Trump's new proposal includes tax cuts, student loan reforms, and stricter rules for Medicaid and SNAP. Here's what the four biggest changes could mean for you.

• The Hamptons have long been a popular summer destination for bankers and traders.
• We spoke to Wall Street insiders and others about the top hot spots for summer 2025.
• Here are the 7 places they said you'll find finance industry insiders this summer.

Whether by car, helicopter, the LIRR, or the infamous Jitney bus, if it's a Friday afternoon between Memorial and Labor Day, Wall Street is going "out east."

The Hamptons have been a haven for the ultrawealthy since the Astors and Vanderbilts set up estates there more than a century ago, but the transition from fishing and whaling towns to playground for urban professionals really started to take off in the freewheeling 1980s, during Wall Street's boom years.

Since then, the secret has been out, and over the last decade, social media and Bravo's "Summer House" have introduced a whole new generation to these once-sleepy seaside towns of Long Island.

Walker Ward, who previously sold data and research to hedge funds and other large investors, told Business Insider that the Hamptons remain a recreation hub for stressed-out Wall Streeters looking to escape the heat and humidity of the city.

"There's so much to do there," Ward said, who has summered there for the better part of the last decade. "Why wouldn't you want to go out there if you could afford it?"

Whether you're looking to relax or rage, there's something for everyone — as long as you have deep pockets. And, as with any destination for the wealthy, these resort towns offer ample opportunity to peacock.

"The Hamptons, especially with social media, have become a runway show for people to go out and flaunt what they have, how much money they make, and what kind of car they're driving," said Ward, who now parodies Wall Street on social media as WalkSauce42.

In preparation for the July 4 holiday, we spoke to current and former financial industry professionals, as well as some Hamptons locals and business proprietors, about this year's hottest hangouts. Some of the industry insiders we spoke to asked to remain anonymous to protect their jobs because speaking to the press is either forbidden or frowned upon.

Here are 7 top Hamptons hangouts for bankers, traders, and more.

Surf Lodge

This was the most-mentioned spot, which is why we're putting it first. It's a quaint seaside hotel and restaurant, as well as a sceney place to get bottle service on the beach and hear live music and top DJs in Montauk. But FYI, tickets for entry on July 4th are pretty much sold out. A table on the beach for 10 for the next day is listed as $7,500.

A nearly $100 chicken tender tower went viral a few summers ago, thanks in part to TikTok and Instagram posts by Ward.

"The tendie towers baby, that's the intern's favorite, and the holy grail," Ward joked to BI. "Everyone knows Surf Lodge."

Someone who previously worked at a large investment bank confirmed it's popular with the Wall Street crowd.

"It's got a DJ, a deck. You pay thousands for a table," he said.

Le Bilboquet Sag Harbor

The Sag Harbor outpost of this Upper East Side French restaurant opened in 2017, and has since built a reputation for being "one of the satellite offices for the elite," said Ward, who currently summers in Amagansett, between East Hampton and Montauk.

The restaurant bans shorts and flip-flops and is perched alongside a marina deep enough to allow large yachts to dock.

"Everyone loves to sit there and drink wine and look at the sterns of all these massive yachts," Ward said.

The Wall Street recruiter described it as "another see and be seen spot."

The menu offers a seafood tower complete with a dozen oysters, king crab, langoustine, shrimp, a half lobster, snow crab and shrimp for $250, a 100-gram tin of Caviar Ossetra Imperial for $490, and their signature Le Poulet Cajun, a $39 Cajun-spice-rubbed chicken with a beurre-blanc sauce, salad, and fries.

Stephen Talkhouse

Stephen Talkhouse, founded in 1987, is also known for its live music scene. It's become so popular with vacationers that one Hamptons local complained to BI of summer lines that "wrapped around the village." Ward agreed, saying you have to know the staff in order to "Trojan Horse" your way in.

Located in Amagansett, between Montauk and East Hampton, its website describes it as "a legendary music scene and casual neighborhood bar in one. The music calendar for the July Fourth weekend includes "Secret Sellebrity Society Band" and alt-rockers "Kids That Fly."

Mary Lou's

The Palm Beach outpost of Mary Lou's is well attended by local financiers and the socially or politically connected. It's also attracted popular musical acts from The Chainsmokers to Mojave Grey.

Mary Lou's Montauk branch, which opened earlier this year, is aiming to provide the same ambiance and flair. Cofounder Alex Melilla told BI that the crowd so far has been "a more mature crowd, affluent crowd, influencers, tastemakers, as well as a great local scene." The

The Wall Street set may be especially drawn to the special menu set to be curated by the team behind Marea, the luxurious seafood restaurant just a stone's throw from Deutsche Bank Center in midtown, which Mary Lou's will offer during a weekend later this month.

Duryea's Montauk

Duryea's is a seafood restaurant on the water in Montauk known for its $97 lobster cobb salad.

Duryea's was purchased by Apollo CEO Marc Rowan in 2014, and it quickly turned from a classic lobster shack into one of the sceniest restaurants on the East Coast. Hampton's legend and Food Network star Ina Garten has said it is one of her favorite restaurants.

"In my 20's that was the only place we would go on summer weekends there because it was cheap and easy," one Wall Street recruiter said. Not anymore. "People go to Duryea's on their yachts and tender to shore."

Gurney's Montauk

Wall Streeters looking to decompress might turn to Gurney's Resort & Seawater Spa, a 146-room hotel and spa with multiple al fresco dining options along a lush stretch of beach in Montauk.

The Wall Street headhunter said it remains one of the most popular outposts for the financial crowd — and Lizabeth Zindel, the editor-in-chief of Hamptons Social Magazine, explained why: "It's absolutely beautiful," Zindel told BI. "There's a huge terrace as well, which overlooks the ocean from up above."

On the menu at the outdoor Firepit lounge are creative cocktail concoctions like the Chocolate Negroni; the "Afternoon Tea" featuring Earl Grey, bergamot, gin, and cream; and the "Improved Grasshopper" featuring mint and chocolate liqueurs. Each is $23.

The country clubs

As with any wealthy enclave, the Hamptons boasts numerous country clubs.

The Hampton's local described Southampton's Shinnecock, which is hosting next year's US Open, as the "fanciest golf place out here." Ward cited East Hampton's Maidstone Club as another place where "fancy people" from the Street spend their time "hobnobbing."

"Maidstone is the Arnie poster above the bed," he said, referring to a poster of Arnold Schwarzenegger as a pro bodybuilder above an aspiring muscleman's bed. "It's what you aspire to be."

• Family and supporters of Sean "Diddy" Combs praised his legal "dream team" after the jury verdict.
• The team was led by Marc Agnifilo, who is also representing Luigi Mangione.
• It was rounded out by a row of other formidable lawyers.

Sean "Diddy" Combs was mostly victorious in the mixed jury verdict at his criminal trial — with much thanks to his stacked legal team.

"Dream team! Dream team!" Combs' supporters and family chanted in the courtroom Wednesday after the jury acquitted him of racketeering and sex trafficking, the most severe charges.

They were up against a formidable government team. The US Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York is considered one of the most elite federal prosecutors' offices in America. And the team prosecuting Combs had Maurene Comey, one of the prosecutors who put Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell behind bars.

Combs, though, has an eye for star lawyers.

His previous defense team also won him an acquittal in 2001, when the Manhattan District Attorney's Office accused him of being involved in a nightclub shooting.

At that time, Combs' team was led by his longtime attorney Ben Brafman. For this year's trial, Brafman's protégé Marc Agnifilo was in the driver's seat.

Here's the "dream team" that defended Diddy:

Marc Agnifilo

The founding partner of Agnifilo Intrater LLP spent about two decades in the US Attorney's office in New Jersey before moving to private practice.

Before the Combs trial, he had a crushing jury verdict against his client, Keith Raniere, the founder of the NXIVM sex cult, who in 2020 was sentenced to 120 years in prison.

But Agnifilo has had high-profile victories, including representing former International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who had sexual assault charges against him dropped.

Together with his wife, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, Agnifilo is also representing Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

In one of the final hearings in the Combs case before the trial, Agnifilo raced to another federal courthouse across the street in lower Manhattan for a hearing in the Mangione case.

Teny Geragos

The 34-year-old Geragos, a partner at Agnifilo's firm, handled some of the trial's biggest moments, including the defense team's opening statement and multiple cross-examinations of important witnesses.

Before the trial, she vocally defended Combs on social media. And, years earlier, she represented Raniere along with Agnifilo.

Geragos has also represented Roger Ng, the ex-Goldman Sachs banker convicted in 2023 of siphoning billions of dollars from 1MDB, the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund.

Her father is celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, who represents Combs' mother and consulted with the trial defense team.

Alexandra Shapiro

A former clerk for former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Shapiro is well-known in the New York bar for her appeals and white collar litigation.

In Combs' case, Shapiro raised multiple legal issues during the trial that could form the basis for an appeal. She also took the lead in bail arguments, unsuccessfully trying to keep Combs out of jail ahead of the trial and between the verdict and his sentencing hearing.

Shapiro is representing Sam Bankman-Fried, Combs's onetime jailhouse roommate, in the appeal of his conviction and 25-year sentence, which remains pending.

She's also the author of the 2022 legal thriller "Presumed Guilty" and is an avid nature photographer.

Jason Driscoll

An associate at Shapiro's firm, Shapiro Arato Bach, Driscoll crafted legal arguments about the scope of what witnesses were permitted to testify about at the trial and which exhibits should have been permitted to go into evidence.

He's previously worked at the Big Law firm Paul Weiss and has clerked for two federal judges in Manhattan.

Anna Estevao

Estevao had one of the most difficult jobs in the trial, cross-examining Cassie Ventura, Combs' longtime partner, who prosecutors had designated as his primary victim and who was visibly pregnant while she was on the witness stand. (Ventura gave birth after her testimony, while the trial was ongoing.)

Estevao joined Combs' legal team while a partner at Sher Tremonte, a firm also representing him in many of the civil lawsuits against him and his companies. She joined the firm Harris Trzaskoma the same month the criminal trial began — a move that a source familiar with the matter said was in the works long before the trial.

Xavier Donaldson

An experienced New York City attorney, Donaldson also joined the Combs criminal case shortly before the trial began.

At the trial, Donaldson cross-examined Daniel Phillip, a male dancer who participated in freak offs with Ventura, and Deonte Nash, a friend of Ventura's.

Donaldson has also previously represented the "Chelsea bomber", Ahmed Rahimi.

Brian Steel

Fresh off a favorable plea deal for the rapper Young Thug in Atlanta, Steel joined Combs' legal team shortly before the trial.

He handled the cross-examination of one of Combs' assistants, as well as security officers at the InterContinental Hotel, where Combs beat Cassie Ventura in a hallway in a notorious incident caught on video.

Nicole Westmoreland

Another Atlanta-based lawyer involved in Young Thug's trial, Westmoreland officially joined the Combs legal team shortly before opening statements.

Westmoreland cross-examined Combs' accuser Dawn Richard and two friends of Ventura who corroborated some of her testimony.

• Sean "Diddy" Combs used to be one of the richest people in the music industry.
• His record label, Bad Boy Records, is just one source of his former empire.
• Musicians like Faith Evans, Janelle Monáe, and Machine Gun Kelly were once signed to the label.

Before Sean Combs, also known as Diddy, was sued by more than a dozen people, alleging sexual misconduct among other things, he was a powerful music tastemaker, creating his own record label.

Diddy founded Bad Boy Records in 1993 and went on to sign major musicians such as The Notorious BIG, Mase, and Faith Evans. It's impossible to think of '90s and '00s rap without also thinking of Bad Boy, which released 13 No. 1 albums from 1997 to 2022.

