Thursday, June 22, 2023

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Morning Brew

Cariuma

Good morning. The Women's World Cup is less than one month away, and the two-time defending champ, the USA, is looking to make history: No country's team, men's or women's, has won the World Cup back-to-back-to-back.

The quest to break the record began for real yesterday when the US released its 23-player roster. It's heavy on newbies—14 players will be making their World Cup debut, joining vets like Alex Morgan, Julie Ertz, and Megan Rapinoe.

So, get very hype, but also be aware that many games will be on at odd hours (like, 3am ET) since the tournament is being held in Australia and New Zealand. Surprisingly, some US cities are not being total squares about it: Washington, DC, just approved a proposal allowing restaurants and bars to remain open 24/7 during the World Cup.

Abby Rubenstein, Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, Matty Merritt, Neal Freyman

MARKETS

Nasdaq

13,502.20

S&P

4,365.69

Dow

33,951.52

10-Year

3.725%

Bitcoin

$29,913.06

Alphabet

$120.55

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 3:00am ET. Here's what these numbers mean.

  • Markets: Stocks suffered their third consecutive day of losses yesterday as Big Tech shares, which had been powering recent gains, fell after investors listened to Jerome Powell tell Congress that the Fed will start raising interest rates again before the end of the year to tackle inflation.
 

POLITICS

Modi means business on his US state visit

Indian Prime Minister Modi in front of Indian and US flags on his state visit to the US MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the US on Tuesday, and tonight he'll be feted at a state dinner—making him only the third world leader to get one during Joe Biden's presidency. While we don't know whether the guest of honor will enjoy the saffron-infused risotto, we do know what he'll be talking about in between bites: deepening economic ties.

One major topic will be a guest not invited: China. With US–China relations fraught, American companies are looking to diversify their manufacturing base, and India has been seizing the opportunity that provides.

India and the US are already plenty economically intertwined—especially in the tech sector:

  • Apple has shifted some iPhone production from China to India, and CEO Tim Cook attended the opening of the nation's first Apple store in April.
  • About half of IBM's workforce is located in India, according to Axios.
  • Around 60 Fortune 500 companies are run by CEOs of Indian origin, including Google and Adobe.

And with CEOs from Apple, Microsoft, FedEx, and Marriott among the anticipated guests at tonight's gala, per CNBC, the relationship will only get stronger. New deals are expected to be announced during Modi's stay, and he's hoping to return home with:

  • A promise from Tesla. The prime minister met with self-proclaimed Modi "fan" Elon Musk on Tuesday, and Musk said Modi pushed for "significant investments" in India—which Musk said he intends to make. The Tesla CEO said the company will be in India "as soon as humanly possible."
  • Permission to manufacture military jet engines. It's been in the works for a while, but the Biden administration will probably officially authorize General Electric to make F414 engines in India, a necessary step since defense technology is heavily regulated.

There's a catch: Both the US and India want to counter China's economic might, but there are concerns about Modi's record on human rights: He has cracked down on dissent and free speech and helped sow religious discord.—AR

     

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WORLD

Tour de headlines

An OceanGate tourist submersible An undated photo of an OceanGate tourist submersible. OceanGate / Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Search widens, time narrows for missing Titanic sub. If the Titan, the submersible that went missing Sunday with five people on board as it journeyed toward the wreckage of the Titanic, is not found by around 6am today, there is little hope of there being survivors due to a lack of oxygen. However, as of yesterday, the Coast Guard said it was still a search-and-rescue mission, and more ships were sent out to search an area twice the size of Connecticut.

Alito is the latest SCOTUS justice accused of ethical missteps. ProPublica reported that Justice Samuel Alito ran afoul of financial disclosure laws by failing to report accepting a seat on a private plane to a luxury Alaska fishing trip from hedge-fund billionaire and Republican donor Paul Singer. It noted that Singer subsequently had cases before the high court, including one his firm won concerning billions of dollars in debt repayments from Argentina. Alito took the unusual step of defending himself in a Wall Street Journal op-ed published first, saying he had "no obligation" to recuse himself and wasn't even aware Singer was involved in the case.

Bad US accounting is good for Ukraine. After discovering a major error in its accounting, the Pentagon realized it could send another $6.2 billion worth of weapons to Ukraine—without having to ask Congress for more aid cash. The oopsie that the Pentagon described to the Washington Post as "valuation errors" first came to light last month, but then it was considered only $3 billion because the Pentagon got the math wrong…again. The news comes as Ukraine needs to gear up for its counteroffensive to win back territory seized by Russia since the invasion.

TECH

FTC claims Amazon duped users into getting Prime

Gavel coming down on the Amazon logo Francis Scialabba

Raise your hand if you have ever been personally victimized by Amazon Prime's user design.

The FTC certainly thinks you have. Yesterday, the agency filed a lawsuit alleging that Amazon violated consumer protection laws by manipulating millions of customers into signing up—and staying signed up—for its $139-a-year Prime service. The lawsuit claims Amazon did this by:

  • Making it harder for customers to buy products without a Prime membership.
  • Utilizing "dark patterns," a design tactic that subtly convinces users to perform a specific action, to get people to enroll in Prime without their consent.
  • Designing a cancellation process that took six clicks, which was referred to internally as the "Iliad Flow," a reference to Homer's doorstop epic poem.

