CBC News: The National | Final passengers leave hantavirus-hit cruise

Tonight more confirmed cases of the rare hantavirus as the passengers all disembarked from the cruise ship where the outbreak began.

Tired and I would say exhausted but very relieved and grateful to be back here in Canada.

Four Canadians now isolating in BC.Three in Ontario.The measures in place to monitor their health.The U .S.President calls the latest peace offer from Iran.

garbage.The ceasefire is on massive life support where the doctor walks in and says sir your loved one has approximately a one percent chance.

As energy prices jump again.And Ottawa vowed to restrict flavored vaping products five years ago but it hasn't happened.So why not just act now?Now is when?Now today?The health minister's response as the youth vaping rate remains stubbornly high.

From CBC News, this is The National with Chief Correspondent Adrienne Arsenault.

Thanks for joining us.Well, the last group of passengers on a cruise ship at the centre of that deadly hantavirus outbreak are on their way home tonight.On Spain's Canary Islands, they were escorted in protective gear off the ship to buses, which took them to government and military flights.They're now heading for their home countries, where they will continue to isolate.And the cruise ship has begun a six -day journey to the Netherlands, where it will be fully sanitized.Health officials continue to reassure the public that the risk of hantavirus remains low.

Leanne Young now with more on those isolating in Canada and abroad.

One by one, the final passengers of the MV Hondius disembarked, some on board for nearly six weeks, quarantined on the vessel for days after a deadly outbreak of the rare hantavirus.The ship's captain praised their perseverance.

I've witnessed your caring, your unity and quiet strength amongst everybody on board.

The World Health Organization has confirmed seven cases of hantavirus so far, an infection typically spread by rodents.Three people have died, all with links to the ship.And a French woman is now in critical condition after first showing symptoms aboard her repatriation flight.On Sunday night the four remaining Canadians on board arrived in Victoria, BC on a government chartered flight where they will isolate for a minimum of 21 days.

Tired and I would say exhausted but very relieved and grateful to be back here in Canada.

A couple from the Yukon and two people from Vancouver Island along with three more people from Ontario all asymptomatic have been told to either stay home or in housing that was provided.but they can go outside.

These are very reasonable people who understand the risk.I have no concerns that people are going to run off and go to a party or something.

While in the U .S., 18 Americans are isolating in Nebraska and Georgia, the majority in quarantine units.

There are no guarantees in life.We're putting as many measures in place as possible to ensure that people are safe and healthy and we keep the community safe and healthy as well.

Quarantine periods vary with the WHO recommending 42 days but the variance can be explained.

It does seem a bit helter -skelter so a lot of it depends on where was the last potential contact that would result in a transmission risk occurring and if you date that back into say April or even early -ish May then in fact that may be a shorter period of time.

The remaining crew members sail next into the Netherlands, its final stop on a voyage no one could have predicted.Leanne Young, CBC News, Vancouver.

Briar Stewart joins us now from the Spanish island of Tenerife.So Briar, what did you see today?

Well, the passengers and crew members that came off, they came in one large group because the water was so choppy that they ended up backing the vessel up into the port because it was not safe to offload people onto those small boats.When the passengers came off and they were put into buses, some of them waved out the windows.One made the sign of the heart.But there's no doubt that this was a very distressing time for them.Officials from the World Health Organization said it was imperative to get them off the vessel as soon as possible, not only for their physical, but also their mental health.Officials talked about how some of the passengers experienced mental health breakdowns after learning about the deaths because of the virus.

I spoke with a field epidemiologist from the WHO, Boris Pavlin, who told me that the suggestion of maybe quarantining these people on the vessel, it was never an option.

One of the main reasons we wanted to get people off the ship as soon as possible was because it wouldn't be feasible to manage a prolonged voyage.It's already been way longer than anyone signed up for.To manage a prolonged voyage with people who are stressed, who are elderly, who have multiple medical conditions in many cases, who need a higher level of care and that's what they're going to get.

