25 talking points for better conversation at cocktails based on what I found interesting this week.
Global Street Smarts
1. the first image of a black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy revealed: Sagittarius A* is 4 million times as massive as the sun and some 26,000 light-years from Earth.
2. Seven in ten Americans view inflation as a massive problem for the country, according to Pew.
3. Greece reported annual inflation of 10.2% in April, the highest since 1995.
4. Global supply chains and China: More than half of Apple's 192 suppliers that manufacture on the Mainland – including Foxconn Technology Group, Pegatron, Quanta Computer, Wistron Corp, and Compal Electronics – have production facilities in lockdown-hit Shanghai and eastern Jiangsu province.
5. The US holds about 8 million tons of lithium, according to the US Geological Survey, putting it in the top five most lithium-rich countries in the world. Yet it mines and processes only 1 percent of global output. Much of the rest comes from China, Chile, and Australia.
6. Tokyo officials have asked residents to watch an hour less of television a day, not keep their rice warm for as long, and turn off their heated toilet seats to save electricity.
7. Subaru to build Japan's first electric vehicle plant: Nikkei reports the automaker to invest $1.9bn in domestic EV production.
8. Office space in aisle 9: Tesco + IWG partner to offer workspaces in supermarkets.
9. CAC: On average, 40% of the money raised by digitally-native CPG brands goes to Google and Meta for customer acquisition.
10. After Jordan debuted his new multicolored shoes in an exhibition game in Oct. 1985, they were banned by the NBA. Nike promptly aired a commercial about the incident, and young people camped out in the streets to buy the new Air Jordans.
+ "Kids like that stuff … 'I'm wearing something I'm not supposed to be wearing.' Perfect. Couldn't be better."
11. GM's newest Cadillac Escalade will be the most powerful and expensive version of the full-size SUV ever: The 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V will start at about $150k with a supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 engine that delivers 682 horsepower.
12. Disney+ tops 200 million subscribers across all streaming services.
13. Percentage of Americans who use:
YouTube 81%
Facebook 69%
Instagram 40%
Pinterest 31%
Linkedin 28%
Snapchat 25%
Twitter 23%
HT Pew Research Center
13. The average American spends 11 hours per day consuming media, 65% of their waking life. Roughly 40% of that time is spent on a mobile device.
14. Andy Warhol's iconic Marilyn Monroe portrait 'Shot Sage Blue Marilyn' sold at Christie's sets a record-high $195 million for an American artwork.
15. The National Library of Austria, in Hofburg Palace, was constructed in the 18th century and contains 7.4 million books.
16. Google announced its first smartwatch, called the Pixel Watch, and it will go on sale in the fall.
17. Heinz says it's developing a paper-based version of its iconic ketchup bottle.
18. Nearly 7 in 10 Americans want to live to 100: Despite fears of outliving savings, most Americans still want to live longer, with nearly 70% hoping to reach age 100, according to Edward Jones and Age Wave.
19. US casinos reported $5.31 billion in revenue in March - their best month ever, according to the American Gaming Association.
20. Naomi Osaka leaves IMG to form her own sports agency: ESPN reports Osaka's sports agency, Evolve, will be stylized in all capital letters as EVOLVE. She is starting the agency with agent Stuart Duguid, who also is leaving IMG.
+ Osaka is ranked 20th on Sportico's 2022 list of the world's highest-paid athletes with prize money and endorsements totaling $53.2 million and is the top earner among women on Sportico's list
21. London could bid for the 2036 or 2040 Olympic games.
22. Tiffany redesigns NBA championship and MVP trophies: Bloomberg reports with the help of artist Victor Solomon, the Larry O'Brien championship trophy gets a new look for the first time since 1977.
23. Lionel Messi is the world's highest-paid athlete, according to Forbes, with $133 million in earnings over the last 12 months.
24. Manchester City has completed the signing of Erling Haaland, one of the best young strikers in the world, for £51 million.
25. Drafting NFL QBs: On a per-play basis, quarterbacks chosen with picks 11 through 50, as well as picks 51 through 90, outperform quarterbacks selected in the top 10.
-Marc
