DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Why 7 prominent VCs are investing millions in new social startups like Diem, Lex, and 222
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Sydney Bradley | Marta Biino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Mervana Parekh is a principal at Acrew and has invested in social startups like Diem, Afterparty, and Anything World. Best Nights VC. Nichols is a founding managing partner at MaC, which recently invested in social startups like Spill and Swsh. Boyce has backed a slew of new social startups, including Diem, Lex, Koodos Labs, and Swsh, alongside associate Rhian Horton. In 2024, Best Nights is looking to invest in companies that facilitate travel experiences after hearing people say their best nights have happened during trips or vacations, said de Silva.

Persons: —, Connie Chan, Mervana Parekh, Peter Boyce II, Marlon Nichols, Catalyst, Web3, Peter, Diem, Afterparty, Lorrain de Silva, Andrew Kahn, Miley Cyrus, Lorde, Kahn, Aaron Matusow, Dan Kruchkow, Nichols, Elizabeth Weil, Kevin Weil, John Smothers, Boyce, Lex, Rhian Horton, Lorrain, Silva, BestNights, Aaron Leithäuser, Gen Z, Peter Boyce, de Silva, Acrew Organizations: Service, Business, Acrew, Stellation, MaC Venture, VCs, Stanford University, Startup, Pudgy Penguins, Crush Ventures, VC, Crush, MaC Venture Capital, MaC, Catalyst, Koodos Labs, Big Tech Locations: 1kx, San Francisco , New York, Lisbon, Acrew, San Francisco, Berlin, Los Angeles and New York, Los Angeles, New York, Rythm

☆ An Indian mega-party is attracting so many private jets that officials set up extra passport control for all the VIPs
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Kieran Corcoran | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Guests like Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Ivanka Trump, led to a surge in private jets at the local airport. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . is underway in India, and the local airport is pulling out all the stops to cope. That kind of guestlist brings a long trail of private jets and the local airport in Jamnagar isn't built for it. It said around 50 of them were private jets coming from other countries, meaning passport control for their occupants.

Persons: India's Ambani, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Ivanka Trump, —, Ambani, Anant, Radhika Merchant, Mukesh Ambani, Ajit Solanki, Sergei Brin, Mexico's Carlos Slim, It's, Larry Fink, Rihanna, Jamnagar isn't, Priscilla Chan, DK Singh Organizations: Service, Bloomberg, Reliance Industries, of, Immigration Locations: India, Jamnagar, Reliance Township, Indian, Gujarat, Davos, of India

☆ Vaccines Didn’t Turn Back Mpox, Study Finds. People Did.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Apoorva Mandavilli | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Why It Matters: Vaccines often arrive too late to stamp out outbreaks. Public health messaging can “be really powerful to control epidemics, even as we’re waiting for things like vaccines to come,” he said. Some experts unrelated to the work were not convinced that behavioral change was largely responsible for stemming the outbreak. “Add in some vaccine-induced immunity in this group and a bit of behavior change, and it will be even more effective,” he said. “As we’ve seen with Covid, the behavioral change only lasts so long,” she said.

Persons: Miguel Paredes, Paredes, ”, Bill Hanage, Thomas Skinner, Virginia Pitzer, we’ve Organizations: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Food and Drug Administration, Vaccines, Harvard, of Public Health, Disease Control, Yale School of Public Health Locations: Seattle, North America, Chan, resurging

☆ Hong Kong GDP to grow 2.5%-3.5% in 2024, scraps property tightening measures
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

People cross an intersection in the Central business district of Hong Kong on Feb. 27, 2024. Hong Kong's economy is expected to grow 2.5%-3.5% this year, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said on Wednesday as he announced measures to bolster a flagging property market and support the economy. The special administrative region, which expanded 3.2% in 2023, will cancel all buy-side property tightening measures for residential properties and waive stamp duties payable on the transfer of REIT units, Chan said. "We decided to cancel all demand-side management measures for residential properties with immediate effect. We consider that the relevant measures are no longer necessary amidst the current economic and market conditions," Chan said, adding that there was room to further adjust measures for the property market.

