Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, has demanded an increase in his voting control over the electric vehicle giant. Musk, who currently owns around 13% of Tesla, insisted that this increased control is crucial for navigating the company's trajectory in AI and robotics and expressed discomfort with the idea of expanding Tesla's presence in AI and robotics without securing approximately 25% of the voting power.
Why?
He highlighted that without this level of influence, he would prefer to explore building products outside of Tesla.
This demand would make him influential but still subject to being overridden by a majority of shareholders. “As for stock ownership, itself being enough motivation, Fidelity and other own similar stakes to me. Why don’t they show up for work?” Elon said.
Elon Musk's current ownership of approximately 13% of Tesla equates to around 411 million shares out of the company's total 3.19 billion shares in common stock outstanding.
Musk has already ventured into AI projects outside of Tesla through his new company, xAI whose recent product is "Grok," a platform designed to compete with Google's Bard and OpenAI's ChatGPT.
Remote Workers Getting Less Promotion
Fully remote workers find themselves facing a promotion drought, receiving 31% fewer promotions than their in-person counterparts, according to a recent analysis by Live Data Technologies.
In a study of 2 million white-collar workers, only 3.9% of fully remote individuals received promotions last year, compared to 5.6% of those going into the office on a hybrid basis. In a survey, around 90% of CEOs prefer rewarding in-person employees with raises, promotions, or better assignments.
The tactics employed by companies, such as Amazon enforce a strict three-day-in-the-office policy and block promotions for non-compliance. Companies like Meta and Zoom are using the "3-2 rule" where employees work three days in the office and two days remotely.
Banks announce earnings
As the earnings season kicks off, major banks like JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs have reported their financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023.
JPMorgan reported a 15% dip in fourth-quarter profit, attributing it to a one-time $2.9 billion charge linked to a regional banking crisis. Despite this setback, JPMorgan still marked its most profitable year on record, with a 32% increase in annual profit to $49.6 billion and a 23% growth in revenue to $158 billion in 2023.
Bank of America recorded a revenue of $22.0 billion and net income of $3.1 billion compared to $7.1 billion in Q4-2022. In 2023, Bank of America reported a full-year net income of $26.5 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $3.08.
Goldman Sachs reported a 51% increase in profits for the last quarter of 2023, reaching $2 billion. Net revenues were $46.25 billion and net earnings of $8.52 billion for the full year of 2023. Earnings per common share (EPS) decreased from $30.06 in 2022 to $22.87 in 2023. Return on common equity for the year was 7.5%, below the industry's desired threshold of 10%.
Morgan Stanley reported a 5% increase in revenue from investment banking in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley reported a fourth-quarter net income of $1.5 billion, with earnings per diluted share of $0.85 and net revenues of $12.9 billion. For the full year, net income was $9.1 billion, with earnings per diluted share of $5.18 and net revenues of $54.1 billion. However, the bank's net income declined over 30%, impacted by two one-time charges – a $286 million FDIC special assessment and a $249 million legal charge to settle a criminal investigation.
Apple 🤜 Samsung
Apple has claimed the title of the world's largest seller of smartphones, beating Samsung for the first time since 2010. According to the International Data Corp (IDC) report, Apple secured a 20% market share in 2023, surpassing Samsung's 19.4% share.
Apple achieved a total of 234.6 million mobile shipments, while Samsung trailed with 226.6 million.
The remaining spots in the top five were claimed by Xiaomi, shipping 145.9 million smartphones, followed by Oppo with 103.1 million, and Transsion with 94.9 million.
Apple's success was highlighted by a 3.7% increase in iPhone shipments, contrasting Samsung's 13.6% decline in phone shipments during the same period. The total smartphone market experienced a decline of 3.2%, reaching 1.17 billion units in 2023.
More…
Apple is set to bypass an import ban on its Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 in the U.S. by removing the Blood Oxygen app from these devices. The move comes after a patent dispute with Masimo, and Apple is set to release modified versions of its Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2, removing the Blood Oxygen feature.
