Good morning and Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day to all those who observe.
The holiday celebrates the fateful day—May 22, 2010—when a programmer named Laszlo Hanyecz spent 10,000 bitcoin to buy two pizzas made by Papa John’s. Those are easily the two most expensive pizzas to ever hit an oven, because after bitcoin notched a new record high yesterday, his 10,000 bitcoin would now be worth over $1 billion.
It just makes you sick to your stomach (eating two Papa John’s pizzas).
—Molly Liebergall, Dave Lozo, Matty Merritt, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman
Markets: Stocks sank like a rock tossed in a pond yesterday as fears rippled out from the bond market, where yields spiked because traders are worried about the Republican’s tax bill ballooning the deficit. Nike was among those that fell, following reports that it plans to raise prices on some products due to tariffs.
Big-box US retailers are largely in the same boat as they weather tariff uncertainty and inflation. And then there’s Target, which seems to be taking on water faster than its competitors.
Yesterday, the company reported another earnings miss and flipped its full-year outlook from positive to negative territory, citing backlash to its DEI rollbacks on top of a “highly challenging environment.”
Target’s Q1 sales declined 3% from last year, and the average checkout total dipped 1.4%.
The retailer now expects a “low-single-digit” sales decline for the year, instead of its previous 1% sales growth forecast.
If that forecast proves accurate, 2025 would be Target’s third straight year of declining sales. The company’s stock is down 40% over the past year.
In an attempt to return to growth, Target COO Michael Fiddelke told investors that he’ll lead a new acceleration office tasked with speeding up the company’s decision-making using “technology and AI” so it can be “more agile.”
Target is the odd one out
The retailer’s dismal dispatch follows rosier reports from Walmart and Home Depot, which both posted revenue gains and reaffirmed their full-year sales outlooks in the past week. Lowe’s also held its full-year guidance steady yesterday despite declining sales.
Unlike these competitors:
Target relies more on discretionary spending on items like toys and electronics, so it’s taking a bigger hit as cash-strapped consumers prioritize necessities like groceries (Walmart’s biggest category).
The chain had a longtime reputation for advocacy, so customers found its DEI rollback in January especially jarring, even as most other retailers do the same. Foot traffic at Target fell last quarter amid a 40-day boycott, reversing three quarters of gains.
Zoom out: Retailers are trying to outline the impact of tariffs without angering President Trump, who posted that Walmart should “EAT THE TARIFFS” after it warned of price increases this week. Though the discretionary aisles that Target relies on are largely filled with products sourced outside the US, the retailer said it’ll raise prices as a “last resort” and will try to negotiate better deals with suppliers.—ML
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Things got tense in the Oval Office over South Africa “genocide” claim. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa came to Washington to try to have a positive reset in relations, but instead ended up in a scene reminiscent of President Trump’s sparring with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky. With television cameras rolling and South African-born billionaire Elon Musk in attendance, President Trump made unsubstantiated claims of systemic killings of white South Africans and put on a video purporting to show officials supporting it. South Africa’s government has previously denied the US’ claims of genocide, and Ramaphosa pushed back, referring to the white members of his delegation and saying, “If there was Afrikaner farmer genocide, I can bet you, these three gentlemen would not be here.”
OpenAI to buy iPhone designer’s startup for $6.5b. The ChatGPT-maker is signalling its intention to go big on hardware with its biggest acquisition to date. It’s buying io, an AI device company helmed by Apple design legend Jony Ive, in a $6.5 billion all-stock deal. Ive, who started the company alongside other ex-Apple designers, will take on “deep creative and design responsibilities across OpenAI and io,” OpenAI said. OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman called Ive “the greatest designer in the world” in an X post, saying he was “excited to try to create a new generation of AI-powered computers.”
Defense Department accepts Boeing 747 from Qatar. The jet that’s raised security and ethics concerns from both Democrats and Republicans has landed as the Pentagon yesterday formally accepted the $400 million gift from Qatar that President Trump plans to use as Air Force One. “The Department of Defense will work to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements” so the president can use the plane, a spokesperson said. The president has defended the gift as saving taxpayers money while he waits for long-delayed replacements for Air Force One from Boeing, but some experts say appropriately outfitting the new jet could cost as much as $1 billion.—AR
When it comes to taxes, even members of the same party can struggle to agree, as the fight over the specifics of President Trump’s “big, beautiful” bill in the House shows. But on Tuesday, the Senate voted 100–0 to pass the No Tax On Tips Act, a stand-alone measure similar to one of that bill’s most popular provisions.
Eliminating taxes on tips has provoked more agreement among both parties than the expulsion of former Rep. George Santos ever since Trump promised it on the campaign trail. The No Tax On Tips Act was introduced by Sen. Ted Cruz in January, and a Democrat brought it to the Senate floor this week.
But…experts believe creating a federal tax deduction of up to $25,000 on tips for employees making $160,000 or less annually will have minimal impact:
According to the Budget Lab at Yale, only 2.5% of all workers are in tipped jobs, and 37% of tipped workers don’t pay federal income taxes already due to low earnings. Per the Tax Policy Center, having no tax on tips would provide an average savings of ~$1,800 per year.
