• The Ferdinand Magellan, also known as US Car No. 1, was used by US presidents between 1943 and 1954.
• It was the president's official transportation in the days before Air Force One.
• The car was used by US presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Dwight Eisenhower.

Long before there was an Air Force One, US presidents traveled the country aboard a 10-foot-wide train car.

Rebuilt in 1942 for presidential use, the Ferdinand Magellan, also known as US Car No. 1, was the president's official mode of transportation between 1943 and 1954.

Made with detailed security features and enlarged spaces for President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the height of World War II, the armored car became the heaviest railcar ever built in the US, and today, it is the only passenger train car to ever be declared a National Historic Landmark.

The Ferdinand Magellan allowed the president to continue his duties in comfort while on the move. It often traveled with other cars dedicated to radio communications, White House staffers, and members of the press.

Take a look inside the "White House on wheels" that predates Air Force One.

US Car No. 1 was presented to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in December 1942.

On December 18, 1942, the Pullman Company presented a luxury train car that had been rebuilt at the request of the US Secret Service, which had determined that the president needed a secure way to travel during wartime.

Roosevelt most often used the car to travel from Washington, DC, to his home in Hyde Park, New York. The president insisted on not surpassing a speed of 35 miles per hour when traveling aboard the Ferdinand Magellan, making his journeys less efficient and heightening security measures, per the White House Historical Association website.

He last rode the car on March 30, 1945, when he visited his Little White House in Warm Springs, Georgia, where he died a few weeks later.

During his time, the president rode over 50,000 miles aboard the presidential train car.

It was most famously used in 1948 during Harry Truman's "whistle-stop" campaign tour.

While the car was built with Roosevelt in mind, including certain designs that would allow him to use a wheelchair on the train, it was his successor, President Harry S. Truman, who used it the most.

The president, who, unlike Roosevelt, opted for a speed of 80 miles per hour, employed the car in his iconic 35-day whistle-stop tour during his reelection campaign in 1948, where he delivered 356 speeches from the back of the Magellan, per Architectural Digest.

By the time Truman's successor, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, took office, more efficient air travel was starting to replace rail travel, and the US Car No. 1 was used for the last time in 1954.

The car was last used by Ronald Reagan during a commemorative whistle-stop tour in Ohio in 1984.

In 1984, Reagan brought the Magellan out of retirement for a one-day whistle-stop tour through Ohio during his reelection campaign.

The president traveled from Dayton to Perrysburg and stopped at five locations to give speeches from the rear platform of the presidential car.

Today, the US Car No. 1 sits in a small museum near Zoo Miami.

In 1959, the Gold Coast Railroad Museum in Miami, Florida, acquired the car, which had been declared surplus and donated to the Smithsonian — which had no way to store it — in 1958.

Since then, the car has stayed in South Florida, where it is now open to the public.

The Gold Coast Railroad Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends. A regular adult ticket for the museum costs $12, and tickets for the presidential train car cost an additional $10.

To carry the president, the unique armored car had enhanced security features.

The car, which is 84 feet long, 10 feet wide, and 15 feet tall, was covered with over 1/2 an inch of nickel-steel armor on its sides and featured 3-inch-thick bulletproof glass windows.

It was also the heaviest train car built in the US. After it was refurbished for presidential use, the train car weighed 285,000 pounds, making it much heavier than modern-day war tanks, which often weigh around 100,000 pounds.

The car also had its name, Ferdinand Magellan, removed from its sides in an effort to conceal the president's presence, although its design often stood out.

Other security features included two escape hatches and a complex security protocol, which included diverting traffic on the rails to ensure that no train traveled ahead or behind the president for at least 30 minutes. Operating under the code name POTUS, the president's train always had the right of way.

Passengers boarded from the front of the train, which housed the staff quarters and kitchen.

The entrance through which presidents and their guests would've entered is at the front of the car.

In the kitchen, an onboard chef had access to ovens and refrigerators.

The train's dedicated chef prepared the president and guests' meals inside this kitchen.

On the other side of the kitchen, the staff had pantry space to plate the dishes.

The kitchen was also equipped with a pantry and a full-size metal sink.

The car housed two staff members: one chef and one porter.

Near the kitchen, a chef and a porter had sleeping quarters that featured an upper and lower berth.

The dining and conference room was in the main cabin of the car.

The presidential car's main cabin featured a 6-foot solid mahogany table where the president and his guests — often diplomats or foreign leaders — could gather for dinners or meetings.

The dining room had its own set of presidential china.

Presidents and guests didn't have to sacrifice the White House's luxuries while they were on the move — the dining room had its own set of china decorated with the presidential emblem.

Today, the room displays an example of the glass used in the car's windows.

The 3-inch-thick laminated bulletproof glass windows were installed when the car was refurbished for the president's use.

The windows were sealed, so to keep the car ventilated there was a simple form of air conditioning in which fans pushed air cooled by blocks of ice.

The car included two guest bedrooms along with a presidential suite.

The first of two guest bedrooms aboard the US Car No. 1, Stateroom D, included an upper and lower berth, where guests could sleep, and an in-room bathroom.

In these guest rooms, Truman welcomed British Prime Minister Winston Churchill during his visit to the US in 1946, during which he delivered his iconic Iron Curtain speech.

The presidential suite included the president's sleeping area.

Designed to accommodate Franklin D. Roosevelt's wheelchair, the president's room included a full-size bed, a dresser, and an in-room toilet.

Like most rooms in the car, it was also connected to a telephone, which was extremely rare at the time.

The connecting bathroom inside the presidential suite had a bathtub, a toilet, and a sink.

The presidential suite bathroom, equipped with a bathtub, toilet, and sink, connected the president's and the first lady's rooms, staterooms B and C.

The bathroom also contained an escape hatch, which was added as a security measure during the car's refurbishing.

The first lady's room paralleled the president's.

Inside the first lady's quarters was a bed and a dresser, although she didn't have an in-room bathroom.

The secondary guest bedroom could also be used as a breakfast or gathering room.

Located towards the back of the car, Stateroom A, the second guest room aboard the Magellan, featured convertible berths, like the other guest room, that could also be used as a breakfast, gathering, or office space for the president or his guests.

The upper berth could be raised into the ceiling, and the lower one could be converted into a sitting booth with a pull-out table.

The presidential car was often attached to train cars housing Secret Service, White House staffers, and the press.

The Ferdinand Magellan functioned as a White House on wheels, and was often attached to train cars dedicated to Secret Service, White House staffers, and reporters traveling with the president.

The US Car No. 1 was also often accompanied by two communications cars equipped with control consoles for radio broadcasts and telegraph communications so the president could be reached while he was on the move, per Atlas Obscura.

A narrow hallway led from the staterooms to the observation deck.

A slim, wood-paneled hallway led from the four staterooms to the observation deck at the rear of the car.

The observation lounge featured some of the presidential car's original furniture.

The observation room was also enlarged during the refurbishing of the car, allowing it to function as a secondary gathering room for the president and his guests.

During the refurbishment, a submarine escape hatch was added to the car.

Part of the car's security modifications included the addition of escape hatches, like this submarine hatch on the observation lounge.

Today, the observation lounge shows signs of hurricane damage that the car has sustained.

In 1992, Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida, and among its many damages were some sustained by the Magellan.

Although minor, a small window crack shows how the presidential car has stood the test of time.

Traveling presidents could address crowds from a podium on the car's rear platform.

At the end of the presidential car was an exposed podium from where the president often addressed crowds.

During Truman's whistle-stop tour, he spoke from the podium repeatedly, often addressing crowds in different cities within the same day.

The preserved train car stands as a remnant of US history and of how presidents spread their message.

Inactive as the president's main form of transportation for over 70 years, the Ferdinand Magellan stands as a memory of America's past.

However, our tour guide pointed out that the car is still on a track connected to current-day railroads and can be requested for use at any moment by the sitting US president.

Although I doubt Donald Trump would want to travel aboard the historic cabin, a modern-day president going on his own whistle-stop tour on US Car No. 1 remains a possibility.

• Meta will report earnings for the second quarter after the closing bell on Wednesday.
• Wall Street expects $44.3 billion in revenue for the quarter.
• Heading toward the 5 p.m. ET call, analysts will be looking for info on capex plans and AI opportunities.

Meta Platforms will report its second-quarter results after the closing bell on Wednesday.

Wall Street is feeling mostly bullish heading into the results. Analysts are eyeing strong AI opportunities and growth in ad spend, but there's some growing caution around high levels of capex and Meta's recent hiring spree aimed at furthering its AI ambitions.

Analysts expect the Facebook parent to report $44.83 billion in revenue and earnings per share of $5.89.

Meta stock is up about 20% year-to-date through Tuesday's close, putting it among the top performers in the Magnificent Seven cohort.

The earnings results will be released shortly after the 4 p.m. ET closing bell. The call with analysts is expected to start at 5 p.m. ET.

Bank of America: Meta is a 'Top Online ad stock'

Bank of America called Meta a "Top Online ad stock" for 2025 in a note this month.

That's because the company looks best-positioned to reap the benefits from AI-driven advertising, analysts wrote, which they believe could support a higher valuation for the stock.

