Good Evening!
Using AI as a key point of your brand messaging? New research says you might want to think again.
Here are the 7 things you missed today:
1. 🦾 SpaceX is Acquiring Cursor For $60Bn in Stock
Just days after SpaceX’s historic IPO, SpaceX has agreed to acquire AI coding startup Cursor in a $60 billion stock deal. The deal is meant to help SpaceX’s AI division (built on SpaceX’s xAI merger earlier this year) catch up to the major AI labs. The acquisition is likely to close in Q3 of this year. (TechCrunch)
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3. 🪶 Robinhood is Slashing 10% of its Workforce
Trading platform Robinhood Markets is reducing its workforce by 10% (about 290 workers) in an effort to streamline the org and “maintain a high performance culture, further accelerate product velocity, and remain lean and disciplined,” according to its CFO. Severance and benefits will drive approximately $20 million in cash restructuring charges with an additional $8 million attributable to share-based compensation. (Quartz)
4. ⚡ Flip Cards in Email. Configure Through Chat. No Code.
The mechanic: a card your subscriber clicks to flip and reveal the other side. Product teasers, seasonal promotions, before/after reveals. The mechanic earns its place.
What I like about how Stripo does it: drag the Flip Card widget in, describe what you want through the Widget Assistant, and it handles the AMP and HTML fallback versions automatically.
5. 🚕 Self-Driving Tech Supplier Mobileye is Targeting a U.S. Robotaxi Launch in 2027
The U.S. might be getting a new robotaxi option. Self-driving technology supplier Mobileye Global is planning to launch its own robotaxi service with an initial 100-vehicle fleet in a major U.S. city in 2027. The first launch will be phased throughout next year, then scaled to roughly 17,000 vehicles over the next five years. (CNBC)
6. 🙅 New Study: 60% of U.S. Customers Think ‘AI’ in Brand Messaging is a Turnoff
According to a new report from WordPress VIP, getting cited by AI is easier than earning consumers’ trust. The report found that 60% of consumers in the U.S. say brands that use ‘AI’ in their messaging are a turnoff while 86% don’t fully trust AI and still want to explore original sources. (TechCrunch)
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7. 🍕 Yum Brands is Selling Pizza Hut For $2.7Bn
Pizza Hut apparently isn’t what it used to be. Yum Brands is selling the pizza chain for $2.7 billion to shed the weakest brand in its portfolio. The transaction is structured as two separate deals with LongRange Capital paying $1.5 billion for Pizza Hut’s international operations excluding mainland China with Yum China taking the remaining piece for $1.2 billion. (Quartz)
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