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Bitcoin investors everywhere are in disarray. Yesterday, the SEC’s long-awaited decision to approve bitcoin ETFs for trading came true, but for only a moment. It turns out that whoever posted the announcement on X (Twitter) had actually hacked into the SEC’s account. What a doozy. Now we have to hold our breath for the actual decision.
In other news… Tom Cruise switches sides, Spotify is replacing human curators with AI, and once upon a time there were no smartphones.
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ENTERTAINMENT
Tom Cruise driving onto the Warners lot // Courtesy of Paramount (lol)
Tom Cruise lands at Warner Bros. Discovery for film deal
The Future. Tom Cruise has struck a unique deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to boost its blockbuster power. That’s as strong an omen as possible for Paramount’s eventual sale. With his action-star power peaking, Cruise may position his Warners deal as a creative launchpad for his next act.
Paramount problems
Cruise planting a flag at Warner Bros. is a big win for the David Zaslav-run studio… but potentially bad news for the Shari Redstone-run one.
Cruise is setting up his production company at Warners — which has been behind eight of his movies and will develop more for him to star in.
The deal is unique in that Cruise will be allowed to make movies at any studio per the deal, including Paramount, which is behind the Mission: Impossible and Top Gun franchises.
Paramount has infamously been an open wallet for Cruise. But with the studio on the sales block, Cruise is seemingly making sure that he has a new benefactor in place — one that has a goal to launch big, theatrical-first films.
Ironically, if WBD prevails in acquiring Paramount (as long as those talks aren’t just bluster to boost the price for other suitors), Cruise may find himself under Paramount’s wing once again.
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MUSIC
Programming the bops // Illustration by Kait Cunniff with Midjourney
Spotify’s AI steals human curators’ thunder
The Future. Human-curated playlists used to be a kingmaker at Spotify, but the music streamer is recently favoring AI-generated playlists as a way to hyper-personalize discovery for users and compete with TikTok. As playlist personalities are muted and curation becomes one-size-fits-one, the ability to platform potential hits may be harder to accomplish.
Playlist generation
Spotify playlists are hitting the assembly line with some new features, both internal and customer-facing.
Spotify crafted an automated pitching form for playlist inclusion, downplaying the individuals responsible for playlist curation — the company doesn’t want curators claiming ownership of song choices.
The streamer also introduced a system where employees tag songs to help them funnel to personalized playlists.
Some human-curated playlists have even shifted to algorithmically-generated ones — this has even applied to popular playlists like “Housewerk” and “Indie Pop.”
Spotify also rolled out a new tool called “Discovery Mode,” through which an artist’s team can submit songs for extra algorithmic pushes in exchange for a smaller royalty rate.
The AI-transformation comes just as Spotify’s playlists are somewhat losing their power — labels, managers, and other insiders report that streams are down between 30 and 50% of what they used to be in their heyday.
No reign lasts forever.
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CULTURE
The OG smartphones
Pre-internet times feel like a lost era
The Future. We hate to break it to you, but the mid-90s are now considered “period,” with young people having no clue how life before smartphones actually functioned. It goes to show how many people are starting to feel like we rely too much on being digitally connected. This could foster a movement around learning analog skills as a way to stand out from the pack.
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Young people are obsessing over what “pre-internet” life looked like, per Axios.
Gen Z and Gen Alpha are watching Friends and Seinfeld, posting questions on Reddit and Quora, and sharing personal essays from elders (anyone over the age of 40) to get a sense of the digital-less existence.
That’s because Boomers, Gen Xers, and elder millennials are the last ones who remember existing in a world without a smartphone in their pocket.
Some hallmarks of this ancient history include a slower, less stressful lifestyle, no social media, and a more singular culture.
A Harris Poll found that “most Americans would prefer to live in a simpler era before everyone was obsessed with screens and social media” — a feeling most prevalent with Gen Xers and elder millennials. That’s because they were still young when the transition happened.
But after nearly two decades, it would be fascinating to see if they could still survive without a smartphone.
So, now we want to hear from you…
YOUR DAILY POLL
We ask the hard-hitting questions.
81.4% of you voted No in yesterday’s poll: Do you own Stanley Cups?
“Overpriced and overhyped, and I don’t understand the craze, even if their marketing is driving it.”
“I don’t need a status symbol to transport my beverage.”
“We will start to find them at Goodwill soon.”
“I’m team Yeti all day.”
“My 11-year-old daughter needed one because there is a ‘Stanley Cup Club’ at school now.”
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What’s better than being good?
Launched by the creators of The Webby Awards in 2021, The Anthem Awards celebrate the purpose and mission-driven work of people, companies, and organizations all over the globe.
They’ve created an inspiring community of advocates, movement leaders, and impact-driven companies over the last three years. And you can totally become a part of it.
Winners will be announced on January 30th, but if you want to get involved, check out their website now.
Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Media, Music, & Entertainment
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour is now the highest-grossing concert movie of all time. Read More → variety
SAG-AFTRA has struck a deal with Replica Studios for union actors to create and license digital voice clones for video games. Read More → deadline
Doja Cat is bringing her Scarlet arena tour to VR via Meta Horizon Worlds. Read More → variety
Fashion & E-Commerce
French fashion conglomerate Kering is pouring $12 million into biomaterials startup Mogu, which is famous for its mushroom-derived leather alternative. Read More → bof
13-year-old Milan from France scored an internship with LVMH after his mom shared his designs online. Read More → complex
Mega retailers like Walmart and Target are letting customers keep items they want to return while still giving refunds. Read More → insider
Tech, Web3, & AI
Elon Musk said that X will start offering peer-to-peer payments sometime this year in an effort to compete with PayPal. Read More → cnbc
Former Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal has raised $30 million for his secretive, enterprise-focused AI-startup from investors like Khosla Ventures and Index Ventures. Read More → theinformation
Waymo robotaxis are taking to Phoenix highways in a first for fully-autonomous vehicles. Read More → forbes
Creator Economy
YouTubers Rhett & Link are embarking on their first live tour, The Good Mythical Tour, starting this May. Read More → tubefilter
Meta announced that teenage users will be blocked from seeing content related to self-harm, graphic violence, and eating disorders. Read More → wsj
Slow Ventures is getting in on micro-investments for creator-led companies. Read More → tubefilter
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Today’s email was written by David Vendrell.
Edited by Boye Akolade. Copy edited by Kait Cunniff.
Published by Darline Salazar.