• AI-generated job applications are overwhelming recruiters and making it harder to stand out.
• A recruitment CEO says old-fashioned networking may beat AI-written cover letters.
• LinkedIn says the number of applicants per US job has doubled since 2022 as AI reshapes hiring.

AI-generated cover letters may be all the rage, but one recruitment veteran says the best way to get noticed is a far more traditional approach.

James Reed, the CEO of Reed Recruitment, said generative AI has flooded employers with near-identical applications, making it harder for candidates to stand out. His advice: make a human connection.

"Some very old-fashioned things still work," Reed said this week on the BBC's "Big Boss Interview" podcast. "If you write to someone and put it in a postbox with a stamp on it, and it lands on their desk, they'll look at it."

His comments come as generative AI is rapidly reshaping recruitment. Candidates can tailor CVs and cover letters in seconds using tools like ChatGPT, while employers increasingly rely on AI to screen growing numbers of applications.

The technology has sped up both sides of the hiring process, but Reed suggested it has also upended it. "At the moment, you have very frequently a situation where you have sort of AI talking to AI and no person is any wiser," he said.

AI is creating an application overload

Reed said his recruitment firm is receiving so many applications that they all "pretty much look the same, because people have gone on ChatGPT, said, 'Help me with my CV,' and it sort of generates the same thing for everyone."

According to LinkedIn's Talent Research 2026 survey, the number of applicants per open role in the US has doubled since the spring of 2022.

That flood of applications leaves hiring managers struggling to review every submission, reducing the value of carefully tailoring an application, Reed said.

"People just aren't seeing the benefits of the investment in time of personalizing it, because the companies are so overwhelmed with applications," he said.

LinkedIn's research found that 65% of the 19,113 workers surveyed said finding a job had become more challenging over the past year. Meanwhile, 93% of the 6,554 recruiters surveyed said they planned to increase their use of AI in hiring in 2026.

Daniel Chait, the CEO of hiring software company Greenhouse, previously described the dynamic to Business Insider as an "AI doom loop": job seekers can apply to more roles more quickly, while recruiters face a growing pile of applications and struggle to find the right person through the noise.

The human touch may be the differentiator

Instead of relying solely on online portals, Reed encouraged applicants to look for ways to establish direct human contact.

"It's an important point that it's about connecting with people in the end," he said, adding that technology has "automated things very effectively, but also almost too effectively."

Reed's advice echoes a broader shift in hiring.

Recruiters and hiring managers previously told Business Insider they are placing less emphasis on AI-polished résumés, with some companies replacing traditional applications with work trials, skills-based assessments, or direct outreach.

• A family that got rich selling baking powder has sold a private island priced at $35 million.
• The Ziegler family has owned Hay Island, just off the Connecticut coast, for over a century.
• Family members have moved to other spots in the US, so they no longer need such a large property.

Many families dream of having a private island to call their own. In Connecticut, a new family just made that a reality.

Hay Island, an 18-acre piece of land off the coast of Connecticut, was sold for $26.5 million.

The last owners owned it for over 100 years. The Zielgler family acquired the island over 100 years ago, according to property records. The family is descended from industrialist William Ziegler Sr., who cofounded the Royal Baking Powder Company in the 1800s.

The island remained in his family as a summer cottage but was most recently used as a full-time residence by Cynthia Ziegler and her husband, Renfrew Brighton, according to Mansion Global.

The earlier summer cottage has been replaced with an 8,684-square-foot New England colonial home. The property also includes a two-bedroom guest house, an infinity-edge pool, and two beaches.

Property records show the island was sold in two transactions in November 2025 to Hay Island CT II LLC, one for $6,360,000 and the other for $20,140,000.

While this wasn't the first island the Ziegler sold, it was the last. In 2023, the family sold their other island, Great Island — just across Ziegler Cove from Hay Island — for $85 million to the town of Darien. The town plans to turn it into a public park.

The Ziegler family's current net worth is unclear, but Forbes estimated it to be $2.8 billion in 2015, due in part to investments in a cigar company.

Take a look around Hay Island to see where the Zieglers once lived and vacationed.

Hay Island was in the Ziegler family for over 100 years.

William Ziegler Sr. amassed the family's wealth in the late 1800s after cofounding the Royal Baking Powder Company.

The current house on the property was built in 2010.

The island was used as a full-time residence. Before the construction of the current house, it was used as a summertime retreat.

The 8,684-square-foot home was designed by architect Austin Patterson Disston.

The island eventually sold for $26.5 million.

Leslie McElwreath of Sotheby's International Realty's Greenwich brokerage had the listing.

The Zielger family has relocated and no longer regularly visits the Connecticut home.

Helen M. Ziegler, an heiress to the baking-powder fortune, sold a home in Palm Beach for $15.9 million in 2024, Palm Beach County property records show. [does she still live in palm beach? where is she now?]

The family also owned other islands in Connecticut, and this is the last of their collection.

The Ziegler family listed Great Island, a 60-acre island across Ziegler Cove from Hay Island, for $100 million in 2022. Darien, a small town known for its wealthy residents, bought Great Island for $85 million with plans to turn it into a public park.

Most rooms in the home have views of the Long Island Sound.

The home has six bedrooms and seven bathrooms.

The Ziegler family once gathered in the family room.

The family room offers indoor and outdoor seating, with access to a screened-in porch.

The library — like most rooms in the house — has water views.

According to the listing, the library includes custom bookshelves, window seats, a wet bar, and a fireplace.

The chef's kitchen gets plenty of light from several windows facing the water.

While there are plenty of water views, the island is accessible by road to the mainland.

"You get the benefits of an island, the privacy and 360-degree water views, but you also get the ability to come and go freely," McElwreath told Mansion Global.

The breakfast room has its own fireplace — one of six fireplaces in the home.

According to a document from the county's Planning and Zoning Commission, the new owner proposed to construct additions onto the main house.

Hay Island is 18 acres.

The island has two beaches. The rest is a rocky shoreline.

The infinity pool also overlooks the Long Island Sound.

The outdoor terrace also includes an outdoor fireplace and a built-in barbecue.

The property also has a two-bedroom guest house.

The guest house has a fully equipped kitchen, a private office, and a fireplace.

• Typically, only 5 to 10% of diners at the Turquaz restaurant in San Francisco are Turkish.
• Turkey's World Cup appearance in the city has brought a surge of Turkish fans through the doors.
• Turkish diners are ordering traditional dishes rarely requested by local diners.

This as-told-to essay is based on an interview with Aziz Aslan, 45, the owner of Turquaz, a Turkish restaurant on Mission Street in San Francisco. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I opened my Turkish restaurant, Turquaz, in San Francisco in February 2025. Typically, most of our customers are locals, and Turkish diners make up a small minority.

But Turkey's World Cup appearance in San Francisco has brought a different type of customer through our doors.

Over the past week, we've had far more Turkish customers dine with us. Reservations are up, walk-in traffic has increased, and we've hired additional staff to keep up with demand.

Turkey qualifying for the World Cup changed my business

As soon as we heard that San Francisco would be one of the World Cup host cities, we were thrilled. We knew it would bring visitors to the city, and potentially new customers to our restaurant.

At that point, we didn't yet know whether Turkey would qualify.

In March, Turkey secured its place in the tournament, and we later learned the team would be playing at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on June 20. That's when I knew we needed to start preparing for the tournament.

Over the last few weeks, we launched targeted advertising campaigns on social media. One Instagram post was written in Turkish. In another, we told visitors that wherever they were traveling from, if they were looking for good food, they should come to us. It helped spread the word about our restaurant.

Most of my customers aren't usually Turkish

I'm originally from Istanbul, although I've been in the Bay Area for about 10 years. Compared with places like New York and New Jersey, there aren't as many Turkish people in this part of California.

Usually, our customers come from a wide range of backgrounds, with Turkish people making up only 5% to 10% of those who dine with us.

With our usual customers, our most popular dishes are chicken kebabs and lahmacun, a flatbread topped with minced meat, vegetables, and herbs. We're a traditional Turkish kitchen, and our pastry section is popular as well, especially our fresh baklava.

In recent weeks, however, we've had a lot of Turkish customers, which is unusual for us. Some have come from places like New Jersey and Texas, while others have flown in from Istanbul, all to watch Turkey play.

Turkey's World Cup match in San Francisco has changed who our customers are and what they're ordering. Dishes like beans and braised meats aren't as popular with our usual clientele, but we're selling a lot more of them now because of our Turkish customers.

They've been ordering foods like white beans with pilaf, braised meat with pilaf, and salads, all of which are really traditional dishes. Turkish customers can be tough critics because they're comparing our food to what they have back home, but I feel confident in our food, and we've received compliments so far.

It hasn't really affected our stock, thankfully. We have good inventory management, and my warehouse for the wholesale food business is only a short drive away, so we can pick up products whenever we need.

We've hired extra staff to meet demand

To prepare for the World Cup, we've had to hire additional employees. On top of the 24 staff members we already had, we added three more because of increasing demand. The staff is also working longer hours than usual.

For Turkey's first match, against Australia, we didn't do anything special, other than create a football-shaped cake. We decided to host watch parties for Turkey's second and third matches because customers kept asking for them. We set up a big screen for fans to watch together.

I think the World Cup is giving Turkish people a reason to gather, reconnect, and talk about soccer.

I hope the World Cup leaves a lasting impact

The first few months of opening a restaurant are never easy. We spent them getting things set up, perfecting our recipes, and building awareness. We're still a relatively new restaurant, so it's been encouraging to see this positive momentum from the World Cup.

The city feels busy. You can see it on the streets. There's an energy in San Francisco right now that's having a positive effect on businesses like ours, and I hope we can keep that going.

Of course, the World Cup is a one-time event, but we'll do our best to serve these customers well. If we can meet their expectations, I hope they'll come back.

And who knows? Maybe the Turkish national team will stop by for a meal before the tournament is over. I'm still holding out hope.

• Apple increased MacBook and iPad prices by 20% due to worldwide demand for AI-related chips.
• Xbox raised prices by up to $150, citing a memory chip shortage driven by AI infrastructure needs.
• Here is what leaders in business and tech are saying about the price hikes, from Dan Ives to Elon Musk.

Apple and Xbox are raising prices on consumer devices as the AI boom has caused a global shortage of memory and storage chips, pushing up costs across the electronics industry.

Apple on Thursday said it would increase the prices of some MacBooks and iPads by up to 20% worldwide, citing an "extraordinary surge" in demand for chips used in AI data centers. Hours later, Microsoft-owned Xbox announced its second console price increase in less than a year, raising prices by up to $150 from August as it cited the same memory and storage crunch.

The moves are the clearest sign yet that the race to build AI infrastructure is starting to hit consumers' wallets. Here's what smart people in business and tech are saying about the price hike.

Dan Ives, analyst at Wedbush Securities

In a note on Thursday, the tech megabull wrote that while Apple is known to secure low prices because of its bulk purchases, memory price increases have "forced" it to raise prices.

"We believe the company is in a strong position to increase prices without sacrificing hardware performance and risking increasing customer churn given the company's increasing focus on the higher-end consumer," Ives wrote.

Daniel Ahmed, director of research and insights at Niko Partners

Ahmed said on X that the most important part of the announcement is that Xbox said console storage and memory prices have increased more than twofold — and that the company expects another doubling by the fall of 2027.

"This is also why I'm expecting another price increase for the Switch 2 in 2027 at this point," Ahmed said on Thursday.

"The delayed price increase this year is to help build up the install base in the Switch's 2nd year," he added.

Nabila Popal, senior director of International Data Corporation's data & analytics team

Popal said on a LinkedIn post that the latest Apple price hikes were higher than she had expected, and that might be a signal for Apple's next possible move: iPhone hikes.

"The up to $500 hikes on MacBooks will only make the likely $100-$200 hikes on the iPhones seem relatively 'reasonable,'" wrote Popal. "Apple's Genius timing and strategic move to get the consumers used to the idea and announce it come after the increases to the MACs."

"I think the days of $50 price increases are over," she added.

Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management

In a Thursday post on X, Munster said that, for the most part, a large price change leads to little change in Apple consumer demand.

"Apple's 1.5B consumers (my estimate) are locked into the ecosystem and, more importantly, get a ton of value out of the products even with the most recent price bump," he wrote.

He added: "Average life of a Mac is 4.5 years before it's traded in which means a $200 increase adds $3.70 a month to the cost of ownership."

Sawyer Merritt, tech influencer and investor

Merritt wrote in a post on X on Thursday that he doesn't think this will be the last price hike for Apple.

"Xbox is increasing console prices by 25% in August, saying that console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and that they expect another doubling by the fall of 2027," Merritt added.

Alex Cheema, cofounder of EXO Labs

Cheema posted on X on Thursday that the 128 gigabyte M5 Max MacBook Pro just saw a 29% price hike.

"No new products, just higher prices," said the AI startup cofounder.

"A customer of ours bought 42 of these just before the price increase - they saved $67,200," Cheema added. "If you want to run local AI, you need to secure hardware ASAP."

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla

The world's richest man also chimed in on the price hikes on his X account. Musk posted Tim Cook's comments that the memory chip shortage had led to the biggest jump in costs "in any area in over 40 years."

"Biggest price jump in anything I've ever seen too," the Tesla CEO wrote.

Musk said that the industry was suffering from an "insane" memory chip production shortfall in the face of spiraling demand. "MUCH higher production is needed," he wrote.

Marques Brownlee, YouTuber

Marques Brownlee said that Apple's Mac Mini price hike in May was a "warning shot" for the current wave of increases — and warned that the new prices could be here to stay.

"If I was guessing, this is a temporary price increase for as long as this memory shortage lasts, but we also have no idea how long this is going to be, so I would just consider this the new price for everything — and you can thank AI for that," the tech YouTuber said in a video posted on social media.

Mark Gurman, Bloomberg chief correspondent

Mark Gurman, Bloomberg's chief correspondent covering Apple, said that it might be some of Apple's lesser-known products that are hit hardest by the price increases.

"I don't think the Mac or iPad price increases are going to be shocking or incredibly deterring to customers," wrote Gurman in a post on X.

"But the smart speaker and TV box markets are so commoditized that these HomePod and Apple TV price hikes could drive people to cheaper Google and Amazon alternatives," he said.

• FieldAI says it has topped $100 million in revenue and customer contracts.
• The startup's software helps robots operate in mines, on construction sites, and in factories.
• Investors, including Bezos Expeditions, Nvidia, and Khosla Ventures, back FieldAI.

The robotics startup FieldAI has hit a $100 million milestone.

The company, which builds software to help robots navigate challenging environments such as mines and construction sites, said it has grown to over $100 million in revenue and in customer contracts. The contracts come from 30 customers across Europe, Asia, and the US, CEO and cofounder Ali Agha told Business Insider.

"We have seen very, very fast growth in the last several months," Agha said.

Founded in 2023, FieldAI is building a "universal general-purpose brain" that works across robots, tasks, and environments. Its software can run on a range of machines, from humanoids and robot dogs to drones and industrial rovers, to help them operate safely and autonomously in unpredictable environments.

Last year, the startup raised $405 million from investors including Jeff Bezos' family office, Laurene Powell Jobs' Emerson Collective, Khosla Ventures, and the venture arms of Nvidia, mining giant BHP, and Intel. The round valued FieldAI at $2 billion.

FieldAI is headquartered in Irvine, California, and the Bay Area, and it has hired robotics and AI talent from Google DeepMind, Waymo, Tesla, Nvidia, Boston Dynamics, and Amazon. Its customers include construction firms, data center operators, defense companies, and more.

Before FieldAI, Agha spent seven years at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory developing autonomous systems for exploring difficult environments, including Mars.

FieldAI's robotics software is used in the real world

FieldAI is among a small group of robotics startups with paying customers using its software to operate robots in the real world. Many companies are still in development or pilots with their robots because of a shortage of real-world training data. While AI chatbots are trained on vast amounts of text and images from the internet, no comparable trove of data exists yet for robots.

Agha said FieldAI's advantage comes from building software called Field Foundation Models that do not require huge amounts of training data for every task. Instead, the company uses physics and probability to build AI that is "risk-aware" and can make safe decisions in uncertain situations.

That has allowed FieldAI to deploy robots with customers more quickly than competitors. At first, robots equipped with a FieldAI "brain" performed basic tasks and collected data from real-world work. FieldAI used that data to improve its software, which helped robots handle more complex situations.

"If you don't have this architecture, it's a chicken and egg problem," Agha said. "You cannot deploy because you need data to have a model that works, and you need a brain to deploy to collect the data in the real world."

In construction, for example, FieldAI's robots can walk sites and take photos that update digital copies of construction projects. Usually, people walking around sites perform this work, and a robot is better suited because it can do it 24/7 and produce more detailed and accurate notes, Agha said.

The data that robots collect on-site helps improve FieldAI's software and enables it to add more robot capabilities over time.

Investors like Khosla Ventures backed FieldAI

Kanu Gulati, a partner at Khosla Ventures and an investor in FieldAI, first met the startup when Agha visited the firm's Menlo Park office with an early prototype. The robot navigated from the backyard to the garage on its own, created a 3D map, and found its way down a steep flight of stairs.

"It was impressive," Gulati said.

After speaking with potential customers in construction, mining, and nuclear sites, Gulati said it became clear how large the market could be for robots in those industries. She said FieldAI has an advantage because its robots are already deployed and collecting data from doing real work.

That gives the company "probably the best shot at doing the next level of complicated tasks," Gulati said, including moving materials and handling larger objects.

While FieldAI is still early in its development, Agha sees a future where robots of many shapes and sizes work across the economy.

"We are going to see robots in almost every aspect of our lives, starting on the industrial side and coming to the consumer side," he said.

Agility Robotics is another company with real-world deployments, including in Amazon warehouses and GXO logistics facilities. The humanoid company plans to go public in a deal valuing it at about $2.5 billion.

• Stripe cofounder John Collison said double majors will excel in the AI era.
• He said "multidisciplinary thinkers" will do "incredibly well."
• The number of students double-majoring at US universities is also on the rise, according to data analysis.

Good news, students who have decided to double-major in college: Stripe cofounder John Collison predicts that the late nights, schedule juggling, and meticulous planning will be worth it in the age of AI.

Collison, who also serves as Stripe's president, said he's "bullish" on double majors and they "will do incredibly well over the next 10 to 20 years."

"If you understand software and understand marketing, you now can go massively improve the entire marketing funnel for your company," Collison said earlier this spring on the tech talk show TBPN. "Now, one person can do what would have taken 20 people dredging through all these systems."

Collison referenced the late Charlie Munger, who served as Berkshire Hathaway's vice chairman for over four decades and was Warren Buffett's business partner.

"Charlie Munger talked about the importance of being multidisciplinary and multidisciplinary thinking," Collison said. "He thinks getting a functional understanding of many disciplines is not that hard. You can just go read the books now or you can talk to your AI about it. I think multidisciplinary thinkers are going to do incredibly well."

The number of students choosing to double major is on the rise at many US universities amid job-security concerns, according to analysis published in The Hechinger Report in November.

Collison also said "high-agency people" would also do well over the coming decades.

"The people at Stripe who have been talking to customers and know exactly what we should do. It's the people who have that pep in their step and want to go make Stripe better. They are so much more empowered thanks to AI," he said.

Advancements in AI are reshaping the workforce, changing how companies approach hiring and the skillsets employees are expected to have.

While AI optimists have said the technology can create new jobs and spur economic growth, a vocal segment of critics believes the opposite. AI can automate basic, repetitive tasks, raising concerns that entry-level jobs typically performed by humans will be overhauled by technology. Slowed hiring rates and layoffs earlier this year have also left some new college graduates in a lurch.

One major area of concern has been software engineering, which has been transformed as AI allows people to create code and programs faster than ever. However, there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. TrueUp, a tech job marketplace and recruiting platform, told Business Insider that tech job openings have risen almost 14% so far in 2026.

Collison, for his part, said people who think AI will herald the death of software engineering are mistaken.

"I think those people are high, honestly," Collison told TBPN.

• There's a Coachella-like ad in NYC for the Series A round raised by Phoebe Gates' startup, Phia.
• Kleiner Perkins gets top billing, but Khloe Kardashian, Jessica Alba, Paris Hilton, and Ice Spice are among the celeb features.
• The shop connected to the ad is an everyman's bodega, selling sandwiches and cigarettes.

A laundromat. A sushi roll chain. A neighborhood bodega with a billboard featuring a Coachella-esque lineup of celebs who invested in a fashion-meets-AI startup.

These are all things you can find right now on Kenmare Street in Manhattan.

Phia — the online shopping startup cofounded by Stanford grads Phoebe Gates (yes, the daughter of Bill Gates) and Sophia Kianni — is advertising its $35.5 million Series A funding round in the windows of Mott Corner, a deli and convenience store in Nolita.

The blue-and-black ad showcases an "Investor Lineup," including a who's who of entertainment, media, and investing titans: Khosla Ventures, Khloé Kardashian, Mindy Kaling, Shaboozey, Bobbi Brown, Ice Spice, Jay Shetty, and even The Chainsmokers.

Inside and around the bodega, the scene is far less glitzy.

When Business Insider visited the shop, a group of construction workers in hard hats and neon-orange vests were eating lunch. The menu offered New York bodega staples, including chicken fingers and deli meat sandwiches.

There were four rain-splattered white chairs — three plastic and one wood — chained to the side of the building. A rainbow-colored rolling ticker sign listed what customers could buy inside the shop: "WE HAVE SODA," "breakfast, lunch, dinner," and "CIGARETTES," it read.

The store manager said Phia's ad had been up since mid-June. Other companies have advertised in the shop's windows for years, the manager said, but nobody had ever asked him about the ads.

Absent from Phia's ad is any explanation of Phia's consumer product.

The startup, which has raised $43.5 million in two rounds, is positioning itself to consumers as a sustainability-minded AI tool for finding better prices and secondhand alternatives online. During a spot on "Good Morning America," Gates and Kianni called the app a "companion that sits in your browser [that] answers the questions that every consumer asks: 'Should I actually buy this?'"

For fashion brands, the company says it "drives high-intent discovery and connects users to products from brands they're most likely to buy from," according to its website.

Carol Spieckerman, a retail consultant, said the ad may look like a consumer-facing billboard, but she sees a more specific pitch.

"This is business-to-business marketing masquerading as out-of-home advertising," Spieckerman told Business Insider. "The audience isn't random passersby; it's decision-makers at brands and retailers who work in or frequent that neighborhood.

"Phia is essentially saying: 'Look at who believes in us,'" Spieckerman said.

The ad caught the eye of at least one VC in the area.

"Why is there a series A announcement on a deli in Nolita?" wondered Eniac Ventures founder Hadley Harris, who posted a photo of it on X.

• SpaceX's IPO has made some employees millionaires — and left Blue Origin workers cursing their luck.
• Ex-employees of Jeff Bezos' rocket startup told BI their stock options are now essentially worthless.
• In an email to staff in 2016, Bezos said the options were "long-term lottery tickets" that were unlikely to pay off.

SpaceX's record-breaking IPO has turned former employees into millionaires — and left alums of a rival rocket company with a serious case of FOMO.

