Google's biggest deal, Trump's net worth sinks, and McDonald's vs. Wendy's: Business news roundup

Google parent Alphabet is reportedly making headway in its bid to acquire the $30 billion marketing software company HubSpot. That deal, which would be Google’s largest-ever acquisition, is part of the company’s strategy to compete with Microsoft in the cloud applications market.

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Donald Trump’s net worth is dropping rapidly as investors continue to ditch stock in his media and technology company.

Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), which owns the right-wing social media platform Truth Social, reported a loss before income taxes of $327.6 million last quarter; that comes out to a net loss of $3.61 per share attributable to shareholders, according to a Monday regulatory filing. Revenue dropped year-over-year to $770,500 from $1.12 million for the three-month period that ended in March.

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The AI boom and a growing talent shortage has resulted in companies paying AI software engineers a whole lot more than their non-AI counterparts.

As of April 2024, AI software engineers in the U.S. were paid a median salary of nearly $300,000, while other software technicians made about $100,000 less, according to data compiled by salary data website Levels.fyi. The pay gap that was already about 30% in mid-2022 has grown to almost 50%.

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The fast food chain meal deal wars are heating up. This time, Wendy’s is making a bid to reach inflation weary consumers with a $3 breakfast bundle.

The Ohio-based company said in a statement on Monday that it will offer the morning deal across its chains immediately.

Customers will be able to choose between a bacon, egg, and cheese English muffin or a sausage, egg, and cheese English muffin, Wendy’s said. The sandwiches will come with a small order of seasoned potatoes, it added.

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Remember when you could just search for the information you needed on the internet and be reasonably certain the internet would provide you with a useful answer? Google, has a new idea: What if there was a way to spend billions of dollars on a system that provides users with incorrect and or useless information?

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Consumer Reports is a trusted resource among car buyers, having provided thorough and comprehensive car reviews for decades. In contrast to many automotive publications, Consumer Reports tends to focus on the average driver rather than the enthusiast. The outlet considers many factors that other reviewers don’t ascribe much value to, like predicted reliability and predicted owner satisfaction. CR scores are culminations of an array of tests, and the totals are all out of 100 possible points.

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Spirit Airlines is the latest carrier to do away with cancellation and change fees, as more and more airlines get rid of the extra charges.

The policy change, first reported by SimpleFlying on Sunday, allows customers to modify and cancel their flights at no extra cost. “Change fees are now gone for all,” and “cancellation fees are canceled for everyone,” reads Spirit’s website.

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The millennial-skewed telehealth platform Hims & Hers announced Monday that is now offering customers a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in popular weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.

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Nvidia beat Wall Street’s expectations again, announced a 10-for-1 stock split, and raised their dividend and guidance

For the first time ever in the United States, daily cannabis consumption has passed alcohol, according to a new study