🚨 “Sam-mergency” — OpenAI’s Code Red. American Eagle’s Anti-AI. Waymo’s safety report. +Wall Street Wrapped

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Best One Yet

Episode: “Sam-mergency” — OpenAI’s Code Red. American Eagle’s Anti-AI. Waymo’s Safety Report. +Wall Street Wrapped

Hosts: Nick & Jack Studios (Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell)
Date: December 4, 2025

Overview

This energizing episode of The Best One Yet dives into three of the biggest stories shaking up pop business: OpenAI’s sudden “code red” alert as it battles rival AI firms, American Eagle’s stock surge thanks to a bold anti-AI stance, and Waymo’s surprising self-driving car safety revelations. With playful banter and rapid-fire takes, Nick and Jack unpack why these stories matter and how they reflect broader trends in tech, retail, and transportation. Listeners get both sharp analysis and memorable metaphors—plus a “Wall Street Wrapped” year-in-review segment with hilarious factoids and highlights from 2025.

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Key Segments, Discussion Points, and Quotes

1. OpenAI’s “Sam-mergency” & The AI Arms Race

[05:34–10:15]

• Code Red at OpenAI

  • Sam Altman sent a “Code Red” emergency email to the whole company, signaling a company-wide crisis.
  • The reason: Google and Anthropic are beating OpenAI at its own game.
  • “Sammy slammed that emergency button.” (A, 05:47)
  • Jim Cramer, live on CNBC, referenced Nick and Jack’s analysis:
    “OpenAI wants to be Alphabet, but… Alphabet has everything that OpenAI would like to have. If OpenAI thinks they can take on Alphabet, they’re greatly mistaken.” (D, 06:09)

• User Backlash and Product Weakness

  • Hosts discuss personal experiences dropping OpenAI’s browser for tried-and-true Google Chrome.
  • “I consistently came into annoying issues that made me miss Google Chrome.” (B, 07:05)

• Rising Threats from Anthropic

  • Anthropic, with its Claude chatbot, is catching up fast—$10 billion in annualized revenue and a $15 billion investment.
  • “Anthropic is the Pepsi to OpenAI's Coke. It’s the Puma to OpenAI’s Adidas.” (B, 07:48)
  • IPO rumors swirl; a $300 billion valuation would make it “one of the biggest of any company ever.” (B, 08:27)

• Race Reminiscent of Mario Kart

  • “You want to be the second player in Mario Kart so you get the red shell to unseat the first player. If you’re in first, you’re going to get a banana and you’re not going to win.” (A, 09:44)
  • Tech’s fast-followers can outpace the innovator:
    “There’s no first mover advantage when it comes to AI. In fact, it’s the first mover disadvantage.” (B, 09:09)

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2. American Eagle’s Soaring Stock & Anti-AI Pledge

[10:15–13:34]

• Celebrity-Powered Growth

  • American Eagle’s brand ambassadors: Sydney Sweeney, Travis Kelce, Martha Stewart—seen as Gen Z icons.
  • “There’s nothing a 23 year old respects more than a crispy pumpkin piece prepared in a gingham apron and an awesome candle burning nearby.” (B, 10:50)
  • Record revenues and “best Thanksgiving weekend of sales in history.”

• The Real Breakthrough: Anti-AI Declaration

  • In October, American Eagle’s underwear brand Aerie publicly committed to no AI-generated bodies or retouching:
    “Today we commit no AI generated bodies or people. Real people only… no retouching. No AI. 100% Aerie Real.” (A & B, 11:42–11:48)
  • This straightforward social post outperformed even the flashiest celebrity campaigns.

• Pushback on AI in Fashion

  • Reference to J. Crew’s AI blunder, which led to social media backlash due to odd, “hallucinatory” photo retouching.

