• Liquor licenses for two of Trump's NJ golf courses remain under review due to his felony conviction.
• On Tuesday, state officials said they have extended the two licenses for another six months.
• Trump can't touch any liquor-sale proceeds for the clubs at Colts Neck and Bedminster — for now.

The Champagne will keep flowing for another six months at two of President Donald Trump's New Jersey golf courses, despite his felony conviction. For now, though, the Trump Organization is barred from touching the proceeds.

Officials with the New Jersey Attorney General's Office said Tuesday that they have issued temporary, half-year extensions for the liquor licenses at the Trump National Golf Club in Colts Neck and the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster.

The last-minute extensions were necessary to keep the drinks flowing while state officials continue to review Trump's application to renew the licenses for the coming year.

Without the extension, the licenses at the Colts Neck and Bedminster clubs would have expired outright on Monday, June 30.

But the extensions come with heavy strings attached — including that Trump, as a convicted felon, and any other corporate members of the clubs' LLCs must keep their hands out of the bar tills at the two clubs indefinitely.

The attorney general's Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control is requiring that proceeds from the two clubs' liquor licenses be held in untouched accounts kept separate from those for the clubs' other income.

It's a constraint that Peter Rhodes — a lawyer who's specialized for 30 years in New Jersey liquor licensing — says he's never seen imposed.

Usually, when a license owner or beneficiary becomes a felon, they are simply given time to walk away from the license, Rhodes said, usually by selling or transferring their interest to a non-felon.

"One might infer that the ABC is struggling with how to handle this issue — with how to deprive a felon of the proceeds of their license," he told BI.

"In short, I find it peculiar," said Rhodes, whose Haddonfield-based firm, Cahill, Wilinski, Rhodes & Joyce, has served for 50 years as counsel to the New Jersey Licensed Beverage Association.

"What they don't say is what happens to that money if, in fact, they find that he is disqualified," Rhodes added. "They can't just confiscate it."

A spokesperson for New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin told Business Insider that the special conditions "are consistent with the division's obligation to ensure that all liquor licensees comply with the law."

"New Jersey statutes state that profiting from a liquor license is a privilege, not a right granted by law," the spokesperson said in a statement.

It was soon after Trump's May 30, 2024, conviction that New Jersey officials first said that the two golf club licenses were under review.

In June of 2024, they announced that they did not intend to renew the licenses due to Trump's new status as a felon.

Both the Bedminster and Colts Neck licenses are in the name of Donald Trump, Jr., the president's son, but the state AG's office ruled at the time that Trump himself is the primary beneficiary of the clubs' liquor sales.

A license-revocation hearing — at which Trump would bear the burden of proving he was qualified to be a license beneficiary — was initially set for July 2024, only to be repeatedly canceled. A new hearing date has yet to be announced.

New Jersey law requires liquor licenses be revoked if their owner or primary beneficiary is sentenced for a crime of moral turpitude, a category which includes felony falsifying business records. That's the state charge Trump was sentenced to in Manhattan in January, nine days before his inauguration.

This week's license extension further requires that by September 30, the Trump Organization provide the alcoholic beverage control officials with details of "the corporate structure, ownership, and beneficiary interests" behind the licenses.

Trump's third New Jersey golf club is the Trump National Golf Club Philadelphia, which is 45 minutes from that city in Pine Hill. The town, not the state, regulates that license, which was also due to expire June 30.

Officials in Pine Hill and a food and beverage manager at the golf club there did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The chief legal officer of the Trump Organization also did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the license renewals and the required special conditions.

• A watchdog is urging the DoD to probe tech execs joining the Army Reserve.
• Concerns have arisen over these executives' potential conflicts of interest.
• Their private employers hold lucrative AI contracts with the Department of Defense.

A watchdog group has called on the Defense Department's Inspector General office to probe whether the recent commissioning of four tech executives as part-time Army officers is in keeping with laws and practices against self-dealing.

The Democracy Defenders Fund sent the letter on Tuesday, requesting that investigators determine "whether the assignment of these officials to the Army Reserve is consistent with the Federal conflict of interest laws" and whether their appointments qualify as "misuse of position and nonpublic information."

The executives — Shyam Sankar, chief technology officer of Palantir; Andrew Bosworth, chief technology officer of Meta; Kevin Weil, chief product officer at OpenAI; and Bob McGrew, an advisor at Thinking Machines Lab who was the chief research officer for OpenAI — joined the Army Reserve just weeks ago. The men will forgo traditional three-month boot camp for a two-week crash course on Army history and basic military knowledge.

These executives may be in a position to influence Army and Defense Department contracts as newly minted lieutenant colonels or share vital inside information to benefit their companies, which could increase the value of compensation like stock options.

It is not unusual for civilians with expertise to bypass the most junior officer ranks for mid-level appointments. Historically that has most often included chaplains, veterinarians, and medical providers, career fields that require advanced degrees to join. The Army has made efforts to recruit more Americans with cyber and tech experience, though the four executives are the highest-profile enlistments to date.

The Democracy Defenders Fund outlined special concerns regarding ongoing contract work Palantir and OpenAI have undertaken with the DoD recently.

It's common for military reservists to have civilian careers in the DoD. The problem with these tech execs, the group says, is the profound amounts of lucrative government contracts at stake for their companies.

"Some of these individuals have significant personal financial stakes in their outside employers, including stock, stock options, restricted stock units, and performance-based bonuses, which they seem unlikely to divest for a part-time government position," the letter read.

"Given the ongoing and clear financial interest these appointees have in the adoption of Artificial Intelligence by the Department of Defense, there is a real risk that these individuals may engage in self-dealing or use their positions or nonpublic government information to benefit their outside employers in violation of federal law," it continued.

The executives' commissions are part of a larger Army effort to rapidly modernize to better harness Silicon Valley's tech for future battlefields. Some experts have previously noted that the expertise such executives have is likely to be an imperative for future peer-level conflicts.

Business Insider asked Army officials if concerns regarding executives' potential conflicts of interest have already been addressed, but did not receive a response before Tuesday afternoon. Officials have previously said the executives will be held to the same ethical standard as other service members.

"Palantir, Meta, OpenAI, and Thinking Machines each have a significant financial interest in DoD adopting AI," the fund letter read, adding that the DoD has already awarded over $1 billion worth of contracts to Palantir and its subsidiaries while OpenAI has a $200 million AI contract with the military.

• If you're under 30, there's a good chance you're borrowing someone's streaming service password.
• A Pew survey shows many streaming moochers are hiding, despite crackdowns from Netflix and Disney.
• This means there are tons of freeloaders left for major media companies to target.

Young people are avoiding the streaming password-sharing crackdown — so far.

For Hollywood, that's both an annoyance and an opportunity.

Just under half of American adults younger than 30 are borrowing a streaming service log-in from someone living outside of their house, a new survey from Pew Research Center shows. That 47% figure doesn't include those passwords within their house (or those who are lying).

Password sharing is less rampant among older generations. Only 26% of 30- to 49-year-olds say they freeload for streamers. And 15% of those over 50 said they're using someone else's password to watch shows and movies.

Netflix pioneered the clampdown on freeloaders to great success. After rolling out "paid sharing," it boasted a banner year of subscriber growth in 2024 that was capped off by its best-ever quarter.

Media giants like Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery followed in Netflix's footsteps with Disney+ and HBO Max, though they're taking a gradual approach, likely to avoid generating mass outrage. Disney CEO Bob Iger said in early May that nudging moochers into paying has paid off by jumpstarting streaming subscriber growth.

NBCU may do the same with Peacock, based on warnings it sent freeloaders, but Paramount and Apple haven't hopped on board yet.

Pew's survey suggests there's still much more room for streamers to crack down.

And while some in the younger cohort could refuse to pay, either out of spite or because they don't watch enough to justify their own subscription, password sharers who do pay up could gravitate toward the cheaper ad-tier. That would be a win for streamers, considering that young people are the most valuable for advertisers, since their buying habits aren't set in stone.

So, for those who are still streaming on someone else's account, beware — because Hollywood's password-sharing crackdown likely won't end anytime soon.

• The jury in Sean "Diddy" Combs' trial says it has reached a verdict on all but one charge.
• Jurors said that they've reached a verdict on all charges except for racketeering conspiracy.
• The judge told the jury to keep deliberating. They're set to return Wednesday morning.

The Manhattan federal jury in Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex-trafficking and racketeering trial said it has reached a verdict on all but one charge.

In a note to US District Judge Arun Subramanian at 4:05 p.m. on Tuesday, the jurors said they have agreed on a verdict on all charges except the first count, racketeering conspiracy. They did not disclose the verdict.

The other four counts are related to the sex trafficking of the prosecution's key witness, R&B singer Cassie Ventura, as well as another one of Combs' exes who testified under the pseudonym "Jane."

"As to count one, we have jurors with unpersuadable opinions on both sides," Subramanian said, reading aloud from the jury note.

It was the second day of jury deliberations.

