For decades, the plastic crisis has always felt far away, whether through time or across distance. But unfortunately, were no longer talking about environmental pollution out there in the ocean. Microplastics, tiny fragments that come from the breakdown of everyday plastic items, are now inside all of us, turning this from a theoretical risk into a shockingand deeply personal (physically) reality.
Despite this fact, most Americans remain unaware of just how prevalent microplastics are in our lives. New national research that we conducted with our partners at The 5 Gyres Institute paints a troubling picture: while 77% of Americans say theyve heard the term microplastics, only 49% actually understand what it means. Even about half of people51%know its often a result of larger plastic breaking down.
The knowledge gap
That knowledge gap is more than an academic concern. Its a public health crisis, especially when you consider that, after the term is defined for survey respondents, 90% of Americans state that theyre worried about microplastics in the human bodyand theyre right to be. Science confirms that these particles have been found in breast milk, placental tissue, lungs, brains, blood, and more. And studies are increasingly linking microplastics to serious health impacts, including cancer, heart disease, hormone disruption, and infertility.
But even when you close that knowledge gap, people who care often feel stuck. Our research shows that 70% of Americans dont know how to reduce their exposure to microplastics and 67% cant name a single company actively working on the problem (were hoping to change that!). That sense of powerlessness is as dangerous as the plastic itself, because people want better. They just dont know where to turn.
At Grove, weve seen firsthand that Americans are searching for answers and theyre looking to us: to companies, brands, and private-sector leaders. They want healthier homes, safer products, and more sustainable choices. They want corporations to leadnot with vague promises, but with bold, measurable action.
This is our collective moment.
A solution
Consumers didnt create the plastic crisis. We, the private sector, did. For decades, our industries have driven plastic adoption in product design, packaging, and sourcing. And we were lied to and manipulated by the petrochemical and plastics industry that shaped this system. Now, we, the private sector in 2025, must dismantle it.
That means going beyond plastic. It means rejecting outdated systems that rely on single-use packaging, microbeads, and petrochemical-based materials. It means investing in compostable and refillable formats, shifting supply chains, being transparent about ingredients and sourcing, and leaning into the circular economy. It means learning and being aware of the impact plastics are having in our bodies and environments. It means supporting legislation, like the newly introduced bipartisan Microplastics Safety Act, which calls on the FDA and HHS to investigate and report on the health impacts of microplastics.
Most importantly, it means refusing to offload responsibility onto consumers and admitting that recycling, long touted as a solution, simply isnt enough. Only 5% of plastic is recycled and the rest ends up in landfills, incinerators, or breaks down into microplastic particles that pollute our air, food, water, and (if not abundantly clear by now) our bodies.
At Grove, we remain unwavering in our commitment to eliminate plastic from the products we make and selland to empower others to do the same. But we cant do it alone.
The cost of inaction
Consumers are demanding accountability. Our research shows that 79% of Americans believe microplastics represent a human and environmental emergency; 82% believe companies should be doing more. But only half (54%) believe that businesses are actually stepping up. That gap is where trust and long-term relevance will be won or lost.
The cost of inaction is rising. Not just in terms of public health, but in trust, consumer confidence, and regulatory risk. There will come a time soon when inaction on microplastics will be seen for what it is: negligent at best, and reckless at worst.
Companies that continue to delay action on plastic pollution arent just making a business decision. Theyre making a decision that directly impacts human health. Brands that cling to plastic-heavy models are effectively choosing profits over people, and theyll have to live with the consequences.
But brands that choose to lead? Theyll be rewarded with consumer loyalty, resilience, and relevance in a world thats rapidly waking up to this crisis. The science is clear. The public is paying attention. The future will not be plastic. And the time for action is now.
Jeff Yurcisin is CEO of Grove Collaborative.
As U.S. climate policy was noisily dismantled in Washington over the spring and summer, another climate story unfoldedquieter, faster, and broadcast to millions.
It unfolded in the streets of Monaco. So Paulo. Shanghai. In the form of all-electric race cars tearing through city centerscheered on by fans living the transition to a low-carbon world, not waiting for it.
Formula E: A global entertainment platform
Launched just over a decade ago, Formula E now reaches half a billion fansmany of whom are new to motorsports. Not because it promised sustainability. But because it delivered a better product: short, high-drama races. Urban venues. A streaming-ready format. Cultural relevance in an EV-first world.
