What's on Your Mind?

Starting next week on Tuesday, September 30, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will no longer issue paper checks for benefit payments, and instead move exclusively to electronic payments: either direct deposit or a pre-paid debit card. The change is part of a broader government-wide initiative to modernize its services and improve efficiency and security, to ensure some 70 million Americans receive their monthly benefits promptly. However, this could mean trouble for some older Americans who do not know how to set up direct deposit or will have trouble using a pre-paid debit card. In March, President The President issued Executive Order 14247, which man…

The rules for collecting Social Security are changing in 2026. Two of the most important things to know if you’re collecting benefits: Your monthly check payments will increase, and if you’re planning on collecting benefits before retirement age and still plan to work, your checks could be reduced or even paused. For more on this, read on. The 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will increase benefits Social Security benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments for 75 million Americans will increase 2.8% in 2026, the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced on Friday. However, due to inflation and the skyrocketing cost of living, ma…

People often think of disasters as great equalizers. After all, a tornado, wildfire, or hurricane doesn’t discriminate against those in its path. But the consequences for those affected are not “one-size-fits-all.” That’s evident in recent storms, and in the U.S. Census Bureau’s national household surveys showing who is displaced by disasters. Overall, the Census Bureau estimates that more than 4.3 million Americans had to leave their homes because of disasters in 2024, whether for a short period or much longer. It was the fourth-costliest year on record for disasters. However, a closer look at demographics in the survey reveals much more about disaster risk in Am…

Japanese technology giant SoftBank said Tuesday it has sold its stake in Nvidia, raising $5.8 billion to pour into other investments. It also reported its profit nearly tripled in the first half of this fiscal year from a year earlier. Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp. said it sold the stake in Silicon Vally-based Nvidia in October, a move that reflects its shift in focus to OpenAI, owner of the artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT. SoftBank reported its profit in April-September soared to about 2.5 trillion yen (about $13 billion). Its sales for the six month period rose 7.7% year-on-year to 3.7 trillion yen ($24 billion), it said. The company’s fortunes tend to flu…

SoftBank Group is racing to close a $22.5 billion funding commitment to OpenAI by year-end through an array of cash-raising schemes, including a sale of some investments, and could tap its undrawn margin loans borrowed against its valuable ownership in chip firm Arm Holdings, sources said. The “all-in” bet on OpenAI is among the biggest yet by SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, as the Japanese billionaire seeks to improve his firm’s position in the race for artificial intelligence. To come up with the money, Son has already sold SoftBank’s entire $5.8 billion stake in AI chip leader Nvidia, offloaded $4.8 billion of its T-Mobile US stake, and slashed staff. Son has slowe…

SoftBank Group will acquire digital infrastructure investor DigitalBridge Group in a deal valued at $4 billion, the companies said on Monday, as the Japanese investment firm looks to deepen its AI-related portfolio. The acquisition would expand SoftBank’s exposure to digital infrastructure as the Japanese conglomerate is positioning its portfolio to focus on artificial intelligence. DigitalBridge shares rose about 9.7% to $15.27 on Monday, following a 45% rise earlier this month after Bloomberg News first reported the acquisition talks. The $16 per share offer represents a 15% premium over DigitalBridge’s closing price on Friday and values the company at $2.92…

When internet services platform Cloudflare suffered an outage in November, it took a big chunk of the online world down with it. Major platforms like ChatGPT, X, and Canva became unreachable. So did digital services offered by countless banks, retailers, and many other businesses. During the six-hour meltdown, as many as 2.4 billion users could have felt the impact. Software outages like this have always been and always will be part of online life. But today our systems are more interconnected than ever, so a single failure can ripple outward. AI only amplifies that risk. Yet, too many companies still lack protection against such disasters. In an era when ou…

In 2018, Joy DasGupta walked away from a steady job in marketing at Starbucks after 13 years to work for herself as a rewards program consultant. As a caregiver with a young child, DasGupta says the corporate life proved too inflexible, and the logistics of balancing her personal life and career were becoming overwhelming. Starbucks was also undergoing restructuring, and DasGupta’s once-secure corporate job was starting to feel a little shaky. She explains that for most working mothers, “if you get the opportunity to make as much money—maybe even a little less—and get flexibility, many will take that option.” She adds that “there aren’t enough companies that are i…

Most people think of solopreneurs as a one-person machine. The solopreneur (according to social media) sends invoices, juggles client calls, manages marketing campaigns, and troubleshoots their own website—all before lunch. It’s a compelling narrative because it celebrates endless hustle and grit. But it’s also a myth. Solopreneurship simply means you make the business decisions. You don’t have to consult anyone else or wait for approval. It doesn’t mean you’re the only person doing the work. Most solopreneurs eventually bring in support (including me, in my solo business). Hiring help doesn’t mean you’re “no longer a real solopreneur.” It’s a sign that your busin…

