Axios PM K-12 report card | Edit ShortsCars

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View in browser   PRESENTED BY AMAZON   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Sep 08, 2026 Good Tuesday afternoon. Today's newsletter, edited by Alex Fitzpatrick, is 561 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing.     1 big thing: K-12 approval plummets   Data: Gallup; Chart: Alex Fitzpatrick/Axios Americans' satisfaction with K-12 education has fallen to its lowest point in Gallup's 27-year trend, new polling finds. Only 32% of Americans are "completely" or "somewhat" satisfied with K-12 education. That's down 11 percentage points over the last two years alone. 🫏 Between the lines: Democrats are driving much of the recent plunge, with their satisfaction falling 19 percentage points since 2024. Yet a greater share (35%) still report being at least somewhat satisfied compared to Republicans (25%). Gallup says: "Republicans and independents are most likely to cite what they perceive as a lack of teaching basic skills." "Roughly equal shares of dissatisfied Democrats mention a lack of teaching basic skills, lack of funding or resources, and poor quality of education or inferiority compared with other countries." 👩‍🏫 The intrigue: Parents of K-12 students are about twice as likely to say that they're satisfied with their own child's education (66%) as they are with K-12 education nationally (32%). How it works: The results are based on an Aug. 3–24 Walton Family Foundation/Gallup telephone poll of 1,200 adults, plus an Aug. 3–17 online survey of 2,143 adults. Explore the findings.     2. 🤖 Controversy clouds OpenAI breakthrough   Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios OpenAI says it has solved the Navier–Stokes Millennium Prize problem, Axios' Madison Mills reports. It's a potentially historic mathematical breakthrough — yet shadowed by questions over unpublished research by outside mathematicians. 🧊 OpenAI said today that an internal AI model produced a proof that the three-dimensional Navier–Stokes equations can develop a singularity in finite time. (Learn more.) Execs said they devoted enormous computing power to the effort, putting the costs in the "millions of dollars." Friction point: NYU mathematician Tristan Buckmaster — who has been working with Anthropic researcher Levent Alpöge on closely related fluid-dynamics research — has questioned whether OpenAI raced down a research direction it learned about from their work. He raised concerns about whether private Codex material could have played a role. OpenAI says that neither its researchers nor its agents saw any of the pair's work before they released it publicly. Go deeper.     A MESSAGE FROM AMAZON What it takes to launch a career as a satellite technician     Dezmond started in an Amazon fulfillment center. Since starting, he has earned a satellite technician certificate. What did it take? Just one of Amazon’s free skills training programs. The impact: Now Dezmond works for Amazon Leo, helping launch satellites. Read his story.     3. ⚡️ Catch me up   Roses seen yesterday at the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. Photo: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images 😷 NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani's administration released more than 170,000 pages of documents suggesting that city officials knew air conditions following the 9/11 attacks were unsafe, despite assurances otherwise. Go deeper. 🇨🇦 Canada struck back at President Trump with tariffs on about $20 billion worth of U.S. goods in response to the latest round of tariffs on Canada. Go deeper. 🖼️ Two thieves stole four valuable Renoir paintings from a small museum on the French Riviera, but abandoned two as they fled. Go deeper.     4. 🖖🏻 1 for the road: Still boldly going   The original "Star Trek" cast. Photo: Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images Sixty years ago today, "Star Trek" debuted in the U.S., launching a beloved and persistently relevant sci-fi franchise, superfan Alex Fitzpatrick writes. Trek's optimistic view of the future — with co-ed, multiracial, multi-species crews working together to explore strange, new worlds — still resonates today as we grapple with racism, inclusivity, equity and more. 📺 A recent explosion of "New Trek" TV shows brought a fresh generation of fans into the Starfleet fold, despite mixed reviews from some corners. Yet the franchise is stuck in unknown space amid owner Paramount's proposed merger with Warner Bros. Discovery. No shows are currently in development or production for the first time in over a decade — though a movie is in the works. Go deeper.     A MESSAGE FROM AMAZON What it takes to turn a childhood interest in space into a career     Dezmond grew up fascinated with space. He turned that interest into a career with Amazon. What did it take? Just one of Amazon’s free skills training programs. Even better: “Amazon covered my tuition,” Dezmond said. Hear from more Amazon employees.   📬 Thanks for reading! Please invite your friends to join PM. 👆 Like this comms style and format? It's called Smart Brevity®. Bring it to your org — via hands-on training or internal comms software — to harness its power and impact.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our journalism. Advertise with us. Read more about Axios' mission, ethics and how we use AI in our journalism. You can reach the authors by replying to this email. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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