Prosecutors asked the judge to give the jurors a version of the Allen charge — standard instructions for a deadlocked jury. Combs' defense attorneys said it was too early for the charge, and that the judge should just ask the jurors to keep deliberating.

Combs' defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo said that because the jury had already reached verdicts on four counts, the judge didn't need to give them elaborate instructions.

"I don't think that this is akin to the other situations where other trial juries have been deliberating for longer or as long and haven't reached any verdicts," Agnifilo said in court. "I think the dispositive difference is this jury has already reached four verdicts, so I don't think that we need to do anything to move them along."

Before jurors left for the day, to return Wednesday morning, the judge urged them to continue deliberating.

"It is your duty as jurors to consult with each other and to deliberate with a view to reaching an agreement," Subramanian said. "Each of you must decide the case for himself or herself, but you should do so only after a consideration of the case with your fellow jurors, and you should not hesitate to change an opinion when convinced that it is erroneous."

As his lawyers stood and packed their bags at the end of the trial day, Combs, wearing a beige sweater over a white button-down shirt, sat slumped in his chair. He stared ahead and tapped his fingers on his lap.

Combs at one point turned from his seat at the defense table and gave a quick, confident nod to his mother, three daughters, and three sons, two rows behind him.

Former federal prosecutor Mark Chutkow, who is not involved in the case, told Business Insider that the jury's note "suggests that the jury has likely voted to convict on most if not all of the other charges."

"The racketeering conspiracy charge is the most complex charge for the prosecution," said Chutkow. "The fact that at least some of the jurors would vote to convict on that charge would suggest that the jurors were willing to convict on the other, more straightforward charges.

The eight-man, four-woman panel, which is in its second day of deliberations, appeared to home in on testimony given by Ventura earlier Tuesday.

Combs' jury sent a note to the judge asking for testimony transcripts relating to four specific parts about Ventura's alleged sex trafficking.

It asked for copies of Ventura's testimony regarding the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles, about an event at Cannes, and about a "freak off" with Daniel Phillip, a dancer who testified that he was recruited multiple times for Combs' sex performances.

The jurors also requested Phillip's own testimony about an encounter with Ventura in New York's Essex hotel, where Phillip said he believed Combs had physically beaten her.

Prosecutors, defense attorneys, and Subramanian quickly determined which portions of the transcript they should send to the jury regarding Phillip and Cannes, where Ventura testified Combs threatened to publish videos of them having sex.

But they spent much of the morning arguing over the scope of testimony regarding the InterContinental hotel, which sprawled over hundreds of pages of the trial transcript. Combs was infamously caught on the hotel's security camera beating Ventura in a hallway, in 2016, following a freak off sex performance with her.

The jury officially got the case on Monday at around 11:30 am ET.

And just 70 minutes into the panelists weighing the charges against the hip-hop mogul, the jury sent the judge a note complaining about one particular juror.

"We have a juror," read the note, "who we are concerned cannot follow your honor's instructions."

The note identified the juror as the one sitting in seat number three, a 51-year-old Manhattan man and self-described scientist.

The judge ultimately instructed the jurors of their duty to follow his instructions and continue deliberations.

Any kind of jury chaos is typically considered a good sign for the defense, Chutkow previously told BI.

"As a general matter, the more conflict and the more chaos occurs in a jury deliberation that spills out so that the court and the counsel know about it tends to be better for the defense because it could mean that a mistrial is looming," said Chutkow.

Chutkow added that in high-profile, complex cases such as Combs' "you're going to get a lot of differences of opinion and things get very hot in the jury room."

"People have very strongly felt feelings, and there can be circumstances where a juror folds up their arms, turns away from the others, and says 'I don't want to talk with you guys anymore,'" he said.

"That is just one of the processes that it's sort of up to the jury to self-regulate and to figure out," said Chutkow.

If the jury convicts Combs, 55, on the top charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, the music tycoon could face up to life in prison.

• The Air Force's B-2 Spirit bombers are undergoing several modernization efforts.
• Those include better stealth, communications technologies, and maintenance schedules.
• B-2s, like the ones used to bomb three nuclear facilities in Iran, will eventually be replaced by B-21 Raiders.

The US Air Force's B-2 Spirit bomber is a highly effective strategic bomber built to penetrate tough battlespaces, but it's been flying for roughly three decades. Time takes a toll, meaning upgrades are needed to keep it lethal.

The Air Force is working on making the B-2 harder to see and available more often as part of ongoing modernization efforts. Over the weekend, the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Public Affairs released details on how they are tinkering with the bomber's software and hardware to keep at the top of its game.

Key efforts are focused on improving maintenance speed, better stealth, and improved communications.

"A lot of people talk about the B-2 as a legacy platform and that is incorrect: It is an operational platform conducting strikes today and if the flag goes up tomorrow, it will be one of the first platforms to conduct strikes," said Lt. Col Robert Allen, materiel leader for the B-2 Advanced Programs Branch.

The B-2, made by Northrop Grumman, is an expensive $2 billion bomber that was controversial in its development, in part due to the high costs. It entered service with the Air Force in 1997 and first saw combat in the Kosovo War as part of Operation Allied Force.

Most recently, seven B-2s dropped bombs on Iran's nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The strategic bombers carried 14 GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bunker-buster bombs, powerful, heavy munitions designed to penetrate hardened bunkers and deeply buried underground facilities. Each bomb weighs 15 tons.

B-2 bombers are also capable of carrying nuclear payloads and are an important element of the US nuclear triad, which also includes intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched missiles. This flexibility in payload type and capacity makes the B-2 instrumental to the larger US military's strike options — and prompts continual investments in keeping it ahead of the curve.

Quicker maintenance

A bomber is only useful if it's ready to fly. The Air Force is working to ensure that the aircraft is ready when it needs to be by reducing downtime and increasing availability for what has traditionally been a maintenance-intensive aircraft. The service currently has 20 B-2s in active service, having lost one in a crash back in 2008.

The B-2's significant maintenance overhaul, called program depot maintenance or PDM, that's done every nine years typically takes 470 days. It is "an exhaustive inspection, overhaul, and repair of the bomber, with much of the work focused on restoration of the bomber's Low Observable (LO) or stealth materials," the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Public Affairs said in a statement last fall.

But last October, the work was done in 379 days.

The improvements to the maintenance process included doing the fuel inspection earlier to avoid duplicate work and conducting pre-inspections to identify issues ahead of time.

"As any aircraft continues to age, you're going to see more and more issues that need to be repaired on a PDM line," said Col. Francis Marino, the B-2 system program manager within the Bombers Directorate, in a statement. He said that "the pre-inspection is great because it reduces the number of surprises at PDM."

Maintaining the B-2's equipment and repair line is also critical. In May 2024, Northrop Grumman was awarded a substantial $7 billion contract for sustainment and support work, as well as planned upgrades.

Better stealth and communications

In order to keep the bombers hidden from potential countermeasures and threats, the Air Force has been at work on several important upgrades to its stealth, as well as its comms.

Allen said that as part of a new program, the service is providing the B-2 with upgraded beyond-line-of-sight satellite communications capability, which "significantly improves the transfer time for real time mission planning data" and "will allow the operator to simultaneously receive and transmit voice communications and data which is an upgrade from what the aircraft currently has."

The B-2's stealth capabilities, including its low-observable, radar-absorbent materials, are also being enhanced, which is set to further reduce its radar cross section, which refers to how the bomber appears to radar operators.

The B-2 features a unique flying-wing airframe, edge alignment, and other technologies that dramatically reduce its signature across multiple frequency bands, making it difficult for enemy air-defense radars to detect, track, and target the aircraft.

"Upgrading its avionics, sensors and communication systems are essential so that we stay ahead of emerging threats and enhance our payload and versatility," Lt. Col. Benjamin Elton, material leader, B-2 Integrated Capabilities Branch, said.

Keeping B-2s in the fight

B-2s will continue to be upgraded into the 2030s, when the Air Force plans to replace the aircraft with the new B-21 Raider, which is currently in initial production and testing after the plane took its first flight in late 2023. The B-21, also made by Northrop Grumman, will also replace the B-1 Lancer. Developments on the new bomber began in 2015.

Many of the details on the B-21's abilities are classified, but it's expected that the aircraft will boast better stealth, payload capacity, communications, and sensors than its predecessor. That includes carrying weapons that haven't been invented yet.

The costs and delivery dates of the B-21 program have shifted over the years, but it's expected to enter service this decade, and the aim is to produce at least 100 of them.

• Donald Trump continues to hawk branded merchandise while in office.
• In June, Trump touted a line of branded fragrances.
• Trump's made millions off of Bibles, books, shoes, and even guitars bearing his name.

After a profitable post-presidency, Donald Trump continues to hawk branded merchandise after returning to the White House.

Trump has reaped millions from the Bibles, fragrances, shoes, NFTs, and other products that use his name, image, and likeness — $600 million last year, per his most recent financial disclosure. Many of the products have been updated to reflect Trump's status as the 47th President of the United States.

