Happy Halloween, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
How’s the trade war treating General Motors? The carmaker is expected to post a dip in third-quarter profit as steel and aluminum tariffs and a slowdown in Chinese sales take their toll.
The Supreme Court hears a case involving Google. Google isn’t a named party in Frank v. Gaos, but it’s at the heart of a case about damages awarded in class-action suits that could influence American law for years to come .
Venezuelans rush to beat Peru’s residency deadline. Thousands of Venezuelans fleeing their country are expected to enter Peru today to make the cutoff for temporary residency cards.
Brazil holds rates steady. The country is expected to keep its benchmark interest rate at 6.5% in its first rate decision since Sunday’s polarizing presidential elections.
While you were sleeping
An Alphabet exec left after reports of sexual harassment. Rich DeVaul, a director at the company’s moonshot division X, did not receive a severance package. Google CEO Sundar Pichai also sent out an internal memo on Tuesday night supporting employees planning a walk-out on Thursday over the company’s handling of sexual harassment.
Airbus profit soared. The European planemaker’s third-quarter profits more than doubled thanks to ramped-up deliveries of its A350 wide-bodied airplanes offsetting issues with other models. US rival Boeing also posted a strong quarterly earnings last week.
Ford and Baidu joined forces to test autonomous cars in China. The first tests in the two-year project will take place on designated Beijing roads. Baidu on Wednesday reported a 56% jump in net profit for the third quarter, which it credited to search-engine revenue and its new AI projects.
India unveiled the world’s tallest statue. At 182 meters (600 feet), the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, a leading independence figure who worked with Mahatma Gandhi, is twice the size of New York’s Statue of Liberty. The project was mired in controversy for years and cost $430 million.
The trade war chilled Chinese factory activity. China’s manufacturing sector sunk to its weakest level since July 2016. Registering 50.2 in October, the Purchasing Managers’ Index missed expectations and was barely above the 50-point mark that divides growth from contraction.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Matthew de Silva and Corinne Purtill on Satoshi Nakamoto, the shadowy figure behind bitcoin: ”When he introduced the cryptocurrency just months after the 2008 global financial crisis, Satoshi portrayed himself as a 36-year-old Japanese man angered by the irresponsibility of banks and governments. His currency would let people make financial transactions those institutions couldn’t touch. So it’s fitting, perhaps, that Satoshi ensured he’d be untouchable as well.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Twitter should kill the retweet. The feature derails healthy conversation and preys on users’ worst instincts.
Your genome is worthless. Even if hackers stole your DNA information (paywall), they couldn’t do much with the data.
Job titles are a distraction. With Elon Musk now calling himself the “Nothing” of Tesla, maybe it’s time to shake up the traditional C-Suite structure.
Surprising discoveries
Paddleboarding witches took over an Oregon river. The coven was in full witch garb as they swanned down the river with stuffed black cats strapped to their boards.
People all over the world are having the same nightmare. Many sufferers of sleep paralysis hallucinate a tall featureless figure who’s become known as the “Hat Man.”
The world’s largest octopus garden is two miles deep. Thousands of brooding octomoms are raising babies off the coast of California.
Japan won’t “please please” Beatles fans. Its Supreme Court ruled the police don’t have to release uncensored security footage from the band’s only visit to Japan in 1966.
The Paris catacombs have an underground society. “Cataphiles” do in-depth amateur explorations, often illegally, throughout the bone-filled network.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, octopus babies, and paddleboarding witches 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 by Jill Petzinger and edited by Jackie Bischof.