When Starbucks announced that it would phase out its mobile-order pickup-only locations beginning in 2026, it raised a question: Why abandon a format seemingly built for speed and efficiency?
As Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol explained in an earnings call, the pickup-only stores have a transactional feel, lacking the warmth and human connection that defines our brand.
While Niccol also touted the mobile-order options at its traditional coffee shops, I see Starbuckss move as an attempt to return to its roots as a third placea destination between home and work where people can gather and connect.
But this sort of pivot comes with trade-offs, and it creates interesting market opportunities for competitors. As a marketing professor and a coffee connoisseur, Im offering this analysis to go with your morning cup of joe.
The two types of coffee shop patrons
In general, coffee shops attract two distinct customer segments. The first are what I call stay-and-savor customerspeople who mostly use the site as a place to meet others or work. Their primary interest is in the space, not the mocha or muffins.
The second are grab-and-go customerspeople who want a consistent product, delivered efficiently. They dont linger at the store, so the place is less important to them than convenience, speed, and product quality. Think of the morning rush at your local coffee joint.
Starbuckss pickup-only stores, branded as Starbucks PICK UP, cater to grab-and-go customers. If you dont live in a busy area, you might never have heard of the brand: There are fewer than 100 Starbucks PICK UPs, many in densely packed cities.
In contrast, there are about 17,000 sit-in Starbucks stores across the United States. That means the companys plan will affect just 0.5% of its locations. Thats not very much.
So why does this change have me a little, well, steamed up?
Back to the third place, whether you like it or not
As I said before, I see this move as part of an effort to emphasize stay-and-savor customers over their grab-and-go counterparts. Indeed, Niccols recent earnings call presentation claimed that Starbucks is prioritizing warmth, connection, and community. Starbucks also published a document stating its principles for upholding the third place, and its commitment seems to be more than just rhetorical.
The problem is that coffee shops arent like regular restaurants in terms of menu prices and customer spending. Stay-and-savor customers are costly to serve for coffee shops, and may generate insufficient revenue, making them less profitable. That could be bad for the bottom line.
The change could also have unintended consequences for workers and customers. For example, pickup-only stores allow employees to focus on food and beverage preparation, with less pressure to engage in small talk in the hopes of generating warmth and tips. Indeed, much academic research has shown that restaurant workers who serve customers report more emotional labor and stress and worse morale and well-being than those who dont.
In contrast, Starbucks rivals such as Dunkin and the Chinese new entrant Luckin Coffee have embraced the grab-and-go customers. These rivals provide space for seating, but they dont elevate their positioning as if their baristas are serving warmth, connection, and community.
Starbucks CEO Niccol has described the plan as a sunsetting. Id watch out for Dunkin and Luckin Coffee and, of course, Starbuckss financials in 2026, to determine whether the Starbucks sun sets or rises.
Vivek Astvansh is an associate professor of quantitative marketing and analytics at McGill University.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
More than 2,700 “No Kings” anti-Trump protests and community events are scheduled to take place today, Saturday, October 18, in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. And a majority of those events are in small and medium-size towns, as the grassroots pro-democracy movement spreads to all corners of the country.
This latest protest comes amid a federal government shutdown and as Trump has deployed National Guard troops to an increasing number of American cities.
The event is organized by Indivisible, a progressive grassroots movement, and a coalition of more than 20 partners that includes the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), 50501, and MoveOn.
It builds on the momentum of the first “No Kings Day” protest on June 14and today’s event is expected to exceed that day’s turnout of 5 million people.
“We are anticipating the largest turnout in Washington, D.C.; Chicago; NYC; Boston; Atlanta; New Orleans; San Francisco; Kansas City; Honolulu; and Bozeman, Montana,” the “No Kings” organizers said in a statement emailed to Fast Company.
While organizers are anticipating the largest gatherings in major cities, which may grab most of the headlines, a majority of the events are actually taking place in rural, small, and midsize towns.
This map shows a complete list of locations for the “No Kings” events in each state scheduled nationwide. (A core principle of the protests is nonviolence, and the No Kings.org website also provides training in de-escalation.)
Fast Company has rounded up some of the events taking place in lesser-known cities, which form the backbone of the “No Kings” movement today. Here are six of them below.
