• Meghan Markle and Prince Harry urged Meta to reverse its fact-checking policy rollback in the US.
• The Duke and Duchess of Sussex said Meta's latest move should "deeply concern us all."
• The couple said that Mark Zuckerberg's company was allowed "ego or profit" to guide its decision-making.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle criticized Meta's decision to cut third-party fact-checking in the US and said the move would allow the spread of "hate, lies, and division" on its platforms.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have a record of speaking out about misinformation on social media and online bullying, published an open letter on Monday urging Mark Zuckerberg's company to reverse the policy change announced last week.

"It doesn't matter whether your views are left, right or somewhere in between," the Sussexes wrote. "The latest news from Meta about changes to their policies directly undermines free speech. This should deeply concern us all."

Meta and representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.

The couple took aim at Meta's "talking points" about replacing its third-party fact-checking program with community notes — similar to X's approach. They also voiced disapproval of Meta's decision to roll back DEI initiatives.

Meta said loosening its fact-checking program would promote free speech by "lifting restrictions" on topics that are part of "mainstream discourse" and take a "more personalized approach to political content." The Sussexes argued it would ultimately "silence speech and expression, not foster it."

"This latest move from Meta is an example of a social media company— fully aware of their power to shape public discourse — disregarding any responsibility to ensure that power is not abused and instead allowing either ego or profit, likely both, to guide decisions that affect billions," the Sussexes said.

Meta's policy changes may increase the likelihood that users encounter controversial content and debates on Instagram, Facebook, and Threads around topics such as "immigration, gender identity, and gender," Business Insider previously reported.

Harry and Meghan also took aim at the apparent link between the company's policy change and President-elect Donald Trump's reelection, which said Meta had "come a long way" in a press conference following the announcement.

The same day, Meta CMO Alex Schultz told BI that Trump's victory directly influenced the decision, saying that "elections have consequences."

Meghan returned to Instagram earlier this month after an absence that began in 2020. The couple have previously spoken about how they met on the platform.

Her new Netflix documentary titled "With Love, Meghan" will now be released on March 4 rather than January 15 because of the "ongoing devastation" of the Los Angeles wildfires.

• An Israel-Hamas cease-fire and hostage deal is looking increasingly likely.
• US, Israeli, and Palestinian officials have expressed optimism that an agreement would be reached.
• White House officials say it could come before President Joe Biden leaves office on January 20.

An Israel-Hamas cease-fire and hostage deal is looking increasingly likely in the final days of President Joe Biden's administration, with officials from all sides expressing optimism that an agreement could soon be reached, potentially in the coming days.

The devasting conflict has been raging for 15 months, after Hamas-led militants launched a surprise terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.

Hamas and its allies still hold 94 of the hostages, including the remains of at least 34 who have died, according to Israel's government.

Meanwhile, Israel's military offensive in Gaza, which has left large parts of the Strip in ruin, has killed more than 46,000 people, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.

However, there's growing hope that the violence may soon come to an end, and that some hostages may be freed.

On Monday, Biden said cease-fire talks are "on the brink" of coming into fruition.

In the past, officials have expressed optimism about the prospect of a deal, only for negotiations to flounder.

"I have learned in many years of public service to never, never, never, ever give up," Biden said, adding that the US is "pressing hard" to close the deal.

During the speech in Washington, DC, Biden told reporters that the proposed deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow for the increase of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC that a deal is "closer than we've ever been."

White House national security advisor Jake Sullivan also offered glimmers of home on Monday, saying in an interview with Nexstar Washington that "we are so close to a cease-fire and hostage deal."

Sullivan called it a "distinct possibility" that the US would be able to get it across the line this week, "before President Biden leaves office."

President-elect Donald Trump will be inaugurated on January 20, 2025.

On Monday, Trump told Newsmax that he understands "there's been a handshake and they're getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week."

Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official, told The Washington Post on Monday that "significant progress" had been made in negotiations and that the mediators had a final draft agreement.

"We are so close," he told the outlet.

Qadura Fares, who leads the Palestinian Ministry of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, also suggested there was some movement in negotiations.

He told CNN on Monday that he was traveling to Qatar to advise negotiators on the list of hostages to be freed "in the event the deal materializes."

There's also optimism in Israel, with several local media outlets reporting that a deal was nearing completion.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said during a news conference on Monday that Israel had been working with both the outgoing Biden administration and incoming Trump administration to hopefully secure a deal "within a short time."

He said, "There is progress, I said it looks much better than previously."

Meanwhile, a group representing the families of the hostages said in a news release that representatives will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.

"The families are hopeful that any deal, even a limited one, represents an important first step toward a comprehensive agreement," the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.

It added, "They are grateful for every hostage who returns home and see each release as progress toward their ultimate goal: the return of all hostages — the living for rehabilitation and the deceased for proper burial."

• GitHub is Microsoft's code-hosting platform that lets users collaborate on open-source projects.
• GitHub has a free version, and several tiers of paid subscription versions.
• GitHub is extremely popular among software developers, and is used by most Fortune 100 companies.

If you're interested in software or software development, you've likely heard of GitHub.

For a coder, GitHub is akin to what Pinterest offers to an interior designer — a place where a person goes not just to upload content, but also for creative inspiration and collaboration.

The company bills itself as the world's leading software development platform, and says over 100 million developers use GitHub, as well as 90% of Fortune 100 companies.

GitHub is owned by Microsoft. The company was founded in 2007, but Microsoft acquired it in 2018 for $7.5 billion in stock, and Microsoft's CEO said at the time that the deal would "strengthen our commitment to developer freedom, openness and innovation."

GitHub has also recently integrated Copilot, Microsoft's AI tool. CEO Satya Nadella said in a July 2024 Microsoft earnings call that Copilot is "by far the most widely adopted AI-powered developer tool," and is responsible for 40% of GitHub's revenue growth.

GitHub's annual revenue run rate is now $2 billion, thanks to Copilot and GitHub's premium subscriptions.

Here's what you need to know about GitHub and how it relates to coding.

What is GitHub?

GitHub is, fundamentally, a hosting platform for coders. The cloud-based service allows coders to effectively manage and maintain open-source programming projects while collaborating with others.

To understand how GitHub works, you have to have an understanding of "Git" and the idea of "version control" in relation to Git.

Git, started by Linux creator Linus Torvalds, is an open-source version control system that tracks changes in files over time.

Version control is an important system when it comes to coding. It enables coders to be nimble with programming, and allows for apps to constantly have new version releases, expansion to other platforms, and bug fixes, among other tracked changes.

Version control systems like Git help maintain the integrity and security of ever-evolving code by safeguarding modifications, and those revisions are then hosted by GitHub, or an alternative "repository" hosting service — although GitHub is the most popular among developers.

This allows developers to easily collaborate, allowing them to download a new version of the software, make changes, and upload the newest revision. Every developer can see these new changes, download them, and contribute.

There are disadvantages to Github, too. GitHub users have been vocal in the past about complaints with the platform; some say GitHub is expensive, buggy, and insufficient for large teams.

Is GitHub free to use?

GitHub has a free version with limited bandwidth and storage, and two paid versions. The Team subscription is geared towards individuals and organizations seeking "advanced collaboration" options, and costs $4 per user per month.

The Enterprise subscription costs $21 per user per month, and has the same advantages as Team, plus a host of other advanced features, greater security, and premium support services.

How to start using Github

If you're looking for a resource to maintain and share code, you can easily install Git and sign up for GitHub for free. Here's how to get started:

1. First, you'll need to install the Git version control system, which you can download for free. Follow the directions specific to the device you're using.

2. Next, you can create your GitHub account at GitHub.com. A free account will have some limitations, but gives you access to both public and private repositories.

3. With your free account, you can get started right away and create a repository by clicking Create a repository on the GitHub homepage to start a new project.

From the same page, you can also access learning materials like a "What is GitHub?" video or an exercise in GitHub flow if you need more expertise before getting started with creating a repository.

• My daughter told me she was dropping out of high school at 16.
• I didn't argue and gave her the space to take a courageous leap into early adulthood, instead.
• "My high school's full of drugs and drinking. I don't want to get into trouble," she told me.

A week before the start of her high school junior year, my 16-year-old daughter walked into the kitchen with a smile of pure delight. "I emailed my principal," she reported. "I said it gave me great pleasure to inform her that I'd no longer be attending her school."

I attempted to maintain a neutral expression like the one I'd affected when — for show and tell in a middle-school science class — she'd brought a leech from her tank in the corner of our living room where she kept three of them along with several bullfrog tadpoles and a crayfish.

"So what will you do about high school this year?" I asked. She'd grown more and more miserable in high school, bewildered by constant social drama and classes full of busy work.

She immediately answered: "I'm going to community college to study marine biology."

"Good plan," I said, but my brain whirled with questions.

My daughter didn't want to get in trouble at school

My daughter has sprung similar revelations on me her entire life.

As a person with ADD, she's struggled with traditional classrooms since kindergarten, finding it difficult to concentrate in a room packed with peers unless she's thoroughly engaged with a subject.

