đ Having trouble seeing eye to eye with someone? Take inspiration from the worldâs tallest and shortest women, who met for high tea in London to celebrate Guinness World Records Day. The women â who stand at 7 feet, 0.7 inches, and 2 feet, 0.7 inches, respectively â have five feet between them but still enjoyed their record-breaking tea.
đ§ On the pod:How did TGI Fridays go from $2B in annual revenue to bankruptcy?
NEWS FLASH
đ Breaking up is hard to do⊠but the Department of Justice doesnât care. The DOJ, along with a group of states, filed an initial proposal that would force Google to sell its Chrome web browser. The filing follows a DC courtâs ruling in August that Google illegally maintains an online search monopoly. Itâs not just Chrome: The government is also proposing that Google face an ultimatum â sell Android, or prohibit Google from making its services mandatory on Android phones. Plus, the filing wants to stop other practices, like Google being the default search engine on Apple smartphones. All this to say, this case will have Big Tech shaking in its boots.
đ The infamous banana taped to a wall â AKA artist Maurizio Cattelanâs âComedianâ â was sold to crypto investor Justin Sun for $6.2m. Heâll receive a roll of duct tape, a certificate of authenticity, and installation instructions â but not the banana, as bananas rot and must be replaced. Because the workâs value lies in the certificate, many crypto enthusiasts have compared it to an NFT. Sun, who naturally paid in crypto, said âComedianâ isnât just art but âa cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.â He intends to acquire, then eat, a banana in reverence. Maybe some people have too much money.
âïž Itâs not as dramatic as the âGame of Thronesâ shame bell, but American Airlines will now scold passengers who attempt to board before their turn. Premature boarders will hear a two-note sound â as will everyone else, presumably â before being turned away to wait in line. With an increase of high-status loyalty program members, itâs in airlinesâ best interest to protect perks like early boarding from the rest of us plebes. Americanâs new tech is now in 100+ nonhub US airports, with the hubs to follow.
MORE NEWS TO KNOW
Meta is leveling up its Messenger app to compete with the likes of Google Meet, Zoom, and FaceTime. The company is adding features including HD video calling, noise suppression, AI backgrounds, voice messaging, and more.
The UKâs power grid operator will start paying people to cut their electricity use. The Demand Flexibility Service, first used during an energy crisis, will now be available year-round. The program has already paid 2.6m households and businesses in cash and rewards over the last two years and saved 7k+ megawatt-hours of electricity.
Gautam Adani, chair of Indian conglomerate Adani Group and one of the worldâs wealthiest people, has been indicted in the US on fraud charges. Adani is accused of hiding from US investors that his solar energy project would be facilitated by ~$265m in bribes to Indian officials.
TOOLBOX
You know what time it is: time to log off of your nine-to-five and dive into that passion project. Here are some links to get you started:
Sure, we love AI â but that doesnât mean itâs perfect. Hereâs how to humanize your AI content to make it highly shareable and engaging.
Want to know how the experts do it? Watch Airbnbâs CMO break down their $86B marketing playbook.
Can brands successfully market on Reddit?Maybe â but they need to tread carefully.
THE BIG IDEA
Meet the new Jag, nothing like the old Jag
A decade ago, British car company Jaguar launched an ad campaign around the idea that its customers are villains. James Bond would drive a classy Aston Martin; the bad guy would drive a Jag.
Well, not anymore.
Ahead of going all-electric in 2026, Jaguar announced a total rebrand thatâs more about selling a vibe than, you know, cars.
Gone is the pouncing cat in its logo, replaced with something that The Vergenotes looks more like âJaGUar.â
British villains have been swapped for stylish models in a pink void and the slogan, âCopy nothing.â
But the models all seem sad, and it feels like itâs approximating âartsyâ from a cold, corporate mindset.
Oh, and there arenât any cars in the new campaign.
Traditionalists are losing their minds over how wrong it is for the Jaguar brand, per NBC News.
But who cares?
Nobodyâs buying Jaguars, anyway:
The company sold fewer than 67k vehicles last year globally, while competitor BMW sold 362k+ in the US alone.
If people arenât buying Jaguars under the current âserious white men in suitsâ identity, why should the company care if people think this redesign is silly? Itâs not like Jaguar took a successful brand â with an iconic logo and terminology that had been accepted into the global lexicon â and replaced it with a single generic letter.
That said, the backlash will be justified if this JaGUar logo shows up on a crummy EV that looks stupid in 2026. The company has to put its money where its artsy mouth is â then it can come back and kill James Bond in style.
Hallelujah â you finally found the right candidate. Hereâs how to seal the deal with the perfect job offer letter.
Want loyal customers? Sure you do. Tune in to find out the one factor you might be overlooking.
NEWSWORTHY NUMBER
How much Ilya âDutchâ Lichtenstein and crypto-rapper Heather âRazzlekhanâ Morganâs stolen bitcoin would be worth today, amid a pop in the cryptocurrencyâs value, perThe Verge. Lichtenstein hacked crypto exchange Bitfinex in 2016, stole 120k bitcoin â worth ~$70m at the time of the theft and $4.5B+ by their arrest in 2022 â and Morgan helped him launder it.
This is relevant because:
Lichtenstein and Morgan were recently sentenced to five years and 18 months in prison, respectively.
Netflix dropped a trailer for Biggest Heist Ever, a forthcoming documentary that details the coupleâs crimes.
A 2019 MacBook used by IRS criminal investigator Chris Janczewski when he worked the case will appear in the Smithsonian Museumâs âThe Value of Moneyâ gallery.
AROUND THE WEB
đ„ On this day: In 1986, Mike Tyson, then 20, became the youngest heavyweight boxing champion in history after defeating Trevor Berbick.
đ„ïž Useful: A website to find nontech jobs at tech companies.
đȘ§ Thatâs interesting: A graphic designer explains type revival, or recreating period typefaces digitally for use in TV and film.