So Briar, that ship is now headed for the Netherlands, yes?

Yes, that's right.It's headed to Rotterdam and that journey is going to take around six days.Once the vessel gets there, there will be some kind of decontamination procedure but the details around that haven't yet been released.Now, on board the ship still there are nearly 30 people.Most of them are crew members but there are two medical staff as well.Also on board the ship is the body of the German national who died back of the virus on May 2nd.

All right, thank you.That is Briar Stewart in Tenerife tonight.The U .S.president is calling out Iran's leadership, slamming its countermeasures.to end the war and warning the fragile ceasefire in place is on quote life support.

Paul Hunter explains why Donald Trump's next move looks to save Americans money but will cost his administration.

Donald Trump's view of Iran's response to the latest U .S.peace proposal, it is stupid, a piece of garbage.The Iranian leadership, lunatics.The month -long ceasefire, he says, unbelievably weak.

I would say the ceasefire is on massive life support, where the doctor walks in and says, sir, your loved one has approximately a 1 % chance of living.

This with diplomacy at an apparent standstill, the warfare bringing a global energy crisis and that continuing U .S.demand that Iran must reopen the Strait of Hormuz and give assurances it will end its nuclear program.Iran has said the U .S.demands amount to a surrender and says it will not bow.

Everything we put forward in our proposed text consisted of reasonable and responsible demands and generous proposals.

Meanwhile, one of the most tangible effects of the war in the U .S.rocketing gasoline prices.Now averaging 450 U .S.a gallon.

Up more than 50 percent from before the war.Trump now pledging to pause the U .S.federal tax on gasoline.

Something Canada did last month.How long are you going to suspend that tax for?

Until it's appropriate, yeah.It's a, you know, it's a small percentage but it's, you know, it's still money.

But suspending the tax would also cost the U .S.government tens of millions of dollars a day in lost revenue.And it would come as barely a third of Americans approve of the bill.in office.Say those are the gas pumps in Washington, D .

C., on word of Trump's gas tax pledge.I believe it when I see it.And on what's caused the price to go up in the first place.I think it's the big guy that's down the street in a White House.U .

S.federal gas tax aside, said Trump today oil prices will come down, as he put it, like a rock, as soon as the war ends, Adrian.

And add to all that, now, Paul, we're looking at new U .S.

sanctions against Iran as well.Yes, aimed at cutting funding for Iran's military and as well the Iranian nuclear program.Fresh U .S.sanctions targeting individuals and companies the U .S.

says have been helping Iran ship oil to, and here's the interesting part, to China, the country where this week Trump is visiting for talks on a number of U .S.-China issues, including China's role in the U .

S.-Iran war.Adrian.All right, that is Paul Hunter in Washington.Thanks Paul.The man charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump last month has pleaded not guilty.

Wearing an orange jumpsuit and shackles Cole Allen didn't speak in the Washington courtroom instead allowing his attorney to enter the plea on his behalf.Allen is accused of storming the White House Correspondents Dinner armed with guns and knives and firing a shotgun at a Secret Service agent.Well there is new evidence tonight that Canadians are drowning in debt.Consumer insolvencies have hit a 17 -year high, the highest quarterly level since the financial crisis of 2009.In the first three months of this year, more than 37 ,000 Canadians filed for insolvency to get relief because they cannot pay their debts.That is up 8 .5 % from the year before.

Nisha Patel joins us now to talk about these numbers.

It's a perfect storm, Adrienne.The job market is shaky, housing and food are expensive and now high gas prices are stretching budgets even further.Canadians are relying on debt to survive and as that debt builds up it can be tough to carry month after month.All it takes is a for rent to be hiked, or your car to break down, or work shifts to be cut, to hit that breaking point where someone can no longer pay their bills.And it may not surprise you to hear that two of the provinces where the consumer insolvencies are seeing the biggest increases, Ontario and B .C.

