🦶 “Foot Fetish” — Birkenstocks’ nail polish. Dubai’s OPEC exit. NYC’s maiden Air Taxi. +1st AI Store

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Best One Yet – “Foot Fetish” — Birkenstocks’ nail polish. Dubai’s OPEC exit. NYC’s maiden Air Taxi. +1st AI Store

Episode Date: April 29, 2026
Hosts: Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell

---

Episode Theme Overview

This episode delivers sharp, irreverent pop business news through the lens of three standout stories:

1. Birkenstock’s bold expansion into foot-specific beauty products
2. The UAE’s historic departure from OPEC during global oil volatility
3. New York’s first electric air taxi, introducing the “1,000-foot economy”
   Plus, Jack & Nick give a firsthand review of the world’s first fully AI-run retail store in San Francisco.

---

Key Discussions & Insights

1. The World’s First AI Retail Store (Andon Market, SF)

[00:25 – 04:06]

• Store Overview & Claims

  • Opened on Union Street; the store claims to be entirely designed and operated by AI.

  • The AI allegedly selected the real estate, raised funds ($100,000), signed a three-year lease ($7,500/month), curated inventory, hired staff, and is tasked with maximizing profit.

  • To “speak to the manager,” customers use a chatbot interface.

  • Inventory selection is chaotic—examples: lavender candles, tarot cards, mushroom plushies, and olive oil dispensers on the same shelf.

    “The curation in this place, Yetis. It makes—how should I put this—zero sense.”
    — Nick [02:21]

• AI Management Missteps

  • The AI paid the one male employee more than the two female employees.

  • It botched the employee schedule so badly the store had to close for three days; all feedback was delivered via Slack.

  • Financial transparency: A massive display shows the store’s real-time losses (currently $13,000 in the red).

    “It actually reveals the financial performance of the store in real time... since opening, this AI store has lost $13,000.”
    — Jack [03:21]

• Hosts’ Verdict & Takeaway

  • The vibe is off, no brand, inventory is incoherent—“store slop.”

  • The experiment currently suggests AI isn’t ready to run physical retail stores .

    “If you work in retail, it looks like your job is safe from AI for now. Because the first AI store looks like it’s heading to bankruptcy.”
    — Nick [03:53]

---

2. Birkenstock’s Toes-First Growth (Beauty Products for Your Feet)

[06:56 – 10:46]

• Product Expansion

  • Birkenstock, a six-generation former family business, is moving further into beauty—now selling foot scrubbers, lotions, and, notably, nail polish designed to match their iconic Arizona sandal.

  • All foot products are featured in Urban Outfitters, aiming for the Gen Z market—a pivot from their reputation as “ugly German grandma shoes.”

    “What used to be an ugly shoe for German grandmas is now touching grass with Gen Z. Literally.”
    — Nick [08:30]

• Tariffs and “Made in Germany”

  • US tariffs recently cost Birkenstock $36 million (effectively a 4% sales tax on US sales), compensated by raising prices which their loyal customers paid.

  • Supreme Court has now deemed these tariffs illegal; Birkenstock is due a $36 million refund.

    “So consumers paid the tariffs. But now that those tariffs have been deemed illegal... Birkenstock is gonna [apply for] basically a nice 10% bonus check from the US government.”
    — Jack [09:31]

• Business Philosophy

  • Unlike failed competitor Allbirds, Birkenstock doubles down on “ugly,” expanding only into foot-specific products and tools—extending their functional, frugal brand legacy (“Deutsche Sparsamkeit” or German frugality).

  • Their product expansion is a case study in brand-consistent growth.

    “Birkenstock has always put function over fashion. That’s key to their strategy, and that’s helped them defy the gravity of fads that come along with the fashion industry.”
    — Jack [10:13]

---

3. UAE Exits OPEC: Oil and the New Economic Captain

[10:50 – 14:51]

• Backdrop: Global Oil Shock

  • Gas prices hit four-year highs ($4.18/gallon average; could hit $5+ by summer).

  • The Iran war has led to a blockaded Strait of Hormuz, stalling oil flow—prediction markets don’t see normalization until June.

    “We're on week eight and a half right now... Add it all up and Axios is calling this a Cold War style stalemate.”
    — Nick [11:11, 11:30]

• UAE’s Big Move

  • United Arab Emirates—OPEC’s #3 oil producer—has officially left after 59 years, partly due to disagreements with Saudi Arabia’s production cuts.

  • Outside OPEC, the UAE can theoretically pump oil freely—though with the Strait still blockaded, immediate supply impact is muted.