Three ex-employees of Jeff Bezos' rocket maker Blue Origin told Business Insider that the company's unusual approach to equity left them with stock options that are essentially worthless.

Meanwhile, they've watched SpaceX's dizzying rise to a $2 trillion-plus valuation provide a massive windfall for early hires — from engineers to welders to cafeteria workers — who received stock options during their time at Elon Musk's company.

Business Insider reviewed documents detailing Blue Origin's historic stock options program, which promised a payout only if the company went public or was sold — and, crucially, expired if those events didn't happen within 10 years.

That is an unusual structure for large private tech companies, with other pre-IPO startups like SpaceX, Stripe, and OpenAI allowing current and former employees to sell their vested stock through periodic share sales.

Blue Origin introduced a new options plan for current employees in April, which offers additional ways to cash out.

Of course, money isn't everything. Two former Blue Origin employees said that, in their experience, Bezos' company generally offered higher salaries, more work-life balance, and better job security for engineers than SpaceX during the late 2010s.

One former Blue Origin employee said they turned down an offer to join SpaceX several years ago, potentially missing out on life-changing wealth.

"If I had taken that equity, I would be a millionaire now," they said. "But I don't regret that for a second."

Blue Origin declined to comment.

'Long-term lottery tickets'

Blue Origin introduced a stock equity plan in early 2016. Employees commonly move between the two companies, and equity plans are often used to help with retention.

In a previously unreported email to employees in February 2016, Bezos warned that the options could be "worth a lot in the future, or not much at all," and added he "wouldn't recommend" employees changing their financial plans on the expectation of a major payout.

"For me, the right mental model is to view them as long-term lottery tickets that might pay off if a series of things go right," Bezos wrote.

A decade later, Bezos' warning has come to pass. Blue Origin's equity program was structured so that employees could exercise their options only through a "liquidity event," defined as an IPO or a sale of the company, according to internal documents. Plus, all options would expire 10 years after the first stock options began to vest, a deadline that, for some, has now passed.

One former employee, who joined Blue Origin from SpaceX, said that it was clear to them that Bezos was unlikely to sell Blue Origin or take it public. Their SpaceX position is worth tens of millions of dollars as of the recent IPO, while their Blue Origin options are worth nothing.

"You technically hold this document, but it would almost be like telling someone, 'Hey, you have the rights to buy the house in your neighborhood next to you if the sun doesn't rise tomorrow,'" the employee added.

The ex-employees all said they joined Blue Origin knowing they could not count on the options paying out, but also said that it provided far less of an incentive than SpaceX's equity scheme, which allowed employees to exercise their options and sell their holdings regularly.

"You could call Blue Origin options a lottery ticket, but it's more like a scratcher, whereas I think SpaceX is like playing red or black on roulette," said the former Blue employee who turned down SpaceX.

SpaceX employees received stock options when they joined the company, at their annual reviews, and when they were promoted, the former SpaceX and Blue Origin employee said, adding that SpaceX also introduced "retention incentive packages" that awarded new options when employee stock vested to encourage them to stay.

Critically, SpaceX's equity scheme wasn't tied exclusively to a hypothetical future IPO. Current and former employees were allowed to sell a portion of their holdings to the company or investors in private liquidity events usually held twice a year. Similar employee share sales are common at major pre-public tech firms, with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Stripe all reportedly allowing current and former employees to sell millions of dollars' worth of shares over the past year.

"They made equity a big part of their compensation package. It was a big deal, especially as the stock started to grow — it became a more important thing to people," the former SpaceX employee said.

The divergence between the two companies' stock option plans is now painfully large. A SpaceX employee who received 9,000 stock options when they joined the company in 2016 and held them without selling would today be worth at least $1.35 million, while a Blue Origin employee with the same number of stock options would have earned nothing from them.

The Blue Origin alumnus who turned down SpaceX told Business Insider that the stock options were a big part of the recruitment pitch when they joined the company in the late 2010s, and they did not realize the opportunities to exercise them would be so restrictive until after they started.

Former employees recalled that discussions over the differences between Blue Origin and SpaceX's equity plans among employees were fueled by the high number of workers moving between the two companies.

"After a couple of years at Blue, I met some welders who were decamillionaires from previously working at SpaceX. They worked at Blue Origin part-time and had these beautiful houses in the Pacific Northwest, and I was like, 'Man, that's awesome,'" one of the ex-Blue Origin employees told Business Insider. They said that they had been offered a role at SpaceX after working at Blue Origin for several years, but turned it down for family reasons.

Another former Blue Origin employee, who joined the company in 2018, said that new employees regularly arrived from Musk's rocket company.

"I do remember quite a few conversations with those people along the lines of 'Yeah, if I had not left, I'd be a millionaire,'" they said.

Blue plays catchup

In recent years, SpaceX has pulled well ahead of its rival in the race to build a sustainable business, with the company's Falcon 9 rocket regularly carrying satellites into orbit and its Starlink internet service growing at a rapid speed.

The former Blue Origin employee who turned down SpaceX said they felt the company's approach to equity gave them little incentive to work the long hours needed to keep pace with Musk's rocket company.

"I would've worked way harder if I had skin in the game, if I knew that those options were going to be worth something," they added.

In April, Blue Origin unveiled a new stock option plan for employees. Ars Technica's Eric Berger reported that this new program would include more opportunities for employees to exercise their stock options in liquidity events, including potential external funding rounds and company-sponsored tender offers — a model more in line with SpaceX and other tech firms.

It comes at a critical moment for Blue Origin. The company's huge New Glenn rocket, which rivals SpaceX's Starship and is a key part of NASA's plan to return to the moon, blew up on the launch pad last month.

Blue Origin's employees now face the grueling task of rebuilding, while watching their counterparts at SpaceX buy second homes and yachts with their newfound fortunes.

Do you work at SpaceX or Blue Origin and have information to share? Contact this reporter at tcarter.41 on Signal or tcarter@businessinsider.com.

• BCG's Behavioral Science Lab cofounder says success is linked to having a "high-agency mindset."
• Julia Dhar said these workers actively seek to understand expectations and are proactive.
• She said these employees do more than the minimum required.

Type A workers, rise up.

BCG's North America leader of people and organization practice, Julia Dhar, says that success increasingly boils down to what she refers to as "a high-agency mindset."

These are the proactive employees who actively seek to understand what's expected of them. They're also the ones who show up with a positive attitude and a belief that their actions will have an impact.

"They have some optimism about the future, even if they're not assured that everything in the future will be good," said Dhar, who co-founded BCG's Behavioral Science Lab and is a fellow at the BCG Institute.

While self-starters may have always thrived in the workplace, that mindset may be more critical during a time of rapid technological transformation.

BCG's 2026 AI at Work Research report found that 72% of workers say skill expectations in their roles have changed, and 88% believe they will need major upskilling in the next five years. Dhar said that employees who seek clarity about their roles and build new skills may be better positioned to keep up.

Employees across industries are grappling with a moment in time when AI disruptions are fueling anxiety about the future of work. Rather than getting stuck in fear, Dhar said high-agency workers focus on what they can control and take action wherever possible.

"The more you take action, the more that it ends up expanding the surface area of opportunity," Dhar said.

What does that look like in practice?

It's the employee who sees a recurring problem and builds a solution before anyone asks, Dhar said. That could mean creating a tool to help remedy a frequent team frustration, she said. Or, it could mean automating a process like organizing customer feedback.

It could also take the form of proactively talking to customers about the features or products they want to see next, or taking time to research and understand competitors.

What sets these employees apart isn't that they're trying to check a box because they think they're supposed to, she said. They're self-starters and don't need perfect instruction before creating value, Dhar said. She added that high-agency employees progressively improve their instincts by getting feedback on their efforts.

"You can think about it as the person who is asking one more question, or doing a tiny little bit more than we might expect as a natural baseline," Dhar said.

Her advice comes as AI reshapes the workplace and agentic AI becomes increasingly embedded in day-to-day workflows. While 42% of workers surveyed in BCG's research report said they save a full workday per week with AI, 66% received no guidance on how to use that time.

At a time when organizations may not be providing their workers with explicit direction, Dhar said the employees who thrive are those who can identify valuable work, improve handoffs, solve frequent problems, and reallocate time to higher-impact activities.

As individual contributors are increasingly expected to act like managers — overseeing agents and automated workflows — the ability to drive work forward without specific instruction is becoming more important.

For example, Dan Diasio, EY global consulting AI leader, said that many entry-level hires are now expected to oversee AI workflows, and they need to think more like managers earlier in their careers.

• Outward Intelligence founders bootstrapped to over $1 million of revenue eight months after launch.
• AI helped Outward Intelligence cut costs and defer hiring, boosting profitable growth.
• Bootstrapping forced Outward Intelligence to prioritize, leading to profitable expansion and success.

Three friends with résumés spanning Google, Palantir, and Harris Poll skipped venture capital and bootstrapped their startup instead. Within eight months of commercialization, they say, they had grown their polling company, Outward Intelligence, to more than $1 million in revenue.

The founders — Amir Kanpurwala, Abhish Raghavan, and Brian Tatum — launched Outward Intelligence in March 2023 after seeing how manual and disconnected the market-research industry still was. Legacy firms, they said, were relying on slow, fragmented systems that made it hard to deliver high-quality insights quickly.

"The polling space is broken," Kanpurwala said, pointing to the slow pace of traditional research and growing concerns about data quality in an era when AI can take surveys and bad actors can game online responses.

He said the problem became more visible after the 2016 presidential election, when many people began questioning whether polls could still be trusted.

"The polls were only off by two or three points, on average, but it got that binary outcome wrong, and I think that's when you first started to see people freaking out about polls."

Rather than raise outside capital, the trio chose to self-fund the business. They said the decision came down to control and focus; venture money can accelerate hiring and growth, but it can also shift a company's priorities away from customers and toward investors.

"The person that you care about the most shifts from your client and your employees to the VC — satisfying the VC," Kanpurwala said.

How they made bootstrapping work

A few things made bootstrapping possible. First, the founders were mid-career and had enough savings to cover the company's early costs, which they kept to a minimum. Second, each brought distinct skills to the business — product and operations, research and client work, and engineering — so they did not need to hire aggressively at the start.

Third, they say, AI changed the economics of building the company.

"Because of our use of AI, we were able to defer hiring, grow very profitably, and then invest in other employees," Kanpurwala said.

Raghavan added that they see AI much the way Steve Jobs once described technology: as a tool that removes drudgery and frees people up to do more creative work.

Tatum, who leads the company's tech and data work, said Outward Intelligence built systems that let AI agents handle tasks that would otherwise require much larger teams, from managing research workflows to spotting bad survey responses and fraud.

"This lets us compete with existing research orgs that are 10X or more our size," he said.

The company's business model also made bootstrapping more feasible than it might be for other startups. Its highest cost was conducting the research itself, but those costs were typically covered once clients signed on. That kept upfront capital needs relatively low — "thousands, not tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars," the founders said.

Bootstrapping came with tradeoffs. Without VC backing, the company lacked the marketing budget, startup perks, and outside credibility that can help with recruiting and sales. At one point, the founders said, their bank even pushed them off its platform because it wanted to focus on venture-backed startups.

Still, they say the constraints were useful. Bootstrapping forced them to stay disciplined about hiring, product decisions, and spending.

"It's been this relentless resource prioritization," Kanpurwala said. "It imposed a discipline that I don't think would exist had we chosen to take outside funding."

How the strategy paid off

The founders' discipline appears to have paid off.

After winning early business from digitally native consumer brands, the company expanded into larger B2B and enterprise accounts. The founders say the business has been profitable since commercialization, has tripled its team size over the past year, and surpassed eight figures in annual recurring revenue this year. Business Insider verified Outward Intelligence's seven-figure revenue by reviewing its 2025 tax return.

"It's one of those things where success begets success," Kanpurwala said. "At the onset, a lot of companies were like, 'You just started — why would we trust our huge market research program with you?' But as we've built in this space, as we've gained more clients, folks have a lot more confidence in our ability."

That said, the early days were stressful. Without VC backing, there was no safety net — if the company did not make sales, it would not make money — but the founders say that pressure helped sharpen their decisions. They were deliberate about spending, avoided unnecessary startup trappings, and reinvested in the business as revenue grew.

"We were very anti-swag, initially," Raghavan said. "We didn't want to buy T-shirts and hats and things like that. We were super focused on not wasting money."

In year one, the founders said, they did not quite match their previous corporate salaries, but they were able to pay themselves.

"We could pay ourselves a lot more, but we're choosing not to because the growth of the business is the most important thing," Kanpurwala said.

For the founders, the appeal of bootstrapping was never just financial.

"It's a values-alignment thing," Kanpurwala said. "We had this conversation at the onset. For us, the objective that we really wanted and that we cared about was to create something that would change this super staid industry — and we wanted to do it on our terms."

• Traders who have piled into SpaceX stock say they still have faith despite the stock's rocky ride.
• Shares of SpaceX have dropped 23% from their peak as the IPO frenzy as faded.
• The bulls are enduring in their faith in Elon Musk's ability to engineer a fresh stock rally.

SpaceX hype has come back down to earth since the company's colossal IPO two weeks ago.

Judging by the stock price, the mania around Elon Musk's rocket company has waned considerably, with shares barely above the $150 level when trading began on June 12. The stock ended Thursday's session down 32% from its peak, though still up about 13% from the $135 IPO price.

The decline doesn't seem to have fazed many retail traders, though. Those who spoke to Business Insider said they're still believers in Musk's space company. Even those who flipped for a quick profit said they're eagerly awaiting another good buy-the-dip moment to load up again.

Elon's true believers

Walid Diab, a 38-year-old consultant based in the United Arab Emirates, was among a large group of Elon Musk fans racing to get their hands on the stock on the day of the IPO. Right as the stock was zooming toward $170, he bought $25,000 worth of shares. He sold around $14,000 worth of his holdings several days later, netting a small profit of about $1,300, according to screenshots of his brokerage account.

Diab says he's holding on to the other half of his SpaceX investment for the long run. He sees SpaceX less as an AI play and more as a "logistics company," an area in which he believes it has nearly no competition.

"You can only come up with the conclusion it can only go up from this point," he said. "Elon — one of the things I always admired about him is whenever the stock seems to be going down, Elon always has some sort of trick up his sleeve."

Prashant Mishra, a 36-year-old retail investor based in the UK, got in and out of SpaceX on the first day of the IPO. He and his wife requested to be part of the initial public offering and invested £1,000 each. Mishra says they were largely drawn to the company by Musk's persona.

"If he was not there, I would not have bought [the stock] at such a high valuation," he said, pointing to how the company lost money in 2025, according to its S-1 filing.

Mishra and his wife sold for a small profit. Brokerages can penalize investors for flipping, or making a quick buck selling shares of a newly public company, but Mishra said he was anticipating a crash and preferred to get out while he could, though he plans to become a long-term investor down the line.

"There are no regrets that way," he said.

Mishra said he's considering a future purchase of as much as £10,000, and that he hopes for a return of 15%-25% on the investment over the years.

"Short term, it may go negative, but I believe — a lot of people believe — that as we go along, in the long-term it's going to make really, really good money," he added.

The wait-and-see crowd

Jonathan Walters, a 39-year-old investor who has been trading for more than 15 years, also bought into the stock on the day of the IPO and exited his position a few days later.

Walters says he's bullish on the company long-term and is "absolutely" looking for opportunities to purchase it again for the long run, but he's waiting for the valuation to significantly drop before doing so. Otherwise, the company needs to "miraculously start making a ton of money," he said.

"When I saw the stuff about building data centers in space, I was like, 'This is just a loss of money,'" he said, referring to the sprawling ambitions outlined in SpaceX's S-1 filing.

Walters thinks the stock could plummet to as low as $63 a share by the time the lock-up period for early investors expires, though he's willing to buy as soon as it drops to $130 a share.

Raj Dass, a trader and wealth manager based in South Africa, was also eager to get in on the IPO. Though he knows flipping IPOs is risky, he thought the trade would be worth it, given SpaceX's immense hype and the timeline for the stock to join major indexes.

On SpaceX's fourth day of trading, he purchased around $17,500 worth of the stock and sold it several hours later, around the time it hit $180 a share. In the end, he said his profit amounted to "lunch money."

Dass said he's more concerned about owning the stock for too long, as he knew many traders would rush to get out once it looked like the stock had peaked.

Dass describes himself more as a SpaceX bear. He said he would consider investing for the long term if its valuation dropped to attractive levels, though he feared the stock would never do so given the hype surrounding Musk. Otherwise, he would like to see the company at least start moving toward profitability.

"Look, investing is always a valuation game. So you can only really say, 'What's the value now and do I buy it at this value?' What I'd like the value to be, it may never get there," he said.

The YOLO trade

On the riskier side of the investment spectrum, one Reddit user posted about pouring the entirety of their Roth IRA — approximately $315,000 — into SpaceX at $211 per share. The post documenting the trade was classified as "YOLO" in the Wall Street Bets subreddit.

Although the stock has since fallen close to $150, the user — who withheld their name but told Business Insider they're a software engineer in their early 30s — said the slide hasn't altered their investment thesis.

"Has it changed my outlook? Definitely not, there's no movement in the company's stock price that would really change my outlook on the company as a whole. The valuation is definitely rich and I wish I could've gone in at a better price, but to me it's an inevitability that the company catches up to its lofty valuation eventually," they said.

The trader explained that their view is tied to their investment horizon. "I can't access my Roth for another like 35 years, theres plenty of time for SpaceX to catch up to its valuation in this span."

• Slate's tiny pickup starts at $24,950, putting it in the rare category of new cars under $25,000.
• The Jeff Bezos-backed startup says buyers can customize the truck with hundreds of add-ons.
• More than 10,000 people placed $300 preorders in its first four live hours, the company told BI.

Slate wants its tiny electric truck to be exactly what its name suggests: a blank slate.

The Jeff Bezos-backed auto startup is pitching a bare-bones pickup that buyers can turn into an SUV, wrap in more than 100 colors, and outfit with everything from a stereo to a custom key fob. This week, Slate gave that idea a price: $24,950.

It lands in one of the narrowest corners of the US auto market — new vehicles under $25,000. Only 4.7% of new vehicles sold last year had starting prices below that mark, according to Edmunds. Slate is trying to hit it with an electric powertrain, which makes the price even more unusual.

Still, there are tradeoffs. The base Slate truck has manual crank windows, no infotainment screen, no interior speakers for music, two seats, and an estimated 205 miles of range.

Slate's pitch is that buyers can add whatever luxuries they want later. The company says it will offer more than 200 accessories and add-ons, including vehicle wraps, seat covers, roof racks, light covers, a stereo, and interior tech.

And that idea is already getting early buyer interest. Slate told Business Insider that more than 10,000 people placed nonrefundable $300 preorders in the first four hours after its website went live. The truck is expected to hit US roads by the end of the year.

So we mapped out what Slate says buyers can customize.

This is what you get for $24,950

The standard Slate truck is intentionally plain: a two-seat pickup with a small bed, steel wheels, and almost no digital frills.

It does come with cruise control, tactile controls, and air conditioning — a feature executives initially debated including when the truck was still in the design phase.

Slate goes SUV

Slate's most dramatic add-on is basically a personality transplant.

The company plans to sell SUV kits — starting at $29,950 for the squareback SUV and $31,950 for a sleeker Fastback — that turn the pickup's open bed into interior space. Both options come with a second-row bench seat, bumping the interior capacity to five.

A coming Jeep-like version

Slate also says that a Jeep Wrangler-like open-air kit — complete with a second-row roll bar — is still in the pipeline. Pricing has not been disclosed.

Don't have an eye for design? Here's some inspo.

For the decision-fatigued, Slate is also offering starter packs.

The preconfigured builds give shoppers a template they can keep as-is or tweak with different colors, accessories, and features. They range from "The Professional," an all-black Fastback, to the orange-accented "Hauler Back" pickup with a roof rack.

Mix and match

Slate's color strategy is less paint shop, more wardrobe change.

The company says buyers will be able to choose from more than 100 wrap colors at launch, or create a custom color, with some full-vehicle wraps expected to cost less than $500.

Slate-trained wrap installers can change the truck's color "in hours," the company said.

Since the $24,960 Slate EV truck doesn’t come with painted body panels, Slate offers wrapping options directly from their website.

Wrap kits start at $499.99 (not including installation), and go up to $1,599 for a custom color or design. https://t.co/1FeNBuqPfC pic.twitter.com/Z0wpTRFQKG

— Nic Cruz Patane (@niccruzpatane) June 24, 2026

Bolted onto the exterior

Slate's exterior parts business can start to look less like an automaker and more like a catalog.

Buyers can add roof racks, running boards, spare tires, tow hitches, bed organizers, light covers, decals, suspension lift kits, and other exterior accessories to change the truck's look or make it more useful.

Slate's new CEO, Peter Faricy, knows a thing or two about selling smaller, scalable products — he's the former vice president of Amazon Marketplace.

Add some creature comforts inside, too

Slate is taking the same mix-and-match approach inside the cabin.

Buyers can choose from seat covers, storage add-ons, floor liners, pet accessories, tech mounts, and small comfort upgrades like a door-mounted front armrest. Some pieces snap into the lifestyle-accessory bucket; others are closer to mini DIY projects.

For example, Slate's $49.99 door-mounted armrest is rated "moderate" for installation difficulty.

And in the end, it looks like…

Accessories can quickly add to the final price.

Business Insider tested Slate's online building tool to see how fast the total could climb. Our build was a pickup with 24 accessories, including a suspension lift, a custom wrap, and a Bluetooth speaker mount.

Even with 10 of those accessories still listed as "price coming soon," the truck came closer to $31,000 than its $24,950 starting price.

• Douglas Craig left the media world after more than 30 years, and his layoff sparked a career change.
• He wanted more time to enjoy his life and to do something more meaningful.
• He's taken up seasonal, full-time work, including being a ski instructor for the first time.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Douglas Craig, a 58-year-old ski instructor in Silverthorne, Colorado. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I worked in media for more than 30 years for a lot of different companies, including Discovery Communications. I helped launch Animal Planet, then switched to the digital side and worked for Roku and Comcast.

My most recent position was senior vice president of content strategy for Paramount+ on the international side. I worked across teams from eight different regions for almost five years. It was a very enjoyable role. I had a great team of people — very high-paced with lots of energy. Getting to build and launch the Paramount+ platform was incredibly rewarding.

Last June, my position was eliminated, and I was laid off. I was caught up in the transition period before the Skydance deal to acquire Paramount was finalized.

Although I considered getting another job in media, I decided to take on seasonal work in Colorado because of my love for skiing and my desire for a better work-life balance. I wanted to take more time to enjoy life.

I was sad when my position was eliminated

I had a terrific run at Paramount, but as I approached my mid-50s, I realized the lifestyle wasn't aligned with what I wanted to do with the rest of my career. I wanted to find something with more meaning, fulfillment, and a sense of community.

My family is filled with educators, including my wife, so I've at times felt a lack of purpose while working in media. Something that had always been in the back of my mind was what I could do to make a larger contribution.

