• The scorching stock rally faded on Friday as inflation fears stoked a shift to risk-off among investors.
• US stocks fell as Treasury yields spiked and oil prices crept higher again,
• Investors weighed the impact of a stalemate in the Iran war after Trump's meeting with China's Xi.

The inflation boogeyman is back.

Stocks on Friday dropped sharply after a fierce rally in tech lifted major indexes to all-time highs throughout the week.

The catalyst for the big drop is Treasury yields, which surged on Friday as investors grew fearful about inflation risks following data this week that showed prices increasing at the fastest pace in years.

The 10-year US Treasury yield jumped 14 basis points to 4.6%, while 30-year yields was up 11 basis points to 5.12%, its highest level in a year. Bond yields are higher globally, with Japan and UK yields also hitting multi-year highs.

There was no one smoking gun for the surge in yields on Friday, but rather a confluence of reminders that inflation is still a problem for markets.

The Treasury sell-off comes just after Trump's Federal Reserve chair pick, Kevin Warsh was confirmed by the Senate. Consumer and producer inflation data earlier in the week dented the outlook for the Fed's to cut rates, even as Warsh is expected to be more dovish than outgoing chair Jerome Powell.

The market has priced out rate cuts in 2026, a major shift from the two to three cuts expected at the beginning of the year. Instead, investors expect rates to remain unchanged by year end, with some rising expectation for a hike.

"This all reinforces expectations that the Federal Reserve, under the new chairmanship of Kevin Warsh, will be unable to loosen monetary policy further, something which is bound to annoy President Trump," David Morrison, a senior market analyst at Trade nation explained.

Major indexes end Friday's session in the red, with the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 down over 1%, marking a reversal from fresh all-time highs hit earlier in the week.

Here's where major indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. ET closing bell:

• S&P 500: 7,408.51, down 1.24%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 49,538.40, down 1.05% (−525.06 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 26,225.14, down 1.54%

"There probably isn't any historical precedent for the plethora of shocks buffeting the US economy," Bank of America analysts wrote on Friday. "It has become increasingly clear in the last few months that inflation is a problem," they added.

The downturn in stocks comes as oil ticks higher on the ongoing war in Iran. Brent oil nears $110, up 3.66% at $109.58, while WTI oil rose
4.37% to $105.59.

The rise in oil comes after US President Trump's meeting with China's Xi. Following the talks, investors didn't seem to find Trump's rhetoric about Iran and the Strait of Hormuz reassuring that the conflict in the Middle East and the historic oil market disruption will be resolved soon.

Investors' beliefs that the an end the the Iran war is around the corner, and a sharp decline in China's oil imports have helped steady oil futures during the conflict.

Trump reported that China agreed to buy US oil, which could threaten the structural forces, the decline in China's oil imports and the increase in US oil exports, that are propping up oil price stability during the war.

The US Dollar index climbed to 99.30, it's highest level since early April.

Congress released a list of 42 US military aircraft reported lost, damaged, or destroyed during the Iran war, based on information from the Pentagon, Central Command, and news reports. The Defense Department estimated the total cost of the losses at $2.6 billion.

One of the most expensive aircraft damaged during the war was an E-3 Sentry surveillance plane, which was hit by an Iranian drone and missile attack in Saudi Arabia. Each aircraft originally cost the Air Force about $270 million.

Other destroyed or damaged aircraft include the F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, MQ-4C Triton spy drone, and the A-10 Warthog, among others.

In the report, Congress said it was "unclear" whether the Defense Department had provided it with an accounting of all the lost aircraft, information with a budgetary impact that may be essential to Congress' oversight role.

• Actors Chuck Norris, Patrick Muldoon, Robert Duvall, and James Van Der Beek died in 2026.
• So did "Dilbert" creator Scott Adams, Grateful Dead's Bob Weir, and pop icon Neil Sedaka.
• Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson and media mogul Ted Turner also died.

Below, we look back at those we lost in 2026, listed in alphabetical order.

Scott Adams, 68

Adams based the character in his beloved "Dilbert" comic strip on his coworkers at the telephone company he worked at in the 1980s. By the end of the decade, the character and his satirical office humor began appearing in comic strips.

At its peak, "Dilbert" was syndicated in over 2,000 newspapers. A cartoon series debuted in 1999 and ran for two seasons.

Adams gained notoriety when he began writing blog posts praising Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential run. In 2023, "Dilbert" was pulled from newspapers across the US following racist comments made by Adams.

Adams died on January 13 following a bout with metastatic prostate cancer.

Brad Arnold, 47

As the lead singer of 3 Doors Down, Arnold launched the group into fame with the 2000 rock anthem "Kryptonite," which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 that year.

The success led to other hits like "Loser," "Here Without You," and "When I'm Gone." Arnold's vocal range and lyrics focused on love and love lost, which fueled the group to stardom.

Arnold died on February 7 after a battle with cancer.

Afrika Bambaataa, 68

Regarded as a pioneer in hip-hop during the 1970s and 1980s, Lance Taylor, known professionally as Afrika Bambaataa, would go on to influence the likes of Queen Latifah and A Tribe Called Quest throughout his career.

First gaining attention as a DJ in the Bronx, Bambaataa signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1981 and released landmark songs like "Jazzy Sensation" and "Planet Rock."

Bambaataa founded the hip-hop awareness group, Universal Zulu Nation, in the 1970s to steer kids away from gang life. Bambaataa stepped down as the head of the organization in 2016 after accusations of sexual abuse.

Bambaataa denied all claims.

He died on April 9 due to prostate cancer.

Nicholas Brendon, 54

Brendon played the beloved character Xander Harris in all seven seasons of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

Brendon also starred in other TV shows, including "Criminal Minds" and "Kitchen Confidential."

Brendon died in his sleep on March 20. According to his family's statement, the cause was natural. In 2023, Brendon suffered a heart attack and was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect. He also had cauda equina syndrome, which led to several spinal surgeries.

"While it's no secret that Nicholas had struggles in the past, he was on medications and treatment to manage his diagnosis, and he was optimistic about the future at the time of his passing," the statement to The Hollywood Reporter read. "Our family asks for privacy during this time as we grieve his loss and celebrate the life of a man who lived with intensity, imagination, and heart."

Robert Carradine, 71

As a member of Hollywood's famed Carradine family, Robert was destined for a career on screen.

He got one of his first screen credits starring in his brother David Carradine's popular 1970s TV series "Kung Fu" and went on to land roles in everything from Samuel Fuller's World War II classic "The Big Red One" to the "Lizzie McGuire" series that made Hilary Duff a star.

But for a generation, Robert Carradine will always be known as the king of the nerds, embodying the iconic geek Lewis Skolnick in the 1980s franchise "Revenge of the Nerds."

Carradine's family shared statements with Deadline that emphasized being open about his struggles with mental illness.

"We are bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul and want to acknowledge Bobby's valiant struggle against his nearly two-decade battle with Bipolar Disorder," Carradine's family said. "We hope his journey can shine a light and encourage addressing the stigma that attaches to mental illness."

Carradine died by suicide on February 23.

If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or has had thoughts of harming themself or taking their own life, get help. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Help is also available through the Crisis Text Line — just text "HOME" to 741741. The International Association for Suicide Prevention offers resources for those outside the US.

Bud Cort, 77

Cort's baby-faced looks, combined with his wit and sophisticated persona, led to him becoming the epitome of 1970s counterculture when director Hal Ashby cast him as the lead in the 1971 movie "Harold and Maude."

The dark comedy stars Cort as Harold, a twenty-something who is obsessed with suicide until he meets 79-year-old eccentric Maude (Ruth Gordon). The movie would go on to become a cult classic thanks to Cort and Gordon's unique on-screen chemistry.

Before that, Cort scored bit parts in Robert Altman's "M*A*S*H*" (1970) and "Brewster McCloud" (1970).

After "Harold and Maude," Cort worked steadily for the rest of his life, occasionally showing up in hit movies like Michael Mann's "Heat" (1995) and Wes Anderson's "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004).

Cort died on Feb. 11 following a long illness.

Eric Dane, 53

Long before becoming one of TV's most recognizable heartthrobs, Eric Dane was building his career with guest roles on series like "Saved by the Bell" and "Married… with Children."

He later gained wider attention with appearances on "Charmed" before landing his breakout role as Dr. Mark "McSteamy" Sloan on "Grey's Anatomy." He most recently starred in HBO's "Euphoria," where he played Cal Jacobs, the father of Jacob Elordi's character, Nate Jacobs.

Dane has two children with his wife, Rebecca Gayheart. In April 2025, the actor said that he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

Dane died on February 19 at age 53 after battling the disease, his publicist confirmed in a statement to Business Insider.

"He spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world," his publicist said.

Robert Duvall, 95

Robert Duvall built a career of timeless cinema classics: "The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part II," "Apocalypse Now," "THX 1138," "The Natural," "Days of Thunder," "The Apostle," and the list goes on.

Duvall will be best remembered for starring in three of director Francis Ford Coppola's iconic films: playing Tom Hagen in the first two "Godfather" movies and playing Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore in "Apocalypse Now," in which he delivers one of the most memorable lines in movie history: "I love the smell of napalm in the morning."

Duvall was lauded for his acting talent, from not saying a word while playing Boo Radley in his first big screen role in the 1962 classic "To Kill a Mockingbird" to his portrayal of a country singer dealing with alcoholism in 1983's "Tender Mercies," which earned him an Oscar.

He died on his ranch in Virginia on February 15, no cause was given.

Valentino Garavani, 93

For over six decades, one name has been synonymous with women's high fashion: Valentino.

The Italian designer launched his fashion business in Rome in 1960 and never looked back. Soon, every star wanted to be seen in his creations. They've been worn by icons like Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Collins, Jackie Kennedy, Princess Diana, Sharon Stone, and more.

Though Garavani retired from designing in 2008, his label is still a red carpet staple, as is his famous shade of bright red dubbed "Valentino Red."

Garavani died on January 19. No cause was given.

Donald Gibb, 71

No one defined a bully for a generation more than Gibb's hulking fraternity character Orge in the "Revenge of the Nerds" movies of the 1980s.

Since the original raunchy comedy was released in 1984, Gibb's intimidating size and loud yells of "NERDS!" have become as memorable as the pocket protectors worn by the movie's geeks.

Gibb went on to star opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme in his classic 1988 action movie "Bloodsport." He also landed guest star roles through his career on shows like "Quantum Leap," Magnum P.I.," "MacGyver," "Night Court," and "Cheers."

Gibb died on May 12 following health complications.

Jesse Jackson, 84

The Rev. Jesse Jackson was a leader of the Civil Rights Movement, a minister, and an activist icon who twice ran for president.

Born on October 8, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson experienced Jim Crow segregation on public buses and at school firsthand. It would shape the rest of his life.

His fight for civil rights began in the 1960s, when he helped organize protests and demonstrations across the US and worked closely alongside civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

His decadeslong career as a leading civil rights activist included support for modern national movements, such as the push for voting rights, the fight against racism, and a higher minimum wage.

Jackson ran for president twice, both times as a democrat. He placed third for the party's nomination in 1984 and second in 1988. This marked the most successful presidential runs of any Black candidate prior to Barack Obama.

Jackson announced in 2017 that he'd been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. In November 2025, Jackson was treated in a Chicago hospital after complications from progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), a rare neurodegenerative condition.

Jackson died on February 17.

Patrick Muldoon, 57

In the 1990s, you couldn't escape the piercing eyes of Patrick Muldoon.

He played Austin Reed on "Days of Our Lives" for most of the decade, and when he wasn't on the soap, he was over on "Melrose Place" playing the villain role of Richard Hart.

If being on two iconic shows wasn't enough, he also showed up on "Saved by the Bell" and had a role in the cult classic movie "Starship Troopers."

Muldoon died on April 19 after a heart attack.

Tom Noonan, 74

Standing at a towering 6' 5", Tom Noonan was born to play the bad guy. And he did just that, starring as the villain in movies like "Manhunter," "RoboCop 2," and "Last Action Hero."

But this actor had more to show off. He showcased his comedy chops as Rodney Dangerfield's degenerate gambling friend in the 1983 comedy "Easy Money," and set up the heist for Robert De Niro in Michael Mann's 1995 classic "Heat."

His knack for storytelling also translated behind the camera. Noonan wrote, directed, and starred in the drama "What Happened Was," which won the grand prize at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival.

Noonan died on February 14; no cause was given.

Chuck Norris, 86

Few action stars Chuck Norris' credentials.

Before he ever stepped in front of a camera, he was a martial arts champion and a black belt in Karate, judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Taekwondo, and Tang Soo Do.

His talents would become known the world over in 1972, when he faced off against Bruce Lee in "The Way of the Dragon."

Through the 1980s, Norris became one of the biggest action stars in the world thanks to movies like "A Force of One," "The Octagon," and the "Delta Force" and "Missing in Action" franchises.

In the 1990s, he took over the small screen, playing the lead in the "Walker, Texas Ranger" TV show, which aired in over 100 countries during its run from 1993 to 2001.

Norris was hospitalized on March 19 in Hawaii and died the following day, according to his family. No cause was given.

Catherine O'Hara, 71

O'Hara, who was best known for her roles in "Beetlejuice" and "Home Alone," got her start in the Canadian comedy scene, appearing in the now-legendary cast of "SCTV."

It would mark the beginning of a fruitful partnership with fellow actor Eugene Levy, who became her frequent costar and collaborator in memorable appearances in Christopher Guest films like "A Mighty Wind" and "Best in Show" and television series like "Schitt's Creek," which earned her an Emmy Award for outstanding lead actress in 2020.

O'Hara's representation confirmed her death to Business Insider on January 30. Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed in a death certificate viewed by People that O'Hara died of a pulmonary embolism, with rectal cancer listed as an underlying cause.

Valerie Perrine, 82

Perrine found herself cast alongside the biggest stars of the 1970s.

She played the love interest opposite Jeff Bridges in 1973's "The Last American Hero" and Robert Redford in 1979's "The Electric Horseman." She earned an Oscar nomination for starring alongside Dustin Hoffman in 1974's "Lenny."

For most, she'll be remembered best for sharing the screen with Gene Hackman as the secretary to his evil Lex Luthor in 1978's "Superman." She also starred in the sequel. As Ms. Teschmacher, her loyalty to Luthor is questioned when she rescues Superman (Christopher Reeve) after he's chained with Kryptonite.

Perrine died in her home in Beverly Hills on March 23. She was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2015.

Neil Sedaka, 86

Sedaka is responsible for some of the biggest pop songs of the 1960s and 1970s.

The Brooklyn native wrote over 500 songs, including classic hits like "Laughter in the Rain," "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do," "Bad Blood" and the Captain & Tennille song, "Love Will Keep Us Together."

Sedaka died on February 27; no cause was given.

Kiki Shepard, 74

In her 15-year tenure as a co-host on "Showtime at the Apollo," Kiki Shepard was considered royalty at Harlem's famed Apollo Theater.

Known in the building as "Apollo Queen of Fashion" thanks to her dazzling outfits, Shepherd was a fixture on the show from 1987 to 2002.

Throughout her career, Shepard also appeared on TV shows like "Baywatch," "A Different World," "NYPD Blue," and "Grey's Anatomy."

Shepard died on March 16 after suffering a heart attack.

Béla Tarr, 70

Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr became a legend in the arthouse world for his unflinching work featuring several-minute-long takes.

With movies like "Family Nest" (1979) and "The Turin Horse" (2011), Tarr showcased his slow cinema style while focusing on marginalized characters living bleak lives. Tarr pushed the envelope with his style when he made "Sátántangó" in 1994, which had a run time of 450 minutes.

His work influenced several arthouse filmmakers, including Jim Jarmusch and Gus Van Sant's "Death Trilogy" ("Gerry," "Elephant," and "Last Days").

Tarr died on January 6 following a battle with a "long and serious illness."

James Tolkan, 94

You might not recognize the name, but if you're a movie fan, you know the face.

Tolkan's tough-guy persona made a mark on movie history in films like "Top Gun" and the "Back to the Future" franchise.

In "Top Gun," he played Commander Tom "Stinger" Jardian, who famously gives Tom Cruise's character a tongue lashing, saying, "Your ego is writing checks your body can't cash."

In "Back to the Future" and its sequels, he played Principal Strickland, who had zero tolerance for "slackers."

Other credits include "Serpico," "WarGames," "Masters of the Universe," and "Dick Tracy."

Tolkan died on March 26; no cause was given.

Ted Turner, 87

Ted Turner changed the television landscape thanks to his maverick maneuvers to harness the 24-hour news cycle.

After taking over his father's advertising company in the 1960s at the age of 24, Turner embarked on a path to change the media landscape by buying up radio and TV stations around the South. He even bought sports teams including the Atlanta Braves MLB team and the Atlanta Hawks NBA team.

All of that programming would eventually become part of TBS, a "super station" that showed old movies, reruns, and Braves and Hawks games.

Turner then set his sights on the news. He founded CNN, the first 24-hour news channel, in June of 1980.

Over the decades, Turner gained celebrity status, particularly after marrying with Jane Fonda, a union that lasted from 1991 to 2001. In 1991, he was named Time's "Man of the Year." He sold his networks to Time Warner for $7.5 billion in 1996.

Turner died on May 6; no cause was given.

James Van Der Beek, 48

Van Der Beek was beloved all over the world for his role as the titular teen Dawson Leery on the WB series "Dawson's Creek."

The series, which ran from 1998 to 2002, turned Van Der Beek into a star and a teen heartthrob. While "Dawson's Creek" was still airing, he'd cement his stardom playing the lead role of high school quarterback "Mox" Moxon in the 1999 coming-of-age drama "Varsity Blues."

Van Der Beek found steady work the rest of his career in movies like "Texas Rangers" and "The Rules of Attraction, and memorably played a fictional version of himself on the TV series "Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23," and performed on "Dancing with the Stars" in 2019.

Van Der Beek learned he had stage 3 colon cancer in 2023, and publicly announced his diagnosis in late 2024.

Van Der Beek previously told Business Insider that the news came as a shock, given the subtleness of his symptoms and his efforts to stay as healthy as possible.

"I was doing everything," he said. "I was doing sauna, cold plunge, weightlifting, Pilates. I would dance and also do football training."

Van Der Beek died on Feb. 11.

Bob Weir, 78

Weir was one of the founding members of the Grateful Dead.

The singer-songwriter wrote and/or sang on songs like "Sugar Magnolia," "Playing in the Band," "Truckin,'" "I Need a Miracle," and "The Other One."

After the Grateful Dead disbanded in 1995, Weir went on to form several other bands, including Kingfish, Bobby and the Midnites, RatDog, The Other Ones, and, alongside John Mayer, Dead & Company.

In the summer of 2025, Weir was diagnosed with cancer.

Weir died on January 10.

Frederick Wiseman, 96

For over five decades, Wiseman's brand of non-fiction storytelling put a spotlight on everyday people.

From high schoolers to hospital workers to Air Force cadets training for nuclear war, Wiseman's close to 50-film catalogue is an unvarnished reflection of America over the last half century.

Wiseman died on Februay 16, no cause was given.

• Abigail McCulloch started playing padel, a racket sport popular in South America, during business school.
• She'd been searching for a career option she was passionate about, and found it on the court.
• She dropped out of Wharton after a year to found her Chicago club.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Abigail McCulloch, founder of Alma Padel. It has been edited for length and clarity.

A few years ago, I was feeling very uninspired about my career. I studied economics, Spanish, and German in college, then worked for a tech startup in New York City. I couldn't see myself in that world long-term, so I decided to go to business school. At the time, it felt like a natural next step.

At the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, recruiting starts almost immediately. I attended recruiting events but left feeling apathetic. I couldn't see myself working in banking for the rest of my life.

I realized I was most motivated to work hard when I was passionate about the project. If I didn't buy into what I was working on, I struggled. It became clear that I was going to need to build something of my own — I just had no idea what that might be.

The idea started with a joke

Around that time, I started playing padel with a group of classmates from Wharton. I wanted to try something new and connect with people. I wasn't the best player, but I immediately loved padel. It felt like a combination of the many sports I'd played growing up. Because the sport is relatively new to the US, everyone is open and friendly, and I really enjoyed the social aspect.

Driving home from padel one day, I lamented that I really needed to figure out what to do with my life. Someone joked, "You should just open a padel club."

I laughed along, but inside I instantly knew that's what I would do. I got to work immediately, creating a business plan and conducting research.

I invested 6 figures of my own savings

I applied to an accelerator hosted by UPenn and was accepted about eight weeks after I'd first had the idea of starting a club. That was crucial as I moved the business forward. I received a five-figure grant, but even more importantly, I leveraged the acceptance to give my idea legitimacy. I could point to the accelerator and say, "Smart people think this is a smart idea."

Ultimately, I needed to put my own money behind the club to make it what I wanted it to be. I invested about 80% of my savings — six figures — into the business. That felt risky, but necessary.

At that point, I wanted to drop out of Wharton. It wasn't a question to me: it needed to be done. Since padel is relatively new, time was of the essence in getting the club off the ground.

When I told my parents I was dropping out, my dad immediately understood. My mom — who is an entrepreneur herself — wasn't thrilled. She comes from a family where education is a very strong safety net. I think she's still hoping I go back and finish my master's.

We did over $1 million in revenue in our first year

Things moved quickly. I signed a lease within eight months of that comment in the car; six months later, the club opened. In hindsight, it was a quick turnaround, but at the time, the minutes crept by slowly. Today, the club has been open for about 14 months.

There's nothing sexy about being a founder at this stage. A lot of my work is service-oriented. I spend time connecting with the community and being on the courts. It's not something you necessarily need a degree for.

I've been working so hard that I haven't had time to pause and appreciate where we are. And yet, the club is successful. During our first year, we did over $1 million in revenue. I'm not yet where I want to be with the business, but I'm on my way and excited about the future for myself, my club, and this sport.

• Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis lived in luxurious homes throughout the East Coast.
• She spent her childhood summers in mansions in the Hamptons, New York, and Rhode Island.
• The home she shared with John F. Kennedy before the White House just sold for $6.125 million.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis grew up in spacious New York apartments and several-acre estates, and, after her marriage, spent summers at the famed Kennedy Compound and winters on the family's estate in Palm Beach.

Still, she said her family's "happiest years" were those spent with her husband, President John F. Kennedy, in the White House.

Before they moved there, the couple lived in a 19th-century red-brick home in Georgetown, Washington, DC, which recently sold for $6.125 million, Mansion Global reported. The Kennedys bought the home in 1957 for $82,000.

While most of Jacquelyn Kennedy Onassis' former homes can only be admired from the outside, one of her final properties is open to visitors.

Parts of what was once known as Red Gate Farm on Martha's Vineyard opened to the public last summer, The Vineyard Gazette reported in June. Two public trails meander through the land, which was sold by the Kennedy family to two nonprofits in 2020 and is now known as Squibnocket Pond Reservation.

Here are all of the impressive places she lived in and owned in her lifetime.

Before she was a Kennedy or an Onassis, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier spent her early years in New York City.

In 1932, the Bouviers moved into an apartment on the sixth and seventh floors of 740 Park Avenue.

The apartment building was developed by her grandfather, James T. Lee, The New York Times reported. At least for a period, her father couldn't afford to furnish it so Jackie and her sister could roller skate from room to room, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The apartment building later became a home for billionaires and was once considered one of the most iconic apartment buildings in the city.

In 2017, her old apartment sold for $25.25 million.

In the 1940s, Bouvier's mother remarried, and they left New York.

They moved into a Georgian-style mansion called "Merrywood" in McLean, Virginia, near Washington, DC.

The 23,000-square-foot mansion, which was built in 1919, had nine bedrooms and 13 bathrooms.

Bouvier's mother had married an oil magnate named Hugh D. Auchincloss, who owned the mansion.

The home sits on the edge of the Potomac River and has an extensive garden.

Bouvier wrote fondly about the house in her diary, saying, "I always love it so at Merrywood — so peaceful … with the river and those great steep hills."

Bouvier spent her summers at her paternal grandfather's East Hampton estate.

The 8,500-square-foot home, which was built in 1917, is called "Lasata," which means "place of peace," in the native Algonquian language.

In 2023, fashion designer Tom Ford bought it for $52 million, The Wall Street Journal reported.

She also spent some of her summers at her maternal grandfather's house in East Hampton called "Wildmoor."

The 18th-century home, covering about 5,700 square feet, was a shingle-and-clapboard wooden house with a view of fields, a swamp, and the sea, per the WSJ.

In 2021, the house was sold for $6.8 million.

Her next notable property was the Kennedy family's summer home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.

Joseph Kennedy Sr., John F. Kennedy's father, bought a white-shingled cottage in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, in 1928 for $25,000, or about $470,000 today. The coastal Massachusetts cottage became the Kennedy family's home base for years to come.

Before they married, Bouvier and John F. Kennedy spent time together there.

It later became known as the "Kennedy Compound."

In 1953, Bouvier became a Kennedy when the couple married in Newport, Rhode Island.

They had the wedding reception at her mother's husband's sprawling estate, known as "Hammersmith Farm," anchored by a grand, 28-room Victorian-era mansion.

The property was last sold in 1999 for just over $8 million.

The estate became a part-time summer home for the Kennedys, along with the Kennedy Compound.

Jackie Kennedy spent summers on the estate during her childhood, and the Kennedys later vacationed there in the summer of 1961.

In 1953, not long after the Kennedys were married, they rented a four-story, four-bedroom house in Washington, DC.

The Kennedys lived there for almost two years.

They enjoyed throwing dinner parties and spending time in the back gardens.

The house, which was built in the 1940s, is about 3,000 square feet.

It last sold for $4 million in April 2025.

Two years later, in 1955, the Kennedys moved to "Hickory Hill," another Georgian-style house.

The home was built in 1815 and had a tennis court, a pool, and 12 fireplaces on a 5.6-acre plot in McLean, Virginia.

They bought it from Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson, The Washington Post reported.

Two years later, the Kennedys sold it for $250,000 to John's brother, Robert, who would end up raising his own family there.

Jackie didn't want to go back after her daughter was stillborn.

Robert Kennedy was at the house when he heard John had been assassinated, the Baltimore Sun reported. He spent an hour alone, walking around the estate.

In 1956, the Kennedys bought a summer home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, right beside the original Kennedy summer home.

The 4,484-square-foot clapboarded home sat on less than an acre of land and soon became part of the "Kennedy Compound."

They spent $45,948 on the house, The Wall Street Journal reported.

In 1957, the Kennedys bought an 18th-century brick row house in Georgetown for $82,000.

Jackie spent about $18,000 on remodeling the home, which was built in 1811, and she decorated it with armchairs and fine porcelain.

Her husband campaigned and was elected president during their years here, Architectural Digest reported. They lived in the home between 1957 and 1961, selling it soon after.

In 2026, the 5,215-square-foot, five-bedroom home sold for $6.125 million.

Though not a property she owned, Jackie lived in the White House with her family during her husband's presidency from 1961 to 1963.

She later described this period as her family's "happiest years," The Daily Beast reported.

While they were living in the White House, they spent winters at her father-in-law Joseph Kennedy's Palm Beach estate.

The Palm Beach estate became known as the Kennedys' "winter White House." In 2020, the house sold for $70 million and underwent extensive renovations by the new owner.

In 1963, after her husband was assassinated, Jackie and her children left the White House and moved into an 18th-century home in DC.

She paid around $175,000 for the five-bedroom house but only lived there for about a year. It was too public, and she reportedly became overwhelmed with all of the tourists.

In 2017, it was purchased for $5.25 million.

In 1964, they returned to New York after she bought a 5,300-square-foot apartment on Fifth Avenue.

The then-$200,000 apartment had five bathrooms, three fireplaces, two terraces, and a library. It also had a view of Central Park.

Jackie Kennedy owned the apartment until she died in 1994.

It was bought from her estate in 1995 for $9.2 million. 

The buyer said she hadn't done much upkeep, and they ended up gutting the whole apartment.

While she was alive, she began dividing her time between France, Greece, Martha's Vineyard, and New Jersey.

She kept New York as a home base.

She also got married again in 1968 to a Greek shipping magnate named Aristotle Onassis and became Jackie Onassis, or "Jackie O."

In 1974, she purchased a country home, a converted barn on almost 10 acres, for $200,000 in Peapack, New Jersey.

She liked the area for its natural beauty and space for horse riding, The New York Times reported.

She knew the area well because she had previously rented a farmhouse described by The Times as a "badly made-over barn" in Bernardsville since 1965.

After she bought the property, she painted it yellow with white trim.

After her death, a neighbor and friend bought the property for $1.47 million in 1997.

The neighbor, Marjorie McDonnell Walsh, told The Wall Street Journal they tore the house down.

"It doesn't matter," she said when declining to share details about the new house. "The much more important thing is we both love the property. It's a private valley. It's beautiful."

In 1979, after her second husband died, Jackie decided to build a new house called "Red Gate Farm," on 340 acres of land in Martha's Vineyard.

She reportedly spent a little more than $1 million on the land, and then another $3.1 million on building the house, which was finished in 1981.

The main building covers 6,456 square feet. There's also a four-bedroom guest house, a pool, and a tennis court. The property stretches across a mile of beach.

In 2020, the estate was put up for sale for $65 million.

Two nonprofits, the Martha's Vineyard Land Bank and Sheriff's Meadow Foundation, bought 304 acres of the land for $27 million, the Vineyard Gazette reported, and the Land Bank later bought an additional 32 acres. It is now known as Squibnocket Pond Reservation, and members of the public can walk on trails that cut through the land.