, two of the provinces that have been hit hardest by U .S.tariffs, and where their housing markets are seeing the deepest downturns.

For the last 20 years, up until a year or two ago, if my credit card debt was getting out of control, I could refinance my house because my house price went up.I can get a HELOC, refinance the mortgage, pay off my unsecured debts.That's no longer possible because my house price didn't go up in the last year or two.It might have even gone down.

So this picture is brutal.If you step back and look at the numbers, what does the story the numbers tell you about what might be coming?

Well, there is a caveat here.Adjusted for population growth, the numbers may not be as dire as they seem.Still, insolvencies have been rising for months now and that's not a sign of a healthy economy.There's no telling when inflation settles down or the job market picks up.So it's not a bad idea to hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

Always.Nisha Patel, thank you.Canadian households have until Tuesday to complete the 2026 census or face a potential fine but some people are raising concerns with this year's questionnaire.David Thurton now with why some are worried for their privacy.

Five years ago many Canadians were working from home because of the pandemic and filling out our census now it's that time again.

Did you fill out your census?census?

I did not.

I got the short form.

Tuesday is census day when Statistics Canada wants the questionnaire completed.

Obviously a very important operation.One that's a key to our democracy in fact.

About 75 % of households received the short -form census, with 25 % asked to fill out a longer version.And for the first time, questions on sexual orientation, general health, and whether anyone in the household has experienced homelessness.Some have taken to social media, complaining about how long it took.Others.

Is it just me or is anyone else upset that they got the short version of the census this year?

But some who did get the long form.

I think it took us about a half hour to 45 minutes.

Say they understand.Hospitals, libraries and school boards in their community depend on it.

If I'm a geek you can call me a geek on it.We were happy to do it.

For others, handing over all that detail makes them nervous.It's definitely invasive.These are not questions I would feel comfortable responding to.Statistics Canada says data submitted online gets encrypted.

There have been some very small minor losses of paper questionnaires in the past.Never electronic questionnaires.So we always encourage people to respond online.That is the safest and most secure way for Canadians to provide us with their census information.

Filling out the census is mandatory by law and while Stats Canada says Tuesday isn't a firm deadline it will start sending out warnings to those who haven't completed it that they could face a fine of up to $500.David Thurton, CBC News, Ottawa.

Five years after the federal government announced it was restrictingvaping flavors, particularly those appealing to young people, it hasn't done so.And as Marina von Stackelberg tells us, there's still no telling when or if it will happen at all.

After decades of smoking, Jacob Woloshin had to kick a new addiction, vaping.The vape did help him quit more harmful cigarettes, but the flavor kept him coming back.

There's banana, mango, pineapple, ice.You look at the flavors and it's like a whole cocktail.They don't need that much.they should definitely have at least heavy restrictions if not full -on ban.

Research shows the flavors are also what attract youth to vaping in the first place.That's why the federal government has been promising to restrict flavors to only mint, menthol and tobacco for five years now.But it hasn't done that and the health minister won't say when or even if it will still happen.So why not just act now?

Now is when?Now today?Well as I said, I am working.I am on it.I know the issue.I know the stakeholders ask.

I am working with my team, the provinces and territories and I will have more to say very soon.Some provinces have acted.

Now new research from the University of Waterloo suggests that in provinces that banned flavours teenagers appear to be vaping less.Despite restrictions there also appears to be no significant uptick in the youth smoking rate.This cardiologist opened a clinic specifically to help vapors quit.

The reality is that there's this massive tsunami of nicotine addiction that's coming.

He says most of his patients are young.Some vape the nicotine equivalent of 100 cigarettes a day.And instead of using vaping to quit smoking he's seeing the opposite happen.

It's actually people that were like, oh I started vaping when I was 15.It was too harsh on my lungs.I ended up switching to cigarettes.And this is not a one -off.