• Takeaway: Digitally Organic

  • “Anti-AI is the new organic, Yetis.” (B, 12:44)
  • Just as food trends moved from artificial ingredients to craving “organic,” fashion is now championing authenticity over AI.
  • “Most companies are embracing AI just like most companies embraced processed food... But eventually, cultural and scientific backlash arrived, leading to a new consumer equilibrium.” (B, 13:00–13:10)
  • Nick & Jack dub this trend “digitally organic.” (B, 13:27)

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3. Waymo’s Safety Breakthroughs and the ‘Aggressive’ Robotaxi Update

[15:43–20:16]

• Waymo vs. Human Drivers

  • After 100 million driverless miles, Waymo reports 90% fewer accidents than humans.
  • “Waymos are involved in 91% fewer crashes that seriously injure people compared to human driven cars.” (A, 17:09)
  • “They were also involved in 96% fewer collisions with pedestrians at intersections compared to human driven cars.” (B, 17:17)
  • Hosts point out: most incidents involving Waymo were caused by human drivers in other vehicles.

• Software Update: Robo-Cabbie Mode

  • Waymo tweaks their algorithm for more “confidently assertive” driving:
    “Waymo just updated the software in their cars to drive like insane humans, not computers.” (B, 18:32)
  • “They adjusted the settings in their cars to be, and I quote, confidently assertive.” (B, 19:38)
  • Now the cars will overtake stopped vehicles, attempt bolder maneuvers, and even make the occasional illegal U-turn.
  • Anecdote: Jack imitates saying, "Whoa there, girl," when a Waymo car accelerated like a horse. (A, 19:33)

• Balancing Assertiveness and Safety

  • Waymo believes it can be bold but still safe:
    “Computers can still predict and avoid collisions better than a human, even while hanging a U-ie.” (A, 20:07)
  • “Waymo thinks it can drive like a New York City cab and still drive carefully.” (B, 18:46)

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Other Noteworthy Segments

Wall Street Wrapped: 2025 Year-in-Review

[02:12–02:53]

• “Slop Balls and Elon” was the new genre.
• “Elon Musk averaged 143 tweets per day.” (A, 02:18)
• “Kim Kardashian’s Skims sold enough underwear to circle Earth 12 times.” (B, 02:21)
• “Hollywood made 962 PG sequels.” (A, 02:31)
• Apple, notably, ”launched zero AI products even though they announced them last year.” (B, 02:48)

Quick Hits

[21:05–22:32]

• Nike ad banned in the UK for “greenwashing.”
• Delta lost $200 million during the government shutdown.
• "Rage bait" is Oxford's word of the year.
• Fun fact: sommeliers develop a larger “smell-processing area” in the brain.
  • “Years of aroma training increased the size of that brain region that handles scent and memory.” (B, 22:58)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On AI Competition:
  “Sam Altman, in just a couple months, has gone from unstoppable tech emperor on a conquest for world domination…to tech entrepreneur in retreat.” (B, 08:43)
• On the AI Race:
  “There’s no first mover advantage in AI. In fact, it could be a disadvantage.” (A, 10:07)
• On Fashion & Authenticity:
  “At the American Eagle lunch table, ChatGPT can’t sit with us.” (B, 11:54)
• On Robotaxis:
  “Waymos don’t get distracted by text messages, or try to eat tacos while they’re driving.” (B, 17:30) “Waymos are so polite, they’ll wait forever until you slowly cross the road...But not anymore.” (A, 19:00)
• Waymo’s New Philosophy:
  “Waymo made a software update. Boom. It went from passive to a little bit pushy.” (A, 20:01)

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Detailed Timestamps for Critical Sections

• [05:34]: OpenAI’s internal “Code Red” & AI arms race
• [07:42]: Anthropic’s dramatic rise and $300B IPO rumors
• [09:44]: Mario Kart analogy—why being second in AI is best
• [11:42]: Aerie’s anti-AI social post: “Real people only”
• [12:44]: “Anti-AI is the new organic”
• [17:09]: Waymo’s accident rates vs. human drivers
• [19:38]: Waymo confirms “confidently assertive” driving upgrade

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Takeaways

1. AI’s Top Spot is Far from Secure

   • OpenAI’s lead is slipping. Competition from Google and Anthropic proves that being first in this space may expose you to fast-followers who quickly surpass you.

