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☆ Private-asset binge exposes insurance to new risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The concept is not new: Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) has used its insurance premiums to help fund everything from railways to cowboy-boot makers. The prospect of insurance companies buying risky loans or private equity investments has raised eyebrows. Many private credit assets, for example, rely on so-called private letter ratings based on confidential data. Given the private nature of private credit, it’s hard to see from the outside how big these risks are, or where they lurk. Besides, even if the share of life insurance assets that are mis-rated or undercapitalized is tiny, smaller insurers could carry more concentrated risk.

Persons: Blackstone, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, Fitch, Kroll, Egan, Jones, DBRS Morningstar, Banks, SVB, Jonathan Guilford, Neil Unmack, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Apollo Global Management, KKR, Global Atlantic, Investments, National Association of Insurance, England’s Everton FC, Rivals, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Athene, P Global, Insurance, SVB, Thomson Locations: Global, Delaware , New York, Iowa, New York, London

☆ A former weight-loss influencer wants you to know working out doesn't have to be a punishment. That's why she invented 'cozy cardio.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Charissa Cheong | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Enter "cozy cardio" — a wellness trend focused on exercising in a comfortable way. "Cozy cardio is really just supposed to redefine what exercise and movement means to you," Zuckerbrow told Business Insider, adding that while she previously thought of exercise as a punishment, "cozy cardio" is meant to "bring back enjoyment to movement." Before she was known for her "cozy cardio," Zuckerbrow's TikTok content was primarily focused on weight loss. "You can't be a weight loss account on social media while gaining weight, you know what I'm saying? Zuckerbrow says cozy cardio has improved her relationship with exerciseZuckerbrow told BI that since she's started focusing on "cozy cardio," her attitude towards exercise has changed.

Persons: Hope Zuckerbrow, —, Zuckerbrow's, Zuckerbrow, she's Organizations: Service, Business Locations: Texas

☆ AI fatigue, sales challenges, and the problem of getting big: Inside growing tension at AWS
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

For Amazon, AWS is more important than ever. Targets missedAWS is falling short of reaching sales goals in its startups and small-business segments, two employees told BI. Burnout and attritionSeveral AWS employees also pointed to high turnover as a major point of concern. AWS employees told BI it still remains to be seen how all these changes will manifest in the months to come. "The most significant single sentiment we feel is uncertainty," one of the AWS employees told BI.

Persons: Matt Garman, Garman, Mark Shmulik, Bernstein, Rob Munoz, Munoz, Charlie Bell, Rachel Thornton, Chris Vonderhaar, Peter DeSantis, DeSantis, Andy Jassy Mike Blake, AWS's, Prasad Kalyanaraman, Kalyanaraman, Amazon's, Bard, Adam Selipsky, Adam Selipsky Noah Berger, Selipsky, Andy Jassy, Jeff Bezos, Jassy, Geekwire Organizations: Amazon Web, AWS, Business, Amazon, SMB, Enterprise, Reuters, Microsoft, Google, BI Locations: Las Vegas, AMZN's, billings

☆ This CEO is changing the rules of American farming. Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

At a time when social and environmental investments have been politicized, Ford and Land O’Lakes are staying the course. Courtesy Land O’Lakes, Inc.“We’re focusing on the things that are most important to our members, their families and to their businesses,” she told CNN. The EPA and the Hershey Company gave $2 million to Land O’Lakes member farms in Pennsylvania. Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford at the company's headquarters in Arden Hills, Minnesota, on July 29, 2021. In 2020, Land O’Lakes convened the American Connection Project coalition to advocate for public and private investment in high-speed internet infrastructure in rural communities.

Persons: “, Beth Ford, Ford, Evan Hillan, don’t, Truterra, ” Ford, ”, Ford’s, Carol, —, CNN’s Poppy Harlow, ‘ I’ve, ’ ” Ford, Harlow, Richard Tsong, I’ve, “ I’ve, O’Lakes, isn’t, Lucas Fuess, Kim Reynolds, Fuess, there’s, Kelly Garrett, ” Garrett, Garrett Organizations: Arden Hills , Minnesota CNN —, Fortune, Arden, Ford, CNN, Inc, US Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, Hershey Company, Pepsi, Mobil, Scholastic —, Star Tribune, Getty, American Connection, Biden, Republican, ”, Nature Locations: Arden Hills , Minnesota, Wisconsin, Truterra, Mill Hill , Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, America, Ford, Sioux City , Iowa, Iowa, Iowa , Idaho , Kansas, Modale , Iowa, Inc, West, Arion , Iowa, American

