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☆ Elon Musk has been chit-chatting with a QAnon-linked influencer on Twitter: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk has been chit-chatting with a QAnon-linked influencer on Twitter, a Media Matters report says. According to a record of Musk's tweets compiled by Media Matters, Musk interacted with a Twitter user named KanekoaTheGreat at least 18 times since February 20. Media Matters said it tracked KanekoaTheGreat's online presence and found that they were part of a QAnon influencer group known as We The Media. Musk's question echoed a right-wing conspiracy theory about depleting testosterone levels pushed by shock jock Alex Jones and Fox News host Tucker Carlson. KanekoaTheGreat posted on their Telegram channel in December that they had obtained "the Elon Musk stamp of approval," and highlighted other occasions where Musk has responded to them.

[1/2] An undated handout photo from Eat Just, Inc shows a GOOD Meat takeout meal product in Singapore. Eat Just, Inc/Handout via REUTERSWASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) - California-based cultivated meat company GOOD Meat has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to bring its lab-grown chicken to market, according to agency documents released on Tuesday. GOOD Meat's chicken is the second cultivated meat product to receive a "no-questions" letter from the FDA after California-based UPSIDE Foods got the regulator's green light for its cultivated chicken breast last November. GOOD Meat plans to initially sell its product at restaurants owned by chef José Andrés, known for his work on global food security. Cultivated meat companies say the product provides environmental benefits because it could cut down on the 14.5% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions derived from livestock.

☆ Archaeologists in Israel left red-faced after it transpired that a unique 'ancient' inscription was carved last summer
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An inscription bearing the name of a Persian king is "not authentic," the Israel Antiquities Authority said. In a demonstration, an expert in ancient inscriptions had etched the words into the shard last summer. The Antiquities Authority said they take "full responsibility for the unfortunate event." "The Israel Antiquities Authority takes full responsibility for the unfortunate event," said Professor Gideon Avni, the authority's chief scientist, according to Israeli news outlet i24. Darius I ruled the ancient Persian Achaemenid Empire from 522 BC until his death in 486 BC.

☆ Beyond Meat shares surge as cost controls bear fruit
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 24 (Reuters) - Shares of Beyond Meat Inc (BYND.O) surged 13% in premarket trading on Friday as the plant-based meat maker's results indicated that its cost control measures were finally bearing fruit. At least three brokerages lifted their price targets on Beyond Meat's shares, after the company on Thursday topped expectations for quarterly sales for the first time since June 2021 and forecast annual revenue slightly above estimates. Beyond Meat's shares have slumped about 65% in the past twelve months, hammered by a string of downbeat results and forecast cuts stemming from collapsing demand for faux meat and elevated levels of freight and raw material costs. "Beyond Meat deserves credit for becoming more disciplined regarding profits and cash," J.P. Morgan analyst Ken Goldman said. Still, analysts cautioned that demand for plant-based meat remained weak, and that Beyond Meat faced a long road to profitability.

☆ Beyond Meat sales slumped because people are eating less fake meat, and the company says it gets why
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The company said it sold around 3,300 fewer pounds of its fake meat products over the time period, a drop of about 17%. Despite the huge slump in sales, Beyond – which sells products including fake jerky, chicken, and sausage – still beat Wall Street sales estimates. According to Brown, the three major obstacles faced by the plant-based meat industry are taste, understanding of health benefits, and price. Consultancy giant Deloitte noted in a September report that plant-based meat sales were dipping. Beyond also offers some plant-based chicken products, including tenders and popcorn chicken.

