|  | Nasdaq | 23,436.02 | |
| | S&P | 6,913.35 | |
| | Dow | 49,384.01 | |
|  | 10-Year | 4.249% | |
|  | Bitcoin | $89,509.31 | |
| | GE Aerospace | $295.00 | |
| | Data is provided by |  |
*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean. | - Markets: Stocks continued to climb for a second day after President Trump backed off his threats to slap more tariffs on Europe and take Greenland by force, netting dip-buyers another big win. But GE Aerospace awkwardly stood in the corner of the party and sulked after its sales forecast underwhelmed investors.
| Markets Sponsored by Elf Labs Pre-IPO opportunity: After securing major global distribution for its character IP, Elf Labs just reserved its Nasdaq ticker: $ELFS. Everyday investors can still participate (plus receive up to 35% bonus shares) while the company is still private. Invest now. |
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TECH The race to release an AI device that people actually like is heating up: Apple may be working on an AI accessory that could come out as early as 2027, The Information reported this week, two days after OpenAI shared an update on its own highly anticipated hardware. According to The Information: - Apple's gizmo will be an AI pin that you can attach to your clothes, equipped with cameras and microphones for observing your surroundings.
- The company is aiming to make it roughly the size of an AirTag (1 ¼ inches across).
- It's still in the "early stages" of development.
Hurry up? Apple was already labeled a slow adopter of AI when it pulled a GTA VI last spring and delayed the launch of its new AI-powered Siri until sometime this year (with help from Google Gemini). Now, the iPhone maker may be trying to expedite its rumored wearable to compete directly with OpenAI, which has been teasing a lamp for its genie for months now. Tight race OpenAI is "on track" to share the first look of its AI hardware in the second half of this year, a company executive said this week. Don't assume it'll be uglier than whatever Apple comes up with: OpenAI is building its device with the former Apple design head Jony Ive. Details are largely under wraps, but: - OpenAI's device is in the prototype phase and could hit the market by the end of 2027, Ive said in November.
- It's rumored to be screenless, roughly smartphone-sized, and possibly wearable. Some alleged leaks and reports from Asian publications suggest it could be earbuds.
Do you like eggs? Because some of Apple's good ones are getting poached. Several dozen Apple engineers have defected to OpenAI in recent months, making Apple execs worry that OpenAI could become "a threat to its underlying business," Bloomberg reported this week.—ML | | |
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Presented By Elf Labs Just ask Disney. They did it by owning globally recognized character IP. Now, after a 10-year legal effort, Elf Labs has secured historic rights (500+ assets) to iconic characters like Cinderella and Snow White. They're bringing them to life through multipatented immersive technology across entertainment, gaming, and consumer products—a market estimated at over $2t. Analyst interest has increased after the company reached a major inflection point this year and reserved its Nasdaq ticker: $ELFS. For a limited time, everyday investors can still participate (plus receive up to 35% bonus shares) while the company remains privately held. Invest now. |
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WORLD  Trump sued JPMorgan Chase and Jamie Dimon over alleged "debanking." In a lawsuit filed in Florida state court yesterday, President Trump accused the bank and its CEO, Jamie Dimon, of closing his accounts for political reasons. Trump believes that JPMorgan was motivated by "unsubstantiated, 'woke' beliefs" to distance itself from the president, per the lawsuit. The bank closed accounts for Trump weeks after a mob of his supporters attacked the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. JPMorgan says it does not close accounts for political or religious reasons and argued that the lawsuit "has no merit." The $5 billion legal action came as Dimon issued a rare public statement criticizing Trump in a speech in Davos, Switzerland, this week, saying that the president's proposed credit card rate cap would create an "economic disaster."—AE
  At long last, TikTok seals deal for new US entity. Nearly six years after President Trump initially threatened to ban TikTok during his first term, the video-sharing app owned by ByteDance announced yesterday that it struck a deal with a group of non-Chinese investors to form a US TikTok, known as TikTok USDS Joint Venture. Adam Presser, who had been TikTok's head of operations, is the CEO of the new and independent entity. According to CNBC, ByteDance will own 19.9%, and Silver Lake, Oracle, and MGX will be the managing investors. The outlet also reported that TikTok's extra-special algorithm will be hosted in Oracle's American data centers. Between 2020 and now, the TikTok saga took approximately 1 million twists and turns, including then-President Biden signing a bipartisan national security law in 2024 to ban the app, which President Trump kept from being enacted last year via executive orders while he searched for a US buyer.—HVL
 Jack Smith publicly testified about his Trump investigations. In an open-door hearing before the House Judiciary Committee yesterday, former Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith defended his investigations into President Trump, arguing that "no one should be above the law." He said that the investigations he led—one into Trump's alleged attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and the other about the president's alleged mishandling of classified documents—were not about politics, as Trump and other Republicans have long claimed. While Smith was speaking, Trump called Smith a "deranged animal" in a post on Truth Social and implied that Attorney General Pam Bondi should investigate him.—AE
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MEDIA The guy you watched scale El Capitan without any ropes or equipment while nervously peeking through your own comparatively weak fingers is back—and this time he's doing it live. Professional rock climber and Free Solo star Alex Honnold will scurry up Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot-tall skyscraper in Taiwan's capital, with just his special shoes and chalked-up hands today. Netflix will broadcast the feat live (with a 10-second delay…just in case) at 8pm ET. Honnold hopes to make it up the building's 101 stories in under two-and-a-half hours: - The hardest part of the climb will be the middle 64 floors, which, according to Honnold, consist of eight sections broken up by balconies with vertical climbing for eight floors at a time.
