🔵 “$400M Latte” — Blue Bottle’s acquisition. Oil’s everything tax. Startup-maxxing surge. +Solo Dining Surge

Summary

The Best One Yet — Podcast Summary

Episode Title: “$400M Latte” — Blue Bottle’s acquisition. Oil’s everything tax. Startup-maxxing surge. +Solo Dining Surge
Hosts: Nick Martell & Jack Crivici-Kramer
Date: March 9, 2026
Duration: ~22 minutes

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Nick and Jack break down the top three pop business stories you need to know: the explosive rise in oil prices and its far-reaching effects, the $400M acquisition of Blue Bottle Coffee and the rise of retail theater, and the record-setting surge in new startups amid America’s shifting job market. The show also highlights a notable cultural trend—the solo leisure boom—and wraps with fun rapid-fire headlines and TBOY trivia.

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Key Stories & Segments

1. The Oil Price Spike: “The Crude Awakening”

Segment: [03:24–08:14]

• Background: Last week saw oil prices jump 35%—the biggest weekly spike since records began, triggered by war in Iran and a hardline all-caps tweet from President Trump ([04:05]).
• Key Impact: The Strait of Hormuz closure and Qatar halting natural gas exports create global supply chain disruptions, with the oil minister warning prices could hit $150/barrel, surpassing 2008’s record ([04:47]).
• Why It Matters:
  • “Economy high oil prices are like a new sales tax. Everyone pays them for everything.” – Jack ([07:18])
  • Oil's reach is highlighted: “If it’s got atoms, it needs oil.” – Nick ([07:34])
  • Even digital businesses are indirectly affected as virtually all supply chains involve oil at some point.
• Winners: Oil exporters (Canada, Texas), oil companies themselves.
• Losers: Consumers (especially Walmart/Costco shoppers), manufacturers (Procter & Gamble), shippers (Etsy), and the U.S. Federal Reserve, which now finds inflation harder to tame.

Memorable Quote:
“Honestly, for anything physical—even digital stuff—the more expensive the price of oil, the higher the cost for the company, which shrinks profits or raises prices or both.” – Nick ([08:04])

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2. Blue Bottle’s $400M Sale: Minimalist Coffee Goes Global

Segment: [08:26–13:54]

• Deal Details: Blue Bottle Coffee, pioneer of “third wave” minimalist coffee and Instagrammable retail spaces, is being sold for $400M to a Chinese private equity firm, Luckin Coffee’s backer ([08:26], [11:33]).
• Brand Journey: Started by a broke clarinet player in a shed—an “origin story so good I'm just gonna read this line. You ready for this? This company was started by a broke clarinet player in a potting shed.” – Nick ([08:46])
• Minimalism & Theater: Blue Bottle became iconic for slowing coffee retail down, focusing on quality and in-store “theater”:
  • “Blue Bottle started the Wave of coffee... Third wave coffee houses treat coffee like wine. Snobbily.” – Jack ([09:22])
  • Their aesthetic—pine wood, polished concrete, $10 lattes—set industry-wide trends; “The double digit latte was invented by Blue Bottle.” – Nick ([10:07])
• Ownership Rollercoaster: American brand, inspired by Japanese design, bought by Nestlé (Dutch conglomerate) for $700M in 2017, now offloading for $400M.
• New Owner: Luckin Coffee is a mass market behemoth with 30,000+ stores in China, now entering the U.S. market on both ends: affordable ($2) and “artistic” coffee.
• Retail Insight: “The best retail is actually theater.” – Jack ([12:44])
  • Even as AI permeates retail, in-person craft and spectacle are in higher demand as attention becomes a scarce resource.

Memorable Moment:
“If you've hung out at a Blue Bottle for 12 hours doing work, you know that they have a custom glass drip coffee contraption that no other coffee shop had. The way they brew their coffee in a Blue Bottle looks like a Dr. Seuss book.” – Jack ([13:26])

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3. Record New Startups: The Founder-maxxing Surge

Segment: [13:54–18:13]