Critics say this hampers the fight for raising “subminimum” hourly wages, which are as low as $2.13 in some states for tipped workers.
What’s next? House Republicans can call a vote on the bill. If it passes, it would only need Trump’s signature to become law.—DL
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A Lightning Lane Pass to Space Mountain is no longer the most valuable ticket in Orlando. Universal’s Epic Universe officially opens today for annual passholders, Military Freedom Passholders, and guests with certain vacation packages. And stellar reviews are starting to pour in.
The $7 billion project, spread out across 750 acres, took eight years to build and marks the biggest ever theme park investment from the Comcast-owned Universal. The park centers around the astronomy-themed Celestial Park, which acts as a gateway to four other worlds:
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic, Super Nintendo World, How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk, and Dark Universe, which spotlights iconic characters like Frankenstein and Dracula.
Single-day tickets (which start at $139) are available for visits starting on June 1.
From the trial of Dolores Umbridge to the 8-bit vibes…visitors are heralding the park’s attention to detail and immersive experiences. While Disney has long held the crown in theme park innovation, Universal’s development of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in 2010 (credited with generating a 36% jump in attendance at Universal Orlando) ushered in a shift toward parks built around one piece of IP.
Look to the western sky…Universal execs have teased a future Wicked attraction as part of the company’s big parks expansion.—MM
You may not remember that Harry and Meghan commemorative plate you impulse bought with one click seven years ago and then hastily tried to send back after it arrived the next day, but Amazon does—and it may finally be sending you a refund. The e-commerce giant has recently begun issuing refunds for returns dating as far back as 2018, Bloomberg reports.
Amazon confirmed to the outlet that it “identified a very small subset of returns that were unresolved because we could not verify that the correct item had been sent back to us,” and that it had “decided to err on the side of customers and just complete refunds for these returns.” The company hasn’t enumerated how many returns are involved, but executives have indicated it could be millions of dollars’ worth, per Bloomberg. The decision to revisit really old refunds comes as Amazon faces a lawsuit over reversing payments to customers who dropped items at designated kiosks that never made it to Amazon’s warehouses.
If you’ve got a seven-year refund itch, there may be nothing to do but sit tight: Amazon said no action is required from customers to get paid.—AR
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The “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill the president desires is getting closer to becoming a reality as Republicans work out their differences and make last-minute changes before an anticipated House vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson reportedly made a deal with the “SALT caucus” to raise the cap on state and local tax deductions to $40,000, and President Trump helped persuade hardline conservatives to accept the legislation with some changes.
The Justice Department is working to cancel settlements with Minneapolis and Louisville that required an overhaul of their police departments following the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
A federal judge found that the Trump administration had violated his earlier order by putting migrants on a flight to South Sudan in the latest clash between the administration and the judiciary over immigration enforcement.
Rep. Gerry Connolly, a Democrat from Virginia known for fighting for federal workers, has died at age 75 while battling cancer.
Fortnite is again available in Apple’s app store after years of legal wrangling, and it’s the No. 1 free game.
The “Tush Push” will remain allowed in NFL games after team owners declined to ban it.
RECS
Read: Cuddle up with this delightful mystery novel before the movie adaptation comes to Netflix in August.**
Miss the traffic: The best times to drive to avoid company on the road during Memorial Day travel.
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Brew Mini: If you’re familiar with the literary son of Lucius, you’re well on your way to solving today’s bite-sized puzzle. Play it here.
Three Headlines and a Lie
Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than Apple Weather’s prediction that the rain will stop in 25 minutes. Can you spot the odd one out?
At the gym, the future Pope Leo XIV kept a high heart rate and a low profile
Jennifer Lopez sued in copyright case for posting photos of herself
US man who tried to escape FBI on underwater scooter pleads guilty to $35m Ponzi scheme
The last remaining coffee table book publisher is in a legal battle with HGTV
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Today’s Word of the Day is: enumerated, meaning “established the number of.” Thanks to Tobe Harris from Melrose, NM, for a suggestion we could count on. Submit another Word of the Day here.
✳︎ A Note From Pacaso
This is a paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals. Under Regulation A+, a company has the ability to change its share price by up to 20%, without requalifying the offering with the SEC.
Things got tense in the Oval Office over South Africa “genocide” claim. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa came to Washington to try to have a positive reset in relations, but instead ended up in a scene reminiscent of President Trump’s sparring with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky. With television cameras rolling and South African-born billionaire Elon Musk in attendance, President Trump 
OpenAI to buy iPhone designer’s startup for $6.5b. The ChatGPT-maker is signalling its intention to go big on hardware with its 
Defense Department accepts Boeing 747 from Qatar. The jet that’s raised security and ethics concerns from both Democrats and Republicans has landed as the Pentagon yesterday formally 
Read: Cuddle up with this delightful 
