
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>An outdoor concert and dance party in a rural area near the Gaza-Israel border turned into tragedy Saturday, when many attendees were killed or taken hostage by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip, adding to hundreds of Israeli casualties in the unprecedented attack.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>About 260 bodies were recovered from the festival grounds, though it’s expected the toll will rise, a spokesperson for ZAKA, an Israeli non-governmental rescue and recovery organization, told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/music-festival-revelers-israeli-desert-became-victims-hamas-militants-rcna119394" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multiple</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-ca7903976387cfc1e1011ce9ea805a71" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outlets</a>&nbsp;Sunday.</p>



<p>The SuperNova Festival—which celebrated the Jewish holiday Sukkot—took place in the Negev Desert near Urim, a kibbutz about 13 miles from the Gaza Strip.</p>



<p>Attendees&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/07/middleeast/israel-gaza-fighting-hamas-attack-music-festival-intl-hnk/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;CNN that once they heard the gunshots early Saturday morning they tried to flee, but cars were at a standstill and gunmen were still shooting, so some ran into nearby forests and hid.</p>



<p>One attendee described the scene to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mako.co.il/news-military/2023_q3/Article-f88c2856ee80b81026.htm?Partner=interlink" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">local media</a>&nbsp;as “four-five hours of a horror movie” and another described hearing sirens before the gunshots started, saying there were gunmen in every direction shooting at the concert-goers.</p>



<p>One festival-goer called it a “battlefield,” telling Israeli newspaper&nbsp;<a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-10-07/ty-article/.premium/survivors-of-massacre-at-israeli-outdoor-rave-describe-battlefield/0000018b-0a85-dae9-adcb-abbfa4990000" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Haaretz</em></a><em>&nbsp;</em>they saw gunmen firing from all directions and burnt-out cars on the street.</p>



<p>“Everyone just started running in all directions,” attendee Eliav Klein&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/music-festival-revelers-israeli-desert-became-victims-hamas-militants-rcna119394" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told</a>&nbsp;NBC News, adding his friend jumped off a 25-foot cliff; Klein estimated there were thousands at the festival, though there is not yet an official count of attendees.</p>



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<p>Some attendees were seen in social media videos being taken hostage by militants—CNN&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/07/middleeast/israel-gaza-fighting-hamas-attack-music-festival-intl-hnk/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;the details of a viral video in which an Israeli woman and her boyfriend were shown being kidnapped, and the woman’s family has since&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67047034" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">confirmed</a>&nbsp;to BBC they believe she was taken hostage.</p>



<p>Jake Marlowe, a 26-year-old British man who was working security at the festival, is missing and hasn’t been heard from since Saturday, when he texted his mother about the attack, Sky News&nbsp;<a href="https://news.sky.com/story/british-citizen-jake-marlowe-missing-after-hamas-attack-on-music-festival-in-israel-says-embassy-12979858#:~:text=A%20British%20citizen%20is%20missing,the%20festival%20in%20southern%20Israel" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“We are doing the best we can to help the security forces, maintaining constant contact with them and are positioned in the area taking part in searches in order to locate the missing,” Nova Festival said in a Hebrew&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/TRIBEofNOVA/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">statement</a>&nbsp;on social media translated by CNN, adding they “share the sorrow” of the missing and killed.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>1,100. That’s at least how many Israeli and Palestinian people have died since Hamas fighters entered Israel on Saturday. The Israeli death toll is past 700,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/IsraelMFA/status/1711091937514492031?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1711091937514492031%7Ctwgr%5E82081fcc6e897c4ff5356e244afd539a6f0eb034%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2Flive%2F2023%2F10%2F08%2Fworld%2Fisrael-gaza-attack-hamas-news" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the Israel Foreign Ministry, and the Palestinian Ministry of Health&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2023/10/08/americans-taken-hostage-in-hamas-attack-on-israel-as-death-toll-passes-1000/?sh=28673215239b">said</a>&nbsp;there were about 413 Palestinians who had been killed.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>On Saturday, Gaza-based militant group Hamas launched an attack on Israel from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/barrage-of-rockets-fired-at-israel-from-gaza-strip-d5b2f05f" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">air, land and sea</a>, with militants crossing the Gaza Strip border into southern Israel while Hamas fired rockets toward Israeli cities, leading to one of the worst attacks on Israel in decades. The festival grounds were reportedly one of the first places gunmen attacked, capturing and killing civilians. Throughout Saturday night into Sunday, residents of Gaza faced Israeli airstrikes, while sirens to warn of potential attacks rang through the night in Israel. The Israeli military is widely expected to launch a large-scale counterattack on Gaza: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/10/07/israel-vows-mighty-vengeance-unprecedented-hamas-attack-leaves-at-least-200-dead/?sh=e0f214d688dd">said</a>&nbsp;the scale of the attack “has never been seen in Israel,” and vowed to “take mighty vengeance for this black day.” Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif called the attack the “day of the greatest battle to end the last occupation on earth,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/07/israel-declares-state-of-war-alert-after-surprise-hamas-attack.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multiple</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-762052" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outlets</a>&nbsp;reported. Throughout Sunday, death and injury tolls have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2023/10/08/americans-taken-hostage-in-hamas-attack-on-israel-as-death-toll-passes-1000/?sh=28673215239b">continued to rise</a>&nbsp;and more information about hostages has been released, as well. Hamas has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, after Israeli forces withdrew from the occupied territory two years prior, and the narrow, densely populated coastal territory has remained under an Israeli and Egyptian blockade since then, with occasional flare-ups between Hamas and Israel’s military.</p>


Israeli airstrikes continue in Gaza

At Least 260 Killed At Israeli Music Festival In Hamas Attack—Attendees Describe ‘Horror Movie’


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Elon Musk, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/?sh=5b8ba5487999">the world’s richest man</a>, grew his net worth by $10.5 billion Wednesday, a 4.2% increase, on the back of an approximately 6% jump in Tesla’s stock, which comprises a vast majority of his wealth—putting his total riches at $260.4 billion.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Tesla’s 5.9% increase brought the share price to about $261 for the stock when markets closed Wednesday afternoon.</p>



<p>This comes despite a&nbsp;<a href="https://ir.tesla.com/press-release/tesla-vehicle-production-deliveries-and-date-financial-results-webcast-third-quarter-2023" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>&nbsp;released Monday that showed a 7% decline in vehicle deliveries during the third quarter, something the company blamed on factories being temporarily shut down for upgrades.</p>



<p>Still, investors bet on a fourth-quarter rebound with the launch of a revamped Model 3 car in China and the expected launch of the Cybertruck, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.investors.com/news/tesla-stock-flashes-buy-signal-leads-sp-500-bulls-shrug-off-bad-news/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Investor’s Business Daily</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Musk first&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk/?sh=27503b4726af">jumped</a>&nbsp;into the top spot on&nbsp;<em>Forbes’&nbsp;</em>Billionaires List in September 2021. “I’m sending a giant statue of the digit ‘2’ to Jeffrey B., along with a silver medal,” he told&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>after&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/jeff-bezos/?sh=4ffe328c1b23">overtaking Amazon’s Jeff Bezos</a>—who, with a $149.8 billion estimated net worth, is now No. 3—for the spot. Recently, he and French fashion mogul&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/bernard-arnault/?list=rtb/&amp;sh=25a8e88f66fa">Bernard Arnault</a>&nbsp;have been flipping back and forth between the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, though Musk has maintained his spot as No. 1 in recent weeks. Around $170.6 billion of his $260.4 billion net worth comes in the form of Tesla stock. Other significant assets include his 42% stake in SpaceX, which amounts to $60.2 billion, and his acquisition of Twitter in October 2022, which is now worth $8.9 billion (he purchased the social media platform for $44 billion).&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>estimates he has $5.2 billion in cash and other liquid assets.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Musk has given away a meager fraction of his wealth to charitable causes,&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>has found.&nbsp;<em>Forbes</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk/?sh=27503b4726af">estimates</a>&nbsp;Musk, who signed the Giving Pledge in 2012, has donated $281 million over his lifetime to charitable causes, which is less than 1% of his net worth as of September 2023. Though, he’s not alone among America’s richest in his lack of philanthropy. Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, Nvidia cofounder Jensen Huang and 124 others on&nbsp;<em>Forbes’&nbsp;</em>400 list have all given away&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/phoebeliu/2023/10/03/the-forbes-philanthropy-score-2023-how-charitable-are-the-richest-americans/?sh=51f3f084eccc">less than 1%</a>&nbsp;of their wealth. Of the 400 richest Americans, only a handful have given away&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/phoebeliu/2023/10/03/the-forbes-philanthropy-score-2023-how-charitable-are-the-richest-americans/?sh=51f3f084eccc">more than 20%</a>&nbsp;of their wealth: John Arnold, Edythe Broad, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates, Amos Hostetter Jr., Pierre Omidyar, MacKenzie Scott, Lynn Schusterman, Jeff Skoll and George Soros.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk/?sh=27503b4726af">Elon Musk’s Road To Riches: Behind The Billions</a> (Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/10/03/grimes-reportedly-sues-elon-musk-over-parental-rights-to-child/?sh=3131bc3421ed">Grimes Reportedly Sues Elon Musk Over Parental Rights To Child</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/09/12/musk-bio-bombshells-secret-child-techno-mechanicus-and-rocky-romantic-relationships-among-these-explosive-revelations/?sh=4322672b17b4">Musk Bio Bombshells: Secret Child Techno Mechanicus And Rocky Romantic Relationships Among These Explosive Revelations</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/10/02/elon-musk-sued-for-falsely-linking-man-to-neo-nazi-group-and-federal-agency/?sh=3cc354ea7956">Elon Musk Sued For Falsely Linking Man To Neo-Nazi Group—And Federal Agency</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/09/18/elon-musk-says-he-might-put-xtwitter-behind-a-paywall/?sh=639508407209">Elon Musk Says He Might Put X/Twitter Behind A Paywall</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


