Bloomberg Businessweek Weekend – January 23rd, 2026

Hosts: Carol Massar, Tim Stenovec
Aired: January 24, 2026

Episode Overview

This weekend’s edition of Bloomberg Businessweek centers on the global economic and political outlook after the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, the continued impact and strategy of President Trump’s administration, and transformative trends in markets, investing, and technology. Notable guests include prominent economist Daron Acemoglu, Ark Invest’s Cathie Wood, Charles Schwab CEO Rick Wurster, Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt, Full Speed Automotive CEO Brian Maciak, and Bloomberg auto columnist Hannah Elliott.

Topics covered span the “theory of Trump,” AI and technology’s profound effect on global markets, practical insights for investors, shifts in consumer behavior, and the near-future of self-driving vehicles.

The “Theory of Trump” and Institutional Change

[02:08] – [13:52]

Main Theme

• The episode opens with a focus on the WEF in Davos, highlighting US President Donald Trump’s speech, his revived interest in a US takeover of Greenland, and the unpredictability of his administration's trade policy—especially regarding Europe.
• Discussion moves to whether Trump’s apparent chaos is actually guided by a “unified theory” involving leverage, disruption, and institutional weakening.

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• “Flood the Zone” as a Communication Strategy
  Tim Stenovec: “A lot coming from the President, flooding the zone, as others have described. That’s what Steve Bannon said… the strategy when it comes to communications.” [03:27]

• Norm-Breaking as a Strategic Tool
  Daron Acemoglu (MIT economist & Nobel laureate):

  “There is a bit of a theory which is that all of these actions are aimed at centralizing power in the hands of an executive presidency with fewer and weaker checks, which come either from institutions or norms.” [06:00]

• Weakening of Institutional Guardrails
  Acemoglu explains that previous presidents respected norms that Trump has systematically broken, leading to an erosion of institutional checks:

  “President Trump and his team have been breaking these norms systematically… all of these have now culminated in Trump controlling the party… constraints that were working are now gone.” [07:27]

• Effectiveness of Markets as a Restraint
  Acemoglu is skeptical that financial markets can act as a meaningful check:

  “The stock market is not the fifth branch of government... I wouldn’t bet on the market mechanism being a strong enough guardrail against this kind of executive imperial presidency emerging.” [11:17]

• Enduring Impact Beyond Trump
  Concerns that future presidents—Republican or Democrat—may be tempted to follow Trump’s playbook:

  “I do not trust that the next Democrat or Republican is going to be much better behaved once the floodgates are open. I think we're going to go to a place where, you know, presidents could have much more arbitrary power...” [13:01]

Notable Quote

• Daron Acemoglu:

  “Trump is an agent of change. He’s really reshaping norms and institutions, but he is himself a symptom of what was wrong in some sense with the US system. There was a lot of inequality, discontent, and gridlock.” [13:01]

Cathie Wood: 2026 Investment Outlook and the Age of Technological Revolution

[17:11] – [29:07]

Main Theme

• Cathie Wood discusses why she remains bullish on US equities, the huge impact of effective corporate tax rate changes, the next wave of productivity boom, and the real-world implications of AI, robotics, and other convergent tech platforms.

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• US Versus Global Markets

  “We think that the combination of deregulation, lower taxes, and what we believe will be much lower inflation and lower interest rates… is actually going to drive the returns on invested capital in the US up relative to those in the rest of the world.” [18:28]

• Tax Policy Impact Cathie describes profound effects of new depreciation schedules:

  “Our effective corporate tax rate… will drop to one of the lowest in the world, at roughly 10%… corporations will get huge tax refunds that they will be able to reinvest into innovation…” [19:25]

• AI Bubble — Or Not?

  “Many people think we're in a bubble... We think that number [$500 billion in data center spending] needs to go to $1.4 trillion in the next five years to accommodate the AI boom.” [20:54]

• Tech Revolution & Multiple Platforms

  “Today, instead of just one major platform evolving, we have five: robotics, energy storage, AI, blockchain technology, and multi-omic sequencing in the life science space…” [22:13]

• Historic GDP & Productivity Forecasts

  “We believe this boom is going to move to 12% of GDP... productivity growth will accelerate to the 4 to 6% range... by the end of this decade, real GDP growth could be averaging more than 7% per year.” [22:13]

• Job Creation and the Digital World Wood predicts more jobs created than lost and points to new business models powered by AI assistants:

