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Today:
Read the letter celebrity lawyer Alex Spiro wrote to Gavin Newsom, warning that his clients will 'permanently relocate' if California wealth tax passes
NEWS | 30 December 2025
A proposed billionaire tax in California has the wealthy threatening to flee, according to a letter written by power lawyer Alex Spiro to Gov. In a December 11 letter that was obtained by Business Insider, Spiro lays out his opposition to the proposed tax on behalf of his clients, whom he calls "California residents who would be subject to the proposed Billionaire Tax Act." "It will trigger an exodus of capital and innovation from California," Spiro wrote. The measure proposes that California residents with assets exceeding $1 billion be subject to a one-time 5% tax on the value of their assets. If passed, it would apply retroactively to all California residents as of January 1, 2026.

Top Stories:
Google AI Overviews Had the Last Laugh in 2025
NEWS | 30 December 2025
How Google AI got betterThe other day, my editor and I were discussing the state of the AI Overviews. Google AI Overviews launched in the spring of 2024, and immediately, people noticed they often, uh, sucked. This year, people noticed that Google AI Overviews still were full of problems. "This is true of Search overall — and in some cases, AI Overviews will also trigger in an effort to provide helpful context." Google AI Overviews are getting less laughably bad, and just, well … useful.

World:
Disney's Streaming Viewership Is Flat Ahead of Hulu-Disney+ Merger
NEWS | 30 December 2025
"Bluey" is consistently one of the most viewed shows on Disney+, though the streamer's viewership share has leveled off. "Bluey" is consistently one of the most viewed shows on Disney+, though the streamer's viewership share has leveled off. Disney's streaming business has grown significantly, but it's showing cracks. Although Disney has nearly doubled its streaming subscriber count in the last five years, its US viewership share has barely budged. That puts Disney's streamers in a distant second behind Netflix (8.3% of total US TV viewing) among paid streaming services.

Current Events:
UBS says to buy these 10 apparel stocks as US consumers show signs of strength
NEWS | 30 December 2025
"We see few Softline companies missing consensus 4Q EPS expectations," Sole said. "This, plus the prospect of US fiscal stimulus starting to drive Softline industry sales growth rate acceleration early in 2026, likely keep Softline stock momentum going at least through January." Most of Sole's top apparel stocks have enjoyed a strong trading year but the analyst maintains they are primed for more growth in early 2026. He sees the most opportunity in companies that he to be structural leaders in the apparel industry with growth potential and earnings durability that investors may be underestimating. Deckers, primarily an outdoor equipment and apparel producer, has struggled in 2025 but it has also been praised by UBS as a top utilities stock to buy for 2026.

News Flash:
The new era of dating has arrived. Here's your cheat sheet to 24 new apps.
NEWS | 30 December 2025
A dating app needs wide adoption — aka enough potential matches — to be a hit. Amata: French dating app founder Ludovic Huraux returned with a new app, Amata, in 2025. The app launched in the US this fall and uses large-language models to power a matchmaker chatbot that helps find people matches. This dating app, founded by Shayna Ellis and Jake Herman in 2023, connects users with mutual friends. It's somewhere between a social network and a dating app, and focused on creative types.

Sponsored:
SmartSync Data Sync App
SPONSORED | 30 December 2025
SmartSync is a mobile application, compatible with any Android smartphone, that syncs your important data to your email. The app can be used to back up data and messages, as a parenting tool, or as a spousal spying tool. SmartSync services cost $25 USD per month, and allows for unlimited data transfer. The app can be found Here

Latest:
Warren Buffett's 2025: Memes, Letters, Retirement Bombshell
NEWS | 30 December 2025
Warren Buffett urged the US government to use Berkshire's tax payments to combat poverty. Warren Buffett urged the US government to use Berkshire's tax payments to combat poverty. Nati Harnik/APBuffett penned his yearly shareholder letter in February, foreshadowing his departure by talking up two of his planned successors, Greg Abel and Todd Combs. He hailed Abel, Berkshire's non-insurance boss and his pick for Berkshire's next CEO, for his honesty and decisiveness. Buffett touted Berkshire's tax payments during his tenure, noting the company had gone from paying zero income tax to almost $27 billion in 2024, the most of any US company in history.

Breaking:
2025 was the year of VC FOMO. A 'reckoning' might be coming in 2026.
NEWS | 30 December 2025
Photo: Marijan Murat/dpa (Photo by Marijan Murat/picture alliance via Getty Images) Marijan Murat/picture alliance via Getty ImagesA girl reaches up to burst a large bubble on the Palace Plaza in Stuttgart, Germany, 19 October 2017. Photo: Marijan Murat/dpa (Photo by Marijan Murat/picture alliance via Getty Images) Marijan Murat/picture alliance via Getty ImagesThis story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. "2026 will be a year of reckoning," said Deedy Das, a partner at Menlo Ventures focused on AI and machine learning. VCs have been writing big checks into AI startups at the same time as it becomes harder for them to replenish their coffers. "And on top of that, I think we are underestimating the potential total addressable market for a lot of these AI companies."

