• President Donald Trump hinted at a potential trade deal with China amid ongoing tariff tensions.
• The trade war has escalated tariffs on China up to 245%, affecting US-China economic relations.
• China and the US are seeking new global trade partners to strengthen their positions.

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he expects an agreement "over the next three to four weeks" that would end the escalating trade war with China.

"I believe we're going to have a deal with China," said Trump during an executive order signing session in the Oval Office alongside Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. "I think we have plenty of time."

There was no immediate confirmation from Beijing on whether a deal is likely to happen. And Trump dodged questions on whether China's leader, Xi Jinping, made the overture to end the tariffs battle.

This is the first time since Trump increased tariffs on China — up to 245% — that the possibility of a deal has appeared on the horizon.

"It's a game between China and the US in terms of who's going to blink first," Nick Vyas, the founding director of USC Marshall's Randall R. Kendrick Global Supply Chain Institute, told Business Insider before Trump's Thursday remarks. "China feels that they have all the cards to continue to hold out, and President Trump feels that he has power, because we consume more from China than China consumes from us."

"Both of these cases are true, and one has to just wait and watch and see which reality will end up shaping up in the end," he added.

China's upper hand? Its system of government

Supply chain and geopolitics experts have told Business Insider that Xi may have more time and leverage than Trump.

"Xi can make life difficult for some American tech companies and for farmers in the Midwest, but the damage to China by the US could be much worse," said Andrew Collier, a senior fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School. "On the flipside, the political pressure on Trump in a democracy is likely to be much higher once people realize how bad the economy and markets are."

"China's authoritarian system is an advantage here," he added.

Vyas said that while Trump's term ends within four years, Xi is the lifetime president of China with a "long horizon."

Xi doesn't have to worry about elections or consumer sentiment, which could make this a "long, drawn-out battle," Vyas added.

Vyas also noted that China has dominance in the EV market and controls 85% of the capacity to process rare earth minerals, which would impact the US's defense capacities and AI ambitions if China completely cuts off that supply.

A history of trade conflict

Trump has a history of raising tariffs on China in attempts to reduce the US trade deficit and bring back manufacturing jobs.

In 2017, his administration began investigating China's trade practices and, in 2018, imposed a 25% tariff on certain Chinese exports, such as electronics and auto parts.

In February this year, Trump targeted China with tariffs twice, resulting in 20% in duties on China by the end of the month. On April 2, Trump again hit China with 34% tariffs. After China responded with tariffs on US exports, he then hiked this figure to 125%, then 145%, and now up to 245% according to a White House document.

China has announced a 125% counter-tariff on US goods by April 11 and halted exports of rare earth elements critical to US defense industries.

Previous efforts to reduce trade deficits with China have yielded limited results. In 2024, the trade deficit was about $295 billion, lower than $375 billion in 2017 but still more than double the total amount of US exports to China in a year.

Both the US and China are courting other countries

With the US taking a harder stance on global trade, Ilaria Mazzocco, senior fellow in Chinese business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told BI that China is seeing "a diplomatic opportunity" to launch "a charm offensive."

"Conversations between the EU and China seem to have taken a softer tone," said Mazzocco. "There's hope on Beijing's side that by showing they are a more status quo, stable, reliable trading and global partner, countries are going to feel reassured, and it's going to improve its foreign relations, like with the EU, where there's been a lot of tension."

After meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Beijing last week, Xi embarked on a tour across Southeast Asia to sign deals on infrastructure and trade. Xi's stop in Malaysia led to deals on AI, rail connectivity, and the export of coconuts.

EU leaders are also planning to travel to Beijing for a late July summit with Xi, which Mazzocco says could be a chance for China to acknowledge it has a structural issue of overproduction and make commitments to address it.

However, Mazzocco added, it is unlikely Southeast Asian countries will replace the US with China as a trading partner, because China doesn't have a strong enough internal demand from consumers to absorb imports from overseas.

The US is also in talks with leaders of the EU. At the White House on Thursday, Trump told Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that a deal between the EU and US would "100%" be reached "at a certain point."

Mazzocco points out that unpredictability of Trump's policies may be harmful for striking a deal, and runs the risk of having US allies quietly pull back the alliance in the long run.

"We seem to understand that part of the goal is to extract concessions from trading partners, and those concessions may be economic or defense related, but the unpredictability is unhelpful." said Mazzocco. "This is really dangerous because it could really undermine business sentiment globally, and could also in the long term incentivize US trading partners to be a little less reliant on the US, diplomatically and on trade."

• Ivan Leong won a $1 million lottery when he was 23.
• After years of comfortable insurance work, he quit to open his own Cantonese roast pork eatery.
• Eight years on, he's rethinking his choice of laboring behind a hot oven and working 11-hour days.

Ivan Leong, 37, used to work as an insurance agent — a job with crisp button-ups, perfume, coffee chats, and flexible schedules. Ten years later, as he slices up juicy pork in his own Cantonese roast pork stall, he said that his life now is a far cry from what it was.

Leong started out as an administrative assistant at a recruitment firm, a job he described as "stagnant." One day in 2013, his colleagues persuaded him to join them in buying lottery tickets.

By a stroke of luck, the lottery ticket he bought with 10 Singapore dollars won him SG$1 million. The sudden windfall gave him the confidence to quit his job, and he gave his one-month notice shortly after.

His first order of business was buying a government-subsidized apartment with his fiancé. Even with the lottery money, buying a condominium or private property was out of the question, he said, as was retiring early.

"Honestly, one million is never enough, especially in Singapore," Leong said. Singapore, a tiny island in Southeast Asia, is one of the world's most expensive cities.

Then, after trying his hand at selling insurance products for a couple of years, Leong felt that he wanted to build something of his own and be his own boss for a change.

"In Singapore, if you start an F&B business, you can be a boss straight away. It's the fastest way," he said with a laugh.

He said that he loved cooking as a kid, particularly during Lunar New Year. To get back into it, he cut his teeth at his friend's roast pork shop in Singapore's Ang Mo Kio neighborhood.

In 2018, he and his wife opened their own roast pork, or char siu, shop in Bukit Merah, a residential area in the south of Singapore. Over the next few years, he would close his original outlet and open two others — one in Woodlands and another in Ang Mo Kio, both of which are residential districts.

Now, he easily spends 11 to 12 hours behind the counter daily. Feeding a hungry lunch crowd means reaching his stall at 7 a.m. daily, and he rarely leaves before 6 p.m.

The roast pork in question

Some key things set Leong's roast pork apart.

He said that he had always found char siu in other restaurants disappointing and laden with food coloring. He also did not like that customers could not choose the type of meat they wanted.

For him, good char siu meant roasting the meat for up to two hours in a charcoal oven instead of the regular 45 minutes. He also lets patrons choose between three different types of pork: fatty, lean, or half-fat.

For Leong, an average day involves earning around $1,500 from each outlet. In terms of meat, that means selling five slabs of roast pork, 60-80 strips of char siu, and about seven whole chickens.

I got the SG$8 "trio" dish to sample all three types of meat he sold at his stall. The dish consisted of chicken and two types of pork over fragrant rice, with fresh cucumbers and a bowl of hot soup.

The crackling pork skin was super crispy, balanced out by the tender meat under it.

The char siu itself was tender and coated with a sticky glaze, which paired well with the fragrant rice.

The third meat, the roasted chicken, was light and a good break from all the pork. The quantity was generous — I ended up taking most of it away in a doggy bag.

The most surprising part of the dish was the clear soup. It was salty, warm, and comforting, with boiled slices of vegetables at the bottom. It was a good contrast to all the meat.

Leong's regulars said his char siu was unlike those they'd had before.

Eddie Soh, 36, said that he's been eating at Leong's stall weekly since 2019. He said that Leong "raised the bar" for char siu for him, and he seldom eats the dish at other eateries.

Soh, an IT product manager, added that Leong's roast pork has become a staple in his Lunar New Year reunion dinners. He sometimes buys "as much as 2kg of char siu and 2kg of roast pork" for his family.

Andrew Ong, a 49-year-old officer with the Singapore Armed Forces, said he found Leong's stall last year and has been having it about thrice a week since.

Ong said the sides are just as good. The flavorful rice and jammy eggs, which deviate from the usual hard-boiled eggs served with char siu, add to its appeal.

It's not just regulars who rave about it — numerous food bloggers in Singapore have reported on Leong's stall.

Sethlui.com, a prominent local food publication, said in a July review of Char Siu Lang that the pork was "caramelized to perfection" and could compete with bigger Chinese food establishments.

In Singapore, small stalls like Leong's are known to serve world-class fare, including some that have been included in the Michelin Guide.

But for Leong, the endgame looks like getting out of the kitchen

For Leong, trading corporate life for days sweating in front of a charcoal oven was tough, with everything from time management to his physical appearance having to adapt.

"Lifestyle-wise, when I was doing financial advisory, I dressed up, used perfume, and wore all the brands. But in the shop, I just wear whatever is comfortable, maybe a pair of shorts, my company T-shirt, and I need to wear safety boots," he said.

The insurance job also allowed for more flexibility, where he could just "push the appointment, change the timings" for client meetings. But reaching his stall at 7 a.m. daily is a schedule that requires discipline.

So, when asked about the future of the business, Leong immediately answered, "My endgame is to sell the business to big organizations."

He said the long work hours are not something he thinks he can sustain long term.

But a return to a corporate job is off the table, he said. He wants to sell something of his own, explore new business ventures, and not have to answer to anyone.

"I would love to know, be able to do other things, not only spend my time in the store," Leong said. "In times to come, I really need to take a step back because I really feel like I spend too much time in this business."

• Carrie Kirby, now 51, is married but opted to celebrate turning 50 with a girls-only trip to Utah.
• They went canyoneering and horseback riding — two things her husband has no interest in.
• Having traveled with her husband for three decades, she now sees the benefits of taking separate trips.

As newlyweds in our 20s, my husband and I backpacked from Beijing to Paris, spending 14 weeks riding trains, buses, and boats. We were good travel partners. But as we've grown older, our travel desires have diverged: I itch for more adventure, while he prefers vacations spent reading and sketching.

For my 50th birthday, instead of coaxing my husband to join me on a hiking trip to a national park, I invited our 20-year-old daughter, who loves active adventures as much as I do. We also brought along a family friend — who, like me, left her husband behind.

The three of us headed to Utah to explore Zion and Bryce Canyon national parks. Along the way, I sent my artistic husband plenty of photos of the red cliffs against the blue sky.

