• Airbus engineers shared plans for its next aircraft, planned for the second half of next decade.
• They're aiming to increase fuel efficiency — reducing emissions and making operations cheaper.
• Innovations include open-fan engines, folding wings, and automatic taxiing.

While Airbus has pushed back plans for a hydrogen-powered plane, it plans to build a high-tech plane that is cheaper and more environmentally friendly.

Business Insider got a look at the tech that might drive it.

At its recent summit in at its headquarters Toulouse, France, CEO Guillaume Faury told reporters it was developing a new single-aisle aircraft to succeed its A320 family and enter service in the second half of the 2030s.

He said the hydrogen-powered plane was canceled as it risked being "a Concorde of hydrogen" and not commercially viable at scale.

He said a next-generation plane would not come with "incremental optimization" but "clean sheet designs." He also predicted a "gloves-off" competition to build a next-generation airplane with Airbus' US rival Boeing.

This is the new tech it's developing.

Open-fan engines

Higher fuel efficiency is a major discussion point in aviation, but making it happen will require "a fundamental change in the shape of the engine," said Mohamed Ali, GE Aerospace's chief technology and operations officer.

Turbofan jet engines work by taking in air. Some of this air enters the engine core where it is mixed with fuel and combusts to drive the turbines. The rest of the air is accelerated by the fan and bypasses the core.

Engines which have a higher proportion of bypassed air are more fuel efficient. However, this ratio is limited by the size of the intake duct.

"Here is the solution, and that's the beauty of physics. You can remove that duct and go to open fan," Ali said.

While today's engines have a bypass ratio of up to 12:1, Ali said current designs for an open-fan engine would improve that to 60:1.

Airbus and CFM — a joint venture between GE and Safran — plan to test open-fan engines on an Airbus A380 by the end of the decade.

They are also planning for the new engines to be able to operate entirely with sustainable aviation fuel. This can be produced from plants and cooking oil, but its takeup has so far been hindered by high costs and a lack of availability.

Folding wings

Airbus engineers are looking to longer wings to create more lift and reduce drag, which in turn means using less fuel. However, the size of a plane's wings is limited by the size of airport gates.

Yet if the wingtips can fold, planes can still have longer wings in flight and fit into airport gates on the ground.

If this sounds familiar, you might've seen something similar on the coming Boeing 777X, although Airbus is planning to first use it on narrow-body planes.

"If you think about the next generation of single-aisle aircraft, it will fly many times a day, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," said Sue Partridge, head of the Wing of Tomorrow program. "That folding wing system needs to work reliably."

New materials and some automation

Another step forward in fuel efficiency could be found in new composite materials.

The latest generation of airliners, like the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787, use carbon fiber-reinforced polymers in the wings and fuselage. These are stronger and lighter than aluminum, but more advances could be made.

"We are working on the next generation of composite materials, with our material suppliers working as partners with us," Partridge told the summit.

Just before the summit began, Reuters reported that both planemakers are looking at thermoplastics for future aircraft.

Single-aisle planes are more popular than widebodies, with Airbus eyeing a target of producing 75 a month.

"We need to be able to make our aircraft and our wings at high rate and at a cost that's actually sustainable for our business," Partridge said.

She added that the Wing of Tomorrow program was looking at robotic and automation technologies to see how they could speed up manufacturing.

Automation won't just take place in the factories, however.

At the summit, BI rode in a self-driving van testing Airbus' new autonomous technology, Optimate.

It's been testing cameras, radar, and lidar to help follow airport lines for autonomous taxiing and to avoid potential collisions. Near misses have been growing more common in recent years, and Airbus also predicts there will be twice the number of aircraft in 20 years.

AI could also be used to predict traffic and help pilots reroute around turbulence or bad weather.

There are still more than 10 years before Airbus sees its next generation of planes taking to the skies.

Faury, the CEO, compared the process to "a caterpillar in a cocoon becoming a butterfly."

"In this transition, there's a bit of paralysis," he said. "There's a lot of forces at stake, it's painful, and then the butterfly takes off. We don't know what it looks like until we're there."

"We remain committed to our purpose, which is to pioneer sustainable aerospace for a safe and united world," he added. "We think it's a beautiful purpose, but it's not an easy one."

The midtown Manhattan building where Jackie Kennedy, Elizabeth Taylor, and Truman Capote once dined, then the legendary French restaurant La Grenouille, is now a nondescript renovation site with wood, metal, and industrial-size garbage bins strewn about. The 60-year home of La Grenouille will soon be turned into the new American home of Quanjude, the most famous Peking duck restaurant brand in China. Quanjude, a publicly listed company controlled by a state-owned entity, bought the 6,800-square-foot building on 52nd Street for $14.3 million in October in an attempt to bring Chinese fine dining to America.

The 161-year-old brand's first branch in the US is going all out. The wallpaper will replicate a 12th-century Chinese handscroll painting. The private dining room will be decorated with traditional fans and chopsticks. But it is the quality of the food that Yan Zhang, the head of Quanjude America, wants diners to obsess about. "Chinese cuisine is exquisite and profound. But in this part of the world, people think it's just spring rolls and chow mein," Zhang said. "We want to revamp their cognition."

Quanjude is one of at least 10 major Chinese food and beverage brands planning to hit US shores this year. Driven by an oversaturated market, a troubled economy back home, and the potential to be listed on the US stock market, companies serving everything from high-end dinners to dumplings and milk tea — several of them with thousands of locations in China — are now poised to break into the US food market. And dozens more are planning to study the landscape to possibly jump in themselves.

But with the relationship between the US and China at one of its rockiest points since the two countries resumed their diplomatic relationship in 1979, the Chinese newcomers' path to success is extremely precarious. Sure, they aren't working on critical technology or launching major social media platforms, but Chinese restaurants have still faced backlash in the past few years, with some Americans blaming the country for the COVID pandemic or because of a general antipathy toward the Chinese Communist Party. Is America really ready for what some local Chinese restaurant insiders are calling a Chinese food "tsunami"?

Since the first Chinese restaurant in the US opened in 1849 in San Francisco during the gold rush, generations of blue-collar immigrants have taken advantage of the relatively low-cost entry point in the restaurant industry to make ends meet. They created dishes that are nonexistent in China, such as chop suey or General Tso's chicken, to cater to Western palettes, forming an expectation among Americans that Chinese cuisine is convenient and cheap. Chinese immigrants, meanwhile, have had to watch their cuisine sink to the bottom of their adopted country's food chain.

When Zhang started traveling around North America for his import and export business 18 years ago, he couldn't bear the Chinese food he came across. "Nothing is authentic other than the beef noodle," he said. A foodie himself, Zhang vowed to make a difference. In 2017, he reached out to Quanjude, proposing to bring the iconic restaurant to North America. He opened the first branch in Vancouver, Canada, in early 2020, right before the pandemic ravaged indoor dining. In 2022, it won a Michelin star, which it has held onto since — and Zhang expects the New York branch to get even greater plaudits.

"Chinese immigrants are better educated and wealthier now. We crave for a better presentation of our own culture," said Zhang. "It is the best time for food brands in China to expand overseas."

While there are some Chinese fine-dining restaurants in the US run by Chinese Americans, the new wave brings some of the best-known restaurant brands in China.

The timing is made more urgent by China's recent economic troubles. The Chinese government says the revenue of the food and beverage industry in the country increased just 5.3% in 2024, a nosedive from the 20.4% increase in 2023, and the smallest growth in a decade excluding the pandemic years. An industry report on 22 publicly listed Chinese food and beverage companies found that 68% saw their profits decline in the first half of last year. Close to 3 million restaurants and cafés in China shut down for good last year.

Chinese food brands' moves to open overseas — which had been increasing modestly since the 1980s — have rapidly accelerated. Hongcan Industry Research Institute, a Chinese group that studies the restaurant industry, released a report in September that found more than 100 Chinese food and beverage brands have moved into more than 180 countries, now running 700,000 locations outside China — a 200,000 increase since 2016. The Chinese government has spurred on the expansion, issuing two directives last year for Chinese food and beverage brands to "go overseas" to help "improve the international influence of Chinese cuisine culture."

"Almost all the major food and beverage brands you see in China are considering coming to the US," said Beichen Hu, a restaurant investor and the director of the North America Asian Food Industry Association. "A popular catchphrase circulating broadly in the food industry in China is 'to go overseas or to die.'"

The US market certainly looks appealing. The food service industry reached over $1 trillion in sales last year, with $1.5 trillion projected in 2025. A survey by the National Restaurant Association found that 80% of restaurant operators in the US expect their sales this year to be the same or higher than last year's. An analysis by IBISWorld predicted a promising market for Chinese restaurants in the US through 2030 as the demand for Chinese food among households with annual income above $100,000 is expected to increase.

For as much of a setback as it was, the pandemic also offered a rare opportunity. "Many prime locations in coveted places like Manhattan are vacant after the pandemic, and that opens the market for brands from China," said Tom Chen, the founder of Kepler Mission Design Group, a design and branding company that's helped food and beverage chains from China open in the US. Leading Chinese brands have snatched up space in competitive areas like Fifth Avenue and Times Square in New York and Beverly Hills in Los Angeles.

"These brands don't want to be just another Chinese restaurant in the US; they want the esteem," said Chao Wang, the owner of the rice-noodle shop Hunan Slurp in New York's East Village. He's helping restaurants from Hunan province, where he's from, to open in the US. "To have a store in Manhattan is like erecting a flag on the moon. It's worth it even if you don't make money."

Still, the cuisine push from China may seem counterintuitive. The tension between the US and China, especially Washington's restrictions on Chinese tech companies in recent years, has created a palpable chilling effect. Figures on foreign investment from China vary significantly, but they all show a steep drop in Chinese investment into the US in the last several years. The most recent annual survey by the China General Chamber of Commerce — USA found that in 2023, more than 60% of Chinese companies in the US complained about the deteriorating business environment and 22% had reduced investment here.

But geopolitical risks are not top of mind for most eateries. "The US is still a pro-business country. And we sell consumer products, not computer chips," said Amanda Wang, the owner of Ningji, the leading Chinese chain of lemon-based teas, with more than 3,000 stores in China. Its first overseas outlet is opening in mid-April in Los Angeles with a product line customized for American consumers called bobobaba. And the company is already looking for more locations.

Wang said the biggest cultural shock for her is the time it takes to open a store in the US. Ningji decided to take over the fully functioning venue of a shuttered beverage store in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale last November, but as of early February, Wang was still waiting for the license to be approved to start the renovation. "I am speechless," said Wang. "We open a new store on average in 20 days in China."

Wang was also confused by a recent street encounter. Two days before the new year, on her way to the supermarket, a stranger yelled at her to "go back to China," and blamed her for stealing jobs in the US. "I don't understand why he thought I stole his job," said Wang. "We are here to create jobs."

This kind of hostility isn't exactly rare. A Pew Research Center survey from May found that eight in 10 Americans have negative views about China, and a study by researchers from Boston College, the University of Michigan, and Microsoft found that Asian restaurants in the US lost $7.4 billion in revenue in 2020 because of anti-Chinese sentiment, which President Donald Trump helped stoke by calling COVID-19 the "China virus."

