🐤 Glass half full

Markets: There were a few big winners to start the week, including Bitcoin and Tesla, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher than 44,000 for the first time and the S&P 500 wrapped up the day above 6,000. Last week also saw new all-time highs for both indexes. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ticked up slightly despite losses by Apple, Meta, and Nvidia.

Chiles play: Months after a ruling at the Paris Olympics cost her the official third-place finish, U.S. gymnast Jordan Chiles is still fighting to correct the record. At the time, officials asserted that her coach missed a deadline by just four seconds, resulting in a lower score that cost her — at least on paper — the bronze medal. Chiles was allowed to keep the medal she originally received, but now she’s pursuing legal action that she hopes will prove neither she nor her coach violated any rules and that her original score should be included in the record books.

Cashing out: If you’ve used the Cash App platform since 2018 — whether or not you currently have an active account — you could be entitled to as much as $2,500. A class action lawsuit is currently underway that stands to distribute a combined $15 million to individuals deemed to have been harmed by the actions of a former employee. Those impacted by either compromised personal data or unauthorized withdrawals have until Monday to submit documentation and begin the process of claiming their share of the settlement.

In the weeds: There’s a big difference in the agendas of current President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump, which has prompted some speculation about how the next four years could impact various aspects of American life … including legalized pot. The Biden administration has worked to reduce federal regulations on weed, including by reclassifying it as a Schedule III drug. For his part, Trump hasn’t made marijuana a prominent campaign focus, signaling hope among pro-legalization advocates that he won’t roll back Biden’s policies.

Cuban crises: After sustaining the devastation of two hurricanes and several other major storms this year, Cuba was hit this week by a significant earthquake. The incident rocked the island’s southern coast and into areas including Guantanamo and Santiago de Cuba throughout the eastern portion of the nation. Some residents of Florida reported feeling the ground move when the quake erupted. Early reports reflected no evidence of fatalities and workers are on the ground to make repairs to homes and infrastructure in affected areas.

A number of tech companies have attempted — with varying degrees of success — to create “smart” glasses that would appeal to the masses. Wearable tech has been a hit-and-miss segment of the industry for a while, but Amazon reportedly has a unique approach to smart glasses that could pay off by increasing the efficiency of its delivery service.

What we know so far

Although the company hasn’t divulged many specifics, there are plenty of rumors circulating about what this new project entails. Instead of attempting to mass market the product, insiders indicate Amazon wants to tailor the technology in its Echo Show glasses to be used by its own drivers.

Here are some of the features they could include:

• Displaying real-time directions while delivering packages
• Capturing footage for proof of delivery or driver monitoring
• Reducing the cost and time of so-called “last-mile” deliveries

Amazon is in a unique position given its ability to produce class-leading software and hardware created specifically to boost its own delivery segment.

Easier said than done

Given the lukewarm response to smart glasses from companies like Google, Snap, and Meta, this project appears to face an uphill battle from the start.

And since models from other companies have suffered from short battery life and/or technical malfunctions, it’s important for Amazon to create a product that remains effective throughout a long shift.

Its success is far from guaranteed, but there’s no question that Amazon has an incentive to trim costs wherever possible. Profit margins in the e-commerce market have always been razor-thin — and if a court rules that Amazon must treat its drivers as employees rather than contractors, its delivery expenses would increase even further.

The company’s investment in electric delivery vehicles is another step toward using technology to lower costs.

In a number of cities across the U.S., so-called robotaxis are picking up passengers and transporting them to their destinations without a human driver behind the wheel. This emerging industry has captured a lot of attention, but not all of it has been positive.

There have been significant concerns raised about safety — particularly that of pedestrians and cyclists sharing the road with much faster and heavier vehicles.

Waymo releases its results

Along with General Motors-owned Cruise, one of the biggest names in this segment is Waymo, which is owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet. Now, Waymo is contributing to the conversation about the safety of its vehicles with the findings of a major study focused on vulnerable road users, or VRUs.

Research shows that pedestrians and those riding bikes or motorcycles account for thousands of deaths and injuries caused by traffic collisions each year. Unfortunately, VRUs are often treated as an afterthought when it comes to compiling vehicle safety data that prioritizes drivers and passengers.

To its credit, however, Waymo at least appears interested in transparency regarding the risks posed by robotaxis.

Finding room for improvement

According to Waymo, its decision to conduct this study in collaboration with German research group VUFO came from a desire to improve the way its driverless technology “decides” how to respond in certain situations.

The report found that VRUs are most susceptible to injury or death from motor vehicles in a few situations, including:

• When they catch drivers by surprise
• When trees, buildings or other obstacles reduce visibility
• When a vehicle is turning or changing speed

After studying the circumstances of 335 VRU-related crashes from across six different cities, Waymo safety researcher John Scanlon said the emerging data “is critical in developing effective strategies to reduce injuries and fatalities.”

Now that former President Donald Trump is heading back to the White House for another term, speculation is swirling about the advisers he will choose to surround himself with for the next four years.

One advocacy group hopes to influence that process with a petition calling on Trump to select billionaire tech titan Elon Musk to play a central role in how the U.S. regulates AI.

Who’s in the group?

Americans for Responsible Innovation, despite being led by former U.S. Rep. Brad Carson (a Democrat), is reaching out to the incoming Republican president to make the case that Musk is the right choice to serve as Trump’s special adviser on artificial intelligence.

Even though ARI makes it clear that Musk isn’t a perfect candidate and has a few potential conflicts of interest within the realm of AI, the group maintains that certain guardrails can be put in place to keep him honest.

Why choose Elon?

It’s no secret that Musk has been an influential figure throughout the development and rapid spread of AI in recent years. He was a co-founder of OpenAI, which created the popular ChatGPT platform. Since then, he has expressed opposition to that company’s business practices and is currently at the helm of another AI company, xAI.

Perhaps more notable, however, is his activism on behalf of implementing a moratorium on AI development.

Musk said his motivation, like others concerned about the ramifications of AI, stems from a desire to address potential issues before they become serious problems — but some of his critics have speculated that it’s a cynical ploy to gain an upper hand on his rivals.

Musk has already discussed with Trump the possibility of joining his administration to implement government efficiency measures, but ARI is convinced he could fill both roles.

When you're young you have two kidneys.

Then you grow up and have two adult knees.