Over her 12-year education, she tried public schools, charter schools, homeschooling, and private schools. I learned to be flexible and curious rather than rigid and angry. Dropping out of high school completely, though, was a new development.

Over my shoulder at the kitchen table, she said in her defense. "My high school's full of drugs and drinking. I don't want to get into trouble."

I worried about a different kind of trouble.

"Is this really legal?" I kept asking her College Now advisor — as if a Truant Officer might nab my teen en route to her beloved marine biology class and haul her back to high school.

"It's legal," said the advisor, who I had on speed dial. She just needs to enroll in the right transfer courses and take her GED exam, the equivalent of a high school diploma, the advisor said.

I brushed up on my research and discovered my daughter's decision could be for the best.

"Community college can be a great way to explore interests inexpensively before committing to a major," I read in the book "The Complete Guide to College Transfer: Find Your Ideal School, Maximize Your Credits, and Earn Your Degree."

The book tells students of any age to consider working toward an associate degree while enrolled at community college. "Not only is it a valuable credential on a resume, but it can also provide transfer benefits with partner universities."

So, my daughter and I worked with her advisor to devise a two-year plan for earning her Associate's degree at the community college and taking her GED.

However, as a young higher-education student, my teen was slightly out of her element. Initially, I helped her find her classes, taught her how to email her professors, and deconstructed her syllabi with her to figure out homework assignments and what textbooks to order. All of this was only possible thanks to my flexible work schedule.

Dropping out of high school was the right move

I admit to some sadness. I adored my high school, and I'm sorry my daughter didn't have the same positive experience.

However, different brains crave different pathways to education.

Despite my trepidation, I gave my daughter the space to take a courageous leap into early adulthood.

She passed her GED exams and is transferring to the University of Oregon next year as a junior.

These days, she wakes up at 9 a.m. and heads for classes she finds meaningful and relevant.

She hangs out with her classmates at lunchtime, comes home mid-afternoon to study, and then goes to the dance studio.

Just 18 and in her second year of college, she's become an independent and joyful young woman.

• Stephany Kirkpatrick said no to a job offer from Goldman Sachs so she could explore new territory.
• She decided to work at SoulCycle; an opportunity that equipped her to become an entrepreneur.
• Had she accepted the Goldman offer, she likely would not have become a founder, she said.

This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Stephany Kirkpatrick, a 43-year-old from New York, about turning down an offer from Goldman Sachs to work at SoulCycle. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When I got a job offer from Goldman Sachs, many people counseled me to take it. They likened it to Harvard. If you get in, you go.

By 2018, I'd spent 15 years working in the financial advice industry. I started my career as a financial planner in the retirement planning ecosystem. In 2011, I joined a New York-based startup called LearnVest. We were acquired in 2015, and I spent another three years working there.

In 2018, I received a job offer from Goldman Sachs to lead a software and business team. The role was similar to what I was already doing, and the obvious next step to continue my career in financial services.

Counter to every piece of advice I received from friends and family members, I thought about what would make me happy instead.

Choosing SoulCycle over Goldman allowed me to do something new

I could've accepted the Goldman job and been the subject matter expert, but in my heart of hearts, I wanted to test my boundaries.

In the spring of 2018, I turned down the offer from Goldman Sachs and accepted a job at the fitness company SoulCycle. The skills I gained at SoulCyle helped me start my own business, and I have no regrets about taking that risk.

The Goldman Sachs offer came after someone I had worked with at LearnVest reached out to me. They wanted me to meet someone building a new project at Goldman.

As you get further into your career, you do less formal applications, and it more likely your network is helping you connect with the right people at the right time.

I spoke with the connection at Goldman and realized the work would be very similar to what I'd done before.

Saying yes to this opportunity would mean I'd probably spend another 10 years doing the same work because I don't like to change jobs often. It became clear to me that this wasn't what I wanted.

I questioned whether I wanted to be a middle-aged financial expert or explore new territory.

Around that time, a person in my network who worked at SoulCycle reached out to me because of my digital and operating experience at LearnVest. I connected with the then-CEO, Melanie Whelan, and we had an informal conversation.

Working with Whelan checked all my boxes: I wanted to work for a female CEO since I'd worked for a female founder at LearnVest, and I wanted to work somewhere based in New York in an industry I could get excited about.

The job paid wildly less money than what I'd earned before. It would be a huge departure from what I'd been able to save. My husband and I had to sit down and discuss what it would mean for our lifestyle, and he supported my choice to take the job.

I also spoke with the chief commercial officer; we immediately clicked and shook hands. Shortly after, I became the GM of digital strategy.

At the time, SoulCycle was considering entering the at-home market. I learned about brick-and-mortar and supply chains and applied what I was good at: being a digital entrepreneur.

It pushed me to figure things out, like how to build bikes that go nowhere, what it would take to make content, and how to learn about the market. I had to build my network in the company and tap into the expertise of others. It was scary to walk into a place where I didn't know all the answers, but it unlocked incredible career growth for me.

After SoulCycle I founded my own business

I loved working at SoulCycle, but I couldn't stop thinking about an idea I'd had at my last job: how people have reduced access to money in a brokerage or high-yield savings account on nights, holidays, or weekends. This is a fundamental flaw in the infrastructure that powers financial services.

One day, I was catching up with an investor friend and brought it up to her. She told me I had a fundable idea and she wanted to write me an inspiration check.

I left SoulCycle in September 2019 and started my own business, Orum. We aim to improve payment speed and orchestration for businesses using API solutions. I've been working on Orum for the past five years. The team has grown to about 40 people, and we've raised $82M to date.

I don't think I'd be a founder if I hadn't turned down the Goldman offer

Looking back, I remember feeling excited about taking the SoulCycle job, but because I'm a people pleaser, I also felt a little bit of shame that I wasn't doing the thing people expected of me.

No one told me not to work at SoulCycle, but taking less money to do something I didn't know I was going to be good at was a little unsettling.

However, the opportunity has made me a better founder today. At both SoulCycle and LearnVest, I basically had to look at a blank piece of paper and pursue a strategy to test our hypothesis. I had to ask and answer how quickly we could learn whether to do this or that, and that's what startups are all about.

Had I stayed in financial services instead of moving to SoulCycle, I truly think I would've stayed there for the next 10 years. I don't think I'd be any less happy, but it's very unlikely that I would have had the courage or reason to take the leap of faith to become a founder.

I'm excited about where Orum is right now and have zero regrets.

Do you have a story about turning down a prestigious job offer or leaving a prestigious company? Email [email protected]

• Qventus just raised $105 million in Series D funding led by KKR.
• Its new AI assistant that gets patients ready for surgery is leading the startup's growth surge.
• Qventus aims to hit breakeven this year by adding more health system customers.

Healthcare startup Qventus just scored a mega-round of funding for its AI that gets patients ready for the operating room.

Qventus has raised $105 million in Series D funding led by private equity giant KKR, the startup announced Monday. Three of Qventus's health system customers, Northwestern Medicine, HonorHealth, and Allina Health, joined the round, along with previous Qventus investor Bessemer Venture Partners.

The funding comes as Qventus ramps up its new AI-powered assistant tech, built in partnership with Northwestern Medicine and other health systems. The startup's software, launched in August, aims to automate a range of non-clinical tasks before and after surgery, including messaging with patients, making phone calls to other healthcare organizations to retrieve a patient's medical records, and sending and receiving faxes.

Qventus has spent more than a decade building technology to automate hospital operations such as surgical scheduling. Founded in 2012, it's raised $200 million to date from investors including Bessemer Venture Partners, Norwest Venture Partners, and Mayfield Fund.

The new AI assistant tech is supercharging Qventus's growth, CEO Mudit Garg told Business Insider.

"They've had the fastest uptake of anything we've built in the past 10 years and very high resonance with customers," Garg said of the operational assistants. "That's accelerating the whole process and the speed at which we bring new solutions to market."

The $105 million Series D round included $20 million of venture debt and $85 million of equity financing. Garg declined to share what firm provided the debt financing.

Qventus's Series D funding is one of multiple mega-rounds announced already this year, joining January raises including Hippocratic AI's $141 million Series B round and Innovaccer's $275 million Series F round. The deals are a clear signal of healthcare VC's priorities in 2025 — Qventus, Hippocratic, and Innovaccer all center AI in their pitches.

Over a decade after Qventus's launch, more startups are cropping up to use AI to tackle healthcare's administrative burdens. General Catalyst-backed Fabric has been racking up acquisitions to help manage emergency room patients. In mental health, Jimini Health raised a $8 million pre-seed round in November for its AI that automates patient intake and offers around-the-clock messaging between therapy sessions.

Garg said Qventus hopes to hit cash flow breakeven by the end of 2025. The startup has never made an acquisition, but its team is considering M&A opportunities as the company continues to grow. Still, Garg noted, "It's always a tradeoff."

"We definitely will be looking, but it's not part of our core thesis," he said.

Despite Qventus's late-stage funding round, Garg isn't thinking about an exit just yet. "There's plenty of cash in the business," he said.

This year, Qventus is focused on building out new use cases for its tech, including automation tailored to complex surgical specialties like oncology and cardiology, Garg said.