• Economic Shift: As job cuts accelerate (92,000 jobs lost in February; tech sector hit hard), more Americans are starting businesses than ever before.
  • “We just got ‘mogged’ by the jobs report, but now we’re founder maxing.” – Nick ([15:23])
  • 532,000 new business applications in January, a record 5.6 million in 2025 ([15:42–15:58])
• Catalyst: AI accelerates both layoffs and entrepreneurship—AI handles basic business functions, lowering startup costs and barriers.
  • “Low-cost AI tools are eliminating the need to hire expensive engineers, designers and bookkeepers, whether you’re launching an app or launching a plumbing business.” – Jack ([17:54])
• Historical Echo: Similar surges in company creation occurred after the 2008 crisis and the pandemic.
• Optimistic AI Case: The next wave of innovation may be founder-driven—and bootstrapped via AI.
  • “This is the democratization of innovation. Or put another way, AI is the boot in bootstrapping.” – Nick ([18:01])
• Success Story: Calai, an AI-powered calorie-counting food app, scaled to $30M revenue and 15 million downloads in 18 months—founded by high schoolers ([17:20]).

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Cultural Trend: The Solo Economy

Segment: [01:23–02:49]

• Solo leisure is booming: 20% of Broadway tickets are now sold to solo attendees, double the share just a few years ago ([01:39]).
• Similar upticks for movies and restaurants; solo reservations are up 52% ([02:03]).
• Societal drivers: “More people are living single and more people are feeling confident out there. It does take some self-confidence to sit alone in a restaurant.” – Jack ([02:10])

Memorable Moment:
“It’s mono E, no other mono. It’s a menage a just moi.” – Nick & Jack ([01:55–01:57])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Anything plastic, anything that needs to be cooked, anything in a building that needs to be heated, anything that requires a vehicle at any point in the supply chain—if it’s got atoms, it needs oil.” – Nick ([07:24])
• “America runs on Dunkin. Andreessen runs on Blue Bottle.” – Nick ([10:23])
• “The best retail is actually theater.” – Jack ([12:44])
• “Founder maxing: we just got mogged by the jobs report, but now we're founder maxing.” – Nick & Jack ([15:23])

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Quick Hits & Fun Facts

Segment: [19:05–20:51]

• Ben Affleck’s film AI startup Interpositive acquired by Netflix ([19:05]).
• United Airlines now bans passengers for not wearing headphones while watching devices ([19:26]).
• Cluly, an AI startup that faked $7M in revenue, outed for lying ([19:50]).
• TBOY Trivia: The two US states that don’t observe daylight savings time are Hawaii and Arizona. The Navajo Nation in AZ does observe it ([20:34]).

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Solo Economy Trend: [01:23–02:49]
• Oil’s Crude Awakening: [03:24–08:14]
• Blue Bottle Acquisition & Retail Theater: [08:26–13:54]
• Entrepreneurship Boom / Founder-maxxing: [13:54–18:13]
• Quick Hits & Trivia: [19:05–20:51]

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Takeaways

• Oil’s Everything Tax: High oil prices are a global “sales tax”—they touch nearly every economic sector.
• Retail = Theater: In the age of AI, theatrical retail (think Blue Bottle’s coffee contraptions) is still a winning differentiator.
• Startup Surge: Layoffs and AI have combined to create a new generation of entrepreneurs—founder-maxxing is on the rise.

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For more details and to catch the next TBOY Live Show in DC—see the episode description for ticket links!

Transcript

[A]

This is Nick, this is Jack. Welcome back. It is Monday, March 9, and today's pod is the best one yet.

[B]

This one.

[A]

This is a T Boy.

[B]

The top three pop business news stories you need to know today.

[A]

Happy live podcast show week to all those who celebrate, which is definitely us.

[B]

Jack, two weeks ago we were in Austin. This week we're in Washington D.C. we still have a few tickets available. Link in episode description.

[A]

Snag the few tickets left in the episode description. We are interviewing Kara Swisher. K. Swish live in dc.

[B]

Plus the three stories you love and more.

[A]

I mean, there's actually a few surprises, but we can't tell you them right now. Jack, three fantastic stories for today's show. So good. What do we got on the T boy?

[B]

For our first story, the price of oil rose by 35% last week.

[A]

Petro Pop.

[B]

It's the biggest one week spike in oil since we've been keeping track since the Rockefellers.

[A]

And because oil seeps into everything, this is a tax on your life.

[B]

For our second story, oil is important. But first, coffee. Yes, Jack, Blue Bottle coffee was just acquired for $400 million.

[A]

Blue Bottle, an American brand inspired by Japanese design, owned by a Dutch company and just sold to China.

