Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Judgment day for Theresa May. Britain’s prime minister won apparent concessions (paywall) from the EU at the proverbial 11th hour, but it’s unclear they will be enough to stop the UK parliament from voting down her revised Brexit deal this evening. If the deal is rejected, it could lead to an extension of the official divorce date, currently set for March 29.
The EU discusses Huawei espionage concerns. A European Parliament resolution will highlight security threats (paywall) posed by Chinese telecom companies. Washington has warned allies in Europe that they risk losing access to US intelligence if they use Huawei to build 5G networks.
Wells Fargo’s CEO heads to Washington. Timothy Sloan is expected to face tough scrutiny before the House Financial Services Committee over the scandal that revealed the bank created scores of fake customer accounts to bolster its numbers. Most of Wells Fargo’s business lines remain under investigation (paywall) by the Justice Department or Securities and Exchange Commission.
Google and Intel talk business before the US Senate. Lawyers for the tech giants are scheduled to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee, to discuss the impact of privacy laws in California and Europe on competition. The California Consumer Privacy Act and Europe’s GPDR are landmark bills that give users more control over their data.
While you were sleeping
US diplomats walked out of Venezuela. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the US embassy in Caracas would pull its last remaining diplomatic staff from the country. The move is the latest escalation between the US, which backs opposition leader’s Juan Guaidó claim to power, and president Nicolás Maduro.
Volkswagen revved up its earnings. The German carmaker beat expectations and posted a 6% rise in net profit for 2018. Volkswagen has faced hefty charges over the “dieselgate” scandal in which it was caught cheating on emissions tests.
Elizabeth Warren had a yo-yo day of Facebook ads. The Democratic senator and 2020 presidential candidate began running ads (paywall) last week calling for the break-up of tech giants Facebook, Google, and Amazon. Facebook removed Warren’s ads, arguing they violated the platform’s policies, but restored them on Monday in the interest of “robust debate.”
Nissan, Renault, and Mitsubishi briefed the press. After a board meeting in Yokohoma, members of the world’s largest carmaking alliance held their first joint news conference since the ouster of chairman Carlos Ghosn amid charges of financial misconduct. They said the three automakers would be put on equal footing as part of a rebalancing effort.
The UN is investigating possible violations of North Korea sanctions. About 20 countries are under scrutiny for alleged actions including nuclear procurement in China and arms brokering in Syria.
Membership
Today we have a new state of play on sovereign wealth funds, which have become major players in finance and venture capital, commanding about $8 trillion in combined assets—equal to around 10% of global GDP. With much longer investment horizons and nation-state backing that leaves some ambiguity about their ultimate goals, they are ever more active players in the global economy.
We also have an analysis of calls to break up big tech, and a video about Japan’s shrinking workforce.
Quartz Obsession
The Little Ice Age: The term often refers to a moderately cold period in the 17th and 18th centuries that hit Europe especially hard. But it may have gone as late as the 19th century and began—or was at least triggered—in the 13th century. Either way, the Little Ice Age caused famines, sparked witch hunts, altered wars, toppled dynasties, and may show us what lies ahead with climate change. Read up on the era in our Quartz Obsession.
Matters of debate
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Automation isn’t the problem—capitalism is. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says we could be more excited about robotic labor if unemployment wasn’t so financially devastating.
We should switch to quantum computing. It’s a crucial tool to combat the threat of ever-growing energy use by regular computers.
Idealized visions of fatherhood can mask abuse. Deep-seated cultural narratives associate having control over others with being a “good” dad.
Surprising discoveries
New Zealand is using barking drones to herd sheep. But during wet weather, dogs are still the best.
The leader of the Iditarod lost a big lead after yelling at his dogs. Speaking of dogs, Frenchman Nicolas Petit’s crew refused to keep going in the Alaskan endurance race, costing him the victory.
A high-school teacher won $10,000 for reading the fine print. A travel insurance company buried the prize to encourage customers to pay attention.
“This is a totally new one for us.” The crew of a flight destined for Kuala Lumpur negotiated with air-traffic control to return to Jeddah when a passenger realized shortly after take-off that she forgot to bring her baby on board.
Hitchhiking pathogens could carry cholera from India to the US. Plastic litter floating in rivers and seas around the world can act as rafts for harmful bacteria.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, dog labor strikes, and fine-print windfalls to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Adam Rasmi and edited by Jason Karaian.