Bryson City, North Carolina
In Bryson City (population 1,500), attendees are gathering for a public protest on Main Street.
Burns, Oregon
No Kings Harney County is gathering in Burns (pop. 2,700) in peace and solidarity to voice our opposition to government overreach, and our support for the First Amendment . . . and all those oppressed by the MAGA regime.
Storm Lake, Iowa
Protestors in Storm Lake (pop. 12,000) are once again standing up to say, NO KINGS IN AMERICA” at the town sign, as they did for the first “No Kings” event in June.
Traverse City, Michigan
The Traverse City (pop. 16,000) event is being held at the Grand Traverse County Civic Center, and it will include speakers, live music, and a demonstration. Attendees are encouraged to bring items to donate to local food banks.
Maryville, Tennessee
Organizers in Maryville (pop. 32,000) are encouraging local participants to dress to honor democracy, by wearing costumes celebrating American icons like Uncle Sam, the Statue of Liberty, and historical heroes who defended democracy.
Manitowoc, Wisconsin
Manitowoc (pop. 35,000) is holding a rally and food drive in Washington Park, the site of the towns first county fair in 1859, that will include a performance by the Raging Grannies of Madison, a social justice organization of older women with chapters in eight countries.
Weve all heard it: For decades, its been a crux of career advice. Keep every door open. Stay on good terms. Never fully walk away. Dont burn that bridge.
But that advice was followed during a different time and for workplaces that were designed to keep you in line, not further your career. In todays fast-moving workforce, clinging to outdated relationships, toxic workplaces, or unfair structures isnt loyalty. Its self-sabotaging.
Its time to rethink what was once considered the norm. Sometimes burning a bridge isnt reckless. Its strategic. Its the first step toward building something better in your career.
Why Dont Burn Bridges No Longer Works
The original phrase came from the military: destroy the bridge behind you so you cant retreat. In modern work life, its been turned into never cut ties, even if those ties are choking your growth.
The reason for this advice? To protect the system, not you. To make sure you dont disrupt the corporate hierarchy, question what was once considered normal, or hold higher powers accountable.
But when youre trauma-bonded to bad bosses, toxic workplaces and colleagues, or exploitative industries, staying connected keeps you stuck. It prevents advancement. It robs you of the energy you need to move forward.
Lets be clear: walking away is complicated.
Here are five ways to burn bridges and do it in a way thats bold, healthy, and future-career focused:
1. Walk away, with both feet. If youre constantly keeping one foot in the past and one in the present, youll never fully be able to march toward your future. When you make the decision to break free from a place or a person holding you back, you must commit to the ending. Any ambivalence will send mixed messages to what you no longer want in your life and to yourself.
Stop meeting your former toxic boss for coffee. Dont like and comment on posts by the person who mistreated you. Block the number in your phone that sends a shiver down your spine every time you see it pop up. Cut the cord.
2. Stand for your boundaries. Create, communicate, and comply with the boundaries that you need and require that those who you allow in your life do the same. Writer, broadcaster, and podcaster Emma Gannon is known for saying, The only people who get upset when you start setting boundaries are the ones who benefited from you not having them. You will be met with resistance because you are no longer allowing others to mistreat you. Dont take that pushback as a sign to retreat. Its working. This is what it looks like.
Decide where you will spend your time and energy and who with. Is the monthly networking dinner you signed up for still serving you? What about the subscription to the organization that no longer feels aligned? Its time to stop feeding the people and places that no longer support the life youre designing. Cancel whats not adding value.
3. Protect yourself. Who is the version inside of you who wasntor isntsafe? Now, go to them and tell them that you know a way out. Lead them there, hand in hand, and dont stop until you get to the other side. So much of growth is about knowing better and then, doing better. You now have the power to rewrite your story. Make sure youre the main character in this edition.
Do you remember what it felt like to be in the midst of your career chaos? Its time to hold that emotion again and release it. Write a letter to that version of yourself acknowledging, honoring, and validating the experience. Tell them what youre doing differently now so that it will never happen again. So much of healing and moving forward is dependent upon witnessing what was. And getting those feelings out of your body onto paper is a powerful tool in the process.
