As parents, we're juggling a lot—childcare, school drop-offs, rising grocery bills, housing costs, college tuition, and figuring out how to make it all work.

The U.S. President told White House reporters on Thursday, "Iran has a chance to have a great country and to live happily without death."

• Malahki Thorn moved to Puerto Vallarta to escape California wildfire risks and start a new business.
• Puerto Vallarta's real estate market is booming, attracting Americans looking to retire affordably.
• Thorn bought a house away from the tourist areas and is part of a community of local professionals.

Malahki Thorn vividly remembers flames encroaching on his house in the wilderness of northern California.

It was 2015, and the Saddle Fire burned about 1,500 acres in Hyapom, a small town about six hours north of San Francisco. Over nearly three decades, Thorn had watched as blazes became more frequent and destructive, polluting the air with smoke for months at a time.

Thorn, 52, said sheriffs managing the emergency response told him to evacuate. Otherwise, he should write his Social Security number on his arm just in case they needed to identify his remains.

"I just remember thinking, 'I'm not ready to start over,'" Thorn told Business Insider. It felt like too much change, he said, having recently separated from his partner of 17 years. "I didn't know where to go, with three dogs and three cats and my Toyota Tacoma."

Thorn said surviving that experience and then struggling to find affordable home insurance made it clear that living in Hyapom was too risky.

"I couldn't figure out how I was going to have an enjoyable retirement," Thorn said.

In 2023, Thorn sold his house in Hyapom and permanently moved to Puerto Vallarta on Mexico's Pacific Coast, where he'd vacationed for many years. Thorn considers himself a "climate mover" who escaped the wildfire risks of California. He also joins many Americans who are relocating in search of a lower cost of living. Thorn said paying less for housing, food, and utilities allowed him to pursue entrepreneurship.

He told Business Insider what it was like to choose where to live, start a business as an expat, and make friends in Puerto Vallarta.

Starting a business in Puerto Vallarta

Before making the move, Thorn spent a couple of years going between California and Puerto Vallarta to network in the real estate industry.

He connected with a real estate agent in Puerto Vallarta who helped him secure several online interior design projects in the area, including oceanfront condos. Since then, he co-founded RavenThorn Group, which includes his design business, a carpentry studio for custom furniture, construction, and property management.

Puerto Vallarta's real estate market is booming, with the inventory of 1 and 2-bedroom condos soaring by 105% from 2023 to 2024 and gated luxury communities rising in value, according to local realtors and finance professionals at TheLatinvestor. The short-term rental market saw a 5% increase in tourists during that period.

"A lot of buyers also undertake renovations because the price of property in Puerto Vallarta is less expensive than in America," Thorn said. "You can't find oceanfront anything in America for $600,000. So people have some money to spend. It's like a gold rush here with the construction and all the people moving here."

'I didn't want all my friends to be retired Americans'

Thorn hired a local immigration attorney to advise him on how to legally live and work in Mexico. He applied for temporary residency and work visas, as well as a unique tax identification number and a local bank account.

Thorn said he decided to buy a house away from Puerto Vallarta's main tourist areas to make friends with locals and network with working professionals. He's happy with that decision, even though he said it requires being more vigilant about safety.

"I think it's possible to come here and live a very insulated lifestyle inside a gated community or condominium," Thorn said. "I chose to live differently. I didn't want all my friends to be retired Americans."

Thorn said he never expected he'd leave California. Now he's grateful he moved before wildfires get worse and that he was able to start a new business venture.

While little data indicates that climate risks like hurricanes and wildfires are directly causing massive migration, Thorn's story suggests that they may become more of a factor.

"It hasn't been completely easy," Thorn said. "But I feel grateful I had the courage to come. If I had waited until my house burned, I might not have had these options."

Do you have a story to share about moving? Contact this reporter at [email protected].

• "Sinners" has a mid-credit and a post-credit scene.
• The new film, starring Michael B. Jordan, is Ryan Coogler's first original film in over a decade.
• The "Sinners" mid-credit scene has a twist that hints at a sequel, but one hasn't been confirmed.

