Good morning. Quick reminder: life is short. So be sure to hug your loved ones and tell ‘em you love ‘em.

Now – allow us a sec to step down from our soapbox. It’s time for NEWS.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be about a 4.68-minute read.

P.S. First time reading? Subscribe here for free.

“It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”

–Albus Dumbledore (1881-1997)

FYPs are about to get a lot quieter, unless your algorithm is deep into ASMR-Tok. Universal Music, the biggest record label in the world, is severing ties with TikTok, the company revealed in an open letter published late Tuesday.

This means the music of any artist signed to Universal – a completely stacked roster that includes Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, Elton John, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Billie Eilish, Adele, Coldplay, Ariana Grande, and more – will be unavailable for use in videos moving forward (it’s unclear how old videos containing these sounds will be handled, but it’s likely they’ll be muted).

The sticking points: The impasse between Universal and TikTok boils down to three issues, per the open letter – appropriate compensation for artists and songwriters, the online safety of TikTok users, and protections from AI.

• Universal alleges TikTok proposed paying artists and songwriters a fraction of what similarly situated major social platforms pay. The label says TikTok only accounts for 1% of its advertising revenue – despite its artists representing 8 out of 10 of the most popular bands and singers on the platform last year.
• Universal also takes issue with TikTok’s copyright enforcement (or lack thereof) and investment in AI-related music features. For example: TikTok is piloting an “AI Song” feature that uses AI to create songs based on prompts that users enter.

They said, they said *cue Spider-Man pointing meme*

Billie Eilish’s songs may not be available on the FYP anymore, but “Bad Guy” is the perfect soundtrack for how negotiations have been going – both Universal and TikTok take issue with how the other has reportedly been handling the situation.

• Universal claims TikTok attempted to strongarm them in negotiations, selectively removing the music of certain developing artists while keeping the work of audience-driving global stars on the platform.
• TikTok calls this narrative false, saying in a statement: “It’s sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters.”

This dispute isn’t the only issue TikTok is facing. As the app leans more into commerce (just count the number of orange-cart icons you see each day), its user growth is slowing – and there’s evidence this shopping push may be partially to blame.

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🇪🇬 Egypt is renovating one of the ancient pyramids at Giza. The smallest of Egypt’s three main pyramids, Menkaure, is the only one known to have an outer layer of granite, which has become severely damaged over the past four thousand years. The three-year project aims to restore Menkaure to its original granite-clad style, though critics say the move could cause major damage to the pyramid.

🇰🇷 South Korea’s fertility rate fell to the lowest level of any country in history. Newly published government projections found the number of babies expected per each South Korean woman this year is 0.72 – down from 0.81 the previous year, and well below the population replacement level of 2.1. At its current pace, experts say South Korea’s population will be cut in half to 24 million people by 2100.

🇪🇺🚜 The EU delayed new environmental laws in response to farmer protests across Europe. The EU’s new decision delays by one year the enactment of rules that would force farmers to set aside a portion of their land to encourage biodiversity and soil health. Over a half-dozen European countries have seen mass farmer protests against the new EU rules in recent weeks, including France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Poland, Romania, and the Netherlands.

The next time you’re browsing at a grocery store, pay attention to the food packaging – because it plays a key role in which products you buy, as well as how much money you spend, per recent research from US marketing experts.

The researchers started by scraping Kroger’s database for four types of common products, including cereals and crackers. After ranking the products’ package designs from simple to complex, they discovered the more minimalist designs sold for a higher price on average.

The study also drew from experiments in which scientists designed two separate packages – simple and complex – for a made-up snack brand, then asked volunteers how much they’d be willing to spend on the item.

• On average, participants were willing to pay $6.39 for the simple bag, while that number fell to $5.56 for the complex packaging.

However, there are a few exceptions. While consumers looking for healthier foods are more likely to choose simple packaging, the opposite is true for those looking to buy an indulgent treat. Researchers found sweet-toothed consumers are willing to pay ~17% more on average for food with complex packaging.

• The study also found a strong consumer preference for complex packaging when buying cheaper, store-branded food products (ex: Kirkland or Member’s Mark).

📝 Bottom line: When consumers see simple food packaging with minimal text and fewer colors, they usually assume the product inside contains few ingredients and is worth paying a premium, according to the study.

