The weekend is here! Pour yourself a mug of Danish Blend coffee, grab a seat outside, and get ready for our longer-form weekend reads:
• The Gizmo Empire: How a flair for infomercials, TikTok and an endless stream of whiz-bang home appliances turned SharkNinja into a $6 billion behemoth. (Bloomberg free)
• AI 101: Economy: Five ways AI is driving growth. Artificial Intelligence is already a spark, accelerator and source of fuel for global economic growth. Even before it significantly moves the needle on productivity, there are five ways that AI is beginning to boost the economy – at least for now. (Deutsche Bank Securities)
• The DoorDash Problem: How AI browsers are a huge threat to Amazon: Amazon’s lawsuit against Perplexity has blown the doors open on the great AI browser fight. (The Verge)
• The Electric 911 Porsche Never Built: How One Tired 911, and One Austin Skunkworks Rewired an Icon (Everyday Driven)
• Who Was the Foodie? What it would mean to take taste seriously again. The problem isn’t just about the domination of food culture by internet aesthetics. Instead, it’s about the way food enthusiasts use those aesthetics to curate away complexity and discomfort, leaving food systems unchallenged and food culture shallow. (Yale Review) see also ‘The English person with a Chinese stomach’: how Fuchsia Dunlop became a Sichuan food hero: The author has been explaining Sichuan cuisine to westerners for decades. But ‘Fu Xia’, as she’s known, has had a profound effect on food lovers in China, too. (The Guardian)
• Med Spa Nation: There are almost as many med spas as McDonald’s in the US, ready to serve you a smoother forehead, glowier skin, and fuller lips. Are you safe placing an order? (Allure)
• ‘I awoke at ½ past 7’ Our cursed age of self-monitoring and optimisation didn’t start with big tech: as so often, the Victorians are to blame (Aeon)
• The Blue Book Burglar: High-Stakes Heists and Artistic: The Social Register was a who’s who of America’s rich and powerful—the heirs of robber barons, scions of political dynasties, and descendants of Mayflower passengers. It was also the perfect hit list for the country’s hardest-working art thief. (Atavist)
• How do the pros get someone to leave a cult? Manipulate them into thinking it was their idea. Two of the world’s leading cult interventionists live (with their parrot) in Philadelphia. They explain the art of coaxing people out of the most pernicious groups in the world. (The Guardian)
• The Biggest Failure in a Century of Sneakers: The entirely avoidable disaster that was Steph Curry and Under Armour. (Slate)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Morgan Housel, whose new book, “The Art of Spending Money, Simple Choices for a Richer Life” was just published. His first book, “The Psychology of Money” sold over 10 million copies.
Fox News Poll: Voters say White House is doing more harm than good on economy
Source: Fox News
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