Over the years, Bad Boy and its founder gained a reputation for being difficult to work with, highlighted by multiple public instances of friction between artists and the label.

In a statement provided to Business Insider, a representative for Combs said, "It's easy to reduce a 30-year legacy to a few negative statements, but that doesn't capture the full story."

"Sean Combs and Bad Boy Records were more than just a label — they were a cultural movement that shaped music, launched careers, and produced iconic hits," they said. "Focusing only on grievances distorts the narrative. The label's contributions remain an essential part of music history."

Before Diddy was arrested in September 2024, he had begun the process of reverting the publishing rights of many of Bad Boy's most famous songs to their original artists, provided they signed agreements, as reported by Billboard.

On Wednesday, a Manhattan jury found Diddy not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering, but convicted him of two lesser charges: two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

"It's a great victory for Sean Combs. It's a great victory for the jury system," Diddy's lawyer Mark Agnifilo said, NBC reported.

Diddy, who remains in custody, is facing up to 20 years in prison, but experts say it's unlikely he'll serve for that long. His sentencing is scheduled for October. At this point, it's unclear what will happen to Diddy and his career.

Bad Boy is still in existence today and remains one source of Diddy's wealth. Here are 15 of the biggest acts that have released albums through Bad Boy since its inception.

The Notorious BIG

Biggie was one of the first artists signed to Bad Boy, and his two studio albums ("Ready to Die" in 1994 and "Life After Death," which was released 16 days after his death in 1997) were released through Bad Boy.

Publicly, the two appeared to be close friends, and Diddy released "I'll Be Missing You" with Biggie's wife, Faith Evans, in 1997.

However, their relationship had become strained. Rolling Stone reported the "Juicy" rapper was preparing to leave Bad Boy. He "was absolutely about to leave Puff" before he was shot, fellow rapper Babs Bunny told the publication.

In the decades since his death, Biggie's mother Violetta Wallace (before her death in February 2025), negotiated with Diddy to gain control of her son's music, per Variety. In February 2025, his estate partnered with Primary Wave Music to handle his music in the future.

Primary Wave did not respond to a request for comment.

Faith Evans

Evans, who was married to The Notorious BIG from 1994 until he died in 1997, was also signed to Bad Boy Records.

Her first three albums, 1995's "Faith," 1998's "Keep the Faith," and 2001's "Faithfully," were put out through Bad Boy. She then moved to Capitol Records.

"In my heart, I really wanted to try and leave Bad Boy after Big died. I mean, after I came back to any type of reality, any clear thinking. I just was so distraught," Evans told XXL in 2014.

Evans said she left Bad Boy because she felt Diddy and the label were paying more attention to other artists, but she emphasized that there was no bad blood.

Evans did not respond to a request for comment.

Mase

Mase released his first two albums, "Harlem World" and "Double Up" through Bad Boy, and was also known as Diddy's hype man through the '90s.

Their partnership collapsed after he released his third album, "Welcome Back," in 2004, also with Bad Boy.

Mase said he felt like his contract was too constricting, leading him to crash a Diddy interview on V103 in Atlanta and demand that Diddy sign paperwork allowing him to feature on other artists' songs.

Things simmered down until 2022, when Mase once again criticized Diddy's business practices in a now-deleted Instagram post.

"Your past business practices knowingly has continued purposely starved your artist and been extremely unfair to the very same artist that helped u obtain that Icon Award on the iconic Badboy label," he wrote.

Mase added that he had offered Diddy $2 million to buy his songs back and was refused. "This is not black excellence at all," he wrote.

Diddy responded during an interview on the syndicated iHeartRadio show "The Breakfast Club" and said that Mase actually owed him $3 million after failing to deliver an album.

In 2023, on another "Breakfast Club" appearance, Diddy said they were "brothers" and that he had "unconditional love" for Mase.

Mase's rights were returned to him when Diddy allowed songs from Bad Boy to revert back to artists that year.

In 2024, Mase called Diddy's arrest "the big payback" and added that "reparations is getting closer and closer" on an episode of the podcast he cohosts with Cam'ron, "It Is What It Is."

During the trial, Mase wondered aloud if he should attend Diddy's trial on his podcast, but it doesn't appear that he ever went.

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

112

The R&B group 112's first four albums were released through Bad Boy from 1996 to 2003. Most famously, they were featured alongside Diddy and Faith Evans on the song "I'll Be Missing You."

As MTV reported, 112 said that they left Bad Boy for Def Jam because of a "lack of money and attention." They added that they also left because their contract was "doo-doo."

"We still work with [Diddy] as far as getting ideas. We got three joints from his camp. It's no bad blood, it's no love lost," said member Mike in 2003.

"It's unfortunate what happened with Diddy," 112 member Slim said while appearing on "Ryan Cameron Uncensored" after the verdict was announced on Wednesday. "That's somebody people looked up to, and there was no win for any of the victims or anybody involved in the situation. It's more like you learn something from this."

112 did not respond to a request for comment.

Cassie

Cassie started publicly dating Diddy shortly after her debut album, "Cassie," was released in 2006 through Bad Boy. They dated until 2018.

In November 2023, Cassie sued Diddy and accused him of rape, abuse, and blowing up Kid Cudi's car after Diddy found out the rapper was interested in Cassie. The suit was settled the same month for an undisclosed amount, The New York Times reported.

In May 2024, CNN published a 2016 video that appeared to show Diddy dragging and kicking Cassie through the halls of a California hotel. Diddy apologized in a since-deleted Instagram post and said he was "disgusted" by his behavior in the video.

In an Instagram post, Cassie thanked fans for their support after the video was made public. "The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning," she wrote. "Domestic Violence is THE issue."

Cassie was one of the witnesses called during Diddy's trial, taking the stand for four days. "I hope that people still see what Cassie did and think that she really made a difference," her lawyer, Douglas H. Wigdor, told ABC News after the verdict announcement.

"She was pleased that he's been found guilty and held responsible to federal crimes, something that he's never been held responsible [for] in his entire life," Wigdor said outside the courthouse.

Cassie Ventura had no comment on the lawsuit when reached by Business Insider.

Shyne

In December 1999, Diddy, his then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez, and his protégé, Shyne, were arrested after a nightclub shooting, but Shyne was the only one who went to prison.

He was later convicted of assault and sentenced to 10 years in prison, reports The New York Times.

Bad Boy released his self-titled debut album in September 2000, while he was in prison.

In 2012, Shyne, who served almost nine years, told MTV that he and Diddy made amends.

"As far as Puff is concerned, that's been a long time coming," he said. "He had reached out to me twice while I was in the pen, but I just wasn't ready for it."

In 2024, he spoke about Diddy's legal troubles. He told journalists soon after Diddy's arrest, "Let us not forget what the cold facts are. This is someone who destroyed my life."

A Hulu documentary following Shyne, "The Honorable Shyne," is set to be released on November 18. In the trailer, he said he believed he was set up to be the fall guy for the shooting.

In December, he told People, "We live in a world, in democracies at least, where the rule of law is tantamount. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty. I pray for justice, I pray for the victims. I pray for Diddy."

Shyne did not respond to a request for comment.

The Lox

The Lox released their first album, 1998's "Money, Power & Respect," via Bad Boy before the trio — Sheek Louch, Styles P, and Jadakiss — left for Ruff Ryders and Interscope.

That wasn't without its drama. The Lox said they had to plead with Diddy to get off Bad Boy and started a grassroots campaign to "Free The Lox," as they felt they weren't receiving a fair publishing deal.

This culminated in a 2005 appearance on Hot 97 in which Styles P threw a chair at Diddy, per Billboard.

"We made one record with you, 'Money Power & Respect.' It's 10 years later, and you still got half of our publishing. And you can't make it justifiable that you deserve half of our publishing," Styles P is heard saying in the recording.

According to AllHipHop, a deal was struck soon after the altercation.

In 2023, Jadakiss appeared on an episode of the podcast "I Am Athlete," saying how he appreciated how Diddy handled the situation: "He could've played much harder ball than he played."

The Lox did not respond to a request for comment.

Janelle Monáe

Monáe is one of the remaining artists signed to Bad Boy who isn't Diddy or his family members.

All four of Monáe's albums have been released through Bad Boy, including the 2019 album of the year nominee "Dirty Computer" and her most recent album, 2023's "The Age of Pleasure" (though both were also co-released by Atlantic Records).

"I got to say, I was scared to be partnering with a major label after a few years of being independent. I met Puff at a time I had decided to live frugally," Monáe told Billboard in 2018.

"But when I spoke to him, his words were, 'I love what you and Wondaland are doing," she continued, referencing the indie record label she had founded. "I don't want to be creatively involved. I just want people to know who you are and what you guys are doing.'"

"It was so humbling and beautiful. We're still close," she added.

Monáe did not respond to a request for comment.

Dream

Dream, a girl group, was formed in 1998 and then signed to Bad Boy as its first white act.

Their first album, "It Was All a Dream," was released in 2001 and debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard 200. Their second album, 2003's "Reality," failed to chart at all, and they were dropped from Bad Boy and broke up.

"There were some shady people who maybe didn't have the best intentions for children. And there were some people who maybe were just doing business," Ashley Poole, a former member, told Complex in 2016.

"There was a big disconnect from Puff and us because we were from such different worlds," continued Poole. "Puff was straight business. He didn't care if feelings were hurt. He said what he needed to say. He would tell us we needed to lose weight."

One of Dream's former members, Alex Chester-Iwata, told Business Insider that working with Bad Boy was "a nightmare," saying they "pitted each of us against each other."

Another group member, Holly Restani, told Business Insider what she thought of the verdict.

"Sean Combs, the same as all individuals, should be held accountable for his wrongdoings, namely his abuses of power, coercion, manipulation, violence, and harm of others in positions beneath him," she said.

"Many of these are well documented and known to many to have occurred. He was acquitted of the charges the prosecution brought in his trial. He is not free of accountability, nor is he innocent," she continued.

The other members of Dream did not respond to a request for comment.

Yung Joc

Yung Joc was one of the biggest musicians signed to Bad Boy South, another offshoot of Bad Boy, this time focusing on rappers out of cities like Atlanta.

Both of the rapper's albums (2006's "New Joc City" and 2007's "Hustlenomics") were released by Bad Boy South.

Two years later, it went south: In 2009, Yung Joc told Billboard he was planning to sue Bad Boy and Block Entertainment, his original record label that partnered with Bad Boy, for "failure to pay royalties and advances for his first two albums and charging 'outrageous clearance fees' for his collaborations with other artists."

"Diddy said he's got to stay out of it because it's between me and Block Entertainment," he said, adding, "I feel like [Bad Boy] isn't doing anything to try to intervene and help the situation."

It's unclear if he ever filed the suit.

He hasn't released an album since, though he has put out singles and EPs independently.

In 2014, Yung Joc told The Grio, "Diddy and I are great. We made a lot of money together. Every time we've crossed paths since, it was love."

Yung Joc did not respond to a request for comment.

French Montana

All four of French Montana's albums have been Bad Boy releases, most recently 2021's "They Got Amnesia."

"The deal [with Diddy] just felt right and it felt like it was the right thing to do. I felt like I can make a change with this for the music culture that I came from," Montana told Billboard in 2011.

In April 2024, during an episode of "Vlad TV," he confirmed he had left Bad Boy.

"I fulfilled everything. I make sure everybody got their money. I made sure, you know, Rozay got his money," he said, referring to rapper Rick Ross, who also owns a record label. "I made sure Puff got his money, made sure Epic got their money."

