☕️ New Atlas

There's a new humanoid robot to haunt your dreams... April 18, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [TopResume]( Good morning. People who live in Barcelona really don’t want you to visit them—in fact, they’re so fed up with tourists that they’ve literally wiped themselves off the map. According to The Guardian, the city council arranged to have a public bus route that frequently gets stuffed with visitors heading to a famous park [removed from Google Maps]( and Apple Maps so you can’t find it, and they can finally enjoy some peace and quiet. Do you know what this means? There’s a secret train to LaGuardia they’ve been hiding from us. —Molly Liebergall, Holly Van Leuven, Matty Merritt, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 15,683.37 -1.15% S&P 5,022.21 -0.58% Dow 37,753.31 -0.12% 10-Year 4.585% -7.4 bps Bitcoin $61,421.70 -3.77% United $48.74 +17.45% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 3:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( Markets: Stocks started the day strong yesterday but ended up [slumping]( before the market closed as investors pulled back on tech stocks, including AI darling Nvidia. United Airlines took off after releasing a strong forecast for the year despite saying it took a $200 million hit because of Boeing’s troubles.  CLIMATE CHANGE Storms flooded Dubai. Conspiracy theories followed [Flooded street corner in Dubai]Stringer/Anadolu via Getty Images Dubai, one of the world’s drier cities, spent much of the week underwater after getting hit with the heaviest thunderstorm it’s ever recorded. And yesterday, the United Arab Emirates dismissed early reports that the nation’s weather modification program might’ve been to blame. ICYMI: Dark clouds [dumped]( half a foot of rain on Dubai, which is two years’ worth, from Monday night to Tuesday night local time. The arid city [lacks]( many storm drains and green spaces for absorbing such a downpour, so it flooded roads, buildings, and airport tarmacs, shut down schools and businesses, and killed at least one person in the UAE and 18 people in bordering Oman. Even after the rain stopped…delays and cancellations at Dubai International Airport, which is the second-busiest airport in the world, [continued yesterday]( and Emirates suspended passenger check-ins through the morning for trips beginning in Dubai (though not ones connecting there). No, Dubai did not do this to itself In the early aftermath of the flooding, claims circulated on social media attributing the hefty rainfall to the UAE’s use of [cloud seeding]( which is when planes spray salt particles into rain clouds to give water vapor more to latch on to in an effort to boost precipitation. Californians also became unfoundedly suspicious of this geoengineering strategy after storms rocked their state in February. Causing some confusion…Bloomberg [reported]( Tuesday that a UAE meteorology official said the country worsened the flood by seeding the approaching clouds in the preceding days, but the UAE [denied]( this, and the same official later told CNBC that seeding planes flew but did not seed clouds, though CNBC couldn’t verify that. Even if the clouds were seeded, the tactic only boosts rainfall by 20% to 25% at best, experts say. The real culprit: Climate change, which is projected to make the UAE 15% to 30% rainier in the coming years, per Nature, and [cost $38 trillion]( in lost global income every year by 2049, according to a study released yesterday.—ML PRESENTED BY TOPRESUME [A résumé worth a thousand words]( [TopResume]( The job seeker’s mission: to condense all of their job experiences and shining skills into one concise, neatly formatted doc that’s bound to catch a potential employer’s eye. Feeling confident? A study conducted by TopResume found that a professionally written résumé [can get you more interviews]( help you get a gig faster, and make you more dough. That’s why TopResume works with job seekers to craft [ATS-friendly résumés]( (aka résumés that pass screening tech), modern LinkedIn profiles, and winning cover letters that reflect your brand and help you land your dream job. Invest in your career trajectory and use [code MBrew10 for 10% off any TopResume writing package](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Elon Musk]Chesnot/Getty Images Tesla shareholders asked to re-up Elon Musk’s pay package that judge tossed. The electric vehicle company said that at its June 13 annual meeting, it will [ask]( shareholders to vote to reinstate Musk’s $56 billion compensation package, which a Delaware judge had nixed as unfair. Though shareholders voted in favor of the plan in 2018, the new vote is coming as Tesla’s value is slipping amid increased competition from Chinese manufacturers and slowing demand for electric cars. The company also wants shareholders to greenlight Musk’s plan to move the company’s incorporation from