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McDonald’s, Wingstop, and Starbucks are among Gen Z’s most popular and appealing restaurant brands, according to Dcdx’s new Magnetic 100: Restaurants report, measured by organic, user-generated content. The report looks at what young consumers spent their hard-earned money on in the first quarter of 2025, noting which brands attracted the most organic conversations, either by generating online buzz or through word-of-mouth, including during big cultural moments such as the Super Bowl and holidays like Valentine’s Day. Some surprising names to crack Dcdx’s top-10 roster this year were Crumbl Cookies (#6) and Raising Cane’s (#7), a fast-casual chain specializing in …

Shares of Costco (COST) fell over 7% in midday trading on Friday after the wholesale retailer reported mixed second-quarter earnings results, missing profit estimates but beating on revenue, as the company braces for the impact of tariffs and inflation on consumer spending. “The tariffs are very fluid right now, so it’s hard to give any predictions about what we can do, but our people are well equipped to deal with anything coming our way and we have great partnerships with our suppliers,” CEO Ron Vachris said during the company’s earnings call. “Our people are nimble and ready to go.” Costco’s Q2 revenue came in at $63.72 billion, slightly beating analyst estimat…

By now, most people know not to trust everything they see on TikTok. But scams on the platform are becoming increasingly sophisticated, thanks to deepfake technology. A new report from Media Matters for America, published this week, identified multiple TikTok accounts using deepfake influencers and fake storytimes to promote wellness products to unsuspecting users. These accounts appear to be part of an affiliated network, using the same content format and often promoting exactly the same products with little to no scientific backing. One now-deleted TikTok account, which had over 245,000 followers, amassed more than 4.1 million likes promoting its “secret to perf…

Trading could soon be very different on the Nasdaq stock market if the stock exchange gets its way. That’s because Nasdaq president Tal Cohen has announced the exchange’s plans to introduce 24-hour trading to the platform in the near future. The move to 24-hour trading would represent a seismic shift for the Nasdaq—and present opportunities and challenges to investors, businesses, and the media who cover them. Here’s what you need to know. Nasdaq proposes 24/5 trading In a blog post published today, Nasdaq president Tal Cohen has proposed what is colloquially called “24/5 trading”—the ability to trade stocks and other securities on exchange 24 hours a day for …

It turns out 2025 isn’t the year for legalized sports betting in Georgia. Efforts to send a state constitutional amendment to voters failed Thursday in the state legislature, as neither the amendment nor a bill laying out details ever came to a vote in the House. Voters in Missouri narrowly approved sports betting in a 2024 referendum, making it the 39th state to legalize the practice. But like in Georgia, legalization faces high hurdles in the 10 remaining states that bar sports gambling. Thursday was the deadline for each Georgia chamber to pass its own legislation to the opposite chamber. The measures still could be revived in the last month of the session, but it m…

Nearly two months after an explosion sent flaming debris raining down on the Turks and Caicos, SpaceX launched another mammoth Starship rocket on Thursday, but lost contact minutes into the test flight as the spacecraft came tumbling down and broke apart. This time, wreckage from the latest explosion was seen streaming from the skies over Florida. It was not immediately known whether the spacecraft’s self-destruct system had kicked in to blow it up. The 403-foot (123-meter) rocket blasted off from Texas. SpaceX caught the first-stage booster back at the pad with giant mechanical arms, but engines on the spacecraft on top started shutting down as it streaked eastward for…

Standing next to her makeshift home of scrap metal, wood and plastic tarp, 47-year-old Nelly Mengual recounts how severe flooding and winds tore off her roof a few months ago, leaving her knee-deep in water in her home. She lives in an informal settlement on the outskirts of Riohacha, in northern Colombia’s arid, wind-swept region, where thousands of other Wayuu people, native to the La Guajira region spanning Colombia and Venezuela, also reside. Although many residents were born in Colombia, it is the Wayuu who fled Venezuela who face the greatest hardship. Having escaped what many describe as economic crisis, they now live in these settlements without access to ru…

Shares in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBA) are up a modest amount after the company announced yesterday that it has agreed to be purchased by private equity firm Sycamore Partners. As of the time of this writing, WBA shares are up under 7% to $11.33. Here’s what you need to know about the buyout and share movement. Walgreens is going private After years of financial struggles, publicly traded Walgreens announced yesterday that it has accepted a deal from private equity firm Sycamore Partners to be bought and taken private. Rumors of the deal were first reported earlier this week. Under the agreement, Sycamore will take the pharmacy chain privat…

The discovery of a huge unexploded World War II-era bomb caused transportation chaos in Paris on Friday that included the suspension of high-speed rail links with London and Brussels and the closure of a vital road artery in the French capital, hobbling France’s busiest train station, dashing travelers’ weekend getaway plans and giving commuters a major headache. The cascade of transport woes spread from the rail to the road network, with Paris police announcing the closure of the A1 highway and sections of the capital’s always-busy ring road around the city, as bomb-disposal experts worked to make the half-ton explosive safe. Eurostar, operator of sleek high-speed trai…

America’s butterflies are disappearing because of insecticides, climate change and habitat loss, with the number of the winged beauties down 22% since 2000, a new study finds. The first countrywide systematic analysis of butterfly abundance found that the number of butterflies in the Lower 48 states has been falling on average 1.3% a year since the turn of the century, with 114 species showing significant declines and only nine increasing, according to a study in Thursday’s journal Science. “Butterflies have been declining the last 20 years,” said study co-author Nick Haddad, an entomologist at Michigan State University. “And we don’t see any sign that that’s going to e…

