A newfound black hole is a hot topic among astronomers — the most distant one observed so far, dating back ~13.3B years, it could teach us how the supermassive cosmic forces are formed. Black holes can swallow entire galaxies with their immense gravitational forces, but that’d impress us more if we hadn’t watched Joey Chestnut set the record for speed-eating hot dogs a few years back (76 in 10 mins, BTW). They’re basically the same thing, no?
In today’s email:
OpenAI: The company’s shocking unraveling continues.
SPACs: An investing revolution has faded into obscurity.
Bad idea, right?: When Gerber tried selling baby food to adults.
Around the web: A startingly pink pond, a clever word game, creators in 2024, and more.
👇 Listen: The latest on Sam Altman and OpenAI’s spectacular collapse.
The Big Idea
OpenAI will still exist, but in what form?
The latest on the AI company’s self-inflicted crisis.
2023-11-21T00:00:00Z
Ben Berkley
Just four days ago, OpenAI marked the pinnacle of the AI world.
Watching CEO Sam Altman grow his Silicon Valley legend.
By the time we reach the fifth day of its corporate drama, the company could barely even exist. It’s hard to fathom; it’s even harder to look away.
Since Altman’s Friday ousting, every passing hour has looked worse for the entrenched board members who orchestrated the move — things have been unraveling so fast, the updates below may be moot by the time they reach you…
OpenAI’s employee revolt is the most 2023 thing imaginable
In a year marked by record-setting labor strikes, it just feels right that Monday’s biggest move would come from OpenAI’s employees: more than 700 of its 770 workers signed a letter threatening to walk.
They’ve got leverage on their side; if they don’t get their wish — board out, Altman back in — they’ll leave for a place where all signatories have a standing offer…
Well played, Microsoft
Altman announced he’s setting up shop at Microsoft, where he’ll helm an “advanced AI research team” — and largely pick up where OpenAI left off rather than starting from scratch. That may ultimately include 90% of his former team.
All this means Microsoft may have just essentially acquired OpenAI. The tech giant, which invested $13B in OpenAI, found itself in a bind after Friday’s drama, but everything has quickly turned on its head — Microsoft looks like it’ll come out of the chaos having extended its AI lead.
And what about Emmett Shear?
The former Twitch boss was named CEO at OpenAI, where he… may not have anyone left to lead?
If he even gets a shot, he’d be tasked with navigating employee defections and eroded trust, then he’d need to find a board-approved pace of AI development (the issue that apparently led to this rift in the first place).
Shear recently took a hard line on the dangers of AI, saying it “should cause you to shit your pants,” so there’s that.
That’s all a tall order. But for Shear, this is all playing with house money. The board will take the blame if OpenAI crumbles, he’ll get credit if they rebound, and either way, he’ll undoubtedly be compensated extravagantly for hopping on this nightmarish ride.
Free Resource
An interview on breaking down barriers
Who among us is a greater champion for the world of women founders than Sarah Chen-Spellings? Her full list of accolades wouldn’t even fit on a CVS receipt with extra coupons.
In 2018, she co-founded Beyond The Billion, a consortium of 100+ VC investors that have committed $1B+ to women-owned startups. Two years later, the World Economic Forum named her a Global Young Leader.
But before she was a chief, she broke into the spotlight as a TV host in Malaysia… at the age of 9. And to add another slice of inspiring fuel, she returned home after finishing law school to steer her father’s business after he was diagnosed with cancer.
Again and again, Sarah was destined to lead. Hear the incredible story and her top tips for women in the workforce on the No Straight Path podcast.
Shakiraagreed to a suspended three-year sentence and a $7.6m fine on the first day of her tax fraud trial in Barcelona. The Colombian pop star’s official residence was in the Bahamas from 2012-2014, but Spanish prosecutors alleged she spent more than half that time in Spain and thus owed ~$15.8m in taxes. Though she’s claimed innocence for almost five years, she said settling the matter was in the best interest of her family.
SNIPPETS
Rumor has it: Apple is wrapping testing on its ~$3.5k Vision Pro headset and will likely release it in the US in March.
As X’s advertisers drop, CEO Linda Yaccarino has hired her son, Matt Madrazo, to rekindle the platform’s political advertising biz which it closed in 2019, back when X was still Twitter.
Airbnbnamed Ron Klain, former White House chief of staff for President Joe Biden, as its chief legal officer, effective at the start of the new year.