In a separate note, analysts said they expected Meta to beat consensus estimates for second-quarter earnings, pointing to positive checks the bank conducted on Meta's advertising business. Revenue could come in around $45.5 billion, they estimated, at the higher end of Meta's guidance for the quarter.

The bank reiterated its "Buy" rating on Meta. Earlier this month, it lifted its price target for the stock to $775 from $765, which implies 9% upside from current levels.

Meta earnings expectations: Wall Street estimates EPS of $5.89

Second Quarter

• Revenue estimate $44.83 billion
• EPS estimate $5.89
• Advertising rev. estimate $44.07 billion
• Family of Apps revenue estimate $44.4 billion
• Reality Labs revenue estimate $386 million
• Other revenue estimate $502.4 million
• Operating income estimate $17.24 billion
• Family of Apps operating income estimate $22.16 billion
• Reality Labs operating loss estimate $4.86 billion
• Operating margin estimate 38.3%
• Ad impressions estimate +6.91%
• Average price per ad estimate +7.58%
• Average Family service users per day estimate 3.42 billion

Third Quarter

• Revenue estimate $46.21 billion
• Capital expenditure estimate $17.78 billion

Full year

• Total expenses estimate $114.01 billion
• Capital expenditure estimate $67.79 billion

Source: Bloomberg data

• Mark Zuckerberg is bullish on something he's calling "personal super intelligence."
• He published a letter on Wednesday outlining his vision for AI's personal impact on humanity.
• He predicted that smart glasses and other personal devices will become "our primary computing devices."

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday outlined his vision for "personal superintelligence," predicting a "new era of personal empowerment."

"I am extremely optimistic that superintelligence will help humanity accelerate our pace of progress," Zuckerberg wrote in a letter published on Meta's blog and social media platforms.

"But perhaps even more important is that superintelligence has the potential to begin a new era of personal empowerment where people will have greater agency to improve the world in the directions they choose," he said.

"Meta's vision is to bring personal superintelligence to everyone," he wrote. "We believe in putting this power in people's hands to direct it towards what they value in their own lives."

He also talked about the hardware that he expects people to use to access AI, saying he believed glasses would become "primary computing devices."

"Personal superintelligence that knows us deeply, understands our goals, and can help us achieve them will be by far the most useful," he added. "Personal devices like glasses that understand our context because they can see what we see, hear what we hear, and interact with us throughout the day will become our primary computing devices."

Meta is bullish on the form factor and has developed and launched multiple models of AI-powered smart glasses, with its AI Ray-Bans being the most popular. It's also working to develop a more advanced version of AI glasses with integrated displays, showing off a prototype of the technology, called "Orion," last year.

If the term "superintelligence" sounds familiar, that's because it's one of the phrases AI companies have used to describe a yet-to-be-reached breakthrough generally defined as when AI is capable or more capable than human intelligence. Another similar phrase is "artificial general intelligence," or AGI.

Last month, Zuckerberg announced Meta's superintelligence lab. The Meta CEO has aggressively recruited established AI talent, including hiring Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang to lead the new lab, and offering jaw-dropping offers to top engineers at OpenAI, Apple, and other AI firms.

Read Zuckerberg's full letter below:

Personal Superintelligence

Over the last few months we have begun to see glimpses of our AI systems improving themselves. The improvement is slow for now, but undeniable. Developing superintelligence is now in sight.

It seems clear that in the coming years, AI will improve all our existing systems and enable the creation and discovery of new things that aren't imaginable today. But it is an open question what we will direct superintelligence towards.

In some ways this will be a new era for humanity, but in others it's just a continuation of historical trends. As recently as 200 years ago, 90% of people were farmers growing food to survive. Advances in technology have steadily freed much of humanity to focus less on subsistence and more on the pursuits we choose. At each step, people have used our newfound productivity to achieve more than was previously possible, pushing the frontiers of science and health, as well as spending more time on creativity, culture, relationships, and enjoying life.

I am extremely optimistic that superintelligence will help humanity accelerate our pace of progress. But perhaps even more important is that superintelligence has the potential to begin a new era of personal empowerment where people will have greater agency to improve the world in the directions they choose.

As profound as the abundance produced by AI may one day be, an even more meaningful impact on our lives will likely come from everyone having a personal superintelligence that helps you achieve your goals, create what you want to see in the world, experience any adventure, be a better friend to those you care about, and grow to become the person you aspire to be.

Meta's vision is to bring personal superintelligence to everyone. We believe in putting this power in people's hands to direct it towards what they value in their own lives.

This is distinct from others in the industry who believe superintelligence should be directed centrally towards automating all valuable work, and then humanity will live on a dole of its output. At Meta, we believe that people pursuing their individual aspirations is how we have always made progress expanding prosperity, science, health, and culture. This will be increasingly important in the future as well.

The intersection of technology and how people live is Meta's focus, and this will only become more important in the future.

If trends continue, then you'd expect people to spend less time in productivity software, and more time creating and connecting. Personal superintelligence that knows us deeply, understands our goals, and can help us achieve them will be by far the most useful. Personal devices like glasses that understand our context because they can see what we see, hear what we hear, and interact with us throughout the day will become our primary computing devices.

We believe the benefits of superintelligence should be shared with the world as broadly as possible. That said, superintelligence will raise novel safety concerns. We'll need to be rigorous about mitigating these risks and careful about what we choose to open source. Still, we believe that building a free society requires that we aim to empower people as much as possible.

The rest of this decade seems likely to be the decisive period for determining the path this technology will take, and whether superintelligence will be a tool for personal empowerment or a force focused on replacing large swaths of society.

Meta believes strongly in building personal superintelligence that empowers everyone. We have the resources and the expertise to build the massive infrastructure required, and the capability and will to deliver new technology to billions of people across our products. I'm excited to focus Meta's efforts towards building this future.

— Mark

• Newly released satellite images show Russia has built shelters to protect aircraft at several bases.
• Britain's defense ministry said these measures follow a string of Ukrainian drone attacks.
• Ukraine has relied on domestically produced drones to hit high-value military targets inside Russia.

Russia has built hardened shelters to protect its vulnerable aircraft at several bases following a string of long-range Ukrainian drone strikes, a new Western intelligence assessment suggests.

Britain's defense ministry this week published satellite imagery from early June, collected by the US company Planet Labs, that shows newly constructed shelters at three Russian air bases behind the front lines.

The shelters, which consist of dome-shaped rooftops and thick blast doors, were photographed at Russia's Millerovo, Kursk Vostochny, and Hvardiiske air bases. Some structures were seen covered with earth for added protection that could help shield against shrapnel or other debris.

The UK said in a Tuesday intelligence update that Russia had launched efforts to protect vulnerable aircraft at several bases "in response to numerous successful" Ukrainian drone attacks. Millerovo, just a few miles across the border, for instance, was targeted just last week.

"The construction of these hardened aircraft shelters provides a layer of protection to aircraft deployed to Russian airbases against future" Ukrainian drone attacks, the UK explained.

Hardened shelters are one of several tactics that Russia has turned to in an effort to protect its fighter jets from the Ukrainian attacks. Moscow has also painted decoy warplanes on the tarmac at its air bases and even covered its bomber aircraft with tires in an attempt to confuse Kyiv's targeting and mislead the drones. It's unclear, however, how effective these protective measures have been.

Ukraine's long-range drone attacks have been a bright spot for Kyiv during the three-and-a-half-year-long war, which has transitioned from a maneuver conflict to one of attrition, featuring largely static front lines and standoff strikes from distance.

The US long prevented Ukraine from using Western-provided missiles to strike across the border and inside Russian territory. That arsenal was also quite limited. As a workaround to these restrictions, Kyiv invested heavily in domestic drone production.

Over the past year, Ukraine has repeatedly used homemade long-range drones to strike a range of high-value military and energy targets inside Russia, including oil terminals, ammunition depots, weapons-making factories, and air bases.

Russian air bases have been a particular focus for the Ukrainian military, as Moscow uses these sites to stage deadly attacks against troops and civilians, relying on missiles and guided bombs.

On Tuesday, conflict analysts at the Institute for the Study of War, a US-based think tank, said in a battlefield assessment that Ukrainian forces "appear to be intensifying a long-range strike campaign against Russian military industrial facilities and transport networks."

• I moved my family to Thailand for a better quality of life.
• I want to retire by 50, and Thailand offers a cheaper cost of living to make that happen.
• Here's a tour of our beautiful apartment in the heart of Bangkok that I could only dream of having in the U.S.

It took me too many years of my life to realize I don't want to work until a typical retirement age. My ex-father-in-law was a catalyst for this realization.

I met Steve when I was 17 (I'm now 44), and he was one of the hardest-working men I knew. There were times when he held two or even three jobs to support his family, and he worked hard at everything he did.

What's sad is that he worked until the day he found out he had stage 4 pancreatic cancer; he died three weeks later at 61.

His death was part of the reason I decided I didn't want to work into my 60s, and conversations with my children helped me see that my identity is more than my work.

Although I own a business, I'm working toward the goal of retiring by the age of 50, and moving to Thailand is the only way I could make that dream a reality.

We moved to Thailand for a better quality of life.

Retiring early in the US would be difficult due to the high cost of living and healthcare, even with insurance. My wife and I decided that moving out of the US permanently would be our best option to achieve our financial independence goals.