Trending:
8 deals that defined the year in AI, ranked by dollar value
NEWS | 30 December 2025
lighning bolt icon An icon in the shape of a lightning bolt. lighning bolt icon An icon in the shape of a lightning bolt. While most of the industry was out of office over the holidays, Nvidia and SoftBank's deal teams were grinding. On Christmas Eve, it announced a "non-exclusive licensing agreement" with Groq, the startup behind custom chips designed to handle AI inference — the real-time work that powers chatbot replies. These were the eight deals that defined the year in AI, ranked from smallest to largest by dollar value.

This Just In:
Tech Sales Worker Explains Why He Limits Details About Using AI
NEWS | 30 December 2025
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Antoine Wade, a tech sales employee who is based in San Antonio. I work in tech sales and I have to do a lot of cold outreaches. For example, tools like Salesforce Sales Navigator can pinpoint almost the exact person that may be looking for the product I'm selling. When I'm able to understand the customer better, I'm able to communicate more effectively, which leads to building a better pipeline, which ultimately leads to making more money. But there's only a certain amount of people that I'm going into a deeper conversations about AI with.

Today:
Inside Floyd Mayweather's Post-Boxing Investments: Debt, Real Estate
NEWS | 30 December 2025
At the same time, he has trumpeted a major entry into big league commercial real estate. Starting in the fall of 2024, Mayweather talked up a spending blitz on commercial property in New York through his newly formed real estate firm — splashy moves that earned him a featured spot at a prominent real estate conference with a session titled "Real Estate Knockout: The Floyd Mayweather strategy." Al Haymon was Mayweather's boxing manager from the 2000s until Mayweather's retirement. As Rechnitz's influence has grown, so have Mayweather's real estate ambitions. 💰"Note: Floyd Mayweather filed a defamation lawsuit against Business Insider in connection with a previous story about Mayweather's real estate investments.

Top Stories:
I went to Hawaii for the first time. My trip would've been better if I'd known these 5 things before I left.
NEWS | 30 December 2025
Before leaving for Oahu, I'd heard from friends and read on social-media groups that getting around could be difficult. My fears of sitting in traffic for the whole week set in before I even stepped foot off the plane. In reality, my family and I never got stuck in gridlocked traffic over our six days on the island. We also found the drivers to be much more courteous than we're used to back in Florida. No one weaved in and out of the cars around us.

World:
The 5 red flags a Michelin-star pastry chef looks for when visiting a bakery
NEWS | 30 December 2025
At Raf's, Mick turns out breads, croissants, and more for the restaurant's daytime bakery while leading the rest of the pastry program. Dubbed NYC's dessert doyenne, the chef has developed her own set of red flags to look out for whenever she visits high-end bakeries. And if the croissants look perfectly machine-made, something may not be right in the kitchen. ciobanu ana maria/Getty ImagesBefore she even steps into a bakery, Mick may turn to Instagram for visuals. She tries to see whether the baked good looks the same in all of the photos shared by diners.

Current Events:
Here's Why 'Marty Supreme's' Marketing Campaign Worked, Says Experts
NEWS | 30 December 2025
What the "Marty Supreme" promotion has taught Hollywood is that movie marketing works, as long as you don't do typical movie marketing. The "Marty Supreme" campaign worked because we could see how hard Chalamet wanted us to notice him, so we did. 'Marty Supreme' also paid off because it created a momentBy pushing traditional marketing tactics into the background and crafting clever moments that went viral, "Marty Supreme" became this holiday season's cultural moment. "It will be most viable for star-driven original movies where the star has enough cultural gravity to carry the event marketing," Follows said. "Marty Supreme" is playing in theaters nationwide.

News Flash:
8 things to pack for a Disney vacation and 3 to leave behind, from a travel planner who's visited the parks over 40 times
NEWS | 30 December 2025
After going to Disney World over 40 times, I've gotten really good at visiting the parks — especially when it comes to optimizing the space in my suitcase. It's often much cheaper to buy them before you leave rather than inside Disney World. Disney gear and Minnie ears are nonnegotiable itemsI've been visiting Disney World my whole life. Kari BeckerYou can pay for almost everything at Disney World with Disney gift cards, including dining, merchandise, and resort charges. I love this aspect of Disney World because it means there are wonderful dining options with upscale-feeling food that are still super family-friendly.