- Will's Weekly Roundup
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- Will's Weekly Roundup
Will's Weekly Roundup is a curated list of tech, business, and startup headlines from last week to kickstart your Monday.
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Business
The business headlines you missed (or need to see again)...
McDonald's launched its drive-thru-only concept CosMc's, featuring a Starbucks-meets-Sonic menu. LINK
Blackstone released its annual holiday video, and this year it was all about Taylor Swift. LINK
The American Dream of two kids, a house, and a car, now costs $3.4 million. LINK
Microsoft completed its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the publisher of Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. LINK
SmileDirect, the teledentistry company, shut down but still wants customers to pay for incomplete treatments. LINK
Americans have a collective $21 billion in unspent gift cards. LINK
Netflix released its full viewership data for the first time, revealing The Mother, starring Jennifer Lopez, to be the most-watched movie of the year at 258 million total hours watched. LINK
Congress passed a record $886 billion annual defense spending bill, which included aid for Ukraine and pushback against China in the Indo-Pacific. LINK
Tech
The tech headlines you missed (or need to see again)...
Google faked its Gemini AI demo that was released last week. LINK
Bathhouse, the trendy Brooklyn spa club, uses Bitcoin mining machines to heat its pools. LINK
The FDA approved the first gene-editing treatment to treat sickle cell disease. LINK
Tesla Model Y is the best-selling new vehicle worldwide in 2023. LINK
Apple’s new journaling app released with iOS 17.2 is almost perfect. LINK
Autopilot defects could be affecting more than 2 million Teslas. LINK
Watchlist
Startups and companies I’m keeping an eye on…
Opal is a screen time app that sets app limits that are virtually impossible to bypass. LINK
i-Virtual is a French medtech startup that can measure vital signs via selfie videos. LINK
ParkerDewy is a marketplace for short-term, paid, professional assignments (micro-internships) for college students. LINK
Kodiak gives trucks, tanks, and Ford 150s autonomous driving capabilities by installing devices in place of the vehicle’s side mirrors. LINK
Tulu provides smart, vending-machine-style stores that offer on-demand access to daily essentials like printers and scooters for apartment buildings and hotels. LINK
SeeQ makes high-protein juices as an alternative to traditional protein shakes. LINK
Verve Motion manufactured an exosuit that wears like a small backpack and takes 40% of the strain off lifting items. LINK
Presto is an AI-powered voice system that takes orders automatically at drive-thrus. LINK
Woola uses waste wool to replace plastic packaging for e-commerce and luxury retailers. LINK
Mistral AI is a Paris-based OpenAI rival that recently closed its Series A at a $2 billion valuation. LINK
Smart Cups developed cups where the beverage flavor contents are 3D printed into the cup itself, which then dissolve upon adding water. LINK
Air created an AI phone sales rep that is pretty convincing. LINK
Renovate Robotics makes autonomous roofing robots that are more reliable than humans. LINK
Blackshark uses AI to detect objects automatically from satellite imagery. LINK
Top Picks
Specific articles and videos worth taking a look at…
Musk had a falling out with OpenAI in 2018 after co-founding the company. NYT
University presidents had a disastrous recent congressional testimony about antisemitism. AXIOS
Jeff Bezos spoke on Lex Fridman’s podcast about Amazon and Blue Origin. YOUTUBE
Outside Interests
Interesting internet finds…
Menu anxiety affects an overwhelming 86% of Gen Zers when ordering at a restaurant. LINK
Soho House stopped adding new members out of concern that the club is losing its exclusivity. LINK
Kid Cudi received an honorary Master’s degree, recognizing his achievements in fashion. LINK
Antigua & Barbuda passports can be acquired in 3-4 months for only $100,000. LINK
Only 11% of the UAE’s 9.8 million population are citizens of the country. LINK
One&Only, the world-renowned luxury resort, is opening its first U.S. location in Montana called Moonlight Basin. LINK
The Obamas have produced their first fiction film on Netflix called "Leave The World Behind" about a cyberattack that shuts down all the country's power. Here’s the trailer. LINK
Israel is rumored to have unlawfully used US-supplied white phosphorus in a Lebanon attack. LINK
Scorigami was achieved in the Raiders' victory over the Chargers on Thursday. LINK
Bohemian Grove is a location involving US presidents, massive owl statues, and conspiracy theories. LINK
Rijks Collection is a digital gallery that makes you feel like you’re in a museum. LINK
Visuals
Three visuals worth taking a look at...
Unicorns are, once again, becoming mythical creatures.
There is a range and variety of entry points for alternative investments across a company’s life cycle.
Lightning strikes are more prevalent in tropical and equatorial regions, excluding Egypt where lightning seems to never strike.
Wisdom
Two quotes of wisdom...
"Open every door that you possibly can. Let the doors that close, close, and just keep walking through the ones that remain open." ― Jay Shetty
"Only the guy who isn’t rowing has time to rock the boat." ― Jean-Paul Sartre
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