🌊 So About That Nonprofit Thing...

Two things:

1) We wish for the safety of all of our Florida and Georgia readers, especially those in Tallahassee, Tampa, Savannah, Atlanta, and the rural areas that the hurricane veered toward at the last second. We only saw a few videos of Florida men jetskiing through the Category 4 storm, so nature seems to be healing.

2) In unrelated news, Maggie Smith — Professor McGonagall in Harry Potter and the Dowager Countess on Downton Abbey — died this morning at 89. RIP to the grand dame and one of the most iconic actors of our time.

Link to our first ever trivia-themed 20 Questions!

–Max, Max, and Owen

KEY STORY

Zelensky v. Republicans

Republicans blasted Pres. Zelensky over his visit to the US

• Earlier this week, Zelensky called JD Vance “too radical” and poorly informed

• On Tuesday, he visited a Scranton, PA, arms factory with Gov. Josh Shapiro (D.). Republicans blasted the move, with Speaker Mike Johnson (R.) calling the visit “a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and…clearly election interference”

• Zelensky is now coming under fire from some in Ukraine, with the chair of Ukraine’s parliamentary foreign affairs committee saying, “Going to Scranton was a mistake”

Dig Deeper

• On Thursday, Zelensky met President Biden and VP Harris to pitch a “victory plan” that outlined what aid Ukraine needs to defeat Russia

• Initial reports said the Biden Administration was unconvinced by the Ukrainian proposal

• Zelensky suggested he will meet Trump in the US, but Trump hasn’t confirmed that

KEY STORY

Ubisoft v. “Wokeness”

Ubisoft delayed “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” amid a backlash over woke content

• French video game company Ubisoft had promised to turn around its poor performance with a pair of games, “Star Wars Outlaws” and “Assassin’s Creed Shadows”

• Last month, Star Wars flopped amid allegations of woke storytelling and bad gameplay. Assassin’s Creed – due for release in November – had come under similar criticism for its inclusion of a black samurai as a protagonist, with Elon Musk saying, “DEI kills art”

• On Wednesday, Ubisoft delayed Assassin’s Creed’s release and acknowledged the company is perceived to be pursuing an “agenda”

Dig Deeper

• Ubisoft defended the black samurai’s inclusion, claiming it resulted from historical research and a creative process

• Ubisoft’s stock – already at a 10-year low post-Star Wars flop – fell further. Amid concerns about the company, its CEO said, “I want to reaffirm that we are an entertainment-first company, creating games for the broadest possible audience, and our goal is not to push any specific agenda. We remain committed to creating games…that everyone can enjoy”

ROCA’S PARTNERS

What Nvidia and Amazon Have in Common

Together with Miso Robotics

• Well, other than trillion-dollar market caps. Both Nvidia and Amazon chose to collaborate with Miso Robotics

• Miso is the leader in AI-powered kitchen robots. That’s why Nvidia offered Miso its premier AI vision tech, and Amazon handpicked Miso to partner with and use its RoboMaker simulation environment

• Now, Miso launched its first commercial AI-powered robot, and it sold out in seven days

• Invest in Miso before their October 18 deadline as they begin scaling across 170+ fast food brands

Disclaimer: This is a paid advertisement for Miso Robotics’ Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.misorobotics.com

KEY STORY

OpenAI = For-Profit

OpenAI plans to convert from a nonprofit organization to a for-profit company

• The change is a drastic shift for OpenAI, which was founded to “benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return”

• OpenAI is expected to garner a $150B valuation after its transition, with Sam Altman poised to receive a 7% stake worth $10.5B

• OpenAI has undergone major recent personnel shifts, including the departures of its CTO, CRO, and more. An OpenAI spokesperson said it will remain focused on ensuring its AI will “benefit everyone”

Dig Deeper

• OpenAI was founded in 2015 by Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and others

• Musk – who contributed the largest slice of the $1B the founders put into OpenAI at launch – left the organization in 2018 and has since sued, claiming he was deceived into believing OpenAI was a nonprofit

KEY STORY

Mayor Adams Charges

In an indictment unsealed on Thursday, prosecutors outlined their corruption and bribery case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams

• They accused Adams of taking bribes – mainly in the form of luxury hotels and international trips – and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish officials in exchange for providing favors, such as not recognizing the Armenian genocide and approving a new consulate building without a fire check

• Adams – who faces up to 45 years in prison – denied the charges and said he has become a “target” because he criticized Biden’s handling of NYC’s migrant influx

Dig Deeper

• Early Thursday morning, the FBI raided Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s official residence