The Kennedy family still owns 65 acres of the estate, including the home, per the Vineyard Gazette.

Editor's note: This story was first published in September 2023 and was most recently updated in May 2026 with additional information.

Another week has passed, which means there's a new selection of fresh films and TV shows now streaming. We've scanned through the slush to highlight the six best movies, TV shows, and specials worth streaming the weekend of May 15, 2026.

Among the can't-miss new programming is a stand-up comedy special from "Abbott Elementary" star Lisa Ann Walter. In the nonfiction field, you can also find a new, breezy season of TV from Stanley Tucci in "Tucci in Italy" and a touching documentary about a comedy icon in "Marty, Life Is Short." Perhaps the most enticing premiere this week is the latest series in the "Yellowstone" universe, a Texas-set adventure for Beth and Rip called "Dutton Ranch."

6: The Punisher: One Last Kill

If you've been lost since the finale of "Daredevil: Born Again" Season 2, Disney Plus and Marvel have a special to help fill the gap. "The Punisher: One Last Kill" brings back Jon Bernthal's Frank Castle for a special episode (co-written by Bernthal) as he attempts to move on with his life, but things have a way of catching up with him. Deborah Ann Woll, Jason R. Moore, and Judith Light also star in "One Last Kill." The special presentation is now streaming on Disney Plus.

5: Lisa Ann Walter: It Was An Accident

After five seasons of making people laugh on "Abbott Elementary," Lisa Ann Walter is trying her hand at a stand-up comedy special. In "It Was An Accident," the actress and comedian chats about her career, family, getting older, and more in an intimate salon-style setting in Philadelphia. The special is streaming on Hulu and the Disney Plus and Hulu bundle.

4: Off Campus

Move over "The Summer I Turned Pretty," there's a new Prime Video young adult romance book adaptation. Based on Elle Kennedy's series of the same name, "Off Campus" follows a university ice hockey star and another college student who decide to start a fake relationship in the hopes of catching a crush's attention. The soapy series stars Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli, and arrives on the heels of the hockey romance "Heated Rivalry." All episodes are now streaming on Prime Video.

3: Tucci in Italy

If you caught the Tucci bug watching "The Devil Wears Prada 2," then you're in for a treat. Stanley Tucci returns for a second season of his hit food and travel series, the aptly named "Tucci in Italy." In the latest season, Tucci visits five new regions of Italy, including Naples and Campania, Sicily, Le Marche, Sardinia, and Veneto. The season premiered on National Geographic, and all five episodes are now streaming on Disney Plus and Hulu.

2: Marty, Life Is Short

Martin Short has been in the comedic limelight for the better part of his life, and a new documentary film digs into his staying power. "Marty, Life Is Short" gives an intimate look into his life, bolstered by interviews with some of the people who know him best. Interviewees include Steve Martin, Eugene Levy, Tom Hanks, John Mulaney, and the late Catherine O'Hara. The documentary film is streaming on Netflix.

1: Dutton Ranch

This week's must-watch show picks up where "Yellowstone" left off. "Dutton Ranch" follows Beth and Rip's next adventure as the couple starts their own ranch, leaving Montana for a new life in Texas, with Carter in tow. Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser reprise their iconic "Yellowstone" roles, and they're joined by Annette Bening and Ed Harris for the latest installment in the popular franchise. Following a double-header premiere, one new episode streams weekly on Paramount Plus on Fridays.

Also streaming

The main weekly recommendations we make consist of new TV shows and season premieres, recent films newly available on streaming, and stand-up comedy specials. That said, there are still several stellar ongoing shows dropping new episodes, as well as newly available movies to rent or buy. We've gathered some of our top recommendations below (featuring a few recommendations from last week's what to stream guide).

• "Survivor" Season 50 (new episodes Wednesdays on CBS, live via DirecTV, Paramount Plus Premium, or next-day on Paramount Plus)
• "Project Hail Mary" (available to rent or buy on Prime Video and Apple TV)
• "Widow's Bay" (new episodes Wednesdays on Apple TV)
• "The Boys" Season 5 (Wednesdays on Prime Video)
• "Euphoria" Season 3 (new episodes Sundays on HBO Max)
• "For All Mankind" Season 5 (new episodes Fridays on Apple TV)
• "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" Season 11 (new episodes Fridays on Paramount Plus)
• "You, Me, & Tuscany" (available to rent or buy on Prime Video and Apple TV)

If you're interested in learning more about these streaming apps, check out our guides to the best streaming services and best live TV streaming services. For additional recommendations, you can explore our roundup of the best streaming deals and bundles.

The 2026 World Cup is shaping up to feel bigger than any edition before it. For the first time, the tournament will be hosted across three countries — the United States, Canada, and Mexico — and expanded to 48 teams, which means more matches, more cities, and more chances for fans to get in on the action. But knowing how to get FIFA World Cup tickets hasn't been smooth sailing for many footy fans.

How to get FIFA World Cup tickets

We've scoured the internet for reliable options to buy legit World Cup tickets. After the fiasco of the opening rounds of lotteries and multiple logins to the official FIFA sites, we've seen the usual reseller sites pop up with tickets for every World Cup match.

• Browse tickets at StubHub or Vivid Seats

And unlike the first few weeks, we're finally starting to see prices drop - by as much as 30% in some cases. FIFA is still releasing tickets in dribs and drabs, but we're finding they're much more expensive than comparable seats on the resale market.

Keep reading to see the full schedule for the 2026 World Cup. If you're ready to commit, head to Vivid Seats, or StubHub to secure your seats.

FIFA World Cup 2026 schedule

For the World Cup, the field expands to 48 teams split into 12 groups of four. Each team plays three group-stage matches (one vs. every other team in its group), and the top two teams in each group advance — along with the eight best third-place teams — to form a 32-team knockout bracket.

We've listed all of the group matches below, along with when and where the knockout fixtures take place afterwards. We've also added the cheapest price for a ticket for each match in US dollars.

These prices are changing constantly, of course, but are correct at the time of publication. Since they initially went on sale a few months back, we have noticed some prices actually dropping in the last few weeks, at least.

June 11, 2026

• Mexico vs. South Africa at Estadio Azteca (Estadio Banorte) in Ciudad de México, Mexico - from $1892
• Korea Republic vs. Czechia at Estadio Akron (Chivas Stadium) in Zapopan, Mexico - from $364

June 12, 2026

• Canada vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $937
• United States vs. Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $954

June 13, 2026

• Haiti vs. Scotland at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $639
• Australia vs. Turkey at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $287
• Brazil vs. Morocco at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $1139
• Qatar vs. Switzerland at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $230

June 14, 2026

• Côte d'Ivoire vs. Ecuador at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $653
• Germany vs. Curaçao at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $432
• Netherlands vs. Japan at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $716
• Sweden vs. Tunisia at Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Monterrey, Mexico - from $294

June 15, 2026

• Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $336
• Spain vs. Cabo Verde at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $480
• Iran vs. New Zealand at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $261
• Belgium vs. Egypt at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $462

June 16, 2026

• France vs. Senegal at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $756
• Iraq vs. Norway at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $295
• Argentina vs. Algeria at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $747
• Austria vs. Jordan at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $179

June 17, 2026

• Ghana vs. Panama at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $472
• England vs. Croatia at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $905
• Portugal vs. Congo DR at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $659
• Uzbekistan vs. Colombia at Estadio Azteca (Estadio Banorte) in Ciudad de México, Mexico - from $642

June 18, 2026

• Czechia vs. South Africa at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $209
• Switzerland vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $325
• Canada vs. Qatar at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $506
• Mexico vs. Korea Republic at Estadio Akron (Chivas Stadium) in Zapopan, Mexico - from $2350

June 19, 2026

• Brazil vs. Haiti at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $856
• Scotland vs. Morocco at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $743
• Türkiye vs. Paraguay at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $262
• United States vs. Australia at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $906

June 20, 2026

• Germany vs. Côte d'Ivoire at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $663
• Ecuador vs. Curaçao at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $333
• Netherlands vs. Sweden at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $459
• Tunisia vs. Japan at Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Monterrey, Mexico - from $346

June 21, 2026

• Uruguay vs. Cabo Verde at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $313
• Spain vs. Saudi Arabia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $493
• Belgium vs. Iran at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $335
• New Zealand vs. Egypt at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $212

June 22, 2026

• Norway vs. Senegal at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $468
• France vs. Iraq at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $404
• Argentina vs. Austria at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $962
• Jordan vs. Algeria at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $185

June 23, 2026

• England vs. Ghana at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $708
• Panama vs. Croatia at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $493
• Portugal vs. Uzbekistan at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $719
• Colombia vs. Congo DR at Estadio Akron (Chivas Stadium) in Zapopan, Mexico - from $578

June 24, 2026

• Scotland vs. Brazil at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $1532
• Morocco vs. Haiti at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $246
• Switzerland vs. Canada at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $557
• Bosnia and Herzegovina vs. Qatar at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $206
• Czechia vs. Mexico at Estadio Azteca (Estadio Banorte) in Ciudad de México, Mexico - from $1066
• South Africa vs. Korea Republic at Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Monterrey, Mexico - from $285

June 25, 2026

• Curaçao vs. Côte d'Ivoire at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $233
• Ecuador vs. Germany at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $911
• Japan vs. Sweden at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $382
• Tunisia vs. Netherlands at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $279
• Türkiye vs. United States at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $676
• Paraguay vs. Australia at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $268

June 26, 2026

• Norway vs. France at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $765
• Senegal vs. Iraq at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $340
• Egypt vs. Iran at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $232
• New Zealand vs. Belgium at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $279
• Cabo Verde vs. Saudi Arabia at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $165
• Uruguay vs. Spain at Estadio Akron (Chivas Stadium) in Zapopan, Mexico - $1439

June 27, 2026

• Panama vs. England at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $786
• Croatia vs. Ghana at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $479
• Algeria vs. Austria at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $186
• Jordan vs. Argentina at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $798
• Colombia vs. Portugal at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $2539
• Congo DR vs. Uzbekistan at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $192

June 28, 2026

• Group A runners-up vs. Group B runners-up at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $501

June 29, 2026

• Group E winners vs. Group A/B/C/D/F third place at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $530
• Group F winners vs. Group C runners-up at Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Monterrey, Mexico - from $522
• Group C winners vs. Group F runners-up at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $628

June 30, 2026

• Group I winners vs. Group C/D/F/G/H third place at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $699
• Group E runners-up vs. Group I runners-up at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $507
• Group A winners vs. Group C/E/F/H/I third place at Estadio Azteca (Estadio Banorte) in Ciudad de México, Mexico - from $800

July 1, 2026

• Group L winners vs. Group E/H/I/J/K third place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $469
• Group D winners vs. Group B/E/F/I/J third place at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California - from $590
• Group G winners vs. Group A/E/H/I/J third place at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $389

July 2, 2026

• Group K runners-up vs. Group L runners-up at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada - from $711
• Group H winners vs. Group J runners-up at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $643
• Group B winners vs. Group E/F/G/I/J third place at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $432

July 3, 2026

• Group J winners vs. Group H runners-up at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $1845
• Group K winners vs. Group D/E/I/J/L at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $534
• Group D runners-up vs. Group G runners-up at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $508

July 4, 2026

• TBD vs. TBD at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - from $959
• TBD vs. TBD at NRG Stadium at NRG Park - Complex in Houston, Texas - from $767

July 5, 2026

• TBD vs. TBD at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $1007
• TBD vs. TBD at Estadio Azteca (Estadio Banorte) in Ciudad de México, Mexico - from $1035

July 6, 2026

• TBD vs. TBD at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $816
• TBD vs. TBD at Lumen Field at Lumen Field Event - Complex in Seattle, Washington - from $749

July 7, 2026

• TBD vs. TBD at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $815
• TBD vs. TBD at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada - from $814

July 9, 2026 - Quarter-final

• TBD vs. TBD at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - from $1149

July 10, 2026 - Quarter-final

• TBD vs. TBD at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California - from $1652

July 11, 2026 - Quarter-final

• TBD vs. TBD at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - from $2014
• TBD vs. TBD at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri - from $1381

July 14, 2026 - Semi-final

• TBD vs. TBD at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - from $2181

July 15, 2026 - Semi-final

• TBD vs. TBD at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia - from $2016

July 18, 2026 - Bronze final

• TBD vs. TBD at Hard Rock Stadium - Complex in Miami, Florida - From $782

July 19, 2026 - Finals

• TBD vs. TBD at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey - from $8467

How much are FIFA World Cup tickets?

There's no getting around it, the 2026 World Cup ticket prices are the highest we've ever seen. Some venues are notably more expensive than others, and prices for the more popular teams are especially high.

Given tickets for the knockout rounds will be in flux until we know more about what teams are involved, let's focus on prices for the group stages for now.

At the time of writing, Mexico City, and not just because of the super high price of the opening game of the tournament, has the highest average ticket price per match for the cheapest ticket at $1, 200. This is closely followed by Zapopan at $1,182, then Miami at $1,180.

East Rutherford, New Jersey, comes in at $832, on average, as the cheapest ticket price for its matches. Arlington, Texas, sits at $753, and Foxborough is $630.

On the opposite end of the scale, the average cheap seats in Atlanta start at a much more reasonable $324, Monterrey, Mexico, is $308, while a trip to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara looks almost bargain-like at $225.

It won't be much of a surprise, though, to see that these lower prices often reflect the lack of international soccer superpowers playing at the time, with the one exception of a couple of Spain's matches in Atlanta.

When did 2026 FIFA World Cup tickets go on sale?

Tickets for the 2026 FIFA World Cup first went on sale in September 2025, when FIFA opened the Visa Presale Draw as the initial sales phase (a lottery-style window for eligible Visa cardholders). After that, FIFA continued releasing inventory through additional sales phases (including draw-based windows and subsequent purchase periods), with availability varying by match, venue, and demand.

If you're looking for the next major buying opportunity, FIFA opened the Last-Minute Sales in early April 2026, on a first-come, first-served basis, via the official FIFA ticketing platform. Since this window has long passed, StubHub and Vivid Seats are your best bet for secondhand seats to sold-out games.

See more: Best sports streaming services | ESPN streaming review | How to watch NHL games

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• Heathrow's AI assistant handles traveler inquiries via WhatsApp, reducing the need for phone calls.
• Heathrow leveraged its longtime partnership with Salesforce to create the tool, called Hallie.
• Hallie is set to expand to the airport's website and app later this year.

Nearly 85 million travelers passed through Heathrow Airport in 2025. Amid the hustle and bustle, they had plenty of questions: How long will it take to get through security? Which Starbucks is closest to my departure gate? If my bag was left behind at security, how can I find it?

Peter Burns, Heathrow's director of digital, e-commerce, and marketing, told Business Insider that he wanted to improve customer service at Europe's busiest airport, where demand keeps increasing. "As we grow capacity, we have to find a technology solution," he said. To do that, Heathrow spent the past three years deepening its longtime partnership with Salesforce, which started in 2009, Burns said.

Heathrow first implemented Salesforce's generative and agentic AI products in 2023, with a focus on customer service applications. These initial tests led to the launch of Hallie, the airport's customer service AI agent that lives on WhatsApp and answers nearly all traveler questions without human help, in March 2025, said Burns. Since finding earlier this year that Hallie significantly reduced the number of customer calls to the airport, Heathrow is looking to further implement the tool on its website and app.

Customer service has been a popular use case for generative AI across industries since the debut of ChatGPT in 2022, said Gartner Research Vice President Bern Elliot. Elliot told Business Insider that a company's customer contact centers can act as AI incubators because their return-on-investment metrics — time saved, agent call volume, response times, and response quality, among others — are clearly defined.

"You don't have to connect very many dots to get from what you deployed to what is the measurable improvement," Elliot said. "It makes for a great starting place in your AI journey."

However, infusing AI into customer service systems isn't a straightforward process, said Elliot. AI systems should be trained on a company's most up-to-date data; otherwise, large language models are more susceptible to giving incorrect responses. "Having AI-ready data is a huge issue," Elliot said.

Burns — along with Salesforce's senior vice president of solution engineering, Paul O'Sullivan — spoke with Business Insider about how Heathrow and Salesforce collaborated to navigate these data complexities and launch Hallie.

The tech

Though Heathrow's initial Salesforce investments lacked AI capabilities, Burns said they were critical to creating a unified database that would later serve as the foundation for the airport's customer service AI agents.

Heathrow's relationship with Salesforce started in July 2009 when it deployed Salesforce Service Cloud, a platform that helps customer service agents manage inquiries across multiple channels. By July 2021, Heathrow's customer and marketing data had been uploaded to Salesforce's real-time data platform, giving airport employees in customer service, marketing, and e-commerce live views of passenger data.

Burns said Heathrow became an early adopter of Salesforce's generative AI capabilities in 2023, largely because of the airport's existing Salesforce product use. AI deployment began that January with two internal use cases: autonomously drafting replies to customer inquiries and creating case wrapups, the summaries that customer service agents prepare after helping someone. These two tests fed more information into Heathrow's database, helping to continuously refine the quality of AI-drafted responses, Burns said.

By late 2023, Salesforce's Agentforce — the software company's autonomous AI platform that can complete customer service, sales, and marketing tasks automatically — was deployed in the airport's contact center to assist human agents with two specific tasks: Writing responses to customer questions and, after a case was resolved, generating a summary. Previously, agents had to type out every response and case summary, Burns said.

He added that Heathrow worked closely with O'Sullivan and his team of UK-based engineers to test and improve the airport's AI capabilities before Hallie's launch. Salesforce has regularly met with Heathrow's team since their partnership began in 2009, with in-person visits about once per quarter and regular virtual catch-ups every other week, O'Sullivan said. In recent years, their meetings have focused on observing contact agents' workflows and identifying pain points where AI could be applied.

O'Sullivan told Business Insider that it is critical for executive leadership, product managers, engineers, and representatives from security, data, and cloud teams to be on the same page before deploying tools like Agentforce, since internal databases could be outdated and make the technology less useful. "The reality is these agents need to be exactly like you and I, and how we work, because we're constantly learning," he said.

At Heathrow, Agentforce pulls from the airport's database of 500 articles outlining processes. However, some of the policies took several months to gather, update, and implement, Burns told Business Insider.

In July 2024, Heathrow added more of its internal data to Salesforce's data platform, enabling the airport to provide customers with real-time flight-tracking data.

Heathrow's unified data foundation, which brought together Heathrow customer data, airport maps, flight statuses, and advances in generative AI, led to the March 2025 launch of Heathrow's AI agent Hallie. On WhatsApp, travelers can ask Hallie questions about upcoming flights, how to find specific airport amenities and terminals, and the length of the security line.

The outcome

Prior to the launch of Hallie, 70% of customer inquiries were handled by phone, said Burns. Thanks to the bot's agentic capabilities, by March 2026, phone calls accounted for 10% of traveler inquiries.

Later this year, Hallie will expand beyond WhatsApp so customers can access the tool on Heathrow's website and app, Burns added. The airport is also considering future rollouts for Hallie, like at kiosks throughout its terminals.

Still, Hallie's guardrails are limited: it only scrapes data from Heathrow's website and internal database, Burns said. "We aren't letting the agent go out into the open web and pull out other information," he said. This decision somewhat limits the AI agent's outputs, as it cannot yet handle personalized questions like, "Where can I pick up my checked bags?"

Burns said it was important for Hallie to provide accurate responses, and added that external sources could have inaccurate or out-of-date information. Looking forward, Heathrow plans to add more functionality to Hallie so passengers can use the tool on platforms beyond WhatsApp, Burns said.

• Business Insider will reveal our sixth annual Seed 100 list, celebrating the most successful early-stage investors.
• The list makes it clear AI is changing seed investing, just like it's changing everything else.
• Find out who made the 2026 list and hear from two investors in a LIVE Q&A, Monday at 2:30 p.m. ET. Scroll down to watch.

Spotting young companies that are poised to make a big splash isn't easy.

That's why Business Insider compiles an annual Seed 100 list, celebrating the top 100 early-stage investors - venture capitalists whose bets are paying off in measurable ways.

Now in its sixth year, the list also highlights how seed investing is changing. As hot AI startups dominate the scene, small checks are being replaced by multi-million dollar investments. Seed rounds may now total a billion dollars or more.

Alongside the Seed 100, Business Insider also publishes the Seed 40, which specifically highlights successful women investors.

Both lists include investors who have made at least 5 active investments between 2011 and 2026 and whose companies have gone public, been acquired, and/or attracted additional rounds of funding.

The lists are compiled using data analysis supplied by Termina, a software platform spun out of Tribe Capital.

So who landed on this year's Seed 100 and Seed 40? Join senior correspondents Ben Bergman and Melia Russell in this live Q&A to find out.

Bergman and Russell will also interview two prominent investors from the list. Those conversations will dig into the investments each made and the companies they are eyeing next.

Tune in Monday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

• Switzerland kept its No. 1 spot on US News & World Report's list of the best countries in the world.
• The 2026 rankings compared 100 countries across factors like infrastructure, health, and tourism.
• The US didn't crack the top 10 in this year's list.

Once again, Switzerland has claimed the top spot as the best country in the world.

The 2026 rankings, released Thursday, were compiled by US News & World Report in partnership with the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Unlike previous iterations of the list, this year's rankings did away with a perception-based approach of surveying experts and business leaders, and instead used a data-driven methodology.

To determine the rankings, researchers evaluated 100 countries across eight categories, including governance, culture and tourism, civic health, economic development, health, infrastructure, opportunity, and the natural environment. The rankings also factored in 24 other subcategories, including healthcare, public safety, labor markets, poverty, and wealth.

The resulting best countries are predominantly a mix of popular and more underrated destinations across Europe. Some major global favorites, including the United States and Japan, didn't crack the top 10.

US News senior data editor Evan Comen told Business Insider that the reason the US didn't make the top 10 is its uneven performance across the eight major categories.

"The US is No. 2 in economic development, No. 1 in culture and tourism," Comen said. "But then these advantages are offset by weaker performance in some of the more data-heavy categories that wouldn't really be reflected in perceptions; things like health, infrastructure, and civic health."

Below are the 20 best countries in the world, according to US News & World Report.

Population data for each country is from the US Census Bureau, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) information was sourced from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

20. South Korea

• Population: 51.4 million
• GDP: $3.1 trillion

Rounding out the top 20, South Korea still ranks high in a few categories. Its capital city, Seoul, is a cultural hub for fashion, technology, and entertainment.

The Asian country ranked sixth in economic development, its highest finish in a category. It also ranked seventh in health.

19. Canada

• Population: 39.5 million
• GDP: $2.7 trillion

Canada, the northern sibling to the US, matches fairly closely with its border mate in overall ranking, but has separation in some categories, like economic development.

Canada doesn't rank high in a lot of categories, but finishes in the top 20 mostly, signaling balance. Culture and tourism is Canada's highest ranking, where it finished eighth.

18. United States

• Population: 342.4 million
• GDP: $29.3 trillion

In what might be a surprising placement to some, the US barely cracked the top 20 in this year's rankings. A leader in cultural tourism and economic development, the country had uneven performance across other categories.

The US has the highest GDP on the list by far; however, it struggles in many categories, such as health and infrastructure, where it doesn't rank in the top 20.

17. Japan

• Population: 122.1 million
• GDP: $6.7 trillion

Japan has cultural significance that reaches every corner of the world. With its busy cities and mountainous landscapes, it's a popular tourist destination.

Japan ranked highest in health and civic health, finishing in fifth and second, respectively.

16. Singapore

• Population: 6.1 million
• GDP: $547.4 billion

Singapore, an island nation in Southeast Asia, is a bustling country marked by tall buildings and modern architecture.

The country leads in infrastructure, according to US News, and finishes near the top in other categories, such as economic development, governance, and health.

15. Iceland

• Population: 370,000
• GDP: $32.3 billion

Iceland, the least populous country on the list, packs a punch in a lot of US News' important categories. Known for its vast landscapes, it finished 10th in culture and tourism, while it ranked first in the heritage and cultural attractions subcategory.

The Nordic island nation finished first in both health and opportunity on this year's list.

14. Australia

• Population: 27.9 million
• GDP: $2 trillion

Home to the Great Barrier Reef, the Sydney Opera House, and wildlife galore, Australia is a unique country with loads to do.

However, culture and tourism aren't its strongest assets: it ranked 18th in that category. Australia's best finish was in health, where it ranked sixth.

13. Ireland

• Population: 5.3 million
• GDP: $759.6 billion

Ireland, the third-largest island in Europe, is only about 100 miles from the United Kingdom, but it has its own culture.

Scoring highest in culture and tourism, Ireland finished in the top 20 for nearly every category, including economic development, governance, and infrastructure.

12. France

• Population: 68.7 million
• GDP: $4.3 trillion

France is a popular tourist destination with a diversity of attractions, from the Eiffel Tower in Paris to historic chateaus to a stunning Mediterranean coastline.

That diversity landed it fifth in the culture and tourism rankings — its highest finish. It also ranked high in economic development and health, at 10th and 11th, respectively.

11. Belgium

• Population: 12 million
• GDP: $880.2 billion

Belgium borders four different countries, and, in turn, blends a lot of those cultures into its own unique brew. It has three official languages: Dutch, French, and German.

Civic health is its strongest category, where it ranks seventh, but it has generally high rankings across the board.

10. Austria

• Population: 9.2 million
• GDP: $695.4 billion

Austria may be a less popular tourist destination than other European favorites like the UK and Italy, but it has been gaining attention for its relatively lower costs and scenic views.

In this year's rankings, it placed 14th for both culture and tourism and economic development. It also ranked 21st for modern urban livability and quality of life.

9. Luxembourg

• Population: 701,000
• GDP: $105.6 billion

Luxembourg is often overshadowed by its larger neighbors, Germany to the east and France to the south, but the country ranks among the best in the world on US News' list.

Though it placed ninth overall this year, Luxembourg ranked third in infrastructure, sixth in opportunity, seventh in governance, ninth in solo travel, and ninth among the best countries to start a business.

8. Finland

• Population: 5.6 million
• GDP: $366.1 billion

The "land of a thousand lakes" finally made the top 10 this year. In individual categories, Finland ranked first for modern urban livability, fourth for infrastructure, and fifth for civic health.

7. United Kingdom

• Population: 69 million
• GDP: $4.3 trillion

The United Kingdom has weathered political and economic turmoil in the wake of Brexit, but even so, it remains a favorable destination and performed well in this year's rankings.

It placed third in culture and tourism and fourth in economic development. The country also earned strong marks for infrastructure and opportunity.

6. Norway

• Population: 5.6 million
• GDP: $588.8 billion

Norway is one of the world's few remaining constitutional monarchies, giving it a unique blend of old-world tradition and modern governance.

This year, the country ranked second in health, fifth in opportunity, and fifth in governance.

5. Netherlands

• Population: 17.9 million
• GDP: $1.5 trillion

The Netherlands, often informally referred to as Holland, finally made the top five in this year's overall rankings. Across individual categories, the country ranked third in governance, seventh in both eco-tourism and infrastructure, and eighth in economic development.

4. Germany

• Population: 83.9 million
• GDP: $6.2 trillion

Germany has repeatedly landed in the top 10 of the US News rankings, and this year it rose to fourth overall.

The country placed third in economic development, fourth in both culture and tourism, and seventh among the best countries for raising children.

3. Sweden

• Population: 10.7 million
• GDP: $752.8 billion

In the categories of governance and opportunity, Sweden ranked fourth and third, respectively, while ranking sixth in civic health.

Notably, the country ranked first for a comfortable retirement.

2. Denmark

• Population: 6.1 million
• GDP: $483.8 billion

The Northern European country located on the Jutland Peninsula ranked second in both infrastructure and governance.

Denmark also ranked high in categories like modern urban livability, education, entrepreneurship, and overall quality of life.

1. Switzerland

• Population: 9 million
• GDP: $877.8 billion

For another consecutive year, Switzerland ranked No. 1 on the Best Countries list.

The Central European nation also topped the rankings in categories such as economic development and governance, while placing second in opportunity, culture, and tourism.

It earned strong marks across several other areas, including education, entrepreneurship, solo travel, digital nomadism, modern livability, and quality of life.

• SAM 26000, a Boeing VC-137C, operated as Air Force One from 1962 to 1998, carrying eight presidents.
• Lyndon Johnson was sworn in on board, and the plane transported John F. Kennedy's body from Texas.
• SAM 26000 is housed at the National Museum of the US Air Force, where visitors can walk through it.

"If history itself had wings, it would probably be this aircraft," Vice President Al Gore said of the SAM 26000 Air Force One plane upon its retirement in 1998.

The first Air Force jet designed and built specifically for US presidents, SAM 26000 (pronounced two six thousand) carried eight presidents between 1962 and 1998 — every leader from President John F. Kennedy to President Bill Clinton.

After 13,000 flying hours over 36 years of service, the plane was retired to the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, where it remains on display.

I visited the museum in August 2025 and walked through the historic aircraft. Take a look inside.

The SAM 26000 Air Force One jet, a Boeing VC-137C, was completed in 1962 for President John F. Kennedy.

The Boeing VC-137C was a customized and modified version of a civilian 707-320B airliner. It was powered by four Pratt & Whitney TF33 engines, each with 18,000 pounds of thrust.

First lady Jacqueline Kennedy chose the plane's blue and white paint colors in coordination with industrial designer Raymond Loewy.

The first lady also added the words "United States of America" to the aircraft to signal its importance as the president's plane.

In a tragic period of American history, SAM 26000 transported President John F. Kennedy's body home after his assassination in 1963.

President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as president aboard the plane hours after Kennedy was pronounced dead.