Its a playbook worth studying for any company trying to bring climate innovation to the mainstream.
This isnt about messaging. Its about strategy.
From clunky to cutting edge
When Roger Griffiths first saw a Formula E car in 2014, he wasnt impressed.
A veteran of IndyCar, Le Mans, and Formula 1, he knew a lot about going fast. And this wasnt it. The battery was huge, heavy, and underpowered. The performance? Underwhelming.
But Formula E wasnt starting from scratch. It was pulling from the top shelf of global motorsport.
What struck him wasnt the hardware. It was the names showing up anyway: Michael Andretti, Alain Prost, and Frank Williamslegends who had built dynasties in IndyCar and Formula 1. Even Richard Branson had joined the grid.
We cant afford (for) this to fail, Griffiths recalled on the Supercool podcast. Too many people have too much invested.
Formula E didnt begin with speed or range. It started with credibility. And in the early days of climate tech, that buys you time to iterate toward something better. So they did.
Designed for a new kind of fan
Formula E didnt mimic Formula 1. It built a motorsport tuned to a new era.
Races last just 45 minutestight enough for modern attention spans, long enough to create drama. The circuits run through the hearts of global cities, not remote tracks. Fans take public transit or Uber to races. The vibe? Less pilgrimage, more pop-up festival.
The audience is younger, urban, and digitally native. Many arent interested in owning a car at all.
Young people today dont necessarily want to own cars, said Griffiths. Were catering to a crowd that thinks differently about mobility. Formula E recognizes that.
Meanwhile, the technology caught upfast. Jaguar used race-day insights to improve the range of its I-PACE SUV. BMW co-developed systems between i3 engineers and race teams.
Formula E became a proving groundnot just for fans, but for the EV industry.
Built to evolve
Unlike legacy motorsports, Formula E gave itself permission to break with tradition.
It experimented early and often: Fan Boost. Attack Mode. Interactive features lifted from gaming culture. Some flopped. Others stuck. But the league kept shipping, learning, and moving forward.
The old me wouldve said, What a stupid idea, Griffiths said of Attack Mode, which gives drivers a temporary power boost if they hit a marked zone on the track. The new me said, Im not surebut Ill give it a go.
Formula E doesnt wait for perfect. It tests ideas in publicon race day, with millions watching. Either way, the race goes on. The sport gets better.
That mindset isnt just tolerated, its structural. Formula Es governance enables change. Its culture rewards it.
5 lessons for climate innovators
Innovators can learn these five lessons from Formula E.
1. Turn constraints into strengths.Early EVs couldnt finish a full race. Formula E shortened them to 45 minutes, creating tighter, more intense competition perfectly tuned for social media highlight reels and streaming.
2. Design for urban lifestyles.Electric cars are quiet enough to race in city centers. Fans dont need to drive. They grab an Uber and plug into the experience as part of modern life.
3. Iterate in public.Formula E doesnt hide experiments. It ships them in real time, where fans become part of the process. Innovation is part of the show.
4. Let climate be the platform, not the pitch.Sustainability underpins the whole thing. Sponsors dont need convincing. Fans dont feel preached to. Thats what makes it scale.
5. Design for whats emerging.Formula E didnt retrofit old formats for electric race cars. It aligned with a modern, urban culture: streaming-first viewing and shared mobility. These behaviors define where were heading.
A better future, built for speed
Formula E didnt scale by talking about emissions. It scaled by delivering an incredible fan experience.
It understood how younger audiences live, move, and engageand built a sport around that.
It made the low-carbon future feel inevitable, not through fear, but through energy and excitement.
And it proved something essential: Climate innovation doesnt have to trade performance for principle.
It doesnt have to trade anything at all.
Josh Dorfman is CEO and host of Supercool.
For years, crypto headlines have fixated on trust issues: fraud, volatility, and the few bad actors whove given crypto a Wild West reputation. But the National Cryptocurrency Associations new 2025 Crypto Confidence Pulsea Harris Poll survey of Americans who dont currently hold any cryptoreveals something more fundamental is holding people back: a knowledge gap.