In late June, Trump took time away from pressing negotiations on Capitol Hill to promote a branded fragrance.

"Enjoy, have fun, and keep winning!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Here are all of the companies and products Trump owns.

Truth Social

While not a product, Truth Social, Trump's social media platform, is among the biggest pieces of his portfolio.

Trump Media has struggled since its early bonanza when it was trading near $70 a share. As of July, it's hovering around $18. — meaning Trump's stake is now worth roughly $2 billion.

Before retaking office, Trump transferred all of his 14,750,000 shares to a trust. Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son, is the sole trustee and holds voting power.

Trump's use of Truth continues to show how he blends official and private interests. As president, Trump has made US foreign policy announcements (including a cease-fire between Israel and Iran), personnel appointments, and other news via posts on the social media platform.

He's also promoted products like his fragrances.

Crypto

Trump and his family have launched multiple cryptocurrency ventures, including the president's official $Trump coin, which he launched in January 2025.

We likely won't know the full extent of Trump's earnings from his memecoin until next year. According to an estimate by Chainalysis, a blockchain data platform, Trump's family and another business entity have earned more than $350 million in trading fees for his meme coin alone.

Trump's coin spiked in value in April after the coin's site announced that the top holders would be treated to an exclusive dinner with the president.

First lady Melania Trump has a coin, too.

Trump Mobile (and a gold phone)

Trump's sons led the Trump Organization into a new area: mobile phone service.

Trump Mobile offers $47.45 plan, a reference to the president's two terms in office. Their flagship smartphone, the T1, costs $499. The company has softened its initial claims that the T1 would be made in the US.

Per his ethics agreement, President Trump does not have day-to-day control over his namesake company. However, he is likely to benefit from the mobile phone venture. DTTM Operations, LLC, which oversees Trump's trademarks, sought to register the Trump name for a mobile phone service.

Books

Before he was a reality TV star, Trump was an author (on paper, at least).

White House staffers and Trump allies continue to refer to 1987's "Art of the Deal." Since it was published decades ago, the president's royalty payments have declined substantially. In 2024, Trump reported between $50,000 to $100,000 in payments related to his first book.

Trump has continued to publish books. His latest books, published by a conservative company co-founded by Donald Trump Jr., have brought in significantly more money.

Trump's "Save America," which features the famous photo taken after his first assassination attempt, is available for $99.

Last year, Trump made $3 million in royalties from the book, per his disclosure.

Shoes

CIC Ventures, which produces a Trump sneaker line, has over 20 offerings, including high tops and women's shoes.

The company made editions that feature the numbers 45 and 47, Trump's respective terms in office.

At $499, the most expensive pairs are golden low-top sneakers, two editions come emblazoned either with "TRUMP WON 45-47" or "FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT," the latter are the words Trump yelled to the crowd after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024.

In 2024, Trump attended SneakerCon, a shoe-focused convention in Philadelphia, to promote the shoe line.

Cologne and perfume

The same company that sells Trump shoes also sells cologne and perfume. The "Victory 47" bottles are each listed for $249. The bottle topper is a golden Trump mini-statue.

"*Victory 47* blends rich, masculine notes with a refined, lasting finish," the description reads. An accompanying perfume is also $249.

Other fragrances are available for $199.

According to his recent financial disclosure, Trump made $2.5 million in royalty payments from the shoes and fragrances in 2024. CIC Ventures was valued at $1 million to $5 million on the president's recent disclosure.

Bibles

Trump is selling a copy of what he says is his favorite book: The Bible.

For $59.99, Trump's edition of the religious text includes "a "handwritten chorus to 'God Bless The USA' by Lee Greenwood.'" The former president frequently features the Greenwood patriotic anthem at his rallies.

The Trump Bible also includes a copy of the US Constitution, Pledge of Allegiance, Declaration of Independence, and Bill of Rights.

There are 11 other editions available, including a Trump signature version (which retails for $1,000) and Inauguration Day commemorative editions for Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and first lady Melania Trump.

According to Trump's recent financial disclosure, he made $1,306,035 in bible-related royalty payments last year.

Guitars

You can think of Trump while strumming the notes to his favorite songs.

There are nine different Trump-branded guitars available for sale, ranging from $1,000 all the way up to $11,500.

The most expensive Trump guitar, is a Trump American Eagle electric guitar that is autographed by the president.

"Only 275 of these are available," the site reads.

Trump made $1,055,100 in guitar-related royalty payments last year, per his disclosure.

Watches

"It's Trump Time," Trump says in a promotional video for branded watches.

Trump-branded watches start at $499, but a few limited-editions are the most expensive Trump-branded products on the market.

"The Victory Tourbillion" watch are available for preorder at $100,000 in either black, gold, or rose gold dials. Only 147 watches will be made.

"Almost entirely made out of 18 Karat Gold (approximately 200 grams across the band, case, and buckle) and decorated with 122 VS1 Diamonds, you will stand out for all the right reasons," the description reads.

Cryptobillionaire Justin Sun said he was gifted one of the rare watches for being the top holder of Trump's memcoin before the exclusive gala.

Trump made $2.8 million in watch-related royalty payments in 2024, per his financial disclosure.

• A new report highlights how US soldiers deployed in the Pacific made changes to a new missile system in the field.
• It was the new Mid-Range Capability, also known as Typhon.
• The system's presence in the region deeply annoyed Beijing.

Troops deployed to the Pacific tinkered with and reworked a missile system in the field, showing the value of soldier-driven design input during a deployment that irritated China, a recent report noted.

Soldiers were in the Philippines and working with the US Army's new Mid-Range Capability, or Typhon, missile system.

The Government Accountability Office, a watchdog agency, reported last month on the Army's modernization efforts for its artillery, rocket, and missile systems. Citing conversations with the program's officials, the GAO said that there were "multiple design changes" made "during development based on user input provided during new equipment training and other exercises."

The improvements made included reducing the reload time and stress on the system's components, and they were made by soldiers on the ground during those exercises. "For example, because of the orientation of the launcher, soldiers suggested moving certain access points and panel connections on the trailer to make it easier to reload, operate, and maintain," the office said.

User input on the system was collected during and after its deployment to the Philippines last year as part of a joint US-Philippine exercise.

In a statement at the time, US Army Pacific called it a "landmark deployment" marking "a significant milestone for the new capability while enhancing interoperability, readiness, and defense capabilities in coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines." It marked the system's first overseas deployment.

The MRC is one of the Army's newest missile systems. It's a versatile ground-based missile system capable of firing both the Standard Missile 6 (SM-6) and Tomahawk Land Attack Missile and designed to fill a key gap in the US arsenal in terms of range and flexibility. While it wasn't fired during the trainings, its presence angered China, which demanded it be removed.

In September 2024, Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, said that China had made its opposition to the deployment clear more than once.

"The deployment is a move to turn back the wheel of history," he said, adding that "it gravely threatens regional countries' security, incites geopolitical confrontation, and has aroused high vigilance and concerns of countries in the region." China notably maintains a large arsenal of ballistic missiles.

China has also expressed its frustrations to the Philippines. In August last year, Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo said his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, had expressed concerns the weapon could destabilize the security and relations of the region, and that when they discussed it, China "made it very dramatic."

Beijing has said the Philippines, a key US ally, is serving American interests ot the detriment of its own, and China has kept up its complaints amid reports of a coming second MRC deployment to the Philippines, which has expressed great interest in the system's capabilities.

The MRC's development came after the 2019 US withdrawal from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which banned nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers.

That withdrawal, which the first Trump administration said was driven by Moscow's violation of the treaty with its SSC-8/9M729, has opened new doors for the US arsenal.

In the GAO report, the office noted that the effort underway for the MRC has "reflected several attributes of an iterative product development approach as it established a business case with flexible requirements focused on a minimum viable product," including adapting new capabilities and requesting user feedback on the system.

Iterative, or staged, development with key soldier feedback has been of growing interest for US Army's transformation and innovation projects. The Army has called these soldier touchpoints, but there are many names for this process within the military. US special operations forces have also been really involved in this approach.

The value of this kind of work in the field has also been seen in the war in Ukraine, where Ukrainian soldiers are often in close contact with and providing feedback to weapons makers, fueling rapid growth in experimental and emerging combat technologies. The Army's first iteration of the Mid-Range Capability experienced that during the Philippines deployment.

Military leaders have said that companies should be testing their tech on the front lines. Short of that, they'd ideally be getting their systems in the hands of deployed troops in training.

• For most of my life, I loved living alone and prioritized having my own space over everything else.
• In my 30s, my best friend convinced me to move in with her. I was surprised by how much I like it.
• It changed my perspective on living alone and I love splitting bills and household responsibilities.

As the youngest child and only girl in my family, I rarely had to share anything — not my toys, not my clothes, and definitely not my room.

That early autonomy shaped my idea of what defined a perfect living situation: I love being able to move through my space however I want without compromise.