After researching, we decided to move to Thailand, a country with a relatively easy visa process, affordable healthcare, cheaper everyday living expenses, and a thriving economy.

My wife, our daughter, our niece, and I secured five-year Destination Thailand Visas (DTV) within a few weeks after deciding to move.

I found a beautiful apartment in the best location for a reasonable price.

It was easy to set up our life in Thailand, and I didn't have to go through the bureaucracy I've experienced my entire life in the US.

I landed in Bangkok and toured the apartments the next day. By the end of day two, we had signed a two-year lease for our dream apartment.

The rent is $1,200 a month, but our monthly living expenses for everything are less than $3,000 a month, which is about one-tenth of what we paid in the US.

Our apartment is close to Bangkok's public transportation.

The apartment is within walking distance to Terminal 21, a large mall, numerous coffee shops, restaurants, grocery stores, and healthcare facilities.

Bangkok is quite the city that never sleeps, and you can find many places that are open 24/7.

The apartment is just under 3,000 square feet with a comfortable living room and a balcony overlooking the pool.

The building and apartment are pet-friendly, so we brought our two cats with us. The building installed netting on the balconies so that the cats can spend time outside.

The apartment was furnished, but we also bought some of our things to make it more comfortable.

For example, I bought an 86-inch TV for the living room.

There is a nice-sized kitchen with a balcony — which houses our washer and dryer.

The kitchen is fully equipped with an oven, a gas stove, and plenty of counter space. Conveniently, a washer and dryer are on a small, netted balcony right outside the kitchen.

There is a formal dining room area, where we keep our filtered water.

We have a large dining room table, built-ins with storage space, and another balcony offers a dining area that's also netted.

Since the weather is good all year round, we're storing our larger suitcase on the balcony.

I turned the fourth bedroom and bathroom into my office.

I own a business and wanted a space to work outside our bedroom. The fourth room would typically be a maid's quarters or a small bedroom, but I converted it to my office.

I installed a mobile AC unit, bought a desk, and purchased a comfortable reading chair for breaks. The office is located on the same floor but is detached from the apartment, making it a quiet space.

Our primary bedroom is large with an ensuite and a balcony.

When we moved to Thailand, we thought we'd be moving to a smaller space than what we're used to in the US. But the apartment we got exceeded our expectations in terms of size.

The master bedroom came with a king-size bed, a large TV on top of built-ins, lots of closet space, a large bathroom, and an area for my wife to have a mini office.

We are quite comfortable.

Our daughter and niece have more space than they had in the US.

Our daughter and niece live with us, and occupy the second and third bedrooms, which are also spacious. Each room has a bathroom, a queen-size bed, and a good-sized TV.

Our daughter's room also features a separate vanity area.

We're very happy with our new family home, especially since it's saving us money.

I'm not sure if we'll stay in this apartment for all five years of our visa, but we're very happy with it right now.

The apartment has more space than anticipated, it's close to everything we need, and the building staff has been incredible.

We made the right move for our family, and we've accelerated our journey toward financial independence by increasing the amount we're saving.

• Sundresses are a summer closet staple, so I tried on options at Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy.
• The Gap dress was too thin, and the Banana Republic option was a little out of my price range.
• Even though it was the least expensive, the Old Navy piece was my favorite.

Summer is in full swing, which means it's time for floral prints, bold colors, and short hemlines.

It's the perfect season to refresh your wardrobe with light, breezy styles, and in my opinion, there's no closet staple more practical or comfortable than a good sundress.

As someone who loves all things feminine and frilly, sundresses are a personal favorite. To find a new go-to for the season, I headed to three retailers that never miss when it comes to wearable fashion — Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy.

Here's how my search for the perfect sundress went.

Old Navy was my first stop.

I love Old Navy's trendy and accessible styles, so I was excited to spot the puff-sleeve linen-blend mini dress while browsing.

Although the dress comes in a few different colors and patterns, I chose the white option with a light-blue floral design.

The dress had a few quirks, but it was comfortable and flattering.

This dress looked nice on the rack, but I was even more pleased once I tried it on.

The silhouette of the dress fell nicely along my curves, which I found flattering. I also liked the structured square neckline, side pockets, and the buttons down the front.

However, I noticed that the thread on a couple of buttons was fraying slightly, which made me question whether it would hold up beyond the summer.

The material was comfortable and lightweight, made from a blend of 55% linen and 45% viscose rayon. That said, the fabric was a bit sheer, and I could see the outline of the pockets through the dress. So, I'd be a little concerned about it becoming see-through in direct sunlight.

Overall, though, I loved the dress and would wear it for multiple summer occasions. I would happily pay the $45 price, as it's a perfect style for weekend barbecues, brunches, and garden parties.

My next stop was Banana Republic, which offers more elevated pieces.

Considering Banana Republic's upscale aesthetic, I knew I could count on the brand for stylish resort wear finds.

I was immediately drawn to the linen-blend seamed bodice mini dress on the rack, thanks to its beautiful yellow hue and flattering A-line silhouette.

The dress was nice, but it was a little more than I was hoping to spend.

The color and pattern of the dress were bold yet elegant, and the deep-V-neckline added an eye-catching touch. The Banana Republic option was made from almost the same blend as the Old Navy dress — 55% linen and 45% rayon.

Overall, the design was lightweight and flattering, and I loved the subtle cinch at the waist and the pleating across the midsection.

However, my one gripe with this dress was the $120 price tag. Although it was nicely made and well-constructed, I wouldn't pay triple digits for it.

Lastly, I popped into Gap to try one more option.

Gap has pleasantly surprised me over the past few years with its versatile selection of basics and fashion-forward clothing.

Upon walking in, the flutter-sleeve tie-waist mini dress immediately grabbed my attention. The material seemed thinner than the others, but that's not necessarily a bad thing when it comes to staying cool in the peak of summer.

This option was flattering, but the fabric felt a bit flimsy.

I was pleasantly surprised by how this dress looked on me. I especially appreciated the adjustable waist tie, and I loved the V-neckline and flowy sleeves paired with the pleated hemline on the skirt.

It looked romantic yet modest, which would be appropriate for a range of summer events like family gatherings or bridal showers.

However, the delicate fabric, which turned out to be 100% rayon, seemed like it might easily rip or get damaged in the wash.

The Gap dress cost $55. It wasn't terribly overpriced, but I don't think the cost was fully justified considering the fabric composition.

The Old Navy dress turned out to be my favorite.

I'd wear every option I tried on, but the Old Navy sundress turned out to be my favorite for its overall design, fit, and comfort.

It was the most affordable, yet also super flattering, and I could easily see myself wearing it for multiple occasions.

• Small exploding drones have emerged as the main battlefield killer in Ukraine.
• Ukraine's special operators were once focused on artillery, but now they train to survive drones.
• An American instructor said he teaches soldiers to hide, move smart, and use their guns if needed.

Ukraine's special operators used to focus their training on surviving intense Russian artillery fire. Now, their attention has shifted to drones — the main battlefield killer.

"Things have changed drastically," an American instructor with the 4th Ranger Regiment of Ukraine's Special Operations Forces told Business Insider. He could only be identified by his call sign Scooter for security reasons.

"One of the main differences we see today is the prevalence of drones," he said. "In 2022, it was primarily artillery fire. There was a lot more of it." The Ukrainian Rangers are now learning better concealment tactics and how to shoot down drones with their service weapons as a last resort.

Artillery, long described as the "king of battle," has played a central role in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, especially during the early years of the conflict, with both sides using the towed cannons and multiple launch rocket systems to attack the enemy.

The scale of the artillery duels could be seen in satellite imagery of the battlefield, where hundreds of craters peppered huge swaths of land and reduced buildings to rubble.

However, amid strained ammunition stockpiles and as the war transitioned from a maneuver-oriented conflict to one of attrition, with relatively static front lines, drones have emerged as the dominant battlefield threat, with some recent estimates suggesting that they are causing around 70% of Russian and Ukrainian casualties.

Scooter attributed the rise of drones to what has been called "shell hunger," explaining that Russia exhausted its stocks of artillery ammunition and began to rely on small quadcopter drones — known as first-person view, or FPV, drones — to fill the gaps. Ukraine also experienced a shortage of artillery rounds, turning to drones as an alternative.

"In 2022, we were trained to utilize terrain and structures to counter artillery fire," said Scooter, speaking to BI via video chat from an undisclosed location in central Ukraine.

"Now, we have to train people with the mentality that they are going to constantly be targeted by a loitering munition piloted by a human operator," he said.

'Move fast — don't move too fast'

FPV drones have emerged as a cheap way to deliver precision strikes against enemy trenches, personnel, and vehicles. Above Ukraine, these weapons are everywhere, with their tiny cameras giving human operators near-constant battlefield surveillance.

Russia and Ukraine have made the FPV drones even more of an issue over the past year by using fiber-optic cables to connect them to their operators, making the small aircraft resistant to most electronic warfare tactics.

"We have had to change our mentality with training completely," Scooter said. "How do I deal with FPVs? Not so much 'how do I deal with artillery fire?"

He said the first thing that he teaches Ukraine's special operators is how to blend in with their surroundings and practice better camouflage techniques. This means that every shiny object needs to be painted, removed, or taped over, with paint covering the hands and face.