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💬 Quoted… “Social media companies as they’re currently designed and operate are dangerous products.”

• The CEOs of five major social media companies – Meta, TikTok, X, Discord, and Snap – testified before the Senate yesterday in a hearing about the online safety of kids under 13. During the testimony, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle called out the CEOs for alleged shortcomings related to the safety of young people on their respective platforms. Lawmakers also used the hearing to push for new laws aimed at reducing the exploitation of kids online – including the STOP CSAM Act, which would allow victims of child exploitation to sue tech platforms.

📈 Stat of the Day: The US economy grew an estimated 2.5% last year – more than any other advanced economy by a wide margin (Japan placed second at 1.9%). Experts say the US stands out from the rest of the world due to a strong labor force and an innovative corporate sector.

🤔 Did You Know?... Ruby and sapphire gemstones are both created from the same material – Corundum. The only difference is contaminants that give the stone its color.

📰 Worth a Read: 23andMe’s Fall From $6 Billion to Nearly $0 → (WSJ)

• ☝️ Parrots can use their beaks to swing like monkeys, per a peer-reviewed study published yesterday in Royal Society Open Science.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

in partnership with bistroMD

• 💰 US markets closed down across the board (S&P: -1.6%; Dow: -0.8%; Nasdaq: -2.2%).
• 🏦 The Fed held interest rates steady yesterday, and said it won't start cutting rates until it's more confident inflation has been tamed.
• 🏬 Walmart is planning to open or expand 150+ of its large-format stores over the next five years.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• ⚾ The Baltimore Orioles’ owner agreed to sell the team for ~$1.7 billion to a group led by billionaire David Rubenstein. | 📺 Paramount Global received a $14 billion purchase offer from Byron Allen, the founder and CEO of Entertainment Studios.
• 📰🌐 The Messenger, a digital news startup that launched in May 2023, is reportedly planning to shut down operations.
• ⛳ The PGA Tour and Strategic Sports Group, a collection of US sports team owners, have reached a deal that will see SSG invest up to $3 billion into PGA Tour Enterprises, the PGA Tour's new for-profit entity.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Olyra

• 🌕 The Moon’s core is slowly shrinking and causing hours-long “moonquakes” across its surface, per a new peer-reviewed study; the findings indicate the Moon’s south pole may be less habitable for humans than previously thought.
• 🖨️🌌 The European Space Agency this week launched the first metal 3D printer for space.
• 🧠 Alzheimer’s disease can be transferred from human to human as part of a no-longer-used medical procedure; that’s per a new Nature Medicine study that marks the first evidence of Alzheimer’s transmission.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🇺🇸🇨🇳 The US government said it recently disrupted a potentially life-threatening Chinese hacking operation that hijacked hundreds of infected routers and used them to secretly target American and allied critical infrastructure networks.
• ⚖️ A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by Disney against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over the state’s removal of Disney’s special taxing district.
• 🏛️ House Republicans on the Homeland Security Committee approved two articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his alleged failure to enforce federal immigration laws; the vote now heads to the full House. (From the Left | From the Center | From the Right)

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Yesterday, we covered how Neuralink recently implanted its brain chip in a human patient for the first time, while rival brain-computer interface groups have also made significant strides in recent years.

❓ Our question to you: If given the opportunity, would you want an implant in your brain that gave you heightened mental abilities?

• 👍 Definitely want: 13%
• 🤔 Probably want: 15%
• 😬 Probably not want: 22%
• 👎 Definitely not want: 36%
• 🤷 Unsure/other: 14%

Click here to read the best longform responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 6,992 votes and 414 longform responses.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, 12% of people have extreme dentist visit anxiety. 

For patients at J&D Dental in Minneapolis, however, their dental anxiety is handled by an expert: Ollie, a fluffy, 80-lb English Goldendoodle.

🐕 Hygienist's little helper... Ollie belongs to dental hygienist April Kline, who started bringing him into work from time-to-time to help nervous patients. 

• Sprawled across April's patients' laps, Ollie has helped countless people – so much so that one woman didn't need to use laughing gas during her appointment like she had every other visit since she was a child. 
• "He’s such a good boy, and he was really calming," said the patient. "I’m surprised at how much he helped.”

Which is the only US state with its entire northern border formed by a river?

(keep scrolling for the answer)

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Kentucky, with the Ohio River as its border