"Trump likes to stir racial antagonism," Chao Wang of Hunan Slurp said. The window of a noodle shop Wang owned in Long Island City, New York, was smashed during the pandemic, and he attributed it to anti-Asian hate.

Yong Zhao, the cofounder and chief executive of the American food chains Junzi Kitchen and Nice Day, had a disturbing moment a few months ago with a customer at his store in Long Island. "I told him we are going to bring organic mushrooms from a local farm into our recipes, and he said, 'Oh, is the farm owned by the CCP?'" said Zhao. The customer was referring to the rising concern that the Chinese Communist Party is spying on the US from farmlands purchased by Chinese entities. "If I were white, I don't think he'd have asked."

Before the pandemic, Zhao, a Yale-educated environmental scientist turned restaurateur, had formed a network of young Chinese restaurant operators in the US with a mission to "tell the stories of Chinese cuisine." But he said since the trade war began in 2018, American media has much less coverage of Chinese culture and lifestyle, and Americans seem less interested in Chinese culture. "Say, you want to highlight the history of a traditional dish from Chengdu, but many people here don't know where Chengdu is," said Zhao, referring to the southwestern Chinese city that is known for mapo tofu and kung pao chicken.

To some industry people I spoke with, Chinese food companies are less likely to be caught up in geopolitical wrangling than, say, the tech industry, but their biggest risk factor may be their own growth. "This is an industry that is safe until Chinese companies start to win, and then they're not safe," said Chris Pereira, the founder and CEO of iMpact, a New York-based consulting firm that has helped hundreds of Chinese enterprises enter the US.

Before he founded iMpact in 2020, Pereira worked as an executive at Huawei, the Chinese tech conglomerate that was driven out of the US market over national security concerns. Having watched that play out, Pereira suggests big Chinese food chains find ways to share profits with American partners as a form of self-protection. For instance, he said, if Luckin Coffee, the Chinese coffeehouse behemoth with more than 22,000 locations in China that plans to come to the US this year, starts to steal market share from Starbucks, "you can bet the US government will find a way to talk about national security for coffee."

In a crowded back office at Quanjude's Manhattan site, Zhang has a more urgent challenge. The visa applications for the five chefs he plans to bring in from China are still pending. Since US-China relations started deteriorating, it's been harder to obtain visas for Chinese nationals, but Zhang says the Chinese-trained chefs are essential for the restaurant. "We won't allow the quality of the food to suffer under untrained hands," he said. If nothing else works out, he plans to bring Quanjude chefs from Canada.

Zhang thinks his ducks could serve an important mission. "I believe food is the best bridge for divisions and it may help pull the US and China closer again," he said.

After a pause, he continued. "Except if there is a hot war," he said, "everything Chinese in the US would be doomed."

Rong Xiaoqing is a New York-based award-winning journalist who has been writing about the Chinese community in the US since 2002.

• New employment data shows what US hiring looks like across industries.
• Employment is thriving in different healthcare fields.
• Couriers and messengers have also added jobs.

If you're looking for work, you could consider applying for a healthcare or transportation job right now. But if you're considering applying to white-collar fields, it may be tougher to land a role.

New Bureau of Labor Statistics data published Friday showed that more people entered the labor force in March, contributing to a small uptick in unemployment. While newly unemployed Americans may be hopeful to land a job quickly, some people on the job market have struggled to find work. The number of people unemployed long term rose by 40,000 in March.

"If you've never had a problem getting a job before and suddenly you do, you can't look at it and think, 'I'm the problem,'" recruiter Kathleen Nolan recently told Business Insider. "You've got to look at what's going on around you."

The newly released data reveals where people have been getting hired so far this year.

Here are the industries that have been hiring

Cory Stahle, an economist at the Indeed Hiring Lab, said the March jobs report showed strength in service and in-person work and less so in white-collar jobs or work that may be more likely to be done remotely.

Healthcare, which typically has in-person roles, has been a constant strength in the labor market, with consistently stronger gains over the past few years. There's an ongoing need for healthcare workers.

There is strength elsewhere in the US economy. Employment in the transportation and warehousing sector rose mainly due to gigs in couriers and messengers, which saw cooler job growth last year. Meanwhile, employment fell in warehousing and storage.

Dean Baker, senior economist for the Center for Economic and Policy Research, said the recent increase in couriers and messengers, which includes people delivering packages, "could reflect increased demand for items in advance of tariffs." President Donald Trump unveiled his latest tariff plan on April 2, which will impose a 10% tariff on countries and then a higher tariff on Japan, the European Union, and many other trade partners.

Stahle said construction's gain of 13,000 in March was "notable because when interest rates started to increase a couple of years ago, that was kind of the industry that everybody thought was going to break first, and yet we see that construction has continued to hold solid."

Employment increased by 24,000 in this sector from December to March. Associated Builders and Contractors said in a January press release that over 400,000 new construction workers are needed this year to meet demand.

Retail work saw employment rise over the month in March, but the BLS report on Friday said that an end of a strike contributed to that gain. The three-month employment increase showed general merchandise retailers saw the highest growth among the detailed types of retail work.

The three-month employment growth in healthcare was widespread across the sector. It increased by thousands in ambulatory healthcare services, which include doctors' offices and medical labs, while also increasing by thousands in hospitals.

While the federal government is making cuts, the numbers haven't largely been reflected in the BLS jobs report because of the timing of the surveys and people on paid leave, such as probationary workers who have been reinstated after a court order pausing their terminations, being counted as employed. For people still interested in working for the government, local government could be an area to look at, based on its most recent three-month job gain.

Amusement, gambling, and recreation industries were one group within the leisure and hospitality that saw recent strength. Michael Feroli, JPMorgan's chief US economist, said that similar to the construction sector, "leisure and hospitality may have benefited from better seasonally adjusted weather conditions."

Do you have a story to share about job searching? Reach out to this reporter at [email protected].

• Americans are flooding Social Security offices and phones over benefit concerns and identity measures.
• New identity verification rules and staff cuts fueled fears of benefit disruptions.
• Advocates warn of a feedback loop worsening call volumes and public anxiety.

Seniors are calling Social Security in spades and showing up en masse to field offices, as many fret about the future of their benefits.

Some are concerned about new identity measures, and others fear that their benefits could be affected. Taken together, this is creating a new problem: People who are worried about delays are straining the Social Security Administration's customer support systems with an influx in calls and appearances at field offices. That all comes as the agency has said it wants to reduce staff by 7,000 of its 57,000 workers.

In February, Social Security's 800 number received around 8.6 million calls; by March, it had received nearly 10.5 million calls. All told, the average number of daily calls per month rose by about 50,000 from February to March. March's average was 483,549, up from 312,533 a year before.

A Social Security operations worker said in a March 28th agency meeting that 665,000 people visited field offices in the week prior, which was "significant."

"Why are they coming? They're nervous," the worker said, who was identified as Ian, said. He said that visitors are coming in and requesting certified copies of their documents, which cost $100, and can usually be accessed online. He said that mySSA, the online portal, used to see around 2,500 users a week; now, that's up to 5,500.

"They're afraid of our systems going down. That's what they're telling us," he added.

When Business Insider's Allie Kelly tried to contact Social Security's 1-800 number last week, she was greeted with a voice message telling her that wait times were over 120 minutes — and then she got hung up on. Under 40% of callers reached a representative in March, according to SSA data, down from around 59% a year prior.

Social Security did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

"With a resounding mandate from the American people, President Trump is moving quickly to fulfill his promise of making the federal government more efficient," White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in a statement. "He has promised to protect Social Security, and every recipient will continue to receive their benefits."

The influx of calls and visitors comes after public uncertainty around the program. Social Security is still providing benefits , but some advocates and beneficiaries have raised concerns over new guidelines for identity verification.

Under that guidance, new beneficiaries would have to verify their identities either online or in-person. Advocates sounded alarms that the new process could leave behind seniors without access to the internet or the ability to come in person. The new guidelines were ultimately tweaked, with the identity proofing now set to start April 14 and applicants for Medicare, disability, and SSI exempted from the in-person requirement.

"The Trump Administration's rash statements and actions on Social Security are triggering widespread worry and stress, particularly among older and disabled people," Kathleen Romig, the director of Social Security and disability policy at the left-leaning think tank Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said.

That cascade of worry is being felt beyond phone lines and field offices: At the end of March, the AARP told BI that the nonprofit has been receiving around 2,000 calls a week about Social Security benefits, with potential disruptions to checks coming in as "by far the number one" issue.

Tracey Gonniger, the managing director of economic security and housing at the advocacy group Justice in Aging, said she thinks that the agency could face a worsening feedback loop.

"You have higher call volume because you created higher call volume, and then you cut back on staff and then created more caller volume. They just keep on making the situation worse, and then people are panicking and probably then calling more because they're like, what's going on?" Gonniger said. "It's this weird effect of making it worse, and then cutting back and then making it worse, and then cutting back on services and making people lose faith in the system; it's really bad."

Workers on the ground are feeling that firsthand. One Social Security employee told BI that they had to talk down someone on the phone who was fearful that Elon Musk would take their checks; they ended up having to assure them and send them documentation they were due benefits.

The recipient was "clearly having an episode," the worker said. "Very sweet, very scared."

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via Signal at julianakaplan.33 or email at [email protected]. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• Trump increased tariffs on US imports to the highest levels in nearly a century.
• The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 raised tariffs and worsened the Great Depression.
• Prior to the Great Depression, Republicans were the pro-tariff party.

Tariffs haven't been raised this dramatically in a long time, perhaps because the last time they were, it made the Great Depression much worse.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced substantial tariffs on products imported to the US, including a baseline 10% on all countries, with higher tariffs on countries the White House considers "the worst offenders" against US trade relations. That includes a 49% tariff for Cambodia, 46% for Vietnam, 20% for the European Union, and a total effective tariff of 54% for China.

Trump's tariffs "represent a complete reversal of how the United States has dealt with the question of global trade for the better nine tenths of a century," Eric Rauchway, a historian and distinguished professor at the University of California Davis, told Business Insider.

"By 1948, it become consensus belief across US political parties, and indeed throughout the world, that tariffs had helped cause the Great Depression and the Second World War," Rauchway said. "The policies we've had since then have been intended to avoid a repeat of those things."

Before the general consensus around free trade became the norm, the US had a long history of tariffs. An early action of the first US Congress was the Tariff Act of 1789, which introduced tariffs to pay government wages and fund the national debt. Until the 16th Amendment was ratified in 1913, which set up the modern system of federal income taxes, tariffs were the federal government's primary source of revenue.

The last time tariffs were this high followed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930.

Following the stock market crash in 1929, President Herbert Hoover signed the act into law in an effort to protect American farmers and manufacturers against imports from Europe, where overproduction after World War I was increasing competition and lowering prices. The act raised already-high import duties on foreign agricultural products and manufactured goods — the Fordney-McCumber Act of 1922 had already raised the average import tax to around 40% — by an additional 20% on average.

Smoot-Hawley accelerated a cycle of retaliation that had begun in the 1920s, as other countries raised their tariffs right back at the US, Rauchway said.

"By the end of the thirties, you have lots and lots of high tariff laws," Rauchway said. "So that just reduces the volume of world trade. And that's bad because the Depression was a global phenomenon and a lot of people needed to sell into other markets for their economies to recover."