☆ Beyond Meat's upbeat 2023 revenue forecast, cost controls lift shares
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Granth Vanaik | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 23 (Reuters) - Beyond Meat Inc (BYND.O) on Thursday forecast annual revenue slightly above estimates and doubled down on cost controls at a time when persistently high inflation was slowing demand for its faux meat products, sending its shares up over 13% after the bell. The company's net revenue fell 21% to $79.9 million in the quarter ended Dec. 31 from a year earlier, but still beat analysts expectations of $75.7 million. Net loss for Beyond Meat narrowed to $66.9 million, or $1.05 per share, in the fourth quarter. In October, Beyond Meat had said it was targeting cash flow positive operations within the second half of 2023. Reporting by Granth Vanaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ NBA roundup: Jayson Tatum (51) guides Celtics past Hornets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Randle had 21 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Knicks, who had their three-game winning streak end. Mikal Bridges tallied 21 points and seven assists to lead Phoenix, while Deandre Ayton added 18 points. Jazz 126, Timberwolves 125Jordan Clarkson hit a game-winning free throw with four seconds remaining and scored 21 points to lead Utah to a victory over Minnesota in Minneapolis. Kessler finished with 20 points and a career-high 21 rebounds, while Agbaji added 17 points off the bench, including nine in the fourth quarter. CJ McCollum scored 25 points and Jonas Valanciunas added 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Pelicans.

☆ Founders growing meat in labs raised a huge $600 million in 2022. Check out the pitch deck used by Multus to raise $9.5 million to make slaughter-free growth serum.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Lab-grown or cultivated meat is real meat grown from the cells of an animal in a controlled environment, as opposed to rearing and slaughtering said animals. It is now honing in on specific use cases to help cultivated meat manufacturers nail the taste and texture of their products. It expects to bring a range of products to market in 2023, including a growth media specifically for beef. The end goal is to also provide growth media for lab-grown dairy and leather. As well as off-the-shelf products, Multus takes advantage of data and automation to discover new growth media ingredients and formulations.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried is now writing his own newsletter while under house arrest at his parents' $4 million property: 'I didn't steal funds'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Presumably writing from his parents' $4 million property in Palo Alto, California near Stanford, Sam Bankman-Fried published a lengthy newsletter yesterday, titled "FTX Pre-Mortem Overview." One statement stood out to me: "I didn't steal funds, and I certainly didn't stash billions away." In the note, Bankman-Fried highlighted that both FTX and Alameda Research were raking in billions in profits in 2021. A key to the collapse, he explained, was 2022's crypto bear market that left just about every token worth dramatically less than the year prior. Well, Bankman-Fried yesterday outlined two versions of the hedge fund's balance sheet, one from each of the past two years.

☆ Take FTX's name off the Miami Heat's arena, the crypto exchange's bankruptcy judge orders in ending a $135 million sponsorship deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

FTX's bankruptcy judge has terminated its $135 million deal to sponsor the Miami Heat's home arena. Miami-Dade County has been trying to get out of the deal since the crypto exchange failed in November. In March 2021, FTX and Miami-Dade agreed a deal to award the crypto exchange the naming rights to the Heat's home arena for the next two years. But the crypto exchange filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November after suffering a major liquidity crisis that wiped out around $8 billion in customer funds. Read more: FTX bankruptcy documents show list of investors set to be completely wiped out, including Tom Brady and Robert Kraft

☆ Croatia beats Morocco 2-1 to take 3rd place at the World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Croatia's Luka Modric, front, kicks the ball during the World Cup third-place playoff soccer match between Croatia and Morocco at Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022. Luka Modric led Croatia to third place in what was likely the midfield great's last appearance at the World Cup. The runners-up from four years ago secured another medal by beating Morocco 2-1 in the third-place match on Saturday. After becoming the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinals, Morocco's tournament ended in two losses. The World Cup final between defending champion France and Argentina is scheduled for Sunday at Lusail Stadium.

☆ A second chance: How Messi's Argentina reached the World Cup final again
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Messi scored a 10th minute penalty in the first half where Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside before the Saudis struck twice in the second half to stun the South American champions. If Argentina could take any solace from the result, it was that when they lost their group opener to Cameroon in 1990 they still reached the final. Substitute Enzo Fernandez scored with another sublime strike to seal the points and set Argentina on their way amid an electric atmosphere at Lusail Stadium, the biggest arena in Qatar. "Today starts another World Cup for Argentina," Messi had said after admitting they were poor in the first half. LAST 16: ARGENTINA 2-1 AUSTRALIAThe stars seemed to align for Messi in a physical last-16 clash with Australia as he scored in his 1,000th match to move past Maradona's World Cup tally.

