August 5, 2026

The Appetizer

“I follow lots of libraries on social media and often you’ll get things that are maybe 30 or 40 years old when they’re cleaning out estates and stuff like that.”

• Australian library manager Michelle Hudson after a local resident returned a book that was over 150 years late. Hudson said theoretically, the late return fine would be about $19,500. Luckily, it will not be enforced.

Now, on to the numbers. Drum roll, please …

• 10%: The growth in U.S. sales of running-specific apparel to almost $1 billion over the 12 months through May.
• 22 billion: The amount of tokens per minute that Google’s Gemini models are now processing, up from 16 billion one quarter ago.
• 305 million+: The square footage of additional warehouse space under construction across the U.S. in the second quarter of 2026, up 18% from 2025.
• 6:00 a.m.: One of the screening times for The Odyssey at the AMC Lincoln Square movie theater in New York City, which has the largest IMAX screen in the U.S.
• 30 million+: The number of extra pints of beer poured by pubs in the UK over the course of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Dig In
Class Notes

Every summer we hand our incoming interns a pencil and a survey (just kidding, it’s just a survey link) and ask how the next generation spends, saves, and sees the world. Think of it as a sneak peek at tomorrow’s consumer.

So, here are some of the results.

Start with the wallet. Cash is practically extinct, and most would rather tap a phone than swipe a card. Yet this same crowd that lives on its devices still craves the human touch: two-thirds prefer shopping in-store, and a striking 91% wouldn’t want an AI bot as their primary doctor. Digital-first, not digital-only.

Some habits never seem to change. For the fourth year running, Instagram tops their feeds, Spotify owns their earbuds, and Nike remains the sneaker brand of choice, even as competition closes in. And 65% admit they’ve bought something after seeing it promoted by an influencer. The storefront now lives in the scroll.

The bigger surprise is how traditional many of their goals remain. Every respondent plans to buy a home someday, nearly all expect to marry, and most have already started saving for retirement, even though half fear they’ll end up financially worse off than their parents. They’re betting on compounding to prove themselves wrong.

They’re skeptical, too. Nearly all use artificial intelligence daily, yet 84% say they’ve questioned an article’s legitimacy because of it. For a generation often written off as screen-addicted, they sound remarkably grounded. The future consumer, it turns out, still wants roots.

To see the full results, click here.

Weekly Specials

Plans to deploy a humanlike AI robot teacher at a New York school have been suspended after backlash from parents, educators, and state officials over concerns about student privacy, classroom oversight, and whether AI belongs at the front of the classroom. Thank goodness – things were getting a little too Black Mirror.

Like many other industries today, China’s beauty sector is embracing AI to speed up innovation. Brands are using AI to analyze millions of social media posts, identify developing skincare trends, discover new cosmetic ingredients, and streamline product testing – cutting development timelines from years to just months. Apparently, AI’s latest glow-up is skincare.

Stunt doubles are nothing new in Hollywood ... unless you’re Tom Cruise. Matt Damon, however, had one for the biceps-flexing fight scene in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. Enter Devyn Dalton – a 4-foot-6 stunt performer with some seriously impressive biceps. Safe to say, movie magic has been hitting the gym.

Corporate Lunch

Chili’s says its turnaround wasn’t fueled by AI, but by investing in foundational technology. Turns out the biggest productivity boost wasn’t robot servers, it was fixing the Wi-Fi.

DoorDash is building its own drones and an end-to-end aerial delivery network. It sounds like your food may finally avoid rush-hour traffic, but it’s still at the mercy of the weather.

Johnson & Johnson is offering $5.5 billion to settle most remaining U.S. talc lawsuits, several years after replacing its baby powder with a cornstarch formula.

JetBlue is overhauling its fare lineup, bringing the total to 11 fare categories to appeal to travelers seeking more comfort and customization. Booking a flight may soon feel less like buying a ticket and more like building a burrito bowl. Somehow, I still end up with the cheapest option.

Boston Scientific approved a company-wide restructuring plan following an acquisition spree of more than 10 companies in five years. Even medical device companies need the occasional post-op recovery.