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☆ Walmart starts bonus program for hourly workers
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN —Walmart, America’s largest private-sector employer, is starting a bonus program for its hourly employees. Walmart has an outsized impact on the labor market for hourly workers , and has been grappling with finding and retaining the workers it needs in a tight labor market. The company has 1.6 million US employees, of which nearly 1.5 million are hourly workers. It said this new program covers about 700,000 of those hourly employees who work in stores. Walmart boosted the average pay of its store managers from $117,000 to $128,000, or by just over 9%, the retailer announced earlier this year.

Persons: – CNN’s Nathaniel Meyersohn Organizations: New, New York CNN, Walmart Locations: New York

☆ OpenAI insiders call for company to be more transparent about the ‘serious risks’ AI technology poises to society
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A group of OpenAI insiders are demanding that artificial intelligence companies be far more transparent about AI’s “serious risks” — and that they protect employees who voice concerns about the technology they’re building. “AI companies have strong financial incentives to avoid effective oversight,” reads the open letter posted Tuesday signed by current and former employees at AI companies including OpenAI, the creator behind the viral ChatGPT tool. As the law currently stands, the AI employees said, they don’t believe AI companies will share critical information about the technology voluntarily. Their letter comes as companies move quickly to implement generative AI tools into their products, while government regulators, companies and consumers grapple with responsible use. Meanwhile, Apple is widely expected to announce a partnership with OpenAI at its annual Worldwide Developer Conference to bring generative AI to the iPhone.

Persons: ”, OpenAI, ” OpenAI, Daniel Ziegler, “, Tim Cook Organizations: CNN, Companies, Security, Apple, OpenAI, Conference, ” Apple Locations: OpenAI

☆ Muhammad Ali’s Childhood Home Goes on the Market
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Johnny Diaz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The childhood home where Muhammad Ali, the three-time world heavyweight boxing champion and activist, learned to box and that was along the route of his funeral procession in Louisville, Ky., is for sale. On Tuesday, the pink one-story home, which for several years was a museum of sorts, focusing on Ali’s early life and humanitarian pursuits, and two of its neighboring properties were listed for sale through Christie’s International Real Estate Bluegrass for $1.5 million, according to the company’s listing. “Home to ‘The Greatest,’” the listing states, noting that the ranch style, one-story house at 3302 Grand Avenue in the Parkland neighborhood of the city features two bedrooms. The living area of the three homes combined is 3,363 square feet.

Persons: Muhammad Ali, ’ Organizations: Christie’s Locations: Louisville, Ky, Parkland

☆ How AI could supercharge the Vision Pro
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

It could also boost sales of the pricey Vision Pro, which has reportedly and unexpectedly received a production cut. During its most recent earnings call, CEO Tim Cook said more than half of the Fortune 100 companies have already bought an Apple Vision Pro. But while it’s unclear when generative AI will come to the Vision Pro, Nygugen said: “It’s only a matter of time.”That’s because the Vision Pro is merely just another interface – much like a tablet, laptop, or watch, that touches Apple’s ecosystem. The Vision Pro, the tech giant's $3,499 headset, is its first major release since the Apple Watch nine years ago. “Vision Pro just came out a few months ago and it needs to get its feet under it before it really starts to take off,” Llamas said.

Persons: it’s, Tim Cook, It’s, Siri, “, Tuong, ”, Nygugen, ” Nygugen, Angela Weiss, Ming Chi, Kuo, Jeremy Bailenson, Bailenson, Ramon Llamas, Apple, ChatGPT – Organizations: CNN, Developers, Google, Samsung, Vision, Fortune, Apple Vision, Gartner, Apple, Apple Watch, Getty, Vision Pro, Stanford, VR, IDC, Microsoft, “ Locations: Cupertino , California, New York City

☆ SpaceX Starship gets green light for fourth test flight
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Ashley Strickland | Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —SpaceX has received a launch license authorizing the fourth test flight of its massive moon rocket. A livestream of the flight test will be available on SpaceX’s website about 30 minutes before liftoff. “In addition, the FAA approved the mission profile that included a controlled and uncontrolled entry of the Starship vehicle. After the explosive first and second Starship test flights, the company immediately sought to frame these mishaps as successes. The nearly hour-long third test flight, conducted in March, achieved several milestones before breaking apart after reentry, rather than splashing down in the Indian Ocean.