Records show the nicotine and vaping industry have been aggressively lobbying the Liberal government and Health Canada not to bring in a flavour ban.They say adult smokers choose to switch to vaping in part because they like the taste.Marina von Stackelberg, CBC News, Ottawa.

The deciding game in the PWHL semifinals between the Montreal Victoire and the Minnesota Frost has been postponed due to illness.The decision was announced just hours before puck drop.While the league didn't elaborate on how many players are affected, it did specify the symptoms aren't linked to hantavirus.Game five will now take place Tuesday.The winner will advance to the final and take on the Ottawa Charge.Well British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is fighting for his political life tonight.

At least 70 of his own MPs are calling on him to resign.And although he's vowing to stay as senior international correspondent Margaret Evans explains he may not have a choice.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer starting his day with a speech billed as make or break for his leadership and not for the first time.

People are frustrated by the state of Britain.Frustrated by politics.and some people frustrated with me.

But this speech comes after the Labour Party was given a drubbing in local elections last week to the benefit of the right -wing populist Reform UK party.

I know I have my doubters and I know I need to prove them wrong and I will.

But he might not get the chance to try.Analyst Colin Murphy calls Starmer's speech good but likely not good enough for his critics.

We can see that in the fact that scores of MPs from his own party the Labour Party have come out publicly and called for him to go after he made that speech.

20 per cent of Starmer's MPs would need to back a replacement candidate to trigger a leadership contest.Starmer hasn't even been in the job for a full two years yet and even though he led Labour to a landslide victory his approval ratings sit at around 20 per cent.

There have been too many u -turns too many bad decisions and I think there is time to change and see what a new leader can do.

We've had too many different leaders over the last few years and I think like more like more change on top of change is not going to do us any favors.

For now it's not a decision up to the British electorate and some analysts warn would -be challengers to be careful what they wish for.An economic burden inherited from previous administrations and a war in the Middle East further destabilizing the cost of living.Margaret Evans, CBC News, London.

Martin Short is opening up about the tragedies he's endured, including the recent death of his daughter.

What it developed in me was this muscle of survival.

How his words could help fight the stigma around mental illness.A game meant for high school seniors has now resulted in a police investigation.

It was really disturbing to see that video.It made me mad.It made me hurt.

what senior assassin really is and how some students seem to be going too far.Plus a symphony for moms.We're back in two.British actor Michael Pennington has died.He was probably best known for his portrayal of the Death Star Commander in the Star Wars franchise.Pennington was also an accomplished Shakespearean actor who went on to perform more than 70 screen roles.

He was 82 years old.Canadian comedian Martin Short is opening up about the death of his daughter.She died by suicide in February.As Griffin Yeager tells us, Short's candid comments could help reduce stigma about mental health.

Martin Short spent decades making people laugh.Now he's getting candid about life behind the scenes.Speaking publicly about the death of his daughter Catherine for the first time.

It's been a nightmare.for the family.

In an interview with CBS Sunday, Short opens up about the grief that's shaped him on and off screen.

What had developed in me was this muscle of survival.

He lost both of his parents and his older brother before he turned 20.His wife, Nancy, died of ovarian cancer in 2010.And in February, his daughter, Catherine, died by suicide.

Mental health and cancer, like my wife, are both diseases.And sometimes with diseases, they are terminal.And my daughter fought for a long time.

This psychiatrist says there's power in short -speaking so openly.

It really seems to me that he is trying to reduce some of the stigma to show that it is, you know, a health condition.and deserves to be talked about with as much openness as any kind of physical situation or condition.

The interview comes as he promotes a new doc about his life.Marty, Life is Short, is dedicated to his late daughter, a project that took some convincing.

You had to sell him on it.

I did.I had to sell him on it.I had to lie to him, tell him how much I loved him and I would never hurt him.

Comedy legends singing his praise including the late Catherine O 'Hara.

I feel like he could improvise to eternity, couldn't he?

There's nobody funnier.

