Good morning. Starbucks launched its new “Oleato” line of olive oil-infused drinks in the US yesterday.

According to former CEO Howard Schultz, the brainchild behind Oleato, the olive oil adds an “unexpected velvety, buttery flavor that enhances the coffee” – but not everyone agrees. Some customers who’ve sampled Oleato say it has a laxative-like effect, leading them to dash for the bathroom at speeds rivaling Usain Bolt.

To anyone reading this who’s given Oleato a try: what’s been your experience? Asking for a lot of friends.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be about a 4.72-minute read.

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“Life must be a constant education; one must learn everything, from speaking to dying.”

–Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880)

Cyberpunk 2077 will have to be changed to Cyberpunk 2027 – because the original seems to have been off by a few years. This week, Neuralink CEO Elon Musk revealed that his startup has created a cyborg implanted its brain chip in a human patient for the first time.

• The recipient is “recovering well” and initial data from the device is promising, per Musk, though he didn’t provide any further details on the procedure.

The basics: Neuralink’s first brain-computer interface (BCI) product, called Telepathy, is initially aimed at human patients who have lost use of their limbs, with future plans to offer it more widely.

The device is implanted in the part of the human brain that controls movement, where it interprets a person’s neural activity so they can control external devices – like smartphones and computers – using only their thoughts.

• The company has already successfully tested its BCI technology in animals, including a 2021 experiment where a monkey played the video game Pong using only its thoughts.

Looking ahead… While its initial BCI implant is focused on giving humans the ability to control computers like the robot from Avengers: Age of Ultron, the company has also announced future plans for implants that could help people learn languages, communicate thoughts mentally, or “solve” brain-related disorders like schizophrenia.

However, experts say any such applications won’t make it in the public’s hands for at least a decade, since Neurolink first has to prove its BCI technology is safe and effective in humans via a series of years-long clinical trials.

🧠 Zoom out: Other groups working on similar brain implants have made significant strides in recent years.

• Two of Neuralink’s main rivals – Blackrock Neurotech and Synchron – have successfully tested their BCI devices in human patients.
• Swiss researchers used BCI technology to create mind-controlled avatars that allowed two patients to “speak” for the first time in over a decade.
• China this week announced plans to bring government-developed BCI products to market as early as 2025.

📊 Flash poll: If given the opportunity, would you want an implant in your brain that gave you heightened mental abilities?

• Definitely want
• Probably want
• Probably not want
• Definitely not want
• Unsure/other

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🇮🇷 Iran simultaneously launched three satellites into space for the first time. The successful night launch included one larger satellite, intended to test the accuracy of Iran’s newest rocket, as well as two nano-satellites to test narrowband communication and GPS technology. Sunday’s successful liftoff broke a streak of five consecutive failed launches for Iran's satellite-carrying rocket program.

🇵🇰 Former Pakistani PM Imran Khan was sentenced to 10 additional years in prison. The retired cricket star was convicted of leaking state secrets, adding a decade on top of his ongoing three-year sentence for corruption. The most recent charges against Khan relate to his appearance at a rally in March 2022 – a month before he was ousted in a no-confidence vote – during which Khan waved a piece of paper he said showed a foreign conspiracy against him. Prosecutors successfully argued the incident amounted to leaking a classified document and damaging diplomatic relations, though Khan says the charges are politically motivated.

🇭🇺🇪🇺 Hungary accused the EU of political blackmail over a $54 billion aid package to Ukraine. Hungarian officials cited a recently leaked document that reportedly suggests the EU will shut off all funding to Hungary if Budapest vetoes the Ukrainian aid package at a summit tomorrow. In recent years, the EU has frozen Hungary’s access to tens of billions of dollars in joint funds over concerns about democratic backsliding, prompting Hungary to respond by vetoing EU political decisions.

If Charles Dickens wrote a book about UPS’s day yesterday, it’d be called Missing Expectations. America’s second-largest deliverer of packages reported Q4 earnings that came in below analysts’ revenue expectations.

Why it matters: The carrier’s financial results often serve as a barometer for both the US and global economy, per the WSJ. That’s because UPS delivers packages from retailers to consumers in addition to handling transportation and logistics for manufacturers, providing insight into various B2C (business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business) industries.

So when someone asks “what can brown do for you?” you can answer: “give us some economic insight.” And here it is:

• UPS revenue declined in the last quarter of 2023, due to weaker delivery volumes in both its domestic and international businesses (indicating a slowing economy).
• The company is now projecting 2024 revenue to fall between $92 billion and $94.5 billion, below analysts’ expectations.

UPS is also getting on the job cuts train. The carrier announced plans to trim ~12,000 jobs this year, and also mandated that employees work from offices five days per week starting in March. Per the company, the moves are meant to cut costs and boost productivity amid a slowdown in its business.

📉 The market reacts: UPS shares fell more than 7% in afternoon trading.

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💬 Quoted… “What we’re saying is what is happening on our streets needs to stop.”

• This month, Oregon politicians on both sides of the aisle announced plans to roll back the state’s first-in-the-nation decriminalization policy for all drugs, which was approved via ballot measure in late 2020. Lawmakers say the move is aimed at reversing a notable increase in overdose deaths, homelessness, and shoplifting across Oregon over the past three years. The new policy proposed by state Democrats would make possession of small amounts of certain illicit drugs – including fentanyl, heroin, and meth – a low-level misdemeanor, while Republican state lawmakers are seeking to make possession of such drugs a high-level misdemeanor.