☆ Opinion | Why on Earth Are Jewish Leaders Praising Elon Musk?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Michelle Goldberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

(In response, Musk threatened a “thermonuclear” lawsuit, but as of this writing does not appear to have filed one.) Abhorrence of the Jewish state slips easily into abhorrence of Jews. On the right, though, there’s a mirror image of this slippage, with some defenders of the Jewish state willing to make excuses for antisemites so long as they champion Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has regularly embraced nationalist leaders who deploy antisemitic tropes, Donald Trump chief among them. It’s hard to figure out who is behaving more cynically, Musk or the Jewish leaders who are koshering him.

Persons: Charles Weber, ‘ Hitler, ’ ” Weber, Elon Musk, ”, George Soros, Magneto —, Soros’s, Musk, Pepe, Kanye, Ye, Israel, I’ve, Los Angeles —, John Hagee, Adolf Hitler, Karl Marx, “, Hagee, Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Jonathan Greenblatt, Amichai Organizations: Twitter, West, Anti, Defamation League, Media, America, ADL Locations: America, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, France, Montreal, Los Angeles, Washington, ”, Pittsburgh

☆ 'Community' is the latest trend that creator-economy startups and platforms are betting big on: 'Creators are the new priests'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

From product updates to startup rebrands, community has been at the forefront of press releases these past several months. Kajabi, a popular online course platform, recently announced that its creators had earned more than $6 billion using its platform. "We need a bit of everything," Amsellem said, adding that online communities and social platforms "are not going to solve loneliness" by themselves. For instance, Lennon's community on Kajabi hosts about 3,000 members — roughly the size of a small town in the US. Across all of Kajabi, the platform hosts more than 32,000 communities and over 2 million community members, per the company.

Persons: Jack Conte, Conte, Patreon, Kajabi, Teri Yu, Eli Valentin, Fourthwall, Valentin, chatbots, Yu, Hugo Amsellem —, —, Patreon's Conte, There's, Rob Lennon, Lennon, aren't, Amsellem, it's, BI's Marta Biino, YouTubers KSI, Logan, Cenat Organizations: Business, X, Vibely Locations: Kajabi, Silicon Valley, London

☆ Target's new favorite buzzword is 'value'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Melissa Repko | In Melissa-Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Target 's goal this holiday season: be more like Walmart . The retailer's leaders said customers will see thousands of gift ideas under $25, store displays that highlight affordability and low-priced Thanksgiving ingredients. The company's executive team used the word "value" 17 times. Target has struggled to improve sales as shoppers focus more on essentials while being choosier when buying clothing, electronics and more. Going into the holiday season, nearly two-thirds of those displays meet that standard.

Persons: Kendra Scott, Christina Hennington, Hennington, John Mulligan Organizations: Walmart, Target Locations: Minneapolis

A satellite identifies tank tracks in the dirt, and a mall security camera catches the moment a bomb in Gaza detonates. While journalists' access to the war in Gaza is limited, a flood of video from all sorts of sources documents what is — and isn't — going on. That means combing through an endless supply of video posted on sources like X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, Instagram, Telegram and Facebook. Sometimes images from video games are passed off as real, but experts can usually spot them. Satellite images, video and photos helped The Washington Post track where Israeli forces went during their initial incursion into Gaza.

Persons: isn't —, ”, Katie Polglase, Wendy McMahon, Israel, Rhona Tarrant, “, Bella Hadid, Hadid, ” McMahon, James Law, Polglase, Charlotte Maher, Says Tarrant, ___ David Bauder Organizations: CNN, CBS, “ CBS, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Ahli Arab Hospital, YouTube, Facebook, BBC, AP Locations: Gaza, Israel, London, Ahli, Palestinian, Lyme, Egypt, That's, Storyful, Russia, Washington, “

☆ HSBC CEO says even Chinese firms are diversifying from China at Bloomberg forum
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Manav Tanneeru | Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —Diversification away from China is increasing, and it doesn’t just affect foreign companies, according to HSBC CEO Noel Quinn. HSBC (HSBC) is the world’s largest trade finance bank, with a focus on Asia, meaning it helps importers and exporters carry out transactions. For decades, China has enjoyed rapid economic growth thanks to its status as a global trade and manufacturing powerhouse. So its supply chains and its supply to the world is going to change over the next 10 to 15 years,” noted Quinn. De-risking, meanwhile, may be harder to detect, as “there is no single economic data series that can effectively capture companies’ decisions to intentionally reduce their real economic exposure to China,” according to the report.