Now an interactive museum artifact, visitors can board the plane the same way US presidents did via a staircase leading into the cabin.

Admission to the National Museum of the US Air Force is free.

SAM 26000 is located in the museum's William E. Boeing Presidential Gallery. The exhibit also includes other presidential planes such as the first presidential aircraft, nicknamed "Sacred Cow," President Harry Truman's Douglas VC-118 named "The Independence," and President Dwight Eisenhower's Lockheed VC-121E, the only aircraft of its kind ever built.

The first stop on my self-guided tour was the cockpit, which featured a four-person crew.

The crew consisted of a pilot, copilot, navigator, and flight engineer. The navigator and flight engineer roles were eventually replaced by GPS and computerized technology on later Air Force One planes.

Two phones were located behind the flight deck.

A plaque above the phones read, "This telephone is subject to monitoring at all times. Use of this telephone constitutes consent to monitoring."

An equipment storage space contained a first-aid kit and firearms.

The closet also had a rack to hang suits and coats.

Next, I walked by the plane's communication facility.

The secure communication center allowed presidents to place calls anywhere in the world while in flight.

Meals were prepared in the galley.

The galley included a stovetop, oven, sink, and small counter space where flight attendants heated and plated meals.

This seating area was used by presidential staff, members of the press, and Secret Service agents.

The aircraft could hold up to 40 passengers.

The seating area, like many areas of the plane, is now protected by plastic barricades.

I noticed fox decals above the seats, which a museum volunteer told me was a nod to the 89th Airlift Wing, which operates Air Force One.

Stationed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, the 89th Airlift Wing is tasked with flying the president and high-ranking government officials. The group is also referred to as "SAM FOX," which stands for "Special Air Missions Foreign."

The presidential stateroom was located down a long hallway.

The benches in the hallway were hollow to offer additional storage.

The president's spacious quarters featured a desk, couch, television, and private bathroom.

In 1969, Nixon redesigned Air Force One and moved the presidential quarters over the wings, which was the quietest and smoothest part of the plane during flight.

The stateroom came with two phones, each with a different purpose.

Presidents used the white phone to communicate with crew members and other passengers on the plane, while the beige phone could be used to call anywhere in the world.

Behind the presidential stateroom, a conference room provided more meeting space.

The room was furnished with throne chairs, a folding table, and another TV.

Additional conference areas provided more seating for staff, Secret Service members, and VIPs.

Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Carter sat here while flying to attend Egyptian President Anwar El-Sadat's funeral in 1981.

An office area across the aisle featured an electric typewriter, scanner, and more phones.

Presidents used the electric typewriter to write and edit speeches while on board the plane.

The office wall was decorated with a map of the United States.

President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as president in this area of Air Force One's cabin after Kennedy's assassination in 1963.

Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, while visiting Dallas. He was pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital at 1 p.m., and Johnson took the oath of office at 2:38 p.m.

Jacqueline Kennedy's pink suit was still smeared with blood when Federal Judge Sarah T. Hughes administered the oath of office on Air Force One. Johnson's wife, Lady Bird Johnson, stood to his right.

Standing in the very spot where Johnson was sworn in after Kennedy's assassination was awe-inspiring.

Even blocked off by plastic barricades, the plane's cabin preserves a pivotal moment in US history.

These four seats toward the back of the plane were removed to make room for Kennedy's coffin on the flight from Dallas back to Washington, DC, in 1963.

The Secret Service had to break the handles off the casket to make it fit through the plane door.

Air Force security personnel operated out of this area at the back of the aircraft to secure the plane while it was on the ground.

The seating area featured six seats, a phone, and a folding table.

My tour ended at the back of the plane with a view of its call sign on the tail and an American flag.

According to US Flag Code, an American flag decal must always be positioned so that the stars face forward.

Air Force One remains an instantly recognizable symbol of US might, making my walkthrough tour a memorable experience.

Like many modes of presidential transportation, such as the bulletproof limousine known as "The Beast" and the Marine One helicopter, Air Force One is about more than simply getting the president from point A to point B. It symbolizes the power of the United States and its elected leader wherever it goes.

The image projected by presidential planes remains of great interest to President Donald Trump, who opted to accept a luxurious Boeing 747-8 jet from the Qatari royal family in May 2025 instead of waiting for Boeing to deliver its long-delayed new Air Force One jets.

• I flew on Singapore Airlines for the first time.
• I was surprised that I could select my seat for free in economy.
• The seats were spacious, the food was decent, and I loved the in-flight entertainment selection.

When it was time to plan my first trip to Asia, I knew I wanted to book an airline I'd never flown before. No option seemed better than Singapore Airlines.

A certified five-star airline by Skytrax, Singapore Airlines was named the world's best international airline by Travel + Leisure in 2025. It also won the title of best airline in Asia at last year's Skytrax World Airline Awards, considered the Oscars of the aviation industry.

While Singapore Airlines is famous for its luxurious suites and first-class cabins, I could only afford an economy ticket. But my experience was still far better than my recent trips on US airlines.

I was impressed with Singapore Airlines before my flight even began.

I decided to travel to Japan after a friend's wedding in Sydney and booked an economy ticket on Singapore Airlines. There are four different tiers of economy — lite, value, standard, and flexi — but only standard was available on my flight.

The trip, which included a layover in Singapore, cost $814.

While booking my Singapore Airlines ticket, I was surprised to find that I could select seats on both of my flights for free. I could even choose one of the "Forward Zone" seats, which are closer to the doors and allow you to disembark first from economy. This felt like a great option since my layover at Changi Airport was less than an hour and a half.

Plus, I got to pick the window seat (my favorite) for both flights.

I was also surprised by the airline's generous weight limit for checked bags.

I'm a notorious overpacker. If there were a gold medal for shuffling items from your checked bag to carry-on to meet the 50-pound limit of most US airlines, I would be the Simone Biles of the sport. It's a natural gift — I don't even have to train!

So, I was shocked when the Singapore Airlines attendant told me I needed to put more stuff in my checked bag, not less. She informed me that the weight limit for checked bags in economy is 30 kilograms, or about 66 pounds. If you fly Singapore Airlines on economy lite or value, the limit is 25 kilograms, or about 55 pounds.

Being able to unload my overstuffed carry-on and gallivant around duty-free was an unexpected pre-flight treat.

Before boarding my flight, I grabbed a pair of headphones by the plane's entrance.

It was a small detail, but I appreciated that I could immediately sit and start watching a movie without waiting for an attendant to pass out the headphones.

My chair was far more spacious than what I've come to expect from US airlines.

As someone who's only flown economy, I've become all too accustomed to the increasingly shrinking seats.

But I was flying on an Airbus A380-800, the world's largest commercial aircraft, and it had some very comfortable seats — even in economy. My seat, which was 19 inches wide, felt surprisingly spacious.

A plush gray pillow and a hefty blanket were waiting on my seat.

They both felt like major upgrades from the paper-thin sheet and the flimsy maxi-pad-esque contraption I've received on long-haul flights with various US airlines.

There was plenty of legroom.

When I first sat down, I was surprised I could still stretch out my legs, even with my backpack under the seat in front of me.

Once the woman in my row and I realized no one would be taking the seat between us, we easily slid both of our backpacks under the middle seat and enjoyed the extra space.

The seat in front of me had helpful buttons and compartments.

Under the left corner of my screen were buttons to turn on the overhead light and call the attendant, plus an outlet to charge my phone. Under the right corner was a stand-alone drink holder. There was also a shelf under my screen, where I stored my headphones when I wasn't watching anything.

I also appreciated the four separate pockets in front of my seat. I could easily store my phone, book, magazine, charger, and water bottle in all of them.

I also had access to an extensive entertainment selection.

According to its website, Singapore Airlines offers more than 1,900 on-demand options via its KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system.

There was everything from "Wicked" to "The Substance," which I didn't feel brave enough to watch on a plane.

TV options included food shows, kids' programs, and classics such as "Law & Order" and "The Golden Girls."

Before takeoff, flight attendants passed out hot towels to everyone on board.

The custom, known in Japanese as "oshibori," has been a longtime signature of the Singapore Airlines brand. Each towel is perfumed with the airline's "Batik Flora" scent, which combines the floral notes of various flowers that are native to Singapore.

As soon as I had given my hands a refreshing cleanse, an attendant returned to retrieve the towel.

Within 20 minutes of takeoff, we were given our first drink and snack.

Who hasn't chugged their little drink on a plane because there wasn't enough space?

Thanks to the stand-alone cupholder, I could leisurely sip on my complimentary glass of white wine as I snacked on the peas-and-crackers snack and read my book.

Then came the dinner service.

Every tray included an entrée of chicken or fish (the vegetarian meals had already been served), bread, a small noodle salad, Australian cheese and crackers, and a mini water bottle. I was surprised it came with metal cutlery rather than the plastic or wood I'm used to seeing in economy.

I started with the salad, which featured vermicelli noodles and shrimp cooked far more delicately than expected for an in-flight meal. The shrimp were plump and fresh, pairing well with the light, tangy dressing that covered each noodle.

I opted for the chicken entrée, which was solid. The meat was tender and covered in sauce, while the potatoes were well-cooked but under-seasoned.

It wasn't exactly gourmet, but it was a huge upgrade from the undercooked pasta and rubbery meat I've had on many long-haul flights with US airlines. (And I'll never forget the tortilla filled with a cut-up hot dog.)

Shortly after we'd settled into dinner, attendants offered us an ice cream sandwich for dessert.

The delicious vanilla fudge brownie was a highlight of the flight. It featured a chocolate crunch on the bottom that satisfyingly snapped with every bite.

An hour before landing, we were given a hot snack.

We were offered a choice between a sandwich with sweet potato and cheese or sweet chili chicken. I chose the latter, which was fine. I couldn't taste the sweet chili, but it was a nice, warm snack.

Overall, I had a great first experience on Singapore Airlines.

At the end of the day, economy is economy. Still, the experience has become increasingly uncomfortable as US carriers shrink their seats and add more fees.

By comparison, flying on Singapore Airlines felt like a breath of fresh air. From the hot towel and spacious seats to the decent in-flight entertainment and food options, my nine-hour flight seemed to fly by.

It's easy to see why Singapore Airlines consistently ranks among the top in the world. I can't wait to fly on one of its planes again.

We tested TA3's viral swimsuits and newer apparel with editors across a range of body types, fit needs, and style preferences to see whether the brand lives up to the hype. TA3 first drew attention after founder Leila Shams appeared on Shark Tank to demonstrate the waist-sculpting effect of her designs, then gained even more momentum on TikTok, where videos of shoppers tightening the corset-style back lacing racked up millions of views. With that kind of buzz, we wanted to find out how the pieces actually perform beyond the dramatic mirror reveal.

In our testing, TA3 stood out for its supportive construction, curve-enhancing fit, and high-impact, confidence-boosting silhouettes. The brand's pieces are undeniably pricey, but several editors felt the combination of shaping, support, and quality made them easier to justify. In this TA3 review, we break down which styles are most worth considering, plus how they fit on different bodies.

Before diving in, one thing is worth saying up front: no one needs shaping swimwear or a cinched silhouette to look good. But for shoppers who want that extra support and sculpting effect, TA3 has built its reputation on delivering exactly that.

If you want more of our favorite suits, see the best swimsuits for women.

The Lifty

TA3's Lifty is a shaping one-piece designed for shoppers who want more lift and support than a typical swimsuit provides. Its underwire construction, adjustable lace-up back, and uncommonly broad size range — including multiple torso lengths and cup sizes up to J/K — make it especially appealing for fuller busts. The overall effect is sculpting and waist-defining, but it's still more customizable than many one-pieces that rely solely on compression.

It's also our top pick for the best swimsuits for large busts and one of our favorite one-piece swimsuits ever.

Sally's review of the Lifty

Size Sally tried: Large, F cup, short torso

I love all of my TA3 swimsuits, but the Lifty is my favorite. The underwire is seriously supportive and helps avoid the dreaded uniboob that some one-pieces can cause. The sizing also feels almost miraculous: you choose your bodice length, swimsuit size, and cup size, which makes for an unusually precise fit. I've never had a one-piece fit me better.

The thick shoulder straps are comfortable and adjustable, and the cups support me perfectly without digging in. It's also cute enough to double as a bodysuit with jeans or flowy linen pants. Most importantly, it really does create a snatched waist. The lace-up back cinches you in impressively well, but you can loosen it when you want less compression, which makes it feel more versatile than most shaping swimsuits.

Sam's review of the Lifty

Size Sam tried: Medium, D/DD cup, short torso

The Lifty is a fantastic suit that offers incredible bust support and a cinched waist with real wow factor. It instantly creates a snatched, sculpted look, which makes it feel especially fun and confidence-boosting to wear. But after taking it to the spa and into the sauna, I realized it's not my top pick for pure lounging and relaxation. You can absolutely loosen the back lacing and make it much more comfortable, but to me, this is a suit that's at its best when you want to look amazing and be seen — not necessarily when you want to fully melt into a lounge chair for hours. For photos, pool parties, and statement swim moments, though, it's fantastic.

The Plungey

TA3's Plungey is a shaping one-piece with a more classic, straightforward feel than the Lifty. Its main draw is the deep neckline, which gives it a sexier look, while the brand's signature lace-up back helps create that cinched TA3 silhouette. It still offers shaping and support, but overall it feels like a more basic, less structured option — a good pick for someone who wants the brand's snatching effect in a simpler, lower-cut style.

Note: We tried the original version of the Plungey, which doesn't have the metal detail at the neckline base.

Jaclyn's review of the Plungey

Size Jaclyn Tried: XL, regular torso

I felt like a catfish in a swimsuit. The fit up top was great, and I felt very secure and flattered at the bust, something that usually concerns me about swimsuits that aren't bra-sized. However, I felt like the suit gaped at the bottom.

The Plungey is very reminiscent of a shapewear bodysuit. It's not the most comfortable swimsuit I've ever worn, but it's a small trade-off for a few hours to feel confident enough to have a photo shoot out in public of myself in a swimsuit. Plus, I felt secure swimming in it.

Sam's review of the Plungey

Size Sam tried: Medium, short torso

You know that Photoshop feature where you can pull your waist in so that it looks smaller? Well, this suit does that in real life. Now, no one's waist ever needs to look smaller — all bodies are beautiful. But as someone with a larger chest and a short torso, I feel most comfortable in clothing with waist definition (A-line dresses are my go-to). 

And boy, oh boy, does the Plungey suit excel in waist-defining. It actually lifts your breasts while pulling your waist in, creating an hourglass shape that I've never seen with another swimsuit. I got tons of compliments when I wore this, which is a true testament to the power of this simple black bathing suit with its magic lacing. 

I'm five-foot-two, so I got the suit in the short version, but there are also different lengths, which is why this suit also made our list of the best swimsuits for long torsos. 

Sally's review of the Plungey

Size Sally tried: Large, short torso

As someone with a DDD cup, I was curious whether such a low-cut suit would actually feel secure, and I was impressed by how well it held everything in place. I wore it while swimming and snorkeling on vacation in Mexico and felt confident throughout.

The pull string also did a great job defining my waist without feeling too restrictive. I could tighten it for more compression and a more dramatic shape or loosen it for a more comfortable fit. I also appreciated the adjustable straps and the option to choose a short torso length, since I'm 5'1.

After five or six washes, the Plungey still looks great, with no stretching or discoloration. The construction feels sturdy enough that the $178 price tag seems more worthwhile.

The Brazilian Bombshell

TA3's Brazilian Bombshell is one of the brand's sexier, more statement-making one-pieces. It combines built-in shaping with molded cups, removable push-up pads, and adjustable straps, so the effect is lifted through the bust and noticeably cinched through the waist. The signature lace-up back adds to that sculpted look, while the Brazilian-style, cheekier back makes it feel more revealing and less everyday than some of TA3's other suits. Overall, this is the style to choose if your priority is a dramatic, va-va-voom silhouette rather than subtle shaping.

Sam's review of the Brazilian Bombshell

Size Sam tried: Medium, short torso, large cups

The Brazilian Bombshell is one of the most statement-making TA3 suits I tried. It gave me a noticeably lifted look through the bust, a cinched effect through the waist, and an overall silhouette that felt very glam and intentionally sexy. The leopard print only adds to that energy. Even though it's bold, it still felt supportive and well constructed, so I didn't feel like I was sacrificing security for style.

The Goddessy Maxi Dress

The Goddessy Maxi Dress brings TA3's signature waist-cinching effect to a floor-length silhouette that feels more polished than overtly shapewear-y. It's designed to define the waist and smooth the midsection, but the drapey skirt keeps it from feeling too tight or rigid.

Sam's review of the Goddessy Maxi Dress

Size Sam tried: Medium

I loved the Goddessy Maxi Dress and felt incredibly confident in it. It delivers TA3's signature waist-cinching effect in a dressier, more dramatic silhouette, while the flowing skirt keeps it feeling elegant rather than restrictive. Overall, it struck me as a flattering, confidence-boosting piece that feels polished and special.

The one drawback for me was the bust fit. As someone with a DD chest, I found the top a little small, especially compared with TA3's swimwear, which offers more precise cup-size options. Still, I really enjoyed wearing the dress, and if the bust works for your proportions, it's a standout choice for anyone who wants shaping with a more glamorous, occasion-ready feel.

What we don't like about TA3

The corseting can cause drooping on the butt part: Gabi and Jaclyn reported the same issue. When the corset is pulled tight, it creates some gaping at the seat of the suit, which can make the back look a little unflattering.

When pulled tight, the suit isn't the most comfortable, but we highly recommend loosening the corset straps when you're just lounging on the beach. The snatching effect is great for pictures or for when you want to be seen, but it does make you feel a little like you're in the Victorian era.

FAQs

How do TA3 swimsuits work?

The garment's fabric feels like activewear compression material, not all that dissimilar to a super supportive sports bra. The front and back waist area is lined with power mesh, which helps smooth and shape.

The corseted design starts at around the mid-back, near where the waist is typically smallest, and laces up to around the shoulder blades. With adjustable straps, removable bust pads, and some leeway with the corseted strings, the suit's sizing is quite accommodating and able to be modified depending on your preference for the day.

How does the sizing work?

When shopping for your perfect size, note that you are able to choose from the regular/long or the short torso fit, which is available for all of their current styles. And from XS to 4X, they have an impressive size range that feels inclusive and intentional. We found that the suits fit true-to-size, but the lace-up system offers a lot of wiggle room in terms of sizing.

Different neckline styles can also be paired with different cuts on the hips, but not every style has a high-cut version.

Can you actually swim in TA3 swimsuits?

Yes — TA3 is still swimwear, not just shapewear that looks like a swimsuit. The swim fabric is engineered to resist chlorine, salt water, and UV rays, though the more sculpting-focused styles may feel less lounge-y than softer, less structured suits.

What is TA3's return policy?

TA3 says it accepts returns and exchanges within 21 days of purchase for eligible orders. For international orders, the brand says returns and exchanges are not accepted, and sale items may be subject to stricter rules depending on the discount.

The bottom line 

It's no secret that these are on the pricey side – but given the quality, TA3 is worth it. Each suit is an investment piece that will be a staple in your closet for many summer vacations of beachside getaways to come.

Aside from comfort and its customizable fit, many appreciate a piece that pairs well with an outfit in between sunbathing and swimming (say, walking around a beach town or at the resort lunch spot) – and this one-piece acts as the ideal complementary item for denim shorts, a swimsuit coverup, or even loose beachy pants.

If you want to feel polished, snatched, and totally secure when playing around in the water, this suit may be your next best purchase.

• GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen's eBay listings have ended. He earned $168,421.39.
• The top-earning item was a large statue from "Halo 2," which sold for $15,100.
• GameStop offered $55.5 billion for eBay (which eBay rejected). Cohen's haul accounts for about 0.0003% of the proposed price.

Ryan Cohen pulled in a hefty sum from his baseball cards, merch, and gaming collectibles, thanks to his eBay listing stunt.

The CEO of GameStop posted a collection of items for resale after announcing his unsolicited bid for eBay, which the company has since rejected. "I'm selling stuff on eBay to pay for eBay," he wrote on X earlier this month.

One week later, the listings have closed, and the items have sold.

Cohen's total haul: $168,421.39.

The highest-earning item was a large Master Chief statue from "Halo 2." The statue was listed for local pickup in Grapevine, Texas — where GameStop is headquartered — and sold for $15,100. It received 105 bids.

Other top earners include two store signs from shuttered GameStop locations ($14,921, 105 bids) and two collectible statues from "South Park" ($13,400, 87 bids).

Cohen also sold a collectible card picturing Donald Trump's 2016 swearing in, which was graded as a PSA 10. The card sold for $6,470 with 44 bids. The buyer seemed pleased, leaving Cohen a positive review, calling it a "smooth transaction" with "excellent communication."

The lowest-earning item was a 1995 baseball card of Vladimir Guerrero. It pulled in $1,694 and 69 bids.

Of course, the haul is a drop in the bucket of GameStop's $55.5 billion bid, which Cohen has said would be "half cash, half stock." The $168,421.39 total is about 0.0003% of the deal total, emphasizing the publicity stunt nature of the item listings.

Cohen's profile was briefly suspended by eBay after its system flagged high price points. EBay restored the account — but not before Cohen posted about it on X.

One casualty of Cohen's initial vision for the listings was his socks, which at one point had attracted bidding over $14,000. Used underwear and socks violate eBay's used clothes policy.

Cohen now faces an even steeper uphill climb toward his goal of becoming CEO of a combined eBay and GameStop entity. EBay earlier this week rejected GameStop's offer, and its chairman, Paul Pressler, called the proposal "neither credible nor attractive."

After the rejection, Cohen responded with an email to Pressler, writing that the company "should not dismiss a $125 per share proposal without engaging on its substance" and that "shareholders deserve the opportunity to evaluate them," FT reported.

In an interview with Piers Morgan, Cohen signaled he wasn't done fighting for a deal.

"They have a job to do the best for shareholders and engage on this, and if they don't then we'll do whatever we need to do," he said.

• Getting a dedicated elbow pad for my desk was a huge comfort upgrade.
• Before, my elbow often hurt when I leaned it on my desk for hours while typing.
• Now? Baby, I'm in heaven!

I'm a caring person, so allow me to care for you: You should get yourself an elbow rest pad for your desk. Trust me on this.

It doesn't really matter which one — you can get a variety of colors/options on Amazon, or Staples, or wherever you shop. This isn't an ad, just my own genuine recommendation coming from the bottom of my cold, dark heart.

Do you find yourself at your computer, and while you're not actively typing, you rest the elbow of your non-mouse-using arm onto your desk? Me too!

And do you find that sometimes, that elbow gets a little sore from sitting there on a hard desk surface for potentially hours a day? Me too!

(Body horror storytime: Several years ago, my elbow suddenly swelled up and got hot and painful over the course of a few hours; I got woozy and feverish, requiring a trip to urgent care for an antibiotic shot. An orthopedist told me the next day it appeared to be a case of bursitis, which can appear rapidly in the elbow if banged or just from resting it on your desk for hours a day.)

Do you ever find yourself wanting to put something soft — the end of your sweatshirt, a folded-up winter hat, the edge of your Neoprene laptop case — under where your elbow goes to give it some comfort? Buddy, you know what I'm about to say (me too).

What if I told you that there is an item you can use, a special one made exactly for this purpose, that will relieve that specific pain and, by extension, the suffering and misery of your tortured existence? And that this one magical object will break you free of the prison of your corporeal suffering and help you ascend to a plane of pure light and fully locked-in-ness of being able to use your computer without any distractions of physical sensations in your body — just pure oneness with your Excel spreadsheet or Chrome tabs.

I know what you'd say. You'd say, Katie, thank you. Thank you for changing my life. I owe you everything; you are the queen. Hey, pal, you said it, not me.

I bought myself an elbow rest pad on Temu last year. It was marketed to nail technicians. Which makes sense — like using a computer, doing a manicure includes a lot of time with your arm's weight on your elbow while doing small tasks with your other wrist. (The exact product listing I bought no longer exists, but this one for $4.74 is nearly identical.)

Admittedly, I've had spotty luck with ordering ergonomic desk products from Temu. In that same order, I also got a mousepad with a gel wrist support, which started leaking goo all over me after a few weeks. I admit I have no one to blame but myself here. But the elbow rest doesn't use gel; it seems to be just regular foam underneath plastic, and it has held up well.

More importantly, it's a boring pale gray and blends in with the rest of my desk. It's small and easy to move out of the way when I don't want to use it. It does one thing, and it does it well. Cheap, unobtrusive, and effective: those are the best possible qualities of any sort of gizmo or doodad.

Like I said, you don't have to get the Temu one. But wherever you get your desk supplies: Get one!

• New data showed which US jobs pay the best on average.
• Pediatric surgeons had the highest average annual wage in 2025.
• Top-paying jobs were largely in healthcare, but pilots and flight engineers ranked highly.

Years of schooling in healthcare usually pay off.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data showing the pay of hundreds of occupations as of May 2025. Many positions earn six figures, exceeding the national average of $69,770.

Pay can be one factor job seekers consider when they're applying for work. A lot of people are actively seeking jobs in the US: 7.2 million people were unemployed in March, outpacing the number of openings. It's also graduation season, so more people may be tweaking their résumés, building a network, and scouring postings in the coming months.

Studying to become an ophthalmologist, a pediatric surgeon, or a pilot can lead to high compensation.

Business Insider ranked the new occupation estimates by average annual wage, excluding catchall job categories, such as "Surgeons, all other." Almost all of the 13 top-paying jobs typically require a doctoral or professional degree. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers usually need a bachelor's.

Below are the 13 highest-paying jobs, alongside estimates of how many Americans are employed in them.

13. Psychiatrists

Average annual wage: $269,940

Employment: 27,980

12. Obstetricians and gynecologists

Average annual wage: $279,040

Employment: 21,260

11. Pathologists

Average annual wage: $285,420

Employment: 11,110

10. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers

Average annual wage: $288,650

Employment: 103,560

9. Ophthalmologists, except pediatric

Average annual wage: $304,650

Employment: 8,950

8. Emergency medicine physicians

Average annual wage: $317,480

Employment: 32,880

7. Dermatologists

Average annual wage: $323,530

Employment: 11,370

6. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons

Average annual wage: $346,490

Employment: 4,910

5. Anesthesiologists

Average annual wage: $360,570

Employment: 38,760

4. Orthopedic surgeons, except pediatric

Average annual wage: $373,570

Employment: 14,100

3. Radiologists

Average annual wage: $381,530

Employment: 26,770

2. Cardiologists

Average annual wage: $454,940

Employment: 17,290

1. Pediatric surgeons

Average annual wage: $502,050

Employment: 1,190

• Instead of attacking with Shaheds at night, Russia is now trying dayslong strike campaigns.
• This week, Ukraine said it was attacked with over 1,500 drones and 50 missiles for two straight days.
• Two analysts studying Shahed warfare said it's an early sign of a new tactic aimed at wearing Ukraine down.

For Ukrainian cities, the last two days have been a near-constant barrage of drones and missile strikes, culminating in Russia's largest and most unrelenting long-range attack in the war so far.

It's another major episode in a new style of Russian drone warfare emerging in the last few months.

Where the Kremlin previously relied on attacking Ukraine with delta-wing Shaheds at night — when they're harder to spot — it's starting to deploy them in extended windows that last long into the day, forcing Ukrainians to shelter for hours or take their chances to go about their lives.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country came under siege from 1,567 drones and 56 missiles from Wednesday to Thursday, describing the assault as "massive and virtually continuous."

This week's bombardment was a "prime example" of the trend, said Igor Anokhin, a Ukrainian senior analyst who sifts through data on Russia's Shahed strikes for the Washington-based think tank Institute for Science and International Security.

The latest salvo marks the fifth time that the Kremlin has used sustained strike periods this year, he told Business Insider.

"I wouldn't call this a fully established pattern yet, but it is clearly becoming a new operational model," Anokhin said.

The first of these prolonged attacks was in late March, when Russia launched nearly 1,000 drones into Ukraine over 24 hours, Anokhin added. Another notable example occurred in mid-April, when continuous drone and missile attacks lasted for 32 hours.

That's against a daily average of 143 to 219 drones this year, depending on the month, according to Anokhin's analyses of Ukrainian and open-source data.

Russia often also targets Ukraine's electrical grid, forcing millions to go through the winter without heat in a campaign aimed at reducing the population's will to resist.

Why daytime strikes?

Enduring an extended onslaught is exhausting, as Business Insider's Jake Epstein and Rob Leslie found during the recent attack. They took cover for hours in a Kyiv bomb shelter, waiting sleeplessly through the night as explosions rattled the city.

Shahed attacks are so frequent that they've already become an accepted part of life for Ukrainian civilians. Anokhin said that's the point.

"The main goal is psychological pressure and economic terror," he said. "Keeping Ukrainian cities on high alert for many hours, disrupting civilian life, and targeting energy and critical infrastructure."

The heightened pressure also puts Ukraine's multi-layered air defense network to the test. To counter aerial attacks, Ukrainian forces deploy a mix of mobile machine-gun crews, interceptor drones, electronic warfare, and high-end defensive missiles.

The sheer volume of threats from Russia strains that system. For example, it runs the risk of forcing Ukraine to fire more rare, expensive interceptors to destroy a cheap drone, making room for ballistic missiles to find their mark.

Russia employed that tactic this week: After hours of drone attacks, missiles began pounding Kyiv on Wednesday evening.

Zelenskyy said air defenses destroyed at least 93% of Russia's drones during the attack, but that only 73% of Russia's missiles were downed. As of Thursday evening, 24 people were confirmed dead, and another 48 were injured, he added.