Almost 90% of non-holders said they dont feel knowledgeable about buying, trading, selling, or even using crypto. And 49% cited a lack of understanding as the main reason theyre unlikely to engage with the technology in the future.
Despite cryptos increased visibility in popular culture, media, and markets, confusion still reigns. Perhaps the clearest sign of confusion among non-holders is this: About 41% say they dont know who or what is backing cryptodespite the fact that its core feature is that it has no central backer at all, and 55% admit that researching the space simply feels overwhelming.
Non-holders arent rejecting crypto outright; many are simply unsure what to thinkoverwhelmed by jargon, unclear about practical uses and cryptos capabilities. In fact, nearly a quarter of non-holders said they would consider using crypto if they could pay for goods and services with itsomething thats already possible today.
The barrier to entry can be overcome through education.
Confusion is the real risk
That lack of understanding creates space for fear to grow. When people cant easily grasp how something works, trust becomes harder to build, no matter how good the underlying technology might be.
Security concerns (43%), distrust of platforms (36%), and persistent misperceptions around scams and hacks continue to cloud public opinion. Even for those who are interested in crypto, nearly one-third still say theyre unsure where to begin, according to our study.
For crypto to fulfill its promise as a more inclusive, accessible, and innovative tool, the industry must provide clarity, not just code. That means education that is simple, transparent, and tied to the real-world benefits crypto can offertoday.
But heres where the data gets especially insightful: Non-crypto holders are not a monolith. The survey identifies five distinct personas, each with unique motivations, anxieties, and opportunities for engagement:
The Curious: Already talking about crypto with friends; almost half (42%) of this group is likely to acquire crypto this year
The Trendwatchers: Watching from the sidelines and intrigued, but need more real-world examples of crypto in action
The Skeptics: Seeking proof, safety, and oversight, this cohort is most concerned about security, scams, and the perceived instability of the space
The Traditionalists: Prefer legacy systems like banks and credit cards and need clear reasons why crypto matters to their day-to-day
The Cautious: Unsure where to start and worried theyve already missed the boat, but open to learning more from trusted sources
A one-size-fits-all approach to crypto education wont cut it: Each group needs a different message. The Curious may benefit from more practical guidance around how to set up a wallet or navigate different types of tokens. Trendwatchers may be most influenced by seeing more retailers they know and love starting to accept crypto payments. Skeptics need assurance, which will likely come in the form of policy decisions. Traditionalists need to understand how crypto and traditional finance work together. The Cautious will likely need help cutting through the hype and jargon.
If we want to close the knowledge gap, we need to start by knowing our audience.
Advance regulation without stifling innovation
We also cant ignore the role of regulation. This isnt just a policy matterits a consumer protection issue.
Clear, smart rules can help demystify the landscape and signal that this is a legitimate, secure space to engage. Until policymakers and industry leaders work together to provide consistent guardrails, uncertainty will continue to cloud perception.
Crypto has long been misperceived as a trustless system. But in reality, its adoption hinges on trust: People need to understand the technology before they can trust itand they need someone they trust to help educate them.
Education is the infrastructure. And if the crypto industry wants to build for tomorrow, its time to lay that foundation today.
Stu Alderoty is president of the National Cryptocurrency Association.
Most of us are failingat AI.
While nearly 90% of CEOs expect AI to transform their organizations, only 16-23% report seeing meaningful value today.
As a result, employers and employees are losing out. Employees are significantly undertrained in AI. Yet, they feel the pressure to keep up. Only about one-third of workers report receiving employer-provided AI training, and of those who arent receiving training, 34% of them want their employers to provide it.
Meanwhile, employers face unprecedented pressure to innovate fasterall while navigating rapid changes in technology and the economy. Boards and investors are urging fast adoption of AI, but many companies dont know how, given high expectations, questionable results, and a wildly uncertain future.
The companies that will succeed are the ones that can integrate AI into their workflow. The rest will be left behind.
By investing in training for their employees, employers can reap the benefits of AI almost immediately, while better preparing its teams, businesses, and communities for whatever the future holds. Here are three ways companies can harness the value of AI.
1. Use AI to unlock your talent pool
Because Amanda, a Duckbill employee, lives with chronic pain, traditional job roles were unsustainable, and freelance work didnt offer reliable pathways to upskilling. Through structured training with Duckbills technology, Amanda was able to transition into a flexible, AI-integrated role.