    “The UAE was the number three oil producer in OPEC... But now, outside OPEC, they can pump as much oil as they want.”
    — Jack [13:26]

• Macroeconomic Shift

  • The hosts argue that oil is supplanting interest rates as the driver of the global economy.

  • Iran’s leverage with Hormuz echoes China’s leverage in the rare earths trade war.

  • OPEC is now weaker, making global oil prices less stable.

    “Oil just said to interest rates: ‘I am the captain now.’”
    — Nick [14:02]

---

4. Flying Taxis: NYC’s 1,000-Foot Economy Debut

[16:52 – 21:11]

• Milestone Flight

  • Joby Aviation (in partnership with Uber and via Blade acquisition) completed NYC’s first electric vertical takeoff and landing (EVTOL) air taxi test, cutting travel from Manhattan to JFK to 7 minutes (from 1.5 hours).

  • EVTOLs are quieter than helicopters, allowing them to operate in areas helicopters can’t.

    “The quieter part is actually a big deal, because it lets air taxis take off and land where loud helicopters are forbidden.”
    — Jack [19:36]

• Market Innovations & Partnerships

  • Delta: Future plans to bundle air taxi flights into airline travel checkout.

  • Uber: Users will be able to upgrade from regular Uber to Uber Air in-app.

  • Cost: $200 per seat—competitive with Uber Black.

    “If you’re traveling alone, it’s actually a competitive price with an Uber Black car.”
    — Nick [20:23]

• Next Frontier: 1,000-foot Economy

  • Hosts coin “the 1,000-foot economy”—the rise of business (drone and air taxi deliveries, medical supply flights) just above city rooftops.

    “The next infrastructure boom—it ain’t underground and it ain’t on the ground. It’s in the air, just above your roof.”
    — Jack [21:11]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• AI Store Realness:
  “If you want to speak to the manager, Karen, you’re going to have to open your phone because the manager is a chatbot.” — Nick [01:47]

• Birkenstock’s Foot Fetish:
  “My personal favorite was the stone to rub your feet against to scrape away the dead cells and get rid of that, you know, foot dandruff. Hate foot dandruff, man.” — Nick [07:56]

• Economic Power Shift:
  “Interest rates aren’t the captain of the economy anymore. Oil is.” — Nick [21:42]

• Air Taxi’s Real Advantage:
  “The most important difference—it’s actually the decibels.” — Jack [19:14]

---

Key Segment Timestamps

• AI Store Discussion: 00:25 – 04:06
• Birkenstock’s Foot Brand Expansion: 06:56 – 10:46
• UAE Leaves OPEC/Energy Markets: 10:50 – 14:51
• Joby Air Taxi & 1,000-Foot Economy: 16:52 – 21:11

---

Episode Recap Bullets

• Birkenstock forges into beauty—but only for the feet (“doubling down on ugly”), all while winning a major tariff refund.
• The UAE breaks from OPEC, signaling turbulent times for energy markets and marking oil, not interest rates, as the determinant of global economic health.
• Joby, Uber, and Delta are pioneering electric air taxis in NYC—a leap for the “1,000-foot economy” and a taste of the airborne infrastructure of tomorrow.
• The world’s first AI-powered store is a comical flop—proving that (for now) retail workers are safe from AI disruption.

---

For the Curious: Other Headlines (Quick Hits)

[22:01+]

• OpenAI Trial: Elon Musk testifies; rumors of an AI-powered phone surface; OpenAI's growth slows.
• FCC vs. Disney: FCC seeks early license renewal, citing DEI investigations; possible major First Amendment test under Trump.
• Inflation Watch: Movie tickets reach $50 for IMAX showings (i.e., “Dune Part 3”).
• Fun Fact: Banana ketchup was invented in WWII Philippines as a tomato substitute—and is still a staple.

---

Tone & Style

• Lighthearted, cheeky, and full of metaphors (“Birkenstock’s growth strategy is a foot fetish,” “Oil just said to interest rates: ‘I am de captain now’”), the hosts keep the episode engaging but packed with legit business insight.

---

Summary prepared for busy listeners—the freshest take you can pass off as your own.

Transcript

[A]

This is Nick.

[B]

This is Jack.

[A]

It's Wednesday. Saviche Wednesday, April 29th, and today's pod is the best one yet. This is a T, boy.

[B]

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

[A]

Oh, Yeti's. Grab an extra set of napkins because we got a heavy serving of earnings today.