The startup is also ramping up its hiring, especially in its engineering department, as it signs on more customers and brings new capabilities to existing contracts.

Here's the 17-slide pitch deck Qventus used to raise $105 million from KKR.

• Abbie Stockard was crowned the new Miss America on January 5.
• The 22-year-old Auburn University student told BI how she prepared for the competition.
• Stockard studied a binder with 150 political and current event topics daily for months.

Before competing at Miss America 2025, Abbie Stockard wanted to make sure she was prepared for the interview round.

So, the 22-year-old Auburn University student prepared a binder with 150 political and current event topics, which she studied every day for months.

The hard work paid off on January 5, when Stockard became the fourth Miss Alabama to win Miss America in the organization's 104-year history.

In a recent interview with Business Insider, Stockard revealed how she prepared for the competition and why she thinks it's important that Miss America can speak on global issues.

The Miss America pageant features rounds in evening wear, fitness, talent, and interviews. The latter includes an eight-minute private interview with judges during the preliminary competition and an onstage question during the finals.

"They can ask you literally anything, so you have to be prepared for it," Stockard said.

In addition to doing two to three mock interviews a week, Stockard said she went through her binder of 150 topics every day.

"I would be like, 'OK, I'm going to cover topics one through 20 today, and I'm going to look at statistics and formulate some talking points,'" Stockard recalled. "I looked at it like I was studying for a test. That's the nursing student in me."

"That's what took up the most of my time," she added. "Making sure I was prepared but also keeping up with current news stories and making sure I could formulate an opinion if asked about them."

During her private interview, Stockard said she was asked what age she thought it was appropriate for a child to have a cellphone or social media, as well as how she would define diversity. During the onstage final on January 5, contestants also discussed censorship, national debt, housing, and immigration.

While questions regarding hot-button issues and current events remain a staple of Miss America, they have disappeared from the Miss USA pageant. Their absence is no accident.

When Laylah Rose took over as owner and CEO of the troubled organization in September 2023, she decided that interview questions involving politics, religion, or sex were off-limits. She told BI at the time that she wanted to highlight the contestants "as individuals, and I really want them to shine within themselves and who they are."

Amid a July 2024 investigation into the Miss USA Organization, multiple past contestants told BI they were shocked by the change and said it diminished the purpose of the pageant.

"Most women get into pageantry because they feel like there's a voice that's missing," said Miss Utah 2020 Rachel Slawson, the first bisexual woman to compete at Miss USA. "Taking that away from women is just really watering them down, and very disappointing when you spend so many years working to have a platform and have your voice heard."

"It removes any individuality to the titleholder so they can be used for anyone and anything," Miss Montana 2020 Merissa Underwood told BI. "It feels akin to the beginning, when Miss USA was literally just about selling swimsuits."

As the new Miss America, Stockard said she believes it's important that she can "speak out on the timely issues of my generation today."

"It doesn't necessarily mean speaking out about my political opinions, but simply using my platform to encourage civic engagement and encourage people to vote, volunteer, and stay informed because I think that is necessary for the future of our democracy," Stockard told BI.

"We have a lot of political and social issues ruling the news today," she added. "I want the world to know that Miss America is a light, she's a role model, she's an inspiration, and she can engage with people regardless of their age, their background, or their political beliefs."

• Ryanair wants authorities to restrict alcohol sales in airports to two drinks per passenger.
• The airline said a diversion caused by a drunk passenger cost it over $15,000.
• It says some passengers are drinking too much particularly when flights are delayed.

Ryanair, the world's third-largest airline by passengers, is calling on authorities to limit the sale of alcoholic beverages at airports.

The Irish airline wants airports to restrict the sale of alcohol in departure areas to two drinks per passenger in a bid to limit the number of incidents involving rowdy, intoxicated passengers.

Ryanair said in a statement Monday that some people consume excessive amounts of alcohol in airport bars particularly when flights are delayed.

"We fail to understand why passengers at airports are not limited to 2 alcoholic drinks (using their boarding pass in exactly the same way they limit duty free sales), as this would result in safer and better passenger behaviour on board aircraft, and a safer travel experience for passengers and crews all over Europe," Ryanair said.

The airline included the statement in a press release giving more details about a civil lawsuit it recently announced it was pursuing against a former passenger.

It says the passenger was so disruptive on an April 2024 flight from Dublin to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands that the flight was diverted to Porto, Portugal, where the passenger was arrested.

It's pursuing the civil suit to recover costs over the incident, which the airline says totaled more than $15,000.

In the statement Monday, it gave a more detailed breakdown of the costs it said it faced, saying that as a result of the disruption and regulations on staff working hours, the airline had to fund accommodations and meals for six crew members and 160 passengers to spend the night in Porto. It said it also provided an additional aircraft and crew to operate the return flight from Lanzarote to Dublin, which was also delayed.

The airline says overall costs came to 15,350 euros, or nearly $15,750 at today's exchange rate, including 7,000 euros on passenger and crew overnight accommodation, 2,500 euros on landing and handling fees at Porto Airport, and 2,500 euros on Portuguese legal fees to date.

"None of these costs would have been incurred if this disruptive passenger had not forced a diversion to Porto in order to protect the safety of the aircraft, 160 passengers and 6 crew members on board," a spokesperson from the European budget airlines said.

• While my daughter was dating her first boyfriend, I made friends with his mother.
• I wanted to go on a cruise and invited her, her mother, and her daughter. We had so much fun.
• We recently took another cruise together even though my daughter and her ex have broken up.

While my 14-year-old daughter was with her first boyfriend, I became close friends with his mom. My teens aren't fans of cruise vacations, so when Disney Cruise Line opened its new private island, Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point, and my family didn't want to go, I asked my newest mom friend to come along with me to check it out. We decided to go on a multigenerational cruise — a stateroom made up of myself, my friend, her mother, and her 18-year-old daughter — and it was the most fun cruise I've been on in my entire life, thanks to the company.

My daughter's foray into dating ended with a breakup, like most first relationships do. Thankfully, she and her ex have remained friends, and a few months after their relationship ended, when I wanted to sail on Disney's newest cruise ship, the Disney Treasure, and needed a few good travel buddies, I reached back out to my travel buddies. Again, we traveled as a multi-generational foursome and again, it was incredibly fun and relaxing.

Here's what I love so much about multigenerational travel with girlfriends, and why I'm hoping we cruise many, many more times together in the future.

The best way to get to know others is through travel — and shared interests

On our first cruise together, I'd never traveled with my friend, her daughter, or her mom and had no idea how the trip would go. Thankfully, we got along great, and I fit right into their family dynamic. We instantly bonded and spent the entirety of the cruise talking, laughing, and getting to know each other better. We left our first cruise with so many great memories that I felt instantly bonded to each of them.

Not only did we travel well together, we had shared interests. I'm someone who's fine with being labeled a "Disney adult," and I appreciate other grown-ups who share my love of Disney magic. As with anything you're passionate about, traveling with a group of people who also value a specific type of experience is pure joy.

From sipping lattes with Disney art aboard the ship to dancing to a Junkanoo show on Lookout Cay with Mickey and his pals, there's something extra enjoyable about experiencing time on a vacation with people who appreciate it instead of teenagers who complain. Disney cruises can be pricey, and enjoying one with a group of people who were genuinely thrilled to be there made everything feel worth it.

I don't have a relationship with my own mother, so borrowing my friend's mom was special

I haven't had a relationship with my own mom for many years, and long ago a therapist told me the best way to deal with the sadness an estrangement sometimes brings is to spend time with other moms you look up to. My friend's mom is one-in-a-million, and getting to take a vacation with her felt really special since I rarely spend time with adult women who are the age of someone who could be my mom. I've learned it's OK to borrow other people's moms as people who I look up to, and traveling twice with this special woman has been a delight.

I laughed so much my stomach hurt

One of my favorite parts of traveling with this group of women was meal time, when we'd sit at a restaurant and talk, sharing stories, giving each other advice, and discussing where we each were at this time in our lives.

In addition to some amazing conversations, we had so many things to laugh about, from silly photos captured by the ship's photographers to inside jokes we'd come up with during our days on the ship. Laughter really is the best medicine, and I left both trips feeling so much joy after cracking up with my friends for several days on end.

We both acted like kids and enjoyed the adults-only areas

While we definitely took advantage of spaces like adults-only pools or restaurants where no kids were allowed while on our Disney cruises, we also made sure to experience the more childlike aspects as well. From watching Disney's Broadway-quality shows each night to seeing fireworks on the ship's upper decks to standing in line to meet characters like Captain Minnie Mouse, my travel party wasn't afraid to embrace their inner children, which made the trip all the more fun. Something I tell my teenage daughter often is that she should find friends who aren't afraid to be silly and who don't take themselves too seriously, so being able to model that for her with my own friendships is important to me.

These women remain some of my closest friends

With two cruises under our belts, I feel more connected than ever to these amazing women, something that's a dream come true for someone like me, who set out recently to make friends who would add more meaning to my life and challenge me to become the best version of myself.