French added that he left Bad Boy on good terms with Diddy.

Montana did not respond to a request for comment.

New Edition

After an eight-year hiatus, New Edition teamed up with Bad Boy for their first album, "One Love." It was released in 2004 and is their last album to date.

The band's members said there were lots of disagreements about the future of the band with Diddy and his label. In a 2005 radio interview, they opened up about the problems.

"Diddy, when we didn't agree with him on certain songs, we would get sent home for like six, seven months. You know, it would just be nothing being done," said member Ricky Bell.

The final straw, they said, came when a song that none of the members liked appeared on the album instead of a song they worked on together with their longtime producers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

"On top of that, Puffy paid himself $50,000, on top of that put a song on it that we didn't like, and we just felt like that was just a slap in the face. No respect," Bell added.

New Edition did not respond to a request for comment.

Pitbull

Pitbull released two albums via Bad Boy: 2006's "El Mariel" and 2007's "The Boatlift."

Pitbull was one of the first acts signed to Bad Boy Latino, an offshoot founded by Diddy and Emilio Estefan in 2005, per Billboard. He was also a partner in the venture and had an A&R role.

It didn't last long. Before "The Boatlift" was announced, Pitbull said he was leaving the label. Pitbull was dissatisfied with his role, a 2006 New York Post report said.

"I told him, 'Yo, I want a piece. If I'm gonna get in the bed with you, I want a piece,'" he said. "I got a whole lot to bring to the table, which [he] is gonna definitely capitalize off of."

Pitbull did not respond to a request for comment.

Machine Gun Kelly

From 2012 to 2022, Machine Gun Kelly's six albums and three EPs were released through Bad Boy. His most recent EP, "Genre: Sadboy," was released in March through Interscope.

The "Wild Boy" rapper was first signed in 2011, as Diddy noted in a now-deleted Instagram post in August 2019.

"When I first signed @machinegunkelly I knew he was going to be a star. I didn't know how exactly we'd get there but I knew it would happen," he wrote. "'I'm so proud of the artist he is becoming, he's shown all the traits of an artist that will stand the test of time."

Kelly did not respond to a request for comment.

B5

Both of B5's albums — 2005's "B5" and 2007's "Don't Talk Just Listen" — were released by Bad Boy. They were a departure from Bad Boy's roster, as the group was primarily a boy band that also appeared on Radio Disney.

During an interview with The Shade Room in 2023, the brothers said they didn't regret leaving Bad Boy. "We just couldn't see eye to eye so we decided to split," said Patrick Breeding.

They added that after Diddy announced his intentions to revert publishing to the original musicians, they hadn't heard anything from him.

"We didn't hear anything. We didn't get no calls or nothing like that from them," said Carnell Breeding.

Dustin Breeding added, "Puff, Diddy, yeah, we all want our publishing too. We were so young at the time, we didn't understand the business of it. But looking back now, damn, why our names wasn't on the credit?"

B5 did not respond to a request for comment.

• Patrick Lyons was laid off from Microsoft twice and worked there for a total of five years.
• Despite layoffs, Lyons maintained financial stability through side businesses and severance.
• Lyons advises pursuing monetizable passions to mitigate the impact of potential layoffs.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Patrick Lyons, a 29-year-old ex-Microsoft employee, based in Austin. It's been edited for length and clarity.

After five years at Microsoft, the last three of which I was a product manager for Microsoft Teams, I felt fulfilled and completely secure in my job.

I learned new things every day, pushed boundaries, and collaborated with brilliant minds. I saw how people needed me and called upon me at work for my expertise, and it brought me a real sense of purpose.

I had also been running three side businesses outside of work for several years, namely an online fitness coaching company. This allowed me to pursue my fitness passion while having bidirectional income streams. I had no plans for anything to change.

Then, in October 2024, I woke up to an early call from my VP letting me know that my role had been permanently eliminated due to business restructuring. I was shocked, but my next thought was, "How can I get rehired?"

During my unemployment, I enjoyed my hobbies

The next day, I started looking at Microsoft's internal job portal, which I'd only have access to for two more weeks. I didn't have any success in that period, so I started applying to jobs at other companies while keeping an eye on Microsoft openings.

Despite the stress about my sudden layoff, I was financially stable because of my businesses and a generous severance.

I spent the next few months applying to jobs and pouring my time into hobbies like improv comedy, fitness, and movies. It was one of the best times of my life. I started having such a good time away from work that a big part of me started questioning if I shouldn't go back to corporate at all and just fully commit to my fitness businesses.

I kept finding myself coming back to how much I missed Microsoft

I missed the ritual of logging into Microsoft Teams, doing my job, and collaborating with the same great people. I loved feeling as though I was really contributing to something larger than myself.

Microsoft's work culture is unbeatable. The idea of a growth mindset was tangible in our daily work, and our expectation was not to be a "know-it-all" but a "learn-it-all." I was surrounded by brilliant minds who wanted to help me become just as brilliant, not put me down for making mistakes or questioning the status quo.

A few months into unemployment, a former mentor of mine at Microsoft forwarded my résumé to a hiring manager, and I got rehired at Microsoft as a program manager for Azure, a cloud computing platform.

I got rehired and laid off in two months

When I returned to Microsoft, I treated my job the same as before, but I doubled down on my communication to make sure I was always on the same page with my team and superiors. It might sound counterintuitive, but I felt even more job security this second time around, because Microsoft had invested a massive amount of money into Azure.

Two months later, I woke up to a nearly identical message inviting me to a meeting where I would be laid off again. It was so jarring. I've already started applying to jobs again, but to be honest, I would still go back to Microsoft if I had the chance.

Even though Microsoft can be political at times, as there is a clear hierarchical structure in which you often have to cater to leaders' preferences, I feel as though I've learned how to navigate it. I can't always just "do" things; I need to consistently present and seek out buy-ins from various leaders.

My advice for people going through layoffs

I've stayed so level-headed while navigating two layoffs because I have diverse income streams.

My businesses allow me to completely support myself and remain in a comfortable financial position. However, I'm still choosing to seek out full-time employment because of health insurance and my desire for multiple streams of income.

I don't think it's possible to be lay-off proof, but you can limit the ability of a layoff to cause harm to your life. If you have something outside of work that you're passionate about that you can realistically monetize, do it.

If you have a unique layoff experience you'd like to share, please email the editor, Manseen Logan, at [email protected].

• President Donald Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" passed the House and is now headed to his desk.
• The tax and spending bill passed in a 218-214 vote on Thursday.
• Trump had urged GOP lawmakers to get the bill passed by July 4.

President Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill is one step closer to becoming law — and reshaping policy from Medicaid to taxes.

The House passed the massive spending bill on Thursday afternoon in a 218-214 vote.

Every Democrat voted against the bill, along with two Republicans: Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.

The final passage came after House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries spoke for roughly eight hours and 45 minutes in opposition to the bill, breaking the record for the longest House floor speech in American history.

The bill now heads to Trump's desk for signing, which could happen as soon as Friday, July 4.

The bill underwent a number of changes since the House passed an initial version in May. That included the eventual removal of a provision aimed at preventing states from regulating AI for 10 years. The bill passed the upper chamber on Tuesday, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote after three GOP senators opposed it.

The bill will have a sweeping impact on Americans' wallets and the country's fiscal health. In addition to extending the 2017 tax cuts, making cuts to Medicaid, and repealing student loan forgiveness, the bill is also expected to add trillions to the deficit over the next ten years.

In May, Moody's Analytics downgraded the US's credit rating, citing rising federal debt. This could lead to higher interest rates on mortgages, auto loans, and more down the road.

Republicans passed the bill despite vehement opposition from Elon Musk, the former face of DOGE.

Musk had criticized the bill's impact on the deficit and its phase-out of green energy tax credits, some of which benefit Tesla. That led to his epic feud with Trump, which remains ongoing to this day.

On Monday, Musk vowed to support primary challengers against any Republicans who supported the bill and said that if it passed, he would form a new political party, called the America Party.

Republicans have largely brushed all of that off.

"Similar threats have been made before, and I'm unsure if anything's come of those threats," Rep. Brian Jack of Georgia told BI on Wednesday.

• The "Big Beautiful Bill" is headed to President Donald Trump's desk.
• It includes a repeal of student loan forgiveness and an increased child tax credit.
• It also includes new "Trump accounts" and changes to Medicaid and SNAP.

From taxes to student loan forgiveness, provisions in President Donald Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" will soon be impacting Americans' wallets.

On Thursday, the House passed the final version of the bill, which would extend the president's 2017 tax cuts and make key changes to the tax system, along with implementing significant changes to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Beyond the effects on Americans' wallets, the legislation provides roughly $150 billion to ramp up immigration enforcement.

The bill first passed the House in May before undergoing changes in the Senate, where it narrowly passed on Tuesday. Trump could sign the bill into law as soon as Friday, July 4.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the bill would add at least $3.3 trillion to the US deficit. In May, Moody's Analytics downgraded the US's credit rating last week, citing rising federal debt. It said an extension of Trump's 2017 taxes could add $4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade. This could lead to higher interest rates on mortgages, auto loans, and more down the road.

Here are four other key ways the tax bill could affect Americans' finances.

A slew of tax policies

Many of Trump's campaign promises are included in the tax bill.

The legislation would eliminate taxes on tips and overtime wages. About two-thirds of tipped workers earn enough to owe federal income tax. After a final bill is signed, the Trump administration will release a list of qualifying occupations.

The Senate bill includes a $6,000 tax deduction for older people making less than $75,000 a year ($150,000 for couples). Seniors making above that threshold would see a decreasing deduction until hitting a cap of $175,000 ($250,000 for couples.) Lower-income seniors likely won't benefit from the deduction. The provision is how lawmakers are trying to fulfill Trump's promise to end taxes on Social Security payments. The deduction would run through 2028.

Another provision would permanently raise the child tax credit to $2,200. Additionally, it would eliminate electric vehicle tax credits after September. It also proposes ending tax credits for homeowners to install solar panels or energy-efficient heat pumps and incentives for new energy-efficient homes and home weatherization projects by the end of this year.

The bill would also make Trump's 2017 tax cuts permanent and increase the state and local tax deduction, known as SALT, from $10,000 to $40,000 in 2025, $40,400 in 2026, and increase an additional 1% every year through 2029 before reverting to $10,000 in 2030. Lifting the SALT cap allows wealthy taxpayers in states and cities with high taxes to claim a bigger federal deduction, and the cap is something some Republican lawmakers have sought to raise or eliminate.

Student loan forgiveness repealed

Under the Senate bill, millions of student loan borrowers would see their repayment options change. The legislation proposes eliminating existing income-driven repayment plans and replacing them with two options: the Repayment Assistance Plan and a standard repayment plan.

The Repayment Assistance Plan would allow for loan forgiveness after 360 qualifying payments based on the borrowers' income, while the standard repayment plan would require a fixed monthly payment over a period set by the servicer.

The bill also would repeal former President Joe Biden's SAVE plan, an income-driven repayment plan that promised cheaper monthly payments and a shorter timeline for debt relief. The plan is blocked in court pending a final legal decision.

'Trump accounts'

If the bill passes, parents could get extra money for their kids down the line. The tax bill includes a "Trump account," previously called a "money account for growth and advancement," or MAGA account. The government would put $1,000 into accounts for babies born after December 31, 2024, and before January 1, 2029. The baby would be required to have been born in the US and have a Social Security number to receive the cash. The money would need to be invested in a qualified index fund and can't be touched until the child turns 18. Parents and others could contribute up to $5,000 a year to each account.

