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Brokerage TD Cowen lowered its U.S. holiday spending estimate to 2% to 3% growth, from 4% to 5%, as it forecast flat Black Friday traffic. With many consumers squeezed by persistent inflation and high interest rates, U.S. holiday spending is expected to rise at the slowest pace in five years. A record 130.7 million people are expected to shop in stores and online in the U.S. on Black Friday this year, the National Retail Federation (NRF) estimates. In France, Italy, and Spain, most shoppers planned to buy clothing on Black Friday, with electronic goods coming second, according to a PwC survey. Thanksgiving Day discounts online peaked at about 28% for toys, while electronics had discounts as steep as 27%, Adobe said.

Persons: Shannon Stapleton, Cowen, Theresa Forsberg, “ It’s, ”, Jill Lizzo, she’s, “, I’m, Lizzo, PwC, hasn’t, Naomi Ojomo, Jeff Gennette, Barbie, John Roberts, Apple AirPods, Bergdorf Goodman, Nordstrom, Oscar de, Katherine Masters, Arriana McLymore, Helen Reid, Mimosa Spencer, Corina Pons, James Davey, Siddharth Cavale, Arriana, Deboarh Sophia, David Gaffen, Miral Fahmy, Nick Zieminski, Frances Kerry Organizations: Black, REUTERS, Shoppers, National Retail Federation, Insider Intelligence, Barclays, Macy's, Adobe Analytics, Adobe, Walmart, Argos, PlayStation, Apple, Thomson Locations: Westbury , New York, U.S, RALEIGH, N.C, New Milford , Connecticut, . U.S, Harlem, Manhattan, France, Italy, Spain, Zara, Canary Wharf, London, British, Paris, Madrid, New York, Raleigh , North Carolina, Bengaluru

☆ VCs didn't care about OpenAI's weird board structure. It was all about investing in Sam Altman and its 'transformative' tech.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

OpenAI's venture capital investors weren't thinking about its mission to serve "humanity" by developing artificial intelligence. After Altman's ouster, Vinod Khosla, an early investor in OpenAI, came to his defense despite the criticism. OpenAI's complex and unique corporate governance structure meant that VCs could invest in the capped profit entity, but never earn any influence over the nonprofit board of directors, all of whom were either cofounders or appointed outside AI experts. The board structure and its governance are all likely to change as part of the deal to bring Sam Altman back as CEO of OpenAI. The purpose of the newly formed OpenAI board – consisting of current board member D'Angelo, former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and former Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor – is to vet and potentially appoint an expanded board of up to nine people, and that Microsoft and Altman want board seats, The Verge reported.

Persons: Sam Altman, OpenAI, Altman, VCs, Sam, Altman's, Vinod Khosla, Yunus, Khosla, Wesley Chan, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, Tasha McCauley, who's, Joseph Gordon, Levitt, Helen Toner, Adam D'Angelo, Karthee Madasamy, it's, David Sacks, D'Angelo, Larry Summers, Bret Taylor – Organizations: Business, Tiger Global Management, Khosla Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Microsoft, FPV Ventures, Rand Corporation, Georgetown's Center for Security, Emerging Technology, MFV Partners, Qualcomm Ventures, Ikea, Bosch, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Bertelsmann Foundation, Carlsberg Foundation, Craft Ventures Locations: OpenAI, Silicon Valley, Hollywood

☆ Singapore's Temasek warns that fake agents in China are trying to sell scam investments
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Clement Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

An undated photo of a signage at Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings' headquarters in the Southeast Asian city-state. Singapore's Temasek Holdings warned that scammers are allegedly trying to sell financial investment products or instruments to unsuspecting individuals while posing as agents of the firm's office in Shenzhen, China. "We have been alerted to a scam in China that involves the impersonation of Temasek in Shenzhen, using our registered office name 'Temasek Holdings Advisors (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.' / '淡马锡投资咨询 (深圳) 有限公司'," Temasek said in a statement Wednesday. Temasek does not directly sell any investment products or financial instruments in China. We have not authorized any third party to do so on our behalf," the Singapore investment company added.

