Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today and over the weekend
The US releases second-quarter GDP figures. Economists expect the nation’s gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 2.6%, the fastest in a year, thanks in large part to strong consumer spending. On the downside, they anticipate weak exports and moderate inventory accumulation.
Tesla marks the opening of its “gigafactory” in Nevada. Select Tesla owner will get a tour of the sprawling facility just east of Reno, similar to the one Quartz took earlier this week. The complex isn’t entirely finished, but it’s slated to eventually become the world’s largest building (by footprint).
Tokyo is set to elect its first female leader. The former defense minister Yuriko Koike is leading in opinion polls to be the next governor of the Japanese capital. If elected on Sunday, she will oversee preparations for the next Olympics.
Hurry for a free upgrade to Windows 10. The deadline for PC users to update their Microsoft operating systems ends on Saturday morning at 5:59 am EDT. After that, it costs $120.
While you were sleeping
The US Democrats wrapped up their national convention. Retired general John Allen gave a bombastic endorsement of Hillary Clinton for president. The father of a Muslim US soldier who died in action asked Donald Trump if he’d ever actually read the US constitution. And, finally, Clinton accepted the party’s nomination and warned against electing “a man you can bait with a tweet.”
Asian tech giants posted second-quarter results. China’s Baidu recorded its biggest earnings drop in 11 years and a 36% drop in second-quarter net income (paywall), as tighter regulations hurt ad revenue. Over in Japan, Sony surprised analysts with a quarterly net profit of $206 million (paywall), buoyed by PlayStation 4 console sales.
The Bank of Japan opted for a modest dose of monetary stimulus. Confounding expectations, the central bank neither decreased its main interest rate nor altered its targets for buying government bonds, but it will significantly increase its purchases of exchange-traded stock funds. The Japanese yen jumped and government bond prices fell (paywall) on the news.
France’s economy stalled. GDP in the euro zone’s second-biggest economy saw no expansion in the quarter to end of June, as consumers reined in spending, and weeks of labor union strikes brought the country to standstill.
Profits slipped at UBS and Barclays. The UK bank’s first-half profit was down 21%, dented by the $527 million in compensation it has allocated to compensate customers for mis-sold insurance, as well as losses on the parts of the company up for sale. Separately, Zurich-based UBS’s second-quarter profit fell by 14% as the investment bank struggled with uncertain financial markets and risk-averse investors (paywall).
Quartz obsession interlude
Akshat Rathi on the science or spin behind a new Alzheimer’s drug. “To understand the hype around TauRx’s ‘breakthrough’ drug we must understand just why Alzheimer’s is such a hard disease to treat… The drugs that exist to treat Alzheimer’s only relieve symptoms temporarily and they don’t work in all patients.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Hacking the vote could be next on Russia’s to-do list. US voting machines and election systems are woefully vulnerable.
3D-printing is a new industrial revolution. New design techniques and on-demand manufacturing could change everything.
Voting with your heart is immoral. Fervent idealism makes voters value loyalty to a candidate over the consequences of their choices.
Surprising discoveries
Jeff Bezos became the world’s third richest man. The Amazon founder is now worth an estimated $65 billion—take that, Warren Buffett!
Norway wants to give Finland a mountain for its 100th birthday. It would mean Norway moving its border.
The English bulldog needs new bloodlines to be returned to health. Who’s a good, overly inbred boy?
Silicon Valley banks are handing out no-money-down mortgages. That could spell trouble if the intertwined tech and real estate bubbles burst.
Robot security guards are ready to patrol your home. The iPatrol bot has tank tracks, a night vision camera and motion sensors.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, sentry robots, and the far superior French bulldog breed to hi@qz.com. You can download our iPhone app or follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.