2. Authenticity Sells: The ‘Digitally Organic’ Movement

   • American Eagle’s bold anti-AI pledge signals a consumer-driven backlash against artificiality, echoing the earlier rise of organic food. Real is the new premium.

3. Self-Driving Cars: Safer but Now Bolder

   • Waymo robo-taxis are proving much safer than humans, but to operate efficiently in city traffic, they’re becoming more aggressive—a bet that assertiveness won’t come at the expense of safety.

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For listeners: this episode is a punchy, witty, and insight-packed review of pop business’s biggest headlines and trends—unmissable for anyone trying to stay ahead of the business and tech curve.

Transcript

[A]

This is Nick, this is Jack. It's Thursday, the new Friday, December 4th, 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, Yetis, thank you for all the love. For our live tour launch yesterday, Austin.

[B]

Texas, Washington, D.C. new York, New York and Los Angeles. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

[A]

Oh, mark your calendars. Tickets on sale tomorrow. We got a link in this episode description to grab them.

[B]

Next spring, we're gonna announce the rest of the IPO tour and it's gonna be leg.

[A]

Okay, but in the meantime, Shaq, we've got three fantastic stories for today's show. What do we got on the T boy?

[B]

For our first story, Sam Altman just sent a company wide code red emergency at OpenAI.

[A]

So we'll explain how the AI race is starting to look like a Mario Kart race.

[B]

For our second story, American Eagle stock surged 15% yesterday, thanks to Sydney Sweeney, Travis Kelsey, and Martha Stewart.

[A]

But the real reason American Eagle is soaring. It's notai.

[B]

And our third and final story. If you live in San Francisco, Austin, Atlanta or Phoenix, have you noticed notice that the robo taxis have started driving more aggressively?

[A]

Uh, yeah, Waymo just confirmed it's true. A software update that Jack and I call crazy New York City taxi mode.

[B]

But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories.

[A]

Whoa, I'm walking here.

[B]

Where you going, Waymo, Your Instagram is probably still flooded by your friends. Spotify screenshots.

[A]

That's right. A happy Spotify Rap season To all.

[B]

Those who celebrate Spotify Rap told me that my music taste is that of a 76 year old jack.

[A]

Spotify Rap told me that I'm in the top 1% of listeners for both Baby Shark and Sabrina Carpenter.

[B]

So Spotify thinks I'm very old and you're ridiculously young.

[A]

Yeah, we gotta speak to a manager.

[B]

But Yetis, did you know that when Spotify Wrapped launched back in 2015, it was actually an intern's idea?

[A]

And now every media CEO has stolen that intern's idea.

[B]

YouTube, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Strava, they all do their own version of year in review.

[A]

Basically, Spotify Wrapped got zucked.

[B]

So right now we're gonna do the same.

[A]

Yeah, let's do it.

[B]

The best one yet's Wall street wr.

[A]

It's our year in review of the pop biz headlines. Jack, kick it off for us over there.

[B]

In 2025, Wall Street's least favorite genre was a new one, Slop Balls and elon.

[A]

Musk averaged 143 tweets per a day.

[B]

Kim Kardashian Skim sold enough underwear to circle planet Earth 12 times.

[A]

And a trillion billion dollar investments were announced at the White house.

[B]

Hollywood made 962 PG sequels.

[A]

And prediction markets predicted that they'd become the top app out of all the predicted apps.

[B]

Sam Altman 1,000 new products this year.

[A]

Nvidia invested in 1 million new startups this year.

[B]

And the Fed lowered interest rates, but not enough.

[A]

And Apple, to round it all out.

[B]

Launched zero AI products even though they announced them last year.

[A]

It's all right, you can still work on it. Guys, Yetis, that is our Wall street wrap for 2025.

[B]

Drop in the comments. What we missed. Yeah, what happened this year on Wall Street?

[A]

What did we miss? What do you think we missed?

[B]

What's in your Wall Street Rap? 2025.