Soldiers are also taught how to stay hidden using tree lines or thick forests to their advantage and to find heat sources, such as a car or generator, if they can, to blend in with their surroundings. A Russian drone operator piloting a surveillance drone may not be able to spot the difference between two white blobs on the screen.

Scooter said he trains soldiers in many of the same ways he would snipers or reconnaissance personnel.

"Move fast — don't move too fast," he said. "Don't draw unnecessary attention. The human eye sees movement, shape, and color — in that order. So move carefully, blend in with your surroundings."

"Basically, the same way you might hide from an enemy helicopter is the way you're going to hide from a drone," he added.

Instructors are also teaching Ukraine's special operators to fight the FPV drones with their service weapons — specifically shotguns — as a last resort.

However, these small targets are extremely difficult to hit, and if the drone is close enough, a direct impact could set off its explosive payload, and its forward momentum could spell trouble.

"Small arms fire is seldom effective" against an FPV drone, Scooter said. "But our mentality is that if I can do nothing else, something is better than nothing."

• Real GDP increased at an annualized rate of 3% in the second quarter, more than expected.
• That reverses the shrinking economy in the first quarter, but tariffs cloud future performance.
• The report is just one of several this week that highlight how the economy is doing.

US real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 3% in the second quarter, surpassing the forecast of 2.5% and a sharp rebound from the first quarter's decline.

"Compared to the first quarter, the upturn in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected a downturn in imports and an acceleration in consumer spending that were partly offset by a downturn in investment," the Bureau of Economic Analysis said.

Real personal consumer spending rose 1.4% in the second quarter, surpassing the 0.5% increase in the first. Fixed investment rose just 0.4% in the second quarter after a 7.6% increase in the first quarter.

After a 37.9% increase in the first quarter, imports fell 30.3% in the second quarter as President Donald Trump's tariff push heated up. Imports are subtracted in the GDP calculation. Exports fell 1.8% in the second quarter, after a 0.4% rise in the first.

"The consumer has been resilient despite recent volatility and policy uncertainty, and any employment weakness will be viewed as a bellwether for weakening consumption, which would likely push the Fed to resume cutting rates sooner," said Ryan Weldon, investment director and portfolio manager at IFM Investors.

Other releases beyond Wednesday's Bureau of Economic Analysis report indicate how the economy is doing. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book covering economic conditions between late May and early July said five of the 12 Fed districts had slight or modest economic gains and another five reported flat activity, compared to three with slight economic growth and three with no change in activity in the previous report.

The Beige Book also said there was a slight improvement in employment. Analysts and economists told Business Insider that the labor market is good if you have a job, and is not so great if you're a job seeker.

Trump's widespread tariffs are supposed to start on August 1 after a few pauses. The US and EU announced a trade deal on Sunday, including a 15% tariff rate on goods imported from the EU with some exceptions, Europe purchasing billions of dollars in US energy, and eliminating tariffs on US industrial goods.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Federal Reserve will announce its newest decision on interest rates, which economists and analysts expect to be held steady for the fifth straight decision. More data will be out this week, including the jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and monthly consumer spending from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

• Adidas' CEO has said tariffs "will directly increase the cost of our products for the US."
• The retailer sources many products from Vietnam and Indonesia, which are facing import levies.
• The company joins other companies, including rival Nike, saying they will raise prices to offset tariffs.

Adidas is the latest company to say it will raise prices in the US because of tariffs.

"The latest iteration of tariffs will directly increase the cost of our products for the US," CEO Bjørn Gulden said Wednesday, adding the levies could cost the company 200 million euros, around $218 million, in the second half of the year.

He added the company had a "negative impact in the double-digit euro millions" from tariffs in Q2.

In a statement accompanying the sportswear giant's most recent results, Gulden added that the company was wary of a bullish outlook for the rest of 2025 because, "We feel the volatility and uncertainty in the world does not make this prudent. We still do not know what the final tariffs in the US will be."

He was speaking as countries from which Adidas sources much of its products face tariffs.

Vietnam, Adidas's largest sourcing country, accounting for 27% of the company's total volume, will face a 20% tariff from August 1. Indonesia made 19% of Adidas' products and will face a 19% tariff.

Adidas joins other companies saying they will raise prices because of tariffs. Its rival Nike said at the end of June that it would raise prices in the US to offset a predicted $1 billion rise in costs.

Macy's, Shein, Temu, Ford, and Walmart have also said they will raise prices to offset tariffs.

Gulden added the company does not know "what the indirect impact on consumer demand will be should all these tariffs cause major inflation."

He said Adidas will stick to its initial outlook for 2025 of operating profit between €1.7 and 1.8 billion. "We currently feel confident to deliver it, but of course this might change," Gulden said.

Adidas's stock was down 7% to €13.85 a share on Frankfurt's stock exchange at 12:30 p.m. local time.

Revenue jumped about 2% year-on-year to almost €6 billion in the three months ending June 30. Operating profit rose 58% year-on-year in the second quarter to €546 million.

• Boeing said it will further delay the launch of two new 737 Max variants to 2026.
• The delays come as the planemaker wrestles with a potential issue regarding the plane's deicing.
• "We're going to have to back up and make some additional design changes," said CEO Kelly Ortberg.

A pair of upcoming variants of Boeing's most popular plane, the 737 Max have been further delayed to 2026, CEO Kelly Ortberg confirmed in an earnings call Tuesday.

Achieving certification for the Max 7 and Max 10 will be a key benchmark for Ortberg, who is approaching one year at the helm and has been leading Boeing's turnaround.

The company had initially hoped the Max 7, the shortest version of the flagship narrow-body jet, would be certified in 2022.

However, it has been constrained by work on the engine anti-ice system, a key safety feature that prevents ice from building up during cold weather conditions and at high altitude.

"Work on the solution is taking longer than expected, and we now are expecting certification in 2026," Ortberg said on the second-quarter earnings call.

The delay was first reported last week by industry publication The Air Current.

Back in 2023, the Federal Aviation Administration warned that the system could cause the engine to overheat — and potentially result in debris breaking off and hitting the plane.

Boeing then requested an exemption, saying an engine breakup is "extremely improbable," but withdrew this request in January 2024 as it faced a safety crisis in the wake of the Alaska Airlines blowout.

Figuring out a solution for the complex system has been far from straightforward.

Ortberg told investors on Tuesday that Boeing has been exploring different design paths.

"We found some issues with the design implementation we had, so we're going to have to back up and make some additional design changes to get through that de-icing requirement," he said.

"Basically, the engineering designs have not yielded in the time frame that we were anticipating, and so we still have work to do."

His comments came after Ryanair's earnings call last week, when CEO Michael O'Leary said Boeing's commercial airplanes chief wrote to confirm the airline's first 15 Max 10s would be delivered in the spring of 2027.

A Boeing spokesperson said: "We are maturing a technical solution that includes design updates. The modifications would be included in the baseline certification of the 737-7 and 737-10. We are finalizing our analysis and will present the information to the FAA. We will continue to work under their rigorous oversight to meet safety and regulatory requirements."

Meanwhile, Boeing is also working to certify the 777X — a twin-engine wide-body jet, also years behind schedule. It's now expected to enter service in 2026 as well.

"Flight testing continues with no new technical issues to report," Ortberg said during the earnings call.

Boeing reported quarterly revenues above expectations of $22.7 billion, with a net loss of $612 million.

It's been ramping up production of its cash-cow 737 Max, reaching the 38-a-month limit imposed by the FAA.

Its share price fell about 4% on Tuesday, but is still up more than 30% since the start of the year.

• TikTok is launching its own version of community notes in the US called "footnotes."
• The tool lets TikTok users chip in on identifying bad or misleading information in videos.
• The company is joining peers like Meta and X in asking users to help moderate content.

Fact-checkers, start your engines.

TikTok is launching a new "footnotes" feature in the US on Wednesday that allows users to add context or corrective information to videos.

The crowdsourcing tool is similar to X (formerly Twitter) or Meta's community notes. It lets users flag videos they believe contain false claims, information that needs clarification, or media that has been edited or artificially generated. Other users then rate the submission's accuracy and helpfulness. If enough support it, it could get added below an offending video.

The footnotes feature arrives at a key moment for TikTok, which has grown into a popular news source for young people. Last year, 17% of US adults said they regularly get news on the site, up from 3% in 2020, according to the Pew Research Center.

TikTok is not relying solely on footnotes to address misinformation.

The company said it uses automation and human moderators to track down false content, working with a global network of fact-checkers to identify misinformation in different markets. But for app users, footnotes may quickly become one of the more visible forms of content review happening on the app.

To start posting footnotes, a user must be based in the US, have been on the app for at least six months, and have no recent community violations on their record. The company said it had registered around 80,000 participants to seed the product at launch.

One challenge that may crop up for TikTok is defining what is or isn't good information in a footnote (an area of contention in the US media landscape where political divisions run deep).

When submitting a footnote, TikTok asks users to provide a link to a "reliable source" to support their claim, though TikTok isn't dictating what is or isn't reliable.

"In the beginning, we're letting our users choose which links to upload and after we go live, we'll be taking a look at some of the sources that come in," Erica Ruzic, TikTok's global head of integrity and authenticity product, said on Tuesday at an event hosted at the company's New York offices. "We will let our users decide what they're deeming an authoritative source to begin."

