Good morning, and a warm welcome to all our new subscribers. In today’s edition:

• 🛍️ eBay’s big bet on live shopping
• 💉 Trump’s executive order on vaccines
• 🧠 How to intentionally enter a flow state

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.07-minute read (1,083 words).

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"The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us."

–Voltaire (1694-1778)

eBay is adding a live camera to its longtime auction formula.

The company’s livestream shopping push is gaining traction, with more shoppers tuning in to watch products get showcased, bid on, and sold in real time.

During its second-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, the company said eBay Live’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) jumped ~8x year-over-year across seven markets, alongside increases in viewers, watch time, and items sold.

From listing to livestream

eBay Live, which involves sellers showing off products on video while buyers bid in real time, fits pretty naturally into the company’s longtime online marketplace for trading cards, sneakers, vintage goods, and other collectibles.

• Instead of relying on a handful of photos and a description assuring you that the 1998 Charizard is definitely in mint condition, sellers can show products in detail and manage bidding in real time.
• eBay last month moved beyond its invite-only model and launched Live for eligible sellers across 300+ categories, covering electronics, fashion, collectibles, and more.

eBay’s bet appears to be paying off

More than 90% of sellers who regularly stream on eBay Live have seen their GMV grow, according to the company.

• Sellers using Live also move ~3x more merchandise than those who don’t.
• On the buyer side, first-time shoppers in the collectibles category spend ~70% more through Live than their non-Live counterparts.

Zoom out: The concept of live shopping is in the process of moving beyond a niche trend and into a serious side category for retailers. Resale giant StockX recently introduced live-shopping capabilities, dedicated platform Whatnot (valued at $11 billion) continues to find success, while TikTok is reportedly testing a Prime-style paid membership for its popular TikTok Shop live-shopping service.

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America's job market is sending about as many mixed signals as a Hinge date who says they had a great time...then leaves your last text on read.

Private US employers added just 44,000 jobs in July, the weakest monthly gain since January, according to ADP’s monthly report.

At the same time, workers who switched jobs saw their pay jump 7% year-over-year, the fastest increase in nearly a year, compared to 4.4% for workers who stayed put

Why the disconnect?

It’s a classic case of supply and demand. Hiring is slowing in industries like manufacturing and retail, where employers are dealing with tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and weaker consumer demand. But in industries where business is consistent and skilled workers are harder to find, wage growth is accelerating as competition for talent heats up.

Construction is a good example: The industry added just 1,000 jobs in July, but pay for workers who switched jobs reached a record high, reflecting strong demand tied to AI data center projects and a limited supply of experienced construction workers.

• Education and health services added a relatively muted 36,000 jobs in July, but also saw strong wage growth as employers continued competing for a limited pool of nurses, caregivers, and other skilled workers.

Other data tells a similar story. Bank of America found the number of paid workers in the US rose 2% year-over-year in July, with after-tax wage growth among lower-income households (+5.2% YoY) outpacing higher-income households (+4.2%) for the first time since late 2024.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 🗽 New York judge pauses Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rollout of NYC’s new “pied-à-terre” tax on second homes worth $5+ million, in response to lawsuit filed Friday by local homeowners.
• 🌶️ Taylor Farms recalls wide range of jalapeño-containing products linked to a recent salmonella outbreak; recall covers items sold across 26 states at major retailers like Kroger, Target, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, and Whole Foods.
• 🌐 Nvidia signs memos of understanding with six large asset managers—including Blackrock and Goldman Sachs—to mobilize $500+ billion in third-party capital for other companies to build out data centers and acquire Nvidia hardware.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🏈 Cowboys DT Quinnen Williams signs 3-yr, $105.9 million contract extension, with $101 million guaranteed marking a new NFL record for defensive tackles.
• 🎙️ President Barack Obama to launch new podcast, called A Great Book With Barack Obama, exploring books that “profoundly shaped his worldview and our society.”
• 🙏 Don Nelson, who won five NBA titles as a player with the Boston Celtics and went on to become a Hall of Fame head coach with the second-most NBA wins of all time, passed away at 86.

Veyra’s Precision Intelligence Platform, Vision, gives you clarity on the direction and amplitude of price movement. It’s based on four decades of aerospace-grade math, delivered simply enough for any trader to use from day one.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🏛️ FDA proposes new rule that would require food companies to notify the agency about new substances in food products, and explain why they consider them safe. | President Trump signs executive order backing a reduction in childhood vaccines to 11 and calling for the MMR vaccine to be broken into three separate shots; Trump cites unsupported link between vaccines and autism, despite decades of scientific evidence showing no tie.
• 🧘 High-intensity yoga ranks as the most “optimal exercise prescription” for poor sleep, with two sessions/week lasting ≤30 mins for 8–10 weeks showing the greatest benefits, new study shows.
• 🌡️🌊 Global sea-surface temperatures outside the polar regions reach hottest level ever recorded in July, surpassing the previous high mark set in 2023; global surface air temperatures also tie for the second-hottest July on record.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• 🗳️ Primary elections will be held today in AL, CT, MN, VT, WI, plus a special Republican primary in SC to replace the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
• 🏛️ Former President Joe Biden is experiencing “painful” and “debilitating” effects from metastatic prostate cancer that’s spread to his bones and beyond, according to son Hunter Biden; the 83-year-old previously said his treatment was going well after undergoing hormone and radiation therapy last year.
• 🌍 Ukrainian drone attack on Russian city of Nizhnekamsk kills 13 people and injures another 78 in one of deadliest attacks by Ukraine inside Russia since 2022; Ukraine says it struck an oil refinery in Nizhnekamsk in its campaign to disrupt Russian energy infrastructure.

☝️ You’re looking at some of the shortlisted photographs for the 2026 ZWO Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition, which drew nearly 4,000 entries from 66 countries.

🤔 Did you know? Candid Camera host Allen Funt was once a passenger on a hijacked flight in 1969, causing his fellow captives among the passengers to believe they were being pranked for a TV program. The Newark-Miami flight was ultimately diverted to Cuba by hijackers, where the passengers were soon released.

📰 Worth a read: How to enter a state of flow

🖱️ What we’re clicking:

• We're getting mealtimes wrong—here's the best time to have dinner
• Are you near one of the 20 best hospitals in America?
• The musicians turning bat calls into club music

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Yesterday we covered how the trend of EV adoption in America has slowed over the past year, as affordability increasingly becomes the biggest obstacle for prospective buyers following the expiration of federal tax credits.

❓ Our question to you: What type of vehicle do you personally want for your next purchase?

• Gas-powered: 33%
• Hybrid: 48%
• Fully electric: 19%

Read some of the most thoughtful longform responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 615 votes and 88 longform responses.

❓ Trivia: What’s the term to describe space that’s devoid of matter? (Hint: “The __ of outer space”)

🍒 True or false?...Fresh cranberries are bouncy.

🤔 Riddle me this: What has four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?

(keep scrolling for the answers)

🪿 A Texas family’s pet goose, named Goosey, is being hailed as a hero after its persistent honking woke its owner and alerted him to a fire in the family’s barn. The owner managed to extinguish the flames, with all animals inside escaping unharmed thanks to Goosey's vigilance. 

❓ Trivia: Vacuum

🍒 T/F: True

🤔 Riddle: A human; baby crawls, adult walks, elder person has a cane

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