Persons: Noel Quinn, Quinn, ” Quinn, ”, — Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, HSBC, Bloomberg Locations: China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Asia, Vietnam, India

☆ Meet the guy in charge of deciding how to spend $1.2 trillion from Biden’s infrastructure bill
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

You can see in the funding for the infrastructure bill that we’re working hard to do all of that. We want to build generational wealth and do it in a way that heals communities rather than separates them. Between the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS act, there’s been a $1.8 trillion dollar investment. You may recall that when this conversation started about three or four years ago, the number was $6 trillion. So $1.2 trillion is significant, but it’s just a downpayment on what the real needs are.

Persons: Mitch Landrieu, Joe Biden, Biden’s, Landrieu, Bell, you’ve, We’re, Biden, it’s, He’s, he’s, there’s, I’ve, Catherine Thorbecke, ”, David Tolley, WeWork, Adam Neumann, Neumann, ’, AFTRA, Ramishah Maruf, “, ” It’s Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, White, Infrastructure Investment, Jobs Act, Economic Security, Infrastructure Law, SAG, ’ Locations: New York, New Orleans, Lowndes County , Alabama, Napakiak, Alaska, China, America, Hollywood

Now, frontier AI has become the latest buzzword as concerns grow that the emerging technology has capabilities that could endanger humanity. The debate comes to a head Wednesday, when British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hosts a two-day summit focused on frontier AI. In a speech last week, Sunak said only governments — not AI companies — can keep people safe from the technology’s risks. Frontier AI is shorthand for the latest and most powerful systems that go right up to the edge of AI’s capabilities. That makes frontier AI systems “dangerous because they’re not perfectly knowledgeable,” Clune said.

Persons: —, Rishi Sunak, It’s, Kamala Harris, Ursula von der Leyen, Google’s, Alan Turing, Sunak, ”, Jeff Clune, Clune, Elon, Sam Altman, He’s, Joe Biden, Geoffrey Hinton, Yoshua, ” Clune, “, it's, Francine Bennett, Ada Lovelace, Deb Raji, ” Raji, it’s, shouldn’t, Raji, DeepMind, Anthropic, Dario Amodei, Jack Clark, ’, Carsten Jung, Jill Lawless Organizations: British, U.S, European, University of British, AI Safety, European Union, Clune, Ada, Ada Lovelace Institute, House, University of California, ” Tech, Microsoft, Institute for Public Policy Research, Regulators, Associated Press Locations: Bletchley, University of British Columbia, State, EU, Brussels, China, U.S, Beijing, London, Berkeley

☆ AI boom could feed precious metals' demand - Metals Focus
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ingots of 99.99 percent pure silver are placed in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 25 (Reuters) - The artificial intelligence (AI) boom could support industrial demand for precious metals next year, although high interest rates and economic concerns may be near-term headwinds, Metals Focus said on Wednesday. Since most components used in conjunction with AI devices are sophisticated, "we expect to see widespread support for a range of precious metals bearing components," Metals Focus said in a note to investors. To cope with the evolution of AI algorithms, shipping growth for AI servers and switches will rise by double digits over the next few years and stimulate precious metals demand, Metals Focus said. Spot gold prices have climbed about 9% in the past two weeks, mainly fueled by safe-haven inflows triggered by the Israel-Hamas conflict, providing a tailwind for other precious metals as well.

Persons: Alexander Manzyuk, ChatGPT, Ashitha Shivaprasad, Arpan Varghese, Richard Chang Organizations: REUTERS, Metals, Nvidia, Thomson Locations: Novosibirsk, Siberian, Russia, Israel, Bengaluru

☆ The giant sucking sound you hear is the gobs of capital being pulled away from emerging managers. Here's how one solo capitalist defied the slump.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Those who raised their first venture capital funds in the pandemic-era boom times are now struggling with their sophomore efforts. Despite the tailwinds, some emerging managers are defying the slump and raising new funds. He told Insider exclusively that he's now closed on $15 million for fund two from investors including Cendana Capital, Invesco Private Capital, and two dozen startup founders. And so in 2019, he reached into his network of founders and raised a $2 million fund to invest in software companies. Now, he's already gearing up for fund three, which Wan said he plans to launch in 2024.

