Blog, YouTube & Content Monetization

Curiosity isn’t just a valuable personality trait—it’s a leadership superpower. In a business environment where innovation dictates success, curiosity serves as the catalyst for breakthroughs and industry reinvention. Yet, despite its transformative potential, curiosity remains one of the most undervalued tools in leadership today. According to a Harvard Business Review study, curiosity fosters openness and collaboration while reducing decision-making errors. Yet only 24% of organizations actively encourage it, leaving a wealth of untapped potential on the table. The best leaders don’t just seek answers; they reframe problems. Instead of asking, “How do we fix this?” …

During his family’s annual summer vacations on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, high schooler Ajith Varikuti began to notice something concerning. Homes on the narrow line of barrier islands that Varikuti had grown up visiting from his hometown Charlotte were no longer there. “I started seeing more and more news articles about entire houses being completely destroyed. And it started clicking, because some of those houses that were being destroyed I’d seen in my previous years there,” he says. Varikuti, who was then a 9th grade student, knew there had to be a solution. So, as part of a student design competition organized by the design software company Autodesk, Varikuti …

Data analytics firm LexisNexis Risk Solutions said it suffered a data breach that could have affected the names, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, and contact information of more than 364,000 people. The company said in a filing with Maine’s attorney general that an “unauthorized third party” stole data from a third-party platform used for software development. A spokesperson told TechCrunch, which earlier reported of the breach, that an unknown hacker accessed its GitHub account. The breach dates back to last Christmas, though the company said it only discovered it on April 1. “Upon learning of the issue, we promptly launched an investigation …

Every friend group has one person who’s always running late. If you can’t think of one, chances are you’re that friend. Now, a newly launched app called Lately is here to help you stay on time for everything from meetings to dinner plans. Created by developer Erik MacInnis, Lately sends users timely nudges—30, 10, and five minutes before it’s time to leave. As the self-acknowledged “late one” in his friend group, MacInnis tells Fast Company that the idea for Lately struck during a fishing trip gone wrong. He had assumed it would take 20 minutes to get there, got sidetracked by replying to emails, left five minutes late, and the drive ended up taking 30. “When I ar…

It really is mind-blowing how much incredible stuff we can do with images these days. ’Twasn’t long ago, after all, that advanced image adjustments required pricey desktop-computer software and super-specific knowledge. These days, we’ve got an endless array of awesome options at our fingertips for making practically any image look amazing—without investing a single dime or ounce of energy. And what’s especially cool is when you encounter a new image-enhancing power tool that transforms old photos in a way you never dreamed possible. Unearth all sorts of transformative tech treasures with my free Cool Tools newsletter from The Intelligence. A new useful discovery in your …

Pet owners know finding a good veterinarian is hard. But in much of the country, finding a vet at all is increasingly tough. A new report released by veterinary telemedicine company Dutch, found that around 38% or 129 million Americans may be living in a veterinary care desert, meaning they don’t have accessible, affordable, or available care for their pets. Dutch’s State of Online Veterinary Care report found that 22% counties nationwide have zero vets per 1,000 households, and pet care is particularly hard to come by in parts of California, Florida, Illinois, New York, and Texas. It’s an issue founder and CEO Joe Spector says likely won’t improve quickly. …

“We don’t just follow orders or system prompts,” says Baratunde Thurston, host of Life with Machines—a YouTube podcast exploring the human side of AI. “We can change our own programming,” he continued. “We can choose a higher goal.” As a host, writer, and speaker, Thurston examines society’s most pressing challenges—from race to democracy, climate to technology—through the lens of interdependence. In addition to Life with Machines, he is the host and executive producer of America Outdoors, creator and host of the podcast How to Citizen, and a writer and founding partner at Puck. In each pursuit, he invites us to cocreate “a better story of us”—to choose a higher goa…

