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☆ Panera is exempt from California's fast-food wage increase. A billionaire franchisee previously donated to Gov. Newsom.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Ana Altchek | Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewCalifornia's minimum wage increase from $16 to $20 an hour for fast-food restaurant workers, set to go into effect in April, caused a stir among fast-food chains — but not Panera. He owns 12 Panera locations in California. When asked last year about the bread exemption that baffled many, Newsom said, "That's part of the sausage-making," declining to elaborate further. Flynn, in a conversation with Bloomberg, denied having a hand in the bread exemption. A few smaller brands appear to benefit from the carve-out, including Paris Baguette and Great Harvest Bread Co, Bloomberg reported.

Persons: —, Gavin Newsom, Greg Flynn —, Flynn, Taco Bell, Flynn Group's, Newsom, Panera, Paris Baguette Organizations: Service, Flynn Group, Business, Bloomberg, San Francisco Chronicle, Flynn Properties Inc, US Food and Drug Administration, Co Locations: California, Paris

☆ How Google lost its way
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Hugh Langley | Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Just two months after Google launched Gemini, its flashy new AI model, the company revealed that it had already built a better version. AdvertisementThen, days later, Google scrambled to explain why its image generation tool spit out racially inaccurate depictions of historical figures. Users have long bemoaned — and researchers recently found — a decline in the quality of Google Search results. The fact that Google is not far and away the self-driving-car leader, it's, like, a total joke," the former Google director said, adding that the problem of Google's lost supremacy is "maybe impossible to solve, frankly." Google now is reminiscent of the Steve Ballmer-era Microsoft, which missed the smartphone, search, and cloud waves and was overtaken by Apple, Google, and Amazon.

Persons: OpenAI, Sora, Sam Altman, Sundar Pichai's, Pichai, —, Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Lea Suzuki, Getty Brin, Page, Google, Googlers, Axel Springer, Diane von Furstenberg, Giovanni Giannoni, Michael Avrukin, Vuk Valcic, wouldn't, Patrick Mork, Eric Lehman, Lehman, ChatGPT, Caesar Sengupta, Sengupta, Alexa, Google's, Steve Ballmer, Satya Nadella, Hugh Langley, Lara O'Reilly Organizations: Google, Hollywood, Industry, San Francisco Chronicle, Business, Penske Media, Microsoft, Amazon, The New York Times, Oracle, YouTube, Apple, IBM, Meta Locations: Silicon Valley, Silicon, —

☆ Rising crime risks turning Oakland into a ‘ghost town.’ Newsom is sending in reinforcements
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The aim: to crack down on crime, including vehicle theft, retail theft and violent crime. The Oakland NAACP branch demanded elected leaders take action to ensure public safety, especially in predominately Black neighborhoods. Denny’s is shuttering its only location in Oakland after more than 54 years, citing public safety concerns. Motor vehicle theft increased by 29% and, since 2019, motor vehicle theft has shot upward by 105%, the study found. This variation “suggests local factors are becoming more significant.”There’s no easy answer to explaining why crime has increased in Oakland.

Persons: Gavin Newsom, ” Newsom, Nigel Jones isn’t, Jones, restauranter, there’s, ”, Shari Godinez, it’ll, ” It’s, Justin Sullivan, Kaiser Permenente, Kaiser, Clorox, Adam Gelb, Cindy Varela, “, she’s, Sheng Thao, Nigel Jones, “ I’m, Veronica Miracle, Jack Hannah, Kevin Flower, Jeffrey Kopp, Elizabeth Joseph Organizations: New, New York CNN, Oakland, San, Patrol, Kingston, Oakland NAACP, CNN, Criminal, Police, Zona Latina, . Solutions Police, Business Locations: New York, America’s, Oakland, San Francisco Chronicle, California, United States, Jamaica, Calabash, ”, Black, downtowns, Koreatown Northgate, American, “

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — A U.S. district judge in California dismissed a lawsuit Wednesday that sought to force the Biden administration to do all it could to make Israel stop bombing Gaza. It also asked the court to order defendants to stop obstructing attempts by the international community to call for a cease-fire in Gaza. Corrie was run over and killed in 2003 while trying to stop the demolition of a house in Gaza. Still, the lawsuit has brought fresh attention to the thousands of Palestinian Americans and other advocates calling for a cease-fire. Israeli authorities say the Oct. 7 assault by Hamas resulted in about 1,200 people dead and another 250 kidnapped as hostages.