[B]

Jack, four of the Mag seven are announcing earnings today. At the same exact moment, the biggest

[A]

of the big techs are all gonna shake the markets at the same time later this afternoon.

[B]

Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta all are like, yeah, me, me three, me four.

[A]

It's the spaghetti and meatballs of earnings days, Yetis. But Jack and I got three fantastic pop biz stories for you. Jack, what have we got in the capital of capitalists? Maybe.

[B]

For our first story, Birkenstock, the sandals company, now also sells foot lotions, foot scrubbers, and toenail polish.

[A]

So Jack and I will tell you why Birkenstock's growth strategy is a foot fetish.

[B]

For our second story, the United Arab Emirates just quit opec, the cartel that controls oil prices, lost a lover.

[A]

It's like Kyle and Amanda breaking up on Summer House with. So we didn't see this coming, guys.

[B]

We didn't. And our third and final story is New York City. They just debuted a flying electric taxi cab that went from Manhattan to JFK in seven minutes. And it was hailed on the Uber

[A]

app because the next economic frontier isn't Mars. It's 1,000ft above us.

[B]

But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful

[A]

mix of stories, I mean, what a mix. No one else doing that mix. Love the mixjack.

[B]

The world's first AI store just opened in San Francisco.

[A]

So we went, we saw, and we gotta talk about this, besties.

[B]

The store is called Andon Market on Union street in Cow Hollow. It's a small store, but this is potentially a big deal because this store

[A]

says it was designed, it was operated, and it is managed entirely by AI

[B]

if you want to speak to the manager, Karen, you're going to have to

[A]

open your phone because the manager is a chatbot.

[B]

Dusty's. The AI selected the real estate and signed the lease for this physical store.

[A]

Three year deal, 7,500 bucks a month. Not too.

[B]

The AI pitched and raised the fundraising for this store.

[A]

The store has a $100,000 check, also not too shabby.

[B]

And its human Master gave the AI1 mission. Maximize profit at this store.

[A]

The big question, can AI run a successful retail store? Jack?

[B]

Well, as soon as you step into the store, it feels pretty awkward because

[A]

the Curation in this place. Yeti's. It makes. How should I put this? 0 sense.

[B]

Lavender candles over there. Olive oil dispensers over there.

[A]

Jack, I tripped on a random mushroom stuffy toy over. What's going on, man?

[B]

I think the AI hallucinated.

[A]

Why would you put incense, a tarot card and granola on the same shelf? It's not nothing, man.

[B]

It's an everything store that also feels like nothing's there.

[A]

Yeah, so the inventory, it's kind of like if you, I don't know, blindfolded your grandmother and then had her fill up a random shopping cart at Costco with whatever she could touch.

[B]

You just set her loose and said, put in there whatever you think, grandma.

[A]

But get this. The AI even hired three human employees to physically put the stuff on the shelves.

[B]

But then the AI paid the one man worker more than the two women workers.

[A]

Jack, it looks like they forgot to include don't gender discriminate in the AI prompt.

[B]

And the AI messed up those three employees schedules so bad, they had to close the store for three days.

[A]

And then the AI gave them all feedback via Slack. True story. It actually did that.

[B]

But the wildest part of all is the giant computer screen right in the middle of this AI store.

[A]

It's wild cause it reveals the financial performance of the store in real time.

[B]

The AI thought it would be good marketing and create buzz.

[A]

And it was right, Jack. Because since opening, this AI store has lost 13,000 buc.

[B]

Generating buzz already of the shot in front of Variety.

[A]

Oh, Bess. He's adding all up in this first AI store. It's a store slop. It's store slop.

[B]

If you're in San Francisco, go check it out. It's failing badly.

[A]

There's no vibe, there's no brand. It's just kind of a space selling way too many candles.

[B]

So, Yetis, if you work in retail, it looks like your job is safe from AI for now.

[A]

Because the first AI store looks like it's heading to bankruptcy.

[B]

The human master must be like, AI try again. But do it completely different than you did it last time.

[A]

Would you like a discount? No discounts, no refunds. No discounts?

[B]

No.

[A]

Unplug it and plug it back in, Jack. Onto the three stories.

[C]

Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the northeast met in the dorm. 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 Liz. If you know, you know. Cause we read to go we can't wait no more so just start the show Start the show, Start the show.

[A]

First, a quick word from our sponsor,

[B]

Monarch.

[A]

All right, Yetis, you're never going to be able to guess how many accounts Jack has linked to Monarch.

[B]

31.