• Prosecutors say Adams has tried to cover up his corruption, including deleting all of his text messages and forgetting the password to his personal cell phone when he handed it over to the FBI in late 2021

• He asked New Yorkers “to wait and hear our defense before making any judgments”

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

💥 Shortly after the US and France said they had nearly secured a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli PM Netanyahu said Israel would continue to strike Hezbollah with full strength

🇧🇷 X requested that Brazil let it resume operations in the country as the company pivots on its earlier refusal to comply with government regulations

⚓ China’s newest nuclear-powered attack submarine sank this spring, according to a new report by the Wall Street Journal

📰 Independent journalist Ken Klippenstein was suspended from X for posting documents allegedly stolen from the Trump campaign by Iran’s government

🔍 A Norwegian-Indian man with apparent ties to Hezbollah’s exploding pagers has been reported missing

COMMUNITY

🧐 Yesterday’s question: Who’s the most famous person from your hometown?

ASK AND TELL
20 Questions

Ladies and gentlemen, the Weeknd.

First there was fire. Then there was the wheel. Then the printing press. Then the ScrubDaddy. And now the first-ever trivia edition of 20 Questions.

They said it couldn't be done. But here we are. Correct answers are at the bottom -- no cheating (orders from Eric Adams).

Here’s the link.

Last Week’s 20 Questions:

Ratings averages from last week’s awful movie quote-themed edition of 20 Qs. 10 being the worst words ever uttered; 1 is actually not that bad.

• "I guess my heart just doesn't know it's in high school." – High School Musical 3. – 6.5

• “I’m gonna take you to the bank, Senator Trent. To the blood bank.” – Hard to Kill – 5.8

• “I don’t like sand. It’s coarse, and rough, and irritating, and it gets everywhere.” – Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones – 5.2

• "It's Lethal To Bats....But Deadly To Humans" – Morbius – 7.3

• "The Illumin-what-i?" – The Multiverse of Madness – 5.2

• "I am a peacock, you gotta let me fly!" – The Other Guys – 3.5

• "You think your life is hard? I'm a high school junior wearing size 13 Nikes. Beat that." – Tall Girl – 6.7

• "You haven't known the triumphs and defeats, the epic highs and lows of high school football." – Riverdale – 5.8

• "You're like my own personal brand of heroin." – Twilight – 7.2

• "My gold stars are a metaphor for me being a star." – Glee – 6.4

• "I have a master's degree in American literature. There's nothing I can't handle." – Pretty Little Liars – 5.8

• "I'm such a whore" "Well you're my whore." – The Secret Life Of The American Teenager – 7.8

• "Make a move and the bunny gets it." – Con Air – 4.0

• "You better hold on tight, spider monkey." – Twilight – 6.3

• "Let's kick some ice!" – Batman and Robin – 5.6

• "I think World War 2 just started." – Pearl Harbor – 5.7

• "I did not hit her. It's not true. It's bullshit. I did not hit her. I did NOT...oh, hi Mark." – The Room – 5.6

• "Can I sit here?" "It is a free country, or at least it will be." – The Patriot – 5.4

• "I want you to drain every ounce of their blood, even if it kills them." – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – 6.1

• "On this planet we have a saying: 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'"

  "I also have a saying: 'I don't care.'" – Transformers: Age of Extinction – 3.4

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🦫 Beaver War: Poland’s prime minister blamed beavers for severe flooding. The prime minister says beavers helped cause the country’s worst flooding in 30 years by damaging levees amid heavy rainfall

🧠 “Stone Cold” stunner: Wrestling legend “Stone Cold” Steve Austin shared that he doesn’t believe in CTE, the brain disease linked to concussions and repeated head injuries. “I’m not a CTE guy, I just don’t believe in it,” he said

🧴 Slip up? Costco denied selling large quantities of baby oil to Diddy after his lawyers explained the 1,000 bottles of baby oil that FBI agents found in Diddy’s home as bulk buys from Costco

🌹 D Rose hangs it up: Former MVP Derrick Rose, 35, retired from the NBA. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by his hometown Chicago Bulls, Rose played 15 seasons in the league, though his career was plagued by injuries

👮🏻‍♂️ Not chill: A Los Angeles police officer had his rifle sucked out of his hand by an MRI machine during a cannabis raid. The MRI’s magnets caused his rifle to fly out of his hands and stick to the device

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

We’re excited to see the trivia results. Let us know if you like the format in the comment section at the bottom. Also, you all really rated this the least-bad awful movie quote?!

"On this planet we have a saying: 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'"

"I also have a saying: 'I don't care.'" – Transformers: Age of Extinction

Here’s our saying: Have a great weekend.

–Max and Max