• A congressional funding shortfall is putting federal judges' safety at risk, the US judiciary said.
• The judicial branch's budget is $391 million less than requested.
• Two judges outlined their concerns in a recent letter to members of Congress.

Congress is putting the safety of federal judges at risk at a time when threats against court officials are on the upswing, the US judiciary has warned.

The federal judiciary announced Friday that a shortfall in congressional funding this year is hampering the judicial branch's ability to maintain courthouse security amid the rise in threats on US judges.

Judicial Conference secretary Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr. and Judge Amy J. St. Eve, the chair of the Conference's Budget Committee, sounded the alarm in a letter last week to members of Congress serving on the House and Senate appropriations committees.

"We have significant concerns about our ability to properly secure federal courthouses given current resource levels," Conrad and St. Eve wrote in the April 10 letter.

The latest congressional appropriations left the judicial branch with an $8.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2025 — $391 million less than the Judicial Conference had requested last year.

As a result, the US judiciary said, many of the judicial branch's accounts are frozen for a second consecutive year, leaving them operating at fiscal year 2023 levels.

Funding for court security remains stagnant at $750 million, it said.

"Consecutive years of flat security funding comes at a time when threats against federal judges and courthouses are escalating, making this situation unsustainable in the current environment," Conrad and St. Eve wrote in the letter.

Representatives for the members of Congress to whom the letter was addressed did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The letter pointed to US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts' 2024 year-end report on the federal judiciary, in which he said there had been a significant uptick in threats to the courts.

Roberts wrote at the time that over the past five years, the US Marshals Service had investigated more than 1,000 serious threats against federal judges.

"Some of these threats have necessitated additional security measures by the US Marshals Service, and approximately 50 individuals have been criminally charged in connection with threats," Conrad and St. Eve wrote to the Congress members.

The letter said that currently, 67 judges involved in high-profile cases are receiving "enhanced online security screening services" provided by the Administrative Office of the US Courts and the Marshals Service.

"In extreme cases, the US Marshals Service has been required to take extraordinary measures to ensure the safety of judges," Conrad and St. Eve wrote. They said they're also concerned about the impact of hiring freezes and staffing losses at the Marshals Service and General Services Administration on courthouse security.

Additionally, Conrad and St. Eve said that the Judiciary's Defender Services program and court staff salaries have also been greatly underfunded.

The judiciary is scheduled to submit its budget request for fiscal year 2026 this month, and Conrad and St. Eve wrote that "adequate funding of that request will be critical to mitigating the adverse impacts" of the recent budget gaps.

• China is building warships much faster than the US, a top US admiral said.
• The head of US Indo-Pacific Command said the rate of Chinese ship production to that of the US is 6 to 1.8.
• China's military buildup and modernization efforts have been a top priority for leader Xi Jinping.

China's military is outbuilding the US on warships, the top American commander in the Indo-Pacific said.

This isn't a new revelation, but the rate at which a top rival is outpacing the US in a critical area is astonishing.

Last week, the head of US Indo-Pacific Command, Adm. Samuel Paparo, testified in front of the US Senate Armed Services Committee on the regional challenges, with China a top talking point.

Asked about China's ability to produce military assets, Paparo said it's building naval combatants at the rate of 6 to 1.8 to the US, roughly three times as many warships.

"And I could go through every force element that we are talking about," he added. He said the rate at which China is building fighter jets compared to the US is 1.2 to 1.

Beijing's military buildup has raised concerns among officials in Washington about what a conflict between the two powers could look like — and whether the US can catch up.

The military buildup, which Paparo suggested had seen staggering growth in recent years, said that "in the last 20 years, they have increased their military 10- to 15-fold."

China is a top priority for the military, especially INDOPACOM. Asked how much time he spends trying to plan for and anticipate potential Chinese actions, Paparo said it "consumes my duties."

In his prepared statement for the committee, Paparo said that China continued "to pursue unprecedented military modernization and increasingly aggressive behavior," citing not only its continually growing military force but also development of cutting-edge technologies, namely artificial intelligence, hypersonic and advanced missiles, and space-based capabilities.

"China is outpacing the US in testing not only these critical technologies," he said, "but also technologies from across their military industrial base."

More combat capability has enabled Chinese assertive and aggressive behavior in the region, the admiral added. That has been especially seen in disputes with the Philippines in the South China Sea, activities around Taiwan, and more.

Paparo specifically cited China's military exercises surrounding Taiwan, which he said have grown in scope, scale, and complexity in recent years and aren't just demonstrations of power but "dress rehearsals for forced unification."

Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping has made military reform, buildup, and modernization his top priorities throughout his time in office. He has set benchmarks for when China should be ready to invade Taiwan, fully modernized, and a world-class military. Some of those deadlines are fast approaching.

The endeavor has faced some hiccups, though, including corruption and graft across the military that has raised questions among top US officials about whether these goals are possible. The US cannot afford to bank on that though.

China's military capabilities have long been a significant concern for the US military.

Across reports on China's military power and US strategic posture in the Indo-Pacific, American defense officials have detailed Beijing's ongoing efforts to bolster its naval fleet, airpower, and missile forces.

Much has been made of China's shipbuilding empire, with its shipyards rapidly producing new and big warships, including surface combatants and aircraft carriers. China has the largest navy in the world and is the top shipbuilder in terms of capacity.

The US shipbuilding industry, in contrast, has atrophied. There are ongoing efforts to revitalize it, but experts and officials say the problems won't be fixed overnight.

Paparo and others have noted that uncrewed systems could be a stopgap answer for what the US lacks in numbers of crewed warships, and the Pentagon is pursuing attritable, affordable drones at scale. But that, too, is a work in progress.

• I tried Chili's new Big QP burger at a pop-up event in New York City targeting fast-food prices.
• The burger is part of the 3-For-Me menu, which starts at $10.99 for an appetizer, drink, and entrée.
• The burger tasted similar to a McDonald's Quarter Pounder, but was a lot bigger and more flavorful.

Chili's is starting beef with McDonald's once again.

On a sunny spring afternoon in New York City, I stepped into Chili's latest bold play against fast-food giants: its Fast Food Financing pop-up in Union Square, where the chain was serving its newest burger, the Big QP.

From its name to its ingredients, the Big QP bears striking similarities to the McDonald's Quarter Pounder, which has been on the fast-food chain's menu since 1971.

Both burgers consist of a single burger patty, two slices of American cheese, diced onions, pickles, ketchup, and mustard.

The key difference between the burgers lies in the weight of the patties: the Chili's burger has 85% more beef than the McDonald's version, the company said.

McDonald's did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the Big QP's similarities to the Quarter Pounder.

Here's what it was like to attend the pop-up, and a look at why Chili's new burger is the perfect weapon to take on McDonald's in the value wars.

Chili's is narrowing in on value and taking aim at high fast-food prices.

"Value, especially for Gen Z, is no longer defined by price alone — it's about the entire dining experience," Hope Neiman, the chief marketing officer at Tillster, an ordering provider for brands like Burger King, Baskin-Robbins, and Popeyes, told Business Insider.

"That's why brands like Chili's are starting to resonate more with younger diners. At a sit-down chain, Gen Z can get more than just a meal — they're getting a place to gather, linger, and connect, all while still finding affordable menu options," she continued.

Neiman said that Chili's new Big QP taps into a "unique sweet spot" of indulgence and value, two things that resonate with Gen Z.

"Meanwhile, fast food is no longer the default value play," she said. "With inflation squeezing wallets, many diners now treat fast food as a splurge. When the cost of a drive-thru meal approaches the price of a casual dine-in, Gen Z is asking, 'Why not make it count?'"

When included in the chain's 3-For-Me meal deal, Chili's Big QP burger costs $10.99. It also comes with an appetizer like a salad or chips and salsa, a bottomless drink, and fries.

The burger with fries costs $14.39, excluding tax, at my closest Chili's in Glendale, New York.

At my local McDonald's in Brooklyn, New York, a Quarter Pounder meal with a medium drink and fries costs $14.49, excluding tax. The burger on its own costs $7.69, excluding tax.

When Chili's talks about value, they're not talking about price alone, its CMO previously told Business Insider.