My initial instinct when my job was eliminated was to find a new job in media

I've bounced back and forth between the NYC area, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. I was open to moving for my next job. There were several positions I was a finalist for that I was interested in, but over time, my wife and I felt our definition of enough had changed.

We have three kids, but they're all out of the house. We didn't need the same lifestyle we had before. We wanted more time for health and purpose. We thought a lot about what it would be like not to have the salary I had and what it would look like to be somewhere else.

About a year and a half ago, we bought a townhouse in Colorado, and we planned to retire there. We were in Colorado in the townhouse all last summer.

In the fall, my wife went back to the East Coast for a teaching job, and I stayed and continued looking for work.

I've always joked that I would love to be a liftie or a ski instructor when I retire

I landed a position at Arapahoe Basin. The pay is about one-tenth of what I previously made. We've been very diligent about saving for retirement, but even so, we've cut down on spending and are keeping a much closer eye on where our money goes.

I started this job in December, and it felt right. I was super happy to be outdoors all the time, not be attached to emails, have a sense of freedom, and feel like I was resetting.

When we decided to make this recent transition, we already had a place to land, so it wasn't like we were uprooting everything. It was really more a matter of how we make this adjustment full-time.

My wife joined me in Colorado full-time in January and quickly found a job in the local school system.

I had never formally taught skiing before

I taught my kids to ski, so it's something I've always felt I would enjoy. Arapahoe Basin has a vibe very similar to mine: it's authentic and laid-back. It's very down-to-earth, and it's a challenging mountain, but it's one that I had already spent a lot of time on.

What surprised me about being a ski instructor was how rewarding it was. I loved to see someone so proud about what they had accomplished after a lesson and how much fun it was, especially kids.

I worked as an instructor at Keystone Science School for the spring season. It turned out to be really fun and rewarding. I also got a lot out of working with other counselors. I'm near their parents' age, but they were super inspiring to work with because they had college degrees yet were choosing to live a life of bouncing from seasonal job to seasonal job, doing what they love.

This summer, I'll be a ranger at an aerial adventure park

It has zip lines, ropes courses, and the like. The team I worked with for ski instructing is the same team that runs this operation in the summer. You're coaching kids and adults to go through these different courses.

I'm really excited. I've done some climbing before, and spending the entire day outside in the woods will be a plus.

We're still getting adjusted to this life change

I took a significant pay cut, but my wife, who is making about the same as she did before, and I saw it as an opportunity to live the life we want to live, rather than as a shock. My father died at a young age, so it's always in the back of my mind: "Let's do things we can do now when we can."

I'm a humble and modest person. I always felt like people might think I failed because I had a great job at a major media company, and what did this next step look like on the outside? Then I started realizing, why do I care what other people think?

My wife and my family were incredibly supportive, and as I've begun to tell some close friends, they have been, too. When I explained why we were doing this, to have a healthier rhythm to our life, a lot of people said, "Wow, that sounds awesome. I wish I could do that."

Just live your life

We recently took a quick trip after my wife's school year ended. In the past, when we would drive or fly home from vacation, I always had this rotten feeling in my gut like, "Oh, vacation is over. I have to go back to work."

This time, that didn't happen because I thought, "We're going back home, and I'm going back to work, but we're just living a simpler life." The pressure that I don't feel anymore is terrific.

If anyone out there is considering a career pivot, be honest with yourself about what you want. Everyone is wired differently, but if someone feels they want to do something, craving something different, they shouldn't ignore it.

I really do miss working with the people in media. I miss the sense of team in working collaboratively, but I don't miss the crazy pace and all the travel. Looking back, I've always thought, "Wow, wouldn't it be great to do something different that's more aligned with my lifestyle," and I finally did it.

Did you make a career pivot or a major life change? Reach out to this reporter to share at mhoff@businessinsider.com.

• Business Insider surveyed dozens of startup founders to understand how coding has changed with AI.
• We found that AI has very quickly become the primary author of startup code.
• That speed is a double-edged sword because there is so much slop.

At Alma, a Menlo Ventures-backed AI nutrition coaching app, nearly every line of code is now written by AI.

"I'm not exaggerating," said Rami Alhamad, Alma's cofounder and CEO. "Nearly everything we ship now is AI-generated."

In a survey of more than two dozen startup founders and venture capitalists, Business Insider found that AI has very quickly become the primary author of startup code, with Anthropic's Claude Code the overwhelming tool of choice. But that speed is a double-edged sword, with founders worrying about slop and low quality.

Coding has become one of generative AI's clearest business use cases, with VCs pouring billions into AI coding startups such as Lovable, Replit, and Cursor. Last week, SpaceX announced it would acquire Cursor for $60 billion. Anthropic has filed paperwork to go public, likely later this year.

Writing AI-generated code is like going from a hand saw to power tools in woodworking, according to Dan Lorenc, cofounder and CEO of Chainguard, an open source cybersecurity company. It is powerful yet dangerous.

"AI showed up and gave everyone a circular saw," he said. "It's way faster, but also a lot easier to lose a finger. Today, everyone is figuring out what guardrails to put in place to do this safely."

Lorenc said 100% of his code is now created via Claude Code. Last year, he put that figure at 60%.

"A year ago, you would write code yourself, and the LLMs might save you a bit of time typing," he said. "In the past four to six months, the models, the tool calls, and the harness got really good. You still have to prompt and steer it, but you can crank out in hours or days what would have taken weeks or months before."

At Wordsmith AI, an AI platform for legal teams, CTO and cofounder Volodymyr Giginiak said the company's code is "nearly 100%" AI-generated.

"Humans write very little code directly," Giginiak said. "The distinction is no longer who writes the code, but how much autonomy the AI has."

Giginiak said fully autonomous tasks account for about 10% of work today, but he expects that to rise quickly. A year from now, he predicted "80—90% of tasks" will be fully autonomous.

"Engineering is not disappearing, but being fundamentally restructured," he said. "The highest-leverage engineers will be those who can design the right environments and context for AI to operate in."

The problem: AI can generate code faster than startups can trust it

In our survey, there was a clear downside to all the AI-generated code: Lots of slop and bugs.

"The trend I'd flag for 2026: the 'vibe coding' bubble will produce a wave of fragile, unmaintainable products built by people who can't support them beyond launch," said Jason Alan Snyder, a futurist and cofounder of SuperTruth and Artists & Robots.

A December report from Menlo Ventures, which was an early backer of Anthropic, called this the "Cleanup Tax."

"The speed gains in writing code can be offset by the time spent on cleanup and quality assurance, an 'ROI Paradox' that complicates the simple productivity narrative," the report said.

At Blueprint, which is building the AI operating system for therapists, nearly all the company's code is now written by AI, up from 40% in August, according to CEO and founder Danny Freed.

He appreciates that the cost of "trying things" has dropped dramatically, but says his human employees have only become more valuable.

"Taste and judgment matter more than ever," he said. "Just because something can be built doesn't necessarily mean it should be built."

• A new RBC survey of chief information officers and tech leaders shows no freakout over AI token budgets.
• The research found that OpenAI is the most popular among companies, outperforming Anthropic.
• Corporate customers are spending more on software while rapidly adopting hybrid AI pricing models.

New research from RBC Capital Markets turned up a string of unexpected findings that challenge many of the biggest AI narratives.

Every six months or so, Rishi Jaluria and other RBC tech analysts survey more than 100 chief information officers and other tech leaders to gauge spending on corporate IT. These annual budgets represent many billions of dollars.

And Jaluria is no AI cheerleader. He's urged caution when it comes to AI adoption by businesses. So I pay attention when he publishes.

This time, the message is clear: Companies are spending a lot on AI and are willing to spend even more.

"We came away encouraged by broad-based enterprise spending momentum into 2H 2026, with AI adoption beginning to transition from pilot to production," Jaluria wrote.

Surprise No. 1

For months, investors have worried that ballooning token bills would become AI's biggest headache. RBC's survey found the opposite.

Nearly nine in 10 respondents said token budgets are manageable, even though almost half have already exceeded their original spending plans.

Instead of scrambling to cut AI costs, most companies plan to spend even more on AI tokens in the future. (Token prices are likely to plunge, making returns on AI spending more attractive, so this makes sense).

OpenAI is way ahead

This result really caught my eye: OpenAI isn't just ahead — it's lapping the field.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents said ChatGPT is the AI model-based service they use most, compared with just 12% for Anthropic's Claude.

OpenAI also comfortably leads on performance, with 44% naming it the highest-performing model provider versus 24% for Anthropic.

Sustained, and very large, business adoption of AI is required for successful IPOs by OpenAI and Anthropic.

SaaSwhat-alypse?

The long-predicted "SaaSpocalypse" has failed to show up so far, according to this survey.

The vast majority of respondents expect to spend more on software, and not a single respondent expects to spend less. Even companies spending more on AI largely aren't paying for it by gutting the rest of their software stack.

From pilot to production

The survey also suggests enterprise AI has graduated from experimentation. Late last year, a similar survey from RBC raised concerns about enterprise AI adoption.

This time, more than half of respondents said AI is already in production, while another 35% expect to reach production within six months.

New pricing catches on quick

Meanwhile, hybrid pricing models that combine seat licenses with usage-based pricing have quickly become the preferred way enterprises want to buy AI.

That's a remarkably fast shift for a market that typically adopts new technology at glacial speed.

The 100% chart

Perhaps the most striking chart in the report is also the simplest: a solid blue circle showing 100% of respondents are allocating budget to AI and large language model projects.

Of those, 91% said they're creating entirely new AI budgets rather than simply reshuffling existing spending — another sign that, for corporate America, the AI investment cycle is accelerating.

Sign up for BI's Tech Memo newsletter here. Reach out to me via email at abarr@businessinsider.com.

• Adam McKay let Sacha Baron Cohen review footage to enhance 'Talladega Nights' humor.
• Cohen added six impactful jokes to 'Talladega Nights' final cut.
• 'Talladega Nights' success boosted Sacha Baron Cohen's fame in American comedy circles.

While making the 2006 comedy "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby," writer-director Adam McKay went above and beyond to make sure Sacha Baron Cohen felt comfortable creatively.

McKay and Will Ferrell were a juggernaut in the comedy space for decades, dating back to when they met on "Saturday Night Live" in the 1990s.

After making "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy" in 2004, the duo gained some clout and quickly began developing their follow-up, in which Ferrell would play Ricky Bobby, an egotistical NASCAR driver. They developed his rival as a French Formula 1 driver named Jean Girard, but didn't know who would be right for the part.

Then they met Cohen at the annual backyard basketball party held at comedy legend Garry Shandling's house.

"He was hot at that point with Ali G., we had seen the videos of him doing it in the UK," McKay told Business Insider for an interview to celebrate the movie's 20th anniversary. "We had seen Sacha do accents… it felt right."

McKay praised Cohen's improvisational instincts, noting that he was the one who came up with the idea of Bobby kissing Girard at the end of the movie.

But the director recalled an instance where Cohen got obsessive about his material.

"I remember when we did a very early screening, he was not happy with the way his stuff had been cut. And I told him, 'Sacha, it's an early cut, it's only going to get better,'" McKay recalled.

"But he's very obsessive, and he kept texting me about it," he continued. "So I said, 'I'll tell you what, come by the edit room, I'll give you one of our assistant editors, you can go through every daily and find every joke you think should have been in the cut.' But I told him the one thing is, if I really don't like a joke, I truly think it's bad, I won't use it."

Cohen took McKay up on his offer.

"He came in for two whole days, and he came back with 16 new jokes," McKay said. "In the end, we ended up finding six really good, funny moments, and I put them in the movie. He couldn't believe I did that."

Cohen did not respond to a request for comment.

"Talladega Nights" not only became a surprise box-office hit, earning over $160 million worldwide, but also elevated Cohen's status among American audiences. His notoriety would only skyrocket three months after "Talladega Nights" came out when "Borat" hit theaters and became a sensation.

• Anthropic's H-1B filings shed light on how it uses competitive pay to attract top AI talent.
• The data showed two Anthropic technical staff members earning over $1 million in base pay.
• Workers are seeing high salaries and booming equity as Anthropic's valuation approaches $1 trillion.

Some of Anthropic's employees are raking in over $1 million in base salary, new data on the AI juggernaut shows.

Anthropic could go public as early as this fall. As it ramps up for what could be a $1 trillion IPO, the San Francisco company has also accelerated its hiring over the last year — and has kept its workers well paid.

Federal filings from the startup's H-1B visa sponsorships provide a window into the hefty pay packages it offers employees. Two salaries in Anthropic's recent H-1B crop stand out for their staggering size. Both of their roles are listed as Member of Technical Staff, a common catch-all at the AI labs — one garnered a $1.12 million base salary, the other $1.38 million.

The sheer size of the salaries Anthropic offers some of these workers comes from its blazing battle for talent. Deep-pocketed competitors like Meta, Google, and OpenAI have fought to win and retain top engineers, writing off exorbitant pay packages as necessary expenses.

Because Anthropic applies its Member of Technical Staff title so broadly, it's impossible to know from the filings what exactly these workers do. They could be top AI researchers hand-picked for their technical acumen or seasoned executives who decided to make the leap to the buzzy lab.

Anthropic obtained certification for roughly 80 H-1B roles during the first two quarters of fiscal 2026. Its federal filings from the process show how much the company offers these foreign-born workers in base pay. The filings don't include bonuses or equity compensation, which often accounts for a huge portion of a total pay package, especially given Anthropic's jump in valuation to $965 billion this May. Still, the base salaries in the filings help explain why the AI lab is one of the corporate world's most in-demand employers.

The hunt for talent has pushed AI's standout companies to hire more employees overseas. As Business Insider previously reported, although several tech giants pulled back on H-1B visa applications in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Anthropic, OpenAI, and Nvidia each ramped up their applications.

In addition, the fight for talent has grown so red-hot that researchers often negotiate multimillion-dollar pay packages. Anthropic has a major selling point: its booming valuation means that workers who've only been at the company for a few years have seen their stock options multiply into the millions.

The company has managed to retain its workers at a higher rate than other labs, SignalFire reported in an analysis last year, and it notched recent wins in the talent battle by poaching researchers from Google.

Anthropic declined to comment for this story.

Here's how much the company behind Claude pays across other key roles.

Member of technical staff salaries

Member of Technical Staff: $133,952 to $1,380,000

Member of Technical Staff (Manager): $134,139 to $850,000

Member of Technical Staff, Reinforcement Learning Researcher: $112,778 to $500,000

Product salaries

Product Design Manager: $140,254 to $385,000

Product Operations: $125,000 to $500,000

Finance, marketing, and other salaries

Accounting: $141,378 to $230,000

Commercial Counsel: $198,765 to $320,000

Compute Capacity: $187,574 to $300,000

Finance & Strategy: $182,978 to $310,000

Finance Systems: $152,152 to $315,000

Marketing: $159,328 to $200,000

Partnerships: $227,760 to $248,500

Research Operations: $125,000 to $500,000

Technical Sales: $155,522 to $500,000

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• Sebastian Sagar has listed his Tribeca apartment for $6.25M, accepting Anthropic shares as payment.
• He's seeking Anthropic stock after missing an opportunity to invest in the company's pre-IPO shares.
• The property has been on the market for over a year — accepting AI stock could help prevent a loss.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sebastian Sagar, who works in finance and is selling a $6.25 million luxury apartment in New York. He is accepting shares in Anthropic as part of a potential sale of the property. It has been edited for length and clarity.

A few years ago, I had an opportunity to buy pre-IPO shares in Anthropic. At the time, I passed. I thought there were better places to put my money.

Looking back, I wish I had taken the opportunity in the early investment round.

Now Anthropic is one of the most talked-about AI companies in the world, and I started thinking about whether there was another way to invest in it.

I own a luxury apartment in Tribeca that I no longer use. My life is in Florida now. I'm getting married and planning to start a family, so I won't be spending much time in New York City.

So I had an idea: What if I traded the apartment for Anthropic stock?

That's why my listing now says I'll consider accepting shares as part of a deal.

It may sound unconventional, but to me it makes perfect sense. Looking at my portfolio, I realized I was overweight in real estate. I already own a lot of property, and I want to invest more in AI.

When I bought the apartment, I was in a completely different stage of life. I loved spending time in New York, and it was a great home base. Then I met my fiancée. Almost overnight, my priorities changed. We built our lives in Florida and decided we weren't looking back.

I still love New York. I'm actually very bullish on the city long term. Even though the market is rough right now, New York has survived and reinvented itself countless times.

The apartment itself is beautiful. It's in northwest Tribeca, which I think is one of the best neighborhoods in the city. It's quiet, safe, family-oriented, and the building is incredible.

I'll genuinely miss it when it's gone. But I don't want to be a landlord or spend my time managing a rental property from another state. I want to focus on my work and on investing. So I decided it was time to sell.

I bought the apartment for about $7 million at the end of 2024. When I listed it in June 2025, I didn't imagine I'd still be talking about it a year later.

Since then, I've lowered the asking price to $6.25 million, changed brokers, and explored different ways to attract the right buyer. The idea of trading for Anthropic stock didn't come until I read that the company was opening an office a few blocks away.

If I'm going to sell an asset that no longer fits my life, I'd rather turn it into an investment I genuinely want to own for the long term.

I started imagining Anthropic employees sitting on valuable pre-IPO equity that they can't easily access. They can't simply sell their shares whenever they want, and traditional banks aren't lining up to lend against private-company stock. Meanwhile, I was sitting on an apartment I wanted to convert into a different type of investment.

It felt like a situation where both sides could solve each other's problems. Someone could acquire a home within walking distance of work. I could gain exposure to a company I believe has enormous long-term potential.

That's what attracted me to the idea.

I'm not exclusively interested in Anthropic. I'd be open to OpenAI shares, too. If someone from another major tech company wanted to structure a creative deal, I'd listen, but Anthropic is the company that first came to mind because I had the chance to invest before and missed it.

And yes, I would seriously consider taking Anthropic stock rather than cash.

If two buyers came to me tomorrow and one offered all cash while another offered Anthropic shares, I'd be inclined to take the stock deal. Even if the tech buyer came in under the asking price, I'd still prefer it — if I accepted a stock deal below my asking price, I believe the future growth of a company like Anthropic could more than offset the difference.

That's because I believe strongly in where AI is headed. I use these tools every day, and I think we're still in the early innings. Companies like Anthropic haven't even scratched the surface of how AI could be used in healthcare, education, and other industries.

As an investor, that's exciting to me. I'm simply trying to move from one asset that no longer fits my life into another asset that I think has tremendous future potential.

Most people sell a property and take the cash — I'm just trying something a little different.

• Gold has dropped to about $4,000 an ounce, down 30% from January's record, after a stunning two-year rally.
• Major banks are cutting gold price forecasts as higher-for-longer Fed rates and a stronger dollar sap demand.
• Once-bullish $6,000 calls are fading as investors pivot from safe havens to higher-yielding assets.

Gold prices have fallen to around $4,000 an ounce, extending a sharp sell-off that has prompted major banks to rein in once-bullish forecasts as expectations of a swift return to record highs fade.

The reversal follows a historic two-year rally that saw spot gold more than double from around $2,000 an ounce at the start of 2024 to an intraday record near $5,600 in late January.

Spot gold was trading around $4,025 a troy ounce early Friday, leaving the precious metal lower for the year and roughly 30% below its intraday record high.

Gold has come under pressure from a stronger US dollar and growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer — or even raise them — reducing the appeal of non-yielding assets such as bullion.

"The sell-off may appear surprising given ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and continued central bank buying. However, gold's weakness highlights the extent to which markets have shifted their focus from safe-haven demand towards the implications of higher interest rates and tighter financial conditions," wrote Ewa Manthey, a commodity strategist at ING, on Thursday.

Higher interest rates typically weigh on gold because the metal pays no income, making bonds and other yield-bearing assets relatively more attractive. A stronger greenback also makes dollar-denominated gold more expensive for global buyers, dampening demand.

The sharp downturn has forced banks to rethink forecasts that only months ago envisioned fresh records driven by geopolitical tensions, central-bank buying, and Fed rate cuts.

ING's Manthey added that higher bond yields, a firmer dollar, and softer investor demand are likely to keep gold under pressure for longer than it had previously expected, prompting the bank to lower its price outlook.

On Thursday, the Dutch bank cut its forecast for gold to average $4,300 an ounce in the third quarter of 2026 and $4,600 in the fourth quarter, down from previous estimates of $4,850 and $5,000, respectively.

Earlier this week, Deutsche Bank also downgraded its outlook, cutting its third-quarter forecast by more than 20% to $4,300 an ounce and lowering its fourth-quarter projection by 17% to $4,800, according to analyst Michael Hsueh.

"The usual suspects which might provide support via investment demand are notably absent, for now," Hsueh wrote, pointing to weaker demand from exchange-traded funds as well as softer buying from China and India.

The downgrade follows a similar move by Goldman Sachs last week. The Wall Street bank lowered its year-end gold target by $500, to $4,900 an ounce, after abandoning its expectation that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates this year.

Bank of America, which has maintained a 12-month target of $6,000 an ounce since January, recently acknowledged that reaching that level now "looks unlikely for now."

The string of forecast cuts underscores how quickly sentiment has shifted in the gold market.

Just months ago, some analysts were debating whether bullion could climb to $6,000 an ounce, while a viral post argued prices should be priced as high as $12,595. on the back of relentless central-bank buying.

• Asian tech stocks sank on Friday as South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei slumped after a brief rebound.
• Softbank crashed 13%, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix also plunged.
• Apple's chip-driven price hikes are fueling fresh doubts over the AI boom and memory chip profits.

A tech rout swept through Asian markets on Friday, with South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 leading losses, renewing concerns over the durability of the AI-driven chip rally.

South Korea's Kospi index closed 5.8% lower after slumping over 8% and tripping the circuit breaker for the second time this week. Major chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix ending 5.3% and 8.4% lower, respectively.

Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 4.2% lower as SoftBank Group slumped 13% after The New York Times reported that OpenAI, one of the Japanese conglomerate's biggest AI investments, could delay its initial public offering until next year.

Taiwan's Taiex closed 3.6% lower with chip giant TSMC closing over 2% lower.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost over 2%. Alibaba extended its recent sharp losses, tanking another 6% after Anthropic accused the Chinese tech giant of exploiting its advanced AI models.

US futures were mixed around 3 a.m. ET with Nasdaq futures 0.7% lower.

The sell-off came as investors reassessed the outlook for memory chip demand after Apple raised prices across its Mac and iPad lineup, citing an unprecedented shortage of memory chips driven by AI data center demand.

"The fact that Apple — one of the most powerful buyers in the industry — cannot absorb the cost surge and must pass it on to consumers raises serious questions about demand elasticity and the durability of memory chip margins," wrote Fabien Yip, a market analyst at IG, in a Friday note.

She added that any slowdown in consumer demand would cast doubt on whether current memory chip margins are sustainable, potentially weakening one of the key pillars of the AI investment story.

The retreat came after a relief rally on Thursday, when stronger-than-expected earnings from Micron Technology briefly lifted sentiment around AI-related demand.