gettyimages-490597722-594×594

Elon Musk Becomes $10 Billion Richer After Tesla Stock Shoots Up 6%


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>The Food and Drug Administration gave&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/coronavirus-covid-19-cber-regulated-biologics/novavax-covid-19-vaccine-adjuvanted#:~:text=Novavax%20COVID-19%20Vaccine%2C%20Adjuvanted%20is%20available%20under%20emergency%20use,years%20of%20age%20and%20older" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">emergency use authorization</a>&nbsp;on Tuesday to Novavax’s new Covid vaccine designed to target the coronavirus’ dominant XBB sublineage, which is fueling a spike in cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the country.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>At&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/public-health/updated-covid-vaccine-who-should-get-it-and-when-it-will-be-available" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$130</a>&nbsp;a dose, the vaccine was approved for those 12 years and older—for those already vaccinated with any vaccine, one dose can be given at least two months after a person’s last Covid shot, and two doses administered three months apart can be given to the unvaccinated.</p>



<p>Novavax’s approval follows the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/09/11/fda-approves-new-covid-vaccines-to-target-latest-strains/?sh=1be38e906e09">approval</a>&nbsp;of Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s monovalent vaccines targeting new coronavirus variant, which were also given emergency use authorization last month by the FDA for those six months and older.</p>



<p>This comes after the agency&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/169591/download?attachment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">encouraged</a>&nbsp;Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax to create new monovalent vaccines that target the XBB lineage, which makes up the majority of the variants circulating in the U.S.</p>



<p>The Novavax vaccine&nbsp;<a href="https://ir.novavax.com/press-releases/US-CDC-and-Advisory-Committee-Recommend-Use-of-Authorized-and-Approved-2023-2024-Monovalent-XBB-COVID-19-Vaccines" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">received approval</a>&nbsp;from an advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month, though it still awaits approval from the agency’s director.</p>



<p>This is the first time since the shots were commercialized that they won’t be free, and both&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-health-business-covid-medicare-1a5d65356ebc7b5bc76524ae99deb55e" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/moderna-expects-price-its-covid-vaccine-about-130-us-2023-03-20/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Moderna</a>&nbsp;estimate their shots will cost between $110 and $130 a dose.</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<p>Though most insurance companies are expected to cover the cost of Covid boosters, the CDC’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2023/07/13/cdc-launch-bridge-access-program-fall-2023-provide-free-covid-19-vaccines-treatments-uninsured-underinsured-adults.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bridge Program</a>&nbsp;is set to launch this fall, providing Covid vaccine coverage to the uninsured.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Covid-related deaths and hospitalizations have increased since the start of the summer and are expected to keep rising as fall and winter kick into gear. Deaths increased by 8% between September 17 and September 23, and hospitalizations stood at 19,079 during this period, according to the CDC’s most recent data. EG.5, or the “Eris” variant—part of the XBB lineage—is the dominant strain in the U.S., making up 29.4% of all cases between September 17 and September 30. As of June, the XBB omicron subvariants made up 95% of all Covid cases in the U.S., according to an FDA&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/169591/download?attachment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>. The existing bivalent boosters offer about 50% protection against XBB variants in most adults and about 33% protection in those 65 years and older, according to a January&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7205e1.htm?s_cid=mm7205e1_w" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>&nbsp;conducted by the CDC. Moderna&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2023/Moderna-Clinical-Trial-Data-Confirm-Its-Updated-COVID-19-Vaccine-Generates-Robust-Immune-Response-in-Humans-Against-Widely-Circulating-Variants/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;its new booster may be effective at protecting against the Eris variant, Novavax&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/22/covid-novavax-vaccine-eris-variant.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;its shot provided a broad immune response against Eris in small animals and Pfizer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/pfizers-updated-covid-shot-effective-against-eris-variant-mice-study-2023-08-17/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;its new shot protected against the variant when tested on mice. Because the current bivalent boosters don’t specifically protect against XBB, some experts&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/08/21/new-covid-boosters-expected-this-fall-why-some-doctors-suggest-holding-off-on-getting-your-next-booster-until-then/?sh=447d21af438b">recommend</a>&nbsp;waiting until the new monovalent boosters release before getting an updated shot.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contra">CONTRA</h2>



<p>An earlier round of updated Covid boosters provided additional protection against previous variants, but only&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccination-states-jurisdictions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">17%</a>&nbsp;of the U.S. has received at least one booster.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>A new Covid variant called BA.2.86, or “Pirola,” is a descendant of the BA sublineage and has begun circulating in the U.S. Although there aren’t enough cases for it to appear on the CDC’s variant tracker, the World Health Organization has&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1692255671687794902" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">labeled</a>&nbsp;it as a variant under monitoring. This is because Pirola has 36 more&nbsp;<a href="https://slides.com/jbloom/new_2nd_gen_ba2_variant?ftag=YHF4eb9d17#/3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mutation spikes</a>&nbsp;than XBB.1.5—the dominant strain in the U.S. earlier this year—and 34 additional mutations compared to BA.2. Pirola isn’t a descendant of the XBB sublineages, so there may be concern they won’t protect against Pirola. However, Moderna&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/09/06/modernas-updated-covid-vaccine-is-effective-against-pirola-variant-as-concern-over-new-strain-grows/?sh=3f334501a06c">said</a>&nbsp;Wednesday its new booster provided an 8.7-fold increase in neutralizing antibodies against Pirola in its clinical trial.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/fda-green-light-new-covid-boosters-early-friday-rcna103379" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">FDA could green light new Covid boosters as early as Friday</a>&nbsp;(NBC)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/09/06/modernas-updated-covid-vaccine-is-effective-against-pirola-variant-as-concern-over-new-strain-grows/?sh=3f334501a06c">Moderna’s Updated Covid Vaccine Is Effective Against Pirola Variant—As Concern Over New Strain Grows</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/08/21/new-covid-boosters-expected-this-fall-why-some-doctors-suggest-holding-off-on-getting-your-next-booster-until-then/?sh=447d21af438b">New Covid Boosters Expected This Fall: Why Some Doctors Suggest Holding Off On Getting Your Next Booster Until Then</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/09/01/its-ok-to-get-your-covid-flu-and-rsv-shots-at-the-same-time-experts-say/?sh=486139df3099">It’s Okay To Get Your Covid, Flu And RSV Shots At The Same Time, Experts Say</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


Vaccinations at Egoli Township as Omicron Cases Spread

FDA Approves Novavax’s New Covid Vaccine Designed To Protect Against The Latest Strain


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that Microsoft can’t compete with Google and that the search engine’s market share is so large the internet has basically become the “Google web” Monday during more than three-and-a-half hours of testimony in Google’s antitrust trial, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/02/technology/microsoft-ceo-testifies-google-search.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multiple</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/10/02/microsoft-ceo-google-antitrust-trial/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">news</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/microsoft-ceo-testifies-about-limits-of-ai-at-google-antitrust-trial-32d032a9?mod=hp_lead_pos5" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">organizations</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Nadella reportedly testified that Microsoft and Bing, its search engine, was unable to compete with Google because of deals Google has made with partners like Apple and Samsung to make Google the default search engine on their devices and browsers.</p>



<p>Nadella described Google’s deal with Apple in particular as “oligopolistic,” and said the deals in sum amount to a “vicious cycle” for Microsoft, according to reports.</p>



<p>He also said that at one point Microsoft was willing to pay “north of 10 plus billion a year” to convince companies to make Bing the default over Google, but companies wouldn’t give in (equity firm Sanford Bernstein estimated Google is paying Apple $18 billion to $19 billion this year to make Google the default on iPhones and other Apple products, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/10/02/microsoft-ceo-google-antitrust-trial/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Washington Post</em></a>).</p>