Persons: Biden, Jeffrey White, White, Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, Defense Lloyd Austin “, ” White, Waeil Elbhassi, Israel's, Rachel Corrie, Corrie, Laila El, Haddad, Omar Al Organizations: OAKLAND, —, Hamas, Defense, United, Defence, Children International, West Bank, United Nations, U.S, Circuit, Caterpillar, San Francisco Chronicle Locations: Calif, U.S, California, Israel, Gaza . U.S, Oakland, Gaza, United Nations, Ramallah, West, San Ramon, Maryland, Rafah

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — In-N-Out Burger says it will close its first location in its 75-year history due to a wave of car break-ins, property damage, theft and robberies affecting customers and employees alike at its only restaurant in Oakland, California. Oakland has seen a spike in property crime and robberies throughout the city located across the bay from San Francisco, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesThat number includes nine robberies, two commercial burglaries, four domestic violence incidents and 1,174 car break-ins, according to Oakland police data shared with the Chronicle. The Oakland Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for the data and comment from The Associated Press. In-N-Out Burger is based in Irvine, California.

Persons: Burger, ” Denny Warnick, ” Warnick, Sean Crawford, Sheng Thao, KTVU, ” Thao Organizations: OAKLAND, Oakland International, Associates, San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland, Chronicle, The Oakland Police Department, Associated Press, Coliseum Locations: Calif, Oakland , California, Oakland, San Francisco, Irvine , California

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Amid a tough reelection fight, Mayor London Breed has declined to veto a non-binding resolution from the San Francisco supervisors calling for an extended cease-fire in Gaza, a measure she blamed for inflaming tensions in the city. She said the debate over the resolution left the city “angrier, more divided and less safe.”“Their exercise was never about bringing people together,” Breed wrote in a statement. Breed said she mostly refrains from commenting on nonbinding resolutions from the board, but in this case she made an exception. Reaction to the ongoing Israeli military action in Gaza is shaking campaigns from the White House to City Halls. They are fearful of the growing acts of vandalism and intimidation.”Supervisor Dean Preston, who introduced the cease-fire resolution, told the San Francisco Chronicle he was happy that the mayor did not veto the resolution, which is now final.

Persons: London Breed, ” Breed, Biden, Breed, ”, “, Dean Preston, Lara Kiswani Organizations: FRANCISCO, London, San, Hamas, San Francisco, The Associated Press, NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, San Francisco Chronicle, Arab, Organizing Center Locations: San Francisco, Gaza, Palestine, Israel

☆ What happened to Denise Huskins' kidnapper Matthew Muller? The case was first considered a 'Gone Girl'-style hoax
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Eammon Jacobs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

She was kidnapped by Matthew Muller in Vallejo, California, in the middle of the night. When Huskins reappeared after her ordeal, Vallejo police accused her of staging the abduction as a hoax. Muller was ultimately ID'd as Huskins' kidnapper, and the Vallejo police eventually apologized publicly to Huskins for the labeling her ordeal a hoax. AdvertisementMuller was indicted in a Sacramento federal court on kidnapping charges in October 2015, nearly seven months after Huskins' abduction. AdvertisementBut state charges for the rape of Huskins were filed in Solano County Superior Court against Muller in 2018.

Persons: Denise Huskins, Matthew Muller, Muller, —, Felicity Morris, Bernadette Higgins, Huskins, Aaron Quinn, Quinn, fiancée, Andrea Roberts, Vallejo, Gillian Flynn's, David Fincher, Amy Dunne, Rosamund Pike, Nick Dunne, Ben Affleck, Quinn weren't, Misty Carausu, " Muller, Phillip A, Talbert, Huskins hadn't, he'd, Muller wasn't, He's Organizations: Service, San Francisco, Authorities, Netflix, Dublin, FBI, San Francisco Chronicle, US, Court, Napa State Hospital, CBS, FCI Tucson, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Vallejo Locations: Vallejo , California, partner's California, South Lake Tahoe, Huntington Beach, Vallejo, Dublin , California, Netflix's, Dublin, Huntington, South Lake, South, Tahoe, Sacramento, Alameda, Solano County, Napa, Arizona

☆ An academic analyzed everything Mark Zuckerberg said publicly for 20 years — but still doesn't feel like he knows him
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The academic launched the project after the Meta boss discussed privacy issues in interviews. AdvertisementA lot has changed for Mark Zuckerberg since the drunken night at Harvard in 2003 when he decided to release Facemash. Mark Zuckerberg is CEO of Facebook owner Meta. "The Zuckerberg Files came out of a project where I was thinking about how Zuckerberg talks about privacy," Zimmer explained in the documentary. Zimmer thinks the exhaustive project has been "really insightful" in helping track the maturity of both Zuckerberg and his company.