As a result, trade between the US and Europe declined by two-thirds, and European banks began to fail. And with a weakened world economy, extremist ideologies flourished in Europe and World War II began.

A reduction of tariff rates began under the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration in 1934, but really accelerated after World War II with the 1948 establishment of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which later became the World Trade Organization, Rauchway said.

"After WWII, the United States did not want to repeat the mistakes of isolationism which had guided the response to the end of WWI, such as not joining the League of Nations," Felix Stossmeister, an expert on trade policy and Ph.D. student at Ohio University, told Business Insider. Because the British Empire was too weakened by the war to "play its old role as guarantor of an international trading order," Stossmeister said, "the United States felt that it had to step up."

To promote international trade and stable exchange rates, the US "played a crucial role" in setting up several major economic development institutions, Stossmeister said.

By the Cold War, "free trade often meant access to American markets for (potential) allies, lest they possibly fall to the Communist side or at least develop sympathies," Stossmeister said. But, he added, using "anti-Communism as a rationale for freer trade faded along with the Soviet Union."

While Trump's latest tariff policy reverses the bipartisan consensus around free trade that has marked much of the last century, it does bring the Republican party back to its roots as the pro-tariff party prior to the Great Depression, Rauchway said.

Since Trump's tariff announcement, US stocks have been plummeting, suffering their worst single-day loss in five years on Thursday. Economy and markets experts are warning the tariffs will increase inflation and raise the overall price of goods in the US.

Amelia Dimoldenberg had been on more than 80 first dates before she finally met her match in a North London chicken shop in November 2023.

The British comedian and internet personality, who made a name for herself by flirting through her interviews with celebrities on her popular YouTube series "Chicken Shop Date," was finally sitting across from someone who could understand what it's like to have chicken be an integral part of one's career.

"This may be the greatest crossover of all time," Dimoldenberg proclaimed to Sean Evans, the host of First We Feast's YouTube talk show series "Hot Ones," which bills itself as "the show with hot questions and even hotter wings."

"Marvel, I don't think, has anything on us," she deadpanned.

In the world of upstart talk shows, the match-up of Dimoldenberg, 31, and Evans, 38, could indeed be likened to "The Avengers." The pair are the epicenter of a new kind of celebrity interview show, one that doesn't air on linear TV and frequently goes viral.

Though both share a poultry-based gimmick, what really unites "Chicken Shop Date" and "Hot Ones" is their thoughtful execution of consistently revealing and meme-able interviews. Whether Dimoldenberg is disarming celebrities with awkward flirting or Evans is asking them probing questions amid the increasingly physical demands of the Scoville scale, the chicken shows have each perfected their own unique recipe for entertainment that viewers want to see — and celebrities want to participate in.

Over the last decade, both shows have worked to prove they're not just a flash in the pan, amassing hundreds of millions (or, in the case of "Hot Ones," billions) of views, millions of subscribers, and producing over 100 episodes each. The fan fervor for both series has reached high enough levels that "Hot Ones" now sells its own hot sauces. Meanwhile, Dimoldenberg's mega-viral "Chicken Shop Date" episode with Andrew Garfield inspired such enthusiasm that fans dressed up as the pair for Halloween.

Both shows also benefit from being independent: BuzzFeed sold First We Feast, the studio behind "Hot Ones," to a group of investors in 2024 for $82.5 million, while Dimoldenberg has called her decision to keep ownership of "Chicken Shop Date" under her production banner, Dimz Inc., "the best thing I've ever done."

Eschewing a corporate overlord hasn't kneecapped either show's opportunities for industry acclaim, either. "Hot Ones" and "Chicken Shop Date" are both now Emmy eligible; "Chicken Shop Date" entered the 2024 race in the outstanding short form comedy, drama or variety series category, while "Hot Ones," which has previously been nominated for Daytime Emmys, successfully petitioned to be considered in the outstanding talk series category at the Primetime Emmys alongside late-night heavyweights.

As ratings for traditional late-night talk shows continue to decline, shows like "Hot Ones" and "Chicken Shop Date" are gobbling up space in pop culture consciousness as a more appetizing alternative.

"These new shows are not a trend," Liza Anderson, the founder and president of Anderson Group Public Relations, told Business Insider. "I really feel like they're the way for the future."

'Hot Ones' and 'Chicken Shop Date' transcend their gimmicks to showcase an unfiltered side of celebrities

In the era before the internet, TV appearances were an essential part of a traditional celebrity press tour. In a 5- to 10-minute slot on national TV, stars could simply promote their show or film by answering a host's canned questions, reaching a large audience of people tuning in live.

"Everything that we used to do 10 years ago was scripted," Anderson told BI. "Any time I put somebody on a major talk show, we had the questions ahead of time. We rehearsed the answers. We knew what was coming."

The rise of social media and streaming has dramatically changed viewers' appetites. Though morning talk shows and late-night interview shows soldier on, large swaths of younger audiences have moved to the internet, where they can watch shorter, more offbeat clips of their favorite stars on digital series and interact directly with them via social media.

"There was a time when you had a TV or movie star, and you didn't want to pierce the veil and get to know the actual actor. The psychology was that it took away from the character," Anderson said. "Now, the opposite is true. The philosophy and psychology behind it is that you want to watch actors that you feel a connection with personally, not just professionally."

Nowhere was that craving for a parasocial connection more apparent than in the aforementioned and now-legendary 2024 episode of "Chicken Shop Date" with guest Andrew Garfield. After two years of flirtatious interactions on red carpets, Dimoldenberg and Garfield finally sat down for a "date" — one that repeatedly broke the fourth wall so convincingly that fans were adamant the pair should date in real life.

"i can't believe the best rom com of 2024 is an 11 minute promo interview between amelia dimoldenberg and andrew garfield," one fan wrote on X.

Flirting with Dimoldenberg was far from the only thing Garfield did to promote his A24 romantic dramedy "We Live in Time." But amid sitting for a slew of press junkets, posing for magazine covers, and dragging a cardboard cutout of his costar Florence Pugh down the red carpet (yes, really), Garfield's viral moment on "Chicken Shop Date" was arguably his most impactful appearance. It was watched 11 million times.

Even bona fide A-listers of older generations are becoming keenly aware that chicken — or, at least, digital interview series — is the key to staying relevant to a generation that lives on the internet.

"The other night, I was interviewed by Amelia, the chicken nuggets," Nicole Kidman told the Guardian of Dimoldenberg. "That's all my daughter cared about, and I loved that." So Kidman looked up Dimoldenberg's show and was charmed by her work. "I loved her with Billie Eilish, and Andrew Garfield and her was so funny. And now I have to go for a date with her. I'm asking for the date."

Celebrity publicists, too, are grateful for these unique concepts, which help portray their clients as multidimensional. "It's a good shift from a strategy perspective because it's something fresh and different," said Beth Booker, founder and CEO of Gracie PR.

"Traditional PR practices are still definitely at play, but we have to have those digital components to make our campaigns really effective because a press release and a radio tour just aren't going to cut it anymore," she added. "You have to find a way to cut through the noise, and those shows give you a really good opportunity to do that."

As late-night ratings plummet, talk shows are relying on social media-friendly digital segments to keep up

In their heyday of internet popularity, late-night talk shows broke the mold with gimmick-based celebrity interview segments like "Day Drinking" with Seth Meyers, "Carpool Karaoke" with James Corden, and "Wheel of Musical Impressions" with Jimmy Fallon.

Media outlets like Vogue, BuzzFeed, and Elle also emerged with their own specialty celebrity interview series, and some newer daytime talk shows have gotten in on the action, too: "The Jennifer Hudson Show" crew's backstage hype-up chants for guests, dubbed the "spirit tunnel," continue to go viral.

Still, it's no secret that traditional late-night is in its downsizing era. In 2024, "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" was cut down to four days a week, and "Late Night With Seth Meyers" dropped its live house band, 8G, reportedly due to budget cuts.

And while late-night shows continue to do games and other segments with stars, there's now more competition and diminishing returns. The most-watched video on the YouTube channel for "Late Night With Seth Meyers" is his day-drinking episode with Rihanna, which was released five years ago. The most popular video on the "Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" channel is an a capella segment with the cast of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," posted eight years ago.

"I don't know if there will be any late-night television shows on network TV in 10 years," Jimmy Kimmel said in August 2024 on the "Politickin'" podcast. "There's a lot to watch and now people can watch anything at any time; they've got all these streaming services."

Booker, however, is optimistic that late night isn't dead yet — though it is going through a transition period.

"I think the late-night shows are still going to survive, honestly, because a lot of them are bridging that gap to add in more of those viral-friendly segments," she said.

Anderson said that for now, there's still room for conventional talk shows in a press tour. However, most people are probably catching up on the latest celebrity news and talk show highlights while scrolling on TikTok, Instagram, and X rather than tuning in live.

"If you get a viral moment on ["The Drew Barrymore Show"], it can make or break somebody's career," Anderson said. "But nobody's sitting at home watching Drew."

What makes something go viral, though, has changed. Gone are the days when an ultra-gimmicky setup (think: James Corden's "Spill Your Guts or Fill Your Guts" or Jimmy Fallon's "Egg Roulette") could guarantee clicks on its own. When it comes down to it, the moments that audiences latch onto are the ones that use a contrived setting to pull a genuine emotion out of their guest.

When late-night legend Conan O'Brien ate his way through Evans' challenge in what's widely considered to be one of the best "Hot Ones" episodes ever, he paused his stream of frenetic anecdotes for a brief moment of sincerity.

"I've watched your show. You're a very good interviewer," O'Brien said, addressing Evans.

"I mean, this is fun, I like this, I get why you guys do it, and it's really fun, and it's compelling," he said, motioning to the hot sauces, the wings, and the camera, "but you are a very serious interviewer. You take it seriously, and you ask really good questions."

Evans laughed and thanked him, a little bit in shock.

"You'll cut that out. That won't make it in. No laughs there," O'Brien said.

It stayed in the final cut.

• A longevity scientist who claims he reversed his age by 15 years believes exercise had the most impact.
• A combination of strength training and aerobic exercise is linked to a longer life.
• Verdin does hot pilates four to five times a week.

A longevity scientist who claims to have reversed his biological age by around 15 years shared his weekly workout routine with Business Insider.

Dr. Eric Verdin, the CEO and president of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, has been using medical tests and wearable devices like smartwatches to monitor his health for the past decade, and tweaking his lifestyle accordingly.

Tests that measure biomarkers such as inflammation, blood pressure, and cholesterol indicate that while Verdin's chronological age is 68, his biological age is between 48 and 53. There's no consensus on the definition of biological age or how to measure it, so it differs according to the test he refers to.

Verdin said he believes exercising for an hour each day has made the biggest difference to his health.

"I rarely take a day off. On that day off, I just miss it because I realize it optimizes everything else," he said. "If you're looking for an anti-aging drug that the Buck Institute is going to come up with in the next few years, it is probably going to be 10 years before we have anything that comes remotely close to exercise and physical activity," Verdin said.

He works out every day, doing a mixture of cardio, strength training, and mobility exercises.

Hot pilates four to five times a week

"It hits all the notes that I need to hit," Verdin said.

