The Daily Upside

Consumer

Chinese Consumers Are Pulling Back on Big Western Brands

(Photo Credit: Zhang Kaiyv/Unsplash)

From cosmetics to apparel to tech, Western brands are seeing revenues dip in China as consumers navigate a struggling post-pandemic economy.

1 min read
Patent Drop

Sony Wants to Check for Bias With “Human-Centric” AI Model

Photo by Jason Goodman on Unsplash

Like any AI-based system, the model itself that makes these determinations needs to be properly trained.

2 min read
Healthcare

Moderna Takes $1.3 Billion Hit From Sluggish Covid Vaccine Uptake

Photo by Ian Hutchinson via Unsplash

Moderna posted a quarterly loss of $3.63 billion, half of which was accounted for by unused Covid-19 shots past their expiration date.

2 min read
Consumer

Starbucks, Coffee Drinkers Don’t Have Time for a Struggling Economy

(Photo by Ben White on Unsplash)

Shares of Starbucks jumped more than 9% Thursday after the company posted better-than-expected Q4 earnings.

1 min read

Big Tech

FTC Gets Specific in its Amazon Antitrust Case

(Photo by Daniel Oberhaus under CC BY 2.0)

Amazon, at the behest of its billionaire founder, intentionally packed its search results pages with junk ads, the FTC alleges.

2 min read
Industrials

Sugar Shortages Loom as Supply Gets Sticky

(Photo by Mathilde Langevin on Unsplash)

Logistical holdups at ports in Brazil combined with poor sugar crops in other major sugar-producing nations is stretching supply of the crop.

1 min read
Regulation

Betting Startup Sues Feds After Election Markets Plan is Rejected

(Photo by Gage Skidmore under CC BY-SA 2.0)

Financial exchange startup Kalshi has sued the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, arguing that the regulator overstepped its authority.

1 min read
Real Estate

Washington DC Sues Landlords, RealPage in Alleged Rent-Fixing Scheme

(Photo by Chuttersnap on Unsplash)

Washington, DC’s Attorney General filed a lawsuit against property management software maker RealPage, along with 14 commercial landlords.

2 min read

OP-ED | Power Corridor

A Bottomless Congressional Conflagration

Another month, another potential government shutdown. The U.S. House of Representatives did manage to briefly overcome its deep divisions long enough to…

3 min read
OP-ED | Power Corridor

SBF’s Own Words Prove His Downfall

For Sam Bankman-Fried, the former chief executive of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, it is safe to say his gift of gab – which briefly…

2 min read
Power Corridor

Fed’s Tea Leaves Get Murkier

Photo by Federal Reserve Board of Governors under Public Domain Mark 1.0

The U.S. Federal Reserve is all but certain to hold interest rates steady Wednesday, but the economy is still scorching – beating expectations in…

2 min read
Artificial Intelligence

Microsoft’s AI News Poll Ticks Off UK Newspaper

(Photo by Connor Lin/The Daily Upside)

The Guardian submitted a complaint to Microsoft on Tuesday after a grotesquely inappropriate AI-generated poll next to a Guardian article.

2 min read

Energy

Biden’s Ambitions for Offshore Wind Are High, Maybe Not Realistic

(Photo by Harry Cunningham on Pexels)

On Tuesday, the Biden administration approved the construction of a massive wind farm off the coast of Virginia.

2 min read
Banking

Low Deal Flow Means Lower Bonuses for Wall Street

(Photo by Edgar on Unsplash)

After 10 months of slower-than-anticipated deal flow, bankers are expecting less-than-stellar year-end holiday bonuses.

1 min read
Patent Drop

Microsoft Guards its Models at All Angles

Photo by Village Global under CC BY 2.0

Microsoft’s AI protection patent shows the vulnerabilities that models face amid rapid growth.

3 min read
Industrials

European Aluminum Giant Is Fretting a Chinese EV Influx

Photo by Blaz Erzetic/Unsplash

While the price of aluminum has climbed off the mat in recent months, it’s still well below the heady days of early 2022.

2 min read
Patent Drop

From the Expert: AI’s Impact on Data Security

AI’s rapid adoption will require cybersecurity that’s more sophisticated than ever before.

2 min read
Markets

Homebuilders Feel the Squeeze of Tight Housing Market

Photo by Zac Gudakov via Unsplash

Shares of leading US homebuilders have plummeted since an industry-wide peak in July, according to a Financial Times analysis.

2 min read
Industrials

Climate Change and Regulations Squeeze Alaska’s Salmon Fishers

(Photo by Max Randall/Unsplash)

Salmon fishers in Alaska face a cascade of challenges as state regulators implement a series of restrictions to prevent overfishing.

1 min read
OP-ED | Power Corridor

Not All Hollywood Bets Have Fairytale Endings

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it charged BlackRock – the largest money manager in the world, with nearly $10 trillion in…

4 min read

Advisor Upside

Financial advisor news, market insights, and practice management essentials.

Trump’s Economic Toolbox Holds More Than Tariffs, Treasury Chief Pledges

Photo by The White House via Public Domain Mark 1.0

2 min read
Scary Movie ’25? Trump Threatens Tariffs on Foreign Films

Photo by Getty Images via Unsplash

2 min read
Skechers Takes $9 Billion Buyout as Shoe Stocks Skid

Photo by Harrison Keely via CC BY 4.0

2 min read

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