Sailing the seas with three generations of women has taught me a lot about myself, showed me how far I've come in life, and given me things to strive for as I continue to age. In my friend's 18-year-old daughter, I see so much drive and determination, qualities that remind me to keep setting goals for myself and dreaming big, even at age 44.

My friend's mom teaches me bits of wisdom about everything from her secrets to a nearly 50-year marriage to stories about what she learned during her career years. And my friend who's my age? Traveling together has made us even closer and bonded us in a pretty unique way.

What's more, all breakups aside, our families remain close, and the three of them remain some of my dearest friends, so much so that we spend holidays together and are planning more trips as a quartet.

• My daughter is in her senior year of high school and in the middle of the college search phase.
• As her mom, I'm trying to be helpful while letting her lead the way to finding the ideal school.
• I'm only suggesting schools to visit and reminding her that I'm always here to help.

My daughter is currently in the midst of the college search phase, and with so many college and university options, you might imagine that this journey is both complex and exciting.

As a parent, I want to help make my child's senior year as stress-free as possible by assisting her during the process, but I also want to step back a bit as she begins the transition to adulthood. With this in mind, finding a way to be just the right amount of helpful is so important.

As my second child who's heading to college — her older brother is in his junior year — this isn't my first experience in the college search phase. However, as parents know, each kid in the family is different and has their own distinct style as to how they proceed with tasks and achieve their goals.

During her brother's college search, it was a new experience for all of us — including the path to finding the ideal university plus all of the other important parts of the process, including the application procedures, financial aid steps, and the final step of him narrowing down the options to his chosen school. This time, we have the experience and can pursue the college search phase with a bit more confidence. With that said, it's so important for me to take a step back and let my daughter find a school that works best for her.

I'm letting her apply to schools without setting too many restrictions

The first way I've taken a step back during this college search phase is by letting her apply to a wide array of schools without setting too many restrictions.

Of course, this doesn't mean that every school will be a top choice for her or that we'll be able to afford it. It just gives her more freedom to explore potential schools that may meet her personal requirements for a good fit and gives her peace of mind knowing she's considered different options.

From that point onward, we can discuss the finer details of each school, including the pros and cons and feasibility factors.

I'm suggesting on-campus visits, but enabling her to choose the must-see options

College visits have expanded in options compared to years ago when I went to school. In the past, you could visit the school in person or take a chance that it may be a good fit simply by reading the brochures.

Fast-forward to today, where prospective students have many exploration options, from virtual college visitation sessions to social media.

These are all excellent research options; however, I feel that it's always good to visit the school in person when able to do so. Therefore, I tell my daughter that we should visit as many schools in person as possible, especially if she's really interested in a few specific universities.

That said, she can pick the ones that really interest her, and then we'll go explore those colleges.

I'm still providing feedback with negotiable viewpoints

Although I'll stand back and let my daughter form her own opinions as to the individual schools, I'll always provide feedback.

This doesn't mean my view is the right one or that my feedback contains non-negotiable terms. I just think it's important to provide her with details she may not have thought of and also let her know my thoughts due to my experience and having gone through the college search process on my own — albeit many years ago.

The feedback will also revolve around cost and location. For example, even with access to scholarships and grants, attending certain schools may not be possible due to financial reasons.

I may also want to provide insight into the pros and cons of schools within driving distance versus colleges that require airline travel. In addition, safety factors may also be discussed when comparing different schools. However, I don't want this feedback to be a definitive response but instead talking points to discuss when deciding which universities and colleges may be right for her.

I'm reminding my daughter I'm always here for her

Most importantly, I make it a point to let her know that although she will take the lead in finding her ideal university, I'm always here for her when she needs advice, information, or simply a parent's loving guidance.

As a mom, I'm going into this college search process, hoping to provide the best possible guidance for my daughter as she takes the initial steps toward adulthood while giving her the space to find her way and make her own decisions.

Ultimately, I know that she will choose the college or university that is right for her as she embarks on this new and exciting journey.

• Daniel Peebles left a film career to care for his sons, one of whom has cerebral palsy, full time.
• Peebles' wife, Courtney, started a toy business in 2023, which she runs from their home.
• The family business, Solobo, supports them now as Peebles embraces life as a stay-at-home dad.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Daniel Peebles, a 27-year-old stay-at-home dad in Arizona. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

While I was growing up with my dad in Virginia Beach, he would surf often. When I was 8, he asked me to start filming him surfing.

I learned to love telling stories, and as I got older I picked up the camera again to make videos for my family and friends in our town for $100 each.

I grew that into a successful film career, but I quit to stay home and care for my two children, one with special needs, while my wife runs a company.

When I was 18, I started making real money with film projects

I decided not to go to college because I knew what I wanted to do for a career. At first, filming was just a hobby, but I started to get serious and charge more.

Through word of mouth, local businesses in our area contacted me to ask if I offered filming and editing services. I charged local companies between $1,000 and $3,000 per project.

In 2017, I met the woman who would become my wife

Courtney was working as a producer at a megachurch. We worked together on film projects and hit it off. We married in 2018 and moved in together.

I realized that the film projects I was doing here and there would not be enough income for a family — I needed a real job.

In 2018, I worked for six months at a mortgage company. Courtney was a multimedia specialist at the time. We were making good money but were miserable and wanted to spend more time together. We both quit at the end of that year.

I went back to freelancing for film projects in 2019

Our first son was born in December. Courtney stayed home with our son, and I picked up freelance film work, but I lost all my film clients when the pandemic hit. Since opportunities were scarce, I networked and got a full-time job as a film director at Ironclad.

I was grateful for the work and the $80,000 salary. With bonuses, it was well into the six figures annually. Our second son was then born in May 2021.

My younger son has cerebral palsy, which meant a lot of care

I traveled constantly. There were some weeks where I was gone three weeks out of the month. Every time I left home, I felt a ping because I didn't want my sons to grow up with a dad who wasn't around.

After my son's diagnosis, I started scaling back and moved into more postproduction, which kept me at home.

My son requires supervision at all times and is on long-term care through our state. I'm the registered provider under the program. If I weren't registered, attendants would come to our home whenever needed.

Courtney became frustrated with our younger son's toys

Courtney found that the toy industry lacked toys for neurodivergent kids. My younger son had a lot of mobility issues with his hands. She couldn't find any toys to help him with those movements.

She started making things just out of cardboard, and then she kept having more ideas. Courtney started Solobo LLC, our family toy business, in March 2023. We invested $10,000 we had saved into prototypes.

At first, she worked on product creation, marketing, sales, and logistics for the business at night while I worked during the day.

We decided I would quit my job and let Courtney pursue her dream

As the business grew, I told Courtney how miserable I was being away from her and the boys, and we talked about her passion for the business. I hesitated about becoming a stay-at-home dad, but it seemed to be the right choice.

I was on my way to becoming the lead director of production when I quit my job at Ironclad in June 2023. I took the leap even though we had no savings at that point.

My dad traveled a lot for work while I was growing up, and I didn't get to see him as much as I wanted to. Staying home with my sons was more important to me than the money.

My day-to-day life as a stay-at-home dad is totally different

One of my kids wakes me up — they're my alarm. I get up and cook breakfast for the family. Courtney goes upstairs to work while I play with the boys.

We have activities a few times a week. I teach them practical things, like how to swim. The boys go to school a few times a week, too — it's an inclusive learning space through play.

I help Courtney with fulfillment coordination, inventory, and logistics at night. We have a few regular subcontractors and a team of pediatric experts.

Money is tight at times, but the business pays our bills

Our relationship has become stronger. Courtney and I first met through work, so it's cool to be working with my best friend again. I get the privilege of spending more time with my boys than most dads, and it's beautiful.

I've had people approach me who are genuinely puzzled that Courtney and I don't get tired of always being around each other. We work, laugh, cry, and dream together, and I wouldn't have it any different.

How I grew up — dads work and moms stay home — I felt there was a stigma for stay-at-home dads, but I did it anyway. I can see how we're building a better future for our boys.

The toy business continues to grow

I love the stay-at-home dad life. The only reason I would consider returning to work depends on the level of care our son needs (as he gets older) and where our business is by then.

Everyone thought I was crazy when I quit my film industry job to become a stay-at-home dad, but it was the best decision for our family.

• About a fifth of recruitment ads in 2024 were "ghost jobs," a Greenhouse report found.
• Ghost jobs frustrate candidates and erode trust, but hiring managers continue to see the benefits.
• Greenhouse and LinkedIn now offer verification features to help identify potential ghost jobs.

Everyone has a story about a role they thought they were perfect for, only to hear nothing back or be ghosted later on.

You may have even been love-bombed during an interview and told you were the ideal candidate, only for it to be crickets afterward.

Greenhouse may have an explanation. It found that between 18% and 22% of jobs listed with it in 2024 were appeals for new workers that never actually got filled.

The hiring platform surveyed 2,500 workers across the US, UK, and Germany, finding that three in five candidates suspected they had encountered a "ghost job."

In analyzing the data, Greenhouse found that about a fifth of the jobs posted on its platform could be classified this way — jobs that go up on boards but don't actually exist.