Warning: spoilers ahead for "Sinners."

Fans who have waited a decade for a new original movie directed by Ryan Coogler after his blockbuster hits "Black Panther" and "Creed" will be excited to know that the movie's two credit scenes may open the door for a sequel (although one hasn't been confirmed).

The highly anticipated movie stars Michael B. Jordan, who has appeared in all of Coogler's movies, as Smoke and Stack: a pair of shady twins who want to open a juke joint in 1930s Clarksdale, Mississippi.

Miles Caton, an R&B singer who makes his acting debut in "Sinners," plays the third protagonist, Sammie Moore, the son of a preacher who aspires to be a musician and leave his small town.

Ignoring his father's request to give up music, Sammie joins his older cousins, Smoke and Stack, to perform at the opening night of the juke joint, using the guitar they gave him.

But Sammie accidentally summons a vampire, Remmick (Jack O'Connell), who wants his ability to spiritually connect with people from the past and future with his music.

Remmick picks off the patrons and workers of the juke joint one by one, including Stack and his former flame Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), converting them into zombie-like vampires who are telepathically connected to him.

Things take a turn for the worse when one of the workers allows the vampires to enter the juke joint to slaughter the remaining survivors.

The "Sinners" mid-credit scene reveals that Sammie isn't the only survivor.

Sammie and Smoke are seemingly the only survivors that night, and vanquish Remmick and his cult of vampires with the sunrise.

But the fight isn't over, because Remmick warned Smoke that a group of KKK clansmen were coming in the morning to kill everyone in the juke joint.

Smoke sends Sammie home, telling him to bury the guitar, which is now broken, to avoid summoning more monsters.

Smoke ambushes the Klansmen, killing them, but he dies from his injuries, allowing him to join his lover and daughter in the afterlife.

Meanwhile, Sammie goes to his church, where his father begs him to drop the guitar and quit music. Sammie jumps in a car with the broken guitar and flees his hometown.

The film ends 60 years in the future, with an older Sammie (played by Buddy Guy, a Grammy-winning blues guitarist) performing as a blues musician in Chicago, the city Sammie said he wanted to visit earlier in the movie to follow in his cousin's footsteps.

Visuals of this performance continue through the first set of credits before the first bonus scene.

This scene shows Sammie at the bar after his performance, when a bouncer tells him he has a visitor.

Without thinking, Sammie says they can enter, and in walk Mary and Stack, who have not aged.

An earlier scene showed Smoke about to kill Stack. But Stack explains that Smoke let him live as long as he stayed away from Sammie.

Stack and Mary somehow survived the sunrise that killed the other vampires and have stayed in the shadows ever since, listening to Sammie's music. Stack offers to turn Sammie into a vampire, but he declines, saying he has seen enough of the world.

When Stack says he prefers Sammie's older music, he performs using his old guitar from earlier in the film, which has been mended.

They reminisce over the time before the vampire attack, then Stack and Mary leave and the scene ends.

This emotional bonus scene opens the door for a sequel. Another film could explore the missing 60 years of Stack and Mary's story, or explore their journey after 1992.

It's also plausible that more vampires could have survived the sunrise like Stack and Mary.

Alternatively, a sequel could explore another mystical monster as the world of "Sinners" is established as one filled with the supernatural.

Coogler told Ebony magazine on Tuesday that he didn't think about the film becoming a franchise while making the movie.

"I never think about that," he said.

It would be Coogler's decision to continue the story because he owns the rights to "Sinners," rather than Warner Bros., which produced and distributed the movie. Coogler told Business Insider earlier this month that he asked for the rights because he wanted to own his film about Black ownership.

Fans may be disappointed by the second credit scene

There's a brief flashback in the film of Sammie playing his guitar at his church.

The post-credit scene shows that flashback in totality, with Sammie playing and singing "This Little Light of Mine."

This scene doesn't add much to the story and may have been included as another opportunity to display Caton's singing talents.

Though Caton has been performing since he was a teenager, the singer has only officially released one single and has under 300 listeners on Spotify, which means "Sinners" could become his breakout moment.