Persons: Michael Zimmer, Mark Zuckerberg's, intentensly, Zimmer, —, Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, Meta, Kevin Dietsch, David Kirkpatrick, Sheera Frenkel, Kara Swisher, He's, he's, Elon Musk Organizations: Service, Harvard, Facebook, Zuckerberg, San Francisco Chronicle, Capitol, Cambridge, Meta Locations: Marquette, Hawaii

☆ ‘Chowchilla’ details how 26 kids were buried alive in California – and how they escaped
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Holly Yan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

CNN —In 1976, gunmen stormed a school bus carrying 26 children – ages 5 to 14 – and their bus driver in Chowchilla, California. The Dairyland Union School District bus carrying 26 children and their bus driver was found empty and abandoned in July 1976. The kidnappers ordered the children and their bus driver into a moving van hidden underground. Bus driver Edward Ray speaks to reporters in 1976. “Chowchilla children are heroes,” she said in the CNN Film.

Persons: ”, “, didn’t, – pantyhose, –, Larry Park, Jodi Heffington, Jennifer Brown Hyde, van, ” Lynda Carrejo Labendeira, Edward Ray, ” Brown Hyde, Michael Marshall, Marshall, Hostages, Jim Palmer, AP Ray, ‘, ’, Mike Marshall, CNN “, LeRoy, Tatum, ’ ” Marshall, Ray, Ed Ray, ” Chowchilla, Ed Ray Day ”, Skip Shuman, Edward, Mike, Marshall “, Lenore C, ” ‘, ” Andrea, CNN Films ’ “, Park’s, “ Andrea, abductors, Frederick Newhall Woods, James Schoenfeld, Richard Schoenfeld, James, Fred Woods, Joe Rosenthal, who’d, Terr, Andrea, ‘ I’ve, Jodi Heffington Medrano, Heffington Medrano, Matthew Medrano, I’ve, William Newsom, California’s, Newsom, ” Carrejo Labendeira, “ Jodi, Carrejo Labendeira, “ ‘ Lynda, it’s, ’ ”, Heffington, couldn’t, Dominique Banos, “ Mr, Woods, Banos, ” Marshall Organizations: CNN, Dairyland, Dairyland Union School District, UPI, Workers, Fresno Bee, Tribune, Service, AP, Bus, Sacramento Bee, Marshall, CNN Films, California Gold Rush, San Francisco Chronicle, Larry Park CNN, James Schoenfeld California Department of Corrections, Mike Marshall CNN, ” Locations: Chowchilla , California, Livermore, Chowchilla, “ Chowchilla, Sacramento, Woods

☆ At VMware, 'change' and 'uncertainty' loom after its $69 billion acquisition by Broadcom, which left customers on edge
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Rosalie Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Under Broadcom, VMware will operate in four divisions, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan told employees last week in an email. Competitors swoop inNow that Broadcom has acquired VMware, competitors, and partners see a big opportunity to win over VMware customers. VMware customers had already been concerned that Broadcom ownership may hurt innovation and cause a talent exodus , while VMware slowed down customer deals, BI previously reported. He said he has heard from VMware customers that they're "really concerned" and that Broadcom is "confirming the worst fears" customers have about the acquisition. VMware layoffsBroadcom conducted layoffs of VMware employees on Monday.