  “The history of technology is it's a net job creator... We cannot imagine the kinds of jobs that are going to exist in the future.” [24:34]

• Tesla, Elon Musk & Humanoid Robots

  “We've always said Tesla is not an auto company. It is actually the convergence of three of the platforms I mentioned: robotics, energy storage, and AI... Robo Taxis we believe will account for 90% of Tesla's valuation by the end of the decade...” [27:53]

Notable Quotes

• “The history of technology is it's a net job creator...” (Cathie Wood) [24:34]
• “We think that humanoid robots is evolving into a $26 trillion opportunity. Half in the home, half in manufacturing plants.” (Cathie Wood) [27:53]

Rick Wurster, CEO of Charles Schwab: The Retail Investing Landscape

[33:00] – [42:32]

Main Theme

• Charles Schwab’s record-breaking quarter, what retail investors want, Schwab’s approach to prediction markets, innovations for clients, and the “bull market for convenience.”

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• Schwab’s Growth

  “It was a record quarter for us as a firm. Our earnings grew 50% year over year... our net new client assets to the firm of $519 billion on the year...” (Rick Wurster) [33:40]

• Convenience & Financial Lives

  “What we are seeing is a bull market for convenience, not just in financial services, but... across most industries.” (Rick Wurster) [33:40]

• Prediction Markets Schwab is cautious about entering prediction markets, especially sports betting:

  “95% of the volume of what people call prediction markets is actually just sports gambling. That's not something that is we're keenly interested in... it's the complete antithesis of what we do at Schwab.” (Rick Wurster) [34:55]

  On financial event prediction markets:

  “If you want to take a position on the employment report or the inflation report... there are countless ways to do that... And I think that's part of the reason why the true idea of prediction markets really hasn't taken off.” (Rick Wurster) [36:22]

• 24/7 Trading

  “We see very little market activity or very little client activity outside of market hours... I think the market hours are a feature, not a bug... The convenience of 24/7 is certainly appealing, but we need to make sure those trades are done in a way that makes sense for clients...” (Rick Wurster) [41:23]

• View on 2026

  “There's going to be geopolitical noise from time to time... My guess is that [negotiating big for later compromise] may be the playbook that's followed here. But for our clients, we're not seeing an undue amount of concern...” (Rick Wurster) [40:02]

The Barnes & Noble Comeback with James Daunt

[48:29] – [59:45]

Main Theme

• The transformation of Barnes & Noble from a struggling chain to a revitalized, community-focused bookstore network, the broader resurgence of physical books, and the bookstore experience.

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• The Revival of Bookstores

  “People are back and have embraced us... collectively, including the big chains and the small guys, a lot of people lost their way and then we got ourselves sorted out.” (James Daunt) [50:45]

• Local Curation and Store Autonomy

  “We have abandoned all of the consistency and operational disciplines of a chain bookstore and hand power to our individual store teams and allow them to replicate that independent community bookstore.” (James Daunt) [52:12]

  “The only advantage, professional advantage I have is I really do understand how to run a really good bookstore because I ran one myself for 20+ years... I don’t tell them what to order and I don’t get in their way...” (James Daunt) [53:51]

• Live Events & Community

  “We are social spaces… from story time for toddlers to interaction between authors and readers... making the bookstore an exciting place to come.” (James Daunt) [56:26]

• AI-Generated Books

  “We generally don't [carry AI books] and we go to great efforts to exclude them from our online operation... If readers want to read [AI books], we should provide that. But it should be very clearly indicated whether it is a real author or AI.” (James Daunt) [58:54]

US Consumer and Automotive Service with Brian Maciak, Full Speed Automotive

[64:47] – [75:18]

Main Theme

• Automotive aftermarket trends, consumer behavior, and the adaptation of service models for frugal, efficiency-driven customers, plus the industry’s labor market and the impact of EVs.