I personally can never bring myself to tell people that I’d rather forgo their gift and just get cash instead—or better yet, a Venmo. It feels almost too blunt, a cheap shot. So each year, when I unwrap another pair of socks, I smile through gritted teeth. I feel a twinge of guilt in admitting it. But, to my relief, it appears I’m not the only one. A new Wells Fargo survey finds younger generations are driving a shift toward digital cash gifts, choosing convenience and flexibility over traditional wrapped presents. A staggering 45% of Gen Z and 42% of millennials say they’d rather receive digital payments, compared with 27% of Gen X and just 10% of baby boomers. …

No Mow May encourages homeowners to stash the lawn mower each spring and let flowers and grass grow for pollinators and water retention. And if your neighbor’s lawn already looks like a wildflower field most of the time, it could be more intentional than passersby might assume. The movement has expanded to “Let It Bloom June” and the fall version: “Leave the leaves.” Conservation and horticulture groups say year-round low-mowing while selectively leaving native plants to grow can save huge amounts of drinking water and lead to lasting and impactful ecological changes. When Amanda Beltramini Healan moved into her Nashville ranch house in 2016, the yard had been manicured…

Too many jobs today have a PR problem, limiting opportunities for our young people and our economy. The jobs that now exist and the training needed for them have changed dramatically over the past half-century, but our perceptions haven’t kept up. Consider the manufacturing industry. A sector once synonymous with grimy factory floors, repetitive labor, and aggressive offshoring is now a hub for advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, robotics, and big data analytics. Yet Deloitte found that only 4 in 10 Americans would likely encourage their children to pursue a manufacturing career. While working in Kentucky several years ago, I heard from many par…

In recent years, there’s been a wave of studies reporting that humans are basically full of microplastics: They’ve been found in our brains, arteries, and even in placentas. But some scientists, quoted and cited in an article published by the Guardian this week, have critiqued some of those findings, saying that microplastics research has been muddied by issues like contamination and false positives. One chemist even told the outlet that these criticisms are “​​forcing us to re-evaluate everything we think we know about microplastics in the body.” However, other scientists who study microplastics and human health say that this framing is overblown. While…

As genetic testing company 23andMe heads to bankruptcy court, there is a lot of data at stake. The company, which analyses DNA through its salvia test kits and offers information about customers’ ancestry, health traits, and genetic risks, now seeks “authorization from the Court to commence a process to sell substantially all of its assets through a chapter 11 plan,” according to 23andMe’s press release. Your DNA data could be part of those assets. A close reading of the bankruptcy docket shows the company’s terms of service appear to allow 23andMe to transfer personally identifiable information in the event of “bankruptcy, merger, acquisition, reorganization or sale …

The housing market just crossed an important threshold—one that’s especially good news for anyone who might be planning on buying a home any time soon. The massive wave of COVID-19-era mortgages with ultra-low rates were a huge boon for many homebuyers, but the housing market hasn’t been the same since. A huge swath of homeowners in the U.S. suddenly had mortgage interest rates well below 4%—and very little incentive to sell their homes for less affordable options with today’s higher rates. That dilemma has created a nightmarish scenario for the U.S. housing market. Many potential buyers and aspiring first-time homeowners remain priced out due to high home prices …

On November 14, hotel and short-term apartment rental chain Sonder Holdings filed for bankruptcy, just days after suddenly announcing it would be “winding down operations immediately,” abruptly kicking guests to the curb and sending employees scrambling for answers. The company had faced major, unforeseen costs from a deal signed in August 2024 to integrate reservation systems with Marriott International and promote Sonder listings through the hotel giant, according to a statement issued four days earlier. Sonder had long been an outlier in the short-term rental space, which was a big part of its appeal to investors. Most of its competitors—short-term rental companies…

Happiness is taking control of a beloved comic strip. Sony is buying a 41% stake in the Charles M. Schulz comic “Peanuts” and its characters including Snoopy and Charlie Brown from Canada’s WildBrain in a $457 million deal, the two companies said Friday. The deal adds to Sony’s existing 39% stake, bringing its shareholding to 80%, according to a joint statement. The Schulz family will continue to own the remaining 20%. “With this additional ownership stake, we are thrilled to be able to further elevate the value of the ‘Peanuts’ brand by drawing on the Sony Groupʼs extensive global network and collective expertise,” Sony Music Entertainment President Shunsuke …

A new partnership between music creation platform BandLab and Sony is set to bring users production tools that are aimed at making independent musicians competitive with big-budget artists. Starting this summer, BandLab will integrate Sony’s spatial sound technology, 360 Reality Audio, directly into its song-creation app—allowing the songwriters and producers who use it to build immersive songs on their smartphones, using any headphones. “A lot of these creators don’t have access to expensive equipment and gear,” says Jordy Freed, who leads brand, business development and strategy for Sony’s personal entertainment business. “When we look at 360 [Reality Audio] and…

After writing more than one article a day for the last 23 years, I’ve accumulated a body of text large enough to train an AI model that could convincingly write “like me.” With today’s technology, it would not be difficult to build a system capable of generating opinions that sound as if they came from Enrique Dans—an algorithmic professor that keeps publishing long after I’m gone. That, apparently, is the next frontier of productivity: the digital twin. Startups such as Viven and tools like Synthesia are building “AI clones” of employees and executives—trained on their voices, writing, decisions, and habits. The idea is seductive. Imagine scaling yourself infinitely…