Delaware to Texas. NBA player banned for life for betting on his own sport. The NBA said yesterday that Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter can never play in the league again after its [investigation]( found evidence of “disclosing confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and betting on NBA games.” The investigation determined that Porter had bet more than $54,000 on NBA games this year—and won upward of $76,000. The punishment comes as sports leagues contend with the reality of legalized betting across the US. Biden wants to triple tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum. President Joe Biden wants to [boost]( the current 7.5% tariff on steel and aluminum imports from China to 25%, an idea he not-so-subtly introduced while campaigning in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, where US Steel is based. US Steel has become a thorny election issue for the president, since the company’s efforts to sell itself to Japan’s Nippon Steel have drawn ire from unions and raised concerns over foreign ownership. MEDIA Not even the media trusts the media [An NPR office]Drew Angerer/Getty Images Anybody who distrusts mainstream media is getting more company: journalists from mainstream media. Uri Berliner, an editor at NPR who published an essay critical of the institution last week, [resigned yesterday](. How it started: On April 9, Berliner, who had been at NPR for 25 years, opined in The Free Press that the outlet [lost the public’s trust]( due to left-leaning bias. He cited NPR’s coverage of ”Russiagate,” and noncoverage of the Covid-19 lab leak theory and Hunter Biden’s laptop. He also blamed NPR’s internal culture, citing a “burgeoning number of employee resource (or affinity) groups based on identity.” How it’s going: NPR suspended Berliner for five days without pay for talking about the org without permission, and he quit. Some conservatives hailed him as a brave truth-teller. Meanwhile, some fellow journalists had a harder time reconciling his complaints with his statement that NPR is “a place I love” than they did accepting that Gerry Turner is divorcing Theresa Nist despite saying he’s still in love with her. Zoom out: Recent clashes between journalists and management at NPR, the [New York Times]( and [NBC]( reflect a “broader rise in [employee activism]( in US corporations” since the murder of George Floyd, per the WSJ.—HVL TOGETHER WITH INFINITY FUEL [Infinity Fuel]( Discovered: An “infinite” supply of energy. The renewable energy market is about to get real in 2024. Infinity Fuel Cell & Hydrogen, Inc. is inviting private investors to [participate in their first capital raise](. They’re pioneering hydrogen fuel cells that work underwater and in space, developed with $50m+ of previous contracts from NASA, the US Navy, and more. [Become one of Infinity’s earliest shareholders while you can](. TECH Boston Dynamics introduces warehouse M3GAN [Boston Dynamics Alta humanoid spinning its mirror head and walking.]Boston Dynamics After only eight years of doing flips for internet clout, the Boston Dynamics humanoid robot Atlas is being put out to pasture. The good (or scary, if you’re concerned about the robo revolution) news is the robotics company already has a [replacement]( an electric-powered Atlas it plans to sell. What does it do? Besides [rising]( from the floor in a way that will forever bedevil your nightmares: - The new Atlas will be able to lift stuff too heavy for most humans (and the previous hydraulic version of Atlas). - It also bends in a way no human can. For instance, its knees swivel backward, and its torso can do a full 360-degree rotation. The OG Atlas was originally pitched for search and rescue missions, but the company now envisions the bot carrying weirdly shaped, heavy items around a warehouse quickly. Looking ahead…Boston Dynamics said it will start testing the new Atlas in its parent company Hyundai’s factories next year. And, unlike the last Atlas, this one will become commercially available, with plans to roll out the bot to other manufacturers in the next few years. Other companies like BMW and Amazon have also started investing in other humanoid robots for warehouse tasks.