The Taliban speaks, Robinhood earnings, plants with human genes

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Here’s what you need to know

The Taliban is attempting a charm offensive. The group said it would work with other nations and allow women to participate in the government, in accordance with its interpretation of sharia.

Thousands are being evacuated from Afghanistan. Meanwhile, India is issuing emergency e-visas to Afghan nationals, and Uganda will host 2,000 refugees for three months.

The World Health Organization identified fake Covid vaccines. Authorities in India and across Africa have been finding counterfeit versions of Covishield, the Indian-made version of AstraZeneca.

Europe is on fire. A wildfire that started Monday night in the French Riviera forced 6,000 people to evacuate, and parts of Greece and Portugal are also still ablaze.

Japan extended its state of emergency. The response to Covid-19 will remain in place through Sept. 12, beyond the Paralympic Games, and has been expanded to cover seven additional prefectures.

IKEA is a utility now. The furniture giant will sell wind- and solar-powered energy directly to Swedish homes starting in September.

What to watch for

Robinhood reports second-quarter results today, its first release as a public company. Here’s what we’re watching:

Has meme stock trading cooled off? Robinhood has profited from the meme stock mania—but trading activity, which was particularly high during the first two months of 2021, has returned to “levels more in line with prior periods” in recent weeks, the trading app said in its amended prospectus filed Monday.

How worried is Robinhood about SEC scrutiny? Robinhood’s main business, selling clients’ stock orders to market makers who handle the trades, has caught the attention of US regulators who are concerned retail traders aren’t getting the best trade execution.

What’s on retail investors’ minds? Robinhood won’t just be fielding questions from Wall Street but also from the “little guys” through a platform it just purchased. Some of the most upvoted questions include: “Will Robinhood pay out a dividend in the future?” and “Is Robinhood getting a crypto wallet?”

Charting Walmart’s plummeting e-commerce sales growth

Last year, Walmart’s US e-commerce sales grew 97% in the second quarter compared to the same period in 2019, the fastest rate on record for the world’s largest retailer. But Walmart yesterday reported e-commerce sales in the US rose just 6% during the three months through July 31.

The slowdown was inevitable as pandemic restrictions eased and customers returned to shopping in stores. However, in its latest filing, Amazon said its North American sales grew 22%, and it is currently on track to overtake Walmart as the largest US retailer in the next few years.

Five things to do that don’t require a phone

🔭 Go outside.

🧩 Do a puzzle.

📚 Read a book.

🏊 Take a swim.

🥧 Bake something.

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Surprising discoveries

TikTok’s 100-million-follower club has a new member. It’s a 21-year-old former factory worker living in Italy on a Senegalese passport.

Researchers added a human protein to plants. It can increase food crop yields by as much as 50%.

Denmark is only big enough for one Little Mermaid statue. The heirs to the artist behind the original have sued an imitator.

A supercomputer calculated pi to the 62.8 trillionth digit. It only took 108 days and 9 hours.

Sharks generally don’t care about humans. Drone footage shows close encounters are pretty common but most of the time the great whites just swim on by.

Correction: A surprising discovery in our Aug. 11 brief claimed hermit crabs were “sexually excited” by a chemical released by plastic garbage. The researchers have since clarified the crustaceans were just hungry. 

Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, Little Mermaid feuds, and shark tales to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our iOS app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Hasit Shah, Michelle Cheng, Marc Bain, Annaliese Griffin, and Liz Webber.