<p>Google’s lawyers continually argued that Microsoft’s lack of ability to compete was because it had an inferior product, not because of the default agreements.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“The entire notion that users have choice, and they go from one website to another website … is completely bogus,” Nadella testified Monday. “Defaults is the only thing that matters in changing search behavior.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-surprising-fact">SURPRISING FACT</h2>



<p>“Google” is the most searched for word on Bing, John Schmidtlein, Google’s lead litigator, pointed out as he cross-examined Nadella.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>When this trial began earlier this month, it became the biggest antitrust trial in more than two decades. The trial revolves around these agreements Google’s made with Apple, Samsung and other partners. The Department of Justice, which brought the case, argues that they constitute illegal means of creating and maintaining a monopoly. Google has continually argued that it is the default search engine on so many products, as well as most users’ preferred search engine, because it is simply a superior product.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/02/technology/microsoft-ceo-testifies-google-search.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft C.E.O. Testifies That Google’s Power in Search Is Ubiquitous</a>&nbsp;(New York Times)</p>



<p>Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.Sign Up</p>



<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/10/02/microsoft-ceo-google-antitrust-trial/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft CEO says Google’s deals with Apple led to its dominance</a>&nbsp;(Washington Post)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/microsoft-ceo-testifies-about-limits-of-ai-at-google-antitrust-trial-32d032a9?mod=hp_lead_pos5" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft CEO Says Google’s Agreements With Apple Unfairly Harmed Bing</a> (Wall Street Journal)</p>


Google Chrome Requests A New Emergency Security Update

The Internet Is Really Just The “Google Web,” Microsoft CEO Says During Google’s Antitrust Trial


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to X to scrutinize a German humanitarian group conducting a rescue operation in the Mediterranean Sea, suggesting such operations and their transport of rescued immigrants to Italy are a violation of the country’s sovereignty.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The video was posted by a user claiming to show German NGO ships in the Mediterranean Sea collecting illegal immigrants before they are unloaded in Italy— and also pledging support for the far-right Alternative for Germany party, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/afd-alternative-for-germany-deutschland-immigration-economy-decline-climate-change-right-wing-populism-opinion-mathias-dopfner/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">surging political party</a>&nbsp;that runs on an anti-immigrant platform.</p>



<p>Musk reposted the video, asking if the German public was aware of such rescue operations—which prompted a reply from the German government’s official X account, which said, “Yes. And it’s called saving lives.”</p>



<p>Musk said he doubted the majority of the German public supported the operations, claiming they are “surely” violations of Italy’s sovereignty and saying they had “invasion vibes.”</p>



<p>The German government confirmed this week it was backing three NGOs that operate in the Mediterranean Sea and bring migrants to Italy, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/elon-musk-wades-into-german-debate-over-migration-2023-09-29/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reuters</a>, which reported the funding has been met with pushback from Italy’s government.</p>



<p>Far-right Italian Prime Minister Meloni said in a letter sent to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz this month that she “learned with astonishment” that Germany, “without coordinating with the Italian government,” allegedly decided to bankroll NGOs engaged in the “reception” of migrants in Italian territory,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/italy-learned-with-astonishment-german-funding-migrant-charities-2023-09-25/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reuters</a>&nbsp;reported.</p>



<p>Meloni suggested in the letter that Germany, which is <a href="https://apnews.com/article/germany-migration-asylum-housing-22372cf1e5ece2e55c5f2e6c9d10e594" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">struggling to provide space</a> for asylum seekers, should instead focus on helping migrants on its own soil, arguing the work of the NGOs incentivizes people to attempt dangerous trips for asylum in other countries.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">CONTRA</h2>



<p>The German foreign ministry has denied the idea that the NGOs provoke migrants to make the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/more-than-2-500-migrants-dead-or-missing-in-mediterranean-in-2023-un-says-/7289741.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">deadly maritime trips</a>&nbsp;to Europe and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/25/italian-pm-astonished-at-germany-paying-charities-for-refugee-rescues" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;rescuing those at sea is a &#8220;legal, humanitarian and moral duty.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>More than 220,000. That’s the number of people who applied for asylum in Germany between January and August this year, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/30/german-government-rebukes-elon-musk-over-refugee-rescue-criticism" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>The Guardian</em></a>. Additionally, more than 127,000 migrants have reached Italy by sea so far this year, almost double the amount of the same period last year, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/migration-italy-lampedusa-3b47cdacb91c2d72f99b11aa396a6d59" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Associated Press</a>&nbsp;reported.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Musk, who has amplified&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/05/09/musk-fuels-unfounded-texas-shooter-conspiracy-theories-doubting-shooters-far-right-connections/?sh=372bbb268098">conspiracy theories</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2022/12/13/elon-musk-tests-the-waters-of-extremism-in-attacking-fauci-roth-in-latest-shift-to-the-right/?sh=39966e9a1681">right-wing ideology</a>&nbsp;on X, has recently become more publicly invested on the topic of immigration. The tech billionaire&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/09/29/elon-musk-citizen-journalist-heres-why-the-tesla-billionaire-visited-the-texas-mexico-border/?sh=d8128627f196">visited the United States’ border</a>&nbsp;with Mexico on Thursday and livestreamed his experience on X. Musk said he traveled to the border to meet with local officials and law enforcement so he could gain an “unfiltered” perspective on migration and “see exactly what’s going on.” Musk, who was born in South Africa and is an immigrant to the U.S. himself, considered himself “extremely pro-immigrant,” saying the country’s immigration system should “greatly expand” so as to accept “hardworking and honest” people who will be contributors. He also said a “collapse in social services” would materialize if the U.S. didn’t curb illegal immigration.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/09/29/elon-musk-citizen-journalist-heres-why-the-tesla-billionaire-visited-the-texas-mexico-border/?sh=d8128627f196">Elon Musk, Citizen Journalist: Here’s Why The Tesla Billionaire Visited The Texas-Mexico Border</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-germany-migrants-rescue-ship-mediterranean-fab94f0fc68833f80ad5df8ca9a071e1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Germany’s government and Elon Musk spar on X over migrant rescue ships</a>&nbsp;(AP)</p>


Elon Musk Makes Twitter Account Private

Elon Musk Attacks Germany Over Its Migrant Rescues, Cites ‘Invasion Vibes’


<p>A new deal between Hollywood studios and writers will for the first time require streamers like Netflix, Hulu and Disney+ to report viewership numbers of original and syndicated content, shining a light on what experts have called a “black hole” of information that has allowed companies to largely avoid justifying in-house programming decisions.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/09/27/hollywood-writers-strike-ends-deal-finalized-after-148-day-work-stoppage/?sh=e88fb758cbf3">new contract</a>&nbsp;negotiated between the Writers Guild of America union, which ended its 148-day strike on Wednesday, and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers will force services to report to the union how many hours a show has been streamed domestically and across the world, a first for a collection of streaming companies that have historically kept a dark veil over the information.</p>



<p>Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Paramount+, Netflix, Hulu and HBOMax are among the companies that have shared what the&nbsp;<em>Verge&nbsp;</em><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/9/26/23891835/wga-contract-summary-ai-streaming-data" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">called&nbsp;</a>“weird metrics or meaningless self-referential rankings” instead of the actual viewership data available for broadcast networks and cable channels like ABC, NBC, CBS, ESPN, Fox News, CNN and others.</p>



<p>The data was a sticking point in the tense union negotiations as writers called for measurable performance metrics that could be translated into residuals—long-term payments sent when their show or movies rerun or are purchased—for union members who work on hit shows.</p>



<p>Writers have for decades been paid every time their show or movie is re-aired on its original network or on cable television, or when someone buys a DVD, but that stopped on on-demand streaming platforms, and writers who’ve had network shows become popular on streaming services complain they have not been adequately compensated for its secondary success on those platforms.</p>



<p>It’s possible the numbers studios provide will be subject to nondisclosure agreements and therefore not released to the public, but the WGA may still be able to release aggregated data.</p>