[A]

Hit us up here. And Jack, let's hit our three stories.

[C]

Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the northeast met. 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 ripped a go. We can't wait no mo.

[A]

So just start the show.

[C]

Start the show.

[A]

Start the show. First a quick word from our sponsor.

Now a quick break.

[B]

Switching topics to one of our favorite sponsors, Vital proteins.

[A]

Now, Jack, my mom does not use most of the products we promote. Like, she's not building a website. She's not downloading a stock trading app.

[B]

No, she's not.

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But she did call me this weekend and here's what she said. She said, I need to know the promo code for your collagen peptide sponsor because I just bought more of it.

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It was Vital proteins and their no sugar added collagen peptide products are delicious. Especially new 30 gram protein shake.

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[A]

The first website we ever built. Our MySpace page. Yeah, we were just young enough, right, Jack?

[B]

Or old enough, Nick. I still Remember, you could give your MySpace page a soundtrack. Music started playing when someone visited the webpage.

[A]

Blink 182, the official music of Young Jack. But besties? If we built a website today, we'd use Framer because they focused on the small things.

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For our first story on Monday, Sam Altman called code red at OpenAI. It's a company wide emergency.

[B]

The reason Google and Anthropic became the big men on the artificial intelligence campus.

[A]

So Sammy slammed that emergency button.

[B]

Code Red.

[A]

Code Red.

[B]

That was the subject line of a company wide email sent by Sam Altman on Monday at OpenAI.

[A]

We don't know if he used the red flashing light emoji like we used in the podcast title for today's episode, but if you're at OpenAI DM us in the comments.

[B]

And the reason? Well, we'll let Jim Cramer explain. Push and Play.

[D]

I don't want to steal something because I've got these guys that I'm on for a podcast this morning, tboi. They're really pretty terrific. That's the best one yet. It's great podcast, but they're just saying, listen, what's happened here is that Open AI wants to be Alphabet, but we don't need Open Air because Alphabet is Alphabet is Alphabet. Alphabet has everything that Open AI would like to have. I think it's a great analysis and I think it became clear to people over the last hundred points that Alphabet is the best of all of these. And if OpenAI thinks they can take on Alphabet, they're greatly mistaken.

[B]

Pretty cool that Jim Cramer mentioned us on cnbc.

[A]

Jimmy, thanks for the shout out, buddy.

[B]

But Sam Altman must also have internal data that people are using OpenAI's chatbot less. And to be honest, I'm one of them.

[A]

Yeah, you're one of them.

[B]

Why don't you tell the Eddies? I was using OpenAI's Atlas browser ever since we covered it on the podcast, but I consistently came into annoying issues that made me miss Google Chrome.

[A]

Yeah, so Jack went back and now Google stock is up 92% in the last six months. And Jack, how are OpenAI's shareholders doing in that time?

[B]

Well, OpenAI doesn't have stock, but its shareholders do. And Microsoft, Nvidia and Oracle are all.

[A]

Down, hence the code red.

[B]

Sam Altman told everyone to stop all non core projects and double down on improving the chatbot. ChatGPT.

[A]

It's like the red goal light at a hockey game. And it is wailing right now. But Besties ChatGPT is not only being attacked on the left flank, it's also being attacked on the right flank too.

[B]

From Google on one side and Anthropic on the other.

[A]

Anthropic, the number two pure play generative AI company. They are known for their chatbot. Claude.

[B]

Anthropic is The Pepsi to OpenAI's Coke. It's the Puma to OpenAI's Adidas.

[A]

The Madewell to its anthropology.

[B]

Jack, Yeti is Anthropic. We were shocked by these numbers. Anthropic is is catching up to OpenAI in terms of its business.

[A]

Anthropic's doing $10 billion in annualized revenue rate right now. That's like the same ballpark as OpenAI.

[B]

And Anthropic also just got a $15 billion private investment led by Microsoft and.

[A]

Nvidia, who were supposed to be dating OpenAI.

[B]

Yeah, OpenAI's like Microsoft, Nvidia.