"The data highlights a troubling reality — the job market has become more soul-crushing than ever," Jon Stross, Greenhouse's president and cofounder, said in a statement.

Spotting a fake job ad

Ghost jobs are not a new phenomenon. Business Insider reported in 2022 on a survey of 1,000 hiring managers conducted by the lending firm Clarify Capital. Half of managers said they kept job postings live even when they weren't actively recruiting because they were "always open to new people."

A Resume Builder survey last May found that seven in 10 hiring managers also think it's "morally acceptable" to post ghost jobs, while three in 10 companies have posted fake listings.

Other reasons for putting up these ads include giving the impression of company growth, placating frustrated staff members, or holding out hope for the perfect "unicorn" candidate.

While hiring managers may see the benefit, in reality, ghost jobs frustrate candidates and erode trust in the process, BI's Tim Paradis reported last year.

The Wall Street Journal reported that in response to persisting ghost jobs, Greenhouse and LinkedIn now have a verification feature to help candidates weed out ads that may be a waste of time.

Some ways to identify a ghost job, BI previously reported, include it being up for 30 days or more, can no longer be found on the company's website, or a vague description of the role and its requirements.

• Almost 50 years ago, a young Donald Trump had a career breakthrough redeveloping a NYC hotel.
• Now, developers want to replace the property with the country's most expensive tower.
• The project's builders need almost $5 billion of federal loans to do it.

Donald Trump was a young developer eager to make a name for himself in the Manhattan real estate industry when he struck a career-making deal to redevelop the Commodore Hotel next to Grand Central Terminal into a 1,300-room Grand Hyatt clad in dark glass.

Nearly half a century later, Trump may again have an opportunity to play a role in the site's destiny when he returns to the White House.

New York developers RXR and TF Cornerstone have proposed leveling the property and raising a 1,575-foot-tall office and hotel tower in its place that would cost as much as $6.5 billion to construct. It would be both the tallest skyscraper by roof height ever built in America as well as the most expensive.

Renderings of the mega-tower show how it will dwarf surrounding structures, including the neighboring landmark Chrysler Building and even a new headquarters tower being built nearby for JPMorgan Chase.

As part of the work, the pair have imagined making improvements to portions of the historic neighboring train terminal and the subway station below the site.

To help pay for the immense project — called 175 Park Avenue — the developers are taking an unusual approach at a moment when lenders have remained wary to finance such large-scale office development.

The property was recently included on a list of mostly transportation related projects that are seeking access to federal money earmarked for transit infrastructure development and upgrades.

RXR and TF Cornerstone are planning to apply for as much as $4.84 billion of federal loans to help pay for the tower, according to the document. The developers expect to spend as much as $6.5 billion on the project, a sum that includes about $550 million of accompanying transit improvements they will make as part of the project. The team is listed as having submitted a draft letter of interest in the federal money, a preliminary and non-binding step in applying for the funding.

The federal money is discretionary and administered by the US Department of Transportation, meaning that the incoming Trump administration — and possibly even the president himself — will have decision-making authority over which projects are ultimately awarded.

"I would expect he'd be supportive and excited about it, and obviously at the appropriate time we're going to be reaching out," Scott Rechler, the CEO and chairman of RXR, said, noting that he hadn't yet attempted to discuss the tower project with the president-elect or anyone in his circle. "He understands office buildings better than any president before."

A shortage of capital for office development

Rechler said the project team behind 175 Park Avenue is exploring the federal loans because of lingering dislocations in the lending market that have made it difficult to source financing from private sector lenders.

Banks, life insurance companies, debt funds, and other sources of mortgage debt have pulled away from office financing as a result of concerns about the stresses of higher interest rates on property values and vacancies created by the enduring popularity of hybrid and remote work.

Trey Morsbach, an executive managing director at JLL who co-leads the firm's real estate debt advisory practice, said that multi-billion-dollar office projects are tricky to finance even during favorable leasing and lending conditions, requiring collections of lenders to divide the loan and spread their risk.

One Vanderbilt, a roughly 1,400-foot-tall tower that opened in 2020 on the other side of Grand Central Terminal from 175 Park Avenue, for instance, received a $1.5 billion construction loan from a group of six banks in 2016 in order to proceed.

Morsbach said that lenders were still funding office construction today, in large part because there is a growing belief that newly built, high-end spaces will outperform the broader market. The pool of active financing groups has shrunk, however, challenging deals like 175 Park Avenue that rely on lending consortiums and benefit from market depth.

Lenders "are interested, but just aren't willing to commit the same scale," Morsbach said.

An unused pot of tens of billions of federal dollars

RXR and TF Cornerstone are aiming to tap lending programs called the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act and Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing. The programs, known by their acronyms Tifia and Rrif, respectively, offer projects access to low-cost financing and long payback periods stretching 35 years or more.

The cost benefits of sourcing a loan at the scale necessary to fund the construction of 175 Park Avenue from the federal government versus the private market would be "absolutely astronomical" for the developers, according to Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, the Earle W. Kazis and Benjamin Schore Professor of Real Estate at Columbia Business School.

Although the programs are aimed at transit upgrades, they were updated as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021 to allow funding for private development located "within a half mile walking distance of transit — commuter and intercity passenger rail stations," according to a DOT spokeswoman.

Few builders, however, have tapped the money, even though the Rrif program holds about $30 billion of unused funds, in part, because of the tedious qualification process.

To receive the financing, the 175 Park Avenue project must receive an investment grade credit rating from a major ratings agency and pass through a federal environmental review.

"It's extremely cumbersome to access that money," Van Nieuwerburgh said.

There has been optimism in the commercial real estate industry that the Trump administration will be more accommodative of business, including by stripping back regulation.

"Donald Trump comes in, his team cuts through the red tape, navigates through and unleashes a $6 billion project that's going to improve transit, create the biggest building in the Western hemisphere," Rechler said of 175 Park Avenue's potential appeal to the president-elect. "It speaks to a lot of his policies and the administration's approach to wanting to get things done."

Unflattering politics

Rechler, however, was for years closely aligned politically with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo — a Democrat and nemesis of Trump's during his first term in the White House.

Rechler, who noted he is a registered independent, is hoping that economic development will prevail over politics.

But a person who is in line to become a Trump administration official said that Rechler's past associations may not be lost on the new administration.

"I'm not speaking for Trump, but I would be in utter shock if the transportation department, which must oversee the railroads, if they signed off on that deal," the person said.

• Jack Clark was a reporter at Bloomberg when I was an editor there.
• He told me he was quitting to join OpenAI in 2016.
• I told him that was a terrible idea. The rest is history.

In 2016, Jack Clark walked up to me in Bloomberg's San Francisco newsroom and asked if we could go for a walk. As an editor, it's often not good when one of your reporters makes a request like this.

Sure enough, as we sat on a bench looking over the bay, Jack told me he was quitting to join a nonprofit called OpenAI.

I said this was a terrible idea. OpenAI was less than a year old at the time and was still a relatively obscure AI research group. Its major claim to fame was Elon Musk's (uneven) financial support.

I pressed my case. As a reporter on Bloomberg's Big Tech team, Jack had a pretty stable job. In contrast, OpenAI didn't seem to have much of a direction, and I couldn't see a path for it to become financially sustainable beyond asking Musk for more money. I selfishly also wanted Jack to stay at Bloomberg and keep covering Google and AI, which he was good at.

I thought I was pretty persuasive, but Jack ignored me and left.

"Just read the research papers"

He went on to be an influential expert and advisor on AI safety and related topics, co-authoring several AI research papers. Jack also built one of the most popular AI email newsletters, called Import AI, which researchers widely follow in the field. He still writes this regularly.

He often told me to "just read the research papers" when I asked how to learn more about AI and get better stories about the technology. He was right. There's a lot of valuable information buried in these papers.

Jack stayed at OpenAI for over four years, doing strategy and communications before becoming a policy director. He may have gotten some equity in that startup, but I'm not sure.

Then, in 2020, he left OpenAI and I didn't hear from him for a while. He popped up a few months later as one of seven cofounders of Anthropic, which was started by a bunch of early OpenAI employees.

Cofounders reminisce

Anthropic is now challenging OpenAI at the forefront of generative AI and large language models. It's backed by Amazon and Google, along with several top venture capital firms.

The cofounders got together last month to talk about the start of Anthropic. Jack holds court with his colleagues, who reminisce about the early days.

"I met Dario in 2015 when I went to a conference you were at, and I tried to interview you, and Google PR said I would've read all of your research papers," Jack says to Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, who used to work at Google.

"I think I was writing 'Concrete problems in AI safety' when I was at Google," Amodei replies. "I think you wrote a story about that paper."

"I did," Jack says, with a cheeky smile.

Not his style

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that Anthropic was raising money at a $60 billion valuation. Then, Forbes reported that the seven cofounders, including Jack, are set to become billionaires.

I asked Jack about this last week and said I wanted to interview him for a story. 

"Haha, Ali, thanks, but really not my style," he replied.

It's true. Jack is among the gentlest, kindest, and most self-deprecating people I've ever met. He's not classic billionaire material. 

I'm still stunned and trying to process his new situation. What I do know is that Jack's decision to ignore me was a testament to his passion, single-mindedness, and vision.