The accounts would have tax incentives; earnings would be tax-deferred, meaning taxes on the accounts would not need to be paid right away. Withdrawals from the accounts would also be taxed at the long-term capital-gains rate, which is dependent on income and typically lower than the regular income tax rate.

Work requirements for Medicaid and SNAP

Lower-income Americans could face bigger healthcare costs or lose federal assistance benefits. The tax bill would mean significant changes for the millions who rely on Medicaid and SNAP. The legislation would mandate that states implement an 80-hour-a-month work requirement by the end of 2026 for childless adults on Medicaid without a disability.

The Congressional Budget Office previously estimated that work requirements on Medicaid could strip coverage from over 8 million Americans over the next decade.

Additionally, the bill would extend the age range of adults subject to work requirements to receive SNAP to include adults ages 55 to 64. Currently, adults ages 18 to 54 without children can receive SNAP benefits only if they work at least 20 hours a week.

• Education and healthcare roles drove unexpected job growth in June.
• But employment in state and local government education and healthcare masked weakness in other sectors.
• White-collar job seekers face challenges as professional services shed roles from May to June.

Sharpen your pencils and shine your stethoscopes: If you're looking for the drivers of the resilient labor market, they might be behind a desk at your local school or staffing your local hospital.

They were largely responsible for a June jobs report that came in hotter than expected, with the country adding 147,000 jobs — far outpacing the consensus forecast of 111,000 — and unemployment unexpectedly ticking down.

Payroll additions in state and local government education, as well as private healthcare and social services, masked weakness elsewhere. Those sectors alone added about 122,000 jobs in June. White-collar job seekers are facing a struggle, as roles feel increasingly scarce and hundreds of applications lead to dead ends.

"If you're not a teacher, if you're not a nurse, and you're not a doctor, you're not seeing those opportunities," Cory Stahle, an economist at the Indeed Hiring Lab, said. An industry breakdown of payrolls shows that professional and business services, a white-collar sector, shed roles from May to June.

The gains in education and healthcare might be in part because schools were more hesitant to let folks go this summer, perhaps due to ongoing teacher labor shortages.

"Probably what's going on here is that there were smaller-than-expected summer layoffs in the education sector, which could be about teachers or it could also be about support staff, like school bus drivers or custodial staff," Daniel Zhao, lead economist at Glassdoor, said.

If that is the case, Zhao said, "we might get an equivalently sized drop in the fall when schools reopen due to a smaller-than-expected hiring." He added that the new data is likely a seasonal quirk, rather than a sustainable increase in roles.

The private sector, which encompasses roles outside government employment, added 74,000 jobs in June, missing the expected 105,000. Within that, employment in the healthcare and social assistance sector increased by 58,600.

Stahle said that with healthcare, social assistance, and state and local government making up much of the job growth in June, "that's not necessarily reflective of a robust labor market that's benefiting everybody."

For workers who already have the qualifications for teaching and healthcare, which often require degrees or specialized training, June's numbers may be a good sign. But for everyone else, the job market is still looking murky.

"If you're already in the labor market, you're in pretty good shape," Stahle said. "But if you're out of it and you're looking for work, things are going to feel a lot different right now."

Are you a white-collar professional looking for work, or are you trying to get into education or healthcare? Contact these reporters to share your story at [email protected] and [email protected].

• In addition to being a musician and actor, Miley Cyrus is also a style icon.
• Many of her looks are extremely daring and involve everything from cutouts to plunging necklines.
• Cyrus also often wears see-through outfits, quirky leotards, and bold accessories.

No one embraces daring fashion quite like Miley Cyrus.

The 32-year-old superstar has been wearing bold outfits since the start of her entertainment career. She's performed in latex leotards, attended awards shows in sheer gowns, and more.

Here's a look at those outfits and some of the other daring ensembles she's sported so far.

Miley Cyrus wore a blazer as a dress to the 2012 Billboard Music Awards.

Her white, double-breasted blazer with a plunging neckline was designed by Jean Paul Gaultier. With this daring look, Cyrus proved she was way ahead of the "no-pants trend," which was most popular between 2016 and 2018. 

Equally bold were her accessories and hair, which included layered necklaces, black-and-white heels, and a short, volumized lob.

About seven months later, Cyrus attended a "VH1 Divas" event wearing a long-sleeved dress covered in cutouts.

The form-fitting dress had a high neckline, long sleeves, and a straight, calf-length skirt. The garment was especially unique thanks to diamond-shaped cutouts on each side that extended from her chest to her legs.

Cyrus completed the look with black pumps, matching nail polish, and short, spiked hair.

At the 2013 Met Gala, the musician paired an optical-illusion dress with one of her boldest hairstyles to date.

Though her Marc Jacobs dress appeared to be see-through at first glance, it actually had a long-sleeved, fishnet overlay atop a nude, sleeveless piece. The outer fabric was also coated with sparkles.

To keep the emphasis on her standout dress, Cyrus opted for a classic beauty look that included black eyeliner, red lipstick, and neutral face products. Her hair, on the other hand, was styled in wispy blonde spikes that showed her brown roots.

Cyrus even found a way to wear sweatpants on the red carpet that year.

She attended a Myspace event in a black bralette-style top, leather jacket, and white pumps. Cyrus also accessorized with a black handbag, layered necklaces, vibrant lipstick, and short blonde hair that was shaved on each side. 

It was her pants, however, that stole the show. The left leg of her pants was made from denim, and the right was made from gray sweatpants. 

She then wore numerous wild outfits during the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.

First, she wore a strapless, fuzzy leotard designed to look like a gray mouse. Underneath was a nude, two-piece set made from latex, which she wore for her infamous performance with Robin Thicke.

She also wore white Creeper shoes from TUK Footwear, a choker necklace, and tiny space buns atop her head.

Toward the end of 2013, Cyrus wore cat-print swimwear and matching platform heels for an awards show.

The bathing suit — which had a sleeveless crop top and high-cut bottoms — was designed by Markus Lupfer. 

Though she performed in just the two-piece set, heels, and clear accessories, Cyrus later added a white jacket backstage.

She wore dozens of unique looks during her 2014 Bangerz Tour — including this leotard made from fake money.

The suit — which had long sleeves, a deep, V-shaped neckline, and a high-cut bottom — was covered in fake bills with Cyrus' face on them.

In addition to her outfit, the musician also wore oversize gold chains, a cannabis-leaf charm, and a green choker.

She also took her daring style offstage and wore skin-baring outfits for red carpets.

One such look was a black Tom Ford design that showed almost her entire torso. It had see-through long sleeves made from mesh and thick black straps that strategically crisscrossed over her chest.

Cyrus completed the look with a sleek blonde bob and dark eye makeup.

The following year, Cyrus put a daring twist on red-carpet elegance for the 2015 Met Gala.

Her black dress, designed by Alexander Wang, had a high neckline, long sleeves, and a floor-length skirt.

It was also covered in gold studs from top to bottom and had four cutouts — two teardrop-shaped ones near the neckline, and larger, half-moon-shaped cutouts across her waist.

She then paired a strapless Moschino gown with red gloves and black boots.

In true Moschino style, the quirky dress had a sweetheart neckline and a giant bow that extended into a train. The red, satin gown was also covered in black-and-red hearts made from sequins.

Cyrus also wore black Doc Martens boots decorated with the same heart pattern.

Months later, Cyrus hit the red carpet in a sparkling suit and white boots.

Her sparkling pink outfit included a long-sleeved jacket cropped at the waist, straight-legged pants, and a matching belt with a silver buckle.

Cyrus' boots, on the other hand, were white, though the stars on them were a metallic pink shade.

While campaigning for Hillary Clinton in 2016, Cyrus wore a giant bow in place of a shirt.

The blue bow, which she wore as a bralette, had a red heart directly in the middle. She also showed her patriotic side in a red-and-white striped skirt, silver heels, and a pink feather headpiece.

And though she wasn't photographed wearing it, Cyrus also carried a sparkling red, white, and blue top hat.

Cyrus once again showed her love for see-through clothes and heart prints in 2017.

On the red carpet, she wore a heart-print crop top underneath a sheer, calf-length jacket covered in the same print. She also wore matching lace tights that were entirely see-through over a red pair of underwear.

To complete the look, the musician wore red satin sandals, matching lipstick, and heart-shaped earrings.

In 2018, the "Midnight Sky" musician put a modern twist on old Hollywood glamour.

She attended an event held by Elton John in an asymmetrical gown partially covered in sparkles and partially made from satin. The latter side was bright pink and resembled Marilyn Monroe's famous gown.

The other side, however, was silver and textured. The long-sleeved gown was also unique thanks to its cutout underneath the neckline and its zig-zag pattern that split the two fabrics.

At the Met Gala that year, Cyrus looked sophisticated in a black gown with a plunging neckline.

The halter-style Stella McCartney design also had a mermaid-style skirt and an open back that showed off her tattoos. Cyrus paired the garment with gold necklaces and a short blonde hairstyle.

Cyrus let her shoes do the talking at the 2019 Grammy Awards.

She arrived on the red carpet in a black Mugler pantsuit, which included pants that flared at the ankles, and an oversize jacket worn without a shirt underneath.

But it was her shoes that really stood out. Cyrus wore vegan heels designed by Bradley Kenneth Eyewear and made by Mink Shoes. They were black sandals with gold-chain straps and two heels in the shapes of her initials: "M" and "C."

She continued to wear wild accessories later that year.

For a Tom Ford fashion show, Cyrus wore black satin pants, a black top with a plunging neckline, and a long velvet jacket.

The rest of her look was even bolder. She donned platform boots with sparkling heels, oversize sunglasses, and a big, fuzzy hat.

At the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, Cyrus wore a see-through dress covered in tiny mirrors.

Her strapless gown, designed by Mugler, was worn over two black undergarments.

Cyrus also wore sheer gloves covered in black beads, strappy sandals, red lipstick, and her new signature mullet.

She wore platforms again in October 2020, but this time with a larger-than-life hat.

While leaving a New York City hotel with her mom, Cyrus was photographed in a red calf-length coat, a white scoop-neck shirt, and wide-legged leather pants with silver zippers across each shin.

Of course, a face mask was part of her ensemble, as were oversize sunglasses, layers of necklaces, and a towering top hat with a wide brim. Cyrus also wore black, alligator-print platform boots and carried a handbag with what appears to be a cat-shaped handle.

Cyrus walked around New York City in 2021 while wearing a rock-inspired outfit.

Her DIY-looking T-shirt read "Let It Rock," and she tucked it into a plaid miniskirt. To complete the look, Cyrus also wore velvet heels with gray bows, fishnet tights, a white garter, and messy buns.

In July 2021, Cyrus performed in Las Vegas for Independence Day while wearing a flag-themed outfit.

Her sleeveless top was made from black leather with silver sequin stars embroidered on it, while her miniskirt was covered in red-and-white sequined stripes from top to bottom.

Cyrus also wore silver jewelry, black knee-high boots with the same star pattern, and a spiked mullet.

She hit the stage again two months later in a daring blouse.

While performing in Atlanta for the Music Midtown festival, Cyrus was photographed onstage wearing a halter shirt with a black collar and two shining hoops of fabric that draped across her chest.

She didn't wear anything else under the shirt, which showed many of her tattoos.

Cyrus wore a sparkling fringe dress to a Gucci fashion show in November 2021.

Her burgundy Gucci dress was covered in a sparkling blue fringe from top to bottom. It also had a thigh-high slit up its skirt, and a yellow feather belt across her hips.