The result: Shes trained to take on future roles in tech that are accessible and flexible enough for her. As are all our other employees.
2. Invest in human-AI partnerships
Elizabeth stepped back from her career to start a very difficult job: parenthood. She re-entered the workforce with a role at Duckbill, where she received tech training. As a Duckbill copilot, Elizabeth completes life administrative tasks for Duckbill members, using her knowledge to create real value for clients by combining AI-generated information and adding her lived experience and empathetic listening. For example, when a customer and fellow mother asked a parenting question, Elizabeth used AI to generate a research-backed foundation for an answer, then layered her own story, creating a richer, more meaningful connection while completing the members task.
The result: When leadership prioritizes human-AI workflows, it delivers both efficiency and emotional intelligence.
3. Embed AI training in career development
Amanda is teaching both humans and AI at Duckbill. As a team leader, she onboards new copilots, teaching them how to use Duckbills proprietary AI technology, and in the process working with engineers to help develop better tools that serve both copilots and members efficiently. Amandas progression is part of a larger, employer-built framework: Every role is paired with built-in AI fluency milestones, career development paths, and mentorship programs.
Embedding AI literacy into Duckbills career development, rather than treating it as a nice-to-have, turns training into infrastructure.
The result: Adaptability isnt dependent on a few tech-savvy individuals; its systemic and sustainable, even in an uncertain economy.
Its time to sink or swim
AI skilling for non-technical employees benefits employers and drives immediate-term efficiency, efficacy, and engagement. AI skilling gives employees the best possible chance to keep up with the demands of an AI economy and helps to build tech that brings out the best in our human teams.
The choice is yours: Reap the benefits of AI or get left behind like the other 84%.
Meghan Joyce is cofounder and CEO of Duckbill.
Remember when the internet cried actual tears for an anglerfish earlier this year? Now, TikTok has a new deep-sea obsession.
Brought to light by creator and wildlife biologist Josh Allyn, TikTok has recently discovered Octopolis and Octlantistwo real underwater sites off the coast of Australia where gloomy octopuses have been quietly building their own cities and complex societies.
Im kinda pissed right now. Was nobody going to tell me that octopuses are creating their own underwater cities? he said in a video posted last week. It has since gone viral with 13 million views at the time of this writing. I had to find out through Instagram Reels. What the hell.
@joshallyn I feel betrayed original sound – Basement Biology
This isnt a new discovery. Once thought to be solitary creatures, gloomy octopuses (named for their downcast eyes rather than their mood) were first seen living communally in 2009, when diver Matthew Lawrence discovered the original octopus city in Jervis Bay, Australia. Home to 16 octopuses, it was dubbed Octopolis.
Then, in 2017, Lawrence and a group of researchers discovered another site with a similar social arrangement of gloomy octopuses that was located only a few hundred meters from Octopolis. They dubbed it Octlantis.
At both sites, octopuses were observed sculpting dens from piles of clam and scallop shells, socializing, bickering, and even evicting one another. As one Reddit user joked in a 2022 thread about the phenomenon: Octopus landlords? Octopus rent? Octopus homeowner associations? I swear, if octopi reinvent capitalism, I’ll be so disappointed.
Now that TikTok has discovered these octopus cities, the content writes itself. As well as being fodder for AI slop, some have turned the cephalopods society into viral skits. Youre soooo early. We just learned about Octopolis, one user commented under comedian Vinny Thomass post. I cant wait to understand this in 30 minutes.”
@vinn_ayy an octopus landlord in an octopus city (which are real) original sound – Vinny Thomas
So why is something discovered over a decade ago trending again now? Thomas has a theory: Were all in this moment fixating on it because were so desperate. Were so desperate to imagine that there’s a society somewhere where theyve got it all figured out, he explained in another post. The octopuses are just down there butt-ass naked, eating crabs, living it up. Meanwhile, we are not doing great. I think we are just desperate for that little ounce of hope. He added: Maybe its alright with the octopuses.
@vinn_ayy Replying to @ Sara wait lets discuss Very Sad – Enchan
Still, in the era of generative AI and AI slop, some viewersscarred by past hoaxes like Trampoline Bunny-gatewant hard evidence before getting emotionally attached to Octopolis and Octlantis.