Over the years, I prioritized living alone and thankfully escaped college without any roommate horror stories.

When I moved to Mexico City at 30, I continued this independent lifestyle until one day, my best friend here, Adalia, floated the idea of living together.

Amid a rising cost of living, she said, it'd be nice to split bills with someone. Plus, we already spent so much time together — this arrangement could make leaning on each other that much simpler.

Since I work remotely, I also felt isolated at times and could go days without interacting with another human in real life. Spending more time with my friend didn't sound so bad.

Eventually, I agreed — and, so far, it's been pretty great.

I was worried about sharing my space, but it's been surprisingly comforting

I thought having a roommate in my 30s, even one I love dearly, might feel suffocating. I like the freedom of having my own space, and I was worried our differences could be a recipe for disaster.

She's up at sunrise, but I come alive after dark. We approach tasks in very different ways and are 16 years apart in age.

However, we fell into a groove pretty naturally because we communicate well and often.

Turns out, 34-year-old me knows how to speak up for herself, how to listen, and how not to take things personally way better than I did at 19.

Beyond splitting expenses, one of the biggest benefits of living together is the simple relief of not having to do everything around the house myself.

From taking out the trash to managing bills to restocking toilet paper, Adalia and I share the household responsibilities. Some weeks it's an even split, and other times one of us steps up a little more, depending on what life's throwing our way.

When I caught COVID-19, I tried to pull my weight by doing the dishes. Adalia practically snatched the sponge out of my hand and demanded I rest. I got to return the favor when she was hit with food poisoning a few weeks later.

Having a roommate also means having a built-in emergency-response partner through earthquakes and other disasters. Now, there's a strange comfort in knowing that if our building starts shaking, I've got someone to yell, "Grab the go bag!"

It turns out getting a roommate in your 30s doesn't have to feel like a step back

What's been most surprising isn't that we can live together well — it's how much I actually enjoy having a roommate.

Some days we're like ships passing in the night. Others, we spend hours doubled over in laughter on our couch.

We just passed the one-year mark of living together, and I can certainly say that this arrangement has made my life more joyful and sustainable. I'm no longer navigating this city, its earthquakes, or even my to-do list by myself.

I used to think living alone was the pinnacle of freedom, but this kind of shared life has expanded my perspective.

Living alone taught me how to take care of myself, but sharing a home with my best friend taught me how to share the mental load of living and let someone else take care of me, too.

• Recent grads in anthropology, physics, and computer engineering had high unemployment rates in 2023.
• Newer data suggests graduates can have issues finding a job.
• Economist Daniel Zhao advises grads to leverage their networks and research where there's hiring demand.

Anthropology, physics, and computer engineering grads have had a rough time in the job market.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York analyzed the unemployment rates of recent college graduates, defined as 22- to 27-year-olds with a bachelor's degree or higher, by major. The analysis used data from the Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey covering 73 majors and subject groups.

Twenty-eight majors had unemployment rates above the overall 3.6% rate for recent grads. The kinds of majors with the highest unemployment rates were mixed, with several related to arts, technology, or science. Recent anthropology graduates had a rate of 9.4%, the highest rate, followed by physics at 7.8%.

Recent computer engineering and computer science graduates also had high unemployment. Still, employed graduates in the two computer-related majors were more likely to be working in jobs that typically require a degree, especially compared to anthropology. They also tied with the highest median wage for early-career graduates, alongside chemical engineering, at $80,000, and had six-figure medians for mid-career graduates.

Daniel Zhao, lead economist at job platform Glassdoor, told Business Insider that computer science and engineering are still appealing because of the high pay they could lead to.

"When you look at the higher unemployment rate but the lower underemployment rate, new grads in computing fields are likely holding out, waiting for that first job in the field, because they know how rewarding it can be," Zhao said.

Jaison Abel, the head of microeconomics at the New York Fed, told BI the tech sector tends to hire many recent college graduates and showed some overall weakness from mid-2022 into the following year, after higher demand for workers following the pandemic recession. He said that the tech sector does tend to hire grads who studied physics, computer engineering, and computer science — three of the majors with relatively high unemployment rates in 2023.

Abel said he thinks "a good chunk of the elevated unemployment at that time for recent grads" in those three majors was because they "just happened to be a part of the economy that was experiencing a bit more weakness than other parts, even though the economy overall was still quite strong."

The job outlook for science graduates was mixed. While physics and chemistry both had relatively high unemployment rates, earth sciences had an unemployment rate of just 1.5%. Biology had an unemployment rate of 3%, below the overall rate.

"For the pure sciences, the types of jobs you can get do tend to be a little bit more constrained than some of the engineering fields," Zhao said.

He added science jobs tend to rely on federal funding. While the unemployment data is about 2023, Zhao said the dependence on federal funding is "certainly a concern moving forward, as the Trump administration has pulled back on funding for research and science."

The job market can still be hard for new job seekers

US job openings have slowed dramatically since the post-pandemic boom, and there are fewer openings per unemployed person. The unemployment rate for recent 22-to-27-year-old college graduates with a bachelor's degree or higher climbed to 5.8% in March, widening the gap with the overall unemployment rate.

"It's hard to say exactly how the individual majors will shake out," Abel said about today's job market. "All else equal, if you've just got a cooler job market with less hiring, that's going to equate to a higher unemployment rate, especially for recent grads, because recent grads are really on the margin of the labor market."

Recent graduates could be having a tougher time getting a job, depending on where they're applying.

"The job market in tech has been soft for entry-level workers, as many tech companies have slowed down hiring or even turned to layoffs," Zhao said.

Job postings in the software development sector on the job search platform Indeed have recently been growing, but they are still far below the opportunities during 2022 and even pre-pandemic February 2020. Job postings for the scientific research and development sector have also slowed from their March 2022 peak.

Zhao's advice for new graduates looking for a job is to connect with their networks, such as alumni and family, and research who is still hiring.

"There is a lot of flexibility with which career path you can pursue because entry-level workers, usually, the skills are more generalizable across industries or across occupations," Zhao said.

Are you a college graduate who is job searching, or did you get a job without a college degree? Reach out to this reporter to share your story at [email protected].

• The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum is a must-see for any "Gilded Age" fan.
• The museum was once the estate of William K. Vanderbilt II, the son of William and Alva Vanderbilt.
• Alva is the inspiration behind Bertha Russell, who is played by Carrie Coon on the show.

Can you hear "The Last Great American Dynasty" playing in the distance?

There are many historical mansions on Long Island, but only one was once owned by the legendary Vanderbilt family. The 42-acre estate of William Kissam Vanderbilt II, which included his summer "cottage" of Eagle's Nest, is now a museum that's open to the public.

Eagle's Nest was first built in 1910 as a small cottage, but as William II spent more time there, it expanded until 1936, when a full redesign was finished; it had become a 24-room Spanish Revival mansion.

William II spent time at Eagle's Nest until his death in 1944. His will stipulated that, upon the death of his wife Rosamund, the estate would be left to Suffolk County and would become a museum, which it did after her death in 1947.

The Vanderbilts are one of the best-known (and richest) families in American history — so much so that Bertha Russell, the main character on HBO's "The Gilded Age," is based on Alva Vanderbilt, William II's mother. In fact, a major plot line in season three is based on William II's sister, Consuelo Vanderbilt, marrying the Duke of Marlborough in 1895.

So, as a new fan of "The Gilded Age," I knew I had to check out Eagle's Nest — even if Larry Russell isn't really based on William II, I still needed to see the real mansion that his character might live in.

The museum is open every day except Monday and Thursday, and tours of the mansion are offered on Sunday, Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday. Tickets for the museum range from $8 to $14, depending on age, while a guided tour of the mansion is an additional $8.

Here's what it was like to set foot in the home of a Vanderbilt.

On the North Shore of Long Island, about 40 miles outside New York City, lies the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum.

Inside the grounds are hiking trails, gardens, and a gift shop.

There's also the Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium, which holds multiple shows daily.

The biggest attraction, though, is Eagle's Nest, the 24-room mansion of William K. Vanderbilt II, the great-grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Before I toured the home, I visited the museum grounds.

At the entrance stood a pair of stone eagles, which were taken from Grand Central Terminal. Cornelius Vanderbilt himself commissioned the train station.

One of the first things I did was head toward the Rose Garden; sadly, most of the roses had already bloomed.

But the landscaping was still immaculate.

Even if the roses were already gone, the views of the Long Island Sound were worth it.

Then it was time to head over to Eagle's Nest.

Eagle's Nest was originally built in 1910 as a small cottage. It expanded over the next three decades to become this Spanish Revival-style mansion.

The courtyard was set up for Shakespeare readings, which happen throughout the summer.

One side of the mansion is a natural history museum.

The other side is preserved to be just as the Vanderbilts left it in the early 1900s.

This was unlike any other historical mansion I've seen on Long Island, which are usually modeled on medieval castles or Tudor mansions.

Source: Business Insider

These cobblestones were taken from the streets of Greenwich Village in Manhattan before the streets were paved over.