He would have hated it all

When we won the permit lottery to hike up Zion's 1,488-foot rock formation, Angels Landing, I knew going with the girls had been the right choice — my husband has always been scared of heights. With narrow paths and sheer drop-offs, Angels Landing is considered one of the most terrifying hikes in America.

The four-hour trek to Angels Landing begins with Walter's Wiggles, a series of strenuous switchbacks. Once we entered the formation's upper section, we scrambled over rocks and tiptoed down paths only a few feet wide. The river snaking through the canyon below looked like the view from an airplane.

I have to admit I was a little shaky when I came to the short sections with no chains to clutch. My husband wouldn't have been scared at all — because he'd have turned back miles earlier.

We also signed up for another of my husband's most hated activities: horseback riding. We descended into the Bryce Canyon on mules and ponies, hoping they wouldn't lose their footing as we enjoyed intimate views of the park's famous hoodoos.

We went canyoneering as well, donning harnesses and helmets to rappel into otherwise inaccessible slot canyons. Stepping backward off a cliff edge to walk our way down, "Spider-Man" style was a lot of fun for us girls. For my husband? Canyoneering would have been another huge nope.

Breaking routines and learning new skills

During our adventures, the girls and I laughed and told stories nonstop. Although I love my husband, my spirit basked in the pause from everyday squabbles and responsibilities. Had he been there, I'd have put a full dinner on the table nightly. But with just us girls, we ate hummus straight from the container for dinner when we felt like it.

I married at 24 and have been a wife for more than half my life. One thing that happens when you couple young is specialization. When we travel together, my husband does most of the driving. On this trip and a few others, I've been able to improve my driving skills, although I still need to learn to change a tire on my own.

Now that our three kids are teens or young adults, my husband and I are discovering what great travel companions they are — each one shares different interests with us, including some we don't share with each other.

Last month, my husband took the two younger kids to visit our oldest in her college town for a hockey game — something that would've bored me to tears, but they all loved it.

Traveling separately has not only let us each pursue what we truly enjoy without guilt, but it's also practical: I'm self-employed with flexible time, while he has limited vacation, and with two kids still in high school, solo trips let one of us travel during the school year without leaving them alone.

It has strengthened our relationship

When friends and family find out one of us isn't coming on a trip, they often ask "Why?" I'm sure some worry that our separate wanderings mean we're headed for divorce.

In reality, our his-and-her trips have been a relationship boon. After 27 years of going through the same daily schedules together, we don't usually have a lot to say that the other hasn't heard before. Travel gives us new stories to share.

The night my daughter and I got home from our Utah adventure, my husband had a hot meal on the table and was excited to sit down and view photos.

"You have got to see this!" I found myself saying as we shared the view of Zion's towering walls. I told him how good the icy Virgin River water felt on our bare feet near The Narrows, and he said he'd love to experience that.

And maybe next time, we'll travel together. We could sign up for a bike tour — his favorite active pursuit — and skip the steep hikes.

Do you have a story to share about celebrating your 50th birthday? Contact the editor at [email protected].

• LinkedIn COO Dan Shapero said leaders need to use AI themselves.
• Shapero uses AI for meeting summaries, learning new topics, and meeting preparation.
• He said AI can't replace human judgment in recruiting and decision-making.

As LinkedIn rolls out artificial intelligence products, Dan Shapero, the chief operations officer, has also been trying out AI tools.

"My advice to business leaders is to get comfortable with the technology, to use it," he told Business Insider. "It is almost certain that you're going to be asked by your CEO or your board, what's your strategy for embracing AI in your area?"

He said the leaders who have good answers to those questions will be successful in the next decade.

Top tech leaders, including Nvidia's Jensen Huang and OpenAI's Sam Altman, have said they use AI at work daily. Some, including e-commerce platform Shopify's CEO Tobe Lütke, have even mandated the use of the technology at their companies.

Shapero shared three ways he has been using AI to become more efficient in his day-to-day — and the aspects of his job he still prefers to do manually:

1. You can't be everywhere

One way Shapero said he uses AI is to summarize notes for meetings he misses.

"There are a lot of meetings that I think would've been valuable to attend, but sometimes I can't be everywhere," he said.

Shapero said he likes using Copilot for this because it is built into Teams, which the Microsoft-owned company uses. "I'll often use Copilot to summarize meeting outcomes to make sure that I can stay on top of the business."

2. Unfamiliar topics

Shapero also said he uses AI to learn about topics he is not well versed in.

"Oftentimes, I'll have to learn about new technologies, new legislation, and different industry trends," the COO said. "I find that having a conversation with ChatGPT can be very helpful in me learning deeply about a topic that I'm not familiar with."

3. Preparing for meetings

Shapero said he also likes using AI to cut down the time it takes for meeting prep. He said he uses LinkedIn's Account IQ product, which is geared toward sales roles.

"It takes all the news that's been going on around a company, all of the things they've shared on LinkedIn, their trends on who they're hiring, and it summarizes it into a one-page dossier that I can then read to be prepared for my discussion," he said.

Shapero said he also uses chatbots for advice on how to write and present ideas more succinctly. There's one big exception: He said he doesn't need LinkedIn's AI summary feature for writing his own profile, since he has lots of practice writing in first person.

Human parts of the job

Still, Shapero said there are parts of his job he cannot imagine AI doing, such as the later stages of recruiting.

He said that once AI helps him find and shortlist candidates, he thinks about questions like "How do I really assess whether they're a good fit for the job?" and "How do I have a conversation with them to convince them that we're a good match for them?"

He also said AI can't do leadership functions.

"While AI has shown that it can synthesize information, I'm not sure that it's shown that it can inspire a team or that it can connect with people at a deeper level," he said.

He said chatbots and AI tools also struggle with a lack of data, which makes human decisions more important.

"Ultimately it has to be you at the center, making the decision and seeing the path forward."

• Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said video podcasts could "find their way" to the streamer.
• Netflix has ramped up its pitch to creators as it competes with YouTube.
• Sarandos said Netflix is looking "everywhere" for the "next generation of great creators."

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says video podcasts could be the next format to appear on the streaming service as it pursues creators in many areas.

On the company's first quarter earnings call Thursday, Sarandos said the "lines are getting blurry" between podcasts and talk shows, in response to a question on whether video pods could work on Netflix.

"As the popularity of video podcasts grows, I suspect you'll see some of them find their way to Netflix," Sarandos said.

His comments confirmed earlier reporting by Business Insider that Netflix was exploring potential deals with video podcasters as it looked to its next phase of growth.

Netflix execs have become increasingly aggressive about putting YouTube creator-led shows on the platform and talking up its advantages to creators.

This comes as YouTube leads the media pack in terms of TV watch time. According to Nielsen, YouTube accounted for 12% of TV watching time in March, extending its lead over Netflix, which came in at 7.9%.

Netflix's top execs have lately argued that Netflix is better than YouTube in helping creators grow and make money. Alongside other media giants like Amazon and Disney, Netflix has also been leaning into popular YouTubers, picking up deals with the Sidemen, preschool educator Ms. Rachel, and the live dating show Pop the Balloon.

"We're looking for the next generation of great creators, and we're looking everywhere, not just in film schools and certainly not just in Hollywood," Sarandos said on the call. "Creators today have tools that were unimaginable a decade ago to tell stories, to reach audience."

Some creators are eager for the prestige, up-front money, and ability to reach new viewers that Netflix and other Hollywood players can afford.

But for others, especially well-established creators, the advantage is less clear when they've built multiplatform businesses independently and enjoy control over their productions as well as direct relationships with their audiences.

• ICE is contracting with Palantir to expand its case management system.
• The deal includes software called ImmigrationOS to track visa overstays and self-deportation.
• ICE says the deal is necessary for carrying out President Trump's mandate on immigration enforcement.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has signed a $30 million deal with Palantir for software add-ons to track self-deportations and immigrants who have overstayed their visas, government records show.

A contract reviewed by Business Insider said the Immigration Lifecycle Operating System — or ImmigrationOS — will minimize "time and resource expenditure" for selecting and apprehending immigrants based on ICE enforcement priorities.

Along with "violent criminals" and "affiliates of known transnational criminal organizations," the contract also cited visa overstays as a deportation priority.

ImmigrationOS will expand ICE's case management system to include "near real-time visibility into instances of self-deportation." The contract said the new ImmigrationOS will streamline "end to end immigration lifecycle from identification to removal."

The agency is awarding Palantir $29.8 million for a prototype to be delivered by September 25.

According to the contract, the new software is necessary for ICE to carry out President Donald Trump's recent executive orders naming illegal immigration and transnational organized crime as significant national security threats.

An ICE spokesperson said the deal is a modification to an existing contract. Palantir did not respond to requests for comment.

The new agreement is an extension of a contract the Biden administration signed with the defense contractor in 2022 for "operations and maintenance" support services. The Department of Homeland Security first contracted Palantir to build its case management system in 2014.

The software collates information from a wide range of government databases and allows DHS agents to keep detailed records on potential immigration violators for future enforcement actions. It includes "data sharing with Customs and Border Protection for lookout and seizure tracking."

The documents underscore an increased emphasis on deporting immigrants who have entered the country legally but may have violated the conditions of their visas, which is typically a civil, not a criminal, offense.

"Palantir has developed deep institutional knowledge of ICE operations over more than a decade of support," ICE wrote in the documents. "Their systems have been tailored to meet strict DHS security and privacy standards."

Palantir employees have been working over the past several weeks to increase ICE capacity to track immigrants already given a final order of removal, and will continue to fast-track an ImmigrationOS prototype, per 404 Media.

• Hermès said on an analyst call on Thursday that it will raise prices in the US.
• The price hikes are because of Trump's tariffs, which the brand said haven't yet affected them.
• The Birkin bag, a staple for Hermès, already retails for more than $10,000.

Luxury retailer Hermès announced on Thursday that it's raising prices in the US to offset the effect of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

Eric du Halgouët, executive vice president of finance at the company, told analysts on call that Hermès hadn't yet been impacted by the tariffs, but it was going to raise US prices in May to brace for how the taxes could impact growth.

"The price increase that we're going to implement will be just for the US. Since it's aimed at offsetting the increase in tariffs, that only applies to the American market," du Halgouët said on the call.

du Halgouët said the company has plans to hire an additional 1,000 to 1,500 people, but it will remain cautious about the impact of "geopolitical changes" on financial markets. He also said Hermès raised prices across the US and Europe by 6% at the beginning of 2025.

Hermès caters to the uber-wealthy — even the cheapest versions of its trademark Birkin bags currently cost more than $10,000. It has maintained strong growth amid a challenging environment for the luxury sector, and recently surpassed rival LVMH as the most valuable luxury company.