4. Build your own bridge. We spend a lot of time running to the next thing. Preparing for the next challenge. Rushing to achieve the next milestone. Its a perfect recipe for never enjoying anything youve worked for. Stop. Look around. This was your goal at one point in time. And even if its not exactly the way you want it to be, you have achieved so much. Stand at the peak of your in-between. Look to the left at whereand whoyouve been. Look to the right at where youre going, at who youre meant to be. Thank them, the you of this moment. They deserve to be celebrated.
Share what youre doing with people you trust. Yes, they can hold you accountable, but they will also be there to celebrate these important steps youre taking: burning the bridges to a past that no longer serves you; building a bridge to a future that is ready to fulfill you. You cant do it alone. Surround yourself with the people who want to see you win.
5. Walk to the other side. Your new bridge is built. The decaying and diseased bridges are burned. All the planning and strategizing and vision boarding in the world means nothing unless you take action. Rewiring the conditioning inside of you that tells you dont burn bridges takes effort, determination, and commitment. But the act of making a different choiceof reprogramming an operating system that at one point brought you safety, success, and solacetakes conviction. You must commit to this shift and start changing your daily habits if you want to realize this new life for yourself. No one else will do it for you. It is up to you.
This is our way forward: New system. New rules. New path.
Lets stop asking others for directions to places theyve never been. Lets stop taking directions from others to places theyll never go. Lets build our own bridges. On our own terms.
Ive gone back too many timesto people and places in my career that have burned me; Ive put my hand into the fire again and again thinking that maybe, this time, it wont be so hot. Ive slipped back while climbing my way out of quicksand because giving in felt so much easier. I even taught myself that it actually felt good.
When we always keep one foot behind, wedged inside this mythical door that must remain open indefinitely, we never fully move forward.
Its time. Close the door. Walk away. Burn the bridge. Build a new bridge. Cross it.
Burning bridges isnt self-destructive. Its an act of self-preservation. And you will always be worth saving.
Martin Luther King, Jr., did plenty to change the world for the better. And nearly 60 years after his assassination, hes at the center of a major concession by the worlds leading AI company that puts a battle over intellectual property and the right to control your image into the spotlight.
In the weeks after OpenAI released Sora 2, its video generation model, onto the world, Kings image has been used in a number of ways that his family have deemed disrespectful to the civil rights campaigners legacy. In one video, created by Sora, King runs down the steps of the site of his famous I have a dream speech, saying he no longer has a dream, he has a nightmare. In another video, which resembles the footage of Kings most famous speech, the AI-generated version of the civil-rights campaigner has been repurposed to quote Tygas Rack City, saying Ten, ten, ten, twenties on your titties, bitch. In another, which Fast Company is not linking to, King makes monkey noises while reciting the same famous speech.
I can’t say how shocking this is, says Joanna Bryson, a professor of AI ethics at the Hertie School in Berlin.
Bryson, a British citizen since 2007 but born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, says that the videos featuring the civil-rights campaigner were particularly distasteful because of his role in historical events. I was born in the 1960s so any kind of atrocity against his memory is incredibly distressing, she says. But also, his family is famously excellent and activist in protecting his legacy.
That activist intervention has resulted in OpenAI rethinking its approach to how people are depicted in Sora. Sort of.
King was far from the only dead individual whose image was recreated and resuscitated with the help of Sora, as Fast Company has previously reported. While the King Estate has managed to secure something of a climbdown from OpenAI in one formthe AI firm said on Oct. 16 it believes public figures and their families should ultimately have control over how their likeness is used– the concession is only a partial one. The public statement continues: Authorized representatives or estate owners can request that their likeness not be used in Sora cameos.
This is an embarrassing climb down for a company that just two weeks ago launched a deepfake app that would generate realistic videos of pretty much anyone you liked, says Ed Newton-Rex, a former AI executive-turned-copyright campaigner and founder of Fairly Trained, a non-profit certifying companies that respect creators rights. But removing one persons likeness doesnt go nearly far enough. No one should have to tell OpenAI if they dont want themselves or their families to be deepfaked.