Good news: This time, the octopus cities are very real.
I dont know what more we could possibly say about Trump, South Park co-creator Trey Parker told Vanity Fair last September. Then Trump won the 2024 election.
After witnessing the chaotic first six months of the presidents second term, the razor-tongued, foul-mouthed satirists behind South Park have understandably found more to say. The July 23 premiere of Season 27 skewered Trumps extractive legal battles with the media and other institutions, his long entanglement in the Jeffrey Epstein saga, and, well, his manhood. The Department of Homeland Security has since tried to reclaim the narrative, using South Park for its own ends by putting an image from the show into a try-hard tweet. But this is one battle the U.S. government has no chance of winning.
The day before its most recent episode aired, the shows X account tweeted a pair of images, debuting a South Park-ian version of real DHS Secretary/influencer Kristi Noem and depicting South Park Elementary guidance counselor Mr. Mackey as a new member of ICE. Within hours, the DHS account reacted, repurposing an image of masked ICE officers from the teaser and adding a link to ICEs recruitment site. (The episode comes amid a major recruitment push; on August 6, Noem announced the removal of ICEs current 21-and-up age limit for new recruits, perhaps hoping to capitalize on all the fresh attention.)
https://t.co/nZkBEj3GGi pic.twitter.com/N7cFpDhb7W— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) August 5, 2025
The goofily menacing use of South Park animation in a tweet is perfectly in keeping with DHSs social media in 2025. Americans generally tend not to look to the government for daily doses of humor, but try telling that to the second Trump administration.
Since Januarys inauguration, the official White House X account has posted images of Trump as a king, pope, and Star Wars sith, while the DHS account has posted edgelord tweets including Studio Ghibli-style AI images of immigrants being taken into custody in tears, not to mention AI crocodiles wearing ICE hats to inaugurate the so-called Alligator Alcatraz detention center. These accounts conjure a queasy alchemy of the visual vocabulary of memesonly wielded with the sneering smugness of total authority toward people who have no power to fight back.
Now, however, theyve squared up against people who do have that power.
Trying to get in on the joke
Not long after DHS tweeted a South Park-branded recruitment ad for ICE, the show clapped back. Its X account quote-tweeted DHSs post, adding: Wait, so we ARE relevant?a reference to the White House statement about South Parks season premiere, which claimed the show has not been relevant for over 20 yearsand adding, for good measure, a hashtag encouraging DHS to eat a bag of, well, manhood.
Wait, so we ARE relevant?#eatabagofdicks https://t.co/HeQSMU86Da— South Park (@SouthPark) August 5, 2025
That tweet is just the beginning, too. Unlike the various social media managers embedded in this administration, the South Park creators have at their disposal more humorous weapons for a flame war than a basic command of memes and an absence of empathy.
Beyond their ICE-mocking August 6 episode, subsequent outings could remain laser-focused on the topic and, of course, on Trump, if Parker and co-creator Matt Stone feel suitably inclined. As the 2012 documentary 6 Days to Air divulgedwithin its very titleSouth Park episodes can go from conception to execution in less than a week, and they can include new material practically right up until airtime. This show is nimble, adaptableand savage.
These are not people this administration wants for foes. As evidenced by Trump gushing over Sydney Sweeneys membership in the GOP this week, as well as the Department of Defense referencing Sweeneys much-discussed American Eagle ad in a tweet about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, this administration is desperate for MAGA to become as culturally relevant as it is politically powerful.
South Parks equal-opportunity satire
Part of what South Park made fun of in the premiere, in fact, was Trump seeking to exert his wil over popular culture through political pressure, nodding toward The Late Show With Stephen Colberts cancellation and the defunding of NPR. But the younger pop-culture junkies Trump hopes to bring or keep in the tentthe Joe Rogan contingent, for instancetend to be the very audience South Park most reliably attracts (men under age 35).
Even in its 27th season, the show still carries weight with young people who consider themselves politically unaffiliated. Its unapologetic, equal-opportunity satire has never been woke, per se, nor specifically anti-woke, even as it has chafed, at great length, over the strictures of political correctness.