Each Shahed costs less than $50,000 to produce and carries up to 110 pounds of explosive that strikes with a shrapnel-laden blast powerful enough to cripple buildings and kill civilians.

Federico Borsari, a researcher at the Center for European Policy Analysis who focuses on drone warfare, told Business Insider that the daytime attacks can also serve a secondary purpose.

Many of Russia's decoy drones are equipped with electro-optical sensors, which can scout the battlefield while soaking up Ukrainian air defense munitions, he said.

"The main targets are typically mobile fire groups, ground-based air defense launchers, and other high-value military targets," Borsari added.

In other words, the daytime drone waves can pinpoint high-value targets for follow-on attack.

Anokhin's analysis found that in April, 66% of Russia's launched one-way drones were Shaheds, while the rest were decoys or other types of strike drones.

The production problem

Russia has attacked in longer windows before, but not at this scale. Both Borsari and Anokhin said a key change is Russia's growing ability to deploy more drones faster.

"It would be ideal to destroy production in Alabuga," said Anokhin.

The Yelabuga Special Economic Zone, also known as Alabuga, in Russia's Tatarstan region, is home to the Kremlin's main factory for Shaheds, which has come under intense global scrutiny as a vital component of the Russian war effort.

Russia is working quickly to ramp up production there, even as Ukraine sends its own long-range drones to attack the factory.

On May 9, Radio Free Europe reported that satellite images showed new facilities and hangars at the site, expanding the campus by 340 hectares while more construction was starting on another 450 hectares.

Per Anokhin, Russia's Shahed deployment has grown steadily since early 2025 and now accounts for a larger share of drone strikes, rising from 59% of total launches in the fall of last year to 64% this spring.

Ukraine's ragtag air defense network, however, appears to be working. Anokhin's analysis shows that while nearly a third of Russia's Shaheds were hitting targets in the fall, that proportion has fallen sharply to around 14% in April.

The country has been emphasizing cheaper systems, such as its interceptor drones. Ukraine's air force estimated in February that about 30% of Russian drones are downed by these inexpensive remote systems, though the reported proportion has risen to 70% in some periods.

Borsari and Anokhin said separately that they believe Russia's extended daytime drone waves will become a more permanent fixture in the war.

"However, it is unclear whether the Russian targeting strategy is bearing fruit," said Borsari.

• Zcash, a cryptocurrency launched a decade ago, is suddenly surging in popularity.
• Crypto pros say investors are drawn to the token due to its emphasis on privacy.
• Interest has been rising for months, ever since a post on X described Zcash as "insurance against Bitcoin."

A decade-old digital token is suddenly all the rage in crypto circles.

ZEC, a token launched in 2016 using the Zcash blockchain protocol, has seen its price surge 50% in a month, even as bitcoin struggles to break out of its slump. The apex crypto is up about 6% in the same time.

The token is relatively unknown outside of some prominent early adopters, who prized the crypto for its emphasis on privacy. It received little attention for years before unexpectedly surging late in 2025.

"People care about ZCash because it represents one of the few major crypto networks built around financial privacy as a core feature rather than an afterthought," stated Daniel Reis Faria, CEO of AI-focused asset management firm Zerostack. "As surveillance across both traditional finance and blockchain increases, there's renewed interest in assets that preserve optionality and confidentiality."

Reis Faria told Business Insider that Zcash appeals not just to crypto traders but also to institutions because it protects the details of their transactions.

"What Zcash offers that bitcoin doesn't is shielded transaction capability," he noted. "Bitcoin is often misunderstood as anonymous, but in reality it's highly transparent and traceable."

Bobby Ong, CEO and Co-founder of CoinGecko, traces the surge in Zcash interest to an October 1 X post from tech entrepreneur Naval Ravikant who stated simply "Bitcoin is insurance against fiat. Zcash is insurance against Bitcoin."

On the day of the post, Zcash was trading at $74 per coin. Since then, it has risen to a peak of more than $600 per token. Ong noted that several other catalysts have followed since Ravikant shared stoked fresh interest last year.

"That momentum was followed by major allocations from Multicoin Capital and Arthur Hayes, the launch of the first US spot Zcash ETF, and the emergence of digital asset treasury company (DATCo) Cypherpunk Technologies accumulating ZEC — all of which reinforced the view that privacy coins were moving back into the mainstream conversation," he said.

The defining narrative seems to be that in a world increasingly driven by AI and powerful tools that could jeopardize the security offered by cryptography, the need for privacy is increasing.

In January, an analyst at Jefferies predicted that the rise of quantum computing will be a top threat to bitcoin in the future. Meanwhile, a man who had been locked out of his crypto wallet for 11 years claimed this week that he used Anthropic's Claude to brute force his way back in, getting the AI bot to test 3.5 trillion passwords.

Heightened anonymity and privacy is the central part of what's driving the appeal of Zcash right now, causing traders to embrace the crypto that, until recently, seemed largely forgotten.

Samantha Bohbot, chief growth officer at digital asset investment firm RockawayX, said she isn't surprised by the recent Zcash rush.

"Privacy coins have become more interesting, especially with the rise of LLMs," she said. "People are giving models more personal data than they've given any technology before, and over time they'll want to protect their data privacy more. Money and LLM usage are where that demand lands first."

• Paramount Skydance's chief tech officer is leaving the company after seven years.
• The departure was planned, a person familiar with the move said.
• Read outgoing tech chief Phil Wiser's final memo to employees.

Paramount Skydance's tech chief is stepping down as David Ellison's digital transformation heats up.

Phil Wiser, Paramount's chief tech officer, told his colleagues on Friday morning that he's leaving at the end of May after seven years with the company.

"Writing this and sharing this news is harder than I expected," Wiser said in his farewell memo, which was obtained by Business Insider.

Wiser said in his memo that he wasn't retiring. A person familiar with the move said Wiser instead may look to work with tech startups. This person said Wiser's decision to step down on May 29 was part of a planned transition.

"Phil has played a meaningful role in shaping our technology strategy during his time here," said Dane Glasgow, Paramount's chief product officer, in a follow-up email to staffers.

Glasgow credited Wiser for "advancing our technical and digital capabilities, all while helping to strengthen the technology foundations as we scaled our global direct-to-consumer business."

Instead of hiring a new chief tech officer, Glasgow told employees that Wiser's responsibilities will be divided among four executives who will report to him:

• Laksh Nathan, EVP and chief information officer
• Jim Harrison, EVP of infrastructure & media technology
• Frank Governale, SVP of production technology & operations
• Carlo Joseph, chief information security officer

Wiser joined the company in September 2018 after serving as the tech chief for Hearst and Sony. He saw plenty of change during his tenure, including the Viacom-CBS merger, a rebrand to Paramount, and the Paramount-Skydance tie-up — plus the COVID-19 pandemic.

"His leadership has further contributed to the modernization of our platforms and the integration of data and technology across our brands," Glasgow said in his memo.

In his final missive to Paramount staffers, Wiser said that what he was "most grateful for is not the accomplishments — as remarkable as they are."

"It is the people," Wiser said. "The culture of this team. The way you solve hard problems together. The way you hold each other up through wave after wave of change and uncertainty. The way you have consistently shown what is possible when talented, good people commit to something. That is what I will carry with me."

Paramount has embraced a "tech-forward" approach since Ellison became CEO last August. He's told employees that "prioritizing investments in advanced technology and data capabilities" is the key to narrowing the gap with Netflix in the streaming space.

In recent months, Paramount+ has launched a short-form video feed and explored adding video podcasts and interactive elements like shopping features and sports stats.

Paramount is also combining the tech platforms for its namesake streamer and Pluto TV, its free streamer, in a process called "convergence" that involves bringing key tech teams together.

Ellison has made several crucial hires to expedite the 114-year-old media company's tech transformation, including former Google exec Hugh Williams and Glasgow, who came over last fall from Meta.

Read Wiser's full memo to employees here:

To my Paramount TECH team,

Writing this and sharing this news is harder than I expected.

After seven-plus years together, I have decided to leave Paramount.

But before I do, what I most want to say — the only thing that really matters — is thank you.

Thank you for showing up, every single day, through conditions that would have broken lesser teams.

Thank you for:

• The late nights and the early mornings. For the problems you solved that no one ever saw, and the ones you fixed that kept the whole thing running and got none of the credit.
• Being relentlessly focused on the complete technology and service experience for our internal and external customers.
• Every integration meeting, every migration, every system failure at 2 a.m. that somehow you turned around by dawn.
• Not flinching when COVID hit — keeping our people safe and our voice on the air.
• Protecting the company diligently while building modern, AI-first cybersecurity capabilities.
• Doing whatever was needed to get that show on the air, that production asset delivered, or that promo to pop.
• Streaming all of those live events at record-breaking scale, starting with the Super Bowl in 2019, on infrastructure that was a fraction of what exists today.
• Rebuilding our entire media supply chain, ad tech ecosystem, licensing solutions, and more into genuinely best-in-class technology and operations platforms.
• Embracing the AI opportunity early and bringing others along to advance our capabilities.
• Giving us one final win together — Oracle Fusion in just 15 months, a feat almost no organization at our scale has pulled off.

While delivering on all of this for Paramount, you also kept innovation, technical excellence, and user experience at the forefront of our efforts.

I saw all of it. Every bit of it. You set the company up for real success going forward.

But what I am most grateful for is not the accomplishments — as remarkable as they are. It is the people. The culture of this team. The way you solve hard problems together. The way you hold each other up through wave after wave of change and uncertainty. The way you have consistently shown what is possible when talented, good people commit to something. That is what I will carry with me.

The challenges coming down the road are real. The pace of change in technology, in AI, in how content is made and distributed — it is only accelerating. The work ahead will be demanding. None of that is new to this team.

I want to be clear about something: you are exceptionally well-positioned for everything ahead of you. The foundation we built together — the infrastructure, the platforms, the operational discipline, the AI capabilities we put in place — is not just solid. It is a genuine competitive advantage. You have done the hard work. You know how to do this.

As for me, I am heading back to my Silicon Valley tech roots to advance some ideas on enterprise AI. More to come on that at a later time. Needless to say, I remain energized and excited about the possibilities emerging in this AI revolution.

Seven years. What a journey.

It has been the honor of a lifetime to work alongside every one of you. And I will be cheering you on as I dive into what's next.

I am here through the end of May and hope to see many of you in the coming weeks to say farewell. You can always find me online — please stay in touch.

Stay Scrappy!

Phil

• Jack Antonoff defended traditional songwriting as a "holy process" in an open letter.
• Antonoff denounced AI-generated music as a way to fake making art.
• He isn't the first artist to condemn the use of artificial intelligence in the arts.

Artificial intelligence has seeped into many industries, and one hit songwriter has a strong opinion on its place in the arts.

Jack Antonoff, the 42-year-old singer-songwriter who has worked with Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar, published a letter Thursday in defense of the "ancient ritual" of making music. In an Instagram post, Antonoff slammed those looking for a way to make songwriting easier or quicker.

"You don't have to write music anymore, you don't have to record it, and you don't have to bring the band out and play it," Antonoff said.

AI-generated content has made its way into fields from academia to illustration to music. Some companies are developing AI tools to automate tasks in the music industry, such as mastering a track. There are also AI assistants specifically designed to write songs and AI pop stars dropping singles on streaming platforms.

Antonoff is having none of it. He condemned the idea of using tech to optimize the "holy process" of writing, recording, and performing music. He said he spoke on behalf of himself, his band, and "everyone I know," as he called out "bad actors" who he said would eventually be revealed by the slop they produce.

"So to everyone who is gassed up about the new ways you can fake making art, by all means drive right off that cliff," Antonoff said in the letter. "We're genuinely happy to see you go."

He's not the first in the music industry to come for AI-generated music. Label Universal Music Group has gone toe-to-toe with AI multiple times to get music made to look and sound like its artists taken down from streaming platforms. Artist Jason Derulo has also said AI music lacks soul.

Antonoff said that the new musicians he knows aren't interested in AI-generated music. He was blunt in what he thinks about the people creating "slop" that's hitting streaming services these days.

"Godless whores," he wrote.

• After we got married, we rented out our spare bedroom to save money. At first, it worked well.
• Eventually, we started to feel uncomfortable in our own home and too reliant on this extra income.
• I'm grateful we rebuilt our savings, but we no longer have a roommate and don't want one again.

Shortly after getting married, my husband and I had the idea to rent out the spare room in our two-bedroom apartment to help rebuild our savings.

We'd just spent a lot on our wedding and honeymoon, and reducing our biggest living expense meant we'd have more money in our pockets each month.

Our spare bedroom is at the far end of our apartment, far enough away to maintain our privacy, making it an ideal space to rent. Plus, a friend of a friend was looking for a place to live.

Getting a roommate felt like the perfect opportunity and a great way for us to get back on track financially — and, for a while, it was.

At first, our new living arrangement worked well and provided a huge financial relief

For the first few months, things went really smoothly.

Our new roommate was in the hospitality industry and primarily worked at night, whereas my husband and I worked during the day. Since everyone had different routines, we weren't stepping on each other's toes.

It was also nice to share some of the household responsibilities, and keeping the apartment clean became second nature with a roommate. When someone else would be using the kitchen or bathroom after you, you wanted to make sure it's in good shape for the next person.

The biggest perk of our new living situation was the financial relief: one-third of our bills were covered. With this, our savings began to grow, and my husband and I started planning some vacations.

We took a two-week-long road trip around Sicily and were able to visit my husband's family in Argentina. We also have a dog, and our roommate loved dogs, so when we were away, they would take care of her.

So, my house was tidy, we had a live-in dog sitter, and our savings were growing. What could go wrong?

Over time, my husband and I stopped feeling comfortable in our own home

I wouldn't say that one particular incident caused us to second-guess having a roommate. Rather, over time, we realized this couldn't be a long-term solution.

We were newlyweds, and although taking romantic vacations was dreamy, we started to crave our privacy at home. Oftentimes, we found ourselves not wanting to use the common spaces in the house and trying to make as little noise as possible.

Before having a roommate, one of our favorite activities at the end of a long day was curling up on our couch to watch a movie. Now, we found ourselves doing this in our bedroom.

When we'd hear my roommate's key in the lock during mealtime, we'd sometimes scurry into our room with our dinner plates just to have quiet time alone.

We couldn't enjoy the beautiful home we had worked so hard to make our own, and feeling uncomfortable in it was affecting the intimacy in our marriage.

Eventually, the financial benefits just weren't worth it anymore

After a few months, we'd also begun to rely too much on the savings from renting the spare room.

Having more money to save each month also meant having more to potentially spend.

We were definitely traveling more than we could realistically afford on our own — a sign of lifestyle creep. This financial relief was always meant to be temporary; we couldn't get too attached to it.

It had also started to cause tension and arguments between my husband and me. I was ready for the roommate to leave, and my husband wanted them to stay a bit longer so our finances could get back on track after all the big spending on our trips.

So after a year and a half, we decided to give our roommate two months' notice to leave. This gave them time to find something, and gave us time to prepare financially to go roommate-free.

It's been just the two of us for about six months now, and we definitely feel freer in our own home — able to watch long movies on the couch and leave a dish or two in the sink, guilt-free.

We're still adjusting to working with a much tighter budget, but at least it's a more sustainable one.

Although we'd like to avoid having a roommate again, I would still recommend this to couples looking for extra cash flow as long as they weigh the pros and cons and set a clear deadline with their partner for how long the arrangement will last.

• Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas is one of the largest cruise ships in the world.
• When the sun goes down, the ship glows with bright, color-changing lights on its outdoor decks.
• Take a look at how the cruise ship transforms with vibrant colors at night in side-by-side photos. 

After taking my first cruise on Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas, I think the ship might be even more beautiful at night.

During my nighttime walks across the 1,188-foot-long ship on a seven-day Caribbean cruise in 2021, I noticed it was equipped with a variety of lighting that transformed the vessel into a colorful oasis when the sun went down.

Take a look at the vibrant nighttime atmosphere at sea.

Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas is one of the largest cruise ships in the world.

With 18 decks and 8 "neighborhoods," 21 restaurants, and a slew of bars and activities, this cruise ship is massive.

The ship has four outdoor decks that all guests can enjoy at night.

Kids on the ship have a 1 a.m. curfew.

All the pools close by 11 p.m., according to Cruise Compass, a daily schedule received on Royal Caribbean cruises.

Decks 15 and 16 are the pool decks.

But the decks are stunning at night, with lights beneath the water.

Above the pools, more lights change colors. I thought the rainbow glow over everything made the decks feel magical.

From the upper decks, guests can see the glows of the Central Park inner neighborhood on deck eight.

The outdoor deck full of plants lights up yellow at night. It reminded me of my own neighborhood at home during the holiday season.

Down on deck six, there's another outdoor neighborhood, the Boardwalk.

Reminiscent of a carnival, it's even brighter and more colorful at night.

Some lights in front of restaurants are on during the day, like the ones in front of this candy store.

Sugar Beach is a candy store that's right across from the carousel on the Boardwalk.

But above them, additional lights come on at night, making the space even more colorful.

I thought the neon lights at Johnny Rockets enhanced its classic diner feel.

At the back of deck six, the Aquatheater glows neon at night.

Pictures of stars fill the screens.

I found that when night came, the best place to be was deck 16, for the sunset views followed by glowing pools.

Exploring these mostly-empty, lit-up decks after hours was one of my favorite parts of the trip.

• Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have been engaged for nearly a year.
• Their couple style has evolved since they first appeared publicly together in September 2023.
• They often sport the same brands and colors when they step out together.

Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift are among the most famous couples on the planet.

Eyes have been glued to the pair since the earliest days of their relationship, with fans eagerly watching Swift attend Chiefs games and the couple going on date nights in New York. Over 37 million people liked their engagement announcement when they posted it on Instagram in August 2025.

In the early days of their relationship, it was fun to see Swift try on a Chiefs jersey or Kelce don a friendship bracelet. Nearly three years in, as Swift and Kelce have become a more established couple, their couple style has evolved, too.

From subtly coordinated Chiefs attire to sporting the same brands or colors, check out some of Swift and Kelce's couple looks, ranked from least to most stylish.

Swift and Kelce wore subtly coordinating outfits at one of their first joint NFL appearances.

Swift and Kelce were photographed leaving the Chiefs game together on October 22, 2023. Both wore red to celebrate Kelce's team.

Kelce's look consisted of a red-and-cream checked flannel shirt and popsicle-printed khakis, both designed by Billionaire Boys Club & Icecream. Green CNCPTS and Nike sneakers completed the outfit.

Swift paired an Ellie Mae Studios vintage Chiefs sweatshirt with a black skirt. The look was cute, but it wasn't distinct from an outfit any other Chiefs fan might wear to a game.

Though the couple's looks worked together, Swift's and Kelce's support for his team was the takeaway from the outfits, not their cohesiveness as a couple.

They both rocked baseball caps at Coachella in April 2024.

Swift's and Kelce's outfits for Coachella also felt subtly coordinated, as they both chose to accessorize their looks with a green-and-white baseball cap.

Swift paired a black top and jacket with a black Halara skirt, black Gucci sneakers, and a black Stella McCartney bag. She also wore a hat representing "New Heights."

Kelce, on the other hand, wore an R13 plaid shirt over a white tee, a colorful bandana around his neck, blue-and-white Martine Rose striped jeans, and white Converse high-tops. His "Happy Gilmore" hat was white with green font, making it the inverse of Swift's.

The couple wore statement jackets for their first public date night in New York City in October 2023.

The duo made their first official appearance as a couple in New York City on October 14, attending a taping of "Saturday Night Live" together.

Swift paired the Versace Medusa corset with high-waisted black trousers. She wore her Gant coat open, showing off the corset. The checked jacket was the only pop of color in her look, as her Aupen bag and Greymer shoes were black.

Kelce's patterned Jil Sander coat was similarly the star of his look, though he wore a little more color than Swift. His Burberry pants were brown, which he paired with a white button-down and white Christian Louboutin sneakers.

Both took an elevated approach to date-night fashion for their hard launch.

They both played up the texture of their looks for another October 2023 date night in New York.

The next day, the couple stepped out in New York again for another date night.

The base of Swift's look was black, as she paired a backward Khaite skirt with a Balenciaga corset top and Louis Vuitton boots. The sheer floral top from Jean Paul Gaultier, worn over the corset, brought color to her ensemble.

Kelce opted for a matching corduroy set, which he wore with a black shirt. Nike sneakers completed his laid-back look.

Both Swift and Kelce made a bold fashion statement at the Chiefs' 2024 debut.

After wrapping the European leg of the Eras Tour, Swift returned to Arrowhead Stadium to support Kelce in the first game of the 2024-2025 season. They both took a more glamorous approach to their game-day fashion than in 2023.

Swift sported an all-denim look, including the denim version of Versace's Medusa corset top and denim shorts from Grlfrnd. The shorts showed off her maroon Giuseppe Zanotti boots, and she toted a Louis Vuitton trunk bag.

Swift also wore over $60,000 in jewelry to the game, including the TNT bracelet Kelce had custom-made for her.

Kelce left the game in a Lanvin set, featuring a white-and-orange ombré pattern that flowed from his shirt to his pants. A Homebred Legends trucker hat and Bottega Veneta sunglasses completed his colorful look.

Pops of red connected Swift's and Kelce's looks for the US Open in September 2024.

The couple made multiple public appearances together after the Chiefs' 2024 opener. For instance, they attended the US Open men's singles finals, where they both wore pops of red.

Kelce wore another coordinating set to the match, pairing a Gucci cardigan with matching shorts. Both featured red and green lining, coordinating with the red-and-green Gucci bucket hat Kelce wore with the look.

Swift chose a red-and-white gingham sundress from Reformation for the sporting event. The dress featured a dropped waist and a sweetheart neckline, giving the summery look structure. Her outfit also featured Gucci touches, including her platform sandals and the bag she carried. Crap Eyewear sunglasses tied the look together.

The ensembles felt more intentionally coordinated than some of Swift's and Kelce's past looks, highlighting how their couple style had evolved since they were first romantically linked.

They also wore complementary sporty looks to attend the Stanley Cup Finals in June 2025.

Kelce and Swift cheered on the Florida Panthers at the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals in monochromatic outfits inspired by the team's red and white colors.

Kelce wore a red sweatshirt and shorts from Elwood, which he paired with a red-and-white Panthers hat designed by Palm Tree Crew.

Swift, on the other hand, opted for a cream set from Area, pairing the brand's crystal-trimmed track jacket with the matching embellished shorts. She accessorized the set with cream Prada ankle boots and a black Chanel handbag. She also wore her hair in a braid, adding to the ensemble's casual feel.

Both Swift and Kelce looked sporty and chic, and it was fun to see their looks ooze team spirit when paired together.

The pair had different takes on autumnal fashion for a date night in November 2025.

Kelce looked to American Eagle's collaboration with Tru Kolors Brand for his date-night look, wearing a matching maroon courduroy jacket and trousers.

He wore a black tee under the jacket, which complemented his Louis Vuitton x Timberland boots. A diamond pendant from Palm Tree Crew and another from Louis Vuitton brought a pop of glam.

Swift was dressed in head-to-toe Louis Vuitton for the evening. She paired a ribbed pullover with a mini wrap skirt, atop Fleur du Mal fishnet tights embroidered with floral motifs. Knee-high boots and a bag, both Louis Vuitton, completed the look.

Swift's and Kelce's looks both read autumnal, with the former's gothic feel and the latter's red hue. They worked well together without feeling overly coordinated.

Their outfits for a September 2024 wedding at Electric Lady Studios were some of their best to date.

In September 2024, Kelce accompanied Swift to supermodel Karen Elson and art collector Lee Foster's wedding at Electric Lady Studios, where Swift frequently records her music.

Swift attended the nuptials in Zimmermann's cream Halliday dress, which featured scalloped detailing on the bodice and cutouts on the waist. The skirt was also embroidered with an array of flowers.

She paired the floral dress with cream Christian Louboutin heels, a blue Vivienne Westwood bag, and red lipstick.

Kelce wore two of the same designers as Swift, though his look was all black. He paired a short-sleeved Vivienne Westwood cardigan with black trousers and Christian Louboutin loafers.

The couple's outfits looked effortlessly chic, complementing each other without going over the top.

The couple wore subtly coordinating accessories for a night out in New York in October 2024.

Swift and Kelce were photographed going out to dinner in New York in October 2024. Although their outfits weren't coordinated, they wore Louis Vuitton accessories that stylishly tied their looks together.

Swift wore shades of light brown and black, pairing Gucci's net corset top with a black miniskirt from RTA and a camel coat designed by Ralph Lauren. She carried a Dior Saddle bag and wore Louis Vuitton's LV Roxy Platform Ankle Boots, as well as the brand's Ombré Blossom Open Ring.

Jacquemus designed Kelce's navy-and-cream blouse, which he wore with black pants and Lanvin sneakers. He also selected Louis Vuitton accessories for the evening, wearing the Monogram Craggy Necklace and Monogram Craggy Bracelet.

Both Swift and Kelce looked stylish and luxurious.

Swift's and Kelce's outfits for a December 2024 outing featured subtly cohesive color schemes.

Swift and Kelce stepped out together in New York City in December 2024 in mostly one-toned ensembles. However, both included a nod to the other's outfit with their looks.

Kelce walked hand in hand with Swift in Nahmias' waxed trucker jacket and baggy jeans, both in red. He wore a white Saint Michael shirt with black lettering and black boots from Louis Vuitton and Timberland.

Almost exactly opposite to Kelce, Swift's outfit was almost entirely black, aside from the red bottoms of her Christian Louboutin sandals and red lipstick. She wore a black minidress from Fleur du Mal with a high neckline, a crystal-adorned coat from Simkhai, and a Stella McCartney tote dripping with crystals.

Kelce let Swift sparkle for their awards show debut as a couple in March 2026.

The couple made their long-awaited debut at an awards show in March 2026, when Kelce accompanied Swift to the iHeartRadio Music Awards. Their outfits were worth the wait.

Swift wore a Wiederhoeft set for the occasion. The mint-green top had a corset bodice with exposed boning and sparkly detailing, offset by the simple, coordinating miniskirt. She played up the green with Jimmy Choo slingbacks in the same color.

Swift also wore plenty of luxury jewelry with her look, the priciest being the bi-color tourmaline earrings from Dena Kemp, which cost $36,000.

Kelce kept his look simple, wearing an all-black ensemble that included a Tom Ford polo shirt, trousers, and a leather jacket. He also wore Tom Ford boots, a Louis Vuitton necklace, and a David Yurman amulet.

Swift and Kelce couldn't have chosen better looks for an awards show where Swift was nominated. She dazzled in her colorful look, and Kelce was stylish while letting her shine.

• The Cannes Film Festival is underway in France between May 12 and May 23.
• Stars like Jane Fonda and Demi Moore have already attended in glamorous outfits.
• Others, like Heidi Klum, missed the mark with their red-carpet fashion.

The red carpet has officially been rolled out in Cannes, France.

Celebrities are flocking to the resort city this week to celebrate the Cannes Film Festival, which showcases new films and promotes highly anticipated projects from around the world.

Naturally, many attendees have already made red-carpet appearances in showstopping fashion, from elegant ensembles to daring looks that push the Cannes Film Festival dress code.

These are the best and worst outfits we've seen so far.

Demi Moore had a princess moment in a shimmering gown at the festival's opening ceremony.

The actor and 2026 Cannes Film Festival jury member arrived on the red carpet in a custom Jacquemus gown.

Her strapless, white piece had a fitted bodice with a peplum waist, a mermaid skirt, and all-over iridescent sequins. It looked elegant on Moore and set the tone for the red carpet.

You also couldn't miss her massive Chopard necklace. The sparkling piece had five rows of large diamonds that sparkled in the light.

Heidi Klum's dress would have looked better in a different color.

Klum wore an Elie Saab design in pastel yellow for her first day at the festival.

The strapless dress featured a deep neckline adorned with a large pink flower, ruched fabric knotted at her waist, and a floor-length skirt with a matching train.

Though the gown's silhouette worked great on Klum, especially with her wavy hairstyle, its light color washed her out. The same dress in a more vibrant shade would have been more striking.

Jane Fonda proved that you can never go wrong with a sleek black dress.

The actor and activist wore a custom Gucci gown for the opening ceremony.

The sequined garment had a high neckline, long sleeves, and a floor-length pleated skirt.

It was the perfect choice to complement Fonda's curly bob hairstyle, and it was strongly accessorized with a diamond-and-stone pendant necklace.

Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu wore a gown that overwhelmed her petite frame.

The "Emily in Paris" actor walked the red carpet in a statement ruffled gown.

The fuchsia piece had long, exaggerated sleeves, a puffed semi-sheer skirt, and a cape-style train at the back.

Though the gown's color looked stunning on Leroy-Beaulieu, as did her diamond accessories, its silhouette was too overpowering and distracted from her glamour.

Elijah Wood showed why good tailoring never goes out of style.

Wood wore a classic black tuxedo at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival. It comprised a double-breasted jacket, which he wore unbuttoned, a satin bow tie, and trousers tailored perfectly to him.

The suit's strong fit made him stand out from other attendees who also wore menswear on the red carpet.

The actor completed the look with leather dress shoes and a white button-up top.

Moore returned on day two of the festival in a purple gown that didn't work as well.

Her off-the-shoulder gown was crafted from a gauzy, see-through fabric that wrapped around her body. It was form-fitting and extended into a long, split train behind her.

The color was stunning on Moore, but its shimmering material didn't photograph well.

A lining underneath the custom Gucci piece could have improved the iridescent effect.