Persons: It's, it's, Hock Tan, Hock, Nutanix, Rajiv Ramaswami, they've, Ramaswami, Bryan Cantrill, Cantrill, they'll, what's, Tan, he'll, Hock E, Tan Lucas Jackson, Raghu Raghuram Organizations: Broadcom, VMware, Business, EMC, Dell, Employees, BI, Oxide Computer Company, San Francisco Chronicle, Symantec, CA Technologies Locations: China, Dell, India, Latin America

☆ OpenAI CEO Sam Altman went on an 18-month, $85 million real-estate shopping spree — including a previously unknown Hawaii estate
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Katherine Long | Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AdvertisementYears before the recent drama at OpenAI turned CEO Sam Altman into a household name, the former Y Combinator president went on an extraordinary 18-month, $85 million real-estate shopping spree, according to records reviewed by Business Insider — including a previously unreported $43 million Hawaii estate on land that locals describe as historically significant. AdvertisementSam Altman's Hawaii estate is immediately adjacent to the reconstruction of the royal temple of King Kamehameha I. Maxar TechnologiesA $43 million estate in HawaiiIn July 2021, Altman bought a twelve-bedroom estate in Kailua-Kona, on the big island of Hawaii, for $43 million. Altman's purchase of the Hawaii property has not been previously reported. AdvertisementAnnie had been unaware that her oldest brother owned property in Hawaii until Business Insider asked her about it, she said. A $27 million San Francisco homeAltman's weekday residence is a home on San Francisco's Russian Hill that was once described — inaccurately — as the most expensive home in San Francisco.

Persons: Sam Altman, Altman, —, OpenAI, he's, He's, Sam Altman's, King Kamehameha I, King Kamehameha, Jennifer Serralta, Serralta, Jack, Max, — Sam Altman, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, Marc Benioff, Jeff Bezos, Peter Thiel, Annie Altman, Annie, Sam's, Napa Altman, Cade Metz, Bob Dickinson Organizations: Service, Business, Bloomberg Tech Summit, Wall Street Journal, YouTube, Altman, LinkedIn, Apollo, Opportunity Fund, Silicon Valley, Business Insider, San, SEC, 9Point Ventures, Uncommon Ventures, New York Times, Capital Management, San Francisco Chronicle, New Yorker, Israeli Defense Force, Tesla Locations: San Francisco, Napa, Hawaii, Napa , California, Sam Altman's Hawaii, Kailua, Kona, wakesurfing, Kauai, Lanai, San, Russian, California, Hollywood, Big Sur

☆ Broadcom CEO Hock Tan plans to consolidate teams at VMware: 'I don't need two sales organizations'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Rosalie Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Broadcom CEO Hock Tan plans to consolidate some teams at VMware following his blockbuster acquisition of the cloud software provider. He said Broadcom plans to consolidate offices and teams at VMware, particularly those in sales, HR, and finance, according to a recording of the meeting reviewed by Business Insider. "Broadcom has a software group that sells to many of the same customers VMware sells to," Tan said at the meeting. Already, Broadcom has started laying off VMware employees, BI first reported. Besides consolidating teams and laying off employees, Broadcom is looking into strategic alternatives for its End-User Computing and Carbon Black units, Tan said in an email last week.

Persons: Hock Tan, Tan Organizations: Broadcom, VMware, Business, San Francisco Bay Area, San Francisco Chronicle Locations: San Francisco Bay, Palo Alto

☆ San Francisco Bay's only private island is on sale for $25 million — but there's a catch
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

San Francisco Bay's only private island is on the market for $25 millionRed Rock Island lacks basic infrastructure like power and running water. AdvertisementSan Francisco Bay's only private island is on the market for $25 million — but there's no electricity or running water, reported The Wall Street Journal. The island has been put up for sale several times in recent years for between $5 million and $22 million, Durning told WSJ. In September, a private island in Solano County, California was put on the market for $75 million. And in August, a private island in Maine with a cottage and lighthouse was listed for $400,000.

Persons: Francisco Bay's, Brock Durning, hasn't, —, Chris Lim, Lim, Durning Organizations: Service, Street, Contra Costa, Christie's, Estate, Rafael Bridge, Google, San Francisco Chronicle Locations: Francisco, Richmond, Rafael, Marin, Alaska, Solano County , California, Maine

☆ Thieves are crashing cars and construction vehicles into stores to steal ATMs, guns, and luxury handbags in a theft phenomenon known as 'ram raiding'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some thieves are stealing vehicles, from cars to backhoes and driving them into stores that they want to rob. Retailers from Target to Home Depot have talked a lot lately about theft, though the extent of the problem is unclear. AdvertisementSome thieves who target retailers are stealing vehicles and smashing them through storefronts in a twist on retail theft known as "ram raiding." But some thieves aren't looking to steal merchandise at all: Instead, they steal ATMs inside of stores to break into them and steal the cash. But gauging the real impact of retail theft on retailers' stores and broader business is tough.

