Taxis, robotaxis everywhere

Hi guys! Today we are going to talk about:

👉 7 magnitude earthquake shaking California

👉 Uber stocks dipped

👉 Bird Flu one step closer to turn into a pandemic

and many more!

Today’s issue is a 5-minute read.

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Quote of the day

“What we know is a drop, what we don't know is an ocean”

Isaac Newton

Must Know

Massive earthquake shook California

On Thursday morning, a powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Northern California, causing panic and chaos. The quake, centered about 70 miles southwest of Eureka, sent items flying off shelves and triggered 🌊 tsunami warnings for many coastal areas.

👍 Fortunately, there were no major injuries reported, but residents felt strong tremors and some struggled to stay upright.

As the earthquake shook the region, tsunami alerts were issued, leading to evacuations in places like San Francisco and Berkeley. People were warned to move to higher ground. However, the tsunami warning was lifted just before noon, with officials confirming there was no tsunami threat.

Robotaxis in Miami

Waymo, the self-driving taxi company owned by Google, is expanding its services to 🌴 Miami. They plan to start testing their autonomous vehicles in early 2025, with human drivers at the wheel to ensure safety.

By 2026, they aim to offer rides to passengers through their Waymo One app. This move shows Waymo's confidence in handling 🌦 tougher weather conditions, as Miami's climate can be challenging for self-driving cars.

🚘 Waymo has been testing in Miami since 2019, which helped them improve their technology for rainy conditions. The company will use all-electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles for this service.

With recent funding of $5.6 billion, Waymo is rapidly growing its operations, already offering over 150,000 rides each week in cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Bird flu, one step closer to infecting humans

🚨 California researchers have discovered that the H5N1 bird flu virus could become a threat to humans with just one genetic change. This mutation affects a protein called hemagglutinin, which helps the virus attach to cells. If this change happens, the virus could potentially spread between people, raising concerns about a possible pandemic.

Currently, H5N1 mainly infects 🐓 birds and 🐄 cows, but there have been cases of human infections linked to contact with these animals.

📃 The study from Scripps Research Institute shows that a 🧬 specific mutation could allow the virus to better bind to human cells. Experts are worried because there have been many outbreaks in California's dairy cows, which means that close contact between infected animals and workers might help the virus evolve.

⚡Speed-Round: The Most Impactful Stories

OpenAI is launching a new subscription tier, ChatGPT Pro, priced at $200 per month, significantly higher than the current ChatGPT Plus plan at $20. This Pro tier will offer:

• ♾ unlimited access to advanced o1 reasoning models

• 💻 enhanced computational resources

• ⚡ superior performance for complex tasks

Google is introducing an AI Mode for its Search app on Android, that will turn your next search into a conversation (just like OpenAI’s SearchGPT). Known as 🤖 AIM, this feature will allow users to engage in interactive discussions, ❓ ask follow-up questions, and use 🔊 voice commands and 📷 images for inquiries.

🚀 NASA has delayed its Artemis program, pushing the 👩‍🚀👨‍🚀 first crewed flight to the moon in over 50 years to mid-2027. These delays are due to issues with the Orion crew capsule's heat shield, which was damaged during the uncrewed Artemis I mission in 2022. NASA plans to modify the capsule's reentry trajectory to address these concerns. The delays come while there exists an increased competition in lunar exploration, particularly from China, which aims for a moon landing by 2030.

Top-levels

Markets & Business

• 🥘 Chipotle has announced a 📈 2% increase in menu prices across the country due to rising costs from inflation. This is the first price raise over a year.

• 💰 Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, has raised another $6 billion in cash bringing the total raised amount to $12 billion.

• Shares of Uber and Lyft 📉 declined abruptly (each 10%) as investors considered the risks presented by driverless taxi services after Waymo announced its plans to expand its presence in Miami.

• 🍷 Gary Vaynerchuk, self-made American millionaire, marketing expert, and former wine content creator on YouTube, recently appeared in an interview on NBC emphasizing the rise of the 🛒 live shopping on social media platforms, pinpointing the huge underutilized opportunity to make money in this space.

• 💊 International pharmaceutical company, Lilly, announces $3 billion expansion, having plans for adding 750 new jobs in Kenosha County, Wisconsin.

• 🚙 Honda recalls about 206,000 SUVs to repair fuel filler tubes that can leak gasoline, risking a 🔥 fire.

Science & Tech News

• 💉 Health officials are warning about a new drug, carfentanil, which is 100 times more potent than fentanyl that has caused 500+ ☠ deaths in 37 states in recent years.

• 👨‍🔬👩‍🔬 A study from Washington University in St. Louis indicates that while a higher body mass index (BMI) in midlife is linked to increased dementia risk, deep visceral fat (belly fat) is associated with Alzheimer's markers long before cognitive symptoms appear.

• 🔍 Google CEO, Sundar Pichai, says the company’s search engine will “change profoundly” in 2025 and it is going to be able to tackle more complex questions than ever before.

• 🦋 Bluesky CEO, Jay Graber, says the company does not have plans to rule out advertising anytime soon.

Did You Know?

♥ Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day.

🐬 Dolphins sleep with one eye open

The average American drinks about 🥤 600 sodas per year.

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