[B]

Okay, Carmen Sandiego. And our third and final story. America is losing jobs, but it's gaining entrepreneurs besties.

[A]

2025 was the biggest year for new startups ever. This is founder maxing.

[B]

But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful

[A]

mix of stories, we were just dancing on that intro. Love the mix, love the stories, Jack.

[B]

But Yetis, did you go out to a dinner, a concert, maybe a show this past weekend?

[A]

And did you go with nobody?

[B]

Trend alert.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Welcome to the solo economy.

[A]

Get this, 20% of Broadway tickets are now bought by solo attendees.

[B]

That's twice the rate of just a couple years ago.

[A]

And it ain't just Phantom of the Opera movies and restaurants. They're swinging solo too these days.

[B]

The fastest growing sales in this economy are for a party of one.

[A]

Add it all up, it is a solo leisure boom.

[B]

It's mono E, no other mono.

[A]

Jack. It's a menage a just moi.

[B]

And it's an escalation of a story we did last year on the solo dining surge.

[A]

Back then, restaurants were seeing a 52% jump in reservations for Uno, it's a

[B]

burger and beer night. And Brian.

[A]

Yeah, no, Brianna, the context to sprinkle on. Well, more people are living single and more people are feeling confident out there.

[B]

Cause it does take some self confidence to sit alone In a restaurant.

[A]

I mean, it's a flex, Jack. It is a flex.

[B]

One of my favorite movie theater going experiences of all time. Yeah, I saw Jurassic Park 6 alone. Enormous tub of popcorn. Didn't need to share with anyone.

[A]

I was gonna say, I say it's cause you're a popcorn guy and I know what happens when I stick my hand in there.

[B]

Your hand gets slapped.

[A]

Now besties, there is no better treat to yo self than a spa day with a little less small talk.

[B]

Unless of course you love the person

[A]

you're supposed to be small talking with. So besties, send this to your buddy. You started the alone leisure trend. You know who they are? Yeah.

[B]

Send this to your buddy who you didn't wingman this past weekend.

[A]

Hey, Timmy. We owe you one. Jack, let's hit our three story.

[C]

Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the northeast met in they had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet. But the best is the norm. Jack. Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50%, that's a fat tip. T boy city on your at list. If you know, you know. Cause we read to go. We can't wait no more.

[A]

So just start the show, start the

[B]

show, Start the show.

[A]

First, a quick word from our sponsor. For our first story. Oil prices exploded higher on Friday on word from the White House about the war in Iran.

[B]

It's the crude awakening.

[A]

It's the crude awakening. And unless you're an organic mushroom forager, high oil prices are gonna hit your wallet.

[B]

Yetis each day. Last week we did a story covering the war in Iran. And at first we were surprised to see stocks actually rise.

[A]

Yeah, the reason we told you last week, Wall Street's base case was regime change light. But now that's off the table because

[B]

on Friday, President Trump tweeted that he would demand an unconditional surrender from Iran to get any kind of deal.

[A]

And that was in all caps. Which is why oil prices surged a shocking 14% on Friday. Biggest one day jump since the Rockefellers.

[B]

And over the course of the week, it was the biggest five day jump since we've been keeping track. 35%.

[A]

Basically, Trump's all caps declaration is a sign that this war, it ain't gonna be a quick one.

[B]

And that's bad news for the oil market because one fifth of the world's transported oil goes through the Strait of Hormuz just off the coast of Iran. But now that oil highway has been closed.

[A]

Qatar, by the way, they Just shut down natural gas production. They basically got no space to even

[B]

store the stuff because they can't export it through the Strait of Hormuz.

[A]

In fact, Qatar's oil minister said that oil could hit 150 bucks a barrel in weeks if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed by the Iran.

[B]

150 bucks a barrel. That would be an all time record high oil price. Yes, it would be beating the 147 record set back in 2008 which triggered our financial crisis.

[A]

Add it all up and that's why Jack and I are calling this the crude awakening.

[B]

And oil? Yeah, it seeps into everything. Oil is the global air that the economy breathes.

[A]

You can't get that stuff off anything. Can't even get olive oil off my hands.

[B]

And the price of crude, West Texas Intermediate oil is up 40% since the Friday before the war began.

[A]

The good stuff. But besties, there are some winners to this oil petro pop. There are some bulls swimming in the oil.

[B]

Top of the list, Canada. Yeah, north of the border. They export huge amounts of oil. And now the thing they're pumping out of the ground is even more valuable than before.