Cyrus also carried a gold purse and wore metallic sandal heels.

The musician also wore her boldest pantsuit to date that month.

Designed by Gucci and Balenciaga, her cream-colored suit was covered in a vibrant, floral print and the Balenciaga logo.

Cyrus wore it with a high-neck blouse underneath, a matching purse, and an oversize emerald ring.

To kick off 2022, Cyrus hosted a New Year's Eve party with Pete Davidson and wore a colorful, three-piece set.

The outfit included a sparkling blue bralette worn underneath a short coat crafted from rainbow-colored feathers. 

She also wore bedazzled platform sandals and a miniskirt made from pink lace, purple beads, and silver sequins.

She later changed into a silver set and experienced a major wardrobe malfunction.

The two-piece set had a backless halter top with rips in the front and a matching miniskirt with asymmetrical pleats.

She was performing "Party in the USA" when the top part of her outfit broke, forcing her to hold it up and quickly make her way backstage. Cyrus then threw on a red blazer and seamlessly carried out the rest of her performance.

"Everybody's definitely looking at me now," she then jokingly sang before adding: "I'm still in the most clothes I've ever worn onstage."

Early in 2022, Cyrus performed in Colombia while wearing a cutout catsuit.

Her long-sleeved outfit was black and covered in tiny cutouts. The small circular ones extended from the garment's neckline to its pant legs, and a giant cutout with crisscross straps sat across its bodice.

In 2023, she was photographed wearing a body-hugging corset dress.

Her Versace dress was strapless with a sharp, plunging neckline, cone top, and leather skirt.

Cyrus wore the bold garment with pointed pumps, black leather gloves, and her hair styled in loose waves.

Cyrus couldn't get enough of daring fashion at the 2024 Grammys.

She first hit the red carpet in a custom ensemble designed by Maison Margiela. The golden chain-link dress was entirely see-through and intricately designed with different patterns from top to bottom.

The metallic piece also showed off her many tattoos and paired perfectly with her blown-out hairstyle.

Later that night, she changed into a brown dress with a slit that reached her waist.

The custom Gucci gown had a thin bodice with a single strap, which barely covered her chest across one side of her body.

The revealing top design mirrored the gown's showstopping skirt, which was slit down the side starting at her waist.

Cyrus wore the dress with pointed pumps, a feather shawl, and a leather purse.

This year, Cyrus stepped out in mesh while promoting her latest album.

She was visiting New York City when she was photographed wearing a black, sleeveless gown that was see-through.

Designed by Ludovic de Saint Sernin, the dress had a mermaid-style skirt, a plunging neckline, and a piece of fabric tied across the collarbone.

She then took fringe to another level.

Also in New York City, Cyrus wore a Schiaparelli couture design. It included a sleeveless, fishnet dress embellished with crystals and a fringe skirt, as well as a massive, fringe-covered coat.

She also carried a Schiaparelli purse with the brand's signature gold anatomy charms.

• The US Army secretary and a top general told BI about the service's plans for what it flies.
• In the coming years, the Army wants to operate far more unmanned aircraft than manned.
• US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wants the Army to reduce its crewed attack helicopter force and replace it with drones.

US Army leadership told Business Insider it wants to be flying a lot more uncrewed aircraft than crewed ones in the coming years. We are talking about a tremendous increase in the number of drones.

Its ambitions, which align with goals outlined by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's recent directive, come from a vision for what Army officials and the Trump administration have described as a more lethal force ready for future warfare.

In an interview with Business Insider, US Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll and Gen. James Rainey, the commanding general of Army Futures Command, said that unprecedented changes in warfare are fueling plans to overhaul what the Army flies.

"We believe there's a role for some manned aircraft," Rainey explained, "Big picture-wise, right now, about 90% of the things we're flying have humans in them and 10% don't. And I believe over the next several years, we would like to invert that."

The plans to give every division 1,000 drones within the next two years, he added, speak to the "aggressiveness" with which the Army is going after the new uncrewed objectives.

Earlier this year, Hegseth sent out a memo on strategic transformations within the Army, laying out goals and timelines for the service, including force restructuring and cuts to certain programs and systems that altogether represent one of the largest Army revamps since the end of the Cold War. The push is estimated to cost around $36 billion over the next five years.

In the memo, Hegseth indicated that crewed attack helicopter formations would be reduced, restructured, and augmented with drone swarms capable of overwhelming adversaries.

War-winning Army capabilities and the ones that aren't

Driscoll said this big change, along with others identified in the DoD memo, is already underway and largely focused on examining what systems no longer make sense in the context of the Army's vision for its future and what systems will replace them.

He mentioned the AH-64D Apache attack helicopter as one platform that no longer aligns with plans for the transformation of the force. "The flying costs on that were $10,000 an hour," the secretary said of the older Deltas, pointing out that the figure is about twice the cost of the newer Echo variant of the aircraft.

"Those are the kinds of decisions that I think we had let linger and fester for too long as an Army for all sorts of reasons," Driscoll said. "What we are trying to do is take a hard look at these things," he explained, and decide whether they align with what the warfighter needs.

Last month, Lt. Gen. Joseph Ryan, the Army's deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and training, said that the Deltas are no longer "a war-winning capability that we can fight with and win today." Even the more advanced Echos, he said, are "on the cusp of being capabilities where we don't necessarily see them contributing to the fight the way they have done perhaps in the past."

The Army plans to shelve the Delta variant and further examine other crewed aircraft that may no longer be sufficiently effective. It is also reviewing other helicopter models and plans to reduce the number of helos operated.

The future of war is robotic

More broadly, uncrewed aircraft are being seen as alternatives that soldiers can send forward on the battlefield to do missions that crewed aircraft have traditionally done.

There's still a place for crewed aircraft in the Army. Some helicopters, for example, still boast value for landing troops behind or around enemy positions to surprise and surround them. But future operations are expected to be a whole lot more robotic, with an Army aviation portfolio that more heavily relies on unmanned systems integrated with manned ones.

The Army sees itself at a turning point. Senior defense officials appointed by President Donald Trump have called out what they see as excessive spending, outdated systems and weapons, and a need to expedite changes to be prepared to deter or fight a future conflict. It's part of efforts to maximize readiness, increase lethality, and get soldiers what they need most.

Such aims aren't entirely new, though, and execution will be key. During the previous administration, for instance, the Army was already discussing the need for more uncrewed systems and changes to its aircraft fleet, especially with the cancellation of the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft program.

Last year, Rainey told lawmakers that for scouting and recon missions "the right thing to do is to use unmanned systems and not put humans in harm's way."

A major motivator for many of the ongoing transformation efforts is China, which the Pentagon has referred to as a pacing challenge. Officials and lawmakers in Washington see China's meteoric military growth and modernization and are pursuing capabilities that will allow the US military to deter aggression and, if necessary, overcome that rapidly evolving fighting force in armed combat.

Drones, from pocket-sized aircraft to quadcopters to bigger warfighting assets, are a key part of these efforts, providing a range of combat capabilities en masse for a relatively low cost compared to some other US weapons programs.

The Pentagon has been working to expedite the development and deployment of uncrewed aerial systems across the services, recognizing their value as this technology sprints onto the scene in big ways. Army soldiers have been testing different types of reconnaissance and strike drones are being tested in areas like the Indo-Pacific region, learning how to adapt unmanned systems to the challenges of different missions and environments.

That's a key aspect of an ongoing "transformation in contact" initiative, which focuses on Army units being given free rein to use different capabilities during training and exercises to see how the systems might work best.

The value of drones, particularly the smaller systems, has been especially visible in the war in Ukraine, which Army leaders continue to study. Ukrainian operators fly drones for intelligence-gathering and strike missions, among others.

Due to extensive electronic warfare countermeasures on the battlefield, both sides are heavily relying on fiber-optic drones to maintain a stable connection between the operator and system while also exploring new technology, like AI-enabled drones that can resist jamming. The US is not in a similar situation, but it is looking to innovate as if it were.

• Quick-service and fast-food restaurants typically collect data on customers' purchasing behaviors.
• With the help of AI, they can now leverage their data to better manage inventory and operations.
• This article is part of "How AI Is Changing Everything: Supply Chain," a series on innovations in logistics.

Fast-food chain Juici Patties, which operates more than 70 locations in Florida, New York, and Jamaica, started on the island nation as a family kitchen in 1978. When the chain expanded into the US last year, it experienced stockouts.

Executives knew they needed a different strategy — one with advanced technology to scale their business, manage franchises, and sell thousands of patties each day, Stuart Levy, the company's chief technology officer, told Business Insider.

Today, Juici Patties uses AI's predictive and proactive features to prevent disruptions before they occur.

"AI is helping to keep our distribution centers stocked with enough of our branded packaging to meet demand," Levy said.

Indeed, AI technology is making its way into quick-service and fast-casual restaurant operations. AI can use data to form predictions about customer orders, then generate insights for leaders on how to manage inventory and operations.

Domino's Pizza and Microsoft teamed up to create a generative-AI assistant that saves managers time on inventory management and ingredient ordering. Starbucks also inked a deal with Microsoft to use genAI in its product development. And Yum Brands, the parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, and others, partnered with Nvidia on AI for internal tasks such as labor management and analytics processing.

For many quick-service restaurants, "their entire brand is built on speed and efficiency," said Spencer Michiel, the restaurant technology advisor at Back of House, a resource for restaurant tech solutions. "If there's anything that can help them with speed, efficiency, and lower cost, they're going to jump all over it."

Data-rich restaurants layer on AI

Restaurants are "extremely data-rich," Michiel said, which makes them well-suited to adopt AI. Major fast-food chains already have standard operating procedures to purchase based on demand, but AI takes that to the next level with forecasting abilities that more accurately predict demand and inform supply.

With AI's forecasting capabilities, restaurants can predict what customers might order and use this data to buy ingredients, a notoriously tricky part of restaurant supply chain management.

"The biggest thing that restaurants do badly is purchase," said Stephen Zagor, a consultant focused on restaurants and food businesses and an adjunct assistant professor of business at Columbia Business School.

AI draws from quick-service restaurants' internal point-of-sale data, such as sales trends and which products customers tend to buy at the same time. Then, an AI algorithm combines this data with external factors like the weather or local events.

"The beauty of AI is it's taking forecasted demand and turning that into a reaction all the way through the supply chain," Zagor said.

For example, AI can deliver granular data by location. For a restaurant right off an interstate, AI could predict that travel will slow down on certain days. Seeing that prediction, restaurant managers could decide to drop their inventory levels and purchase fewer items, Zagor said.

He named McDonald's as one quick-service restaurant that uses AI to maximize everything from its point-of-sale to its supply chain. The fast-food giant has partnered with Google Cloud and IBM on various AI solutions.

When it comes to data and AI, the level of standardization across major chains puts them at an advantage over smaller franchises and independent restaurants.

A mom-and-pop restaurant may not have "the time, the bandwidth, the skills, the knowledge" to gather data and create an action plan, Michiel said. Subscribing to software can cost hundreds of dollars each month, presenting financial barriers to small businesses. Any new back-of-house or supply chain software would need to integrate with existing point-of-sale systems. If done incorrectly, the result could be data loss or lag, "and it's going to be frustrating," Michiel said.

Serving up efficiency and financial gains

AI's predictive power can also help minimize waste in restaurant supply chains. If a restaurant orders too much, it could have to discard unused or expired food. This could require the business to increase meal costs to compensate for the loss, according to Michiel.

"Food waste is just a killer," Michiel said. "Over-ordering is straight loss. There's no way you're going to recover that cost."