Marty operates at the speed of joy.

But Short says finding that joy meant pushing through tough times.

I just, you head toward the light.

A personal look at a comedy icon and the strength he's built along the way.Griffin Yeager, CBC News, Toronto.

If you or someone you know is in distress, help is available.You can call or text the suicide helpline at 988.It is accessible in both English and French 24 -7.Well known for tackling corruption in the Philippines, Nobel laureate Maria Ressa has a new warning about some of the world's most powerful people.

Change the way we feel.Anger, fear, these are the ones that go viral.

The existential threat prompting calls to be prepared.The tech sector is going through waves of layoffs often tied to the rise of artificial intelligence.You need to you know evolve.You need to contribute I guess differently.Why some say AI is just a smokescreen.The National breaks down the story shaping our world.

Next.Aha, there is some good news for Simpsons fans out of Quebec.A Quebecois dubbed version of the show is making a comeback.The dubbing was suspended by Chorus Entertainment last summer after 35 seasons prompting tens of thousands of people to petition the move.The new deal was announced by Bell Media which has since acquired the broadcast rights in Quebec.Well, Ontario Provincial Police are investigating after a vulnerable man was targeted in a controversial game known as Senior Assassin.

It is a popular end -of -year tradition for some graduating high school seniors.Karen Paul shows us the potential consequences.

Senior Assassin is a rite of passage for many grade 12 students.Stress relief as they're writing exams and preparing for graduation.The goal, eliminate their target by squirting them with a water gun.It's supposed to be harmless.But video posted recently on social media shows an Indigenous man targeted in Kenora, Ontario.

It was really disturbing to see that video.It made me mad.It made me hurt.

Tanya Cameron is a community activist.

They're taking a cheap shot at someone who's already having so many life struggles.There's a small segment out there that don't see the harm in it.They're saying it's kids being kids and it just blows my mind that they think that that kind of behaviour on the unhoused is okay.

We found the man in the video.He said he didn't want to do an interview because he doesn't want to make waves.He said he didn't like being sprayed by the water gun but he dealt with it.And he had this message for the students involved.

don't do it to anyone else.

The OPP confirms it's investigating and there could be serious consequences.

Any unwanted physical contact or contact withsomething that someone doesn't consent to could be seen as assault in the criminal code.

Police across the country are getting 911 calls of people hiding and running through neighbourhoods with what appear to be guns.Make sure that your water gun of choice clearly resembles a toy.Last year, a Guelph, Ontario high school was locked down and a teen arrested at gunpoint for holding what was later revealed to be a water gun.

We never know, like when we're attending a scene, is it going to be a real firearm?Is it not?We obviously have to treat everything as the utmost serious situation.

Police say they don't want to throw cold water on the game but they want students to be safe and respectful.Karen Pauls, CBC News, Kenora, Ontario.

In the breakdown tonight, the risks of big tech's global influence on democratic institutions and in the job market.

As AI takes on an even bigger role, what to make of recent layoffs?There is this expectation that, okay, you can get more out of less people.

The example of crypto giant Coinbase, but first.

There is an unholy alliance now, a fusion between state power and tech power.

A Nobel laureate whose whole life is a warning about the long reach of disinformation.

Anger, fear, these are the ones that go viral.

Filipina journalist Maria Ressa brings her message to Canada.I spoke recently with Maria Ressa about how she confronts authoritarianism and how she thinks citizens can still bend governments to their will.

I worry that progressive leaders in democratic nations are standing on wood that is being eaten by termites.Unless you address these fundamental issues, right?It's very hard for anyone to govern today in this information.ecosystem.

When Maria Ressa talks of the dangers of disinformation you do well to listen.The Filipino -American journalist famous for exposing human rights violations under the Rodrigo Duterte administration has been directly in the crosshairs of a regime determined to crush dissent.

Since you are a fake news outlet.

She faced charges from cyber libel to tax evasion all part of an effort to bankrupt and silence her news site Rappler.