[A]

So European heads of state are calling up Ottawa right now and asking for some emergency tanker deliveries. Please. Pretty please.

[B]

Texas is also a big winner for a similar reason.

[A]

Good point, Jack.

[B]

Oil companies are quietly fist bumping this high oil price because it will certainly boost their quarterly profits.

[A]

Yeah, they got their own cha ching buttons. But Jack, what about the unexpected losers of the high oil prices? The bears swimming in the petro.

[B]

Top of this list is Walmart. Yeah, because for Walmart, squeezed consumers will be even more squeezed as their gasoline and heating prices rise.

[A]

Yeah, the Costco guys may not be hitting up Costco as much.

[B]

And at Procter and Gamble, their Tide products, Tampax products, Gillette products, all of them are made of plastic and packaged in plastic.

[A]

And plastic is, is made of petrol.

[B]

Even Etsy, the online arts and crafts store, is affected by oil prices.

[A]

I mean Jack, those candle materials can't be shipped unless they're on a truck, which is run on gas or diesel.

[B]

Either way, it comes from underground.

[A]

And now you know why my birthday

[B]

gift to you is delayed. But the biggest surprise loser of the spike last week in oil prices is the Federal Reserve.

[A]

That's right, because our central bank wants to cut rates and stop being the party pooper for the housing market right now.

[B]

Oil was the one bright spot defying inflation in this economy. But now oil is rising just like the price of everything else, the 30

[A]

year mortgage, it fell below 6% two weeks ago. We were so excited. First time in years.

[B]

But now, because of the price of oil going up, mortgage prices are back above 6%.

[A]

Wah wah. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies who are looking at this? Oil seeping into everything.

[B]

Economy high oil prices are like a new sales tax. Everyone pays them for everything.

[A]

Yetis. Let's just let this thing in for a second. Anything plastic, anything that needs to be cooked, anything in a building that needs to be heated, anything that requires a vehicle at any point in the supply chain.

[B]

Jack.

[A]

If it's got atoms, it needs oil.

[B]

It needs oil. Nick and I tried really hard to think of a product not affected in any way by the rise in oil prices.

[A]

All right, let's whip out the whiteboard here. Like, I don't know, maybe a foraged mushroom for sale at a farmer's market, maybe like that's not affected by the rise in oil prices.

[B]

Maybe. Maybe because even that farmer had to drive the tractor at some point. Or like drive his vehicle to the farmer's market. And that vehicle, even if it's electric, it's got rubber tires and that's petro.

[A]

Shiitakes are kidding me, Jack.

[B]

Honestly, Eddie, for anything physical, even digital stuff, the more expensive the price of oil, the higher the cost for the company, which shrinks profits or raises prices or both.

[A]

So, besties Jack and I gotta ask the big question. Who has the higher pain point? Iranians who are getting barraged by American and Israeli missiles?

[B]

Or an American president whose popularity is often tied to oil prices?

[A]

Drop your thoughts in the comments and we'll start getting on that second story. For our second story, Blue Bottle coffee is getting sold to the owner of China's luckin coffee for 400 million bucks. Blue bottle.

[B]

They invented the modern day minimalist coffee trend.

[A]

Yes, they did.

[B]

Because theatricality sells.

[A]

All right, bestie, sometimes you get an origin story. So good. I'm just gonna read this line. You ready for this? This company was started by a broke clarinet player in a potting shed.

[B]

Are you insulting clarinet players? Because you know I played clarinet in elementary school.

[A]

I know, and you were impressive. Read number two.

[B]

Yeah, I was. Read number two.

[A]

Well, this young man with this clarinet decided to take on 15,000 bucks in debt and opened their first coffee cart in Oakland many years ago.

[B]

And the goal of this coffee cart was the opposite of convenience.

[A]

Yeah. The goal was single origin, slow it down. The kind of beans that you gotta sip with two hands.

[B]

Blue bottle started the Wave of coffee.

[A]

Yes. The first wave was Folgers made at home. Then you had Starbucks with speed. And then Blue Bottle slowed the entire coffee industry down.

[B]

Third wave coffee houses treat coffee like wine. Snobbily.

[A]

I took Jack to a Blue Bottle. He forgot his copy of the New Yorker at home. They almost didn't let him in.

[B]

It's like a passport situation.