Persons: “, “ We’re, Elon Musk Organizations: CNN, SpaceX, Federal Aviation Administration, Super, FAA, NASA Locations: Boca Chica , Texas, Gulf, Mexico, United States, China

☆ Video: See Japanese company’s brand new $48 million whaling mothership
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ Even high-income Americans are shopping at discount retailers as economic outlook sours
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The reason for that is mostly the American consumer, with spending accounting for about 70% of gross domestic product. On Thursday, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said that his customers are slowing down the rate of their purchases. Consumer payments, as measured through credit cards, checks and ATM withdrawals, have grown by 3.5% since last year, he said. I’m being careful, slowing things down,’” Moynihan said, referring to both consumers and businesses, at a financial conference in New York. This survey shows that consumers feel just the opposite — optimistic about their own financial standing but not about the macroeconomic environment.

Persons: Brian Moynihan, ’ ” Moynihan, Bell, Peter Torrente, I’m, Elon Musk’s, Allison Morrow, “, — “, Glass Lewis, Tesla, Musk, Gary Millerchip, Richard Galanti, Read Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, Bank of America, KPMG, Federal Reserve, Elon, Services, Twitter, SpaceX, Costco Locations: New York, Europe, Texas, Delaware

☆ Nvidia, AMD unveil next generation AI technology ahead of Computex in Taiwan
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Wayne Chang | Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Taipei/Hong Kong CNN —Nvidia and AMD have separately launched the next generation of their artificial intelligence (AI) chips in Taiwan, as a three-way race with Intel heats up. Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia (NVDA), said Sunday that the company would roll out its most advanced AI chip platform, called Rubin, in 2026. The Rubin platform will succeed the Blackwell, which supplies chips for data centers and was announced only in March. But competition is growing, with major competitors AMD (AMD) and Intel (INTC) introducing new products in an effort to challenge Nvidia’s dominance. The new chip will succeed the MI300 and feature more memory, faster memory bandwidth and better computer performance, Su added.

Persons: Jensen Huang, Rubin, Blackwell, Vera, Huang, ”, Richard Windsor, Lisa Su, ” Su, MI300X, Su, MI400, Patrick Gelsinger Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Nvidia, AMD, Intel, National Taiwan University, Radio Free Mobile Locations: Taipei, Hong Kong, Taiwan, “, we’re, Computex

☆ Shein IPO: London Stock Exchange is desperate for IPOs. Could Shein end the drought?
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

If Shein goes ahead with the listing, it is expected to try to raise more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) from the sale of new shares, Sky News said. Bloomberg and the Financial Times have also reported that Shein is preparing a confidential filing for a London listing. Given its high profile and potential hefty valuation, an IPO by Shein would be a much-needed coup for the London Stock Exchange. In recent years, several companies have quit the exchange for other cities or chosen New York to go public. Still, even the slightest hint that Shell could ditch London will have rattled the city’s financial center.

Persons: Shein, ”, “, Marco Rubio, Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown, Wael Sawan, Sawan, Shell Organizations: London CNN, Authority, Sky News, Bloomberg, Financial Times, UK’s Labour Party, CNN, Shein, London Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, Shell Locations: China, United Kingdom, Britain, Singapore, New York, United States, While New York, London

☆ GameStop shares surge 73% after Roaring Kitty reveals $116 million bet
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —Shares in GameStop shot up almost 73% in pre-market trade Monday as the renewed frenzy around meme stocks shows little sign of abating. The video game retailer’s stock soared hours after a Reddit post by stocks influencer Keith Gill — also known as “Roaring Kitty” — revealed that he had bought nearly $116 million worth of the stock. The post was the first on Gill’s Reddit account in more than three years, when social media-fueled hype around GameStop (GME) shares was in full swing. Meme stocks are shares that swing wildly in value based on their popularity among trader communities on social media rather than the companies’ fundamental characteristics. He also said he did not set out to help stoke the GameStop frenzy and instead believed the stock offered an attractive opportunity for investors.