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• Consumers Stretching Vehicle Maintenance

  “People are keeping their cars longer. Average age of the vehicle on the road right now... about 13 and a half years... They are stretching as long as possible before they need to get it into our bays...” (Brian Maciak) [66:49]

  “We used to see [customers] every three months on the dot, and now it’s around five, six months... over the last 12–18 months.” (Brian Maciak) [67:33]

• Distrust in Auto Service Industry

  “About 70% of people distrust the folks that work in my industry and we are trying our best to reverse that trend... we want to send you a digital vehicle inspection on your phone so you can see it.” (Brian Maciak) [68:12]

• Labor and Training Challenges

  “We have really good relationships with trade schools... [And] found partnering with the military... very good workers and they stay with you for a while.” (Brian Maciak) [72:07]

• EVs Not a Threat (Yet)

  “Hybrids need oil changes. Right now, we offer a diversified menu of services. So they still need the brakes, they still need a lot of the other ancillary services. So we still see them.” (Brian Maciak) [74:42]

Hannah Elliott: The Future is Self-Driving and "Smart" Cars

[78:51] – [90:25]

Main Theme

• AI-powered driving goes mainstream: impressions from the first true AI-assisted Mercedes, comparison with Waymo ride experiences, and the implications for urban transportation and legal hurdles ahead.

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• Mercedes CLA and MB Drive Assist Pro

  “The Mercedes CLA, the new entry level car… starting price $47,250… This has been developed with Nvidia. So this is truly AI in your car, driving your car on a fully other level.” (Hannah Elliott) [79:49]

• Near-Humanlike Driving

  “The real difference here is that this MB Drive Assist Pro is so smart that it does know when it can turn right on red and when it can't turn right on red... felt more humanistic than any other sort of self driving system…” (Hannah Elliott) [81:09]

• City-Only for Now

  “Right now is only for city streets... The highway thing is really more related to regulations and legislation…” (Hannah Elliott) [83:11]

• Waymo as the Reference Point

  “If you have been in a Waymo, it's like imagine that the Waymo is driving your own personal car... It took like two or three minutes for me to be in the car before I trusted it. And then it was like, oh, yeah, this is fine.” (Hannah Elliott) [85:41]

• Wider Adoption and 10-Year Horizon

  “Experts that I talk to say we have another 10 years before we'll see anything close to a predominance of self driving cars on the road. So we don't want to get ahead of ourselves.” (Hannah Elliott) [88:13]

Notable Quote

• “My takeaway after driving around an hour in a car driven by AI makes everything else feel, well, dumb.” (Hannah Elliott) [80:43]

Key Takeaways

• US Politics & Markets:
  Trump’s governing style may seem chaotic, but some analysts see a strategy to concentrate executive power, with concerning implications for American institutions and global markets.

• Investment Landscape:
  Deregulation, lower effective corporate taxes, and massive AI investment are shaping investment opportunities, particularly in the US, with Cathie Wood foreseeing historic growth potential.

• Retail & Innovation:
  Both Charles Schwab and Barnes & Noble are thriving by focusing on customer preferences—Schwab through “bull market for convenience” and tech innovation, Barnes & Noble via local empowerment and experiential curation.

• Consumer Caution & Transportation:
  Post-pandemic consumers are frugal and holding their assets longer, impacting industries from auto repair to book sales. The next leap in transportation tech—affordable, AI-driven vehicles—is on the visible horizon, but will require time and regulatory clarity.

Timestamps for Major Segments

• [02:08] – Opening & WEF / Trump’s strategy discussion
• [05:32] – Daron Acemoglu: “Theory of Trump”
• [17:11] – Cathie Wood on markets, AI, innovation
• [33:00] – Rick Wurster (Charles Schwab) earnings, prediction markets
• [48:29] – James Daunt (Barnes & Noble) on bookstore revival
• [64:47] – Brian Maciak (Full Speed Automotive) on consumer/auto trends
• [78:51] – Hannah Elliott: Mercedes AI test-drive, future of autonomous cars

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Daron Acemoglu [06:00]

“All of these actions are aimed at centralizing power in the hands of an executive presidency with fewer and weaker checks... Even the foreign actions are all about increasing domestic power.”

Cathie Wood [22:13]

“This five platform innovation strategy or boom is going to move to 12% of GDP. And… by the end of this decade, real GDP growth could be averaging more than 7% per year.”

Rick Wurster [34:55]

“95% of the volume of what people call prediction markets is actually just sports gambling. That's not something that is we're keenly interested in... it's the complete antithesis of what we do at Schwab.”

James Daunt [52:12]

“We have abandoned all of the consistency and operational disciplines of a chain bookstore and hand power to our individual store teams and allow them to replicate that independent community bookstore.”

Brian Maciak [66:49]

“People are keeping their cars longer. Average age... about 13 and a half years... They are stretching as long as possible before they need to get it into our bays...”

Hannah Elliott [80:43]

“My takeaway after driving around an hour in a car driven by AI makes everything else feel, well, dumb.”