From Ukraine to the Middle East, Shield AI’s autonomous drones are deployed on the front lines. Brandon Tseng, cofounder and president of the San Diego-based company, is in the vanguard of this defense-tech explosion and the fierce debate over the use of AI in modern warfare. He confronts the hard questions: Can we trust the U.S. and its allies to wield AI responsibly? And why does this former Navy SEAL find building a company just as grueling as combat? This is an abridged transcript of an interview from Rapid Response, hosted by former Fast Company editor-in-chief Robert Safian. From the…
Author: Staff Writer
When supervising colleagues, you often need to guide their behavior and help them to improve their skills. That means noticing the mistakes people are making and giving them good feedback that will influence their behavior in the future. You might find, though, that your team members don’t improve as much as you’d like after you speak to them. If so, there are a few key things you can do to maximize the effectiveness of your critical feedback. Ultimately, you need to learn to think more like a teacher. Catch your team members doing good things The errors that your supervisees…
When Anna, a 32-year-old IT professional, started her first job, it wasn’t long before she found herself facing a bad case of job creep. “They said, ‘Hey, can you do this other thing too for a little bit? It’ll be like 10% of your time.’ But that turned into basically doing a second full-time job,” Anna told me. So she scheduled a meeting with her manager to ask for a salary that accounted for the added responsibilities of her expanded role. “I laid it out, ‘Here’s what I’ve taken on, here’s how I’m spending my time, here’s what my days…
Germany was defeated because we outproduced them 18:1 when Germany wanted the most sophisticated weapons that could not be mass produced. Today, the arrogance of the Neocons have transformed the United States into Germany of WWII. We spend millions in missiles to destroy a $30,000 drone. Iran is using a war of attrition against the US and Israel. I hate to point out that they still have 70%+ of their balistic missiles. Then China can out produce the United States in a war the same as the US did to Hitler. We have become the arrogant power and assume we…
With gas prices soaring, Americans looking to save at the pump are flocking to Costco in droves. In its latest quarterly earnings report, the budget-friendly retailer described a “record-breaking” volume of sales in its gasoline business. Costco operates its own pumps attached to its retail locations, which members who pay $65 annually can use to fill up. Like the food and goods inside Costco warehouses, the company’s fuel prices aggressively undercut the competition—good business sense as customers grapple with affordability. The spike in demand was so significant that its pumps required additional gas deliveries to keep fuel stocked these last…
President Trump’s attack on mail-in voting is roping in the U.S. Postal Service. Under a new proposal introduced on Friday, the USPS would force states to hand over the names and addresses of residents who vote by mail. States would also be required to provide the agency with names and barcodes linked to mail-in ballots for federal elections. The proposal is the latest development in the president’s crusade against mail-in voting, in which states proactively send out ballots to all eligible voters. Trump has vowed to “lead a movement to get rid of mail-in ballots,” which he has falsely linked…
Researchers suggest that the average attention span has plummeted over the past two decades, from about 2.5 minutes to just 47 seconds in 2012. How can marketers capture attention when they’re losing people in less time than it takes to properly wash your hands?It turns out that there’s an overlooked community that can teach us a lot about what it takes to cut through in our distracted world. Almost 14% of Americans report having ADHD. This is a consumer segment with enormous economic power representing trillions in net worth, yet it remains dramatically under-researched in marketing. While major marketing research…
Only weeks after announcing a slew of new offerings at its annual Go-Get event in New York, Uber Technologies is throwing more onto the pile ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On Friday, the company announced a new suite of features that are designed to help those traveling to World Cup matches—including Uber Shuttle services at four World Cup venues in the United States and a Travel Pass allowing users to secure savings on rides and Eats orders. But perhaps the neatest addition is enhanced “smart wayfinding,” which is a boost to in-app directions within certain buildings, like airports…
There is a moment on a trout river, when the light softens, the water goes still and everything you know about casting, currents, and choosing the right fly comes together in a single act of skill. When the line unrolls, the fly touches down, and a trout rises to meet it, the feeling is close to gratitude. You did the work. The river did the rest. I have spent 40 years helping technology companies build brands and almost as long trying to catch trout on a fly rod in Montana. I am better at one than the other, though the…
As founder, chair, and CEO of the Exceptional Women Alliance, I am privileged to engage with extraordinary female leaders across industries. This month, I spoke with Britt Ide about one of the most overlooked—and essential—leadership skills: building bridges. An engineer, lawyer, and seasoned board director, Ide has spent her career navigating high-stakes negotiations, from major deals to complex disputes. Q: Explain “bridge building” in leadership Ide: Bridge building is the discipline of turning tension into better outcomes. It starts with a mindset shift: Instead of avoiding conflict, welcome constructive conflict. And then use it productively. Bridge building creates win-win solutions…