Good Morning! Happy Thursday everyone… unless you’re a banker at Credit Suisse. We knew layoffs were coming, but UBS officially announced they’re cutting half of the Credit Suisse workforce post-merger. But it’s not all bad news for banks, with all 23 major American banks reportedly passing the Fed’s stress test.

The private equity landscape is getting even more cutthroat. It’s rare for rival firms to get into bidding wars, but Arcline made a $57/share bid for pump and valve maker Circor, topping KKR’s $51/share offer.

The FTC wants to toughen antitrust merger guidelines. And Amazon began testing driverless robotaxis in Vegas this week.

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Google Doesn’t Trust AI

Talk about down bad. A lot of people have been calling big tech hypocritical for years. But it looks like things are getting even worse with chatbots.

Google is one of the biggest backers of generative AI and chatbots. They’ve been championing the technology for years, raving about its potential to revolutionize technology. But as bullish as Google sounds about generative AI, it turns out the company is having trouble trusting it.

Google’s been pushing the boundaries of AI yet is now warning its own workforce about the risks associated with these chatbots. In a recent email sent out to its employees, Google issued a cautionary note, urging them not to enter any confidential materials into chatbots.

And the concerns raised by Google are not without merit. There is a genuine worry that similar AI systems could inadvertently reproduce sensitive information that they have absorbed during their training, creating a significant risk of data leaks.

Takeaway: Google’s still pouring billions of dollars into its chatbot ‘Bard’ and stands to make a killing in its pursuit of AI dominance. The era of ‘move fast and break things’ might be over though. There are concerns AI innovations might be happening too fast. And the race between Microsoft and Google isn’t helping matters, either. Regulation? Yeah, that can't show up soon enough.

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Markets Rundown

Stocks closed flat as Powell warns more rate hikes are on the way.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Pinterest ($PINS) +7% after an upgrade by Wells Fargo.

• (+) Netflix ($NFLX) +3% after Oppenheimer raised its price target.

• (–) General Mills ($GIS) -5% after a mixed earnings report.

Private Dealmaking

• Redpanda, a data streaming startup, raised $100 million

• Nothing, a smartphone developer, raised $96 million 

• Augmedics, an AR navigation platform for spinal surgeries, raised $82.5 million

• Flywheel, a medical imaging data platform, raised $54 million

• Betr, Jake Paul’s sports betting app, raised $35 million 

• On Energy, a battery energy storage company, raised $20 million 

_{SPONSORED BY COMPOSER}

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_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• Why BlackRock won’t say ESG anymore (YF)

• Private-equity-owned businesses confront hiring hurdles for key roles (WSJ)

• The next recession might be 3 years away (YF)

• Why investing in AI is different than investing in the Metaverse (YF)

• American companies are draining their cash at the dumbest possible time (CNN)

• Silicon Valley is on drugs (BB)

• The nuclear industry’s big bet on going small (Vox)

• Are private credit’s double-digit yields too good to be true? (Forbes)

• Nvidia leads sell off after report on US tightening AI chips (CNBC)

• Virgin Galactic set to launch first commercial flight (YF)

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Super Mentors

Modern mentorship is about opportunity, not advice. What you really want is someone to open a door for you, provide an introduction, or move your resume to the top of the pile. Eric Koester and Adam Saven give you a powerful new framework to make that a reality.

To get where you want to go in life - to be successful - you've undoubtedly been told to "find a mentor." To search for a wise sage who will hold your hand throughout life, offering advice. The Yoda to your Luke, Dumbledore to your Harry, Glinda to your Dorothy.

Sorry to say...but most of us will never find that one special voice of advice.

That, however, doesn't mean you're out of luck.

Truth is, there are powerful people out there - many in fact - extraordinary leaders in their fields who can move the needle for you.

"Exhilarating and empowering... if you care about your success, you have to read Super Mentors."

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Short Squeez Picks

• The power of critical ignoring

• 3 things to do if you’re wondering why you can’t be happy

• What to do when your boss gives you bad feedback

• The fine balance between short-term and long-term planning

• Will AI become the new McKinsey?

_{SPONSORED BY BUENA FE}

Investing in Tequila Isn’t Just For Celebrities

Unless you've been living under a rock for the last two years, it certainly seems as if every celebrity has their own tequila company. Tequila has been on an unstoppable rise in popularity, and the excitement just keeps on flowing.

But that's not all. The other cool kid on the block is spirit-based ready-to-drink (RTD) products. Remember the splash White Claw and Truly made? Well, now folks are getting savvy and swapping these beer-cousins for higher quality spirit-based drinks.

So, here's where Buena Fé comes in, riding this wave with its organic, tequila-based RTDs. But get this - they're not playing around with any second-rate mixto tequila. No sir, Buena Fé's all about the real deal - 100% agave tequila.

These guys hit the scene in 2022 and have already made a splash in 12 states, scoring deals with major chains like Albertsons and Total Wine. Their impressive leadership team includes the former President of Mike's Hard Lemonade.

Buena Fé is inviting you to join the party and be a part of their growth and expansion. They're raising capital through crowdfunding, so you can become a proud owner of a tequila company*, and receive some excellent perks (including their I’m not a celebrity but I do own a Tequila company tee).

Unleash your inner celebrity and own a tequila company today.

_{DAILY VISUAL}

Used Teslas Need a Charge

Average list price of Tesla used vehicles

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Why We Believe The Things We Do

“A father in Yemen lost a son to starvation, only to have another child fall dangerously ill.

Desperate, he turned to tribal elders who recommended a folk remedy:

Shove a burning stick through the sick child’s chest to drain the illness. The father agreed.

Asked about the horrific procedure, the father said: “People said burn him in the body and it will be O.K. When you have no money, and your son is sick, you’ll believe anything.”

When you have no money, and your son is sick, you’ll believe anything.

That is such a powerful statement, and some version of it applies to everyone.

Here’s a universal reality: What you believe to be true is influenced by how much you want it to be true.

The more something helps you deal with uncertainty, the lower the bar is for you to believe it’s true.

It’s been like that forever. Describing the Great Plague of London, Daniel Defoe wrote in 1722:

“The people were more addicted to prophecies and astrological conjurations, dreams, and old wives’ tales than ever they were before or since.”

You’ll believe just about anything that offers hope when a plague is killing a quarter of your neighbors.

Visa Founder Dee Hock once said, “We are built with an almost infinite capacity to believe things because the beliefs are advantageous for us to hold, rather than because they are even remotely related to the truth.”

Source: Morgan Housel (Collab Fund)

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MEMES OF THE DAY