Morning Brew Daily — Episode Summary

Episode Title: Sellers Are Ripping Homes Off the Market & AI Slop is Taking Over Thanksgiving
Hosts: Neal Freyman and Toby Howell
Date: November 26, 2025

Overview

This pre-Thanksgiving episode dives into the shifting U.S. housing market, the existential threat AI poses to food blogging and Thanksgiving recipes, shakeups in the AI chip industry, strange signals from consumer spending, and notable pop culture tidbits. Neal and Toby bring a witty, conversational energy to the day's top news stories.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Thanksgiving Vibes and Hometown Traditions

• The hosts open with musings on Thanksgiving Eve—typically a time when young adults meet high school friends at local bars, with Neal commenting he's “aged out” of the tradition, but offering lighthearted tips for those still partaking.
• Notable Moment: Neal and Toby joke about asserting dominance at hometown bars, e.g., “subtly bring up that you are running the turkey trot tomorrow while everyone's getting a little bit sloshed” (01:39 - Toby).

2. Housing Market: Delistings and the New Reality

[03:05–06:44]

• Record Delistings: Nearly 85,000 US home sellers pulled their listings in September (highest in 8 years, 28% YoY jump, per Redfin).
  • 70% of listings have gone "stale" (60+ days unsold).
  • Some sellers cut prices (20% of listings, double the rates seen during the pandemic); others would rather not sell at a loss.
  • 15% risked selling at a loss (highest share in 5 years).
• Psychology of Sellers:
  • Many overprice due to “psychological anchoring” to pandemic-era highs.
  • “They are psychologically anchored to these prices. It's very hard to sell your home for a loss…They have a price in mind…” (04:20 - Toby).
• Relisting Strategies: Sellers delist, then relist to reset "days on market" and hide price cuts.
  • 20% of delisted homes are later relisted; 31% of those eventually sell.
  • “It’s the old delist-relist strategy. It sounds like it’s straight out of Seinfeld.” (05:08 - Neal)
• Regional Differences:
  • Florida cities (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm): delisting/relisting rates around 80%.
  • Lowest: Midwest cities (Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Chicago).
  • “In Florida, it almost mirrors the entire pandemic trend in general…” (05:56 - Toby)
• Why Aren’t Prices Dropping?
  • Delisting keeps inventory “tighter than it looks on paper.”
  • Prices nationally still inching up (2% YoY), though some markets (e.g. Florida) have declines.
  • “The frequency of delistings… is keeping inventory tighter than it looks on paper. So home prices are still inching up…” (06:44 - Neal)

3. AI Chip Wars and Tech Industry Shakeups

[06:44–11:21]

• Meta Eyes Google Chips, Nvidia Wobbles:
  • Meta may buy billions in Google’s AI chips (TPUs), formerly Nvidia’s domain.
  • “All of a sudden, Google looks like the alpha dog, while Nvidia and fellow GPU maker AMD are showing cracks.” (07:53 - Neal)
  • Nvidia’s attempts at reassurance on social media seem defensive, sparking “smiling through tears” memes.
  • “Nvidia is the biggest company in the world, and yet they spent the last few days responding to posts on X with very passive aggressive sounding tweets.” (08:45 - Toby)
• OpenAI’s Rough Ride:
  • Sam Altman warns staff about Google Search as a threat.
  • Once a “kingmaker,” OpenAI is now seen as a risk—Softbank and Oracle see massive market value drops tied to OpenAI partnerships.
  • “Now…OpenAI is now an albatross around all of these companies’ necks that are doing business with it…” (09:53 - Neal)

4. US Consumer Update: Mixed Signals in Retail

[11:21–13:59]

• Confusing Signs:
  • Government data: Sep retail sales up only 0.2% (vs. 0.6% prior month).
  • But several retailers (Abercrombie, Best Buy, Kohl’s) report strong earnings and upgraded outlooks.
  • Value retailers (TJ Maxx, Walmart, Burlington) are thriving; Target, Home Depot lagging.
  • “People are still shopping, they're seeking out value, but they are still shopping more than all of these warnings would suggest.” (12:43 - Neal)
• Spending Shifts and Inflation:
  • MasterCard predicts 3.6% growth in holiday spend for 2025, but largely price-driven (people buying fewer items for more money).
  • “Inflated price tags makes the consumer look healthier, makes the total pie look bigger, even though actual gift volume may decline…” (13:59 - Toby)
  • Discussion of the “K-shaped economy”: High-income households still splurging; lower, middle-income discount-hunting.