Controlling costs is especially critical for fast-food chains, which order at scale and sell low-priced products. Making just 5 cents more on an item, or making 5 cents fewer, "is a big deal," Zagor said.

AI can also promote cost savings by flagging if a particular ingredient swap could result in higher profits without sacrificing taste or quality. The technology "smooths out" a restaurant's ability to purchase inventory while still keeping customer satisfaction top of mind, Zagor said.

"You can get good profit, and the customer is going to be happy," Zagor said. "It's win-win."

Levy said Juici Patties' AI implementation into its point-of-sale system and supply chain was time-consuming, involved some growing pains, and sparked fears about replacing the workforce with AI. He acknowledged that "AI isn't flawless."

Now that the technology is in place, though, Juici Patties has seen a boost in operational efficiency, Levy said. In one instance, the AI revealed that customers wanted to purchase food earlier in the day, before Juici Patties locations were open.

"We were missing potential sales during earlier hours of the day," Levy said. The restaurant chain acted upon that information and adjusted its opening times. The result: "a consistent increase in daily sales," Levy said.

• Nvidia's stock has been on a tear lately — but some people still don't know how to pronounce the company's name.
• While some pronounce it "NUH-vid-ee-uh," the correct pronunciation is "en-VID-ee-uh."
• Nvidia's name, inspired by the Latin word "invidia," reflects its founders' hope to evoke envy.

You might hear people mentioning Nvidia more this week. The stock is trading at an all-time high. It's officially the most valuable company in the world. But are people pronouncing it correctly?

Despite the company dominating headlines and being at the forefront of many conversations around AI, some people still don't know how to pronounce its name.

Luckily, Nvidia cleared the confusion on its website and explained the proper pronunciation. We're sorry to tell you, but if you're one of the people calling the tech giant "NUH-vid-ee-uh," you've been saying it wrong.

The proper pronunciation of Nvidia is "en-VID-ee-uh," according to the company.

Founded by CEO Jensen Huang, Chris Malachowsky, and Curtis Priem in 1993, the chipmaker's name actually came from its lack of a name, Fortune previously reported. While the trio focused on developing the company, they put its title on the back burner and named files "NV" as an abbreviation for the "next version."

The three eventually decided on NVision before realizing the name was taken by a toilet-paper manufacturing company, The New Yorker reported. Finally, Huang suggested the chipmaker's current name, a spinoff of the word "invidia," which means envy in Latin, the report said.

Huang and the founders had dreams of creating a product that would make rivals "green with envy," Nvidia cofounder Priem said. Given Nvidia has a nearly $3.9 trillion market cap and a long line of tech giants and startups angling for its latest AI chips, it seems as if that vision has come to fruition.

To celebrate Nvidia's stock price hitting $100 years ago, Huang got the company's logo tattooed on his arm — an experience he later said "hurts way more than anybody tells you."

Check out the video below to hear Huang pronounce the name at Nvidia's 2024 keynote.

• NYC's mayoral frontrunner has a plan to overhaul the city's property tax system.
• It involves an analysis of billionaire Ken Griffin's 220 Central Park South apartment.
• Here's what it could mean for NYC homeowners from Staten Island to the Bronx.

When Ken Griffin purchased the most expensive home in America in 2019, it came with a hidden discount.

The palatial four-floor apartment at 220 Central Park South, which cost the billionaire founder of the hedge fund Citadel nearly $240 million, is taxed at about half the rate of the average condo in the city, data shows.

Now, Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old self-described socialist who won the Democratic primary for New York City mayor, wants Griffin — and scores of other wealthy homeowners in the city — to pay more. His plan, if instituted, could upend tax bills from Staten Island to Billionaire's Row in Manhattan.

In a policy memo published by his campaign, Mamdani pointed to Griffin's Central Park South apartment as an example of why he thinks an overhaul of the city's byzantine system is necessary.

Without mentioning Griffin by name, the memo called out the taxes charged for an apartment at 220 Central Park South that cost $228 million, what the memo described as "the most expensive home ever sold in the United States." (News reports at the time of the sale said Griffin bought the apartment for $238 million.)

The memo proposed taxing the apartment, and others like it across the city, closer to their actual sales values versus the complex formulas currently used by the city's Department of Finance, which valued Griffin's apartment at just $15 million on his most recent tax bill. Mamdani's memo said this change would lead to an annual property tax bill on Griffin's Central Park pad of $3 million — more than three times what it currently pays. Other New Yorkers could also see their costs rise — or fall — depending on where they live and the sales value of their homes.

A spokesperson for Griffin declined to comment. Records from the city's Department of Finance show Griffin's Central Park property was charged $841,000 in property taxes for 2025/26.

The $841,000 bill means that Griffin pays 35 cents of taxes per hundred dollars of the apartment's sales value. That's less than half the tax burden paid by condo owners across the city on average, according to a 2021 report by a tax reform commission tapped by the previous NYC mayor, Bill de Blasio. The average condo in the city pays 74 cents of taxes per $100 of sales value, according to the report.

Raising taxes on Brooklyn brownstones

Mamdani said the city's current method, which calculates values for condos and coops by comparing them with rentals, "heavily favors luxury and super-luxury apartments."

He said he would embrace reforms recommended by the 2021 tax commission, which suggested NYC use a "sales-based methodology to value all properties." That methodology, he said, would lower tax payments for homeowners in neighborhoods like Jamaica in Queens and Brownsville in Brooklyn "while raising the amount paid in the most expensive Brooklyn brownstones."

Tax experts agreed that the current tax system tends to favor tony neighborhoods like the Upper East Side, Greenwich Village, and Park Slope. Poorer and working-class communities in the Bronx and Staten Island have historically paid more as a percentage of the sales value of their real estate, they said.

Sebastian Hallum Clarke, a product manager at Google Maps who has studied the city's property tax system in his free time, highlighted that dichotomy in a blog post. Clarke detailed how a 96-unit rental apartment building in the Queens neighborhood of Jackson Heights paid nearly six times as much in annual property taxes as a single-family Upper East Side mansion, even though the city's Department of Finance estimates similar values — $6.6 million versus $5.5 million — for the two.

"Every dollar in cost for a rental gets passed on ultimately to the renters themselves," Clarke said. It's "a broken system that is just completely unfair in terms of how much tax different classes of property are paying."

Part of the disparity is attributable to state-mandated caps that prevent the city from raising the assessed value on one- to three-family homes by more than 6% per year and 20% over five years.

It remains to be seen whether Mamdani, if he wins the mayoralty, prioritizes property tax reform in an agenda packed with bold promises, including free bus service, a rent freeze, and affordable housing development. Other mayors have pledged to fix the system only to punt on the complex and politically fraught issue.

"The Dinkins administration did a property tax reform commission," said Martha Stark, a former commissioner of the Department of Finance during Michael Bloomberg's mayoralty, noting how long the system has been under scrutiny.

"I just can't imagine that Mamdani would elevate that to the top of his priority list in the first term," said James Parrott, an economist who was on the 2021 tax advisory commission.

• The CEO of Ford warned that AI could eliminate half of white-collar jobs.
• He emphasized the importance of skilled trades amid a slowdown in tech hiring.
• Some CEOs have sounded the AI alarm, while others are more skeptical of mass job displacement.

Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, pumped the brakes on opting for an office job in the AI era.

Speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival on June 27 about what he coined the "essential economy," Farley reflected on his own family's journey. His grandfather, he said, was an orphan in Michigan and built a career at Ford from his early days as an hourly employee.

"Look around the room," he said in his opening remarks. "At some point, almost all of your families came from these kinds of jobs."

Farley warned, though, that the American education system focuses on four-year degrees instead of the trades, while hiring at tech firms is falling rapidly.

"Artificial intelligence is going to replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the US," Farley said. That's why, he said, more people are looking to the skilled trades. Representatives for Ford did not immediately respond to BI's request for comment.

Farley isn't the only executive sounding the alarm.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said in May that AI could eliminate half of entry-level office jobs within five years. Companies and governments, Amodei said, should stop "sugarcoating" the risks of widespread job replacement in fields including technology, finance, law, and consulting.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told employees in June to expect corporate job cuts because of generative AI (people weren't thrilled about the memo). Jassy didn't offer many specifics, but said in a later interview that the new technology will create jobs in robotics and AI.

Other leaders have a different view. Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar told BI that he thinks AI will create more jobs for college graduates, particularly when it comes to human labor. Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, also disagreed with Amodei's warning, and said AI will change everyone's job but could also crate creative opportunities.

White-collar job postings dropped 12.7% over the year in the first quarter, compared to a 11.6% dip for blue-collar jobs. The tech industry in particular has slowed down hiring. Big Tech firms' hiring of new grads fell around 50% from before the pandemic, according to venture capital firm SignalFire. Some of that has to do with AI, the report said.

GenZ is turning increasingly to blue-collar jobs, which some AI whisperers think is the safest spot in the labor market, at least for now.

• We've lived in our house for 30 years and have no plans of moving out any time soon.
• Our friends are downsizing, but emotions play a big part in our not leaving our 3,500 square foot house.
• There are memories in every corner of this place.

After 30 years, we're not ready to leave our 1970s home, even though it has stairs and no walk-in shower.

Among my friends my age — I'm 67 — downsizing is a major topic at social gatherings. The focus is always on finances and logistics, not the deep feelings that the decision reveals.

Emotions play a big part in why, for now, we're staying in this too-big, too-out-of-date, difficult-to-manage two-level 3,500-square-foot home despite many reasons to go and fewer to stay.

We've put so much work into it

My husband of 40 years and I have upgraded and replaced many things. Our upper level has oak plank floors, and we ripped the kitchen to the studs, put in a long peninsula, and increased cabinet space. We upgraded all the interior doors, replaced the concrete driveway, and improved the drainage. We've added a new roof and refurbished a concrete patio. We've added tiles to the bathroom floors and repainted multiple times. And except for the ubiquitous ancient refrigerator in the basement, we've upgraded with good appliances as needed.

But we don't necessarily love everything we've done throughout the years. The oak planks throughout the upper level are narrow, having been put in years ago, and the trend is wider planks. The remodeled kitchen, chic in 2011, has dark cabinets that are not in vogue.

It's an expensive house

At our price point and on our retirement income, it doesn't make sense to replace wooden floors or upgrade a kitchen that costs more than we'll ever get back.

A costly team cares for our lawn. A landscaper cares for the garden beds, and early every Monday, a team of mowers wakes us up. Another person hauls away branches after our frequent Midwestern storms. A man with a lift and a crew takes down the big trees, about 15 in 30 years. A company fertilizes the acre-sized lot and treats it for moles.

One Mother's Day, my husband looked out the kitchen window and said, "You are not the only mother on the property today," spotting Mr. and Mrs. Ground Hog and their four babies. We hired "The Critter Roper," who gently removed them from our property.

We hired the varmint guy to build a structure to protect our foundation, one of those expenses that cost a pretty penny and are not as exciting as a new car or TV. Our foundation has been safe from varmints ever since.

But we have reasons to stay

All that said, we are comfortable in our home. While the decorative style might be called Eclectic Grammy, each room has relics of past travel, copies of famous paintings, and originals by artist friends. We are surrounded by books everywhere (my husband is a retired librarian), and I can't bear to part with one book yet.

We each have an office, and my husband, who runs an online antiques business, keeps inventory in our basement and yard barn.

I love my yellow-and-white striped wallpapered office and large L-shaped desk. Diverse items hang on the walls — a huge picture of Eleanore Roosevelt, an "I Love Lucy" Vitameatavegamin clock, posters of Baryshnikov, my mother's 1955 Indiana University diploma, a picture my son drew in first grade of "The Cat in the Hat," and a poster of El Greco's "Toledo," the exact spot where my husband and I stood.