[A]

Are there even that many? Like financial products out there? Yetis, he's got credit cards, checking accounts, brokerage Accounts, Retirement Accounts, 529 College savings

[B]

accounts for each kid and my nieces and nephews. Nick.

[A]

Okay, I'm rounding up. Does that count? Where are we?

[B]

Don't forget my mortgage, my house, the car I own. They're all linked. And all their values in Monarch.

[A]

You see? Besties. Jack actually linked everything to Monarch one year ago during a little bit of spring cleaning.

[B]

Until I used Monarch, I had a very messy, very chaotic spreadsheet. But now they're clean, synced, and automatic.

[A]

Basically, Jack went full Marie Kondo on his finances. And he did it with Monarch, which can do your financial spring cleaning for you.

[B]

One dashboard that gets your entire financial life organized. No more clutter, no more mess, no more scattered logins. Just logins. Investments. Investments, property and more. All in one place.

[A]

Get your first year of Monarch for half off. Just 50 bucks with promo code T. Boy.

[B]

Use code [e-mail] to get your first year half off at just $50.

[A]

That's 50% off your first year at monarch.com with code T. Boy.

[B]

Zip recruiter.

[A]

Yeti's the Devil Wears Prada. The reason Miranda Priestley was perfect as editor in chief of Runway, it wasn't just her skills, it was her passion.

[B]

That cerulean monologue. Oh, that was so good. Silk runs through her veins, Nick.

[A]

Her blood type is cashmere.

[B]

Jack, if you're hiring, you want a candidate who' passionate about your role. But you can't get that insight from a resume unless you post your job in ZipRecruiter.

[A]

And now you can try it for

[B]

free at ZipRecruiter.com tboy ZipRecruiter's powerful matching technology finds qualified candidates quickly.

[A]

And ZipRecruiter has a new feature that shows you the most interested qualified candidates first, so you meet the right people faster.

[B]

Instead of waiting for someone to find your job listing. ZipRecruiter does the finding for you, searching through its database of millions of job seekers.

[A]

And one of them is your Miranda. Find her before someone else does.

[B]

With ZipRecruiter, find candidates who really want your job on ZipRecruiter?

[A]

Four out of five employers who post on ZipRecruiter get a qualified candidate in the first day.

[B]

Try it for free at ZipRecruiter.com tby. That's ZipRecruiter.com tboy meet your match on ZipRecruiter.

[A]

For our first story, Birkenstock just launched nail polish to complement their footwear, foot lotions and foot scrubs. I'm sorry, what's going on, Jack?

[B]

Birkenstock is becoming a beauty company, Nick. But they're keeping it all beneath the ankle.

[A]

Now, yetis, if we're gonna tell this story, full disclosure. Back in our banking days, Jack used to have a client who was Birkenstock.

[B]

Right. I got to visit their German headquarters and their San Francisco American headquarters. That was a family run business dating back six generations. Yeah.

[A]

All the way to Johan von Birkenstock. Am I right, Jack? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Now, when they sold to private equity in 2021 and when they IPO'd in 2023, we knew Birkenstock would be forced to to spread their toes out into some different new product categories.

[A]

But what Jack and I did not know is that Birkenstock had a full on foot fetish.

[B]

Because in 2024, Birkenstock launched an exfoliating foot scrub. Yeah. Nourishing foot balms. And get this tired leg and foot relief lotion, Jack.

[A]

My personal favorite was the stone to rub your feet against to scrape away the dead cells and get rid of that, you know, foot dandruff. Hate foot dandruff, man.

[B]

Reading the product descriptions was kind of disgusting.

[A]

Yeah, but the latest product is a

[B]

little more of a glow up.

[A]

Right, Jack? It is nail polish developed specifically to match the classic Arizona Birkenstock sandal.

[B]

Because your footwear needs matching toes. It's called fashion, honey.

[A]

Yeah, look it up.

[B]

So these beauty and body products that you didn't realize Birkenstock sold are all designed for below the ankle.

[A]

And they will all be featured specifically at Urban Outfitters because what used to

[B]

be an ugly shoe for German grandmas is now touching grass with gen Z. Literally.

[A]

25 year olds ain't shopping at shoe stores these days. They're in the beauty aisle at Urban.

[B]

But Nick, bigger news than Birkenstock's toenails. Yeah, Jeff, Is Birkenstock's tariffs because the Supreme Court handed Birkenstock a big bonus in February.

[A]

Oh, big toe bonus. Because Birkenstock yetis they don't just stick made in Germany in fine print on their tags. They scream it in all of their marketing.