<p>Representatives for WGA, Netflix and Hulu did not immediately respond to&nbsp;<em>Forbes’&nbsp;</em>request for comment Wednesday.</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Not knowing the numbers is “very frustrating,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-09-14/wga-writers-strike-sag-aftra-actors-strike-netflix-ratings-data-transparency?_gl=1*ywpsu6*_gcl_au*MTQ5MzQ4MjQ4OS4xNjk1ODIwNzQ4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said&nbsp;</a>Gloria Calderón Kellett, the co-showrunner for Netflix’s reboot of&nbsp;<em>One Day at a Time</em>, which was canceled. “Because you just don’t know what you don’t know. You are in this black hole.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Historically, a lack of data has led to a lack of accountability for streamers when it comes to making programming decisions. Without viewership information, Nexflix and other companies have been allowed to make decisions on canceling and renewing projects without any transparency, and they can claim a project has or hasn’t been successful on a whim. Viewers have expressed discontent about the cancellation of shows that seemed to do well in the public eye—like&nbsp;<em>Daredevil, Warrior Nun, The OA&nbsp;</em>and&nbsp;<em>Inside Job</em>—only to be shut down by the streamer. It has also shielded companies from having to admit when a high-budget show flops. Netflix CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters told Bloomberg earlier this year that the streamer has “never canceled a successful show.” Netflix is slightly more transparent than its competitors, it does provide a weekly top-10&nbsp;<a href="https://www.netflix.com/tudum/top10/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">breakdown&nbsp;</a>of the top movies and shows by country, but it only covers the most popular programs and provides no indication as to what isn’t doing well. Others, like Disney+, will on occasion release how many people watched a popular show’s premiere or finale but not in any kind of context to other services or shows on the same platform. Nielsen, the media data company that tracks viewership behavior, provides a top-10 list of streaming platform ratings based on the devices people use to stream (think smart TVs or video game consoles).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>15.2 million. That&#8217;s how many views Netflix says its original film<em>&nbsp;Love At First Sight</em>, the most-watched English movie of the week, got between September 18 and September 24.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Sharing streaming data with the public could put publicly traded companies like Netflix, Disney and Paramount in the hot seat when it comes to their shareholders. Michael Smith, a professor of information technology and marketing at Carnegie Mellon University, told&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>he doesn’t think sharing the data privately with the WGA will have a dramatic impact on how stocks perform, but that they could be impacted if the world knows an expensive project ultimately flopped. Measuring the performance of a streaming company now is largely based on revenues, costs and an aggregate number of subscribers (which not all streaming services have made public), Smith said, but streamers have fought tooth and nail against revealing streaming data because of a potential impact to share prices. He added that streamers differ from traditional broadcast channels that rely on viewership numbers to sell ad space, while platforms like Hulu have more flexibility in their advertising options. “I think this is the most interesting part of the (WGA) deal,” Smith said.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/09/27/hollywood-writers-strike-ends-deal-finalized-after-148-day-work-stoppage/">Hollywood Writers Strike Ends: Deal Finalized After 148 Days Of Work Stoppage</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/daniellechemtob/2023/09/26/forbes-daily-another-strike-on-the-horizon-as-sag-aftra-authorizes-second-walkout/">Another Strike On The Horizon As SAG-AFTRA Authorizes Second Walkout</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/09/26/swifties-take-nfl-ratings-soared-for-chiefs-game-as-taylor-swift-cheered-on-travis-kelce/">Swifties Take NFL: Ratings Soared For Chiefs Game As Taylor Swift Cheered On Travis Kelce</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Stay at home and watch TV

What’s Really The Most-Watched Netflix Show? Hollywood Writers’ Deal Could Bring Streaming Data To Light


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company that created ChatGPT, is in discussions about a potential share sale that would value it at $80 to $90 billion,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/openai-seeks-new-valuation-of-up-to-90-billion-in-sale-of-existing-shares-ed6229e0?mod=e2tw" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the&nbsp;<em>Wall Street Journal</em>—about three times what it was valued in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2023/01/05/chatgpt-creator-openai-discussing-offer-valuing-company-at-29-billion-report-says/?sh=62fa761311e0">January</a>, as the AI race heats up.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>It’s expected that the deal will let employees sell their shares, instead of OpenAI issuing new ones, the&nbsp;<em>Journal</em>&nbsp;reported, citing multiple unnamed sources.</p>



<p>A valuation of $80 or $90 billion would make OpenAI—which is privately held—one of the highest valued startups, joining the ranks of TikTok owner ByteDance and SpaceX and surpassing companies like Shein and Canva.</p>



<p>OpenAI is positioned to earn more than $1 billion in revenue over the next year by selling access to a higher-quality version of ChatGPT and the technology behind it, Reuters&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/openai-track-generate-more-than-1-bln-revenue-over-12-months-information-2023-08-29/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;last month.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>OpenAI is backed largely by Microsoft, which owns 49% of the company, according to the&nbsp;<em>Journal</em>. Microsoft&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/01/23/chatgpt-parent-open-ai-gets-game-changing-multibillion-dollar-boost-from-microsoft/?sh=4173fcd63c0c">expanded</a>&nbsp;its investment earlier this year when it put billions more into OpenAI, and it has begun integrating the company’s AI technology into its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/08/technology/microsoft-bing-openai-artificial-intelligence.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bing search engine</a>&nbsp;in a bid to compete with Google.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>ChatGPT—OpenAI’s chief product—launched last November and quickly became one of the most popular artificial intelligence programs. Within a week of its launch, the program attracted one million signed-up users who were able to use it for free while the product was in a “research preview” phase. People can still use ChatGPT for free, but OpenAI also offers ChatGPT+ for a $20 per month subscription fee. Beyond normal access to ChatGPT, subscribers get faster response times, are able to use the service even during peak times and get priority access to new features, according to its&nbsp;<a href="https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt-plus" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">website</a>.</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>OpenAI backer Microsoft isn’t the only major tech company to invest in artificial intelligence. Google <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/03/21/google-releases-bard-ai-chatbot-amid-competition-with-chatgpt/?sh=769740e832b7">launched</a> its Bard AI chatbot earlier this year, and has <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/09/19/google-expands-ai-chatbot-bard-to-apps-like-gmail-drive-and-youtube/?sh=594736544905">begun integrating it</a> into services like Gmail and YouTube, while Amazon announced a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/09/25/amazon-plans-to-invest-up-to-4-billion-in-ai-startup-anthropic/?sh=7408d8aa30e0">$4 billion investment</a> in AI startup Anthropic on Monday.</p>


In this photo illustration a Open AI logo is displayed on a

OpenAI Could Reach Massive $90 Billion Valuation With New Share Sales, Report Says


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Spotify will start using artificial intelligence to translate podcasts into other languages, the company announced Monday as part of a partnership with OpenAI, as Spotify becomes the latest to use generative AI for its products.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Spotify&nbsp;<a href="https://newsroom.spotify.com/2023-09-25/ai-voice-translation-pilot-lex-fridman-dax-shepard-steven-bartlett/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;Monday that it is releasing a pilot for its “Voice Translation” feature, which will translate podcasts into other languages that will match the original speaker’s voice and style.</p>



<p>The feature was created in partnership with OpenAI, which&nbsp;<a href="https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt-can-now-see-hear-and-speak" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;Monday that it was releasing new “voice and image capabilities” for ChatGPT, allowing users to speak with the AI chatbot with generated “human-like audio from just text and a few seconds of sample speech.”</p>



<p>Spotify’s new feature is based on OpenAI’s voice transcription tool Whisper, which transcribes English speech and translates other languages into English.</p>



<p>The pilot includes three podcast episodes—including the&nbsp;<em>Lex Fridman Podcast</em>,&nbsp;<em>Armchair Expert&nbsp;</em>and&nbsp;<em>The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett</em>—available in Spanish to both subscribed and unsubscribed users, with episodes available in French and German “in the coming days and weeks.”</p>



<p>All translated podcasts will be available in Spotify’s “<a href="https://spoti.fi/VoiceTranslation" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Voice Translations Hub</a>,” which will be updated with additional episodes and podcasts “over the coming weeks and months.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>100 million. That’s how many users “regularly” listen to podcasts on Spotify, according to the company.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Other companies have started to use generative AI for its products in recent months. Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/irenebenedicto/2023/08/02/meta-launches-tool-to-create-music-using-ai-heres-what-to-know/?sh=4eddc404444d">announced</a>&nbsp;earlier this year that it would release AudioCraft, a tool that allows users to create AI-generated music and sounds. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6f022306-2f83-4da7-8066-51386e8fe63b?list=intlhomepage" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Financial Times</em></a>&nbsp;reported in August that Google and Universal Music Group were in discussions over whether to license artists’ melodies and vocals for AI-generated music. Google also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/09/19/google-expands-ai-chatbot-bard-to-apps-like-gmail-drive-and-youtube/?sh=3282847f4905">announced</a>&nbsp;earlier this month that it had integrated its AI chatbot Bard into its other applications, including YouTube, Gmail and Drive. Amid concerns over privacy and safety, OpenAI said it was gradually releasing its image and voice capabilities for ChatGPT, after the company warned the new features could present new risks, including “the potential for malicious actors to impersonate public figures or commit fraud.”</p>