"I think a lot of brands mistake the lowest price point for being [the best] value, and I don't think that's giving consumers enough credit," Chili's CMO George Felix told BI in January. "So for us, we believe value is the entire holistic experience of what you pay for what you get."

This isn't the first time Chili's has taken on McDonald's with a copycat burger.

In April 2024, Chili's launched its Big Smasher burger, which featured similar ingredients to McDonald's iconic Big Mac.

"We've always had incredible burgers on our menu, but for about a year now, we've been hearing more and more frustration from fast-food fans over rising costs," Chili's director of culinary, Brian Paquette, told BI at the time, adding that it's one of the reasons the chain wanted to deliver "some of the favorite drive-thru flavors" on its menu.

Both burgers include shredded lettuce, onions, pickles, American cheese, and a Thousand-Island-style dressing, though Chili's version has "twice the meat of a Big Mac," the company said.

When I compared the two burgers, there was a clear winner for me: I thought Chili's delivered a larger, better burger. And, when included in the 3-For-Me meal deal, I got more food at Chili's for the same price as McDonald's.

When I arrived to try Chili's new burger, I was greeted by a sign-spinner advertising the event.

I attended a media preview of the pop-up on April 15, a day before it opened to the public for a limited two-day window on April 16 and 17.

While there, I tried the chain's new burger and explored the Fast Food Financing pop-up space and adjoining "Chili's speakeasy."

The event, which was a play on financing store experiences, was located right next door to a McDonald's in Union Square in Manhattan. Well played, Chili's.

Signage throughout the event called out high fast-food prices.

One sign inside the front door read, "Stop overpaying for fast food today!" Similar signs were posted throughout the space.

Another sign directly targeted inflation prices.

McDonald's chief financial officer Ian Borden told analysts at the UBS Global Consumer and Retail Conference in March 2024 that the chain raised US prices by around 10% in 2022 and 2023, blaming inflation.

McDonald's is taking steps to address higher-than-usual prices as people tighten their wallets by offering lower-priced meal deals.

The interactive experience involved getting approved for a fake gift card, which would cover the cost of my meal.

I also received several promotional materials at the event, including a brochure for Fast Food Financing that included fake testimonials about the high price of fast food.

"As an international mega-businessperson type, I figured I would make enough money for fast food. But I was wrong. Sure, I was rich — but not like, fast food rich. Thank you, Fast Food Financing, for helping me finance the tiny burger I had to get for lunch," read one review inside the pamphlet I received.

After being approved, I got to enter the Chili's speakeasy to try the new burger.

The new burger launched in restaurants nationwide on April 15, but I got to try it at the pop-up event.

The Big QP, which the chain said features "familiar fast food flavors," consists of a burger patty, two slices of American cheese, diced red onions, pickles, ketchup, and mustard on a Brioche bun.

When ordered through the chain's 3-For-Me menu, Chili's said it delivers "a dining experience that's less expensive than a comparable meal at McDonald's."

The burger was piled high with toppings.

Chili's culinary director Brian Paquette said at the event that this is the first time the chain has introduced a burger with ketchup already added to it.

I thought the Big QP was a lot heartier than a McDonald's Quarter Pounder.

The burger patty was thick, juicy, and well-seasoned, while the pickles added a tart crunch. Admittedly, it tasted very similar to a Quarter Pounder, just kicked up a few notches in terms of flavor and size.

The ketchup and mustard added moisture and flavor to the burger, while the red onions added sharpness. As a huge fan of the Quarter Pounder — it's my go-to burger at McDonald's — I was extremely happy with the overall flavor profile.

The name also doesn't lie — this was a big burger. I struggled to get more than a few bites in after already filling up on chips and salsa, which are also included in the meal deal.

I had to agree with Chili's that this is an excellent deal. While you might pay more for the Big QP than the Quarter Pounder if you ordered them à la carte, the $10.99 3-For-Me deal makes the Chili's burger the obviously better value.

"Rather than relying on deals to drive short-term traffic, Chili's is delivering value through quality, portion size, and cultural relevance," Neiman told BI, calling the Big QP launch "a bold move that taps into social media buzz and generational preferences."

"It's not the cheapest burger out there, but it resonates with consumers' preferences for craveability, freshness, and conversation," she said.

• More men are getting cosmetic treatments and anti-aging procedures.
• A plastic surgeon in New York said he's seen an uptick in male clients.
• He shared the most popular treatments requested by men, from fillers to breast reduction.

Women aren't the only ones getting Botox injections.

Dr. Mark Epstein, a dual-board-certified plastic surgeon, told Business Insider he's seen an uptick in male clients over the past decade.

Where men used to make up about less than 2% of his clientele about 10 years ago, they now make up closer to 10%.

"Men are definitely getting more and more interested in taking care of themselves and looking good — it's not just for women anymore," Epstein told BI.

Age-wise, they run the gamut — 18 to 80 — requesting treatments for anti-aging and weight loss. Even facials and skin-tightening procedures, previously only performed on female clients, are seeing more male interest, Epstein said.

Epstein shared the most popular procedures men are asking for, from facial fillers to breast reduction.

Men want more hair, minus the plugs

Epstein's most popular non-surgical procedures are tied to male pattern baldness, which affects 50 million men in the US, studies suggest.

In the US, hair transplants can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000. (Or you can go to Turkey for $3,500).

Transplants can also cause scarring if not done well. Epstein believes that offices should specialize in hair transplants for clients to get the best results, not as an add-on with other treatments.

He offers a less invasive (and less expensive) option: platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, an increasingly buzzy treatment that stimulates hair growth after platelet-rich plasma is injected into the scalp.

"A lot of patients don't want to undergo a surgical procedure; they want to take advantage of PRP and all the other male hair restoration technology that is now available," he said.

Filler facelifts continue to rise

Men are becoming more interested in filler and other injectibles, whether it's for their face or penis enlargement, Epstein said.

The former is more popular in his office, with men getting Botox to smooth wrinkles and filler to make up for volume loss and skin laxity that comes with aging — a form of filler facelift that's cheaper and less invasive than a surgical one, which is nearly $12,000 on average.

Another popular non-surgical option is using "lifting threads," dissolvable sugar strands that "give a little bit of regional hike to the skin," he said.

Breast reduction is more common than you may think

Another popular option in Epstein's office is breast reduction to treat gynecomastia, or enlarged breasts in men. He's had patients ranging from their teens to their 70s, as enlarged breasts can be caused by everything from hormones and steroid use to aging.

While it's technically a surgical procedure, he said it's minimally invasive and only takes a few weeks to recover from, making it more appealing to men who want to get back into their workout routines.

Men over 40 look to eyelid lifts

Epstein's older male clients in their 40s to 60s are increasingly interested in eyelid lifts, which can reduce the appearance of aging and fatigue by removing excess skin and fat around the eye.

With over 30 years of experience in the field, Epstein said the surgery has evolved over time and is "much better than older procedures" at hiding the surgery scar and preserving the eye shape.

It's also not as expensive as a surgical facelift, costing around $3,300-$3,800 on average (though it varies on location).

Liposuction is still hot, especially in the age of Ozempic

Despite the popularity of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro, which are used for weight loss, Epstein said he's "busier every year" with liposuction clients, including a growing number of men.

Unlike weight-loss drugs, liposuction is more targeted, Epstein said. "I like to call it 'lipo-sculpture,'" he said. "It's not just removing bulk fat, it's about sculpting the body." In fact, he said his liposuction clients are usually fit or have recently undergone some weight loss.

They just want "a little bit of tweaking," such as removing fat around their midsection to reveal their muscles more.

Men want their muscles to pop

Some of Epstein's male clients are primarily focused on toning their bodies. They opt for treatments like CoolSculpting, which uses a device to freeze fat cells in certain areas, and CoolTone, which uses electromagnetic waves to stimulate muscle contraction, thereby defining muscles more.

"You really feel it's like doing 10,000 sit-ups," Epstein said.

• Dakota Meyer reenlists in the Marine Corps Reserve after 15 years as a civilian.
• Meyer said he felt compelled to return after advising another Marine on reenlistment.
• Meyer was the first Marine in 40 years to receive the Medal of Honor in 2011.

The Marine Corps Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer reenlisted on Thursday, returning to duty 15 years after he received the nation's highest honor for valor.