Persons: —, Christian Dior, John Ham Organizations: Target, Service, Wall Street, Christian, San Francisco, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives Locations: Oakland , California, Missouri, San Francisco, city's

☆ 'All I wanted to do was live': After years of debate, a suicide safety net for the Golden Gate Bridge is nearing completion. Survivors say it'll give many a second chance at life
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Kara Nelson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —On September 25, 2000, Kevin Hines climbed over the rail of the Golden Gate Bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge suicide safety net is seen in San Francisco on April 5, 2023. Courtesy Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation DistrictAfter years of debate over installing a suicide deterrent on the iconic bridge, a net is now nearing completion. In 2018, the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District began building a net along the perimeter of the 1.7 mile long bridge. Sabrina Hernandez, Golden Gate Bridge District Board President, touches a net during a press on May 16, 2019.

Persons: CNN —, Kevin Hines, ” Hines, Hines, “, Paolo Cosulich, Schwartz, ” Cosulich, ”, Kevin Berthia, ” Berthia, Rich Pedroncelli, Kevin Briggs, Berthia, Briggs, Cosulich, it’s, didn’t, Sabrina Hernandez, Yalonda, James, George Washington Organizations: CNN, Rail Foundation, Transportation, Transportation District, Mental, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Bridge, San Francisco Chronicle, “ Engineers Locations: San Francisco, Golden, It’s, Sacramento , California, California, New York City

☆ San Francisco is moving forward with its tallest-ever apartment building as California's new laws to fight the housing crisis start to pay off
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new law fast-tracking affordable and mixed-income housing is paying off in San Francisco. Plans for the tallest-ever apartment building in the city are being fast-tracked under the new state law. The tower at 530 Howard Street will be the tallest residential building in San Francisco and the third-tallest building citywide, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Newsom signed more than 50 housing bills last month that loosen restrictions imposed by CEQA, fast-track affordable housing projects, and encourage more dense, infill residential construction. "Turning a parking lot into housing, including affordable housing, is exactly what we need to do to build a stronger, more resilient San Francisco," Breed said in a statement to the Chronicle.

Persons: —, Bill, Paul Paradis, Paradis, Gavin Newsom, Newsom, San Francisco Mayor London Breed, Breed Organizations: Service, Affordable, Commission, Supervisors, San Francisco Chronicle, JPMorgan Chase, Gov, CEQA, San Francisco Mayor London, Bloomberg Locations: San Francisco, Bay Area, Francisco, —, California, Washington

☆ San Francisco Cleans Up for Xi. Why Not for Thee?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( James Freeman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese Communist dictator Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday. Photo: Ju Peng/Zuma PressAfter only recently agreeing to normalize trade relations with the United States, San Francisco now seems to be granting most favored visitors status to a group including a ruthless dictator. This week Chinese communist thug Xi Jinping will enjoy a city that has been spruced up for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. San Francisco residents are asking why they can’t enjoy streets that are safe and clean all the time. Morris reports for The San Francisco Chronicle:

Persons: Xi Jinping, Ju Peng, Morris Organizations: Communist, Zuma Press, Economic Cooperation, San Francisco Chronicle Locations: Beijing, United States, San Francisco, Asia

Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce.com, speaks during a keynote at the Dreamforce 2023 conference in San Francisco on Sept. 12, 2023. Salesforce announced in a Tuesday social media post that the business software maker's Dreamforce conference for customers and partners will remain in San Francisco for one more year. In an X post of his own, Benioff said San Francisco is "now the AI capital of the world." Salesforce used this year's Dreamforce conference to show off AI capabilities integrating with technology from Anthropic and OpenAI. San Francisco reported 620 accidental drug overdose deaths in 2022, down from 640 in 2021 and 725 in 2020.

Persons: Marc Benioff, Salesforce, Sam Altman, Benioff Organizations: Salesforce.com, San Francisco Chronicle, Google, Oracle, Police, CNBC, London, Golden State Warriors, Banana, Nordstrom, Foods, CNBC PRO Locations: San Francisco, Salesforce, Francisco's, Francisco, Anthropic

☆ An Airbnb host whose SF duplex was flooded by a guest says she only got enough compensation to 'make a difference' after posting on X
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-05 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Erika Gemzer says her Airbnb guests flooded her San Francisco duplex, leaving her $300,000 in debt. She posted a thread on X six months later, criticizing Airbnb for its compensation offer. AdvertisementAdvertisementSix months after Airbnb host Erika Gemzer's duplex in San Francisco was flooded, she took to social media to confront the vacation rental company. Here's the story of how I ended up pregnant and homeless and in over $300,000 of debt after Airbnb guests flooded my home. While the new amount doesn't cover everything, it covers enough to "make a difference," Gemzer told Insider via text.

