On today's episode, we discuss what happens next now that the newsletter boom has faded, Uber getting serious about grocery, how Starbucks is defying inflation, whether Spotify can revolutionize podcast ads, robots doing all of our housework, an unpopular opinion about TikTok's hype, why so many baseballs are used during a game, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our director of reports editing Rahul Chadha and analysts Suzy Davidkhanian and Blake Droesch.
Finally, some good inflation news: The US consumer price index didn’t increase in July, which could restore some faith in ad spending.
An EV pricing debacle: Rising prices for EVs like Ford’s F-150 Lighting run afoul of proposed US tax credit requirements. Premature pressure for domestic EV battery sourcing could make inflation worse.
We unpack why Amazon’s latest offering and new partnership with Headspace Health means for competitors like CVS Health.
New gov’t tool tracks correlation between pollution, social health factors, and patient health: We explain what the government’s new Environmental Justice Index means for community health.
Digital startups to watch this week: We spotlight funding rounds from predictive analytics platform Biofourmis, AI medical documentation company Abridge, and virtual health clinic Salvo Health.
AppLovin’s bid to acquire Unity is a landmark moment: Whether the $17.5 billion deal goes through or not, there is no stopping the coming integration of ads in games.
Roblox isn’t growing: The young-skewing gaming/metaverse platform reported lower net bookings than Q2 2021.
Disney+ gets out in front of Netflix: When it comes to launching and announcing pricing for its ad-supported tier, that is.
The great disconnection: Google is imploring Apple to enable cross-platform messaging between iPhones and Android devices. But the blue bubble is the crown jewel of its walled garden.
Chipotle pays the price for violating workers’ rights: The fast-food chain will pay NYC workers $20 million in the largest fair workweek settlement in the US.
Advertiser pullback weighs on Nextdoor: Neighborhood platform projects sales for current quarter that trail analysts’ estimates.
The RealReal’s worker shortage is hurting its ability to grow: The resale platform missed Q2 revenue expectations due to lack of inventory, while its labor-intensive model could complicate its efforts to break even by 2024.
Google’s expanding cloud: Weeks after announcing its Latin America expansion, Google Cloud set its sights on Thailand, Malaysia, and New Zealand. Cloud providers are racing for coverage in the APAC region.
For the love of bots: Economic uncertainty and continued supply chain angst aren’t stopping the robotics sector from making science fiction a reality. With bots permeating society, ethics battles will follow.
Self-scanning stores are about to get a lot more common: 7-Eleven, Dollar General, and Best Buy are among the US merchants that are bullish on self-checkout services.
The number of financial services deals declined 31% compared to Q1.
It expanded its Visa Direct integration so US customers can send payments to eligible Visa cardholders in six countries.