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UnitedHealthcare CEO Killed |
Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, the insurance division of UnitedHealth Group, was shot and killed yesterday in what police called a targeted attack in Manhattan. The company was holding its annual investor day at the Hilton Hotel. A search for the suspect is underway.
The 50-year-old Thompson was arriving around 6:45 am ET when the suspect, wearing a ski mask and a dark hooded sweatshirt, fired three shots at his back and leg using a handgun before escaping on an e-bike. Police say the suspect was lying in wait for several minutes before the killing. Authorities have not publicly identified a motive as of this writing, but they say Thompson had recently faced several threats. See photos of the suspect here.
UnitedHealthcare is the largest private health insurance provider in the US, serving roughly 50 million customers. Thompson had worked at the company for more than 20 years, becoming CEO of UnitedHealthcare in April 2021. Read his bio here. |
France Prime Minister Ousted |
France's National Assembly voted to oust conservative Prime Minister Michel Barnier yesterday, marking the country's first successful no-confidence effort since 1962. He is expected to resign imminently.
The vote—331 out of 577—came two days after Barnier sidestepped Parliament to pass a 2025 budget with roughly $63B in spending cuts and tax increases. While France reels from two years of flat growth and high levels of debt, the budget—and its mode of passage—was opposed by both left-wing and conservative populist parties. Barnier's budget is now null and void, leaving some concerned about the direction of Europe's second-largest economy.
Barnier's government lasted only three months—the shortest-lived government in France's history. He was appointed by President Emmanuel Macron in September after snap elections over the summer left the National Assembly without a party in the majority. Barnier is expected to stay on as a caretaker prime minister until Macron appoints his replacement. |
Sunny with a Chance of Accuracy |
Google's DeepMind yesterday unveiled an AI model capable of predicting the weather more accurately than existing forecasting systems. The breakthrough marks an advancement in the field, promising quicker and cheaper results.
DeepMind researchers trained their model, GenCast, on data from 1979 to 2018 to predict the weather for 2019. In a study published in Nature, they found GenCast outperformed the world's leading atmospheric predictor—the ensemble system from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts—over 97% of the time on factors like wind speeds, temperatures, and precipitation. GenCast was also fast, producing 15-day predictions in eight minutes rather than the hours conventional systems can take. GenCast also outperformed in predicting fast-changing hurricane paths but underperformed in predictions of hurricane intensity.
At least 35 countries rely on Europe's ensemble system, which forecasts weather using room-sized supercomputers that calculate global observations from satellites and weather stations. In contrast, GenCast runs on smaller machines and uses historical data to spot patterns and present scenarios. |
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It's easy to forget that our sweat isn't just water. But why is it that we only down a glass of water after a long run or a hot day? Our sweat consists of water and salt, so next time you're reaching for that glass of water ... remember to replenish electrolytes, too.
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Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
> Disney+ integrates ESPN live sports and other select content into its offering, including two new Disney+ exclusive sports studio shows (More) |
> Texas, Georgia, and Alabama highlight top 2025 recruiting classes for college football's national signing day (More) | Sports streamer DAZN signs roughly $1B deal for broadcast rights to all 63 matches for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup (More) |
> Taylor Swift named Spotify's most-streamed artist worldwide for second straight year; The Weeknd, Bad Bunny, Drake, and Billie Eilish round out the top five (More) |
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> Drugmaker Eli Lilly reports its weightloss drug Zepbound showed more than 20% reduction in body weight, roughly 50% more effective than rival Wegovy in randomized control trials (More) | See comparison between the two (More) |
> Researchers discover brain circuit linked to resilience against stress in mice; findings may lead to new treatments for chronic depression (More) |
> Engineers develop new catalyst that efficiently turns methane gas into useful polymers; reaction produces formaldehyde, which can be combined with urea to create a resin found in common consumer goods (More) |
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> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +0.6%, Dow +0.7%, Nasdaq +1.3%), with all three indexes reaching all-time session highs and closing at records (More) | Bitcoin surpasses $100K in value for the first time; the cryptocurrency has jumped over 45% in value since the US presidential election last month (More) |
> Amazon sued by Washington, DC, Attorney General Brian Schwalb (D) for allegedly excluding two historically underserved communities from access to Prime's expedited two-day delivery (More) |
> General Motors to record over $5B hit to Q4 profit as it aims to restructure an unprofitable joint venture in Shanghai that has lost market share to Chinese manufacturers in recent years (More) |
💸 1440 Business & Finance: This week, we're exploring retirement savings, from the difference between traditional and Roth IRAs to the story of a founder who turned their IRA into $5B. The deep dive comes out at 8:30 am ET today—sign up here for free. |
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In partnership with Motley Fool Money |
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> South Korea's opposition parties submit motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol following martial law declaration this week; vote could come as early as tomorrow (More) | See previous write-up (More) |
> President-elect Donald Trump to nominate cryptocurrency advocate Paul Atkins to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission (More) | Former Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) selected to lead Small Business Administration (More) | Peter Navarro selected as top trade adviser (More) | Jared Isaacman—first billionaire to conduct private spacewalk—chosen to lead NASA (More) | Army veteran Dan Driscoll selected for Army secretary (More) | See list of key appointments and nominations (More) |
> Final House race called as Democrat Adam Gray is declared winner of California's 13th District; Republicans to hold five-seat majority (220-215) (More) |
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> The Promise of Duolingo
The Dial | Imogen West-Knights. Duolingo is the world's most downloaded language-learning app, with many users boasting of their once-a-day practice streak. Can we expect conversational fluency from it—or some other gain entirely? (Read)
> The Rise and Fall of Honeycrisp
Serious Eats | Genevieve Yam. When the Honeycrisp debuted in the 1990s, it redefined the fruit. Today, as much as 50% of apples may be its offspring ... but is the variety's taste—and reputation—in decline? (Read) |
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The Trusted Way To Hydrate |
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"Be silent, if you choose; but when it is necessary, speak–and speak in such a way that people will remember it." |
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |
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