It involves doing strength training exercises such as squats and pushups with small weights in the heat, which both challenge the muscles and make the heart and lungs work, he said.

Research suggests that doing a combination of weight lighting and cardio is best for longevity.

In a large 2022 study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers from the National Cancer Institute examined data from nearly 100,000 older US adults. They found that participants who did resistance training once or twice a week as well as cardio, had a 41% lower risk of dying from chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease when compared to sedentary participants.

Those who did 150 to 300 minutes a week of aerobic exercise were, on average, 32% less likely to die from any cause during the course of the study. And resistance training was linked to 9% lower mortality rates.

Lifting heavy weights at home

Once a week, Verdin lifts heavy weights at home, which helps him build muscle.

Dr. Vonda Wright, an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in healthy aging, previously told BI that maintaining muscle mass and bone density as we age is essential for staying strong and mobile.

Muscles help us perform everyday movements, such as reaching for a book off a high shelf or standing up from a chair, but they naturally start to shrink around the age of 30.

Long bike rides in nature

The Buck Institute is in Novato, just north of San Francisco. Verdin takes advantage of the beautiful surroundings by going on a two to three-hour bike ride in the mountains every week.

Cycling is a form of cardio that has been linked to multiple health benefits, including lower blood pressure and cholesterol, better mood, and a lower risk of chronic disease.

Exercising in nature has also been found to have extra benefits for the brain, such as improved focus.

• With tariffs, federal budget cuts, and student loan limbo, Americans are delaying financial decisions.
• 6 Americans told BI how economic uncertainty is shaping their family, jobs, budgets, and retirement.
• While the US is not in a recession, indicators are showing some signs of weakness.

Babies, homes, retirement, and business ventures — all major moves Americans have told BI they're putting on hold as the US reels from economic uncertainty.

Tariffs are set to raise prices on everything from groceries to cars, and sweeping cuts to federal spending have many concerned about their livelihoods. Federal student loan limbo is also leaving millions wondering how they will pay off their debt.

"I feel like I just got done building a life out here," said a Washington DC 28-year-old who resigned from her government job and may have to move due to finances. "I was actually trying to own a home."

Some are even worried about a recession. While the US isn't in one yet, a major indicator of consumer sentiment hit a three-year low in March, and consumer spending was weaker than expected last month. Meanwhile, a closely watched inflation metric has seen its highest jump in a year. Economists have said these conditions are making people less likely to make major purchases and take financial risks.

While some Americans also told BI they support Trump's recent cost-cutting measures and don't plan to make any adjustments to their jobs or savings, six shared stories about holding off on major milestones.

A millennial is weighing starting a family amid student loan uncertainty

Florence Thompson feels stuck. The 39-year-old wants to buy a home and have a baby, but she's not sure what her future monthly student-loan payments will look like. She said she hopes they'll stay in the low hundreds.

Thompson is enrolled in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which forgives student debt for government and nonprofit workers after 10 years of qualifying payments. Trump is taking steps to limit eligibility for the program, which could bar some borrowers from future relief.

Thompson is also on the SAVE plan, created by President Joe Biden to give borrowers more affordable monthly payments. Since July, she and 8 million enrolled borrowers have been stuck in forbearance after SAVE was blocked in court. Thompson has not been able to make payments or earn PSLF credit while the lawsuit plays out. Now, Thompson isn't sure when she will have to add loan payments back into her budget — and how much those payments will be. The Trump administration's recent decision to dismantle the Department of Education has heightened this uncertainty, she said. It's complicating her plans to buy a home and start a family.

"I have the money to pursue IVF, I have the money to buy a home," Thompson said. "But it's like the sword hanging above your head where you don't know when your monthly costs are going to increase and by how much. It's just a real uncertainty, and I know people are in much more difficult positions than myself. It's just not fair, not right."

Until she knows what will happen with her student debt, Thompson is conflicted. "It's really causing me to have to save money rather than spend it on the things that I'd like to spend it on," she said.

A federal employee left a $100,000 salary on the table and is worried about the future of her career

Ashley Shannon submitted her resignation letter last month. The 28-year-old was an attorney in her second year at the Department of Justice's Federal Bureau of Prisons. She said her job felt meaningful — her work helped combat mass incarceration disproportionately impacting Black and brown people.

But, as news flooded in about the firings of federal probationary workers, Shannon made the tough decision to leave her role.

"Higher up in the agency, they pretty much told us it's either you leave or you're going to likely get fired and pushed out," she said.

The career paths for Black women in private-sector law are more limited than in the federal workforce, and Shannon had been excited to build a career in the public interest. She had been making $100,000 a year and was building her life in Washington DC — hoping to buy her first home soon. Now, Shannon has been unemployed since March 5. If she can't find a job by the end of April, she will have to move back to Chicago to live with her parents.

"That is a very defeating feeling as a very new attorney," she said. "I would have to move back in with my family, find another job, and pretty much restart my entire life."

A Gen Zer moved back in with her parents to save up for an international move

Last fall, Bri O. moved back in with her parents. The 23-year-old works a finance job in Charlotte, North Carolina. She didn't picture spending her young adult years in her childhood home, but said it's her best option to save money.

Bri knew she wanted to live abroad at some point in her life — it's an opportunity to experience new cultures and she has her eyes set on Spain. However, she said Trump's return to the Oval Office has accelerated her timeline: She's now trying to save $50,000 by 2026 so that she can move out of the US, maybe permanently.

As a young, queer woman, Bri said she doesn't feel safe living under the Trump administration, especially if she someday chooses to get married or start a family. The government "enacting policies against us in the queer community is having an effect on our lives," she said.

She said she's sacrificing some of her independence by living with family right now, but it's worth it for her finances. Being at home is allowing her to put the money she would be spending on rent and other expenses into savings for her eventual move.

"I'd love to stay in the country where all my friends and my family are," she said, adding, "It's disheartening that I'm leaving because of fear."

A Gen Xer isn't sure she can retire early anymore

Margarita Sdoukos, 49, thought she was going to retire early. She was confident that she and her husband would have a strong enough nest egg to stop working in six years. Due to living below their means, savvy investments, and careful saving habits, the couple felt financially comfortable.

Now, Sdoukos isn't sure she will ever fully retire. The Illinois resident told BI that she and her husband have lost "tens of thousands" of dollars in the stock market since Trump took office in January, and they're shifting to safer investments for their 401(k), even if they are less lucrative. She cashed out her teacher's pension and placed it in an IRA due to "uncertainty in the government." She's concerned about potential changes to Social Security, and now expects to continue working for as long as possible.

"We don't even think about retirement right now," she said.

A business owner is anxious about her next step

Jessica Deseo, 40, has been in the design industry for nearly two decades. She's a California-based, first-generation immigrant and mother who is balancing her own LLC with her role as a 1099 employee for a fellow creative.

With economic policy changing quickly under Trump, Deseo is at a crossroads with her career: go solo with her business or balance her job and freelancing.

"I'm right in the middle of figuring that out, and it's really, really hard," she said.

Deseo said she wants to put energy and money into growing her own business, but it comes with sacrifices. She's worried that potential clients won't have the extra budget to hire her as a freelancer and said that going out completely on her own would be an even bigger financial risk. Right now, she's being cautious about spending and saving as much as she can.

"You see the economy around you and you're just like, 'Jesus, everyone is getting laid off,"' she said.

A baby boomer is putting off a move and saving some Social Security income

Kathy Heller, 67, hoped to move out of her studio apartment in Pennsylvania and buy a new house. However, due to recent changes in the stock market and her fears about the future of Social Security, she said that may no longer be possible.

"I've been wanting to move for the last couple of years, and I just can't now," Heller said. "Everything's changed."

Heller, who worked as a legal secretary, ate through some of her retirement savings while caring for her husband, who was ill for two decades. She works nearly full-time as a real estate agent to supplement her over $3,000 monthly Social Security survivor benefits. She said she's had to wait for four hours on the phone to contact a Social Security representative, and she said she's worried about what her finances may look like a few months from now, especially if Social Security is disrupted in any way.

"My plan is to save $1,000 a month out of my Social Security check, but I live alone," Heller said. "If you don't have savings or a monthly income, you're screwed now."

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• CinemaCon, the annual movie-theater convention held in Las Vegas, had its 2025 edition during the first week in April.
• The convention featured never-before-seen footage of upcoming movies.
• Get ready for Glen Powell in "The Running Man," Brad Pitt in "F1," and a return to Oz with "Wicked: For Good."

Every spring, Hollywood treks to Las Vegas for CinemaCon, a week-long convention that showcases upcoming movie releases.

The convention, run by Cinema United, the world's largest movie theater trade organization, is four days of studio executives and theater owners coming together to speak on how to better the industry. This year, one major topic of discussion was expanding the theatrical window on all movies before they can show up on video on demand or streaming.

But the biggest draw the studios' flashy presentations. This year, Disney, Universal, Lionsgate, Sony, Paramount, Warner Bros, and Amazon MGM Studios highlighted what they have coming out in 2025 and beyond by screening trailers and footage.

Some of the titles showcased in Vegas already have had trailers out online. But for many others, CinemaCon marked the first time footage was shown of an upcoming release. Below is a rundown of the most exciting new footage we saw at CinemaCon.

If you want to see highlights from this year's CinemaCon at your local theater, look out for "Sneak Peek Showcase," a 70-minute recap that will play in theaters on April 22 and 24.

"The Phoenician Scheme" (May 2)

Wes Anderson's latest release looks to be another ambitious tale filled with outlandish performances by acting greats and meticulous production design, costuming, and music.

In "The Phoenician Scheme," Benicio del Toro plays the lead, Zsa-zsa Korda, the richest man in Europe. After surviving his sixth plane crash, Korda begins to take steps to hand over his estate to his daughter, played by Mia Threapleton.

Michael Cera, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Riz Ahmed, Jeffrey Wright, Scarlett Johansson, and Benedict Cumberbatch also star.

"F1" (June 27)

CinemaCon attendees screened the first ten minutes of what's sure to be one of Sony's biggest hits of the year.

The movie opens showcasing Sonny Hayes' (Brad Pitt) skills behind the wheel at the 24 Hours at Daytona. After speeding until dawn to secure the win as the anchor of his racing team, Hayes is propositioned by an old racing friend (Javier Bardem) to join his team and mentor his No. 2 driver.

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Joseph Kosinski (the duo behind "Top Gun: Maverick"), this has all the makings of a big summer box-office hit.

"M3GAN 2.0" (June 27)

After wowing audiences with her killing prowess (and her dance moves), M3GAN is back. Now in AI form following the events of the first movie, she's the one thing that can stop a new military robot named Amelia that is causing havoc. It all leads to M3GAN getting a complete physical makeover to save the day.

"The Naked Gun" (August 1)

If you miss a good raunchy comedy, this one's for you.

After Leslie Nielsen's slapstick antics made detective Frank Drebin a comedy icon thanks to the "Police Squad!" and "Naked Gun" franchises, Liam Neeson has taken the reins to bring Drebin's silly antics to a new generation.

The movie's first trailer shows Neeson doing everything from playing a schoolgirl to doing some unusual things to show his love for his dog. Paramount could have a sleeper hit on its hands.

"Weapons" (August 8)

Following the success of "Barbarian," director Zach Cregger delivers what looks to be another horrifying tale you can't look away from.