It immediately raises the question: why?

Meyer, now 36 years old, said in a statement he felt called to return to military service, this time to the Corp's Reserve component. His decision, he explained, came after a question from a Marine during a speaking event about whether that Marine should reenlist for another tour or leave the Corps.

Meyer encouraged the Marine to remain in the service.

Reflecting on his response later on, Meyer asked himself, "How could I ask them to continue to serve and sacrifice without doing it myself?"

"You've got to be who you say you are and live by the standards you expect everybody else to live by," Meyer said in a Marine Corps release on his return. "I had to look in the mirror and lay out who I wanted to be, then turn around and assess all my decisions and habits and decide if they were helping me get closer to who I needed to be."

The Marine Corps published a video on social media Thursday morning before the reenlistment ceremony showing Meyer working out with other Marines, sporting the "high and tight" haircut Marines are well-known for.

"I would say that there has probably not been a day that I've been out that I haven't wanted to come back in," Meyer told reporters during a press briefing before the ceremony.

"I finally just got to a point where I felt like I would be an asset and I felt like I could come back in and contribute," he said.

Meyer has served as an ambassador for the Marine Corps since leaving active duty and has traveled the country to speak with Marine units.

He has two children with his ex-wife, Bristol Palin, daughter of former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, Sarah Palin.

Speaking at the reenlistment ceremony Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that he asked Meyer if he was sure. "He was. Dead sure," the defense chief said.

Meyer became an outspoken critic of the Biden administration, particularly amid the disastrous US withdrawal from Afghanistan. He knows Hegseth personally, along with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Hegseth previously served with the Army National Guard, leaving the service as a major. Gabbard is still in the reserve, holding the rank of lieutenant colonel.

"This is a guy who's put it all on the line, done the most difficult things you can imagine, testing human resolve, and yet after all of that, he's standing before us today saying 'I want to do more,'" Hegseth said Thursday. "That's an example."

Meyer was the Corps' first Marine in almost 40 years to receive the Medal of Honor.

He received the award in 2011, just two years after a brutal gunfight in Afghanistan's Kunar Province which saw five US servicemembers killed. Meyer entered an ambush zone multiple times to rescue wounded troops, which the DoD estimated saved almost three dozen US and Afghan personnel.

Medals of Honor often become mired in bureaucratic red tape throughout the often complex and inefficient military awards process, leaving some recipients waiting even longer, sometimes seeing other valor awards upgraded years later.

The official story from the Marine Corps came under question after the 2011 award ceremony. A reporter who was embedded with Meyer's unit during the gunfight said that while Meyer deserved the Medal of Honor, the Corps unnecessarily embellished some of the details to secure the award for a living recipient.

The Marine Corps challenged those claims in an official rebuttal statement, breaking down the investigation process concerning the details of what Meyer called the "worst day of his life."

• Internships are commonly filled by high school or college students.
• But graduates may increasingly be leaning on internships in a cooling job market.
• "It's harder and harder for folks to get onto the career ladder in the first place," Glassdoor lead economist Daniel Zhao told BI.

As anyone looking for a job now can probably attest, the job market is cooling.

A rising number of recent college graduates applying to internships could be a sign of these challenging times.

Careers site Glassdoor this week released its list of the best internships of 2025, based on median salary, overall reviews, and ratings of workplace factors like career opportunities, culture and values, and work-life balance.

In the report, Danny Cao, who leads the company's internship program, spoke of a trend he's seen among their own prospective interns.

"While the majority of our internship applicants are current students, I've noticed a slight increase this year in recent graduates applying for summer internships," he noted in the report. "This could potentially be a growing trend that showcases how internships are evolving into a stepping stone for not only students but also early-career professionals navigating a challenging job market."

Trainee programs and apprenticeships aren't unheard of for recent graduates. But more new grads applying for internships that are traditionally filled by students could mean early-career workers are struggling to find job prospects out of college.

"The fact that you have more of these new grads applying to internships is a sign of the slower job market and the bunching that we're getting down at the bottom of the career ladder where progress up the career ladder has slowed," Daniel Zhao, lead economist at Glassdoor, told BI.

"Whether that means new grads or interns, there is this difficulty that folks are facing with getting their foot in the door in the first place," Zhao said. "So some new grads are turning to internships to get their foot in the door, whereas in a hotter job market, they would just go straight to an entry-level job."

Glassdoor's report pointed out that last year saw the most competitive season for internships since the pandemic. Applicant pool aside, a dearth of internships from employers' end is also contributing to the cut-throat competition.

"As companies have slowed down hiring, they've also pulled back on entry-level and new grad opportunities in addition to internships as well, so that's I think why we're seeing such high competition this year," said Zhao. "The slower job market overall means that companies are less willing to invest in their internship programs this season."

So what should applicants do in a highly competitive market? It's important to remember to "consider the rest of the applicant pool," Zhao said.

His advice is to look for a qualification that can differentiate you, whether it's additional project experience or even a past internship that may not be particularly on-topic but can add interesting value to your application.

"It's really important to stand out and to really try to make your application pop so that it gets that second look over from the hiring manager," he said. "Ultimately, your goal as an applicant is not to show that you are qualified for the job, but to show that you are the best candidate for the job."

• I'm a first-generation graduate student who enrolled in Columbia Journalism School.
• While there, some of my classmates were rich and didn't have to work part-time like I did.
• I struggled to fit in with the richer students, but they motivated me.

Most of my peers were jet-lagged, but I was too excited to sleep.

My Columbia University journalism school classmates and I were on a 10-day trip to Ireland for our "Covering Religion" class. We would soon meet and interview people of all faiths, spending time at churches, synagogues, mosques, and a Buddhist retreat. We'd speak to Sikhs, Protestants, Catholics, Hare Krishnas, and even the then-president of Ireland, Mary McAleese.

While my upper-middle-class peers had traveled to Europe and across the globe, my trip to the Emerald Isle in March 2009 was my first time on a new continent and only the second foreign country I had visited.

So, when my classmates and I left the airport and hopped on a charter bus to start our journey, I couldn't contain my excitement.

"I've only ever been to Canada and a handful of states," I told my seatmate, who was surprised that I had only ever visited one country.

At the time, I was a reporter at a newspaper, earning $34,000 a year before taxes and living with my parents to make ends meet. However, it still wasn't enough to cover my commuting expenses and other bills. I could never measure up to some of my Ivy League classmates.

I come from a family with not a lot of money

While my graduate school was filled with people from all different backgrounds, I found that some of my Columbia classmates took a year off to attend graduate school full time. Meanwhile, I had to continue working and attending school part-time. I couldn't afford to take an entire year off and risk not getting a job immediately after graduating — not to mention dealing with loans and interest payments.

As a first-generation graduate student, I didn't come from money. At the time, my mother was retired and living off a modest pension.

During my undergraduate years at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, there was more of a sense of parity between my peers and me. Many of the people in my friend group and I met during the summer of 2001 at an Educational Opportunity Fund program session. The program provides financial assistance and support services for kids like me who come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Several of my friends and I worked on-campus jobs to help cover the costs of what EOF and other scholarships didn't cover. Many of us stayed in the tri-state area during the summers and either worked or took extra classes. I did both.

Many of my classmates were also from different parts of New Jersey with similar stories: We were either from immigrant families, the first in our families to go to college, or both.

I struggled to fit in with my Columbia classmates

By contrast, I experienced culture shock when I enrolled at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.

While there were some students like me, many others I met in grad school came from wealthy backgrounds. Some were even children of diplomats. For the first time, I had classmates from all over the country and the world.

It wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Whereas at Rutgers, I would have theoretical discussions about journalism in certain European countries, at Columbia, I'd have real-world talks with classmates from France, Germany, and other locations about what constitutes media objectivity.

But we struggled to connect beyond our shared interest in media. Most of my classmates used the word "summer" as a verb. I typically avoided talking about nonexistent upcoming vacations that would call out my socioeconomic status.

I'm now living the life I've always dreamed of

I'm 41, and over a decade after earning my graduate degree, I've paid off most of my debt.

I also allocate a significant portion of my disposable income toward traveling. Since then, I've visited all 50 states, 25 countries, and counting.