Persons: scammers, Temasek Organizations: Temasek Holdings, Singapore's Temasek Holdings, Temasek, Temasek Holdings Advisors, Co, Singapore, Apple, Ikea, Xinhua Locations: Singapore, Shenzhen, China, Beijing, Shanghai, Myanmar

[1/8] Waste from international clothing brands is stored before being used to fuel kilns at a brick factory on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia November 17, 2023. It found pre-consumer garment waste including fabric, plastic, rubber, and other materials from the brands was being burned at seven factories. The factories were burning garment waste to save on fuel costs, it said. Brick factory workers reported regular migraines, nosebleeds, and other illnesses, the UK report said. LPP said it was unaware its textile waste was being burned in brick kilns, and has contacted its agents responsible for placing orders in Cambodia.

Persons: Lululemon, Co's, Betty, Tilley Endurables, Armour, Lidl, LICADHO, LPP, Tilley, Clare Baldwin, Helen Reid, Katherine Masters Organizations: Cambodian League, Promotion, of Human, REUTERS Acquire, Adidas, Walmart, The Cambodian League, of Human Rights, Reuters, UNDP, Royal Holloway, University of London, Navy, Lidl Stiftung, Reebok, Venus, World, Cambodian Ministry of Environment, Sarom Trading, Thomson Locations: Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Cambodian, Kandal

☆ Honda’s new scooter is also the box it comes in
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Peter Valdes-Dapena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —There are lots of electric scooters available today in a huge range of styles and prices. Honda’s original micro-bikeThe real inspiration was the Honda Motocompo, a tiny motorcycle Honda offered for a few years in the early 1980s. Peter Valdes-Dapena trying Honda's new electric scooter, the Honda Motocompacto. Its memory inspired someone in Honda’s California design studio –- someone Honda won’t name because he’s left the company –- to sketch out a modern version. Also giving you confidence will be the seriously sturdy latches locking the seat, handle bars and wheels in place before you start riding.

Persons: Honda, Peter Valdes, he’s Organizations: CNN, Honda Locations: United States, Honda’s California, footpegs

☆ The creepy AI-driven surveillance that may be infiltrating your workplace
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Clem De Pressigny | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

For companies, EAI may be a gold mine. But that isn't stopping companies from using EAI to spy on their employees, determine how they feel, and identify who should be hired and who should be fired. HireVue, a Utah recruitment platform, began using EAI facial analysis in 2014 as part of its candidate interview process. EAI companies disagree. And if it can't, then companies using EAI to make decisions about hiring or firing someone could be entirely misguided.

Persons: EAI, Gabi Zijderveld, Smith, Zijderveld, Dow Jones, Sarah Myers West, Samu Hällfors, Framery, Hällfors, West, it's, Kat Roemmich, Roemmich, Paul Ekman's, Clem De Pressigny Organizations: Companies, Smart, CBS, Disney, Ikea, Dow, Oracle, Washington Post, Electronic Privacy, Center, LinkedIn, Nvidia, Looksery, Snap Inc, University of Michigan School of Information, Smart Eye Locations: Utah, Munich, Helsinki, Europe, American

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — World leaders, CEOs, protesters and thousands of others will soon descend on San Francisco for a global trade summit that could give the battered city a chance to reverse its image of an economic powerhouse now in decline. As host, San Francisco and the city's partners are polishing sidewalks, scrubbing away graffiti and moving homeless people to accommodations indoors. “It shows that San Francisco isn’t dead,” he said, adding he believes “there's an appetite for things to change” despite negative media narratives. This month, Air China resumed direct flights between San Francisco and Beijing after suspending flights just before the pandemic. —-Associated Press journalists Haven Daley in San Francisco and Huizhong Wu in Bangkok contributed to this report.