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<p>By signing up, you accept and agree to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/terms-and-conditions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Terms of Service</a>&nbsp;(including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Privacy Statement</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/08/08/google-and-universal-music-group-negotiating-ai-generated-music-tool-report-says/?sh=3d4d29cf22e7">Google And Universal Music Group Negotiating AI-Generated Music Tool, Report Says</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/irenebenedicto/2023/08/02/meta-launches-tool-to-create-music-using-ai-heres-what-to-know/?sh=4eddc404444d">Meta Launches Tool To Create Music Using AI—Here’s What To Know</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/"></a></p>


Photo Logo Illustrations

Spotify Will Translate Podcasts Into Other Languages Using AI


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Sold out iPhone 15 pre-orders and long queues in cities around the world signaled the launch of Apple’s latest iPhone Friday—more than a month after the company reported its <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/aug/03/apple-revenues-fall-third-straight-quarter#:~:text=Apple%20boss%20Tim%20Cook%20announced,fell%201.4%25%20to%20%2481.8bn." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">third straight quarter</a> of declining sales.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Lines formed in&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/KateKozuch/status/1705186743106916842?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uae/iphone-15-in-uae-long-queues-of-buyers-at-dubai-mall-apple-store-barricaded" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dubai</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/Reuters/status/1705260668356567522?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Shanghai</a>&nbsp;and other cities for the launch of the iPhone 15, which features camera upgrades, new colors and USB-C charging among other subtle changes from the previous model.</p>



<p>Apple CEO Tim Cook made an&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/tim_cook/status/1705258046681686288?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">appearance</a>&nbsp;at one of the launches in New York, where several customers waited in line hours prior to the opening of Apple&#8217;s Fifth Avenue store.</p>



<p>Reservations for in-store pickups have sold out quickly, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-22/apple-s-iphone-15-goes-on-sale-in-test-of-holiday-resurgence" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bloomberg</a>, which reported online orders for the highest-end iPhone 15 models won’t reach customers in several countries until at least mid-November—an indication of high demand.</p>



<p>Apple is in its most drawn out sales slump since 2016, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/aug/03/apple-revenues-fall-third-straight-quarter#:~:text=Apple%20boss%20Tim%20Cook%20announced,fell%201.4%25%20to%20%2481.8bn." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>The Guardian</em></a><em>,&nbsp;</em>with the company reporting last month its third straight quarter of revenue declines, with third quarter sales falling 1.4% to $81.1 billion over the last year.</p>



<p>Analysts expect the company to break the slump next quarter with slight revenue growth, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-aapl-q3-earnings-report-2023-46673f8f" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Wall Street Journal</em></a>&nbsp;reported.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Apple shares closed up more than 0.49% at $174.79 Friday as the tech giant’s stock continues to trade up more than 39% since the start of the year.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/04/apple-shares-slide-after-it-reports-decreased-hardware-revenue.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$39.7 billion</a>. That’s how much revenue Apple’s iPhone brought in for the company in the third quarter.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forbes-valuation">FORBES VALUATION</h2>



<p>We estimate Cook to be worth&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/tim-cook/?sh=2a64b4273ea4">$1.9 billion</a>, a sum of wealth bolstered by hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Apple shares he’s sold over the years.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Declines in iPhone sales are the main culprit behind Apple’s minor slump, as the product typically makes up about half of the company’s total sales. The June period is typically the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/03/tech/apple-earnings-third-quarter/index.html#:~:text=iPhone%20revenue%20came%20in%20at,revenue%20was%20down%20nearly%2020%25." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">slowest quarter</a>&nbsp;of the year for Apple. The company usually reveals its new iPhone models in September after consumers have held out on phone upgrades until the new models hit the market. However, June was the same month Apple surpassed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/06/30/apple-hits-3-trillion-market-value-and-could-soar-another-800-billion/?sh=2af94dd852b1">$3 trillion</a>&nbsp;in market value, making it the first company ever to reach past the mark. Apple is worth nearly as much as Tesla, Meta, Berkshire Hathaway, UnitedHealth and Visa—firms in the top 10 of America&#8217;s most valuable companies—<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/06/30/apple-hits-3-trillion-market-value-and-could-soar-another-800-billion/?sh=2af94dd852b1">combined</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonkelly/2023/09/01/apple-iphone-15-pro-max-ultra-design-camera-display-price-new-iphone-release/?sh=267597b442b0">Apple Analyst Details iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro Design, Display, Camera, Color Changes</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidphelan/2023/09/18/iphone-15-pro-max-serious-problem-highlighted-by-apple-insider-iphone-16-pro-leak/?sh=70265fd72faa">iPhone 15 Pro Max Serious Problem Highlighted By Apple Insider</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


iPhone15 On Sale in Chongqing

iPhone 15 Global Debut Marked By Long Lines And Consumer Hype As Apple Looks To Turn Around Sales Slump


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Paxlovid—Pfizer’s antiviral Covid-19 treatment—is 37% effective at preventing hospitalization or death in high-risk patients compared with no treatment, according to <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2809779" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a study</a> published Thursday in the <em>JAMA Network Open</em>, well below the 88% effectiveness rate Pfizer and regulators <a href="https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-first-oral-antiviral-treatment-covid-19" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a> in clinical trials in 2021—though it remains very effective at staving off death.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The study found that when excluding hospitalizations and looking at death alone, the drug is 84% effective.</p>



<p>The observational study analyzed electronic health records from thousands of patients at the Cleveland Clinic Health System in 2022 and early 2023 to determine Paxlovid’s effectiveness, using real-world data rather than the clinical trials that were used before.</p>



<p>The study also found another antiviral Covid-19 treatment, Merck’s Lagevrio, was 42% effective in preventing hospitalization or death and 77% effective against death alone.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-we-don-t-know">WHAT WE DON’T KNOW</h2>



<p>Why the effectiveness has fallen. The study authors noted the clinical trials were conducted among unvaccinated patients who had limited natural immunity, whereas this study was conducted in a real-world population including vaccinated and previously infected patients who had some other defenses against the coronavirus. They also noted the original clinical studies were completed when the Delta variant was the most common strain of the virus while their study was conducted when the Omicron variant was, suggesting that the drug could work differently with different strains.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-news-peg">NEWS PEG</h2>



<p>While they note the effectiveness has fallen, the study’s authors still say these drugs are useful tools in fighting Covid-19, arguing both drugs can be used in nonhospitalized Covid-19 patients to prevent the most severe outcomes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>Paxlovid is still “definitely recommended for high-risk patients,” said University of North Carolina professor Danyu Lin, one of the study’s authors, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-21/paxlovid-study-shows-effectiveness-against-covid-has-declined?srnd=premium" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bloomberg</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Paxlovid, a course of oral pills, first&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/pfizers-paxlovidtm-receives-fda-approval-adult-patients#:~:text=PAXLOVID%20has%20been%20available%20in,remain%20consistent%20with%20the%20EUA." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">became available</a>&nbsp;in December 2021 and is to be taken early in a patient’s infection. They’re designed to prevent patients who already have Covid-19 from becoming hospitalized or dying, particularly patients who are at an elevated risk of severe Covid-19 due to age or medical conditions. New information on Paxlovid’s effectiveness comes amid fears of a new wave of Covid-19 this fall. In the week ending September 9, 20,538 people were hospitalized for Covid-19, a 7.7% increase over the week prior, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#maps_percent-covid-deaths" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a>. Since the onset of the pandemic, 1.14 million people have died of the virus.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2809779" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nirmatrelvir or Molnupiravir Use and Severe Outcomes From Omicron Infections</a>&nbsp;(JAMA Network Open)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/05/25/pfizers-paxlovid-covid-pill-granted-full-fda-approval/?sh=385c6c1014ec">Pfizer’s Paxlovid Covid Pill Granted Full FDA Approval</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2022/04/21/who-endorses-pfizers-antiviral-pill-paxlovid-for-high-risk-covid-patients-but-says-benefits-trivial-for-low-risk-groups/?sh=14dd5ff3623b">WHO Endorses Pfizer’s Antiviral Pill Paxlovid For High-Risk Covid Patients But Says Benefits ‘Trivial’ For Low-Risk Groups</a> (Forbes)</p>


Covid Drug Paxlovid Now Less Effective Than In Early Trials—But It’s Still Great At Preventing Death


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden <a href="https://youtu.be/YdWtvbkSJlY?feature=shared&amp;t=876" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a> in a recent podcast interview that he doesn’t think rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, “meant what he said” about Jewish people last year, adding he doesn’t think Ye is “a bad person, it just came across that way.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



<p>When asked about what happened with Adidas and Ye on&nbsp;<em>In Good Company</em>, a podcast from Norges Bank Investment Management, Gulden recognized the artist made some statements that weren’t “that good,” leading Adidas to break the contract.</p>



