Tech Force Wants You

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It’s Tuesday, Future Party. On Sunday night, legendary filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, were tragically killed. The details are widely available, but we just want to shine a light on Reiner’s nearly incomparable career — from beloved actor (All in the Family), to iconic director (Stand by Me, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally…), to hit producer (The Shawshank Redemption, Seinfeld). He was an artist who made movies with a big heart… and, by all accounts, had an even bigger one in real life. RIP.

The Trump administration is partnering with 28 tech companies to start the United States Tech Force — a two-year job program for early-stage tech workers to modernize the federal government.

The Big Picture: Working for the federal government has been a case of whiplash this year — from the Elon Musk-led DOGE taking a wrecking ball to employment numbers to cuts in key departments related to cybersecurity, technical infrastructure, and nuclear operations. Tech Force is seemingly rebuilding from that damage while also looping in the private sector.

Behind The Program: The White House and Silicon Valley want to do a little job-sharing.

Final Test: Partnering companies — including Apple, Amazon, Anduril, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, Palantir, Oracle, and xAI — will provide training resources and mentorship opportunities, and have pledged to consider workers for roles once their government contracts conclude. There’s no requirement that they do so.

On the flip side, employees at these same companies can also choose to take a leave of absence from their private-sector jobs to become government employees — while still maintaining their equity and stock options. Given that the government would likely welcome talent with top-tier experience, this could be the low-key, ultimate recruitment goal of Tech Force.

The Future: Getting the attention of top Silicon Valley firms is tough… so it’s possible that a stint in the federal government becomes part of the private-sector hiring pipeline.

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Christmas music is really popping off this season, scoring high streaming engagement far earlier than the usual holiday listening cycle.

Why It Hits: Christmas music brings a lot of people nostalgic joy and a sense of communal connection… and it seems many people are craving a dose of that earlier this year, after a chaotic stretch of living in “interesting times” (your mileage on how good or bad that is may vary). That tracks: music-analytics company Hit Momentum founder Matt Bailey told The WSJ that the last time Christmas music listening spiked this early was in 2020.

Between The Lines: When people are stressed, Christmas music is a balm.

Encore: Christmas music puts people in such a good mood that it can actually lessen their critical judgment of songs… at least according to music manager Jonathan Daniel. That’s why some of his acts — including Sia, Weezer, and Fall Out Boy — have experimented with Christmas music in recent years (the Christmas With Weezer album is an all-season spin for this writer).

And for some reason, people also feel more comfortable listening to genres they wouldn’t normally seek out during the rest of the year — which is how a cappella supergroup Pentatonix has sold more than 9 million holiday albums in the US.

Next Tune: Daniel told The WSJ that a hit holiday song is a “little ATM.” If the vibes in 2026 are as bleak as they’ve been this year, don’t be surprised if every band you know and love drops a Christmas tune.

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44.1% of you voted I mix planning ahead with last-minute shopping. in yesterday’s poll: What best describes your approach to holiday gift-giving?

“I actually shop all year long. When I see something that has a certain person’s ‘name on it,’ I get it at that time. Then, I finish any final shopping in early December — and I still send out Christmas cards, too.”

“For my close circle, I have all the gifts planned out and bought before Thanksgiving. For the additional people that I just don’t know well enough, I shop at the last minute and use it as an excuse to shop locally or make something handmade.”

“I save all my shopping for Black Friday.”

“My holiday shopping has evolved from last-minute running around when going into department stores during the holidays used to be exciting. Now, it’s more minimal for ease — with gift cards, the recipient gets exactly what they want.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🛻 Ford has officially hit the brakes on producing the F-150 Lightning — a flagship example of the EV-market slowdown.

🚗 Tesla is testing its robotaxis without a safety driver in Austin.

📉 Roomba-maker iRobot is filing for bankruptcy… and will be acquired by Chinese tech firm Picea Robotics.

👀 JPMorgan is rolling out a tokenized money-market fund that will trade on the Ethereum blockchain.

🎲 Luxury-branded board games want to up your game night next year. Do you even Uno if it’s not Miu Miu?

🧸 Mattel is slow-rolling the production of toys with OpenAI following several issues with AI-powered toys.

📱 A high-profile study found that smartphone use before age 12 could have significant developmental cognitive consequences.

📸 Your Snapchat is getting wrapped with a new feature called “Recaps.”

🗣️ Threads is introducing new and expanded community tools in a bid to take engagement away from Reddit and X.