Celebrity cage match. Let’s get ready to grumble! After months of back-and-forth bickering, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg’s online feud may finally transpire into something worthwhile. Well, maybe. The two billionaires have tentatively agreed to hit the octagon for a pay-per-view style meme match (and by “agreed,” we mean post about it on social), dividing the internet on who would actually win. While we’re 100% certain the fight will never happen, it’s still fun to dream.
Also, it’s officially summer, Future Party people, and what better way to celebrate than by winning a trip to the Fairmont Mayakoba Resort in Riviera Maya. This exclusive giveaway ends today, so click here to enter before it’s too late.
In other news… Adventure tourists make it rain, Vice hits the bargain bin, and the Great Resignation rages on.
Top Trends
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TRAVEL
Extreme tourism turns risk into a vacation
The Future. Affluent travelers are increasingly skipping the usual vacation destinations for adventures that put them to the lowest depths of the ocean or the highest reaches of space. It’s the experience economy taken to the extreme. While many of these trips are safer than ever, the tragic implosion of the Titan sub that has rocked the public imagination may be a reminder that they still come with considerable risk.
Spaceships, submarines, and summits
Some adventurous travelers are pushing their bucket lists to the limit.
Space travel is now within reach thanks to SpaceX, Blue Origin, and the newest entrant, Virgin Galactic — suborbital trips range from $250,000 to $500,000.
Deep Sea trips — like OceanGate Expeditions’ ill-fated mission to the Titanic — can cost up to $250,000.
A journey to the South Pole runs travelers a modest $100,000.
And a jaunt to the top of Everest is so popular that there are literal lines to the summit… and that was before Nepal issued a record number of climbing permits last season.
What’s driving people to put life and limb on the line for the ultimate experience? Axios says it’s a mixture of technological advancement, a post-COVID sense of “do the crazy thing while you still can,” and maybe some of the intangibles that drove adventurers of centuries past.
Whatever the reason, the global adventure tourism industry is expected to launch from $322 billion in 2022 to over $1 trillion this year. James Petrick, a professor at Texas A&M who studies tourism and recreation, says, "There are very few places on the planet that people have never been, and the demand for a unique trip increases its price and value."
MEDIA
On clearance // Illustration by Kate Walker
Burning cash, Vice finds new owner in fire sale
The Future. Vice Media is coming out of bankruptcy with (slightly) new owners, giving the company a lifeline to continue operating. Unfortunately, the company is a former shadow of itself… which may speak less of Vice’s business decisions and more of the overall devaluation of the digital publishing ecosystem that ruled culture the previous decade.
Digital meltdown
Vice Media is getting picked up from the bargain bin… err… acquired out of bankruptcy.
Fortress Investment Group and Soros Fund Management put in a bid to purchase the brand… which is just covered by existing loans to the company.
Others put in bids, such as GoDigital, but co-CEOs Hozefa Lokhandwala and Bruce Dixon said they didn’t hold up and would forward Fortress’ offer to the bankruptcy court.
Lokhandwala and Dixon will likely remain in their positions, and embattled co-founder Shane Smith may continue to have a role at the company.
The deal is expected to close on July 7th.
Per NYT, the new owners have signaled that they’re open to selling pieces of Vice, which includes production company Vice Studios, ad agency Virtue, and magazine i-D.
The company has come a long way from being one of the top players in the digital publishing world when it commanded a valuation of $5.6 billion.
EMPLOYMENT
“Adios!” // Unsplash
The Great Resignation rages on
The Future. Despite a year filled with layoffs, cutbacks, and inflation, the Great Resignation hasn’t died down, with many American workers still signaling that they’re on the hunt for better, higher-paying jobs. The takeaway here may be that employees feel like they can’t survive the skyrocketing cost of living without more income or benefits, so people are getting aggressive about securing that before their current situation becomes untenable.
Exit anxiety
While a struggling economy usually inspires people to keep their jobs, workers are increasingly looking for greener pastures to ride things out.
Bankrate found that even though one-third of US adults are concerned about job security, half of them plan to quit in the next year, while 88% plan to at least take some action, like demanding a higher income or more flexibility.
FlexJobs found that 42% are considering leaving their jobs, while 39% are concerned about getting laid off (complex times).
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 3.8 million people resigned from their jobs each month in the first four months of this year — far above pre-pandemic levels.
Factoring in a bonafide labor movement, surging transparency around pay and working conditions, and a focus on work-life balance, the average American worker may just be fed up with the status quo… no matter the conditions.
Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Media, Music, & Entertainment
The Academy is rewriting the rules to qualify for Best Picture (starting with films released in 2024), putting a bigger focus on having a national theatrical run — a clear swipe at the direct-to-streaming model. Read more → variety
A member of Canada’s Parliament filed an official grievance over Taylor Swift skipping the country on her Eras Tour, hoping that the singer would reconsider. Read more → complex
BMG has acquired a “substantial stake” in the catalog of legendary songwriter and musician Paul Simon, who came to fame in the 60s as one-half of Simon & Garfunkel and was behind the classic soundtrack for The Graduate. Read more → variety
Fashion & E-Commerce
VF Corporation, the parent company of mainstay brands like Vans, The North Face, and Supreme, crowned former Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell as its new head honcho. Read more → hypebeast
Fashion brands are increasingly demanding that their suppliers ditch coal in their fabric-making process. Read more → businessoffashion
NFTs, but make it fashion: Pillz is dropping a phygital wearable that displays your art as a necklace, bracelet, or carabiner for your blockchain crush. Read more → hypebeast
Tech, Web3, & AI
Whoops, it looks like not a single AI company measures up to the EU’s draft rules for its AI Act. Read more → axios
No one — fans, Hollywood creatives, entertainment industry analysts — was too happy about Marvel’s newest series, Secret Invasion, using generative AI to create its opening credits. Read more → deadline
Apple, the tech company, really wants to trademark the silhouette of apples, the fruit. Read more → hypebeast
Creator Economy
Yes, TikTok does store American data in China — the data of anyone enrolled in its Creator Fund. Read more → tubefilter
The Russo Brothers’ AGBO and Slamdance are partnering on a summer showcase in LA that will highlight emerging creators in film and TV, gaming, digital content, and even stand-up comedy. Read more → variety
Protest update: Reddit is furious after moderators switched their subreddits to NSFW in order to tank the platform’s ad revenue. Read more → techcrunch
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Editing by Nick Comney. Publishing by Darline Salazar.