Initially, footnotes will only appear on the original offending video, which means duets or stitches won't get flagged. They also won't appear on content from advertisers.

The effectiveness of the program may depend on TikTok's ability to prevent its system from being gamed, as bad actors might try to flood the zone with misinformation on a particular topic, Angie Drobnic Holan, director of the International Fact-Checking Network, said during a Tuesday panel at TikTok's offices.

The speed at which a footnote is submitted, reviewed, and posted will also be an important factor in the program's impact.

"When bad content that's harmful goes viral, it doesn't go viral in two weeks, it goes viral in one hour," Roberta Braga, founder and executive director of the Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas, said during the panel.

• My teen wanted to get a job at a camp this summer, so I helped her through the application process.
• She was unsure what to put down as skills and and who to list as references, so I guided her.
• Her experience helped her stand out among the 100 applicants we heard she was up against.

"I want to be a camp counselor next summer," my 16-year-old daughter (now 17) proclaimed one day.

Luckily, she said this in December, just in time to start applying. From my own experience as a camp counselor at her age, I knew that most applications for this type of summer job are often due between January and March.

She set her sights on a familiar place

She decided to apply to the same camp she attended from age 8 to 11, a place she loved spending her summers. I let her know that her years as a camper there were valuable experience and something she should mention when she eventually filled out an application.

I guided her through the application process

Once she decided that this was the summer job she wanted to go for, I decided to help her figure out how to get it. First, I told her to search the name of the camp online along with the words "camp counselor application." After finding it I asked her to check the deadline. It turns out I was right about the time frame, since it was due in early February.

At first, she was worried that she didn't have any prior work experience, but I reassured her that camps often value leadership roles at school and participation in extracurricular activities. I also pointed out that her high GPA and academic awards could work in her favor. Plus, she did have experience looking after her younger cousins, which I assured her would count for something.

As she filled out the application, she asked me for feedback about which activities to include (she does a lot!). After some discussion, she decided to highlight that she founded and serves as president of her school's environmental club, an activity that showed both her leadership skills and her love of the outdoors. Since the camp she applied to is an outdoor adventure camp that visits different parks, it felt like a perfect activity to feature.

When she got to the section for references, she had no idea what it meant or who to include. I explained that if the camp is considering her for the position, they will contact the people she lists and ask whether she is responsible, hardworking, and reliable. I suggested she include the teacher who oversees the environmental club, her karate sensei, and someone who has known her since preschool and now works at the recreation center where the camp is held.

I also explained that before listing someone as a reference, she needed to ask if they were willing to be one. At first, she was hesitant to include the person who works at the camp because they hadn't interacted recently, and she felt nervous about reaching out. I told her that personal connections can sometimes help you get a job. Even though she wasn't entirely convinced, she agreed to reach out and ended up including this person.

She got an interview

A few weeks after she submitted her application, she received an email from the camp asking to set up an interview. She was excited but admitted she was also a little nervous. Since she participates in musical theater, we decided to "role play" a mock interview using possible questions. She said our practice session helped her feel more confident and ready for the real thing.

Following her interview, she felt both excited and hesitant. The job seemed like a perfect fit, and they asked some of the questions we had practiced.

"I think you were right about the personal connection," she explained. It turns out they mentioned the person during the interview. She was surprised that I was probably right. I don't often hear "You're right, Mom" so that was a win for me!

Even though she was clearly excited about the possible job and interview, she didn't want to get her hopes up. "They told me there are over a hundred applicants, and most of them are older than me," she said.

She got the job

Weeks passed without any word from the camp. Just when she thought she didn't get the job, she received a packet in the mail confirming that she did. She was beyond excited to start her new position and I was happy our work paid off.

She just finished her third week as a camp counselor and loves it. Being outdoors in parks, interacting with other campers and counselors, and reliving her own camp days have made the experience fun. "I don't even feel like it's work," she said to me.

I'm so happy that she found the perfect fit for a summer job. She loves it so much that I'm now wondering if maybe it's time I start asking her for career advice.

• Reid Hoffman built an AI version of himself to explore ethical uses of deepfake tech.
• His AI twin delivers speeches in multiple languages using his cloned voice.
• Hoffman said deepfakes can connect people — if used with transparency and care.

Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn cofounder and veteran Silicon Valley investor, has created an AI-powered version of himself — and the results are both eye-opening and a little surreal.

In a Monday interview on the "American Optimist" podcast, Hoffman revealed he trained a "deepfake twin" using a custom GPT model, ElevenLabs for voice synthesis, and video-generation tools to explore whether a technology widely associated with disinformation could also be repurposed for good.

"You have this technology that most people call deepfake, and deepfake just sounds like it's bad," Hoffman said. "So I was like, let's start experimenting with it and see how it can work in better ways."

The AI clone, which he calls "Reid AI," is designed to act and sound like him — and, in some cases, speak languages Hoffman doesn't.

After delivering a speech at the University of Perugia in Italy in May 2024, he used his AI twin to deliver the same message in Hindi, Chinese, Japanese, and Italian.

"I've never heard my voice speaking Hindi; I've never heard my voice speaking Japanese," he said. "And it was like, wow, it is clearly my voice."

Hoffman described the projects as "raw experimentation" with surprising upsides, including increasing accessibility and expanding the reach of ideas.

But he also acknowledged serious limitations.

"I haven't put it out in the wild," he said, citing the risk of hackers making the AI say "crazy stuff."

Deepfakes have already been misused in several ways. These include impersonating former President Joe Biden in AI-generated robocalls urging voters not to participate ahead of the 2024 New Hampshire primary and spreading fake surrender messages from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

For now, Hoffman's clone remains private and serves as a tool for translation, experimentation, and testing new ways to communicate across cultures and platforms.

Hoffman built the projects with transparency in mind: the AI's synthetic nature is disclosed, and its use remains tightly controlled.

His takeaway is that not all deepfakes are inherently harmful. With ethical design and intentional use, the same technology driving disinformation could help people connect across languages and cultures.

"What we're trying to do, as technooptimists say, is how do we shape it so it's applied well," he said.

Hoffman isn't the only one to have experimented with AI clones.

"The Diary of a CEO" host Steven Bartlett launched a new podcast in May, "100 CEOs with Steven Bartlett," using an AI-generated version of himself to narrate stories about business leaders.

• When my kids moved out, I wasn't prepared for how unnerving the silence would feel.
• I spent years pouring into everyone else and had to relearn what brought me joy.
• Now, I've rediscovered my voice, embraced life over 50, and found a new kind of purpose.

For years, my life ran on a nonstop loop of various sporting events, travel to tournaments, and coordinating team dinners. My son and daughter both played travel sports. I was usually the team manager, organizing hotels, carpools, and group texts. Our weekends were booked for years. My house was the hub for prom, homecoming, and all the in-between moments. I worked, yes, and enjoyed it, but everything always came after my role as "Mom."

Then one day, the house was quiet.

I thought I'd be ready for the empty nest phase. I had friends who raved about the freedom. But I wasn't prepared for how unsettling it would feel.

When the noise stopped, the questions began

It's not just that the kids were gone. It's that everything that made our life feel full — the chaos, the laughter, the messy rooms, the mudroom full of shoes — was suddenly gone, too. I found myself lingering in the kitchen, waiting for someone to walk through the door. I missed the clutter. I missed the noise. I missed them.

And then I started missing me.

When you spend two decades being everything for everyone, it's easy to forget who you are outside of that. I didn't feel sad every day. I just felt like I was adrift. Untethered. Like I had checked all the boxes, and now I didn't know what came next.

I had to slow down long enough to figure things out

Initially, I stayed busy because that was what I knew. But eventually, I ran out of things to organize. I no longer had to pack the car with chairs and coolers. There were no games, no events, no post-practice dinners — just space.

And it turns out that space makes you listen.

That's when I started writing again. I remembered how much I loved telling stories — especially the stories of women like me who were figuring out this next chapter.

I still love the title "Mom," but I've loosened my grip on it

Don't get me wrong, I still love being a mom. But I've learned I can't hold it the same way I used to. My adult kids don't need a team manager. They need a sounding board. They need to know how to get their car repaired, which insurance to choose, or how to cook their favorite meal. They need space to grow. And I needed to realize that being a great mom now looks different from what it used to.

I no longer center my life around them. I cheer them on from the sidelines of their lives, but I've finally stepped onto the field of my own.

I started to live for myself

This isn't a story of an impulsive reinvention. I didn't sell everything and move across the world. But I did reinvent — quietly at first, then boldly. I let go of the version of me who only knew how to give. I started choosing things that lit me up.

I launched a podcast to spotlight women navigating life after 50, which has also become a regular television segment. I became a lifestyle expert on TV. I started writing professionally. I built a TikTok community from scratch, proof that midlife is not a slowdown, but a second wind.

The truth is, I never stopped being me. I just buried her under everyone else's needs. And now, I'm carefully, and sometimes clumsily, unearthing her again.

I'm not chasing some youthful version of myself. I'm claiming the wisdom I've earned and the freedom I nearly forgot I had.

This isn't the end of anything. It's just the first time I'm living fully as me.