South Korea has been among the world's top-performing equity markets this year, driven by a rally in semiconductor and AI-related stocks. That strong run has also left it vulnerable to sharp reversals.

Japan's stock market — along with Taiwan's— has also been on a roll this year thanks to the AI boom.

Friday's losses are capping a volatile week in the markets. South Korea's Kospi plunged about 10% earlier this week before rebounding over the following two sessions. Japan's Nikkei also swung sharply as investors rushed in and out of semiconductor stocks.

• Katie Couric, 69, says she experienced workplace sexism early in her career.
• She said her colleague, the late former CNN anchor Don Farmer, encouraged her to stand up for herself.
• "It was a life lesson that extended way beyond that incident," Couric said.

Katie Couric, 69, says a supportive male colleague taught her one of the biggest life lessons after she experienced workplace sexism.

During an appearance on Wednesday's episode of "Call Her Daddy," Couric opened up about the challenges she faced early in her broadcast journalism career.

She recounted an incident in which an executive made a sexist remark about her during a production meeting.

"He said something like, 'That's not like Katie. She's been successful because of her hard work, her writing skills, and her breast size,'" Couric said, recalling his words.

Couric said the incident happened at a "big table surrounded by male executives," a lot of whom were "pretty young."

She said the sexist remark left her feeling "flummoxed," but a male colleague, the late former CNN anchor Don Farmer, stepped in to help her after learning what had happened. He urged Couric to confront the executive, and together they drafted a memo demanding an apology, she said.

"He got on his little Smith Corona typewriter, and together we wrote this memo saying, 'What you said to me was inappropriate, insulting, sexist, and totally unacceptable. I expect an apology immediately. If you do that, we can keep this between us,'" Couric said.

Couric said she didn't even know whether there was a human resources department she could turn to to report the incident.

"But how great that my friend Don Farmer said, 'You do not have to put up with that. We are going to write him this memo,'" she said.

Looking back, Couric said Farmer's advice and support stayed with her long after the incident.

"He helped me realize the importance of standing up for yourself. So, it was a life lesson that extended way beyond that incident," she said. "I really owe him a lot, and I've always really been grateful to him for that."

Couric isn't the only prominent woman to speak publicly about navigating sexism in the workplace.

In a 2025 podcast appearance, the late primatologist Jane Goodall recalled how her National Geographic cover prompted sexist remarks from male scientists, who suggested she was featured because of her "nice legs" and not her research.

"Back then, all I wanted was to get back to the chimps. So if my legs were getting me the money, thank you legs," Goodall said.

In a 2025 interview, Scarlett Johansson said many of the early roles she landed were "deeply unfulfilling" because they relied on her sex appeal.

"But when I was younger, a lot of the roles I was offered, or I went for, had their ambitions or character arcs revolving around their own desirability, or the male gaze, or a male-centered story," she said.

• Mark Cuban said AI companies should spend billions on towns and cities hit by job losses.
• He said this is the "cost of doing business" for the companies that are losing a PR battle with the masses.
• Cuban said big AI companies at present "all suck at putting people first."

Mark Cuban has advice for AI companies: spend billions on people directly affected by AI.

In a Thursday post on X, the billionaire former "Shark Tank" investor wrote that AI companies need to start spending money "to help towns and cities that may be impacted by job losses."

He said the companies are losing a PR battle with the masses and have to start courting them.

"Billions of dollars is a lot of money across towns and city programs. Across the major LLMs, it's a cost of doing business," Cuban said.

"One thing I have learned is being hated is not good for business," he said, adding that big AI companies "all suck at putting people first."

Cuban talked about another group that is largely affected by AI — creatives. He said that every creative he knows is terrified about what AI will do to their profession, and the companies need to go to artists in LA and NYC and talk to them about providing financial and creative support to win them over.

"You must meet them face to face and basically do what they say," he wrote. On the flip side, he said AI companies paying famous people to endorse their activities was a "dumb" idea.

"Given the number of data centers and power that is needed, today and going forward, if you don't kiss the asses of the people that go to work every day, and are just trying to pay their bills, you will fall far far short of the capacity you need to make your business work," Cuban wrote on X.

Cuban's post comes as AI-linked job losses have skyrocketed this year. At least 16 companies in the US have announced that they were laying off staff because of AI-affiliated job redundancies, including Snap, Cisco, and Coinbase.

There's been backlash at college graduation ceremonies, too, with speakers who mention AI getting booed.

• Jeonghan of Seventeen is back after two years in the military.
• The Seventeen vocalist said he enjoyed the routine that came with his 9-to-6 public service job.
• It allowed him to "live much more healthily," he said.

Seventeen's Yoon Jeonghan is back in K-pop idol life after a two-year hiatus, but he still speaks fondly of his 9-to-6 job.

Yoon, a vocalist from the 13-member K-pop group, was required to enlist in South Korea's military in September 2024. After basic training, he had to serve the rest of his two-year mandated service as a public servant.

"Life as a 9-to-6 office worker, I think it really allowed me to live much more healthily, and I liked that a lot," Yoon said in his first live stream back from hiatus on Thursday evening.

He brought up how his Myers-Briggs Type Indicator personality is ISFJ — which stands for Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging — explaining that made adjusting to office life after a decade of K-pop stardom easy.

"For me, it was just like going to work, coming home, taking care of myself, learning things i need to learn, then going to bed around 11.30 p.m., waking up at 7 a.m., having a routine," he said.

"While I was living that kind of life, it was so good that I thought: 'Ah, I could really see this as a healthy lifestyle,'" he added.

On Thursday evening's stream, the singer described having health problems "build up" before going into the military. At one point, he weighed 53 kilograms, or about 116 pounds, he said, but he managed to get healthier, exercise, and get back up to about 63 kilograms.

He's now readjusting to the rigor of idol life and what comes with being famous: getting recognized and stopped for selfies and autographs.

During the livestream, the singer shared an anecdote about being surprised by a young fan asking for his signature — something that hadn't happened to him in a while.

"I couldn't get used to it, because it's been such a long time," he said.

The singer is the first member of Seventeen to complete his military service.

Three other members of the group have enlisted, and five others will be required to enlist.

Due to the scheduled service periods, Seventeen does not plan to do group activities until 2028, when the band returns at full strength.

The group hasn't had an extended break since their 2015 debut. However, the hiatus doesn't signal the end of the road for the group: They have agreed to sign on for more years together in the K-pop business.

The band's nine active members wrapped up a series of fan meetings in Tokyo, Osaka, and South Korea on Sunday, where they said "goodbye for now" to their fans.

• The DOT is pushing for regulatory changes to enable the development of autonomous vehicles.
• NHTSA proposes allowing the removal of brake pedals and steering wheels for AVs.
• Safety advocates are concerned about the lack of clarity on vehicle operations.

The idea of riding in a car with no steering wheel or pedals is one step closer to becoming reality, thanks to Donald Trump and the Department of Transportation.

The Trump administration is considering a regulatory change that could help accelerate the rollout of purpose-built robotaxis, including vehicles without steering wheels or brake pedals.

On Thursday, the DOT proposed updating federal vehicle safety rules to no longer require brake pedals in vehicles designed to operate exclusively with automated driving systems. If adopted, the change would remove a hurdle for companies such as Tesla and Zoox, which are developing autonomous vehicles without traditional driver controls.

The proposal is now open for public comment for 30 days.

The move is part of a broader effort by federal regulators to modernize vehicle rules for the autonomous era. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has previously proposed eliminating requirements tied to features such as windshield defoggers, wipers, and tire placards for certain self-driving vehicles. During the Biden administration, regulators finalized a rule allowing autonomous vehicles to operate without steering wheels.

At the moment, companies that want to deploy vehicles missing federally required equipment must obtain government exemptions, and those exemptions come with limits on how many vehicles can be put on the road.

The new regulations would allow companies like Zoox to scale quickly. At present, Zoox is waiting on an exemption on driver-control requirements so it can produce 100 robotaxis a week.

NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison said in a statement that the latest proposal is an effort to tear down "pointless barriers to innovative designs."

Philip Koopman, an emeritus professor of electrical and computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, said that removing "historically unintended restrictions on autonomous vehicles" is generally a good idea.

"It is appropriate to modify the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards to remove unintended barriers to driverless vehicle deployment by removing dependencies on the presence of a human driver, which this latest proposal does," Koopman said.

"Another equally important point is that while NHTSA is busy removing unintended barriers, there are no FMVSS parts that are specific to autonomous vehicles," Koopman added of the regulations. "It is long past time to see movement in adding new safety standards relevant to this new technology as well."

The proposal could be especially significant for Tesla's Cybercab and Amazon-owned Zoox, both of which are developing robotaxis without conventional driver controls. Multiple AV companies have voiced their support for the NHTSA proposal through public comment filings.

Both Waymo and Zoox wrote in April that the revised regulations would reduce their compliance costs, while Tesla wrote that it would like the agency to consider adding more vehicle types to the pedal exemption.

Safety complexities remain

The American Automobile Association said in its public comment to NHTSA that while it supports easing regulations for fully autonomous vehicles, transparency is key, especially for passengers and emergency responders who may not know how to operate a vehicle without such controls.

The Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety echoed these concerns.

"NHTSA presents no research or analysis of the potential safety impacts of removing the display and provides no discussion of the possible concerns not only for passengers but also potentially for first responders who may need to know the potential for the vehicle to be in gear following a collision or other system failure," the advocacy organization wrote in its public comment.

Dan O'Dowd, founder of The Dawn Project, an AV safety advocacy group, told Business Insider that robotaxis should be required to meet certain reliability standards before they can have no physical controls.

"Tesla's 'Robotaxis' are nowhere near the reliability level required to remove the brake pedal," O'Dowd said. "The removal of physical controls should only be granted to robotaxi companies who have conclusively proven their software is safe for autonomous, unsupervised driving."

Tesla, Waymo, and Zoox did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

• Doug Petno and Troy Rohrbaugh became front-runners in JPMorgan's succession race Thursday.
• Less than two years ago, three women had been among the top contenders for Jamie Dimon's job.
• Here's how the dynamics shifted, leaving it unlikely that a woman will lead another major US bank soon.

Less than two years ago, it seemed reasonably likely that a woman would be the next person to lead JPMorgan. As of Thursday, that seems a very slim possibility.

JPMorgan named Doug Petno and Troy Rohrbaugh, current co-heads of the bank's commercial and investment bank, as co-presidents, setting them up as the frontrunners to succeed longtime CEO Jamie Dimon. Their promotions, the bank said in a press release, "are part of the Board's ongoing succession planning process."

Petno and Rohrbaugh were among a handful of powerhouse candidates poised to succeed Dimon, including Jennifer Piepszak, chief operating officer, Marianne Lake, CEO of the commercial bank, and Mary Erdoes, CEO of asset and wealth management.

How, in a mere 18 months, did the field narrow from predominantly women to all male?

Dimon has led JPMorgan since 2006, and his leadership during the 2008 financial crisis cemented his status as one of the most trusted figures on the Street. Yet he celebrated his 70th birthday this year, and questions about who would fill his shoes have circled for more than a decade.

When Dimon underwent treatment for throat cancer in 2014, the Wall Street Journal reported that Erdoes was among the top two contenders to take over, should there be an immediate leadership change. Lake was also listed among the longer-term succession candidates.

Come 2020, Citi announced that Jane Fraser would become its CEO, making her the first woman to lead a major US bank. When The New York Times published an article speculating which women might follow in Fraser's footsteps, Lake and Piepszak were at the top of the list.

Five years later, Piepszak became JPMorgan's chief operating officer, a promotion that, on its face, would have made her the most likely to succeed Dimon. Yet she said she had no interest in the job, effectively taking herself out of the race.

And on Thursday, Lake did something similar by announcing her retirement after more than 25 years at the firm. That leaves Erdoes, whose position remains unchanged, according to the release. She wasn't mentioned in the part of the announcement explicitly about succession, and her name only came up in the last paragraph of the press release.

Though Lake's departure refigures the race's dynamics, it's not entirely surprising that Rohrbaugh and Petno emerged as front-runners. Erdoes, for one, runs a much smaller business than the two of them — in the first quarter of this year, the commercial and investment bank generated $9 billion in net income, compared with $1.8 billion in asset and wealth management.

Her name came up in headlines about Jeffrey Epstein earlier this year, as the two exchanged emails when she was one of his primary contacts at the bank. There's no indication that her communications with Epstein have had any bearing on the succession race, and JPMorgan declined to comment on the matter.

Even with Thursday's announcement, women are still embedded in JPMorgan's innermost inner circle — seven of the people on the thirteen-person operating committee are women.

Despite the rise of the girlboss, it remains difficult for women to reach the highest echelons of Wall Street, still seen in many ways as a, if not the, boys' club. Last year, David Solomon, the CEO of Goldman Sachs, said the bank hadn't made enough progress in elevating women to leadership roles. It appears that Fraser will remain the only woman leading a major US firm for the foreseeable future.

Dimon is uniquely embedded as a Wall Street leader, since investors laud his performance. Analysts from Bank of America said in a note that Lake's retirement suggests Dimon will remain CEO for several more years.

"While the departure of Lake — widely regarded in the industry as one of the best banking executives — is a loss no doubt, we believe the implication that the move indicates several more years of Dimon as CEO is a far bigger positive," the note read.

Wells Fargo banking analyst Mike Mayo, meanwhile, said he was "surprised and puzzled" to see Lake — a "star executive" — depart. But that's one cost of having a CEO as successful and long-tenured as Dimon.

The flip side is that JPMorgan "manufactures CEOs," Mayo said. "The next Marianne Lake is probably being groomed."

The final matches are playing out in the World Cup group stage, and the United States has already advanced to the knockouts. We've rounded up everything you need to know about where to watch Turkey vs. USA, including global streaming options.

Turkey won't advance to the knockouts, but Team USA has already snagged a spot in the Round of 32 after definitive wins over Australia (2-0) and Paraguay (4-1). They'll face Turkey at SoFi Stadium in California for one final game before the next round.

Below, we'll outline everything you need to know about tuning in to the match. If you don't want to scroll any further, you can live stream the match on FOX through a paid live TV service like Fubo in the US, for free on ITVX in the UK, and for free on SBS on Demand in Australia. If you're interested in keeping up with other tournament matches, make sure to bookmark our official where to watch the World Cup viewing guide.

• See also: The best Prime Day deals so far

*Local channels, like FOX, vary by region on Sling TV.

Where to watch Turkey vs. USA in the US

Turkey vs. USA, and much of the rest of the tournament, will air on FOX in the US. Other matches will be available through FS1. If you're a cord-cutter looking for a streaming service to watch the rest of the World Cup, you have several options.

Fubo Sports + News offers FOX, FS1, and around 27 other channels in its lineup. Subscriptions also unlock access to ESPN Unlimited. If you're looking for even more channels, FOX and FS1 are also available in Fubo's pricier Pro and Elite plans. Fubo Sports + News costs $56 a month, but first-time customers can get $10 off their first month after a five-day free trial.

YouTube TV carries FOX and FS1 in both its main and sports plans. The main plan typically costs $83 a month, but a limited-time deal can bring the first five months down to $68 a month for new customers. Similarly, the sports plan typically costs $65 a month, but new users can get $10 a month off their first 12 months. YouTube TV also typically offers a free trial for first-time customers.

Sling TV is another live TV service with World Cup coverage, though you should double-check whether FOX is available in your ZIP code, as Sling's local channel coverage varies by market. If you can get FOX via Sling in your region, you'll want to opt for a Sling Select or Sling Blue plan, both of which also have FS1. When local channels are available, Sling Select costs at $25 a month, and Sling Blue costs $51 a month.

Fans interested in Spanish-language coverage in the US will need to subscribe to Peacock. Sports-friendly plans start at $11 a month for Peacock Premium and unlock access to all 104 World Cup matches.

FOX also has a direct streaming counterpart, FOX One, which costs $20 a month. You can also sign up for the service as an add-on through Prime Video if you don't feel like downloading another app.

Where to watch Turkey vs. USA in the UK

BBC and ITV split coverage rights in the UK, but this match is available through ITV. This means fans will be able to live stream all of the action for free with an ITVX account. Users just need to create an account if they don't already have one, and then they're all set to start watching.

Where to watch Turkey vs. USA in Australia

All World Cup games, including USA vs. Australia, are available to live stream on SBS On Demand in Australia. This is a free streaming service that supports SBS channels and just requires account creation to use.

How to watch Turkey vs. USA from anywhere

If you're away from the location where your streaming service works, don't worry. You can access your free option from anywhere with a VPN (virtual private network). VPNs are easy-to-use apps that let people temporarily change the location on their devices so their favorite websites work from anywhere in the world. They're especially popular among those looking to keep up with their usual services while traveling abroad or hoping to boost their day-to-day cybersecurity and privacy.

NordVPN consistently ranks among the best VPNs we've tested. It's fast, user-friendly, and offers an impressive selection of global servers. Plus, it includes a 30-day money-back guarantee, so there's no sweat if it's not what you're looking for.

Note: VPN use is illegal in certain countries, and using VPNs to access region-locked streaming content may constitute a breach of the terms of use for some services. Business Insider does not endorse or condone the illegal use of VPNs.

There's still time to bag a Prime Day deal on many of our favorite products we've tested over the years across our range of buying guides and reviews across home, tech, kitchen, style, and more.

Amazon's big summer sale ends on Friday night, though, and some of the earliest deals from the 4-day event have already started to sell out, so we'd act fast if you don't want to be disappointed.

• See all Prime Day deals at Amazon

First and foremost, Apple has just raised its MSRP prices overnight on its own store, adding hundreds of dollars to MacBooks and iPads, but they're still on sale at Amazon at their original discounts, marking what could be the last time you'll see them this low due to the RAM shortage.

Prime Day tech deals

Don't miss out on rare laptop deals, discounted foldables, high-performing budget Android phones, monitors, and more.

Prime Day headphone deals

Our favorite in-ear and over-ear models from Apple, Sony, and Bose are all at year-low prices

Struggling to choose between the two Sony models above? While the XM6 does sound a touch better, the XM5 topped multiple best headphones lists before its sequel came along. As such, we still think it's an excellent buy, especially at this price. If you travel a lot, the XM6 folds flatter and offers better noise cancellation and call quality, which could come in handy, but you're paying a lot extra today.

• See more Prime Day headphone and earbud deals

Prime Day TV deals

Samsung's finest lead the way, along with plenty of budget TV picks or supercheap Fire Sticks

• See more Prime Day TV deals

Prime Day fitness tracker deals

Smart rings and watches are ready to help your summer gains

Prime Day coffee deals

Pods or coffee grounds - we've got your next caffeine fix ready

This Keurig is an excellent purchase at this price, and I'm so glad I picked this model last year over the slightly cheaper Mini (also on sale for $50 today). The larger water reservoir means I don't have to fill it for every cup, and it features a strong brew mode and heats up a lot faster than the Mini, as I found out when using one at a hotel recently. Don't forget to stock up on some coffee pods for it today if you're buying as loads are on sale. — Brendan Griffiths

• See more Prime Day coffee deals

Prime Day kitchen deals

Air fryers and blenders are up to 40% off

I only picked up my first air fryer last year (this Instant Pot one that's down to $60 today, by the way). And it's been a good buy so far for things like wings, asparagus, and the like. But I do kind of wish I'd bought one like this Chefman model with a window, as I also use it for warming up/toasting bagels and need to constantly keep opening it to check I'm not burning them. Being able to look through the glass would be a clutch upgrade. However, glass is a bit harder to clean if oil spits onto it while cooking.

On the flip side of all that, I've also been tempted by something a bit bigger, like this Ninja model below! New York counter space says no, though. — Brendan Griffiths

• See more Prime Day air fryer deals

• See more Prime Day blender deals

I'm not much of a chef, but after seeing our kitchen editors praise the Caraway set, I gave it a shot a few years ago. More than being a pretty lineup on the range, this cookware really… cooks. They're a little heavy for my taste, but considerably lighter than cast iron and other viral brands I've tested. The surfaces heat evenly — and did I mention how nice they look on a countertop?

They're a regular participant during major deal holidays, but outside of that, it can be tough to find them on sale. — Sarah Saril

• See more Prime Day kitchen deals

Prime Day bedroom deals

Sheets, pillows, mattresses, beds, and more

• See more Prime Day pillow deals

• See more Prime Day mattress deals

Prime Day vacuum & cleaning deals

Cordless and robo vacs for every budget

• See more Prime Day vacuum deals | Pet vacuum deals

Prime Day home deals

Desks, air purifiers, baby items, and furniture are all on sale

• See more Prime Day furniture deals

• See more Prime Day luggage deals

Prime Day beauty deals

Time to stock up on a skincare haul or treat yourself to a fancy Dyson?

• See more Prime Day red light therapy deals

Dry California weather is not for the dry of skin, and the Laneige lip products above really carry me through the thick of it. They're more than just hype — I actually restocked and bought three Lip Glowy Balm tubes as soon as midnight struck and Prime Day kicked off. They're not often on sale, so now is really the time to stock up. — Sarah Saril

Prime Day style deals

There's still time for a summer wardrobe refresh with these offers

These sub-$20 Celine Triomphe dupes are having a good, long moment. Their versatility across different face shapes, chic design, and, of course, low price make them irresistible. Editor Sam Crozier will be sporting them all summer — and now you can too at this low price.

• See more Levi's Prime Day deals

I had the chance to test out this specific case after the iPhone 17 launched. It's a seriously sweet upgrade from your typical budget case: it uses premium materials with thoughtful features like pivoting loops and a clip for extra wallet security. At $100, it's still considered a pretty luxurious phone accessory, but this is a rare chance to save on a beloved brand. — Sarah Saril

Prime Day luggage & travel deals

Don't let low-quality luggage ruin a vacation

• See more Prime Day luggage deals

• See more Prime Day backpack deals

• See more Prime Day travel deals

• See all deals at Amazon

When does Prime Day end?

Prime Day 2026 ends at the end of the day on Friday, July 26. Some deals will expire beforehand, especially lightning deals, and some items will only have a limited number of units available at the discounted price, so you could see prices increase before the sale officially ends.

On the other hand, we also see a small number of deals stick around a few extra days after Prime Day, so it's certainly worth a late look over the weekend as well.

Is Prime Day only for members?

Yes, the vast majority of deals will require a Prime membership to enjoy the exclusive price.

Not a member? That's OK, as there's a 30-day free trial that you can use to enjoy the full sale, along with all the other perks like fast delivery, Prime Video streaming, and more. You're under no obligation to keep Prime, and are free to cancel it within the 30 days before you become a paid subscriber.

Is Prime Day worth it?

Yes, especially the Summer version - October Prime Day can be hit and miss, as it's too close to Black Friday, but we always find plenty of highlights in the summer.

So much so, we always tell our friends looking for a TV or laptop, a new air fryer or vacuum, or even just things for the apartment like pet items, cleaning supplies, coffee pods, and the like, to hold on for Prime Day if they can, as prices get slashed on every category around the site.