• Sarah Khan, 33, and her husband both had flexible jobs and dreamed of living as digital nomads.
• Their rent getting doubled was the push they needed to pack up and go.
• It's been 10 months, and she's found that following this daily schedule helps her stay grounded.

Our landlord doubled our rent last year — it was the final push we needed to go remote.

My now-husband and I had been talking about it for years. We pictured ourselves spending long stretches living and working near beaches and nature. The desire only grew stronger during the quiet of the COVID lockdowns. But like many Singaporeans, we were tethered by the demands of our jobs and an apartment lease that kept our feet firmly homebound.

Not being able to afford our apartment was the perfect push.

After all, we had everything lined up: I'd been freelancing, as a content and editorial strategist, for a year, and my husband had a remote job. Being location-independent was feasible, and since we hadn't yet decided on starting a family, this window of freedom felt worth seizing.

We ended our lease, packed up, and took the plunge into nomadic living. Ten months in, we've made homes out of Bali, Rome, Tuscany, Bangkok, Phuket — and soon, Alicante, Spain — spending two to three months in each place.

Nature and novelty

There's no question: our life feels fuller now. In just a short time, we've packed in some amazing experiences: a digital detox retreat in Cambodia, train-hopping across Italy, staying on a farm near Rome, and hiking through national parks in Thailand. Even the mundane tasks — like grocery runs or riding a scooter to the gym — feel fresh and new.

More meaningfully, this year has given me a fresh lens on life and work.

I often felt pressure to follow a conventional script — buy a home, climb the corporate ladder, and have kids. But this journey opened my eyes to different possibilities of a life well-lived. We've met people building companies, writing books, and designing lives that prioritize meaning over milestones.

Working remotely has helped me dream bigger and embrace the idea that success doesn't have to be confined to one path.

Harder than expected

That said, this lifestyle isn't without its challenges. A few months in, the cracks began to show.

One big misconception about being a digital nomad is that it feels like a permanent vacation — that work plays second fiddle to leisure. Think: those laptop-on-the-beach shots. The reality is less glamorous: most days, you're indoors, working.

In the beginning, I constantly felt torn and caught in between: not quite in "vacation mode," but not working in a traditional sense either. I remember sitting in a hotel lobby in Ischia, watching vacationers frolic in the sea, while I stayed glued to my screen, powering through a 9-to-5 writing shift.

These days, I try to establish clearer boundaries. I accept that some days are for work and some are for play, and theme my days accordingly.

On paper, city-hopping sounded exhilarating; in reality, it often left me feeling scattered. Each new city brought wonder, yes, but came with a new round of logistics: finding a decent gym, adjusting to a new timezone, and resetting my workspace.

Just as I'd hit my stride, it was time to pack up again. The frequent travel can be disorienting, especially when you're balancing full-time work obligations and life admin.

Thankfully, we've since shifted to what's often called the "slomad" lifestyle, spending two to three months in each place. This slower pace has helped us find a rhythm that feels more sustainable, one where we can settle in and build routines.

A routine that travels with me

Working and traveling sounds like a dream — and in many ways, it is. But I've also learned how essential it is to stay grounded in daily rituals.

Noticing how my productivity and well-being often took a hit, especially when adjusting to a new city or timezone, I realized I needed a "transferrable routine" — something simple but effective that I could recreate anywhere.

After lots of trial and error, I've used Notion, a productivity app, to set this daily rhythm:

• 6:30 a.m. meditation and yoga
• Breakfast with my husband at our favorite local café
• 1 outreach or visibility action (e.g. following up with client leads)
• 30 minutes of focused writing
• Movement (typically strength training or Pilates)
• Reading fiction and/or catching up on favorite Substacks
• Wrapping up work by 5:30 p.m. so we can squeeze in a sunset swim
• A FaceTime or text with someone back home

Most tasks only take 10 to 30 minutes, but together, they help me stay grounded, healthy, and aligned with my bigger goals without getting overwhelmed. They eliminate decision fatigue as I find my footing in a new environment, keep me consistent with what matters, and make each new place feel a little more like home.