All of effort that is put to turn journalism into a crime.

Far from back down she stood up to those attacks.Was ultimately awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2021.

Without facts, you can't have truth.Without truth, you can't have trust.Without trust, we have no shared reality.No democracy.

Now an international symbol for the fight against disinformation she has new warnings and advice.

I never thought that social media could be used in this way of like pounding someone to silence.

I spoke with her before an onstage speech and Q &A at the Chan Centre in Vancouver.We are sitting in this theater that is about to be full of people who know you as a Nobel laureate, but they also have been worried about you, knowing that there was a time when you were facing so many criminal charges and civil charges that you could have gone to jail for a very long time.So how are you and how is it that you're here?

So I'll start with the bad news first, which is that I still have one case at the Supreme Court.So it's bad and good news.I still have to ask for permission to travel.Of who?The Philippine Supreme Court.And they've turned me down in the past.

but here's the good news.Well, it's been a decade since Duterte, my president, took office.And Rappler has won all the charges thrown against us.I have one left.And Rodrigo Duterte?He's in jail.

right?Finally facing charges of crimes against humanity.There are stories of being able to fight, reclaim your rights, and have democratic renewal.Why do we trust private companies in Silicon Valley and in China to to actually take care of the public information ecosystem.

This is the essence of Maria Ressa's speeches these days and another book she's working on about how to fight back to ensure disinformation and dictators do not win.She insists defeating them takes work and takes recognizing how we're all being played.

There's only one person that lives in the physical.and the virtual world, why do we have different laws?Or in the virtual world, why do we have no laws, right?The dictators are not just our real estate dictators, but they're the owners of these companies.We never elected Mark Zuckerberg.And yes, and yet he controls 3 .2 billion around the world, right?

X, did you elect Elon Musk?Thank you.

As we sit here talking, you're still smiling.You are fundamentally an optimistic person, right?But you also come with a warning.What is the headline of the warning?

What happened to us is now happening to you.Let's call it narrative warfare because who's the war against?It's you.It's the cellular warfare.of a democracy.It's the person who's holding the phone, scrolling.

Remember, these platforms are private companies, and their main goal is to make money.And the way they spread it most is they have learned how to hack our biology.They They change the way we feel, anger, fear.These are the ones that go viral.And if it changes the way we feel, it changes the way we see the world.It changes the way we act, the way we vote.

Right?So that's the first phase.Where does it go?Why is that important to make you not know the difference between fact and fiction?Because the second phase is the breakdown of the institutions that provide accountability.

So if we look at the United States, those institutions would be the media.The courts, Congress, what else?

Do any of them work right now?Because if you don't have a shared reality of facts, then these institutions break down.In America, the legislature stopped doing its job, right?Like the Republican Party supported Trump wholeheartedly.You're seeing this.So that's the quick check and balance.

Now you have to wait for the courts.Sometimes the court rules, so you're seeing what the courts are doing now.There's some pushback, but it takes a long time.And by the time the courts jump in, it's already destroyed.What happens when you have no institutional checks and balances?It goes to strategic corruption or kleptocracy, because there are no boundaries, right?

How do we fix this?Because where's the incentive for tech companies to change practices that make them and others so much money?To the audience, Ressa argued one answer is regulation based on harms to democracy and health.

It is a public health case, right?The harms are clear, but why are they not accountable for the harms?I'll point out that there is an unholy alliance now, a fusion between state power and tech power, right?Last year, the front row in the inauguration were not the cabinet secretaries or the Supreme Court.They were tech bros. there is a social contract and governments have been responsible for public health and public safety.Look even we go back to like when cars rolled out they found we needed seat belts.

They put seat belts in.

Regulation reigning in the tech companies may help but that requires trusting governments.Ressa increasingly finds you put her in front of people just like she was in Vancouver and what they want to know is what they can do to advocate for and defend truth.