An opt-out regime for public figures to not have their images usedsome would argue abusedby generative AI tools is a far cry from the norms that have protected celebrities or intellectual property owners in the past. And its an onerous requirement on individuals as much as corporations to try and fight fires. (Separately, Fast Company has reported that OpenAIs enforcement of registering Sora accounts in the names of public figures has been patchy at best.)
Indeed, the huge imposition that such an opt-out regime would have on anyone has been appealed at governmental levels. Following Sora 2s release, the Japanese government has petitioned OpenAI to stop infringing on the intellectual property of Japanese citizens and companies.
In this instance, it goes beyond IP alone. This is less of an IP issue and more of a self-sovereignty issue, says Nana Nwachukwu, a researcher at the AI Accountability Lab at Trinity College Dublin. I can look at IP as tied to digital sovereignty in these times so that makes it a bit complex. My face, mannerisms and voice are not public data even ifbig ifI become a viral figure tomorrow. Theyre the essence of my identity. Opt-out policies, however intentioned, are often misguided and dangerous, she says.
We simply can’t ask every historic figure to rely on this kind of body to opt out of sordid depictions, says Bryson. It would make more sense to demand some lower bounds of dignity in the depiction of any recognizable figure.
Says Newton-Rex: Its really very simpleOpenAI should be getting permission before letting their users make deepfakes of people. Anything else is incredibly irresponsible. Newton-Rex has long been a critic of the way that AI companies approach copyright and intellectual property.
OpenAI has defended its partial stand down by saying there are strong free speech interests in depicting historical figures. A spokesperson for the company told The Washington Post this week: We believe that public figures and their families should ultimately have control over how their likeness is used.
Bryson believes that some sort of AI-specific approach to how living figures are depicted through these tools is needed, in part because of the speed at which videos can be produced, the low barrier to entry to doing so, and the low cost at which those outputs can be disseminated at speed. We probably do need a new rule, and it will unfortunately only depend on the brand of the AI developer, she says. I say unfortunately because I don’t expect the monopoly presently enforced by compute and data costs to hold, she adds. I think there will be more, less expensive, and more geographically diverse DeepSeek moments [in video generation].
Experts suggest that the world shouldnt necessarily celebrate the King climbdown as a major moment, in part because it still tries to shift the window of acceptability over intellectual property and recognizable individuals further than it stood before Sora was unleashed on the world. And even then, there may still be workarounds: Three hours after OpenAI published its statement in conjunction with the King Estate, an X user shared another video of the iconic figure.
In this one, at least, Kings words werent too twisted. But the fact it could be made at all was. I have a dream, the AI character said to applause, where Sora changes its content violation policy.
Formula One announced a five-year deal Friday with Apple, which will be the global motorsports series’ U.S. broadcast partner beginning next season.
ESPN had been the broadcast partner since 2018 and through the explosion of popularity of F1 in the United States, but it notified the series at the start of this year that it would not be extending its deal.
At the same time, Apple was working with the series on F1: The Movie, an original film released internationally in cinemas and Imax in June. It will make its global streaming debut on Apple TV in December, and has already grossed nearly $630 million globallyas both the most successful sports movie in history and the most lucrative of Brad Pitt’s career.
The relationship made Apple the front-runner to land the U.S. broadcast rights. Financial terms were not released.
I feel like I am on the podium. This is amazing, said Eddy Cue, Apples senior vice president of services. “Our vision for Apple TVwe wanted to deliver customers the best story from the most creative storytellers. We launched in 2019, we started with nine original series, and now weve got a deep library of over 300 shows and movies and thousands of hours.
And everyone on Apple TV in the U.S. will now get Formula One, he added. Theyre going to get everything that Formula One has to offer.
Apple plans to air F1 on Apple TV as well as amplify the series across Apple News, Apple Maps, Apple Music, Apple Sports, and Apple Fitness+. Apple TV will also host all practice, qualifying, sprint sessions, and races.
Select races and all practice sessions throughout the season will also be available to watch for free in the Apple TV app. F1 TV Premium, F1s own premier content offering, will continue to be available in the U.S. via an Apple TV subscription and will be free to Apple subscribers.
Apple TV is available in over 100 countries and regions on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone and other products, such as PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles.
Cue said Apple’s reach will only help grow F1 in the United States, which currently hosts races in Miami, Las Vegas, and this weekend in Austin.