Like its fellow multigeneration-spanning vehicle for satire, Saturday Night Live, South Park punches up at whichever party is in power. Its approach to politics is perhaps best summarized in an infamous 2004 episode that depicted the election between John Kerry and George W. Bush as one between a literal giant douche” and a “turd sandwich.
South Park has no sacred cows, and having just signed a $1.5 billion streaming deal with Paramount, its creators have nothing to lose.
Why MAGA wont win this meme war
As with all the administration’s memes, the unsuccessful South Park rebuttals can’t cover up the MAGA movement’s overall feelings of aggrievementits festering sense that no matter how much power it amasses or how many people it gleefully deports, broader cultural cachet remains unattainable.
Flailing to contort the shows barbs into content only gives South Park more power. Though Parker and Stone lamented last year that there was nothing left to say about Trump, taking the administration to task has already elevated South Park to its highest ratingsand yes, relevancein years.
On top of everything else, this is all unfolding right as Joe Rogan and his ilk grow increasingly disillusioned with Trump over both his Epstein entanglements and the ICE raids, creating a perfect storm of bad buzz that this administration cant meme away.
Sure enough, the episode about ICE ended up about as brutal as the DHS social media manager may have feared. After months of citizen outrage over masked ICE officers raiding spaces as innocuous as an elementary school graduation, with many comparing it to the secret police of authoritarian countries, the show parodied the agencys overzealous, blundering tacticswith a violent raid on a Dora the Explorer theatrical performance.
In one especially incisive jab, the episode depicts the hypocrisy of ICE officers need for anonymity. Im proud to work for the I-C-E, one masked agent says in a recruitment video, pulling the mask higher on his face.
The only response to the episode as of Thursday afternoon was from notoriously thin-skinned Vice President JD Vance, who was doing his best to appear unbothered by his debut on the show as a photoshopped, stout minion to Trump. Perhaps DHS and the White House have learned their lesson, or maybe their social teams are currently formulating what they consider the perfect response.
Either way, many of the young people theyre hoping to reach are likely far more interested in what South Park has to say about the government than vice versa.
Duolingo may be known as the worlds largest language-learning app, but it also wants to get users hooked on learning music.
On August 6, Duolingo announced its plan to acquire the team behind the London-based gaming startup NextBeat. The startup’s mobile gaming catalog, which includes Piano Tiles-style games like Beatstar and Country Star, has amassed around $200 million in revenue. Now, NextBeats staff will help Duolingo make its Music course more fun, effective and, ultimately, something you don’t want to put down.
[Beatstar and Country Star] combined chart-topping licensed music with intuitive, satisfying gameplay and reached tens of millions of players worldwide, a Duolingo spokesperson said of the acquisition. The teams background spans game design, music licensing, live operations, and mobile monetization, all of which will strengthen Duolingo Music and beyond.
For Duolingo, the deal is part of a larger plan to build out its non-language courses using its uniquely gamified learning modelultimately moving toward becoming an all-encompassing education app.
What’s next for Duolingo Music
The NextBeat acquisition announcement came on the same day as Duolingo’s second-quarter 2025 earnings report, which notched a 41% increase in revenue year over year and an 84% increase in net income. The report marked an overwhelmingly positive quarter for Duolingo, in spite of the backlash the company received earlier this year when CEO Luis von Ahn announced that Duolingo would be going AI first.
On an earnings call with investors, von Ahn shared that the company would be raising its full-year guidance while still investing in both our core business and exciting new areas, like chess, math, and music, that we believe will drive long-term growth.
Duolingo first added math courses to its repertoire in 2022, followed by music in 2023 and chess earlier this year. While the company declined to share specific numbers on the Music courses performance, a spokesperson did say that millions of learners are studying music on Duolingo, and the company views it as a key pillar of our evolution into a broader learning platform.
Currently, Duolingos sole Music offering is a piano course. Through the NextBeat acquisition, though, the company plans to experiment with new modules like guitar, voice, and rhythm-based activities, chief business officer Bob Meese told Bloomberg News.
Furthermore, a spokesperson shared with Fast Company that NextBeat will help to smooth out the in-lesson user experience by improving course pacing, personalization, and feedback mechanics.
Were focused on making the Music course even more joyful and captivating, the spokesperson said. Our vision is to make music learning feel just as engaging and habit-forming as language learning does on Duolingo.