• We bought our dream mountain home just outside of Boulder, Colorado.
• It had stunning views from roof-height front windows and nearby hiking trails that our dog loved.
• We knew the risk of wildfires when we bought, but the scope of mitigation was larger than we thought.

When I first set foot inside, I knew it was special.

My partner and I had been living in a 1,150-square-foot home in Boulder, Colorado, enjoying a 2.75% interest rate, but we were feeling cramped.

We both worked from home and shared a tiny desk in our spare bedroom and a full-sized desk in our dining space. Dinner parties required creative planning, and we had no garage or basement for storage.

Then, one day, our realtor excitedly called us up. A house that checked nearly all of our boxes was just about to hit the market. She asked if we could come see it right away.

The neighborhood was comprised of sprawling land plots and spacious homes tucked into an impressive foothill, with a winding road connecting them. Our future house was at the very top.

As I stepped inside, I could see Boulder's grasslands reach out toward the horizon through roof-height front windows. Take just a few steps into the backyard, and the craggy peaks of the Rocky Mountains poked into the sky.

It was true mountain living, but only a 10-minute drive to Boulder's city limits. To us, it offered the best of both worlds: access to the community we loved, while gaining plenty of space to work remotely and feel connected with nature.

There was one major downside, though.

We'd have to factor wildfire risk into our day-to-day lives

Worsening drought conditions accelerated by climate change were leading to destructive, difficult-to-predict wildfires in the Western states, including Colorado's Front Range.

Our realtor connected us with her friend, a retired fire department chief, and we walked the property together.

He pointed out the changes we would likely need to make: updating the roof with fire-resistant shingles, adding a gravel barrier, taking down trees, and keeping wild grasses trimmed.

He said to start by contacting a local nonprofit, Wildfire Partners, that assesses wildfire risks for homeowners.

So, after closing on our dreamy mountain home in the winter of 2022, we scheduled our assessment. Since Wildfire Partners would not come until spring, and our yard was blanketed in a protective layer of snow, we shelved our concerns for the first few months.

We faced a steep learning curve

We assembled mood boards on Canva, scoured vintage rug resellers, and shopped for the perfect leather couch to complete our dream living room.

Our houseplants thrived, and our sweet dog fell in love with the trails that started outside our front door.

As the springtime rolled in, we watched the evening thunderstorms roll over the plains. Some mornings, we even woke up above the clouds.

Mountain living wasn't all rainbows, though. Upon moving in, we had a long list of tasks to complete. We needed to install a radon fan. Our well required treatment for T. coli (total coliform) contamination. Getting contractors to come out was a monumental task.

We also discovered that many of the seller's renovations were hastily slapped together. We wondered what other corners he might have cut, and how much of our planned wildfire mitigation budget would have to go toward these unexpected fixes.

The scope of wildfire mitigation was larger than we expected

When the Wildfire Partners representative came out that spring, he tagged over 30 trees that we would need to cut down. His 17-page assessment also involved trimming ladder fuels and fireproofing our house's exterior.

If and when we completed our wildfire mitigation checklist, Wildfire Partners would come back, verify the work, and issue a certification. They would also match up to $2,000 of arborist-related costs, but the rest would be on us to fund. The proposed scope of work would cost upwards of $50,000, or several thousand less if you were able to DIY some projects.

Our assessor assured us that most people take years to complete their checklists due to the time, money, and effort required. My partner and I debated our plan of approach and decided we would sleep better at night knowing we had taken all the necessary steps to protect our home.

A grassland fire put us on edge

That first (and only) summer in our dream home, we spent weekends working toward our certification. We felled dozens of trees, stacked logs, and gave them away. Friends pitched in, and a kind neighbor lent us chainsaws.

We trimmed the wild grasses that covered our hillside. We installed a gravel barrier around the house to reduce the likelihood of a stray ember landing and catching flame. We interviewed contractors for more complex projects, like installing roofing and ledge flashing.

It was hard work, but it was rewarding. Before we knew it, we were only a few list items away from earning our certification and feeling accomplished.

Then, one afternoon, a small wildfire broke out at the bottom of the neighborhood hill.

A neighbor told us that someone operating a weedwhacker had nicked a rock, and the resulting sparks had started a brush fire. I watched smoke curl over the ridge, and refreshed my neighborhood message board, anxiously waiting to find out if we needed to evacuate.

Fortunately, the firefighters acted swiftly, and the winds were not blowing that day, but this fire event brought back a devastating memory from just a few years prior.

On December 30, 2021, a grass fire in Boulder County transformed into a suburban firestorm, fanned by wind gusts of over 100 miles per hour. In a matter of hours, the Marshall Fire had claimed two lives and over 1,000 homes. People had minutes to evacuate. My partner and I read stories of neighbors knocking on doors to ensure no one was left behind, since there was no statewide alert system.

Wildfires are not only frightening because they are destructive. They are also infamously unpredictable. Just one ember—deposited by the wind onto a combustible ledge—could be the difference between avoiding disaster and losing your home.

That's why our friends at Wildfire Partners were so stringent about handing out certifications. Details that could appear insignificant, such as decking gaps or the type of mesh covering your vents, actually make a big difference. There was also hope—but not a promise—that the mitigations would help keep homes like ours insured.

Insurance trends made us question our purchase

In 2024, the insurance landscape began to change. We heard through the neighborhood grapevine that a neighbor's insurer had dropped them.

A friend in another part of the state also lost her coverage. Finally, we read that State Farm, our insurer, would no longer issue new home policies in California. Could Colorado be next?

It occurred to us that our safety net, which we paid thousands of dollars annually to secure, might not be there for us when we needed it.

We started wondering what would happen if we lost everything. Would our insurer provide us enough to rebuild in place? Would we even want to? And in the absolute worst-case scenario possible—if a fire broke out, would a neighbor rescue our dog if we were unable to get to her?

Over beers, the same neighbors who lent us yard tools recounted tales of their most recent evacuation. The 2020 CalWood Fire had burned over 10,000 acres. On their wall hung a framed photo of the blaze, which had ripped through the foothills just across the canyon and leveled 26 structures.

I was in awe of their casual attitude, but they revealed important truths. We cannot control nature, no matter how many preventative checklists we complete. Also, we are far from experiencing the worst impacts of climate change, especially as our government takes steps to halt climate action.

Committing to life in a wildland-urban interface would require acceptance and a come-what-may point of view on the matter of wildfires, which we weren't sure we were up for.

We sold in 2024

Our life on the mountain was far from perfect, but it had become our home.

We looked forward to the wild irises and larkspurs blooming. We even felt fond of the wild band of turkeys that sometimes woke us up at 6 in the morning. Could we really leave it all behind?

Despite everything, we were not resting easily. No matter how much we enjoyed it in the present, we feared our dream home could not be insured or sold in the future. This is not a dealbreaker for our neighbors, who plan to spend the rest of their lives in this special place—come what may. It doesn't matter because they are in their forever homes.

As it turned out, we were not in ours.

Our trusty realtor listed our dream home in the spring, and by summer, it closed. Although we came out in the red, we exhaled a massive sigh of relief. A few days after closing, a wildfire broke out in South Boulder, and I told that familiar pang of fear to take a hike.

For those willing to accept the risk, our former mountain home is a magical place to live. We just weren't those people.

• The TV business has been contracting for years, which is why media companies are trying to sell off their cable networks.
• But David and Larry Ellison think there's long-term value in Paramount and its TV business, says analyst Rich Greenfield.
• Greenfield also weighs in on new streaming launches from ESPN and Fox.

The TV business is not slowing down this summer: Any day now, David and Larry Ellison will finally buy Paramount, with its collection of once-storied TV networks like CBS and MTV. A few weeks later, ESPN and Fox — the last two big TV players that haven't launched their own streamers — will launch their own streamers.

But on the other hand, the TV business has been slowing down for a decade: Every quarter, more cable TV subscribers cut the cord, or never sign up for a cord in the first place. The people who own cable TV networks don't seem to have any plan to deal with the issue, other than trying to sell their cable TV networks.

Lightshed analyst Rich Greenfield has been chronicling the industry's massive, internet-driven change for years. I caught up with him on my Channels podcast to talk through the particular challenges — and perhaps some opportunities — facing TV right now. Here's an edited excerpt of our chat.

Peter Kafka: When the music business collapsed back in the Napster era, it happened basically overnight. But TV has hung on for much longer, even though consumer behavior changed pretty significantly over the last decade.

Is there something specific about the TV industry that's allowed these guys to move in slow motion?

Rich Greenfield: There's very few businesses where you can raise the price on a product that consumers are using less and less every day.

The brilliance of the cable TV business model was the big fat bundle. It's a pretty incredible business to put all of these channels together, even if people don't want most of them.

It had everything you wanted and no alternatives, which is very different than where we are today.

One of my soapboxes is when I hear people saying they wish we could go back to the cable days. And I keep saying, that was terrible. You guys forget. Everyone hated that.

I think consumers are pretty adept at managing their services, and I don't hear a lot of complaints. Sometimes it's like, "Where is this game?" Or "How do I find this thing?" It can be a little confusing.

But think about your cellphone. You've had one for quite a while now. Managing the apps and deleting something if you're not using it and adding something —these are all pretty easy functions.

We don't give consumers enough credit. They're pretty adept at figuring out cheaper solutions and ways to manage.