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Tesla, McDonald's, Netflix, Carvana, Microsoft & more
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Cowen names Costco a top 2023 pick Cowen said Costco is well positioned in a deteriorating macro environment. " Cowen names Caterpillar a top 2023 pick Cowen said the company is well positioned heading into 2023. Cowen names Netflix a top 2023 pick Cowen said it sees free-cash flow ramping up for Netflix in 2023. Morgan Stanley reiterates Apple as overweight Morgan Stanley said investors should take advantage of any weakness and buy the dip in shares of Apple . Morgan Stanley reiterates Lululemon as overweight Morgan Stanley said the company's fundamentals remain strong after its earnings report on Thursday. "

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Netflix, Lululemon, DocuSign and more
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Check out the companies making the biggest moves midday:Lululemon — Shares of Lululemon fell 12% after the athletic apparel company gave a weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter outlook. Broadcom — Broadcom gained 3.1% after giving an upbeat revenue forecast and reporting better-than-expected quarterly results after the bell Thursday. Netflix — Netflix gained 5% after being named a "best idea" for 2023 by Cowen and being upgraded by Wells Fargo to overweight from equal weight. DocuSign — Shares of DocuSign jumped 16% after the electronic signature company posted upbeat quarterly results. Bath & Body Works — Shares of Bath & Body Works gained rose 2.1% after activist investor Dan Loeb boosted his stake in the retailer.

Chicago wheat futures are still elevated versus most years, though they are slipping significantly versus prices elsewhere and against competing grains, even as supplies remain tight. Most-active CBOT wheat settled at $7.29 per bushel Tuesday after hitting a 14-month low. By the first week in March, most-active CBOT wheat had surged more than 50% within 10 sessions. Through Tuesday, CBOT wheat's 10-session decline totaled 11%, almost a record for the time of year. CBOT wheat usually sits at a premium to CBOT corn, but it has lost significant ground to its yellow grain competitor.

☆ What’s gone wrong at Beyond Meat
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

And fierce competition is squeezing sales, including in frozen, plant-based chicken, a category that is growing while refrigerated plant-based meat sales falter. “We believe that healthy competition within plant-based meat is a good thing as it brings investment in marketing to the category,” said Brown during the November analyst call. It’s true that the plant-based meat pie is smaller these days. Ground plant-based meat fell about 19%, and patties were down 30% in that period. It launched a retooled version, Beyond Chicken Tenders, in stores in 2021, and has built its plant-based chicken portfolio since then.

☆ FTX pledged $600,000 to an anti-racist non-profit, but the money never arrived and Sam Bankman-Fried's father wrote to apologize
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's father offered anti-racist program EAT $600,000 on behalf of FTX. SBF's father told the charity he was "heartbroken," but was spending his money on his son's defense. Sam Bankman-Fried's father, Joseph Bankman, recommended programs that help close the racial wealth gap that he thought FTX should donate to. But when FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11, Bankman wrote to Wallace to express his sadness that the money wouldn't come through. Bankman, Wallace, and FTX did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

☆ Investors have filed a lawsuit against FTX celeb endorsers like Tom Brady, Steph Curry, and Larry David
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Nathan Mcalone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Investors have filed a lawsuit against celebs who promoted the defunct crypto exchange FTX. The suit names celebs who range from sports stars like Tom Brady and Steph Curry to Larry David. FTX, which filed for bankruptcy on Friday, had invested millions in promotions like high-profile partnerships with celebs, sponsorships including the Miami Heat's FTX Arena, and deals with finance influencers. Several finance influencers who promoted FTX have apologized to their fans in recent days, including YouTuber Graham Stephan, Insider previously reported. FTX and representatives for Brady, Curry, Ortiz, David, and O'Leary did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

☆ I ate lab-grown meat. Here's what 'cultivated' chicken made in a bioreactor looks and tastes like.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Good Meat served its "cultivated" chicken at the UN climate summit in Egypt. Cultivated meat is getting attention at the UN's COP27 meeting because at least 14% of global greenhouse-gas emissions come from animal agriculture, largely driven by beef and dairy cattle. Good Meat went to great lengths to get its "cultivated" chicken served in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where the COP27 meeting is taking place. The restaurant 1880 in Singapore sold two dishes with Good Meat's chicken for $23, but the revenue from that still isn't enough to make Good Meat profitable. But it will take a whole lot of "cultivated" chicken to offset the world's poultry obsession.