[A]

But besties, you know Blue Bottle because you've seen Blue Bottle even if you've never been there. They pioneered the entire minimalist design aesthetic.

[B]

The pine wood counters, the polished concrete floors, clean everything. This Apple store of cappuccino, that whitewashed

[A]

Williamsburg coffee shop you go to with the bitter barista and $8 espressos. It's a disciple of Blue Bottle coffee.

[B]

And the coffee price, that reminds us of Apple too.

[A]

Yeah, it does, Jack.

[B]

The double digit latte was invented by Blue Bottle.

[A]

Yeah, and that kind of money attracts VC. Blue Bottle raised 117 million bucks from the Instagram founders, Google Ventures, and even Bono.

[B]

Guy came a long way from his broke clarinet class.

[A]

And what do we like to say about it all, Jack?

[B]

America runs on Dunkin. Andreessen runs on Blue Bottle pairs well

[A]

with AllB and an overpriced studio apartment. But besties? This is what Jack and I find fascinating. This is an American startup inspired by Japanese design acquired by a Dutch conglomerate.

[B]

Yes, because Nestle, the world's biggest food company, acquired Blue bottle in 2017 for $700 million.

[A]

And the strategy made sense. Scale the cult following. They added 100 new locations ready to drink grocery lattes, and went into six new countries.

[B]

They expanded the tote bag merch into fashion too.

[A]

Blue Bottle had opportun. They would open mini stores over at fashion shows. That was the association.

[B]

What, the NPR tote is to Boston. The Blue Bottle tote is to San Francisco.

[A]

And it paid off. Last year, blue bottle did 250 million bucks in revenue. It had become a lifestyle business.

[B]

But the one caffeinated problem, decaffeinated problem, it never had profits.

[A]

Plus, Jack, a bunch of the Blue Bottle baristas unionized. Which was definitely not in Nestle's pitch deck.

[B]

Which leads to the wild plot twist. Now this American startup inspired by Japanese design, owned by a Dutch conglomerate, is selling to China.

[A]

Get this. A Chinese private equity firm behind Luckin Coffee is buying up blue bottle for 400 million bucks.

[B]

And Luckin Coffee is the polar opposite of its new sister company, Blue Bottle.

[A]

Oh, it's on the other end of the venti, Jack. Luckin has got 30,000 stores selling $2 coffees. But they're buying an American artistic brand with 100 stores selling $10 coffees.

[B]

And since Luckin just entered the United States last year, China is now a leader in both the high end and low end coffee business here in the States.

[A]

Yeah, Luckin has taken on Dahleen at Duncan on the low end, but also Stumptown and your local art bro barista spot right down the street.

[B]

Nick, I think some Boston listeners are unsubscribing because you just called Duncan low end. I think you should apologize.

[A]

I'm sorry. High calorie, low end. But besties, we still have gotta ask this question. Why the price cut like 700 million bucks to 400 million bucks?

[B]

Why is it, Jack, Blue Bottle's valuation fell in the last nine years? Maybe because you can't scale craft Blue

[A]

Bottle, they built a coffee cult. But there's a reason you don't see many mainstream cults. Oh, I know you're thinking, Jack. The Eddies and the besties. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Blue Bottle Coffee?

[B]

The best retail is actually theater.

[A]

Now, Yetis, over the weekend, Jack and I read this interview with the CEO of Bloomingdale's, the department store, talking about retail theater.

[B]

Bloomingdale's is doing surprisingly well. While Saks Fifth Avenue and Macy's are struggling. Bloomingdale's is doing pretty good because they've invested in their windows. You know those shopping windows you see from the street?

[A]

That is the theatrical effect.

[B]

Now, here's the idea.

[A]

With AI everywhere, we crave human craft, and we're in an Instagram era, so we want visual stimulus.

[B]

And in the attention economy, the bar is very high.

[A]

To keep our attention craft, attention stimulus. Blue Bottle hit all of those with their stores wherever they opened.

[B]

But Blue Bottle's real accomplishment is the theatricality of their stores that you don't see from the competition.

[A]

If you've hung out at a blue bottle for 12 hours doing work, you know that they have a custom glass drip coffee contraption that no other coffee shop had.

[B]

The way they brew their coffee in a Blue bottle looks like a Dr. Seuss book. There's like pipes and drips and machines.

