You should know what deepfake means because SAT vocab, and this week’s news cycle has been centered squarely on the technology—and just how out of hand it can get. A deepfake is an artificial intelligence-generated video that depicts someone saying or doing things that person never actually said or did. Exhibit A: Zuck This week, the Facebook…
Author: Finterest
Ep 26: Tesco Eats It
What’s Going On Here? Tesco (UK’s 100-year-old largest retailer), reported weaker-than-expected sales growth thanks to a rotten grocery market. What Does This Mean? Tesco’s UK sales grew only 0.4% last quarter (down from 1.7% in the previous one). Sales in central Europe fell by 5%. Tesco (like other retailers) pointed to the weather: an unseasonably cold May and the previous hottest-since-records May was a…
Ep 25: Why Hong Kong Matters
What’s going on here? After weekend protests spilled (at times violently), we’re keeping a close eye on what exactly is going on in the global financial hub. The backstory Hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets to oppose a bill that would permit extradition from Hong Kong to mainland China, undermining the “one country, two systems”…
Ep 24: Dassault, Folks
What’s Going On Here? French tech titan Dassault Systèmes announced a $6 billion acquisition of American software company Medidata Solutions, shining a light on previously announced major marriages… What Does This Mean? “Analytics” seems to be a buzzword right now: Salesforce’s purchase helping its customers make more sales to you; Medidata’s tools helping biotech and pharma companies keep track of their drugs during clinical…
Ep 23: Inditex Shows Its Knees
What’s Going On Here? Inditex (world’s biggest clothing retailer and owner of Zara) – reported a fancy quarterly performance. What Does This Mean? Inditex faced the same challenges as Ted Baker last quarter, whereby unusually cold weather hampered customer demand for its lighter spring wares. Inditex didn’t slash prices to boost sales (it’s got a reputation for rarely discounting). Instead, its industry-leading supply chain…
Ep 22: Sinking Island
What’s Going On Here? The UK’s manufacturing output in April fell by the most in over 17 years; The British economy shrank. What Does This Mean? British manufacturing production in April fell by 3.9% compared to March. Brexit was partly to blame. With the UK initially planning to leave the EU in March, companies stockpiled goods in anticipation of potential supply shortages, helping…
Ep 21: Salesforce Gains Force
What’s Going On Here? Silicon Valley software Salesforce announced a $16 billion acquisition of data analytics firm Tableau – its biggest purchase to date. What Does This Mean? Data is king Salesforce’s software is focused on customer relationship management; Tableau brings fresh analytics to the table – helping Salesforce customers (like Netflix & Southwest Airlines) to better understand the data. Shareholders side Salesforce…
Ep 20: America Halves The Dream
What’s Going On Here? Friday’s jobs report showed that the US added just 75,000 jobs in May – less than half the number expected. What Does This Mean? For sectors The healthcare sector nursed 16,000 new jobs; Professional and business services (like lawyers and researchers) added 33,000; Jobs in retail, manufacturing, and working for Uncle Sam didn’t grow by much; Nor…
Ep 19: FedEx Cuts Off Amazon
What’s going on here? FedEx announced its own exit: it’ll stop providing express delivery for Amazon packages in the U.S. this summer. Why this matters From a numbers perspective, Amazon represented under 1.3% of FedEx’s total revenue last year. But from a broader perspective, FedEx’s decision is telling Amazon, “we’d like to see you do it better.” That’s because Amazon…
Ep 18: Beyond’s Stock Is Red Meat
What’s going on here? Beyond Meat, the plant-based meat company, reported earnings yesterday for the first time since its IPO. It beat Wall Street expectations with: quarterly net revenue of $40 million; forecast juicy sales of over $210 million for the whole year; net losses of $6.6 million for the quarter. A lot has happened since the IPO…
with HT 