Fans of the beleaguered retail chain Big Lots will be happy to learn that the first locations to reopen after its bankruptcy last year are currently undergoing a cleaning, remodeling, and re-merchandising process. Their reopening, the first in a series of four waves of “soft openings,” is scheduled for next month. Here’s what you need to know about when and where Big Lots stores will reopen. Big Lots ‘first wave’ locations Variety Wholesalers, the North Carolina-based retail company that has taken control of hundreds of the ailing retailer’s stores, has confirmed with Fast Company that it is gearing up to reopen some of the locations that it has acquired. As Fa…

Every morning, after Richard J. Davidson meditates, he opens his calendar and sets an intention for each meeting. He brings each person into his mind and heart, expresses gratitude for their work in the world, and considers how he can best support them. I was inspired to try this practice. I reflected on the people that I planned to see that day and chose one thing that I’d like to thank them for. I was surprised that a simple “thank you” caused them to visibly light up. Davidson was right: It not only transformed our conversation, but the entire nature of my day. This is an example of microdosing well-being and its impact on ourselves and others. It’s also the heart…

Spotify just opened up a new stream of revenue for podcasters. That is, if they’re uploading video. What was once an audio-first medium, podcasting is now increasingly filmed and produced. That started on YouTube, which is now racking up one billion podcast viewers a month. While Spotify has hosted podcasts for a decade now, the company is suddenly racing to stay competitive, rolling out new features and monetization tools. That includes their Partner Program, which allows podcasters to earn money directly from the streams of premium subscribers, so long as they’re using a video aspect. “We decided to focus on video because that’s where we see a lot of audiences…

When I was 35, a ruptured brain aneurysm nearly killed me. My husband and I had just moved to a new city, bought our first house, adopted a dog, and I had recently started my own business. Life was running at 100 miles an hour and I thought this is what hustling was supposed to feel like. Living my best life, right? Until I collapsed, unconscious, on my bathroom floor. I miraculously survived. Recovery wasn’t always easy due to my new cognitive deficits. However, the experience taught me about the power of empathy to heal and how clarity and decisive action — especially when the stakes are high — can be the most compassionate things someone can do to alleviate str…

Starting today, thousands of changemakers and leaders will descend upon Austin for one of the biggest festivals and conferences of the year: South by Southwest (SXSW). It’s the “level playing field” event where startups and Fortune 500 companies share the same stage to discuss the hottest topics and trends in film, tech, sustainability and travel, social good, and health and wellness. It’s where brands unveil new products, relationships are formed, and celebrities premiere their films. However, despite its popularity as a must-attend event, you won’t find SXSW in your Google Calendar app. You also won’t find two other cultural events in March: Women’s History Month o…

Every year, Employee Appreciation Day comes and goes, prompting organizations to rush into gratitude mode—offering lunches, shoutouts, and small gifts. But if March 7 is the only time leaders express appreciation to their teams, they’re missing the mark. It’s like only telling your partner “I love you” on your anniversary. If appreciation is absent the rest of the year, the sentiment feels hollow. In fact, a once-a-year show of recognition can do more harm than good, as employees may perceive these actions as insincere. Whether in relationships or the workplace, real appreciation is built through consistent, meaningful recognition. Recognition is even more critica…

This week in branding news, Volvo released its first-ever entirely AI-generated ad, fashion brand Pretty Little Thing attempted to overhaul its brand image, and Crystal Light made a late bid on the canned cocktail craze. Here’s everything you need to know. Volvo veers into the uncanny valley The news: Volvo just released a new AI-generated ad, and it doesn’t include a single car. That was probably a mistake. Big picture: The ad, which aired in Saudi Arabia, is Volvo’s first spot made entirely with AI. Created by the agency Lion, the minute-long video used Midjourney for visuals, Runway editing software for touch-ups, and ChatGPT for narration. It’s essentially …

Tyler, the CEO of an early-stage technology company, reached out for executive coaching support at the recommendation of a college friend: “Give it a try,” she encouraged. He was skeptical about anything “touchy-feely” and wondered if coaching could offer his leadership an “edge.” After we reviewed his 360 results together, Tyler’s skepticism took center stage. His feedback consisted of descriptors like controlling, arrogant, and dismissive. Tyler was unmoved. He asked, “Why should I care about what people think of me if we’re getting great results?” Tyler’s not an anomaly. There are leaders everywhere who behave badly interpersonally but exceed sales goals, secu…

Have you seen the new Volvo ad made with generative artificial intelligence? Go ahead. Watch it. . . . I’ll wait. If you think it looks awful, you’re not alone. The physics are all wrong, with hair, sand, and objects going in the wrong direction at the wrong time. The humans look like they’re made of plastic. Their emotions are forced, their expressions deformed, their smiles anything but warm. Instead, they likely fill you with an uncanny Grand Canyon of dread. The lighting is artificial, too—no film, digital camera, or grading would produce that unnatural palette. Some people are saying that Volvo made a mistake by not putting a car in the ad, obviously not realizi…

How are the world’s most creative people using AI to drive their work forward? This was the question at the heart of an in-depth survey Fast Company recently conducted in partnership with Whalar, a leading social agency focused on content creators. We found that, for most, AI has become a routine part of the creative process—and a return to an AI-free working life has become almost unfathomable. Yet the survey also found the world’s creative elite are grappling with a technology that gets more powerful and useful every day but remains unwieldy, error-prone, and not entirely trustworthy. “I want people to understand how well it can augment and enhance the thinking…