| Good morning. This top blurb is directed to all the college students reading this. First of all, you're still using email? Respect. Second, we're excited to announce that the Brew U campus ambassador program is back for the fall semester. This program is for all students who want hands-on business experience and a peek behind the scenes at a fast-growing startup. Plus, you can win free swag. Bottom line: If you're obsessed with the Brew and want to become as famous on campus as the football players, learn more here. | | | |  | Nasdaq | 14,835.76 | | | | | S&P | 4,436.52 | | | | | Dow | 35,208.51 | | | | | Bitcoin | $43,824.34 | | | | | 10-Year | 1.303% | | | | | Oil | $67.19 | | | | *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 8:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean. | - Markets: If you've been getting the sense we've been writing "all-time high" in this section a lot...your gut is correct. The S&P 500 has notched 44 record closes this year due to companies recovering from the pandemic more quickly than expected.
- Covid: Average daily case numbers in the US have topped 100k, the highest level since February. Austin, TX, warned of a "dire" situation with only six ICU beds available as of Saturday.
| | | Adam Pretty/Getty Images | Just as we finally figured out how to watch the Olympics, they ended on Sunday. From the moving family watch party videos to the thrusting Australian swim coach, the Tokyo Olympics gave us all a desperately needed distraction while raising thorny questions about the future of the Games. Here are the numbers that tell the story of the weirdest Olympics ever. 113: The number of total medals the US won at the Olympics, 25 more than second-place China. Team USA also made a last-second comeback to grab the most number of gold medals at the Games, 39 to China's 38. $15.4 billion: The official price tag for the Tokyo Olympics, making it the most expensive Games ever staged. 0.02%: The Covid-19 test positivity rate for people participating in the Olympics. Organizers found 430 Olympics-related infections since July 1 out of 624,000 tests, and no serious cases. Overall, the bubble created for more than 50,000 people held up really well. 16 million: Instagram interactions for Simone Biles's account during the Olympics, per Axios. The famed US gymnast, who withdrew from most competitions over mental health concerns, had the top eight Instagram posts among all American athletes. 42%: The decrease in viewership from the 2016 Rio Olympics to the Tokyo Games through Tuesday. NBCUniversal, which paid more than $1 billion to air the Olympics, struggled with a whacky time zone difference, lower enthusiasm, and its own confusing menu of viewing options. 179: Days until the Winter Olympics kick off in Beijing, which is already facing a number of coronavirus and geopolitical questions. More than 180 human rights groups have called for a boycott over China's treatment of the Uighurs, officially considered a "genocide" by the US government. Major corporate sponsors, like Visa and Coca-Cola, remain on board for now despite pressure. Looking beyond this winter, Paris will host the 2024 Summer Games, followed by LA in 2028. | | | Apple reignited the "what happens on your phone, stays on your phone" debate when it introduced new features last week intended to clamp down on child abuse content. The company said its new technology, called NeuralHash, will scan US iPhones for images of child sexual abuse that have also been uploaded to iCloud. If a photo is matched to one in an existing database of child pornography images, it will have a human team review its accuracy then flag it for authorities. The supporters: Many parents, probably, and governments across the world who've pressured tech companies to proactively root out abusive content. - Key soundbite: "Apple's plans to combat child sexual exploitation are a welcome, innovative, and bold step," Sen. Richard Blumenthal tweeted.
The opponents: Privacy activists and other tech companies who say Apple's moves could allow bad actors to exploit greater access to someone's personal device. - Key soundbite: "This is an Apple-built and operated surveillance system that could very easily be used to scan private content for anything they or a government decides it wants to control," the head of Facebook's WhatsApp Will Cathcart said.