Alexandra Leclerc and Charles Leclerc looked glamorous together.

The newlyweds walked the "La Vie D'Une Femme" red carpet together in classic eveningwear.

Alexandra Leclerc wore a strapless, semi-sheer Paolo Sebastian gown covered in rose-gold mesh and sequins, while her F1-driver husband wore a classic Giorgio Armani tuxedo.

He embellished the latter look with a bow tie and a diamond, leaf-shaped brooch.

Gillian Anderson's look was almost perfect — but not quite.

The actor arrived in a sleek, baby-pink gown with four thick straps across the shoulders. The straps and belt around her waist were adorned with chunky crystals and pearls.

Though the color and style suited Anderson, the Miu Miu gown's silhouette could have been tailored to her better.

Aja Naomi King stunned in white.

The actor chose a white Miu Miu gown for the second day of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, and it was the perfect choice.

The dress was made from a statement floral lace that was sheer enough to reveal her pink satin slip beneath. It also had ruffled feathers, adding another feminine touch.

She completed the look with a diamond choker necklace and a white flower in her hair.

Diane Kruger's accessories made her outfit look too much like a costume.

The actor attended the third day of the festival in a satin halter minidress with an all-over floral print.

The dress was pretty and feminine, and it perfectly matched her bow sandals. She also wore diamond jewelry that complemented the look.

Unfortunately, Kruger also wore a thick green cape that tied around her neck and almost reached the floor. The piece didn't fit the outfit and made it look like a costume.

Barbara Palvin and Dylan Sprouse complemented each other in chic ensembles.

The model, who just announced that she's pregnant, hit the red carpet in a powder-blue gown with sheer cap sleeves, a long pleated skirt, and a feather-fringed hem.

The gown was stunning and had the perfect moment to shine, especially since her husband wore a classic black tuxedo.

• I started a new in-office job, and rely on Costco snacks to help keep me fueled throughout the day.
• My favorites include the Quest protein chips and the Krave beef chimichurri sticks.
• I have a sweet tooth, so I also love to keep the NuGo chocolate protein bars near my desk.

It's been a while since I've consistently worked in an office, so after starting a new full-time job in New York City, I quickly remembered how exhausting working in person can be.

Luckily, I've been able to turn to Costco for filling, high-protein snacks that give me the fuel I need to power through the day.

Here are seven snacks I'm loving right now.

When I'm craving pure chocolate, I grab a NuGo protein bar.

My dad had the biggest sweet tooth, and he unfortunately passed it down to me.

Although Hershey Kisses and Oreos used to leave me feeling sluggish and unfocused, NuGo protein bars make me feel refreshed and ready to conquer any task.

These have become my go-to daily breakfast or mid-morning snack, and are one of my favorite items to buy at Costco.

The amazing chocolate-chocolate chip flavor makes the bar taste like a decadent dessert, but with 12 grams of protein and fewer calories and sugar.

I wasn't a fan of chickpeas until I tried the roasted version from Biena.

The last time I had chickpeas, I wasn't a fan. But when I tried the roasted sea-salt version from Biena, I was pleasantly surprised, and it quickly became one of my staples.

These roasted sea-salt chickpeas are packed with plenty of flavor and 6 grams of protein per serving.

Not only do they taste great, but they're also made from simple ingredients, like sunflower and safflower oil.

I can never get enough of the delicious Krave chimichurri beef sticks.

Slim Jims were one of my favorite snacks when I was a kid, so it's no wonder that I've fallen in love with these Krave beef sticks from Costco as an adult.

They're made from 100% grass-fed beef, so I know I'm getting a high-quality snack.

Additionally, each flavorful stick has 8 grams of protein, making it an ideal snack to reach for when my stomach starts to grumble before my lunch break.

Quest protein chips are so good that my coworkers love them too.

I firmly believe every office should have bags of Quest protein chips available at all times. They're one of my favorite snacks, and my coworkers love them, too.

I typically eat these chips, which are packed with 16 grams of protein and only 4 grams of carbs, as a side with my lunch — leaving me feeling energized but not too full.

Orgain protein shakes are my favorite for an after-lunch boost.

About an hour or two after lunch, I'm usually struggling to finish the workday strong. That's when I reach for one of these delicious chocolate-fudge protein shakes from Orgain.

Packed with a whopping 30 grams of protein, these shakes help me stay full and focused, whether I'm sitting at my desk or running around the office.

Speaking of shakes, I use the Orgain protein powder to make my own.

The blend of superfoods found in Orgain protein powder makes me feel great, even on those endless Monday afternoons. The creamy chocolate fudge flavor makes every shake taste like one of my grandma's homemade brownies.

Other protein powders I've had have tasted bland or chalky, but this one from Costco has a great consistency.

Each serving is packed with 21 grams of protein and only 160 calories.

I think the RXBAR protein bars are a must-have for office workers.

At my last few jobs, I made the terrible mistake of keeping only junk food at my desk. Even as an athlete, it was tough to resist the occasional bag of cookies.

However, an RXBAR is the perfect snack for when I'm craving a sweet treat that will keep me feeling full.

Each bar has 12 grams of protein and is made with a mix of cashews and almonds. The chocolate-sea-salt flavor is my favorite.

• Business Insider compiled a list of the most famous hotel in every state.
• Criteria included celebrity sightings, relevance to pop culture, and historic value.
• Some of these famous hotels are giant resorts, while others are smaller inns.

The US is packed with hotels known for being historic, haunted, or simply the best, but each state has only a handful that can be considered truly famous. 

Business Insider went state by state to find the most iconic hotel in each state, ranking places to stay based on criteria including architectural significance, historic value, celebrity sightings, relevance to pop culture, and local fame.

From expensive resorts to quaint inns, every state has a hotel that has stood out from the rest.

Keep reading to find out which hotel is the most famous in your state. 

ALABAMA: Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel & Spa, Mobile

Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel & Spa in Mobile, Alabama, has a long history. During the War of 1812, it was a military headquarters for Andrew Jackson. During the Civil War, the building also acted as a Confederate hospital.

Today, it's a popular hotel frequented by celebrities and politicians.

ALASKA: Hotel Captain Cook, Anchorage

Hotel Captain Cook in Anchorage, Alaska, is a luxury hotel in the Preferred Hotels & Resorts Worldwide brand. While it's often popular among celebrities, the hotel is also known to locals as a favorite place for weddings and large events. Locals also know it as the best spot to view the city and the Chugach Mountains.

ARIZONA: Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix

Famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright consulted on the design of Phoenix's Arizona Biltmore hotel in 1929. Since then, presidents, diplomats, and celebrities have all stayed at this hotel. The Wright Bar on the property is also the birthplace of the Tequila Sunrise.

The Arizona Biltmore features eight swimming pools, two 18-hole golf courses, seven tennis courts, and 740 guest rooms.

ARKANSAS: Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa, Hot Springs

The Arlington in Hot Springs has hosted hundreds of grand balls, survived a devastating fire, and welcomed some of the biggest names in history. For example, presidents like Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Bill Clinton have all stayed at this hotel. Celebrities like Babe Ruth, Barbra Streisand, and Yoko Ono have also checked in in the past.

CALIFORNIA: The Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills

The Beverly Hills Hotel opened in 1912 and has since become as famous as the city itself. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, some of the biggest stars stayed here. Elizabeth Taylor honeymooned at the hotel, and Marilyn Monroe was a frequent guest. Frank Sinatra enjoyed the Polo Lounge, which is still a favorite among celebrities. 

COLORADO: The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park

The Stanley Hotel is just minutes from the Rocky Mountain National Park and an hour outside Denver. The hotel is known as the inspiration for Stephen King's famous novel "The Shining." The book is set in a fictional hotel, called the Overlook, which is overrun with spirits. The Stanley Hotel is also said to be haunted, and guests can take tours to experience it for themselves.

CONNECTICUT: Mohegan Sun, Uncasville

Mohegan Sun opened in 1996, and people have been flocking to the resort's hotel, casinos, and live arenas ever since. The hotel has 1,563 rooms, two spas, and 45 restaurants.

It's also popular among celebrities. A-list stars come to Mohegan Sun to perform year-round, but they can also be spotted at the casino. Sarah Silverman, Margaret Cho, and Kevin Hart have all been seen on the premises. 

DELAWARE: Hotel du Pont, Wilmington

Hotel du Pont opened in Wilmington, Delaware, in 1913 and became internationally known for its grandeur. Built by French and Italian craftsmen, the hotel rivaled those in Europe and New York. Over the years, Hotel du Pont has welcomed A-listers such as Katharine Hepburn, John F. Kennedy, and Joe DiMaggio. 

FLORIDA: The Setai, Miami

The Setai in Miami Beach is known as a favorite among celebrities. Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Paris Hilton, Madonna, and Britney Spears have all been guests at the hotel. At one time, Lenny Kravitz had a recording studio at the Setai. 

Beyond the celebrities, the hotel is known for its Japanese-inspired decor and cuisine. 

GEORGIA: Four Seasons, Atlanta

In Midtown Atlanta, the Four Seasons hotel, which opened in the GLG Grand building in 1997, is known for its luxury accommodations, towering neoclassical structure, and its grand lobby.

The hotel, a celebrity hot spot, is also known for its cocktail bar, Bar Margot, its restaurant, Brasserie Margot, and its rooftop garden that gives views of the city.

HAWAII: Moana Surfrider, Waikiki

Moana Surfrider, a Westin Resort & Spa, was the first hotel built in Waikiki, dating back to 1901. As a result, the hotel earned the nickname the "First Lady of Waikiki."

The hotel became a popular destination for tourists and royalty, including King Charles and Lord Louis Mountbatten.

IDAHO: Coeur d'Alene Resort, Coeur d'Alene

Although Coeur d'Alene Resort is located on an alpine lake, has an infinity pool, and welcomes all types of guests, it's truly famous for two key features.

First, the hotel has the world's only floating green (pictured), which is a golf course that floats on Lake Coeur d'Alene.

Second, the hotel is famous for its Christmas light show, the largest in the US, featuring 1.5 million lights. Travel + Leisure named the hotel one of the best places to spend Christmas in the US. 

ILLINOIS: The Drake, Chicago

The Drake opened in Chicago on New Year's Eve in 1920. Over the years, the hotel has become a landmark in the city, attracting notable figures from around the world. Winston Churchill, Princess Diana, and Pope John Paul II have all checked into this hotel.

Others might recognize the hotel from famous movies like "The Blues Brothers" and "Risky Business."

INDIANA: West Baden Springs Hotel, West Baden Springs

West Baden Springs Hotel may be over a century old, but it's still earning praise for its famous lobby. The dome-shaped atrium is 200 feet wide and 6 stories tall. At one time, it was called the "Eighth Wonder of the World." US News & World Report named the hotel's lobby as one of the most beautiful in the country. 

Beyond the famous atrium, guests can also enjoy a spa, a golf course, and shopping at the West Baden Springs Hotel.

IOWA: Hotel Julien, Dubuque

Hotel Julien's fame dates back to the mid-1800s. Around 1830, Hotel Julien was called the Waples House and was known as the first building you'd see crossing the Mississippi River into Dubuque, Iowa.

Decades later, the hotel was once again catapulted into the spotlight when notorious gangster Al Capone checked in. He isn't the only notable name to visit the hotel. Abraham Lincoln, Mark Twain, and Buffalo Bill were all past guests. 

Guests can now experience the history of Hotel Julien by staying a night in the Al Capone-themed suite.

KANSAS: Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview, Wichita

The Drury Plaza Hotel Broadview opened in 1922. During the Prohibition era, its basement featured the only speakeasy in Wichita.

The hotel's Crystal Ballroom, constructed in 1948, includes a 1,500-square-foot mosaic designed by Blackbear Bosin, a Native American artist.

KENTUCKY: The Brown Hotel, Louisville

Built in the Georgian-Revival style in 1923, the Brown Hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Its first guest was Britain's former prime minister David Lloyd George — and the list of celebrity visitors didn't stop there. Jimmy Carter, Barack Obama, Muhammad Ali, Joan Crawford, and Elizabeth Taylor have all checked in. 

LOUISIANA: Hotel Monteleone, New Orleans

While Hotel Monteleone is a historic establishment in New Orleans, it's actually famous for its bar, which is a carousel that turns as customers drink cocktails. For 70 years, the carousel has been one of the city's biggest tourist attractions.

MAINE: The Bar Harbor Inn

The first iteration of the Bar Harbor Inn was built in 1887. Designed by William Ralph Emerson for use as an exclusive social club, it was visited by President William Howard Taft in 1910 and served as a Navy observation quarters during World War II before becoming a hotel in 1950.

David J. Witham bought the property and named it the Bar Harbor Inn in 1987. Its proximity to Acadia National Park makes it a popular destination for tourists in the coastal town.

MARYLAND: Kimpton Hotel Monaco, Baltimore

Kimpton Hotel Monaco is a boutique hotel housed in a former railroad headquarters in Baltimore.

Celebrities who have chosen the Kimpton Hotel Monaco as their accommodation of choice include Sade, Common, Melanie Fiona, and Robin Thicke, The Baltimore Sun reported.

MASSACHUSETTS: The Boston Park Plaza, Boston

The Boston Park Plaza, located near Boston Common and Public Garden, opened as The Statler Hotel in 1927.

Its founder, Ellsworth Milton Statler, envisioned the hotel as "a city within a city" with a barber shop in the basement, carpentry, print, and upholstery shops on the roof, and radios in every room.

It's now known as the Hilton Boston Park Plaza, after Hilton acquired the property in 2023, and it features a 20,000-square-foot health club and a golf simulator among other amenities.

Throughout the years, A-listers have checked in, including Katharine Hepburn, Judy Garland, Winston Churchill, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

MICHIGAN: Grand Hotel, Mackinac Island

The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Michigan, is famous for being over 130 years old. Opened in 1887, it was advertised as a summer getaway for people coming from Chicago, Montreal, and Detroit. 

In 1980, the hotel was the setting for the movie "Somewhere in Time." The film was shot at the hotel, which hosted the film's stars: Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, and Christopher Plummer. 

MINNESOTA: Saint Paul Hotel, St. Paul

The Saint Paul Hotel, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, is known as "St. Paul's Million-Dollar Hotel." Opened in 1878, the hotel was originally named The Windsor until it was turned into an arcade and theater.

In 1908, the Saint Paul Hotel officially opened in its place, and it has been attracting notables, including John F. Kennedy and Charles Lindbergh, for decades. 

MISSISSIPPI: Beau Rivage Resort and Casino, Biloxi

Located in Biloxi, Mississippi, the Beau Rivage Resort and Casino is known as the tallest building in the state, at 32 stories. The hotel has also been called the "crown jewel of the Mississippi Gulf Coast." 

The hotel has several restaurants, bars, and clubs that attract both guests and celebrities. 

MISSOURI: The Elms Hotel & Spa, Excelsior Springs

The history of The Elms Hotel dates back to the 1800s when the Excelsior Springs in Missouri were thought to heal illnesses. Quickly, a town popped up around the springs, creating homes and businesses. One of those businesses was The Elms Hotel. 

Throughout the years, the hotel caught fire and was rebuilt, all while attracting famous guests. Al Capone is said to have hosted gambling and bathtub gin parties in the rooms. Professional boxer Jack Dempsey and, later, the New York Giants were also guests. 

Today, the hotel continues to welcome guests, especially those interested in the building's history. 

MONTANA: The Ranch at Rock Creek, Philipsburg

The Ranch at Rock Creek in Philipsburg, Montana, is known as a luxury dude ranch, but the establishment is especially famous because it's considered one of the most expensive hotels in the US. During the peak summer months, prices range from $2,000 to $20,000 per night, according to the travel concierge site Top 50 Ranches.

That price includes access to the hotel's 6,000 acres of activities, including hiking, horseback riding, a ropes course, fly fishing, and rodeo.

NEBRASKA: Hotel Deco, Omaha

Hotel Deco, located in Omaha, is aptly named because of its art deco architecture and decor. Built in 1930 as an office building, it was eventually turned into a hotel in 1989.

Hotel Deco calls itself the only luxury boutique hotel in Omaha. It is included on the National Register of Historic Places and is a member of Historic Hotels of America, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Throughout the hotel, guests can find a blend of old and modern furnishings.

NEVADA: Caesars Palace, Las Vegas

Caesars Palace opened on the Las Vegas strip in 1966, becoming one of the most iconic hotels in the country. The hotel has hosted numerous iconic pop-culture moments, including Evel Knievel's famous crash, Muhammad Ali's fight with Larry Holmes, Frank Sinatra's concerts in the showroom, and Celine Dion's record-breaking residency. 

In the early 2000s, Caesars Palace jumped into the spotlight as the setting of the hit comedy "The Hangover." The iconic scene where the actors swim in the fountain solidified this hotel as the most famous in Nevada. 

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Wentworth by the Sea, New Castle

Since 1874, Wentworth by the Sea in New Castle, New Hampshire, has been dubbed the "Grand Dame by the Sea." It has also been called the "Ship Building" because of its nautical architecture.

The Wentworth by the Sea is notable because it hosted the signers of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, which ended the Russo-Japanese War and helped President Theodore Roosevelt earn the Nobel Peace Prize. 

NEW JERSEY: The Asbury Hotel, Asbury Park

The Asbury Hotel, known as the "Jewel of the Jersey Shore," is situated on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.

One of the hotel's star attractions is the Baronet, a 4,300-square-foot rooftop that hosts outdoor movie screenings. The hotel also has two well-known bars, Soundbooth and Salvation.

NEW MEXICO: The Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas

The Plaza Hotel in Las Vegas, New Mexico, has nothing to do with the famous hotel in New York, nor the famous city in Nevada.

New Mexico's Plaza Hotel is a historic hotel dating back to the 1800s. Through the years, the hotel has been featured in films like "Longmire," "No Country for Old Men," and "Easy Rider."

NEW YORK: The Plaza Hotel, New York

New York City's Plaza Hotel opened in 1907 and has remained an iconic destination on Fifth Avenue.

The hotel has been the setting for countless Hollywood movies like "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York," "Sleepless in Seattle," "The Great Gatsby," and "North by Northwest." Similarly, famous guests have passed through the halls of The Plaza, including Elizabeth Taylor, John Lennon, Liza Minnelli, Jackie Kennedy Onassis, and even The Beatles. 

NORTH CAROLINA: The Inn on Biltmore Estate, Asheville

The Inn on Biltmore Estate in Asheville opened in 2001, but the mansion was originally constructed by George Vanderbilt in the 1800s.

Built as a private residence for the wealthy Vanderbilt family, Biltmore Estate served as a social center of high society during the Gilded Age. Guests at the landmark hotel enjoy free admission to the mansion, which is now a public museum.

NORTH DAKOTA: The Hotel Donaldson, Fargo

The Hotel Donaldson, dubbed "HoDo," is a local landmark in downtown Fargo. The boutique hotel started as a lodge over 100 years ago. The building was revitalized in 2003 and now has 17 rooms, each highlighting a local artist.

OHIO: Hotel Cleveland, Cleveland

Hotel Cleveland opened in 1918 and underwent numerous name and ownership changes until Marriott added the property to its Autograph Collection as Hotel Cleveland and reopened the hotel in 2024 after a renovation.

Famous guests have included President Harry Truman, Eleanor Roosevelt, and The Beatles.

OKLAHOMA: The Skirvin Hilton, Oklahoma City

When the Skirvin Hilton opened in downtown Oklahoma City in 1911, it was the largest hotel in the Midwest with 225 guest rooms. Since then, the Skirvin Hilton has welcomed A-listers through its doors, including Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Harry Truman, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. 

OREGON: The Heathman Hotel, Portland

The Heathman Hotel has been known as an iconic landmark in downtown Portland since it opened in 1927. From the '30s to the '50s, the hotel was home to a radio station, KOIN, that welcomed some of the most famous names in music through its doors. 

Today, the hotel has been recognized on the list of Historic Hotels Worldwide. It's also known as the backdrop for the bestselling novel "50 Shades of Grey."

PENNSYLVANIA: Deer Head Inn, Poconos

While the Deer Head Inn in the Pocono Mountains has accommodations for short-term stays, the hotel is famous for an entirely different reason: It's the oldest continuously running jazz club in the US. Since 1950, some of the most popular jazz artists have performed at the inn, including Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, Keith Jarrett, and Phil Woods. 

RHODE ISLAND: Castle Hill Inn, Newport

Newport, Rhode Island, is known for its lavish mansions, but one stands out from the rest: Castle Hill Inn. The property was originally built in 1875 as the summer home of Harvard marine biologist Alexander Agassiz and served as a base for naval officers during World War II. After the war, it was turned into a hotel.

Castle Hill Inn was a favorite among celebrities, especially Grace Kelly, who stayed there while filming "High Society" with Frank Sinatra in the '50s. The private beach in front of the hotel is known as "Grace Kelly Beach" because she loved to visit it. 

SOUTH CAROLINA: Wentworth Mansion, Charleston

Located in Charleston, South Carolina, Wentworth Mansion is known for its Gilded Age architecture and decor. Completed in 1886, the hotel is filled with mahogany furniture and grand stylings. 

Travel + Leisure's readers voted Wentworth Mansion as one of their favorite hotels in Charleston in 2025.

SOUTH DAKOTA: Hotel Alex Johnson, Rapid City

Hotel Alex Johnson has stood in Rapid City, South Dakota, since the late 1920s. The hotel features Germanic Tudor-style architecture and Native American art, including a chandelier in the lobby made of war spears.

The hotel is also famous for reports of being haunted. Atlas Obscura reported that some guests have spotted a "Lady in White," the ghost of a bride who jumped out of one of the hotel's windows to her death. It's fitting, then, that Alfred Hitchcock stayed at this hotel when filming "North by Northwest" in the late '50s.

TENNESSEE: The Hermitage Hotel, Nashville

The Hermitage Hotel is known for being Nashville's first million-dollar hotel. Built in 1910, the hotel made a name for itself with its Beaux Arts architecture and design. The Italian and French finishings, the grand staircase, and the elaborate ballroom have been attracting famous guests for years. Babe Ruth, Johnny Cash, Charlie Chaplin, and Patsy Cline have all walked through the hotel's halls. 

TEXAS: Hotel ZaZa, Houston

Hotel ZaZa has locations in Dallas, Houston, and Austin.

The Texas hotel chain is known for its themed rooms, which include "Houston We Have a Problem," "Rock Star," and "Fatal Charms."

The unique hotel experience has attracted many A-listers, like Amy Adams, Michelle Williams, Lauren Conrad, Jessica Simpson, Victoria Beckham, and Pat Benatar.

UTAH: Amangiri, Canyon Point

Amangiri is located in the Utah desert, surrounding a 164-million-year-old rock formation. This minimalist five-star resort is also known as a celebrity hotspot. Kim Kardashian celebrated her birthday there in 2017, and model Emily Ratajkowski spent her honeymoon at the hotel. Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Gordon Ramsay, and John Travolta have also visited.

The hotel's offerings include slot canyon tours, water sports, rock climbing, and UTV off-roading.

VERMONT: von Trapp Family Lodge and Resort, Stowe

Many know the von Trapp family from the classic movie "The Sound of Music," but the family is real and owns the von Trapp Family Lodge and Resort in Vermont.

When the von Trapps traveled around the US, they decided to build a home in Stowe, Vermont, because the mountains reminded them of Austria. By the 1950s, they started welcoming guests into their home, eventually turning it into a hotel.

Today, the hotel is known for its Austrian architecture and its regular "The Sound of Music" sing-alongs.

VIRGINIA: The Jefferson Hotel, Richmond

Located in Richmond, Virginia, The Jefferson Hotel has been a city landmark since its opening in 1895. Its well-preserved Beaux-Arts-style architecture landed it on the National Register of Historic Places.

Through the years, several politicians and A-listers have entered The Jefferson Hotel. F. Scott Fitzgerald, Elvis, Frank Sinatra, and Barack Obama are just a few examples.

It's also said that the hotel's grand staircase was the inspiration for the one featured in "Gone With the Wind."

WASHINGTON: The Edgewater Hotel, Seattle

The Edgewater in Seattle is known as the city's only over-water hotel. It was built for the 1962 World's Fair and became a popular landmark when The Beatles stayed at the hotel during their US tour two years later. Other legends like Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Blondie, and Willie Nelson have also checked in. 

WEST VIRGINIA: The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs

The Greenbrier markets itself as "America's Resort," as people first started visiting the resort in 1778, shortly after the United States of America was founded. The hotel building was added in 1913.

Today, the resort is known for its Dorothy Draper decor and sprawling size.

Among its amenities, there are 10 lobbies, 96 guest houses, an 11,000-acre playground, and a 103,000-square-foot entertainment venue. There's also a golf course, as well as several bars and restaurants. 

WISCONSIN: The Pfister Hotel, Milwaukee

The Pfister Hotel was known as the "Grand Hotel of the West" when it opened in 1893. In addition to its Romanesque Revival architecture, the hotel is also famous for housing the largest collection of Victorian art of any other hotel in the world. 

WYOMING: Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone National Park

Old Faithful Inn is the most popular hotel in Yellowstone National Park, even though it's open for only a few months each year. Completed in 1904, it holds the distinction of being one of the largest log-built structures in the world.

Inside the log inn, guests can find a restaurant, a lounge, and a huge stone fireplace.

When our team came together to test a bunch of the best carry-on bags, I offered to test luggage from Quince. After all, I've tried almost everything else the brand makes — leather handbags, fine jewelry, suede loafers, you name it.

As I've shared in our Quince review, I don't love all of its dupes. However, this hardshell unit is a prime example of a great Quince product: it passes for a luxury brand suitcase, costs far less, and functions just the same with smooth spinner wheels and gliding YKK zippers. I got mine right before I flew to Las Vegas in 2024 and haven't used another suitcase since.

The design is similar to the fancy Away luggage I see pulled around by more experienced travelers than myself. Over the past two years, I've mostly been riding the Amtrak between New York City and New England. So for $130, I can't ask for much better.

Maneuvering it through the subway is easy

Before I got the Quince carry-on, I was using a two-wheeled suitcase for way too long. The 360° turn on its Hinomoto wheels really makes a huge difference. I can spin it around people who are getting on and off the subway, and the wheels glide down narrow, carpeted train hallways. I also like that the aluminum telescopic handle locks into a halfway position when I need to carry it up the platform stairs.

It can fit a week's worth of outfits

My roommate used this exact Quince carry-on for his weeklong trip to Paris, and it fit everything he needed. I tend to overpack, though — the 21-inch suitcase will fit me about six days' worth of casual clothing, shoes, and toiletries. Anything extra goes in my travel backpack.

The compartments inside help keep everything organized. On one side is a space for shoes and bulky items. On the other, there's room for clothing that can be packed down with compression straps. There's also a detachable laundry bag and a mesh insert where I store my underwear and socks.

How it's held up after two years

When I first started using this suitcase, I tossed it down a cement driveway five times to give it the airport treatment. The shell sustained some scuff marks, but there was no damage otherwise.

All the metal and plastic accents have held up well, too. In our household, the true test of an item's durability is whether it can survive our cat's chewing habit. So far, his tiny fangs haven't put a dent in it.

What I like about this hardshell's exterior is that the polycarbonate is lightweight and slightly flexible, so even when it's full to the brim, it caves in just enough that I can zip it completely closed. But it has never warped on me, so I'm confident it'll maintain its shape.

It looks a bit worn after two years of hard use, but I'm not precious about buffing the scratches out. If you prefer to keep yours looking pristine, you can use the foam eraser Quince includes with the suitcase, or shield it with a luggage cover.

Cons to consider

Quince doesn't clearly outline the terms of the "limited lifetime warranty" that comes with its luggage. The brand also has a too-good-to-be-true return policy. If you need to send it back within the 365-day grace period, make sure your payment method (whether that's PayPal, Apple Pay, or Google Pay) adheres to the same default refund period as Quince. Otherwise, you'll be stuck with a store credit instead of getting your money back.

Quince makes a similar version of this suitcase with a front pocket, which I also tested. While I personally liked the addition, the pocket does cut into the interior packing space and I think most people will find it isn't worth the trade-off.

The bottom line

After spending two years traveling with the Quince hardshell suitcase, I can say it's served me well. As a city dweller, the maneuverability comes into clutch each time I take it on the train, and the exterior can handle rough-and-tumble traveling. It's merely a bonus that it looks like a stylish, luxury-grade suitcase.

Shop all Quince luggage here.

• Keith Alan Pavlick, 53, is moving his parents into assisted living, which will cost $9,000 monthly.
• Pavlick's father has dementia, and Pavlick estimates memory care will cost $14,000 monthly.
• The caregiving and long-term care experience has taken up every second of Pavlick's life.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Keith Alan Pavlick, 53, who works as a real estate agent in Orlando. Pavlick plans to sell his parents' home by next month and move his parents into an assisted living community, which will cost about $9,000 monthly, not including insurance or other medical costs. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

There's a lot more than just the dementia diagnosis. There are a lot of things people don't think about that occur right around the time of a diagnosis, when the elderly person has accumulated bills that they didn't need or bought things that just take up space.

Much of this country has parents who are getting older. The reason we have Social Security and other programs in place is because there is a need for them. Unless you're starting out investing or you bought SpaceX at the IPO, then you're probably not going to be able to take care of your parents when they're that age by yourself. I'm probably going to be selling real estate until I'm dead.

We're supposed to take care of the people who took care of us when we were young, but it's hard on me right now.

My mom is my dad's caretaker right now

I work as a real estate agent in Orlando. I'm lucky that I make good money. I've had lots of deals and closings recently, but as far as new deals for the next month, those won't happen because I have to focus on my parents' situation.

