Inclusive and profitable economic ecosystems can be built, invested in, and scaled. That was my core message at the recent Fast Company Impact Council Annual Meeting, where I joined innovative business leaders to discuss what it will take to rebuild America’s competitive edge. I sat on the mainstage alongside Jean-Claude Brizard, president and CEO of Digital Promise, and Deirdre White, CEO of Pyxera Global. Prompted by Brendan Vaughan, editor-in-chief of Fast Company, we each addressed the limit of investing in binary thinking. Jean-Claude highlighted the pitfall of adopting sweeping prohibitions on technology use in schools without engaging educators skilled in…
Author: Staff Writer
Nearly 20 years ago, I was finishing my MBA while working a full-time job—as a director of training at a large regional bank—with an infant at home. One evening after class, my marketing professor pulled me aside to ask if I’d ever thought of teaching a course. I wasn’t sure that was even possible with my full-time role. But his question made me realize that two of my coworkers were already adjunct professors, and others consulted on the side, spoke at conferences, or ran small businesses. With a hefty day care bill staring me down, I approached my employer about…
The Trump administration is proposing a new rule on Thursday to keep hospitals from charging markups on discounted drugs for Medicare patients and says that could save consumers $1.1 billion next year, according to estimates obtained by The Associated Press. The rule would apply to hospitals that serve low-income patients under what is known as the 340B program, which lets hospitals buy outpatient prescription drugs at discounted prices. But in many cases, hospitals can bill insurers at rates that exceed those costs, allowing hospitals to keep the difference and resulting in higher costs to patients. Under the proposed rule, the Centers for…
ASIA: The major Asian stock markets had a mixed day today: • NIKKEI 225 decreased 1,741.81 points or -2.47% to 68,733.15 • Shanghai decreased 83.541 points or -2.03% to 4,028.904 • Hang Seng increased 174.01 points or 0.76% to 23,055.03 • ASX 200 increased 1.60 points or 0.02% to 8,724.50 • SENSEX increased 579.48 points or 0.75% to 77,502.12 • Nifty50 increased 169.85 points or 0.71% to 24,175.70 The major Asian currency markets had a mixed day today: • AUDUSD increased 0.00274 or 0.40% to 0.69208 • NZDUSD increased 0.00245 or 0.43% to 0.56975 • USDJPY decreased 1.536 or -0.94%…
After weeks of complaints from frustrated fans, StubHub is being sued by customers who say the ticket reseller’s inability to fulfill orders crushed their dreams of going to the World Cup. Julia Reeker Moghal and Reuben Renteria, both of California, sued the ticketing giant this week in federal court in New York, alleging that “false and misleading” sales practices left them without the tickets they purchased for group stage matches last month. The lawsuit, which seeks to become a class action, says Moghal and Renteria are among hundreds or even thousands of World Cup fans who purchased tickets only to find out that they…
Sephora just broke new ground in the beauty industry, becoming the first beauty retailer to launch sensory-friendly shopping hours at a global scale. During their newly announced “Quiet Hours,” Sephora stores will lower their music, adjust screens, and minimize strong scents. Avoiding these sensory triggers aims to make shopping more accessible for neurodivergent customers, including shoppers with autism and ADHD. Sephora has not yet announced a specific schedule for these hours. With the initiative, Sephora is continuing a trend started by Walmart and picked up by brands across the retail, restaurant, and entertainment industries, making space for neurodivergent customers to…
Grand Theft Auto 6 is the most anticipated game of the year (and perhaps of the decade, given the agonizing wait since the franchise’s last entry in 2013). But earlier this week, rumors started swirling that Rockstar Games would release the title via digital download only, with physical copies of Grand Theft Auto 6 being reduced to a box with a download code inside rather than a game disc. Then, on July 1, Sony dealt an even more devastating blow to lovers of physical media: Starting in 2028, new games on PlayStation consoles will only be released digitally, with all…
If anybody has it all, Taylor Swift does. And while you knew that already, brace yourself for a pushy reminder this holiday weekend, because the culmination of Swift’s storybook romance with proverbial captain of the football team Travis Kelce will apparently be a multi-day wedding flex, set in the world capital of attention: New York City’s Madison Square Garden. In addition to being recognized as one of the great American songwriters, Swift is an absolute master of publicity and brand image. So who knows if everything we think we know about her marital extravaganza is a massive head fake, and…
Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company’s weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. You can sign up to receive this newsletter every week via email here. Trump administration Okays Anthropic’s powerful Mythos-class AI models After placing export restrictions on Anthropic’s Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models on June 12—effectively forcing their removal from the market—the Trump Commerce Department has now reversed course. But in the end, the sudden regulatory pivot may play to China’s advantage. Administration officials removed the controls Tuesday evening, after working with Anthropic for two weeks on a refined…
U.S. applications for jobless aid inched down last week as layoffs remain at historically healthy levels.The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits in the week ending June 27 fell by 1,000 to 215,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s fewer than the 225,000 new applications forecast by analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet.Weekly filings for unemployment benefits are considered representative of U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.The government also released its more comprehensive June jobs report on Thursday, a day earlier than usual due to the July 4…