Persons: Paul Chan, Chan Organizations: Financial, HK Locations: Central, Hong Kong, Hong

☆ Hong Kong scraps decade-old property restrictions to boost flagging economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

These taxes had been introduced as early as 2010 to cool the city’s once red-hot property market, a pillar of the economy. Real estate and related industries play a key role in Hong Kong’s economy, accounting for as much as a fifth of the city’s gross domestic product (GDP). Hong Kong’s economy has struggled to regain momentum since it reopened after more than two years of self-imposed Covid isolation. Hong Kong’s stock market, where many of China’s largest and most important companies are listed, has become less popular with international investors. Late last year, the city’s stock exchange was overtaken by the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) as the world’s seven largest bourse.

Persons: Paul Chan, “, ” Chan, Chan Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Hong Kong, National Stock Exchange of India, bourse Locations: China, Hong Kong, Hong Kong’s, Victoria Harbour, Hong, Beijing, Washington, Asia

☆ Hong Kong property stocks jump after city scraps cooling measures
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

An urban view of high-rise buildings at dusk as seen from Hong Kong's Victoria Peak. Stocks of Hong Kong developers rose after Financial Secretary Paul Chan scrapped property cooling measures in a bid to bolster the sector, which has been weighed down by high borrowing costs and weak economic sentiment. Churchouse added that this could "be a bit of a positive flip" for the wider Hong Kong stock market as it is highly correlated with the residential property market. Hong Kong's stock markets have plunged around 40% from its highs a couple of years ago. Hong Kong's government is also rolling out over 1 billion Hong Kong dollars ($127 million) to support its tourism industry.

Persons: Chan, Paul Chan, Peter Churchouse, Churchouse, Hong Organizations: Hong, Portwood, Kong's Monetary, Hong Kong Locations: Hong, Victoria, Hong Kong

☆ Inside the rocky marriage of hedge funds and top AI talent
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AI researchers have struggled with hedge funds' culture around proprietary secrets, which goes against the open-source philosophy foundational to AI and academia. Some recruiters, including Michael Stover, are seeing double- and triple-digit growth in AI hiring among hedge funds and prop-trading firms. For heads of AI, he said, hedge funds are dishing out a minimum of $1.5 million in total comp. But perhaps the top reason hedge funds are interested in the technology is that AI capabilities are bait in the war for investing talent. It's one of the few large US hedge funds without an executive or centralized team dedicated to AI or machine learning.

Persons: Ken Griffin's Citadel, Li Deng, Deng, Ken, Ken Griffin, Michael Stover, Stover, ExodusPoint, Balyasny, Agni Ghosh, Stott, isn't, Sumeet Chabria, Conor Twomey, Tim Mace, Mace, May's Ghosh, it's, They're, Peter Finter, Finter, That's, Ghosh, you've Organizations: Microsoft, Business, Citadel, Milken Institute, Reuters, Millennium Management, Bloomberg, Balyasny Asset Management, Man, Bank of America, Wall, Wall Street, Tech, Google Locations: Chicago, Seattle, Beverly Hills , California, London, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Wall

☆ 10 fascinating facts about Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who has a company tattoo and dozens of direct reports
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Nvidia cofounder and CEO Jensen Huang is on track to be one of the richest people in the world. Here are 10 surprising facts about Huang, from his Nvidia tattoo to his staggering number of direct reports. AdvertisementJensen Huang, the CEO and cofounder of Nvidia, is leading the charge towards an AI future — with his company making billions. He has a tattoo of Nvidia's logo on his shoulderNvidia founder, president and CEO Jensen Huang displays his tattoo in September 2010. "The more direct reports the CEO has, the less layers are in the company," Huang said during an interview at the 2023 DealBook Summit.

Persons: Jensen Huang, Huang, —, who's, it's, Lori, Chris Malochowsky, Curtis Priem, Robert Galbraith, you've, Fortune, Noah Berger, what's, He's, he'll, Jackie Chan Organizations: Nvidia, Service, Oneida Baptist Institute in, Wired, NPR, Oregon State University, HP, Stanford, New York Times, Wilson Jackets, New Yorker, Yorker, New York Times DealBook Locations: Oneida Baptist Institute in Kentucky, California, Shutterstock

☆ Leaked memo: Broadcom leaders address KKR's plans to acquire VMware's End-User Computing unit for $4 billion
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Rosalie Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

KKR announced on Monday that it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the End-User Computing division from Broadcom for about $4 billion. Broadcom acquired VMware in November, and it had been reviewing strategic alternatives for EUC, BI previously reported. In addition, he said employees should help customers complete their renewals as many customers have expired renewals. Prior to the acquisition by Broadcom, VMware employees had already been speculating the EUC business, as well as the Carbon Black cybersecurity business, would be spun out, BI previously reported. Help customers complete their renewals and add on orders.

