Juulâs market share went up in smoke
As the e-cig maker's market share evaporates, Elon Musk calls Tesla's gigafactories âgiant money furnaces.â

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Good morning, Quartz readers!
Hereâs what you need to know
The US Federal Reserve acknowledged rising interest rates could trigger a recession. Last weekâs decision is already having an impact on the housing market, with JPMorgan cutting jobs in its mortgage unit.
Elon Musk compared Teslaâs gigafactories to âgiant money furnaces.â The billionaire bemoaned the financial impact of supply chain disruptions on his companyâs operations.
E-cig maker Juulâs market share went up in smoke. The US Food and Drug Administration is set to ban the vape company following an investigation and thousands of lawsuits.
Revlon has become a meme stock. After filing for bankruptcy last week, the cosmetics companyâs stock has shot up more than 50% as speculative retail investors cash in.
Uvaldeâs school district police chief was put on leave. Pedro âPeteâ Arredondo faces scrutiny over his handling of the deadly mass shooting at Robb Elementary.
The Westminster Dog Show crowned a new top dog. Trumpet the bloodhound became the first of his breed to earn Best in Show.

What to watch for
Summer has officially started in the northern hemisphere, but the juryâs still out on its official song. The charts are topped by Harry Stylesâs âAs It Was,â and Kate Bushâs 1985 classic âRunning up that Hill.â But Billboard charts may no longer be a good yardstick for a songâs success.
For one, Billboardâs chart-toppers are pop and reggaeton, but Twitter is all about Kpop, and indie jazz is hot on Bandcamp. And Billboard itself has acknowledged it canât keep up with streaming. TikTok generates viral hits tooâtreat yourself to TikTok compilations of Lizzoâs upbeat âAbout Damn Time,â and Jack Harlowâs âFirst Class.â And, of course, BeyoncĂ© has a new single (and Great Resignation anthem?).
Spotify just went ahead and threw them all on one list, and maybe we no longer like to be told what single song defines our season, anyway.
Whatâs the point of a gas tax holiday?
In response to record-high gasoline prices, US president Joe Biden asked lawmakers yesterday to pause federal taxes on the fuel for three months. Production of gasoline in the US is already close to maxed-out, and outside of begging Saudi Arabia to drill more, the federal government doesnât have a ton of cards to play.
But itâs not like the temporary tax break, which some states have also tried, will save drivers all that much. The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents per gallon, less than 4% of the current gasoline price. Plus, a break on a fixed rate looks even worse if gas just keeps getting more expensive.

Whether the gas tax holiday will be another fruitless effort to curb inflation is hard to say. But targeted relief for low-income households, as well as subsidies on public transit and electric vehicles, could be a better place to start.
Did the US waste low interest rates?
Todayâs inflation problem can be traced in part to the last recovery, when public investment stalled despite unprecedented low interest rates. The decision to forego investment left the US vulnerable to supply chain problems, and led industries like housing and energy to cut much of the capacity the world sorely needs today.
ââ⊠Our next Weekend Brief, available exclusively to Quartz members, takes a look at the âwasted decade.â Get it in your inbox by signing up for a membership (at 40% off!) today.
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đŠ·Â ââBelgium is returning a Congolese freedom fighterâs tooth 60 years after his murder

Surprising discoveries
Porn-detecting headwear now exists. Chinese scientists have developed a helmet that can read brainwaves to detect consumption of illicit material.
Robo-fireflies have taken to the skies. Flying, insect-sized robots can use light to communicate with each other.
A tiny, self-healing robo-fish is bait for microplastics. Itâs made of materials the pollutants canât resist.  Â
Amazonâs latest hire is a robot worker. It wonât quit unless it runs out of power.
Londoners are going wild for vegetable cocktails. Thatâs one way to get your five-a-day.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, microplastic saviors, and one kale old-fashioned, please, to hi@qz.com. Reader support makes Quartz available to allâbecome a member. Todayâs Daily Brief was brought to you by Julia Malleck, Sofia Lotto Persio, Morgan Haefner, and Susan Howson.
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