In "Weapons," a group of children go missing in the middle of the night, leading to a lot of frustration, finger-pointing, and some really, really terrifying events as a close-knit community in Florida spirals into madness.

Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, and Benedict Wong star.

"Caught Stealing" (August 29)

This year marked the first time Darren Aronofsky graced the CinemaCon stage, and he said the occasion was because it was finally time for him to do something "fun."

For the guy known for making dark movies like "Requiem for a Dream," "Black Swan," and "The Whale," his latest seems to be a major pivot.

Based on the Charlie Huston book of the same name, "Caught Stealing" stars Austin Butler as Hank, a former baseball player who is inexplicably chased around 1990s New York City by gangsters. It certainly looks like Aronofsky's most slick and mainstream work to date.

Zoë Kravitz, Regina King, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Bad Bunny also star.

"The Long Walk" (September 12)

Based on Stephen King's novel and directed by Francis Lawrence ("The Hunger Games"), this thriller set in a dystopian future showcases a group of young people who take part in a walking contest. If you ever stop, you are killed on the spot. The contest goes on until there's only one person left walking.

The movie stars David Jonsson ("Alien: Romulus"), Cooper Hoffman ("Licorice Pizza"), and Mark Hamill as the villainous major who oversees the contest.

"Zootopia 2" (November 26)

Nine years after Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde made "Zootopia" a box office sensation, the pair of detectives are in a relationship slump and are going to partner therapy. Hilarity ensues as they try to work out their problems.

Ginnifer Goodwin and Jason Bateman return to voice the lead characters. New characters include Quinta Brunson as their therapist and Ke Huy Quan as a mysterious snake.

"Wicked: For Good" (November 21)

In the trailer teasing the film's thrilling conclusion, Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), now an enemy of the state, strengthens her powers by studying the Grimmerie, while Glinda (Ariana Grande) is taken under the wing of the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) and Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh).

Before footage was shown onstage, director Jon M. Chu teased that "For Good" will "take us past" when Dorothy Gale shows up on the yellow brick road.

"The Running Man" (November 7)

Just weeks after wrapping production on "The Running Man," director Edgar Wright and stars Glen Powell, Colman Domingo, and Josh Brolin presented footage from the movie to the CinemaCon crowd.

Another work based on a Stephen King novel, many know the title from the beloved 1987 release starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Expect a very different adaptation this time around.

Showcasing more gore, comedy, and inventive camera work from Wright, this telling of the story — in which Powell stars as Ben Richards, who is racing to save his life by surviving "The Running Man" game show — feels very different from the one Arnold was in.

Avatar: Fire and Ash (December 19)

James Cameron takes us from water to fire. Where the previous release in the acclaimed "Avatar" franchise, "The Way of Water," showed how Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his family made friends with the ocean-friendly Metkayina clan, it looks like in "Fire and Ash" they will not get the same reception.

In the footage shown, the Ash tribe are menacing warriors who shoot arrows with fire. Nothing seems peaceful in this chapter of the franchise, and the terrain is rocky and full of volcanoes. And then there's Quaritch (Stephen Lang) still hot on Jake's tail.

The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants (December 19)

Released on the same day as the new "Avatar" is something for the kids.

SpongeBob returns to the big screen, and he's a big boy now. Well, a little taller. And being "bigger" makes SpongeBob want to set out on a voyage at sea. The trouble is, he crosses paths with the most evil pirate to sail the seas, the Flying Dutchman (voiced by Mark Hamill). Expect lots of laughs.

"The Housemaid" (December 25)

Directed by Paul Feig ("Bridesmaids," "A Simple Favor") and based on Freida McFadden's best-selling novel, "The Housemaid" has assembled an impressive cast to bring this popular psychological thriller about a housemaid who lives with a wealthy family to the big screen.

Sydney Sweeney plays the housemaid Millie, Amanda Seyfried stars as Nina, and Brandon Sklenar plays Andrew. Now let the games begin.

"Project Hail Mary" (March 2026)

Amazon MGM Studios proved audiences will have more to look forward to than James Bond in the coming years by wowing CinemaCon with footage from this sci-fi movie.

Based on the novel by Andy Weir ("The Martian"), Ryan Gosling plays a teacher who finds himself recruited to go into space and save the world. Along the way he finds an alien to help him out.

Marking the first directing effort by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller since 2014's "22 Jump Street," the trailer got one of the loudest reactions at this year's CinemaCon thanks to its clever premise and Gosling's light-hearted touch as a regular guy doing extraordinary things.

• Donald Trump's attacks against Big Law firms have drawn three lawsuits. A few other firms settled.
• 504 law firms asked the courts to put a stop to it.
• But from Kirkland & Ellis to Paul Hastings, the highest-earning firms in Big Law declined to join.

More than 500 law firms — including some of the country's most prominent — signed onto a legal brief Friday to oppose Donald Trump's executive orders attacking law firms that hired his political enemies.

Absent from the list, however, were America's 27 highest-grossing law firms.

From Kirkland & Ellis, which reported $8.8 billion in revenue last year and has about 3,800 lawyers, to Paul Hastings, with more than $2 billion in revenue, corporate America's legal team was largely silent.

The 27 firms that didn't sign collectively brought in over $74 billion in revenue last year.

They are: Kirkland, Latham, DLA Piper (verein), Baker McKenzie (verein), Skadden, Sidley, Gibson Dunn, Ropes & Gray, White & Case, Morgan Lewis, Hogan Lovells, Jones Day, Simpson Thacher, Greenberg Traurig, Norton Rose (verein), Goodwin Procter, King & Spalding, Quinn Emanuel, Cooley, Davis Polk, Paul Weiss, McDermott, Mayer Brown, Sullivan & Cromwell, Holland & Knight, Weil, and Paul Hastings.

"The largest law firms are extraordinarily powerful, and in this instance, that power actually cripples them. I'm disappointed that they didn't join," said Nathan Eimer, one of the lawyers who wrote the brief.

The above 27 firms did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider about why they didn't sign onto the brief.

The brief was filed in support of Perkins Coie, a law firm whose attorneys Trump effectively deemed a national security threat in an executive order that barred them from federal buildings, stripped them of security clearances, and required government contractors to disclose whether they used the firm.

Several former partners at Perkins Coie represented some of Trump's political adversaries, but most of the firm's political lawyers have left.

Some big firms did sign on to the brief, as did some top class-action lawyers and trial lawyers who often represent plaintiffs suing big corporations.

The US arm of Freshfields, a UK-founded corporate law firm that last year was reported to do about 20% of its business in the United States, signed the brief. Arnold & Porter, a big DC-based firm that represented federal workers accused of being communists during the "Red Scare" of the 1950s, also included its name. Arnold & Porter was one of eight firms among the country's 100 highest-earning that signed, according to Law.com.

Other firms targeted by Trump's orders rallied behind Perkins. Covington & Burling, which gave legal advice to a prosecutor who went after Trump, as well as WilmerHale and Jenner & Block, which have sued the Trump administration over executive orders that targeted them, all put their names on the brief.

But the lack of America's largest firms was frustrating, said Eimer, who told Business Insider he didn't know whose names would be included until shortly before the legal papers were filed because the process was treated with extreme confidentiality.

"I understand, from the management side, why they feel that jeopardizing their business is their overriding concern. But in my view, at the end of the day, lawyers have an obligation to the courts," he said, "and the constitution that overrides our business interest."

Law firms, including Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Milbank, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, have cut deals with the Trump administration to collectively devote hundreds of millions of dollars worth of lawyers' time to causes that dovetail with the president's interests — like veterans' rights and fighting antisemitism.

Bloomberg reported the conservative group The Oversight Project wrote a letter to law firms asking them to donate up to $10 million of legal advice to it and other "center-right" groups to help satisfy their commitments.

The first firm to cut a deal with the Trump administration was Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison, whose chairman, Brad Karp, and senior lawyers are known for being political progressives. Karp defended the agreement with the Trump administration in an email sent to the firm late last month, saying that competing law firms immediately started trying to poach Paul Weiss clients and attorneys.

"The resolution we reached with the Administration will have no effect on our work and our shared culture and values," Karp wrote.

Paul Weiss's name is not on the brief.

• Ameenah Thobani is a 48-year-old clinical hypnotherapist in Vancouver.
• She started having perimenopausal symptoms in her early 40s.
• She wakes at 4 a.m. every morning and repeats positive affirmations about herself.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Ameenah Thobani. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Before my dad died last year, I remember him flicking through my wedding photos from 23 years prior and commenting on how young he looked — how he used to be so healthy and energetic. He had changed. He was no longer the young man in those photos.

But for years, he had been. It was only when he started to tell himself and verbalize how tired he was that he became tired and seemed to age more rapidly.

Perimenopause left me drained

Around the age of 43, I began experiencing perimenopausal symptoms, starting with sudden episodes of unexplained rage. Over time, these symptoms expanded to include irregular bleeding, severe fatigue, and debilitating migraines. There were days when simply getting out of bed felt impossible, deeply affecting my daily life and emotional health. Negative self-talk about my body and health further intensified my struggles during this period.

At 45, I thought about all the years before perimenopause that I had felt well nearly all the time. I didn't have any health issues, was on no medication, and felt good most of the time. But even then, all I focused on was my weight. I spent my "good years" ungrateful for the body I'd had — only concerned with how I looked, thinking beauty was only to be found in being a certain size.

As I watched my dad regret taking all those younger years of his life for granted, I wanted to make sure I didn't do the same. I wanted to learn to appreciate the moment and how my body is currently rather than focusing on what I don't like about it.

I express my thankfulness to my body

In 2022, I started to retrain how I thought about my body. From my work, I know that you can retrain your brain, but it takes effort and time.

I now go to bed early every night and wake up at 4 a.m. to meditate, connecting to the source of all my energy. I intentionally acknowledge my body, express thankfulness for it, and remember I have to take care of it.

Next, I look in the mirror and brush my teeth with my left hand (my dominant hand is my right — using my left-hand makes my mind focus on what I'm saying to ingrain it into my thought pattern) while repeating affirmations.

"I am healthy, wealthy, and divine," I say. "Everything comes to me in perfect time. I shine bright like the sun. I am vibrating in abundance and health and wellness."

Instead of focusing on all that is going wrong with my body, I focus on its health and ability.

Another way I stay grateful is by imagining I am 90 years old and getting to wake up in my 48-year-old body again. It leaves me feeling grateful and bubbling with energy. After all, I've got another 40 years to live! I'm not going to spend my time worrying about my body — there's so much more to life!

As I became more appreciative of my body, I wanted to take care of it. I spoke with my doctor about the symptoms I was experiencing, and she gave me the option of HRT. I eventually decided to try it, and my symptoms alleviated.

Even in the middle of perimenopause, I am grateful for my body and all it is able to do, aware that one day, I'll reflect on my body at 48 with joy.

The Office of the US Trade Representative shared the math responsible for President Donald Trump's tariffs, which range from 10% to 50%.

• A string of US executives has left TikTok in the past year.
• The departures are creating a management vacuum that Chinese leaders are filling, insiders told BI.
• TikTok is under political pressure to separate its US business from its China-based owner ByteDance.