Persons: Insider's Callum Burroughs, Jordan Wan, Wan, Zocdoc, Oliver Kharraz, it's, Alan Ni, Jake Cooper, Manoj Kanagaraj, Blackstone, Cooper didn't, Cooper, they've, Wolf Organizations: Sequoia, Partners, Cendana, Invesco, Capital, Oscar Insurance, Garner Health Locations: London, Denver , Colorado, Wan

☆ Walmart says customers on Ozempic are actually spending more money overall
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Gloria Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Walmart told the analysts the small group of known customers who take the drugs spend more overall. AdvertisementAdvertisementWalmart is trying to clarify the impact weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are actually having on its bottom line. AdvertisementAdvertisementBut speaking to Morgan Stanley analysts, Walmart has clarified "two potential misconceptions," the analysts wrote. But, within this group, Walmart observed these customers were spending slightly less on food year over year. In aggregate, GLP-1 spending changes are not moving the needle for Walmart's total business, the authors write.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, —, John Furner, Furner, hasn't, Rice Krispies Organizations: Walmart, Service, Bloomberg

☆ Premarket stocks trading: ESG has lost its meaning. One advocate says let's throw it in the trash
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Dedicated ESG funds have also lost popularity with investors. Total assets under management in ESG funds fell by about $163.2 billion globally during the first quarter of 2023 from the year before, according to data provider Lipper. According to the latest Fed projections, officials forecast just one more interest rate hike this year — and rate cuts next year. When members of his board ask him whether interest rates could really go that high, his answer is always “yes,” he told Bloomberg. There are a lot of “potential bad outcomes,” Dimon said, but the worst-case economic scenario would be stagflation, with low growth and high interest rates.

Persons: “ ESG, ESG, What’s, Lipper, Lynn Forester de Rothschild, ESG “, ”, Rothschild, King Charles II, Bill Clinton, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, ’, Stephen Hall, Philip Morris, “, Robert Jenkins, Jenkins, Jamie Dimon, Dimon, It’s, ” Dimon, “ you’re, Satya Nadella, Brian Fung, Nadella, ” Nadella, else’s Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, Fox News, Republican, Biden, Council, Inclusive Capitalism, “ Investment, Better, CNN, Jamie Dimon JPMorgan, Federal, Bloomberg, Times, Microsoft, Google Locations: New York, Times of India, United States

☆ Visa launches $100 mln venture fund for generative AI startups
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Credit card is seen in front of displayed Visa logo in this illustration taken, July 15, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 2 (Reuters) - Payments processor Visa (V.N) on Monday launched a $100 million venture fund for generative artificial intelligence (AI) startups, joining a list of investors who have flocked to the sector this year. Several high-profile names such as Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google have backed the AI space, a buzzword in technology circles this year, after chatbot ChatGPT's popularity. Generative AI is a technology that creates brand new content based on what it has learnt from past data. Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi MajumdarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Jack Forestell, Niket, Shilpi Majumdar Organizations: REUTERS, Monday, Microsoft, Google, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ OpenAI in talks with investors for sale of existing shares - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A keyboard is placed in front of a displayed OpenAI logo in this illustration taken February 21, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 26 (Reuters) - OpenAI, the artificial intelligence startup behind ChatGPT, is talking to investors on a possible sale of existing shares, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The deal could value Microsoft-backed OpenAI at between $80 billion to $90 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the potential share sale. In a sale of existing shares no new capital is raised, but insiders and investors are allowed to sell their shares. OpenAI's new valuation would be almost triple of what the company was worth after a share sale earlier this year, the WSJ reported.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, OpenAI, Krystal Hu, Niket, Shounak Dasgupta Organizations: REUTERS, Microsoft, Wall Street, Thomson Locations: Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Bengaluru

☆ Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin travels the globe to keep crypto alive as the U.S. cracks down
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +17 min

Today, the biggest challenge for Buterin and the ethereum community is making sure that it provides actual value to people. Buterin was named the world's youngest crypto billionaire at age 27 as the crypto market swelled to its peak in 2021. And he isn't, according to his own estimation, the be-all and end-all authority on the ethereum network. About the ethereum network, he says, "On the other hand, you've got your laptop. In terms of what's next for ethereum — Buterin says a big priority is focusing on privacy and scalability through zero-knowledge rollups.