Back in 2015, when very few people thought about AI, he was obsessed with it and was constantly pushing to write about the technology at Bloomberg. 

Jack knew that AI was important. When his chance came, he took a risk and went for it.

• Mark Zuckerberg wants more "masculine energy" at Meta. There's some disconnect with the user base.
• In the US, 61% of men use Facebook — while 78% of women do.
• Academic studies suggest men and women view frequent posting to social media as a less masculine trait.

Mark Zuckerberg said he thinks Meta needs more "masculine energy" and that the company's culture has been "neutered" in the last few years.

There might be a disconnect between Zuckerberg's ambitions — which he shared on Joe Rogan's podcast last week — and the actual social platforms he runs. In the US, more women use Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp than men. (Global numbers aren't available.)

Facebook — still the most popular social network — is where the gender divide gets even more obvious. A 2024 Pew Research Center report on social media use showed that 61% of adult men in the US used Facebook "at all," while 78% of adult women did. That 17-point difference is greater than the divide between men's and women's use of any other social network except Pinterest.

If you look back at a similar 2013 Pew report, 66% of men and 72% of women used Facebook. However, the most current metric is slightly different, measuring internet-using adults, not all adults. But even a decade ago, there was still a noticeable gap between the genders — and it's gotten bigger.

Quite simply, Facebook is in some way a women's platform — or at least it leans that way.

Now, of course, it's an exaggeration to say that men "don't" use Facebook — a majority of them say they use it or have an account.

But that doesn't tell us how they're using it, exactly — if they're frequently posting or engaging or just checking in once a month. I don't have data about which gender actually uses Facebook more, but I have some ideas based on both research and my own anecdotal experience that suggest that women are driving the daily conversations on the platform.

It's important to note that these stats are for US users, which makes up only a fraction of the 3 billion-plus users. Globally, the gender breakdown may be quite different; Meta doesn't release its own statistics on gender and declined to comment for this story.

So why don't more men use Facebook?

Why do more women than men use Facebook? I have some theories, some of which are sweeping generalizations about gender — like that some men don't find as much value or pleasure in keeping up with old acquaintances as women do.

You can see in the Pew study that other platforms like X (Twitter) and Reddit have more male users. This doesn't seem surprising at all, and you can probably come up with some easy theories in your mind right now as to why.

For our purposes, we're talking about traditional gender roles here. (I recognize the irony in talking about gender this way when Meta has just changed its content rules to allow for more hateful rhetoric about trans people). I am sure that there are many people out there — perhaps even you, dear reader — who don't use Facebook this way and can't relate to any of this. That's OK.

Frequent posting on social media is perceived as "feminine"

There is some interesting academic research that can help us try to make sense of this female energy. A study published last year looked into perceptions of masculinity and the use of social media. Participants were to rate the masculinity or femininity of a person who posts either frequently or infrequently. What they found was that consistently, people rated men who post frequently as being less masculine.

Andrew Edelblum, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Dayton, who authored the paper, and his coauthor tried different "bias-breakers" in their surveys: What if the man wasn't posting about himself but posting about other people? Or what if the man was posting not as a regular person but as a professional influencer who was doing it for work? They found that the perception remained the same — frequent posting was viewed as feminine.

Perhaps men, sensing this perception, stop themselves from being active on Facebook.

"What we found is, and we're drawing on, what at this point is kind of a well-known phenomenon of 'precarious manhood,'" Edelblum told Business Insider. "It's essentially the idea that 'man card' credentials are really hard to gain but very easy to lose."

Anecdotally, I have noticed that Facebook seems to be predominantly used by women. My male friends rarely use Facebook, and as I poke around many corners of the platform, either for professional or personal reasons, I tend to see fewer men posting in groups or even listing things on Marketplace.

I'm incredibly active on Facebook — I spend hours there a week, mainly in groups that are nearly all women — groups for parenting, fans of "Vanderpump Rules," shopping, or decorating (now that I think about it, perhaps Facebook being a matriarchal society is why I have more unregretted user seconds spent on there than, say, X).

I also see some well-worn gendered division of household labor dynamics play out: For example, my kid's school has an active Facebook Group, but it's almost all moms. Same with a group for hiring local babysitters. Even a non-gendered general local town group or a Buy Nothing group seems to be mainly used by women.

My husband deactivated his own Facebook account in 2009 after deciding it was "uncool," but I recently whined to him that it was unfair that I had to be the sole Facebook admin for the family. (He made a new account with a fake name so he can browse Marketplace at least.)

So what does this mean?

Mark Zuckerberg's comment about wanting more "masculine energy" was about his company's internal culture and the need to be more aggressive instead of accommodating external critics.

This has seemed to play out in some ways that appear boorish, like removing the tampons in the men's bathrooms that were meant to accommodate a handful of trans or nonbinary employees and visitors.

I do wonder if part of Zuckberg's apparent personal King of the Bros rebrand is hoping to entice younger men back to Facebook, trying to demonstrate that you can be both masculine and a frequent Facebook poster.

It seems that his comments and his actions aren't really meant for the nosy housewives who are among the biggest users of his platforms. His peacocking, new politics, and Joe Rogan appearances are meant for Silicon Valley workers who work at or invest in his products — and many of them seem to love it.

But somewhere, I do worry that people have forgotten something that seems clear to me: Facebook is powered by feminine energy.

• "Shark Tank" investor Barbara Corcoran is one of many celebrities to lose homes in the LA wildfires.
• Her property was in a mobile home community in Pacific Palisades that's been razed to the ground.
• She spent $150,000 renovating the trailer, which she called her "Taj Mahal."

The oceanfront mobile home that TV star and real estate mogul Barbara Corcoran spent hundreds of thousands renovating burned down during the Los Angeles fires.

The "Shark Tank" investor, 75, is among a growing list of celebrities and Hollywood A-listers to lose homes in the fires that continue to cause havoc in Los Angeles.

Corcoran's spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that her two-and-a-half bedroom trailer, located within the Tahitian Terrace mobile home community in Pacific Palisades, was razed to the ground by the flames and that she has launched a GoFundMe page to raise funds for the residents.

"I'm absolutely heartbroken about the mass devastation throughout Los Angeles," Corcoran said in a statement to BI. "Pacific Palisades and the Tahitian Terrace community in particular is a little slice of heaven."

Corcoran said she owned her home in the community for five years, during which she befriended many neighbors.

The park was originally built in 1963 and comprised 250 "manufactured homes," according to real estate group Compass.

"Many of the residents, most of them elderly, had built their lives here over many decades and planned to live out their retirement here," Corcoran added. "They've lost absolutely everything."

Corcoran's GoFundMe has raised more than $145,000 toward her goal of $600,000. She herself donated $100,000.

In 2023, a tour Corcoran gave of her mobile home, which has unobstructed views of the Pacific Ocean, went viral.

Shared by TikToker Caleb Simpson, who is known for posting videos of unique homes, the video included Corcoran joking that her trailer was her "Taj Mahal."

Corcoran said she bought the property for $800,000 and spent another $150,000 on renovations, including a pricey freestanding bathtub. "You're in a million-dollar home," she added.

• Business Insider asked high-end stylists about the clothes and accessories the rich are wearing.
• Tailored blazers and suits are extremely popular among wealthy clientele.
• Accessories like luxury handbags and statement jewelry are also staples in many wardrobes.

Many of us know the big names in the high-end design space, like Louis Vuitton or Gucci — but just knowing the brands isn't enough to build a fashionable wardrobe.

So, Business Insider asked high-end stylists what their wealthy and celebrity clientele are reaching for right now to determine which styles and accessories are actually in.

Tailored blazers never go out of style.

Kim Appelt, personal and celebrity stylist, told BI that tailored, relaxed blazers are easy to throw on and wear effortlessly.

"This is the ultimate 'power casual' piece, delivering sophistication without being too formal," she said. "They work with everything from jeans to silk slip skirts, creating an understated, polished look that feels effortless."

Some popular styles include those from brands like The Row or Celine that have clean lines for a sharp, precise look.

Leather and suede pieces scream high-end.

Desiree Miranda, a New York City-based stylist, personal shopper, and founder of Miranda New York, said many people opt for leather and suede pieces to elevate their looks.

"These pieces give off a feeling of prestige and status while also offering timeless style," she said. "When you find the perfect piece, whether it be a coat, pants, or a jacket, they will mold to your body over time, providing a unique and comfortable fit."

You can't go wrong with a classic pair of leather shoes.

Leather shoes are versatile and go with both tailored and casual looks, making them ideal for everyday wear, the office, and more formal occasions.

"Timeless loafers, often penny styles from Hermès or Chanel, and sleek, ankle-high leather boots are popular," Appelt told BI. "The quality leather softens beautifully over time, and because they never go out of style, they're the perfect fusion of comfort and class."

Monochromatic looks are chic.

Lindsey Bernay, a leading fashion expert, stylist, and author of the book, "You Can't Leave the House Naked," told BI that monochromatic looks are luxe.

