Axios

While AI was trained to write like humans, these large language models are eroding the unpredictability of our writing and shifting the way we talk.

The big picture: Researchers found that AI pushes users toward a more standardized speaking and writing style, reducing variations in sentence structure and vocabulary.

Several airlines are offering "rescue" fares to stranded Spirit Airlines passengers after the budget carrier ceased operations early Saturday.

Why it matters: Spirit announced shortly after 2am that it's going out of business and canceling all its flights.

Artificial intelligence is wiping out some entry-level work that trains the next generation of elite lawyers.

Why it matters: Big Law's entire business model depends on armies of junior associates learning on the job. If AI erases that rung, the profession faces a long-term talent crisis.

Costco is now letting shoppers swap soda for bottled water in its iconic $1.50 hot dog combo — a small change that could appeal to more health-conscious customers.

Why it matters: The hot dog combo — introduced more than 40 years ago — is one of retail's most famous fixed-price deals, holding at that price through decades of inflation.

Spirit Airlines is going out of business, canceling all of its flights and stranding current travelers — marking the end of the runway for a company that offered cheap flights to America's budget travelers.

Why it matters: The company's demise — which comes after two bankruptcies and a failed attempt to secure a government bailout — marks the first death of a major U.S. airline in decades.

Several major airlines said Friday that they'll aid Spirit Airlines customers if the budget carrier suddenly goes out of business.

Why it matters: Spirit is said to be on the verge of ceasing operations after failing to land a government bailout during its second bankruptcy in less than a year.

Spirit Airlines is reportedly preparing to cease operations, joining the graveyard of failed U.S. air carriers — including icons like Pan Am and Eastern Airlines — as it has not been able to identify a path out of its second bankruptcy.

Why it matters: The company's demise would leave the U.S. travel industry with fewer competitors in the low-cost space, which could drive up ticket prices and reduce route options.

Roughly half of all Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newsroom workers are expected to lose their jobs Monday as new nonprofit owners take over, the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh said Friday.

The big picture: Staff reductions will shrink coverage of local news, high school and college sports, and the arts at Pittsburgh's oldest newspaper, along with less editing and production staff, per the Guild. Staff has been cut by 40%-50%, the union added.

Catch up quick: Block Communications Inc. announced April 14 it was selling the newspaper to the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism — the nonprofit publisher of the Baltimore Banner. Venetoulis Institute founder Stewart Bainum said the nonprofit would likely cut the newsroom's roughly 100-person workforce due to industry realities.

• Staff members were asked to reapply for their jobs and to sit for 20-minute conversations with Institute leaders, WESA reported.
• Some Post-Gazette employees said the process was less formal than a job interview; they didn't feel like they were "reapplying" for their roles during their often casual conversations with leaders.
• The nonprofit sent job offers to about half the newsroom starting Wednesday, per the Guild, while others received emails starting Thursday informing them they would not be retained.

Zoom in: Those who said they were not re-hired include longtime music writer Scott Mervis; designer Zack Tanner, who served as Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh president for most of the newsroom's three-year strike; high school sports writers Steve Rotstein and Brad Everett, Pitt athletics reporters Abby Schnable and Stephen Thompson; photographers Steve Mellon and Sebastian Foltz; and high school sports and Riverhounds writer Keith Barnes.

• Books editor and columnist Adriana Ramírez said on X she will not be re-hired, adding "the new ownership will be shuttering the entire opinion section." The paper published its last editorial on Sunday.
• About 80% of former striking Post-Gazette workers will not be rehired, NewsGuild president and education reporter Andrew Goldstein said Friday. Goldstein said he's among those not offered jobs.
• The cuts "are a brazen, discriminatory attempt at busting our union by the PG's incoming owners," Goldstein said in an email to supporters Friday.

Between the lines: The Baltimore Banner reported the nonprofit will buy only the paper's assets and is not obligated to take on existing contracts; the Institute previously informed the union it will recognize its standing and negotiate a new contract, per the NewsGuild.

• "I hope that the workers who remain don't give Baltimore ownership one inch of leeway when it comes to defending their workplace rights," Tanner told Axios. "If new owners can cut this aggressively, who knows what else they're capable of."

The other side: "… Our commitment to providing trusted, independent news to the Pittsburgh region is fierce and unwavering," a Venetoulis Institute spokesperson said in a statement.

• "At the same time, we are a nonprofit news organization determined to put the publication, which was on the verge of shutdown, on solid financial footing, so that it can serve the people of western Pennsylvania for generations to come."

Flashback: Block Communications said in January it would close the Post-Gazette, citing more than $350 million in losses over the past 20 years.

• The decision followed the longest newsroom strike of the digital era, during which many journalists crossed the picket line.

What's next: The newspaper's leadership team will remain in place after the Venetoulis Institute acquires the paper on Monday, the nonprofit announced Thursday. Tracey DeAngelo will stay on as president, and Stan Wischnowski will continue as executive editor.

• New owners plan to maintain the Post-Gazette's two print days, Thursday and Sunday, and return newsroom offices to the North Shore before the end of summer.

Axios Pittsburgh reporter Ryan Deto contributed to this story.

This story has been updated with new information and comment.

Francis Suarez, former Miami mayor, has joined the "Ambition Accelerated" campaign as a senior advisor.

The big picture: This is the effort launched by Stephen Ross and Ken Griffin to recruit more companies, CEOs and founders to Florida's "Gold Coast" corridor between West Palm Beach and Miami.

Arcadia, which helps businesses procure and manage energy, is acquiring Engie Impact — the arm of French multinational power giant Engie that offers a suite of complementary services.

Why it matters: The deal lands as energy demand and costs are rising around the world.

The Iran war threatens to disrupt summer travel as it sends oil prices surging — and flight and hotel bookings are already dipping, industry experts warn.

The big picture: Rising oil prices and dwindling supplies are hitting travel as drivers face higher gas prices and airlines in the U.S. and elsewhere cut flights and raise ticket costs and baggage fees.

I'm offering you four specific ways to get more out of AI: better prompting, improving AI memory, starting a business using AI (tonight) and running a business using AI (Monday).

The barrier to starting a business isn't capital anymore. It isn't a team. It's just you.

• The old rule: Before you could launch, you'd need to assemble an army: lawyer, accountant, developer, designer, copywriter, researcher. This cost — and complexity — left a million ideas unborn.
• The new rule: Anyone with a strong idea and solid AI prompting skills can model and prep a new business in a weekend.

Why it matters: This is THE under-appreciated upside of the same AI boom that many fear will eviscerate existing jobs. It has never been this easy to start something with so little capital.