September 10, 2020

empowering you with insights and information from the edge of today’s headlines

International

Brexit or leave it: Brexit (the UK leaving the EU) was achieved in January of 2020, but the transition period was set to last until December 31. During this period, the parties were meant to agree on their trading relationships. Unfortunately, issues over Northern Ireland are causing more problems. The border between Northern Ireland (part of the UK) and Ireland (part of the EU) was one of the main reasons Theresa May resigned as Prime Minister, and now Boris Johnson appears to be using it as an excuse to break international law. The British government even admitted that it was prepared to break the Brexit treaty in an effort to protect the trading relationships of the UK’s four nations.

Democracies across the world seem to be endorsing the “rule of law” when it comes to protestors and others, but the governments themselves are more fond of breaking their own laws these days. (We’re on the side of “your word is your bond.”) How can the US and the UK work against anti-democratic activities in Hong Kong, China and Belarus, if we don’t stand up to our own commitments?

We don’t see how the Brexit negotiation tactic advances the UK, since the UK has much more to lose from the lack of a trade deal than the EU. In theory, Johnson (and his parliament) and the EU have until October 15 to set the terms for a post-Brexit trade deal, when the parties meet at a EU summit. Fingers crossed.

Global Security: China is launching its own initiative on data security as a counter to the US Clean Network Program. China is calling on countries to handle data security in a “comprehensive, objective and evidence-based manner” devoid of politics. The Chinese program calls for tech companies to refrain from installing back doors and for countries to oppose mass surveillance. Feels like the internet is splintering even further, although China certainly has the upper hand with the Great Fire Wall.

Technology

Augmented influencers: Amazon has filed a patent to put advertising all over the human body using augmented reality technology. We know that influencers have sold their souls (and their social media accounts) to the big tech companies and other advertisers in order to make a digital living. We are not sure how we feel about humans being walking billboards, but then again, with branded clothing, most of us already are.

Department of Pre-Crime: A sheriff in Florida is using technology to attempt to stop crimes before they happen (sound familiar). The system generates a list of people it considers are likely to be criminals, and then harasses them and their families. While most similar programs across the country have been scrapped due to bias and concerns over civil rights and police overreach, the Pasco County sheriff has actually expanded the program. In the past 5 years, the program has targeted over 1,000 people. The intelligent, pro-active policing (or so it is called) was started to help end property crime, and has instead morphed into a $2.8M department with 30 team members. People are rated based on whether they are likely to reform or engage in a career of crime. Apparently, one of the goals of the program is to harass the targets until they move out of the jurisdiction. According to one law professor, the program’s manual “feels like everything that’s wrong about policing in one document.”

Avoiding the skies: One more reason not to fly this year: another Boeing plane is under investigation by the FAA. Eight 787 Dreamliners have been grounded stemming from quality control issues during production. The 737 Max was scheduled to resume flights after being grounded since last March. The Dreamliner fleet was already grounded once in 2013 due to an in-flight fire caused by a battery, and if the FAA finds issue in its investigation, over 1,000 planes could be pulled from service.

Summer Concert Series: Fortnite will be hosting a three-week long concert series starting on September 12. The concerts will be filmed in a studio specially designed for in-game streaming. Fortnite is advertising the concerts as “tour stops” on analog music tours - ““If you’re on tour, you want to stop on the Fortnite stage. It’s a unique way to get in front of an audience that maybe you’re not reaching through other means.” The concerts take place within the game at the violence-free island called the party royale.

Mask as Brand: Apple has designed its own mask (which will be delivered to its employees). The mask is reusable and designed by the engineering teams behind the iPad. Apple is also sending the ClearMask to its staff (we suspect mostly to its retail stores); this mask is the first FDA-cleared surgical mask that is completely transparent.

In case an Apple-branded mask isn’t your style, why not go for the Louis Vuitton face shield, which will be released as part of its 2021 Cruise Collection. Considering the retailer sells a sleep mask for $1100, we suspect this pleather and plastic will set you back a few stimulus payments.

Digital Luxuries: Taking a page out of the Fortnite playbook, Gucci is now designing fashion for the digital realm. Since most of us are now spending the majority of our time online or in Zoom meetings, Gucci is designing virtual fashion — someone just spent $9500 on a virtual dress that only exists on Instagram. Gucci has expanded its digital footprint to include a fashion-themed video game and fashion for a variety of online platforms, and apps which allow you to try before you buy. We suspect that fast fashion will soon have a new definition, and Gucci could be one of the most sustainable brands: no physical waste when you are all virtual.

