Insider Today: Amazon's AI problem
- This post originally appeared in the Insider Today newsletter.
Welcome back to our Sunday edition, a roundup of some of our top stories. Pet owners spent an estimated $3.9 billion on pet insurance in 2023. You'll want to read this before buying it for Kitty and Flopsy.
On the agenda:
- Amazon wants to crack Nvidia's AI chip dominance. It's not going well.
- Seven Wall Street heavyweights reveal the single best trades of their careers.
- A bizarre government rule is preventing young men from getting a job.
- Denmark made homebuying easier. America should follow its lead.
But first: Searching for answers at Google.
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This week's dispatch
Searching for answers
Hundreds of millions of people turn to Google each day to get their questions answered.
How Google finds, categorizes, and ranks that information is constantly evolving. An entire industry has developed to help those who want to show up on the first page of search results.
In the past, some users might have noticed subtle changes from time to time: a result seems better tailored to their needs, or is delivered that little bit quicker. For most, these tweaks might pass them by.
Not anymore.
From the sharp shift towards showcasing Reddit and similar platforms to the bumpy rollout out of the generative search experience, Google is transforming itself before our eyes.
Those who rely on Google for referrals are freaking out. There have been embarrassing edge cases (no, you shouldn't put glue in your pizza). There will be lessons learned and updates implemented.
What's clear: Google's efforts to disrupt itself are already having a profound impact on the information ecosystem. We're all in on the ride.
Amazon's chip ambitions
Amazon is struggling to compete with Nvidia's dominance over AI chips — and it's another sign of how far behind it is in the generative-AI race.
Low usage, "compatibility gaps," and project-migration issues are putting millions of dollars in cloud revenue at risk, according to confidential internal documents and people familiar with the situation.
Also read:
The best investments ever
BI asked seven heavyweight investors, including Rob Arnott and Bob Elliott, to identify the best trades of their careers.
Each shared the top investments they've made, and explained how the lessons from those decisions still apply today.
America's ridiculous hiring hurdle
Fewer American men than ever are working right now, and unemployment insurance may be at least partially to blame.
The way firings are handled might affect whether guys get hired in the first place. If you are going to get taxed for employees that get laid off, you're going to be a lot more hesitant about hiring.
Why employers are reluctant to hire young men.
A better way to sell homes
Fixed-rate mortgages guarantee homeowners will pay the same amount each month for decades. But when mortgage rates shoot up, they can also prevent homeowners from selling.
In Denmark, sellers are able to earn a profit when they trade in their low mortgage rates for more expensive ones, making it easier to move even when rates rise. This helps keep the housing market from locking up — and is something America can learn from.
Inside Denmark's genius housing fix.
This week's quote:
"We're not writing a blank check."
Andrea Mac, a business owner who made $550,000 last year, on why she and her husband decided not to pay their daughter's college tuition.
More of this week's top reads:
- First came cellphones, then came smartphones. Now, "IntelliPhones" are coming.
- Laid-off TikTokers reflect on the "abrupt end to a very chaotic ride."
- Here's how much hedge funds and prop-trading firms pay AI workers.
- Google announced a smartwatch for kids — and it looks pretty good.
- Fisker cuts deeper with a new wave of summer layoffs.
- Loyalty at work no longer pays — and it's employers who are to blame.
- Early retirees share three IRS rules they've used to avoid taxes.
Vivek Ramaswamy has a plan for BuzzFeed. There's just one problem.
The Insider Today team: Matt Turner, deputy editor-in-chief, in New York. Jordan Parker Erb, editor, in New York. Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York. Lisa Ryan, executive editor, in New York.