Tinderrolled out a new suite of features with a “rizz-first redesign.” The dating app says the improvements include UI updates, profile prompts and quizzes, dark mode, and more.
Bullish, the crypto exchange run by former NYSE president Tom Farley, is acquiring crypto media company CoinDesk in an all-cash deal. The financial terms have not yet been disclosed.
Cruise co-founder and CEO Kyle Vogt has resigned. Vogt’s exit comes just three months after GM’s self-driving car unit won approval to operate driverless taxis in San Francisco (it has since had its permits revoked).
Honda is recalling ~250k vehicles over a manufacturing defect in the engine crankshaft that could cause it to stall or stop while driving. Owners will be notified by mail in January.
Budget bodaciously: Can spreadsheets help quell your shopaholic habits? Here are 5 financial planning sheets fit for both business and personal expenses.
Don’t miss this…
AI can provide invaluable insight, direction, and assistance when you’re trying to sell into new industries. Check out an expert’s take on five key ways you can leverage AI for just that.
What the SPAC?
The spectacular failure of SPACs
Way back in early 2021, when GameStop stock was soaring and cratering, when the phrase Bored Ape Yacht Club entered the lexicon, and when Bitcoin was pushing above $50k, celebrities and financiers were buzzing about another investment vehicle.
Chamath Palihapitiya, a venture capitalist, described this tool as a way to “level the playing field,” offering average people an opportunity to invest in high-growth companies. Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman planned to use one to “marry a unicorn.” Athletes like Shaquille O’Neal also got involved.
All of them were believers in SPACs. Remember them?
SPACs, Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (or blank-check companies), are public shell companies created by investors. They go public through an IPO and seek to acquire a separate private company within two years and take it public.
The merged company, sometimes called a deSPAC, gets listed on the stock market — often faster than it would through a traditional IPO.
SPACs were supposed to be a revolution. But more than two years later, they’ve faded into obscurity, the boastful dreams of many business titans giving way to an austere reality.
Most of the hundreds of SPACs that formed at the height of the 2021 craze didn’t complete mergers, and most companies that went through a merger process turned into nightmares for average investors.
Why did SPACs fail so badly? And will they ever become popular again?
Gerber once decided to market its baby food to lonely adults who couldn’t cook. Predictably, it didn’t go well.
2023-11-21T00:00:00Z
Juliet Bennett Rylah
Many Americans this week will indulge in a feast among family, whether they want to or not. But no matter how your Thanksgiving shakes out, it won’t be as sad as Gerber Singles.
In 1974, baby food behemoth Gerber decided to expand its offering to adults with Gerber Singles. The idea was that solo adults who weren’t interested in cooking could open up a jar of pureed ham casserole or sweet and sour pork and call it a meal.
“We were good for you then, we’re good for you now,” a slogan coaxed.
But why?
Business journalist Milton Moskowitz posited that Gerber — a company that once proudly stated that babies were its “only business” — was responding to a drop in the US birthrate.
In 1960, 4.2m+ babies were born, but that number dropped to 3.2m in 1972 — or a 25% dip in potential Gerber consumers.
At the same time, fewer people were getting married, meaning a lot of folks were eating at home alone.
Marketing was especially sad…
… specifying Singles were for “whenever you eat alone,” and lamenting how troublesome it was to cook for one’s self while ensuring the right amount of nutrients and avoiding food waste. And, ugh, who wants leftovers?
Unsurprisingly, people were not stoked to try pudding versions of savory meals. Singles lasted about three months before they were pulled from the shelves.
Today…
… people love a good smoothie, with some costing $20+. Perhaps if Gerber had stuck to fruity, nutty flavors, hadn’t sold them in little glass jars, and added a little bee pollen, they’d have been a hit.
Swapping baby food for real meals was also a recent fad diet — though presumably not a great one, as chewing is one thing that helps you feel full.
AROUND THE WEB
🥊 On this day: In 1976, Sylvester Stallone’s Rockydebuted in NYC, later winning an Academy Award for Best Picture and launching the then-unknown actor/writer to stardom.
🌊 That’s interesting: A pond at a Hawaiian wildlife refuge turned Barbie pink, likely due to a colony of single-celled organisms.
🎧 Podcast: On Creator Science, John Lee Dumas and Jay Clouse discuss 2024 for creators: AI, video podcasts, LinkedIn, and more.
🧠 Game: A word game in which you change just one letter at a time.
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