Representatives for Impossible Foods did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the decision. Redwood City, California-based Impossible Foods sued Motif, a Boston-based spinoff of biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks, in March. The court agreed with Impossible Foods that Hemami could still infringe the patents and allowed the claims to continue. Impossible Foods' patents may cover Hemami because it is produced using yeast and does not have any "direct animal provenance," Bryson said. The case is Impossible Foods Inc v. Motif Foodworks Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No.

FTX and about 130 of its companies entered voluntary bankruptcy proceedings in an abrupt fall from grace for a company that was once a darling of the crypto industry. In March 2021, FTX acquired the naming rights to the bayside arena for $135 million over 19 years. "The reports about FTX and its affiliates are extremely disappointing," the Heat said in a statement. "Miami-Dade County and the Miami Heat are immediately taking action to terminate our business relationships with FTX, and we will be working together to find a new naming rights partner for the area." "We are proud of the impact our Peace and Prosperity Plan... is already having in preventing violence and creating opportunity for young people across Miami-Dade," the Heat said.

☆ Rise and fall of crypto exchange FTX
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Cryptocurrency exchange FTX stood on the brink of failure on Thursday after a bailout from larger rival Binance collapsed. September - FTX signed a sponsorship deal with Mercedes' Formula 1 team. June 4 - FTX signed a reportedly $135 million sponsorship deal for naming rights of the Miami Heat's home court. July 1 - FTX signed a deal with an option to buy embattled crypto lender BlockFi for up to $240 million. Aug. 19 - A U.S. bank regulator ordered crypto exchange FTX to halt "false and misleading" claims it had made about whether funds at the company are insured by the government.

☆ Tyson Foods CFO John Tyson was arrested in Arkansas after allegedly becoming intoxicated and falling asleep in the bed of a woman who didn't know him
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tyson Foods CFO John Tyson was arrested Sunday in Arkansas after allegedly becoming intoxicated. Tyson is a fourth-generation member of the Tyson family, and was made CFO of the company last month. Tyson was named CFO of Tyson Foods on October 2, after serving as executive vice president of strategy and chief sustainability officer. He is also the great-grandson of Tyson Foods founder John W. Tyson. Ramsey, who formerly worked at Tyson Foods, was fired along with 19% of Beyond Meat's workforce in October.

☆ Russia stole from a Ukrainian crypt the bones of Catherine the Great's lover, the conqueror who annexed Crimea and inspired Putin
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The bones of Potemkin were removed from Kherson and taken deeper into Russian-occupied territory. Potemkin was Catherine the Great's lover and played a key role in the annexation of Crimea in 1783. Potemkin's remains were removed from St. Catherine's Cathedral and taken deeper into Russian-occupied territory as Ukrainian forces move to retake Kherson. Sebag Montefiore, a historian and author of "Catherine the Great and Potemkin," said in tweets that Potemkin would've "loathed" Putin's "primitive" and "cruel nationalism." An attempt to quickly seize the Ukrainian capital fell apart, forcing Russia to concentrate its efforts on the east, where grinding artillery battles took their toll on both sides.

☆ Walmart and Kroger customers can now buy plant-based Beyond Steak, which company describes as 'seared to perfection' and 'chopped into bite-sized pieces'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Sarah Belle Lin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Beyond Steak is plant-based food company Beyond Meat's newest product. The product arrives in more than 5,000 Kroger and Walmart stores amid a decline in sales of plant-based meat. The company says the $7.99 product is "designed to deliver the juicy, tender and delicious bite of seared steak tips with the added nutritional and environmental benefits of plant-based meat." It says the product is "seared to perfection and chopped into bite-sized pieces," has 21 grams of protein per serving, is low in saturated fat, has 0 milligrams of cholesterol. The product rollout comes amid declining sales of plant-based meats.

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