Upon entering the home, the first thing you see is the staircase. It was imported from a Belgian castle.

There are portraits of William II's family in the entryway. This is his father, William Kissam Vanderbilt. He ran an arena you may have heard of: Madison Square Garden.

Pictured top right is William II's mother, Alva Vanderbilt. She inspired Carrie Coon's character, Bertha Russell, on "The Gilded Age."

The first room I saw was the dining room.

The ceiling is constructed from Florida cedar, or Southern Red cedar.

In the corner is a beautifully crafted fireplace. The floor tiles were imported from Portugal.

Next to the formal dining room is the butler's kitchen. At the height of William II's entertaining, 36 servants worked at Eagle's Nest.

With a view as great as Eagle's Nest's, of course there's a screened-in veranda.

Off the veranda is the Portuguese sitting room, named for the ornate fireplace imported from Portugal. It was constructed in 1494.

Here's one of the guest rooms open for display. Each guest room had its own closet and bathroom.

Then, it was time to go upstairs and view the rest of the mansion.

One upstairs sitting room was almost entirely covered in dark wood. It also housed a giant organ.

A portrait of William II's sister Consuelo can be seen in this room, in the bottom left. She coined the term "heir and a spare," which she used to refer to her sons with her first husband.

Source: Town & Country

She was married to Charles Spencer-Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough. If their marriage didn't produce children, his title would've gone to his first cousin, Winston Churchill.

Here's one of the guest bathrooms at Eagle's Nest. Note the marbled walls and tub.

This was William II's bedroom. The room is bright, with beautiful views of the water — he probably had a great view of his 264-foot yacht, the Alva.

In addition to loving the sea, William II was an avid race-car driver, naturalist, and golfer.

His bed, seen here, was a to-scale replica of the bed of Napoleon Bonaparte.

These buttons, right by his bed, were connected to the servant's staircase. He could summon his butler, and lock or unlock the servants' stairwell.

In his bathroom, nods to his love of the water included a large ship on the floor. He also had a shower, which was somewhat unusual for the time.

To get to his wife's quarters, I had to pass through the breakfast room.

Like the rest of the home, it had a lovely view of the water.

William II had two wives — this is how the bedroom looked when it was occupied by his second wife, Rosamond Lancaster Warburton.

This is her changing room and bathroom.

Rosamund's tub is made of rose marble — a nod from William II to his nickname for his wife.

As I left the living quarters, I reached one of the entrances to the museum. This room is dedicated to William II's son, William K. Vanderbilt III.

Inside were specimens collected by William II's son on a 1931 trip to Africa.

The scenes reminded me of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, which made sense — the same designer and taxidermist, William Belanske, did both.

This is a portrait of William III during a safari in 1931. He died two years later in a car crash at 26.

While it was time to exit this wing, there was still the rest of the museum to see.

The other half of the mansion is filled with specimens the elder William collected on his trips around the world.

There's also a miniature replica of his yacht, Alva. During World War II, he donated it to the US Navy, and it was renamed the USS Plymouth. It was sunk by U-boats in 1943.

There are multiple rooms that are filled with sea creatures. William II himself discovered multiple species during his travels.

Down a final set of stairs was a basement filled with more relics from William II's life.

There were also two of his cars parked and awaiting a driver (and probably a tune-up).

As I exited the home and crossed the courtyard, I was surprised to learn that there was even more to see.

I followed a sign for even more "habitats."

I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't a giant whale shark hanging from the ceiling.

Another room was dedicated to large predators. It had a taxidermied lion and a tiger, but my favorite was the polar bear.

The exit brought me to the back of the house. I decided to go back to the central courtyard to see if I had missed anything.

And I had! There was a small doorway that led to Eagle's Nest's backyard.

The house was set on a hill, so the yard was multi-level.

First, I walked to the right.

There was a large reflecting pool.

Then I walked to the left and came across another fountain and some well-manicured hedges.

But the main attraction was, once again, the view.

The lawn was open, so I decided to trek down and see what structure at the bottom was.

To my surprise, it was a filled-in saltwater pool.

They'd even left the ladder in.

There were also changing rooms.

With that, I had seen almost everything the Vanderbilt Museum had to offer, with the exception of a few hiking trails.

I left the museum with a greater understanding of the Vanderbilts — and ready to keep watching "The Gilded Age."

• A deal between Microsoft and OpenAI gives the software giant access to the AI startup's technology.
• Exactly what OpenAI has to share — and when — is sometimes a gray area, insiders said.
• The issue is central to Microsoft as the companies renegotiate their multibillion-dollar alliance.

The future of the most important partnership in technology depends on Microsoft's access to the artificial intelligence powering ChatGPT.

When OpenAI first demoed a breakthrough feature in May 2024, allowing users to talk to its AI just like a person, it looked as if the company did so in lock-step with its partner and investor, Microsoft. Soon after OpenAI demoed this voice capability for its new GPT-4o model, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella included it in a keynote speech at the company's Build developer conference.

Behind the scenes, Microsoft had little knowledge of the feature until days before the demo, people involved in the matter told Business Insider.

While the agreement between the two companies gives Microsoft access to OpenAI's technology, exactly what OpenAI has to share — and when — is sometimes a gray area.

In this case, Microsoft had access to frequent updates of the core model at the time, but not the voice technology OpenAI built on top of it. Microsoft found out about the demo, and pressured OpenAI executives, including then-technology boss Mira Murati, to get access to the code so Microsoft could do its own announcement, the people said. The company did not want to appear flat-footed to investors, to whom the company has to justify its $13 billion investment in OpenAI, they said.

The example illustrates the ongoing complexity of Microsoft's relationship with OpenAI, and why access to the AI startup's technology is a core issue as the companies renegotiate their agreement.

OpenAI needs Microsoft's blessing for a corporate restructuring. To get that, OpenAI may need to convince Microsoft to change or give up some pretty sweet terms: Microsoft has access to much of OpenAI's technology, exclusive rights to sell it on Azure, first right of refusal to provide computing resources, and a revenue-sharing agreement worth billions of dollars.

Lots of thorny details about points of contention in the negotiations have made recent headlines — a looming, existential clause OpenAI could activate to cut off Microsoft's access, a "nuclear option" reportedly considered by OpenAI executives to accuse Microsoft of anticompetitive behavior, and a report that Microsoft was prepared to walk away from the renegotiations.

In response to those reports, Microsoft and OpenAI released a joint statement saying, "Talks are ongoing and we are optimistic we will continue to build together for years to come."

People close to Microsoft's side of the negotiating talks tell BI the software giant is unlikely to walk away because it is deeply reliant on OpenAI's intellectual property, and the negotiations are an opportunity to improve and expand its access to this technology.

It's all about IP

Microsoft has significantly benefited from its arrangement to access the rights to OpenAI's intellectual property, both by selling it to customers through the Azure OpenAI service and creating its own products using OpenAI's technology, like its AI assistant Copilot. There are limits, however, to what the companies consider "IP."

For example, Microsoft gets access to important aspects of OpenAI's models, like model weights that help determine AI outputs and inference codes that instruct the models on how to use data, the people said. Some things are excluded from what the companies consider IP, like product and user interface information, they said, and the point at which OpenAI must share any technology is up to interpretation.

One person with knowledge of OpenAI's operations said the company doesn't have to share what it's developing until it's finished, which can be subjective.

"You can make sure you share something with Microsoft as late as possible, so they can still simultaneously announce, but make it really difficult to build the same product on top of it," the person said.

Plus, having access to the IP isn't the same as knowing how to use it. This has been harder than expected, several people told BI. OpenAI has grown frustrated with Microsoft's request to spell out the technology to its employees, people with knowledge of both companies said. Sometimes, Microsoft doesn't know what questions to ask of OpenAI.

Microsoft formed a new AI organization two years ago and hired Mustafa Suleyman, the former Inflection CEO who cofounded the AI pioneer DeepMind, to run it. The hiring was meant as a hedge against OpenAI, after Nadella received pressure from Microsoft's board to diversify following instability at its partner startup and CEO Sam Altman's ouster. However, little has come of that in terms of replacing Microsoft's need for its partnership with OpenAI, the people said.

Suleyman has completely rebuilt Microsoft's Copilot app. That effort has yet to achieve much growth for Copilot. His team is focused on building smaller models and has seen success with post-training existing models for new purposes, one of the people said. Overall, Microsoft isn't trying to build frontier models like those that would compete with GPT, and is instead putting resources toward OpenAI, they said.

Microsoft is less worried about AGI, antitrust, Windsurf, or SoftBank

Other points of contention that have made recent headlines are of less concern to Microsoft, the people with knowledge of Microsoft's position said.

Included in the agreement is a clause that would allow OpenAI to declare what's called artificial general intelligence or "AGI," and cut off Microsoft's access to OpenAI's IP and profits. OpenAI defines AGI as "a highly autonomous system that outperforms humans at most economically valuable works."