The French company reported a slow down in first-quarter sales — it grew by 7.2% compared to 18% in the prior quarter. It reported first quarter revenue of €4.1 billion and growth in all geographical areas, according to a press release.

Hermès got caught up in a TikTok fueled controversy earlier this month, when a user posted a now-deleted video claiming that 80% of luxury bags are made in China.

The company doesn't manufacture bags in China and most of its production takes place in France, according to its website. Since Trump issued a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs, France is facing a blanket 10% tax.

Representatives for Hermès did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

• Facebook's cultural relevance has been on the rocks for years.
• Emails between Mark Zuckerberg and a Facebook exec reveal Meta's concerns about the social network.
• The emails were used as evidence in the FTC's antitrust lawsuit against Meta.

Mark Zuckerberg has been worried about Facebook's cultural relevance for years.

Emails from April 2022 between Zuckerberg and Tom Alison — Meta's head of Facebook — were presented in court this week during the FTC's antitrust trial against Meta.

The main topic of the email exchange: How to keep Facebook relevant.

"Even though the FB app's engagement is steady in many places, it feels like its cultural relevance is decreasing quickly and I worry that this may be a leading indicator of future health issues," Zuckerberg wrote.

He added that even if Instagram and WhatsApp did well, he didn't see a path to success for Meta if Facebook faltered.

Just months before these emails, Facebook had widely rolled out reels, its short-form video product resembling TikTok. While Zuckerberg said in the emails that he agreed with Facebook's recent shift of resources to reels, he wanted to "make sure we have a unique vision" for the Facebook app.

So, what was going wrong on Facebook, then?

According to the emails, here's what was affecting Facebook's cultural relevance at the time:

1. Facebook's classic act of "friending" someone seemed to have lost its luster. "First, a lot of people's friend graphs are stale and not filled with the people they want to hear from or connect with," Zuckerberg wrote, adding that the act of friending someone also felt too "heavyweight" for users. "Do you want to be seen as someone adding friends on FB, or would you rather be seen adding the person on IG?" In the same exchange, Zuckerberg presented three options to Alison that could help Facebook's relevancy, including one "crazy idea" of wiping people's friend graphs and having them start from scratch.
2. People were turning to other platforms, like Instagram, to follow friends and public figures. Zuckerberg himself even admitted that he was more likely to follow surfers or MMA fighters on Instagram or Twitter. "Every other modern social network is built on following rather than friending, so it seems possible that the FB app is just outdated because it never adopted this fundamental innovation," Zuckerberg said.
3. Facebook's attempt to focus on communities with groups still needed work. "I'm optimistic about community messaging, but after running at groups in FB for several years, I'm not sure how much further we'll be able to push this," Zuckerberg wrote. "It's possible groups will just never be as big as friending/following, and that a lot of group behavior is moving to messaging anyway."
4. Its push into short-form video needed to feel more social, and also unique to Facebook. Zuckerberg said that while Facebook's push of reels was good for surfacing interesting content in the feed, "it reduces the social sense of feeling connected to the person creating the content," especially if it wasn't made on Facebook. Alison responded to Zuckerberg in one email that the "problem with Facebook is that we don't have a culturally relevant public content ecosystem as a baseline since it's mainly comprised of commoditized news and video publisher content."
5. Facebook has a litany of competitors — even its own sibling, Instagram. TikTok, YouTube, Twitter, and Reddit all came up in the exchange. Smaller social apps were also referenced, like friend-sharing apps BeReal and Poparazzi. But one of the most interesting competitors was Instagram, especially since its acquisition by Facebook is core to the FTC's case against Meta. (It appears that Instagram's top exec, Adam Mosseri, was cc'd on these emails.) "Differentiating between IG and FB is important, but I think we need to find a strategy that doesn't leave one service picking up the scraps the other service leaves behind or having either service artificially or unreasonably constrain itself," Zuckerberg wrote. "Right now IG is doing well on cultural relevance and FB isn't, so I'm more focused on figuring out a reasonable path for FB longer term." Nothing like a little sibling rivalry.

• Netflix reported strong first-quarter results on Thursday.
• The company reported $10.54 billion in revenue, beating analysts' expectations. EPS was nearly a dollar higher than estimates.
• It's the first quarter that Netflix hasn't broken out subscriber numbers.

Netflix delivered a big earnings beat for the first quarter on Thursday, and its report looked a little bit different this time.

Gone were any specific numbers on quarterly subscription numbers, a change the streaming giant had previously announced.

The company's revenue was $10.54 billion, slightly beating analyst expectations. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had expected revenue of $10.5 billion.

Operating income was $3.3 billion, higher than Bloomberg's estimate of $3 billion. Earnings per share were $6.61, a big beat over analysts' estimates of $5.68.

The streaming service's shares were 3% higher in after-hours trading.

The company didn't change its guidance for 2025. It still expects revenue of between $43.5 billion and $44.5 billion for the year, as well as an operating margin of 29%.

Netflix has added more new subscribers than analysts expected in recent quarters, in part thanks to new policies aimed at reducing password sharing. That's pushed many who might have been using credentials from a friend or family member to start paying for their own account.

Starting with Thursday's report, though, Netflix is no longer providing quarterly updates on how many new subscribers it logged.

"The streaming land grab era is dead for good," said Ross Benes, an analyst at Business Insider's sister company, EMARKETER, after the company reported earnings.

"Netflix got ahead of the story by eliminating its quarterly subscriber update just as password sharing gains were set to decline and the outlook on subscriber increases appeared stale," Benes said.

Instead, Wall Street analysts were looking for details about ad sales as well as Netflix's plans for sports and creator content to judge how the company is doing. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Thursday that video podcasts could be the next format to appear on the service.

His comments confirmed earlier reporting by Business Insider that Netflix was exploring potential deals with video podcasters.

Advertising has been one area where Netflix is trying to expand and compete with the likes of Amazon. Netflix launched its ad tech platform on April 1, it said in its earnings announcement on Thursday, and is "on track to roll it out in our remaining ads countries in the coming months."

Despite worries about an economic slowdown, Netflix isn't seeing ad buyers cut back, co-CEO Greg Peters said on the company's earnings call.

Netflix reportedly has big growth plans: It's targeting a market cap of $1 trillion by 2030, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

"On rare and very disappointing occasions, our confidential and internal discussions can leak into the press," Sarandos said on the company's call, referring to the Journal's report. He said it's important to note that internal discussions about goals are different than official company guidance.

Netflix's stock has outperformed the broader indexes and other major technology stocks so far this year.

Viewers are likely to keep watching Netflix programming — or even consume more of it — if the US slips into recession, some analysts have said.

Speaking to wider economic pressures, Peters said consumers have kept spending on entertainment.

"Netflix specifically also has been generally quite resilient, and we haven't seen any major impacts during those tougher times," he said.

We got an inside look at the United States Marine Corps' intense 13-week basic training program. Chief video correspondent Graham Flanagan spent five days at the Marine Corps Recruit Training Depot in San Diego, California, where he observed different companies at various stages of training.

Enlisted recruits who live west of the Mississippi River attend basic training in San Diego, where women have only trained since 2021. Men and women train together, but live in separate squad bays. Male and female recruits are not allowed to talk to each other during training. In week seven, recruits travel 40 miles north of San Diego to Camp Pendleton, where they complete their training.

Boot camp culminates with a 54-hour event known as The Crucible, in which recruits endure mental and physical challenges with minimal food and sleep. After completing The Crucible, recruits receive the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor pendant, marking their official transition to Marines.

• Katy Perry has traveled across the country, overseas, and to space this year.
• She's also been wearing daring fashion for each appearance, from leather corsets to sparkling gowns.
• So far, three of those outfits have been stunning, and three have missed the mark.

Katy Perry has been everywhere this year — almost literally.

She's traveled across the country to promote her Lifetimes tour, made a few overseas appearances, and, of course, briefly flew to space with Blue Origin.

All the while, she's been sporting her signature daring fashion.

From sparkling gowns to leather costumes, here's a look at the best and worst outfits she's worn in 2025 so far.

Katy Perry looked striking in silver at the Breakthrough Prize ceremony, but her dress had a few issues.

Gaurav Gupta designed her sequinned number for the April event. It had an asymmetrical bodice, deep chest cutouts, a floor-length skirt, and a head covering.

Though its silver color suited her, the gown's skin-colored mesh was visible beneath its daring chest piece and distracted from the outfit.

Its skirt was also an awkward length — not dramatic enough to create a train, and not short enough to show her shoes.

She wore her best look of the year at the Vanity Fair Oscar party in March.

Perry walked the red carpet in a shimmering Miss Sohee gown. The strapless piece was covered in small, square pieces with a pearl finish and even smaller sequins in between.

The gown fit her perfectly and made her one of the night's best-dressed stars. Her updo hairstyle and shimmering body makeup also complemented the gown.

The leather ensemble she wore to the SiriusXM Studios in February didn't make sense.

While promoting her Lifetimes tour, Perry was photographed wearing a brown getup from the London-based brand KNWLS.

It featured a leather corset with a zippered shawl on top, matching sleeves, and leg straps over gray bike shorts. She completed the look with square-toed boots.

Ultimately, Perry's ensemble had too much going on. There were too many pieces to make the look cohesive, and its contrasting colors didn't work together.

The same goes for the black-and-white look she donned at the 2025 Invictus Games.

The pop star hit the stage that day in a multi-layered outfit and statement shoes.

She wore a white corset beneath a running vest, gray shorts over suspender tights, and thigh-high white boots with shin and knee pads. She also wore fingerless gloves.

Perry may have been aiming to look athletic for the sporting event, but the high heels of her boots didn't match the outfit's casual aesthetic.

The ensemble also might have looked better without a few layers, like the stockings and gloves.

Perry kept things simple and fun for the FireAid benefit concert in January.

She hit the stage wearing a brown skirt with a deep slit, thigh-high boots in brown, and a black T-shirt from a Los Angeles fire department. The latter was altered to feature a small corset.

The outfit was casual, meaningful, and still fit for a celebrity with its fun details.

She also rocked a traditional leather look that month.

Perry was photographed arriving at the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" studio in January wearing leather pants from Area.

The $1,795 trousers had slits across each leg that were studded with gold pieces, matching Perry's $1,195 strapless top.

The outfit was chic and simple, but still had an edge and looked luxurious.