[A]

I thought you guys were with me. But Jack, worst of all, the Financial Times reports that Anthropic has hired lawyers to IPO as early as next year.

[B]

The reports say that the IPO would be one of the biggest of any company ever. A $300 billion valuation. If Anthropic IPO is next year, it's like 30 lifts.

[A]

If Anthropic beats OpenAI to the stock market, it could become the darling of retail traders.

[B]

So Sam Altman, in just a couple months has gone from unstoppable tech emperor on a conquest for world domination.

[A]

Genghis a icon to tech entrepreneur in.

[B]

Retreat asking why Nvidia and Microsoft are sleeping with the competition.

[A]

Jack, I love a Game of Thrones analogy right here, but I prefer our mar. So let's get to the takeaway. What's the takeaway? For our buddies over at OpenAI, there.

[B]

Is no first mover advantage when it comes to AI. In fact, it's the first mover disadvantage.

[A]

Yetis, until 2022, Google was the leader in AI. It was believed to be on the brink of a new chatbot.

[B]

But then OpenAI became the leader and since they've expanded into every tech product category.

[A]

But Jack, now Google and anthropic are copping OpenAI's best product features and doing them better. Remember that tweet we just saw from Marc Benioff?

[B]

He said, I've used ChatGPT every day for three years, but I just spent two hours on Google's Gemini 3 and I'm not going back. The leap is insane. Besties.

[A]

This reminds us of Mario the video game. Remember, like heading to the finish line. You want to be the second player in Mario Kart, so you get the red shell to unseat the first player.

[B]

If you're in first, you're going to get a banana and you're not going to win. You always want to be in second place in Mario Kart.

[A]

Well, yetis the race to win AI. It is still very much competitive. OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, they are neck, neck and neck.

[B]

And it all proves there's no first mover advantage in AI. In fact, it could be a disadvantage.

[A]

For our second story, the top stock yesterday, American eagle, it soared 15% in the markets.

[B]

It wasn't just a Sydney Sweeney surge. American Eagle is soaring because of its anti AI pledge.

[A]

Now, yetis to kick off this story. Quick question. Drop your answer in the comments. Jack, what's the question?

[B]

What celebrities are you putting on Gen Z's Mount Rushmore?

[A]

All right, I got some here. Jack, you ready for this? How about Travis Kelce, Coco Gauff and Sydney Sweeney?

[B]

Well, because American Eagle has signed all of them.

[A]

Oh, and American Eagle just signed Martha Stewart last month.

[B]

My friend, there's nothing a 23 year old respects more than a crispy pumpkin piece prepared in a gingham apron and an awesome candle burning nearby on the counter.

[A]

That's a nice touch.

[B]

Hiring Gen Z's Mount Rushmore as brand ambassadors is paying off for American Eagle.

[A]

Get this. American Eagle just announced record revenues which grew 6%. They just had their best Thanksgiving weekend of sales in history.

[B]

Nick, if American Eagle signed Zendaya and Timothee Chalamet, oh boy. The stock may hit an all time high.

[A]

But besties, here's what Jack and I find fascinating. 6% sales growth. That is good, but it's not exactly great.

[B]

I'm not riding home about 6% sales growth.

[A]

No, no, no, no, no. The bigger reason why American Eagle is all the rage now. It's anti AI pledge.

[B]

In October, American Eagle's underwear brand, Aerie went on social media to do what.

[A]

Many teens do, an emotional Instagram post.

[B]

Here it is. Today we commit no AI generated bodies or people. Real people only.

[A]

Then Arie went on and said in the post, no retouching. No AI 100% aerie real at the.

[B]

American Eagle lunch table. ChatGPT can't sit with us.

[A]

No. And the result of this Instagram post, it became their top performing post of the entire year.

[B]

Forget Travis Kelce thirst trap pics and torn American Eagle denim.

[A]

Yeah, Jack.

[B]

American Eagle's best post this year is five lines of text that we hope were written by humans, not AI because.

