Axios

Yahoo CEO Jim Lanzone was "a little scared" of AI-driven news aggregation platform Artifact at first but became a "huge fan."

Why it matters: Yahoo bought Artifact, which was started by Instagram's co-founders, in early April and is building a new product together, Lanzone told Kia Kokalitcheva Tuesday at Axios BFD in San Francisco.

Haun Ventures founder Katie Haun confirmed in a conversation with Dan Primack at the Axios BFD in San Francisco that the firm invested in late-stage crypto survivors Fireblocks and Chainalysis.

Why it matters: The investments — both previously unannounced — came while other crypto VCs either slowed investing or stopped altogether.

NFL legend and private equity investor Steve Young told Axios that he predicts by 2028, a hundred million girls will be playing flag football.

Why it matters: Young's comments come at a time when interest in women's sports is surging, led by superstar players like Caitlin Clark.

Google's planned roll-out of AI-summarized search results doesn't faze Perplexity AI CEO and co-founder Aravind Srinivas — whose startup has offered a popular AI-driven search tool providing similar digests for nearly two years.

What they're saying: "In a world where everyone gets answers and doesn't have to click on links, the biggest loser is Google," Srinivas told Axios' Kia Kokalitcheva Tuesday at Axios BFD San Francisco.

Google may have dissolved its formal health division years ago but the company remains active in the sector, per chief health officer Karen DeSalvo.

Why it matters: Google Health was formally dismantled in 2021, with its units scattered throughout the search giant, raising questions about the company's strategy.

Elon Musk must comply with a Securities and Exchange Commission subpoena to testify in the SEC's investigation into the October 2022 Twitter takeover, a federal court ruled Tuesday.

The big picture: Musk had argued the SEC didn't have the authority to subpoena him in the investigation into whether he violated federal securities laws in the takeover of the site now known as X and accused the federal agency of harassment amid a years-long feud.

Steve Young, the NFL legend and private equity investor, tells Axios that enabling private equity stakes in NFL clubs could bring financial rigor and help professionalize team operations.

Why it matters: Private equity investment in sports teams has surged in recent years, and the NFL is talking about allowing PE buyers.

Mercedes-Benz earlier this year brought college football coaching legend Nick Saban to talk to workers at its auto manufacturing campus in Alabama after the UAW announced a bid to unionize the plants there.

Why it matters: Mercedes workers in Tuscaloosa County are voting this week on whether to join the UAW in what would be the union's second victory in as many months after years of organizing failures in the South.

Krispy Kreme is teaming up with the Queen of Country on its first-ever celebrity doughnut line.

The big picture: The Dolly Southern Sweets Doughnut Collection launched Tuesday includes four Dolly Parton-inspired limited-time doughnuts sold at Krispy Kreme shops and select grocery stores.

Our restaurant spending is shifting from weekday lunch hours to the weekends, per new Square data.

Why it matters: It's a reflection of pandemic behavior changes — and an important insight for restaurants as they continue adapting to survive and thrive.

Alexey Pertsev, the Russian national arrested in the Netherlands for developing cryptocurrency privacy application Tornado Cash, has been sentenced to 64 months in prison.

Why it matters: The judgment is likely to make other software developers reluctant to work on privacy-preserving technology in the future.

Staffers at The Athletic are in active discussions about forming a union, sources told Axios. The conversations have ramped up as The Athletic becomes further integrated with its parent, the New York Times.

Why it matters: Should employees choose to formally unionize, it would create yet another labor headache for the Times.

A group of prominent conservative operatives and businesspeople are dishing out more than $1 million to launch a new media company aimed at reaching conservative members of Congress and their staffers, sources told Axios.

Why it matters: The goal is to challenge established outlets covering Capitol Hill, including Punchbowl and Politico, with perspectives and insights that are catered specifically to conservatives.

Self-driving car firm Waymo is facing a new federal investigation into crashes involving the Alphabet division's autonomous vehicles.

Why it matters: The promising but still nascent sector is under scrutiny as regulators examine whether self-driving cars are fit for the road.

Amazon Web Services CEO Adam Selipsky, who's led the unit since 2021, will step down June 3, the company announced on Tuesday.

Why it matters: AWS is one of Amazon's most profitable businesses, accounting for more than 6o% of the company's operating income last quarter.

Rumble, the publicly-traded YouTube alternative that's favored by conservatives, has filed a lawsuit against Google and its parent Alphabet.

The big picture: The lawsuit argues that Google owes Rumble upwards of $1 billion in damages for lost ad revenue as a client, and for illegally leveraging its dominance in ad technology to hamper Rumble's ability to compete as an ad tech competitor.

Private equity is breathing easier this morning, after a federal judge in Texas dismissed what could have been a landmark antitrust lawsuit against Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe.

Why it matters: The Biden administration took a big swing against private equity. And it missed.

AMC Entertainment raised another $250 million from a stock sale, tapping into a sudden meme stock resurgence.

Why it matters: Meme stocks like GameStop and AMC skyrocketed Monday, amid speculation the WallStreetBets titan Keith Gill — known to fans as "Roaring Kitty" and "DeepF---kingValue" — was returning.

Meme stocks are back — and it turns out the new ones are exactly the same as the old ones.

Why it matters: Keith "Roaring Kitty" Gill, credited with kickstarting the boom in GameStop shares, is a bona fide celebrity, especially in the wake of a film about him that was the second most popular movie on Netflix upon its release.

By leaving the Gates Foundation, Melinda French Gates has effectively managed to raise $12.5 billion for her philanthropy focused on women and girls.

Why it matters: The Gates Foundation, where French Gates made up 50% of the trustees as of June 2021, now boasts a solid eight-member board of trustees and a governance structure that makes her role much less crucial than it was three years ago.

President Biden is set to announce massive new tariff increases on $18 billion worth of Chinese imports — including a 100% tax on electric vehicles.

Why it matters: The administration wants to keep cheap Chinese EVs out of the U.S. market and prevent domestic automakers (and workers) from getting crushed by the competition.

Electric vehicles (EVs) accounted for 4.3% of sales on used car sales platform Carvana in the first quarter of 2024 — up from 1.8% in the same period last year.

Why it matters: It's another sign that there's finally a decent market for used electric cars — important for the overall EV transition, as new electric models still tend to be prohibitively expensive for many would-be buyers.

Crews in Baltimore conducted a controlled explosion of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge on Monday that was "flawless," the city's mayor announced.

Why it matters: The Port of Baltimore is one of the busiest in the U.S. and vessel traffic has been restricted since the cargo ship Dali struck the bridge and caused its fatal collapse in March.