[B]

So Trump's trade war has been particularly painful for a made in Germany company like Birkenstock. Birkenstock paid $36 million in tariffs last year.

[A]

The way to think about it, besties. Those tariffs were basically like a new 4% sales tax on Birkenstock's U.S. sales. Gesundheit.

[B]

But Birkenstock, a luxury product, increased prices to fully offset the cost. According to their cfo Jack, how did

[A]

consumers react when they heard their Arizona sandal was now suddenly a little bit more expensive? They paid it.

[B]

So consumers paid the tariffs.

[A]

But now that those tariffs have been deemed illegal, as of just a few

[B]

weeks ago, Birkenstock is gonn. They're applying for a $36 million refund. Basically a nice 10% bonus check from the US government.

[A]

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our

[B]

buddies over at Birkenstock? Isn't Allbirds. They're expanding the right way. They're doing it ugly.

[A]

Yeetes. When Allbirds collapsed just a few weeks ago, Jack and I juxtaposed their failure with Birkenstock's success.

[B]

You see, Birkenstock famously embraces the ugly. Even if you wear socks to cover your ugly toenails, that makes your Birkenstocks

[A]

look more ugly, uglier. So while Allbirds expanded into underwear, sweaters, and base layers, Birkenstock has expanded into foot lotion, toenail polish, and dead skin stones.

[B]

Birkenstock has always put function over fashion. That's key to their strategy, and that's helped them defy the gravity of fads that come along with the fashion industry.

[A]

You see, Birkenstock was so focused on function, they even launched a tube squeezer to make sure that you get every single drop of that tired foot relief lotion out of the tube.

[B]

It's like a metal fork specifically designed to squeeze out the lotion.

[A]

Yeah, Jack, what's the German term again? Like, even though this is a luxury

[B]

product, they never abandoned their Deutsche Sparsamkeit, their German frugality.

[A]

Add it all up, besties, and Birkenstock is expanding the right way for their brand.

[B]

They're doubling down on the ugly.

[A]

For our second story, the UAE just left the world's biggest oil cartel, opec. As gas prices hit four year highs,

[B]

interest rates have defined the last four years of this economy. Oil might define the next four.

[A]

Now, Yeti's checking the calendar here. Before the story Today, day number 60 of the war in Iran.

[B]

The President said it would last four to six weeks. We're on week eight and a half right now.

[A]

Now we are not in an active war at the moment, right, Jack.

[B]

It's a blockade standoff with a technical ceasefire.

[A]

And today you may be reading about a 60 day war powers deadline in the news.

[B]

But effectively the President can ignore that and he most certainly will to extend the war.

[A]

So add it all up and Axios is calling this a Cold War style stalemate. We might never see a clear end to this type of conflict because Iran

[B]

has learned that the Strait of Hormuz is their trump card.

[A]

Literally. Literally. Prediction markets are now saying a normal flow of oil through that Strait of Hormuz won't happen until June.

[B]

Translation for us, our Memorial Day weekend road trip could face $5 a gallon.

[A]

Gas again may become a staycation kind

[B]

of a situation because according to AAA, a gallon of regular unleaded is $4.18 on average right now.

[A]

Ye up 50% so far this year. It is the highest level for gasoline since back in 2022, back when Russia

[B]

invaded Ukraine and sanctions spiked gas prices to over five bucks a gallon.

[A]

Oh, and one other fascinating data point. What is it, Jack?

[B]

The United States just set a record for most oil exports ever in a single month.

[A]

You see besties with oil trading at $10 more per barrel overseas. Big Oil in America is making one crude decision.

[B]

They're shipping oil to wherever they can sell it the most, which is not the United States.

[A]

No ExxonMobil, by the way, that stock all time high.

[B]

So that's what's happening in the usa, but what's happening in the UAE is potentially even bigger.

[A]

That's right, because the United Arab Emirates, home of Dubai, just announced on Tuesday that after 59 years, they are leaving OPEC and they are shutting the door, baby.

[B]

But to pump on some context here, OPEC is a 12 nation club that colludes to try to fix the world's oil price at a very high price.

[A]

You see yetis, it would be illegal in the United States to do this. But OPEC is not in the United States.

[B]

It's mostly in the Middle east and it's led by Saudi Arabia.

[A]

OPEC is mostly run by authoritarian petro states that act like one big monopoly with Saudi Arabia as the big boss.

[B]

And Saudi Arabia has long voted to limit oil production in OPEC to keep prices as high as possible.

[A]

On the other hand, the United Arab Emirates, they disagree with that policy.