5. AI 'Slop' Takes Over Thanksgiving Recipes

[15:55–21:15]

• AI-Generated Recipe Chaos:
  • Google puts AI-generated summaries above actual recipe links.
  • Bloggers report traffic down 40% or more.
  • “Google’s AI spit out a Christmas cake based on her recipes that told people to cook a 6-inch cake for three to four hours at 320 degrees…that is a recipe for coal.” (17:07 - Toby)
  • AI-generated food images proliferate; full-on ripoff/cloning sites skirt copyright laws.
• AI Recipe Dangers:
  • Neal tests Google’s “AI overview” for dry brining a turkey—finds it plausible but sees how it siphons blog traffic.
  • “As I was reading through, I didn't actually go through with it...But I did see how this would absolutely collapse traffic to food bloggers…” (18:08 - Neal)
  • Food bloggers emphasize the human touch of actually testing recipes versus AI “Frankenstein” mashups.
  • “Baking is a science, and if you are playing fast and loose with those ratios, like, things can go south quickly.” (19:11 - Toby)
• Existential Threat to Food Blogs:
  • AI “Frankensteins” recipes—cobbling instructions and ingredients from many sources, resulting in unreliable concoctions.
  • “They're combining together and they don't really know the difference…so they might take one ingredient list from one blog…then another instruction manual from another…” (20:17 - Neal)
  • If anyone’s Thanksgiving dish flops: “Just blame it on the AI overview…” (21:05 - Toby)

6. Thanksgiving Goes Global

[21:15–23:23]

• Britain Embraces Thanksgiving:
  • 440% jump in UK searches for “Thanksgiving”; pumpkin spice up 550% (per Ocado).
  • “Driven by interest in American food…in a place that relies solely on salt and vibes for seasoning.” (21:15 - Neal)
  • US-to-UK expat moves may stoke trend; Halloween also gaining traction.
  • 42% of Gen Z, Millennials in UK have attended American-style Thanksgiving.
  • Neal wonders what US should import in return: “Should we do Boxing Day?” (23:02 - Neal)

7. Rush Hour 4 & Hollywood’s Complicated Comebacks

[23:38–25:41]

• Rush Hour 4 in Development:
  • Paramount revives the franchise, reuniting Chan/Tucker and seeking Brett Ratner’s return—controversial due to past misconduct allegations (he denies).
  • Trump reportedly pressures movie studios to greenlight.
  • “Critics of Trump’s meddling into the private markets would spark an uproar…when it comes to Rush [Hour]…[we’re] just shrugging and saying, well, all right, I guess.” (24:40 - Neal)
  • Toby and Neal reminisce: “The first one is pretty good. The second one was actually pretty good too. The third one…lost a little steam.” (25:09 - Toby)
  • Neal half-jokingly campaigns for more National Treasure sequels.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Basically, they need a friend to come along and tell them their standards are too high and that's why they don't have a girlfriend.”
  — Neal, on overpriced home listings (03:05)
• “They are psychologically anchored to these prices. It's very hard to sell your home for a loss. No one wants to do that.”
  — Toby, on sellers’ mindset (04:20)
• “We’ve entered the era of Thanksgiving slop.”
  — Toby, on the proliferation of AI-generated recipes (17:55)
• “If you stink at cook and you create something that is inedible, just blame it on the AI overview. It wasn't you. Like I followed the recipe. It was just the wrong recipe.”
  — Toby, on Thanksgiving cooking fails (21:05)
• “In a place that relies solely on salt and vibes for seasoning.”
  — Neal, poking fun at British culinary traditions (21:15)
• “While you’re greenlighting movies, Trump, I’d like to order another Master and Commander, please. And 20 more National Treasures.”
  — Neal, on presidential pop culture influence (25:18)

Timestamped Guide to Major Segments

• Thanksgiving bar talk & traditions — 00:59–01:39
• Housing market delistings, seller psychology, regional trends — 03:05–06:44
• AI chips: Meta + Google shakeup, Nvidia reaction, OpenAI’s struggles — 06:44–11:21
• US consumer/retail state: spending, inflation, value trends — 11:21–13:59
• Holiday spending, ‘K-shaped’ economy — 13:59–15:16
• AI-generated recipes vs. food blogs, dangers and impact — 15:55–21:15
• Thanksgiving’s popularity in the UK — 21:15–23:23
• Rush Hour 4, Brett Ratner, Trump Hollywood meddling — 23:38–25:41

Tone & Style

The show maintains a smart, witty, and conversational tone. Neal and Toby blend deep business analysis with light cultural banter, using humor ("salt and vibes," "Thanksgiving slop") while keeping listeners engaged on sometimes weighty economic topics.

Summary

In this episode, Morning Brew Daily peels back the layers on the latest home seller strategies, tech industry power shifts, complicated signals from US shoppers, the messy future of online recipes thanks to AI, the global spread of Thanksgiving festivities, and the peculiar rebirth of a classic Hollywood franchise. With a bow of levity and sharp insight, Neal and Toby prime listeners for both savvy dinner table conversation and a keener eye for "AI slop" at the holiday feast.