We might get some of the best prices of the year on some items, while other deals we highlight include items with what we'd consider a great price right now - one that we'd make a purchase on ourselves or recommend to a friend. Inflation, tariffs, and the RAM shortage have increased prices on a lot of things this year, for example, so we're taking all of that into account when recommending these deals in the current climate to try to help find you the best bang for your buck.

As counterintuitive as it may seem, sometimes having more stuff can help make your small living space more manageable. With the right organization tools, your home can feel bigger while your belongings remain easily accessible. These Prime Day space-saving deals are the best way to get started while saving big.

From pantry organization bins to cleverly designed hangers, you might be surprised by what you might find on sale right now. Even when you think you've already maximized your space, brands come up with smart new products to take advantage of areas in your home you never considered.

Keep reading to find our favorite buys for making the most of small living spaces. Don't forget to check out our Prime Day hub for all of the event's best deals, too.

The best space-saving Prime Day deals

Kitchen

Skip the frustrating jungle of food storage containers in your cupboard — consider these Stasher reusable food bags instead. They're soft, can be squished into small spaces, and don't require two parts (lid and base) that can get separated. Also, imagine how much space you can save by repackaging half-eaten snacks, cereal, and ingredients in these bags rather than in their original boxes.

Another hack for eliminating food storage containers in your home, these stretchy lids turn your existing bowls, half-empty soda cans, and cups into airtight containers. They're even good for stretching over the melon halves you have yet to eat. They're on sale pretty often, but $10 is a new low for them in 2026.

Never underestimate the power of a clear bin. One of the tips in our guide to small-space storage products is to recommend them for making an area feel less chaotic. Rather than having to dig through cardboard boxes or fabric totes, these allow you to see what's inside, whether you're storing pantry goods or past-season clothing. At $22, this is a slightly lower deal than we typically see for these clear organizers.

Limited counter space doesn't mean you have to sacrifice quality in your appliances. The smaller version of our top glass air fryer pick, the Ninja Crispi offers the same great functionality with a smaller cooking area. It rarely dips below its listing price, but for Prime Day, it's at an incredible low of $170.

• See more: Space-saving kitchen products

Bedroom and closet

The space under your bed is for more than just dust bunnies, imaginary monsters, and curious kitties. With the right tools, like the StorageWorks Under Bed containers, you can turn that previously unused space into an organized hub of out-of-season clothing, clean bedding, and the like. At 20% off for Prime Day, this is a rare chance to save.

Another great under-bed storage solution, these wheeled storage boxes are heartier and offer rolling functionality for carpet-free floors. Especially if you're looking to protect the contents, airtight, rigid storage like the Rubbermaid option can offer more peace of mind when storing photo albums, treasured stuffed toys, and the like. 25% off is an excellent deal, especially because they're rarely on sale.

Imagine a world where your pants are all visible and easily accessible without ruining the whole stack. That dream can be a reality with these pants hangers; simply slide your pants on each rung to have each pair neatly displayed. They're also kept wrinkle-free with this storage method, and at 34% off, they're a dollar less than typical discounts we've seen.

The hangers above may be overkill for bottoms as thin and lightweight as leggings, which is where this hanging organizer comes in handy. Attach each of your pairs to the hanger by clipping them on — now you'll be able to see and access all of them easily without taking up much additional space. Though not the biggest discount, this $2 Prime Day price cut is a sweet chance to stock up.

There seems to be a hanging organizer for everything, and purses are no exception. This clever yet simple contraption gives you multiple hooks for your purses while only taking up a single hanger space in your closet. You can also use it for backpacks and hats.

Traditionally used for shoes, these over-door organizers can hold a wide variety of items. Socks, hair products, jewelry, and other accessories can be easily pocketed in it, getting them off your floor and into the vertical space that was previously unused.

Finally, an excuse to buy more shoes. The Neprock Shoe Slots Organizer allows you to stack your shoes, one on top of the other, to maximize shelf space — and allow for more shopping. It very rarely sees discounts, so don't miss out on this 13% discount.

Entryways and common spaces

We love rolling carts for organizing space without permanently occupying it. This entryway rack offers the perfect space for shoes and other everyday carry items on top, but can be easily moved out of sight when entertaining guests or cleaning. Yamazaki Home is a popular brand that rarely sees discounts, making this 15% cut especially worthwhile.

While other robot vacuums keep getting larger in the name of better cleaning, the Eufy C10 has kept its footprint tight for users in small spaces. It's the vacuum-only pick in our guide to the best robot vacuums, and at a rare 56% off, this is an incredible chance to save.

Storage solutions don't have to be all plastic bins and metal hangers — this HomePop Tufted Ottoman can keep goods out of sight and out of mind while you kick back and relax. They're perfect for throw blankets, heating pads, and similar items, but the world is your oyster; there are endless storage options with a piece of furniture like this. It's only mildly discounted, but rare price drops classify this as a worthwhile deal.

While at first glance this may look like your average bean bag chair, it's actually a smart way to store soft toys while using their plushness for comfort. Parents and plushie collectors can take advantage of the Kisoy Storage Bean Bag to store beloved stuffies away from dust and create extra seating.

• See more: Small-spage storage products

FAQs

When does Amazon Prime Day end?

This summer's Prime Day runs from July 23 to 26, with most deals expiring after 11:59 p.m. PT on the final day. Many items are out of stock, and others have jumped back up in price, so we recommend acting fast despite the longer deadline.

Find our full list of Prime Day's best deals in our hub.

Follow our Instagram page and WhatsApp channel on mobile for buying guides, deals, reviews, and more.

• Oil prices have fallen to about $70 a barrel amid a US-Iran peace deal, but fares likely won't drop.
• Analysts say carriers are seeing favorable supply-and-demand dynamics, partly driven by the war.
• US airline stocks are rallying as investors expect lower oil prices to boost profitability.

Flyers hoping for cheaper flights this summer may be disappointed.

Oil prices — airlines' second-largest expense after labor — have tumbled to nearly $70 a barrel from highs above $100 after the US and Iran announced a preliminary agreement to end the nearly four-month war that closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil shipments.

Aviation analysts say airlines won't rush to cut ticket prices or their lucrative checked-bag fees even if the war between the US and Iran ends. Israel is also not a direct party to the agreement.

Since the US and Israel launched the conflict in late February, carriers have cut unprofitable routes and raised fares and ancillary fees to offset higher fuel costs.

Richard Aboulafia, aviation analyst and the managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory, told Business Insider that tight seat supply, combined with resilient demand, has given airlines little incentive to reverse course on pricing.

"Things are pretty good, maybe traffic is down a little, but profits aren't, right?" he said. "So why would you? Inflation is a great excuse to get more pricing power."

US airline stocks are rallying as investors expect the favorable mix of lower fuel costs and sustainable high fares to boost profitability.

Data from KAYAK flight search shows that average domestic airfares are up about 8% since the war started; average international airfares are up about 18%. Fares from the US to Amsterdam and London, for example, have increased by more than $200 roundtrip.

US airlines have also raised checked bag fees by as much as $50 one-way to offset soaring oil prices, with most major carriers now charging between $40 and $50 per bag each way.

Airline CEOs at Delta, United, and Southwest aren't disputing analysts' warnings, saying resilient demand, tight capacity, and durable pricing power are reasons fares are likely to remain elevated even if oil prices ease further.

"We and our competitors are all focused on ratable production of results, steady production of results, sustainable margins, and so I do think that produces a backdrop where we'll certainly not attempt to give some of these fare increases back," Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in May.

Don't expect flight prices to drop

Raymond James analyst Savanthi Syth told Business Insider that for airline ticket prices to fall, supply needs to increase or demand needs to soften — but she said that's unlikely, especially since oil is still up 50% year-over-year and oil shocks may continue even with a deal.

"Capacity through August is likely mostly finalized by now, so the opportunity to gain confidence to add back more capacity (or get back to the prior plan) would be in 4Q at the earliest," she said, referring to the fourth quarter that begins in October.

US airline stocks have surged in recent days as oil prices fall and investors anticipate wider profit margins. Delta Air Lines' stock has risen above $90 since Wednesday, surpassing its pre-war high of about $75 in early February.

United Airlines' stock is trading at about $134 on Thursday, up from roughly $117 before the conflict. The carrier has outperformed its legacy rivals on Wall Street in recent years as it adds new aircraft, expands premium cabins, and grows its international network.

American Airlines has also gained ground, though its stock remains well behind its larger rivals at about $17 a share as of Thursday. The carrier has historically trailed Delta and United in profitability.

These rallies could quickly fade if tensions in the Middle East escalate again and the Strait shuts back down.

The Trump administration has repeatedly announced possible deals to end the war, but many ultimately fell through. The latest agreement, signed last week, extends the ceasefire for 60 days as the sides negotiate on the thorniest issues, including the whereabouts of Iran's highly enriched uranium.

Officials have spoken about the deal in broad statements, but its specific terms remain secret. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump warned that if Iran were to acquire a nuclear weapon, "all hell will rain down on them."

Time will tell how durable the US-Iran agreement proves to be, and some airlines may be hedging their bets. United CEO Scott Kirby told Bloomberg at an industry conference in early June that he is not confident any deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz would last.

Syth said that airlines in general may also be hesitant to add capacity after a series of shocks over the past two years, including persistent inflation that has driven up operating costs and two government shutdowns that caused mass flight delays and cancellations.

NerdWallet travel analyst Sally French told Business Insider that the pricing picture also has to factor in Spirit Airlines' collapse in May and the loss of its cheaper tickets.

"With fewer seats and one fewer ultra-low-cost carrier, we're generally not seeing the kind of downward pressure on fares that budget-conscious travelers want," she said.

As for checked bag fees, all three analysts say they are unlikely to drop. Data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics shows US airlines made roughly $5.5 billion in revenue from checked bag fees in 2025.

"Changes there tend to be stickier regardless of the demand environment," Syth said, adding that it should be a while before bag fees increase further if oil prices are lower.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on Monday and has been updated.

I've reported on Cozy Earth for about as long as I've covered Amazon Prime Day sales as a shopping editor, which is seven years, so I'm very familiar with the brand's sale rhythms. Cozy Earth always matches Amazon's deals and adds an incentive to shop on its own site (typically a bigger discount if you buy multiple items), and this year was no different. But Amazon just tipped the scales in its favor: Every Cozy Earth Prime Day deal is now 25% off, up from 20% off at the start of the sale.

Why the Cozy Earth Waffle bath towels are the deal I'd shop first

I received the Cozy Earth Waffle Bath Towels from the brand for editorial consideration around three years ago — just after it landed on Oprah's Favorite Things list — and I haven't wrapped myself in anything else post-shower since. One side is like your standard towel, and that's what hits my body first, quickly absorbing moisture without getting wet itself. The other side has that luxurious waffle weave, and that's what I use to rub down my skin until it's completely dry. Like most Cozy Earth products, the fabric blend contains viscose derived from bamboo, which gives the towels their soft, luxurious feel.

They're also pretty attractive, as far as towels go. Before receiving these, my multicolored cotton towels were giving "dorm bathroom." Now, the soft, subtle color and waffle texture of the Cozy Earth towels — especially the hand towels — lend the space a more adult, sophisticated feel. They have no problems with the washing machine, and I have yet to pull out a loose thread, which signals their structural integrity.

Things to Consider

While the towels have softened over time, they're still not the softest towels I've ever used. Those would be the Frontgate Resort Collection towels, which Business Insider happened to name the best bath towel. But personally, I find them a bit too plush — I prefer the weight and feel of Cozy Earth's. If you do like a plush towel, the Frontgate towels are on sale for 30% off.

Also, they're pricey. Even with this Prime Day deal, the set is still over $200, which is a lot for towels. If you don't need the whole 10-piece set, the towels are available in sets of two for $81. Still, the Cozy Earth waffle towels are a meaningful upgrade to everyday life that you won't have to think about replacing for several months, and I don't think you'll see a discount like this again for several months.

Check out more of my recommendations for taking advantage of Cozy Earth's worth-it Prime Day deals below.

More of the best Cozy Earth Prime Day Deals

If I'm not planning to get dressed for a while after showering, I'll reach for the waffle robe after drying off with the bath sheet. It's much thicker than the towels and thus more plush, which is what I want in a towel bathrobe, and I love the coordinated look.

These bamboo sheets are the first thing I tried from Cozy Earth, and I prefer them to other cooling sheets I've tested. Even though they wrinkle pretty easily, they have a rich, silky feel. They're certainly a splurge for sheets, but their high price tag is reflected in the quality.

I almost never see these cooling pajamas for under $100. They're made almost entirely with bamboo viscose, plus a touch of spandex for stretch, so they're basically a wearable version of the brand's award-winning sheets. I sleep too hot for real pajamas in the summer, but I love my long-sleeve-and-pants sets in the winter.

These are the travel pants Business Insider editors recommend for long flights. Personally, I wear them for long sits on the couch, but I should wear them out of the house more often — they're actually really flattering on my curvy shape.

Prime Day saves you nearly $100 on this oversized faux-fur throw blanket. I've seen this one sell out before, so even if you won't use it until the fall, I'd grab it now to beat the holiday shopping rush. It's fur-lined on both sides, insanely soft, and has a slightly weighted feel.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals or browse Amazon for the full selection.

Amazon's Prime Day sale is full of excellent TV deals, but one model stands out from the pack: the Samsung S90F. This OLED is already a great value at its typical street price, but for Prime Day, the 55-, 65-, and 77-inch sizes are at all-time lows. It's easily one of the top Prime Day deals this year.

My team and I review TVs year-round, and the S90F is my pick for the best TV overall. It's an OLED, so it features an infinite contrast ratio with deep, inky black levels and bold HDR highlights. It also has wide viewing angles, so you get a great view no matter where you sit. The 65-inch model is a particularly great buy at a record-low price of $1,198. And though Samsung has a newer 2026 version of this TV, the S90F actually delivers superior color performance. Since the S90F is a 2025 model, it will get harder to find as the year goes on. With that in mind, this could be your last chance to snag it at such a big discount.

There are other great OLED TVs on sale right now, but none can match the S90F's picture quality at this price. Here's why it's one of the best Prime Day TV deals right now.

Why we love the Samsung S90F TV

• It delivers the best balance of picture quality and price of any TV my team has reviewed.
• Offers pixel-level contrast and deep black levels that disappear into a dark room.
• The 55-, 65-, and 77-inch models feature quantum dots, which enable a wider color gamut than you'd get with the newer Samsung S90H or similar LG models.
• It has solid brightness for a midrange OLED, with a peak of around 1,460 nits, which is more than enough for a typical living room.
• Its combination of high contrast and brightness gives HDR scenes a bold look, with explosions and other highlights that really pop.
• Wide viewing angles maintain strong contrast and color accuracy from nearly any seat in the room.
• Great for gaming, with up to 144Hz on PC, and 120Hz on PS5 and Xbox Series X.
• Supports nearly every major streaming service and offers faster navigation than older Samsung TVs.

What about the 2026 S90H?

Samsung also sells a new 2026 edition of the S90 Series, called the S90H. The new model offers similar contrast and brightness, but its color capabilities are actually downgraded since its panel no longer uses quantum dots. On the other hand, the S90H does have a much more effective anti-glare screen than the S90F, so it can nearly eliminate reflections. This anti-glare screen does hurt contrast a bit in bright rooms, but it's otherwise a nice perk.

The S90H is also on sale for Prime Day, but it's still notably more expensive than the S90F. I give the S90F an edge since it's more affordable and delivers better HDR color, but if glare is a huge headache in your room, you may want to consider paying more for the newer S90H.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

It's the third day of Prime Day, and a great time to score big on pet supplies and gear. Many of the top Prime Day pet deals are on items that I have not only personally tested but also use in my day-to-day life, including one of my favorite automatic cat feeders: the Petlibro Granary Smart Camera Feeder. It has dropped by 35% to its lowest price ever, only the second time it's hit this all-time low.

If you've been on the fence about upgrading your pet's feeding setup, this is the moment. I've tested several automatic feeders for Business Insider's guide to the best cat feeders, and this is the only model I've used that combines precise scheduled feeding with a built-in wide-angle camera. It also has a tamper-proof lid that not even my toddler or my polydactyl, food-obsessed cat can break into.

This is a smart buy for pet parents who travel or work long hours and want scheduled meals plus real-time monitoring — without buying two separate devices. And while there are solid Prime Day pet camera deals out there, why buy both when this does it all?

Why we love it

The wide-angle lens lets you see more than just the feeder. The 1080p HD, 145-degree field of view covers most of a room, which means you're getting more than a close-up of a food bowl. I've strategically positioned mine so I can view my Feeder Robot (a great feeder that lacks a camera), and I still have a view of most of my dining room, where my cats are often lounging.

It fits your schedule — or more importantly, your cat's. Some cats do fine with two meals a day; others need smaller, more frequent feedings throughout. The Granary accommodates both, with portions as small as 1/12 cup (about a tablespoon) per feeding and up to 10 scheduled meals daily that can repeat on your selected days.

You can make adjustments on the go. Using the Petlibro companion app, you can dispense a meal in real time or adjust the feeding schedule from anywhere. I use this when we have a house sitter, and they realize they'll be out past dinner, so no meals are ever missed.

Night vision means you're never left in the dark. The infrared night vision lets you check in on your cats at any hour without turning on a light. As a self-described helicopter pet parent, seeing my cats happily snoozing at 2 a.m. helps me sleep better.

It has a large capacity and keeps food fresh. The Granary holds up to 32 cups of dry food, and the tightly sealed lid and included desiccant pack help keep kibble fresh for longer.

The twist-off lid is genuinely cat- and toddler-proof. I've used the Granary for about four years, and in that time, my cats have never once broken into it. Neither has my toddler, who would absolutely eat cat food given the chance.

It keeps feeding even during a power outage. Install backup batteries, and the Granary will continue dispensing meals on schedule even if the power and WiFi go out. D batteries are not included, but I found a great Prime Day deal on those, too.

Whether you need a feeder without a camera, a smart RFID model for two cats eating different diets, or a cat water fountain, PetLibro has options on sale across the board right now — making it a smart time to outfit your home.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Prime Day mattress sales can be a mess to shop. Amazon is flooded with unfamiliar bed-in-a-box brands, inflated list prices, and deals that are not always better than what you'll find directly from the manufacturer.

As Business Insider's sleep editor, I track mattress prices year-round, and I'm usually skeptical of buying a bed from Amazon for that exact reason. But after sorting through the Prime Day listings and comparing prices against competing brand-site sales, I found a handful of Amazon mattress deals that clear a higher bar: They're on best mattresses we've tested, recommend, and would actually buy at these prices.

I've also rounded up a few deals on great mattresses that aren't sold on Amazon but are discounted ahead of early 4th of July promotions. Still, the strongest mattress deals I found are on Amazon, including the Nectar Classic Mattress for $537, our pick for the best mattress under $1,000, and our favorite cheap foam mattress from Zinus, on sale for just $188.

If you're in the mood to fully upgrade your bed, consider one of the best pillow deals and savings on other bedding accessories, too.

• See all Prime Day mattress deals on Amazon

The best Prime Day mattress deals

Nectar Classic Mattress

Why we love this deal: As our top pick for a mattress under $1,000, the Nectar Classic is a well-rounded foam mattress with a medium-firm feel that should appeal to most sleep styles, including those struggling with back pain. For Prime Day, Nectar has dropped the price to $532 on Amazon. This beats buying directly from Nectar by more than $150 and is lower than the roughly $700 price we've seen around other major shopping holidays like Memorial Day. You still get Nectar's yearlong trial and lifetime warranty.

Who should buy it: Best for back, side, and combination sleepers who want a medium-firm foam mattress with broad appeal. It's also good for couples who want strong motion isolation, but don't need advanced cooling. Read our full Nectar review.

Leesa Sapira Hybrid Mattress

Why we love this deal: Leesa is offering 30% off mattresses right now, including the Leesa Sapira Hybrid, the comfiest mattress we've ever tested and the top pick in our best mattress guide. This premium bed-in-a-box costs more than many Amazon mattress deals, but it delivers a high-quality build with contouring foam, individually wrapped coils, excellent pressure relief, responsive support, and strong cooling.

Who should buy it: Best for side, back, and combination sleepers who want a medium-feel hybrid that balances pressure relief and support. It's also a strong pick for couples, hot sleepers, and people with back pain. Read our Leesa Sapira review.

DreamCloud Classic Hybrid Mattress

Why we love this deal: DreamCloud has pulled out all the stops for Prime Day, dropping the price of the DreamCloud Classic Hybrid mattress to $535 from its typical $700 price. You can also opt into Amazon's in-home setup for $80, which is far less than DreamCloud's $199 fee for White Glove Delivery. Plus, you still get the yearlong trial and lifetime warranty.

If you prefer to shop DreamCloud directly, it is offering an extra 15% off its typical pricing. We found slight price differences between Amazon and DreamCloud, so I suggest comparing prices based on the model you choose. For instance, the Premier is $849 instead of its typical $1,100 on DreamCloud (unavailable on Amazon), but the Amazon pricing on the more premium 14-inch Luxe beats DreamCloud direct ($966 versus $1,189).

Who should buy it: The Classic has the same essential construction as the Premier, which our testers liked, but lacks the additional foam support and a euro-top with a cashmere blend. Best for back and combination sleepers who want the support and bounce of a hybrid without a high price. Couples who prefer a more responsive feel should like it too. The yearlong sleep trial will give you peace of mind to try it out for yourself.

Zinus Green Tea Cooling Gel Foam Mattress

Why we love this deal: Zinus makes some of the best cheap mattresses around. The all-foam Green Tea Cooling Gel Foam Mattress offers outstanding edge support and motion isolation, and sleeps cool too. Its medium-firm design appeals to all sleep types. While it's available in various depths, we recommend choosing at least 10 inches. Otherwise, you lose support.

Who should buy it: This is a solid option for budget shoppers, guest bedrooms, college apartments, and anyone who wants a no-frills foam mattress with better-than-expected cooling, edge support, and motion isolation.

Casper Original Hybrid Mattress

Why we love this deal: This is Casper's OG hybrid mattress, now exclusively sold on Amazon. Compared to its successor, the Casper Dream Hybrid, you're saving about $300 for a very similar construction. Amazon is also offering free in-home setup and mattress removal, which adds rare value for a bed-in-a-box deal. Compare the Casper lineup here.

Who should buy it: It's a good fit for combination sleepers, couples, and anyone who prefers an average-firmness mattress that feels more responsive than an all-foam bed. It's also a smart pick if you want zoned support and don't want to set up the mattress yourself.

Casper Element Mattress

Why we love this deal: The Element foam mattress is a cheaper alternative to some of Casper's other options and a rare chance to snag a mattress from the brand for under $500. It's only available through Amazon and offers a firm base and excellent edge support. It's made of two layers of foam: a base layer for support and durability, and a top layer for pressure relief and breathability.

Who should buy it: A good choice for back and stomach sleepers who want a firmer foam mattress from a recognizable brand for under $500. It's also a practical pick for guest rooms, teens, and first apartments. Side sleepers or anyone who needs deep cushioning around the shoulders and hips may want a softer, more pressure-relieving option.