Persons: Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, London Breed, Breed, —, ”, Gavin Newsom, Newsom, Janet Yellen, Karl Kramer, LaunchSquad, Gilbert Manirakiza, Chotto Matte, Kurt Zdesar, San Francisco isn’t, “, Azalina Eusope, ” Eusope, Jennifer Friedenbach, San Francisco, Emily Cohen, Malcolm Yeung, Haven Daley, Huizhong Wu Organizations: FRANCISCO, Economic Cooperation, Francisco's, United Nations, London, Associated Press . California Gov, San Francisco, Fox, Treasury, San, APEC, San Francisco Living Wage Coalition, San Francisco Giants, dreamers, Coalition, Homelessness, city's Department of Homelessness, Air China, Chinatown Community Development Center, Associated Press Locations: San Francisco, Asia, United, Francisco, San, U.S, Israel, Kenya, Chinatown, Malaysian, Tenderloin District, Beijing, Tourism, China, Bangkok

The European Commission in its 2016 decision said Apple benefited from two Irish tax rulings for more than two decades that artificially reduced its tax burden to as low as 0.005% in 2014. "The judgment of the General Court on 'tax rulings' adopted by Ireland in relation to Apple should be set aside," he said in a non-binding opinion. "It is therefore necessary for the General Court to carry out a new assessment," Pitruzzella said. Her biggest legal victory to date came in September when the General Court upheld her decision against a 700-million-euro Belgian tax scheme for 55 multinationals. Vestager is currently investigating IKEA brand owner Inter IKEA's Dutch tax arrangement in a case dating from 2017, Nike's (NKE.N) Dutch tax rulings and Finnish food and drink packaging company Huhtamaki's (HUH1V.HE) tax rulings granted by Luxembourg.

Persons: Mike Blake, Margrethe Vestager's, Apple, Apple's, Giovanni Pitruzzella, CJEU, Pitruzzella, Michael McGrath, Court’s, Vestager, Stellantis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, EU, Apple, European Commission, of Justice, Justice, Court, Ireland, Dublin, Starbucks, IKEA, Inter IKEA's, Thomson Locations: La Jolla , California, U.S, Rights LUXEMBOURG, Ireland, Belgian, Luxembourg

☆ Adidas sees Samba shoes driving more interest from retailers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Helen Reid | Thomson Reuters | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Inventory levels were down 23% year-on-year at 4.85 billion euros ($5.18 billion), a little more than expected, Adidas said. Adidas' gross margin for the quarter was up 0.2 percentage points at 49.3%, helped by reduced freight costs and fewer discounts. "Adidas' competitive position compared to Nike is improving," said Robert Schramm-Fuchs, portfolio manager at Janus Henderson, which holds Adidas shares. "Adidas needs to earn back the shelf space, but I think they have the right product to do it," he said. Adidas' sales in Greater China grew by 5.7% in currency-adjusted terms, a slowdown after growth of 16.4% in the second quarter.

Persons: Tingshu Wang, Bjorn Gulden, Kanye West, Ye, Spezial, Gulden, Robert Schramm, Fuchs, Janus Henderson, Schramm, Adam Cochrane, Miranda Murray, Helen Reid, Maria Sheahan, Sherry Jacob, Phillips, Catherine Evans Organizations: Adidas, REUTERS, Apparel, Nike, Deutsche Bank . Currency, Reuters Graphics, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, United States, North America, Greater China, Berlin

☆ The best evidence yet that banning Airbnbs will make rent go down
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Katya Schwenk | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

The case of IrvineWhen the city of Irvine took on short-term rentals in 2018, Airbnb seemed unstoppable. Its tentacles had spread to cities across the globe, converting entire neighborhood blocks, in the most dramatic cases, to short-term rentals. Plenty of cities had passed ordinances banning short-term rentals, only to see Airbnb listings continue to pop up. That's consistent with data on short-term rentals in Irvine, which showed that by January 2021, the number of listings in Irvine had halved. As the Berlin and Boston studies found, when houses or apartments are pulled off the long-term market to be used as short-term rentals, housing supply decreases.