The Trump administration is racing to curb TikTok's ties to China. But inside the company, a string of recent US executive departures and team restructurings has given Chinese leaders a greater grip on its American business, company insiders told Business Insider.

This month, US-based sales and marketing exec Blake Chandlee, who served as the face of TikTok at key industry events like Cannes and Advertising Week, stepped down. Will Liu, known as Liu Xiaobing in China, is taking over management of his global business solutions team. Liu, a Singapore-based staffer who reports to ByteDance China chairman Zhang Lidong, works on monetization products for the company's Chinese apps and TikTok.

The sales team shakeup is one example of a broader shift in power across several company departments.

TikTok made a big push to hire top talent in the US as it looked to launch new businesses like e-commerce in the country. But over the past year, at least seven key US-based executives, including Chandlee, have left their roles across various business lines. Some have been replaced by Chinese leaders. There's a sense among some of TikTok's roughly 7,000 US staffers that ByteDance executives who are either based in China or have come to the US from China are tightening control. Business Insider spoke to nine current and seven former staffers who have worked at the company in the past year.

"They have been consolidating under Chinese leadership," a TikTok employee who works on its e-commerce business told BI. "Before we had a senior manager in the US, and now the person is outside the US."

TikTok and ByteDance did not respond to requests for comment from BI.

The leadership balance may change again if TikTok finds a new owner outside ByteDance, as required by a divestment law. The Trump administration is working on a potential deal, and the president wrote on Friday that he was giving the company another 75 days to find a solution. Some employees are eager for a switch that would put new US executives in charge.

"I really hope this happens," a staffer who works in operations said of a prospective sale. "I hope it can be new leadership if they can really get bought by Oracle or someone else."

A slow drip of exits

While staff at TikTok's parent company ByteDance have had the final say over its product for years, and US leaders like North America global business solutions head Khartoon Weiss remain, the 16 insiders felt that the recent departures of other top US managers expanded control of Chinese leaders.

TikTok's e-commerce team, which runs its Shop product under the leadership of China-based ByteDance executive Bob Kang, has lost several US leaders over the last year and a half, according to nine of the insiders.

Since late 2023, US executives that have exited include Sandie Hawkins, TikTok's former GM of US e-commerce; Marni Levine, one of Hawkins' two replacements, who oversaw TikTok Shop's US operations; and Mary Hubbard, the company's former head of governance and experience in the Americas for Shop.

Executives with experience working on TikTok's Chinese sister app are filling the void, including Mu Qing, a former Douyin e-commerce VP; Sheng Zhou, the company's SVP of global e-commerce; and product VP Xu Luran.

TikTok recruited heavily from Amazon and other big e-commerce players when it began testing Shop in the US a couple of years ago, bringing local knowledge into the business, insiders said. But in the past year, as US executives have left, leadership has shifted from building a localized shopping product to instead trying to imitate Douyin, a staffer who works on TikTok Shop told BI.

Chinese leadership is also cracking down on its US team this year after they felt the country underperformed in 2024, as BI previously reported.

Other US teams within TikTok have similarly seen American leaders swapped out for ByteDance staffers from China.

There have been examples of these power shifts as early as 2022. Vanessa Campos, a former TikTok recruiter focused on early career hires who left the company this year, wrote in an April blog post that her US manager was replaced by a global leader from China in late 2022 who began "tightening their grip on hiring priorities." Chinese leadership led the early careers team from that point forward, Campos told BI.

Rebecca Sawyer, TikTok's US advertising lead for small and midsize businesses, was replaced by ByteDance executive Qing Lan in late 2023. Qing previously worked on the Chinese version of TikTok, Douyin.

The e-commerce staffer said Chinese leadership's control of the business "hyper-accelerated" in the second half of 2024.

Globally, at least eight executives have left TikTok in 2025, The Information earlier reported, citing departures like the music exec Ole Obermann and North America ads leader Sameer Singh.

As more Chinese managers take charge, US staffers feel left out of the loop

ByteDance is still very much a Chinese tech company at its core. Decisions about its global products are often made in China, where it has offices in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hangzhou. US TikTok employees previously told BI that they refer to its Beijing office as "HQ."

As it's expanded into other parts of the world, ByteDance has brought hundreds of employees over from China into its new offices via H-1B or L-1 visas, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services records and another company employee with knowledge of its visa strategy.

About 670 of the roughly 1,100 approved US H-1B visa hires for TikTok and ByteDance workers were from China during fiscal year 2023, the most recent period BI was able to obtain data via a Freedom of Information Act request. In fiscal year 2022, the company received 445 H-1B approvals for Chinese nationals, per USCIS data shared with US Sen. Tom Cotton.

"A lot of leaders are Chinese nationals from mainland China," the employee with knowledge of its visa strategy said.

But the company also grew TikTok globally by leaning into the expertise of local hires. Business lines like recruiting, the creator outreach team, and its sales staff that interface with US marketers have generally operated with less oversight from China, four of the current and former staffers said. Staff members in some of those divisions have not had to take late calls with Chinese colleagues to accommodate time zone differences, for example. That independence from China has drifted away in the past year, the insiders told BI.

In 2024, TikTok's US creator team was asked to align its goals with a product team mostly based in China, a former staffer who worked on the creator team told BI.

"While we weren't actually reporting into them, it was almost like a dotted line," the ex-employee said. "If they said jump, the creator team had to jump."

US employees reporting to managers based in China told BI they sometimes feel excluded from the team, either because they don't speak or read Mandarin Chinese or because they work in a different time zone and are unable to join certain calls.

A trust and safety team member who does not speak Mandarin said it was challenging to try to work with Chinese colleagues who, they felt, often made little effort to accommodate their US teammates.

The staffer said they'd been provided with some internal documents translated from Mandarin that have been hard to follow.

"I'm always two days behind," they said.

Another staffer on the engineering team estimated their China-based manager had directly spoken to them for less than 30 minutes over the last six months.

The employee said it was challenging to work with translated documents and group chats in the company's internal messaging platform Lark that were originally written in Mandarin.

"The meetings conducted are in Chinese as well, so a lot of my American colleagues can't understand the context," this person said.

A former product staffer said they felt like it was harder to get their ideas heard after switching from a US-based manager to one based in China.

"I felt like they didn't really listen to the US opinion," the former employee said of their new manager. "They would say things like 'Just follow what the Chinese product manager said.'"

A TikTok sale in the US could shake up the company — if it actually shifts who is in charge

The power structure for TikTok's US business may shift in the coming weeks if new owners take over operations.

The company could reach a deal to sell TikTok's US assets in order to comply with the law requiring ByteDance to divest from its US app.

ByteDance said it's talking to the US government about a potential solution, but key matters need to be resolved, and an agreement would be subject to approval under Chinese law.

As staffers await a political resolution, morale at the company is low among some who are experiencing burnout and dealing with the aftermath of a recent review cycle that led to performance-improvement plans and staff exits, company insiders previously told BI.

"We essentially haven't had a voice for a very long time," the second e-commerce worker said. "They say they want you to be candid and clear, but really they want you to fall in line and follow the Chinese and rebuild Douyin."

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at [email protected] or Signal at @danwhateley.94. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

Ashley Rodriguez and Shubhangi Goel contributed reporting.

• Amazon faces uncertainty as tariffs disrupt forecasting and supply chain operations.
• Amazon's suppliers and sellers say there has been very little guidance.
• Amazon's stock was among the hardest hit on Thursday following Trump's tariff announcement.

The tariff mayhem is throwing Amazon into uncertain territory.

Forecasting, for example, has become nearly impossible for some teams. One of Amazon's largest supply chain units recently warned about the challenges of making its second-quarter projections due to tariffs, according to an internal email obtained by Business Insider.

The "volatility and uncertainty" from the new round of tariffs were simply too high to derive any meaningful numbers, the email said.

Amazon employees, alongside suppliers and sellers, are scrambling for answers as President Donald Trump's whipsaw trade policy roils the country's largest e-commerce retailer. On Thursday, Amazon was among the hardest-hit stocks when roughly $2.5 trillion was wiped out of the S&P500 Index over Trump's aggressive tariff plan.

Amazon has given little guidance or financial flexibility so far, according to multiple employees, suppliers, and sellers, who mostly spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press. Tension is intensifying as concerns of a prolonged trade war and potential recession loom.

Amazon's spokesperson didn't respond to a request for comment.

'Large risk'

The same email from Amazon's supply chain team said that the near-term impact of tariffs will ultimately be captured and reflected in a later forecast. But the exposure to tariffs and a global trade war is "a large risk" that can set back Amazon's retail business going forward, it added.

Some Amazon employees have been in direct contact with its suppliers, commonly known as first-party vendors. These companies sell their products wholesale to Amazon, which then resells them to shoppers.

These vendors said Amazon isn't willing to pay more for their products, even if the tariffs would increase the suppliers' costs. According to a March email seen by BI, an Amazon employee encourages vendors to seek further cost savings from their own manufacturers or through government subsidies.

"We understand the challenges posed by the current economic and trade environment," the email said. "However, we believe there are alternatives to direct cost increases that haven't been fully explored."

Some vendors told BI that Amazon also seeks "margin agreements" that guarantee the same margin after a vendor increases its prices. That way, Amazon would maintain its profit margins from its suppliers, even if it buys the products at a higher price.

In some cases, Amazon is pausing shipment orders from vendors to monitor the market. One shipping company recently told a vendor that "as per Amazon's request," it was holding the pick-up schedule of inventory to "mitigate the impact" of tariffs, according to an email seen by BI.

Alan Adams, president of Navazon, a vendor software company, told BI that tariff discussions with Amazon employees have been ongoing for months. He said both Amazon and the suppliers are pursuing ways to adapt to the new market conditions, but the constant policy changes make finding a long-term solution difficult.

"We are all in a wait-and-see mode with a tremendous amount of uncertainty across different categories," Adams said.

Raising prices

Trump imposed sweeping tariff increases on most countries this week. The changes are expected to increase prices across a variety of goods.

Truist Securities' Youssef Squali said the tariffs will likely have an adverse effect on e-commerce companies, including Amazon. Import costs will likely eat into their margins, though it will still take time to fully measure their impact on each individual company, he wrote in a note Friday. Amazon's stock is down roughly 10% from Wednesday.

Third-party merchants who sell on Amazon told BI they will likely have to raise their prices due to the tariffs.

Charles Chakkalo, founder of JoeyzShopping, who sells home and kitchen items, said he anticipates over 50% tariffs on his products. To counter, he will have to raise prices, while leveraging his unit volume to lower manufacturing costs.

Oscar Babarin, managing director of marketing agency Hawke Media, said a number of his clients are feeling the impact deeply. Some of them are scaling back their business, while others are more aggressively pursuing market share, he said.

However, some sellers, are excited about the elimination of the de minimis exemption that allowed tax-free shipments of Chinese imports valued at less than $800, according to Oliver Scutt, board member of Merchant AI. Those sellers expect less competition from Temu and Shein following the change, he said.

Still, most sellers and vendors said they feel helpless against the complexity of trade policies. On Thursday, as the market plunged, one supplier emailed an Amazon manager to ask for additional guidance, only to receive very little support.

"Rest assured, we are looking into it," the Amazon manager said.