[A]

It was really wonky in. You see, unlike Starbucks or small local coffee shops, Blue Bottle drew in with these giant artistic contraptions.

[B]

It's like a science fair or.

[A]

Exactly. Blue Bottle. It shows that the best retail is actually theater. Now a quick word from our sponsor for our third and final story. It's. Oh, my God, is That entrepreneurs, Jack. Entrepreneurs are sprouting up everywhere like beautiful weeds, fertilized by AI besties. This is the great on bossing.

[B]

Because necessity is the mother of invention. Could AI create a golden era of entrepreneurship?

[A]

Ooh, we got the data. But besties, as my doctor likes to say, Jack, let's start with the bad news.

[B]

On Friday, we got the jobs report for the US economy. We lost 92,000 jobs in February.

[A]

Besties. For the fifth time in nine months, more people were fired than hired. If you were affected, we feel for you.

[B]

Tech, in particular, lost 11,000 jobs last month. That's the AI effect.

[A]

Remember, 4,000 of those jobs lost in February. They were from block, right, Jack?

[B]

Yeah, we covered it. Jack Dorsey laid off 4,000 people, replacing them explicitly with AI.

[A]

It's bleak. Besties. And this part almost makes it. This is rubbing some salt into that wound, Jack.

[B]

If AI did take your job, it's probably AI that's reading your resume and cover letter as you try to get a new job.

[A]

But besties, pause the pod, because we found a bright piece of data for you.

[B]

We found record numbers of people saying, I'm done with the rat race. I'm done working for the man. I'm done trying to impress AI HR with my resume bullets.

[A]

I'm unbossing besties. That's right, we just got mogged by the jobs report, but now we're founder maxing.

[B]

We're working for ourselves.

[A]

We're founder maxing besties. And get this, here are the numbers. 532,000 new business applications were filed in January. According to the Census Bureau, almost half

[B]

a million applications for new businesses in one.

[A]

That's up 37% from last year. That is 17,000 new startups every day.

[B]

And for the full year 2025, 5.6 million new businesses were formed in America. That's a record high, beating the previous record of 2021.

[A]

I'm sorry, Jack, could you put this in LinkedIn terms for us, please, my jargon friend?

[B]

This is a shocker. The number of people listing themselves as founders is up 69% on LinkedIn from one year later.

[A]

And yetis, it's because necessity is the mother of invention, and AI and an economic slowdown are necessitating entrepreneurship.

[B]

And we've actually seen this happen in the economy before. In 2008, during the financial crisis. That was a huge moment for company creation.

[A]

It's what led to Uber, airbnb, Instagram, the D2C craze of the 2010s, the

[B]

pandemic was another founder pill moment. Lots of people started blue collar businesses during the pandemic to take advantage of the spreading out effect as people move.

[A]

And now in 2026, AI layoffs are accidentally birthing a new generation of entrepreneurs. Pink slip to startup pipeline.

[B]

Now, a story could be told here. Needing work, people are trying to get hired. It's not working out, so they're doing their own thing in desperation.

[A]

But Jack, we also should point out this could result in something beautifully positive too.

[B]

You can't rely on companies right now, so you're betting on yourself.

[A]

Although ironically, with the help of AI. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies founder maxing out there?

[B]

Are we witnessing the start of the optimistic case for AI Now?

[A]

Yetis last week we did our best episode yet at the time about Calai, a company that uses AI to count calories from food that you take a picture of.

[B]

In just 18 months, Calai scaled to 15 million downloads and $30 million of annual subscription revenue. And it was founded by high school students.

[A]

It's an AI success story. The 18 year old founders vive coded their way to glory without engineers.

[B]

And that's what the AI optimists have been saying all along. Yes, AI will eliminate some jobs looking at you, Jack, Dorsey and Block, but it will create other jobs in even bigger numbers.

[A]

As Sam Altman aggressively optimistically puts it, Lamplighters lost their jobs when electricity was invented, but ultimately they found better jobs for founders.

[B]

Low cost AI tools are eliminating the need to hire expensive engineers, designers and bookkeepers, whether you're launching an app or launching a plumbing business.

[A]

So Bastius, when we look at these numbers, this is the democratization of innovation. Or put another way, AI is the boot in bootstrapping the record number of

[B]

new businesses formed last year. We call it founder maxing.

[A]

Yes we do.

[B]

And it could be the start of the optimistic case for AI.

