were negotiating on behalf of Ms. McDougal and behalf of Stormy Daniels, one of your concerns was on staying on the right side of the line with respect to extortion, correct?" Bove asked.

"I suppose," Davidson answered, hesitantly.

At another point, Bove asked, "In 2016, you were well-versed in getting right up to the line, without committing extortion, right?"

"I don't understand the question," Davidson answered after a pause.

And in this context came Thursday's onslaught of C-lister cameos.

First, Hulk Hogan

"Isn't it a fact that in connection with events in 2012, you were investigated by state and federal authorities for committing extortion against Terry Bollea — Hulk Hogan," Bove asked.

Bollea was Hogan's given name.

"That's true," Davidson answered.

Davidson was asked about the infamous Hogan sex tape. It was Davidson who asked Hogan for cash to purchase, and bury, the tape, the witness conceded.

"At some point in 2012, you reached out to Hulk Hogan's representatives, right?"

"Yes," answered Davidson .

"You made a monetary demand to Hulk Hogan's representative in order to not publish these tapes, correct?" Bove asked.

"No," Davidson answered.

Moments later, as Bove's cross-examination continued, Davidson backpedaled.

"Did you ask for money?" Bove asked.

"There was a monetary demand made," Davidson answered, vaguely.

"Was it for purchase, so that Hulk Hogan could purchase the tapes? The rights to the tapes?" Bove asked.

"Yes," Davidson admitted.

Then, Lindsay Lohan

Davidson said he also represented an employee at the Betty Ford rehab clinic in 2010.

And she "leaked information about the treatment of Lindsay Lohan at a rehab facility, correct?" Bove asked.

Davidson took a very long pause, during which he took a sip of water.

"It was reported that that's what she did," the witness answered cautiously.

Bove noted that the story ran in TMZ, and asked "and you had connections at TMZ at the time, right?"

"True," Davidson answered.

"You still do, right?"

"No. Well, perhaps," Davidson answered.

"Perhaps," Bove responded, skeptically.

"You helped Ms. Holland get paid in connection with what I just described, didn't you?" Bove then demanded.

"I don't recall," Davidson answered.

"You don't recall that TMZ paid Ms. Holland $10,000 around this time?

"I don't recall," Davidson answered again.

Next up: Tila Tequila

"Do you know who Tila Tequila is?" Bove then asked suddenly of the reality TV personality.

"I do," Davidson answered.

"And in 2010, you took steps to broker a deal of a sex tape involving her, correct?"

"I believe so," Davidson answered.

Davidson was asked if he worked on that "engagement" with someone named Kevin Blatt— "sort of known as a sex tape broker, is that right?"

"I think that's fair," Davidson answered cautiously.

Bove asked Davidson if he recalled that "Ms. Tequila" was threatened by a man who said if she didn't pay $75,000 the sex tape would be published.

"I don't recall that," Davidson answered.

"You don't recall at the time of that transaction, you were on a 90-day bar suspension?" Bove pressed.

"I don't recall that," came Davidson's answer, once again.

And finally … Charlie Sheen

The topic of the cross-examination then veered without warning to Charlie Sheen.

"You know who Charlie Sheen is, right?" Bove asked.

"I do," Davidson answered.

"And you've represented some clients who you helped get paid by Charlie Sheen, right?" Bove asked.

"I've represented several clients who had claims against Charlie Sheen," Davidson answered carefully.

"And who you extracted sums of money from Charlie Sheen on behalf of, correct?" the Trump lawyer pushed.

Davidson smiled.

"There was no extraction," he answered, adding, "we asserted that there was tortious activity committed and valid settlements that were executed."

Bove asked Davidson to talk about his representation of one Sheen accuser he said "was under the influence of methamphetamine at the time," in 2011.

"You don't recall she was barely completing sentences when you got her to sign the letter" agreeing to Davidson's representation, Bove asked.

"No, I don't recall that," Davidson answered.