I'm happy to finally be financially able to travel to faraway places, but a huge part of me still feels like that working-class girl scraping to get by.

Carmen Cusido is a Cuban-American writer based in northern New Jersey.

• Smartphone shipments rose overall in China in the first quarter, but iPhone shipments fell 9%, according to IDC data.
• Apple's Chinese competitors are hitting growth milestones boosted by government subsidies.
• Xiaomi now leads with 39.9% market share, retaking the top spot.

New numbers are out for China's smartphone market — and they're a troubling sign for Apple.

Overall smartphone shipments in China grew 3.3% in the first quarter, according to a Thursday research report from the International Data Corporation, but iPhone shipments notably fell by 9% year over year.

Apple was the only major smartphone maker to lose market share during the quarter, according to IDC.

Local rivals dominated the Chinese market, a key region for Apple that CEO Tim Cook has called "the most competitive market in the world," driven by government subsidies that include smartphones.

IDC analyst Will Wong wrote that the relatively high price of the iPhone meant Apple was largely left out of the subsidy-fueled growth.

Apple's smartphone shipments in China "declined as its premium pricing structure prevented it from capitalizing on the subsidies," Wong said in the IDC report. Apple's iPhones accounted for 9.8 million, or 13.7% of the 71.6 million smartphones shipped in the first quarter.

Local rival Xiaomi, on the other hand, retook the top spot for the first time in nearly a decade with a 39.9% increase in shipments, making up 13.3 million units of the total shipments.

In January, the Chinese government extended subsidies intended to stimulate consumer spending to smartphones and other tech devices. The benefit is capped at products less than 6,000 yuan, or $821, making some Apple phones too pricey for consumers to have 15% of the sale covered.

An iPhone 16 Pro, for example, starts at 7,999 yuan, or $1,095. Local smartphone makers, like Xiaomi and Huawei, have more affordable models that can be discounted using the benefit.

Government subsidies aren't the only challenge Apple is facing in China. President Donald Trump's 145% tariff on Chinese goods still hangs over its head, though Apple's devices are temporary exempt from the higher rate. China is Apple's largest supply chain hub for iPhones. While Trump largely gave the tech industry a break from the highest tariff rate for goods produced in China, he later said that companies like Apple would be subject to separate tariffs down the line.

"Looking ahead, the market is expected to face challenges as the US-China trade tensions may lead to cost increases and tighter consumer budgets," Arthur Guo, senior research analyst at IDC, said.

Apple has plenty of ground to make up in the country as its numbers continue to indicate that the iPhone is losing its foothold. Its share of the smartphone market in China for Q4 2024 was 17% — down 21% from the previous year.

The iPhone giant releases its first-quarter earnings report on May 1, which will give Wall Street a better look at how the company is doing in the highly competitive market.

• Trump is considering Kevin Warsh for Federal Reserve Chair, the Wall Street Journal reported.
• Trump has criticized Powell's performance and says he has the authority to remove him before 2026.
• Warsh, a former Fed governor, advised against prematurely firing Powell, according to the Journal.

President Donald Trump wants to shake up the Federal Reserve, and he has sights set on the right person for the job.

Trump is considering Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, to replace Jerome Powell as the Chair of the Federal Reserve, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

Publicly, the president made it clear that he's not happy with Powell. In private, Trump has discussed ousting Powell before his Fed term is up in May 2026, the Journal reported.

Trump blasted Powell in a Truth Social post on Thursday, saying the Fed chair is "always TOO LATE AND WRONG" before adding that "Powell's termination cannot come fast enough!" Also on Thursday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he has the authority to get rid of Powell, despite Powell's position that such a move is against the law.

"If I want him out, he'll be out of there real fast, believe me," Trump said.

Trump has already had meetings with Warsh at Mar-a-Lago about potentially selecting him to replace Powell before Powell's term is over, The Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Warsh, 55, is a former Morgan Stanley banker who served as an economic advisor to President George W. Bush from 2002 to 2006 and a governor of the Federal Reserve Board from 2006 to 2011. Warsh helped rescue struggling banks following the 2007-2008 financial crisis, and helped shape the country's larger response to the crisis.

Warsh also worked on Trump's second term transition team, and was previously one of the president's top picks for Treasury Secretary before he ultimately selected Scott Bessent. During his first term in office, Trump had also considered Warsh for Fed Chair in 2017 before choosing Powell.

Warsh, who studied public policy at Stanford University before attending Harvard Law School, has invested in crypto-related startups including now-defunct cryptocurrency platform Basis and asset management platform Bitwise, which offers cryptocurrency index funds, according to Pitchbook. Warsh wrote in a 2022 op-ed for The Wall Street Journal that crypto offers both "promise and peril for the American-led global financial system," and advocated for the Federal Reserve to adopt a central bank digital currency (CBDC) to compete with China's digital yuan.

Warsh, a known financial hawk, has been critical of the US's expanding debt, saying in July that inflation is the fault of "irresponsible government spending and excessive money printing."

He is married to Jane Lauder, an Estée Lauder heir and daughter of Ron Lauder, who helped spark Trump's obsession with buying Greenland.

Whether Warsh actually wants the job is not clear, and the financier did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.

Warsh has, however, advised that Trump should not prematurely fire Powell and should let the Chair carry out his full term, The Journal reported.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

• "Daredevil: Born Again" and "Abbott Elementary" released their season finales this week.
• Netflix's new show "Ransom Canyon" offers a Western-set story for fans of "Yellowstone."
• "Companion," starring Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid, is a love story with a horror twist.

The latest seasons of "Daredevil: Born Again" and "Abbott Elementary" ended this week, but there are plenty of new additions to discover on streamers.

If you're a fan of shows like "Yellowstone" and "Virgin River," Netflix's new Western series "Ransom Canyon" might be your speed. For a different kind of love story, watch the 2025 sci-fi movie "Companion," starring "Yellowjackets" actor Sophie Thatcher and "The Boys" favorite Jack Quaid.

Here's a complete rundown of all the best movies, shows, and documentaries to stream this weekend, broken down by what kind of entertainment you're looking for.

Season one of "Daredevil: Born Again" ended this week.

Seven years after Netflix canceled the Marvel series "Daredevil," lawyer-vigilante Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) returned in the Disney+ series "Daredevil: Born Again," much to the delight of fervent fans who rallied for the show to be saved.

The nine-episode season concluded on Tuesday, but the titular character's feud with the mob boss turned mayor Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D'Onofrio) is far from over and will continue when the show returns for season two.

Streaming on: Disney+

"Abbott Elementary" aired its season four finale.

Like past seasons, the season four finale of "Abbott Elementary" centers on the teachers taking the students on an end-of-year field trip. This time, they visit Philadelphia's Please Touch Museum, where Janine (Quinta Brunson) meets and bonds with someone close to Gregory (Tyler James Williams).

Streaming on: Hulu

Season three of the fantasy series "The Wheel of Time" also wrapped up this week.

The latest season of "The Wheel of Time" ended with an action-packed finale that featured some characters meeting untimely deaths, while Rand al'Thor (Josha Stradowski) finally chose between good and evil.

Streaming on: Prime Video

For a mind-bending series, watch Rami Malek in the psychological thriller "Mr. Robot."

Before his Oscar-winning performance as Queen front man Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody," Rami Malek earned critical acclaim for his role as cybersecurity engineer Elliot Alderson, who gets recruited by a hacktivist group to help take down corporate corruption. The four-season show ran on USA from 2014 to 2019 but you can stream it for free in its entirety on Tubi.

Streaming on: Tubi

The '60s-set comedy "Government Cheese" is equal parts grounded and absurd.

"Selma" star David Oyelowo plays Hampton Chambers, a man who's released from prison after two years. Eager to get a second chance and set his family on a path to success, he devises a self-sharpening drill that he hopes to sell to an aerospace company — but his plan is derailed by a debt he owes to a crime family.

Streaming on: Apple TV+

Ramy Youssef brings his comedic style to "#1 Happy Family USA."

Comedian and show cocreator Ramy Youssef tackles what it means to be a patriotic Muslim family in post-9/11 America in the early 2000s in this new eight-episode animated series packed with heart and humor.

Streaming on: Prime Video

Crime-fighting duo Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson reunite in season five of "Law & Order: Organized Crime."

Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay reprised their roles as Elliot and Olivia in the two-episode premiere of season five of "Law & Order: Organized Crime." New episodes are released weekly and tackle everything from domestic terrorism to cross-border smuggling.

Streaming on: Peacock

"Vanderpump Rules" spinoff "The Valley" is back this week.

Jax Taylor, Brittany Cartwright, and the rest of the show's reality TV stars are back for more suburban drama and memorable moments, like Kristen Doute and Luke Broderick's engagement and the aftermath of Taylor and Cartwright's separation after 10 years together.

Expect appearances from "Vanderpump Rules" alums Lala Kent, Tom Schwartz, Scheana Shay, and Brock Davies, too.

Streaming on: Peacock

For a romantic drama, watch the Western series "Ransom Canyon."

Netflix continues expanding its collection of Westerns with "Ransom Canyon," a new series based on author Jodi Thomas' book series of the same name.

The Texas-set show stars Josh Duhamel as Staten Kirkland, a rancher fighting to protect his land, and Minka Kelly as Quinn O'Grady, a longtime friend of Staten's who returns home after living in New York. Expect plenty of romance and horseback riding in the 10-episode season.

Streaming on: Netflix

"Companion" offers a gorier love story.

Hailed as "a wily, well-oiled scary movie machine" with a 94% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, "Companion" centers on Josh (Jack Quaid) and Iris (Sophie Thatcher), his made-to-order, programmable AI companion who goes rogue on a weekend getaway to a remote cabin.

Streaming on: Max

"Euphoria" and "Saltburn" actor Jacob Elordi stars in the new drama series "Narrow Road to the Deep North."

The five-part limited series based on Richard Flanagan's novel of the same name follows WWII hero Dorrigo Evans (Jacob Elordi) as he recalls being held captive in a Japanese prisoner of war camp, his passionate affair with a woman named Amy (Odessa Young), and his time spent as a surgeon.

Streaming on: Prime Video

"The Carters: Hurts to Love You" explores the tumultuous lives of late singer Aaron Carter, Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter, and their family dynamic.

The two-part documentary chronicles Aaron and Nick Carter's ascents to stardom and how fame, money, addiction, and mental health issues affected the Carter family.

"The Carters: Hurts to Love You" features never-before-seen home videos, family photos, and interviews with the two surviving siblings of the original five, Nick Carter and Angel Carter Conrad.

Streaming on: Paramount+

After almost three years, the docu-comedy series "The Rehearsal" is back for season two.

The HBO show centers on actor and comedian Nathan Fielder, who helps regular people prepare for big life moments by putting them in eccentric "rehearsal" scenarios and simulations that he designed.

In a premise that feels weirdly eerie given recent aviation-related disasters, the six-episode second season of "The Rehearsal" focuses on the underlying causes of plane crashes.

Streaming on: Max

• In school, I didn't understand how my classmates didn't need a system to avoid panic attacks.
• My parents tried to get me diagnosed, but since I was a successful kid, I slipped through the cracks.
• At 25, I was diagnosed with autism and ADHD, and that didn't stop me from doing the things I wanted.

I've always sensed there was something fundamentally different about how I move through the world.

As a child, it felt like my classmates were speaking a different language, and I didn't have a hint of fluency. People would talk and interact, and connect in a way that felt impossible for me. I navigated adolescence with a sense of an outsider looking in on a hidden world, one I could interlope in at school but never fully belong to.

It wasn't until I was 25 that I finally got an answer.

I would have meltdowns every day at home

I didn't understand how my peers could experience and contribute to the complex noises and stimulation of a classroom when I would have near-daily meltdowns by the time I got home.

I couldn't comprehend that people didn't need to have a strict routine consisting of safe foods, clothes, songs, and smells when a single step out of my rigid system would induce panic attacks. It was absurd that others weren't obsessed with certain topics, gathering every tidbit of information with rabid hunger.

My parents also knew I was different and took me to psychiatrists. But, because on paper I was a "successful" kid, getting good grades and staying out of trouble, I slipped through the cracks — my symptoms were blamed on a panic disorder.

For a while, I was able to mask my way through life — I did ballet and cross country, graduated top of my high school and college classes, met my now husband, and hit "normal" milestones.

And then, in my first year of dental school, I suffered debilitating burnout. I wasn't sleeping, I wasn't eating, I was anxious and disoriented and nearly non-functional under the demands of my curriculum and living in a new city and being thrown into a dental school class filled with its own set of social rules I couldn't even begin to understand.

I was crumbling. If I didn't find help, I didn't know if I would make it to the next year.

I was diagnosed with autism and ADHD

Help came in the form of an incredible psychiatrist who, at the end of our first appointment, where I was a sobbing, broken mess, gently asked if anyone had ever suggested I'm neurodivergent. Fast forward a year, and at 25, I was diagnosed with ADHD and autism.

Getting my diagnosis was one of the most empowering moments of my life. At last, I had language for my overstimulation and sensory processing issues. I could acknowledge my unique wiring, and was told to explore and discover and free myself from trying to fit the mold of the neurotypical world. It felt like after an endless winter, I was finally able to push myself out of the soil and blossom.

I have since graduated from dental school, working as a full-time dentist focusing on making the experience as sensory-friendly as possible for my patients. I write books too. I leaned into my obsession with rom-coms and wrote my own featuring neurodivergent characters. One of my books, "Tilly in Technicolor," a young adult novel about an autistic boy and an ADHD girl grappling with the confusion of life after high school and falling wildly, beautifully in love with each other, but also their neurodivergent brains, went on to win an award. Another of my novels, "Late Bloomer" (this one adult and featuring autistic women indulging in a quiet, comfortable, romantic life filled with their special interests) is a USA Today Bestseller. Other titles in my backlist discuss anxiety disorders, CPTSD, and ADHD. I've traveled the world. I hate sports. I'm married and madly in love. I've cultivated friendships (mainly with neurodivergent folks) that young me would envy. My family seems pretty proud of me.

Recently, US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said autistic kids "will never pay taxes, hold a job, play baseball, write a poem, go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted. Autism destroys families."

I've done all of the things he said I wouldn't. For all intents and purposes, I am an accomplished individual. But this list of things I've done doesn't actually matter. I, like all disabled folks, am more than my output, more than a taxpayer and employee. My diagnosis made me realize that I don't have to conform to a set of societal expectations to "earn" a worthy existence.

I have value simply for existing, just like everybody else.

• MrBeast's recent partnership with Resorts World Las Vegas didn't live up to fan expectations.
• It is one of several recent partnerships that have landed MrBeast in hot water.
• It validates the YouTube star's strategy to bring more of his operations in-house as they expand.

MrBeast was caught up in another embarrassing incident with a partner. It shows why he's trying to bring more operations in-house.

The YouTube megastar partnered with Resorts World Las Vegas to offer a three-night "MrBeast Experience" at its hotel from April 13 to April 15.

The event promised an immersive experience, including games, exclusive merch and menu items, and a chance to win $10,000.

But some fans said the experience didn't deliver on those promises. Several attendees said in social media posts and news reports that the event lacked exclusive merch and other experiences. For example, multiple people told 8 News Now that the hotel told them to stay in their rooms for a mystery arrival — some waited up to 24 hours for the surprise, which one person said was a box of chocolates.

MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, responded to the backlash on X and expressed disappointment with his event partners. "This definitely isn't the experience we hoped they'd deliver. My team's already on it," he wrote on Tuesday.

He wrote that people who attended the experience would be refunded and that he'd "personally make it up to" them by flying them out for a tour of his Greenville, North Carolina studio.

"I love my fans and I'll make sure they're happy," he wrote.

Resorts World, the casino and hotel company behind the event, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.

This isn't Donaldson's first partnership that missed the mark.

In 2023, he sued the business partner of his ghost kitchen, MrBeast Burger, claiming the poor quality of the food was damaging his brand.

Then, in 2024, his Lunchly meal kit collab with influencers Logan Paul and KSI faced backlash after customers alleged on social media that mold was found in the food kit.

These scandals involving outside partners show why MrBeast is taking steps to gain more control of his empire. He's been bringing more operations in-house, and his company is raising money to expand.

MrBeast has been growing his in-house team

Donaldson is YouTube's top star, with over 380 million followers.