As someone attempting to build a career while on the road, this routine gives me the structure and space to do meaningful work and move my projects along, without constantly feeling like I'm playing catch-up.

Moving forward

My husband and I originally committed to this lifestyle for a year. Ten months in, and despite the challenges of being nomadic, we're not quite ready to stop, so we've decided to extend it for at least half a year.

Though I miss the comfort and familiarity of a permanent base, we're excited to keep exploring.

Thankfully, this time, I feel better equipped to stay grounded, even in flux.

Several holidays related to Easter also take place during the week including Palm Sunday and Holy Thursday.

Nova Landeros was abducted from Desert Hot Springs on Thursday. The suspect is 33-year-old Oscar Landeros.

• Trump said he is reluctant to push China tariffs higher because it may hurt consumption.
• "I may not want to even go up to that level, I may want to go to less," Trump said of tariffs.
• He also made remarks on TikTok saying a deal is in place but is subject to China.

President Donald Trump said there may be a point where he doesn't want to put higher tariffs on China because the move could deter buying.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump said he may not raise tariffs if China goes beyond the 125% duty it has on American goods.

"At a certain point, I don't want them to go higher because at a certain point, you make it where people don't buy," Trump said when a reporter asked what happens if China raises tariffs on the US.

"I may not want to go higher, or I may not want to even go up to that level — I may want to go to less, because you want people to buy, and at a certain point, people aren't going to buy," he added.

Earlier on Thursday, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it wouldn't pay attention to Trump's "tariff numbers game" after the White House said Chinese exports face a levy of up to 245%. Last week, Beijing called escalating US tariffs a "joke" and said they no longer hold "any economic significance."

China is the third-largest buyer of US goods, behind Canada and Mexico. According to US government figures, China bought $143.5 billion worth of American products last year.

In addition to tariffs, China and the US have imposed various punitive measures on each other in the escalating trade war. China has curbed the import of Hollywood films, and earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that Beijing asked its airlines to stop taking deliveries from Boeing. The US said that companies selling H20 chips to China will need a license, a move analysts said is essentially a ban on exporting those chips.

On Thursday, Trump added that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have a "very good relationship" and said Xi has reached out to him "a number of times."

The president on Thursday also commented on TikTok, whose fate in the US remains unclear.

"We have a deal for TikTok, but it'll be subject to China, so we'll just delay the deal till this thing works out one way or the other," Trump said, responding to a question about whether he would consider reducing tariffs to complete a TikTok deal.

TikTok's parent company faces a summer deadline to divest its US operations or face removal from US app stores. Trump has twice pushed back the deadline.

Among the parties who have expressed interest in acquiring TikTok's US operations are Amazon, Oracle, Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian, and the YouTuber MrBeast.

"If we're making a deal, I guess we'll spend five minutes to talk about TikTok, it wouldn't take very long," Trump said.

• Gut health is a buzzy topic, but the oral microbiome might be the next big trend.
• The evidence that a clean mouth could lower the risk of chronic diseases is piling up.
• Big voices in the longevity space like Andrew Huberman are starting to spread the word.

You may know that caring for the bugs in your gut, or the gut microbiome, could help you live longer. But a different collection of micro-organisms is getting attention for its health credentials.

Researchers have known for decades that people with problems like gum disease, cavities, and missing teeth, are more likely to experience stroke and develop chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's.

"I've been in this business for over 50 years," Judith Jones, a professor who researches oral disease at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry, told Business Insider, "centenarians have more teeth than the people who don't live that long."

The potential reasons for this are "messy," she said: "It's not simple science."

Losing teeth, for instance, can affect our self-esteem and quality of life. We are less likely to socialize if we feel self-conscious and will struggle to eat nutritious but difficult-to-chew foods such as nuts, vegetables, and lean protein.

But growing research suggests the microbes that live in the mouth (the oral microbiome) could play a larger role in our health than previously thought.

Bryan Johnson and Andrew Huberman are talking to their followers about oral health

Some of the loudest voices in the longevity space are mainstreaming the idea that a clean mouth could help us live longer.