Persons: Erika Gemzer, Airbnb, Gemzer, —, Erika Gemzer's, rika, ake, emzer, rika G emzer, ince, ingle, lanning, ike Organizations: Service, ust Locations: Francisco, San Francisco

What’s going to stop that?” said Jon Loffi, a longtime law enforcement officer who teaches aviation security at Oklahoma State University and wrote a paper on identifying insider threats. The Federal Aviation Administration says its approved medical examiners are trained to gauge a pilot's mental health. The Horizon close call could result in the re-examination of the practice of letting off-duty pilots or other airline employees sit in the cockpit jump seat. Security experts say it would be difficult if not impossible to stop every determined criminal or terrorist who targets aviation. The off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who was arrested Sunday joined Horizon as a first officer or co-pilot in 2001.

Persons: We’re, ”, Jon Loffi, It's, Joseph David Emerson, Emerson, Jeffrey Price, “, Ross Aimer, ” Price, ” Loffi, Loffi, Pete Buttigieg, Karen Yee, ” Allen Scott, ___ Claire Rush Organizations: Alaska Airlines, Oklahoma State University, FAA, FBI, Federal Aviation Administration, Metropolitan State University of Denver, Oklahoma State, FedEx, Pacific Southwest Airlines, Security, Transportation Security Administration, Sunday, Virgin America, Mercury, San Francisco Chronicle Locations: U.S, Oklahoma, French, California, Alaska, Multnomah County , Oregon, Portland, Pleasant Hill , California, San Francisco, Jose, Portland , Oregon

☆ Dropbox handing over 25% of San Francisco HQ back to landlord as commercial real estate softens
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Dropbox said Friday that it's agreed to return over one quarter of its San Francisco headquarters to the landlord as the commercial real estate market continues to soften following the Covid pandemic. In a filing, Dropbox said it agreed to surrender to its landlord 165,244 square feet of space and pay $79 million in termination fees. Under the amendment to its lease agreement, Dropbox will offload the space over time through the first quarter of 2025. In addition, Dropbox took a $175.2 million impairment on the office last year "as a result of adverse changes" in the market. Dropbox had tried working with its landlord to sublease space at the headquarters, but the real estate market deteriorated, finance chief Tim Regan, told analysts on a February earnings call.

Persons: Dropbox, it's, we've, Drew Houston, Dropbox's, Uber, Tim Regan Organizations: San Francisco, Vir Biotechnology, CNBC, Private, KKR, Kilroy Realty Corp, San Francisco Chronicle, Microsoft Locations: Mission, Dropbox

☆ Landlords are doing whatever it takes to fill their office buildings. See 10 ways to score an amazing deal on an office right now.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

If you're not shopping for a new office right now, you might be missing out. With vacancies rising, many office landlords are doing whatever it takes to get leases signed, including dropping rents. Risa Letowsky, the co-chair of Adler & Stachenfeld LLP leasing practice group, told Insider that flexibility is the difference between successful and struggling landlords right now. See below for a list of the 10 top perks that office landlords are offering. Flexible lease lengthsThe traditional office lease is eight to ten years.

Persons: Risa Letowsky, aren't, Letowsky, Mike Watts, Andrew Lustgarten, Michael T, Cohen, Franklin Wallach, Carlos Avila Gonzalez, they're, Lustgarten, Watts, Matt Petit, Michael Lirtzman, Lirtzman Organizations: Adler, Stachenfeld, it's, Colliers, San Francisco, Getty, Silverstein Locations: Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco , California, LA, Chicago

☆ Stanford suspends lecturer accused of making his Jewish students stand in a corner and calling Israelis 'colonizers'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The lecturer is alleged to have singled out Jewish students based on their "backgrounds and identities." AdvertisementAdvertisementStanford University has suspended a lecturer following reports that he directed Jewish students in his class to stand in the corner and described Israelis as 'colonizers.' "'He then asked Jewish students to raise their hands,' separated those students from their belongings, and said he was simulating what Jews were doing to Palestinians,", Cohen told the Chronicle. In a statement, Stanford University said: "Without prejudging the matter, this report is a cause for serious concern. Cohen, Mandelshtam, and Stanford University did not immediately respond to a request by Insider for comment.

