Good Morning. From a Florida launchpad to a Sicilian vault to your grocery aisle, today's stories all follow the money.
We also cover Anthropic's trillion-dollar leap, a hepatitis B breakthrough, and the safe-feeling money habit costing you millions (forwarded this email? Join 523k readers).
TOP STORY TODAY
Bezos Rocket Explodes
Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket exploded last night near Cape Canaveral, Florida, during a ground engine test. A massive fireball lit the sky around 9 p.m. The company confirmed all personnel were safe, with no injuries reported.
The rocket was being readied for a June flight carrying Amazon internet satellites. New Glenn debuted last year. Its commercial mission this spring left a satellite in the wrong orbit. Officials are now reviewing data for a cause.
The damaged pad is the only one that can launch New Glenn. Amazon had loaded 48 satellites for the coming mission. NASA flights could also slip. It was the Cape's first pad explosion since 2016.
▲ If you are in the rockets business, rockets explode — a history of rapid unscheduled disassemblies (RUDS).
Prices Finally Drop
Major consumer companies are slashing prices, shrinking packages, and rolling out value meals to win back inflation-weary shoppers. The shift comes as firms from Coca-Cola to Kraft Heinz admit many Americans can no longer afford their products.
Consumer prices rose 3.8% in April year-over-year, straining lower-income households. PepsiCo cut snack prices up to 15%, while Walmart lowered tags on 7,200 items. McDonald's added sub-$3 deals, and Stellantis is planning cars under $30,000.
The cuts come as big companies thrive. S&P 500 earnings per share jumped roughly 29%. A bigger tailwind looms: an estimated $166 billion in tariff refunds, due after a February Supreme Court ruling, will fund deeper discounts.
Mafia Fortune Seized
Italian authorities announced yesterday they seized more than 200 million euros ($232 million) in assets tied to late Sicilian Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro's drug network. Prosecutors called it a blow to the mob's finances.
The haul included 26 pounds of gold bars, millions in cash, and 20 luxury properties. More than 150 financial police searched across Italy and abroad, from Switzerland to the Cayman Islands. Three people were arrested.
Messina Denaro died in 2023, nine months after his capture ended three decades on the run. He was convicted in dozens of murders, including 1992 bombings that killed two prosecutors. Some investigators estimate his fortune neared 4 billion euros. How this manhunt went down.
TOGETHER WITH KALSHI
Bitcoin Crossing $100k Again Is a Coin Flip. Literally.
The market says 33% before January 2027, 13% before October. Over $8.2 million is already trading on when Bitcoin crosses $100k again on Kalshi, and the odds reprice every time the chart twitches.
The window to get in before the crowd picks a side is closing. The best prediction market trades happen before everyone agrees on the outcome. That moment is right now. Peer-to-peer, no house, cash out anytime. Trade $10, get $10 free to start.
Trade responsibly*
TODAY’S LIFE ADVICE
Daily Walking: The Highest ROI Habit You Have
Harvard researchers call walking one of the highest-return health habits available, free, low-risk, and stacked with benefits most people never connect to it.
A few worth banking:
20 minutes a day, 5 days a week cut sick days by 43% in one study.
Lowers blood pressure, blood sugar, and dementia risk.
Post-meal blood sugar drops after just 2 minutes of walking.
Skip the 10,000-step pressure. Benefits start around 2,500 steps. There's one surprising thing Harvard says walking curbs that has nothing to do with your legs.
Your Cash Pile Is Costing You
Stockpiling cash feels safe, but it quietly drains your wealth. Americans park $5.6 trillion in low-yield accounts earning roughly zero after taxes and inflation.
The math is brutal:
$5,000 invested yearly from 1980 to 2023 grew to $4.3M even with the worst possible timing.
Left in cash, it became just $350,000.
Holding 25% in cash drags returns below even worst-timing investing.
Keep an emergency cushion, then put the rest to work. There's one reflex that makes this even costlier, and almost everyone has it. Read why.
TRENDING
5 Stories
▲ Ozempic users report lost libido and emotional flattening as brain scans show rewiring in just months
▲ Peter Thiel buys Buenos Aires mansion and enrolls kids, eyeing Argentina as billionaire "escape hatch"
▲ Hepatitis B drug "functionally cures" 19% in trials, a breakthrough for 240 million infected worldwide
▲ Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern shed billions as regulators stall their $71.5B megamerger
▲ Anthropic overtakes OpenAI as world's most valuable AI startup, nearing $1 trillion at $965B valuation
TOGETHER WITH BENJAMIN TODD
The hidden cost of choosing the wrong career.
You have about 80,000 hours in your career: 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year, for 40 years.
Choose wisely and you can build a career that's both fulfilling and actually matters.
Choose poorly and you risk decades of meaningless, soul-sucking work.
80,000 Hours is the first book to explore what the research actually says about which careers have an impact.
Based on over a decade of research from the nonprofit of the same name, founder Benjamin Todd introduces a framework that's already helped thousands change paths.
Please support our sponsors!
Fun Links
Inside Putin’s $26B quest for longevity [WSJ]
How your genes could cost your job [Blog]
Scooter Braun vs Taylor Swift [His Side]
Iceland now pricier than Switzerland [Blog]
Your desire comes from your ability [Video]
Spielberg’s best film in 20 years [Blog]
Odds The Odyssey wins Best Picture? [Partner*]
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