Persons: EUC, Shankar Iyer, Iyer, Robert Ruelas, Ruelas, Shankar Organizations: Broadcom, VMware, KKR, Business Insider, Reuters, Business, Iyer, EUC, Revenue Locations: Vegas

☆ My boyfriend and I spent $40,000 to take our dog to Japan on vacation. It was worth every penny.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Faye Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

My boyfriend Anders and I are based in Hong Kong, and last year we spent around $40,000 to take our dog on vacation in Japan. It was magical to watch Siu Tim experience his first snowfall and frolic through Japan's breathtaking landscapes. AdvertisementTo make traveling around with Siu Tim easier, we spent $1,160 to rent a car. In Japan, Siu Tim stood out and quickly became a local favorite, perhaps due to the nation's affinity for small dogs. The trip was expensive but we've already gone on our second vacation togetherThe couple already returned to Japan in 2024 with Siu Tim for their second trip.

Persons: Tiffany Chan, Anders, Siu Tim, Siu Tim's, Siu, we've Organizations: Business, Bulldog, Japan Locations: Hong Kong, Japan, Mong Kok, Narita, Kyoto, Asakusa, Tokyo

☆ BAFTA Award winners list
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Alli Rosenbloom | Thomas Page | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The Christopher Nolan-directed award season favorite led the nominees with 13 nods this year and won seven awards, including director, lead actor and the coveted best film award. “Poor Things” was the other stand-out winner of the ceremony with five wins, including Emma Stone’s award for lead actress. “The Holdovers” star Da’Vine Joy Randolph continues to dominate the supporting actress category through this award season cycle. Thanking her co-star Paul Giamatti while accepting her BAFTA, Randolph said, “Gosh, I cry every time I say your name. See below for a full list of BAFTA nominees and winners.

Persons: CNN — “ Oppenheimer ”, Christopher Nolan, Nolan, ”, Emma Stone’s, “, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Paul Giamatti, Randolph, “ Gosh, Jonathan Glazer, Barbie, Maestro ”, Martin Scorsese, Tom Cruise, Michael J, Fox, Prince William, Catherine , Princess of Wales, King Charles ., “ Oppenheimer ”, Napoleon ” “, Wonka, Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer, Melinda Sue Gordon, Andrew Haigh, Justine Triet, Alexander Payne, ” Bradley Cooper, “ Maestro ” Christopher Nolan, Cord Jefferson, ” –, “ Oppenheimer, Tony McNamara, Arthur Harari, Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, “ Barbie ” David Hemingson, Josh Singer, “ Maestro ” Celine Song, Barry Keoghan, Saltburn ” Bradley Cooper, “ Maestro ” Cillian Murphy, “ Oppenheimer ” –, Colman Domingo, “ Rustin ” Paul Giamatti, ” Teo Yoo, Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, “ Maestro ” Emma Stone, Fantasia Barrino, Margot Robbie, “ Barbie ” Sandra Hüller, Vivian Oparah, Dominic Sessa, Jacob Elordi, Saltburn, Paul Mescal, Robert De Niro, Robert Downey Jr, Ryan Gosling, “ Barbie, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Claire Foy, Danielle Brooks, Emily Blunt, Rosamund Pike, Sandra Hüller, Robbie Robertson, Ludwig Göransson, Jerskin Fendrix, ” Anthony Willis, “ Saltburn ” Daniel Pemberton, Jacqueline Durran, “ Barbie ” Jacqueline West, Dave Crossman, Janty Yates, “ Napoleon ” Ellen Mirojnick, Holly Waddington, Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer, Jack Fisk, Adam Willis, Ruth De Jong, Claire Kaufman, Shona Heath, James Price, Zsuzsa, Chris Oddy, Joanna Maria Kuś, Katarzyna Sikora, Jonathan Bullock, Charmaine Chan, Ian Comley, Jay Cooper, Theo Bialek, Stephane Ceretti, Alexis Wajsbrot, Guy Williams, Neil Corbould, Simone Coco, Jeff Sutherland, Alex Wuttke, Henry Badgett, Charley Henley, Ewen Martin, “ Napoleon, Tim, Simon Hughes, Dean Koonjul, Jane Paton, Hair Kay Georgiou, Thomas Nellen, Sian Grigg, Kay Georgiou, Kazu Hiro, Lori McCoy, Bell, “ Maestro ” Jana Carboni, Francesco Pegoretti, Satinder Chumber, Julia Vernon, “ Napoleon ” Luisa Abel, Jaime Leigh McIntosh, Jason Hamer, Ahou, Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier, Josh Weston, Laurent Sénéchal, Thelma Schoonmaker, Jennifer Lame, Yorgos Mavropsaridis, ” Paul Watts, Rodrigo Prieto, Matthew Libatique, Maestro ” Hoyte van, Robbie Ryan, Kahleen Crawford, Susan Shopmaker, Isabella Odoffin, Ellen Lewis, Rene Haynes, Angelo Bonanni, Tony Lamberti, Andy Nelson, Lee Orloff, Bernard Weiser, “ Ferrari ” Richard King, Steve Morrow, Tom Ozanich, Jason Ruder, Dean Zupancic, Maestro ” Chris Burdon, James H, Mather, Chris Munro, Mark Taylor, Willie Burton, Richard King, Kevin O’Connell, Gary A, Rizzo, Johnnie Burn, ” “ Gorka, Phoebe Dynevor Ayo, Jacob Elordi Mia Mckenna, Bruce –, Sophie Wilde Organizations: CNN, Royal Festival Hall, Universal, BAFTA, Screen, Netflix, BBC, “ Society, Fox, Universal Pictures, Searchlight, “ Guardians, “ Locations: London, England, British, “