Persons: Vitalik Buterin, Buterin, coder, doesn't, Czech Republic Pavel Sinagl, that's, clasped, Buterin wasn't, cryptocurrencies, Sam Bankman, Luna, they're, Dmitry, Vitalik, Dmitry Buterin, ethereum blockchains, you've, Satoshi Nakamoto, ethereum, — Buterin Organizations: CNBC PRAGUE, CNBC, Canadian, U.S . Tornado, Buterin, U.S, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CFTC, People's Bank of China, tinker, Ethereum, Ethereum Foundation Locations: Prague, Russia, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Netherlands, Paralelní Polis, Holešovice, China, U.S, Africa, Argentina, Buenos Aires, San Francisco, CBDCs, Moscow, ethereum, Denver, Paris

☆ AI feature Dream Screen unveiled for Youtube Shorts
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The video platform, under the Alphabet-Google umbrella, teased a new generative AI feature dubbed Dream Screen specifically for its short-form video arm and TikTok competitor, YouTube Shorts. Dream Screen is an experimental feature that lets creators add AI-generated video or image backgrounds to their vertical videos. YouTube's Dream Screen tool, which allows users to create AI-generated video or image backgrounds by typing an idea into a prompt. YouTubeTo use Dream Screen, creators can type their idea for a background as a prompt and the platform will do the rest. Chikin Chow currently boasts the title of the most-watched YouTube Shorts creator in the world.

Persons: ” Neal Mohan, Mohan, YouTube Alan Chikin Chow, Chikin Chow, ” Chikin Chow, Alan Chikin Chow, Beverly Hilton, Emma McIntyre, clark, Dick Clark, he’s, ” Organizations: CNN, YouTube, Beverly Locations: Los Angeles, ANGELES , CALIFORNIA, Los Angeles , California, Silicon Valley

☆ 'The scholar, the pragmatist, and the rainmaker:' How three Bloomberg Beta VCs bet on AI before it became a buzzword
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Bahat brings this same radical directness to Bloomberg Beta, the early-stage venture capital fund housed within the larger Bloomberg empire that he's run for the past decade. And Bloomberg Beta was making investments in generative AI as far back as 2015, before the term "generative AI" even existed. "It felt like we were just waiting for the right moment," said Cham, Bloomberg Beta partner and de-facto chief technologist, "where the rest of the world would see it." Bloomberg Beta made the decision early on to publish its entire operating manual on GitHub, including sensitive information about average check size and investment criteria. Kieran Snyder, the founder of generative AI startup Textio which Bloomberg Beta invested in in 2015, has a shorthand for describing the role of Beta's three partners.

Persons: Roy Bahat's, Bahat, James Cham, Karin Klein, Shivon Zillis, Elon Musk's, Cham, ChatGPT, VCs, Bloomberg Beta, Dan Doctoroff, Mike Bloomberg, Doctoroff, Bahat's chutzpah, Bloomberg —, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Tade Oyerinde, Sam Altman, Peter Thiel's Founder's, Roy didn't, Oyerinde, Kieran Snyder, who's, Apple Lisa, Klein, Karen, Snyder, Roy, Zilis Organizations: Port Authority, World Trade Center, IGN, Bloomberg Beta, Bloomberg, LinkedIn, Elon, Beta, Apple, New Locations: New York, Silicon Valley, East, California

The new round, led by T. Rowe Price, could mark the last round of private funding as the data company gears up for the public market. Chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA.O), another beneficiary of the AI boom, and credit card firm Capital One Financial (COF.N), also participated in the latest funding round. AI, the latest buzzword in the technology space, has captivated the interest of investors from Silicon Valley to Wall Street. Its latest valuation is over 13% more than the $38 billion the San Francisco-based company was worth after its last fundraise in 2021. The company has raised $4 billion since inception.

Persons: Rowe Price, Ali Ghodsi, Ghodsi, Andreessen Horowitz, Baillie Gifford, Morgan, Weeks, Databricks, Niket, Krystal Hu, Dhanya Ann Thoppil Organizations: Nvidia, Reuters, Fidelity Management & Research, Tiger Global, Thomson Locations: Silicon Valley, Wall, Francisco, Bengaluru, Hong Kong

☆ Insider Today: Automating away CEOs
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Today is always a difficult day, particularly here in New York, as we remember the innocent lives lost 22 years ago. But the group that seems immune to those concerns — CEOs — is primed for being usurped by robots, writes Ed Zitron. Ed's argument is straightforward: CEOs get paid a lot despite not providing much value for their companies. For all the talk of CEOs being transformational leaders full of business ingenuity, many are nothing more than figureheads. The Insider Today team: Dan DeFrancesco, senior editor and anchor, in New York City.