“The many millions of Apple TV viewers that we have in the U.S., we know many of them are Formula One fans, hopefully, and we know that many of them are not yet,” he said. “Were going to be able to bring [new fans] to the table right away; thats very much low-hanging fruit.
The deal with Apple was praised by Dan Towriss, CEO of TWG Motorsports and the Cadillac Formula One team that will debut next season.
As we build a truly American team, Apples scale, influence, marketing and, most importantly, deep commitment to innovation will bring us to American audiences in exactly the ways we want to reach them, Towriss said.
Stefano Domenicali, F1 president and CEO, noted the potential for growth.
This is an incredibly exciting partnership for both Formula One and Apple that will ensure we can continue to maximize our growth potential in the U.S. with the right content and innovative distribution channels,” Domenicali said. “We have a shared vision to bring this amazing sport to our fans in the U.S. and entice new fans through live broadcasts, engaging content, and a year-round approach to keep them hooked.
Domenicali also praised the coverage and growth ESPN brought the series over eight seasons.
Were incredibly proud of what we and Formula One accomplished together in the United States and look forward to a strong finish in this final season,” ESPN said in a statement. “We wish F1 well in the future.
By Jenna Fryer, AP auto racing writer
It might start with a cassette deck that streams Spotify and charges your phone. It doesnt have to stop there.
These days, yesterday is big business.
A retro revival is underway in the design world: mushroom-shaped lamps, walnut stereo consoles, daisy dishware, neon Polaroid cameras. Its like our homes just hustled over from One Day at a Time or That ’70s Show or moonwalked in from Thriller-era 1982.
Welcome to the retro reset, where 70s, 80s, and ’90s aesthetics are getting a second life. It’s not just in fashion and film but in home décor and tech. Whether you actually lived through it or long for a past you never experienced, nostalgia is fueling a surge of interest from Gen X to Gen Z in throwback styles that blend vintage charm with modern convenience.
Old-school tech, new-school tricks
A big part of the trend is tech that looks analog but functions digitally. Think portable CD players in the kind of candy colors popular at Radio Shack in the 1970s, AM/FM radios equipped with USB outputs, or turntables with Bluetooth amplification to wireless speakers. Compact radios styled after 1970s transistor models now double as smart speakers.
Theres even a growing market for clunky-but-charming mini cathode-ray-style TVs and boomboxes with streaming capability. It’s as if the Carter, Reagan and Clinton eras have collided with the latest of the digital age.
What draws us? Some of it is the tactile appeal of dials and buttons of interacting with something that feels solid, more real.
In a room, these elements arent just nods to the past. Theyre also aesthetic statements that add way more character than a giant, flat, black screen, or a smart” sound system you cant even see. Stereo consoles in a woodgrain finish or a pastel-colored lacquer offer not only music but a nice furniture addition to a space. (Though who knows: Will those minimalist black screens be retro” one day for our children and grandchildren?)
Whether its turntables, cassette players, speakers or musical instruments, theres definitely a fascination among younger audiences with analog technology and how things worked before the digital age,” says Emmanuel Plat, merchandising director for MoMAstore, the design shop at New Yorks Museum of Modern Art.
The store has Tivolis Model One table radio, with a throwback-style, wood-grain frame, circle speaker grill and knobs, but 2025s sound quality and connectivity. Theyre also stocking pocket synthesizers, Bluetooth turntables, and Peanuts-themed Polaroid cameras and cassette players.
Whos into it and why
Gen Z is seeing it all with fresh eyes, and enjoying the hunt for vintage or vintage-look stuff. Millennials and Gen X may enjoy reliving their childhood aesthetics.
And that can be comforting in today’s stressed world, says Joseph Sgambatti, 37, a design journalist in New York City.
Nostalgia-driven design choices become comforts that help us cope,” he says.
There’s also an ironic, social-media component to the trend.
Midcentury modern and retro design objects are simple, often show-stopping artifacts,” Sgambatti says. “These finds carry a lot of social currency in a generation that prioritizes publishing their life online.”