☆ Utah legislature passes a bill that makes company NDAs on sexual assault and harassment unenforceable
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Rosalie Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Utah legislature approved a bill on NDAs related to sexual assault and harassment. The bill also says attempts to enforce a confidentiality clause could result in liability for costs. AdvertisementThe Utah state legislature passed a bill on Friday that makes confidentiality clauses related to sexual assault and sexual harassment unenforceable. "In most sexual harassment cases, a company is fully equipped with lawyers at their beck and call," Bernhardt said. When individuals report sexual harassment, a lot of them don't have attorneys.

Persons: —, Kera Birkeland, they've, Kimberly Bernhardt, Bernhardt, there's, doesn't, NDAs, Susan Madsen, they're Organizations: Service, Rep, Nationwide, state's, Utah Women, Leadership, Utah State University Locations: Utah, Utah's House

☆ Happy New Year of the Dragon - or Loong?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

This year, it’s the Year of the Dragon, or more accurately, the “Year of the Loong,” says Chinese state media, using its preferred term for the mythical beast. The Chinese “loong” conjures positivity, nobleness and fortune and therefore should be distinguished linguistically from its Western cousin, state media argues. Chinese media has dedicated coverage and airtime to promote the new nomenclature over the past week or so, though both “dragon” and “loong” are being used interchangeably in English-language reports. “Transcribing long into English ‘loong’ would cause more problems and confusion than translating it as ‘dragon’,” he wrote. He noted that “some patriotic and political sources in the Sinosphere” have been peddling the concept that the Western dragon is fearful.

Persons: ”, Loong ”, it’s, loong, “ loong, Xi Jinping, Loong, John Lee, Wong Tai, Alex Chan Tsz Yuk, Elliott, Bradford Lee Eden, Eden, Eduardo Leal, ‘, Weibo, Victor Mair, Mair, “ loong ”, ” Eden, “ Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Disney, Xinhua, of Library Services, Valparaiso University ,, Tolkien Research, Getty, University of Pennsylvania, Valparaiso University Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beijing, Valparaiso University , Indiana, Macau, Weibo, West

☆ See the pitch deck that helped former investment bankers raise a $7 million seed round for their generative 'AI consigliere' to bankers and analysts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

It’s a reality that’s all too common among bankers on Wall Street — and one that venture-capital investors are hoping to capitalize on . "I was seeing how rote the work was, what a pain it was,” Stengel said, who would often work hundred-hour weeks . While at Princeton in 2019, Stengel researched how to use AI in chatbot form to analyze financial and economic data. Rogo is an AI platform built for investment bankers, hedge fund analysts, and private equity investors. Here's the 9-page pitch deck Rogo used to raise $7 million.