Persons: Rick Rescorla, Morgan Stanley, Rescorla, — Dan DeFrancesco, Arantza Pena Popo, —, Ed Zitron, Ed, they're, STAN HONDA, Bill Ackman, foresees, Elon Musk's, Sam Altman, Kevin Dietsch, Ryan Petersen, Flexport's, Apple's, Microsoft's, Chris Williams, he's, Joe Biden, Damar Hamlin, Joe's, Wilson, Dan DeFrancesco, Naga Siu, Hallam Bullock, Lisa Ryan Organizations: Service, Tech, TED, LinkedIn, nab, Bank, America, Wynn Resorts, Broadcom, Sun, Pentagon, & Museum, The New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Bills, Oracle, Bovis Homes Locations: Wall, Silicon, New York, China, Alaska, Savanna, New York City, San Diego, London

☆ Insider Today: Y Combinator's Demo Day decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Y Combinator's Demo Day, which will wrap up today, was long considered the event for early-stage startups. AdvertisementAdvertisementInvestors front-running Demo Day was previously considered a major faux pas. You might ask yourself: Who cares if startups line up investments before Demo Day? And companies that get investments before Demo Day might regret it in the long run. The new rating system for performance reviews determines pay — and managers were instructed to not share it with employees.

Persons: I've, that's, Madeline Renbarger, haven't, It's, it's, Samantha Lee, Madeline, There's, Martin, Ryan Reynolds, LeBron James, they're, Ed Yardeni, Jeremy Grantham, Brevan Howard, Peter Hornick, Eduardo Munoz, Sapna Chadha, Shopify, Arantza Pena Popo, YIMBYism, Elon Musk, Katy Perry, Hozier, Hayao Miyazaki's, Heidi Tissenbaum's, Dan DeFrancesco, Naga Siu, Hallam Bullock, Lisa Ryan Organizations: Service, NFL, Tech, Bank, Getty Images, REUTERS, Google, Google Asia Pacific, The Kansas City Chiefs —, Detroit Lions, 48th Toronto, Getty Locations: Wall, Silicon, Silicon Valley, Nevada, The, New York City, San Diego, London, New York

☆ ‘Immaculate disinflation’ is the new economic buzzword. But what does it mean?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Economists added yet another term to their lexicon in recent months: immaculate disinflation. That pain tends to come in the form of a higher unemployment rate, which hampers economic growth. Yet the nation’s unemployment rate actually fell from 3.6% in June 2022 to 3.5% in July 2023. That’s leading some economists to believe that immaculate disinflation may be possible. “I wouldn’t call this disinflation immaculate,” he said in a CNBC interview at last month’s Jackson Hole Fed conference.

Persons: there’s, that’s, aren’t, Jerome Powell, Powell, Alex Wong, Joe Biden’s, Jared Bernstein, ”, Jackson, “, Bernstein, Loretta Mester, ” Mester, it’s, Mester Organizations: New, New York CNN, CNBC, Fed, White, Cleveland Fed Locations: New York, United States

The "AI for business" diploma offers training in data and AI for client leaders, practitioners, and WPP executives, according to WPP's website. The team work under AI expert Daniel Hulme who was appointed chief AI officer at WPP two years ago. While lawmakers and philosophers alike still debate whether content produced by generative AI models amounts to anything like human creativity, advertisers have already begun using the technology in their promotional campaigns. Unilever, which owns more than 400 brands including Dove soap and Ben & Jerry's ice cream, has its own generative AI technology that can write product descriptions for retailers' websites and digital commerce sites, it said. The company's TRESemmé haircare brand has used its AI content generator for written content and its automation tool for visual content on Amazon.co.uk (AMZN.O).

Persons: Mark Read, Read, we've, Mondelez, Shah Rukh Khan, Daniel Hulme, Nestle, Gandon, Ray, Johannes Vermeer's, Aaron Rajan, Nestle's Gandon, Martin Sorrell, You've, Ben King, Richa Naidu, Martin Coulter, Matt Scuffham, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Nestle, Unilever, Marketing, Investment, Reuters, WPP, Oreo, Cadbury, Bollywood, YouTube, Facebook, University of Oxford, Global, Google, Go, Market Technology, Consumer, Walmart, Carrefour, Kroger, Thomson Locations: Africa, India, London, Swiss, Okta

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