Shares of Intel dropped more than 3% Thursday after President Donald Trump demanded the immediate resignation of the chipmakers CEO.
Claiming that there is no other solution to this problem, Trump said Lip-Bu Tan is highly conflicted in an early-morning post on Truth Social. Though the president didnt elaborate on his reasoning, Reuters has previously reported that Tan, either directly or through venture funds, has invested at least $200 million in Chinese manufacturing and chip companies.
Intel shares dropped as much as 3.5% before recovering some of those losses. Tan caught the ire of Trump one day after Sen. Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, called Tans ties to Chinese firms concerning and questioned the potential impact on U.S. national security in a letter he sent to Frank Yeary, Intels board chair.
In his letter, Cotton requested that Yeary respond by next week to questions about Tans ties to Chinese firms and his prior tenure as CEO of Cadence Design Systems, which last month agreed to plead guilty in a past criminal case. He also cited Intels receipt of nearly $8 billion in funding under the CHIPS and Science Act during Joe Bidens presidency last year.
Intel is required to be a responsible steward of American taxpayer dollars and to comply with applicable security regulations, Cotton wrote. Mr. Tans associations raise questions about Intels ability to fulfill these obligations.
TAN AND TRUMP
Tans past investments came under scrutiny following his appointment as Intel’s CEOalthough as a former venture capitalist, the size and scope are perhaps not so unusual. A Reuters investigation found that Tans investments in China were made through Walden International, the venture capital firm he founded in 1987, along with two Hong Kong-based holding companies.
Reuters said it found no evidence that Tan was invested directly in any company thats banned by the U.S. Treasurys Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies List.
Whats more, Walden International wasnt an anomaly: It was one of five American venture capital firms that were the subject of a congressional investigation last year into investments in Chinas semiconductor industry that have totaled $1 billion since 2001. The other funds on the list were GGV Capital, GSR Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures, and Sequoia Capital.
But Walden Internationaland Tanmay be out of favor with the Trump administration for other reasons. GGV Capital split its U.S. and China operations into two firms last year, while GSR Ventures did so this year. Qualcomm donated $1 million to a nonprofit that supported Trumps 2024 election bid, while Shaun Maguire, one of Sequoias partners, is a vocal Trump supporter and the firm has ties to David Sacks, the White House AI and crypto czar.
As recently as March, Tan said the Trump administration was prepared to help Intel so the U.S. can maintain semiconductor leadershipand he would seek the administrations help, as needed. On Wednesday, Trump threatened a 100% tariff on imported semiconductors and chips, which would actually favor Intel, as it has domestic facilities.
Even if information about Tans investments is known, its trickier to track the personal investments of CEOs in foreign companies, as theyre not required to disclose that information unless theres a potential conflict of interest. But sometimes their investments do catch the eye of watchdogs.
Last year, for example, Campaign for Accountability, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that runs the Tech Transparency Project, reported that former Google CEO Eric Schmidt had invested nearly $17 million through his private foundation into the Chinese AI industry, even as he was leading the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence.
INTELS WOES
The Santa Clara, California-based company issued a statement in response on Wednesday, saying: Intel and Tan are deeply committed to the national security of the U.S. and the integrity of our role in the U.S. defense ecosystem.
The company hasnt responded to Trumps call for Tans immediate resignation, according to reporting by other news outlets.
Tan was appointed as CEO of Intel in March, replacing Pat Gelsinger, who was forced out in late 2024 after the board of directors lost confidence in his turnaround plans for the company. In his first few months, Tan has already embarked on an aggressive plan to streamline the organization with more layoffs, to the tune of about 15%.
In a July letter to employees about Intel’s second-quarter financial results, Tan said such efforts are steps in the right direction.
REACTIONS TO TRUMPS POST
On social media, several commenters questioned whether Intel will bend the knee and submit to Trumps call for Tans resignation. Analysts also weighed in about the implications of the presidents post.
Unfortunately, unlike other tech CEOs, Lip-Bu does not appear to have cultivated the kind of personal relationship with Trump that would help to assuage his ire, Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon said in a note to clients.
And Trumps apparent meddling in corporate leadership could be setting a very unfortunate precedent, Phil Blancato, CEO of Ladenburg Thalmann Asset Management (which does not own Intel shares) told Reuters. You don’t want American presidents dictating who runs companies, but certainly his opinion has merit and weight.”
