Axios

The AI bubble debate has lurched through at least three frenzied phases in the span of three years:

1. Suspicion: Historic sums of capital poured into AI before anyone proved it could reliably automate work. A violent market correction felt inevitable.
2. Mania: Claude Code and autonomous agents made the early skepticism look outdated, fueling a corporate scramble to embed AI everywhere and maximize usage.
3. Reckoning: Companies discovered that AI can be extraordinary when aimed precisely — and ruinously expensive when treated as a universal productivity machine.

Tech stocks plunged Friday amid rising bond yields and concerns about the massive growth expectations that have been fueling the AI trade.

Why it matters: It was a bloodbath for chip stocks — the physical infrastructure underpinning the promising AI economy.

Financial markets are pricing in the possibility that Kevin Warsh, the newly installed Federal Reserve chair, may have to push interest rates higher despite White House desires for cheaper money.

• Friday's stronger-than-expected jobs report reinforces the idea that the labor market is increasingly on solid footing, removing downside risks to its employment mandate. Now, it's all about inflation.

Doomers be damned: America is in the midst of a hiring reacceleration that few saw coming.

Why it matters: It is a rapid turnaround from the slump of 2025's gloomy jobs growth. Employers are coming off the sidelines, with reinvigorated demand for new staff, despite the risks of economic uncertainty from the Iran war, AI, tariffs and more.

Years before he helped launch Disney+, or helped the Mouse buy Marvel and Star Wars, Kevin Mayer studied mechanical engineering at MIT and spent time working on battlefield radar systems and signal processors.

• Now he's getting back to those roots.

Driving the news: Smash Capital, the venture firm Mayer co-founded in 2021, has led a $200 million Series B round for autonomous turret maker Allen Control Systems at a $2.2 billion post-money valuation.

The U.S. economy added 172,000 jobs in May, while the unemployment rate held at 4.3%, the government said Friday.

Why it matters: The labor market is strengthening after months of lackluster jobs growth, confirming the economy is gaining momentum despite the economic fallout from the Iran war.

After an astonishing run-up last year, the price of gold is moving sideways.

Why it matters: It undercuts the idea that the precious metal is a safe-haven investment during risky times.

South Korea's wild markets are shaking the country's currency.

Why it matters: The swings in the South Korean currency, the won, illustrate how financial markets can create issues for the real economy.

As these two Gen Z maids of honor will tell you, the modern bachelorette party has evolved from one night out to a multi-day production with matching pajamas, signature cocktails, costumes and daily themes.

Stunning stat: Bridesmaids in 2026 are dropping hundreds — in some cases, thousands — on other people's pre-wedding celebrations.