My most precious books are on a rough-hewn bookshelf my Dad built when I moved into my first apartment, arm's length away from my comfortable office chair.

From my office, I see West Lake, the canopy of trees in our yard, and lilac bushes that recently bloomed. Three bird feeders hang off the deck rail, awaiting the imminent arrival of the Rose-breasted grosbeaks on their way back to Canada.

I'm not ready to give these things up. My husband, who couldn't run his business from a smaller space, isn't ready to stop his business.

I hear kids in my mind, despite it being empty now

The house is quiet now, but I still love being here despite its too-small rooms and the lack of a linen closet.

In my mind, I hear the noise of children's pool parties and the clatter of my son's quick, child footsteps on the stairs, although he left for college in 2008 and lives on the East Coast.

My maternal grandfather was a real estate agent and always told me, that owning a home is an emotional investment. That statement sticks with me now as my husband and I contemplate when to downsize.

For now, I'm happy to stay in our home on its lovely tree-filled lot, which offers comfort and familiarity, rich memories, and seasonal beauty.

• Charlize Theron added a dramatic scene to "The Old Guard 2" during reshoots.
• The scene highlights the complex relationship between her character, Andy, and Quỳnh, played by Veronica Ngô.
• "The Old Guard 2" is currently available on Netflix.

Though "The Old Guard" franchise is filled with exciting action sequences, it also has some serious moments, and one of the most dramatic in "The Old Guard 2" was imagined by its star, Charlize Theron.

When immortal warrior Andy (Theron) learns that her friend from centuries ago, Quỳnh (Veronica Ngô), is actually alive, Andy is beside herself. She has felt guilty all this time that she could never locate her friend. And, to make things worse, Quỳnh has teamed up with the evil immortal, Discourse (Uma Thurman).

In one scene, soon after learning Quỳnh is alive, Andy has a memory from back in medieval times. In one of her darkest moments, she almost strangles to death a man who seems to have done nothing wrong to her until Quỳnh tells her, "This is not who you are."

This dramatic moment is relevant towards the end of the movie when Quỳnh has her own dark moment. After an all-out battle between Andy's team and Discourse at a nuclear plant, Andy comes across Quỳnh as she's about to blow up the facility. In that moment, Quỳnh says to Andy, "Is this when you tell me that this isn't who I am?"

"That was all Charlize," "The Old Guard 2" director Victoria Mahoney told Business Insider, revealing that Theron came up with the sequences when they did reshoots on the movie.

"It was to give the audience another view of who these two were in time and what they've meant to each other," she continued. "It wasn't just fighting side by side but pulling each other from the dark side."

Mahoney said they were able to build out the Andy/Quỳnh relationship thanks to the groundwork laid out in the first movie.

"My job was to grow all these wonderful aspects of what had already been planted," she said. "How to honor them, celebrate them, and then expand."

She also hopes that delving deeper into their relationship will make the audience think about the Andy and Quỳnh in their own lives.

"Going to your darkest self, many people can relate to that," Mahoney said. "And that makes them think of the person in their lives who says, 'That's not you.'"

• After seeing a stunning aerial shot of Lake Bled on "The Amazing Race," I booked a trip to Slovenia.
• I spent 2 weeks driving through Slovenia, visiting beautiful towns, hiking alpine gorges, and more.
• The country's kind locals, diverse landscapes, and peaceful charm made it my top travel destination.

My husband and I were halfway through an episode of CBS's "The Amazing Race" when a brief aerial shot of a glittering alpine lake stopped us cold.

The water shimmered in a perfect shade of blue, a tiny island church sat at its center, and towering green mountains framed the scene like a painting. We looked at each other and said, "Let's go there."

The destination? Lake Bled in Slovenia, a country I couldn't have placed on a map at the time. Within weeks, we'd booked the trip.

I thought this would be a one-off adventure to a pretty spot we'd seen on TV. I had no idea Slovenia would become my favorite travel destination.

We based parts of our trip on 'The Amazing Race' episode

Although there's an airport in Slovenia's capital city, Ljubljana, we opted to fly into Vienna instead, then take the train into Ljubljana, just like competitors did on "The Amazing Race."

The ride through the countryside was cinematic, with rolling hills, dense forests, and snowy mountains in the distance.

We then rented a car and spent two weeks tracing the show's route, filling in the gaps with places that caught our attention along the way.

Ljubljana felt like a fairytale come to life, with pastel buildings, pedestrian promenades, and a calm river that split the city center. We searched for the famous locks and dragon statues we'd seen on TV, ate pizza, and enjoyed local beers at cafés lining the water.

From there, we drove to Lake Bled, where the island church and emerald water looked just as magical in person as they did on our screens.

The nearby Lake Bohinj, quieter and more rugged, felt like a local secret.

We hiked through Vintgar Gorge, where wooden walkways hugged the cliffs over rushing water, and explored the medieval clifftop Predjama Castle, which looks like it was carved straight into the rock.

In the Soča Valley, we based ourselves in the mountain town of Bovec.

The Soča River shimmered in surreal shades of blue, and we spent hours walking along its banks, dipping our toes in, and soaking up the mountain air.

We hiked through Tolmin Gorge, crossed hanging bridges, and attempted to paraglide, though the weather didn't cooperate.

Before heading home, we detoured to explore the Škocjan Caves, a jaw-dropping underground world with echoing caverns and waterfalls thundering in the dark.

We then ended our trip on the coast in Piran, a tiny seaside town where cars aren't allowed in the historic center.

We wandered narrow alleyways, climbed to the city walls, and watched the sun dip into the Adriatic while church bells echoed in the distance.

The locals we encountered were so friendly, too

As beautiful as Slovenia is, the people left the most profound impression.

When I got sick mid-trip, my husband drove to a nearby village to find a pharmacy. The pharmacist didn't speak much English, and my husband spoke no Slovenian aside from "hello" and "thank you," but she still managed to get him everything I needed — and even sent him off with well wishes for me.

Later, we hired a boat captain for a sunset cruise, and he went so far above and beyond that he offered to drive us to the train station the next morning. He still checks in with us to this day.

That level of kindness wasn't the exception — it was the norm. People we encountered everywhere we went in Slovenia seemed patient, welcoming, and eager to help us enjoy their country.

They helped us learn small bits of Slovenian, provided us with suggestions and ideas on how to spend our afternoons, took the time to chat with us, and never made us feel like unwanted tourists.

Now, Slovenia is my favorite travel destination

Slovenia wasn't on my radar before that random episode of "The Amazing Race," but now it's the first place I recommend to anyone looking for something special.

It gave us adventure, peace, stunning scenery, and meaningful connections, all without the crowds or chaos of more popular European spots.

But more than anything, it just felt good to be there. Slovenia reminded me that sometimes the best trips aren't the ones we plan for months, they're the ones that start with a single, unexpected moment that makes you say, "Let's go."

• This post originally appeared in the Business Insider Today newsletter.
• You can sign up for Business Insider's daily newsletter here.

Good morning. President Donald Trump's "big beautiful bill" is heading for a final vote in the US House of Representatives. BI has broken down how it could affect your wallet, if it passes, from an increase in the child tax credit to a repeal of student loan forgiveness.

In today's big story, Sean "Diddy" Combs may have dodged a possible sentence of life in prison, but he's not a free man yet.

What's on deck

Markets: A new report attempts to answer one question hanging over everyone on Wall Street.

Tech: Amazon's performance review process is getting a new key metric.

Business: What media and politics insiders are saying about Paramount's settlement with Trump.

But first, the jury has reached a verdict.

If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.

The big story

Diddy's empire on the line

Cheers erupted in the courtroom as the verdicts were announced.

Sean "Diddy" Combs was found guilty on two felony counts of transporting people for prostitution. He avoided convictions on steeper charges: two counts of sex trafficking and one of racketeering.

"Love you!" Combs shouted to his family with a beaming smile after the verdict was read. "I'm gonna be home soon!"

Not as soon as he'd like. Combs was denied bail and ordered to remain in jail until his sentencing, with the judge citing his history of violence.

The verdict came after 14 hours of jury deliberations and more than six weeks of testimony from 34 government witnesses, including the R&B singer Cassie Ventura, who dated Combs for 11 years.

What does the verdict mean for the hip-hop mogul's business empire and his fortune?

Well — what's left of them, anyway.

As a result of the criminal indictment, emotionally-charged courtroom testimony, and the wave of civil sex abuse lawsuits against Combs, he's become persona non grata in the industries that once made him very wealthy, BI's Madeline Berg and Natalie Musumeci write.

His income streams and reputation have been dealt a blow.

For example, Diageo, Combs' partner in Cîroc vodka and DeLeón tequila, cut ties with him in 2023. The move officially ended a relationship that, according to the company, netted the music tycoon nearly $1 billion since he was named the face of Cîroc in 2007.

"Mr. Combs is well-aware that these lawsuits make it impossible for him to continue to be the 'face' of anything," Diageo lawyers wrote in 2023.

Beyond his criminal case, Combs is still facing more than 50 civil lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault, rape, drugging, and other forms of violence. And if any of the plaintiffs win, the financial impact could be steep.

3 things in markets

1. Tough times for Tesla. The EV maker's delivery numbers came in just as bad as Wall Street predicted, representing a 13.5% year-over-year decrease from Q2 2024. Early Tesla investor-turned-bear Ross Gerber called Elon Musk's latest spat with President Trump another "nail in the coffin" that could tank the stock as much as 50% if the market reevaluates it.

2. Why the economy is doing worse than we thought. The job market is tough, real GDP dropped more than initially thought, and consumer spending fell. These warning signs indicate there's trouble in the US economy, but that doesn't mean a recession is guaranteed.

3. A new report measures exactly how much AI will reshape banking. Unsurprisingly, the report found tech, engineering, and infrastructure would change the most, with a projection of 55% of the work being redefined by 2030. Front office functions are projected to see huge changes, too.

3 things in tech

1. Behind Microsoft's new AI-focused sales strategy. Microsoft's chief commercial officer Judson Althoff is revamping the sales unit to become "the frontier AI Firm," according to an internal memo viewed by BI. The memo was sent out a day before Microsoft cut less than 4% of its workforce, which affected many salespeople.

2. Amazon's performance reviews are getting stricter. Employee evaluations will now formally include the company's long-standing "Leadership Principles." Managers will use a new three-tiered system to evaluate how well employees reflect the company's values, according to an internal document BI obtained.

3. How much Meta pays top talent across its broader workforce. Software engineers at Meta can make up to $480,000, and even product designers and researchers can make $200,000, according to federal filings. Here's what Meta pays employees across various key roles.

3 things in business

1. More layoffs at TikTok. The company notified some e-commerce workers that their roles were being cut as part of "organizational and personnel changes," according to two employees and an internal email viewed by BI. US e-commerce sales performance has been mixed this year amid new tariffs on China.

2. Paramount's settlement with Trump sets a new media precedent. The media giant is paying $16 million to settle a lawsuit Trump brought over a "60 Minutes" segment that aired last fall. Here's what top people in media and politics, from Sen. Bernie Sanders to veteran White House reporter John Harwood, are saying about the agreement.

3. Corona beer is losing a key group of drinkers. Constellation Brands, the parent company, said first-quarter spending was soft in areas with "larger Hispanic populations." CEO Bill Newlands said this demographic makes up about 50% of the beer's consumer base.