[B]

And with tensions Higher than ever. The UAE is finally quitting opec.

[A]

They're like, I'm leaving you and it's

[B]

not me, it's you, actually. Saudi Arabia. The UAE was the number three oil producer in OPEC behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq. But now, outside of opec, they can pump as much oil as they want.

[A]

And more oil from the Emiratis could actually be good for oil prices for us at the pump.

[B]

More supply lowers prices.

[A]

Although, Jack, we should point out the Strait of Hormuz is still closed, so

[B]

the UAE can't export anything. So nothing's gonna happen at the pump until the war ends.

[A]

Let it be. Let it be. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over in oil?

[B]

Oil is replacing interest rates as the driver of the global economy.

[A]

Oil just said to interest rates. I am de captain now. Yet he's inflation. It blew up in 2022 across the world. You saw it, you felt it, you experienced it. Every central bank jacked up interest rates to put that fire out.

[B]

High interest rates, it's been the defining characteristic of the economy for the last four years.

[A]

Housing market's frozen, construction markets have closed. The stock market is super interest rate sensitive. We see it all the time.

[B]

But unless something dramatically changes, it looks like OPEC oil is taking over.

[A]

Because Iran has learned in this war how much leverage they can get by controlling the Strait of Hormuz.

[B]

Just like China learned in the trade war how much leverage they can get by controlling the rare earth metals.

[A]

And now the UAE is fed up, leaving OPEC weaker and less able to stabilize these global oil prices.

[B]

What we're witnessing is a change in the global economic cycle caused by the war in Iran.

[A]

From interest rates being in charge to oil being in charge. Now a quick word from our sponsor, Dell Yetis. Dell PCs with Intel inside are built for the moments that matter.

[B]

For the moments you plan and the ones you don't.

[A]

Yeah. Built for the busy days that turn into all night. Order food at 2am, study sessions.

[B]

You know the moment you're working from a cafe and realize every outlet is taken.

[A]

And the times you're deep in your flow and the absolute last thing you need is an auto update thrown off your momentum.

[B]

That's why Dell builds tech that adapts to the way that you actually work.

[A]

Built with a long lasting battery so you're not scrambling for the closest outlet.

[B]

And built in intelligence that makes updates around your schedule, not in the middle of it.

[A]

They don't build tech for tech's sake, they build it for you.

[B]

Find technology built for the way you [e-mail] DellPCS built for you.

[A]

HIMS yeti's once in a lifetime technologies are a big deal. You got AI self driving cars, tallow

[B]

moisturizer, joking about the tallow, not putting animal fat on our skin yet.

[A]

But we are serious about GLP1s as a life changing technology. We've covered them on the pod with

[B]

WeGovia at hims you can lose up to 20% of your body weight when combined with diet and exercise.

[A]

Plus WeGovy is the first ever GLP1 pill for weight loss so there are no needles needed.

[B]

You see, it's extremely hard for me to eat some Doritos without eating the entire bag, but if I were on GLP1s it would kill that craving, wouldn't it Nick?

[A]

That's right. So through IMS everything happens online. You'll connect with a licensed provider who will determine if your treatment is is right for you.

[B]

If prescribed, your medication is delivered right to your door. No insurance necessary.

[A]

So besties ready to reach your goals? Visit himss.comtboy to get a personalized affordable plan that gets you.

[B]

That's h I m s.comtboy himss.comtboy. weight loss by HIMSS is not available in all 50 states. Wegovy is the registered trademark of Novo Nordisk as to get started and learn more, including important safety information, WeGovy clinical study information and restrictions. Visit hims.com

[A]

for our third and final story. Joby and Uber just completed New York City's first electric air taxi flight from Manhattan to JFK, cutting travel time by

[B]

90% because the next addressable market is the 1,000ft above our heads.

[A]

Alright yet it's funny thing Jack and I noticed when we were sharing Seinfeld DVDs in college. There's this joke from Seinfeld 30 years ago about being stuck in traffic on the Van Wyck Expressway to get to the airport.

[B]

Hilarious because the Van Wyck Expressway is still under construction and you'll still get stuck there on the way to the airport.

[A]

The joke still works today because it's about one and a half hours if you want to get from Midtown Manhattan to jfk, baby.

[B]

So Joby Aviation, the publicly traded electric aircraft company, sees their opportunity in that traffic jam.

[A]

Here's the big news. Joby just completed their first ever point to point Evtol flight in New York City history.

[B]

Technical term Nick Evtol Evtol is electric

[A]

vertical takeoff and landing.