• With return-to-office mandates pushing workers back to the office, some are seeing economic impacts.
• In some cities, workers spend up to 7% of their income on commuting by car.
• Multiple cities in California and Florida rank within the top 10 most expensive cities to drive in.

With return-to-office mandates becoming more common in corporate America, it seems that the days of commuting from the kitchen to the couch are behind us.

As people make their way back to the office, they have to factor in commuting costs again.

Mercury Insurance released a report in March that ranked 147 US cities by how much residents paid, on average, to commute to and from work by car. Its study considered factors including average driving distances, gas prices, tolls, and repair costs per city using the most recently available data. Sources for the report included data from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analytics, transit-research company Replica, CarMD's Vehicle Health Index State Index, and TollGuru's toll calculator tool.

While some of the top cities, like New York and San Francisco, have extensive public transportation systems that allow many residents to commute using public transit, most places on the list are predominantly car cities.

See how the top 10 cities rank.

10. Louisville, Kentucky

Sitting on the Ohio River, Louisville is the largest city in Kentucky with over 600,000 residents.

The city is in Jefferson County where, in 2023, nearly 72% of workers drove alone to work, according to the US Census' American Community Survey data.

Although the city has a bus system, public transportation isn't a particularly popular option for commuters, with only 1.8% of the county's population opting for it, per the ACS data. The percentage of those walking to work is higher, at 2%.

In Louisville, commuting costs an average of $3,615 per year, representing 5.5% of the average income in the city, Mercury Insurance's report said.

9. Wichita, Kansas

In Wichita, commuting times averaged 19.9 minutes in 2023. Commuting costs averaged $3,670, or 6.08% of the average income in the city, Mercury Insurance reported.

Nearly 90% of the county's residents commute by car to work, with some 80.4% of residents driving alone to work, according to census data.

8. Flagstaff, Arizona

The mountain city of Flagstaff, Arizona, and its fewer than 100,000 residents also experience some of the highest costs of commuting in the country, per the report.

Although at 18.4 minutes, the average commute time is shorter than in other US cities, the average cost of commuting in Flagstaff is $3,688 annually, or 5.95% of the average income, per Mercury Insurance.

However, its county also has a relatively high rate of work-from-home employees, averaging 11.6% in 2023, according to census data. That year, 64.2% of the population drove alone to work.

7. Colorado Springs, Colorado

Another mountain city, Colorado Springs also ranks among the costliest commutes in the country — the annual average is $3,909. Nearly 70% of residents in the county, El Paso County, drive alone to work, according to census data.

The costs equal to 5.94% of the average income for city residents, according to the insurance company's report.

6. Orlando, Florida

A famously car-dependent city, Orlando ranks high on the list, reportedly averaging a yearly $3,916 in commuting costs. The commute costs relative to income is the highest on the list, with residents spending 6.78% of their incomes on commuting, on average.

In Orange County, which includes Orlando, 67.9% of residents drove alone to work in 2023, according to census data. It has a high rate of work-from-home employees, with 17.5% of residents working remotely.

5. Tampa, Florida

Tampa residents spend an average of $3,957 driving to and from work. It's another car-dependent city, with 60% of residents driving to get around, according to a 2021 survey conducted by the City of Tampa.

Census data for Hillsborough County estimated that 65.6% of residents drive alone to get to work. The county, however, also has a high share of remote employees, with 20.1% of residents working from home.

4. San Francisco

The tech hub has some of the highest costs of commuting, contributing to its expensive cost of living. The average cost of driving to and from work in the California city totals $4,465 annually, although Mercury Insurance reported the figure represents 3.42% of the average resident income, which is lower than in other cities.

While the cost of driving to work is high, commuting by car is also not as predominant as in other cities on the list, with 29.7% of San Francisco County residents driving alone to work in 2023, according to census data.

Nearly a quarter of workers in the county work from home, while 22% rely on public transportation.

3. Houston

The Texas metropolis, known for its extensive highways, has the third-highest cost of driving to and from work, with the annual average in Houston coming in at $4,864, or 6.71% of the average income, per the report.

Just over 70% of residents in Harris County, which includes Houston, drive to work alone, according to census data. Another 11.9% worked from home.

2. San Diego

Costing residents 6.42% of their average income, driving to and from work in San Diego averages $5,081, the highest of the car-dependent cities on this list.

According to 2023 census data, two-thirds of San Diego County residents drove alone to work, while 16% worked from home.

The average commute time in the city is 25.7 minutes, clocking in higher than some other places on this list.

1. New York

Topping the list is New York City, which in recent months has implemented policies like congestion pricing in a bid to discourage solo drivers from entering the busiest parts of the city.

For those who drive to work in the city, the costs average $5,907 annually, accounting for 6.46% of average incomes.

However, 2023 census data for the five boroughs indicates over half of residents commute through public transportation, making the commuting cost only applicable to the 24% who decide to drive alone to work.

• Donald Trump promised to "bomb the hell" out of ISIS in the lead-up to his first term.
• Now, several months into a second term, he's hammering terror groups again.
• The US military has stepped up its airstrikes in Somalia and Yemen in recent weeks.

Ahead of his first term in the White House, President Donald Trump campaigned on "bombing the hell" out of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. At that time, the terror group was surging, causing turmoil in the Middle East and beyond.

Now, roughly a decade later and a few months into his second term, the president is back to bombing terror groups.

The US military has noticeably increased the number of airstrikes that it has carried out against ISIS in Somalia under Trump compared to his predecessor, Joe Biden, according to publicly available information on these operations.

And across the Gulf of Aden, a body of water that separates the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, the US has been heavily bombing the Houthi rebels in Yemen nonstop for more than a month in a bid to get them to stop their Red Sea attacks. Trump's new bombing campaign against the group appears much more aggressive than the Biden administration's operations.

Bombing ISIS and others

Trump's campaign pledges in 2015 and 2016 to "bomb the hell" out of ISIS preceded an intense air campaign against the terror group. The White House later announced the US military had defeated ISIS.

Its once-sweeping caliphate in Iraq and Syria crumbled under international pressure, but the threat persisted. The US intelligence community still considers ISIS to be a major threat, and it is not limited to the old caliphate.

During the first three months of the new Trump administration, US Africa Command has disclosed at least eight rounds of airstrikes against ISIS in Somalia. It's a major jump from previous years under Biden.

Last year, the US military carried out one airstrike on ISIS in Somalia, according to publicly available statements from Africom. And in 2023, American forces carried out a lone assault operation against the terror group in the country. In 2022 and 2021, there were no publicly reported missions.

ISIS-Somalia has doubled in size over the past year, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence wrote in a March report on global threats. Africom regularly says that the terror group "has proved both its will and capability" to attack American and partner forces and calls these efforts a threat to US national security interests.

The US military is also conducting operations against al-Shabaab, which ODNI refers to as Al Qaeda's largest and wealthiest affiliate group. It has long been active in Somalia.

The US averaged more than 10 rounds of airstrikes against the group each year that Biden was in office, with a peak of 15 in 2023. So far, there have been at least five rounds of US airstrikes against al-Shabaab this year, the latest of which occurred overnight Wednesday.

The strikes come amid reports that the White House was considering eliminating Africom and closing diplomatic posts in Africa, which could hurt counterterrorism efforts. The airstrikes also appear to reflect the president's move to give US commanders more authority over strikes and operations.

A US defense official told Business Insider on Thursday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is "focused on persistent malign influence" by ISIS, al-Shabaab, and similar groups in the area, adding that "we're working closely with the Somali government to degrade and destroy those malign actors."

The official said Hegseth has "empowered" combatant commanders to take the necessary steps to identify and eliminate threats to the US and its interests.

The US is still hunting down ISIS in the Middle East. In March, for instance, the military killed the terror group's second-in-command in Iraq. Other operations against ISIS in Iraq and Syria that have been publicly acknowledged by the Trump administration have been carried out by local partner forces and "enabled" by American troops.

The Houthis

Between late 2023 and the end of last year, US warships and aircraft have been tasked with intercepting Houthi missiles and drones targeting ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. American forces have also carried out airstrikes to wipe out rebel weaponry and assets in Yemen.

This year started out with relative calm in the Houthi conflict, but on March 15, the Trump administration started a new campaign of strikes in Yemen to get the rebels to permanently stop their maritime attacks. Since then, the US has moved a second aircraft carrier into the Middle East and has deployed B-2 stealth bombers to a base in the Indian Ocean in a major show of force.

Top officials, including the president, have said that the large-scale bombing will be "unrelenting," and the US military frequently touts the "24/7" operations on social media.

However, experts and analysts have cast doubt that the intense campaign, now in its second month, will completely annihilate the Houthis, as Trump has threatened.

It's unclear how much of the Houthi network the US has affected. Air Force Lt. Gen Alexus Grynkewich, director of operations for the Joint Staff, told reporters on March 17, days after the campaign began, that strikes hit training sites, drone infrastructure, command centers, and weapons storage facilities.

Details since then have been scarce, but US Central Command, which oversees Middle East operations, said Thursday that American forces struck a port in Yemen that the Houthis used to import fuel.

Known as the "Hillbilly Donnie Brasco," FBI agent Scott Payne risked his life to expose violent neo-Nazi cells threatening national security, including the KKK and biker gangs.

Payne began his law enforcement career at the Greenville County Sheriff's Office in South Carolina, where he worked for five years as a uniform patrol officer and a vice and narcotics investigator. He signed up for the FBI in 1998 and was assigned to the New York, San Antonio, and Knoxville field offices, working against drug trafficking, human trafficking, and domestic terrorism. In 2005, he went undercover with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club in Massachusetts. In 2017, he helped arrest a white nationalist who planned an attack on a synagogue. In 2019, he embedded himself with US extremist groups as part of an FBI investigation to avert a mass shooting planned by a white nationalist group called The Base.

Payne talks to Business Insider about undercover protocol, creating legends, whether agents use burner phones, the ethics of undercover work, and surveillance techniques. He also voices his opinions on changes to the FBI since he started and what the future holds for the agency's leadership.

Since leaving the service in 2021, he has become a professional speaker with Eradicate Hate. He is the author of "Code Name: Pale Horse: How I Went Undercover to Expose America's Nazis."

For more:

@ScottPayneBigCountry

"Code Name: Pale Horse"

• Gracie Abrams spoke about her friendship with Taylor Swift in Billboard's new cover story.
• Abrams said that spending time with Swift makes her own fame feel manageable by comparison.
• "One of the things that I've felt lucky to observe is how extreme it can be," Abrams said.

Gracie Abrams may be a top-10 charting pop star who was raised by a blockbuster movie director, but she said her fame feels slight in the shadow of her mentor and friend, Taylor Swift.