I want to ask you about a few specific companies. The Paramount deal is finally going to close. What do you think the new owners — David Ellison and his father, Larry Ellison — will do once they have control? Will it change overnight, or is this a slow-rolling thing?

It will certainly change.

The juxtaposition is sort of amazing. [Paramount, under current owner Shari Redstone, is a] financially strapped company, with challenged financial ownership.

And you're moving to an ownership team that is one of the wealthiest families on planet Earth.

David Ellison is probably going to be running this company for 30, 40 years. He obviously has a passion for entertainment. He's moving to a much bigger stage.

But this is still a financially struggling company. He can't fix the trends of what consumer behavior is changing. What he can do is invest and really build.

And you saw the "South Park" deal they just cut, where they're spending hundreds of millions of dollars to move the show [exclusively] to Paramount+. I think it's a small sign of the post-merger strategy, which is that David Ellison is not just doing this to cut costs and squeeze more juice out of this existing company. His goal is to build something significant with a very long-term perspective, which is going to require a lot of investment.

What does that look like? Is the new Paramount just a film studio and a streaming service and CBS — and Ellison sells off everything that's not those things?

I think initially they'll say they need the cash flow from cable and will use that cash flow to reinvest.

I would be shocked if you didn't see more sports on CBS. I think they will be a contender for UFC rights. You've seen David Ellison multiple times in the past year sitting in the front row, cage side with Ari Emanuel [CEO of TKO Group, which owns UFC], and with [UFC CEO] Dana White.

And Donald Trump.

I don't disagree there on politics. But I also think he likes the content. I think he's going to spend a lot of money.

He understands the tech North Star — whether we're talking about TikTok, Meta, Netflix, or Spotify — it's all about time spent. I think David gets that Paramount+ needs a heck of a lot more time spent. The only way you're gonna get there is a better product and more content.

Let's move to Disney. Sometime in the next few weeks, before college football and the NFL starts, ESPN will finally be something you can buy as a stand-alone streaming service. If they rolled this out in 2015, we would have said it's a really big deal. Is it a big deal in 2025?

At $30 a month, I don't think this is a huge deal. My guess is it gives them flexibility to start packaging this with other services. They can probably get some subscribers. Not a lot. It's probably low to mid-single-digit millions. Not millions and millions.

Remember, they're giving the new service to everybody who already subscribed to [pay TV]. So 65 million-plus ESPN subscribers are going to get this new ESPN app at no additional cost.

So who is the audience for this? You're not subscribing to the big bundle. You're a pretty passionate sports fan. You're willing to spend $30 a month for sports. My guess is it's just a small number.

It actually makes sense to do it. But I don't think, at the end of the day, it is a huge needle-mover. What's going to matter to Disney stock is their theme park business and their cruise ship business. Those being better than expected — because of the state of the economy and what's happened with tariffs not being as problematic as feared a few months ago — is far more important to Disney than what happens with the ESPN streaming rollout.

We're also close to the launch of Fox's own streamer, Fox One. The main assets there are Fox Sports — which is really the NFL — and Fox News. Do you think Fox thinks this is primarily a product for people who want to watch football, or do you think it's primarily for Fox News fans?

I think this is a pretty limited offering for a sports fan.

So does that lead you to believe that Fox thinks this is really a Fox News product?

I think you'll see more uptake from Fox News viewers.

In the old days, you would have said that Fox News has a very old audience. And the idea that its audience is going to stream it doesn't make sense. But maybe that's not true in 2025?

Streaming's become pretty normalized. When you look at how many subscribers Netflix now has, I don't think streaming is some elitist thing. I think it's pretty normalized.

I think the part you may be missing is that the Fox News audience is also widening out.

And as you make it available to people on streaming, you may pick up some younger people. Maybe it's more interesting during election years. It creates flexibility. And I don't think there's a whole lot of downside.

All the basic cable networks are in freefall. Everyone who owns them is trying to sell them — either directly to another buyer or, in the case of Comcast's Versant, trying to bundle it up as a publicly traded stock. Who is a buyer for cable networks?

I don't think there are enough people talking about this topic. So many of the investors I deal with, or even industry executives I talk to, think you're going to see Paramount do a deal with Warner Bros. Or maybe you'll see Versant merge with some of the Paramount cable networks.

But let's just step back. I think David Ellison and Larry Ellison have a much bigger plan than aggregating more linear cable networks. I would be surprised if that was the strategy. I think there's a much bigger plan that the Ellison family is probably thinking about that goes well beyond just aggregating more legacy media assets.

WarnerMedia merged with Discovery, which hasn't created value. CBS and Viacom became Paramount, and that hasn't created value. Disney bought most of Fox's cable networks, and that hasn't created value. Putting legacy assets together that are in secular decline doesn't work. Maybe it might've been worse [without those deals].

But that's not compelling for a buyer.

It's a reason to be a seller. As a buyer, there's lots of things you could buy and lots of places you could go. The idea that buying more of these assets so that you have more costs to cut doesn't seem really compelling.

Another reason you are skeptical about big media consolidation is politics. You think that either antitrust politics, or Donald Trump's personal politics, make that unlikely. The only media mogul he wasn't complaining about was Rupert Murdoch, and now he's suing Murdoch.

Is there a world where anyone sells or buys a meaningful media asset while Donald Trump is president?

I think it's going to be challenging.

• Starbucks' new protein cold foam will be released by the end of 2025, CEO Brian Niccol said Tuesday.
• The optional topping will bring 15g of protein with no added sugar to "virtually any cold beverage."
• The new offering taps into the protein coffee trend sweeping TikTok, a marketing strategist told BI.

Starbucks may unleash the next wave of protein coffee, or "proffee," posts on TikTok if its new menu item brews up the excitement execs hope it will.

The coffee giant plans to release its new protein cold foam by the end of this year, capitalizing on the growing trend of making even your coffee a health drink, popularized by gym bros and Gen Z.

"In late Q4, we'll introduce protein cold foam," CEO Brian Niccol told investors during the company's Q3 earnings call on Tuesday. "It taps into what has become one of our most popular modifiers — cold foam, which grew 23% year-over-year. Protein cold foam with no added sugar is an easy way to add 15 grams of protein to virtually any cold beverage. And customers can also add the flavor of their choice."

Since debuting cold foam as a topping in 2014, Starbucks has expanded its flavor options to include offerings like vanilla, brown sugar, pumpkin spice, and raspberry cream.

Starbucks is in the middle of a revitalization campaign, intending to reverse slumping sales and renew diminished consumer interest. In addition to remodeling stores with ceramic dishes and comfy chairs to encourage visitors to stay longer and bringing back the self-serve condiment bar, Niccol has also aimed to streamline the store's menus, announcing plans to cut 30% of its offerings and changing the pricing structure for add-ons like syrups.

In the hourlong call, during which Starbucks announced that it had beat analyst expectations on revenue but missed on earnings, Niccol appeared animated by new protein-focused menu items, mentioning "protein" at least eight times.

"As we move further into 2026, expect more experiential beverages and nutritious, satisfying bites for the afternoon day part," Niccol said. "This month, we'll start testing new coconut water-based tea and coffee beverages in select markets, and we'll lean into customer needs with upcoming tests of gluten-free and high-protein options to create food that's as artisanal as our beverages."

Michael Della Penna, chief strategy officer at the digital advertising research firm, InMarket, which publishes regular reports on fast-casual restaurant customer loyalty, told Business Insider that the demand for high-protein drinks and food options has been accelerating over the last 3-5 years.

A study by Cargill found that more than 60% of Americans increased their protein intake in 2024 — a rise from 48% in 2019. Gen Z, in particular, loves a high-protein option and tends to prefer customizable menu offerings and cold beverages, Della Penna said, making an optional protein add-on like cold foam a perfect blend to capture trending tastes.

"The other interesting part of it is the routine that a drink like that can create for a consumer," Della Penna said. "By introducing protein, that's a great way to get a consumer back as they move about their daily lives, particularly when going to work out and then stopping to get a cold brew with a scoop of protein. That creates that sort of repeatable pattern of visitation and purchase that a drink like that can offer to a segment within their customer base."

With Gen Z and fitness fans in mind, move over, pink drink — it's protein's time to shine.

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert at [email protected] or Signal at byktl.50. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• Jain Global, one of the buzziest hedge fund launches, recently wrapped its first year of trading.
• After a slow start, Jain started gathering momentum in 2025.
• Business Insider dug into the numbers and charts that explain Jain Global's first year.

Jain Global launched last July with great fanfare and even greater expectations. It landed with a thud — at first — before gathering momentum toward the end of its first year.

While Jain Global didn't end up being the largest hedge fund launch ever, as founder Bobby Jain had once envisioned, it nonetheless holds a claim to being the most complex and ambitious.

Jain raised $5.3 billion in commitments from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, a sovereign wealth fund, and wealth management platforms from Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, among others. Jain Global didn't start trading that full amount right away. Instead, it received and put the money to work in stages, the last $700 million arriving in July.

The firm started trading with 215 employees and six overarching investment strategies, as well as a seventh Asia-specific business line that trades in each strategy — an unprecedented and expensive rollout intended to lay the foundation for future growth. In its first year, the firm traded about 50 products — everything from convertible bonds to significant risk transfers, Delta 1 options, and natural gas — across 45 countries.