Do you work at Amazon? Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at [email protected] or Signal, Telegram, or WhatsApp at 650-942-3061. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

• I traveled in style in a premium train car aboard Madaraka Express between Voi and Nairobi in Kenya.
• My ticket cost about $66, and the ride made me feel like I was in a first-class plane cabin.
• The route goes through multiple national parks, and I was able to spot elephants from my seat.

On a recent trip to Kenya, I learned about the new premium-class train service on the Madaraka Express.

It connects the tourist-favored coastal city of Mombasa and the cosmopolitan Kenya capital Nairobi. The train travels through numerous national parks, game reserves, and wildlife conservancies.

Essentially, it makes it possible to go on an extended safari throughout Kenya without renting a car or arranging drivers.

So, I booked a ticket and an upgrade. Here's what it was like to ride premium class on Kenya's Madaraka Express.

My one-way premium ticket only cost about $66.

I took the Madaraka Express to Nairobi after spending four days at the nearby Lions Bluff Lodge near Voi, a town on the edge of the Taru Desert

The cost to go one way on the full route from Mombasa to Nairobi in the premium class is about $93. However, my trip from Voi to Nairobi was only $65.50 and I could bring my large backpack and overstuffed duffel for no extra charge.

That's less than a one-way economy flight on Kenya Airways between Mombasa and Nairobi, which usually costs around $71 each way (not including a checked bag).

I took a morning train from Voi Station, near Mombasa.

Voi Station is one of the largest stations on the line.

The station had a large, crowded waiting area, as well as a small lounge for premium passengers (which I wasn't allowed to photograph) with padded chairs and basic snacks.

I arrived about 30 minutes before my train left, giving myself plenty of time to go through the quick security check and browse the two small souvenir shops over the station.

Boarding was easy, but I had to hustle to find the right car.

Boarding the train felt straightforward, although I had to quickly make my way to the front car — where the premium class is — before it left.

Once aboard, staff checked my ticket, escorted me to my seat, and helped me store my luggage in the back of the car.

My premium seat felt spacious and offered lots of privacy.

The premium seating looked like what I'd find in business or first class on an international flight.

There's just one large seat on each side of the train, staggered so when you step into the aisle, you're not directly next to another person.

Each seat looked extra wide and could transform into a lie-flat bed, though I didn't try to sleep during my daytime journey. However, I saw several passengers from Mombasa just waking up when I boarded, and they looked pretty comfortable.

My seat was loaded with amenities.

My premium seat came with a large side table with USB ports and a standard (Kenyan) plug, an adjustable reading light, a small storage compartment, a screen with seat controls, and a footrest.

There was also a large TV screen and plenty of space in the overhead bin for my large backpack and overstuffed duffel.

I recommend choosing a seat on the left side of the train if you're on this route.

Every seat was tilted slightly to the left, which left my back a little more exposed to the aisle. The angled seating felt odd at first.

However, once the train started moving, the design made more sense. Passengers on the left side got a direct, unobstructed view of the landscape without needing to turn their heads.

Although the right side of the train also had great views, those passengers had to twist a bit more to take in the scenery.

The sleeping situation felt as nice as a first-class flight.

I've flown first class on international flights before, and this train felt just as nice as those trips.

The lie-flat seat controls worked well, and when combined with the footrest extension, my entire setup became a continuous sleeping surface.

At 5 feet, 7 inches, I could fully stretch out — but taller passengers might need to bend their legs slightly.

The meal was so-so, but it still added to the experience.

Breakfast service began soon after I boarded. Train attendants came around to take my order from three meal options: Indian, Kenyan, or Western.

I chose scrambled eggs with tomatoes and yogurt. Although I wouldn't say the meal was the highlight of my ride, it helped the trip feel more elegant — especially as I could spot elephants while sipping a hot coffee.

The Madaraka Express travels through some of Africa's most iconic sites.

The Madaraka Express passes between Tsavo East and Tsavo West national parks.

From the left side of the train, I got a clear view of the Tsavo Railway Bridge — the infamous site of the 1898 attacks in which lions killed many railway workers. It later inspired the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness." As a history buff, I appreciated getting to see the bridge.

A highlight was also traveling above Nairobi National Park, about 4 miles from the city center. It's one of the few places travelers can do a full big-game safari within a major urban area.

The last few miles of the Standard Gauge Railway leading into Nairobi are elevated above the park, allowing wildlife to move freely beneath it.

Trains slow down over this stretch to reduce disturbances to wildlife and give passengers a chance to spot elephants, giraffes, and even rhinos from their seats.

My train ride felt like an international first-class flight for a fraction of the price.

My train ride was only about four hours, although my setup was so good I wish it was longer.

I spent the ride working on WiFi (which was intermittent), watching the landscapes go by, and chatting with other tourists in the dining car.

If I'd had more time on board, I would've used the other features of the seat to really stretch out and spent more time watching for wildlife outside my window.

• Chewing gum releases hundreds to thousands of microplastics into your mouth, a new study suggests.
• Chewing gum's base ingredient is synthetic rubber, which is a type of plastic.
• A stick of gum is a relatively small source of microplastics, but a chewing habit could add up.

Microplastics are flowing out of gum as you chew it, preliminary results of a new study suggest.

The burst of flavor in the first few minutes of chewing a stick of gum comes from the hundreds to thousands of microplastics the gum is releasing into your saliva, said the study's lead author, Sanjay Mohanty.

Indeed, the base ingredient of chewing gum — the part that makes it chewy — is synthetic rubber. That's plastic.

"That's something very few consumers know," Mohanty, an engineering professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Business Insider.

"You are eating a material that is made of plastic. At least 2% of that is plastic," he said, referring to a piece of gum.

To be sure, microplastics are everywhere. Countless products shed them in your home. They're in your dust, food, and drinking water. They're in soil and oceans all over the world — from the Mariana Trench to the top of Mount Everest. They've been found in human blood, poop, hearts, testicles, placentas, and breast milk.

An especially offputting study recently found human brains potentially contained enough microplastics to make a spoon.

Mohanty said, "99% of things I see around me are plastic, so I should not be surprised to find plastic in everything, including my own body."

Research has found correlations between microplastics and inflammation, infertility, lung and colon cancers, and risk of heart attacks and stroke. However, it's unclear if microplastics caused or contributed to those conditions.

"My goal is just to inform what we could do differently," Mohanty said.

Chewing less gum, it seems, is one thing we can do.

Mohanty presented these findings, which have not undergone peer review through a scientific journal, at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society last week.

"Chewing gum was not something on my radar," Britta Baechler, the director of ocean plastics research at the nonprofit Ocean Conservancy, who recently co-authored a study on microplastics in food, told BI.

"I think scientists are getting really creative with trying to get a more complete picture of our exposure to microplastics," she added.

Natural gum released plastic, too

Mohanty and the graduate students in his lab chose five brands of synthetic gum and gave seven pieces of each brand to a single person, who chewed each piece for up to 20 minutes, rinsing with clean water in between pieces to clear out residual plastic.

Knowing the plastic base of gum, Mohanty wasn't surprised when he measured hundreds to thousands of tiny plastic polymers swimming in the person's saliva as they chewed each piece.

He was surprised, however, when they ran the same tests with five brands of natural gums, which are made from plant materials like chicle instead of a rubber base.

Natural gums resulted in about the same quantity of microplastics in the chewer's saliva.

They even found the same plastic polymers in both types of gum: polyolefins, polyethylene terephthalates, polyacrylamide, and polystyrene. Those types of plastics are also used in food wraps, shopping bags, car parts, egg cartons, and packing peanuts.

Because of the measuring techniques they used, this experiment was only able to detect plastic particles 20 micrometers wide or larger. That's about one-fifth the width of a human hair. It's likely that gum also releases plastic of even smaller size — nanoplastics — Mohanty said.

Should you chew gum?

There's good news — sort of.

The researchers found the most microplastics within the first two minutes of chewing gum. After eight minutes, 94% of the plastic particles they detected had already been released.

A simple way to cut back on plastic is to chew your gum for longer instead of popping a new piece, Lisa Lowe, a graduate student who ran this study with Mohanty, said in a press release.

In the grand scheme of your daily microplastic ingestion, a stick of gum probably isn't much. You ingest billions more microplastics from a cup of tea made with a plastic-containing teabag (which is more common than you might think), a 2019 study found.

Still, a gum-chewing habit could add up. Based on their findings, the researchers calculated that someone who chews 160 to 180 small sticks of gum per year would ingest about 30,000 microplastic particles annually.

Mohanty said his wife stopped chewing gum altogether after hearing their results.

"Why eat chewing gum and directly ingest plastics? Chewing gum is non-essential," Mohanty said.

If you do chew, Mohanty added, throw your gum in the garbage instead of leaving chewed-up plastic in the street.

• President Donald Trump's auto tariffs are designed to protect the US car manufacturing industry.
• Sen. Ted Cruz, a tariff skeptic, is warning that the price of American cars will likely go up too.
• He said the price of an average car from a Big 3 automaker could increase by $4,500 in June.

Sen. Ted Cruz says that you're likely to end up paying thousands of dollars more for a new car as a result of Trump's auto tariffs — even if you buy American.

"It's not just foreign cars that will go up," the Texas Republican said on an episode of his "Verdict" podcast released on Friday. "There are weird impacts, given how the American supply chain works."

Cruz said a representative from one of the "Big 3" US auto manufacturers — which include General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis — had told him the previous night that the average cost of one of their cars would increase by $4,500 beginning in June, when newly manufactured cars begin hitting dealerships.

Trump's auto tariffs include not just a 25% tariff on imported cars, but on imported car parts. Many domestic manufacturers rely on parts from overseas.

The chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, Cruz has emerged as an outspoken critic of Trump's trade plans.

"I am not a fan of tariffs. Tariffs are a tax on the American people," Cruz told BI on Thursday.

When asked whether he had confidence in the Trump administration's approach, the Texas senator replied: "We will see whether the result is lower tariffs from our trading partners, or higher tariffs from our trading partners."

• "Pulse" and "The Bondsman" are among the new shows premiering on streamers this week.
• The slow-burn third season of "The White Lotus" ends this weekend.
• "One of Them Days," a buddy cop movie starring Keke Palmer and SZA, is now on Netflix.

Coming-of-age tales and love stories are plentiful on streamers this weekend.

The iconic teen movie "The Breakfast Club" is new to Netflix, while the 2022 film "Aftersun," which examines the complexities of fatherhood, hits Max this week.

For heart-racing entertainment, watch the new medical procedural "Pulse" or the limited series "Dying for Sex." For heart-pounding antics, watch the finale of the Thailand-set third season of "The White Lotus."

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

See Paul Mescal's Oscar-nominated performance as a father struggling with parenthood in "Aftersun."

Paul Mescal followed up his Emmy-nominated role as Connell Waldron in Hulu's "Normal People" with another emotionally raw performance that put him in Oscars contention in writer-director Charlotte Wells' 2022 movie "Aftersun."

The indie film stars Mescal as Calum Patterson, a father trying to mask his own insecurities and anxieties about fatherhood while on holiday in Turkey with his 11-year-old daughter, Sophie (Frankie Corio).

