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Apple is close to reaching a $3 trillion market cap. The company’s shares have been on a roll since unveiling the Vision Pro headset, scoring a new high.
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Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard is facing a new obstacle in the US. The Federal Trade Commission wants to block the $69 billion deal.
JPMorgan is settling with Jeffrey Epstein’s victims. The world’s largest bank was accused of turning a blind eye to the late sex offender’s dealings.
Silvio Berlusconi has died. The former Italian prime minister shaped his country for decades to come—and not for the better.
AI helped Paul McCartney create one last Beatles song. A software extrapolated John Lennon’s voice from a demo to compose the band’s last tune.
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Fun fact: Montana’s kids are suing for climate protections
Some of the plaintiffs of Held v Montana—a lawsuit in the US state of Montana that ​​deals with the constitutional right to a “clean and healthful environment”—are so young that they won’t even testify during the trial. But most of the 16 youths, ranging in age from two to 18 at time of filing, are expected to testify this week in the first US trial of its kind. The case aims to establish a governmental duty to protect citizens from climate change, as it happened in the Netherlands.
Nio reluctantly drives into the EV price wars
Joining China’s electric vehicle price war wasn’t on Nio’s itinerary, but six price cuts from Tesla alone this year have made some detours unavoidable.
The Chinese EV maker is trimming $4,200 from its price tags to rev up competition with Tesla, BYD, and others. It’s also getting rid of its free battery swap program. But what is the third most attractive EV stock in China with a $13 billion valuation trying to fend off, exactly? Well, there are a few roadblocks:
😋 Luxury EV maker Lucid is hungry, and wants a slice of China’s auto market
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🤑 Tesla has made its cars nearly 50% cheaper in China than they are in the US
😱 BYD, China’s largest EV company, had some BIG profit growth last year—like, 446%
One big number: 30
The number of people in the UK who will receive £1,600 ($1,984) a month for the next two years as part of a universal basic income pilot
How many pilots like this do we really need to prove giving away money works? Quartz’s Tim Fernholz explains what these experiments can and can’t teach us.
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Quartz most popular
🍕 New York City’s food delivery workers will be the first in the country to get a minimum wage
⚡ The White House is trying to persuade Tesla to keep the US’s EV charging standard alive
🚫 Toblerone maker Mondelez is facing a boycott in Nordic countries over its Russian business
👋🏾 Women are quitting India’s biggest IT firm as it ends work-from-home
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🎯 Most companies’ net-zero emission plans are largely meaningless
🎓 Even in countries where women are better educated, men earn more
Surprising discoveries
Successioncore is filling closets. Wearers of taupe suits and cashmere sweaters are all about that soft power.
A $3.4 million luxury Speedmaster watch was found to be fake. It looked real enough to fool its maker.
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A warmer planet is making plane rides much bumpier. Instances of severe turbulence are up 55% from 1979 to 2020 for North Atlantic trips.
Avoiding short-term indulgences doesn’t make you happy or healthier in the long-term. In fact, giving into short-term desires—strategically, that is—may improve our wellbeing. In other words: eat the cake.
Don’t throw away that creepy doll in your grandparents’ basement. It could sell for $66,000 at an auction.
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