Just 48 short years ago, movie director George Lucas used the phrase “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” as the opening to the first Star Wars movie, later labeled Episode IV: A New Hope. But at least four important aspects of the Star Wars saga are much closer—both in time and space—than Lucas was letting on. One, the ability to add blue food coloring to milk, was possible even at the time the first film came out. But in 2024, Star Wars-themed blue milk became periodically available in grocery stores. And we, an environmental health engineer and a civil engineer, know there are at least three more elements of these ancient, distant Lucas stories that migh…

When Sergey Brin spoke at Stanford University’s school of engineering centennial celebration recently, the Google co-founder was open about his career mistakes. “When you have your cool new wearable device idea, really fully bake it before you have a cool stunt involving skydiving and airships,” he joked, referring to the infamous Google Glass flop. But one misstep he admitted to might surprise a lot of people who dream of the day they can quit their 9-to-5. “I actually retired like a month before Covid hit, and it was the worst decision,” Brin said. He was such a failure at retirement that he has since returned to everyday work at Google, spearheading its effort…

The technology industry is in the midst of a skills shortage—one that shows no signs of slowing. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that tech jobs will grow at twice the rate of America’s overall workforce, creating hiring shortfalls as organizations struggle to fill critical positions in IT, cybersecurity, and other vital areas. The emergence of AI has only exacerbated the issue, as organizations in nearly every industry are seeking employees who can help them better understand the technology and get the most out of their solutions. Even as AI becomes a part of everyday life, most organizations are still determining how best to utilize it—and how to limit the r…

If you thought you’d heard the last of the viral “Apple” dance, think again. The TikToker behind it is now suing Roblox over its unauthorized use. Last year, during the height of Brat summer, Roblox partnered with singer Charli XCX to feature her music and likeness in an in-game concert within “Dress to Impress,” a fashion game on the platform. In a lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles, Kelley Heyer—the creator of the dance set to Charli XCX’s hit song—alleges that Roblox used her choreography in the update before finalizing negotiations to officially license the dance, as first reported by Polygon. Heyer first posted the “Apple” dance on June 15, 2024, and subm…

The LA Art Book Fair returned this weekend with a new venue and a renewed sense of intention. Now in its eighth edition, the fair took over ArtCenter College of Design’s South Campus in Pasadena, California, transforming classrooms, courtyards, and even the rooftop of a Subaru Outback into vibrant hubs of independent publishing. Produced remotely by Printed Matter’s New York team, the fair was made possible through deep collaboration with LA’s creative community. Still reeling from January’s wildfires, the city’s small press scene showed up with resilience and purpose, supported by mutual aid efforts and fee waivers for affected publishers. At a time when book bans, c…

Take a look at your to-do list. Does it seem never-ending? The thing about task lists is that they are filled with specific things you need to accomplish. Combine that with an ever-expanding inbox, and you have a recipe for busy work days. While you may get many things done, you may not feel like they are adding up to a more significant contribution to the mission of your workplace or your own big-picture goals. To ensure that the specific things you’re doing lead to important outcomes, you need some time in your schedule to reflect on the big-picture goals you have and their relationship to the actions you’re taking day-to-day. Here are a few things you can do to…

The Centennial State may become first in the nation to require retailers to warn consumers that burning fossil fuels “releases air pollutants and greenhouse gases, known by the state of Colorado to be linked to significant health impacts and global heating.” The warning is the linchpin of a bill—HB25-1277—that narrowly passed the state House on April 2 and is scheduled to be heard in the Senate’s Transportation & Energy Committee this week. Its Democratic sponsors say the bill will raise awareness among consumers that combusting gas in their vehicles creates pollutants that harm their health and trap heat in the atmosphere, leading to more intense and extreme weat…

After nearly 13 years leading PepsiCo design, its first chief design officer—Mauro Porcini—is departing the company. (Previous to PepsiCo, he was the first designer named to a chief design officer role at 3M.) Under Porcini, design at the PepsiCo family of brands has seen a significant glow up. He arrived shortly after 2008’s disastrous Pepsi rebrand during the era of flat design. And he spent the next decade investing in more internal talent—successfully arguing that the approach would actually save the company money while offering stronger creative autonomy. Porcini opened a flagship design center in NYC in 2012, then following its success, he added 18 more across t…