Why we love this deal: An organic mattress for under $1,000 is pretty hard to come by, but this Awara deal on the Premier gets you very close, at $1,019 for a queen. It's made of GOLS & FSC-certified organic latex and individually wrapped coils, with a soft-to-the-touch cover made of wool and bamboo rayon. Read our Awara Premier review.

Who should buy it: The two extra inches of latex on the Premier create a luxurious hotel-style pillowtop that the Classic design lacks. We suggest it for back and stomach sleepers who like a tinge of plush, eco-conscious buyers on a budget, and those who sleep hot, as the bed exhibited excellent temperature regulation.

Serta Five Star Mattress

Why we love this deal: On our radar for testing, Serta's affordable bed-in-a-box innerspring offering is available in several different firmnesses (plush, medium, firm) and depths (8 to 16 inches) and features zoned support, a rarity in the budget mattress category. Very few budget mattresses also see price cuts this deep, making this pricing especially noteworthy.

Who should buy it: Those looking for an affordable option from a legacy mattress brand. It's also offered in various firmness levels and depths, something you don't typically see in affordable mattresses, though the pricing does creep up for the plusher, thicker options.

Tuft & Needle Original Hybrid Mattress

Why we love this deal: Tuft & Needle seldom goes on sale, so this 33% Prime Day price cut on its flagship Original Hybrid Mattress is a great option if you've been wanting to try the brand's adaptive foam.

Who should buy it: Our tester recommends this bed for side and back sleepers seeking a plusher sleep surface and highlights its excellent temperature regulation and motion isolation, but hopes for more advanced pressure relief. It's a strong choice for couples, hot sleepers, and anyone who prefers a more cushioned feel while still wanting coil support.

Beautyrest Silver Mattress

Why we love this deal: Several Beautyrest Silver mattresses are 15% off for Prime Day, which only happens occasionally. This classic option features an antimicrobial cooling cover and gel lumbar support over 900 individually wrapped coils. It's several hundred dollars less on Amazon than what we've seen from other retailers, and you can add on a free in-home setup.

Who should buy it: This is a good pick for shoppers who want a more traditional coil mattress from a legacy brand, especially if they value cooling features, lumbar support, and the option of in-home setup. It's best for people who prefer sturdy support over the slow-sinking feel of memory foam. It's also worth considering for anyone replacing an older innerspring mattress and wanting something familiar but more updated. It's available in multiple firmness options, offering a more tailored feel.

Sweetnight CoolNest Cooling Memory Foam Mattress

Why we love this deal: This 14-inch memory foam mattress combines phase change material foam with gel-infused memory foam for layered cooling comfort and five-zone support for pressure relief where you need it most. It's a thick mattress too, which feels more luxurious than thinner counterparts.

Who should buy it: This is best for shoppers who want a tall, cooling-focused memory foam mattress. Its medium feel makes it a practical option for couples with different sleep preferences, combination sleepers, and guest rooms. We haven't tested it firsthand yet, but 81% of Amazon reviews are 5-star, which is a very high approval rating in the mattress category.

Tuft & Needle Kin Foam Mattress

Why we love this deal: The Amazon-exclusive Kin by Tuft & Needle mattress features 10 inches of adaptive foam technology to help you sleep cooler and offers balanced support between soft and firm.

Who sold buy it: This is a good pick for shoppers who want Tuft & Needle's adaptive foam feel at a lower Amazon-exclusive price. It's best for people who want a balanced, not-too-soft, not-too-firm foam mattress with better breathability than traditional memory foam. It's also a smart option for guest rooms, teens, and anyone who wants a straightforward foam mattress with a 100-day trial and a 10-year warranty.

Helix Dusk Luxe Mattress

Why we love this deal: Helix mattresses are up to 30% off for Prime Day, and they truly have a mattress for everyone. I suggest taking the brand's mattress quiz to help you find the right option for your needs. Helix mattresses have a 120-night sleep trial and a limited lifetime guarantee.

Who should buy it: I like the Dusk Luxe for back, stomach, and combination sleepers who want a medium-feel hybrid with extra support around the hips and lower back. Side sleepers may prefer the softer Midnight Luxe. The cooling upgrades are also worth it if you're a hot sleeper.

Puffy Royal Mattress

Why we love this deal: Puffy frequently offers $1,350 off its mattresses, but the current free upgrade deal makes the sale even more compelling by letting shoppers get a more luxe model for less. For example, you can get the Puffy Royal for the price of the Puffy Lux. The way to "activate" the deal can be a little confusing, as you must go through the cheaper mattress's product page and opt in to the upgrade.

Who should buy: Our tester loved the Puffy Royal for side and petite sleepers, citing its plush, sink-in feel that was extremely pressure-relieving. It does sleep warmer, so it's better for cold sleepers or anyone who isn't temperature sensitive.

Avocado Green Mattress

Why we love this deal: Avocado offers sales around major holidays like July 4th, and its entire lineup of organic mattresses is 15% off. Avocado is one of the most trusted names in organic bedding, and backs its products with various third-party certifications. The beds have a one-year trial and 25-year warranty.

Who should buy it: If you're looking for an organic or latex hybrid bed backed by tons of eco-friendly certifications. The Avocado Green is available in three firmness options and sleeps cool. The tight-top medium is best for back, stomach, and combination sleepers who like a firmer, more lifted feel. Side sleepers should consider the pillow-top plush version for more pressure relief.

The best Prime Day mattress sales by retailer

Several amazing mattresses are available directly from the brands themselves. Here are some competing offers to consider

• Avocado: Get up to 15% off mattresses
• Awara: Save up to 50% on mattresses
• Bear: Get 35% off mattresses with code JULY35
• Big Fig: Get $500 off a mattress and 20% off sitewide
• Birch: Save up to 30% off sitewide
• Brooklyn Bedding: Get 25% off sitewide
• Casper: Save up to 30% off mattresses
• DreamCloud: Save up to 60%, plus an extra 15% off on mattresses and 66% on bundles
• Glacier: Save 15% off cooling mattresses
• Helix: Save up to 30% off mattresses
• Leesa: Save 30% off mattresses
• Mattress Firm: Save up to $700 off mattresses, plus a free adjustable base
• Nectar: Get up to 50% off mattresses, plus an extra 15% off and 66% off bundles
• Nolah: Get 35% off sitewide
• Plushbeds: Get up to 50% off mattresses and $99 white glove delivery
• Puffy: Save $1,350 off mattresses, plus a free mattress upgrade
• Purple: Save up to $800 off a mattress and a base
• Saatva: Save $300 off your $1,000 order
• Siena: Save up to 60% on mattresses
• Sleep Number: Up to 20% off, plus free delivery
• Tempur-Pedic: Save $500 on Tempur-Breeze mattresses
• Zoma: Get 30% off mattresses

Prime Day deals on other bedding accessories

If you're considering a new mattress, your bed is just one part of your sleep setup. I also found several of the best mattress protectors (an essential) and mattress toppers (an affordable way to add more comfort to a bed). Adjustable bases are growing in popularity, too, and are helpful for relieving back pain, reducing pressure, minimizing snoring and acid reflux, and making watching TV or reading in bed more comfortable.

Prime Day mattress deals FAQs

What are the best mattresses?

The top pick in our best mattress guide is the Leesa Sapira Hybrid, an excellent medium-firm bed that's currently 25% off on Leesa's site.

Is Prime Day a good time to buy a new mattress?

A mattress is a pricey investment, so we recommend buying one during a sale like Prime Day. For mattresses available exclusively through Amazon, you'll find the lowest prices there, but many other brands are running mattress sales that will carry into July 4th.

Why buy a mattress from Amazon?

There are some perks to buying a mattress from Amazon. Your purchase is backed by a sleep trial of at least 90 days and includes free shipping. Some models offer scheduled delivery, in-home setup, and removal of your old mattress for $80. I've even noticed offers for free in-home delivery on certain beds.

Can I use my HSA/FSA funds to buy a mattress?

People with a qualifying medical condition — like sleep apnea, chronic pain, or mental illness — are able to use pre-taxed dollars from their HSA/FSA funds to buy a mattress, meaning extra savings for you. Using these funds requires a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN) from a doctor, but brands like Sleep Number and Purple partner with organizations like TrueMed and Sika to make the process easier. Read our guide to using HSA/FSA funds to buy a mattress for more information.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Amazon Prime Day is back for another year — and with it, thousands of red-tagged deals competing for your attention. But not every markdown is worth your time, let alone your money.

To cut through the noise, we turned to some of the internet's most discerning shoppers: Redditors. Between flashy gadgets, lookalike dupes, and an endless scroll of "limited-time" offers, even savvy shoppers can get lost in the chaos. But members of anti-consumption-minded communities like r/BuyItForLife and r/Frugal aren't easily swayed. They're some of the pickiest shoppers out there — so when they recommend something, we pay attention.

And it's not just the practical stuff that sparks Reddit's enthusiasm. Entire communities spring to life when a cult-favorite beauty product goes on sale, like the Aestura ATOBARRIER365 cream (which also happens to be the K-beauty cream that our editors swear by for fighting chapped winter skin).

So we mined these subreddits, compared notes with our in-house testing data, and compiled the standout deals worth your attention for Prime Day. In addition to product recommendations, we've also rounded up some of the best Prime Day shopping advice according to Redditors. The event runs from June 23 to 26, and you can find some of the best offers available across categories in our massive roundup of Prime Day deals.

Recommendations from the r/BuyItForLife community

The r/BuyItForLife community is ultra discerning in its recommendations. The group's central tenet is to purchase as few things as possible, with the goal of never having to buy a replacement.

Some of the most popular posts are odes to items that have lasted for years (or, ideally, decades), ranging from water bottles to pocket knives. So when the community rallies around a recommendation, you know you have a product that's made to go the distance. Here are some highlights.

Recommendations from the r/smarthome community

The r/smarthome community is a strong source for smart home recommendations because it's full of people troubleshooting, testing, and comparing devices in real homes — not just reviewing them out of the box.

Prime Day is a good time to upgrade the smart home devices that make your space more convenient, secure, and energy-efficient, so we looked at products that are highly recommended by us and the r/smarthome community.

Shop all Prime Day deals on smart home devices.

Budget-friendly recommendations from r/Frugal and r/SavingMoney

If you ask r/Frugal or r/SavingMoney what you should buy for Prime Day, you're almost guaranteed to get the same answer: Nothing you don't already need.

These thrifty communities caution strongly against falling for the lure of a red sale tag. For them, the only things worth buying are household essentials that you know you're going to need anyway.

Shop all Prime Day deals on household essentials.

Recommendations from the r/Backpacking community

Backpacking season is in full swing, and Prime Day is a good time to upgrade the gear people keep recommending across Reddit. Here are some products that come highly recommended by us and the r/backpacking community.

See all Prime Day deals on outdoor recreation.

Recommendations from r/KoreanSkincare

Korean skincare is still having a major moment, and Prime Day is a good time to try some of the K-beauty products people keep raving about on TikTok and Reddit. This year's Amazon deals include top-rated Korean moisturizers, barrier creams, ceramide masks, and other gentle, hydrating skincare essentials.

A huge favorite of ours is the K-beauty brand Aestura, which we swear by for intense hydration and bouncy skin. Here are some products that come highly recommended by us and the r/koreanskincare community.

See all Prime Day deals on Korean beauty and check out our spotlight of the best Medicube Prime Day deals.

Hero products from well-known beauty brands

The Redditors at r/beauty caution against buying unvetted Amazon brands that pop up on Big Deal Days sales (basically, if it has a collection of uppercase, unpronounceable letters, avoid it). Instead, they advise investing in personal care items from brands you already know.

See all Prime Day beauty deals and check out our roundup of editor-favorite makeup and skincare deals.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

• Target plans to introduce a new point-based attendance tracking system in the coming months.
• The approach is similar to those of other major retailers, including Walmart and Amazon.
• It's part of several recent changes aimed at improving store operations and customer experience.

Target is tightening enforcement of its attendance policy.

Starting in September, the bullseye retailer plans to begin tracking unexcused lateness and absences with a new point-based system for store and warehouse workers companywide, a spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider. The company is also switching to a unified scheduling app for employees and managers.

Going forward, workers will incur a quarter of a point for arriving more than eight minutes late, one point for missing a shift without approval, and three points for missing a shift without notifying a manager.

Discipline progresses from a check-in with a manager at three points to counseling at five points, to a final warning at nine points, and then to termination at 12. Points expire after 365 days.

The spokesperson said the new system does not change Target's commitment to comply with protected absence, leave, or accommodation laws.

Several other major retailers, including Walmart and Amazon, have similar point systems for employee attendance.

This latest move comes as Target's new CEO, Michael Fiddelke, is pushing to improve store operations and customer experiences.

"Target is focused on returning to growth, and elevating our guest experience is a key strategic priority," the spokesperson said. "We'll continue to focus on enabling our team to deliver the delightful experience that guests depend on every day."

Other recent initiatives include a revised dress code and a 10-4 rule that asks workers to smile at shoppers within 10 feet and say hello to those within four feet.

The early results have been positive for Target, with increased visits fueling comparable sales growth of 5.6% last quarter.

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at dreuter@businessinsider.com or text/call/Signal at 646-768-4750. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• Micron's blowout earnings fueled a brief tech stock rally on Thursday before moves reversed.
• Apple officially raised prices due to higher memory chip costs, dragging down the Nasdaq.
• Investors are weighing the impact of memory price spikes and what it means for the AI trade.

It was a volatile day on Wall Street after a short-lived tech rally soured and abruptly reversed course.

Micron's stellar earnings report boosted the stock by nearly 20% and reignited the AI trade, helping the Nasdaq 100 jump 2% at Thursday's opening bell.

But it wasn't to last. Just a half an hour into regular trading, the tech-heavy Nasdaq's gains reversed, dragged lower by Apple stock, which dropped on news of price hikes on devices as it responds to the memory-supply crunch.

Apple officially raised price for Macs and iPads, a change outgoing CEO Tim Cook warned about earlier this month when discussing memory chip costs.

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

• S&P 500: 7,357.50, down 0.01%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 51,920.62, up 0.14% (+71.72 points)
• Nasdaq 100: 29,440.32, up 0.75%

The premarket rally was led by the some of the stocks that saw the most dramatic declines earlier in the week, including Micron and other memory chipmakers.

Apple and other Magnificent Seven names were among the tech stocks in the red in Thursday's session.

Here were some of Thursday's most notable moves:

• Sandisk: +19.5%
• Micron: +16.3%
• Western Digital: +4.8%
• Dell: -6%
• Palantir: -5.4%
• Apple: -6.1%
• Microsoft: -3.5%
• Nvidia: -1.6%

Micron's earnings may have been "too good," Futurum CEO Daniel Newman told Business Insider.

"The pricing pressure is very real and it's landing in the laps of consumers with the likes of Apple raising prices due to memory," he said, adding, "Structurally the capex and AI trade got validation, but the knock on effects are being digested. This plus profit concentration are certainly contributors to volatility."

Baird investment strategist Ross Mayfield told Business Insider that Micron's strong results can't offset a tough technical setup.

"My sense is that even with strong A.I. fundamentals (e.g., Micron), positioning is still really lopsided so good news gets sold intraday. The rotation out of AI infrastructure and memory was never really about fundamentals – it was a technical move – so while Micron’s results reinforce the durability of the AI buildout, it doesn’t do much to relieve the immediate pressure of overcrowded positioning in the tech space," he outlined.

Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki, explained Thursday's moves reflects investors realizing that the memory chip price surge is raising costs for consumer tech.

Ted Mortonson, a tech strategist at Baird, told BI that the market moves reflect worries about inflation within the tech sector as well as a broader rotation into other sectors from tech. "Pricing increases not sustainable," he said.

Amazon Prime Day is going strong on its third day, with deals aplenty, including great savings on computer monitors. I've been testing tech products for over a decade, and I've covered every Prime Day event since the first sale in 2015. All that experience helps me separate the good Prime Day deals from the duds. I'm keeping track of all the best Prime Day monitor deals for entertainment, work, gaming, and everyday web browsing.

A few discounts have gone up and down over the last few days, with some models getting slightly better prices and others slightly worse. For instance, Samsung's 34-inch ViewFinity UltraWide monitor is actually $15 less than it was at the start of Prime Day. It's now $385, which is just $5 shy of its all-time low of $380. Meanwhile, if you're shopping for a gaming monitor, I recommend checking out this 30% discount on Asus' 26.5-inch ROG Strix OLED display. This kind of panel delivers much higher contrast than a standard LED monitor.

Prime Day ends on June 26, and I'll be updating this guide throughout the rest of the sale. And if you're looking for savings on larger displays, be sure to check out my roundup of all the best Prime Day TV deals.

The best Prime Day computer monitor deals

If you're looking for a standard monitor suited for everyday tasks, these models from Samsung, Philips, Dell, Asus, and LG are all solid options, especially with these discounts.

The best Prime Day gaming monitor deals

These gaming monitors all deliver advanced features geared toward providing a smooth, high-contrast image. OLED models, like LG's 32-inch UltraGear, have especially strong picture quality, making them ideal for gamers and media enthusiasts.

Prime Day monitor FAQs

What's the difference between a standard monitor and a gaming monitor?

A standard monitor is built for everyday tasks like browsing the web, drafting documents, streaming videos, and basic photo editing. A gaming monitor is designed to display games with smooth motion and advanced features like HDR (high dynamic range). As such, gaming monitors offer higher refresh rates, faster response times, brighter panels, and additional features, such as adaptive sync, that you won't find in typical productivity monitors.

For casual use, a standard monitor with 1080p or QHD resolution, a basic LED panel, and a 60Hz refresh rate is fine. But if you play fast-paced games, you should invest in a gaming monitor that supports at least 120Hz. Monitors that use OLED, QLED, and Mini LED panels are also better suited for games since they deliver brighter, higher contrast images than basic LED screens. If your PC is powerful enough to handle higher resolutions, a 4K gaming monitor is also a good option since it'll deliver a sharper image.

Should you buy an ultrawide monitor?

Several monitors on sale for Prime Day feature an ultrawide design, giving you more horizontal space than a standard 16:9 or 16:10 monitor. This type of screen can be great for multitasking, productivity, and immersive gaming, but it takes up more desk space and usually costs more than a standard display. It's best for shoppers who want extra screen space without using two monitors.

Is Prime Day a good time to buy a computer monitor?

If you've been meaning to buy a new computer monitor, Prime Day is a great time to do so. The event is packed with good deals on monitors from top brands like Samsung, LG, Asus, Dell, and Alienware. That said, there are always a handful of mediocre deals to be wary of, but my recommendations cover notable discounts from quality brands.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Japan and Sweden have both put together strong World Cup campaigns, setting up a compelling Group F showdown in the tournament's final round of group-stage matches. Depending on the rest of the group's results, this game could decide first place or simply determine who enters the knockout rounds with momentum. Here's where to watch Japan vs. Sweden from anywhere in the world.

Two of the most organized and disciplined teams in the field, Japan and Sweden, have achieved success in different ways but share the same goal: extending their World Cup run. The match will stream on FOX via a live TV service in the US, on BBC iPlayer in the UK, and on SBS on Demand in Australia, among others.

We recommend using a VPN to stream the entire tournament (and future sporting events) from anywhere in the world, especially via the free international options below. Follow the full tournament and learn how to watch your team in our where to watch the World Cup guide, or try your chance at scoring a seat in person with our guide to buying World Cup tickets.

*Local channel coverage, like FOX, varies by region on Sling.

Where to watch Japan vs. Sweden for free

Luckily for fans, there are plenty of ways to catch this match at no cost. In Australia, tune in via SBS On Demand; in the UK, via BBC iPlayer. Want some more? Ok, how about Tabii in Turkey?

In the US, the best way to see it without incurring a fee is to sign up for a free trial of Fubo or YouTube TV. Or you can use a VPN, as detailed below, to access your free live streaming options from anywhere in the world.

How to watch Japan vs. Sweden from anywhere

Found yourself away during the match? Don't sweat the details — you can access the Japan vs. Sweden match from anywhere in the world using a VPN (virtual private network). This simple app lets users change their device's location, granting access to their favorite free streaming service from anywhere. It's a helpful tool outside of just streaming the game, especially for avid travelers hoping to access their usual services from abroad and folks interested in cybersecurity.

We recommend NordVPN, one of the top picks in our guide to the best VPNs, for catching the game. Fast, easy to use, and home to a variety of global servers, it'll have you covered for the whole tournament. Plus, it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Where to watch Japan vs. Sweden in the US

Just like the rest of the World Cup, the Japan vs. Sweden game will air on FOX in the US (some other matches will be available through FS1). To tune into the channel, you'll need cable, an antenna, or a paid streaming subscription. For this game specifically, you can catch it for free by signing up for a free Fubo or YouTube TV trial.

A live TV package could be the right solution for your home, since it'll offer you more than just Fox — check out our guide to the best live TV streaming services to find your perfect fit.

Fubo Sports + News ($56 a month) is a great choice, offering Fox, FS1, and about 27 other channels. If you're hoping to find a more inclusive service, Fubo's pricier plans are a good choice with even more channels bundled in. All Fubo plans come with a free trial for new users.

YouTube TV is another solid option. Plans cost $83 a month, but a special deal will knock your first five months down to just $68 a month. Fox and FS1 are also available in YouTube TV's cheaper Sports Plan. All YouTube TV plans come with a free trial for new customers.

We also recommend Sling TV, but you'll need to double-check that the service covers FOX in your ZIP code to ensure World Cup coverage. If it does, Sling Select ($25 a month) or Sling Blue ($51 a month) are our suggestions, since both also include FS1. Sling Select plans without local channels start at just $20 a month.

Viewers looking for Spanish-language tournament coverage will be best served by Peacock. Plans with sports streaming start at $11 a month.

Where to watch Japan vs. Sweden in the UK

ITVX and the BBC have split rights for the World Cup. The Japan vs. Sweden game will be free to stream via BBC iPlayer for UK viewers. You'll just need to create an account.

Where to watch Japan vs. Sweden in Australia

Australian viewers can catch the entire World Cup tournament via SBS On Demand. The free service requires account creation, but no payment.

Note: VPN use is illegal in certain countries, and using VPNs to access region-locked streaming content may constitute a breach of the terms of use for some services. Business Insider does not endorse or condone the illegal use of VPNs.

I'm the last person who needs another tote bag — my closet is stuffed with so many already. But as my collection grows, I've learned which design features makes a tote truly exceptional. Prime Day is one of the best times to upgrade to one with a padded laptop sleeve, a secure zip-top, or a spacious main compartment for those jam-packed days.

So far I've scouted a neat little foldable travel tote for as little as $13, all the way to rosy leather designer bag from Tory Burch on sale for $187 off. Some of our favorite summer-ready totes are also on sale, including a softside Yeti that's perfect for the beach (now $105 off it's usual $350).

Find related discounts in our guide to the best Prime Day travel deals. And for up-to-date deals across all categories, check out our main Prime Day deals hub.