In her ascent to mainstream renown, Abrams, 25, has been subjected to plenty of scrutiny about her love life (she's reportedly dating "Gladiator II" star Paul Mescal) and her family (she's faced "nepo baby" accusations thanks to her father, J.J. Abrams, whose credits include hit TV shows like "Lost" and major film franchises like "Star Wars" and "Star Trek").

However, in Billboard's new cover story, Abrams said spending time with Swift puts her own experience in the public eye into perspective.

"It's like, I really don't have it that bad in terms of invasion of privacy, you know what I mean?" Abrams said. "I feel like I learned a lot from her, obviously, but one of the things that I've felt lucky to observe is how extreme it can be [for her]. It helps right-size my own shit."

Still, that doesn't mean Abrams isn't harboring Swift-sized ambitions.

The two musicians became close when Swift enlisted Abrams as one of her opening acts on the Eras Tour; they ended up collaborating on a Grammy-nominated duet ("Us.") and sharing the stage multiple times during Swift's record-breaking stadium trek.

Asked if she hopes to headline her own stadium tour in the future, Abrams replied, "Hell yeah."

"I could have never imagined myself admitting to that," Abrams continued. "I think having had the privilege of opening for Taylor in the stadiums that we played, to now have a visual reference and a real sense of what it feels like to be on a stage in that environment… It's something that I miss and desperately hope to earn over time."

Abrams also said that, much like Swift, the scrutiny she's faced hasn't changed her approach to dating or diaristic songwriting. "That would be so unfortunate," she told Billboard.

Abrams released her debut EP, "Minor," in 2020, which served as an early lyrical inspiration for Olivia Rodrigo (who became another close friend after Abrams opened for Rodrigo's Sour Tour).

In addition to praise from her peers, Abrams also drew critical acclaim for songs like "I Miss You, I'm Sorry" in 2020 and "Rockland" in 2021 — but she didn't crack the Billboard Hot 100's top 10 until last year with "That's So True." The surprise hit was released as a deluxe track from her sophomore album, "The Secret of Us," which also yielded fan favorites like "I Love You, I'm Sorry" and "Risk."

In March, Abrams was honored as songwriter of the year at Billboard's annual Women in Music event, where Abrams thanked "the incomparable Miss Taylor Swift."

"I will never stop thanking her for the gift of her pen," Abrams said, "which very much raised me."

• A House Oversight member says DOGE has created chaos at the Social Security Administration.
• He said DOGE's actions are putting Americans data, privacy, and access to benefits in danger.
• DOGE's handling of sensitive data may have broken multiple laws, Rep. Gerald Connolly said.

A ranking member of the House Oversight Committee wrote in a new letter that DOGE has unleashed "chaos" at the Social Security Administration, putting Americans' privacy, security, and access to benefits at risk.

In a Thursday letter to Michelle Anderson, the SSA's Assistant Inspector General for Audit, Democratic Representative Gerald Connolly of Virginia urged the agency to investigate DOGE's actions and access to SSA data.

"The whistleblower information obtained by the Committee, combined with public reporting, paints a picture of chaos at SSA as DOGE is rapidly, haphazardly, and unlawfully working to implement changes that could disrupt Social Security payments and expose Americans' sensitive data," Connolly wrote in the letter.

One of Connolly's major concerns about DOGE's actions at the SSA is its attempt to combine sensitive data held separately by multiple federal agencies — including the SSA, the Internal Revenue Service, Health and Human Services — into "a single cross-agency master database." Connolly said the Committee has information that indicates DOGE "is carrying out its work in a manner that disregards important cybersecurity and privacy considerations, potentially in violation of the law."

Connolly said that DOGE engineers have tried to skirt network security controls to create specialized computers for themselves with full access to data across agencies, and that DOGE associates have been collecting "backpacks full of laptops" each containing access to federal agencies' databases. Such actions could be in violation of federal laws that limit how agencies share information with each other and that require individuals' consent before such information is shared, he wrote.

Another of Connolly's concerns is the recent staffing reductions at the SSA and the impact on IT systems. On top of already eliminating around 7,000 positions at the SSA, DOGE has called for cutting 50% of the technology staff that manage the agency's website, benefits portals, and IT systems, Connolly wrote, citing The Washington Post. And, Connolly said, the Trump administration has plans to eliminate an additional 25% of staffers who oversee the SSA's data systems.

These mass firings are happening at the same time the SSA has experienced repeated IT failures and website outages, which "could mean seniors and others who rely on Social Security are left without the income they need to buy food, pay rent, heat their homes, afford medications, and more," Connolly wrote.

Connolly also said that the Committee has learned the Trump administration plans to replace critical SSA IT systems without enough planning and preparation to prevent "significant operational disruptions" that could have "catastrophic" consequences for Americans' ability to receive lifeline Social Security benefits.

"During its short existence, DOGE has established a track record of extreme negligence and an alarmingly cavalier attitude with respect to protecting Americans' sensitive data," Connolly said.

Connolly urged the SSA to address his key concerns so that the Committee can decide whether it needs to make legislative reforms to keep Americans' data and federal systems safe.

The SSA press office said it has received the letter and will respond directly to Connolly.

"President Trump will always protect social security, and every recipient will continue to receive their benefits," White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in a statement shared with Business Insider.

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has tasked DOGE, and its de facto leader, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, with gutting the federal workforce and slashing government spending. In that short time, DOGE has worked quickly to target the employees, contracts, building leases, expenses, operations, and data of nearly every federal agency.

• I was so anxious waiting for my bar exam results the second time around.
• Staying at home was making me stressed, so I decided to go out on dates every day of the week.
• I passed the bar and married the guy I went on a date on Tuesday.

I knew I needed to do something drastic when I found myself crying into a bowl of ramen at 12:30 p.m. on a Thursday.

It was the week before bar exam results came out, and I was so anxious that I'd burst into tears during lunch with a friend. "I don't know how to help you anymore," he confessed.

It was the second time I had taken the California Bar, and the idea that years of school and studying could come to nothing was too much to bear. I had put everything into becoming a lawyer. Who and what would I be if I failed?

I couldn't keep asking friends to hang out just to watch me cry, but staying home to stress by myself sounded awful. I then had an idea: I would set up dates for the entire week.

It would force me to leave the house

The brilliance of this plan was that I would be forced to leave the house and not talk about my mental anguish, which would be an undeniably insane topic on a date.

I'd been so busy studying that I hadn't dated for a while, so I went digging in my contacts.

For Monday, I set up a date with a guy I had been on a few casual dates with months before. For Wednesday, I set up something similar, and for Thursday I arranged to see a guy who had an offputting energy, but also a boat. For Friday, I planned to meet up with an old flame from school who was in town, which left me with Tuesday to fill.

I opened up my long-neglected Tinder and scrolled to find the cutest person with a halfway-decent opening line. Amid all the "Heys," one message caught my eye: "You look fun to dance in public with." It was an odd line, but it made me laugh, and besides, I am fun to dance in public with. "That's incredibly random, but you're right," I responded. "Want to get a drink on Tuesday?"

I really liked my Tuesday date

Monday's date was fine. We were clearly better suited as friends, but the evening was a pleasant distraction. The next night, I met Mr. Tuesday at a bar, where I ran into a snag in my plan for a stress-free week of casual meet-ups: he was even cuter than his pictures. I was usually a confident dater, but now I was extremely nervous. Thrown off my game, I told him the truth when he asked what I did: "I'm…maybe going to be a lawyer?" I teared up and explained everything. He was extremely kind, and we talked about it as long as I needed to.

Mr. Tuesday hadn't had anything on his profile about being into art or literature or politics, but our conversations about those things were much better than those I'd had with dozens of guys who had emphasized them. I spent the rest of the week musing on the muscular guy who liked Jane Austen, who knew my biggest professional insecurity but wanted to see me again anyway.

I genuinely don't remember anything about Wednesday's date, but I know I canceled Thursday's. I was somehow finally calm enough that an evening in my own company sounded better than being at sea with an obnoxious, almost stranger.

I passed the bar and married Mr. Tuesday

On Friday, I learned that I passed the bar. My friends bought me Champagne, after which I did manage to keep the date with the old acquaintance, albeit tipsily. Mr. Friday seemed bored when I told him I had passed, which was unimpressive given that Mr. Tuesday had already texted to check in and congratulate me.

That week I was raw enough to be authentically myself, with someone I hadn't had time to typecast like I normally did. Mr. Tuesday and I went on another date, then another, then another, and ultimately moved in together. He had liked me before I was a lawyer and was the first person to support me years later when I admitted that I was unhappy with the law and wanted to do something else.

We're married now. Our first dance was to Louis Armstrong's "La Vie En Rose," one of many, many times we've had fun dancing in public together.

• Companies are leveraging AI agents to execute multi-step tasks.
• Agents are now used for everything from email management to complex engineering.
• But researchers say agent errors are prevalent and compound the more steps they take.

Silicon Valley is brimming with optimism about AI agents.

In basic terms, the technology can solve problems, execute tasks, and grow smarter as it learns from its environment. Agents are like a virtual assistant, something most workers dream of having. They're already using them to book flights, collect data, summarize reports, and even make decisions.

But agents are far from perfect, and not only are errors and hallucinations still commonplace, they get worse the more they're used.

Companies are now using agents to automate elaborate, multi-step tasks. New tools have emerged to make that possible. Regie AI uses "auto-pilot sales agents" to automatically find leads, draft personalized emails, and follow up with buyers. Cognition AI makes an agent called Devin that carries out complex engineering tasks. Big Four professional services firm PwC unveiled "agent OS" a platform that makes it easier for agents to communicate with one another to execute tasks.

But the more steps an agent takes to complete a task, the more likely its error rate — the percentage of incorrect outputs — will impact the outcome. Some agent processes can have as many as 100 steps or more, according to Patronus AI, a startup that helps companies evaluate and optimize AI technology.

Patronus AI measured the risk and revenue loss caused by the mistakes of AI agents. Its findings confirm a familiar truth — with great power comes great responsibility.

"An error at any step can derail the entire task. The more steps involved, the higher the chance something goes wrong by the end," the company wrote on its blog. It built a statistical model that found that an agent with a 1% error rate per step can compound to a 63% chance of error by the 100th step.

ScaleAI growth lead Quintin Au said error rates are much higher in the wild.

"Currently, every time an AI performs an action, there's roughly a 20% chance of error (this is how LLMs work, we can't expect 100% accuracy)," he wrote in a post on LinkedIn last year. "If an agent needs to complete 5 actions to finish a task, there's only a 32% chance it gets every step right."

DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis said at a recent event to think of error rate like "compound interest," according to Computer Weekly. By the time it works through the 5,000 steps it needs to execute a task in the real world, the probability it's correct could be random.

"In the real world, you don't have perfect information," Hassabis said at the event, according to Computer Weekly. "There's hidden information that we don't know about, so we need AI models that are able to understand the world around us."

The higher probability of failure for AI agents means that companies are at greater risk of losing their end customers.

The good news is that guardrails — filters, rules, and tools that can be used to identify and remove inaccurate content — can help mitigate error rates. Small improvements "can yield outsized reductions in error probability," Patronus AI said in its post.

Patronus AI CEO Anand Kannappan told BI that guardrails can be as simple as additional checks to ensure agents don't fail while they're operating. They can "prevent the agent from continuing or kind of ask the agent to retry," he said.

"That's why it's so important to measure performance carefully and holistically," Douwe Kiela, an advisor to Patronus AI and cofounder of Contextual AI, told BI in a LinkedIn message.

• I tried the seasonal foods at Trader Joe's for the spring and reviewed them.
• The coffee creme Joe-Joe's and Meyer lemon cookies were both delicious and adorable. 
• The chain's cheese-filled fiocchetti and taco salad kit are both good entrée options.

Trader Joe's stocks its shelves with a variety of seasonal products every spring.

So, I've been trying the spring offerings from my local store as part of an ongoing series where I review the grocery chain's seasonal foods. 

Keep reading to see which items I'll be stocking up on and which I'll skip. 

Editor's Note: This post was originally published in April 2021. Although many seasonal spring foods return, item availability is subject to change.

The cheese blintzes would make a perfect addition to any brunch table

A blintz is a popular breakfast treat that's essentially a lightly sweetened pancake wrapped around a cheese or fruit filling.

They're often associated with Shavuot, a springtime holiday celebrated in the Jewish faith, but are also popular throughout parts of Eastern Europe.

I picked up a package of four pastries in the frozen section at Trader Joe's. Although the product doesn't come with toppings, its box features a picture with whipped cream and fruit, so I followed suit to get the full experience. 

This was my first time trying blintzes, and I mostly enjoyed them. They tasted like a traditional crepe, and I appreciated that their light sweetness became more noticeable with the berries. 

However, I don't love the texture of cottage cheese, so I was a little turned off by the filling.

VERDICT: Overall, the blintzes were decent, but they weren't my favorite. The fruit and whipped cream certainly elevated them, but I had trouble getting over the texture. 

But if you're a cottage cheese fan or like a versatile breakfast, these will probably be right up your alley. 

The gluten-free coffee cake muffins were incredible

The most noticeable thing about these muffins was their size — compared to a standard version, these were gigantic.

Each treat sported that signature coffee cake look with a ribbon-like swirl of cinnamon on the bottom, which was dense and sturdy, yet also slightly crumbly. The tops were adorned with a dusting of sprinkles.

I'm usually wary of gluten-free pastries because of their tendency to be either super dry or way too dense and crumbly, but these muffins were surprisingly moist and delicate, with a lightly sweet flavor that made them suitable for an early morning bite. 

When paired with a cup of coffee, the cinnamon flavor really popped.

VERDICT: Although I can't see myself buying these muffins all the time, I will absolutely be hitting up Trader Joe's for these when I'm craving a sweet breakfast or having guests over. 

The oven-baked cheese bites would be great in soup or on their own

If you ever wanted to know what spaghetti would taste like in snack form, this is your answer. And as strange as that might sound, this item is absolutely worth buying.

Basically, these gluten-free bites are dehydrated, aged cheese with a few added seasonings. 

Like any good snack, these morsels delivered in crunch, and I gave them bonus points for their airiness that gifted each bite with a crispy, melt-in-your-mouth quality.

What made these a real standout, however, was the zesty chili and tomato flavor that came through with each bite. 

VERDICT: 10/10. I'm obsessed. 

The vegan taco salad was delicious

Each vegan taco salad kit contains iceberg lettuce, blue tortilla strips, corn salsa, and chipotle-seasoned seitan.

The Chipotle seitan made this mix a filling meal on its own and gave it a necessary layer of savory flavor, which is crucial in salads with a limited amount of dressing. 

This seitan wasn't dry or soggy, and though I couldn't really detect the chipotle flavor, it was still seasoned enough to have that taco meat taste. It was like a toned-down version of the chain's soy chorizo.

Trader Joe's also nailed the salad dressing. It didn't have a weird artificial taste, and the only downside was that there wasn't more of it.

VERDICT: With the mix of textures, super filling seitan, and tasty dressing, this salad is a must-buy for anyone looking to spice up their lunches.

The lemon bars tasted homemade

Chocolate is great and all, but nothing screams springtime like a yummy lemon bar.

There was no mistaking the presence of real lemon in these — as soon as I opened the box, I noticed a sweet citrus aroma.

I let these lemon bars defrost on my counter for an hour before tasting them, and I'm not sure I'll ever attempt baking this dessert on my own again — they were out of this world.

Had I not purchased this dessert myself, I never would have guessed it came from the freezer section. Each bar had a scrumptious, fresh taste, so it could easily pass as homemade.

The combination of vanilla shortbread with the bright, citrusy lemon curd and a dusting of powdered sugar was absolutely divine. But these stood out for their texture — they had a perfect level of chewiness with an impressively buttery crust despite being frozen.

VERDICT: I apologize in advance to anyone who lives near me and wants to try these lemon bars because I might be buying them all the next time I hit up Trader Joe's.

These peanut-shaped chocolates were fun and creative

In my opinion, all chocolate tastes better when it comes in a cute shape, and these peanut-like candies were proof of that.

Plus, they had just the right ratio of high-quality chocolate exterior to creamy peanut butter filling. Each bite was so melt-in-your-mouth delicious that the treats could have passed for something I'd buy at a specialty candy shop. 

The texture really won me over, as each piece had an added layer of rice cereal under the coating for extra crunch.

VERDICT: To say I loved this candy would be an understatement.

The dark chocolate plantain chips are a great springtime treat

Crunchy, salty, and slightly sweet, these plantain chips were everything I'd been craving.

I appreciated how Trader Joe's didn't go overboard with the chocolate coating and opted for a light drizzle. Plantains already have a natural fruity sweetness, so they only need a touch of cocoa flavor to highlight their sugary notes.

Although I thought these plantain chips were tasty, I'm not sure I would rate them above the jerk-style variety, as I was over these after a few bites. 

VERDICT: Overall, I'd say these chips are a must-buy for anyone who loves the combination of dark chocolate with salty flavors. I can also see them making a superb sweet addition to any snack platter.

I fell in love with the tasty filling in the lemon and ricotta ravioli

My longtime favorite Trader Joe's ravioli is the Caprese one, but after trying this lemon version, I'm not so sure. 

The ravioli cooked in less than 10 minutes, making it an excellent quick dinner option.

In the interest of tasting the ravioli in its purest form, I coated the dish in just olive oil, salt, pepper, and Parmesan.

When I took a bite, I noticed the filling was super smooth and had a pleasantly fresh flavor to it. The delicate hints of lemon provided a needed contrast to the ricotta's sweetness to make it less rich than the standard cheese-stuffed ravioli.

I also loved that I didn't feel heavy after eating this meal, which almost never happens with cheesy pasta.

VERDICT: It's safe to say this ravioli will be my new go-to weeknight dinner this spring.

The almond-butter almonds make a perfect snack

With a super smooth coating and lightly salted nutty interior, these almond-butter almonds tasted like candy.

Super creamy and sweet, with subtle notes of cocoa and vanilla, the almond-butter coating was so yummy I could have eaten it by the spoonful.

VERDICT: Almond on top of almond might sound like a bit much, but it proved to be an excellent choice. These bites were delicious. I hope Trader Joe's keeps them around, but I'll stock up just in case.

These crispy mushrooms were a bit of an acquired taste

I love mushrooms, but when I saw these snacks at Trader Joe's, I raised an eyebrow.

I wasn't sure what to expect from these, but at a glance, they didn't look super appetizing — more like overcooked mushrooms than anything else.

Appearance aside, these were a decent savory snack. They tasted like nothing I'd ever eaten, so I gave Trader Joe's credit for creativity. 

According to the package description, the mushrooms are lightly salted, dried, and tossed in sunflower oil, so their natural umami taste stood out because it wasn't competing with too many seasonings.

Their texture made them a memorable snack, as they had a light, crispy exterior like a chip and a slightly chewy inside like a cooked mushroom.

VERDICT: The crispy mushrooms are worth trying at least once, but I don't think I'd buy them again.

The cheese-filled fiocchetti with pink sauce was good, but not mind-blowing

Just as the package suggested, the fiocchetti cooked to an optimal tenderness in less than 10 minutes, but the sauce didn't really look quite right.

Even though I measured the water and oil according to the instructions, the mix looked much thinner and less pink than advertised. Despite its light-orange hue, I still gave it a chance.

I generally enjoyed the pasta component of the dish, but the sauce left much to be desired. I thought it desperately needed more tomato and garlic flavors.

It's possible I watered it down during the cooking process, but even so, the flavor wasn't as bold as I anticipated, and it came out so thin that it seemed more like a lightly seasoned broth than a sauce.

I set aside some leftovers in the fridge and noticed the next day that the sauce had thickened slightly.

VERDICT: Overall, I'd say this pasta is a great vegetarian entrée to add to your weeknight repertoire.

Although the dish's flavors were quite mellow, the meal could easily be upgraded with a few extra ingredients, like red pepper flakes and more cheese, so I'm willing to buy this one again. 

The pink and white shortbread cookies would make a great addition to any picnic

With their cute floral shape, colorful yogurt coating, and adorable rainbow sprinkles, these cookies were pretty much impossible for me to dislike.

They tasted just like the frosted circus animal cookies I was obsessed with growing up. My fellow '90s babies will know what I'm talking about, as one bite of these Trader Joe's cookies instantly transported me to my childhood. 

In terms of texture, they were of comparable thickness to graham crackers with a familiar, crumby feel.

Most of all, I enjoyed that these cookies were sweet but not overwhelmingly sugary. The yogurt coating was super smooth and contained subtle notes of vanilla that didn't taste artificial.

VERDICT: I can picture serving these cookies as a treat at brunch or an outdoor picnic with friends. They'd also make a great decorative addition to an ice cream sundae. Perfect for kids and adults who want a hit of nostalgia, these cookies are worth buying again. 