Persons: Keith Gill —, ” —, Gill Organizations: London CNN —, GameStop, AMC Entertainment, stoke

MicroStrategy and its founder settle tax case for $40 millionThe attorney general for the District of Columbia has reached a $40 million settlement with the billionaire Bitcoin investor Michael Saylor and MicroStrategy, the software company he founded, over tax fraud, DealBook’s Lauren Hirsch is first to report. Officials say the agreement is the biggest-ever income tax fraud recovery in the district. The lawsuit accused Saylor of evading more than $25 million in income taxes. The attorney general sued the tech executive and MicroStrategy in 2022, saying he enlisted the company’s help to file fraudulent tax forms from 2005 through 2020. The lawsuit said Saylor and the company claimed that he lived in Virginia or Florida, states with significantly lower income tax rates.

Persons: Michael Saylor, DealBook’s Lauren Hirsch, Saylor Organizations: District of Columbia Locations: It’s, Virginia, Florida

☆ GameStop Stock Surges Again on Social Media Buzz
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Michael J. De La Merced | More About Michael J. De La Merced | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It was GameStop’s second major rally in as many months, seemingly prompted by social media buzz. Monday’s surge was driven by a screenshot uploaded to Reddit on Sunday by the account associated with Mr. Gill, after more than three years of inactivity. The market data provider Unusual Whales posted that there had been a spike in trading for those options. Adding fuel to the rally was a post to the X account associated with Mr. Gill that featured an image of a reverse card from Uno, the card game. Followers largely interpreted the picture — in line with the cryptic memes that punctuated Mr. Gill’s social media posts in 2021 — as a rallying cry to bolster GameStop’s stock price, which had fallen after a Roaring Kitty-inspired spike last month.

Persons: Keith Gill, Kitty, Gill, — Organizations: GameStop, Uno

☆ Washington Post Editor Sally Buzbee to Step Down
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-02 | by ( Katie Robertson | Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The executive editor of The Washington Post, Sally Buzbee, will step down from her role, according to a person with knowledge of the company’s plans, a major and sudden change at one of the nation’s pre-eminent news organizations. Matt Murray, the former editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal, will take her place, the person said. Ms. Buzbee, 58, steered the newspaper for the last three years, a turbulent period that resulted in award-winning journalism as well as a drop in audience and an exodus of some top talent from the newsroom. A spokeswoman for The Post did not respond to requests for comment. Ms. Buzbee and Mr. Murray also didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Sally Buzbee, Matt Murray, Buzbee, Murray, didn’t Organizations: The Washington Post, Street

☆ Google Rolls Back A.I. Search Feature After Flubs and Flaws
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Nico Grant | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, introduced a generative artificial intelligence feature for the company’s search engine last month, he and his colleagues demonstrated the new capability with six text-based queries that the public could try out. The questions included “how do you clean a fabric sofa” and “what should I use to get a coffee stain out of my carpet.” These were intended to highlight how Google’s new feature, A.I. Overviews, could generate full and useful information summaries above traditional search results. But by Friday, only one of the six queries still yielded an A.I. Users loudly complained on social media about the mistakes, in many cases outright making fun of Google.

Persons: Sundar Pichai Organizations: The New York Times, Care, Google

☆ Sam Butcher, Who Gave the World Precious Moments, Dies at 85
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Penelope Green | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Mr. Butcher was the Michelangelo of Missouri, and his adorable snub-nosed Precious Moments characters were “the Beanie Babies of porcelain,” as The Wall Street Journal once put it. Their zealous collectors, who numbered in the hundreds of thousands, built rooms for their Precious Moments figurines, convened in regional clubs and made pilgrimages to Carthage, where they slept in the Precious Moments motel or the R.V. park, marveled at the Precious Moments Fountain of the Angels, dined in the Precious Moments food courts and wandered the 30-acre grounds. (Carthage also hosted Precious Moments weddings.) There were hundreds and hundreds of Precious Moments licensees, which made hats, keychains, watches, greeting cards, books and a children’s Bible.

Persons: Sam Butcher, Jon, Mr, Butcher, Michelangelo, Missouri, marveled, Van —, —, . Butcher Organizations: Wall Street, Angels Locations: Carthage, Mo

☆ Cracker Barrel is in a battle for relevancy. One of its solutions is surprising
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New Cracker Barrels might be smaller restaurants altogether, with menus that include new items like green chili cornbread and banana pudding. Discounted dinner from 4 to 6 p.m.Why would Cracker Barrel, so desperate for relevancy, lean into a tactic typically used to attract senior citizens? A woman eats lunch at Cracker Barrel. Masino didn’t explicitly mention the specials during the discussion about the long-term strategy for Cracker Barrel. To compete in this environment, Cracker Barrel realizes it has to offer some type of deal.

