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OTC gaming. So long, CVS. Hello, GameStop Pharmacy? As the FDA and DEA look for ways to alleviate America’s ongoing Adderall shortage, one possible solution may surprise you: video games. While the idea of using digital prescriptions to help treat ADHD is nothing new (it’s actually been around for quite a while), support around this pixelated remedy has become more popular as of late thanks to emerging research.
In other news… Hollywood’s latest offer has major AI loopholes, US homes are shrinking, and mental health gets by with a little help from some friends.
Top Trends
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ENTERTAINMENT
Dueling visions // Illustration by Kate Walker
The future of AI-written scripts is in strike development
The Future. Film and TV writers may need to worry more about generative AI undermining copyright protections than outright replacing them in jobs. While the studios have made clear AI won’t be treated as a human writer on projects, a loophole remains on who owns the work that began as an AI generation. For Hollywood writers, closing those loopholes for good may be one of the only ways the strike ends.
Generating ownership
In its latest offer to the WGA, the AMPTP conceded it wouldn’t allow AI-generated scripts to be deemed as underlying literary material, and the AI wouldn’t be counted as the “first writer” on a project, which would’ve negatively impacted the compensation of a hired human writer.
But according to THR, that’s because, since AI can’t be granted copyright, studios actually need a human touch to gain ownership of the completed work.
A script, or any work of art, is copyrightable after it’s been extensively revised by a human — otherwise, the AI work would enter the public domain.
So, studios could generate a first draft of a script and then hire a writer to rewrite it (with the proper compensation, credit, and rights), but make themselves the owner of the underlying IP.
That would allow the studios to hold greater control over the finished work, creating an ecosystem where fewer writers could maintain or claw back copyright ownership.
There are plenty of examples of the studios fighting to maintain copyright on popular IP in perpetuity, as evidenced by the fights over franchises like Predator, Friday the 13th, and Spider-Man.
As John Lopez, a member of the WGA’s working group on AI, says, “Fundamentally, the offers mistook who’s doing who a favor.”
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HOUSING
Shrinking single-family homes // Illustration by Kate Walker
New homes keep getting smaller
The Future. With home prices skyrocketing and mortgage rates at a 20-year high, a new housing trend is sweeping the nation: just making them smaller. In a perfect world, that would mean the homes are a lot cheaper, but that’s turning out to not be the case. With entry-level home buyers relegated to smaller pads for the time being, furniture makers and smart-home device developers may need to pivot to make tiny living feel less tight.
Honey, I shrunk the home
Not only are homes getting more expensive, but they’re also being made smaller.
John Burns Research and Consulting reports home prices nationwide have skyrocketed 72% over the past three years, with the number of homes priced under $400,000 declining rapidly.
Meanwhile, listing platform Livabl by Zonda found the average size of new construction homes has decreased by 10%, with even bigger decreases in popular metros like Seattle, Charlotte, and San Antonio.
How’s the shrinking shaking out? Builders are getting rid of dining areas, separate living rooms, additional bedrooms, and bathtubs… while opting to make shared spaces a little larger.
Those shrinking homes are meant to help curb costs (good for builders) and lower prices (good for consumers), but the US Census Bureau found customers are still paying more per square foot.
In other words, we’re getting less bang for our buck. No wonder some are just opting to live in actual tiny homes.
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Stay sustainable
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Check out Matter and replace your (garbage) plastic items with something a lot better.
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Buddy system
Living near close friends can make you healthy, wealthy, and wise
The Future. Americans are lonely, which is having measurable effects on our health and well-being. After decades of preaching the benefits of finding happiness within ourselves, culture is shifting to cultivating it by prioritizing close — in quality and proximity — community. Those changes could immensely influence migration patterns over the next several years.
Relationship radius
The ultimate health and wellness hack may be just living closer to your friends, writes Melody Song in her headlines newsletter.
The longest study on human happiness found living within a mile of a friend who’s happy can increase your happiness by 25%.
Having a friend you see most days can improve your well-being as much as making an extra $100,000 per year.
But unfortunately, the modern American is more friendless than ever, with only 13% saying they have 10 close friends (a 33% drop from the ‘90s) and 12% saying they have no close friends at all. No wonder 60% of American adults say they feel lonely.
But several movements hope to change that.
The LiveNearFriends site, launched by Phil Levin, helps people coordinate living within a five-minute walk of each other.
Apps like Geneva, Saturday, and even Bumble are putting a focus on friend discovery within your area.
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) introduced legislation to create a national game plan for combating loneliness.
All in all, we could get by better with a little help from our friends.
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Build a website in 30 seconds with AI
Another day, another AI tool coming at ya. But this one can truly make your life easier, especially if you run a business that requires a website (which is, like, all of them).
Durable is on a mission to create a future where anyone, regardless of technical ability, can build software without touching any code. That’s right, folks — no shirt, no shoes, no code, no problem. Using Durable, you can generate a fully designed website with copy and images in under a minute. Then, you can check out their other AI tools to market and grow your business. 🚀
Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Media, Music, & Entertainment
Warner Bros. Discovery is adding CNN to Max, giving subscribers 24/7 news coverage as part of its existing plans — a little over a year after the conglomerate shut down the standalone CNN+ platform. Read more → thr
Programming drama: Netflix co-founder and former CEO Marc Randolph argues the company has lost its focus with the launch of a pop-up restaurant featuring a menu curated by talent from its shows. Read more → medium
Filmmaker Antoine Fuqua is seriously considering making an Equalizer prequel starring a de-aged Denzel Washington. Read more → deadline
Fashion & E-Commerce
Brian Cox is going from CEO of Waystar Royco to the star of Kith’s fall campaign. Read more → complex
SHEIN struck a deal with Forever 21 to bring its clothes to its e-commerce site, which may lead to SHEIN storefronts inside F21 locations. Read more → wsj
Rolex has purchased luxury watch retailer Bucherer AG, giving the company better control over the clockwork behind its used and pre-owned retail sales. Read more → bloomberg
Tech, Web3, & AI
CVS Health plans to make cheaper “biosimilar” variations of FDA-approved name-brand medicines via its new unit Cordavis. Read more → engadget
The DOJ has charged the two founders of Russian cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash with money laundering after $1 billion was funneled through the platform by criminals. Read more → cnbc
Despite planning to eliminate article headlines, X says news organizations can take part in its revenue-share program. Read more → theverge
Creator Economy
Top TikTok execs argue the reason Hollywood advertising works so well on the platform is because it’s a “fullscreen audio-on platform,” making it hard to multitask on other screens. Read more → variety
Speaking of TikTok, the D’Amelios are graduating from spending most of their time on the platform to focusing on their family brand. Read more → bloomberg
A survey from Precise TV and Giraffe Insights found YouTube beats Twitch when it comes to watching video game streams. Read more → tubefilter
Correction: In the 8/23 newsletter, we mixed up Cactus Plant Flea Market with Cactus Jack by Travis Scott. We must’ve had brain freeze from CPFM’s Erewhon smoothies.
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Today’s email was written by David Vendrell.
Edited by Nick Comney. Copy edited by Kait Cunniff.
Published by Darline Salazar.