Persons: it's, that's, Banning, Irvine, Airbnb, Michael Seiler, College of William & Mary, Seiler, Murray Cox, Ken Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Cox, Airbnbs, Alicia Glen, Sarah Saadian, It's, we're, Saadian, Katya Schwenk Organizations: —, New, Real Estate Economics, College of William &, Irvine, New York's, Housing Coalition, The Locations: New York City, New York, York City, Irvine , California, Orange County, Real, Irvine, Plenty, Airbnbs, . New York City, Berlin, Boston, Burlington , Vermont, Summit County, Colorado, New, Airbnb, Phoenix , Arizona

☆ Zalando cuts 2023 sales forecast as demand stays weak
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Helen Reid | Thomson Reuters | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Zalando packaging from an online delivery is seen discarded in a cardboard box in Galway, Ireland, August 27, 2020. Zalando now expects 2023 revenue to fall between 0.5% and 3%, having previously guided to a 1% decline at worst. An unusually warm September weighed on sales of autumn and winter clothes, Zalando said, exacerbating the impact of weak consumer sentiment. Gross merchandise volume - a measure of sales on the platform by Zalando and partner brands - fell by 2.4% from a year ago. The company's market value has dropped over the past two years as shoppers, freed from pandemic restrictions, returned to stores and ordered fewer clothes online.

Persons: Clodagh, Zalando, Clément Génelot, Bryan Garnier, Zalando's, Génelot, Gross, Helen Reid, Christian Schmollinger, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Galway, Ireland, Paris, Germany, Austria, Switzerland

☆ Adidas and Puma eye chances in soccer's fashion moment
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Helen Reid | Thomson Reuters | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

One Premiership team has hired a creative director to expand its apparel offering, while Adidas in September launched an "exclusively off-pitch" apparel collection for some of the big-name teams it sponsors. "The love-in between football and fashion is only just beginning," said Richard Busby, CEO at sponsorship consultancy BDS Sponsorship. In August, Crystal Palace hired Kenny Annan-Jonathan as creative director focused on apparel. "We are experiencing hype around football jerseys and general designs influenced by football culture across streetwear and fashion," said Puma's global creative director Heiko Desens. "There's a risk of tension with existing fans whenever you start moving beyond the core culture," said Athens Kallithea's president and creative director, Ted Philipakos.

Persons: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake, Kim Kardashian, Richard Busby, Mary Earps, Busby, Kardashian, Germain, Mia Regan, Kenny Annan, Jonathan, GlobalData, Heiko Desens, Puma, popstar, cleats, Pele, Rihanna, Graham Renwick, Prada, Ted Philipakos, Philipakos, Helen Reid, Catherine Evans Organizations: Soccer Football, FIFA, England, Soccer, LONDON, Adidas, Puma, Nike, Greek, Athens Kallithea, Paris Saint, Arsenal, Crystal Palace, Premier League club, FOOTBALL, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Manchester United, Real, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Italy's Venezia FC, Athens Kallithea's, Premier League, Bundesliga, Thomson Locations: New Zealand, Spain, Australia, Sydney, Brazilian, Real Madrid, Italian, Athens

☆ Swedish architects are building skyscrapers out of wood laminates glued together. The material is shockingly sturdy.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In Sweden, architects are attempting to journey back to the days before concrete, bricks, and steel, and building impressive towers made with timber, The Washington Post reported. The architects told the Post that, at least in the heavily forested areas of Sweden, wood-based architecture is the future of sustainable building for several reasons. The building material's emissions have grown faster than most other single sources of carbon dioxide thanks to their increased demand and production, Inside Climate News reported. In places like West Africa , architects like Diébédo Francis Kéré are turning back to traditional building materials like soil, stone, and vegetation as sustainable building materials . "The built environment — as it is built now — is not sustainable," Michael Green, the author of "The Case for Tall Wood Buildings," told the Post.

Persons: —, Robert Schmitz, Therese Kreisel, Sara, JONATHAN NACKSTRAND, White Arkitekter, Sara center's, Diébédo Francis Kéré, Michael Green Organizations: Service, Washington Post, Post, Sara Cultural Center, Getty, Sweden doesn't, Climate, University of Rochester, World Steel Association Locations: Sweden, Skelleftea, AFP, Stockholm, Europe, Asia, West Africa

☆ I visited one of Ikea's new mini 'plan and order' stores, and it felt like a tiny version of Home Depot
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

But in a $2 billion initiative it announced earlier this year, Ikea said that it would open nine "plan-and-order" stores in the US. Each store is a fraction of the size of the Ikea you're probably used to. While an Ikea warehouse can take up around 350,000 square feet, plan-and-order stores are a tiny fraction of that. The plan-and-order stores are designed around model kitchens, bedrooms, and other complete packages of appliances and decor that shoppers can buy for rooms in their homes. Ikea calls the stores "showrooms" and staffs them with employees it says can answer questions or even plan a remodel.