So the first step before, and I guess this is for Canadians, before you lose it all, begin to organize yourself.We called it the civic circle.Pull your civic circle together, eight to 15 people.That's the way it begins, that civic circle.And the reason I point this out is because we watched it in real time form in weeks in Minneapolis as a response to threat, the threat of ICE.The community came together.

To protect itself, they were taking their kids, right?There were families that were very, very vulnerable and others brought them groceries.All of this was formed and that happened quickly.

When so many looked at American streets in horror during the ice raids, Ressa was watching it differently.She took note of the whistles, for example.A way people found peace.their vulnerable neighbors to ICE agents in the area.The way they found strength in numbers.The way they forced the government pullback.

These civic circles, she said, brought people together in person and online.Where social media typically distorts and isolates, bringing people physically together restores a balance.Reminds you, you're not alone.

If you look at every single one of the No Kings protests, they've gotten bigger and bigger and bigger.

Keep an eye on their numbers, she says, because there's a long -studied mathematical tipping point for when protests lead to real change.

If 3 .5 % of the population come together, like, let's say for America, that's about 12 million people.Where's the last No Cames Day protest?8 million.Before that, it was 7 million.Before that, it was 2 million.I trust the physical world.

I gotta tell you, when I see you face to face, I get things from you that I would never get online.

There's more of course to pushing back against the destruction of disinformation and dictatorial ways about fighting for facts.But her core point is watch the world.There are places casting aside authoritarian leaders to protect their democracies.

It can happen.So the first step is when trust is broken down, restore trust in your own community.When civil society comes together and reimagines what civic engagement is, what democracy is in these times, right?So where have we seen that?Let's look at the Philippines.We moved from hell to purgatory.

I'm here.I'm still free.I'm not in jail.

And some of the biggest names in tech are expected to join President Trump on his China visit later this week.Today the White House said that group will includeElon Musk and Apple's Tim Cook.Well, coming up, AI isn't just reshaping the way we work.It is restructuring crucial parts of tech's labour force.We've seen like such rampant layoffs, right?

But are those cuts only a reflection of AI efficiency?We'll break it all down next.Currency exchange platform Coinbase is the latest major tech company to reduce its staff, adding more fuel to widespread fears that AI in the workplace is a coding job killer.

Today nearly 75 % of all new code at Google is AI generated and approved by engineers.

But is automation the only thing driving the tech layoff wave?Nora Young looks at the industry's rapid shifts and what the cuts may also signal.

On Tuesday, Coinbase's CEO emailed staff saying that 700 people working at the crypto exchange platform are losing their jobs, citing AI efficiencies.The cuts will impact 14 % of its workforce.CEO Brian Armstrong said crypto is currently in a down market, and that means they have to cut costs.But he also argued AI is changing the way they work at Coinbase.Armstrong said they're going to experiment with one -person teams where engineers, designers and product managers are all in one role, describing AI now as an inflection point for every company.But just how much of the technical work can actually be offloaded to AI?

Well, according to Coinbase's CEO, non -technical teams are now shipping production code.Meaning they're not just using it to, say, prototype, they're actually getting it out the door to users.So what does that mean for the future of software engineering?

When you first start off in the industry, your work is very implementation heavy.You're given these tasks that, hey, go implement this task, go code this, go code that.But AI tools do that really well for you.The implementation part, they do that really, really well.And that trend is showing up all over tech.

Today, nearly 75 % of all new code at Google is AI generated and approved by engineers.

So does that mean a software engineer is just checking AI's work?And if the engineer isn't just coding, what are they doing?

Because AI tools are so good at that implementation, you need to evolve.You need to contribute, I guess, differently.So think more about what are bigger and better problems that we can solve.There's a lot more to software engineering than just coding.pushing out code to prod.You thinking about guardrails, you thinking about user experience, you thinking about like even code quality.

Are you using good coding practices?Are you adding a lot of tech debt?