The Meyer lemon cookies would make a scrumptious springtime treat

The first thing that came to mind when I opened this box of cookies was afternoon tea. With their pale yellow color and paper-thin texture, they were practically designed to be consumed off a pretty pastel colored plate atop some doilies.

These cookies had a delightfully airy quality and nice crisp that crumbled in my mouth with every bite.

As a fan of all things citrus, I appreciated that the tangy flavor was detectable but not artificial tasting. They also had a slightly floral quality, which probably came from the use of Meyer lemons.

Either way, they were absolutely delicious.

VERDICT: If you're searching for a super light sweet treat to munch on, look no further than these Meyer lemon cookies.

I couldn't get enough of the candy-coated almonds

With their slightly crunchy, colorful shell, these candy-coated almonds look a lot like Cadbury's mini eggs. They were also delicious.

The coating offered a yummy crunch that regular chocolate-covered almonds can't compete with. Plus, I loved the pastel colors.

The chocolate layer was pleasantly smooth, and the almond center gave these treats dimension and a yummy, nutty flavor.

VERDICT: As someone who frequently craves chocolate, these springtime almonds are a must-have.

This blood orange cake mix made a delicious loaf, but I wasn't impressed by the icing

I've never thought to use blood oranges for anything beyond cocktails, so I was excited to try this mix. 

The moment I started mixing the ingredients, I caught a strong whiff of the bold, citrus aroma, and the batter was bright orange.

Like most boxed cake mixes, this came together with just a few ingredients and under an hour of bake time. It also included a packet of icing, which saved me even more time.

On its own, this cake was awesome. The blood orange flavor was pronounced, offering a unique profile that was noticeably more tart than sweet. Its texture was dense yet tender and moist, like a pound cake. 

However, I found the icing tasted too much like candy. It was sweet with a seemingly artificial flavor. Next time, I'll try topping it with my own cream cheese frosting and blood orange zest. 

VERDICT: Buy the cake mix, but ditch the icing — it doesn't need it.

These lemon madeleines were sweet and delicious

These fluffy tea cakes were sweet, buttery, and delicious. The lemon zest flavor was very subtle yet detectable.

They're dainty, which made them suitable for early mornings when I wasn't quite ready for a full meal. 

The flavor was comparable to a classic vanilla pound cake, with just the slightest kiss of lemon. The firm yet spongy texture would be ideal for dipping in hot coffee or tea. 

VERDICT: As someone who often craves light sweets in the morning, these lemon zest madeleines hit the spot. I'll gladly be buying a couple more packages before the season ends.

Fans of spinach would really enjoy this frozen Florentine lasagna

Based on the box, I assumed this lasagna would be loaded with Italian flavors, but I later learned that Florentine is actually a French cooking term that refers to a dish with cooked spinach and a cheesy, creamy sauce.

I was excited about this dish since it's vegetarian, serves more than one person, and doesn't require any actual prep work — just patience.

Per the instructions, you can heat this in the microwave in two six-minute intervals, but I opted to bake mine in the oven for just under an hour.

The aroma of garlic, herbs, and cheese filled my entire apartment while this cooked, which was reason enough to give this a solid rating.

However, spinach has a high water content, which was evident the moment I cut into this lasagna. It looked more like a cheesy soup with pasta. So, getting any kind of square slice was impossible. I used a spoon to scoop it onto my plate.

If you really dig cooked spinach, you'll probably enjoy this. The bitter, metallic green tasted great with the creamy, sweet ricotta. 

I also appreciated that Trader Joe's included Parmesan in the cheese blend — which added a nice balance of salt — and a ton of flavorful dried herbs and garlic.

VERDICT: Although the Florentine lasagna offered a lot of fragrant, cheesy flavor, its lengthy cook time and sloppy texture kept it from being as good as possible. 

Trader Joe's Springle Jangle was just OK

Like the winter equivalent, the Trader Joe's Springle Jangle consists of various bite-sized snacks, like butter toffee peanuts, yogurt-dipped pretzels, dark chocolate Joe-Joe bark, dark and milk chocolate mini peanut butter cups, sprinkle covered chocolate discs, and candy gems (which are similar to M&Ms). 

It's more of a candy mix than a snack one, as it was very sweet and barely salty, save for the yogurt-dipped pretzels. Those were my favorite parts, even though some pieces tasted a bit stale.

The chocolate could've been better, as it was slightly chalky and didn't quite have that melt-in-your-mouth quality I expect from most dipped treats.

Overall, this would make a decent snack if you want something sweet but can't decide on what to buy. However, I think it could've used one more salty component, like a handful of almonds.

VERDICT: Although the Springle Jangle is a yummy snack that people with a sweet tooth will likely enjoy, it's far from my favorite springtime Trader Joe's product. 

Trader Joe's spring cupcake mix required way more work than I anticipated

These spring cupcakes looked so cute on the box — but the assembly wasn't what I expected. 

The box didn't come with finished frosting, but rather a powder, which required milk and butter to prepare (more ingredients I had to buy). It also needed to be beaten with a hand or stand mixer.

The kit didn't include a piping tip, which made working with the frosting disastrous. My cupcake grass looked more like Medusa's hair than anything you'd find in an Easter basket.

On a positive note, the cupcakes themselves turned out great. They had a nice buttery flavor and were super fluffy.

The caramel candy eggs that came in the box were by far the best part and made the price tag worth it. Honestly, I wish there were more of them.

VERDICT: These spring cupcakes had so much potential, but between all the additional ingredients you have to buy and the extensive prep, it wasn't really convenient, especially if you plan to make them with kids. 

I'd rather buy one of the better cake mixes that Trader Joe's sells.

There's no need to buy Easter candy if you have these chocolate mousse eggs on hand

These creamy treats are probably one of my favorite finds in Trader Joe's bakery section. 

The chocolate cake was soft, moist, and rich, while the mousse layer was sweet and fluffy. The double chocolate flavor worked well since the mousse had more of a milk chocolate profile that built on the cake's richness. 

All of this came wrapped in a thin, chocolate candy coating, complete with colorful icing designs on top.

Each egg-shaped cake is just the right size for a mid-afternoon or after-dinner sweet. Eating just one or two satisfied my chocolate craving.

VERDICT: I wish they were individually wrapped, but as long as these are available at Trader Joe's, I'll keep buying them.

These blueberry and lemon hand pies are the perfect pastry for spring

These crescent-shaped mini pies tasted like they were from a local farmers market. The crust was thick and semi-flaky, with bits of yummy raw sugar on top and imprints that gave them a rustic feel.

Each pie was loaded with a bright, semi-sweet filling made primarily with puréed blueberries. However, a few chunks made it feel more like a homemade pie than a mass-produced one.

The use of lemon flavoring on the pastry made them significantly more tart than I expected, but I wouldn't call them sour. It's almost as if they're made to be consumed with sweet tea or vanilla ice cream. 

For the price, these are a solid way to enjoy a fruity dessert without having to bake an entire pie. The fact that they're handheld is even better. 

VERDICT: If you're a huge fan of blueberries, these are a must-buy. If you're pretty indifferent about them, this may not be for you. I found these hand pies to be quite tasty, but I'm not in a rush to buy them again because blueberries aren't my favorite. However, if Trader Joe's made these with other fruit fillings, I'd buy them.

These Sprinkles Walk into a Sandwich cookies are a fun treat for kids, but they were too sweet for me

These crumbly, buttery, cookie sandwiches took a while to grow on me, and I'm still not totally sold. 

The thin layer of buttercream frosting had a super sugary sweetness with a slightly fluffier quality than I expected. This made the buttery flavor in the shortbread pop. The sprinkles, meanwhile, were a nice touch and provided a bit of fun texture.

Overall, each bite kind of tasted like a cross between vanilla Funfetti cake and a Walker's shortbread cookie.

I also thought the cookie part was a little bit too dry and could have been thinner. That said, I can see these being a hit with others looking for a sweet springtime dessert that's easier to transport than a cupcake. Kids will definitely get a kick out of them.

VERDICT:  These cookies were a bit too sweet for me. Although they were decently tasty, I'm not in a rush to buy them again.

Trader Joe's Portuguese custard tarts totally lived up to the hype

I've been to Portugal twice, and the custard tarts — called pasteis de nata — are always a highlight. When the tarts are enjoyed fresh, they have a signature crunch that I love, so I was nervous to try these out of a box. 

Fortunately, Trader Joe's knocked it out of the park. I popped all four tarts into my oven with the intent of sampling just one, and ended up devoured three in a sitting. The crust was buttery and flaky, and the custard center was light and creamy. 

Best of all, they weren't overly sweet, which can sometimes happen with American custard tarts. 

Nothing is ever going to be the same as getting pasteis de nata in person, but for coming out of a box and requiring pretty much zero effort (or travel plans) these were absolutely spectacular.

Verdict: I waited an entire year to finally get my hands on a box of these and have already stocked my freezer with several more for the season.

The goat's milk cheese rubbed with vanilla sugar has a unique flavor, but its sweet profile may not be for everyone

Made using goat's milk cheese that's aged for several weeks, this semi-solid cheese smelled and tasted faintly like a vanilla cupcake.

I found the cheese itself was overall very mild in flavor, but undeniably sweet. The vanilla notes were clearly detectable at the end of each bite. I can see this being a hit with people who like the idea of a sweeter cheese they can use on crepes or fruit. 

That said, I was thrown off by the lack of tang I'm used to getting with goat cheese, and I'm not sold on the flavor yet.

VERDICT: I appreciate the creativity of this goat cheese, but don't know if I'd go out of my way to buy it again.

I was blown away by how delicious these Joe-Joe's with coffee creme were

These chocolate-dipped Joe-Joe's taste less like something from a grocery store's prepackaged cookie section and more like a dessert I'd expect to see behind a glass case. The cookie component was semi-soft, and the dark chocolate coating was smooth, thick, and delicious. 

These tasted like the cookie version of a dark-chocolate-covered espresso bean. The layer of mocha filling in the center was fluffy and smooth, with a bold coffee flavor that was impossible to miss. 

Overall, the flavor was bold and quite intense, with each bite offering a good balance of bitter and sweet tones. I also appreciated how large each cookie was. 

VERDICT: The Joe-Joe's with coffee creme are now my favorite of the entire Joe-Joe's lineup.

The triple-ginger pretzels are a great spring snack for those who reach for pumpkin spice pretzels in the fall

As someone who usually reaches for pumpkin spice items in the fall, the ginger version of these pretzels is just right for spring. These pretzels are satisfyingly crunchy, delicately sweet, and delicious.