Persons: Julie Felss Masino, ” Masino, ”, Jeff Greenberg, Baby, Masino, Lisa W, Miller, RJ Hottovy, It’s, “, John A, Gordon Organizations: New, New York CNN, Universal, Getty, Baby Boomers, Miller & Associates, Street Journal, Pacific Management Consulting Group Locations: New York, The Tennessee, Placer.ai

☆ Notre-Dame Rises Again ... in Lego
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Jenny Gross | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Arnaud Gaudillat, a history teacher in France, recalled bursting into tears as he watched television coverage of flames tearing through the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in 2019. Now, five years later, as hundreds of architects, engineers and metalworkers race to finish rebuilding the cathedral’s roof coverings and electrical cabling by the end of the year, Mr. Gaudillat will not be sitting on the sidelines. Lego, the biggest toy company in the world, on Saturday released a model of the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, complete with rose windows, bell towers and a central spire surrounded by statues. “I just want to have this beautiful thing in my house,” Mr. Gaudillat, 25, said of the Notre-Dame set. He started building intricate Lego sets a few years ago and became hooked.

Persons: Arnaud Gaudillat, ”, Gaudillat, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, Solomon R, “, ” Mr, Dame Organizations: Notre, Guggenheim Museum Locations: France

☆ Ukraine’s Oreo production is back in business after Mondelez repaired its war-damaged factory
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Mondelez’s plant in Trostyanets is now fully rebuilt after opening partially last year to make chocolates, according to a company statement. The company said the Oreo cookies and other chocolates produced at the Ukrainian factory are not being exported to neighboring Russia. Mondelez said it was making its business in Russia “stand-alone” with a self-sufficient supply chain by the end of 2023. “We continue to increase our investments in supporting and rebuilding Ukraine,” the company said in the statement. Norges Bank, Mondelez’s 11th-largest shareholder according to LSEG’s Eikon, backed the proposal, according to the fund’s disclosures.

Persons: Mondelez, “, Dirk Van de, LSEG’s, ” Organizations: CNN, Nestle, Reuters, Milka, Cadbury, Norges Bank Locations: Ukraine, Trostyanets, Russia, Europe, Oreos, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Ukrainian, Mondelez’s

☆ Trump Media Stock Swings After Guilty Verdict
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Jason Karaian | Matthew Goldstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group whipsawed after former President Donald J. Trump, the company’s largest investor and primary user of its Truth Social platform, was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal. Trump Media’s stock began falling immediately after the verdict in Mr. Trump’s trial in Manhattan was announced on Thursday, which came after the stock market had closed. The company’s stock is typically volatile, so such large moves are not unusual, especially after the official close of regular trading, when low trading volumes can accentuate price swings. Trump Media remains richly valued relative to the size of its business. The stock has become his main source of wealth since Trump Media make its market debut in March, but he cannot sell or borrow against the shares until September.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Trump’s, Still Organizations: Trump Media & Technology, Trump Media’s, Trump Media Locations: Manhattan

☆ Chobani Yogurt Founder Buys Anchor Brewing Company
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Emily Schmall | More About Emily Schmall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The billionaire owner of the yogurt company Chobani said on Friday that he had acquired Anchor Brewing Company, the San Francisco brewer that went out of business last year after 127 years. Hamdi Ulukaya, who is also Chobani’s chief executive, said a video posted on social media that he looked forward to bringing Anchor Brewing “back to life.” The price Mr. Ulukaya paid to acquire the brewing company’s assets from a liquidator was not disclosed. The company, said to be America’s oldest craft brewer, announced it was shutting down in July 2023, citing the effects of the pandemic, inflation and a highly competitive beer market. Sam Singer, a spokesman for Anchor, said on Friday that the company was “very pleased” about the acquisition.