The lawsuit accused Amazon leadership of being complicit in the company "tricking and trapping" customers, saying that they "slowed or rejected changes that would've made it easier for users to cancel Prime because those changes adversely affected Amazon's bottom line."

It's not just Amazon: The FTC proposed rule changes in March that would require companies to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up for one. So, the days of spending an hour on the phone to cancel that subscription you signed up for impulsively may soon be over. —CC

     

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FOOD & BEV

Lab-grown chicken greenlit for US sales

Lab-grown chicken is approved for US consumption for the first time Getty Images/ Photo Illustration: Hannah Minn

Some diners will soon be able to skip the egg and get straight to the chicken: Two Bay Area-based startups received the go-ahead yesterday from the US Department of Agriculture to sell lab-grown poultry to American consumers for the first time.

The scientist-made meat will initially only be available in two swanky restaurants (one in San Francisco and one in Washington, DC), but the startups, Good Meat and Upside Foods, plan to roll it out to grocery stores eventually.

Supporters of slaughter-free "cultured" meat—which grows from a sample of an animal's cells—say this is a big step toward a more humane and environmentally friendly meat industry.  But the challenge of scaling production could keep cultured meat a novelty for those who can afford it.

  • Upside hopes to expand production to 400,000 pounds of cultured meat per year. According to poultry industry experts Watt Global Media, Tyson, America's largest poultry producer, churns out about 200 million pounds…per week.
  • The startups haven't revealed the price for their lab-grown chicken cutlets, but they're expected to eventually cost $20 per pound, rivaling the cost of high-quality organic chicken.

Zoom out: It'll be years before lab-grown chicken makes it to grocery store shelves, but in that time, scientist-made pork, lamb, fish, and beef could also get approved—150 companies worldwide are looking to grow their own meat and have already raised $3 billion.—ML

     

GRAB BAG

Key performance indicators

A Singapore Airline plane in flight Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Stat: If you've been putting off booking your summer vacation, you might want to consider flying on Singapore Airlines. The carrier ranked No. 1 in Skytrax's annual survey of the world's best airlines. But, if you're willing to spend big, it may be best to go with No. 2, Qatar Airways, which was voted best business class airline and lounge. To get to a US-based airline, you have to travel down the list to Delta at No. 20. American Airlines came in at No. 82, behind United (49), JetBlue (55), and even Southwest (60).

Quote: "Send me location."

A battle of the tech billionaires is brewing: After Elon Musk tweeted that he'd be "up for a cage match" against Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg, the newly ripped Zuck agreed to take him up on the offer via Instagram. A Meta spokesperson confirmed to The Verge that Zuck's reply was not a joke. The rivalry stems from Meta's efforts to build a Twitter competitor, which prompted Musk, who runs five companies, to tweet measured and mature responses like "Zuck my ." If the tech titans have it out, our money's on recent jujitsu tournament winner Zuck, even if Musk is pretty scrappy.

Read: A Nobel Prize-winning economist wonders whether Taylor Swift is underpaid. (New York Times)

NEWS

What else is brewing

  • An explosion in Paris injured more than 30 people. Authorities say the cause has not yet been determined.
  • Marvel Studios used AI to make the opening credits for its new Secret Invasion show, and artists are not happy about it.
  • Hunter Boots has filed for the British version of bankruptcy, but its sturdy wellies will likely live on thanks to an IP sale.
  • Denver is hosting a major psychedelics conference and the featured speakers include quarterback Aaron Rodgers, musician Melissa Etheridge, and the co-founder of Whole Foods.
  • Invasion: A town in Nevada is fighting off a horde of blood-red crickets, while Florida's Broward County was put under quarantine due to the presence of a dangerous species of African land snail.

RECS

To do list Thursday

Meet us in Lima: That's where the newly crowned best restaurant in the world is.

 Pharrell made fashionistas happy: Here are the highlights from his debut Louis Vuitton show. (Or watch the whole thing here.)

Condiment comparison: Who does Heinz ketchup better, the US or Canada?

AI dream catcher: This AI doesn't just want to hear about your dream from last night, night—it'll also animate it based on your description.

 Hiring? HR Brew's latest guide helps you weigh the pros and cons of hiring internally vs. externally. Check it out.

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Size isn't everything: The internal combustion engine is big, heavy, and inefficient. LiquidPiston is reinventing the engine to make it smaller but just as strong. Read about their advancements + how you can invest.*

*This is sponsored advertising content.

GAMES

The puzzle section

Brew Mini: See if you can beat Neal's time of 2:21 in today's Mini (feat. dog breeds and a Star Wars character). Play it here.

Three headlines and a lie

Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than the plants in your dentist's waiting room. Can you spot the odd one out?

  1. California restaurant had fake priest hear workers' confessions, Labor Department says
  2. Cash-strapped Taliban selling tickets to ruins of Buddhas it blew up
  3. PA Gov. Josh Shapiro credits Wawa's Hoagiefest promotion with expediting I-95 rebuild
  4. A 'Price Is Right' contestant celebrated so hard he dislocated his shoulder

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AROUND THE BREW

Escape the rent race?

Avocado toast lovers rejoice: The majority of millennials are actually on track to achieve homeownership. Read why here.

Hey, startups, want in on how to stand out? We've got you covered. Join us for a free virtual event on June 28. Learn more.

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ANSWER

We made up the Hoagiefest one, but the joke's on us because now we're hungry.

         

Written by Neal Freyman, Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, and Abigail Rubenstein

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