Despite the name, these pretzels weren't as front-loaded with intense ginger as I expected them to be. Instead, the spicy flavor came through on the finish of each bite, building a nice, warm sensation that tickled the sides of my mouth more and more with each successive bite.

Overall, I'd describe these as quite similar to pumpkin spice pretzels, with a slightly more peppery taste.

VERDICT: I'm already longtime fan of Trader Joe's various coated pretzels, and these are now giving the chocolate and peppermint ones some serious competition.

Trader Joe's all-butter shortbread sandwich cookies with raspberry filling were delicious

I honestly wasn't expecting these cookies to be as good as they were. I loved everything about them.

With their sleek, rectangular shape and striking layer of visible, bright red filling, these cookies were clearly made to be served on pretty plates with doilies on an outdoor patio. 

The texture was crumbly, yet not as dry as I anticipated. In my opinion, the ratio of shortbread to raspberry on these cookies was just right, offering a yummy, slightly sweet, faintly tart, fruity flavor that resolved nicely into the delicious melt-in-your-mouth buttery shortbread.

VERDICT: For a boxed cookie, these were absolutely incredible. 

Trader Joe's mini lemon sheet cake is the showstopper every spring brunch needs

I saw so much hype about this lemon cake online, and based on my experience, it's well-deserved.

The cake was exquisitely moist and its lemon flavor was fragrant and inviting without tasting overly sweet or artificial.

The lemon cream cheese was sublime. It tasted like a recipe from an Ina Garten cookbook that uses real lemons.

The dusting of lemon zest on top was a perfect garnish for a dessert this classy. If someone told me Trader Joe's lemon sheet cake came from a fancy bakery, I wouldn't question it for a second.

VERDICT:  This cake is a high-quality gem. I'll keep buying it as long as it's in stores.

The spring gummies felt like a grown-up version of fruit snacks

These are the softest gummies I've ever purchased.

They resembled fruit snacks rather than traditional peach rings or gummy worms.

They had a pleasant, fruity flavor without tasting too sugary or hurting my teeth. However, the spring-themed shapes were a bit indiscernible (I think they were supposed to be birds), as were the flavors.

One gummy kind of tasted like raspberry, and another had a slightly sour, citrusy vibe. Still, the snack was as bright and vibrant as spring itself.

VERDICT: I probably wouldn't buy multiple bags per season, but I'd get one for snacking.

The dulce de leche ice cream was decadent, but also very one-note

This ultra-smooth, creamy dessert felt like pure decadence when it hit my palate.

The flavor reminded me of a light caramel candy. It was buttery, sweet, and milky.

Though this ice cream had a lot going for it, I thought it was a one-note dessert. The combination of dulce de leche and caramel tasted like one super sweet flavor stacked on another.

Even the caramel swirls, which required a bit of an excavation to find, were underwhelming. The near-uniform ice cream texture lost its luster after a few bites. 

In the future, I'd pair this ice cream with something to cut through the sweetness, like salty pretzels or a dark chocolate brownie. 

VERDICT: I wouldn't buy this as a stand-alone dessert, but I'd get it if I wanted an accompaniment that wasn't basic vanilla.

I wasn't impressed by the passion fruit meringue tartelettes

Trader Joe's passion fruit meringue tartelettes perfectly capture the vibes of an island getaway. After thawing for two hours in the fridge per the instructions, the vibrant yellow tarts looked like a cups of pure sunshine.

However, I took a tiny bite of this and felt my lips automatically pucker because of how intense the fruit flavor was.

If you don't love tart notes in a dessert, you will, like me, probably feel overwhelmed by this.

That said, even though it wasn't really my thing, I can still acknowledge that it's a good dessert. The texture of the main fruit component was perfect and I enjoyed the buttery shortbread crust.

The meringue also did a superb job balancing out the intensity of the tropical sweetness.

VERDICT: Although this wasn't for me, I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a tropical-themed fruity dessert.

I had high hopes for the lemon poppy seed buns, but I thought they tasted dry

The box promised a lemon filling, but I didn't find anything inside these buns. Instead, it tasted more like they were baked with some sort of lemony extract or soaked in lemon glaze.

They were sweet like a slice of lemon cake, and the inside of each pastry had pockets of poppy seeds and sugar crystals. I also thought the pastry component tasted a bit stale.

VERDICT: As a diehard fan of lemon poppy seed muffins, these should have been up my alley. However, I thought they left a lot to be desired.

The chocolate truffle eggs are perfect for adults who miss getting an Easter basket

These felt like Trader Joe's take on a miniature Cadbury egg. Each chocolate truffle has a unique filling and is individually wrapped in colorful foil.

I was impressed by the selection of unique flavors including pistachio and cookies and cream.

The dark chocolate praline (my favorite of the bunch) was reminiscent of a Ferrero Rocher. The others tasted close to something you'd get from a pricy confectionery.

VERDICT: I'm a sucker for miniature chocolates, so I'd say this is worth the buy.

The chocolate break-apart bunny is (literally) filled with festive fun

If you grew up in the '90s, you probably recall a gimmicky confection called a Wonderball — a chocolate orb that featured character-shaped bits of candy inside.

This bunny kind of reminded me of one, but with a little more festivity and creativity. Along with being fun to break, the chocolate itself was yummy. It offered a smooth, milky flavor that's noticeably better than many other chocolate bunnies I've tried.

Inside, I found a treasure trove of sugar-dusted gummy carrots, making me feel like I was getting two treats in one.

VERDICT: Though this isn't something I'd go out of the way to buy for myself, I think it's an adorable idea for an Easter basket treat.

The Seville orange marmalade will make you forget other jams exist

Unlike jelly, this marmalade was much firmer and easier to spread, with actual pieces of orange peel dispersed throughout.

Its fruity, orange flavor was well pronounced and bright, with a combination of sweet and tangy notes. For me, what really made it stand out was that it had a unique bitter note. In some ways, it reminded me of Aperol.

VERDICT: I would buy another jar of this.

This story was originally published in April 2021 and most recently updated on April 17, 2025.

Click to keep reading other Trader Joe's taste tests in this series.

• TGI Fridays CEO Ray Blanchette shared four things he's focusing on after its bankruptcy filing.
• He told BI he hopes to improve sales and menu innovation and refocus TGI Fridays' brand.
• Blanchette also highlighted Gen Z and millennials with young families as key focus groups.

Two years after stepping down as CEO, Ray Blanchette has returned to the top job at TGI Fridays, focused on revitalizing the brand and driving its growth.

Blanchette spoke to Business Insider about how he hopes to get TGI Fridays back on track following its recent bankruptcy filing.

The casual dining chain has faced major challenges in the last few years.

Originally opened in the 1960s as a singles bar in New York City, TGI Fridays grew to become an international chain famous for its burgers and pub-grub appetizers.

However, throughout the 2010s, TGI Fridays closed more than 200 restaurants in the US. Its plans to take the company public in 2020 also coincided with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, halting those plans indefinitely.

Ultimately, last November, the chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections, citing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its capital structure as key factors in the filing.

There have also been a series of leadership changes. After five years as CEO, Blanchette stepped down in May 2023. He was replaced by Brandon Coleman III, who was only in the position for a few months, and then by Weldon Spangler, who took over the position in October 2023, Nation's Restaurant News reported.

Blanchette returned as CEO in January after working as a full-time franchisee within the chain, which he said helped him feel more connected to the brand and its franchisee base.

Blanchette said he wants to leave the bankruptcy filing in the rearview mirror and refocus on the brand's strengths, starting with a menu revamp coming May 13.

Here are four ways he hopes to lead the chain's comeback.

Sales are the chain's top priority after TGI Fridays filed for bankruptcy last year.

Blanchette told Business Insider in a video interview that before he gets out of bed in the morning, he's thinking about the company's sales. Driving top-line sales is his "No. 1 priority" for the chain's comeback.

"We've seen some great progress in the restaurants that I own, and we are fortunate to have seen a meaningful turnaround in same-store sales this year," he said.

"We think that as we're learning, we can build off of that and continue to grow sales in a powerful way," he continued.

Growing sales is no easy task, but Blanchette said he's been encouraged by growth in the casual dining industry with chains like Chili's, which saw a significant 31.4% increase in same-store sales at the start of the year.

"I think what happened at Chili's is encouraging for everyone in casual dining, and what they're continuing to see is inspiring to us," Blanchette said.

Blanchette wants to reengage employees and refocus on the "celebration" aspect of TGI Fridays' brand.

Blanchette said that the company's bankruptcy filing in November 2024 was an "enormous distraction," compounded by a simultaneous change in management.

However, he wants customers and franchisees to focus less on the bankruptcy filing and more on the fun, playful side of TGI Fridays' brand.

"Celebration is kind of at the heart of everything we do. And so we're trying to reengage our team members by giving them food that they're prouder to serve," he told BI. "We're stopping the conversations and the distractions around the bankruptcy and getting focused on remembering that the jobs that we create around the globe change people's lives."

Blanchette cited the chain's growing international business, including 391 restaurants in 41 countries.

"We want to lean into that and continue to grow and not forget to celebrate along the way," he said.

Blanchette is revamping the menu, with a new food and cocktail menu coming May 13.

When it comes to resonating with younger generations, Blanchette said that menu innovation — from adding new items to improving the quality of items already on the menu — is one of the chain's top priorities.

He also said that innovation can pose a unique challenge, as it "increases complexity in a lot of cases."

"I've spent my time trying to rally the organization around getting excited about these new products," he said, naming the chain's recent steakhouse menu, which features hand-cut steaks and is available at select franchise locations.

Blanchette said the idea really resonated with franchisees, and the chain is now seeing interest from its international franchisee partners.

"Creating a pull rather than a push on these new ideas has been a big priority," he said.

Blanchette said he wants to tap into generations like Gen Z and millennials with young families.

Blanchette said menu innovation is one way he thinks TGI Fridays could win over customers in younger generations, such as Gen Z.

"This is a generation with a very high food IQ, and I think they tend to be more food curious," he said, citing a trend toward spicy food and more "fusion" flavors with international influences. "They'll try spices from abroad even if they don't know exactly what the flavor is until they try it. And so we think innovation is especially important for this younger generation."

Blanchette added that the chain is also focusing on millennials, especially those with young kids, since their tastes in restaurants tend to change once they become parents.

"I think Fridays, because the environment's a little louder, can compete much harder for those young families because you don't have to give up your entire sense of self," he said. "You can still have a handcrafted cocktail, you can still have handmade interesting food when you go out."