Persons: Chobani, Hamdi Ulukaya, Ulukaya, Sam Singer Organizations: Anchor Brewing Company, Anchor Brewing, Anchor Locations: San Francisco

☆ The Big Number: $6 Billion
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Santul Nerkar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Mr. Musk founded xAI last July, and so far, it has released a chatbot, Grok, which can be used on Mr. Musk’s platform, X. In a statement, the company said the investment would go toward developing new products and research and development. Mr. Musk said on X that the company’s valuation was $18 billion, before counting the new money. Mr. Musk has an ambivalent history with A.I. He was a founder of OpenAI but left in 2018 over philosophical differences.

Persons: Musk Organizations: OpenAI

☆ F.D.A.’s Review of MDMA Cites Health Risks and Study Flaws
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Andrew Jacobs | Christina Jewett | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Food and Drug Administration on Friday raised concerns about the health effects of MDMA as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, citing flaws in a company’s studies that could pose major obstacles to approval of a treatment anticipated to help people struggling with the condition. The agency said that bias had seeped into the studies because participants and therapists were readily able to figure out who got MDMA versus a placebo. It also flagged “significant increases” in blood pressure and pulse rates that could “trigger cardiovascular events.”The staff analysis was conducted for an independent advisory panel that will meet Tuesday to consider an application by Lykos Therapeutics for the use of MDMA-assisted therapy. The agency’s concerns highlight the unique and complex issues facing regulators as they weigh the therapeutic value of an illegal drug commonly known as Ecstasy that has long been associated with all-night raves and cuddle puddles. Approval would mark a seismic change in the nation’s tortuous relationship with psychedelic compounds, most of which the Drug Enforcement Administration classifies as illegal substances that have “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

Persons: ” Organizations: Drug Administration, Lykos Therapeutics, Drug

☆ Boeing Gives F.A.A. Plan to Address Systemic Quality-Control Issues
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Mark Walker | Niraj Chokshi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing’s top executives delivered a plan to improve quality and safety to the Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday, vowing to address systemic issues that have damaged the company’s reputation and put the aircraft manufacturer at the center of several federal investigations. Boeing detailed these and other steps during a three-hour meeting with the F.A.A.’s administrator, Mike Whitaker, where the company submitted a “comprehensive action plan” that the regulator ordered in February. Mr. Whitaker had given Boeing 90 days to develop a plan to make sweeping safety improvements after a midcabin panel known as a door plug blew out of a 737 Max 9 jet flying at about 16,000 feet on Jan. 5. No one was seriously injured during the flight. said in a statement on Thursday that “senior” leaders from the agency would “meet with Boeing weekly to review their performance metrics, progress, and any challenges they’re facing in implementing the changes.”

Persons: ’, Mike Whitaker, Whitaker Organizations: Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing

☆ Big oil shareholders could get a lot richer
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —Big oil just got bigger, and shareholders could soon be getting richer. Dollar Tree will reopen these stores with its own products under its brand beginning in the fall, reports my colleague Nathaniel Meyersohn. Dollar Tree, a national company with mostly suburban locations, primarily offers discretionary merchandise like party supplies and home goods. Dollar Tree also owns Family Dollar, based mostly in cities. Family Dollar has underperformed Dollar Tree and other discount chains in recent years, and it’s closing 975 stores.

Persons: Stewart Glickman, ”, “ it’s, Stewart, Hess, McDonald’s, Joe Erlinger, “, Danielle Wiener, Bronner, they’re, Chris Kempczinski, ” Read, Nathaniel Meyersohn Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, ConocoPhillips, Marathon, Diamondback, Endeavor Energy Partners, “, McDonald’s, America, Mac, ” Locations: New York, multibillion, McDonald’s USA, U.S, Arizona , California , Nevada, Texas, Virginia, West Coast

☆ Taco Bell’s oversized Cheez-It collab is finally going nationwide
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —One of the most eagerly anticipated items ever made by Taco Bell is finally getting a nationwide release. The “Big Cheez-It Tostada” layers ground beef, reduced-fat sour cream, tomatoes, lettuce and cheddar cheese on the cheesy cracker for $3.49. Taco Bell is also adding a "Big Cheez-It Box" to menus for a limited time. Like other fast food chains, Taco Bell’s parent, Yum Brands, isn’t resistant to a slowdown in consumer spending, especially among lower-income diners. Shares of Yum Brands (YUM) have risen nearly 5% for the year.

Persons: Taco Bell, Taco, ”, Bell, nacho Organizations: New, New York CNN, Taco Bell, Bell, Yum Brands, KFC Locations: New York

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