While OpenAI could declare AGI, the concept is so open to interpretation that Microsoft could sue and easily tie the company up in a legal battle for years, the people said. There's another version of the clause, "sufficient AGI," that OpenAI could declare when it builds a technology capable of achieving a certain level of profits, but Microsoft has to sign off on that.

Another apparent sticking point in the negotiations has centered on OpenAI's desire to acquire AI coding assistant startup Windsurf. Under the current agreement, that would give Microsoft access to Windsurf's technology. Microsoft has said it would agree to the acquisition, but Windsurf's CEO doesn't want the company's technology to be shared with Microsoft, one of the people said.

While GitHub Copilot faces increasing competition from other AI coding assistants, access to Windsurf's technology is not a big desire for Microsoft, and the company might consider a carve-out of Windsurf IP in a new deal, the person said.

OpenAI executives have reportedly considered accusing Microsoft of anticompetitive behavior. Microsoft is largely unconcerned about this, two of the people said. The existing deal was investigated by antitrust regulators, including the European Union and the United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority.

OpenAI's desire to restructure is in part motivated by a deadline from investor SoftBank that risks a percentage of funding if OpenAI can't close such a deal by the end of the year. OpenAI has said it struggled to fundraise due to its peculiar structure. SoftBank has a reputation for taking risks with its funding, and its CEO is keen on OpenAI, so some observers doubt SoftBank will follow through on its deadline to revoke funding if a new deal isn't reached.

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at [email protected] or Signal at +1-425-344-8242. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• At 2025's halfway point, the biggest hedge funds are, for the most part, on par with the stock market.
• Several funds were stung by the volatility earlier this year.
• Stocks have since rebounded, and many firms had decent returns in June.

Despite a rollercoaster start to 2025, the biggest hedge funds are positive for the year, tracking close to what stock markets have returned.

Ken Griffin's Citadel and Izzy Englander's Millennium, which both lost money in a hectic March, each returned 1.7% in June in the firms' respective flagship funds, people close to the managers said. Citadel's six-month return now stands at 2.5%, while Millennium's is at 2.2%, lower than many of their smaller multistrategy peers.

For example, according to people close to the two firms, Michael Gelband's ExodusPoint and Dmitry Balyasny's eponymous firm are up 9.3% and 7.3%, respectively, through the first half of the year.

Equity markets surged in June, with the S&P 500 index up 5%. This pushed the index's 2025 gain to more than 5.7%, a stark reversal from the dip experienced in global equities in March and early April, when President Donald Trump's tariff policies were rolled out.

There are still plenty of macro worries that could roil markets, though. Tensions between Israel and Iran remain high after the ceasefire announced last week. Trump's budget proposal, the so-called "big, beautiful bill" that would add trillions in debt, passed the Senate Tuesday and is back in the House of Representatives.

The firms below either declined to comment or did not immediately return requests for comment. Additional figures will be added as they are learned.

• Apple CEO Tim Cook has shared a list of books that have influenced him.
• Many of Cook's recommendations were inspired by influential figures.
• The list includes American classics, memoirs, and more.

If you're looking to beef up your summer reading, Apple CEO Tim Cook has a list of books that he said left a mark on him.

Many major executives are big readers. Warren Buffett would sometimes read 1,000 pages a day when he started his investing career, and he is still an avid reader. Jeff Bezos has held all-day book clubs for his senior management. Elon Musk was influenced by science fiction books at a young age. And, there's the famous Bill Gates summer reading list.

Cook is no exception.

Dua Lipa interviewed Cook on an episode of BBC's "Dua Lipa: At Your Service" podcast in 2023. Toward the end of the episode, she asked him to share five books that have shaped him over the years.

Cook's list is a mix of classics, memoirs, and the biographies of civil rights leaders. These are the six books cosigned by the Apple boss.

"To Kill A Mockingbird," Harper Lee

"I think it's not just for young students, but for all of us," Cook said of Harper Lee's classic novel, which is widely read in schools.

"Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike," Phil Knight

"It's kind of meant to be a business book, but it's a book on life," Cook said of Nike cofounder Phil Knight's memoir. "It's really great."

"When Breath Becomes Air," Paul Kalanithi

Cook called this memoir by neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi "phenomenal." Kalanithi chronicled his battle with stage four lung cancer, reflecting on mortality, illness, and medicine in his book, which was published posthumously after the author's death in 2015.

"I Am Malala," Malala Yousafzai, Christina Lamb

"I love Malala's story and her passion around young girls' education," Cook said. "We work with her, and the work that she does is incredible."

Malala Yousafzai's autobiography, which was cowritten with British journalist and author Christina Lamb, chronicles Yousafzai's early life, activism, and the assassination attempt made against her at the age of 15.

Apple and the Malala Fund announced a long-term partnership in 2018 to offer primary education to around 100,000 underprivileged girls. Yousafzai also has a programming partnership with Apple TV+.

Biographies of Martin Luther King Jr. and Bobby Kennedy

"I love reading biographies of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy, and some of the great people that were pushing forward civil rights," Cook told Lipa.

While he didn't give any specific titles, there are well-known biographies of Kennedy by Thurston Clarke and Chris Matthews, and an autobiography of King created by historian and documentarian Clayborne Carson that weaves together King's first-person works.

Kylie Kirschner contributed to an earlier version of this story.

• I did everything I could to be a good mother to my son when he was young.
• When he was in fourth grade, his teacher kindly suggested I give him more space.
• Learning to step back took time, but it allowed my son to gain independence and confidence.

I used to think I was just being a "good mom" to my son.

I packed his lunch with color-coded notes. I filled out permission slips as soon as they made it home. If he forgot his homework, I'd zip it over to school. If a birthday party made him nervous, I'd RSVP that he couldn't attend.

I called it being involved. Responsible. Protective. It wasn't until his fourth-grade teacher gently pulled me aside after a parent-teacher conference that I saw it for what it really was.

It was time for me to take a step back

"I can see how much you care," my son's teacher said to me kindly. "But I think John is ready for a little more space to figure things out."

It was a soft statement, not a scolding. But it hit hard. I was acting, at least a bit, like a helicopter parent. Her words cracked something open in me something brittle and stretched too tight. For the first time, I saw that maybe my hovering wasn't helping him thrive it was holding him back.

The transition took time

That suggestion was made nearly four years ago. John is heading into eighth grade now, and I'm a different kind of parent than I used to be. Letting go didn't happen overnight. It wasn't a clean break. It was more like peeling off layers of armor I thought we both needed. And beneath it? A scared mom, afraid of letting her kid stumble. Afraid of watching him fail.

The first test came with a school overnight trip. I made myself let him pack. I watched silently as he forgot socks. (Socks!) I didn't step in. Not even when I saw the empty corner of his suitcase. When he came back with blisters and a sheepish grin, I nodded and said, "Looks like next time, you'll remember."

That one moment taught me more than any parenting book ever could.

Since then, I've paused before offering solutions. I ask instead of instruct. I stay quiet when I want to jump in. Sometimes, I physically have to sit on my hands. But the change in him? It's worth every ounce of discomfort.

My son is thriving

I've noticed that my son is more confident now. He solves problems on his own. He's handled conflict with friends without me sending "just a quick text to the mom." He even tried out for something and didn't make it and didn't fall apart. I watched him cry, regroup, and try again. That's a kind of resilience no amount of micromanaging could ever teach.

And somewhere in the middle of all this, something else happened: I found pieces of me again. The me who loved painting but hadn't touched a canvas in years. The me who could enjoy a quiet Saturday morning without managing a minute-by-minute schedule. By trusting him to grow, I rediscovered who I was outside of being the constant fixer.

Letting go didn't mean I stopped caring. It meant I started believing in him, and in myself.

These days, when I see other parents stressing over perfect snack bags or jumping in to smooth every wrinkle, I get it. I was them. Sometimes, I still feel the urge to swoop in. But then I look at my son blistered, brave, blooming and I remind myself: the best thing I ever did for him was learning how to let go.

Katherine Heigl thinks a strongly worded letter should be sent to whoever's responsible for moms experiencing perimenopause while parenting teens.

The Emmy-award winning actor, best known for her roles in "Grey's Anatomy," "27 Dresses," and "Firefly Lane," has three children with her husband Josh Kelley: two daughters, Naleigh, 15, and Adalaide, 13, as well as a son, Joshua, 8.

Heigl, 46, told Business Insider that everyone's hormones changing at once is "really difficult," but she prioritizes her and her kids' physical and mental health as best she can, even if it sometimes means making the same "kid-friendly" dinners on repeat.

Speaking to BI to promote the dog food brand she founded, Badlands Ranch, in the latest installment of our "5-9" series, Heigl shared how she spends her days in her rural Utah home. She also detailed how she's relearning her body during perimenopause and how she's changed her relationship with exercise for the better.

Coffee and chilling with her dogs

On an average day, what time do you get up, and what's your morning routine?