[A]

Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us to kick off the live

[B]

show week, oil prices rose 14% on Friday, ending the week 35% higher at the biggest weekly oil price jump ever.

[A]

This is the Jurassic period. Besties, higher oil prices. They are like a sales tax. Everyone pays them for everything.

[B]

For our second story, now that Blue Bottle got acquired for $400 million, Blue Bottle is now sister companies with Luckin Coffee.

[A]

Blue Bottle's trick to start a cult. Well, the best retail is actually theater.

[B]

And our third and final story, we found a bright spot in the negative jobs data. It's easier now than ever to start

[A]

a company Besties, we just got mogged by the jobs report, but now we're foundermaxing.

[B]

But, besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today.

[A]

First, the award goes to. Ben Aff. The actor has an AI startup that was just acquired by Netflix.

[B]

The startup is called Interpositive. It gives AI tools to filmmakers that don't replace the filmmakers. It just helps them.

[A]

It's an AI that guides a director on the editorial angles and storyline as they're building out a movie.

[B]

And now Netflix is buying it.

[A]

And second, United Airlines may kick you off for life if you don't wear your headphones.

[B]

In United's terms and conditions, wearing headphones when watching a device was a common courtesy. But now it's an official rule.

[A]

Right now, you could get permanently banned from United if you were scrolling TikTok without the AirPods in.

[B]

And finally, remember Cluly, the AI startup that helps you lie and, like, cheat on your job interview?

[A]

Well, the founder reported doing 7 million bucks a year in revenue last year, but he also just admitted in a tweet that he made all that up.

[B]

That's called fraud. It's actually one of the great things about, like, business and stock markets. Lying is illegal.

[A]

It is.

[B]

So you're gonna need a lawyer.

[A]

Now. Time for the best fact yet, which, because it's Monday, means some T boy trivia. Jack, what do we got? Cause I'm feeling a. Feeling a little groggy over here.

[B]

Well, our clocks jumped forward by an hour last night, which was not fun. We've had daylight savings since 1918 in the United States, but two states said no, thanks.

[A]

Yeah, so what are the two American states that have opted out of daylight savings? You can drop them in the comments now. We'll give you a second. And, Jack, what is the answer? The two states that don't do daylight savings?

[B]

Hawaii and Arizona.

[A]

Hawaii and Arizona. There you go, guys. I mean, I like it. You're just being yourself. Although we should point out one wrinkle here. The Navajo Nation within Arizona does observe daylight savings time, even though the state does not.

[B]

I'm a fan of that.

[A]

So if you're driving through Arizona, you may go through, like, three different time zones and you don't even realize it. Yetis, you are looking fantastic to kick off the week. Jack, bags packed. We ready to go on this thing? Dc, baby.

[B]

We are getting dinner with one lucky yeti on Tuesday night. The show's Wednesday night. Doors open at 6, Showtime at 7, and Nick and I are gonna hit up a bar afterwards to hang with

[A]

you and we will see you there. You can grab those remaining tickets right now. We got a link in this episode description.

[B]

Nick and I, we'll see you tomorrow.

[A]

And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti Keely Lamb down in Dallas.

[B]

Happy birthday to Kristen Cruz in Farmington Hills, Michigan.

[A]

And Samil Agarwal. Enjoy that birthday over in the Garden State.

[B]

And. And A big happy 4th birthday to Anira Gomkhel in Seattle, Washington.

[A]

And Alango is the father of two with the best birthday yet in Montgomery, New Jersey. And congratulations to Charles Prenivou, who just became a charter pilot over in Hyannis, flying just outside Boston.

[B]

Congratulations to Kent and Alaina Meredith, who are celebrating their first Ibo, their initial baby offering. To Theo, born in San Mateo, California.

[A]

And the Morones, we've got an anniversary down in Miami.

[B]

Congratulations to Max for getting into fifth grade at Calhoun in New York City.

[A]

Yeah, coolest building in the city. It's the TV school, Jack. It looks like a whole vcr. Legendary place. Congrats, Max.

[B]

And a huge shout out to Max Bosh Powers at smu. He's recruiting right now for a finance job. Been listening to the show for years. This guy's gonna crush his interview Yetis.

[A]

Trust us, if you are hiring in finance, Max Bosh Powers is already your future CEO.

[B]

You could even call him your future mvp. This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix. And Nick and I both own stock of Airbnb.