Style trends do tend to arrive in cycles think Happy Days portraying the 1950s for the 1970s, or the current Gen-Z crush on Y2K fashion. Plus, a steady diet of nostalgia-rich media from Stranger Things to Barbie has reintroduced retro design to younger audiences.
But theres also an emotional component. After years of digital overload and pandemic-era disruptions, were gravitating toward styles that feel warmer, softer more human, even.
Colors that carry meaning
If you walk by the E.C. Reems Academy, an elementary school in Oakland, California, or Houstons Childrens Assessment Center, you cant miss the vibrant graphic murals done by Berkeley-based Project Color Corps. The group, which helps transform libraries, schools and other community spaces with eye-catching wall art, often uses graphics, typefaces and an overall palette with a 70s and 80s vibe.
In the 1970s, we sought solace in warm, earthy tones that symbolized grounding and stability. Browns, oranges, olive greens and deep yellows dominated the aesthetic landscape, reflecting the growing Earth movement, says Laura Guido-Clark, who founded the nonprofit.
It was a different aesthetic in the 80s one dripping with materialism, consumerism, the emergence of ”yuppie” culture, says Guido-Clark. “Neon colors, bold patterns and vibrant fashion choices.
And theres affection for that, too.
Her group recently worked with the design firm Gensler on a lounge space at Chicagos NeoCon trade fair for commercial interior design. The space featured retro-flavored colors and motifs.
Genslers design director, Marianne Starke, says the colors draw viewers into a sensory experience that might be rooted in memory: A popsicle on a 90s summer day, an 80s striped T-shirt, a rollerskating rink in the ’70s.
Furniture with curves and confidence
In furniture, the revival of those slightly distant decades leans toward soft silhouettes, rounded edges and a low-slung vibe. Arched bookshelves, bubble chairs, Lucite tables and terrazzo finishes have all reentered the conversation. Wallpaper and textile patterns feature bold geometrics, Memphis-style squiggles and Pop-Artsy botanicals.
Its a deliberate swing away from the chilly gray-on-white-on-gray look that farmhouse modern décor gave us for the past couple of decades.
In the process, eras get conflated. Who’s to say whether an inspiration or design comes precisely from the 70s, the 80s or the ’90s or contains elements of all three?
Designers are even revisiting some once-controversial elements of the disco era: Smoked glass, chrome accents and mirrored surfaces are making subtle (not a word often used in connection with the 1970s) comebacks in upscale interiors and product lines.
Whether its a lava lamp grooving on a media console, daisies and doves dancing on wallpaper, or a sofa rocking a bunch of ruffly chintz pillows, the retro revival feels less like a gimmick and more like a shift in how people want to live integrating elements of the past that offer comfort and delight.
As long as those cassette players keep syncing to Bluetooth and we can stream Annie Hall, Saturday Night Fever or Miami Vice, the past, it seems, is here to stay at least until our own moment inevitably becomes a nostalgia play in itself.
Kim Cook, Associated Press
The MrBeast burger. MrBeast toys. Rumors of a MrBeast phone company. Could a MrBeast bank next?
The world’s most-subscribed-to YouTuber, with 446 million subscribers, has filed an application with the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office for a service called MrBeast Financial.
The recent trademark application for the latest venture from MrBeast — whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson — lists plans for a mobile app and online services for a range of banking, financial advisory, crypto exchange, and other services.
The venture has not yet been approved and the full details remain unclear. However, the trademark application, which was filed on Oct. 13, aligns with a 2025 fundraising pitch deck, reported by Business Insider, outlining plans to expand into financial services.
Much of MrBeast content is built on the promise of huge cash prizes in exchange for partaking in bizarre tasks. Would You Risk Dying for $500,000? is the title of one video posted this month. Survive 30 Days Chained To Your Ex, Win $250,000, reads another.
Now, rather than throwing money at fans, he wants to help them manage it.
Having to explain to your wife and 3 kids mrbeast is taking your house away because you didn’t pay your mortgage on time and the only way you can get it back is by winning beast games season 3 on amazon prime, one X user joked.
Yet, its easy to see why a self-made 20-something, whos big on philanthropy, would be an appealing financial role-model to MrBeasts predominantly young audience. A 2023 study found that Gen Z places greater importance on being rich than any other age demographic and Gen Alpha are already busy earning big online before they are even old enough to drive.
