Business
The Global Payment Report 2024 by Worldpay. A lot of great information and data from Worldpay
Airlines Are Mastering the Dark Art of the Upsell. “A survey United sent to some elite customers in April hinted at more ritzy options for sale. In one question posted on frequent-flier forums and travel blogs, the survey inquired whether a customer who had paid $2,500 for a ticket in United’s Polaris international business class on a 14-hour flight would be willing to pay extra for upgrades to boarding position, in-flight amenities like fancier pajamas and more elaborate onboard meals. One possible feature: a “press for Champagne” button at the passenger’s seat.“
The enormity of Microsoft’s Windows Phone shut-down mistake is becoming increasingly clear in the AI era. There is a lot of hype around AI, but how AI can land in the hands of millions of consumers and benefit their lives remains to be seen. For all the talk from Microsoft about AI, their best hope so far seems to the new Surface lineup recently introduced. But what about phones? Will consumers like Surface more than Apple’s products? Will AI be the difference maker?
Why Copper Demand Is Skyrocketing. I should have looked into the rise of EVs or AI and figured out that copper demand would explode.
A Very Long Hill. Patience and compounding pay off. The trick is to stay the course over the long period of time, despite turbulance, and not interrupt the wheel of compounding.
Costco is building out an ad business using its shoppers’ data. Every company, once at scale, is going to have an ads business. Why waste data and the popularity? It’ll be interesting to see how this push into ads will affect the valuation and stock price with Costco stock already being considered pricey.
Other Stuff I Find Interesting
The AI Revolution Is Already Losing Steam. I have conflicted opinions over this topic. On one hand, I can see the point that the article is making: that the AI revolution is running of low-hanging fruits and the next breakthrough will be hard to come by. On the other hand, I question whether the innovation is slowing. It’s possible that people still innovate outside the big tech firms and there is just a huge gap between reality and the hype generated by VCs and the likes of OpenAI, Google and Microsoft.
AI Is a False God. “Having spoken to experts, it seems to me as though the promise of AI lies in dealing with sets of data that exist at a scale humans simply cannot operate at. Pattern recognition machines put to use in biology or physics will likely yield fascinating, useful results. AI’s other uses seem more ordinary, at least for now: making work more efficient, streamlining some aspects of content creation, making accessing simple things like travel itineraries or summaries of texts easier. To say that AI on its own will be able to produce art misunderstands why we turn to the aesthetic in the first place. We crave things made by humans because we care about what humans say and feel about their experience of being a person and a body in the world.“
How School Shootings Are Changing the Design of American Classrooms. If this is not the sign that as a society, we fail our children or grandchildren, I don’t know what is.
F1 cars in 2026 will be smaller, safer, more nimble, more sustainable. The new rules regarding moveable aerodynamics elements (X and Z modes) are very interesting. I can’t wait to see how teams interepret the rules and what innovation they bring to the table. Without DRS, drivers will really have to be faster to overtake because every car can now use the X mode, different from the current situation when only the chasing car within one second of the car ahead can activate DRS. In terms of engine, Mercedes dominated the sports when the regulations changed in 2014 and Ferrari had one of the worst years. Rumors around the paddock said that Mercedes already had a strong engine in the works for 2026. I simply cannot wait.
Walmart to Replace Paper Price Tags With Digital Shelf Labels. I always wonder why retailers haven’t done this yet. Of course, there are other things to consider such as digital glitches leading to incorrect prices, who has privilege to change prices, what the process to change an item’s price looks like…The benefits include more time for associates to do more valuable things, savings of paper and less impact on environment.
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Minh Quang Duong 
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