In 2024, he left his management company, Night, which he had been working with since 2018. He's since brought more of his operations in-house.

He hired Jeffrey Housenbold as president of his company, Beast Industries. Housenbold has been working to help the company secure funding at a $5 billion valuation, Bloomberg reported in February.

He's been pitching Donaldson's company as the next Disney, BI reported.

"Beast Industries is the next generation diversified media, consumer product goods and services conglomerate," said a February Beast Industries pitch deck obtained by BI.

The company generated $473 million in revenue in 2024 and is forecasting revenue of nearly double that this year, according to the deck.

Moving more operations in-house doesn't mean Donaldson is done with partnerships. His Amazon show "Beast Games" is casting for season two, and he has a line of collectible minifigures in partnership with the toy manufacturer Moose Toys.

Still, his immense ambitions show he can no longer afford messy partnerships that could damage his brand, like the one that created the "MrBeast Experience." The backlash validates his strategy to regain control of his business ventures.

• Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt said Trump's research cuts could hurt competition with China.
• Schmidt characterized Trump's policies in his second term as an "attack on science."
• "This madness will eventually end because it's too stupid not to fix," Schmidt said at a recent summit.

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt says the United States could fall behind China in the race to superintelligence if President Donald Trump keeps on keeping on the way he is.

Since taking office in January, the Trump administration has tightened immigration controls, cut funding for government grants and research, reduced staffing and funding at NASA and NOAA, and targeted universities for their DEI-related programs and pro-Palestinian protests.

In March, Columbia University agreed to a series of conditions — stricter protest policies, a bolstered campus security force, and oversight of its Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department — after the administration threatened to withhold $400 million in funding.

This week, the Trump administration froze $2 billion in funding to Harvard University after school leaders refused similar demands, including changes to Harvard's admissions process that would force it to coordinate with immigration officials.

Schmidt said these kinds of efforts from the Trump administration could chill tech development in the United States just as competition from China is ramping up.

At the AI+Biotechnology Summit, hosted last week by the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, Schmidt said the government has leveraged education funding to "falsely attack science." Schmidt graduated from Princeton University and has spoken highly of the school in other appearances.

At the conference, an interviewer asked Schmidt for his reaction to the Trump administration's suspension of university research programs and cuts to government science programs.

"This looks like a total attack on all of science in America," Schmidt said. "We're up against China that is pouring a trillion dollars into this, and we're screwing around with funding the core people to invent our future."

Schmidt was also asked about international students choosing not to come to the United States, or tech workers looking for work in other countries, because they worry they could face problems with immigration. He said he knew people who planned to return to London because "they don't want to work in this environment."

While many tech leaders, like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who both attended and helped finance Trump's inauguration, have struck a conciliatory tone with the administration, there appears to be dissent among the ranks.

Last month, Meta's Chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, said Trump had started a "witch hunt in academia, moving to cancel the green card of some folks and expel them based on their speech."

Schmidt said that "everything that has happened in American exceptionalism" has come from the understanding that universities create exceptional innovators who can create strong "science and technology-generated" business opportunities.

"If you think that this sounds like me being a Democrat, let me remind you that fracking, which is hugely successful in America, made us independent of oil and gas, made us the largest exporter, followed the same path," Schmidt said.

Schmidt said many universities are now under "hiring freezes" because they are "so scared of this administration, which appears to be withholding hundreds of millions of dollars from them."

"This madness will eventually end, because it's too stupid not to fix, but there's damage occurring already, and I want everyone to understand it's real damage," he said.

• Ted Sarandos, the co-CEO of Netflix, said AI can open the door to improving movies overall.
• In addition to making them cheaper, as James Cameron recently said, Sarandos said he believes movies can be made "better."
• Talent at Netflix is already leveraging AI, particularly in VFX, he said on a Q1 earnings call.

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said he believes AI's true potential in Hollywood lies not in making movies more cost-efficient, but overall "better."

"There's a ton of excitement about what AI can do for content creators," Sarandos said on a Q1 earnings call when asked about how "meaningful" AI could be. "I read the article too, what Jim Cameron said about making movies 50% cheaper. I remain convinced that there's an even bigger opportunity if you can make movies 10% better."

Earlier this month, "Avatar" director Cameron said AI had the potential to cut the cost of blockbuster movies clear in half — a necessity, he said, if the medium is to survive. He's an advocate of using it to reduce expenses for "big effects-heavy, CG-heavy" films, rather than to generate "word salad" scripts.

Already, Sarandos said, creators at Netflix are using AI in just that fashion.

"So, our talent today is using AI tools to do set references or pre-vis, VFX sequence prep, shop planning, all kinds of things today that kind of make the process better," Sarandos said.

Sarandos said he believes it also allows smaller films to have access to effects that previously would've been locked behind large budgets typically reserved for big-name projects.

"Traditionally, only big-budget projects would have access to things like advanced visual effects, such as de-aging," he said. "So, today you can use these AI-powered tools to enable smaller budget projects to have access to big VFX on screen."

The technology remains controversial in Hollywood.

Concerns about the potential damage AI could do to creative industries, particularly in terms of job replacement, partly sparked the 2023 joint strike of SAG-AFTRA and the WGA. Since the resumption of production across the industry, AI as a technology has continued to advance rapidly, but has remained relatively narrow in terms of scope — largely confined to the VFX department.

Sarandos cited the experience of cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto as an example of how AI can be leveraged successfully, in this case, to reduce the cost of a de-aging effect.

"A recent example I think is really exciting, Rodrigo Prieto was the DP on 'The Irishman' just five years ago," Sarandos said. "And if you remember that movie, we were using very cutting-edge, very expensive de-aging technology that still had massive limitations, still created a bunch of complexity on set for the actors."

Just half a decade later, Sarandos said, AI has substantially shrunk the cost of de-aging.

"Using AI-powered tools, he was able to deliver this de-aging VFX to the screen for a fraction of what it costs on 'The Irishman,'" he said. "In fact, the entire budget of the film was about the VFX costs on 'The Irishman.'"

Moving forward, Sarandos said Netflix aims to continue to create opportunities for AI to improve what it's like to work as a creator, rather than replace the role entirely.

"So, same creator using new tools — new better tools — to do something that would have been impossible to do just five years ago," he said. "That's incredibly exciting. So, our focus is simple: find ways for AI to improve the member and the creator experience."

• Nintendo set a date for Switch 2 pre-orders in the US and apologized for a previous delay.
• The gaming giant isn't hiking the price of the game console for now but is increasing accessory prices.
• Nintendo said the higher prices were due to "changes in market conditions."

Nintendo gave an update to its American customers on Friday — and it's a good news/bad news situation.

The good news: The company isn't raising the price of the Switch 2 game console (for now).

The bad news: The extra accessories that many shoppers buy alongside the game console, such as controllers, are getting more expensive.

"Retail pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 will begin on April 24, 2025. At launch, the price for Nintendo Switch 2 in the U.S. will remain as announced on April 2 at $449.99, and the Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle will remain as announced at $499.99," the company said on Friday.

"However, Nintendo Switch 2 accessories will experience price adjustments from those announced on April 2 due to changes in market conditions," Nintendo added. The company published a full pricing list, which you can view here.

Nintendo is also keeping the door open to future price hikes, including for the Switch 2.

"Other adjustments to the price of any Nintendo product are also possible in the future depending on market conditions," it said.

The much-anticipated update arrives after Nintendo found itself in a tough spot. The same day that it announced preorder pricing for the Switch 2, President Donald Trump unveiled his "Liberation Day" tariffs, which impacted the countries that manufacture Nintendo's game consoles.

Nintendo decided to pause US preorders, originally scheduled to begin on April 9, to "assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions."

Nintendo apologized for the delay in its Friday update and said it hopes its release of the pricing details "reduces some of the uncertainty our customers may be experiencing."

The path to working on Wall Street is a long and rigorous obstacle course.

Young people who aspire to become dealmakers, traders, or investors must now begin as soon as they arrive at college. From there, it's an immediate dash to join campus finance clubs, hobnob with industry professionals, and fill a résumé with pre-internship accolades — all while maintaining a perfect GPA.