[A]

Besties remember the story we did earlier this year on JJ. Crew's epic AI mistake.

[B]

Yeah. The biggest fashion faux pas of the year. J. Crew sneakily used AI to create vintage looking images for their magazine.

[A]

But upon further review, the model's foot was backwards and the popped collar was like, hallucinated. Awkwardly, J.

[B]

Crew got dragged for using AI So American Eagle is doing the opposite.

[A]

That got Jack and I thinking, and we whipped up this takeaway. Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at American Eagle?

[B]

Anti AI is the new organic yetis.

[A]

As AI floods the zone, we are already seeing a popular pushback. And we've seen this before in another industry, the food industry.

[B]

Most companies are embracing AI just like most companies embraced processed food.

[A]

At first, AI allows companies to scale productivity. Artificial ingredients allowed companies to scale their produce.

[B]

Both were scientific innovation, and initially both were broadly popular.

[A]

But eventually, cultural and scientific backlash arrived, leading to a new consumer equilibrium.

[B]

We tolerate artificial ingredients, but we admire organic ones.

[A]

American Eagle taps into that exact admiration. That the market will also enthusiastically support what is natural.

[B]

It's the start of the growing anti AI trend. We call it digitally organic.

[A]

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For our third and final story, Waymo just announced that after 100 million miles, their self driving cars had 90% fewer accidents than human drivers did.

[B]

So guess what? They just tweaked their algorithm to make waymos drive like crazy New York City cab drivers.

[A]

Hey, watch out over there. Oh, Yetis. Waymo's nationwide expansion kind of feels like the NFL draft. The way Jack and I see it.

[B]

Everyone is waiting to get selected.

[A]

Dun dun dun. The latest draft picks. Baltimore, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. Congratulations. Step on up, Waymo test. Robo taxis are headed your way.

[B]

Google's self driving car operation is now active in 5 cities and 18 more cities have been announced. Besties.

[A]

Check the Waymo blog. Milwaukee, you could be next.

[B]

I don't think Burlington, Vermont is next.

[A]

No, I don't think it is either, Jack. But for Alphabet, whose stock has become the best on Wall street lately, they have even more to gloat about with Waymo.

[B]

Because Waymo released their biggest study yet on whether their Waymos are actually safe.

[A]

And Jack and I call it the Declaration of Dependence. As in, it turns out you could depend on robo taxis more than you realize. Right?

[B]

That's really good.

[A]

It's good. It's good. Run with that, Waymo. Run with it. Waymos, it turns out, are much safer than human drivers. Although maybe not for long.

[B]

Waymo released data covering 100 million driverless miles that their vehicles have taken across four different American cities.

[A]

And here's the hero stat. Waymos are involved in 91% fewer crashes that seriously injure people compared to human driven cars.

[B]

They were also involved in 96% fewer collisions with pedestrians at intersections compared to human driven cars.

[A]

Yet he's added all up, and honestly, Jack and I, as a couple, guys who take Waymos all the time, not that surprised.

[B]

Waymos don't get distracted by text messages coming in. They don't try to answer their phone when someone's calling. And they don't try to eat tacos while they're driving the car.

[A]

And they don't try to text while eating the tacos.

[B]

Right. Now we should point out there have been two deaths involving Waymos, but both were caused by the human driver in the other car.

[A]

And we should also point out, Jack, that a Waymo did run over an unleashed dog down the street in San Francisco on Sunday night.

[B]

Which is tragic, but still, let's look at the bigger picture. They're 90% safer. Nick, for a technology this young, that's incredible.

[A]

It sounds like for the investors, Waymo.

[B]

It did and scaled across more cities, more cars and more miles. Self driving cars are going to be a huge public health win.

[A]

Not trying to be techno optimists here, but delaying self driving, it's kind of missing a chance to save lives.

[B]

It's missing a chance to make intersections where pedestrians cross the street 96% safer.

[A]

But besties, all of that Declaration of Dependence is what makes the next part of our story so awkward.

[B]

Waymo just updated the software in their cars to drive like insane. Humans, not computers.