Technical debt refers to the cost you take on as a result of sloppy decisions earlier in software development that need to be fixed down the road.Coinbase is just the latest example of layoffs in the tech sector.In 2026 alone, Meta, Salesforce, Block, Amazon and Snap are all among leading tech firms announcing layoffs.

Intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company.We're already seeing it internally.

The thing is, not everyone agrees that the layoffs are due to AI efficiency.Some suggest they're simply AI -washing, citing AI when the real reason is overhiring, especially coming out of the pandemic.Or the need to cut people to fund the enormous amount of spending AI requires.But the cuts?The smaller team.they're real.

You are seeing that trend across the industry.Like, I mean, we've seen like such rampant layoffs, right?So I think generally there is this expectation that, okay, you can get more out of less people now.

But does that mean it's just a matter of time until all the engineering jobs disappear?NVIDIA's Jensen Huang thinks differently.

The number of software engineers at NVIDIA is going to grow, not decline.I wanted my software engineers to solve problems.I didn't care how many lines of code they wrote.Looking for new problems to solve, innovation, connecting dots, you know, none of that stuff is going to go away.

It's not entirely clear that AI will prove as effective in all jobs as it's been in coding.But it does suggest we may all need to think of the uniquely human skills we bring to our jobs.

And those cuts Nora spoke about show no sign of slowing.Just this month PayPal said it would be cutting about 20 % of its workers.That's some 4 ,500 jobs over the next three years.Reason being reported a focus on automation and AI adoption.Well as dozens of passengers return home from the hantavirus hit cruise ship two former survivors are reacting to the latest outbreak sharing their experiences with Eli Glasner more than two decades after they recovered.Here's a little bit of that conversation.

I kept testing negative but my physical self was deteriorating pretty rapidly.What does get worse?What were you going through Gilbert?What were you feeling?What were your symptoms?fatigue, extreme fatigue, pressure on my lungs, high fever.

It's like a super case of pneumonia almost.And I wound up in ICU for about a week.And I had some friends that were allowed to come and visit me because they wantedcheer me up.And I could tell by the looks on their faces when they walked in that I was not in good shape.Did you think there was a chance that you would follow the same path as your sister and your mother?

Yeah.Yeah, yeah.I had that conversation with God.

Wow.

That when you're in a bed and you're looking at your own skin and it's not the normal color that it should be and every part of you hurts and then on top of all that you're dealing with the grief of losing your mother and your sister and and all of that that came along with it you know um yeah it was I was lowest point in my life that I've ever been.

You can catch Eli's full story in the coming days right here on The National.Well coming up health care professionals trade in their lab coats for instruments of the musical kind.

I try to heal people in the office but we also try to heal our audiences with music.

Why they came together on Mother's Day next in our moment.

Musam doesn't come close to describing this.

Why am I getting the feeling that you guys have seen something like this before?

Because we have.

So there's no way you can tell this just by looking but these are health care workers.On Mother's Day they traded in their scrubs to support women's health initiatives.So getting concert ready took a lot of practice, making their performance all the more impressive.Even moment worthy, you might say.

We had an afternoon concert on Mother's Day that was endocarious.which is a multidisciplinary complex endometriosis clinic.There were over 350 people there supporting mothers' endometriosis.This orchestra is fairly special.We're not a professional orchestra.We're amateurs that love music and love to give back to the community.

We developed a concert where we would be able to highlight the talent of the Faculty of Medicine at McGill.We're composed of about 50 % of doctors, medical students, residents, and then we have a ton of different scientists, researchers, engineers that are all having that love for music.I'm currently the concertmaster, the first violinist.Being part of this orchestra is kind of an extension of my career.I try to heal people in the office, but we also try to heal our audiences with music.

Okay, so that is incredibly calming, especially coming from a world which can be full of so much chaos.So thanks to them for that.From all of us at The National, thanks for being with us.I'm Adrienne Arsenault.Take care.