Waymo In The Fast Lane

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Happy Thursday, Future Party. It’s always fun to see a great filmmaker or celebrity’s Letterboxd 4, but it’s another thing entirely to hear the Pope’s. Prior to a meeting at the Vatican with some of the biggest names in Hollywood “to deepen dialogue with the world of cinema,” the pontiff revealed that his favorite films are Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life, Robert Wise’s The Sound of Music, Robert Redford’s Ordinary People, and Roberto Benigni’s Life Is Beautiful. Talk about a collection of movies that really do unify cinephiles from around the world.

Waymo announced that it’s rolling out its driverless fleet onto select US highways, making it the first company in America to do so.

Why It Rolls: The robotaxi race is upon us… and Waymo is officially leading the pack. Freeways have long been the white whale of the industry due to safety concerns and high speeds, so getting the greenlight to operate without safety drivers represents a major leap forward for the technology. It also puts robotaxis fully in competition with traditional rideshare services and taxis.

Behind The Rides: Ready to sit in the back seat at 70 mph with no one behind the wheel?

Last Exit: The question on everybody’s mind is: “Is this safe?” Waymo says it’s been testing the feature for over a year using its current tech stack and sensors, closed-course driving, simulation testing, and the good ol’ practice of putting its employees in the back seat during live runs. According to the company, the vehicles have been put through “rare” and “inevitable” driving conditions, including hydroplaning, flooding, and even a deer jumping out in front of them. 

Whether you trust robotaxis may ultimately come down to how Waymo handles one of those real-life curveballs when you’re the passenger.

Next Drive: The new cultural divide could be whether you opt for a Waymo or an Uber on your night out on the town.

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Spotify is officially bringing music videos to the platform in the US after testing the feature overseas.

The Big Picture: Music videos have lost the cultural cachet they once had just 15 years ago, thanks to the decline of MTV, the diminished role of Vevo, and the disappearance of Vimeo Staff Picks. In their place, vibey visuals primed for the vertical scroll have become the go-to content on social media. But with Spotify — the most popular music streamer in the world — putting them on the platform, they could be primed for a cultural comeback.

Behind The Videos: Spotify Wrapped will be getting a new metric this year — your most-watched music videos.

The Future: Spotify’s push into music videos comes as nearly every streamer bulks up on video podcasts, which have become low-lift, high-engagement content to sell ads against. Having perfected that tech, it was inevitable that Spotify would expand to music videos… especially since YouTube Music already offers them. 

But YouTube Music never managed to revive the cultural status of music videos. Spotify thinks its platform — built around playlists, personalization, and habit — can actually turn passive listeners into active watchers.

Next Hit: The “middle class” of music video directors has nearly disappeared in recent years due to the shift toward cheaper, vibe-driven visuals. If Spotify’s integration performs well, it could push labels to invest in traditional music videos again, giving emerging artists and filmmakers a long-overdue boost.

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52.6% of you voted Directly through the official ticketing site (Ticketmaster, etc.) in yesterday’s poll: How do you usually get tickets to concerts or sports games?

“The ticketing industry is undergoing lawsuits with the government, and Live Nation and Ticketmaster have been caught doing underground deals with third-party sites like StubHub the moment tickets go on sale. If anything, they’ve barely helped prevent scalping. It’s a huge problem in the concert industry.”

“It’s a monopoly that everyone seems to just accept.”

“Some things never change — like being the tag-along friend who pays you back for their ticket. I just can’t be trusted with the task.”

“The only live events I attend with any regularity are our local AAA baseball games, and I buy tickets on game day at the ballpark.”

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.

🖼️ George Lucas’ $1 billion, decade-in-the-making Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is set to finally open on September 22nd, 2026.

🎭 Filmmaker Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted, Night Watch) has created an AI system that trains generated actors to method act.

🎮 Valve is getting into the console wars with the Steam Machine.

🤖 Meta’s chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, is looking to leave the company and launch his own startup.

🐔🚗 Toyota is all-in on hybrid vehicles with the launch of a new $14 billion factory in North Carolina.

📱 Google is suing a scam operation in China called “Lighthouse,” which is responsible for most of the fraudulent toll texts to American phones.

🪪 Apple is introducing a Digital ID in the Wallet app that can be used at TSA checkpoints in 250 US airports.

🛍️ Airbnb is testing a partnership with Instacart that would allow renters to have their fridges stocked before arrival.

🫡 The last penny was officially minted in Philadelphia yesterday. Sweet dreams, Penny. It was a great 232 years.