🙅💰 Stat of the Day: Yesterday, a Delaware judge struck down Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s record $56 billion pay package, ruling that its approval process was “deeply flawed” due to Musk’s “extensive ties with the persons tasked with negotiating on Tesla’s behalf.” The ruling also puts the spotlight on Tesla's next round of compensation negotiations with Musk, who recently said he’s uncomfortable leading the EV-maker into the future unless his voting control is upped to ~25% (currently ~13%). Another Musk-pay fun fact: a senior director at Equilar, an executive pay research firm, estimated in 2022 that Musk's overall compensation package was ~6x larger than the combined pay of the 200 highest-paid executives in the prior year.

🤔 Did You Know?... The word “dreamt” and its variations (e.g., daydreamt) are the only words in the English language that end in the letters “mt.”

📰 Worth a Read: The legend of "Bum" Farto, a Florida fire-chief-turned-drug-dealer who vanished → (Mental Floss)

• ☝️ Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska, received 17+ inches of snow over the past three days, pushing it past the 100-inch mark for this winter season; it’s the earliest time in history that Anchorage has reached the threshold, as well as the second back-to-back 100-inch season since the mid-1950s.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

in partnership with The Cold Life

• 💰 US markets closed mixed (S&P: -0.1%; Dow: +0.3%; Nasdaq: -0.8%). | 🔀 Walmart announced a 3-for-1 stock split.
• 💼 PayPal is cutting ~2,500 jobs, or 9% of its workforce.
• 🤑📝 Earnings bonanza: GM reported Q4 earnings that beat analysts’ expectations; the automaker also said it’s changing its product lineup strategy to include plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. | Alphabet reported better-than-expected revenue and profit in Q4, but ad revenue missed analysts’ projections. | Microsoft outpaced expectations on both earnings and revenue amid strong growth in AI and cloud services.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🥇⛸️ Team USA this week was awarded the gold medal in the 2022 Olympic team figure skating competition after Russia was stripped of its title due to a doping disqualification; it marks the US team’s first-ever win in the competition.
• 📱🔄 TikTok is reportedly incentivizing creators to start posting horizontal videos that are more than a minute long.
• 🎢 Universal revealed details about its newest theme park called Epic Universe, which combines several IPs including Harry Potter, Super Nintendo World, and How to Train Your Dragon.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Ingrid, Barnaby & Dot's Dreamland Adventure

• 💡🦟 Flying insects aren’t actually attracted to bright lights, according to a new peer-reviewed study; instead, researchers found artificial lights at night mess with bugs’ innate navigational systems that use light to tell which direction is up.
• 🧠💊 Vertex Pharmaceuticals of Boston says it has developed an experimental drug that relieves severe pain by blocking pain signals before they reach the brain; Vertex says its drug is expected to avoid the addiction potential seen in opioids.
• 🦠 US cases of syphilis rose 17% in 2022 to reach its highest level in 70+ years, per a new CDC report; syphilis cases are up 80% since 2018.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🍳🔥 Gas stoves are in the clear: The Department of Energy’s new efficiency standards, published Monday, allow gas stoves to keep high-powered burners, oversize cast-iron grates, and other key features.
• 🇫🇷🚜 French farmers blocked major roads across Paris for a second straight day as part of weeks-long protests for better pay and working conditions.
• 🏛️ Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) is the subject of an ongoing DOJ investigation into whether her campaign improperly paid her husband to provide personal security. (From the Left | From the Center | From the Right)

CLICKBAIT

• 💑 We’ve studied over 30,000 couples – here are 6 phrases you’ll hear in the most successful relationships.

Yesterday, we covered a pair of new surveys that show many younger Americans aren’t doing so hot compared to previous generations at their age.

❓ Our question to you: In your opinion, what can/should be done to reverse the decline in youth well-being?

• “We need to get kids off of social media. Children do not need to feel these things at such a young age. They just need to focus on being kids and making friendships in real life.”
• “We need education for families around screen time and access to social media, while ensuring that ALL children in education have time during their school days to simply play. For older kids, at least an hour just for socializing outside of the classroom. For littles, most of their day should be invested in play, including access to a green space.”
• “We need to find a balance between understanding mental health and providing ways to be resilient. Too many students are sad and obsessed with what others think of them. Caring adults can provide ways for them to broaden their experiences and help them see that their small world is not all that there is to life.”
• “Delay allowing them to have 24/7 access to phones/tablets/computers. If the cat's already out of the bag, work with them to limit the screen time. Time to pump the brakes and monitor their usage, as well.”

Click here to read more of the best responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 264 longform responses.

There's a big event happening on Sunday, February 11th: Puppy Bowl XX. 

🏈 Sports + animal fans, unite... The annual event, hosted by Animal Planet, features puppies up for adoption who "play" football in the iconic Puppy Bowl Stadium. It even features a halftime kitten show. 

This year's lineup features 131 puppies from 73 different shelters and rescues.

• The smallest player is Sweetpea, coming in at 1.7 lbs. And the biggest? Levi, a Great Dane, at 70 lbs.

Can you name America's top 5 highest-grossing films of 2023? (Based on domestic box office figures)

(keep scrolling for the answers)

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What to do: Copy your unique link below, then send it to anyone who you think would like the DONUT. Once you hit each milestone, you'll get an email with a link to claim your prize. (Pro tip: there's no need to ration points, you're entitled to a prize at each tier.)

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1. Barbie ($636.2 million)
2. The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($574.9 million)
3. Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse ($381.3 million)
4. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ($359.0 million)
5. Oppenheimer ($326.1 million)

Source → (Box Office Mojo)