"Monochromatic looks signal luxury through subtlety," she said. "Wearing one color head-to-toe, especially in neutral tones, creates a sleek, sophisticated look that feels both fresh and timeless."

The stylist emphasized the use of clean lines and high-quality fabrics for an extra bit of posh elegance.

Structured, minimalistic handbags elevate any outfit.

Appelt told BI that handbags with minimal branding, like the Hermès Picotin and the Bottega Veneta pouch, are in demand right now.

"The understated look is the new status symbol," she said. "This shift toward subtlety shows a confidence in one's style without needing to prove anything — it's the ultimate 'if you know, you know' vibe."

If the weather calls for knitwear, cashmere is best.

Appelt said high-quality cashmere sweaters, cardigans, and turtlenecks in neutral tones are popular among rich clientele right now — especially when they're from brands like Loro Piana or Brunello Cucinelli.

"Cashmere lasts and gets softer over time, making it a true investment," she told BI.

The celebrity stylist said the knitwear is a good example of the current influx of "quiet luxury" in the fashion world. They're well-made and high-quality while still being comfortable and low-key.

Bespoke jewelry stands out from the crowd.

Accessories can be just as important as the clothing itself in high-end fashion, and Appelt said bespoke jewelry is in right now.

The trend can include customized pieces, like a gold signet ring, and vintage fare, like heirloom-quality earrings.

"There's a lean toward pieces that tell a story or have sentimental value rather than flashy logos," the stylist told BI. "Custom jewelry feels intimate and luxurious, especially in an age when personal expression is key."

• A Chinese social media app called Xiaohongshu is one of the biggest winners from a looming TikTok ban.
• It's so popular in the US that Chinese users have started a new hashtag to welcome Americans.
• The cultural exchange frenzy has birthed posts of people asking for help with English homework, among other requests.

A Chinese social media platform has grown so popular in the US that it's this week's most downloaded iPhone app — and it's become the site of a sudden East-Meets-West cultural exchange.

Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, hit the top spot on the US Apple store's ranking this week as a divest-or-ban law threatens to shut off American access to TikTok.

The app, commonly referred to as China's version of Instagram, has been flooded with posts from Chinese users greeting the influx of US newcomers.

One post titled "American please help me" went viral on Monday and received over 10,000 comments after its poster, from Zhejiang, requested help with their English homework.

Other popular posts also featured users, who listed their location as being in the US, offering their assistance for Chinese users' homework.

"Ask me any questions! I can help with your English homework, or answer questions about America (Texas). Thank you for welcoming us TikTok refugees," one post read. Several commenters uploaded photos of English-language worksheets in response.

The surge in American users on Chinese apps has also led to a rise in the hashtag #TikTokRefugee on Xiaohongshu, with dozens of Chinese creators posting guides on how to use the platform. The hashtag itself has been viewed over 64 million times, according to data seen by Business Insider.

"If you see a video that's downright awesome, just comment 6 or 66 or 666," said a cowboy hat-toting user, Big Tooth Chinese Redneck, in one viral video, referencing a Chinese internet slang term.

The sudden interest in Chinese social media platforms comes as TikTok continues to challenge the divest-or-ban law that the Senate passed in April. According to the law, TikTok will have to stop operating in the US on January 19 if its Chinese-based owner, Bytedance, doesn't sell the app.

The divest-and-ban law was passed amid widespread security concerns that the Chinese government could access user data if Bytedance continued to own the platform. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told The Wall Street Journal in 2023 that such concerns are unfounded since the company would work with Oracle to store user data in the US.

TikTok argued its case with the Supreme Court on Friday, saying it will "go dark" in January if the court doesn't extend its divestment deadline. The court is expected to rule on the company's fate this week.

There's a lot on the line for TikTok now — it lost a challenge to the law in December when it brought the case before a panel of three judges from the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

In December, President-elect Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court to pause the law until after his inauguration. Trump is set to take office on January 20.

Allowing TikTok to operate in the US is a reversal of Trump's policy position on the company. Trump pushed for a TikTok ban in 2020 when he was still president. But more recently, the president-elect told reporters in December that he had a "warm spot" in his heart for TikTok.

Still, TikTok's troubles have brought unexpected benefits to platforms like Xiaohongshu and Lemon8, which both surged to the top two spots on Apple app store rankings. Lemon8 is also owned by Bytedance.

Meagan Loyst, founder of the investor collective Gen Z VCs, told Business Insider on Monday that users were flocking to these platforms to protest the government's planned TikTok ban.

"It really is just retaliation towards the government in the simplest way, but in a way that feels very native to Gen Z," Loyst said.

Representatives for TikTok and Xiaohongshu did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

A typical weekend for 28-year-old Olivia looks something like this: On Friday night, she'll catch a game, either in the stands or from the comfort of her couch in her home city of Philadephia. Saturday is for the girls — her book club might go out to brunch or convene at one of their houses. Sunday is for bonus activities like shopping and chores to help get ready for the week. While there might be alcohol at some of those events, Olivia won't be partaking. She's one of a growing cohort of Gen Zers who are opting out of America's drinking culture.

It's a choice that's become increasingly popular in Olivia's peer group. A few years ago, some of her friends would look at her like she was "crazy" for abstaining at social events. Now, some don't even notice — and more are joining her in cutting out alcohol completely, even in a city with a heavy drinking culture.

"I've noticed a lot of my friends have also started to give up drinking, or they're just not interested in spending the money," Olivia, who works in finance, said. "They don't like the feeling of it. Part of that I think, is getting older; part of it is it's just not as cool."

This year, Dry January came with a new warning for Americans: The US surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, published an advisory that said alcohol should come with a cancer warning, as multiple studies pointed to a link between the two — even as many Americans did not recognize it as a potential danger. Alcohol stocks tumbled immediately. But if the fresh warning about alcohol shocked millennials and older Americans, many Gen Zers met it with a shrug.

"The younger generations are just a little more risk averse than we were," Mary Charlton, a professor of epidemiology and the director of the Iowa Cancer Registry at the University of Iowa, told me. "I think they're a little less fatalistic about things." If older generations embraced an ethos of "I'm going to die anyways, I might as well smoke," Gen Z is rejecting that, Charlton said — or, at least, they're more aware of who's making money off of getting them hooked on those substances.

Existential considerations aside, for many younger Americans, drinking has become incidental to a good time. If millennials killed off everything from golfing to casual dining, Gen Z might put the final nail in the coffin of social and economic life centered on alcohol. It's cheaper and more rewarding for them to opt for a different kind of connection. And, for a growing subset of businesses, that could translate into huge dollar signs.

Becca Borowski, a 25-year-old Wisconsinite, said that she drank "way too much" in college. When she was 22, she began getting terrible hangovers and decided she wanted to cut down on her consumption.

"I feel like everyone kind of realized after COVID that we don't really have to drink to have fun," she said, adding: "That's kind of when I started to realize, oh, I really don't enjoy drinking as much. I kind of just enjoyed more so that everyone was there."

That seems to be a common sentiment among her peer group. Gallup polling found that the share of 18- to 34-year-olds who drink alcoholic beverages has tumbled to a record low.

Meanwhile, the share of 18- to 34-year-olds who think even drinking in moderation is bad for health has doubled since the early 2000s. Chloe Richman, a 29-year-old in New York City who cohosts the podcast "Litty and Sh*tty," has been sober for nearly a year. Her decision to ditch drinking came after she started watching videos about popular online wellness trends such as 75 Hard and cold plunges.

"It really got to me, and I was thinking, oh, that's an easy fix for me," Richman said.

She says she only drank on weekends but would go hard when she did. That meant a lost day on Sundays recovering from the inevitable hangover. So cutting out drinking completely seemed like a logical next step. At first, the decision felt "extremely isolating" — going out for a drink was an easy option for socializing that no longer existed. But soon, she became "obsessed with the idea of just treating my body the best it can be," and decoupled fun from alcohol. These days, her evening activities include going to paint at an art café.

The shifting attitudes toward drinking affect not only how Gen Zers spend their time, but it's also had a dramatic effect on how they spend their money. For some businesses, this has become a serious issue: Concert venues are struggling with lower alcohol sales, and some bars are having to pivot their offerings, bolstering their non-alcoholic options and crafting spaces for optimal socializing. At the same time, a Gen Z nonalcoholic economy is quietly booming — and creating an opening for new types of businesses. The global non- and low-alcoholic beverage business has ballooned to $13 billion and is projected to grow even more. An analysis from IWSR found that nonalcoholic drink volume rose by 29% from 2022 to 2023, and the industry is projected to grow by 7% from 2023 to 2027. Nonalcoholic beverages have also captured new fans: In 2023, for instance, 17% of the industry's consumers were new to the nonalcoholic market. It turns out that Gen Zers still want to see each other; it just doesn't have to be over a drink.

As with any social movement, some big corporations are trying to capitalize on the recent shift. The big alcohol companies have already been gearing up for the anti-booze revolution, with many launching alcohol-free versions of their products. Heineken's CFO Harold van den Beck said in an October earnings call that 4% of the company's portfolio is nonalcoholic beverages and that that could increase to 6% or 7% of the total portfolio in the foreseeable future. Even Gen Z icon Tom Holland — who has been sober since 2022 — has launched his own nonalcoholic beer, Bero, which touts itself as "the new gold standard in beer."