Last month, tech CEO-turned-biohacker Bryan Johnson shared his nine-step oral health "protocol" in his newsletter, which involves tongue scraping and tea tree oil to prevent chronic disease.

Days later, Andrew Huberman dedicated an entire episode of his chart-topping "Huberman Lab" podcast to the potential link between the oral microbiome and physical and mental health.

And the industry newsletter Fitt Insider reported on microbiome-focused products entering the $55 billion oral care market, including a prebiotic toothpaste featuring ingredients personalized according to the bugs that live in a customer's mouth.

From 2023 to 2024, the sale of oral care products in the US increased by 6.3%, from $10.8 billion to $12.2 billion, according to market research firm Mintel. Those investing are likely hoping to repeat the success of the global digestive health market, which is projected to be worth $71.95 billion in 2027, up from $37.93 billion in 2019, according to market research by Fortune Business Reports.

Both the mouth and the gut have a microbiome

Just like the gut, the mouth microbiome houses a collection of "good" and "bad" microorganisms, but it functions differently.

A healthy gut microbiome is one with a diverse range of inhabitants. These microbes have been linked to a variety of physical and mental health benefits — from a stronger immune system and better mood to a lower risk of diseases, including type two diabetes and colon cancer. In contrast, a healthy oral microbiome is relatively sparse.

Brushing and flossing hits the reset button and prevents harmful microbes from colonizing and maturing, Johnathon Baker, an assistant professor at Oregon Health and Science University who studies the oral microbiome, told BI.

He likened the ecosystem of the oral microbiome to a landscape following a volcanic eruption. It's barren (after a thorough clean), but plants eventually grow and change the environment, allowing secondary plants such as moss to grow. After a few years (or a few days of not brushing well enough), moss breaks down the rock, and more plant species emerge, until, eventually, you have a whole rainforest of microbes.

The more mature species of microbes are what can cause infections that break down the barrier between the gums and blood, enabling them to enter the bloodstream. That's why bleeding gums are a hallmark of periodontal disease, Baker said.

Once in the bloodstream, bacteria can travel to different parts of the body and cause damage and inflammation, he said. Gum disease-causing bacteria have been found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's, the tumors of colon cancer patients, and in heart tissue of people with cardiovascular disease.

Whether these microbes are causing chronic illness, contributing to its development, or just making the body more vulnerable to disease by causing inflammation is uncertain, Baker said, because research into the oral microbiome is in its infancy.

But evidence suggests there is a strong link between good oral hygiene and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, with one study suggesting flossing weekly appeared to lower the risk of an ischemic stroke by over a fifth. Similarly, a review of studies into oral health and chronic disease published in 2019 found the most frequently reported correlation was between periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease.

Baker believes that as our understanding develops we may one day see "advances that will help our overall health significantly."

Brush and floss thoroughly daily

Jones, who started her career as a dental hygienist, said that good oral hygiene involves brushing your teeth thoroughly at least once a day. "Most dentists recommend twice a day. I think part of that is so people get it done really well at least once a day. And part of it is making people's breaths smell better," she said.

It's also important to floss daily because a toothbrush can't reach the spot in between the teeth and the gums, which is known as the periodontal pocket, where disease occurs, she said.

"Flossing helps you keep your teeth," Jones added.

When it comes to what kind of floss you should use, she thinks simple is best. "They say now even the water jets are effective, although I can't imagine that they are, quite honestly," she said.

Baker reiterated the importance of flossing. "Before I entered this field, I was definitely one of those people who didn't really floss very much," he said. But as a grad student, he saw "very graphic images" of advanced periodontal disease.

"I was like, I'm flossing every day from now on, and I have," he said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said Thursday he'll sue the Trump administration over the reported DOGE-driven dismantling of the Americorps service program.

The big picture: This is Newsom's second lawsuit announcement against the administration this week after saying Wednesday that he'd sue over President Trump's sweeping global tariffs.

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Driving the news: AmeriCorps placed most of its federal staff on paid administrative leave Wednesday, per America's Service Commissions (ASC), a nonprofit representing state service commissions, and multiple news reports.