My dad was a military man. He was in the Air Force doing top-secret military bombing runs in the Vietnam War. My mom, 79, and dad, 80, are both retired teachers, so they have a pension. My dad was diagnosed with dementia in March 2025. He's also a diabetic. In order for him to get the care that I need him to get, we have to transition him from his house into a facility. My mom is his caretaker at this time.

My mom has heart problems. She can still drive, but she's living in fear of what's going to happen to her husband and them financially. I know my mom is cognitively stronger than my dad.

He can't remember his name some days

He's declined so fast that it's alarming. A year ago, he was able to travel and remember things. Now, he can't remember his name or the day. He sometimes goes into "repeat mode," where he has to check the mail every 10 minutes for hours.

In some cases, older people in this situation are sold things that are predatory. In my parents' case, time shares were theirs. They signed a contract for this timeshare with $1,500 in monthly fees, so I'm in a fight with the timeshare about the costs because they sold it to him after he was diagnosed.

A few weeks ago, my dad decided that he was going to get chlorine for the pool, so he left. He took the car keys when my mom fell asleep, and he was gone all day. He couldn't find his way home. He ran out of gas at the gas station about 10 miles from the house. Police took him in the ambulance to the hospital, where they admitted him, and found that he had a case of shingles. He was in the hospital for a week recovering.

A few weeks later, he decided to go out again. I got into the car and made an assumption about which direction he would go. It was like trying to find a ghost. I was able to locate him. He recognized me and followed me home. At that point, I moved into their house.

There was so much hoarding

I knew they couldn't handle that house anymore. I am now taking on my family's entire assets, selling everything, and trying to get them into a situation where they can go into independent living. I plan to make about $25,000 on the closing of my parents' home.

This will probably be an eight-week adventure. There are lots of valuables in there, such as my dad's coin collection or a signed Salvador Dali lithograph, which I'm not comfortable selling. I had to sell my dad's gun that he's owned since the military. Over the last two weeks, I've thrown out over 60,000 envelopes and listed about 60 items on various platforms to sell. I'm hoping people will buy these for pennies on the dollar just to create some space.

They're lucky that their son's a real estate guy because not every family has somebody who can separate themselves from their life and do this sale. I hope there will be a small monthly stipend to help cover the facility costs. If they need extra, I'll have to pull from our family's resources.

I don't have time for my family and friends

My emotional state and my inability to do anything else are stunting everything else in my life. I don't get to see my wife and daughter. My niece is graduating in a few weeks, but I don't know if I'll get the chance to do that. I can't spend time with friends.

The way that they've been living is unacceptable, but a lot of facilities know that and know there are insurance companies that they can gouge. That's why their costs are so high. When you have a bad need for something, people tend to exploit you.

The assisted living facility will cost $9,000 a month for room and board. It's almost all of what their pension brings in. That cost is a discount because of my dad's military background, and I got a confirmation that they will never increase the cost for them while he's there. An independent living facility has a kitchen, appliances, and places where you can come and go, though he's not going to be able to stay in that for very long. If they pass away in the facility, at least I put them in a place that's pretty and clean, and they're taken care of.

That $9,000 number, though, is a mirage.

We looked all over the city and found one place we really liked that worked. The problem was, it's not a memory center. Eventually, my dad will not be able to stay there, because it'll get to the point where he's sitting on the couch, looking at the TV all day, not moving.

What's going to finance all of this is my mom and dad's financial growth over the years, and the little nest egg they've built with their house and collection that we're going to sell. We'll probably have to invest a bit of it somewhere, maybe in a life policy.

With current inflation, insurance costs will probably go up every month. He'll probably have to go to the memory center, where that $9,000 will jump up to $14,000.

It just seems like, with insurance, any time you need a memory, cognitive, or emotional test, you have to get a specialist and get it approved. By the time you get it approved, the condition will have gotten worse.

It's really important that we take care of our elderly, without having to jump through 60 hoops and getting 60 different answers from 60 different people.

• A version of this story originally appeared in the BI Tech Memo newsletter.
• Sign up for the weekly BI Tech Memo newsletter here.

At Anthropic's developer conference last week, I ran into Guillermo Rauch, CEO of AI startup Vercel. We started chatting, and the first company he mentioned wasn't Anthropic; it was Google.

Overall, demand for AI is off the charts, he said. But Google's models, in particular, are in demand amongst Vercel customers. Rauch even mentioned that he had to call a top Google executive recently to ask for more Gemini tokens, the core unit of AI usage.

While all the talk lately has been about Anthropic and OpenAI, Google's Gemini has been quietly gaining ground, he said.

You can see this on Vercel's AI Gateway, which lets companies connect their apps to different AI models through a single system. It's mainly used by AI startups, software companies, and enterprise product teams that run AI features like chatbots, coding assistants, search tools, and copilots.

Check out this chart. In March, Anthropic models led, based on the number of tokens (traffic) handled by Vercel's AI Gateway. In early April, Google's Gemini 3 Flash model jumped into the lead and has stayed there. And this is even before Google's big annual conference, I/O, which kicks off next week. The company is likely to unveil a host of more capable AI models, tools, and features. (I'll be there, so tune in next week).

Gemini Flash is less powerful than the full Gemini 3 model, but it's faster and cheaper to use. That makes it popular, especially among corporate customers of Vercel.

"Enterprise teams tend to pick Gemini Flash and Claude Haiku, the smallest, fastest, cheapest models each lab ships," Rauch told me. "Flash in particular is seeing strong B2C adoption because it doesn't hallucinate much, uses tools effectively, and it's fast and affordable."

In AI, the answers are never simple, though. There are other ways to measure success, such as how much users spend on models

"I'm often asked which lab is 'winning', but what we see in production looks nothing like the benchmark leaderboards," Rauch said. "AI Gateway reflects a variety of models winning different use cases."

By token use, Google clearly won in April. But, based on dollars spent, Anthropic led with 61% share. "Some models win on inexpensive, high-volume traffic. Others win on expensive, quality-critical work. They're solving different problems," Rauch explained.

OpenAI's spend share tripled from March to April (going from 4% to 12%) due to the launch of its new GPT-5.4 and 5.5 AI model series. Google climbed from 8% to 21%, based on dollars spent, as Gemini Flash usage scaled.

"A snapshot from any one month doesn't predict the next," Rauch warned.

That's especially true with Google I/O just around the corner.

Sign up for BI's Tech Memo newsletter here. Reach out to me via email at abarr@businessinsider.com.

• Series, a networking app focused on Gen Z, lives fully in iMessage.
• Founded by Yale students Nathaneo Johnson and Sean Hargrow, the startup raised $5.1 million.
• Read the pitch deck Series is sharing with investors as it raises its new funding round.

Once a day, I get a text message with 10 photos of random people looking for jobs, professional connections, or, on occasion, a new friend or date.

It's not LinkedIn or Tinder texting me. It's Series, a social networking startup that sends potential connections straight to its users' iMessage inbox.

"The whole goal of Series was to build a professional network where Gen Z lives, which is in their messages," Series CEO Nathaneo Johnson told Business Insider.

Building a social network layer on top of iMessage allows users to feel the "intimacy of having someone's phone number," but with a bit more privacy, he added.

If you want, you can share your direct contact info with someone you meet through Series. But the default is for you to reply to other users via Series' messaging service. That service lives within a single iMessage conversation, with distinct threads for replying to different people (and to the platform's AI chatbot).

The startup, cofounded by Yale students Johnson and Sean Hargrow, both 22, raised $3.1 million last March and recently announced it has closed another $2 million in funding. That brings the company's total pre-seed financing to $5.1 million.

Its investors include Venmo cofounder Iqram Magdon-Ismail, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman, and venture capital firms such as Uncommon Projects, Pear VC, and Parable Ventures.

The startup is also looking to raise additional capital, Johnson said. Series is targeting an 8-figure seed round.

The team is looking to further scale its platform and hire engineering talent with its targeted seed funding, Johnson added. Its pre-seed funding was used to hire its initial team — eight people — and bring the product to market.

Series deployed marketing stunts in the past year to grow its platform, including "hiring" a robot to accompany the founders as they pitched the platform to college students, filming a reality-TV-style series, and hopping on the trend of viral launch videos to stir buzz.

The top goal for Series, now, is "making sure we continue to grow the network as dense and as fast as we can," Johnson said.

A new way to network for the AI era

While people can use Series to find love or camaraderie, its main use case is young professionals seeking networking opportunities.

Johnson said the startup first branded itself as an "AI social network, which essentially is still true."

"But we realized we need to relatively niche down in the type of connections we were making," he continued, which meant doubling down on professional connections in its marketing and product development.

Series is one of several AI startups, including Gigi and Boardy, taking on LinkedIn by pitching that they can help people network better and faster.

If Series recommends someone who stands out, users can hold down on the photo and react like they would any iMessage content: using an emoji or directly replying. Users can also prompt the Series bot with what type of people they're looking for, such as startup founders or investors. The platform uses a third-party service that lets Series send and receive iMessages. Android users can sign up for Series, but Johnson said the experience is more limited via SMS text messages.

Series users no longer need a college email address to sign up.

As for monetizing, the service is free for now, and Series is considering enterprise options, such as offering its network as a hiring resource to companies or agencies.

Read the pitch deck Series is sharing with investors as it raises its seed round:

Note: Some slides and figures have been redacted.

Series dubs itself the 'professional network for Gen Z'

It starts the deck explaining how AI is a technological shift

It then outlines a problem: People don't always respond to DMs

It introduces Series as a network that is 'entirely on iMessage'

Then, it explains how the app works — using iMessage styling

Series then introduces its 8-person team

It also includes retention data points

Then, it includes a slide about its marketing strategy, which includes LinkedIn

Series tells investors it is 'pre-revenue by choice'

It ends the deck by sharing contact information and info about its pre-seed round

• As a mom and professional meal planner, I rely on one-pot recipes for easy, customizable dinners.
• I keep the ingredients simple and affordable, with each meal costing under $25.
• Some of my favorite meals to make are creamy pesto pasta and Italian-style orzo.

As a professional meal planner and busy mom, I rely on simple one-pot dinners to get flavorful, satisfying meals on the table quickly.

I especially love these recipes because they're easy to customize. For example, I'm vegan but my family isn't, and these dishes can easily be adapted to suit different dietary preferences.

These four quick and easy dinners take less than 30 minutes to make and are perfect for busy weeknights when I want something homemade, nutritious, and stress-free.

At under $25 per meal, they're also budget-friendly and require only a handful of ingredients.

My family can't get enough of this taco soup

Ingredients:

• One onion
• 12 ounces of vegan (or regular) ground beef
• 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning
• 3 cups of vegan broth
• 28-ounce jar of salsa
• 4-ounce can of diced green chiles
• Can of black beans
• Can of pinto beans
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil

This one-pot soup delivers all the flavor of taco night with none of the fuss.

I start by sautéing the chopped onion in olive oil. Then, I add the vegan beef and taco seasoning and cook until browned.

Next, I stir in the broth, salsa, and green chiles. I drain and rinse the cans of beans and add them to the pot. Once the mixture comes to a boil, I reduce the heat and let it simmer until slightly thickened.

I like to serve it with a DIY topping bar so everyone can customize their bowl. At my house, dairy-free sour cream, lime wedges, avocado, taco sauce, and chopped cilantro are always in the mix.

I'm always amazed by how easy this creamy pesto pasta is

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of penne pasta
• 24-ounce jar of marinara sauce
• 1 cup of pesto
• ½ cup of drained sun-dried tomatoes
• 8 ounces of vegan cream cheese
• ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup of basil leaves
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper

I've made this creamy, dairy-free pesto pasta dozens of times, and it still surprises me how flavorful and effortless it is.

I start by boiling the pasta according to the directions on the bag. While that's on the stove, I chop the sun-dried tomatoes.

Once the pasta is cooked and drained, I return it to the pot and stir in the marinara sauce, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, and vegan cream cheese until everything is smooth and creamy.

To finish, I season to taste with salt and pepper, then top with vegan Parmesan and torn basil.

My family can't get enough of this comforting, colorful dish.

This stir-fry is flavorful and packed with protein

Ingredients:

• One carrot
• Two cloves of garlic
• 1 tablespoon of sesame oil
• 14 ounces of firm tofu
• A bag of cauliflower rice
• 1 cup of mushrooms
• 1 cup of cooked edamame
• Six green onions
• ½ cup chopped peanuts
• A head of butter lettuce
• Stir-fry sauce

Stir-fry is one of my go-to meals because it's easy to customize, and this one delivers big flavor with minimal effort.

I start by sautéing the diced carrots and minced garlic in sesame oil. Then, I crumble in the tofu and cook it until it's golden and crispy.

Next, I stir in the cauliflower rice, sliced mushrooms, and cooked, shelled edamame. I finish with a generous drizzle of my favorite store-bought stir-fry sauce (any teriyaki-style blend works great).

To serve, I top it with sliced green onions and chopped nuts. We love eating it straight from the bowl — or spooning it into lettuce leaves for a nutritious, protein-packed wrap.

This Italian-style Orzo tastes like it came from a restaurant

Ingredients:

• Half of an onion
• Two cloves of garlic
• A jar of marinated bell peppers
• A can of artichoke hearts
• 1 cup of sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons of capers
• 3 tablespoons of tomato paste
• 1 cup of orzo
• 14 ounces of bruschetta
• A can of cannellini beans
• 2 cups of vegetable broth
• 3 cups of baby spinach leaves
• ½ cup of vegan ricotta
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 ½ tablespoons of Italian seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• Fresh basil leaves

This is my favorite way to elevate a simple orzo dish. Everything comes together in one skillet before finishing in the oven — and the result is impressive.

While the oven preheats to 400°F, I chop the onions, bell peppers, and artichoke hearts. I mince the garlic and cut the sun-dried tomatoes into thin slices.

Then, I add all the veggies to a pan with capers and Italian seasoning, and sauté the mixture in olive oil for about 5 minutes.

Next, I stir in the uncooked orzo, tomato paste, bruschetta, drained beans, and broth. Once it comes to a simmer, I transfer the skillet to the oven and bake the dish for 10 to 15 minutes.

To finish, I stir in the spinach and vegan ricotta, and top it off with fresh basil.

The final result is a hearty comfort meal that's totally restaurant-worthy.

This story was originally published on August 7, 2025, and most recently updated on May 15, 2026.

• Starbucks announced its latest round of corporate layoffs on Friday, slashing 300 jobs.
• It's the third round of cuts since February 2025, amid its "Back to Starbucks" turnaround strategy.
• Starbucks' restructuring reflects a broader trend of corporate cutbacks of white-collar jobs.

Starbucks continues cutting corporate staff as CEO Brian Niccol pushes ahead with a sweeping turnaround effort that has already reshaped parts of the coffee giant's business.

The company announced on Friday that it is eliminating about 300 US support roles and reviewing its international support organization, a move that could result in additional layoffs outside the US. Starbucks is also consolidating regional office space and reevaluating lease commitments to cut costs and streamline operations.

The cuts mark Starbucks' third round of corporate layoffs since February 2025 and underscore how aggressively Niccol has moved to remake the company since taking over in September 2024.

"We are taking further action under the Back to Starbucks strategy, building on our strong business momentum and working to return the company to durable, profitable growth," a Starbucks spokesperson said in a statement to Business Insider.

The spokesperson said company leaders reviewed their organizations to "sharpen focus, prioritize work, reduce complexity, and lower costs."

Starbucks expects to record about $400 million in restructuring charges tied to the changes, including roughly $120 million in severance costs and about $280 million in accounting charges tied largely to leased office space, according to details the company shared in an SEC filing.

The latest cuts build on a broader restructuring effort Starbucks has been undertaking in the last year. In February 2025, the company said it would eliminate 1,100 corporate support roles globally and cut several hundred open positions. A further 900 cuts were announced in September, alongside the closure of more than 400 coffeehouses.

Starbucks has also tightened return-to-office expectations, announced the opening of a new Nashville satellite office, and reorganized teams as it works to revive years of sluggish sales growth and improve efficiency.

Starbucks' restructuring mirrors a broader pullback across corporate America, where employers in retail, tech, and consumer industries have aggressively trimmed white-collar staff and are consolidating office operations.

At the same time, Starbucks' turnaround efforts are beginning to show results. In its April earnings report, the company reported that global comparable-store sales increased by 6.2%, and executives described the business as gaining momentum. Its stock was up more than 26% year to date before the latest job cuts were announced.

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert at ktl@businessinsider.com or Signal at byktl.50. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• When my husband and I left New York for London, we didn't know how our finances would change.
• Although London can still be pricy, we're saving money on groceries and budgeting better.
• That said, our utility bills are around the same, and public transit is slightly more expensive.

It's one of the first things I talk about with other American friends who now live in London: our quality of life in the UK.

Whether I'm chatting with someone from New York, California, or somewhere in between, there's often a shared sentiment that some things just feel better over here. Sometimes, a friend will point out the clean, efficient transit system or post-work pub culture.

When I really sat down to think about it, though, I realized how much of this magic comes down to the financial trade-offs that my husband and I made when we moved here from New York.

Although some changes may seem small or insignificant (so much so that I hardly noticed them at first), these differences added up to make my life all the better.

We live in an adorable 2-bedroom mews flat — and our rent feels manageable

I am absolutely obsessed with our beautiful little flat. It sits in a quiet, cobblestone mews, which are old, converted horse stables, right in the heart of London.

We are a three-minute walk from Hyde Park, steps away from a central tube station, and a 25-minute door-to-door train ride from the airport.

It is, in short, an absolute dream. We have two bedrooms and two full bathrooms, high vaulted ceilings, air conditioning, heated floors, lots of natural light, and a washer-dryer.

Our mews holds summer neighborhood parties, and I know all the families and couples around us. We do pay a bit more in rent than we did for my husband's tiny Manhattan studio, but it definitely feels like we're getting a whole lot more bang for our buck.

It's nice to have more space, and there's no way we could afford a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment with in-unit laundry back in Manhattan — especially not one near a major transit stop and park.

Most people get paid once a month, which completely changed how I budget and spend money

In the UK, most salaried employees are paid on the last working day of the month. Practically, that means you get a lump sum in your bank account at the end of each month, and everyone's a little more liquid at the start of the next month.

In the US, I was paid every other week. Although I actually preferred that system, I quickly noticed that my new setup made me more conscious of the ways I spend my money throughout the month — which started helping my wallet.

Watching my checking account tick down all month long as I spend money on dinners, groceries, and Ubers has inadvertently made me more intentional with my budget and spending.

Now, as I wait for my next paycheck to hit, I'll often opt for the tube or walk instead of taking a cab, or cook at home and bring lunch to work instead of getting delivery or eating out.

I haven't spent as much as I expected on flights back home

Deciding to move overseas in our late 20s and early 30s — during a season of friends' weddings, bachelorette parties, and new babies — is not for the faint of heart. I was expecting to have to spend lots of our disposable income flying back for important events and to see family.

As much as this has been the case, our friends and family have also been very eager to make the trip across the pond to see us, rather than the other way around. We've had over 30 visitors so far, who stop in when they're on vacation, traveling for work, or on their way to destination weddings.

The constant stream of guests means fewer trips back home. Plus, I have realized I love getting this special quality time with my loved ones when they visit and stay with us: slow morning coffees, brushing teeth together in our pajamas, long runs through Hyde Park.

It's those little in-between moments that get lost when you live in the same city and only meet for dinners or drinks before trundling back to your own apartments and homes.

Generally, my groceries also cost less

When I was back in New York recently, I popped out to the store to grab some oat milk and whole milk.

My jaw fully dropped at the cash register: The two jugs cost me over $15. I'd usually spend maybe 3 pounds, or about $4, for a similar haul back in London.

In my experience, London's grocery store prices generally tend to be lower than New York City's. Pantry staples like free-range eggs and whole milk are often a dollar or two cheaper, and I've noticed that these small differences really add up.

One of my favorite grocery savings is French butter. Président butter is under 4 pounds, about $5, at my local store. In New York, the same product would cost me up to $8 or $9.

Even post-Brexit, chic European imports like butter, wine, and cheese remain cheaper in my area than they were back in the States.

Of course, there are still parts of London life that feel expensive

Overall, living in London has felt more cost-effective for us than being in New York City. However, this isn't the case for everyone, and not everything here is a lower cost.

The tube is typically more expensive than the New York subway, and my utilities cost about the same.

Plus, salaries here tend to be lower (especially in my field), and our taxes are higher in London. I have been lucky enough that my corporate editorial job actually pays about the same as my New York-based magazine job, but more of my income goes toward taxes each month.

To be quite honest, though, I'm happy to pay a little extra each month if it means I can live in such a sparkling city.

• Paul Graham says Silicon Valley still beats Stockholm for ambitious founders worldwide.
• The YC cofounder said Silicon Valley investors move much faster than Europe's startup backers.
• Paul Graham says Stockholm could one day become Europe's Silicon Valley if these founders return home after.

Stockholm has become one of Europe's hottest startup hubs, producing fast-growing AI companies like Lovable, Legora, and Sana Labs.

Yet, Paul Graham says ambitious founders should still go to Silicon Valley.

"Should I go there?" the Y Combinator cofounder asked during a speech to founders in Sweden last month that was released on video on Wednesday. "Yes, you should. You can go there for a bit and then come back, but you should at least go."

Graham's message landed at a moment when Stockholm's startup ecosystem is attracting increasing attention from investors and founders. According to global data intelligence platform Dealroom, the Swedish capital was home to more than 1,800 startups as of 2025, with a combined enterprise value of $236 billion.

Still, Graham said Silicon Valley remains uniquely valuable because of its concentration of founders, investors, and engineers.

He compared Silicon Valley to historic centers of excellence like Paris in the 1870s for painting and Hollywood in the 1950s for movies, saying ambitious people throughout history have tended to relocate to wherever the best talent is clustered.

"What exactly do you get when you move to the big center?" Graham said. "You get the best peers."

'Investors in Silicon Valley decide a lot faster'

Graham said Silicon Valley also benefits from something many startup ecosystems struggle to replicate: the density of serendipitous meetings between ambitious people.

"There's nothing in the world that's better than serendipitous meetings with people who are working on the same stuff," Graham said.

He also said Silicon Valley operates at a much faster pace than most European startup ecosystems.

"Investors in Silicon Valley decide a lot faster," Graham said, adding that fierce competition forces venture capitalists to move quickly on promising startups.

He pointed to Dropbox as an example, recalling how a Boston venture capital firm spent months offering the startup advice without investing before rushing to send founder Drew Houston a term sheet with a blank valuation after Sequoia Capital became interested.

Graham also suggested the biggest advantage of spending time in Silicon Valley is psychological.

"You go there and you see these people and you think, 'Okay, I could do that,'" Graham said. "I could be like that guy if I worked as hard."

'The Silicon Valley of Europe'

Even so, Graham did not dismiss Stockholm's potential entirely.

He said founders who return home after spending time in Silicon Valley can strengthen local startup ecosystems by bringing back capital, networks, and startup culture.

Graham added that Stockholm could eventually become "the Silicon Valley of Europe" if enough founders return with that experience.

"That job is still up for grabs," Graham said. "All you need is a place founders want to live and a critical mass of them."

Some Swedish entrepreneurs are already moving back after careers abroad.

Patrik Torstensson, a former Meta engineering director, recently joined Lovable in Stockholm after more than a decade in Silicon Valley and London. He told Business Insider last month that he ultimately wanted to "give back to Europe and Sweden."

Lovable CEO Anton Osika has also said that Sweden's long-term thinking and tightly knit work culture are helping lure talent back from Silicon Valley and London.

• Who loves street food? Jensen Huang.
• The Nvidia CEO was spotted enjoying some noodles on a Beijing sidewalk after joining Trump's China trip.
• Huang has a history of visiting food markets on business trips.

Jensen Huang is known for many things: leading the world's most valuable company, his trademark leather jacket, and his love of street food.

The Nvidia CEO was spotted eating noodles on a Beijing sidewalk on Friday after accompanying President Donald Trump on his state visit to China.

"It's so good," Huang told a crowd of onlookers while tucking into the fried bean sauce noodles.

One clip of the moment shared on X racked up more than a million views by early Friday morning.

Huang was part of a delegation of business leaders — including Elon Musk, Tim Cook, and Larry Fink — who joined Trump for his meeting with China's leader, Xi Jinping, this week. Huang was not originally part of the exec group until Air Force One made a last-minute pit stop in Alaska to pick up the Nvidia CEO on Wednesday.

Huang is no stranger to diplomatic visits to China: Nvidia has faced US restrictions on the sale of its advanced AI chips to the country for nearly four years.

He's also no stranger to sampling street market food during his business travels.

Over the years, Huang has been spotted enjoying local cuisine at markets in cities such as Taipei, Taiwan, and Hanoi, Vietnam.

As Nvidia's market cap has soared — it's currently valued at $5.7 trillion — so too has Huang's celebrity. That's led to bigger crowds flocking to see the CEO when he dines out, as demonstrated when his fried chicken meal with the heads of Samsung and Hyundai was crashed by photographers in South Korea last year.

Huang also likes to mix business and food out of the public eye. Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, said in 2024 that the Nvidia boss once invited him to his house to cook cheesesteaks.

Perhaps it's not surprising that Huang is a foodie. The idea for Nvidia famously came from Huang and his cofounders, Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem, over coffee and pancakes at a Denny's in San Jose, California — something that the company paid homage to with pop-up Denny's stalls at its GTC conference last year.

One thing that didn't seem to be on the menu during Trump's China state visit was announcements about AI or semiconductors.

Jamieson Greer, the US trade representative, said in a Friday interview with Bloomberg that US export controls ‌on semiconductor chips were not a major topic of discussion with Chinese officials in Beijing.

Reuters, citing unnamed sources, reported on Thursday that the US had cleared about 10 Chinese firms to buy Nvidia's H200 chips, but added no sales had yet taken place.

Huang has previously made clear his appetite for the Chinese market, calling it a $50 billion opportunity.

• I moved from Paris to Florida 10 years ago.
• I'm raising my daughter, now 8, in the US.
• I wasn't prepared for how differently people parent here.

I grew up in France, and before moving to Fort Lauderdale 10 years ago, I had no idea how different it was to raise a child in the US. I tried to make some adjustments to fit better into American culture, but there were some French parenting norms I just couldn't let go of.

My daughter learned table manners at age 3

For the French, what we eat is as important as how we eat. When my daughter was 3, I taught her to sit up while eating without resting her elbows on the table, holding her fork in one hand and her knife in the other. Being French, I see it as a way to show respect to others. I also find it more pleasant to be around people who eat nicely.

Every time I go to the restaurant, I notice that American parents have a more casual approach. My daughter doesn't understand why other kids are allowed to eat with their fingers and chew with an open mouth, but she isn't. I stand firm on the matter because I believe she will have better opportunities in life if she has good manners.

I don't give her extra screen time or reward her for chores

My daughter, now 8, has a lot of spare time after school and on the weekends to do what she wants, including screen time. However, I set clear limits. She can only watch 45 minutes of television daily. She doesn't have a phone or a tablet, and she isn't allowed to use mine to access the internet. In the pediatrician's waiting room, she is the one holding a book instead of a phone.

I don't reward her with additional screen time, even for good grades at school, whereas her friends are granted more time on their devices. In fact, I never offer her incentives to do anything, though it seems Americans are more likely to do so.

My daughter told me that her friends receive money for setting the table or putting away the dishes. I prefer to establish clear boundaries. I explained to her that it is her responsibility to help at home and that there is no incentive to do so. She knows that if she doesn't help, I will be disappointed, which she doesn't want. Now, she sets the table without me asking.

At gatherings, I have noticed that some parents regard me with curiosity when they see my daughter sitting quietly next to me, while their kids are racing around the tables. They probably perceive me as too strict.

I avoid over-praising my daughter

I admire the time and energy that my American friends devote to fostering their children's self-esteem. They never miss sports practice to encourage and support them, whereas I just drop my kid off and go do something else.

At the library, I regularly witness young children making ordinary scribbles. Their American moms always compliment them as if they were Picasso: "That's fantastic; you're very talented!"

I don't give overly positive feedback to my child, especially when she rushes through a drawing with minimal effort. When she returns from school with an A, I just say, "Good job on your hard work," while many of her classmates get gifts and lots of praise from their moms.

I want my daughter to be confident, too, but I worry that overconfidence can inhibit self-reflection and improvement. To help her believe in herself, I focus on independence.

Overparenting is not for me; I prefer to rely on independence

Ever since she was very little, I have tried to encourage my daughter's independence and pushed her to do things on her own. I think that builds her confidence, and it also allows me to have more time for myself.

At six months, she slept alone in her bed without waking us through the night. At 4, she tied her shoelaces and got dressed for school by herself, which gave me more time to get ready. At 8, she manages her homework without my supervision. It teaches her to be responsible for her actions. If she doesn't complete it, she receives a failing grade, something she strongly dislikes.

Now that I live in the US, I realize that helicopter parenting really exists. Many parents here supervise their children rather than let them do things on their own. My friends closely monitor homework, even when it overwhelms them and their kids.

In our competitive society, I understand parents' desire to help, especially with assignments. However, that approach doesn't suit me. I prefer to spend the time I dedicate to my child at the beach, laughing, rather than reciting multiplication tables.

There is no right way to parent, and raising a kid in a country with another culture has not always been straightforward for me. But our family has so far found a balance between French and American parenting that works for us, although my daughter feels a stronger connection to American culture.

• Mark Cuban said getting fired early in life helped teach him how to become a better entrepreneur.
• The billionaire said jobs he hated taught him valuable lessons about leadership and business.
• Cuban said entrepreneurs only need to succeed once after repeated failure in business.

