Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
A pivotal climate report lays out the steps to avoid disaster. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is scheduled to release new findings on what’s needed to limit global temperature increases to 1.5° C above pre-industrial levels. The ambitious target would require massive changes in the global economy.
The result of Brazil’s presidential election. Far-right populist Jair Bolsonaro holds a commanding lead over Fernando Haddad of the Workers’ Party, but he may not reach the 50% threshold needed to avoid a second round of voting. Results are due about 8am HTK.
Depleted guardians of the global economy descend on Bali. The annual meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund will feature finance ministers from around the world—but they are deeply divided over populism and globalism, and have little firepower after a decade of rock-bottom interest rates.
Over the weekend
The US and North Korea discussed a second Trump-Kim summit. US secretary of state Mike Pompeo returned from a trip to Pyongyang (paywall) to brief the South Korean government, which said the countries’ leaders would meet “as soon as possible.” Pompeo and Kim reportedly discussed what steps North Korea would take toward denuclearization, including the potential presence of US monitors.
Chinese anti-graft authorities detained Interpol president Meng Hongwei. The world’s top police official, who was reported missing to French authorities by his wife last week, is being investigated for “suspected serious violations of state law” by China’s National Supervisory Commission. He resigned from his post at Interpol on Sunday.
Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the US Supreme Court. Republicans narrowly secured his lifetime appointment to the country’s highest court despite numerous accusations of sexual assault. Maine’s Susan Collins, who cast the deciding vote, said she believed Christine Blasey Ford was sexually assaulted, but not by Kavanaugh.
A Saudi dissident journalist was allegedly murdered in the Istanbul consulate. Turkish officials said Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor who had criticized Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed after he entered the consulate seeking documents for his upcoming marriage. The Saudi government denied the accusation.
A $1.4 million Banksy painting self-destructed at a Sotheby’s auction. As soon as the gavel came down on the sale of “Girl With Balloon,” the painting was sent through a remote-controlled paper shredder that was hidden in the frame. “It appears we’ve just been Banksy’ed,” Sotheby’s senior director said.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Mike Murphy on making the switch from Mac to Windows: “I’ve spent the better part of my adult life using Apple computers. … They have consistently been simple to understand, wonderfully designed, and generally pretty durable. But recently, it’s felt as though many of the things that made Apple computers great—the attention to detail, the simple software, innovative products—aren’t shining through in its products as often anymore, especially in its laptops. So I’ve started, like many, to cast my eyes elsewhere.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Gig workers are the new proletariat. The ever-present threat of technology means they can’t do anything but work to survive.
Snoop Dogg is the life coach the world needs right now. The rapper’s relatable and weed-heavy approach to self-care is easier to implement than aspirational competitors.
China’s alleged motherboard hack could cause ripples in global trade. Tensions between China and the US will only escalate, even if the scandal is fake.
Surprising discoveries
A $100,000 meteorite was used as a doorstop for 30 years. The Smithsonian helped to uncover its interstellar origin.
Venomous funnel-web spiders could cure cancer. Their melanoma-killing peptide has almost no negative effects on healthy cells.
Luxury panic rooms are hot in the Hamptons. Billionaires are fearful of the MS-13 gang that has been spotted an hour’s drive away.
A Swiss startup is turning carbon dioxide into stone. It’s selling carbon offsets based on the innovative technology to help fund its expansion.
Trinity Dublin College gave a prized literary award to one of its own janitors. The winner says she finds her daily labors more conducive to writing than sitting at a desk all day.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, meteorite doorstops and spider-venom cancer killers to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. Today’s Daily Brief was written and edited by Adam Pasick, John Detrixhe, Marc Bain, and April Siese.