If this latest venture gets off the ground, it would join Donaldsons growing list of companies including chocolate brand, Feastables, packaged food brand, Lunchly, as well as his Amazon Prime series Beast Games. Through these various exploits he achieved billionaire status in 2024.
However, he admitted, his mom still controls his bank account.
Apples mission to remake Apple TV into a streaming hub for sports is on track, literally.
Apple will buy exclusive broadcast rights to Formula One (F1) races in the U.S. for the next five years, the company announced Friday. Apple cited the success of F1: The Movie in its decision to partner more deeply with Formula One, as the international motorsport gains a foothold among U.S. viewers.
The five-year deal aims to extend the appeal of an Apple TV subscription to a broader swath of viewers while converting existing Apple TV users into racing fans, if things go as planned. Terms of the deal werent disclosed, but reports from CNBC and New York Times-owned The Athletic put it in the ballpark of $140 million.
Apple TV will air practice, qualifying, and sprint sessions and Grand Prix events for subscribers, and some races and all practice sessions will be available for free through the Apple TV app. F1s existing subscription service, F1 TV Premium, will remain available in the U.S. only through Apple TV.
Were thrilled to expand our relationship with Formula One and offer Apple TV subscribers in the U.S. front-row access to one of the most exciting and fastest-growing sports on the planet, said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of services. 2026 marks a transformative new era for Formula Onefrom new teams to new regulations and cars with the best drivers in the worldand we look forward to delivering premium and innovative fan-first coverage to our customers in a way that only Apple can.
The deal follows Apples success with the summer blockbuster F1: The Movie, starring Brad Pitt, its highest-grossing original film to date. The movie earned $293 million at the box office 10 days after release and marked a high point for Apples at times faltering film strategy. After earning $629 million at the global box office to date, the racing film will hit Apples streaming service on December 12.
Streamers scoop up sports
With the Apple deal, F1 will leave its existing media partner, ESPN, for greener pastures. ESPN was paying roughly $90 million for each F1 season, but Apple offered around $140 million to poach broadcast rights to the sport, according to CNBC. Apples move to throw cash at a growing sport to lure it away from a stagnant ESPN contract has echoes of Paramounts recent $7.7 billion play for UFC, which will double what it earns each season under its new terms.
In its announcement, Apple notes that it will boost the sport across its suite of apps, including Apple News, Apple Maps, Apple Music, and Apple Fitness+. Apples Sports app will include live F1 updates, real-time leaderboards, driver standings, and a special home screen widget.
Apples F1 deal isnt its first foray into sports in the U.S. In 2022, Apple announced a 10-year deal to air all Major League Soccer matches. The company charges $14.99 for MLS Season Pass, its soccer streaming package, on top of an Apple TV subscription, though existing subscribers get a few bucks off.
Based in the U.S. and Canada, MLS doesnt approach the popularity of soccer leagues in Europe and South America, but it does host Argentine legend Lionel Messi. Messi signed with Inter Miami in 2023, giving the world a reason to tune in to Apples exclusive MLS streams and earning a revenue-sharing agreement with the tech giant to boost the more than $20 million he makes on the field each season.
In 2022, Apple also picked up the streaming rights to weekly Major League Baseball doubleheaders, branded as Friday Night Baseball, during the regular season. The company pays $85 million a season for the games, but its not yet clear if that relationship will continue as MLB negotiates new media rights deals for its games.
Even if Apple does back away from its exploratory relationship with MLB, its clear the company sees big potential in owning the rights to stream growing sports in the United States. Soccer and F1 arent exactly niche sports, but neither dominates U.S. viewership like the classic American trifecta of football, basketball, and baseball. With a big boost at the box office over the summer, F1s U.S. growth might be on the cusp of booming, a trend Apple hopes to amplify by bringing its races under the Apple TV umbrella.
Would you want to be in a group chat with your favorite sports celebrities and athletes? You’ll have your chance this fall, thanks to a collaboration between WhatsApp and OffBall.
OffBall, a year-old sports media startup that focuses on careful curation for its followers, announced on Friday that it was bringing back The Chat, which it had previously conducted with sports stars such as LeBron James.