Looking ahead...Apple's scanning technology is part of a larger suite of child protection features that Apple will roll out with its new mobile operating system, iOS 15, next month. | | | Giphy | The passage of an infrastructure bill that would bolster investment in one of humanity's oldest inventions—roads and bridges—is being complicated by a debate over one of its newest: cryptocurrencies. Tucked in to the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill is a provision that expands the definition of a crypto "broker," and increases reporting requirements by those brokers to the IRS. The goal is to use the $28 billion raised through tighter crypto regulation to help pay for the infrastructure bill. That's not playing well in cryptoland The provision "makes no sense," Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong tweeted last week, arguing that the rules would wrap so much red tape around crypto that key players would leave the US for locations with less regulation. Even Elon Musk chimed in, saying, "There is no crisis that compels hasty legislation." Some senators agree, and several of them introduced changes (endorsed by the White House) that would limit the crypto participants exposed to the new reporting requirements. Looking ahead...once this and other issues get resolved, a final vote looks likely to happen Tuesday. | | | | Sure, we all would love to be real estate moguls: owning properties across the country while benefiting from both steady returns and long-term appreciation. It sounds pretty awesome. But not all of us have the extra time, energy, or cash to start investing. Or so we thought. Enter: Fundrise. They believe that real estate belongs in everyone's portfolio, and have made it easy for investors looking to take the next step by removing high fees, intermediaries, and other barriers that have traditionally stood in the way of real estate investing. Fundrise lets you build a portfolio of premium assets across the country at the touch of a button. With Fundrise you can unlock real estate's potential returns, all while you humblebrag about your properties in LA, Philly, and Chicago. So stop thinking that real estate is out of reach. Start building a better portfolio with Fundrise today. | | | Stat: Average pay at US supermarkets and restaurants hit $15/hour for the first time ever, according to the Washington Post. Nearly 80% of US workers now earn a minimum of $15/hour, compared to 60% in 2014. Quote: "The circumstances have changed." Randi Weingarten, the president of the second-largest teachers union in the country, the American Federation of Teachers, said on Meet the Press that she had reversed her thinking and now supports a vaccine mandate for teachers. "It weighs really heavily on me that kids under 12 can't get vaccinated," Weingarten said. Read: What do you do with a billion grams of surplus weed? (The Walrus) | | | Francis Scialabba | Inflation: Six letters could help determine what happens next on Wall Street—CPI and PPI. The consumer price index and the producer price index, which drop Wed. and Thurs., respectively, will reveal the extent of price increases in July for consumers and businesses. Higher inflation, paired with Friday's strong jobs report, could encourage the Fed to wind down some of its pandemic-era stimulus measures in the next few months. Earnings: S&P 500 companies are estimated to have increased earnings 90% during Q2 from a year earlier, when the pandemic forced the economy into hibernation. This week's slate of earnings reports includes meme stock AMC, SoftBank, Coinbase, eBay, Wendy's, Disney, Palantir, DoorDash, and Airbnb. Everything else: - The Islamic New Year begins this evening.
- Samsung's Unpacked event is on Thursday with a look at new foldable phone models.
- Friday is the 13th. Prepare accordingly.
| | - One of the most significant climate change reports in years drops today.
- Alibaba suspended several staff members after a female employee said she was sexually assaulted by her boss and a client.
- Berkshire Hathaway revealed a strong quarter as the booming economy lifted its various businesses, which include railroads and insurance.
- The latest TikTok trend: eating frozen honey.
| | | Invest in plant medicines. When you invest in Ei.Ventures, you're helping people who suffer from mental illness. It's an estimated $35 billion market. Ei.Ventures is bringing the healing power of these breakthrough medicines to the world. Get more info here.* The Farmer's Dog puts the "food" in "dog food" with recipes made from real, fresh, meat and vegetables, not highly processed mystery-fillers. Catch ya later, kibble. Get healthier pet food delivered with 50% off your first box today.* Dive back into the week. *This is sponsored advertising content | | | | MB/A is our 8-week program designed to take your career to the next level. Whether you're trying to become a better leader, get a big promotion, grow your network, or have the next great startup idea, MB/A can get you where you want to be. We're now accepting applications for our second cohort starting on September 7, but spots are limited. Join the best and brightest from Morning Brew's community and fill out the quick MB/A application before the August 15 deadline. Apply here. | | | Kriss Kross: Click here to try out our new puzzle format; we guarantee you will not be disappointed by the theme. Guess the name This chart from the Baby Name Explorer shows the popularity for which name in the US? 
| | | ✢ A Note From Fundrise (Here's all the legal jargon we know you love reading.) | | | Written by Neal Freyman Illustrations & graphics by Francis Scialabba Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here. | ADVERTISE // CAREERS // SHOP // FAQ
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