For some workers, getting fired can feel like a career-ending setback. For billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban, it became one of the most valuable business lessons of his life.

During a conversation released Friday with former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher, the former Dallas Mavericks owner reflected on the early jobs he lost before building his first successful company, MicroSolutions.

"I got fired from jobs and I realized I wasn't a very good employee," Cuban said.

Cuban said the problem wasn't that he lacked skills but that he often clashed with managers because he thought he knew better than they did.

"I didn't get fired because I didn't know what I was doing," he said. "I got fired because I was like, always trying to do too much, or I thought I was too smart."

The former "Shark Tank" investor said those experiences ultimately became some of the most valuable lessons of his career.

"I learned more from the jobs that I hated," Cuban said. "As an entrepreneur, I learned what not to do."

Lessons from bad jobs

Cuban grew up in a working-class family in Pittsburgh and spent his teenage years hustling through a long list of jobs. He sold garbage bags door-to-door, worked behind the counter at Isaly's, laid carpet, and worked as a box boy at a discount store downtown.

He said every role, even the ones that ended badly, taught him something.

"I always looked at it — it wasn't a great job, but I was getting paid to learn, and I learned a lot," Cuban said.

That mindset became especially important after he was fired and decided to start MicroSolutions, the software company he founded in the 1980s and sold in 1990 for $6 million.

"When I finally got fired from a job and started my first real company, MicroSolutions, I knew I didn't know everything, there was a lot I needed to learn," Cuban said. "But I learned some things about what not to do from the bosses that fired me."

The billionaire said failure and setbacks are unavoidable in both business and life, but entrepreneurs shouldn't let them stop them from taking risks.

"It doesn't matter how many times you fail," he said. "You only gotta be right one time."

What experts say you should do after getting fired

Cuban's comments come as many workers grapple with job insecurity in a cooling labor market shaped by layoffs, AI disruption, and rising performance expectations.

Career coaches and labor experts told Business Insider earlier in 2026 that, when getting fired, workers should avoid reacting emotionally, take time to process the setback, and focus on what they can learn from the experience rather than letting the loss define their career.

For Cuban, setbacks ultimately became part of the learning curve that helped shape his career.

"For entrepreneurs specifically, I tell them, and this is from [legendary college basketball coach] Bobby Knight, I stole it for him: Everybody's got the will to win, but it's only those with the will to prepare that do win," Cuban said.

• US soldrers in Lithuania trained to identify drones by the sound of their buzz overhead.
• The Army exercise also tested combat movement under constant drone presence.
• Troops practiced fighting in skies crowded with drones, jammers, and other sensors.

During a recent US Army counter-drone exercise along NATO's eastern edge, American soldiers worked on developing a new skill: listening for the distinct buzz of drones overhead.

The Project Flytrap exercise in Lithuania saw a company of US soldiers training with drones, counter-drone systems, and electronic jamming tools in a force-on-force event against their British counterparts.

One of the goals of the exercise was to replicate the tactical messiness of modern drone warfare outside the sterile training environments the military often inadvertently creates for itself, soldiers from the Army's 2nd Cavalry Regiment said during a Thursday media roundtable with reporters.

Sgt. 1st Class Tyler Harrington, a 2nd Cavalry platoon sergeant whose team worked on counter-drone tactics during the exercise, said that the presence of adversarial drones forced soldiers to change up their thinking and tactics, shifting how they move and what they pay attention to.

"All of a sudden, you hear buzzing," Harrington said. "No longer am I just scanning to my 12 o'clock and around me at a ground level."

The lesson was not just that drones are a prolific threat on the modern battlefield, but that soldiers need to treat the sky above them as a potential source of danger and be attuned to those threats.

The 2nd Cavalry Regiment, an Army Stryker brigade based in Europe, is a hotbed for Army experimentation and modernization efforts. The unit, for instance, recently tested new communications methods and uncrewed ground vehicles for possible casualty evacuations.

During the recent exercise, Harrington's small group began learning how to identify different drones based only on their sound. That is not a service-wide tactic, but rather a skill that his unit is exploring.

One-way attack drones, from quadcopters to octocopters to loitering munitions, sound different than other battlefield munitions. Moving swiftly across the battlespace, the often propeller-driven weapons buzz and whiz in ways that other systems do not. Harrington said listening to those drone signatures has kick-started newly developed team response drills.

The Pentagon has been aggressively pushing drones and counter-drone tools while still working through the necessary policies and practices for training troops effectively and realistically. Drones and electronic warfare training can be limited by airspace regulations, electromagnetic spectrum restrictions, safety concerns, and the practical difficulty of recreating a battlefield crowded with friendly and enemy drones.

For soldiers with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, the challenge was not simply destroying enemy drones but learning how to maneuver in a battlespace filled with both friendly and hostile uncrewed aircraft, jammers, and sensors. It can be difficult in the chaos of battle to distinguish one drone from another, and electronic warfare can jam a friendly drone as easily as an adversarial one.

The exercise also tested how drone systems hold up under factors like human exhaustion and weather conditions.

"How do these things work through a long-duration battle period against a living, breathing, thinking enemy?" Lt. Col. Jason Kruk, commander of the regiment's 2nd Squadron, said during the roundtable. "How do they work after 8, 12, 36 hours straight?"

That stress was complicated by local weather that could quickly turn from sunshine to snow or sleet, conditions that can make drone operations more challenging.

Army officials declined to specify which drone or counter-drone systems soldiers used during the training.

It's time start thinking about your outdoor space. Patio season is fully here, and outdoor furniture sells out faster than you might expect once warm weather hits, especially popular dining sets, sectionals, and Adirondack chairs, as people want to spend more time enjoying their outdoor living spaces.

Here's where to begin, because designing your outdoor spaces will take some thought. Beyond considering sizing, budget, and decor style, you'll need long-lasting furniture that holds up against the elements: think durable and rust-proof foundations with water- and UV resistant fabrics. We compiled a list of the best places to shop for outdoor furniture, whether you're furnishing a sprawling deck to a tiny balcony. We've considered retailers that fit every budget, style preference, furniture type, and environmental needs. Keep reading to discover which trusted retailers made our list, the latest deals to outfit the space for less, and the types of outdoor materials to consider first.

Our top places to shop for outdoor furniture

Best overall: Polywood

Polywood offers durable, low-maintenance outdoor furniture made from weather-resistant HDPE lumber. Its wide selection, classic styles, and strong warranties make it a reliable choice for most patios and climates.

Best budget: Wayfair

Wayfair has one of the largest selections of affordable outdoor furniture, with options across nearly every style, size, and material. They frequently have sales and fast delivery.

Best for fast shipping: Amazon

Amazon is a convenient option for outdoor furniture you need quickly, especially smaller pieces like bistro sets, chairs, side tables, and patio accessories. Prime shipping and customer reviews also make it easier to narrow down choices fast.

Best modern outdoor furniture: CB2

CB2 is best for sleek, design-forward outdoor furniture with a contemporary look. Its collection leans polished and elevated, making it a strong pick for modern patios, balconies, and entertaining spaces.

Best for sustainable outdoor furniture: Outer

Outer emphasizes durable materials, thoughtful design, and sustainability-minded features, including recyclable materials and long-lasting construction. Its weather-ready sofas and seating are especially good for shoppers who want stylish furniture built to last.

Best coastal outdoor furniture: Serena & Lily

Serena & Lily is a go-to for breezy, coastal-inspired outdoor furniture with a polished, upscale feel. Its pieces are best for shoppers who want relaxed resort-style design and are willing to invest more.

Best outdoor furniture for small spaces: Target

Target offers affordable, compact outdoor furniture that works well for balconies, small patios, and porches. Its Threshold and Opalhouse collections include stylish bistro sets, accent chairs, and space-saving pieces at accessible prices.

Polywood

When Polywood started out of a garage in 1990, it became the first company to produce outdoor furniture from recycled plastics. Polywood lumber is made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic that mimics the look of wood. It's made with a 99% waste-free process.

Polywood's first design was an Adirondack chair, and while it remains one of their most popular pieces, they've given it some modern updates, as seen in the Polywood Modern Curveback Adirondack Chair. In addition to traditional wood tones, the chairs are available in several vibrant colors. 

We tested the Polywood Acadia 6-piece Lounge Sofa Set. The water-resistant set came in so many color options. The cushions repelled water well and the set required little maintenance. And it's comfortable for hours of backyard lounging. If you'd like to see Polywood in person, many authorized retailers carry parts of the line in showrooms.

Read our full Polywood furniture review.

Outer

Co-founded by Jiake Liu and Terry Lin, the latter a former designer for IDEO (Pottery Barn), Outer has made waves with its outdoor furniture made largely from recycled materials, but it's a high-quality option that our reviewer of a teak sofa dubbed a "buy it for life" set. In addition to its signature outdoor sofas, the brand also offers outdoor rugs, coffee and dining tables, lounge chairs, and a fire pit.

Outer offers collections in weather-resistant wicker, teak, or aluminum, depending on your budget and/or material preference. Eschewing product names, simply dubbed the modular sofa, you can see all the materials in the sofa configurator. The teak and aluminum sofas have a more slim frame, while the polyethylene wicker is boxier. The memory foam cushions are encased in Olefin fabric, which is water, mold, mildew, and stain resistant. The brand is distinctly unique for its OuterShell design, an integrated water- and UV-resistant cover that protects furniture from rain, pollen, and dust when not in use.

One of our favorite things about Outer are its use of "neighborhood showrooms'' so prospective shoppers can get a hands-on experience through already-satisfied customers within their neighborhood, who then receive compensation for the showing. Large scale furniture such as sofas and tables can take up to eight weeks for delivery and is arranged through scheduled freight shipping, which includes setup.

Read our full Outer furniture review.

Wayfair

Wayfair has more on offer than we could ever keep track of — gazebos, pergolas, sheds, hot tubs, sectionals, grills, and outdoor fireplaces, as well as all the outdoor decor and accents your heart desires. There are thousands of products in stock and ready to ship, and at all price points. If you can't find what you're looking for here, you may have bigger problems. The Wayfair Verified tag highlights products that have been personally vetted for quality control by Wayfair, while easy shopping filters help you narrow down results if you know what seating capacity you're looking for.

The online retailer carries patio furniture from its own private lines as well as options from renowned companies like Summer Classics, Sunbrella, Blu Dot, and Polywood.

CB2

CB2 furniture has a distinct look and also offers exclusive collaborations with designers and tastemakers. For instance, this season we're loving the metal wireframed Costa Collection with Sunbrella fabrics that oozes art deco glamour, dreamt up by Australian design firm, Vuue. We're also enamored with the channeled teak details of the Topia Collection, from Barcelona's Mermelada Estudio.

CB2 has widespread showroom availability to get inspired in person and free design services. Most pieces are delivered via white glove delivery and in-home set up.

Cozey

Cozey has been one to watch if you're looking for mid-priced, modular furniture. Cozey has two main outdoor sofa styles: a minimalist powder-coated aluminum frame and a chunky wicker design with hidden storage. Both are modular and can be configured in a numbers of ways with adds-on like an ottoman or in-line table. Cozey rounds out its small but impactful outdoor selection with a coffee table, dining set, outdoor rugs and pillows, and storage covers.

We recently tried the Shinuk, the aforementioned outdoor sofa with storage, and our reviewer appreciated the watertight storage compartments that kept contents dry. She also found the firm, yet well constructed cushions, comfortable for hours on end. The cushions haven't faded under the sun and are water resistant, too. Due to the modularity, each pieces ships separately in a box and took a few hours to put together. At this time, no in home set up options are available, but shipping is free.

Read our Cozey Shinuk review.

Amazon

You can find every type and variety of outdoor furniture and home decor on Amazon: garden benches, side tables, outdoor chaise lounges, rocking chairs, porch swings, Adirondack chairs, you name it. Amazon does an especially great job at offering big patio sets — with sectionals, cushions, tables, and chairs — for a decent price.

We've tried a number of different Amazon-based brands for outdoor furniture and have been thoroughly pleased so far. A gamble on a $560 sectional sofa turned out to be the perfect addition to a screened in porch (Read our Lausaint sofa review.) Meanwhile this $100 bistro-style set of folding tables and chairs was a perfect dupe for this a Fermob set when we weren't prepared to spend $500 on a small outdoor table and chairs.

Article

You'll find clean lines and stylish mid-century modern outdoor furniture at Article. In the simplest of terms, they've made outdoor patios look as cool and chic as living rooms, with a commitment to value and good design.

We love their statement outdoor pieces like the Bixby Ochre Brown Side Table, especially matched with more traditional midcentury furniture designs like the Laholm Dravite Ivory Sofa or the low-slung armless Lubek Loveseat. Expect many of the chairs and side tables to have mid-century tapered legs, low couches and chairs with wood, woven, and metal elements, rounded edges, and fun pops of colors like the Skane Green Coffee Table. Article is the way to go if you're aching to elevate your outdoor patio and impress your friends.

Article has no showroom availability but they do offer free interior design services.

Yardbird

Yardbird was founded by a father-son duo in 2017 that paired great outdoor design with sustainable options.  In 2022 alone, the direct-to-consumer brand repurposed over 430,000 pounds of plastic into its furniture. It also now has a number of showrooms and partnerships with select Best Buy locations to view its furniture in real life. 

Backed by three-, five-, and 10-year warranties on defects, Sunbrella fabrics, and frames, respectively, the brand offers handmade furniture that can stand shoulder to shoulder with pieces by companies charging twice as much.

We can't stop eyeing the handwoven wicker sectional sofas, that look like rattan, but are weatherproof thanks to the fact that they're made from much more durable recycled plastic.

The brand also offers teak dining furniture, which, it goes without saying, is not made from recycled plastic collected from the oceans. It will cost you about as much as it would anywhere else, but you'll also get that great warranty we mentioned.

Ballard Designs

Ballard Designs has come a long way since its inception in 1983 as a humble mail-order business, but the brand has stood the changing tides of the commerce market through the Home Shopping Network and into the internet era.

Offering classic chaises, dining sets, swings and daybeds, and even custom pieces, Ballard Designs does it all. There's classic weather-ready cast-aluminum furniture, which looks and withstands weathering just like wrought iron but weighs a fraction, to traditional wicker styles with an air of coastal elegance.

The brand does a great job with classic, romantic-style pieces like the Cape Town Outdoor Sofa with sunbrella cushions. Here's also a fresh take on a rocker-style chair, featuring a teak wood frame with a resin basketweave stretched across.

The Home Depot

The Home Depot is all about home improvement, and once you've invested in one of the best grills, it's also a one-shop stop for improving your outdoor spaces with their wide range of budget and mid-priced patio furniture. They've got a diverse selection of patio sets from their own private labels like Hampton Bay and Stylewell, to brands like Polywood or Hanover Home. 

Home Depot really shines in table seating and multi-piece sets made of wicker, plastic, wood, or iron, like the $650 Hampton Bay Newshite 4-Piece Wicker Patio Conversation Seating Set, which includes a sofa, two accent chairs and ottomans, and a coffee table for a fraction of what we've seen from sets offered by Outer or Polywood.

Expect a lot of classic or farmhouse styles or simple outdoor pieces. Not to mention a plethora of outdoor accessories like rugs, lanterns, umbrellas, and fire pits—it's an outdoor living mecca. Plus, it's not uncommon for The Home Depot to offer discounts and sales on its patio furniture. 

In addition to patio design ideas, they have a plethora of how-to articles like how to hang your hammock, videos on small space patio sets, and even how to clean and store outdoor furniture. 

Serena & Lily

Serena and Lily is high-end coastal living done right. If you're looking for outdoor furniture that can weather winter, spring, summer, and fall, you'd do well with Serena and Lily. From outdoor friendly bistro chairs part of the iconic Riviera collection to weatherproof upholstery of the Paros collection, offering crisp, clean lines accentuated with contrast piping.

Think wooden furniture with crisp white accents and plush pillows, and substantial lounge sets woven with thick, dyed acrylic that won't give way to sun and salt anytime soon. Couple with durable outdoor rugs or unique umbrellas for a look that comes straight out of a catalog.

Burrow

We're big fans of Burrow's easy-to-assemble and modular furniture that adapts to your needs and space, and think it's one of the best places to buy a sofa. Burrow released its first outdoor collection in 2023, and currently offers four coordinating collections across outdoor seating and dining.

We tried a Relay Sectional Set, a four-piece sectional with the option to add an ottoman or a coffee table. Each piece took only a few minutes to assemble, and we were able to try several different arrangements before we found the perfect setup for our patio (the sections lock in place with included metal clamps). Each seat ships individually in its own box, but if you don't want to deal with the fuss of set up, Burrow offers assembly on some large items for just $49. We love that we can shrink, expand, or reconfigure the couch, and don't have to worry about whether it'll fit into whatever space we move to next. The seating is comfortable and the fabric is weather-resistant and durable. Burrow's outdoor collection is a worthwhile investment, especially if you tend to move around a lot.

Read our full Burrow outdoor furniture review.

Target

From hammocks to outdoor fire pits to beautiful patio dining sets, Target offers an array of outdoor furniture for any size space, especially small space outdoor furniture, from its own brands and national ones, like this cute Threshold conversation set. You'll find more smaller pieces like dining chairs and loveseats than larger seating collections. Though, Target really shines with its accent pieces to add character to an outdoor space and complement existing decor or furniture, like throw pillows and planters. Its patio accent tables start at under $30.  

Frontgate

Frontgate carries commercial-grade bistro furniture that can withstand years of restaurant life. In fact, most of their outdoor furniture is backed by a 10-year warranty.

The high-end furniture brand has a timeless European-inspired design, with many customizations available from frame materials (teak, aluminum, wicker) to fabrics. Frontgate also offers three different types of cushions: standard, Sunbrella, and Quick-Dry, which offer varying protection in terms of dry time and water resistance.

The variety is robust, with over 40 outdoor collections. We'd love to gather around for al fresco dining around the Isola teak dining table with white-washed wicker chairs or lounge around by the pool on the Montoro Daybed.

The product assortment also includes outdoor decor and accessories, from heat lamps to outdoor games and recreation. There's also a large selection of outdoor storage furniture, dozens of rugs, and bistro tables and chairs. 

World Market

Patio furniture doesn't have to cost a fortune, and World Market's lounge sets and outdoor accent tables are a testament to that. Still, you're getting quality goods, and while the prices are already fair, there's almost always a sizeable sale happening. And, if you're looking for Adirondack chairs, this site is probably one of the more affordable places to find them. We're particularly drawn to this funky cutout cement side table or stool as an accent piece or these lightweight plastic stacking chairs available in several vibrant colors.

Through the "shop the room" feature, you can browse themes and aesthetics along the lines of Modern Geneva or Colorful Cove which are tidily curated, fun, and extremely helpful for when you're not quite sure what to get.

West Elm

West Elm offers a plethora of modern outdoor furniture made of sustainably sourced weather-resistant materials. Whether you're looking for wood, wicker, aluminum, or steel, it can be found at West Elm. Many products are contract grade, too, meaning it has enhanced durability that can handle hospitality levels of use.

West Elm offers various outdoor lounge and dining collections from modern farmhouse-inspired or bohemian woven wicker to colorful, sleek metal furniture. We just want to lounge up in the Porto Outdoor Swivel Chair. Pair with various decor like pillows, planters, and umbrellas and entertaining pieces like melamine serveware. The Cami Ceramic Side Table adds texture, visual interest, color, and a resting space to place a cold beverage without worrying about water rings.

How we chose the best places to buy outdoor furniture

To make our list, we considered selection, material quality, delivery options, return policies, warranties, price range, in-person availability, and when available, our team's firsthand testing. We've frequently shopped from these retailers or have tried outdoor products or large furniture pieces from these brands and retailers.

What to consider

Material

Look for materials that match your climate, maintenance preferences, and budget. Aluminum is lightweight and rust-resistant, teak is durable but expensive, HDPE/poly lumber is low-maintenance, and resin wicker is stylish but best when it's high quality or used in covered areas. These are some of the most common materials.

Material	Pros	Cons	Best for
Aluminum	Lightweight, rust-resistant, easy to move	Can blow around in wind; may get hot; quality varies	Dining sets, lounge chairs, rainy or coastal climates
Teak	Highly durable, naturally weather-resistant, classic look	Expensive; turns gray if untreated; heavy	Investment pieces, dining tables, benches
HDPE / Poly Lumber	Durable, low-maintenance, moisture- and fade-resistant	Heavy; can be pricey; plastic-like look	Adirondack chairs, year-round outdoor use
Wicker / Resin Wicker	Stylish, lightweight, comfortable with cushions	Natural wicker isn’t ideal outdoors; low-quality resin can crack or fade	Covered patios, conversation sets
Steel / Wrought Iron	Strong, sturdy, good for windy areas	Can rust if coating chips; heavy; may need cushions	Traditional patios, budget-friendly dining sets
Acacia / Eucalyptus	Attractive, more affordable than teak	Needs regular sealing; less durable than teak	Budget-friendly wood furniture, covered spaces
Concrete / Stone	Very durable, modern, stable	Hard to move; can stain or crack in freeze-thaw climates	Tables, modern patios

Size and layout

Measure your patio, deck, balcony, or yard before buying, and leave enough room to walk around furniture comfortably. For small spaces, look for bistro sets, folding chairs, nesting tables, or compact loveseats. For larger areas, sectionals, dining sets, and conversation sets can help define zones.

Use case

Think about how you'll actually use the space. If you host meals outside, prioritize a dining table and comfortable chairs. If you mostly relax or entertain casually, look for sofas, sectionals, lounge chairs, or a conversation set. For poolside setups, chaise lounges and quick-drying cushions may be more useful.

Weather resistance

Check whether frames, cushions, and finishes are designed to withstand sun, rain, humidity, wind, or salt air. Powder-coated aluminum, teak, HDPE, and performance fabrics tend to hold up better outdoors, while some woods and natural wicker need more protection, and are better suited for covered spaces.

Cushion quality

Look for removable, washable covers and outdoor-rated fabrics that resist fading, mildew, and moisture. Quick-drying foam or cushions with drainage are especially helpful if the furniture will be exposed to rain.

Storage needs

Consider whether the furniture can stay outside year-round or needs to be stored during bad weather or the off-season. Stackable chairs, folding pieces, furniture covers, and modular designs can make storage easier.

Weight

Lightweight furniture is easier to move and rearrange, but it may not be ideal for windy areas. Heavier materials like teak, steel, wrought iron, concrete, and HDPE are sturdier but harder to move or store.

Warranty and return policy

Outdoor furniture can be expensive and bulky to return, so check the warranty, return window, shipping fees, and restocking fees before buying. A strong warranty can be especially important for high-cost materials like teak, HDPE, or premium outdoor sectionals.

Assembly and delivery

Large outdoor sets may require freight delivery, assembly, or longer lead times. Before purchasing, check whether delivery includes placement, whether assembly is required, and how long the item will take to arrive.

Outdoor furniture FAQs

How long does outdoor furniture last?

Depending on the material and how well you take care of it, outdoor furniture can last up to 15 or 20 years. Aluminum, wicker, wrought iron, hardwood, and teakwood furniture can last quite a long time if you properly maintain them, such as by storing them in the winter, giving the furniture fresh paint jobs every few years, or oiling and resealing wood. It's a good idea to store cushions inside when not in use to protect them from the elements and animals. Furniture placed under a patio covering may also last longer than those exposed to the rain and sun. 

How do you store outdoor furniture in the winter? 

The best thing you can do in the winter is to bring outdoor furniture indoors, be it a garage, the best shed, or storage unit. We understand that not everyone has the space or even the financial capabilities to do so. (At least bring the cushions inside!) You could invest in outdoor furniture covers or tarps that fully cover the outdoor pieces. Most companies will sell covers alongside their products. If you notice snow, ice, or leaves on the coverings, remove it immediately. If you go the cover or tarp route, you may want to use water-repellant spray on the furniture, too. 

When is the best time to buy outdoor furniture? 

You'll find the widest selection of outdoor furniture, including new styles, at the beginning of spring. Shop early for the best options, especially since some brands have longer delivery lead times. However, if you're looking for the best outdoor furniture deals, Memorial Day and Fourth of July sales are good times to shop, though deepest discounts typically arrive at the end of summer.

That said, the best time to buy outdoor furniture depends on your priority. If you want to enjoy your setup throughout the warm-weather season, it's worth shopping early. If you're willing to wait, end-of-season sales can offer bigger savings. It's also worth shopping in store: retailers like Home Depot may mark down floor models to closeout-level prices that aren't available online as they make room for holiday inventory.

• Former dot-com darlings Cisco, Intel, and Dell are among the stocks to catch fire in recent months.
• Product they've been making since the dot-com era have suddenly become indispensable to the AI boom.
• Five main examples are unpacked below, with rationale for each.

As Chumbawamba famously put it in the late 90s: "I get knocked down, but I get up again."

Much to the delight of millennials everywhere, the lyric has become a mantra of sorts for many of the tech stocks that thrived during the dot-com boom. Lost in the wilderness for years after an epic market collapse, these companies — and their stock prices — are finding renewed life amid the AI revolution.

The products these firms have been making since the dot-com era — networking equipment, semiconductors, servers, and other hardware — have suddenly become indispensable to the AI boom. They hung on during lean times, and have become newly relevant. Oops! … They did it again.

Let's go company by company, broken down into two distinct categories:

Category 1: Firms whose stocks finally reclaimed dot-com highs

Cisco (+50% YTD)

The latest star of the show is Cisco (not to be confused with 90s-era singer Sisqo). Its stock rocketed 13% higher on Thursday after the company issued sales guidance above estimates and announced AI-driven job cuts.

It was only just recently — in December 2025, to be exact — that Cisco stock finally overtook its dot-com-era highs. The company makes networking products that are essentially the plumbing of the internet — something that needs a major upgrade for the AI era. That includes switches, routers, and security infrastructure.

Intel (+214% YTD)

Intel has been on a tear ever since President Trump announced last year that the US government would be taking a roughly 10% stake in the chipmaker. It overtook its dot-com-era peak even more recently than Cisco, in late April.

Since the US investment, through several earnings cycles, the company has proven itself as a serious player in semiconductors and data-center processors, even as Nvidia dominates the high-end market. It also helps, of course, that Intel is viewed by investors as the US government's horse in the chipmaking race.

Category 2: Dot-com relics that suddenly matter again

Dell (+97% YTD)

What millennial can forget the classic "dude, you're getting a Dell" motto that was burned into our brains in the early 2000s? The company was a veritable PC juggernaut. I personally had one, which I used to chat on AIM, download mp3s from Napster, and occasionally do schoolwork.

Companies building AI systems need loads of servers, storage systems, and data-center equipment — all areas where Dell is a major supplier.

Micron (+172% YTD)

Micron is getting a major boost from demand for high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI systems and data centers. There's been a shortage, which has driven prices — and Micron's stock price — ever higher. The company's products are viewed as essential to the AI buildout.

Qualcomm (+17% YTD)

Qualcomm's niche is making chips not for giant data centers, but instead for AI-enabled consumer electronic devices, like smartphones and PCs.

Long story short, the companies that built the internet are now helping build the AI economy — and their stocks are thriving because of it.

If you can't tell, I'm fully in the spirit. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to throw on some Jnco jeans and watch a YouTube clip of Korn's 1999 appearance on Total Request Live.

• Bill Ackman announced a new investment in Microsoft.
• The billionaire investor said both his hedge fund and new closed-end fund had taken positions.
• Ackman touted Microsoft's ownership of M365 and Azure and the recent slump in its stock price.

Bill Ackman is betting big on Microsoft's success in the AI era.

Billionaire investor Ackman said on Friday that his hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, has taken a position in Microsoft, saying he has been following the company for many years and that it now has a "highly compelling valuation."

Ackman introduced the Microsoft stake in an X post, saying his team has "found occasional opportunities to acquire some of the most dominant long-term compounding franchises at attractive valuations."

He gave Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta as examples in recent years.

Ackman explained his Microsoft wager by pointing to the company's ownership of "two of the most valuable franchises in enterprise technology," namely M365 —a software suite that includes Word, Excel and Powerpoint — and Azure, its cloud platform which is benefiting from "surging demand for AI inference workloads."

He also highlighted Microsoft's ownership of LinkedIn, Xbox, Activision Blizzard, Bing, and Edge.

Ackman said the position will be formally disclosed later on Friday when his hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, releases an SEC filing known as a "13F," which will list its US stock holdings as of March 31.

"While $PSUS will not be filing a 13F tomorrow, it has also recently made $MFST a core holding," he added.

He listed Pershing Square USA, a closed-end fund marketed toward retail investors, on the New York Stock Exchange in late April.

Ackman said his team began investing in Microsoft in February after its stock slumped following its second-quarter earnings report in late January. They invested at 21 times forward earnings, "well below Microsoft's trading average over the last few years," he added.

He wrote that the company's valuation "does not reflect the value of Microsoft's approximately 27% economic interest in OpenAI, which would represent approximately $200 billion, or 7% of Microsoft's market capitalization, at OpenAI's most recent funding round valuation."

Ackman attributed Microsoft's sell-off to investor concerns over how M365 will stand up to new competitors such as Anthropic's Claude Cowork, and whether Azure's growth will endure.

He argued that investors are underestimating how resilient M365 is, given that it is "deeply embedded" in enterprises' workflow, and attractively priced.

As for Azure, Ackman pointed to the platform's revenue jumping 39% in constant-currency terms last quarter, and Microsoft guiding to a modest acceleration later this year.

