Asics Considers Onitsuka Tiger Spinoff as Luxury Sneaker Brand Expands Globally 
South Korea Weighs AI Profit Sharing as Samsung and SK Hynix Earnings Surge 
Naver Stock Jumps on NVIDIA Partnership to Build South Korea’s AI Infrastructure 
OpenAI Files Confidential IPO Draft as AI Giants Race Toward Public Markets 
Apple Unveils Enhanced Apple Intelligence and Next-Generation Siri at WWDC 2026 
US Officials Explore AI Company Equity Stakes Ahead of OpenAI and Anthropic IPO Plans 
Italy’s ITA Airways Weighs Legal Action Against Pratt & Whitney Over Grounded Airbus Fleet 
Lululemon Cuts 2026 Outlook as Weak North America Sales Pressure Growth 
Switch Eyes Multi-Billion-Dollar Funding Round at $50 Billion Valuation Ahead of Potential IPO 
Netflix Names Jay Hoag as Board Chairman Following Reed Hastings’ Departure 
Nvidia Expands South Korea AI Partnerships to Strengthen Data Center and Memory Chip Supply 
oOh!media Takeover Battle Intensifies as Bain Capital Joins Competing Bids 
SpaceX IPO Demand Surges Past $250 Billion Ahead of Historic Market Debut 
Qualcomm Stock Gains After Jensen Huang Endorsement 
Trump Administration Defends Anthropic AI Restrictions in Ongoing Federal Lawsuit 
Airbus Aircraft Deliveries Surge in May 2026 
MOL Gets More Time to Negotiate Acquisition of Russian-Owned Stake in Serbia’s NIS 
A SpaceX engineer reportedly pleaded guilty of conspiracy to perpetrate securities fraud through selling insider information on the dark web. This is said to be the first case that was brought to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission involving violations in the deep web sphere.
About Elon Musk’s employees’ case
Reuters reported that the SpaceX’s engineers’ guilty plea was revealed by both the U.S. Department of Justice and the SEC on Thursday, March 18. The accused has been identified as James Roland Jones of Redondo Beach, California, and with the development in his case, he is facing a five-year imprisonment term in federal jail.
This is said to be the maximum penalty that Jones could get in his guilty plea. However, the official sentencing for the litigation has not been set yet.
The DOJ and the SEC disclosed that from the year 2016 until 2017, the SpaceX engineer conspired with someone whose identity was not revealed. The said person accesses different dark web marketplaces to look for material and confidential information that he can use for his own securities trading business.
Based on the report, Jones also concocted a plan to sell what he said were insider tips on the dark web though it appears that the info was actually false. He has been earning in this scheme as some people are purchasing the tips using bitcoin.
At any rate, the dark web is a part of the World Wide Web that is only accessible through the use of special software. It allows users and website operators to access the internet anonymously, and they couldn’t be traced either. This is usually used to host websites engaged in illegal activities.
Is SpaceX involved in the case?
It is not clear if Jones is currently working in SpaceX or he was already terminated. Moreover, the justice department did not reveal if the illegal trading was done while he was working for Elon Musk’s company or not.
It turned out that the FBI has been investigating his criminal case since 2017, and this led to the DOJ’s charges against him. But then again, despite his link to SpaceX, the SEC did not mention the company in Jone’s case. Meanwhile, the exchange commission, the DOJ, and SpaceX did not immediately respond to CNBC when asked for comments.