The steps are an unofficial yet unspokenly understood requirement among students at top target schools (plus those elsewhere with the fortune of being in the know). Some financial institutions — namely investment banks, where most Wall Streeters start out — now scout young talent during their sophomore year of college. That means those who wait, or don't learn the recruiting game quickly enough, risk being left behind altogether.

"It forces students to focus very early at a time when, in my opinion, they should be not focusing, but actually broadening their perspectives," Gustavo Schwed, an NYU professor who worked in investment banking and private equity before switching to academia, said.

A Wharton student who recently signed a 2026 internship offer at an investment bank put it this way: "I am a sophomore in college, and it's kind of outrageous that we have to decide at this age — I just turned 20 — what my first job is out of college."

The new finance career path

Business Insider talked to college students, recruiters, finance executives, professors, and many others about what it takes to build a career in finance in 2025. We compiled what we learned into a series of stories and videos that started rolling out on April 16 and which will continue through May. The series seeks to help students better understand what it takes to break into Wall Street and what to expect once they get there.

Check back here to see the latest. We will delve into what it's really like to work for a hedge fund, how the face of Wall Street has changed, and the challenges of getting into the college clubs needed to snag that all-important internship, among other topics.

Want to share your career path with us? Fill out this quick form.

_{Article credits
Reporters: Emmalyse Brownstein, Bradley Saacks, Alex Morrell, Alex Nicoll, Bianca Chan
Editors: Kaja Whitehouse, Michelle Abrego, Jeffrey Cane, Jamie Heller
Copy Editors: Kevin Kaplan
Graphics and art: Alyssa Powell, Annie Fu, Randy Yeip, Andy Kiersz,}

• The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau terminated 90% of its staff.
• A termination notice seen by BI said employees would lose access to work systems on Friday night.
• It's Trump's latest move to gut a federal agency created to prevent another financial crisis.

President Donald Trump is moving forward with his promise to slash a top federal consumer watchdog.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau began sending termination notices to nearly 90% of its employees on Thursday night, slashing the agency spearheaded by Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2011 with the aim of preventing another financial crisis like the one that sparked the Great Recession.

Over the past decade, the CFPB has filed lawsuits against major companies, including student lenders and banks like Capital One, over accusations of predatory behavior. It has also returned billions of dollars to consumers and introduced new rules to crack down on medical debt and overdraft fees.

"I regret to inform you that you are affected by a reduction in force (RIF) action," a copy of the notice viewed by Business Insider from Russell Vought, the acting director of the CPFB and the director of the Office of Management and Budget, said. "This RIF action is necessary to restructure the Bureau's operations to better reflect the agency's priorities and mission."

The notice added that employees will "retain access to work systems" until 6 p.m. ET on Friday, and that after that deadline, "system access will be discontinued, and you will be placed in an administrative leave status through your official separation date as outlined above."

The National Treasury Employees Union wrote in a legal filing on Thursday that Vought sent reduction-in-force notices to "the vast majority of CFPB employees." The notices, as first reported by Fox Business, went out to about 1,500 employees, slashing the agency's workforce by nearly 90%. The CFPB sent those numbers to BI.

"As one would expect with a RIF of that size, the plaintiffs have been told that entire offices, including statutorily mandated ones, have or soon will be either eliminated or reduced to a single person," the NTEU wrote in the legal filing.

These termination notices come just one week after a federal judge ruled on April 11 that the CFPB could move forward with firing some employees deemed unnecessary to carry out the CFPB's "statutory duties." It followed an earlier ruling from a federal judge that froze the CFPB's earlier attempts at terminations, calling them a "hurried effort to dismantle and disable the agency entirely."

Business Insider reported on Wednesday that the CFPB laid out new priorities for the agency in an internal memo sent to employees. The memo, viewed by BI, said the CFPB would "shift resources from enforcement and supervision that can be done by the States."

That included plans to "deprioritize" student-loan oversight, medical debt, consumer data, and digital payments.

These changes are part of Trump and the DOGE office's efforts to slash the government workforce to reduce spending. Elon Musk, DOGE's unofficial leader, has previously said he wanted to "delete" the CFPB entirely, writing "CFPB RIP" in a February post on X.

Warren wrote in a statement on Thursday night that "Trump just gutted almost all CFPB staff, so the agency can't do its job of helping Americans who get scammed by big banks and giant corporations."

"Dismantling the CFPB in the face of a court order blocking an illegal shutdown is yet another assault on consumers and our democracy by this lawless Administration, and we will fight back with everything we've got," she said.

The OMB and White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.

Have a tip or story to share? Contact this reporter via email at [email protected] or Signal at asheffey.97. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• I spent 12 hours in a regular seat on an overnight train from Berlin to Vienna.
• For less than $50, I got a reclining seat in a seating carriage cabin with five other people.
• I've traveled on Amtrak sleeper cars in private rooms, but I didn't adjust well to the shared space.

In October 2022, I spent 12 hours in a sleeping carriage on an overnight train traveling from Berlin to Vienna.

I had taken overnight trains in the US before, where I'd booked private cabins on Amtrak trains.

But this was my first time on a sleeper train in Europe — and my first time in an accommodation shared with other guests.

Since I wanted to maximize my time exploring during the day, I thought an overnight train would be the best way to travel through Europe. And at $40, it was the cheapest overnight train ride I've ever booked. But ultimately, the ride was too uncomfortable to sleep, and I arrived in Vienna feeling too exhausted to explore.

To get from Berlin to Vienna in 12 hours, I took the Austrian Federal Railway's OBB Nightjet train.

The rail line operates overnight routes between Austria, Italy, France, and the Netherlands, and it goes as fast as 143 miles per hour, according to the company's website.

Nightjet trains have sleeper cars with seating carriages and bunks of three, four, or six.

I booked the former, which are cabins with six regular assigned seats that deeply recline. Some routes have private cabins, but mine didn't.

"We recommend the sleeper or couchette car for night travel. There is enough space to stretch out. Seated carriages are recommended for shorter journeys," OBB Nightjet wrote in a statement to Business Insider.

"The quality of travel depends not only on the carriages, but also on the route," the statement also said.

To travel by train, I bought a Eurail pass for $477, which gives access to most European trains for a set number of days.

Some trains only require a Eurail pass to ride, while others, including overnight trains, incur an additional discounted price.

Without the pass, the ticket would have been about $40.

With my seven-day Eurail pass, the train trip cost $14. It was the cheapest overnight accommodation.

My journey began at Germany's Berlin Ostbahnhof train station.

I arrived about an hour and a half before my 6:53 p.m. train, so I had ample time to find the platform.

Since my ticket didn't include a meal, I grabbed food from the McDonald's inside the station.

McDonald's in Germany has different menu items from locations in the US, like the hash brown burger.

Then, I went to platform three after viewing on a screen that it was where my train would be arriving.

The train arrived on time and I found and boarded my assigned car, number 254.

Once inside the seating carriage sleeper cars, I saw narrow, dimly lit corridors that opened to small enclosed cabins with six seats in each.

I made my way to my assigned seat in one of these cabins.

During my leg of the journey, three travelers were already in my room when I boarded.

Two others arrived within the first few hours.

I thought the seat was slightly wider than a typical train coach seat.

It had two cushions and reclined far enough to almost lie flat, but not fully.

Each seat came with a small table that slid out from the armrest.

It was just large enough to hold my ticket and phone.

Right away, I thought the room was cramped and lacked enough legroom for each traveler.

However, I was surprised to find ample luggage space on two rows of storage racks above the seats.

I wanted to charge my phone, but I only saw two outlets next to the window in my carriage. I had to communicate with other passengers to take turns using them.

An OBB Nightjet rep told BI that new cars that began running in 2023 have more outlets.

Even though my ticket didn't include a meal, I checked the menu to see what was available for purchase.

I thought it had a wide selection with snacks, pasta, and wraps.

Since I had already eaten, I skipped the food and used one of the two shared bathrooms in the car to brush my teeth. The bathroom looked like it hadn't been cleaned in a while.

"Toilets are always cleaned when the trip starts," OBB Nightjet said in a statement to BI. "In addition, our staff is doing regular checks during the night."

Back in my room, someone had turned the lights off. I tried to fall asleep but found it impossible with the constant bumps on the ride and so many people around me.