Persons: — Organizations: Ikea, Service Locations: Arlington , Virginia, Arlington

☆ Green Steel Is Coming. Europe Is Leading the Charge Thanks to New Carbon Taxes.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( Yusuf Khan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

The need for conversion to low-carbon steel production is greater in Europe, where 57% of steel is produced in coal-fired blast furnaces. Swedish-based startup H2 Green Steel has signed deals to supply low-carbon steel to IKEA, Mercedes-Benz , BMW and Scania. Customers of H2 Green Steel have been willing to support the project based on their own green targets and their end-customers’ willingness to pay a green premium, he said. H2 Green Steel said it would charge a €150 premium, while Swedish steelmaker SSAB expects to charge double that. Research from the Rocky Mountain Institute suggests the IRA will encourage green steel investments that would, by 2030, produce about eight million tons of low-carbon steel, or nearly 10% of U.S. steel demand.

Persons: fabian strauch, ”, Colin Richardson, incentivizing, CBAM, Nicola Davidson, Davidson, Henrik Henriksson, Mikael Sjoberg, ” Henriksson, Gunnar Güthenke, SSAB, Europe ”, Simone Tagliapietra, Paul Lim, ” Lim, Yusuf Khan Organizations: Leadership Group, Industry, Argus Media, Rocky Mountain Institute, U.S ., Business, International Energy Agency, Investments, Steel, IKEA, Mercedes, Benz, BMW, Scania, H2, Bloomberg, Research, Europe, Bruegel, U.S Locations: Europe, U.S, Brussels, London, European, Lakes , Texas, Pacific, China, Asia

☆ Nestle, Volvo among 130 companies urging COP28 agreement to ditch fossil fuels
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Companies including Nestle (NESN.S), Unilever (ULVR.L), Mahindra Group and Volvo Cars are urging political leaders to agree a timeline at the upcoming U.N. climate summit to phase out fossil fuels. "Our businesses are feeling the impacts and cost of increasing extreme weather events resulting from climate change," the companies wrote in the letter, which was coordinated by the non-profit We Mean Business Coalition, which is pushing for greater climate action globally. "To decarbonise the global energy system, we need to ramp up clean energy as fast as we phase out the use and production of fossil fuels," they wrote. The speed at which countries should phase out fossil fuels will be one of the thorniest issues. Reporting by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes; Editing by Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: COP28, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Companies, Nestle, Unilever, Mahindra Group, Volvo, Business Coalition, Bayer, Heineken, IKEA, Thomson Locations: Dubai, Paris, Europe

☆ Moments in the ‘Buy Nothing’ Life
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-21 | by ( Michelle Madden | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

We post on Buy Nothing in order to give. One man’s trash may be another’s “lucky futon.”In today’s Buy Nothing feed: a retro keyboard “up for grabs” gets 25 likes. Or, a retro keyboard is the one you’ve been searching for your whole life. Or, a retro keyboard is junk and should be disposed of in an ethical manner. Three tubes that I personally made available “if anybody has a use.” Yes, the tubes were expired, but “probably still fine,” I said.

Persons: ”, insensate, “ Locations: Los Angeles

☆ Travel news: Amsterdam will increase its tourist tax in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-14 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —This week in travel news: An ancient Italian site, a hefty European tourist tax and a bunch of bears in Alaska all got bigger. Norbert Eisele-Hein/imageBROKER/Shutterstock An Indian icon: The Hawa Mahal is part of the larger City Palace complex in the middle of Jaipur. According to Indian authorities in charge of the monument, roughly 1 million people visit Hawa Mahal each year. To experience its cooling effects firsthand, head inside Jaipur's City Palace -- it's located on the edge of the palace grounds. Vishal Bhatnagar/NurPhoto/Getty Images India's stunning Hawa Mahal Prev NextThe Hawa Mahal isn’t just one of India’s most beautiful buildings – it was also way ahead of its time in terms of sustainability.