In other news

• How Meta is training its chatbots to message you first, remember your chats, and keep you talking, according to internal documents obtained by BI.
• Citadel hires a chief medical officer as Ken Griffin's empire adds investment bank-like benefits.
• Tesla competitor BYD axes Mexico factory plans.
• KPMG partners share how to turn your Big Four summer internship into a job offer.
• National security-focused VC firm America's Frontier Fund is raising $315 million for its debut fund.
• Over 900 ETFs were launched in the last year. Here are nine of the most innovative.
• Four reasons forecasters are bullish on the market's smallest stocks after years of underperformance.
• What Babbel's new CEO has learned about leadership from his previous roles.
• Why a famed financial advisor thinks crypto should be up to 40% of your portfolio.
• Elon Musk is threatening their political careers. Republicans say they aren't sweating it.

What's happening today

• Bureau of Labor Statistics releases monthly employment report.

• US financial markets close early ahead of Independence Day.

  ---

  Hallam Bullock, senior editor, in London. Meghan Morris, deputy bureau chief, in Singapore. Akin Oyedele, deputy editor, in New York. Grace Lett, editor, in New York. Amanda Yen, associate editor, in New York. Lisa Ryan, executive editor, in New York. Ella Hopkins, associate editor, in London. Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York (on parental leave).

• Trivago CEO Johannes Thomas tries to keep his mornings free from meetings.
• Thomas's routine involves blocks of 90 minutes to two hours to enhance focus and efficiency.
• Trivago tells workers to limit morning meetings so there can be "shared flow time."

Johannes Thomas, CEO of the hotel-search company Trivago, tries to keep his mornings free so he has time to chew on big ideas.

Thomas wakes early and tries not to take meetings before 11 a.m. so that he can structure the start of his workdays around blocks of time lasting 90 minutes to two hours.

The idea, he said, is to create time for "undivided attention" that can lead to high levels of productivity. It's what Thomas and others often refer to as "flow."

"I just focus on a problem, think it through, and really go into deep thinking," he told Business Insider.

That way, Thomas said, by lunch he's already accomplished a good deal of work. After that, he makes time for meetings. Thomas said the afternoon is generally more structured because that's the part of the day when "cognitive function goes down for most people."

Finding ways to squeeze more productivity out of workdays overrun by calendar reminders, email pings, and DMs can be a challenge for many workers. Yet, corralling meetings to certain days or times can boost productivity.

'Shared flow time'

Thomas said the 30-minute meetings that often punctuate corporate calendars can make things worse, "taking you out of these deep thinking modes that are extremely important for productivity."

That's why Trivago recommends that employees at the company, based in Düsseldorf, Germany, rely on the morning-afternoon split by trying to keep their calendars free from meetings before 11 a.m.

"We call it shared flow time," Thomas said, who returned in 2023 to the company where he'd started as an intern in 2011.

Thomas, 38, said having the routine also helps prime his brain for how he'll use those blocks of time when he starts his day. He tends to reserve one block for learning, which might involve getting his head around some aspect of artificial intelligence. Other times, it's going in-depth on some aspect of the company.

"Everything that demands cognitive function — it comes into these sessions," Thomas said.

In the afternoon, he'll make time to respond to emails "because that's usually not hard cognitive function," he said. If an email requires more dedicated attention, Thomas said, he'll slot it into his focus time.

Learning from the boss

Employees often take cues from leadership, so when those in charge model ways of working that might limit distractions, that can benefit organizations broadly, Kate Walker, a human resources consultant and executive coach in California, told BI.

The reverse can also be true, she said, if workers observe constant fire drills.

"If you see a leader at the top who's scattered and running around and reactive, then maybe you're more inclined to be operating in that way," Walker said.

She often recommends to her clients that they block time on their calendars for focusing and taking breaks. Walker also said workers can ask their bosses which meetings they might not need to attend.

Having too many meetings on the books can be a sign of cultural dysfunction within an organization, Nir Eyal, author of the book "Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life," previously told BI. In essence, he said, it can indicate that leaders and others don't value workers' time properly.

Ultimately, Trivago's Thomas said, having a good time management strategy gives him peace of mind. While he has a plan and strong intentions, Thomas estimates that his morning setup works about 70% of the time. So, he tries to be flexible when necessary.

"I have three kids," he said. "The world is a bit chaotic. Things happen."

• Utilities are using AI to modernize the aging grid with tools to manage growing energy demands.
• Predictive maintenance and genAI assistants are predicting grid risk and reducing repair time.
• This article is part of "How AI Is Changing Everything," a series on AI adoption across industries.

After decades of wear and tear, the US energy grid is starting to reach its breaking point.

The traditional grid system was designed for a time when electricity demand was steady and less intense. Today, the grid faces a mountain of unprecedented stressors. Accelerating electrification, a surge in energy-hungry AI infrastructure like data centers, and the intensifying impacts of extreme weather fueled by climate change are pushing grid infrastructure to its limits, destabilizing the already vulnerable energy system.

These disruptions could result in blackouts that could cost American businesses up to $150 billion each year, according to the US Department of Energy, potentially leaving millions of consumers without reliable electricity.

In response, utilities are cautiously starting to embrace artificial intelligence as a tool to help stabilize grid operations. Once seen as just a budding technology, AI is emerging as one part of utilities' strategies to anticipate disruptions, protect the grid's equipment, and better serve a rapidly changing energy landscape.

AI is enhancing predictive maintenance

AI is sharpening the tried-and-tested tools utilities have been using to prevent failures across the energy grid.

One is predictive maintenance, where sensors and software are used to monitor the condition of grid equipment, like transformers and power lines, and spot issues to fix before they cause outages.

Predictive maintenance isn't new. But integrating machine learning into the process has made detecting faulty equipment faster and more precise, according to Somjyoti Mukherjee, a consulting partner at Cognizant, an IT consulting firm.

Sensors embedded in circuit breakers, switch gears, and transmission lines feed real-time data into AI systems, which then analyze patterns to forecast when components are likely to fail.

"Predictive maintenance is delivering the fastest returns," Mukherjee, who leads grid modernization efforts for North America's utilities sector, told Business Insider.

Murkherjee pointed to one utility client with outdated systems that left field-technician crews wasting hours daily because they couldn't catch issues in time. After switching to an AI-driven maintenance system, the software recommended tools, suggested equipment replacements, and located defects in real time, allowing crews to work "smarter and faster," Murkherjee said.

Duke Energy, an American energy provider, is also tapping into AI to identify grid vulnerabilities. The Fortune 500 utility provider developed a hybrid AI system that blends machine learning with expert diagnostics to flag high-risk equipment. The tool is designed to monitor the health of Duke's transformer fleet, a connected web of circuits that transmit electricity from one board to another.

Duke's hybrid approach combining human expertise with AI-powered insights has led to "more consistent identification of problematic equipment" and "improved planning decisions," said Matt Carrara, the president of Doble Engineering.

Some startups are pushing AI's capabilities even further.

Rhizome is working with Seattle City Light, Vermont Electric Power Company, and other US grid operators to map out climate-driven risks before they strike. Co-founded by CEO Mishal Thadani, the platform uses AI to analyze historical grid data, outage causes, and environmental threats, such as wildfires, storms, and vegetation growth, down to the level of individual poles and wires.

The result is a digital risk map that guides where to invest in upgrades and maintenance for the biggest impact per dollar. One utility in Texas, for example, used Rhizome's predictive model to identify which circuits in its energy system were at high risk of impact by storm activity so the utility could invest capital into improving vulnerable equipment. In doing so, the Texas utility reduced storm-induced outages by 72%, according to Rhizome.

As utilities face tighter budgets, rising insurance costs, and increasing pressure from climate change and power-hungry data centers, Thadani said platforms like Rhizome can help them make more strategic investments into grid improvements.

"More utilities need to be very conscious about the investments they're making," Thadani told BI, adding that big capital decisions must be "justified with data and evidence to show that ratepayer value."

Energy providers are exploring new AI tools

Beyond maintenance, utilities are adopting new AI tools to better understand and manage physical equipment in the field.

Peter Nearing, a principal advisor at Stantec, an engineering consulting group, pointed to one of his firm's utility clients that deployed cameras with image recognition to automatically capture, identify, and digitize equipment data. Doing so improved the quality and speed of data collection, leading to less time spent gathering intel, better decision-making on equipment fleets, and, in turn, fewer manual site visits.

Implementing computer vision technology into the grid is part of a larger shift toward using AI for pattern recognition and data-heavy tasks, such as forecasting demand, mapping outages, and streamlining upgrades.

"This is where AI shines," Nearing told BI regarding the technology's data-handling capabilities.

Some utilities are now turning to generative AI to make fieldwork easier, too. In March, Avangrid, a US renewable energy supplier, launched "First Time Right Autopilot," a genAI tool trained on the company's internal manuals, troubleshooting guides, and other internal documents. Accessible on mobile devices through voice or text, the chatbot can answer technicians' repair questions in real time.

For instance, if a wind turbine goes offline, a technician can ask the AI assistant how to fix it. The tool analyzes the issue using contextual data on the turbine's equipment and provides step-by-step instructions.

Since implementing the AI tool, Avangrid has seen faster repairs and reduced downtime, according to Avangrid's chief information officer Nelly Jefferson.

"It empowers our workforce by providing field technicians with real-time access to expert-level support," Jefferson told BI.

Still, managing energy demand — especially during peak hours — remains a tough feat for AI to address, given the grid's outdated infrastructure. It's why most utilities are still in pilot mode when it comes to AI-driven load management, according to Vivian Lee, a Boston Consulting Group managing director with expertise in the energy sector.

Lee says that some are experimenting with short-term load forecasting, using real-time data like weather, usage trends, and local events to predict electricity demand hours or days in advance. Others are testing AI to control distributed energy resources like smart thermostats, EV chargers, and home batteries to slightly reduce or shift energy use during high-demand periods, easing strain on the grid.

These tools remain largely rule-based, where they only work when given instructions for specific use cases, limiting their widespread applications. But Lee sees long-term potential in AI to manage energy loads.

"Broad adoption of AI in load management is still in its early days," Lee told BI.

Roadblocks stand in the way of AI adoption

Despite rising optimism, the energy experts who spoke to BI said utilities companies are still finding it tough to adopt AI.

Many are still working with legacy IT and operational systems that don't integrate easily, making it hard to pull together clean, usable data for AI to draw insights.

"Data quality and availability remain major hurdles," said Lee.

Talent shortages add more friction. A lack of AI literacy across the workforce could make an organization more resistant to embracing new technologies, according to Nearing.

Regulatory bottlenecks make that transition even harder. The absence of clear guidelines on AI deployment in the energy sector creates hesitation among utilities, and utilities are required to navigate legal frameworks to ensure AI applications comply with data protection laws.

The Trump administration's tariffs on imported components like transformers and metals have also spiked costs, further complicating project timelines, Carrara said.

Utilities turn to AI with caution

Still, many of these obstacles are no longer deal-breakers. Mukherjee says that utilities are making progress by migrating to the cloud, training employees how to use AI, and engaging with regulators to encourage technological change.

"Regulators are responding," Mukherjee said, pointing to agencies like the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that are hiring technical experts and "leaning into innovation."

Building trust is also key. Mukherjee, Nearing, and Lee emphasized starting small, focusing on low-risk, explainable use cases to build internal momentum, and involving frontline workers from day one.

Looking ahead, utility experts say energy providers are eager to continue exploring AI's potential to modernize the grid to reduce strain.

But they have a long way to go before they can fully embrace AI with open arms.

"AI won't replace core grid functions," Lee said. "But it will increasingly act as an accelerant."