…and the UAW's auto strike finds a parking spot
| Signed, sealed, delivered… AI'm yours (Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images) | |
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Yesterday's Market Moves | | Dow Jones
32,929 (+1.58%) | S&P 500
4,167 (+1.20%) | Nasdaq
12,789 (+1.16%) | Bitcoin
$34,543 (+0.02%) |
| Dow Jones
32,929 (+1.58%) | S&P 500
4,167 (+1.20%) | Nasdaq
12,789 (+1.16%) | Bitcoin
$34,543 (+0.02%) |
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Hey Snackers, Businesses are gaming Google with search-inspired names: NYC's "Thai Food Near Me" gets a boost from folks searching the term nearly 1M times/month. There's also "Affordable Dentist Near Me," "Plumber Near Me," and even "Psychic Near Me." Life imitates…tech? The stock market woke up on the right side of the bed yesterday, with US indexes rising after a losing week. The Fed's expected to hold interest rates steady at its meeting tomorrow, and investors hope hikes are over for the year. | |
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Biden signs an AI exec order as the explosive tech fuels widespread concerns | AI's new rulebook… Yesterday, President Biden introduced a first-of-its kind executive order targeting AI "safety, security, and trust." The eight-part order aims to address fears around AI's potential role in propagating biases, displacing workers, and undermining national security. In July, techies including Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, and Alphabet pledged to monitor AI safety, but the Biden admin says it's not enough. Now: Red report: Companies building advanced AI systems must run safety tests (dubbed "red teaming") and notify the gov't of the results before any product rollouts. AI labels: The Commerce Department must create guidelines for checking and watermarking AI content to identify it (picture: less "fake news"). Protecting consumers: Health and Human Services will have to create a program evaluating the safety of AI use in healthcare and diagnoses. Worker support: Biden ordered a report on how AI could disrupt the labor market, and ways the gov't could support people who lose their jobs to the tech. A Goldman Sachs report estimated that AI could eventually fill 300M full-time roles worldwide. Threat watch: The Energy Department and Homeland Security must address potential AI threats in critical sectors like infrastructure, nuclear energy, and cybersecurity.
Rocky rise… GenAI has exploded since ChatGPT's viral public rollout last fall. But the tech has been met with legal battles and lawmaker scrutiny. Also, only 10% of Americans think AI helps more than it hurts. While some tech titans have supported AI regulation, VC heavyweights like Marc Andreessen think it should run free (see: "the techno-optimist manifesto"). |  | THE TAKEAWAY |
| With great tech comes great regulation… The pace of AI innovation has governments scrambling to draft rules. The EU passed the first AI regulation, called the AI Act, in June, and China passed its own AI regulations in August. While an executive order usually lasts only as long as the administration, it could provide a blueprint for lawmakers trying to pass new legislation before the year ends. | |
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| | Scared of surprise assignment? Check out European style index options | |
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Detroit's auto strikes end after six weeks, while the UAW looks ahead to EVs | Fresh off the lot… The UAW reached a tentative labor deal with GM yesterday, days after making similar agreements with Ford and Stellantis. The agreements (which need approval from union members) would mark the end of a six-week strike against the Big Three US automakers — and the first simultaneous stoppage. It's a win for autoworkers: Under the hood: The new contracts include a 25% wage hike over four years — more than workers have received in the past 22 years combined — and the return of inflation-proofing cost-of-living adjustments. More audacious asks, including a 32-hour workweek, weren't achieved. Hitting the brakes: During the strike, the UAW escalated the # of walkouts, targeting some of the most profitable plants. The initial 13K-member strike grew to 40K+ of the union's 146K members. Sticker price: While the stoppages weighed heavily on production (Ford said the strikes cost it $1.3B; GM said $800M), pay bumps will cost automakers in the long term too (Ford said the contract could add ~$850 in expenses per vehicle).
From defense to offense… The UAW says it's targeting nonunion automakers like Tesla, Toyota, and Volkswagen next, expanding to "the Big Five or Big Six" as Detroit's market share shrinks. As part of the new deal, the union secured jobs and the ability to organize at all three automakers' battery and EV facilities — something experts say is necessary for the UAW's future. | | THE TAKEAWAY |
| Labor's lookin' up the road… As the EV transition ramps up, the UAW will likely use its electric wins as a recruiting tool for workers at Tesla (FYI: Elon isn't a union fan). By trying to unionize electric autoworkers, the UAW hopes to future-proof itself against a changing industry, similar to striking entertainment workers (looking for AI protections) and those working in hospitality (seeking automation protections). | |
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What else we're Snackin' | Moodscore: Pinterest's sales grew a better-than-expected 11% from last year, and it swung to a profit. The moodboard platform benefited from an ad rebound that also helped rivals like Meta and Snap. McRaise: Food inflation could get faster: McDonald's and Chipotle plan to raise prices in California, where minimum wage for fast-food chains will jump to $20 in April, the industry's highest in the US. Dunk: Kim Kardashian's Skims is now the official underwear brand of the NBA and WNBA. The team-up will give prime marketing opps to Skims' new men's line as the shapewear brand expands with its $4B valuation. $ubs: Meta said it'll charge European Facebook and Instagram users between €10 and €13/month for ad-free subs. The offering's a bid to comply with regulations that aim to restrict how the ad giant tracks users. SBFTX: Prosecutors cross-examined Sam Bankman-Fried, with the former FTX boss testifying that he was more involved with Alameda Research than he'd previously indicated. Experts had said that SBF's decision to testify was risky.
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Snack Fact Of the Day | Taylor Swift is now a billionaire after her Eras tour and hit concert movie | | |
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Tuesday | Happy Halloween! Earnings expected from AB InBev, BP, Caesars, Caterpillar, JetBlue, Match, Pfizer, Shutterstock, and Sonoco
Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Alphabet, Amazon, GM, Match, Microsoft, Snap, and Tesla *Advertiser's disclosure: There are important risks associated with transacting in any of the Cboe Company products discussed here. Before engaging in any transactions in those products, it is important for market participants to carefully review the disclosures and disclaimers contained at https://www.cboe.com/us_disclaimers. | |
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Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... See more | |
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