<p>But Gulden, who was not yet&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adidas-group.com/en/media/news-archive/press-releases/2022/bjorn-gulden-become-ceo-adidas-ag/#:~:text=The%20Supervisory%20Board%20of%20adidas,and%20CEO%20of%20adidas%20AG." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">leading</a>&nbsp;the company at the time of the controversy, also offered praise for Ye, saying he’s “one of the most creative people in the world, both in music and … street culture.”</p>



<p>Gulden called the Yeezy shoe line one of the “most successful collabs” in history; it cost Adidas $440 million in sales in the first quarter of this year alone to discontinue the Yeezy line,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adidas-group.com/en/media/news-archive/press-releases/2023/adidas-reports-revenues-on-prior-year-level-in-the-first-quarter/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according</a>&nbsp;to the sportswear company.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Last October, Ye spouted antisemitic comments, conspiracy theories and criticized Black Lives Matter in a number of interviews and public appearances, leading to broken business relationships, his&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/10/08/musk-welcomes-kanye-west-back-to-twitter-after-hes-blocked-by-instagram-over-apparent-antisemitic-post/?sh=7ee386ca50da">removal</a>&nbsp;from social media platforms and widespread criticism. At the start of the month, Ye had models at his fashion show in Paris wear “White Lives Matter” shirts, a term that’s associated with a neo-Nazi group. Just days later, he took to X—formerly known as Twitter—to claim he was going to go “death con 3 on Jewish people.” He said it wasn’t antisemitic for him to tweet that because “black people are actually Jew also,” and his account was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/10/09/twitter-deletes-kanye-west-post-about-jewish-people/?sh=f9375e1302f7">locked</a>. Ye also repeatedly made comments that the Anti-Defamation League said use “age-old anti-Semitic myths about Jewish greed and power and control of the entertainment industry.” Ye said he didn’t regret his remarks, but did apologize for the “death con 3” comment on&nbsp;<em>Piers Morgan Uncensored</em>. In November, NBC News&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/kanye-west-ye-settlement-anti-semitic-jewish-hitler-nazis-allegations-rcna54485" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;people who previously worked with Ye said he made several pro-Hitler and pro-Nazi remarks as far back as 2018. In addition to Adidas, Gap, Balenciaga, Vogue and JP Morgan Chase all&nbsp;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kanye-west-companies-cutting-ties-adidas-gap-balenciaga-vogue-tweet-2022-10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">broke ties</a>&nbsp;with the artist. The essential collapse of his business empire caused Ye to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2023/04/05/heres-why-kanye-west-dropped-off-the-forbes-billionaires-list/?sh=369e75cd1866">lose his billionaire status</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“When you work with third parties that could happen and it’s part of the game,” Gulden said on the podcast. “That can happen with an athlete, it can happen with an entertainer, so it’s part of the business.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$565 million. That’s how much Adidas made in May when it opted to sell the unsold Yeezy shoes that were left over after the company stopped working with Ye. The sale of Yeezy inventory helped Adidas reduce its projected operating loss for the year from $775 million to $598.56 million, the company&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adidas-group.com/media/filer_public/4d/5f/4d5fbc81-6eee-4e9e-b21d-1f9247d3aff6/adidasag_q22023_pre-announcement_final_en.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forbes-valuation">FORBES VALUATION</h2>



<p>We estimate Ye’s net <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/kanye-west/?sh=4cef8adb56f1">worth at $400 million</a>—a fraction of his $2 billion estimated net worth last year.</p>


adidas + KANYE WEST New Partnership Announcement

Adidas CEO: Kanye West Didn’t Mean Antisemitic Comments, Isn’t A Bad Person


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Six Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces and dozens more injured during three separate incidents in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, the Palestinian Ministry of Health told <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/20/middleeast/israeli-military-palestinians-intl/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CNN</a>—incidents that come during a controversial meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Four people died and over 30 were injured when the Israeli military invaded the Jenin refugee camp Tuesday evening and exchanged fire with Palestinian militants,—Israel claims the Palestinian militants fired first—CNN reported, citing the ministry and an anonymous witness, who said that electricity was knocked out from the camp for some time.</p>



<p>The Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement that troops entered the camp as part of “counterterrorism activity” and claimed that “armed gunmen opened fire” at them before they returned fire.</p>



<p>Meanwhile, on Tuesday afternoon, a Palestinian man was killed and several others were injured when Israeli forces fired across the Gaza border fence at protesters who had been holding regular protests along the border for the past week; the earlier protests had, at times, turned violent, with protesters throwing explosive devices and burning tires as well as occasionally firing guns at Israeli guards.</p>



<p>The IDF said in a statement, “hundreds of rioters gathered in a violent riot adjacent to the security fence in the Gaza Strip…a number of explosive devices were activated by the rioters.”</p>



<p>On Wednesday morning, a Palestinian man was killed by Israeli military who entered the Aqabat Jaber refugee camp in Jericho.</p>



<p>Israeli forces said they were attempting to apprehend 10 wanted suspects when explosive devices were hurled at them and they returned fire.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The West Bank and the Gaza strip have been under military occupation by Israel since 1967. The West Bank has been embroiled by nearly daily violence throughout 2023, spurred by nightly raids from Israeli forces, putting the region on track for its bloodiest year since 2005. Notably, in July, Israel&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/06/19/5-palestinians-die-in-the-conflicts-most-ferocious-fighting-in-years/?sh=5e3671687ab2">struck</a>&nbsp;the refugee camp in Jenin—the same one that saw four people die on Tuesday—with gunfire, armored bulldozers and at least one Apache helicopter, the first time a helicopter gunship had been used in the conflict since the second Palestinian uprising around two decades ago. That fighting lasted 10 hours, killed five and injured 91.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>The violence unfolded while Israel’s leader Netanyahu was visiting Biden and New York during the United Nations General Assembly Wednesday, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-netanyahu-biden-white-house-united-nations-c6dab3cc0357f67b2054446f3c6cdc52" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Associated Press reported</a>. The meeting will be the first between the two since Netanyahu formed his far-right coalition government last year, a buck to tradition as the U.S. has typically invited Israeli leaders to the White House within weeks of them starting their tenure. The delay, as well as the meeting taking place in New York instead of Washington, D.C., is widely seen as a signal of Biden’s displeasure with Netayahu’s new government, which has taken a hardline on the conflict with the Palestinians and attempted to overhaul the country’s judiciary in a way that makes it more favorable to them, according to the AP. Biden opened the meeting by saying they would discuss “some tough issues” including “upholding democratic values that lie at the heart of our partnership, including checks and balances.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/20/middleeast/israeli-military-palestinians-intl/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Six Palestinians killed by Israeli military in three separate incidents over 24 hours</a>&nbsp;(CNN)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/06/19/5-palestinians-die-in-the-conflicts-most-ferocious-fighting-in-years/?sh=5e3671687ab2">5 Palestinians Die In The Conflict’s Most Ferocious Fighting In Years</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/09/19/us-considering-defense-treaty-with-saudi-arabia-that-includes-israel-normalization-report-says/?sh=652d65239e37">U.S. Considering Defense Treaty With Saudi Arabia That Includes Israel Normalization, Report Says</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


Israeli army bulldozer on duty during the demolition of

Six Palestinians Killed In Three Separate Incidents By Israeli Forces Over 24 Hours


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline"><a href="https://policies.google.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>TOPLINE</h2>



<p>A drought in Spain, record-high temperatures and a pause in Turkish exports have driven prices of Spanish olive oil to a record high of $8,900 per ton this month, and there&#8217;s no clear indication as to when they&#8217;ll fall.</p>



<p>Extreme hot weather and persistent drought conditions have dealt a severe blow to olive oil&nbsp;&#8230; [+]<small>ANADOLU AGENCY VIA GETTY IMAGES</small></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>&#8220;Extremely dry weather in much of the Mediterranean&#8221; has been blamed for the skyrocketing prices of olive oil—up 130% from last year—by the&nbsp;<a href="https://apps.fas.usda.gov/psdonline/circulars/oilseeds.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">U.S. Department of Agriculture</a>, which warns the only thing that could bring them down in the coming months would be improved growing conditions.</p>



<p>The Catalonia region of Spain&nbsp;<a href="https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/08/09/we-have-never-seen-it-so-low-spain-introduces-water-restrictions-as-reservoirs-run-dry#:~:text=Drought%20is%20leaving%20reservoirs%20empty&amp;text=Spain%20registered%20the%20driest%20start,Andalusia%20being%20the%20most%20affected." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">declared</a>&nbsp;a drought emergency in 24 municipalities in August after 30 months of little rain, and the drought has dried up reservoirs, parched olive groves and led to restrictions on water use across the country, per&nbsp;<a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/151366/spain-browned-by-drought" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>.</p>