• The agency's National Civilian Community Corps, which oversees volunteerism and service work, told volunteers Tuesday they'd leave the program early "due to programmatic circumstances beyond your control," per AP, which cited an email Americorps email it obtained.
• The Golden State "will both challenge the illegal action in court and accelerate recruitment for the California Service Corps program — already the largest service corps in the nation, surpassing the size of the Peace Corps," per a statement from the state governor's office.
• The statement noted that "AmeriCorps members were on the ground, distributing supplies and supporting families" during the climate-change related wildfires that devastated much of Los Angeles earlier this year.

By the numbers: Some 2,200 18- to 26-year-olds serve for 10-11 months on projects with FEMA, nonprofits, the U.S. Forest Service or community groups, per the agency's site.

What they're saying: "We've gone from the New Deal, the New Frontier, and the Great Society to a federal government that gives the middle finger to volunteers serving their fellow Americans," Newsom said in a statement Thursday. "We will sue to stop this."

• Newsom's chief service officer Josh Fryday said in a statement the action of DOGE, which the world's richest person Elon Musk is the face of, "aren't about making government work better — it's about making communities weaker."

The other side: "A White House official said the Trump administration questioned using taxpayer money for the program," per AP.

• Representatives for the White House and Americorps did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment in the evening.

Go deeper: AmeriCorps pledges aid to tribal-led climate solutions

Virginia's bare-breasted state flag, and a lesson about the Commonwealth of Virginia, has been banned for some students in a Texas school district.

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The big picture: Lamar CISD, a school district around 30 minutes from Houston, last fall removed a section about Virginia from its online learning platform used by 3rd-5th graders, Texas Freedom to Read Project co-director Anne Russey tells Axios.

• The reason: The bare breast on Virginia's flag, a picture of which was included in the lesson, violated the district's recently adopted ban on any "visual depictions or illustrations of frontal nudity" in elementary school library material.
• That's according to what the Lamar district confirmed to Russey in a Freedom of Information Act request.

The district did not respond to Axios' request for more information.

Zoom out: The Texas district, like some in Virginia, uses the educational website PebbleGo Next as one of its online learning platforms for elementary-age students, per the district's website.

• PebbleGo's lesson about Virginia does, in fact, include an image of the state's flag, as well as a picture of the state seal, which also shows the breast.
• The lesson notes that the state's seal and flag depict the Roman goddess Virtus standing over a "defeated tyrant," along with the state's motto, "Sic semper tyrannis."
• That motto, the lesson tells students, means "Thus Always to Tyrants."

The conflict near the Red Sea is intensifying as the Yemeni rebel group has continued attacks

Heading into the 2025 NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins have some obvious needs. Who are a few players the team should stay away from in the first round, though?

A new assessment says there is no coordination between Tren de Aragua and the Venezuelan government.

The Indianapolis Colts have had an interesting offseason and now the team needs to nail the 2025 NFL Draft.

Google wants employees to focus on their work and not fret about the company's loss of "parts of" its online advertising monopoly case, it said in a memo to employees Thursday.

Why it matters: The court's ruling, which Google said it would appeal, could fundamentally reshape the giant's advertising business, depending on the remedies, or penalties, the judge determines.

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• Advertising represents the vast majority of Google's revenue. It fuels the company's ability to invest in new technologies, like AI and cloud servers.

Zoom in: In a note to staff, Google VP of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said it's important for employees to"continue to focus on our users and customers by building amazing products that help people around the world."

• Google, she noted, plans to appeal the ruling, arguing it "incorrectly suggests a company like ours has a legal obligation to do business with competitors."
• "This is contrary to past Supreme Court decisions," she asserted.

Between the lines: Mulholland also sought to clarify the outcome of the case by noting that the court delivered a mixed ruling.

• "It rejected key parts of the DOJ's case," she said. "The court found our advertiser tools don't harm competition and our acquisitions of DoubleClick and AdMeld were not anticompetitive. But it agreed with the DOJ's claims about one of our publisher tools. In other words, we won half, lost the other half."