Persons: It’s, Grazer, F, Jimenez, Alaska’s, Grazer “, She’ll, Jeffrey Pfefferle, Leon McNaught, Pfefferle, they’ve, “, ”, Norbert Eisele, Hein, imageBROKER, Hawa, Vishal Bhatnagar, Elena Odareeva, what's, Sanjay Sharma, Kavita Jain, Lola Fdez, Jain, Mickey Mousing, – Organizations: CNN, Amsterdam, Bear, &, Grazer, CNN Travel, UNESCO, Heritage, Adobe, KS, IKEA Locations: Alaska, overtourism Amsterdam, Europe, ”, Amsterdam, Italy, American, Sicilian, Mussomeli, Zhangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Fujian province, Indian, Jaipur, Jaipur's, Nogales, Kenya, Swedish

☆ IKEA sticks with China despite slowing economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Helen Reid | Thomson Reuters | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Yves Herman Acquire Licensing RightsMALMÖ, Sweden, Oct 12 (Reuters) - China is still a key growth market for budget furniture retailer IKEA despite the world's second-largest economy showing signs of strain, executives at the biggest IKEA store owner said on Thursday. The company has 37 IKEA stores in China, out of a total of 537 locations worldwide. Ingka Group overall saw 697 million visits to its IKEA stores in the 2023 financial year, up 7.4% from the previous year. The rate of increase was much higher in China, Brodin said, as stores reopened and shoppers returned. China's sheer size makes it a key opportunity, said Tolga Oncu, head of IKEA Retail at Ingka Group.

Persons: Yves Herman Acquire, Jesper Brodin, Brodin, Ingka, Tolga Oncu, Oncu, Helen Reid, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, IKEA, Ingka Group, Ingka, Reuters, IKEA Retail, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Sweden, China

☆ Swedish startup Luvly is making flat-pack electric microcars
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Rebecca Cairns | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

In addition to the novel flat-pack delivery, Luvly is hoping that the electric car’s other features – including its super-light frame and swappable batteries – will make sustainable transport more affordable, says Håkan Lutz, Luvly CEO and co-founder. LuvlyA “Luvly” solutionLuvly O is a “light urban vehicle,” also known as a microcar. Luvly plans to license its patented light vehicle flat-pack framework to other car manufacturers to build their own branded versions. Resource-light and requiring less energy to manufacture than electric passenger cars, light electric vehicles (LEVs) such as microcars could make a serious dent in transport carbon emissions, says Brost. This is where Luvly hopes to add value: inspiring more car manufacturers to develop light urban vehicles with its patented framework.

Persons: it’s, Håkan Lutz, Lutz, Luvly, ”, —, “, Luvly isn’t, Citroën, Ami, Mascha Brost, Brost, ” Brost, It’s Organizations: CNN, IKEA, BMW, Formula, Opel, Fiat, Micro, German Aerospace Center, German Aerospace, Institute for Highway, US, Peachtree Locations: Swedish, Stockholm, €, Italian, Swiss, Germany, Peachtree City, Georgia

"Matched with the NFL, which we all know is driving the biggest TV ratings and interest across the entire sports landscape... Swift's appearance also preceded a nearly three-fold increase in sales in a 24-hour window for Chiefs home games on StubHub. [1/2]Sep 24, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Taylor Swift reacts while watching the Kansas City Chiefs vs Chicago Bears game during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. "Taylor Swift being at NFL games is gold dust for the league," Scott said. But Swift, whose fame far eclipses that of Kelce's, brings a megawatt starpower that is virtually unprecedented - even in the NFL.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Swift, Travis Kelce's, Donna, Adam Budelli, Aaron Rodgers, Roku, Denny, Tom Scott, Scott, Joe Namath, Pro Bowler, Kelce, Amy Tennery, Helen Reid, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Super Bowl, Kansas City Chiefs, NFL, National Football League, Chicago Bears, Chiefs, Jets, Reuters, Bears, Arrowhead, Trippant, Philadelphia Eagles, Miami Dolphins, of Fame, Sports, Super, Apple, Thomson Locations: New York, East Rutherford , New Jersey, Kansas City, Kansas City , Missouri, USA, London, Frankfurt