- If Honnold makes it to the top, it will be the highest urban free solo ever.
Honnold told the NYT that his calculations regarding risk haven't changed much since getting married and having kids. And no, he doesn't have life insurance. He's reportedly being paid in the mid-six figures for this climb. Emphasis on the live: Skyscraper Live is part of Netflix's push into live sports coverage. The streaming company credited the investment for a surge in revenue and subscribers at the end of last year. Netflix reported an 18% increase in Q4 revenue to just over $12 billion, and its subscriber base grew to more than 325 million.—MM | | |
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Together With Nature's Bounty New year, smarter habits. Nature's Bounty is giving your routine a glow-up: Get $10 off when you spend $40 on 100+ participating supplements on Amazon, for a limited time. From bestsellers to new essentials, refresh your stack, chase 2026 goals, and thrive—because feeling your best is in your nature today. Your 2026 reset starts here. |
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AI The Japanese company famous for making fancy toilets with bidet capabilities and heated seats is riding the AI wave—and it's not by making its smart toilets tell bathroom jokes. Toto's stock surged 11% yesterday after Goldman Sachs said that the potty purveyor is positioned to grow the profits from its side gig of producing a key ingredient in semiconductor manufacturing. From washlets to wafers When it's not busy convincing the world that spray is the cleanest way, Toto uses its ceramics competence to produce electrostatic "chucks" that hold silicone wafers in place while they are processed during semiconductor production. It's been making the gizmos since the 1980s, but demand has skyrocketed as tech companies pour billions into computer chips for AI: - Toto's non-toilet manufacturing accounted for 42% of its operating income during the last financial year.
- Goldman Sachs analysts expect its e-chunk haul to keep growing amid the AI data center frenzy that's squeezing the supply of chipmaking equipment.
It's not just Toto with a semiconductor side hustle…as several Japanese consumer goods companies have capitalized on the country's status as a computer chip hub. The cosmetics giant Kao Corp, for instance, makes chemicals to sanitize silicone wafers, in addition to facial cleansers.—SK | | |
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STAT Michael B. Jordan? More like Michael be nominated. The actor received an Oscar nod for best actor for his dual role in Sinners, one of a whopping 16 nominations that the blues-soaked vampire thriller earned yesterday—the most of all time: - The previous record was 14, held by All About Eve, Titanic, and La La Land.
- In addition to Jordan's nod, Sinners got love for best picture, best director (Ryan Coogler), best cinematography, and best original score, among others.
Despite the record haul for Sinners, One Battle After Another is still the odds-on favorite to win best picture. The Oscars are on March 15 on ABC and Hulu, and here's the full list of nominees. If you're just checking to see if Wicked: For Good got nominated for anything, don't bother. It completely bageled.—AE |
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QUIZ The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew's Weekly News Quiz has been compared to opening the bag of food you had delivered and realizing they got the order right. It's that satisfying. Ace the quiz. |
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NEWS - President Zelensky of Ukraine put Europe on blast in his speech at Davos, accusing the Continent of not doing enough to stop Russia's Vladimir Putin. The Ukrainian president said, "Europe loves to discuss the future but avoids taking action today."
- The No. 6 reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant was shut down again hours after its restart, according to officials, and is expected to be offline for at least several days.
- The US is seeking regime change in Cuba by the end of the year, according to the Wall Street Journal.
- Tesla's Optimus robots will be available to the public by the end of 2027, CEO Elon Musk said.
- Inflation ticked up to 2.8% in November, according to the Commerce Department.
- Jared Kushner presented development plans yesterday for what he termed a "New Gaza," equipped with data centers and seaside resorts.
- Waymo launched its robotaxi service in Miami, the sixth market where the Alphabet-owned company now offers driverless cabs.
- Emmanuel Macron is being credited with boosting a sunglasses-maker's value by $4 million after the French president wore its aviators during his speech at Davos this week (indoors), which he said was to protect his eyes due to a burst blood vessel.
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PLAY Jigsaw: This week's puzzle is elemental and vibey in a warm kind of way. Play it here. Friday puzzle Nine cats—Andar, Balak, Collo, Erec, Indan, Kyft, Meva, Qupuwu, and Yitsim—are positioned in a 3x3 grid; you know three things about them: 1. Balak, the leader, always sits in the top left. 2. Erec, the kitten, never sits in the top row. 3. None of the adjacent cats (even diagonal) share a single letter. Where are they positioned? |
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SHARE THE BREW  Share the Brew, watch your referral count climb, and unlock brag-worthy swag. Your friends get smarter. You get rewarded. Win-win. Your referral count: 0 Click to Share Or copy & paste your referral link to others:
morningbrew.com/r/?kid=eaab23a8 |
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ANSWER Balak; Yitsim; Andar Erec; Qupuwu; Collo Indan; Kyft; Meva (Source) Word of the Day Today's Word of the Day is: harangued, meaning "lectured someone in an aggressive and critical manner." Thanks to Ernie from Larchmont, NY, for the suggestion. Submit another Word of the Day here. |
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✢ A Note From Elf Labs This is a paid advertisement for Elf Labs' Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://www.elflabs.com/. Timelines are subject to change. Listing on the Nasdaq is contingent upon necessary approvals, and reserving a ticker symbol does not guarantee a company's public listing. ✤ A Note From Money Pickle Money Pickle, LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser. This is a paid advertisement. The publisher is not a client and receives compensation for this placement, which may create a conflict of interest. Content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Estate planning services, if applicable, may involve coordination with third-party legal professionals. |
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