I hardly had any personal space.

I reclined my seat all the way, but I thought the gap between the back and the bottom of the seat made it tough to get comfortable.

I didn't see any pillows or sheets provided for guests, either.

The rep for OBB Nightjet told BI that pillows and sheets are only provided for guests in the bunk-style sleeping cars because the seating carriage is not recommended for long-haul trips.

Although seats were assigned, I noticed other passengers moving around the car to find less crowded rooms. I followed suit.

I ended up switching to a different cabin with only two other people.

But I knew that someone boarding at one of the many overnight stops could kick me out at any time if I switched to a seat assigned to them.

Even in a less-crowded cabin, I couldn't get comfortable on such a bumpy journey or with the knowledge that someone might wake me up to move.

I ended up staying awake until the morning.

My train arrived in Vienna at 7 a.m., and I was so exhausted that I ran around town looking for any hotel that would take me in so early in the morning.

Splurging on a hotel room upon arrival for a few hours of sleep made me feel like the cheapest ticket on an overnight train ultimately wasn't worth it.

Next time, I'll book a flight or take a train with private cabins.

• Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon used an Air Force One plane known as SAM 970.
• The first jet-powered presidential aircraft featured an office and a safe for the nuclear codes.
• The retired plane, used from 1959 to 1996, is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

President Dwight Eisenhower became the first US president to travel by jet when he flew on a new Air Force One plane in 1959.

The jet, known as SAM (Special Air Missions) 970, was customized to meet the needs of the president and White House staff. It included a presidential stateroom, a conference room, seats for members of the press, and a safe for the nuclear codes.

Retired in 1996, SAM 970 now lives at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. I visited the museum in July to tour the old Air Force One and see how presidents once traveled.

Take a look inside.

Four US presidents flew aboard the Air Force One plane known as SAM 970.

In 1959, the customized Boeing 707-153 known as SAM 970 became the new presidential aircraft, replacing the propeller-powered C-121C Super Constellation used by President Dwight Eisenhower. SAM 970 was part of the VC-137 series of planes.

SAM 970 was used by Eisenhower as well as Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon.

In 1962, a newer VC-137C plane replaced it as the primary presidential aircraft, but it still transported vice presidents and other VIPs. The SAM 970 remained part of the presidential fleet until 1996.

The retired aircraft is on display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

Admission to the museum costs $26 per adult. Tickets can be purchased on the Museum of Flight's website.

The exhibit featured figures of Nixon and Premier Zhou Enlai of China shaking hands, recreating the moment the two leaders met.

Nixon took Air Force One to visit China in 1972, becoming the first US president to visit mainland China while holding office.

The cockpit included seats for a pilot, copilot, flight engineer, and guest or auxiliary crew member.

The plane's maximum speed was 590 miles per hour. The top speed of the current Air Force One, the VC-25A, is 630 miles per hour.

The communication station featured state-of-the-art radio and communication equipment.

From the plane, the president could reach the White House Situation Room and the National Military Command Center and send secret communications.

Across from the communication station, the briefcase containing codes to initiate a nuclear strike was kept locked in a safe.

Known as the "nuclear football," every president since Eisenhower has been accompanied by the briefcase at all times.

The safe also held military communication center codes.

In the forward galley, crew members prepared food and drinks for the president and other crew.

The two galleys on Air Force One included ovens, refrigerators, and open-burner stovetops. Drink dispensers also served coffee, water, and other beverages.

A phone in the crew compartment came with a warning against discussing classified information.

A plaque next to the phone read "Caution. This phone has no security provisions. Sensitive or classified material should not be discussed."

A narrow hallway led to Air Force One's meeting areas.

Presidents met with staff, received briefings, and took phone calls while traveling on Air Force One, earning it the nickname of the "flying Oval Office."

The flight crew added fake temperature controls to the presidential stateroom to appease Johnson, who often complained about the cabin temperature.

Whenever Johnson adjusted the fake temperature dial, it alerted the captain, who could then decide to change the cabin's temperature or leave it the same, a Museum of Flight guide said.

Johnson had a doggie door installed in the stateroom to accommodate his restless pet beagles.

Johnson's beagles would often howl if they were left in the conference room too long, according to the Museum of Flight.

The stateroom room included its own private bathroom.

The private bathroom was much more spacious than the lavatories used by the flight crew and members of the press.

The presidential conference room featured more space for larger meetings.

The seating booth featured seat belts in case of rough air.

White House staffers and cabinet members who joined the president on trips sat in the staff seating area.

The roomy sets of four seats featured tables between them.

A separate secretary station provided more workspace for staff.

The workstation was outfitted with a lamp and typewriter.

Members of the press sat further back on the plane.

The staff seating area looked the most similar to regular economy cabin seats.

The aft galley in the back of the plane served food and drinks to senior staff and the press.

Like the forward galley, the aft galley was furnished with kitchen appliances and drink dispensers.

The tail of the plane was decorated with an American flag.

First lady Jackie Kennedy chose Air Force One's blue, white, and metallic color scheme.

During his first term, President Donald Trump proposed new Air Force One colors of red, white, and navy blue for Boeing's long-delayed new Air Force One plane. The Air Force rejected his design since the darker colors would have cost more and caused overheating issues. The plane was supposed to be ready in 2024, but its completion timeline has been pushed to 2027.

• I've visited 86 countries and seen a lot of beautiful places around the world.
• Wānaka, New Zealand, has an incredible natural landscape.
• I loved the architecture in Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.

In January 2016, I took my first solo trip to Hawaii and instantly fell in love with this form of travel. Now, nearly 10 years later, I run a travel blog, No Man Nomad, and have solo traveled to 86 countries across all seven continents.

Throughout my travels, I've been lucky enough to visit some truly beautiful locations. From the second largest canyon in the world to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, here are five of the most beautiful destinations I've been to.

Valle d'Aosta is one of the most underrated regions in Italy.

Valle d'Aosta, Italy's smallest and least populated region, took my breath away when I visited in September 2024.

Located in the northwest corner of the country, the region shares a border with Switzerland and France, creating a majestic mountainous backdrop thanks to Mont Blanc straddling all three countries.

I recommend staying in the capital, Aosta. Nicknamed "little Rome of the Alps," it's not just Mont Blanc that's worth viewing — Aosta is full of historic ruins, like Porta Pretoria and Criptoportico Forense.

Wānaka, New Zealand, is ideal for immersing yourself in nature.

In January 2019, I traveled to New Zealand and rented a campervan for a road trip from Queenstown to Aoraki/Mount Cook.

My first stop was Wānaka, where I frolicked through fields of flowers and tasted local honey at Wānaka Lavender Farm.

I also hiked Roys Peak — a 5,177-foot summit where I saw plenty of sheep as I made my way to the panoramic views of the town.

Each morning, I sipped coffee on Lake Wānaka and admired the lone willow tree that grows in the water. As a New Yorker, I really enjoyed being able to lose myself in nature.

Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay, is a peaceful escape.

When I visited Buenos Aires in January 2023, I decided to take a ferry to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay, for a day trip.

The town is full of white, stone, and pastel-colored buildings, many of which are adorned with flowers. Together, they contrasted beautifully with the cobblestone streets.

Colonia del Sacramento's historic quarter is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here, you can head to the San Miguel Bastion for views of the sea or Ruinas del Convento de San Francisco for the only remnants left from a convent built in the 1690s.

Fish River Canyon in Namibia, left me speechless.

On another international road trip, I visited Fish River Canyon in Namibia, which is the largest canyon in Africa and the second largest in the world after the Grand Canyon.

There were barely any tourists when I visited on a hot day in April 2024. Looking out at the massive, colorful gorge was an experience I'll never forget. It was extremely quiet, and I sat by the edge to take it all in.

Jeju Island, South Korea, is gorgeous.

In March 2019, I scored a $12 flight from Seoul to Jeju Island, South Korea.

One of my first stops was to see Oedolgae, a unique rock formation that's believed to have been formed by a volcanic eruption. As I walked there from my hostel, I passed plenty of waterfalls and witnessed early signs of the island's blooming cherry blossoms.

When I arrived, I watched as the waves crashed into Oedolgae and the other massive volcanic rocks that jarred from the ocean's floor.