An Orthodox Jewish passenger says a United Airlines pilot forcibly removed him from an airplane bathroom while he was experiencing constipation, exposing his genitalia to other flyers during a flight from Tulum, Mexico, to Houston. Yisroel Liebb, of New Jersey, described his trip through allegedly unfriendly skies in a federal lawsuit this week against the airline and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, whose officers he said boarded the plane upon landing and took him away in handcuffs. Liebb and a fellow Orthodox Jewish traveler said the pilot made disparaging remarks about their faith. They said they were forced to miss a connecting flight to New York City whil…

Hertz is notifying customers that hackers may have stolen personal information like credit card details and social security numbers during a data breach on one of its vendors. In a notice on its website, Hertz said an unauthorized third-party stole data during a cyberattack on Cleo Communications’ file-transfer platform between October 2024 and December 2024. Hertz, which also owns the Dollar and Thrifty rental brands, said it confirmed the attack on Feb. 10 and concluded April 2 that the information exposed by the breach could have included customers’ names, contact information, dates of birth, credit card information, driver’s license information, and informat…

The workplace AI narrative has been dominated by fears of human replacement. But forward-thinking leaders are discovering AI’s real power: helping employees become more human, not less. Shifting from workplaces of human doings to a collective of activated human beings. And while AI can absolutely help eliminate busywork, opening employees’ time for more impactful work and meaningful progress, its impact can go far beyond productivity. In fact, having studied power shifts in modern workplaces for many years, I think the companies that will thrive moving forward will focus more on using these tools to improve employee well-being. Smart leaders should approach AI i…

A decade ago, the easiest way in the front door at a restaurant was often to call—or even just show up for a meal. Now, it’s far easier to book ahead, and the list of ways to get a coveted seat at the table is growing to include some surprising places. The country’s two largest delivery apps, DoorDash and Uber Eats, have both shared plans in recent weeks to add restaurant reservations to their apps. A crowded field Over the past few years, restaurant reservations—especially the hot ones—have become a type of currency. Call it a post-COVID return to socializing or our increased excitement to plan ahead; prime-time tables at top restaurants have gotten harder to sec…

One of the world’s most iconic and controversial maps just got a major redesign. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in New York has unveiled the final version of an updated map of its subway system, marking the first time the map has had a full redesign since 1979. It’s a visually bold, user-centric design that, according to the MTA, will make it easier for people to understand where they’re going and how to use the system. The new maps are expected to be installed in train cars and stations over the next few weeks. The map features bright, color-coded lines for each train line, which criss-cross a stylized map of the city in horizontal, vertical, and dia…

There is a new landmark at the home of the Chicago White Sox—Section 140, Row 19, Seat 2. That’s where Father Bob—the future Pope Leo XIV—sat for Game 1 of the 2005 World Series. The White Sox unveiled a graphic installation Monday that pays tribute to the new pontiff and that moment during their last championship run. The pillar artwork features a waving Pope Leo XIV, along with a picture from the TV broadcast of the future pope sitting with good friend Ed Schmit and his grandson, Eddie. The team also is planning to do something to commemorate the Rate Field seat the pope occupied during the 2005 World Series opener. “When people come into the ballpark, it’s an inter…

Researchers funded by the U.S. Navy have used gene-editing technology to make house spiders produce red fluorescent silk. This might seem like a quirky scientific novelty, but the breakthrough is a critical step toward modifying spider silk properties and creating new “supermaterials” for industries ranging from textiles to aerospace. The team at Germany’s University of Bayreuth, led by Professor Thomas Scheibel, successfully applied CRISPR-Cas9—a molecular tool that acts as “genetic scissors” to cut and modify DNA sequences—to spiders for the first time. The study, published in the scientific journal Angewandte Chemie, demonstrates how this technology introduces modi…

Fast Company’s Creative Director Mike Schnaidt shares a first look at the magazine redesign. So if you are a typeface fanatic, you won’t want to miss this breakdown. View the full article