Fair or not, the heft of Jain's undertaking immediately thrust it into competition with the world's largest multistrategy hedge funds, drawing comparisons to Millennium, Citadel, and Exoduspoint, which holds the crown as the largest ever hedge fund launch.

Business Insider dug into more of the numbers and charts that explain Jain Global's first year. Charts are based on BI conversations with people familiar with the firm as well as public media reports.

A Jain Global spokesman declined to comment.

Jain's headcount has kept growing

Jain Global's roster has expanded significantly since launch, growing nearly 80% to more than 380, about half of which are investment professionals, a person close to the firm said. PMs are still joining as their noncompete provisions and garden leaves expire.

One upshot of launching seven businesses at once, according to people familiar with the firm's strategy, is minimizing technology headaches from bolting on businesses years later.

Each of the seven business lines has a dedicated CIO overseeing the operation, apart from equity arbitrage. That business, which includes strategies like index rebalance and volatility trading, is overseen by founder and firm-wide CIO Jain, who spent decades at Millennium and Credit Suisse deeply involved in such trades.

How Jain Global has put money to work

How exactly a fund deploys its capital fluctuates depending on market conditions and personnel, among other factors. When Jain was pitching investors in late 2023, he included details on how he expected to allocate investor capital once at full strength, BI reported at the time.

Here's how those estimates compare with its capital allocation as it hit the one-year mark (The Asia business wasn't included in the strategy breakdown early on):

Having received its last tranche of capital this month, the firm expects to have its $5.3 billion fully deployed by year-end, a person familiar with the matter said.

Jain Global got off to an inauspicious start, losing money in its first two months but clawing into the black by the end of 2024, finishing up 0.5%.

But it started to hit its stride in the second quarter of 2025, posting three straight months of gains and ending its first 12 months of trading up 2.7%.

Here's a breakdown of Jain's performance in each of the first 12 months:

Investors don't gush over returns that lag the Treasury yield. But they also don't sign up for a three-year commitment to a new fund — as Jain's backers did — without some inherent patience.

"Setting up and effectively competing with the other Multi-Strats, which is already an extremely competitive backdrop, is an uphill battle," Brian Payne, chief private markets and alternatives strategist at BCA Research, said in an email to BI. "Getting the proper talent, infrastructure, technology, etc. on top of making sure the portfolio is properly balanced and meeting objectives is not one that can be done overnight."

It's taken ExodusPoint, which launched with a record $8.5 billion, seven years, including plenty of fits and starts, to begin hitting its stride, BI previously reported.

Jain envisioned a fund that could one day scale to as much as $12 billion. The initial investors get first crack at future Jain Global capital raises, and one telling sign will be who signs up for more and what external investors decide to pile in.

• Jennifer McMahon is job hunting for the first time in 20 years.
• She said more competition and a lengthy interview process have changed the job-search landscape.
• McMahon said her AI knowledge has helped, along with a job coaching service and networking.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Jennifer McMahon, a Gen X job seeker based in Connecticut. Her employment history and identification have been verified by Business Insider. This story has been edited for length and clarity.

About five months ago, I was informed that my organization at Google was getting moved to Mexico City.

I felt like the rug was ripped out from under me. I've been working in marketing and sales enablement continuously for over 20 years, and it's been so long that I've forgotten the feeling of not working.

The job market has also changed. Gen X was always told, "No bragging, let your work speak for itself." That's not the case anymore. You have to put yourself out there now, and it's uncomfortable and new for me.

The volume of applicants has also increased. I'll look at a job that was posted 10 minutes ago, and there are already 100 people who have applied. So that's kind of freaking me out, as I don't know how I'm going to showcase my value when there are thousands of applicants.

There are also fake jobs being posted out there for phishing purposes. So, I'm often like, "Is this job real?"

The interview process itself has also shifted. I've gone through several interviews where I have to build a presentation. I'm like, "Whoa, I'm not a CEO." I'm not going for the highest-level position here, but it's still super competitive.

It's been tough. It's been a roller coaster. I'm not a job-hopper, and in this process, I've realized that I'm a control freak. It's been challenging to surrender and just trust, but I have to have faith that I'm going to find the right position.

I haven't landed anything yet, but these three things have helped improve the process.

1. AI knowledge

Having had the opportunity to work at Google has definitely been a blessing for my résumé. I think it makes a difference because of how tech- and AI-forward the company is.

I've been trying to look at the job hunt as an opportunity to continue to grow and learn new technologies. ChatGPT has helped me come up with an elevator pitch and I even generated a NotebookLM podcast on myself by putting in my profile and résumé. After listening to the podcast, I was like, "Wow, I am good at this."

For one interview, I even used AI to build a one-pager prototype concept of what an AI coach would entail. It's so incredible right now what you can build with AI. I was like, "Hey, I haven't done this type of training before, but look what AI can help your company do, and here's the prototype."

I think I have a little advantage due to my experience with AI, and I think people want to hear that.

2. A job coach

One of the benefits of working with Google is that they'll help you with the transition for six months if you don't find a new role internally. I've had an incredible benefit from that experience.

The service they provide helped optimize my résumé and provided me with a one-on-one job coach. The company also offers resource hubs and webinars with recruiters so you can ask them questions about what they're looking for in candidates.

We also have a weekly group meeting where people get together, share stories, and try to uplift each other. It's sort of like a community of folks in the same situation, and it's been really helpful.

3. Years of experience

Networking has to be the most important piece right now.

If someone doesn't come in with that, "Hey, we know Jen, she's good at what she does," I don't think I'm getting that call back. Since the end of June, I've applied for about 25 external roles, and I've been able to get about seven interviews out of that. I got referrals on all except for one.

After 20 years of industry experience, I'm able to rely on my network to be supportive, helpful, and put in a good word.

• People have been using ChatGPT and other AI tools to "manifest" their ideal lives.
• My colleague reported on this late last year, and I keep seeing the trend on TikTok still today.
• So I thought about it: Should I give in and join the AI manifesters and visualize my dream life?

It's a TikTok trend that's been going on for some time now — people using ChatGPT and other AI tools to "manifest" their dream lives.

So far, I've avoided it, but when one of my editors noticed it trending again, I had to at least consider it: Am I the type of person who'd manifest? And then use AI to show me what my ideal life would look like?

My colleague Ana Altchek noticed the trend back in September. "Users are sharing how AI has helped them enhance their traditional manifestation practices, such as visualizations, vision boards, positive affirmations, mantras, and rewiring negative beliefs," she reported at the time.

ChatGPT shows your dream life

I decided to investigate for myself, and I found that people essentially prompt AI to create a story about their dream life, based on their goals.

Let's say your goals were to be rich, have flawless skin, snag a hunky husband and two kids, and live in a villa in Italy where you garden tomatoes. Enter those goals — manifest them, if you will — and it would whip up a story for you.

Then, you could use it to create an action plan to actually get there.

I tried this out myself, asking ChatGPT to tell me a story about a day in my life in that Italian villa. I can't deny it delivered an appealing tale:

The sun slipped gently over the Tuscan hills, casting gold across the rolling vineyards and awakening Villa Rosabella, your sun-washed estate tucked among olive trees and cypress-lined roads. The sheets were linen, cool and crisp, and the smell of blooming jasmine drifted in through open French doors. You stretched, not a wrinkle on your face, your skin dewy and flawless, like you'd just walked out of a spa in Capri (because you had — last weekend).

But when I asked it to give me steps to achieve this dream life, things got a little wonky. Although it had some decent practical advice about how to achieve flawless skin ("get a consultation with a top dermatologist,") things got slightly more complicated when it came to the "becoming rich" part of the dream. It suggested things like, "Scale income to $500K+ annual revenue," which ... OK, sure?

To be fair, had I given it slightly more specific goals, it might have come up with a better plan. But I need to admit my bias here: I'm not really into the idea of manifesting. I'm happy for anyone who finds this useful, but it's just not for me.

A while back, I DM'ed some of the people I'd seen talking about this life hack on social media. A few of them told me they really did believe in the power of manifestation — and had clear life goals in mind. (I realized that these women were younger than I am, just starting out in their adult lives. Whereas I'm old enough that my only life goal is just to ride this thing out.)

Manifesting on video

There's also a new twist to the AI manifestations: video. The New York Times reported last week that people are using tools like Runway, Google's Veo 3, or a tool called Freepik to enter a real image of themselves that's then used to illustrate a real (fake) life. For example, I could upload a picture of myself, and then have AI create a video of me sauntering around my Tuscan tomato grove.

I wanted to give it a try, so I tried to use Freepik, which one of the women interviewed by the Times used. But there was a catch: Freepik required a paid account to create video— and there's no way I'm going to scale my income to $500,000 if I'm throwing it all away on AI tools, so I declined.

Personally, I don't think I want to see a video of myself in a dream life, anyway.

I don't think it would make me feel bad per se — or jealous of my dream AI self. And I'm not afraid that the AI version of me might come to life and murder and replace me. I simply do not wish to engage with such content. It just does not appeal to me at all.

Perhaps I lack a growth mindset — the desire to truly improve my life. Perhaps I should be more open to AI manifesting! But also, I am happy to just use my imagination, and tend the one scraggly cherry tomato plant in my yard.