[B]

Translation to that technical term translation is

[A]

it's like a helicopter, but it's electric. This is a flying taxi.

[B]

And it's faster because it has six propellers, not one. All of which can tilt forward once it's in the air and basically go into airplane mode.

[A]

Yeah. Let's sprinkle on some really fast context here. Going from West 30th street to JFK, this thing flies at 200 miles per

[B]

hour, which means a one to two hour trip. And taxicab can become a seven minute flight.

[A]

It feels like you're time traveling.

[B]

Now this is key. Joby actually acquired Blade, the helicopter company including their five travel lounges in Manhattan and JFK in Newark.

[A]

So Joby shipped 90,000 passengers last year in these regular old helicopters.

[B]

But for the first time yesterday, they did an evtol flying air taxi flight from JFK to Manhattan.

[A]

Biggest moment in transportation since the chassis. But funny question Jack and I gotta ask as we research this story, you

[B]

wanna ask it J. How is an EVTOL better than a regular helicopter?

[A]

The answer, the value proposition, is actually a total surprise. More on that in a minute.

[B]

First, to sprinkle on some context. Joby's air taxis look like a drone. And a helicopter had a baby that was raised by George Lucas in the Jetsons.

[A]

The flying taxi kind of looks like a giant insect ipod. Would you say that, Jack, is that fair?

[B]

Yes, but it flies only marginally faster than a helicopter.

[A]

Now it's electric, so it's cleaner. But Jack, is that enough to really disrupt the helicopter?

[B]

No, it's not, Nick. Which leads to the most important difference. It's actually the decibels.

[A]

That's right. Because this flying electric taxi is a fraction as loud as a chopper.

[B]

The quieter electric motor doesn't have the thunderous earthquake effect that a chopper has if you're anywhere near it.

[A]

Okay, but pause the pawjack. I still gotta ask, is that enough to really disrupt the helicopter?

[B]

The quieter part is actually a big deal because it lets air taxis take off and land where loud helicopters are forbidden.

[A]

That's the unlock that opened the market. Being way quieter potentially allows air taxis to land everywhere without disturbing everything, like a helicopter would.

[B]

You could land an air taxi in Union Square potentially as long as you like. Make sure nobody's there.

[A]

Yeah, another key here. Joby partnered with Delta to let future customers add on an air taxi flight to and from the airport seamlessly at checkout.

[B]

And instead of building their own customer base, they're partnering with Uber so that you can upgrade from an Uber X to an Uber Air with a swipe of your finger.

[A]

But besties, it always comes down to the pricing and that. Jack, what is it?

[B]

The price of an air taxi flight from Manhattan to JFK or vice versa is reportedly going to be 200 bucks per seat later this year.

[A]

So if you're traveling alone, it's actually a competitive price with an uber black car. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies on the maiden voyage of the flying electric taxi?

[B]

We are entering the 1000 foot economy.

[A]

Yetis, over the last few years, Jack and I have noticed a few new markets that have been opened up right above our heads.

[B]

You already had airplanes at 30,000ft and satellites in low earth orbit.

[A]

But new opportunities are emerging at the 1,000 foot level, just above the height of most buildings.

[B]

Walmart and Amazon are doing grocery drone delivery already in Texas and Arizona.

[A]

Burritos flying at you at 1,000ft.

[B]

Zipline is a startup that hit an $8 billion valuation earlier this year for drone delivery of critical medical supplies.

[A]

That insulin is flying at you at 1,000ft.

[B]

And now Joby's Electric Air Taxis taking people to the airport at about 1000ft

[A]

basties the next infrastructure boom. It ain't underground and it ain't on the ground. It's in the air just above your roof. Jack, could you whip up the stories for us for ceviche Wednesday?

[B]

Your hobbit feet are already wearing Birkenstocks. Now they want your toes and your foot dandruff too.

[A]

Because unlike allbirds, Birkenstock is expanding in a way consistent with the brand. They're doubling down un ugly.

[B]

For our second story, the UAE is leaving OPEC as oil is over 100 bucks a barrel and gas is at 4 year highs.

[A]

Interest rates aren't the captain of the economy anymore. Oil is.

[B]

And our third and final story is Joby's Electric Air Taxis. They completed their maiden voyage from JFK to Manhattan.

[A]

And it's all part of the next frontier, the 1,000 foot economy.

[B]

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

[A]

First, another doozy of a day for OpenAI. In day one of their trial, Elon actually took the stand under oath.

[B]

Elon didn't say much we didn't already know though, in his testimony.