The franchise is designed to get users to participate in big group chats and discuss sports or anything else. High-profile personalitiessuch as professional athletes or othersalso take part, and everyone can text or message each other like any other group chat, or simply follow along with the discussion.
With the success of previous iterations of The Chat, OffBall is going to hold additional Chats, featuring F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo, media personality Kylie Kelce (wife of former NFL player Jason Kelce, and future sister-in-law of Taylor Swift), and NBA players Tyrese Maxey and Tyrese Haliburton.
The Chats will occur during live sporting events, allowing fans to engage and discuss whats happening, Offball said. The company describes it as a unique “second screen” experience.
Heres the announced schedule for the future chats:
October 19: F1 Austin Grand Prix with Daniel Ricciardo, Hunter Lawrence, and Jett Lawrence.
November 12: NBA Los Angeles Lakers versus Oklahoma City Thunder with Tyrese Maxey and Tyrese Haliburton.
November 23: NFL Indianapolis Colts versus Kansas City Chiefs with Kylie Kelce and Caleb Hearon.
In an interview published earlier this year by Lia Haberman on her Substack newsletter ICYMI, OffBall cofounder Michaela Hammond said that The Chat was born of athletes love of social media, and fans love of group chatting around sports.
The Chat is built on an existing product feature on WhatsApp called Communities,” Hammond said. “People already use it for larger community-based chats, like neighborhoods, parents at a school, and workplaces.
The U.S. has succeeded in blocking a global fee on shipping emissions as an international maritime meeting adjourned Friday without adopting regulations.
The worlds largest maritime nations had been deliberating on adopting regulations to move the shipping industry away from fossil fuels to slash emissions. But U.S. President Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia, and other countries vowed to fight any global tax on shipping emissions.
The U.S. had threatened to retaliate if nations support it. Trump urged countries to vote “No” at the International Maritime Organization headquarters in London, posting on his social media platform Truth Social on Thursday that the United States will not stand for this global green new scam tax on shipping.
The IMO is the United Nations agency that regulates international shipping.
Saudi Arabia called for a vote to adjourn the meeting for a year. More than half of the countries agreed.
Now you have one year, you will continue to work on several aspects of these amendments, Arsenio Dominguez, secretary general of the International Maritime Organization, said in his closing remarks. You have one year to negotiate and talk and come to consensus.
Ralph Regenvanu, minister for climate change for the Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu, said the decision is unacceptable, given the urgency we face in light of accelerating climate change.
If the green shipping regulations were adopted, it would have been the first time a global fee was imposed on planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. Most ships today run on heavy fuel oil that releases carbon dioxide and other pollutants as its burned.
The delay leaves the shipping sector drifting in uncertainty. But this week has also shown that there is a clear desire to clean up the shipping industry, even in the face of U.S. bullying, said Alison Shaw, IMO Manager at Transport & Environment, a Brussels-based environmental nongovernmental organization.
Shipping emissions have grown over the past decade to about 3% of the global total as trade has grown and vessels use immense amounts of fossil fuels to transport cargo over long distances. In April, IMO member states agreed on the contents of the regulatory framework, with the aim of adopting the Net-Zero Framework at this London meeting.
Adopting the regulations was meant to demonstrate how effective multilateral cooperation can deliver real progress on global climate goals, said Emma Fenton, senior director for climate diplomacy at a U.K.-based climate change nonprofit, Opportunity Green. Delaying the process risks undermining the framework’s ambitions, they added.
The regulations would set a marine fuel standard that decreases, over time, the amount of greenhouse gas emissions allowed from using shipping fuels. The regulations also would establish a pricing system that would impose fees for every ton of greenhouse gases emitted by ships above allowable limits, in what is effectively the first global tax on greenhouse gas emissions.
The IMO, which regulates international shipping, set a target for the sector to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by about 2050, and has committed to ensuring that fuels with zero or near-zero emissions are used more widely.
What matters now is that countries rise up and come back to the IMO with a louder and more confident yes vote that cannot be silenced, said Anas Rios, shipping policy officer for Seas At Risk. “The planet and the future of shipping does not have time to waste.
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Sibi Arasu and Jennifer McDermott, Associated Press