Go deeper: Here's the full text of Google's memo:

Today, a U.S. district court issued a mixed decision in our advertising technology case with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). We asked Lee-Anne Mulholland, VP of Regulatory Affairs, for her thoughts.

Give us an overview of the court's decision today. The court delivered a mixed ruling in the DOJ's lawsuit focused on some of our ad tech. It rejected key parts of the DOJ's case: The court found our advertiser tools don't harm competition and our acquisitions of DoubleClick and AdMeld were not anticompetitive. But it agreed with the DOJ's claims about one of our publisher tools. In other words, we won half, lost the other half.

For those unfamiliar, what's the focus of this case? This case is focused on the tools we provide to advertisers and publishers for third-party display advertising on the web. While these tools are valuable for those customers, they represent a narrow part of our advertising business — separate from Search and YouTube ads. Specifically, it looked at whether some of our advertising technology — tools that connect advertisers (like retailers) and ad sellers (typically website owners) — violated antitrust law; as well as whether our acquisitions in this space were anticompetitive.

What are the next steps? On this case, there is a ways to go; this is definitely not the final word. We will next go to trial to decide the remedies in this case, and then we will appeal the decision. We believe we're strongly positioned to appeal based on established Supreme Court precedent, the facts of our case, and the findings of the court today:

• The ruling doesn't align with how the Supreme Court has previously viewed multi-sided markets like ours, which involve advertisers, publishers, platforms, and users.
• The ruling incorrectly suggests a company like ours has a legal obligation to do business with competitors. This is contrary to past Supreme Court decisions.
• The court recognized that our advertising tools operate in a competitive market, alongside major players in social media and beyond.
• The ruling found that our acquisitions in this space (DoubleClick and Admeld) did not harm competition.
• Publishers have tons of options and they choose Google because our tools are simple, affordable, and effective.

Is there anything else you want Googlers to know? There's been a lot of interest by regulators in our ad tech products around the world for many, many years so this scrutiny isn't new! We've long invested in ad tech because it goes back to our mission of making information universally accessible and useful. Ad tech helps online publishers, content creators, and bloggers make money—which in turn keeps the internet free and open to use for all of us.

We're deeply committed to providing solutions to a wide array of publishers and advertisers in a highly competitive sector. The Regulatory Affairs team will keep working to challenge this case through the appeals process. It's important for Googlers to continue to focus on our users and customers by building amazing products that help people around the world.

The Houston Texans have several obvious needs that need to be addressed in the 2025 NFL Draft. However, which players should the team NOT draft?

Jennings also said he is concerned that Democrats may advocate for Abrego Garcia to stay in the U.S. if he returns.

The NFL Draft is one week away and several hundred players are preparing to hear their names called. These few players could go lower than expected, however.

Former top Pentagon spokesperson John Ullyot "was asked to resign," a Defense Department official said in an emailed statement on Thursday evening.

Why it matters: Despite this announcement, Ullyot maintains he offered his resignation, telling Axios late Thursday that "DoD officials who hide behind anonymous statements clearly resent that they did not have the access or relationship to Secretary [Pete] Hegseth that I enjoyed under President Trump's leadership."

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• He added in his emailed statement: "Their sour-grapes anonymous spin is as inaccurate as it is laughable." Representatives for the Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment in the evening on Ullyot's statement.
• Ullyot's resignation comes during a staffing overhaul at the Pentagon that saw three politically appointed senior aides to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth placed on administrative leave during in an investigation into Defense Department leaks.

The big picture: Politico first reported on Wednesday that Ullyot would leave the Pentagon on Friday and AP first reported on Thursday's announcement and the former Pentagon press secretary's denial that he was asked to resign.

• Ullyot oversaw responses to outrage at the Defense Department's removal — and subsequent restoration — of webpages related to baseball and civil rights legend Jackie Robinson and the Navajo Code Talkers as part of a Trump administration crackdown on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
• The Marine veteran also held senior roles in the first Trump administration and served in a top communications role during the president's 2016 campaign.

Read former top Pentagon spokesperson John Ullyot's resignation letter that he shared with AP, via DocumentCloud:

Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from former Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot and further context.