Davidson testified he did remember that the woman had been referred to him by Blatt, the so-called sex-tape broker. But he didn't remember if Sheen paid the woman $2 million.

"Is it fair to say that your memory seems a little fuzzy around some of these issues?" Bove asked.

"I've had 1,500 clients in my career," Davidson protested. "You're asking me about events that took place many, many years ago."

"A $2 million payment is a typical payment for you on one of these cases? So much so that you don't remember it? Is that your testimony?" Bove asked, his voice rising in pitch.

"I don't remember a settlement from 13 years ago," Davidson answered.

At another point in the Sheen portion of Thursday's testimony, Bove asked Davidson if he remembered "extracting another settlement from Mr. Sheen" while representing Capri Anderson.

"Again, it was no extraction," Davidson responded.

"You got Mr. Sheen to pay, correct?" Bove asked.

"Assuming arguendo that he did pay and that there was a settlement agreement, that settlement would be confidential," Davidson snapped. "And I would not discuss it here."

"Look," Bove shot back. "We're both lawyers. I'm not here to play lawyer games with you. I'm just here to ask questions and get straight answers."

The judge sustained an objection to this non-question from the prosecution.

Davidson then invoked attorney-client privilege in declining to say if there was a settlement between Anderson and Sheen.

Testimony continues Friday.

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• Tesla is revoking summer internship offers as the automaker grapples with layoffs.
• One college senior said she was disappointed to lose her internship just weeks before she was set to start. 
• Brook Gura said she turned down offers at other companies in favor of working at Tesla. 

A college senior who scored a prestigious Tesla internship is scrambling to make new professional plans after the automaker revoked her offer less than three weeks before she was supposed to start.

Brook Gura, 21, was looking forward to spending her summer as a recruiting intern in Tesla's human resources department, she told Business Insider this week. The senior at the University of Texas at Austin said she spent about three weeks interviewing with the company earlier this year before signing a contract with Tesla on February 29. Business Insider viewed part of Gura's offer letter from Tesla.

"It was exciting. I was looking for a big corporate internship," Gura said. "And it was close by. I wouldn't have had to relocate."

Gura, who said she turned down internship offers at other companies in favor of Tesla, was particularly stoked about the compensation — $26 an hour, she told BI.

The 12-week internship was scheduled to start on May 20. Gura said she was told she would get more information about picking up a company laptop the first week of May.

When Tesla announced layoffs last month affecting 10% of the company's workforce, Gura said she wasn't initially worried.

"Interns are relatively cheap compared to full-time employees," she said. "I figured if they were trying to cut down, I might even be working more."

But as Gura was studying for finals on Tuesday, she said she got a call from an unknown phone number. A couple of hours later, she received an email from a Tesla recruiter asking her to call back.

Gura said she immediately panicked and went online to see if the company had done more layoffs. That's when she saw a LinkedIn post from another intern who had lost their offer.

By the time she called the recruiter back, Gura said she was fairly certain she knew what was coming. The "pretty short" conversation, however, still took her by surprise.

"They just explained the company was making cuts that were going to start impacting interns, and that meant me," Gura said. "There wasn't any room for negotiating."

Gura said she initially started panicking over how she'd spend her last summer before she graduates in December.

"I was upset. This was not the only internship offer I had. I picked Tesla out of other organizations," she said.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Gura made her own LinkedIn post on Wednesday, asking her professional network for support and opportunities. Other would-be interns have posted about losing their Tesla internships, as well. Gura said several interns have connected in the aftermath of the cuts and are offering support to one another. She feels lucky compared to other interns who had already paid for flights and housing.

Gura said she's trying to stay positive and look to the future.

"Taking the time to think about this, I have learned that rejection is redirection," she wrote on LinkedIn. "While I am incredibly disappointed that I will not have the summer I intended to have, I know that this moment will only help me grow stronger as a professional."

But she can't help but feel disappointed by the whole experience.

"What bummed me out the most is I didn't even have the chance to showcase my skills," Gura said.

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