Persons: Gabriel Stengel, It’s, ” Stengel, Stengel, John Willett, Tumas Rackaitis, Gilder Gagnon Howe, ”, we've Organizations: Service, Lazard, Wall, Business, Princeton, JPMorgan, Co, AlleyCorp, Company Ventures, BoxGroup, ScOp Ventures, SEC

☆ What is the Atlantic diet?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The traditional diet of northern Portugal and northwestern Spain, known as the Southern European Traditional Atlantic Diet, or Atlantic diet for short, may hold some clues to better heart health and a lower risk of dying early from cancer, heart disease or any cause, according to studies conducted in Europe. The diet is based on foods grown or found in that part of the Europe, much like its famous cousin the Mediterranean diet. Because it’s plant-based and locally sourced, the Atlantic diet also helps protect the planet by contributing to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, the study’s authors noted. Like the Mediterranean diet, the Atlantic diet focuses on home-cooked food served family style, with an emphasis on social interactions between friends and family. However, other studies have shown that not all food groups in the traditional Atlantic diet are beneficial.

Persons: ”, Walter Willett, Harvard T.H, David Katz, Al Bochi Organizations: CNN, Southern, JAMA, Harvard, of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, United Nations, True Health Initiative, Atlanta, Academy of Nutrition, “ Locations: Portugal, Spain, Europe, Chan, Boston, Czechia, Poland

Shanker also raised his price target to $80 from $75, suggesting nearly 34% downside from Friday's close. — Spencer Kimball 8:16 a.m.: Loop Capital upgrades Corteva, touts growth acceleration in 2025 Corteva's stronger-than-expected 2024 full-year guidance will jumpstart a period of strong growth, according to Loop Capital. The firm upgraded the agricultural chemicals company to buy from hold and increased its price target to $65 from $57. Analyst Jay Sole upgraded Urban to neutral from sell and upped his 12-month price target by $20 to $41. Kaufman's $183 price target indicates roughly 6.3% downside for shares, which have fallen more than 18% over the past year.

Persons: headwinds, Morgan Stanley downgrades XPO, Morgan Stanley, Ravi, Shanker, — Michelle Fox, Julien Dumoulin, Smith, Duke's, — Spencer Kimball, Chris Kapsch, Kapsch, Brian Evans, Cassie Chan, they'll, Chan, —, Jay Sole, URBN, Sole, Urban's, — Pia Singh, Filippo Falorni, Falorni, Hershey, Stanley, Pamela Kaufman, Kaufman's, Hershey's, Kaufman, Graham Doyle, Doyle, Piper Sandler, David Amsellem, Amsellem, Amsellam, Christopher Horvers, Jan, Horvers, Fred Imbert, Dan Levy, Levy Organizations: CNBC, Barclays, Automotive, JPMorgan, Corp, Bank of America, Bank of America downgrades Duke Energy, Duke Energy, Duke, Wall, America, UBS, Urban Outfitters, Free People, Urban, Citi, PepsiCo, Citi Research, Pepsi, Hershey, GE Healthcare Technologies, UBS GE Healthcare Technologies, Pharmaceutical, Teva Pharmaceutical, Federal, Barclays downgrades Rivian, Rivian Automotive, North American EV Locations: Bank of America downgrades, GEHC, David Amsellem U.S

It's by choice, yet she still suffers FOMO when Valentine's Day rolls around. She became a certified matchmaker last year and has organized a speed-dating event ahead of Valentine's Day. Like Valentine's Day, loneliness has become big business, complete with an outpouring of books offering up self help and data. Her best advice for making it through Valentine's Day is as sweet as those candy conversation hearts that circulate this time of year. On Valentine's Day, the project is offering a free Zoom coloring session for anyone who cares to sign up.

