Business Wars

Allbirds was once valued at $4.1 billion. The sustainable shoe brand had a fast and meteoric rise that mirrored the path of many other direct to consumer brands, but by early 2024 Allbirds' luck had changed. Find out what wrong for the company and the DTC market broadly, and how they're trying to find their footing again. Featured Guests: Ann Gehan, Retail Reporter at The Information Elizabeth Segran, Senior Staff Writer at Fast Company See Privacy Policy at https://art19...

It's 1940 and as Adolph Hitler’s forces storm across Europe, the American army pays a nearly broke U.S. carmaker to develop a lightweight, durable, all-purpose, all-terrain automobile for use in the coming world war. The vehicle that’s created comes to be known as the Jeep and it plays a pivotal role in winning that war. But the Jeep has a bumpy homecoming. And as Americans start spending more time on the road and behind the wheel, they pave the way for the rise of an off-road challenger...

When ex-Bunny girl Jayne Gaskin spots the desert island of her dreams for sale online, she decides to risk it all. Trading in their English village home, Jayne and her family relocate to their own private paradise, just off the coast of Nicaragua. And a reality TV crew follows them to film a new show, No Going Back. But soon they all discover that paradise has its secrets. The locals claim the island belongs to them, and it’s been sold illegally. Jayne’s not leaving without a fight...

A lot has happened at OpenAI since that whiplash week in November 2023 when the board ousted its chief executive. There was an investigation to determine whether Sam Altman’s firing was just, and a lawsuit from OpenAI co-founder Elon Musk. Meanwhile, the company’s competition has been charging ahead. Julia Black, a reporter with The Information, joins host David Brown to break down the latest developments and shed light on where Sam Altman — and the future of AI — are going next...

After five intense days, Sam Altman prevails over the OpenAI Board and is reinstated as CEO, with a new board in place.  But the turmoil has shown that OpenAI is vulnerable and its competitors, including Google and Microsoft, are ready to take advantage of OpenAI’s weakness.  And with OpenAI’s old board out and Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever’s role at OpenAI murky, the path is clear for OpenAI to develop and commercialize AI at an even faster rate than as before...

OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever’s move to fire Sam Altman with no warning kicks off five days of chaos for the tech company. After he gets over the shock, Altman uses all his corporate savvy to fight back. For days, over McDonalds and Boba tea, Altman and the board feud over the path forward for Altman and OpenAI, while the business community waits on tenterhooks to find out the future of one of the most important AI companies in the world. See Privacy Policy at https://art19...

In the 1990s and early 2000s, Enron was like no corporation on earth. It was the ultimate corporate success story. But the key to Enron’s success? Accounting fraud. At the time, the scale of illegal manipulation of the American financial system was unprecedented. The sheer breadth and complexity of Enron’s crimes stunned the world, and in the aftermath, many wondered how such massive fraud could go undetected for so long. This is just a preview of American Scandal...

Costco's membership retention rate is the stuff of other retailers' dreams, nevermind the love they get on social media. With very little paid advertising, the company has managed to keep its spot as the third largest retailer in the U.S. We’re finding out how they do it with Susan and David Schwartz, authors of “The Joy of Costco: a Treasure Hunt from A to Z,”  and Business Insider reporter Dominick Reuter. See Privacy Policy at https://art19...

From the outside, OpenAI looked like one of Silicon Valley’s biggest success stories. In 2022, it had stunned the world with the release of ChatGPT3.5, leapfrogging some of the biggest tech companies to be an industry leader in artificial intelligence. But, inside the company walls trouble was brewing. Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever had increasing concerns about the speed at which OpenAI was commercializing and releasing AI products...

With everything Taylor Swift’s been up to lately, being a Swiftie is almost a fulltime job. Today, David speaks with two digital creators who have been covering her since day one. First up, pop culture YouTuber Lauren Lipman talks about Taylor’s NFL era, the challenges of covering Taylor during her fight for her masters, and the time she got to meet Taylor.  Next, digital creator and longtime Swiftie Autumn Kennedy takes us inside her fan account TS Tour Tips...