Finance

Tariffs come for the Blue Box: In November of 2019, LVMH, the luxury French retailer, announced it wanted to purchased Tiffany & Co for $16B. The deal was approved by Tiffany’s shareholders in February, and then, Trump (not COVID) has apparently destroyed the deal. LVMH announced its intention to pull out of the acquisition because of the Trump administration’s focus on tariffs of French luxury goods. These tariffs are in retaliation for digital services taxes imposed by France on large US technology firms, and the French foreign ministry asked LVMH to delay the merger. COVID has destroyed the retail markets within the US, and may have permanently changed the way shoppers approach retail and especially luxury goods. (One irony to this story is that Tiffany’s flagship in NY is located next door to Trump Tower.) Yet one more sign that no one wins with tariffs.

Tesla has a rival: General Motors is investing $2B in Nikola, an electric truck maker. The strategic partnership will allow Nikola to benefit from the distribution and manufacturing capabilities of GM, while GM gets access to electric vehicle technology and will manufacture Nikola’s Badger, a electric pickup powered by hydrogen fuel cells. GM is also expected to work with Nikola in producing electric semi-trucks and selling the batteries globally. Nikola was founded in 2015, and went public through a SPAC in June, although prior to this partnership, it wasn’t expected to generate revenue until 2021.

Women rule:  Goldman Sachs has released a report that states that US fund portfolios managed by women and mixed-gender teams outperformed all-male portfolios in 2020. “Even after adjusting for risk, female managed funds outperformed their male counterparts amid the coronavirus-related market swings,” said David Kostin, Goldman Sachs’ chief US equity strategist. We knew women were calm under pressure and tend to deal with crises better (see New Zealand, Finland, Germany). Maybe now if Goldman Sachs believes it, diversity will actually be more than a buzzword.

Culture

Get your golden ticket: The founder of Jelly Belly is launching a series of treasure hunts across the US that are highly reminiscent of Willy Wonka. One lucky winner will actually walk away with the keys to a candy factory. There are a series of riddles per state, and you have to pay $50 to get access. But there could we worse ways to spend your pandemic than looking for candy.

Techno gets shelved: Berlin is famous for its night clubs, blasting techno music into the morning hours. But the pandemic has certainly taken its toll. Clubs have opened virtual simulations (Club Quarantane has hosted three parties, with 700,000 visitors and even turned away 40,000 guests on opening night). Some clubs have reopened, but dancing is strictly forbidden — mask-wearing patrons sip drinks and act like wall flowers. But in order to keep the culture alive in Berlin, several of the clubs have turned into art galleries by day. One famous club, Berghain, has art installations, but a bouncer at the door will sticker over your camera phone, and kick you out if you attempt to take a photo. You can hang out in the space as long as you like, enjoying a silent rave, but you can’t document it.

The Stones keep rolling: The Rolling Stones were set to tour in 2020, but like everything, the pandemic put an end to their live music plans. Fortunately, their record label discovered some unfinished tracks, and the band has been working on some “new” music. 2022 will be the 60th anniversary of the band’s first shows, and they expect to be touring. None of the band members expect to retire voluntarily. As Keith Richards put it: “I mean, that’s what we do. And also there’s that thing between us, like, ‘Who’s going to be the first one to get off the bus?’ You have to be kicked off or drop off, right? So it’s like that. I really can’t imagine doing anything else.” 

Escapism: We don’t really remember Dune from 1984, just something with Sting, spices, the desert and a galactic apocalypse. However, we are all here for the 2020 reboot with Timothy Chalamet. Here’s hoping that by the December release date we’ll have a vaccine or at least an outdoor IMAX (our bet, sadly, is on the latter). The movie will have a sequel (or at least the second half of the book on film at some later date) and an HBO Max prequel.

Missing the office: Audio engineer Stéphane Pigeon created Calm Office - streaming audio that replicates the sounds of a busy office. White collar workers apparently prefer the sounds of walking colleagues, typing and muffled printers over Gregorian chants and raindrops to “zone out” or at least get into a new COVID working mind space. Over 250,000 streams and counting.

What planet are we on? In case you missed it, the skies over California were quite apocalyptic on Wednesday. Astronomers have been asking whether the landscape looks like California, Mars, Venus, or one of Saturn’s moons. iPhone’s were also having trouble taking pictures of the orange-tinted sky, since the sky isn’t supposed to be that color! We are rooting for the firefighters and the rain, and we hope to be back to blue soon.

— Lauren Eve Cantor

thanks for reading!

if someone sent this to you or you haven’t done so yet, please sign up below so you never miss an issue.

if you have any feedback or want to engage on any of the topics discussed in On the Edge, please feel free to reply to this email.

we hope to be flowing into your inbox a few times a week. stay tuned for more!

visit our past editions in the archives.