Good morning, Quartz readers!
Hereās what you need to know
U.S. President Joe Biden signed a TikTok bill into law. The measure requires the appās owner, China-based Bytedance, to divest TikTok or get banned in the States in 270 days ā but its CEO said TikTok isnāt going anywhere.
Metaās Metaverse is still losing the company billions. Reality Labs, its virtual reality business and research division, posted a loss of $3.8 billion yesterday.
Shoppers in Asia are powering the global luxury industry (again). Prada and Moncler are finally shaking off a pandemic-induced financial hit, but Gucci is still lagging.
Boeing is burning through cash as it rushes to fix quality control issues. The planemaker spent $3.93 billion over the first three months of 2024, far more than it recorded during the same time last year.
The U.K. is scrutinizing Big Techās AI deals as they heat up
Big Tech companies have been picking up and partnering with smaller AI firms to boost their own positions in the AI race ā and U.K. regulators are taking notice.
The countryās antitrust watchdog invited third parties to comment on whether the partnership between Microsoft and OpenAIās French rival Mistral AI, as well as Amazonās partnership with Anthropic, fall under the U.K.ās merger regulations and can threaten competition.
The scrutiny could intensify in the U.K. and elsewhere as more AI deals and investments are struck. Hereās just a few that have taken place (or, in one case, was called off) in the past week:
š Nvidia is buying an Israeli AI software startup that makes AI chips more efficient
šæ Sam Altman and others are investing $20 million in a startup tackling AIās energy problem
āļø Salesforce is ditching its deal to buy Informatica, report saysĀ
š¹ Adobe might partner with OpenAI to offer AI video generation
šø The Pentagon is spending billions on Big Tech and Silicon Valley startups as it goes all-in on AI
Read more about what U.K. regulators are looking for.
Quotable: Spotify has some layoff hindsight
āAlthough thereās no question that it was the right strategic decision, it did disrupt our day-to-day operations more than we anticipated. It took us some time to find our footing, but more than four months into this transition, I think weāre back on track, and I expect to continue improving on our execution throughout the year getting us to an even better place than weāve ever been.ā ā Spotify chief executive Daniel Ek in an earnings call with investors yesterday. He was talking about the companyās 1,500-person workforce reduction in December.
More from Quartz
š§ Trump Media is taking claims that its stock is being illegally traded to Congress
š Biogen stock rises on sales of groundbreaking Alzheimerās drug
š Jamie Dimon says consumers are in āgood shapeā ā even if a recession hits
š Wegovy could soon treat millions of Medicare patients
āļø Airlines will have to give cash refunds and avoid surprise fees under new Biden rules
Surprising discoveries
San Franciscoās new public toilet didnāt cost $1.7 million. It was projected to, but came in at a much more manageable $200,000.
Chartreuse sales hit a high last year that hasnāt been seen since the late 1890s. A total of 1.6 million bottles of the French herbal liqueur made by Carthusian monks were sold.
Athens looks quite apocalyptic right now. Dust from the Sahara is descending over Greece and making the skies appear an eerie orange.
A teacher got fined for putting a For Sale sign in his own truck. Itās all because of a local ordinance in Pennsylvania.
Scientists need a scary new color because the world keeps getting hotter. A shade beyond red is needed to indicate extreme heat.
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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, Chartreuse cocktail ideas, and scary color ideas to talk@qz.com. Todayās Daily Brief was brought to you by Morgan Haefner.