YouTube – Transformers One

X (Twitter) – Stevie Nicks

Google – The Tortured Poets Department

Reddit – James Bond

TikTok – “Me Myself and I” - De La Soul

Spotify – “Espresso” - Sabrina Carpenter

Startups in the crypto and blockchain sectors raised around $1.9 billion in 346 deals in Q1, which is a 58% jump from Q4 2023, when startups in those sectors raised about $1.2 billion in 263 deals.

Last week, New York-based Monad Labs, a blockchain compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine, snagged a $225 million funding round led by Paradigm in the biggest Web3 funding round of 2024 so far.

Generate dances, iconic memes, and more with lifelike movements.

Create personalized characters from a single reference image.

Create original videos by writing out the prompts in Prompt Builder.

Hipgnosis Songs Fund, home to the music catalogs of nearly 150 artists including Neil Young, Shakira, and Justin Bieber, has agreed to a $1.4 billion sale to Nashville-based music company Concord Chorus. [Read More]

A24 is facing backlash for the six posters from its latest movie Civil War that it posted on Instagram, because the company used AI to generate the images. [Read More]

The most powerful people in Paris are joining forces to make the Olympic Games a true demonstration of France’s iconic motto: “Liberté, égalité, fraternité.” [Read More]

Caitlin Clark, the No. 1 pick in this week’s WNBA draft, is reportedly finalizing an eight-figure endorsement deal with Nike, which will include a signature shoe. [Read More]

Anne Wojcicki wants to buy back the DNA-testing company 23andMe she co-founded in 2006 and take it private after three years in public markets saw the company tumble from its peak valuation of $6 billion. [Read More]

Meghan Markle is reinventing herself with the launch of a new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, and the announcement of a new cooking show in the early stages of production at Netflix. [Read More]

SAG-AFTRA is encouraging members to ratify an agreement with major record labels, which says that musicians must give their consent before a label uses AI to produce a track with their voices. [Read More]

Couples therapy is improving tech co-founders’ personal lives and company cultures, as the biggest issues affecting entrepreneurs are similar to marriage problems. [Read More]

Spotify announced that while its premium plans bundling music and audiobooks will reduce songwriter payments, creator earnings are set to increase on the platform. [Read More]

“Blackout shopping” (going out for something specific but getting tempted to impulse-buy other stuff) is one of the worst things we can do if we’re trying to save money. [Read More]

The House, in its move to ban TikTok in the US, has issued a revised bill that would extend the ByteDance divestment period to nine months, with the potential for a 90-day extension. [Read More]

Meta AI’s Imagine feature, which lets users create images from text in real-time, is rolling out in beta on WhatsApp in the US. [Read More]

Coca-Cola, Target, and Tide are three irrationally loved brands that have won public favor by creating advertising narratives around their customers’ unmet needs and evolving those narratives over time.

For example, Coca-Cola has always focused on inclusive experiences that make life better, Target has always prioritized the affordability of beautifully designed goods, and Tide has always tackled stain removal.

Use: Dupe Photos, a new royalty-free, crowd-sourced stock image platform that’s searchable by aesthetic, recently dropped, and it’s legit.

Read: Totally Recommended analyzes product recommendation content on social media in the smart essay “Is Recommendation Culture Making Us Act Nutso?” on Substack.

Listen: Katherine Heigl opens up about her journey building the lifestyle brand New Lane Road Mercantile on Shopify’s Masters Podcast.