[A]

Okay, but separately, it leaked that OpenAI wants to make a phone. The first AI iPhone, basically.

[B]

But that may be a problem because of this next headline. OpenAI's business is missing their targets big time.

[A]

That was the third doozy. The world's biggest AI company missed their targets for both user growth and revenue growth last quarter.

[B]

Second, the FCC is requiring Disney to renew their TV broadcast licenses two years early.

[A]

This comes one day after the President urged Disney to fire Jimmy Kimmel again after a joke he said.

[B]

The FCC is citing a DEI investigation as the reason for the early renewal requirement.

[A]

But if you look at it, it could set up the biggest First Amendment test yet in the Trump administration. The FCC versus Mickey Mouse.

[B]

And finally, an update to the inflation situation. Movie tickets have hit $50.

[A]

That's right. To see Dune Part 3 at Regal Cinemas in IMAX, it's going to cost you 50 bucks a ticket, 100 bucks for that date night because the box

[B]

office knows that you're willing to leave your living room couch for an epic in person experience.

[A]

Oh, and splurge, baby. Which explains why IMAX Stock is up 50% in the last year and is now near an all time high. Now time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Tiffany S. The legendary yeti from lovely Ann Arbor, Michigan.

[B]

Couple weeks ago, we covered the tomato trauma. Ah, yes, basically like five inputs to the cost of tomatoes are going up because of the war in Iran.

[A]

Well, Tiffany points out there's an interesting historical precedent for all this tomato scarcity.

[B]

During World War II, the Philippines lost access to their tomato imports. So a food technologist, Magdalo lady Fernando, solved the problem for her home country.

[A]

And how did she solve it exactly, Jack?

[B]

By creating a ketchup made with vinegar, sugar and spices. Okay. And bananas instead of tomato.

[A]

That's right. The temporary solution worked so well that banana ketchup actually became a Filipino pantry

[B]

staple and still is today, decades after the tomato shortage has ended. Filipinos love their banana ketchup.

[A]

Heinz, your move. Yetis, you look fantastic. Hey, Jack, you are glowing. What is the big question today for our poll on Spotify? What do we got, Jack?

[B]

How many more days will this AI store last before its human master shuts it down?

[A]

The AI store, it's lost $13,000 in about a month.

[B]

The doors are gonna lock because they're out of tokens. Let me tell you, if you want

[A]

a lot of candles, they do sell a lot of candles there.

[B]

Smells like a deal.

[A]

Jack and I will see you tomorrow. And before we go, a happy birthday to legendary yeti Emily Liu, the master student over in Taipei, Taiwan.

[B]

Happy birthday to Elizabeth Leonard on the way to piano class in Fremont, California. She's turning 8 and she is the next virtuoso on the piano.

[A]

And Laura Bruskin. Enjoy that birthday down in Arlington, Virginia.

[B]

And happy birthday to the prolific Andrew Zucker from New York City hanging out just outside Boston.

[A]

Just outside Boston. And Karine Teresa Bachi over in Manhattan. Enjoy the best birthday yet.

[B]

Happy birthday to Joel Pereira in Miami, Florida.

[A]

And the Leyva triplets are turning 23 years old down in Tucson. Congratulations, Congratulations. And congratulations.

[B]

This is Jack. I own stock of Amazon and even though I own between three and seven pairs of Birkenstocks, I do not own the stock. The Drop by GNC Yetis the wellness

[A]

space moves fast every day. An influencer is pumping some new product which is ironically named Pump product and

[B]

it'll get you huge even if you don't lift yet.

[A]

There's creatine in the colostrum in the protein.

[B]

GNC actually has experts who cut through all of that and hand pick what's

[A]

worth your attention the new ingredients, new formulas and new brands and health and nutrition you need to know about.

[B]

The Drop is the section of GNC that curates the newest products to share with you what actually works.

[A]

We're talking trending ingredients, breakthrough formula stuff that's actually going to move the needle

[B]

on your goals, whether that's performance recovery or just getting huge.

[A]

So think of it as the VIP section of the supplement world. You're not waiting for something to blow up on TikTok to find out about it.

[C]

You're already there.

[B]

Get a sneak peek at the newest formulas, flavors and brands coming soon to gnc.

[A]

New drops launch regularly, so there's always something exciting to discover.

[B]

GNC.com TheDrop is the destination to discover something new to try today.

[A]

Get the facts you can trust on what's new and trending plan what's next

[B]

by browsing the Coming soon calendar of [e-mail] drop get the protein in the colostrum.