Its been a week of wins for Eli Lillys weight-loss drugs. In the company’s second quarter earnings report on Thursday, it reported that sales of Mounjaro, its type-2 diabetes medication often used for weight loss, reached nearly $5.2 billion in revenue, up 68% from the same quarter last year and exceeding analyst estimates of $4.7 billion. Similarly, its weight-loss medication Zepbound reached $3.4 billion in sales, up 172% year-over-year and exceeding estimates of $3 billion.
According to Eli Lilly, the company’s market share for the class of drugs that includes Mounjaro and Zepbound increased to 57% during the quarter.
Additionally, Mounjaro demonstrated its ability to protect cardiovascular health in trial results announced July 31. And the company also on Thursday announced its oral GLP-1, orforglipron, helped patients lose an average of 27.3 pounds in a phase three clinical trial.
These successes, along with high demand for its weight-loss drugs, led Eli Lilly to increase its 2025 guidance. Still, investors are wary of the 148-year-old pharmaceutical company. Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) stock fell over 14% today, dropping to its lowest price in over a year.
Meanwhile, Eli Lillys key competitor in the weight-loss sphere, Novo Nordisk, saw its shares surge more than 7%, even after a disappointing earnings report yesterday suggested lower growth expectations as Wegovy and Ozempic face mounting competition from the cheaper Eli Lilly alternatives.
The seemingly counterintuitive investor reactions come down to Eli Lillys recent clinical trial testing the efficacy of its oral GLP-1, in a group of 3,127 adults who are obese or overweight and experiencing weight-related medical issues.
The drug is effective. At the highest dose, over half of patients in the trial saw at least a 10% reduction in weight and nearly 40% saw at least a 15% reduction.
However, investors were hoping for higher levels of weight loss to compete with Novo Nordisks medicationsincluding an oral verson of Wegovy that is up for FDA approval later this year.
After Eli Lilly’s trial results were released, David Risinger, an analyst at Leerink Partners, downgraded Eli Lillys stock and changed his expectation for sales of the drug from $21.6 billion to $13.5 billion.
In the increasingly crowded and fast-changing weight-loss drug space, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk are slated to remain in close competition.
Eli Lilly plans to move to a second phase three trial for its oral GLP-1, while Novo Nordisks pill version of Wegovy also continues its path to FDA approval.
OpenAI on Thursday unveiled its highly anticipated GPT-5, a powerful multi-modal AI model featuring major advancements in problem-solving and coding.
The new flagship model was announced during a Thursday morning livestream. Unlike previous releases that were limited to paid subscribers, GPT-5 will be available to free-tier ChatGPT users as well, OpenAI said.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman described interacting with the new model as akin to conversing with a PhD-level expert, noting that while GPT-3 was comparable to a high school student and GPT-4 to a college student, With GPT-5 you get an entire team of PhD experts in your pocket, ready to help you, Altman said.
During the announcement, OpenAI researchers emphasized that GPT-5 was designed to be more reliable and accurate, with fewer hallucinations.
GPT-5 offers improvements in reasoning, higher-quality code generation, greater autonomy with reduced need for user input, and seamless integration with platforms like ChatGPT and Google’s Gmail and Calendar apps.
Earlier language models relied only on pretraining to generate responses. GPT-5, like recent inference-based models, can also incorporate new data from user prompts in real time (a method known as test-time computing). This release also unifies OpenAIs model naming, replacing names like o1 and o4-mini with the GPT-5 family, signaling a shift to models that combine both pretraining and inference.
For many, the key question is whether the leap from GPT4 to GPT-5 will prove as dramatic as the jump from GPT3 to GPT4. Independent testing will shed light on that.
OpenAI also recently introduced two open-weight modelsgpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20bwhich are freely available and modifiable by developers. This move marked a rare shift from its typically closed model strategy. However, with GPT-5, OpenAI returns to its more traditional closed approach.
In addition, the company announced a partnership with the U.S. federal government to provide executive branch agencies access to its enterprise-grade chatbot. Through a landmark agreement with the General Services Administration (GSA), ChatGPTEnterprise will be made available to agencies for just $1 per agency for one year. OpenAI has assured that it will not use government data to train its AI models.