Persons: — Elise Plessis hasn't, “, ”, Plessis, She'll, she'll, ” Plessis, Vivek Murthy, ” Murthy, that’s, David Sbarra, crunchers, ” Sbarra, Tori Mattei, She's, I’ve, “ I’ve, ” Mattei, Mattei doesn't, Jeremy Nobel, Nobel, —, Kelli Miller Organizations: Associated Press, University of Arizona, Harvard Chan School of Public Health, Foundation for Art & Healing Locations: Manitoba, Canada, U.S, America, Tucson, New York, Manhattan, Los Angeles

☆ Messi’s ‘miracle’ return stirs Chinese anger and conspiracy theories
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

“(He) played in five of the six preseason games and only missed the game in Hong Kong, China! Don’t come to China, China doesn’t welcome you,” another user wrote in a post liked by 20,000 others. “Why didn’t Messi play in Hong Kong or participate in the handshake with HK (the Hong Kong) chief executive? Messi's no-show sparks an outcry in Hong Kong on February 4, 2024. One social media user noted that it was not only Messi who played in Tokyo, but not Hong Kong.

Persons: Lionel Messi, Messi didn’t, Messi, “ Messi, Hong Kong, Kenneth Fok, Hu Xijin, didn’t Messi, ” Hu, ”, Louise Delmotte, “ Don’t, Hong, David Beckham, Beckham, Gerardo “ Tata ” Martino, Luis Suárez couldn’t, Philip Fong, “, nimbly, Regina Ip, ” “ Messi, Kenneth Chan, Taylor Swift, ’ Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Sunday, Major League Soccer, Inter Miami, Vissel, Hong, CNN, Weibo, HK, Global Times, Inter, National Basketball Association, Houston Rockets, Soccer, Ardent, Messi, Argentina national, Australia, Inter Miami's, Getty, The Inter Miami, Hong Kong Baptist University Locations: China, Hong Kong, Argentine, Japan, Vissel Kobe, Tokyo, Beijing, State, China’s Sichuan, Argentina, AFP, Asia

☆ Big insurance companies want more private credit. Here's how Blackstone is using AI to win them over.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Insurance companies represent a big opportunity for private equity firms, who invest with the accumulated premiums paid by millions of everyday Americans. It's not just insurance clients that benefit from AI to bring more transparency to the cloudy private credit market. With private credit, insurance firms can invest in a more diversified set of assets with greater yield (and, albeit risk) than public credit markets, like vanilla corporate bonds. And because insurance companies often have long-term horizons with their financial obligations to policyholders, they can invest in less-liquid asset classes, like private credit. But to win more insurance clients, Blackstone must compete with the likes of Apollo Global Management, Carlyle, and KKR, which have also been keen on insurance.

Persons: Blackstone, John Stecher, it's, Stecher, Gilles Dellaert, Carlyle, that's, Jon Gray, Gray Organizations: Blackstone, —, Business, Insurance, Blackstone Insurance, Apollo Global Management, KKR Locations: BXCI

☆ 6 venture investors spotlight the fintechs that could soar in 2024 amid another tough year for startups
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Fintech has shown few signs of recovering in 2024 as funding declines and layoffs continue. VCs said they want to pick up deals this year in AI and cost-management tools for software. Investors digging for deals in the fintech industry are zeroing in on a few pockets of resilience. Venture funding to financial-technology startups fell by 50% in 2023 from 2022, according to CB Insights. Only one month into 2024, fintech layoffs have been abound.

Persons: Fintech, VCs, Jack Dorsey's Block Organizations: PayPal, Business Locations: Brex

☆ Finance worker pays out $25 million after video call with deepfake ‘chief financial officer’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Heather Chen | Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A finance worker at a multinational firm was tricked into paying out $25 million to fraudsters using deepfake technology to pose as the company’s chief financial officer in a video conference call, according to Hong Kong police. Chan said the worker had grown suspicious after he received a message that was purportedly from the company’s UK-based chief financial officer. Dale De La Rey / AFPBelieving everyone else on the call was real, the worker agreed to remit a total of $200 million Hong Kong dollars – about $25.6 million, the police officer added. At the press briefing Friday, Hong Kong police said they had made six arrests in connection with such scams. Authorities across the world are growing increasingly concerned at the sophistication of deepfake technology and the nefarious uses it can be put to.