<p>The lack of rain has coincided with the nation’s third-hottest summer on record: The Spanish meteorological agency&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aemet.es/en/noticias/2023/09/avance_verano_2023" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">says</a>&nbsp;four heat waves were recorded this summer, temperatures were 2.3°F (1.3°C) higher than normal on average and meteorologists are predicting a warmer-than-normal autumn.</p>



<p>Italy and Greece, which also grow a significant portion of the world’s olives, have also seen hot, dry seasons, with Italy recording&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/08/07/extreme-heat-in-southern-italy-increased-july-death-rate-officials-say/?sh=4ab63d9c2664">temperatures</a>&nbsp;over 40°C (104°F), and Greece, where major tourist attractions&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/07/15/europes-dangerous-heat-wave-greece-closes-acropolis-as-warnings-issued-across-italy-spain-and-germany/?sh=7b774c7e39c0">were closed</a>&nbsp;due to the heat, notching temperatures just as high.</p>



<p>Spain, the world’s largest producer and exporter of olive oil, made 50% less oil in its most recent season, CNBC&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/19/olive-oil-prices-surge-over-100percent-leading-to-cooking-oil-thefts.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>, and prices have been further impacted by Turkey&#8217;s decision&nbsp;<a href="https://apps.fas.usda.gov/psdonline/circulars/oilseeds.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">to suspend</a>&nbsp;bulk oil exports until at least November 1 in a move meant to ensure domestic supplies and alleviate price pressure.</p>



<p>Before this August, the previous record price for olive oil was set at $6,242 per ton in 1996, according to the USDA.</p>



<p>Picture shows healthy olives grown using an irrigation system developed by researchers of the&nbsp;&#8230; [+]<small>AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES</small></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>610,000 tons. That&#8217;s how much olive oil Spain produced in the recent season, compared to a usual yield of 1.3 to 1.5 million tons.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The global olive oil market was valued at $14.2 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $18.4 billion by 2030, Fortune Business Insights&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/olive-oil-market-101455" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">predicts</a>. Spain manufactures almost half of the world&#8217;s olive oil,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/the-world-of-olive-oil/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">followed by</a>&nbsp;producers in Italy, Greece, Portugal, Tunisia, Turkey and Morocco. Greeks are the largest olive oil consumer per capita,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aboutoliveoil.org/olive-oil-production-by-country" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according to&nbsp;</a>the North American Olive Oil Association, followed by Spain and Italy. Greeks consume about 20 liters of olive oil per person each year, compared to about 1 liter per American. The size of the United States compared to other nations, however—only about 10.6 million people live in Greece compared to 331 million in the U.S.—makes the nation a major consumer: The&nbsp;<a href="https://apps.fas.usda.gov/psdonline/circulars/oilseeds.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">USDA</a>&nbsp;said American imports usually make up about 30% of the global olive oil trade, and that number is expected to rise to between 35% and 37% this year.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-surprising-fact">SURPRISING FACT</h2>



<p>A theft of about 50,000 liters of extra virgin olive oil left one of the nation&#8217;s family-owned mills, Marin Serrano El Lagar, out about $450,000, local news&nbsp;<a href="https://www.elmundo.es/andalucia/2023/08/31/64f0462efc6c8312768b459c.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>. No arrests have been made in the theft and a spokesperson for the Civil Guard told&nbsp;<em>El Mundo</em>&nbsp;that stealing in bulk, rather than bottles, makes tracking the oil particularly hard. Just two weeks before that, another 6,000 liters of extra virgin olive oil—$53,500 worth—<a href="https://www.elmundo.es/andalucia/2023/08/23/64e5e1bdfc6c8303668b4591.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">was stolen</a>&nbsp;from the Terraverne oil mill.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Olive oil isn&#8217;t the only commodity to have seen cost jumps this summer,&nbsp;<em>Business Insider</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/commodities/foodflation-cocoa-surges-12-year-high-orange-juice-hit-record-2023-7?_gl=1*1147odj*_ga*MTgyMjM0ODk0OC4xNjg2NzU2MDU1*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY5NTIxNjY5My4yNS4xLjE2OTUyMTY4OTIuMjMuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>. Cocoa, orange juice, wheat and soybeans all surged this summer as heavy rainfall and disease impacted West Africa&#8217;s cocoa supply, a crop disease hit citrus plants in Florida and Brazil and Russia pulled out of the deal allowing the export of grain from Ukraine. Soybean prices&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/global-grains-idAFL1N38128J" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">also soared</a>&nbsp;this summer after the USDA reported much lower-than-expected soy plantings.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/08/23/india-to-ban-sugar-exports-in-addition-to-rice-as-corn-soybeans-and-more-crops-falter-in-extreme-heat-and-drought/?sh=56d252986d6c">India To Ban Sugar Exports In Addition To Rice—As Corn, Soybeans And More Crops Falter In Extreme Heat And Drought</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/08/21/out-with-shrimp-in-with-jellyfish-seafood-industry-facing-potential-overhaul-due-to-climate-change/?sh=2c38609723bb">Out With Shrimp, In With Jellyfish? Seafood Industry Facing Potential Overhaul Due To Climate Change</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2022/06/26/heres-the-latest-data-on-climate-and-food-and-its-not-good/?sh=1229c7592e52">Here’s The Latest Data On Climate And Food And It’s Not Good</a>&nbsp;(<em>Forbes</em>)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2022/09/02/us-farmers-struggle-through-drought-to-bring-food-to-the-table-but-face-more-challenges-ahead/?sh=7119cadcfc08">U.S. Farmers Struggle Through Drought To Bring Food To The Table But Face More Challenges Ahead</a> (<em>Forbes</em>)</p>


Oil pump with candle stick graph chart in the background. World Oil Industry

Olive Oil Prices Jump 50%—And Climate Change Might Be Why

Hacker, IT and person with code on computer, programming and phishing scam with malware or virus. Hacking, system glitch and cloud computing error in dark room, cyber crime and cybersecurity fail

How AI Is Supercharging Financial Fraud–And Making It Harder To Spot


<p><strong>OpenSea, once the leading marketplace for non-fungible tokens, was built on a promise of perpetual royalties for digital artists. Then came upstart Blur, whose no-fee, trader-friendly platform put the focus on pricing and costs.</strong></p>



<p>It only took a few months to kill the art world’s <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/03/17/what-blurs-success-reveals-about-nft-marketplaces/?sh=19e61c2a189f">utopian dream</a> of long-lasting income streams for content creators.</p>



<p>As of September 1, OpenSea, once the leading marketplace for art linked to non fungible tokens, rescinded its policy of mandatory royalty payments to NFT creators. The decision came after it lost its dominance to no-fee competitor Blur, which only appeared on the scene in October but then quickly gobbled up market share by not charging platform processing fees and became the top NFT trading site in February. Overall NFT trading volume has plummeted from about $5.36 billion in January 2022, according to The Block, to $410 million in August. OpenSea’s share of the struggling NFT market has plummeted to under 30%.</p>



<p>Besides the lack of platform fees, Blur does not force sellers to abide by royalty agreements, which creators who launch their works on OpenSea and a few smaller marketplaces can require on transactions in their artworks after the initial sale. OpenSea, which did police such arrangements, said it would no longer do so after August 31, and it seems unlikely that many buyers will offer the payments.</p>



<p>Without the guarantee of a long-term royalty stream, the appeal of creating works linked to NFTs lessens, and prices for the kind of computer-generated art often linked to the tokens are plunging anyway. So why should artists bother with NFTs?</p>



<p>“Making art is an act of risk-taking,” says Amy Whitaker, associate professor of art business at New York University. “It makes sense, therefore, for artists to share in the upside that they helped to create.” She termed OpenSea’s decision to abandon royalties “unfortunate.”</p>



<p>Digital works encoded onto blockchains rose in popularity in 2021 after the artist Beeple sold a collection of images previously published on his Instagram page for $69 million. Seeing the big bucks to be made in a seemingly simple process–just upload a digital file to an NFT marketplace, which would encode it, for a fee, onto a blockchain–hundreds, if not thousands of artists joined in. NFT aficionados, including artists and collectors, claimed that blockchain-linked art would democratize access to a murky and difficult-to-break-in market, making the opaque system of well-connected galleries and deep-pocketed buyers obsolete. The decentralized system for royalty payments, they contended, would also ensure that artists would directly participate in the appreciation of their works, typically earning a 10% cut on each subsequent sale.</p>



<p>Each marketplace maintained its own policy for awarding royalties to artists. Beeple for example, famously would sell his “drops” for $1 each, but as they were bid up and resold on NFT marketplace Nifty Gateway for hundreds of thousands of dollars, he earned tens of thousands in royalties on each transaction.</p>



<p>In its brief life, NFT-linked art has largely been digital, often in series of similar images with various unique features that make some more collectible than others. But anything can be linked to a token–traditional art, real estate, even musical instruments–and then tracked on its associated blockchain. So, the technology could speed transactions and cut out middlemen in many industries.<strong></strong></p>