☆ OpenAI's GPTBot and other AI web crawlers are being blocked by even more companies now
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Unique, high quality data, mainly scraped from the web, is vital to the performance of AI models. AdvertisementAdvertisementMore and more companies are trying to avoid having their data freely scraped and saved by web crawlers working for the benefit of AI models. Last month, OpenAI last revealed its own crawler, GPTBot, saying it would respect robots.txt, a decades-old method through which a website can tell a web crawler to ignore it. Many more companies are now also blocking CCBot, a web crawler used by Common Crawl. AdvertisementAdvertisementSee below for a full list of the biggest websites now blocking GPTBot and CCBot as of Sept. 22:Blocking GPTBotamazon.comquora.comnytimes.comtheguardian.comshutterstock.comwikihow.comcnn.comsciencedirect.comusatoday.comhealthline.comstackexchange.comalamy.comscribd.comwebmd.combusinessinsider.comdictionary.comreuters.comwashingtonpost.commedicalnewstoday.comnpr.orgcbsnews.comgoodhousekeeping.comamazon.co.uktumblr.comlatimes.cominsider.comglassdoor.comvocabulary.cominvestopedia.comslideshare.netamazon.decosmopolitan.comnbcnews.comindiamart.comstackoverflow.comhindustantimes.combloomberg.comcnbc.compeople.comtvtropes.orgamazon.invimeo.comverywellhealth.comikea.comespn.comindianexpress.comthesaurus.compbs.org123rf.comwattpad.comvariety.comtoday.compopsugar.comthespruce.comuol.com.bramazon.frgeeksforgeeks.orgelle.comeconomictimes.compcmag.comtheverge.comallrecipes.comthoughtco.comrollingstone.comwired.comnextdoor.comhollywoodreporter.comabc.net.auew.comamazon.canews18.comwomenshealthmag.comrateyourmusic.comamazon.co.jptechradar.comairbnb.comndtv.comlifewire.comtomsguide.comvulture.comeverydayhealth.compolygon.comtheconversation.comesquire.comprnewswire.combillboard.commenshealth.commetro.co.ukcountryliving.commashable.comgamesradar.comthehindu.comtimesofindia.comdeadline.comharpersbazaar.commedscape.comnymag.comrefinery29.comradiotimes.comcbssports.comtandfonline.comtheatlantic.comtrulia.comamazon.espinterest.esnationalgeographic.combhg.comeater.comsouthernliving.comhealthgrades.comvice.compicclick.combustle.comnewyorker.comeonline.comdigitalspy.comopentable.compinterest.dethepioneerwoman.comcaranddriver.combyrdie.comlivemint.commedicinenet.comteacherspayteachers.comcookpad.comthespruceeats.combizjournals.compagesjaunes.frliputan6.comdelish.commasterclass.comarchiveofourown.orgvox.comrealsimple.comaarp.orgfrancetvinfo.frpinterest.frkumparan.comtheathletic.comtravelandleisure.comvogue.comlivescience.comapartments.commarketwatch.comglamour.comamazon.itcinemablend.comthrillist.comamazon.com.brpinterest.co.ukangi.comalamy.esusmagazine.comdistractify.combbcgoodfood.comjagran.commercadolibre.com.mxandroidauthority.comcity-data.comfoodandwine.comhellomagazine.comamazon.com.augq.comingles.comamarujala.comieee.orgprevention.comstern.dekbb.comedmunds.commarthastewart.compcgamer.comjustanswer.comhealth.com20minutes.frfortune.comhomes.comscientificamerican.compopularmechanics.comverywellfit.comvanityfair.comchicagotribune.comverywellmind.comhousebeautiful.comcntraveler.comallure.comspanishdict.comneverbounce.comanswers.commoneycontrol.comarchitecturaldigest.comslate.comlonelyplanet.cominverse.comcorriere.itactu.frself.comtripsavvy.cominstyle.comeatingwell.comsuperuser.comwelt.despiegel.dewomansday.comseventeen.comhbr.orgoprahdaily.comautotrader.combonappetit.comsueddeutsche.deseriouseats.comliveabout.comseattletimes.comcoursera.orglivehindustan.comfrance24.comtownandcountrymag.comdotesports.comworldplaces.mefaz.netteenvogue.commotor1.comnj.comglamourmagazine.co.ukokdiario.combrides.comstylecaster.comalamyimages.frjagranjosh.comtheglobeandmail.comaxios.comfrancebleu.frtabelog.comthebalancemoney.comnydailynews.comsheknows.comnaomedical.comverywellfamily.comBlocking CCBot

