As venues adopt new security technology and fans wear cameras, attending a live event can come with privacy concerns.
Why it matters: Safety has always been a concern at large gatherings. But technology is giving venues more powerful ways to identify and track who's inside.
Admission prices for movies, theaters and concerts in the U.S. have jumped more than 41% since January 2016, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Why it matters: That's just the ticket. Fans may complain about higher costs, but they're still showing up and spending for travel, food and other expenses.
Whether framed on an office wall, collecting dust in a box or still a distant dream, the college diploma is getting a hard reappraisal.
Why it matters: College was once sold as a ticket to the American dream. But students today are taking a tougher look at the college tradeoff: burdensome debt and no guarantee of a dream career — or employment at all, as AI threatens the jobs the degrees were meant to unlock.
Students — and their parents — are searching for future-proof college majors for an AI-powered world.
Why it matters: AI is changing the skills employers expect from entry-level workers, while colleges are rethinking how to prepare students for the transition.
America is losing its grip on one of its quietest superpowers: its ability to attract the world's most ambitious students.
Why it matters: As international enrollment drops, colleges face a financial hit. Foreign students typically pay full tuition, acting as a crucial revenue stream that subsidizes campus operations and eases the cost burden for American taxpayers.
Some young workers are swapping laptops for hardhats, betting that a welding torch or a toolbelt could offer more protection from AI disruption.
Why it matters: As artificial intelligence rattles white-collar career paths, more young Americans are looking to the skilled trades for lower debt, stable pay and work that's harder to automate.
American consumers have powered the economy forward this year. In July, they took a breather.
Why it matters: While the underlying trend in consumer demand appears solid, retail sales hit an air pocket last month, suggesting a bumpier path ahead for overall growth.
Combined with a weak jobs report last week and twosubdued inflation readings this week, it points to the Federal Reserve having room to be patient on potential interest rate increases this fall.
Public opinion about the economy appears to be souring further this month, per the preliminary release of the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index.
By the numbers: Overall sentiment fell 8% in the early days of August, after two consecutive months of improvement.
The Treasury Department this week scrapped a key part of a federal anti-corruption law that required anonymous shell companies and other firms to disclose their owners.
Why it matters: The move is the latest example of how it's becoming harder to get information about the financial system, even as the ascendance of AI makes it seemingly easier to learn anything you want to know.
The U.S. is projected to become majority-minority in 2046, but hundreds of rural pockets crossed that demographic benchmark years ago, an Axios analysis finds.
Why it matters: The evolving face of rural America, driven both by immigration and increased mobility, has invigorated communities, increased their diversity — and presented new challenges.