<p><strong><abbr>T</abbr></strong>he fight for royalty payments has largely played out in the court of NFT marketplaces, websites that allow creators and sellers to list their pieces in primary and secondary transactions. In order to better compete with Blur, OpenSea launched what it called its operator filter, which allowed creators of NFTs to prohibit their tokens from being sold in marketplaces that did not enforce royalties. In other words, the filter blocked OpenSea’s competitors and required collections to trade either on its own marketplace or others that did enforce royalty payments, keeping them away from Blur.</p>



<p>Market forces did not cooperate with OpenSea’s strategy. Free trades and optional royalty payment policies quickly drew sellers, which in turn attracted buyers. Since prices and volume were controlled by traders, seeking quick, if marginal, returns, voluntarily paying royalties to artists were easily dismissed by them.</p>



<p>OpenSea’s trading volume plummeted to 27% in August as Blur’s skyrocketed from a mere 5% to 60% in the same time frame, according to data from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theblock.co/data/nft-non-fungible-tokens/marketplaces" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Block</a>. Even OpenSea Pro, OpenSea’s no-fee aggregator and direct competitor to Blur which launched in April, has been unable to take market share from Blur, accounting for only 33% of trading volume on NFT aggregators in August (63% of trades happened on Blur), according to data from<a href="https://dune.com/hildobby/nft-aggregators" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;Dune Analytics</a>.</p>



<p>But the playing field is not level for OpenSea. With no marketplace fee, Blur is living mostly on its $11 million in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/04/13/forget-art-lets-trade-how-a-10-person-startup-came-to-dominate-nft-markets/?sh=227ffacc2680">venture capital funding</a>&nbsp;and a&nbsp;<a href="https://docs.blur.foundation/tokenomics" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">hefty</a>&nbsp;supply of blur tokens, reward tokens given out to its founding team and traders as rewards for using the platform. While Blur has attempted to grow its customer base with the launch of its lending products (Blend) and more uses for its token, how long its dominance will last will depend on its reliance on its token model, which could make it susceptible to regulatory action.</p>



<p>Ultimately, OpenSea has not only lost market share to Blur, but it is taking a smaller piece of a smaller pie. After peaking at $16 billion in January 2022, NFT trading has plummeted, with only $559 million worth exchanged in August in 3.2 million transactions, a more-than-<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/08/03/stan-lee-becomes-nft-superhero-illustrating-a-downward-shift-in-prices/?sh=6de9fb6d5ae5">60% volume decrease</a>&nbsp;from last year, according to industry research firm&nbsp;<a href="https://dappradar.com/blog/blockchain-industry-regains-traction-as-2-million-unique-active-wallets-interact-daily/#Chapter-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DappRadar</a>. Even then, only 15% of unique active wallets contributed to August’s NFT transactions. In July, only 4% of wallets traded the NFTs.</p>



<p>Few transactions and even fewer users (measured by the number of unique wallets) points to a new normal in NFT trading which is bad news for digital artists: traders rule the market, and most refuse to pay royalties.</p>



<p>Blur’s predecessors, aggregators like X2Y2 and LooksRare which listed NFTs available in various marketplaces, set the standard for royalty-free marketplaces geared toward traders by offering quick no-fee transactions. Others, like Magic Eden, the largest marketplace for NFTs on the Solana blockchain, and Ethereum-based OpenSea, had to respond to draw customers back to their platforms, lowering costs one way or another. Magic Eden took the first step, moving to a royalty-optional model in&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/MagicEden/status/1581101016686399491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1581101016686399491%7Ctwgr%5E9d190b061a3b95519526e7d4bab1ea7a5ea8bfbb%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.coindesk.com%2Fbusiness%2F2022%2F10%2F15%2Fmagic-eden-moves-to-optional-royalty-model%2F" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">October</a>&nbsp;as trading declined, preceding OpenSea by two weeks.</p>



<p><strong><abbr>T</abbr></strong>he royalty policy changes at OpenSea and other marketplaces should send a loud wake up call to Bored Ape Yacht Club maker Yuga Labs. Since it debuted in April 2021, Yuga has received $58 million in royalties from the resales of its Bored Ape collection. Its Mutant Ape Yacht Club and “Otherdeed” collection brought in nearly $100 million more. Chiru Labs, which designed the anime-inspired Azuki collection, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/mariagraciasantillanalinares/2022/09/13/reddits-ohanian-leads-54-million-doodles-capital-raise/?sh=84266a63bf38">Doodles</a>, purveyor of pastel-forward illustrations are also likely to take big revenue hits.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-10-royalty-generating-nft-collections"><strong>TOP 10 ROYALTY GENERATING NFT COLLECTIONS</strong></h2>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-through-august-2023-profile-picture-collections-have-received-the-most-in-total-royalties-since-launch-garnering-millions-in-fees-from-secondary-trading-but-when-it-comes-to-effective-royalty-rates-metaverse-and-gaming-nfts-with-rates-of-8-to-9-are-the-winners">Through August 2023, profile picture collections have received the most in total royalties since launch, garnering millions in fees from secondary trading. But when it comes to effective royalty rates, metaverse and gaming NFTs, with rates of 8% to 9%, are the winners.</h4>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<p>Even prior to OpenSea scrapping royalty payments, 10% royalties were more of a goal than a reality. According to Nansen, the average royalty for the highest earning collections was between 2% and 4%. Top-performing gaming collectibles were earning 5% to 10%.</p>



<p>Though they stand to have the most dollars to lose, some big creators are insulated by the brand recognition they’ve garnered, including shows at traditional&nbsp;<a href="https://www.centrepompidou.fr/en/magazine/article/the-centre-pompidou-in-the-age-of-nfts" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">museums</a>, and can still claim the big bucks on primary sales. Chiru Labs, for example, raised $38 million ahead of its much-anticipated “Elementals,” although investors ultimately thought that collection of characters with&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/wizardofsoho/status/1673772462289350657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1673772462289350657%7Ctwgr%5E1f3046daac6098742355f02bd7c2633d1e660522%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdecrypt.co%2F146464%2Fazuki-nft-prices-plummet-collectors-blast-identical-elementals-art" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">almost identical designs</a>&nbsp;was a flop.</p>



<p>The most dire consequences of the loss of royalties are likely to fall on the smaller creators whose monthly payments have been in the hundreds or low thousands of dollars but who have included the income in their financial planning, according to Calderon.</p>



<p>At the $6.7-million collection Rektguy, the loss of royalties is having tangible results, says co-founder Ovie Faruq. “We&#8217;ve used royalties to pay a moderator, to put-on real-life events, to build different competitions and build our website and community,” he says. “So, when you strip that out, it changes the business model.”</p>



<p>Combined with the evaporating royalties, NFT participants face new U.S. regulatory issues. The Securities and Exchange Commission last month required Los Angeles-based&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/08/31/sec-opens-a-new-can-of-worms-with-nft-enforcement-action/?sh=4aba9c3921ab">Impact Theory</a>, a digital media studio which raised $30 million from its NFT sales since 2021, to revise the smart contract underlying its Founders Keys NFTs to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sec.gov/files/litigation/admin/2023/33-11226.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">eliminate</a>&nbsp;any royalty payment the company may receive from future secondary market transactions. The SEC alleges the company sold unregistered crypto securities through its sale. Because Impact collects and profits from the royalties (set at 10%), rather than the digital artist, the SEC contends, its NFTs are securities. This week, the SEC also fined the creators of the Stoner Cats collection&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2023-178" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$1 million</a>&nbsp;over the sale of unregistered securities.</p>



<p>Impact Theory’s NFTs offered a number of exclusive opportunities to holders, including discounts and early access to videos and gaming content. To settle charges that it was selling unregistered securities–the first SEC enforcement action against an NFT issuer–Impact Theory also agreed to destroy its remaining supply of the tokens and pay a $6 million fine.</p>



<p>If the SEC is looking at royalty payments as a potential criterion for treating the tokens like securities, NFT studios, collectors and even the marketplaces they’re traded on could be susceptible to the same kinds of enforcement actions the agency has been taking against cryptocurrency companies. The way the Impact Theory NFTs were structured may have made them especially susceptible.</p>



<p>“There&#8217;s a pretty good argument for the artists receiving royalties downstream, based on certain case law,” says James Walker, co-lead of Perkins and Coie’s fintech enforcement and compliance team referring to the way the entertainment industry compensates musicians, actors and screenwriters, for example. “But there’s a stronger argument [that NFTs are securities] when you have a company [like Impact Theory] that isn’t involved in the creation that is getting royalties downstream from certain NFTs issued.&#8221;</p>


Author: Forbes

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