🌎 US inflation peaks again

Plus: A new kind of labor organizing Was this newsletter forwarded to you? [Sign up here]( [Quartz]( July 14, 2022 [View in browser]( Sponsored By Good morning, Quartz readers! Here’s what you need to know Inflation in the US hit 9.1%, a four-decade high. The Federal Reserve is now likely to [hike interest rates]( once again. Crypto company Celsius has filed for bankruptcy. The filing [comes a month]( after the lender [halted transfers and withdrawals](. Panasonic picked Kansas for its battery mega-factory. The $4 billion manufacturing plant will [employ 4,000 workers](. Netflix partnered with Microsoft to bring ads to its platform. The streamer is expected to unveil a [cheaper, ad-supported subscription tier]( by the end of the year. Tesla’s top AI executive left. Andrej Karpathy was hired five years ago to lead the electric vehicle maker’s [AI and Autopilot teams.]( US health officials warned pharmacists against restricting access to drugs linked to abortion. Refusing to fill prescription to [abortifacient medicines]( could violate [anti-discrimination laws](. Bill Gates increased his foundation’s endowment. Boosted [by $20 billion]( of the billionaire’s personal wealth, the foundation’s budget will reach $9 billion per year by 2026. Sponsor content by Modern Health Extended deadline: nominate an HR Professional. [Modern Health Heroes]( recognizes HR workers who’ve made a positive impact on a company’s workplace culture and the well-being of its employees. The winner of the category will have $500 donated to their mental health non-profit organization of choice. Nominations are open for two more weeks! [Learn more]( What to watch for When TSMC, the world’s largest chip manufacturer, reports earnings later today, it will offer a glimpse into the [turbulent state of semiconductor supply chains](. After more than a year of consistent chip shortages, some semiconductor manufacturers are starting to warn of an oversupply in certain categories of chips, particularly memory chips for laptops and smartphones. Meanwhile, automakers are complaining they lack other varieties of chips, and can’t keep up with customer demand. Today’s call with TSMC, which controls more than half of global semiconductor manufacturing, will give industry watchers strong clues as to whether the chip shortage will drag on for several more months or if the industry is poised to [whipsaw]( from severe shortages to overproduction. Amazon workers are forging a new kind of labor organizing [an amazon labour union organizer holding a sign that says "vote yes" stands in front of an amazon warehouse sign, with his fist raised] Reuters/Brendan McDermid. An Amazon warehouse outside Albany, New York, is looking to organize with the independent Amazon Labor Union (ALU), [highlighting a major shift]( toward independent worker-led unions, rather than large, national organizations which have historically dominated union membership in the US. Previous Amazon union campaigns have struggled. The company’s huge size and high turnover makes it harder to build solidarity, and Amazon has also allegedly employed a range of union-busting tactics. Young, independent unions like the ALU lack the resources, experience, and reach of national unions. But they have some big advantages, too. For example, a company can’t exactly smear grassroots unions as bureaucracy-laden third parties, a common refrain aimed at national organizations to try and undermine labor organizing efforts. Kenya’s digital literacy failure is a black market success Kenyans have taken to social media, venting their anger over reports that government tablets meant for grade one pupils have been spotted for sale on Uganda’s black market. The government’s digital literacy program cost taxpayers millions, and no one seems to be investigating those who sold government property. Faustine Ngila looks into how a failed program crushed the dreams of [millions of Kenyan students](. ✦ Becoming a Quartz member helps us publish stories like this one, and keep them free for all readers. Support our journalism—take [40% off](when you sign up today! And to keep up with the latest Quartz Africa happenings, sign up for the [Quartz Africa Weekly](. It’ll hit your inbox, for free, once a week. Subscribe instantly below! [⚡ Sign me up!]( Subscribe with one click Message from our Partner B Lab has announced the Best for the WorldTM 2022 B Corps! These companies are leading the way in advancing their impact on community, environment, customers, workers and governance. As more businesses join the movement, together they are transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet. Read more about the Best for the World B Corps. [Read more]( Quartz’s most popular 7️⃣ [The G7 is playing catch-up with China in Africa]( 🔭 [The first five scientific images from the James Webb Space Telescope]( 🛢 [Global oil production is already near capacity]( 🍪 [An Indian startup has lost its plea for “direct access” to the world’s largest selling biscuits…]( 💢 […And Indian aviation’s safety troubles are now exacerbated by employee anger]( 🦠[Covid was twice as deadly in poor countries as in rich ones]( Sponsor content by Modern Health Extended deadline: nominate a therapist. [Modern Health Heroes]( recognizes licensed therapists who’ve made a positive impact on the patients and the communities they serve. The winner of the category will have $500 donated to their mental health non-profit organization of choice. Nominations are open for two more weeks! [Learn more]( Surprising discoveries Hidden sketches were found in an Amedeo Modigliani painting. Israeli curators found the sketches in Nude with a Hat which is already unusual as it’s displayed [upside down](. Seventeen dinosaur teeth were discovered in Queensland, Australia. The “[exceptionally rare](” fossils come from a herbivorous sauropod. Bourbon is running dry in New Zealand. Chicken nuggets and craft beer are [also getting scarce](, no thanks to supply chain delays. The emerald ash borer is annihilating forests. While prettily named, the beetle has been [dubbed](, “the most destructive and costliest forest pest ever to invade North America.” Netflix’s Squid Game became the first non-English language series to receive a best drama nomination at the Emmys. And in total, it received [14 Emmy nominations](. 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