—MM GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [A hand throwing pennies into a trash can]Francis Scialabba Stat: If you’ve ever felt like you’re throwing money away by impulse-buying that gadget you saw on TikTok or forgetting to turn the lights off when you go out, know that many Americans are literally trashing cash. According to Reworld, a company that fishes coins out of garbage for profit, ~$68 million worth of change gets [chucked]( per year. The company says it collected $10 million in discarded coins in the past seven years—though only $6 million was in good enough shape to use, according to the Wall Street Journal. Quote: “As is common with entirely innocent people, they are offering me an enormous sum of money to keep this matter out of court.” Hugh Grant said yesterday that as much as he’d like to keep fighting his lawsuit accusing British tabloid the Sun of invading his privacy by illegally spying on his phone calls, car, and home, he’s taking their money to [settle]( the case. The actor said he was persuaded to sign onto the deal because of litigation rules that could have put him on the hook for paying the publisher’s lawyers even if he won the case if he was awarded less than the settlement offer. The settlement amount (characterized by Grant as “enormous”) wasn’t disclosed, and the Sun, which is still facing claims from Prince Harry and other celebrities, admitted no liability. Read: The invisible seafaring industry that keeps the internet afloat. ([The Verge]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [The Senate]( dismissed the impeachment charges against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, bringing a swift end to Republicans’ effort to remove him from office over his handling of the Mexican border. - [House Speaker Mike Johnson]( unveiled the bills he hopes to pass to secure aid for Ukraine and Israel despite conservative opposition within his own party. A final vote is expected on Saturday. - [The president of Columbia University]( was grilled on antisemitism by the same House committee whose questioning led to the resignations of the presidents of Harvard and UPenn. - [A Boeing whistleblower]( shared safety concerns with a Senate committee, telling lawmakers, “They are putting out defective airplanes.” - [Zepbound]( Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug, also reduces sleep apnea, a new study found. - [Google employees]( were arrested while staging a sit-in to protest the company’s work with Israel. - [Disneyland staffers]( who dress as characters filed a petition to form a union. POETRY [Cicada haiku contest winners](#) Yesterday, to celebrate National Haiku Day, we asked you to write a haiku about cicadas. And you delivered with a thunderous roar. Here are our favorites: Cicadas this month Where are they all other months Big bug mystery —Steve from Chesterfield, MO Wake slumbering broods! Mate, frolic, make yourself known. Return to silence. —Eric Peel from Dothan, AL If I see one more Cicada post on Facebook Grandma’s unfriended. —Ingrid from PA Cicadas emerge Summer’s rock band in the trees Their drummer’s a leaf. —Joshua from Indiana Silly cicadas Visiting annually At least bring presents —Taylor A. from the Space Coast of Florida RECS [To do list Thursday] Listen: A new Lennon-McCartney [song]( dropped, but this one is by John’s and Paul’s sons. Crunch: The Crocs and Pringles [collab]( you never knew you needed. Watch: A day in a [candle factory](. Update your playlist: ABBA and The Notorious B.I.G. made the cut of [25 recordings]( added to the Library of Congress’s list for preservation. Arouse the whole you: This FDA-registered [vibrating ring]( for women adjusts to your vulva shape for distributed external stimulation and magnified sensations everywhere you want them. Even better? [Take 25% off today]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Mini: In today’s crossword, you’ll go down and across in more ways than one. [Check it out](. Three Headlines and a Lie Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than a reliable printer. Can you spot the odd one out? - Coachella and Nike collab [sold]( a single sneaker to buy and pretend you lost the other one partying - Plane passenger sparks [debate]( after catching woman cheating at Wordle: ‘This might be worse than infidelity’ - Axe body spray [finds]( an unlikely new customer: Grouchy sheep - Wrong couple get [divorced]( after solicitor ‘clicks wrong button’ AROUND THE BREW [Miss Excel workshop]( Discover Miss Excel’s secret hacks to unleash the full power of Microsoft Excel. Wednesday’s free Excel class will share hidden tricks for optimizing your spreadsheets with pivot tables and data visualization. The best news: If you can’t attend live, you will also get 48-hour access to a replay when you register. [Register today for this FREE live workshop and save hours each week.]( ANSWER We made up the Nike and Coachella collab. Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: bedevil, meaning “to change for the worse.” Thanks to Justinn from Kampala, Uganda, for sending a suggestion to make our lives better. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✳︎ A Note From Infinity Fuel This is a paid advertisement for Infinity Fuel Cell & Hydrogen, Inc.’s Reg CF offering. Please read the offering circular at [(. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Abigail Rubenstein]( [Molly Liebergall]( [Holly Van Leuven]( and [Matty Merritt]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2024 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011