Persons: “, Baron Chan Shun, Chan, Hong, Dale De La, deepfakes, Taylor Swift Organizations: CNN, Hong, RTHK Locations: Hong Kong, Dale De La Rey, AFP, American

☆ Asian Cup: Son Heung-min’s dazzling extra-time free kick seals South Korea’s dramatic passage to semifinals
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A dazzling extra-time free kick from talisman and captain Son Heung-min sealed a dramatic victory for South Korea in the Asian Cup quarterfinals against Australia, continuing its habit of nervy, sensational finishes in this tournament. And against Australia, South Korea was trailing 1-0 almost four minutes into stoppage time. “The most important thing is we get the result,” Son said afterwards, per the Asian Cup website. Son's goal sealed South Korea's place in the Asian Cup semifinals. Xia Bohan/VCG/Getty Images“It was another drama,” said South Korea manager Jürgen Klinsmann, according to the Asian Cup wesbite.

Persons: Son Heung, Cho Gue, Son, Hwang Hee, Matty Ryan, ” Son, Craig Goodwin, Jo Hyeon, Connor Metcalfe, Goodwin, Nathaniel Atkinson, Jo, Graham Arnold, Aidan O’Neill, Xia Bohan, ”, Jürgen Klinsmann, “ I’m, Jordan Organizations: CNN, South, Australia, Warriors, Tottenham, Kyodo, Socceroos, Taegeuk Locations: South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Australia

☆ Pat McGrath: How the legendary makeup artist created these looks at the Maison Margiela show
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Claire Coleman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —It’s been more than a week since the looks created by makeup artist Pat McGrath for last week’s Maison Margiela couture show captured collective imaginations, and the internet is still abuzz. The legendary creative — deemed the most influential makeup artist in the world by Vogue magazine — transformed models into living dolls, complete with porcelain skin, pencil-thin eyebrows and strikingly shaded eyes, lips and cheeks. While “glass skin” was all about leaving the face bare but with a glistening sheen, 2020s “dolphin skin” trend took things to the next level. The last decade has seen a range of trends celebrating skin with a high sheen, from so-called "glass skin" to 2022's "glazed donut" look. Pat McGrath LabsLike “glass skin” before it, “dolphin skin” was a sensation on social media, but not everyone was a fan.

Persons: CNN — It’s, Pat McGrath, —, McGrath, Pat, influencers, Mary Phillips, skincare, Andy Millward, Hailey Bieber, Monika, Gemma Chan, Jessica Alba, Kate Hudson, Megan Fox, ” Pat McGrath, Charles Sykes, you’ve Organizations: CNN, Vogue, Maison, Pat McGrath Labs, Margiela, Clio Locations: Korea

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Extreme heat and wildfire smoke are independently harmful to the human body, but together their impact on cardiovascular and respiratory systems is more dangerous and affects some communities more than others. A study published Friday in the journal Science Advances said climate change is increasing the frequency of both hazards, particularly in California. The authors found that the combined harm of extreme heat and inhalation of wildfire smoke increased hospitalizations and disproportionately impacted low-income communities and Latino, Black, Asian and other racially marginalized residents. Homes and work places with air conditioning and neighborhoods with tree canopy cover are better protected from extreme heat, and some buildings filter smoke from wildfires and insulate heat more efficiently. “For a variety of reason, they tend to feel climate change much worse than other non-underserved communities, and I think it's really important to highlight this social injustice aspect of climate change,” said the emergency physician and fellow at the Harvard T.H.

Persons: ”, Tarik Benmarhnia, Benmarhnia, Christopher T, Minson, it’s, Catharina Giudice Organizations: ANGELES, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, UC San Diego, University of Oregon, Environmental Protection Agency, University of Southern, Harvard, of Public Health, National Weather Service, Associated Press, Walton Family Foundation, AP Locations: California, San Diego, United States, Oregon, Washington, Canada, British Columbia, Central Valley, Central, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, Chan

☆ CLSA Feng Shui Index: We think the HSI will break even by mid-year, analyst says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailCLSA Feng Shui Index: We think the HSI will break even by mid-year, analyst saysJustin Chan, equity research analyst at CLSA, says "after a slow start in the first quarter, we think that the Han Seng Index will break even by mid-year, and then continue to rise up, eventually reaching new heights."

Persons: Justin Chan Organizations: Shui

Search resuls for: "Chan"

25 mentions found