The best work tote Prime Day deals

This Prime Day, we're seeing standout savings on structured leather totes, zip-top bags with padded laptop compartments, and intuitive designs to help you feel organized at the office. See more commuter-friendly options in our roundup of the best Prime Day backpack deals.

• Read more: The best affordable work bags we tested

The best travel tote Prime Day deals

We're also seeing under-$25 deals from our favorite budget-friendly travel brand, Bagsmart. These bags are lightweight with trolley sleeves, zip-top closures, plenty of pockets, and enough space for your on-the-go essentials. See more of our favorite travel bags on sale in our guide to the best Prime Day luggage deals.

• Read more: The best travel totes we tested

The best beach tote Prime Day deals

These spacious totes account for all the bulky towels, leaky sunscreen bottles, sandy shovels, and whatever else you need to make it a perfect day at the beach. Prime Day brings discounts on some of our favorite canvas bags and easy-to-clean carryalls.

• Read more: The best beach bags and canvas totes we tested

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Amazon Prime Day is more than halfway over, but it's not too late to grab huge savings on big-ticket items, like a new smartphone. Android users will especially benefit, with brands like Samsung and Google pitching in to the event's festivities. The best Prime Day smartphone deals are gathered below, featuring models we've tested, researched, and recommend.

At up to $230 off, the flagship Samsung Galaxy S26 is at an all-time low, while Google's Pixel 10 is 33% off — another record-breaking price drop. You can also find different specs and models from each brand on sale, making it easier for shoppers, no matter what their budget.

Though there's still another day of the event, we've already seen deals expire and had to remove some from the list below. If you see a model you want in a color you like, don't hesitate to snatch it up. For more great deals, check out our Amazon Prime Day hub.

The best Prime Day Samsung Galaxy phone deals

Samsung's flagship Galaxy S26 Series is on sale for Prime Day, with record discounts on the S26, S26+, and S26 Ultra. You can select different colors and storage options from each Amazon listing. You can also shop deals on the Galaxy Z Flip 7 and Fold 7, with the latter reaching an all-time low price.

The best Prime Day Google Pixel phone deals

Google fans can save big on the brand's Pixel 10 Series of smartphones for Prime Day. Highlights include $100 off the entry-level Pixel 10a, which is already a good buy at full price. You can learn more in our complete Google Pixel 10a review.

The best Prime Day phone accessory deals

Still happy with your phone? You can still save big this Prime Day on cases, earbuds, power banks, and other accessories to make your device experience even better.

FAQs

Are iPhones on sale for Prime Day?

Amazon doesn't typically sell new iPhones directly, so you won't find Prime Day discounts on the latest iPhone models. You may see deals on renewed or refurbished iPhones, but shoppers looking for a brand-new iPhone are better off checking carriers like Mint Mobile, T-Mobile, and AT&T to see if they're running any promotions.

You can learn more about Apple's latest phones in our iPhone 17 review and iPhone 17 Pro review.

Should I get a case for my new phone?

As phone technology has advanced, durability has mostly improved, so now an accidental drop isn't always the end of the line for your phone. That said, given how pricey smartphones are, we typically recommend that people at least invest in a phone case. We also think that screen protectors (especially tempered glass ones) are worth it for certain models.

You can shop our curated guides to the best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 cases, best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 cases, and best Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra cases.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

After six years of covering Prime Day deals and tracking prices year-round, I have a pretty good sense of what to expect from Amazon's biggest sale events. There are always plenty of vacuums, coffee makers, TVs, and Amazon devices marked down — the kinds of products that go on sale often, but may drop to new lows or fall within their usual deal-event price ranges.

Those discounts can still be worthwhile if you're ready to replace or upgrade something. But unless you already had one of those products on your wish list, there may not be much urgency to buy, especially when many of them will likely be on sale again by the next major holiday weekend.

Every so often, though, a few brands genuinely surprise me. These are the ones that rarely get discounted, go on sale only during major shopping events, or hit unusually low prices on Prime Day. I found 10 brands with rare deals worth paying attention to, along with a few standout products from each.

Supergoop!

Supergoop! is another one of those brands that only offers discounts a few times during the year. During the summer, it can be especially selective with deals because demand for sunscreen is already high. Our beauty editors found 365-day low prices on some cult classics, so you can protect your skin this summer.

Shop up to 30% off Supergoop!.

Summer Fridays

Prime Day is the perfect time to catch all the beauty deals on trendy, premium, and K-beauty products. Summer Fridays is one of the brands I'm seeing everywhere right now, and thanks to this deal, it might finally be time to try the Lip Butter Balm that helped put it on the map.

Shop all Summer Fridays deals.

Oura Ring

The Oura Ring 5 was just released earlier this month, making it the perfect time to save big on the previous generation. The Oura Ring 4 is at its lowest price ever at 35% off, and is our favorite smart ring for its accurate tracking, approachable advice, and lightweight design.

Skylight Calendar

The digital calendar organizer is absolutely beloved by parents trying to manage their family schedule. It only drops in price a few times a year, and $250 is the lowest we've ever seen this 15-inch touchscreen go for. Get a head start on the school year, and read our Skylight Calendar review about how it helped bring some calm to contributor Jamie Davis Smith's routine.

Yeti

This is the first time I've ever seen some of Yeti's popular coolers, like the Hopper M30, see any sort of discount. The soft-sided design makes transporting easier and keeps contents icy cold thanks to its top-tier insulation.

• See all Yeti Prime Day deals.

Coach

Some of Coach's most classic styles are up to 40% off for Prime Day. These styles are least likely to be marked down due to their trending status amid the Coach resurgence, but alas, we've been given a treat for Prime Day. The colorway options are more limited on the markdowns, though. Here are some of the designs I'm itching to add to my collection.

• See all Coach Prime Day deals.

Mackenzie-Childs

I dream of decorating my home head to toe in Mackenzie-Childs. A ton of the iconic brand's decor and kitchenwares are 25% off for Prime Day, including coveted teapots, useful canisters, serveware, rugs, and more in classic prints like Courtly Check and Butterfly Garden. It's the perfect time to add to or start your collection.

• See all Mackenzie-Childs Prime Day deals

Hatch

Few items have switched up my bedroom routine like the Hatch Restore 3. First presented to me as a customizable wake-up alarm clock, it's so much more than that. It has helped me create a wind-down routine with its content library of relaxing meditations, stories, and sounds. It also functions as a sound machine if you like white noise while you sleep. It only goes on sale during Prime Day and Black Friday, so this 20% discount is the best you'll find if you're trying to work on better sleep habits.

Ninja

Ok, hear me out, Ninja is always on sale, but their most viral products aren't. This Prime Day marks the first meaningful price drop of the Ninja Crispi Pro and the lowest price ever on the Ninja Cafe Pro. Sadly, the deal on the device of the summer, the Slushi, is sold out, but it is still available on Ninja direct.

Technivorm

In the same caffeinated vein, the Technivorm Moccamaster sees small 10% price cuts throughout the year but never drops by more than 35%. The Moccamaster is commonly regarded as a "buy-it-for-life" appliance and makes some of the richest drip coffee. The machine is hand-built in the Netherlands with a design that has barely changed since the 1970s, featuring modular parts that are easily repairable and a long five-year warranty. It can be found in a rainbow of colors, too.

What makes these Prime Day deals rare?

To qualify as rare, I dug into comparable price data and compared how often they go on sale and lowest historical prices. This may be the first time these products have been this price this year, or they only go on sale around key shopping events like Black Friday and now Prime Day. I also consider popular products that are at their lowest prices ever.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals or browse Amazon for the full selection.

It's day three of Amazon's Prime Day sale, and there are still plenty of excellent discounts available. One of our favorite Prime Day deals is on the Oura Ring 4. Certain sizes and colors are down to all-time low prices, with the best Oura Ring 4 Prime Day discounts offering up to 48% off.

Specific prices vary by material, color, and size, but the Oura Ring 4 usually costs between $349 and $499 before any discounts. Right now, various metallic and ceramic configurations are under $300, matching or exceeding previous sales. The Ceramic Midnight Oura Ring 4 is up to 48% off, while the Metallic Silver Oura Ring 4 is up to 38% off. However, a few sizes and colors are no longer in stock, so you may need to try different combinations if you don't see a deal right away.

Our fitness expert tested the best smart rings and best fitness trackers, and the Oura Ring 4 made the cut as one of our top picks. It's lightweight and offers an impressive seven to eight days of battery life, so you typically get a full week between charges. You can learn more in our Oura Ring 4 review.

FAQ

Is there an Oura Ring 5?

Yes, Oura released the Oura Ring 5 in June 2026. However, the new model is not on sale for Prime Day. It ranges in price from $399 to $499. The Oura Ring 5 does offer some improvements, including a lighter design and longer battery life. But given current discounts, the Oura Ring 4 remains the better value overall.

You can also shop the older Oura Ring Gen3 Heritage and Oura Ring Gen3 Horizon at discounts in select sizes and colors.

When does Prime Day end?

Prime Day runs through June 26. While there's technically another full day to shop, popular items often sell out early. We've already seen certain Oura Ring 4 sizes and color combinations go out of stock, so if you're planning to purchase one, we recommend doing so sooner rather than later.

Do you need a subscription to use an Oura Ring?

You need a subscription to get the most out of an Oura Ring. While you can technically use basic features without a subscription (like daily Readiness, Sleep, and Activity scores), most tracking features and metrics require a membership. Subscriptions cost $6 a month or $70 a year.

Are other health and fitness trackers on sale for Prime Day?

If a ring isn't quite your speed, several other fitness wearables are getting big discounts for Prime Day, including smartwatches. Several Apple Watches are discounted, including a record-low 30% off the Series 11, our top pick for the best Apple Watch.

You can also find deals on Fitbits, Garmins, and other popular fitness watches. These watches might be better fits for serious athletes and runners since Oura Rings don't offer as many fitness metrics.

If you're looking for a cheaper smart ring, you can also get 37% off our top budget pick, the Amazfit Helio Ring.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Luggage can be expensive, but cheaping out can result in immediate regret once your roller wheels catch, zippers rip, and straps tear on your trip. With the right Prime Day luggage deals, you can save over a hundred dollars on our top-reviewed brands, making it easier than ever to invest in a travel companion you'll have for years.

Whether you're in need of a carry-on, checked bag, or personal item, the whole range of items is on sale right now. Some of our favorite names are participating in the sale, including Away, Travelpro, Samsonite, and many more. Colors and sizes are limited, so we highly recommend acting fast before your choice sells out.

Read on to find the best luggage we've tested at the lowest prices of the year. Don't forget to check our Amazon Prime Day hub for deals across every category, too.

This softside carry-on from Travelpro may not look as sleek as an Away or Monos hardshell, but we still think it's worth the splurge — especially while it's $95 off for Prime Day. Its wheels glided effortlessly over rough terrain better than any other carry-on we tested, and its many internal pockets make packing easier. Plus, you can use its USB ports to charge your phone on the go.

The best Amazon Prime Day carry-on luggage deals

A good carry-on can make quick trips much easier, especially if you're trying to skip the baggage carousel. The best Prime Day carry-on deals include compact suitcases that fit overhead bins while still offering useful features like spinner wheels, interior dividers, and front pockets.

• Read more: The best carry-on bags we tested

The best Amazon Prime Day luggage set deals

A luggage set can be a smarter buy than purchasing each suitcase separately, especially if you need bags for multiple stops or several family members. Prime Day brings discounts on matching sets that bundle carry-ons, checked bags, and sometimes smaller travel pieces into one purchase.

• Read more: The best luggage we tested

The best Amazon Prime Day checked luggage deals

Checked luggage is best for longer trips, heavy packers, or anyone who wants room for bulky shoes or souvenirs. Prime Day is a good time to look for deals on durable hardside and softside checked bags with expandable storage, compression straps, and sturdy handles.

• Read more: The best checked luggage we tested

More Amazon Prime Day travel bag deals

So you've got your roller bags handled, but your totes and backpacks still need to be taken care of. In that case, Prime Day is also offering tons of great deals on travel companions we've tested and love as personal items and carry-on bags.

• Read more: Weekender bags | Travel backpacks | Personal item bags

FAQs on Prime Day luggage deals

Is Prime Day a good time to buy luggage?

Definitely. We're still early in the summer travel season, so now's the perfect opportunity to save on a new carry-on or checked luggage. Plus, during this 4-day period, you can find plenty of luggage sales outside of Amazon.

As someone who travels at least once a month, I think the scarcity of all-black luggage deals this Prime Day is actually a good thing. I prefer when I can clearly see my bright teal hardshell coming around the baggage carousel, so don't be discouraged if you're noticing limited color variety.

What size carry-on should I buy?

Most domestic airlines have a maximum carry-on size requirement of 22 inches long, 14 inches wide, and nine inches tall.

What are the best luggage brands on sale?

Some of our favorite luggage brands offer deep discounts on suitcases for Prime Day. Samsonite has slashed prices this Prime Day, with some bundles at over 50% off. Away now has carry-on and checked bags marked down 20%, and there are tons of other deals going live all the time.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

• A heat wave in Europe caused record-breaking temperatures across several countries.
• Much of Europe doesn't have air conditioning, so people used fountains and ice cream to cool off.
• The heat affected public transportation, grocery shopping, and other aspects of daily life.

Over 120 million people across 18 European countries are caught in a heat wave, with record-breaking temperatures exceeding 113 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas.

The extreme conditions, which began last week and continued to spike on Thursday, were caused by a heat dome, a high-pressure system that traps heat and humidity.

The World Meteorological Organization reported in April that Europe is warming at a rate that is twice the global average due to the climate crisis, with 95% of the continent experiencing above-average annual temperatures last year.

With no air conditioning in much of Europe, there is little relief to be found from the sweltering weather. Several European governments issued health warnings advising the public to minimize unnecessary travel and carry water while outdoors.

The heat has also proven fatal, with five dead from heat exposure in Italy and 40 drowning deaths reported in France, where many young people have taken to swimming unattended in lakes and canals, The New York Times reported.

Photos show how extreme heat is affecting businesses, infrastructure, and daily life across Europe — and how locals and tourists are doing their best to beat the heat.

On Tuesday, a thermometer in Brussels displayed a temperature of 45 degrees Celsius, or 113 degrees Fahrenheit.

Dogs and humans alike splashed in sidewalk sprinklers and fountains around Brussels for a break from the heat.

Billboards in Venice, Italy, issued heat wave alerts on Tuesday, when temperatures reached 95 degrees Fahrenheit.

Tourists on the Ponte della Paglia bridge in Venice carried umbrellas for some relief from the sun.

The UK experienced its hottest June day on record on Wednesday, with temperatures reaching 97 degrees Fahrenheit, causing train cancellations.

Signs at King's Cross station in London advised train passengers to "only travel if absolutely necessary" on Wednesday and Thursday.

Riders on the tube in London carried fans to cool themselves off.

Sainsbury's supermarket locations covered their refrigerated sections with blinds to help keep food cold.

In Paris, the Louvre announced it would close early through June 27 due to the extreme temperatures.

Ice cream sold out at supermarkets across Paris amid skyrocketing demand for frozen treats.

Sea lions snacked on ice cubes at Paris Zoological Park.

Zookeepers at Safaripark Beekse Bergen in the Netherlands provided giraffe-friendly ice cream.

In Tilburg, the Netherlands, locals stocked up on fans.

In Germany, winter maintenance vehicles in Unstrut-Hainich-Kreis sprayed down roads to keep the asphalt from softening.

Parts of Germany's A2 highway still had to close on Thursday after the high temperatures damaged the road's surface.

A farm in Oberried, Germany, utilized a misting system to help alleviate heat stress for its cows.

Across Europe, government organizations advised people to stay hydrated.

Prime Day is in full swing, and there's no better time to save on luggage and travel accessories before you hit the road or fly this summer. One standout deal is on the Trtl Travel Pillow, a godsend for upright, middle, and aisle-seaters, or anyone seeking extra neck support. For Prime Day, it's $39.70, which is 38% off and its lowest price since 2023.

I bought this pillow back in April so I'd have it for my 8-hour flights to and from Italy. I'd seen the Trtl Pillow on many best-of lists but was always skeptical. Rather than a plush or inflatable pillow, it's an ergonomic design incorporating a piece of molded plastic wrapped in lightweight fleece. You position the plastic along one side of your neck, then wrap the fleece around to achieve a secure fit with your neck in a neutral position.

After Italy and a recent road trip where I took some hourslong naps, I'm happy to report that I won't leave home without this pillow in the future — my neck pain didn't creep up on me. Insider Reviews editor Gabi Chase feels the same. "This is the only travel pillow I've tried that fits my long, thin neck," she says. "The wrap is easily adjustable and kept my head in a fixed position, sparing me from the agonizing cycle of headbobbing and shocking myself awake."

Why we love the Trtl Travel Pillow

• Unmatched ergonomic support: Upright sleepers won't find the same level of support in other travel pillows. Some standard plush or inflatable pillows are designed for upright sleep, but none offer the structure of the Trtl. This is key for people with long, thin necks or chronic neck pain.
• Low profile means less bulk: If you dislike the standard, bulky U-ring pillows like I do, the Trtl Pillow has an incredibly thin profile and weighs just 4.6 ounces.
• Portability: The pillow fits neatly inside its convenient carry pouch, which features a carabiner for clipping to your luggage or backpack. Combined, the pillow and pouch weigh a mere 6.3 ounces.

• Easy to clean: I have yet to wash my pillow, but the care directions say you can remove the plastic support and toss the fleece wrap into the washer on cold. Then you'll want to air-dry it.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.

Amazon Prime Day is a great time to restock your beauty routine, but the sale can also be a lot to sort through. There are thousands of skincare, haircare, makeup, and sunscreen deals live at once, and not every viral product with a discount is actually worth buying.

That's why we're focusing on the Prime Day deals our editors already use, repurchase, or recommend after testing. The best deals we've found include K-beauty moisturizers that have earned permanent spots in our routines, sunscreen that makes reapplying feel fun, a shampoo I think is actually worth the higher price, and the pimple patches our executive editor calls her go-to. We also found discounts on internet-loved brands like Medicube, Laneige, OUAI, Aestura, Vacation, Paula's Choice, Hero Cosmetics, Sulwhasoo, and Tarte.

Below, we've rounded up the best Prime Day beauty and skincare deals to shop now, with quick notes on who each product is best for and why we think it deserves a spot in your cart.

For more Prime Day beauty deals, see our roundups of the best red light mask deals, the best Dyson deals, the best laser hair removal deals, and more.

The affordable K-beauty brand that's taking over the internet

Medicube has become one of the buzziest names in at-home K-beauty, and Prime Day is a good excuse to try the brand at a discount. Its products hit that sweet spot between viral and actually useful: the devices are made to help your skincare absorb better and leave skin looking glowier, while the topical formulas lean into hydration and the glass-skin ingredients people are already searching for, like niacinamide, collagen, exfoliating acids, and PDRN — a salmon-derived DNA ingredient that's become one of skincare's latest fixations..

• Medicube Zero Pore Pad 2.0, ($31 $15): Medicube's Zero Pore Pads are one of the brand's best-known products, and they're a practical Prime Day pickup if you want a quick exfoliating step for smoother-looking skin. "I have these on subscribe and save because every time I test out stopping them, my skin gets scaly again," says executive editor Sally Kaplan.

• Medicube PDRN Pink Peptide Serum, ($22 $15): This lightweight pink serum taps into the PDRN trend with peptides and niacinamide for a more hydrated-looking finish.
• Medicube PDRN Pink Niacinamide Milky Toner, ($20 $14): A softening, milky toner with PDRN, ceramides, and peptides, this is the one to grab if your skin wants more cushion than exfoliation.
• Medicube PDRN Pink Peptide Eye Cream, ($22 $15): This pink peptide eye cream is designed for the under-eye area, with PDRN and niacinamide to target dryness, fine lines, and uneven tone.

See all Medicube products on sale for Amazon Prime Day and check out our roundup of our favorite Prime Day deals on Medicube.

A French pharmacy staple

Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré Sensitive, ($35 $28)

Embryolisse is a French pharmacy staple with a reputation that goes well beyond everyday moisturizing — makeup artists often use it as a primer by smoothing on a thicker layer before foundation.

Executive Editor Sally Kaplan likes the sensitive-skin version as a daily face cream and calls it "the most amazing daily moisturizer for dry skin." She has rosacea, so she's especially careful about formulas that can irritate her skin, and says this one hydrates "in a way that no other moisturizer ever has." It's a smart Prime Day pickup if you want a rich, comforting moisturizer that can also help makeup sit more smoothly.

The final boss of lip hydration

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask ($24 $16)

A family friend who works as a flight attendant turned me on to the Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask years ago and told me it's a staple among her colleagues for dealing with dry cabin air. It's become a favorite on our team, too, especially in winter when regular lip balm doesn't always feel like enough. Despite the name, it's not just for sleeping — I use it anytime my lips feel chapped and need something thicker, glossier, and longer-lasting.

Pricey shampoo and conditioner at a discount

OUAI Thick Hair Shampoo and Conditioner Set, ($64 $51)

OUAI's shampoo and conditioner sets are among the few haircare products I think are actually worth the higher price. I use the brand's shampoo exclusively, and while it's definitely more expensive than a drugstore bottle, the formulas make my hair feel cleaner, softer, and more manageable without leaving it stripped. That's why this is one of the Prime Day beauty deals I'd actually recommend stocking up on, especially since OUAI makes versions for fine, medium, and thick hair types.

A moisturizer so good, multiple editors have switched

Aestura Atobarrier 365 Cream, ($32 $24)

This is my favorite moisturizer ever, full stop. It's rich without feeling greasy, makes my skin look immediately calmer and glowier, and has the kind of barrier-supporting texture that feels especially useful when my face is dry, irritated, or over-exfoliated.

Senior Associate Style Editor Gabrielle Chase is also a longtime fan: She says that it's "the only thing that keeps my extremely dry skin feeling hydrated for over 24 hours at a time," adding that the finish "almost feels like a wax seal, locking moisture in." Since it's usually pricier than a basic drugstore moisturizer, this is exactly the kind of beauty deal I'd use Prime Day to stock up on.

But we don't just love the moisturizer. The whole line is among our favorite hydrating products of all time. Here are our favorite products:

• Aestura Atobarrier 365 Cream Mist ($24 $18): This ceramide-packed mist is a good desk or gym-bag product if your skin tends to feel dry midday and needs a quick refresh.
• Aestura Atobarrier 365 Hydro Cera-HA Serum ($34 $27): This lightweight serum has ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and niacinamide, making it a good pick if you want hydration and barrier support without adding another heavy cream.
• Aestura Atobarrier 365 Hydro Soothing Gel Cream ($32 $20): This is the lighter, cooling option in the Atobarrier lineup, and it makes the most sense for combination or oily skin that still needs barrier support.

Our go-to pimple patches

Mighty Patch Original from Hero Cosmetics, ($23 $17)

Hero Cosmetics' Mighty Patch is one of those products that makes the most sense to buy in bulk, since you never really know when a breakout is going to show up. Executive Editor Sally Kaplan calls it her "go-to pimple patch," and this 75-count pack is a practical Prime Day restock if you already know you'll go through them.