Persons: —, OpenAI, GPTbot, Conde Nast, Masterclass, Kelly, robots.txt, verywellhealth.com, indianexpress.com Organizations: Service, Amazon, Guardian, NPR, CBS News, CBS Sports, NBC News, CNBC, Yorker, Hearst, New York Times Locations: USA, Europe, Originality.ai, androidauthority.com

☆ H&M blames warm weather for September sales slide
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Helen Reid | トムソンロイター | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

H&M, whose biggest rival is Zara owner Inditex (ITX.MC), said September sales would be down 10% year-on-year measured in local currencies. That compares with Inditex reporting sales between Aug. 1 and Sept. 11 that were up 14%. Operating profit in the Swedish group's third quarter jumped to 4.74 billion crowns ($431 million) from a year-earlier 902 million. The year-ago figure included a one-off cost of 2.1 billion crowns for the group's exit from Russia, which also accounted for four percentage points of the 10% September sales decline. H&M announced a share buyback programme starting on Wednesday, planning to buy back up to 3 billion crowns of stock by March 31 next year.

Persons: サマリー, Inditex, Vera Diehl, Nicolas Champ, LSEG, Richard Chamberlain, Anna Ringstrom, Helen Reid, Jan Harvey, Mark Potter Organizations: Union Investment, Barclays, RBC, HK, Tmall Locations: STOCKHOLM, Zara, Swedish, Russia, JD.com, China's Xinjiang, Alibaba's

☆ Swedish furniture maker IKEA to open first Colombia store
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The IKEA logo is seen outside an IKEA furniture store in Brussels, Belgium June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBOGOTA, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Swedish furniture maker IKEA will this week open its biggest South American store in Colombia, as part of an international expansion plan which includes growth in Peru and Chile with an investment worth $600 million, an executive said on Wednesday. The Colombia store, to be opened on Thursday in the capital Bogota, will be the first in the country and will span three floors with 40 exhibition rooms. "The opening of our first store in Colombia is part of the brand's plan to establish nine stores in Chile, Colombia and Peru over the next 10 years," Hasbleidy Castaneda, IKEA's manager in Colombia, said in an interview. The investment plan includes opening two more stores in Colombia next year, to be located in Medellin and Cali, the country's second and third-largest cities respectively.

Persons: Yves Herman, Hasbleidy Castaneda, Luis Jaime Acosta, Oliver Griffin, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, IKEA, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Rights BOGOTA, Swedish, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Bogota, Medellin, Cali, Mexico, Dominican Republic

☆ Adidas tests upper limit of running market with $500 shoe
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Helen Reid | Thomson Reuters | London-Based Reporter Covering The European Retail Sector Through A Global Lens. Focusing On Companies Including Adidas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Adidas, its bigger rival Nike and other sports brands, have been locked in a "supershoe" war for years, since the first running shoes containing a thick, shock-absorbing foam and carbon fibre plate helping athletes run more efficiently, were released. At $500 a pair, the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1 cost $225 more than Nike's equivalent Alphafly 2, raising the question of how many amateur runners will swallow the extra cost. "The price tag is just insane," said Harry Swinhoe, founder of Grove Lane Runners, an amateur running club in southeast London. "This is a shoe optimized for speed, versus durability," Adidas said. Assefa broke the world record by more than 2 minutes to finish in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 53 seconds.

Persons: Ethiopia's Tigist, Harry Swinhoe, Bjorn Gulden, Assefa, Helen Reid, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Adidas, Nike, Evo, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Lane, London

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