Good morning, Quartz readers!
Here’s what you need to know
Tesla’s Chinese rival is launching more cheap EVs. But the Warren Buffett-backed BYD may have to pay for all its rapid expansion.
Meanwhile, Toyota is giving out higher paychecks. The carmaker agreed to give factory workers in Japan their biggest raises in 25 years as inflation remains historically high.
Bitcoin and Bitcoin ETFs both smashed records. Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) attracted more than $1 billion in net inflows, while Bitcoin cruised past $73,000.
Amazon is now delivering Zepbound to people’s homes. A prescription is still necessary to place the order for Eli Lilly’s very in-demand weight loss drug.
Dollar Tree is about to have a lot of sales
“Family Dollar is the victim of the macroenvironment,” Dollar Tree CEO Rick Dreiling told investors yesterday, who dropped the stock like hotcakes after the bargain retailer said it’s closing nearly 1,000 stores. There’s a plus side for shoppers though: Discounted items will be even cheaper at the affected brick-and-mortars… or should we call them Penny Trees?
Google’s chatbot is getting tight-lipped on election questions
Out of an abundance of caution, Google said that its Gemini chatbot ain’t answering some questions that voters in two of the world’s largest democracies — the U.S. and India — may pose ahead of their respective elections this year.
It’s probably a smart move. Google already embarrassed itself with Gemini’s image generator. But how will other chatbots respond?
Adidas is tied up in Yeezy shoe strings
Reputation-wise, Adidas’s move to part ways with the rapper Ye made perfect sense. Business-wise has been another story.
- First, it was going to sell the shoes without the Yeezy logo
- Then, it sat with the idea of taking a giant loss of €700 million ($750 million at the time) on the shoes with the logo
- Then, it decided to continue selling the shoes with the Yeezy logo but at cost and with some of the money going to charity
That last decision did lead to some positive results for Adidas’s operating profit — but it wasn’t enough to stop the shoemaker from losing money for the first time in decades.
More from Quartz
🚗 China is beating the U.S. on self-driving cars because of one feature
🤖 Cyber attackers are using AI to get better, Microsoft executive says
💻 Samsung is turning to the same AI chipmaking technology as its rival
Surprising discoveries
A man lived in an iron lung for 70 years. He entered the respirator after contracting polio at age 6, though eventually got to the point where he could spend small amounts of time without it.
Del Monte is about to sell the “most compact pineapple” in its history. The Precious Honeyglow is about half the usual size of the tropical fruit. Aw!
Alaska is home to bats! They act like little bears, feasting voraciously during the warmer months to prepare for the much colder ones. Aw!!
There are more giant redwoods in the UK than in California. But they aren’t as tall — yet. Aw!!!
The original 2007 iPhone could cost you $190,000. Back in the day it was $499. Aw!!!!
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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, perfectly ripe Precious Honeyglows, and UK redwood sightings to talk@qz.com. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Morgan Haefner and Susan Howson.