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Plus: A Republican-led panel recommends that the Justice Department investigate all of former President Joe Biden’s executive actions. And, Chinese auto giant BYD logs a nearly fivefold surge in sales in Europe. Caitlin McCabe hosts.
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A.M. Edition for Oct. 28. According to people familiar with the matter, Amazon plans to cut roughly 10% of its corporate workforce, as it seeks to slim down, conserve cash and further employ AI. Plus, WSJ’s Jon Emont explains how a slew of billion-dollar deals is reshaping the once-dormant Western rare-earths industry. And, a Republican-led committee recommends that the Justice Department investigate former President Joe Biden’s executive actions, particularly his clemency decisions. Caitlin McCabe hosts.
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Zohar Bronfman spends most of his time in Tel Aviv, Israel these days. He has a focused academic background, specifically in philosophy and neuroscience. He was always intrigued by the question - how do we know what we know? - which led him to get a PhD in Philosophy. While doing that, he also became fascinated with he human mind and empirical decision making, which took him down the road of obtaining another PhD in AI & Neuroscience, essentially emulating brain processes. Outside of tech, he has 3 kids and a startup. He loves a good book in the philosophy or neuroscience space, and is a big fan of sports. Specifically, he loves the NBA and claims to be a Knicks fan.
Zohar and his now co-founder were digging into predictive models, as an extension of their academic studies. They were curious as to why companies, though they were running predictive models, were not making accurate predictions. They soon realized that this was because the AI modeling expertise was centralized at couple of well known companies.
This is the creation story of Pecan AI.
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In his new book, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales writes ”in the early years of the internet, we were right to be bullish about people and the technology. Our capacity for social connection, community and cooperation can deliver amazing things. But the very same human nature can deliver atrocities.”
Wales’s says he wrote this book to help combat a crisis of trust in society that is leading to the rise of authoritarianism. Marketplace’s Nova Safo asked him about the main lessons he learned from building Wikipedia into a highly-relied-upon source of information.
It’s Halloween, and Bridget and Ryan are trying to answer a question about the national debt while preparing for their town’s giant Halloween extravaganza. The town has taken on debt to make things extra spooky this year and things are starting to get a little out of control! Can Bridget and Ryan help the town navigate their monster debt?
(Grownups: This is episode does contain monsters but no jump scares! You know your kid listeners best, so exercise caution if Halloween is more tricky than treat for them!)
If your family is interested in learning even more about today’s question, check out our website. We’ve got conversation starters and a tip sheet!
This episode is sponsored by Greenlight. Sign up for Greenlight today at greenlight.com/million.
Hurricane Melissa intensifies into a Category 5 storm as Jamaica braces for catastrophic flooding and evacuations. The ongoing U.S. government shutdown halts SNAP benefits, leaving millions without food assistance. A U.S. missile destroyer arrives in the Caribbean amid escalating tensions with Venezuela. Washington threatens to pull funding from California over noncitizen commercial licenses, while LAX experiences major delays as unpaid air traffic controllers protest. Governor Gavin Newsom and former Vice President Kamala Harris both signal possible 2028 presidential runs. In business, El Segundo moves forward with plans for a $175 million surf park, and EV maker Rivian announces more than 600 layoffs amid slowing electric vehicle demand.
As wildfire seasons grow longer and deadlier, states are increasingly relying on private companies to provide thousands of firefighters to the front lines.
Hannah Dreier, who has been covering the story, explains how lax rules and regulatory loopholes have left many of these firefighters sick, in debt and on their own.
Guest: Hannah Dreier, a New York Times reporter who writes in-depth stories about national issues.
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Photo: Loren Elliott for The New York Times
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Ships of unknown origin or intent are flummoxing NATO forces on the high seas. Our correspondent visits the Latvian navy on the Virsaitis as it intercepts a mystery vessel. We examine China’s enormous gig economy and how 200m workers are turning precarious conditions to their advantage. And a new book explores what people talk about when they talk about antisemitism.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Dana Farrington, Padma Rama, Tara Neil, Mohamad ElBardicy and Alice Woelfle .
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Ben Abrams and Christopher Thomas
We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
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States sound the alarm to residents, saying that the government shutdown will pause food program benefits this weekend. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino will stand before a judge in Chicago after allegedly tossing a tear gas canister into a crowd. And Jim Morrison, the man who skied down Mount Everest, describes his historic run to ABC.
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