Beyond the big businesses trying to get in on the trend, local entrepreneurs are also trying to create a smaller-scale community that caters to Gen Z's booze-free proclivities. Alexandra Zauner, 34, quit drinking 10 years ago. She wanted to create a way for people to socialize without alcohol, something she felt was missing in her own sobriety journey. That led her to create Lucille's, a nonalcoholic bottle shop and tasting room in St. Paul, Minnesota.

"We're seeing more and more people that are craving opportunities to connect, and it's less about the alcohol and it's more about just creating spaces for people that feel exciting and fun and gets people out of the house," Zauner said. She thinks people still want to experience nightlife — they're just opting not to do that at bars. Whether she's at one of her own nonalcoholic events or someone else's, she feels she gets to connect with other people on a deeper level — and have "genuine fun."

That rings true for Borowski, the Gen Zer in Wisconsin, who wants to get out and meet people without feeling the need to down boozy drinks. For her, that's meant pursuing some of her more creative hobbies: She's a student at local pottery studio Cream City Clay, where she's been cultivating a few friendships out of class. Connecting with peers who share her hobbies — rather than just a drink — has led her to more like-minded, creative folks.

"It's really fun to be able to take our friendship out of the class," she said.

At Chaotic Good Cafe in Manhattan — a new board game and role-playing venue — Gen Zers are flocking to play weekly games of Dungeons and Dragons. After being laid off in January 2023, the café's owner, 39-year-old Andrew Panos, combined his love for board games and coffee to create a space that doesn't revolve around alcohol (although it's still available for patrons who want it).

"We get a lot of people in their 20s and 30s coming in just to sit down and do work. We have WiFi and lots of outlets and 45 seats," Panos said. "We encourage people to sit down. So we're getting a lot of people who just want a cozy, warm spot right now."

That's pretty much the definition of an ideal third space — a place to gather that isn't home or the office but open to those who want to hang out for longer unstructured stretches. If millennials found themselves constricted by a loss of third spaces that funneled primarily into bars, Gen Zers' appetite to hang out sans alcohol might bring third spaces back and then some. A quick glimpse at the type of activities Gen Z is resurrecting — like speed dating or book clubs — shows that there's a larger cultural shift undergirding the patrons keeping these businesses afloat.

Gen Z sobriety still has its own nuances — many Gen Zers are still drinking, even if just a little. Others might be more motivated by current wellness trends and an acute need for connection than a long-term dedication to sobriety.

In Ohio, the rock-climbing walls at RockQuest are hopping on a Friday night. The general manager, 34-year-old Tyler Carson, has noticed an influx in younger folks who aren't just serious outdoorsy types. That includes everyone from older high schoolers to college groups to first dates. Carson said that the pandemic was a catalyst, of sorts — people were stuck inside and getting antsy. Now, some are opting for the thrill of the climb instead of the high of an alcohol buzz.

"There's enough fear even when doing it properly that's like, ooh, this is kind of a rush for people, especially new to the industry. And so they get that excitement, they get that thrill," Carson said.

Indeed, some of the Gen Z focus on sobriety might be tied to the overarching wellness culture and a focus on weight-loss and body transformations fueled by drugs like Ozempic. As Meir Statman, a professor of finance at Santa Clara University, said, "thin is in" in America right now, and younger people (many of whom are frequently on camera, whether it be a Zoom call or an Instagram story) are more concerned about how they look to potential mates. Emily Wilson, a 28-year-old in New York City who cohosts the "Litty and Sh*tty" podcast with Richman, said, much of the new wellness culture — including the sober-curious movement — is centered on selling new products to Gen Zers.

"Wellness is kind of a scam, but I think the fact that it's making people be healthier in some ways — like sobriety — is good, but there's definitely other ways where it's like the Ozempic culture is terrible," Wilson said.

While more members of Gen Z are sober-curious or cutting out alcohol, it doesn't mean all members of the younger generation are dialing back, and other substances might see more Gen Z support: 19% of 18- to 34-year-olds surveyed by Gallup in 2023 and 2024 said they smoke marijuana, the highest among age groups. Even weed companies are adapting to the younger generation's desire for a less intoxicating experience — Curaleaf recently launched a new seltzer with a 2.5-milligram dose of hemp THC, half the dosage of its 5-milligram seltzer launched over the summer. Curaleaf chairman and CEO Boris Jordan said their products are getting a boost as young people search for alcohol-free alternatives.

"As cannabis legalization expands and the hemp market grows, we are seeing adults shift from alcohol use to cannabis consumption, particularly in the 21-27 age group," Jordan told me in a statement.

These changes started taking hold even before the surgeon general's advisory, which may help to accelerate Gen Z's shift — and grow the market for alcohol-free fun. After completing her own research on the link between drinking and cancer, Charlton abandoned her habit of having a glass of wine at night as a reward for getting work done. Now, she only drinks socially. She thinks the longer-term effect of the prominent cancer warning might help people broaden their perspectives on how they want to spend their time.

Kam Kobeissi, 44, has witnessed the Gen Z transformation firsthand. Kobeissi, an elder millennial and a nonprofit worker in the Albany region, has never been much of a drinker; in the past year or so, he's been trying to find a community of people who don't rely on drinking-based socializing. But who he finds isn't exactly his cohort: "I'm definitely a minority in my age bracket." As a millennial, he's familiar with the generation's reputation for killing off certain activities and brands (rest in peace, diamonds). Now, he's getting to see the younger generation perform their own economic sleight of hand. When Kobeissi went to check out a board game café the other night, he was the oldest person there by 10 to 15 years.

"I really like this new generation and how it stands out in such different ways from what traditional business and marketing kind of is used to," he said. "I think it's challenging everything across the board."

Juliana Kaplan is a senior labor and inequality reporter on Business Insider's economy team.

• As a TikTok ban looks more likely, several apps are vying for its crown.
• Sister app Lemon8 has soared in popularity, but would likely get the ax, too.
• Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have been competing in short-form video for years.

As TikTok inches toward potential extinction in the US, creators are trying to transition viewers to other platforms, while some viewers are already in a state of mourning.

The Chinese-owned platform is set to be yanked from US app stores on January 19. That's unless it's tossed a last-minute life raft by the Supreme Court or President-elect Donald Trump, who has asked the court to pause an enforcement deadline.

The former scenario is looking increasingly unlikely, however, as legal experts tell Business Insider that the Supreme Court appears to be leaning toward upholding the divest-or-ban law.

If the app goes dark, US users will have to look elsewhere for a short-form video fix. TikTok's ethos and community are unique, but competing formats exist on the world's biggest social-media apps, and are also offered by emerging competitors.

Here's who is — and who's not — in the running.

Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have been competing in short-form video for years

Data shows that new apps often struggle to gain long-term traction when they have well-established rivals. And Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have all been competing in the short-form space for years.

Meta launched Instagram reels in 2020 to great success — even chipping away at TikTok usage, according to two studies from last year.

YouTube, the original video giant, added short-form video in 2021, which has paid off handsomely. More recently, the Google-owned platform has used the prospect of a ban as a selling point for its ad team.

Snapchat, for its part, launched a TikTok counterpart called Spotlight in 2020, offering payouts to get creators to post.

Meanwhile, LinkedIn has more recently targeted TikTok by encouraging influencers to post short-form content. Some have told Business Insider that they've seen engagement boosts as a result.

TikTok sister app Lemon8 would likely get the ax, too

TikTok sister app, Lemon8, has soared to the top of the app charts in recent weeks. Lemon8 is reminiscent of Pinterest and contains a mix of photos and videos.

However, given that the law specifically mentions ByteDance, the parent company of the two apps, Lemon8 would likely be banned along with TikTok.

Christopher Krepich, the communications director for the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, previously told Forbes the bill would ban Lemon8 unless ByteDance divested.

Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, another Chinese social app — which functions like Instagram but with more commerce features — has recently surged in popularity. It could, however, also be subject to the same divest-or-ban law as TikTok if the US government chose to target it.

Triller has long positioned itself as a TikTok rival

Triller has long sought to position itself as an alternative to TikTok — and currently offers a tool to help creators save their videos ahead of a potential ban.

Triller has gone through a series of strategy shifts over the years. After several false starts, it went public late last year through a reverse merger with a Hong Kong-based company called AGBA Group Holding Limited.

It recently hired former TikTok product head Sean Kim to run its video app, as well as several other subsidiaries.

Apps like Whatnot could fill a shopping void

TikTok helped social shopping break through in the US in a major way in 2024. The app drove $100 million in US sales on Black Friday alone, for example.

It's not the only one in the space, however. Some of its competitors include Flip and Complex Shop, formerly known as NTWRK. Flip, which raised $144 million last April at a $1 billion valuation, according to Bloomberg, launched in 2019 and enables users to post short, shoppable reviews.

Whatnot also made headlines after closing a $265 million funding round earlier this month at a $5 billion valuation. The app hosts livestreams across categories like fashion, collectibles, and storage unit finds.