Insider Today: Undercover millionaires
- This post originally appeared in the Insider Today newsletter.
Welcome back to our Sunday edition, a roundup of some of our top stories. Hopefully, you're unwinding from work this weekend and avoiding looking at emails or answering calls. That is unless you work for "Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary, who has a real problem with Australia's new "right to disconnect" law.
On the agenda today:
- They're millionaires, but you probably wouldn't know it based on how they live.
- The healthcare startup with a blank check from General Catalyst.
- It's the biggest debate on LinkedIn: Are you #opentowork?
- Amazon's big AI product has some employees concerned.
But first: Are you ready for some football?
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This week's dispatch
Ready for kickoff
It's the most wonderful time of the year: football season.
The NFL returns in full force today after primetime games aired on Thursday and Friday. America's favorite pastime has plenty of interesting storylines to follow on the field.
Can the Kansas City Chiefs be the first team to win three Super Bowls in a row? How will Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh do in his return to the NFL after winning a national championship with the University of Michigan? Will Aaron Rodgers play more than four snaps for the New York Jets? (Dear God, I hope so.)
Off the field, the action is pretty good, too. (And I'm not talking about you-know-who.)
As the crown jewel of live TV, the NFL remains a key piece of media deals. Three media giants were set to launch a sports-focused streamer that would have shaken up the landscape, but that's been put on hold. However, one new face is streaming games this season: Netflix.
Speaking of new entrants, private equity has gotten a (minority) seat at the NFL ownership table. Some firms are positioned to win big now that the league has finally opened its doors to institutional investors.
And while we're on the topic of winning, it's only right to mention gambling. ESPN Bet hopes a New York launch coupled with the football season can help turnaround its business.
Bettors aren't faring much better from an economic perspective, according to some studies. And differing state laws and partnerships between sportsbooks and leagues have made the industry feel a bit weird.
Status symbols ≠ wealth
Not all millionaires are living the flashy lifestyle you think they are. And circumstances like family wealth or a superstar career aren't the only ways to catapult yourself into a higher tax bracket.
In fact, Business Insider spoke with several millionaires who achieved their riches without using get-rich-quick tricks. Instead, they grew their wealth by investing wisely and being frugal with their spending for a decade or more.
To banner, or not to banner
The LinkedIn Open to Work banner makes some job seekers feel embarrassed. But can it actually land you a job?
Although there's some worry that displaying the banner might turn recruiters away from you, those fears are mostly unfounded. Several recruiters who spoke to BI's reporter said they actively seek people who publicize that they are #opentowork. You may be better off bannering, even if you have to swallow your pride.
Also read:
- It's not just you. LinkedIn has gotten really weird.
- Why posting on LinkedIn feels so embarrassing — and how to overcome the cringe factor.
Event invite
Join Fidelity on September 19 at noon ET for a conversation with top minds from finance, legal, and strategy who take every step with companies through their IPOs. Register now.
Amazon's AI conundrum
Amazon's big new AI product is off to a rocky start.
Messages and an internal memo seen by Business Insider show AWS employees raising concerns about the AI chatbot's performance. The issues range from a lack of features to trouble integrating with software.
But what's worse: Q could be losing customers to Microsoft's Copilot.
Also read:
A VC's passion project
Launching a startup in the venture capital world is far from a walk in the park. But if you're healthcare startup Commure, cofounded by Hemant Taneja, CEO of a major venture firm, that's a different story.
Commure has made six acquisitions since the startup's 2020 launch and was recently valued at $6 billion. At the same time, it has pivoted from its initial mission and cycled through four CEOs. Regardless, it appears that Taneja won't allow Commure to fail.
Inside his determination for success.
Also read:
This week's quote:
"I'm not going out of my way to predict the end of the world when I don't see the end of the world."
— "Big Short" investor Steve Eisman on his refusal to peddle negativity about a financial system he's no longer overly worried about.
More of this week's top reads:
- Inside the hard-partying world of America's wildest lawsuits.
- Feeling stuck at a job you hate? Here are 4 ways to unstick your career.
- Longtime Tesla bull Ross Gerber details his journey from Elon Musk's biggest believer to his loudest critic.
- You don't have to be a millionaire to retire before 50, accountant says. Here's how she did it.
- AI won't kill the billable hour in the legal world — it'll just reinvent it.
- Gen Z men and women spend their money and free time very differently
- I was 'stealth' laid off from my Silicon Valley job 9 months ago. After over a hundred applications, I've given up and moved home.
A Gen Xer who grew her savings from $50k to $350k in 10 years shares the FIRE methods she's using to get to $1 million.
The Insider Today team: Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York. Grace Lett, editor, in Chicago. Amanda Yen, fellow, in New York.