Typically, I'm up around 8 a.m. or 8:30 a.m., and the first thing I do is let my little dog sleep in bed with me. Then we all come down, the dogs go out, then they get their breakfast, I make a cup of coffee, and then we just sit in our little sitting room off the kitchen.

I either journal, read, or sometimes scroll, but typically, I give myself an hour to just sit, have a cup of coffee, and chill with the dogs before I get going — whether working or working out.

Coming down to see your dogs in the morning is the best because they're so excited.

You can leave the room for two minutes and come back, and they're equally as excited.

So right. So what do you have for breakfast most days?

I just cannot make myself eat until about noon. So it's just a cup or two of coffee, and that's it until lunch.

I love food — I'm a total foodie — but I have no patience to make it for myself. So I typically will just throw a smoothie together really quickly, and that will be that until dinner.

I used to really love to cook, and I used to cook a lot, but now, I live in the mountains of Utah. We can't even get a pizza delivered. When you're forced to cook every day, come up with meals, and figure it out every day, I'm so over it now.

I have not been a great mom in that way lately. I've been like, "Hey, guys, let's just have ramen." So I'm giving myself a break, but I'll get back to it, I'm sure.

I'm sure your kids aren't complaining. Are they fussy eaters?

My oldest daughter, Naleigh, she'll eat anything. She and I have very similar tastes — we both really like spicy food, we love Indian food. My other two are fussy, yes.

I had a work trip to Vegas recently and decided to take the whole family. We had some beautiful dinners and lunches, and I was shocked: My son ordered a white truffle pizza.

I didn't think he'd like it, but he looked at me and said, "Really good food makes me feel like I'm floating."

So I'm hoping he'll be a bit more adventurous. I get really sick of making the same kid-friendly dishes all the time.

Working out for mental health

You mentioned you sometimes exercise in the morning. What does movement look like for you? Dog walking?

Actually, no. I live on 20 acres of land, so they are very happy roaming and running around the yard. I used to do quite a bit more hiking: Where I live is on a paved road, 7,000 feet up, so it's all uphill.

I got us a Peloton a few years ago. I didn't realise they have everything from strength training to yoga to meditation to stretching classes. So I do no less than three days a week. Right now, I'm really proud of myself because I'm on a 100-week streak.

That's amazing.

It's probably the first time in my life I've ever made that kind of commitment to exercise. About three years ago, I changed my perspective — instead of it being about beating my body into submission because I wasn't happy with my body, I made it about my mental health and feeling better.

Once I shifted to thinking about how exercise can help me go about the rest of my day in a better, more energized way, it became way less of a chore. Exercise used to be something I hated and had to talk myself into, but now I look forward to it because it does make me feel better. I just feel healthier inside my head.

It's such a refreshing shift to make, but it's also hard to do, especially for women, because for so long, we've been told to exercise to shrink ourselves.

Yes, and it's something I really try to teach my daughters now. It's not about changing the way you look, it's about changing the way you feel. And if you can approach it from that place, it's less of a challenge to get yourself to do it and to have that self-discipline. I do have to make them, though.

Well, they're teenagers aren't they? So, that's tricky.

Yeah. Send help, please.

Perimenopause and holistic health

So you have eight dogs?

Yes, we were down to five, but then we adopted three new puppies. I think my husband wants me to stop, but I say to my family: "Listen, I do a lot for you guys and the dogs bring me so much joy, happiness, and comfort, so your help with these dogs is really about helping and supporting me so I can do the same for you."

I'm going to use that argument.

It really works. Who can argue with that? You don't want me to have comfort or peace or joy? You can't say that. That's horrible.

Genius.

Caring for our dogs and all dogs is so important to me. That's why I wanted to work with the team creating Badlands Ranch dog food. It aligns with my passion for holistic health — we're all learning more and more how important our digestive health is, and if we keep that healthy, how much of the rest of our system functions better and healthier. It's the same for dogs.

What other lifestyle essentials do you have to keep yourself healthy and happy?

I have had to learn to really make my mental health a priority and recognize the triggers when stress gets too much. Every year I get older, I've learned how to better manage and not necessarily predict, but notice those triggers before it goes too far.

Meditation has become really important. I do not do it nearly enough, but I try to do it at least three days a week. That has helped me a lot just with clarity, purpose, and perspective.

With three kids and obviously a house full of pets, of course, there's stress, and things are going to come up. But to be able to take a step back, give yourself even just an hour a day to approach everything calmly, has made a huge difference to my health, my mentality, and even just ensuring I get a better night's sleep, which then ensures that my body and mind and everything functions better the next day.

I know you've spoken about perimenopause before.

Yeah. Whoever designed it so that women would be going through perimenopause while raising teenagers should be sent a strongly worded letter.

It's really difficult. Their hormones are all over the place, they're trying to adapt and get used to their new bodies and their new ways of thinking, and I am too. So the only thing I can do is look at them and go, "Well, at least we're in it together."

I just started researching something called Eight Sleep — it goes over your mattress to keep the bed cool at night. The number of nights that I wake up so hot and drenched in sweat. The good news is that I live in Utah, and nine months out of the year, it's freezing, so I can just step outside and cool off.

Perimenopause is like having to relearn your whole system and body again. I feel like it happens almost every 10 years. In my 20s, my hormones were crazy and tumultuous, and I was trying to figure myself out. And then I had 10 years in my 30s where I had a good handle on it all, and then it all started shifting and changing again at about 40. Great.

Just endless changes, that's exhausting.

Get used to it.

How do you wind down to give yourself the best chance of a good sleep?

There are nights where we'll watch a show — my husband and I have gotten really into "Succession," but I prefer to read for an hour before actually putting my head on the pillow.

If I scroll for too long at night or in bed, it really messes with my circadian rhythm. It just makes sleep really restless, and I think the blue light and onslaught of sensory overload is a thing. So we all put our phones down a good hour before bed.

• "The Sandman" explores mystical worlds where cosmic beings control concepts like dreams and destiny.
• The Netflix series is based on the critically acclaimed comic of the same name.
• Here's why the show is coming to an end after just two seasons.

"The Sandman" is coming to an end after two seasons, which may come as a surprise: the show is critically acclaimed and based on a comic that ran for 75 issues.

The fantasy horror revolves around Morpheus (Tom Sturridge), a cosmic entity also known as the Sandman, who controls a mystical realm, the Dreaming. This is where every living person's dreams and nightmares take place. The story follows him as he tries to restore the Dreaming to its former glory after being imprisoned by occultists for over a century.

The first volume of "The Sandman" season two consists of six episodes and will be released on July 3. The second volume, which consists of five episodes, will be released on July 24, followed by a bonus episode on July 31. Season one came out in August 2022.

The DC comic that the show is based on originally ran for seven years from 1989 to 1996, and has since been expanded with numerous spin-off series and continuations.

So why is the Netflix adaptation ending?

'The Sandman' is expensive to make, and its creator, Neil Gaiman, was accused of sexual abuse

In January 2025, Netflix announced that "The Sandman" would end after its second season, nearly three years after the first arrived on the streamer. In a statement to Variety, the showrunner Allan Heinberg said ending the show was a creative decision.

"'The Sandman' series has always been focused exclusively on Dream's story, and back in 2022, when we looked at the remaining Dream material from the comics, we knew we only had enough story for one more season," he said.

Variety also reported that Warner Bros. Television was considering ending "The Sandman" with season two while it was filming in 2023, citing sources close to the show.

There have also been reports that "The Sandman" is an extremely costly show to make. In August 2022, Deadline reported that each episode had a budget of $15 million.

Representatives for Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

This suggests "The Sandman" was set to end before allegations against Neil Gaiman, the creator and writer of the comics, were made in a Tortoise Media podcast series that started in July 2024. Five women accused Gaiman of sexual assault between 1986 and 2022.

In a statement to Tortoise Media, Gaiman said he "denies any unlawful behavior" and was "disturbed" by the allegations. Representatives for Gaiman did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by BI.

While the allegations may not have been the sole reason Netflix ended the serious, they were likely a consideration.

"The Sandman" season two, volume one will be released on July 3.

• Chi Lewis-Parry played the infected Alpha, Samson, in Danny Boyle's "28 Years Later."
• The actor told BI he impressed Boyle in his audition by sprinting at him from across the room.
• "Every time he tried to move, I would nudge him into place," he said.

When director Danny Boyle told the actor Chi Lewis-Parry "terrify me" during his audition for "28 Years Later," he probably didn't expect the 6-foot-8-inch former MMA fighter to sprint at him from across a large room.

But this unique approach helped Lewis-Parry land the role of Samson, a terrifying new type of the infected called an Alpha, in the horror sequel that hit cinemas in June.

Samson appears in several spine-tingling sequences in the film to showcase how the Rage Virus has evolved since the original outbreak depicted in 2002's "28 Days Later."

Lewis-Parry told Business Insider that when he auditioned for an "untitled Danny Boyle project," he didn't know it was for "28 Years Later."