Streaming on: Max

John Hughes captures the highs and lows of adolescence in the 1985 coming-of-age classic "The Breakfast Club"

The quintessential high school movie stars Judd Nelson, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald, and Anthony Michael Hall as a ragtag group of students who are stuck together during Saturday detention and forced to write a thousand-word essay on who they think they are.

As the group learns more about each other over the course of the day, they're revealed to be more complex than the high school stereotypes they represent.

Streaming on: Netflix

For a different kind of nostalgia, check out "Y2K."

The 2024 movie, written and directed by "Saturday Night Live" alum Kyle Mooney, centers on best friends Eli (Jaeden Martell) and Danny (Julian Dennison) who crash a New Year's Eve party in 1999 in the hopes that Eli can secure a midnight kiss with his crush, Laura (Rachel Zegler).

It almost seems like the premise of a teen rom-com or coming-of-age flick — until the clock strikes midnight and a Y2K glitch occurs, setting off an apocalypse in which technology turns against the teens and they're forced to fight for their lives.

Streaming on: Max

Keke Palmer and SZA make a dynamic duo in the movie "One of Them Days."

After releasing in theaters in January and becoming a surprise box office win, "One of Them Days" is now available to watch on streaming.

The R-rated buddy comedy stars Keke Palmer and Grammy-winning singer SZA in her acting debut as broke best friends and roommates struggling to make $1,500 by any means necessary so they can pay their rent and avoid eviction.

Streaming on: Netflix

"Love on the Spectrum" is back for season three.

The heartwarming docuseries "Love on the Spectrum" returns for a third season, following the love lives of newcomers and returning stars on the autism spectrum.

Streaming on: Netflix

Netflix's new medical procedural "Pulse" is the streamer's answer to "Grey's Anatomy."

The steamy and stress-inducing series stars Willa Fitzgerald as Danny Simms, an ER doctor who gets promoted to chief resident at a Miami emergency room amid an illicit romance with a colleague, an increasingly dangerous hurricane, and a lockdown at the hospital.

Streaming on: Netflix

In "Dying for Sex," Michelle Williams plays a woman whose perspective on her love life changes after a cancer diagnosis.

The eight-episode FX series is based on the real-life story of Molly Kochan, a woman who was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, left her husband of 15 years, and documented her quest to explore her sexual desires in a podcast called "Dying for Sex."

Michelle Williams portrays Molly and Jenny Slate costars as Nikki Boyer, her best friend.

Streaming on: Hulu

"The White Lotus" fans will finally learn who's in the body bag when the season three finale airs this weekend.

The slow-burn third season of Mike White's HBO anthology series "The White Lotus" wraps up on Sunday.

Who fires the gun that sends the resort staff and guests into chaos? Who drinks a smoothie that may or may not be made from a deadly island fruit? And, perhaps most importantly, whose body ends up in the water? Fans will have to tune in on Sunday night for all these answers.

Streaming on: Max

Kevin Bacon stars as a resurrected bounty hunter in "The Bondsman."

Kevin Bacon adds another credit to his lengthy acting career with "The Bondsman," a gory series set in motion by bounty hunter Hub Halloran (Bacon) being brought back to life by the devil and tasked with hunting demons.

Streaming on: Prime Video

For a true crime fix, watch "Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer."

The three-part documentary re-examines the lengthy search for the Long Island Serial Killer who targeted women, primarily sex workers, and unpacks the key evidence that led law enforcement to arrest Rex Heuermann in connection to the Gilgo Beach killings in 2023.

Heuermann was charged with the murders of seven women and pleaded not guilty to all charges. The case is ongoing.

Streaming on: Netflix

• I made a baked potato in the microwave, air fryer, and oven to test the different cooking methods.
• The microwave ended up being the least reliable method, and the oven results were just OK.
• Overall, making a baked potato in an air fryer was the winning method.

A perfectly cooked baked potato is a satisfying side or even main course, depending on how you dress it up.

Ideally, you want a fluffy middle and a nicely seasoned, crispy outer skin. But there are a lot of cooking methods out there that won't yield these results.

In an effort to find the best way to cook a baked potato, I tried three different methods using a microwave, air fryer, and oven. For each one, I used a cleaned russet potato, oil, and simple seasonings.

First, I used a quick microwave method to cook my potato

Using the microwave took almost zero effort.

The only downside was having to poke the uncooked potato with a fork, which wasn't super easy and slowed me down a bit.

I also didn't like worrying about if I pricked it enough times to ensure it wouldn't pop in the microwave. 

After poking the potato about 10 times, I put it in the microwave on high for five minutes, turned it over, and cooked it for another five.

The potato came out dry and almost chalky

I ended up overcooking the potato, which led to a dry, unappealing final product.

Because every microwave has different settings and heat strengths, it was hard to find the right instructions to make an evenly cooked baked potato. 

For my second variation, I cooked the potato in an air fryer

I liked using the air fryer because I didn't have to poke my potato a bunch of times for airflow.

All I did was spray it with cooking oil, season it with garlic salt, and pop it in the air fryer at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.

It came out crispy on the outside and perfectly fluffy on the inside

I checked it halfway to make sure it wasn't burning and used tongs to rotate the potato for an even fry.

After 45 minutes, the skin was crispy and the potato was done.

When I cut it open, I was shocked at how evenly cooked it was. The potato was easy to fluff, and the skin had a great texture and flavor.

The last method I tested out involved baking the potato in the oven

I used a fork to poke 12 holes all over the potato so moisture could escape while it cooked.

Poking the fork in and out of the spud was just as labor-intensive as it was with the microwave method, mainly because the fork kept getting stuck.

Before I placed it in the oven, I coated the potato in oil and salt. Then I cooked it right on the oven rack for an hour at 350 F. 

The potato turned out OK, but it didn't beat the air-fryer variety

After an hour in the oven, the potato was done.

It came out relatively fluffy on the inside, but it wasn't as evenly cooked as the air-fryer method.

Out of the 3 appliances I tried, the air fryer was my favorite

The air-fried potato came out perfectly.

It was evenly cooked — fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside — which gave the potato a great shape. The crispness of the skin also made it ideal for stuffing with hearty toppings.

Click to check out the other appliances we've put head-to-head so far.

• I spent four days in Athens, Greece, while traveling around Europe. 
• Stumbling upon the National Garden was such a treat, and I loved learning about the Acropolis. 
• On the other hand, I'm not sure the Roman Agora or Hadrian's Library are worth a visit. 

In 2023, I traveled to Athens, Greece, for the first time since I was 18 months old. 

I spent four days exploring some of the city's amazing landmarks and sites. But even though I didn't pay for all of the attractions — because some are free for EU citizens 25 and under — there are a few I wouldn't spend time on again. 

If you're currently planning a trip, here's everything that was worth the time and money and the few things I'd skip on my next trip.

I was glad I happened upon Athens National Garden.

I happened upon the National Garden kind of by accident when I was looking for some green space to run in. It's completely free to visit and perfect for a walk, jog, or run.

The space is very peaceful and also has ponds with lots of turtles. I ended up going back a few days later to sit and read in the shade.

The Acropolis is definitely worth it, especially in the morning.

The Acropolis, which I'd consider the main tourist attraction in Athens, is a must-visit.

The citadel contains several ancient buildings, most notably the Parthenon. I was told to start waiting in line around 7:30 a.m. (it opens at 8), and it was well worth the time and effort.

It got busy — and hot — really quickly. I couldn't imagine going any later, and I ended up being able to take a nap afterward anyway. 

I wasn't too sure about Mount Lycabettus, but the views won me over.

One day, I planned to go to Mount Lycabettus (the highest point in Athens) so I could watch the sunset. I thought I'd allotted enough time, but everyone seemed to have the same idea since there was a huge line when I arrived.

Truthfully, I was a bit disappointed by the tram ride, and when I got to the top, I was overwhelmed by how many people there were. But the view made it worth it.

I ended up staying for dinner and had a delicious meal of Greek salad, moussaka, and white wine for about $16.

I'm so glad I paid to run along the track at Panathenaic Stadium.

The stadium is cool on its own — it dates back to 600 BC and is the only marble stadium in the world.

I went early in the morning, during the designated running hours of 7:30 to 9 a.m., and got to run around the track.

It's only about $10 to enter (I paid the student price of $5), and it was one of my favorite things I did on my trip to Greece.

Kerameikos Archaeological Site is one of the coolest cemeteries I've ever seen.

I had pretty low expectations going in, as I've seen my fair share of cemeteries, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one.

The tombstones were pillar-shaped, and there were great views of the Parthenon from this area.

If you're doing the Acropolis, make sure to swing through Plaka afterward.

It's worth walking around the neighborhood surrounding the Acropolis.

There are great taverns with traditional Greek food and places to buy all the souvenirs your heart desires. I really enjoyed wandering around and exploring some of the picturesque side streets.

Even after seeing the real deal, I got a lot out of the Acropolis Museum.

I'm not usually a big museum person, but the Acropolis Museum is definitely worth a visit.

I went after I'd already seen the landmark, and it gave me good context. It houses many artifacts that were excavated from the site.

Areopagus Hill provided stunning views for free.

Behind the Acropolis is a prominent rock outcropping. It can be a slippery and steep walk up, but the views of the Acropolis and the surrounding area are breathtaking.

Entrance to the hill and its surrounding park is also completely free.

I could feel history at the Ancient Agora of Athens.

The Athenian Agora is one of the best-known examples of a traditional Greek meeting place. It had great views of the Acropolis and was beautifully adorned with trees and other ruins.

I was especially impressed by how well the Temple of Hephaestus was preserved. There's also a museum, and the second floor has a nice balcony where you can look out over the agora

I'm glad I swung by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Many of the attractions in Athens date back centuries, but the tomb is much more contemporary.

Dedicated to Greek soldiers killed in war, the tomb itself is visually quite simple. But there are guards that stand in traditional garb, which reminded me of Buckingham Palace.

It's also pretty central — right next to the National Garden — so I didn't have to go out of the way to see it.

Next time, I'd skip Monastiraki Flea Market and shop in Plaka instead.

I was excited to go to a flea market but was quite disappointed to find that this one didn't sell anything much different than the rows of stores in Plaka.

I will say that the square near the market had good views of the Parthenon, but I was able to see similar angles from other places in the city. 

After seeing the Athenian Agora, I'd skip the Roman Agora on future trips.

In contrast to the Athenian Agora, the Roman version wasn't much to write home about.

The gate at the front is kind of cool, but I think could just look from the outside instead of spending time going in. 

Hadrian's Library didn't wow me.

I didn't find the "library" all that special. The ruin isn't really a building, just pillars.

And like the Roman Agora, you could easily just peek through the gates to get a good sense of the place.

I wanted to love the Temple of Zeus, but I was a little underwhelmed.

I was excited to see a temple devoted to the King of the Gods, but it was kind of disappointing.

To be fair, the temple was under construction when I went — but I felt that there wasn't a ton to look at, regardless.

The Lyceum of Aristotle isn't all that exciting, and it's far from everything else.

The original Lyceum of Aristotle was destroyed. All that's left of it is a few ruins that were discovered about 30 years ago.

It's relatively new since it wasn't opened to the public until 2009, but I felt like it wasn't worth the walk since it was far from most of the other landmarks.

This story was originally published on November 12, 2023, and most recently updated on April 7, 2025.