The most summery sunscreen

Vacation makes sunscreen feel less like a chore and more like something you actually want to keep reapplying, which is half the battle on pool and beach days. The brand's Classic scent is basically bottled summer: coconut, banana, pool water, pool toy, and swimsuit fabric (if that sounds strange, just wait 'til you smell it — it will make sense). The formulas are practical, too, with SPF 50 options that are water-resistant and designed to feel lightweight instead of gloopy.

• Vacation Super Spritz SPF 50 Face Mist, ($24 $15): Face spray sunscreen is a game changer for pool and beach days because it makes reapplying SPF feel less annoying — no smearing, no gloopy mess, just a refreshing mist you can spritz on throughout the day. It's truly a game-changer for me.
• Vacation Classic SPF 50 Sunscreen Lotion and Air Freshener Bundle, ($17 $14): This travel-size lotion is easy to throw in a beach bag, and it gives you Vacation's nostalgic summer scent in a more controlled sunscreen format than a spray.
• Vacation Classic SPF 50 Sunscreen Lotion Family Size, ($48 $37): This 20-ounce pump bottle is the practical pick if you want a sunscreen everyone can use all summer without constantly running out.

Shop all of Vacation's Amazon Prime Day deals

The best cleanser for combination skin

Sulwhasoo Gentle Cleansing Foam, ($38 $29)

Sulwhasoo's foaming cleanser is a luxe K-beauty wash that feels more special than a basic morning cleanser, and Senior Home Editor Jaclyn Turner says it's held up as a repurchase since she bought it last Prime Day. "I love starting my morning with this cleanser," she says. "It foams up beautifully and feels velvety smooth on my skin. My skin feels so fresh afterward, and it has minimized breakouts on my combination oily skin."

The ultimate summer vitamin C serum

TruSkin Vitamin C Serum, ($20 $15)

This is my go-to affordable vitamin C serum for summer, when I want something lightweight that helps with uneven tone and gives my skin a little extra support against UV-related damage. I use Sunday Riley's CEO Glow Oil (also on sale) in the winter, but this feels better for hot weather — and you can actually feel that slight tightening effect right after applying it. It also has over 155,000 Amazon reviews and a 4.5-star rating, which is reassuring for a serum that costs far less than most prestige vitamin C formulas.

A lip color with subtle plumping

Tarte Maracuja Juicy Lip Plump, ($27 $16)

Tarte Maracuja Juicy Lip Balm Gloss, ($27 $16)

The Maracuja Juicy Lip Plump or Balm Gloss are great Prime Day pickups if you like the look of a gloss but want something that feels more cushioned than sticky. Senior Home Editor Jaclyn Turner's go-to shade in the Plump formula is Rose Quartz Shimmer Glass, a sheer, sparkly pink that adds polish without looking overdone.

She likes that it has the "perfect amount of shimmer and shine," an easy click-up applicator, and a subtle tingle that makes her lips look fuller. It's the kind of low-effort lip product that works on its own, over liner, or tossed in a bag for touch-ups.

Sally is equally obsessed with her Juicy Lip Balm Glosses, which are hydrating and sheer enough for everyday wear.

A hyaluronic acid staple

Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer, ($38 $27)

This Laneige moisturizer is a staple in Senior Home Editor Jaclyn Turner's skincare routine, and it's a good pick if you want something richer than a gel cream but not as heavy as a thick balm. It has squalane, ceramides, and blue hyaluronic acid to help hydrate normal to dry skin and support the moisture barrier, making it an easy everyday moisturizer if your skin tends to feel tight or dehydrated.

The ultimate exfoliant

Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant, ($37 $26)

I bought this cult-favorite exfoliant to try on my own dry skin, and it was a bit of a disaster — red, irritated, the whole thing. But when I passed it along to my fiancé, who has oily skin, it worked like a dream. I can tell when he's using it consistently because his skin looks smoother, brighter, and more even; when he's slacking, I can tell that, too. The formula uses 2% salicylic acid to clear pore congestion and smooth texture, so it's especially worth considering if your skin is oily or blackhead-prone.

A versatile hairbrush

FHI Heat UNbrush Detangling Brush ($18 $15)

The viral UNbrush is Senior Home Editor Jaclyn Turner's favorite detangling brush, with a lightweight, vented design and flexible dual-length bristles that work through knots on wet or dry hair without making detangling feel like a whole event.

• Most days, I found myself feeling exhausted, burned out, and glued to my phone after work.
• So, I began attending reading parties, laid-back hangs where people gather to read independently.
• It's the perfect low-pressure social activity for me to feel refreshed and get off my phone.

After work each day, I found myself feeling mentally exhausted and burned out.

Seemingly endless emails and a phone that buzzes long after 5 p.m. left me craving a more balanced lifestyle, particularly one that didn't make me feel constantly available.

However, I was struggling to find activities and plans that would actually stick.

I know exercise can be mood-boosting, so I tried going to the gym after work. Most of the time, though, I ended up canceling because I was too tired and it didn't sound like much fun.

I also attempted to make regular plans to go to happy hour with coworkers. This didn't stick, either, and I didn't exactly want all my social interactions to revolve around alcohol.

Instead, I continued spending most evenings sitting on my couch, doomscrolling on Instagram, waiting for my husband to get home from work.

At one point, after checking my screen-time settings, I was horrified to realize I was spending an average of four hours a day on my phone.

When I told my friend about my unsuccessful attempts to fix my post-work habits, she suggested I attend a reading party (or Silent Book Club).

I'd seen people around the world posting about attending these low-pressure events, where attendees gather to read books independently and silently, then have discussions afterward.

It seemed strange to turn an activity I usually do alone into a group one, but I was willing to give it a try.

I was skeptical, but the reading party helped me get off my phone in a fun way

Shortly after, I headed to a reading party at a café near me with a copy of "The Handmaid's Tale" in hand.

As I arrived, I was worried I'd be the only one in attendance. Instead, I was surprised to see about a dozen people spread out at tables in the back corner of the café — all with books in hand, coffees nearby, and no phones in sight.

A woman smiled at me and scooted over, so I could sit at the empty seat beside her. I pulled out my book, ordered an oat-milk latte, and tried to start reading.

Instead, I kept getting distracted and couldn't get comfortable in the chair. I shifted from side to side and had to reread the same page three times because I kept looking up at the sound of the espresso machine or someone walking by.

I wondered how long I could possibly sit here like this as I resisted the urge to grab my phone to check the time. Everyone else's were away, and I didn't want to be judged for having mine out.

After about 20 minutes, I finally got comfortable and was able to really dive into my book.

Our group read, uninterrupted, for one and a half hours, and then the woman who had organized the event got our attention and said the reading part of the event was finished. She motioned for us to go around in a circle, introduce ourselves, and share what we were reading.

Once everyone was through, attendees chatted with the people beside them. The conversations flowed naturally. We all liked reading and set aside time in our schedules to go there, so it was easy to break the ice.

I found out the girl next to me was also a big Bukowski fan, and it was nice to pick each other's brains about our favorite works of his. Shortly after, the event came to a close.

People began to leave, and I liked not feeling pressured to exchange Instagram handles or phone numbers with anyone. I simply thanked the host and said I'd be back.

I left feeling refreshed and calm.

It's nice having semi-regular plans that help me connect with others in a low-pressure way

Instead of looking down at my phone during my walk home, I found myself enjoying the beauty of my neighborhood — people walking their dogs, chatting in cafés.

As I continued, a buzz in my bag snapped me out of the present moment. Without thinking, my hand shot into my purse and grabbed it. I laughed when I saw that I had no important messages, only a promotional email about a sale at Ikea. I had missed nothing.

I won't say this event was a magic cure that's made me never reach for my phone or feel stressed after work. However, it helped me to connect with others and myself in a more present way.

I've now been attending these parties every other week or so for about six months. It's gotten easier to get comfortable, stay focused on the page I'm reading, make post-reading conversation, and not feel tempted to grab my phone.

And when I'm truly desperate to know what time it is, I just look at the watch that I'd forgotten I owned.

• Texas has become one of the top destinations for movers in the US.
• Its business-friendly climate and lower cost of living attract people from all walks of life.
• Supermodel Bella Hadid and actor Glen Powell are among the celebrities who have moved to Texas.

Texas is popular for many reasons.

The second-largest US state is the birthplace of the iconic musician Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, NFL star Michael Strahan, and actresses Selena Gomez and Reneé Zellweger.

It's also home to a beloved football team, the Dallas Cowboys, and internationally famous festivals, including South by Southwest.

Beyond its cultural significance, Texas has a reputation for its affordability, largely due to its relatively lower cost of living and absence of state income tax. This personal finance appeal, combined with a business-friendly environment, has attracted entrepreneurs and their companies over the years.

US Census Bureau data shows that Texas population growth has declined nationwide; Texas is still a leader in attracting movers. From July 1, 2024, to July 1, 2025, Texas had the highest number of new residents, adding 391,243.

Several celebrities are among the hordes of movers to Texas. This reflects a broader trend of wealth realignment in the United States, where even the proverbial Joneses are moving to areas where their money goes further, and the weather is more favorable.

Consider supermodel Bella Hadid, who moved to Fort Worth, Texas, or comedian Roseanne Barr and podcast host Joe Rogan, who have decamped from LA to Austin in recent years.

Business Insider has compiled a list of 20 notable celebrities and businesspeople who have moved themselves — and in some cases, their businesses — to the Lone Star State.

The list is presented in alphabetical order by last name.

Roseanne Barr traded Hollywood for 30 acres in Texas Hill Country.

Roseanne Barr's son, Jake Pentland, told Us Weekly in June 2025 that his famous mother had traded the Hollywood Hills for Texas Hill Country, a region in central Texas that includes cities like Austin and New Braunfels.

"My mom lives with me, my wife, and my two daughters — she's the best grandma," Pentland told the magazine.

In a separate interview with Fox News Digital, Barr said living in Texas is a "dream come true."

"I'm doing a lot of mowing. I've got a really fantastic tractor out here, and I'm mowing," Barr said. "The only problem is I don't clear the trees quite as good as I should, and I'm always hitting a tree and knocking it over, and it always hits me in the head."

Haylie Duff said it took a while to realize she could still have an acting career without living in LA.

A native of Texas, Duff decided with her fiancé Matt Rosenberg to pack up the kids and leave California once the pandemic hit.

At first, she was nervous that the move would hurt her career.

"I think so much of my fear of moving out of Los Angeles was that my career was there and that I would never work again or something like that," she told Fox News Digital in 2022. "And, you know, I think this has all taught us that Zoom certainly can be a very powerful tool. And we can, you know, very luckily for me, get to continue to work from here, and I get to live near my dad. I haven't lived, here, near my dad in a really long time."

Scott Eastwood loves living in Texas because it 'slows life down.'

The son of Clint Eastwood, Scott has been methodically building his own career, showing up in the "Fast and Furious" franchise and Guy Ritchie movies.

During his downtime in Texas, he does everything from fishing to hunting.

"I think that's why people who come to Texas really can fall in love with it," he told Flaunt in 2021 from his home in Austin. "There's more community, people are more neighborly, people are nice. It slows life down a little bit. It's not this fast-paced living in a big city like New York or Los Angeles."

Adrian Grenier's acting career is thriving in Texas.

In 2020, "Entourage" and "The Devil Wears Prada" star Adrian Grenier left the Hollywood Hills for a 46-acre sustainable ranch in Bastrop, Texas, a city about 40 minutes southeast of Austin.

While in Texas, Grenier has continued acting and most recently appeared in the short film "Self Custody," about a struggling father who loses a cryptocurrency fortune. The film was shot in Austin, near his home.

In an interview with Page Six in March, Grenier said Texas' burgeoning film and television industry will keep him in the state.

"There's $2.5 billion that the Texas state government just put into film and television projects in Texas," Grenier said. "They're building three movie studios not too far from me. I don't see any reason why we wouldn't just continue to film in Texas."

Bella Hadid said she moved to Texas for her health.

After spending most of her life jet-setting around the world trying to conquer the modeling industry, Hadid decided recently to take some time away from the spotlight.

In early 2024, she spoke to Allure about moving to Texas to focus on her mental and physical health (she was diagnosed with Lyme Disease in 2013), and be with her then boyfriend, cowboy Adan Banuelos.

"Just as I have styled myself for years now — which I still do — I love being able to do my own hair and makeup, be happy with how I look, and get ready with my girlfriends here in Texas," Hadid told Allure. "We have the best time, and I never feel like I need to do too much."

"For the first time now, I'm not putting on a fake face. If I don't feel good, I won't go. If I don't feel good, I take time for myself. And I've never had the opportunity to do that or say that before," Hadid added. "Now, when anybody sees me in pictures, and they say I look happy, I genuinely am. I am feeling better; my bad days now were my old good days."

Woody Harrelson is lobbying to make Texas a hub for film and television production.

Harrelson lived in Hawaii for many years before moving back to his home state of Texas in 2023.

Now in the Lone Star State and living outside Austin, the actor has lobbied alongside longtime friend Matthew McConaughey to make Texas a hub for film and television production.

In 2025, the Texas House approved Senate Bill 22, which provides $300 million every two years through 2035 to support the local film industry.

Chanel Iman said Texas gives her more freedom.

Supermodel Chanel Iman and her husband, New Orleans Saints football player Davon Godchaux, purchased a spacious ranch about 90 minutes west of Dallas, Architectural Digest reported in June.

"Texas gave us the freedom to dream bigger," Iman told Architectural Digest. "We love the land, the openness, being surrounded by nature. That's really what brought us here, and it's a dream come true."

50 Cent is a New Yorker, but his primary residence is in Texas.

In 2021, the rapper-turned-television producer and entrepreneur announced on X that he was living in Houston.

Since James Marsden moved to Texas, he lives closer to his mother.

The star has enjoyed visiting Austin for decades but finally decided to live there in 2020.

"I love it. I've been coming here for 20 years," he told "Live with Kelly and Ryan" in 2020. "I'm much closer to my mom and everybody. I love it. It's great."

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick traded California for Texas.

The former Uber CEO announced on the daily live video and audio podcast TBPN in March that he had moved to Texas in December 2025.

Kalanick joins a slew of tech billionaires, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who have left California for greener pastures.

Keith Lee fell in love with Dallas' restaurants.

The former mixed martial arts fighter turned TikTok food critic has set up shop in Texas.

After living in Las Vegas, Lee relocated to Texas in November 2024. In a December video reviewing the downtown Dallas restaurant The Wicked Butcher, he revealed that he now lives in Dallas.

"One thing I do love about the Dallas food scene — we've been here a month, a month and a half — they do have some nice fine dining restaurants," Lee said.

Matthew McConaughey wanted to be closer to family.

Oscar-winner Matthew McConaughey and wife Camila Alves settled in Austin in 2012 after buying a 10,800-square-foot mansion.

According to a 2024 profile in Southern Living, the move to Texas was initially because of a "family crisis," when he needed to help his mother and two brothers. The couple decided to stay put and raise their three children there.

"Ritual came back," McConaughey said of being back in Texas. "Whether that was Sunday church, sports, dinner together as a family every night, or staying up after that telling stories in the kitchen, sitting at the island pouring drinks and nibbling while retelling them all in different ways than we told them before."

Elon Musk moved to Texas and brought his companies with him.

Elon Musk has moved both SpaceX and Tesla's headquarters out of California to Texas.

In 2020, Musk announced that he had moved to Texas at The Wall Street Journal's CEO Council summit.

Musk has said he owns a tiny home in Texas, and records show he bought a house in Austin in 2022.

Shaquille O'Neal has been buying up properties in North Texas.

In 2022, O'Neal bought a 5,269-square-foot home in Carrollton listed at $1,224,000 and sold it in 2024 for an undisclosed amount, though it was listed for $1.7 million, according to Realtor.com.

That year, Chexy Trust, tied to the Carrollton purchase, bought a 4,670-square-foot home in Rockwall County. In 2024, O'Neal opened a branch of his Big Chicken chain restaurant in Fort Worth.

As his footprint in the region grows, he told Dallas television station WFAA he plans to make the area his home base.

"I'm 75% going to move here full time," O'Neal said last June. "I have to see what's going on with TNT next year, but based on that, you'll probably be seeing a lot more of me."

Glen Powell got tired of the lack of freedom living in Los Angeles.

The "Twisters" star, who is also a native Texan, recently moved back to Austin from Los Angeles to be close to his family and improve his mental health.

"When all you do is consume movies and entertainment, you could become a little self-aware and maybe derivative of yourself," Powell told USA Today. "Your personal life, there's no sort of freedom there, there's storytelling around that, and I feel like that's just not good for you on the long term."

Jared Padalecki has a soft spot for Austin.

Padalecki ditched Hollywood for Texas before it was a trend. The "Supernatural" star, a San Antonio native, relocated from Los Angeles to Austin with his wife, Genevieve, in 2012.

In an Instagram video taken on Austin's 24th Street in 2020, he explained why he loves the city so much.

"Austin brings me a warmth and a happiness and a peace that I have been unable to find anywhere else in my travels," Padalecki said. "I love being here."

Jesse Plemons returned home and brought Kirsten Dunst with him.

Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons, who got engaged in 2017 and married in 2022, thought they'd temporarily go to Texas, Plemons' home state, during the pandemic, but have since grown accustomed to life there.

In an interview with CBS News Sunday Morning, Dunst said that she's enjoyed her time in Texas.

"It's everything," she said. "People care less because it's not a movie town. They're better with children, the parks are nicer."

Plemons told Texas Monthly in a 2024 cover story that the couple was renovating their home in East Austin, potentially to move into it for good.

"The people just look at you in a different way," Plemons told Texas Monthly. "They're not on the hamster wheel."

Christine Quinn's return to her home state has brought her closer to her family.

In 2025, former "Selling Sunset" star Christine Quinn relocated to her home state of Texas after splitting from her ex-husband, tech entrepreneur Christian Dumontet.

Quinn now lives in a suburb outside Dallas with her young son, Christian.

"I am really, really grateful to be living here," Quinn told People in January, adding that she's happy to be closer to family. "I have a sister who lives really close to me, and my son has a cousin. So it's really something that I needed as opposed to the chaos when I was in Los Angeles."

Joe Rogan ended up in Texas once the pandemic hit.

Like many other celebs, Rogan left Los Angeles once the pandemic hit.

In a 2023 episode of his popular podcast, "The Joe Rogan Experience," he explained why he ended up in Texas.

"Then we went to the lake, and people are playing music and jumping in the water," said Rogan, adding that his kids "were like, 'We want to live here!'"

"That was it. Two months later, I lived here," he said in the podcast episode.

Jamie Lynn Sigler has felt more connected to her craft since moving to Texas.

"The Sopranos" star moved to Austin in 2021 with her family, husband Cutter Dykstra, and sons Beau and Jack.

"I almost feel more connected to my craft and why I love acting," Sigler told The New York Times in 2021. "When the calls come in, it's a beautiful surprise. I'm still on things and I'm still a businesswoman and it's still my career, but I don't feel the pressure around it because we took a stand for ourselves and we made decisions for our families."

• Microsoft is the latest tech giant to raise prices due to the memory shortage; Xbox prices will go up $100-$150 on August 1.
• It said memory and storage prices have increased by "more than 2.5x" and it expects "another doubling by the fall of 2027."
• The news follows Apple raising MacBook and iPad prices by as much as $300 on Thursday.

Shoppers got a double whammy of bad news on Thursday as Microsoft announced yet another round of Xbox price hikes hours after Apple boosted prices.

Taken together, the price increases — which both companies say are due to spiking memory and storage costs — are set to make holiday shopping significantly more expensive. For gamers, it makes gaming increasingly feel like a luxury hobby.

Microsoft's popular Xbox game consoles are set to increase by $100-$150 on August 1. The 512 GB models will go up by $100, and the 1 TB versions will increase by $150. The Xbox with the highest available storage configuration of 2 TB will be discontinued entirely.

"Last October, we increased XBOX console price by $20-$70 in the U.S. We hoped another price increase would not be necessary, and we have spent the last several months working with suppliers on options," Microsoft said in a blog post. "Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027."

The new price hikes will apply worldwide.

This is the third time Microsoft has raised prices on its latest Xbox generation, following increases in May and October 2025. The Xbox Series X is now $250 to $300 more expensive than it was when it launched in 2020.

The memory shortage has impacted a broad range of consumer electronics companies, many of which have raised prices in the last 8 months.

Microsoft's chief rivals in the gaming wars, PlayStation and Nintendo, have both previously announced price increases for the PS5 and Nintendo Switch 2, respectively.

Computers, which also rely on memory and storage chips, have also become more costly to produce, and Apple followed many of its peers in boosting MacBook and iMac prices, along with the iPad, Apple TV, HomePod, and Vision Pro, on Thursday — by as much as $300.

"The entire consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis, but the effects are particularly hard on consoles," Microsoft said. "Unlike phones, computers, speakers, and other consumer devices, consoles are typically not sold at a profit, but instead for less than they cost to make."

In its blog post announcing the coming price hikes, Microsoft shared details on programs it said "make XBOX consoles more accessible," such as buy-now-pay-later and interest-free financing services, along with efforts to make previously used game consoles available via retailers to purchase.

Don't have anything on your wish list this Prime Day? You don't have to feel pressured to buy big-ticket items, just because they're on sale — which they definitely are. Instead, don't forget that Amazon's deal event is an excellent occasion to stock up on essentials you'd otherwise pay full price for. The best Prime Day bulk buy deals are often consumables like paper towels, detergent pods, and the like.

• Shop Prime Day's everyday essential deals

These expendables are down to great prices while the sale continues. They won't save you hundreds of dollars the way laptop and TV shopping will, but savings of a few bucks can make a sweet dent while you restock your home on essentials. Not only that, but you're sparing yourself another trip to the grocery store by having them all delivered to your door.

Keep reading to find our roundup of the best bulk buy deals available this Prime Day. We're also keeping tabs on all sale categories, so if you are looking to spend big on a new stand mixer or MacBook, don't forget to check out our other roundups before adding to cart.

The best Amazon Prime Day deals to buy in bulk

While I can allow myself a little overspending on a new desk, I won't accept paying top dollar for a box of tissues (which my family and I will run through in less than a day anyway). Here are the everyday basics worth buying in bulk this Prime Day.

FAQs on buying in bulk for Prime Day

Is Prime Day a good time to buy in bulk?

Yes, if you're purchasing products you use regularly and would buy anyway. Household essentials, toiletries, and cleaning supplies are often among the strongest Prime Day values because they combine sale pricing with multi-pack discounts.

Which categories have the best bulk buy deals?

Paper products, cleaning supplies, personal care items, and pantry staples have the best deals. Paper products will give you the best return for your money because they don't expire and will be used consistently.

Should I choose "Subscribe & Save" if it's an option?

Amazon sometimes allows shoppers to stack Prime Day discounts with Subscribe & Save discounts, lowering the effective price further. Check your stock in a month and cancel future shipments if it turns out you don't run through as much as you expected.

Shopping for more discounts today? Check out our roundup of all of the best Prime Day deals, or browse Amazon's website for the full selection.