Recalling his thought-process after Boyle said to terrify him, Lewis-Parry said he walked to the opposite end of vast room lined with pillars to appear intimidating.

"I just stood there for a while with my back to him, I didn't let him see me, just kind of stood there until I decided. I felt it was time to just take a little peek at what's over my shoulder. Then, when the timing was right, I just sprinted at him as fast as I could. Just ran at him and stopped right there and just breathed him in," he said.

"It was elements of everything that I've ever been inspired by from creatures in the horror genre. And I just stood over him, and every time he tried to move, I would nudge him into place. It was just 'Stay there. You're not going anywhere.'

"He just let out this massive smile. And that for me was indicative of: 'I think you got this,'" Lewis-Parry added.

Lewis-Parry's unique presence can be felt throughout the film, including the scene in a gloomy tunnel where Samson kills a NATO soldier by pulling his head off his body with the spine still attached.

"I like to honor the things that have inspired me. I was the Predator in that moment!" he said, referring to the creature in 1987 sci-fi movie. "So holding the head up and showing it with the spine dangling, but then also the muzzle flash reminded me of the train scene in 'Predator 2' when Bill Paxton gets it.

"I gave everything I put into that energetically. I didn't have anything else in the tank, that was all of me, that was my loudest scream, my fiercest intent."

Lewis-Parry was hugely inspired by 1980s and '90s horror movies, and he name-checked fan-favorite directors including John Carpenter, Wes Craven, and Clive Barker.

But Lewis-Parry said he worked with Boyle to make the character about more than violence, particularly in a scene where a soldier shoots dead an infected pregnant woman. This angers Samson, and suggests he as the capacity for emotions.

"I suggested, what if he sees the infected body and he's disgusted by it? He can't believe it, 'You did this to us.' There's a division. There's human intelligence, or human barbarism, to infected intelligence, and it's this moment of: 'Why?'"

Asked about his role in the sequel, Lewis-Parry was careful not to spoil "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple," but teased: "I can just say that people might fall in love with Samson."

Judging by the way he went viral following the film's release, audiences already have.

• The US Air Force will use unspent funds from a missile program to refurbish Trump's new jet.
• The Boeing 747 was gifted by the Qatari government and will be used as part of Air Force One.
• Critics have said the cost of refitting the aircraft could be as high as $1 billion.

The Pentagon is set to shift funds from the US's Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program to refit a jet gifted to the US and President Donald Trump by Qatar.

Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told a Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee hearing last week that the funds were from "excess to need in 2024," per Defense One.

He went on to stress that redirecting the funds would not set back the $140 billion Sentinel program, an initiative to replace the US's aging nuclear missiles that has experienced years of delays and a near doubling of its estimated cost.

"Let me be very clear, the Sentinel program is fully funded [and has] all the resources it needs to execute as quickly as possible," he said, per Defense News.

The US accepted the Boeing 747 from Qatar back in May, but critics have raised numerous concerns, including the cost of refitting it as well as security issues with turning a foreign jet into a flying White House.

Others have criticised the deal over Constitutional rules related to accepting expensive gifts from foreign leaders.

Some lawmakers and outside experts have said the expected costs of modifying the jet could be as high as $1 billion, as the aircraft would require extensive retrofitting of security and communications systems before it could be used for presidential air travel.

But Meink disputed that cost, and said that refitting the plane would cost around $400 million, and could be completed in a year.

Trump, during his first term, signed a contract for two new Boeing aircraft to enter the Air Force One fleet, but delays mean the planes are unlikely to be ready for service until 2027 or 2028, near the end of Trump's second term.

The Sentinel program was designed to replace the US's stockpile of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, which can be fitted with nuclear warheads.

In January, it was reported that costs for the program were spiralling, from an initial projection of $77 billion to potentially $140 billion.

Air Force Global Strike Command oversees the 400 Minuteman III missiles deployed in silos across the central US. These long-range missiles have been one of the most threatening elements of the US nuclear force since they became operational five decades ago. The Sentinels are set to replace them in the 2030s.

• Ukrainian drones struck a Russian airbase on Friday, destroying two Su-34 fighter-bomber planes.
• The airbase is used as a staging point for fighter jets dispersed from more vulnerable locations.
• Britain's defense ministry said that, despite these efforts, Russian planes are still under threat.

Ukrainian forces launched an attack on a Russian airbase that's used as a fallback spot for fighter jets pulled from more vulnerable locations, a new Western intelligence assessment said.

Ukraine used long-range drones on Friday to strike the Marinovka airbase in Russia's Volgograd region, over 270 miles from the front lines, destroying at least two Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft.

Russia uses Marinovka for its daily combat operations, but it has also functioned as a haven for dispersed aircraft taken from other threatened airbases, Britain's defense ministry said in a Tuesday intel update that confirmed some details of the attack.

Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft were relocated to Marinovka from Morozovsk airbase, which is closer to the front lines, after it was hit by Ukrainian drones in August 2024. However, "despite these dispersal efforts to protect their aircraft, Russian aviation remains vulnerable" to Kyiv's attacks, the defense ministry said.

The attack on Marinovka on Friday was a joint operation carried out by Ukraine's SBU internal security agency, its Special Operations Forces, and other elements of the military.

The SBU said that the attack destroyed two Su-34 and damaged two other aircraft, while the military said all four planes were destroyed. Ukraine also noted that the drone attacks caused a fire in the maintenance and repair areas of the airbase. Business Insider could not immediately confirm the details of the operation.

The Su-34 "Fullback" fleet has been a serious problem for Ukraine, as Russia arms these aircraft with its highly destructive glide bombs and employs them to devastating effect.

Glide bombs are unguided dumb bombs fitted with special kits that turn them into precision-guided munitions. With short flight times, small radar signatures, and non-ballistic trajectories, they are incredibly difficult to intercept and have been used in deadly strikes on Ukrainian cities.

Russia's defense industry produces glide bombs in a range of different sizes. Among the larger munitions is one that weighs more than 6,000 pounds, which is very destructive on impact.

Britain's defense ministry said Russia relies on its Su-34 fleet to execute "huge amounts of daily sorties launching glide bombs" across the front lines. It further added that Moscow has now lost more than 30 of these aircraft since its full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

Ukraine has made it a priority to curb the glide bomb threat and has carried out a number of deep strikes over the past year aimed at Su-34 aircraft, the airfields they're based at, and storage sites for these munitions.

The glide bombs continue to be a major challenge for Kyiv. On Sunday, for instance, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian warplanes had launched nearly 1,100 of these munitions over the previous week.

The Marinovka attack comes amid Ukraine's relentless efforts to degrade Russian aviation capabilities. Over the weekend, Kyiv carried out another drone strike that targeted helicopter operations at a base in the occupied Crimean peninsula.

• Bolt's CEO said he's ending unlimited PTO at the company.
• CEO Ryan Breslow said undefined PTO policies mean "the good ones don't take PTO" and "the bad ones take too much."
• Instead, Bolt employees will get four mandatory paid weeks off, the CEO said.

"It sounds progressive, but it's totally broken." That's how Bolt's CEO described unlimited paid time off while saying he had just "killed" the policy at the company.

On Tuesday, CEO Ryan Breslow said that the San Francisco-based checkout and payments technology company would instead move to a PTO policy that offered four paid weeks off.

"When time off is undefined, the good ones don't take PTO. The bad ones take too much," the CEO wrote in a message shared to his LinkedIn profile. "This leads to A-performer burnout. B-performer luxuries. And feelings of unfairness across the board."

"So we're flipping the script: no more confusion. Every Bolter now gets 4 weeks of paid vacation (yes, the traditional corporate standard), with the opportunity to accrue more with tenure. Not optional," Breslow added. "We mandate everyone take all 4 weeks off."

Unlimited PTO is a perk that a growing number of companies have offered over the last decade. Studies in recent years have examined the perk and its impact on the number of paid days off employees take.

A survey from HR platform Namely found that in 2022, employees with unlimited PTO policies took 12.09 days off per year, on average, compared to 11.36 days for their peers with a PTO limit. Similarly, a survey by Expedia found that, compared to the national average in the US, those with unlimited PTO took 3.5 more days off on average in 2022.

However, a 2022 report from job search site Joblist found that full-time US employees with unlimited PTO took an average of 10 days off, compared to an average of 11 paid days off work across all vacation policies.

A common criticism of an unlimited vacation time policy is that, without the guidance of a set number of days, employees can be unsure how much PTO to take.

"We believe a team executing at the pace and scale we do deserves real, protected time off, not vague promises," a Bolt spokesperson told Business Insider. "When we saw in our own data that our A-players weren't taking enough time away, we knew we had to fix it."

Bolt, founded in 2014, has raised $957.5 million as of January 2024, according to PitchBook data. In June, the company announced a partnership with Klarna, which will see Klarna's payment plans offered in Bolt's checkout devices.

"If we're asking people to move fast, build hard, and operate at the highest level, we need to protect their recovery time with the same intensity," Breslow said. "Execution requires clarity. That applies to PTO, too."