Morning Brew Daily — Episode Summary

Episode Title: Waymo’s Are A Lot Safer Than You Think & Meet Italy’s ‘Berkshire Hathaway’
Hosts: Neal Freyman & Toby Howell
Date: December 4, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Neal and Toby explore the latest moves in U.S. automotive policy under President Trump, the viral power and design twists of Spotify Wrapped, the Italian tech group Bending Spoons’ spree of internet-era company acquisitions, and new data showing how Waymo’s self-driving cars are remarkably safer than human drivers. They also touch on rental market shifts in Boston, the science of daily commuting, an upcoming search for the MH370 plane, and a record-breaking December cold snap in the U.S.

Key Discussion Points

1. President Trump’s Rollback of Fuel Economy Standards

• Trump Administration Policy Shift:
  • The White House drops Biden-era rules, cutting vehicle fuel economy targets from 50 mpg by 2031 to just 34 mpg (02:35).
  • Automaker CEOs celebrate; environmentalists and critics worry about more gas guzzlers on the road and increased long-term consumer costs.
  • U.S. risks ceding the EV race to China.
• Market Realities & CEO Responses:
  • Automakers likely to pivot back to profitable pickups and SUVs (03:42).
  • Mary Barra (GM CEO): Publicly commits to EVs but is incentivized now to lean into high-margin traditional vehicles.
• Potential Risks:
  • Cheap gas currently benefits policy narrative, but any oil price shocks could backfire (04:50).
  • A heavy reliance on wealthy households for expensive car purchases creates market fragility (05:53).

2. Unpacking Spotify Wrapped 2025

• User Stats & Show Popularity:
  • Morning Brew Daily: Over 511,000 unique listeners, 240,000 new this year, 286 million minutes streamed, top 5 show for 239,000 listeners, and #1 for 87,000 (01:03).
  • “That’s enough to fill an SEC football stadium and we could definitely start a moderately successful cult. Something to think about.” — Toby Howell (01:28)
• New Features & Viral Moments:
  • Listener “age” identifies your musical era by the five-year period of your most-played tracks (06:45).
  • Both hosts get ribbed for their high listening ages (Neal: 92, Toby: 67), favoring classical and jazz (08:52–08:59).
  • Shift from Stories to vertical TikTok-style feed (08:59).
• Top Artists & Albums:
  • Bad Bunny dethrones Taylor Swift as top global artist; Morgan Wallen tops U.S. albums, “Die With a Smile” is the year’s biggest song internationally (09:35).

3. Bending Spoons: Italy’s Internet ‘Berkshire Hathaway’

• Acquisition Roll-Up Strategy:
  • Milan-based Bending Spoons buys up legacy internet brands, e.g., AOL, Evernote, Vimeo, Eventbrite (which they acquired for $500M), and more (11:40).
  • Process: Identify fading but cash-flowing brands, cut staff, move operations to Europe, deploy a team of Italian coders to rebuild, and focus on long-term growth.
  • “They are building a sort of Internet era Berkshire Hathaway in Milan, Italy, to extract value out of names that others had long ago cast the bargain bin.” — Toby Howell (12:01)
• Funding Sources:
  • Backers include Andre Agassi, Ryan Reynolds, The Weeknd, and Eric Schmidt; recent funding round valued company at $11B; $2.8B in debt financing (12:17).
• Evernote Example:
  • Half the staff laid off, prices hiked 63%, complete technical overhaul (13:03).
  • “You’re never going to hear from satisfied users. So we basically just ignore the noise.” — CEO Luca Ferrari, paraphrased (13:56).
• Name Origin:
  • Reference to the Matrix “bending spoons” scene; about “changing reality” (14:06).

4. Neil’s Numbers: Waymo Safety Data & More

Waymo Self-Driving Safety Data

• Public Health Significance:

  • Waymo’s driverless cars showed:
    • 91% fewer serious injury crashes
    • 80% fewer crashes causing any injury
    • 96% fewer intersection injury crashes compared to regular drivers (16:26).
  • “If this were a pill, they would call off the trial right now... We need to stop doing the placebo which is people driving cars.” — Toby Howell (17:44)

• Policy Implication:

  • Dr. Slotkin's NYT op-ed argues adopting AVs on a mass scale is an ethical necessity.

• Waymo Software Personality Update:

  • Tweaked from overly cautious to “confidently assertive,” driving more like humans:
    • “Now you’re seeing them getting a little jazzy on the road, a little brazier.” — Neal Freyman (18:26)
    • “Confidently assertive... kind of how I try to live my life.” — Toby Howell (19:05)

Rents Plunge in Boston

• Boston’s Housing Market Weakness:
  • Average rent falls to $3,000 (lowest since 2021), vacancies up post-pandemic (19:12).
  • Causes: Biotech sector slowdown, fewer international students, increase in rental supply (20:12).
  • Landlords now “willing to do basically anything to fill it… even accepting undergrads” (20:12).
  • Relief for renters: previously, a quarter spent over half their income on rent (20:52).

The Marchetti Constant: How Far We Travel

• Global Trend:
  • People everywhere travel about 78 minutes daily, regardless of country or wealth (21:22).
• Urban Planning History:
  • Marchetti constant: for thousands of years, new technologies expanded commute distances but not travel time (22:19).
  • “Everything about urban life has always been dictated by whatever technology enables a 30 minute commute.” — Toby Howell (22:19)

5. Quick Headlines

The Search for MH370 Resumes

• Ocean Infinity’s New Search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight covers a tighter 6,000 sq. mile target zone, with a “no find, no fee” $70M bounty (23:49–24:45).
• Optimism:
  • New tech, smaller search area, and experienced team.

U.S. Cold Snap — December 2025

• Record-Setting Cold Forecast:
  • Polar vortex to bring historic lows, with places like Des Moines, Springfield, and South Bend likely to break 19th-century records (24:45–26:55).
  • Coldest weather since the 1800s affecting 14 states.
  • “Don’t they know we don’t accept visitors from the North Pole until the night of December 24th?” — Neal Freyman (26:19)
  • Commentary on Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift bracing for the Kansas City freeze (26:19).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Cult-Classic Gratitude:

  • “We could definitely start a moderately successful cult. Something to think about.” — Toby Howell, on Spotify Wrapped stats (01:32)

• Spotify Wrapped Trolling:

  • “Dude, I am begging you to join us in this century.” — Toby to Neal, referencing the latter’s elderly music taste (07:46)

• Bending Spoons Name Origin:

  • “Well, it’s that scene from the Matrix where they use the power of the mind to bend spoons. ... you’re changing reality.” — Neal Freyman (14:06)

• Waymo as Public Health Breakthrough:

  • “We need to stop doing the placebo which is people driving cars. We need to move over to this treatment which is Waymo’s.”— Toby Howell (17:44)

• Urban Theory Soundbite:

  • “Everything about urban life has always been dictated by whatever technology enables a 30 minute commute.” — Toby Howell (22:19)

Key Segment Timestamps

• Spotify Wrapped Stats & Discussion: 00:48–10:27
• Bending Spoons & Internet Company Acquisition: 11:40–14:24
• Neil’s Numbers (Waymo Data, Rents, Travel Time): 16:26–23:49
• Quick Headlines (MH370, Cold Snap): 23:49–26:55

Tone & Style

The hosts balance data-driven insights with sharp wit and friendly banter, making complex topics accessible and entertaining for listeners of all backgrounds.

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