What we’re reading (6/25)
“Housing Market Set For The 'Worst Year In Decades,’ Says Meredith Whitney” (Business Insider). “The CEO of investment research firm Meredith Whitney Advisory Group and senior advisor at Boston Consulting Group told Yahoo Finance that 2023 and 2024 were both bad years, but it's now looking even worse with about 4 million sales of existing homes expected. Whitney thinks the actual number may be significantly below that figure.”
“OpenAI, Microsoft Rift Hinges On How Smart AI Can Get” (Wall Street Journal). “The future of the OpenAI-Microsoft—one of the most storied in tech history—hinges in part on the meaning of an amorphous AI buzzword that divides many in the industry. The contract between the tech partners, who have been locked in acrimonious negotiations, stipulates that when OpenAI’s systems reach ‘artificial general intelligence,’ or AGI, the startup will be able to limit Microsoft’s access to its future technology. Microsoft is fighting hard to prevent that.”
“Coinbase Stock Touches 52-Week High As Analyst Calls Company ‘One-Stop Amazon’ Of Crypto Services” (Yahoo! Finance). “‘Coinbase is the most misunderstood company in our Crypto coverage universe,’ Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani and his team wrote on Wednesday morning, raising their price target on the stock to $510 from $310 with an Outperform rating. Coinbase dominates US crypto trading, operates the largest stablecoin business among exchanges, and serves as custodian for the underlying assets of the majority of US spot bitcoin ETFs, Bernstein analysts said.”
“Why Today’s Graduates Are Screwed” (The Economist). “This is especially true for those jobs that require the rudimentary use of technology. Until relatively recently, many people could get to grips with a computer only by attending a university. Now everyone has a smartphone, meaning non-graduates are adept with tech, too. The consequences are clear. In almost every sector of the economy, educational requirements are becoming less strenuous, according to Indeed, a jobs website. America’s professional-and-business services industry employs more people without a university education than it did 15 years ago, even though there are fewer such people around.”
“The End Of Publishing As We Know It” (The Atlantic). “Not all publishers are at equal risk: Those that primarily rely on general-interest readers who come in from search engines and social media may be in worse shape than specialized publishers with dedicated subscribers. Yet no one is totally safe. Released in May 2024, AI Overviews joins ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, Perplexity, and other AI-powered products that, combined, have replaced search for more than 25 percent of Americans, according to one study.”