He also championed Microsoft's plan to invest around $190 billion this calendar year as "growth capex that should drive future revenue generation."

Microsoft shares were marginally down in premarket trading on Friday. They've fallen about 15% this year as of Thursday's close, while the S&P 500 has jumped nearly 10% to record highs over the same period.

Ackman's hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, owned about $2.1 billion of Alphabet stock, $2.2 billion of Amazon, and $1.8 billion of Meta stock at the end of December, per its latest 13F filing.

Those positions were among the largest in its portfolio of 10 stocks, along with a $2.8 billion bet on Brookfield and a $2.5 billion Uber wager.

"Like our purchases of $GOOG, $AMZN, and $META, we believe that $MSFT offers analogous and compelling long-term value at today's valuation," Ackman wrote on X.

• Retail trader Lander Schlessinger, 23, has found success in the market trading options.
• He got his start in high school and has since made millions in profit.
• Schlessinger says trading successfully requires intense focus and the ability to set aside emotions.

Lander Schlessinger made so much money trading options in high school that he says his father thought he was dealing drugs.

A native of New Jersey, Schlessinger started trading penny stocks before moving on to the higher-risk-higher-reward options market when he was 17.

According to screenshots of his brokerage account viewed by Business Insider, he's soared well past $1 million in profit just in 2025, but he says crossing a lower threshold stands out more as a memory of his trading journey.

"I would say the 100k mark was actually more significant to me, because that was the hardest to get to," he told Business Insider. "When I reached it, it felt like 'this is a real thing, and I could actually make some serious money doing this.' It just kept compounding from there."

Schlessinger's schedule attending a vocational high school allowed him to trade during the early morning hours while he was enrolled in his business and finance courses. He added that when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the world went into lockdown, it allowed him even more flexibility to trade during the day.

Now 23 years old, Schlessinger is still actively trading options, though he only spends a few hours a day doing it. His day starts at 9am to monitor premarket moves before he begins making trades between the key market hours of 9:30 and 11am.

Schlessinger isn't part of popular trading forums like r/WallStreetBets but his educational company Stock Method LLC includes an active Discord channel. Like other traders, he notes that the lifestyle can be lonely, which compelled him to build a community of traders.

Schlessinger, who recently spoke on a panel hosted by retail trading platform MooMoo and WallStreetBets, says he primarily trades options on the same four tickers—Tesla, Nvidia, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF and Invesco NASDAQ Future Gen 200 ETF.

His strategy centers around trading 0DTE (zero days to expiration) options contracts. The contracts are a particularly high-risk options play.

But Schlessinger's tips did not focus on explicit trading strategy around the options themselves. Rather, he emphasized that he believes success in options, as well as all other trading, comes from sticking to a plan and making moves without emotion.

"The reason people can't make money long term is because they just can't follow a plan for longer than a week, because they get too emotional," he said. "The reason why they get too emotional is because there's money involved."

Schlessinger acknowledged that he didn't enjoy immediate success. He said it took him between six and eight months of regular trading to be able to generate consistent profits.

During his early trading days, he kept detailed spreadsheets that helped him follow through with plans he made that ultimately led him to profitability. He shared examples of the sheets with Business Insider, highlighting the importance of using data to visualize what worked what didn't.

"It's a lot mentally," he said, adding that creating and executing on a plan requires intense focus, which is why it's often the hardest part of the equation for most traders.

Schlessinger credits a lot of his success to an obsession with trading and with markets. However, he also says that aspiring traders shouldn't fixate to the point where they grow to hate being in the market.

"Anything I do, I obsess over it. I don't know if that's a good thing or bad thing, but in the right areas, it definitely works," he said. "I actually just enjoy trading."

• Inflation is up to 3.8%, but Schroders sees no repeat of the 2022 price on the horizon.
• Schroders' Simon Webber says that weaker consumer demand today will limit price hikes.
• Webber said the firm is reducing bank stock exposure due to potential loan defaults.

Rising inflation is giving consumers and investors nightmares of a repeat of 2022. Yet, there's little reason to worry things will get that dire, according to Schroders, which manages $1.1 trillion in assets.

Consumer prices rose 3.8% year-over-year in April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Tuesday, as high oil prices trickle down throughout the rest of the economy. It's a far cry from 9.1% seen in 2022, but it marks a stark uptrend from the February lows of 2.4%.

Still, it's likely that inflation stays somewhere in the 3%-4% range from here, Simon Webber, Head of Global Equities at Schroders, told Business Insider.

In an interview on Thursday, Webber laid out a two reasons the war-fueled surge in prices since March is not a pandemic inflation redux.

First, we've already likely seen the worst of the surge in oil prices. Crude has fallen below wartime peaks, so the situation in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz would have to deteriorate significantly again from here, Webber said.

"We'd need a further rise in oil and gas prices," he said.

Second, it's a much different economic environment than in 2022. Back then, consumers were flush with stimulus checks, job openings were plentiful, and wage and job growth were soaring. Today, job openings are more scarce, and wage and employment growth are lower.

Recent consumer sentiment data from the the University of Michigan reflects the tough economic backdrop: consumer are more negative about the economy than at any other point in the university's survey history going back to 1978.

All of this means consumer demand is generally weaker today than it was a few years ago, which will make it more difficult for companies to pass rising costs on to the consumer, Webber said.

"The consumer's already exasperated with affordability and price increases and not in the mood to accept another round of big price increases," he said. "So I think it will be much harder for companies to pass on price this time than when everyone was coming out of COVID and there was a lot of demand."

Webber likened the situation to the tariff episodes in April 2025, when companies initially seemed to hold off on passing costs onto consumers because they weren't sure how permanent the stated tariff levels would be.

The shorter the disruption to oil flows and production, Webber said, the less likely it is that consumers continue to see rising prices.

While we may not see 2022-level inflation, there are still portfolio risks associated with rising consumer prices. In terms of how he's navigating this environment, Webber said the firm is reducing exposure to banks, as rising costs and economic volatility could put some companies out of business, leading to loan defaults.

"Certainly, the longer the whole shock goes on, we're going to see more non-performing loan increases," Webber said. "We're not talking about a financial crisis, but just a normalization of credit losses. That will be just a more negative outcome for bank earnings than it has been."

• Data, software, and AI engineering roles used to be "completely different professions," said EY's Dan Diasio.
• The work overlaps much more now, Diasio said, as engineers are able build more quickly.
• The consulting giant is also reshaping its hiring strategy for technical workers in the AI era.

Software engineering roles aren't going away anytime soon — but they are converging.

At least that's the case at the Big Four firm EY, according to Dan Diasio, global consulting AI leader. Diasio said software engineers are able to accomplish and build a lot more quickly than they were previously.

The shift has pushed the consulting giant to move beyond traditional software engineering lifecycles and toward product development lifecycles. That means training engineers to operate more like end-to-end product builders rather than pure coders.

Diasio told Business Insider that roles that were once split across data engineering, software engineering, and AI engineering are now overlapping.

Those used to be three "completely different professions," Diasio, who is also EY's Americas consulting CTO.

While the roles still exist as separate titles today, the work is converging, he said. In addition to the skillsets overlapping more than in the past, Diasio said that the company is also shifting its expectations of engineer hires to work across data, software, and AI.

"The role titles will catch up," Diasio added in an email. "We've already started moving our training and talent development towards this product-first view."

Part of the shift stems from AI speeding up the product lifecycle, he said. Instead of starting with a requirements document generated by AI, passing it to a design plan generated by AI, and then to a team that builds and codes the software, that process is being streamlined, Diasio said.

That's all happening "much faster than we would have been able to do it previously," Diasio said.

Diasio is describing a shift that has swept through the software engineering industry since late 2025, when improvements to AI coding models like Anthropic's Claude Code and OpenAI's Codex automated most coding work. A number of engineers have told Business Insider that they haven't touched code directly since December.

Shifts in hiring technical talent

Amid this transformative moment for engineering, EY is reshaping its hiring strategy for technical workers.

"We're no longer just evaluating someone's coding skills — that floor has risen. Instead, we are looking for people that break through the ceiling," Diasio added.

That means top engineers are inquiring more about intent during interviews, the AI leader said. For example, EY engineers may ask a candidate why they made specific design decisions, what outcome they were solving, and how that work fits into a product.

Diasio said that "well-crafted intent, architecture thinking, and scalability" are the factors separating top talent now. He emphasized the importance of top engineers being involved in the hiring process.

"A talent hires A talent," Diasio said.

This comes at a time when the consulting giant is broadly reevaluating its talent strategy, from onboarding to promotions.

EY's talent chief recently said that AI is making career paths more fluid. The firm now requires all early-career applicants to complete skills-based assessments and is seeking candidates who can evolve with the technology, Ginnie Carlier, EY Americas' chief talent and culture officer, previously told Business Insider.

Diasio said EY is also increasingly prioritizing managerial skills in hires across the firm's business and technology sectors. That's a departure from the previous model in professional services firms, where junior workers primarily executed their own tasks until taking on supervisory roles, he said.

Many entry-level hires are now expected to delegate and manage workflows across AI tools. As AI becomes more integrated into day-to-day operations, Diasio said employees need to think more like managers earlier in their careers.

Diasio said the company is allocating more training in that area.

"We are preparing for our new hires to be Day One managers," he wrote.

AI is forcing the consulting industry to reinvent itself.

The biggest firms are racing to weave the technology into nearly every facet of their businesses — from how consultants execute client projects to how employees are trained, promoted, and measured.

McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte, EY, KPMG, PwC, and IBM Consulting are all now hiring more technical talent, building AI tools and AI agents, and pushing staff to use them in their day-to-day work.

Business Insider has closely covered how the consulting industry is changing. See our stories below on how AI is reshaping the work, and the firms and startups leading the shift.

How the work of consultants is changing

AI is changing not only how consultants advise clients, but also who does that work.

Consulting firms are now promoting a new class of so-called "forward-deployed engineers" — employees who work directly with clients to customize AI tools, connect them to company data, and turn them into products that solve specific business problems. In some sense, they are becoming the new consultants: part engineer, part strategist, and part translator between AI systems and the companies trying to use them.

The rise of AI agents

AI agents are changing the structure of consulting work itself.

Firms are using them to automate rote tasks, shrink project teams, and shift more work to smaller groups of humans supervising networks of digital coworkers. At BCG, IBM, McKinsey, and elsewhere, consultants are being asked not just to use AI tools but to build, manage, and oversee agents that could reshape the traditional consulting hierarchy.

The new age of consulting

AI is bringing consulting and Silicon Valley closer together — and even, at times, blurring the line between them. Big firms are trying to become more like tech companies, building software, hiring engineers, and turning their expertise into products.

At the same time, AI startups are coming for consulting's core business, offering faster, cheaper versions of strategy work, research, and analysis. The result is a new competitive landscape where McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte, and the Big Four are both cozying up with tech companies and defending themselves against them.

• Delta Air Lines is one of few carriers opting against installing Starlink internet on its planes.
• The airline instead tapped Amazon LEO in March to become its in-flight WiFi provider.
• Elon Musk hit out at Delta's choice on X, saying it would be "painful, difficult and expensive."

Elon Musk doesn't seem pleased with Delta Air Lines choosing a rival internet provider to Starlink.

Dozens of airlines around the world have struck deals with Starlink to give passengers free, high-speed WiFi. It connects to a constellation of over 10,000 satellites, helping provide connectivity in remote areas, such as over the ocean.

However, Delta instead tapped Amazon Leo in March to become its in-flight WiFi provider. Amazon's service has launched about 300 satellites so far.

On Wednesday, Musk replied to an X post that suggested Delta chose Amazon because it wanted customers to connect via its own Delta Sync portal.

"SpaceX requires that there be no annoying 'portal' to use Starlink," Musk posted. "Starlink WiFi must just work effortlessly every time, as though you were at home."

"Delta wanted to make it painful, difficult and expensive for their customers. Hard to see how that is a winning strategy," he added.

A Delta spokesperson told Business Insider that "the assertion in question is not accurate." The airline said it chose Amazon's Leo connectivity service over Starlink for "several reasons," including the potential for a "broader partnership" beyond just in-flight WiFi.

It added that Amazon met Delta's technical requirements and shared its vision for the "next era of connected travel," while adding that Delta's strategy is to equip different aircraft with the technology that best fits each fleet.

Delta also clarified that passengers would still have been able to access the Delta Sync portal via a SkyMiles login.

To the last point, while Starlink has pushed for a more seamless in-flight WiFi experience with minimal friction between passengers and the web, airlines using the service still route access through their own branded systems.

United Airlines' Starlink access, for example, is tied to its MileagePlus platform — with similar setups at Alaska Airlines and Qatar Airways.

Delta isn't saying its portal was an obstacle. It seems to want a deeper level of control over the ecosystem surrounding onboard internet than SpaceX may have preferred.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Late on Thursday, responding to Delta's comments, Musk posted on X: "They will lose customers over this."

Qatar has faced similar decisions in its Starlink strategy. Xia Cai, Qatar Airways' SVP of product development and design, talked at a 2024 APEX event about the airline's approach to customer engagement through its Starlink connectivity.

"There has to be a connection. Is it a transient connection? Or is it actually something that you're going to build to create an experience, which Delta has done really well on their Sync platform?" Cai said, the aviation website Paxex.Aero reported. "How do you engage [with passengers]?"

United is actively installing SpaceX technology and expects the rollout to be completed by the end of 2027. Delta's planned next-generation connectivity project with Amazon's Kuiper network is not expected to begin until 2028.

It isn't the first time this year that Musk has taken umbrage with an airline.

In January, Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said he wasn't interested in Starlink, suggesting that installing the terminals on airplane fuselages would increase drag and, in turn, fuel costs.

Musk and O'Leary then engaged in a dayslong war of words, including Musk suggesting he could buy Ryanair, and calling for O'Leary's firing.

• Shanon Morris, a Navy veteran, co-founded Trimester Abroad with her husband to aid traveling parents.
• After being laid off by Google, Morris transitioned to entrepreneurship in the travel industry.
• Trimester Abroad aims to improve travel experiences for new and expecting parents globally.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Shanon Morris, a 34-year-old entrepreneur in Ithaca, New York. It's been edited for length and clarity.

I'm a Navy veteran, Marine Corps spouse, and the CEO of Trimester Abroad, where I develop solutions that elevate the travel and hospitality experience for new and expecting parents. I'm also in a master's program in hospitality management at Cornell.

I started my career as a surface warfare officer and public affairs officer in the US Navy. I was medically separated from the Navy due to a car accident in 2018.

For the next year, I worked as a cyber intelligence team lead at Noblis. Between July 2019 and May 2021, I served as a communications and marketing strategy consultant at Accenture Interactive.

I started working at Google in May 2021, where I held several roles, including sales development manager, strategic communications program manager, and veteran hiring lead, and served as the communications lead for Google's global Veteran Network.

Since 2023, I've co-founded and now serve as CEO of Trimester Abroad, where I lead branding, go-to-market strategy, partnership development, PR, and business operations across multiple ventures.

One morning in March 2023, at 6 a.m., I got laid off from Google

I opened my laptop to troubleshoot a new work phone, only to see my termination notice. One minute, I was leading Google's veteran hiring program; the next, I was in my parents' kitchen with my new husband, Matthew, toasting to unemployment.

Matthew and I were preparing for him to be either medically separated after a motorcycle accident or deploy again. I was stressed, working two full-time roles and trying to get pregnant.

Losing my job was a shock, but also a relief.

On Mother's Day, I found out I was pregnant

Two weeks later, Matthew received a call informing him he'd been separated from the Marine Corps. We went from DINKs with two six-figure salaries to dual-unemployed with a baby on the way in six months.

Luckily, we were aligned on money, values, and risk tolerance, and our different investing styles diversified our portfolio. Severance, savings, investments, real estate, unemployment insurance, and my VA disability allowance bought us time.

Around that time, my friend Gaby became our unofficial birth guru

After three extreme births, she was the first to tell me hospitals weren't the only place to give birth. With our jobs gone, our next mission became figuring out how to bring our daughter into the world safely and intentionally.

We threw a mattress in the truck and drove 10,000 miles around North America, but it wasn't enough. With nothing tying us down, we sold the house and the vehicles.

Europe was where our research on birthing options led us: birth centers, home births, midwives, and care models that didn't feel industrialized. Ultimately, we were on a too-cramped timeline, so we returned home. We found a homebirth midwife group, and I gave birth in an apartment in Chicago.

We began traveling again when our daughter was around six months old.

We've now traveled to 28 countries as a family

Our first trip was in August 2023, when I found out a DJ I liked was performing in Aalborg, Denmark. I was around four months pregnant. After that, we mostly booked next-day flights, dodged wildfires in Italy and Greece, and coordinated loosely around military friends' travel and a shooting competition.

Our daughter is almost two, and our second baby will arrive soon. Traveling with a baby is easier than people think. In cities, you can buy everything you need. Diapers are often cheaper abroad. Public transit in places like Taiwan is spotless. Dubai has rideshares with car seats. Breastfeeding eliminates half the packing list.

Emotionally, the hardest part was setting boundaries, like when strangers approached her to interact. Luxury hotels were another surprise. Even ultra-luxury brands assume a kids club solves everything, yet most don't allow children under three or four, even when accompanied by a parent.

We want intentionally designed spaces for infants and toddlers. Almost no one is designing for families with kids under four, even though it's the easiest age to travel.

That gap is what led to Trimester Abroad.

I realized the industry still treats pregnancy and early parenthood like a travel dead zone

Many hotels don't offer pregnancy/body pillows or prenatal massages. I've requested the same things multiple times, yet the experience is often that pregnant and/or breastfeeding women get served alcohol as welcome gifts or celebratory amenities.

There's no consent training. Some hotel staff will pick up your kids or poke their bellies without asking parents. When catering to American travelers, this can ruin an experience.

Trimester Abroad aims to make travel easier for new and expecting parents. We consult for hotels, airlines, and tourism boards, audit properties, and are building the first Michelin-style rating system for pregnancy and early parenthood.

We're also training travel advisors. This summer, we plan to build out the Trimester Abroad app, an AI-powered travel intelligence platform.

Going from a six-figure Google salary to self-employment was the wild west

In entrepreneurship, there's no guaranteed paycheck. Our income fluctuates, and we reinvest almost everything. Profit is one to two years away, so we're still living off our investments. Matthew is a full-time MBA student, and he works on Trimester Abroad with me as my VP of strategic partnerships.

Our story proves that military talent, parenthood, and entrepreneurship aren't mutually exclusive. Traveling while pregnant or with a baby is completely doable when you design around your needs.

If I hadn't gotten laid off, I probably would have stayed at Google

I was in a role helping veterans and military spouses (my people) transition into the civilian world without sacrificing their pay or well-being.

My priorities are so much different now. I recently had the opportunity to visit the newest Google office in New York City for a trek I led as part of my master's program. Even with all the free snacks, benefits, and creature comforts, I can't see myself going back.

• Figure AI's humanoids drew over 3 million views on X as it sorted packages on a viral livestream.
• CEO Brett Adcock said the robots worked autonomously with zero failures for 24 hours.
• One robotics expert said the demo was impressive, but the humanoids are not deployment-ready.

Silicon Valley's hottest livestream this week is a humanoid robot clocking in for a warehouse shift.

It began Wednesday, when Figure AI CEO Brett Adcock set out to prove to skeptics that his robots could complete an eight-hour stretch of autonomous labor. Within hours, Figure AI had a film crew at its San Jose headquarters and was streaming a humanoid doing one of the dullest tasks imaginable: sorting packages.

The internet was captivated. Millions tuned in to watch the robot pick up small packages and place them on a conveyor belt with the barcode facing down. Two humanoids stood on chargers in the background, ready to sub in when the working robot ran low on battery. One viewer called the feed "surprisingly addicting" and asked for a 24/7 livestream, while investor Jason Calacanis wrote that "robotic ASMR is bizarrely comforting." As the livestream climbed past 1.5 million views on X over its first eight hours, some viewers gave the three robots names: Bob, Frank, and Gary.

Figure AI reached its goal of running the robot for eight hours with "zero failures," Adcock said, and decided to keep going. By the 24-hour mark on Thursday morning, the humanoids had sorted more than 30,000 packages, with more than 3 million cumulative views.

The viral stream is more than a robotics stunt. For Figure AI, a startup valued near $40 billion, it is a public audition for a future in which humanoids can work long shifts in warehouses, factories, and eventually homes. The demo gave investors and potential customers a rare look at whether the company's robots can perform repetitive labor reliably.

It also exposed the gap between spectacle and commercial readiness: Figure's humanoids may be getting closer to human speed, but experts say they still have a long way to go before they can handle the messy reality of a logistics center.

'A whole new economy'

Many tasks that feel mindless to humans remain challenging for robots, requiring dexterity, perception, balance, and judgment people barely notice themselves using. That is part of what makes videos of humanoids doing routine work so compelling.

Last week, Figure AI released a video of two of its humanoids making a bed together, while French startup Genesis AI, backed by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, showed a robot cracking an egg and playing the piano.

Among the viewers of this week's livestream were Figure investors and board members Jesse Coors-Blankenship and Gregg Hill of Parkway Venture Capital, who said they were watching from their New York office and planned to celebrate the milestone later.

Coors-Blankenship said the conveyor belt was a large loop, with the same packages cycling through repeatedly. The point, he said, was to show potential customers that Figure AI's humanoids can work reliably for long stretches, including 24-hour shifts.

"It's just something that's never been done before, except for maybe in a movie," Coors-Blankenship said. "It's so captivating because everyone's realizing we're moving into a whole new economy."

The livestream raises the stakes in the race to develop commercially useful humanoids. Figure AI faces stiff competition from Tesla, Agility Robotics, and China's Unitree.

"I bet you that 50,000 of the viewers are Tesla investors," Hill said.

'More like a science project'

When asked about Figure AI's livestream at an event in San Francisco on Wednesday night, Agility Robotics cofounder Jonathan Hurst replied: "Congratulations. We did that two years ago." The Oregon-based startup has deployed its humanoid robot, Digit, with customers including Amazon, Schaeffler Group, and GXO, a logistics company.

Last year, Figure AI came under scrutiny after Fortune reported that Adcock appeared to overstate the company's work with its marquee customer, BMW. Adcock disputed the report, and the company has said its previous humanoid model spent 11 months at BMW's Spartanburg plant, where it ran 10-hour weekday shifts and helped produce more than 30,000 X3 vehicles.

Figure AI's livestream did not have any major glitches, but the robots did have some prolonged pauses and eccentric gestures like touching an arm to its helmet-like head. The moments fueled speculation that the humanoids were getting help from a remote human operator. Adcock stressed that the robots are fully autonomous and decide what to do based on what they see through their cameras.

Adcock said that when a robot gets stuck, its AI model triggers an automatic reset, which viewers occasionally saw during the stream. And if a robot has a software or hardware issue, he added, it can autonomously leave for maintenance while another robot takes over.

"We haven't had a failure yet, but statistically we probably will at some point," Adcock wrote on X.

Human package sorters average about three seconds per package, according to Adcock, and Figure AI's robots are now near human parity. But roboticist Ayanna Howard, dean of Ohio State University's College of Engineering, said speed is only one measure of readiness.

Howard said the livestream was impressive because the robot appeared to operate for so long without a failure. Still, she said the humanoids looked more like a "science project" than machines ready for deployment, citing accuracy issues she saw during the stream, including packages placed on the conveyor belt with the barcode facing the wrong way and one package being knocked off the belt.

"It's not ready for prime time," Howard said, adding that the robot was performing only one small part of the package-sorting process.

"We're a long way away from a fully autonomous humanoid in a logistics center."

By Thursday evening, the livestream was still running, and the humanoids had logged 30 hours of continuous work. Adcock also introduced a new member to the robot crew: Rose.

• Tim Draper said he took "52 pitches in 52 minutes" while sitting in an ice bath below 40 degrees.
• "Pitching in stressful situations allows entrepreneurs to relax when they need to," Draper told Business Insider.
• Ice baths and cold plunges have grown in popularity among Silicon Valley leaders.

The deals may be flowing, but the founders are on ice.

Billionaire venture capitalist Tim Draper backed Tesla, Skype, and Twitch. The early investments made him billions and boosted the VC firm he founded, Draper Associates. He recently looked for his next big deal in an unusual place: an ice bath.

"I took 52 pitches in 52 minutes at below 40 degrees," Draper wrote on X on Wednesday. "Welcome to my office."

Draper also included a photo of the ice bath. Four people sat around the cold tub, looking directly at Draper. Floating chunks of ice surrounded them.

In an email to Business Insider, Draper wrote that the pitch session took place at an "undisclosed location where we do Draper University survival." The program trains the next generation of founders and once spawned a reality TV show.

"Pitching in stressful situations allows entrepreneurs to relax when they need to," he wrote.

Draper is not a frequent cold plunger, "but I am apparently good at it," he wrote. He took on the 52 pitches continuously, but wrote that things became "dicey" around the 40-minute mark.

The VC hinted that some potential deals emerged from the ice bath pitches. "There are always a few that catch my imagination," he wrote.

Silicon Valley is on a health kick. Many in the industry have embraced lifting weights and injecting peptides while cutting out alcohol. Why be a scrawny nerd when Mark Zuckerberg got ripped?

Their embrace of frigid conditions isn't new, though. Since at least the 2010s, tech executives looking to live longer and work harder were dunking themselves in ice baths.

Cold plunges have some benefits. Shocking the senses with cold temperatures can relieve joint pain, reduce inflammation, increase energy, and decrease stress.

The jury's still out on whether they have any concrete benefits to healthy aging. Longevity hacks may have spread nationwide, but they're still localized in Silicon Valley, where figures like Bryan Johnson have spent millions looking for new ways to extend life.

What does Draper think of the longevity movement?

"I want to keep living," he wrote. "I like life."

• I've reported on CEO Sam Altman since ChatGPT's release, so I was eager to see his trial testimony.
• The trial's stakes are sky-high for Altman as he fights to keep control of OpenAI.
• Altman delivered his pitch for the company, though he didn't have answers for the hardest questions.

It's tricky business to define Sam Altman's "day job."

He's got the basic task of overseeing OpenAI's executives and staff, as any CEO does. Work doesn't stay at the office, though. Altman has become the public face of the AI boom, responsible for selling a technology that's upending workforces, capturing markets, and costing billions of dollars to build. That's often a high-wire act, and especially so this week — he also had to sell himself.

I watched Altman's testimony on Tuesday in the Oakland courtroom where, for weeks, jurors have weighed Elon Musk's arguments against those of OpenAI and Microsoft. Musk says Altman and OpenAI president Greg Brockman "stole" the OpenAI charity. They responded that the charity actually thrives because of the commercial moves they made.

It's a high-profile, high-stakes trial, and I was keen to see how Altman would perform. Reporting on OpenAI over the last few years, I've watched him schmooze with San Franciscans, chop it up with AI boosters, and hit softball questions from Jimmy Fallon. He posts to X, joins podcasts, writes blogs — it's all part of his gig. Altman is a content creator, a CEO working to spread hype.

So it was no surprise to me that Altman gave the jury an optimistic vision for both his company and for AI itself. The shocking part was how little he did to protect his own reputation.

The softball questions for Sam Altman ran out

Wearing a dark suit, a thin purple tie, and a slightly furrowed brow, Altman was the day's star witness. He followed OpenAI's lawyer William Savitt through anecdotes, details, and admissions for a breezy first hour of testimony. Then, as the attorney wound down his time, Savitt asked Altman about the OpenAI Foundation's work — the actual goals of the nonprofit at the center of all this legal trouble.

Altman was articulate, and, as usual, forward-looking. He talked about plans to research Alzheimer's and to prepare society for economic change. He expressed hope for a better future, saying that the new tech's benefits should spread widely. He said he was still "extremely" enthusiastic about the company's remaining nonprofit oversight and got off a line about Musk trying to "kill" the very charity he was accusing Altman of "stealing."

Do-gooder ideals, plus optimism about healthcare: It was a rebuttal built on Altman's practiced style of pitching AI to the general public.

The cheery rapport stopped there.

Musk's head lawyer, Steven Molo, then kicked off cross-examination by asking Altman whether he's "completely trustworthy."

"I believe so," Altman said.

The feeling in the courtroom had palpably shifted. Molo responded with a hint of incredulity, "But you don't know whether you're completely trustworthy?"

"I'll just amend my answer to yes," Altman replied.

Under Molo's barrage, Altman had an odd response

Attorneys usually try to strip credibility from an opponent's witness. Molo continued peppering Altman with questions aimed at doing exactly that.

The lawyer said Altman had repeatedly been called "deceptive," citing statements from four other witnesses: OpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever, former CTO Mira Murati, and former board members Helen Toner and Tasha McCauley.

Gone was the confident, loquacious CEO. Altman deflected on allegation after allegation, often stating that he hadn't heard the testimony or didn't know specifically what had been said.

Once, he made a larger rebuttal, saying there was "a breakdown in trust between me and the board and a difference — a big difference — of opinion." Then he returned to saying he hadn't heard McCauley's testimony.

Finally, Molo asked, "Is it important to you to find out what's going on in this trial?"

"Yes," Altman responded. "Although I also have a very busy day job and have not been able to be here every day."

He added that he "certainly" cares about the trial. A jury has sat for weeks, and the stakes are huge: Musk wants Altman removed as CEO and seeks $150 billion in damages. Most people I spoke with favor OpenAI to win. Still, Altman will need his credibility for the years ahead.

He stepped off the witness stand around midday, after more hammering from Molo. In the back of the courtroom, I was left thinking that the CEO could have — if only for a week — made the trial his day job.