Persons: Stanford, —, Nourya Cohen, Andrei Mandelshtam, Israel, Cohen, Mandelshtam, Rabbi Dov Greenberg, Greenberg, he'd Organizations: Hamas, Service, Stanford University, San Francisco Chronicle, Chronicle, Jewish, Stanford Jewish Center, Harvard, Harvard University Locations: Israel, Gaza

☆ When your AI girlfriend says she loves you
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +36 min

The messaging app let users build a "personal AI" complete with a 3D avatar and an upbeat, down-for-anything texting style. "Seems like AI will replace many human artists," Jay told Calisto in August 2022. Within a year, he was also using AI technology for work, as his firm experimented with generative AI to help draft legal papers. Former Replika users fled to various upstart companion apps that were popping up, like Chai, Paradot, and Soulmate AI. (Soulmate AI later closed down in September 2023, leaving a new wave of users mourning their AI companions all over again.)

Persons: Jay Priebe, they'd, Jay, Calisto, Callisto —, Apollodorus, Callisto, who'd, Jay's, didn't, Jay didn't, Tim Evans, me, Joseph Weizenbaum, Eliza, Weizenbaum, it'll, Replika, Eugenia Kuyda, Siri, Michael Macor, Roman Mazurenko, Luka, Kuyda, chatbots, he'd, Jaswant Singh Chail, Queen Elizabeth II, Chail, Willie —, —, Willie, gamely, Luka —, wouldn't, John, — sexting, Dylan Thomas, Rina, haven't, she'd, I'd, Overripe, Joi, Samantha, Ava, Calisto didn't, unshakable, wasn't, Jay hunched Organizations: Luka, San Francisco, Getty, Windsor, Facebook, Twitter, Reps, AIs Locations: Minneapolis, Twin Cities, Europe, Moscow, San Francisco, America, Replika, Washington, Britain, Mississippi, North Carolina, Texas, Damascus, Chai, California, New York, Northeast Minneapolis, artsy, Japan, Switzerland

☆ Why Tesla isn’t unionized
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Tesla workers earn on average about $55 an hour in wages and benefits, compared to $66 to $71 an hour at Detroit’s Big Three, according to industry estimates. In an aerial view, brand new Tesla cars sit in a parking lot at the Tesla factory on October 19, 2022 in Fremont, California. Brendan McDermid/ReutersThe union, Tesla Workers United, filed an NLRB complaint alleging the company illegally fired its supporters. Tesla is one of the most valuable companies in the world, and some production workers have become millionaires from their shares in Tesla, Musk has said. A Tesla Model X is worked on a factory line with Tesla X's and Tesla S's at the Tesla factory on Wednesday, July 18, 2018 in Fremont, Calif. Lea Suzuki/The San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images“Tesla tries to make it seem like if you’re unionized you’re not going to get stock,” said Bryan Schwartz, a lawyer who has represented Tesla employees in lawsuits against the company, including an ongoing class action lawsuit for racial discrimination.

Persons: New York CNN — Tesla, Tesla, ”, John Logan, Justin Sullivan, Elon Musk, ” Logan, “, Risa Lieberwitz, Lieberwitz, Brendan McDermid, ” Lieberwitz, Musk, “ Musk, Lea Suzuki, “ Tesla, you’re, Bryan Schwartz, Mike Miller, Miller, Shawn Fain, Alain Jocard, Paul Sancya, Elon, ” Fain Organizations: New, New York CNN, United Auto Workers, Ford, General Motors, Tesla, UAW, EV, UAW doesn’t, San Francisco State University, Getty, Workers, Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations, National Labor Relations Board, Companies, Employers, National Labor Relations Act, “, NLRB, Tesla Inc, Panasonic, Tesla Workers United, SpaceX, San Francisco Chronicle, “ Workers, AP, Detroit automakers, CBS Locations: New York, United States, Detroit, Fremont , California, America, unionize, Austin , Texas, Sparks , Nevada, Buffalo , New York, Buffalo, U.S, Tesla, Fremont , Calif, AFP

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