The move allows Apple to continue importing and selling these devices in the U.S. amid an ongoing legal battle.
ITC previously found Apple's watch sensors violated Masimo's patents, leading to a temporary ban.
JetBlue's and Spirit Airlines Merger
A federal judge ruled against the proposed $3.8 billion merger between JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines, citing concerns about its impact on competition. Judge William Young emphasized that the merger would harm competition and violate antitrust laws and Spirit's low-cost pricing structure had a positive impact on air travel accessibility and pricing within the airline industry.
JetBlue, the nation's sixth-largest airline, argued that the merger was crucial for enhancing its competitiveness against "Big 4" rivals which include American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines. Both companies have expressed their intention to challenge the ruling in the 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals.
Burger King's to Acquire Largest U.S. Franchisee
Restaurant Brands International, the parent company of Burger King, has announced its intention to acquire Carrols Restaurant Group, the largest Burger King franchisee in the U.S., in a cash deal valued at about $1 billion.
Restaurant Brands International will pay $9.55 per share to acquire Carrols Restaurant Group, which currently operates over 1,000 Burger King restaurants and 60 Popeyes locations.
Restaurant Brands plans to invest approximately $500 million, funded by Carrols' operating cash flow, to remodel 600 of the acquired Burger King locations.
The company aims to complete the remodeling within the next five years and subsequently sell the restaurants back to smaller franchise operators who reside in their local communities. The remodeling initiative is part of Burger King's broader strategy called "Reclaim the Flame," announced in 2022.
Things to Know:
Marlene Engelhorn, a 31-year-old Austro-German heiress, is setting up a citizens group called the Good Council for Redistribution to decide on the allocation of $27 million. She has invited 10,000 Austrians. From this pool, 50 members will be selected, along with 15 substitutes, to form a diverse council that will decide on the allocation of $27 million. Marlene Engelhorn, heir to BASF(German chemical and pharmaceutical company) founder Friedrich Engelhorn, inherited millions from her grandmother, Traudl Engelhorn-Vechiatto, in September 2022. With an estimated $4.2 billion in wealth, Marlene had pledged to donate around 90% of her inheritance before her grandmother's passing.
The top 1% of the world's wealthiest individuals now control 43% of global financial assets. The study points out that the five richest individuals on Earth—Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison, and Warren Buffett—have witnessed their combined wealth grow from $340 billion in 2020 to $869 billion in just three years.
Adjusted for inflation, this marks a real increase of 114%. 69.3% of the world's wealth is located in the Global North, which has 20.6% of the planet’s population.
Although it looks almost impossible now, if current trends continue, the world could see its first trillionaire within the next 10 years.
Almost 5 billion people, which is 60% of humanity, are getting poorer, and they predict it will take 229 years to eliminate global poverty if current trends continue.
Uber has confirmed the shutdown of its alcohol delivery app, Drizly, just three years after acquiring the platform for $1.1 billion. The closure, scheduled for March 2024, follows Uber's decision to streamline its product delivery services and concentrate on its core Uber Eats strategy. As consumers increasingly prefer a unified platform for various products. Drizly, founded in 2012, experienced significant growth in 2020, with sales surging by approximately 350% during the pandemic's peak.
China's population has reported a decline for the second consecutive year. Last year, about 9.02 million babies were born, a drop from 9.56 million in 2022. Conversely, deaths increased to 11.1 million in 2023, up from 10.41 million in the previous year.
China's birth rate in 2023, at 6.39 births per thousand people, is the lowest since the founding of Communist China in 1949.
With the working-age population (16-59 years old) declining by 10.75 million in 2023, the burden on the remaining workforce to care for the elderly increases. Over 297 million people, or more than one-fifth of the population, are now aged 60 or above.
Arizona State University (ASU) has become the first higher education institution to collaborate with OpenAI. ASU plans to integrate ChatGPT Enterprise into coursework, tutoring, and research, showcasing a commitment to exploring the potential of AI in higher education. One of the primary goals is to develop a personalized AI tutor for students, providing them with unique learning experiences.