[A]

Oh yeah. Honk, honk.

[B]

You can let me out right here, actually.

[A]

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Waymo?

[B]

Waymo thinks it can drive like a New York City cab and still drive carefully.

[A]

Yetis in San Francisco, tourists stand in front of Waymos, block them and take pictures. Honestly, it's a tourist attraction. It's happened to me a bunch. It's kind of fun, but it slows you down.

[B]

And the Waymos don't mind. Waymos are so polite. They will wait forever until you slowly cross the road. You can mess with them and. And they won't mind at all.

[A]

But not anymore. The Wall Street Journal just reported that Waymos in San Francisco suddenly got more aggressive.

[B]

More like New York City cabbies. According to the Wall Street Journal, they're making daring passes in tunnels. They're not coming to full stops every time. They're even making illegal U turns sometimes.

[A]

Jack, remember you were with me in a Waymo a few weeks ago, and it just took off down the street.

[B]

It went 0 to 60, like fast Yeti's.

[A]

Jack actually said, whoa there, girl, like it was a horse. It was so weird. But that's why he did it.

[B]

And get this. Waymo actually confirmed to the W.A. this is true. They adjusted the settings in their cars to be, and I quote, confidently, assertive.

[A]

Because Waymo says the vehicle's passiveness was holding it back.

[B]

And we understand that too. For example, if a construction vehicle was blocking the lane in the past, Waymos would just wait forever. Now they'll cross the double yellow to make a safe pass.

[A]

Add it all up. And Waymo made a software update.

[B]

Boom.

[A]

It went from passive to a little bit pushy.

[B]

Waymo says this won't come at the expense of the safety that they just.

[A]

Bragged about either, because computers can still predict and avoid collisions better than a human, even while hanging a ue.

Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us for the new Friday OpenAI.

[B]

Declared a company wide code red because it's lost its AI lead to Google and anthropic besties.

[A]

When it comes to AI, there's no first mover advantage. It's a first mover disadvantage.

[B]

For our second story, American Eagle stock jumped 15% yesterday, but not just on Sydney Sweeney on an anti AI pledge.

[A]

There's a growing anti AI trend, and we call it digitally organic.

[B]

And our third and final story. Waymo data shows they're 90% safer than human driven cars. But now they're driving more aggressive.

[A]

Waymo thinks it can drive Like a New York City cabbie. And still be careful.

[B]

You can just let me out right here.

[A]

Oh, one sec. Oh, yeah. Easy, buddy. Hey, I'm walking here.

[B]

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

[A]

First, Nike advertisements in the United Kingdom just banned by the UK's advertising watchdog.

[B]

The reason? Misleading claims on sustainability. So it just did it, but then had to undo it.

[A]

Yeah, Nike had an ad promoting their environmental credibility, but it wasn't backed up by enough evidence. Allbirds loves this news.

[B]

Yeah, it's a case of greenwashing and.

[A]

The Brits won't have it. And second, we're finally getting the bill on the government shutdown. And for Delta, ooh, it is 200 million bones.

[B]

The CEO said in the earnings yesterday that they lost 200 million in potential profit because they had to cancel 2,000 flights during the 43 day government shutdown.

[A]

Maybe that is why Delta is jacking up the price of my next flight to New York City. Come on, guys.

[B]

And finally, rage bait. I'm not doing rage bait. Rage bait is the Oxford word of the year.

[A]

That's right. There were 30,000 submissions. And other top words of the year were aura farming and biohacking.

[B]

Donut, Aura farming is. But isn't it a type of biohacking?

[A]

No, you don't know what aura farming is, Jack. But rage bait one which. Jack, could you use rage baiting in a sentence for us, please?

[B]

Yeah, it's when you post something intentionally to drive emotional strong reactions from people. Basically, you bait people into rage responses.

[A]

Yeah, like Jack, sometimes I'll order a half caff coffee with Molly, but then I'll only drink half of the half caf. So it's a quarter calf.

[B]

And that's basically rage baiting.

[A]

It's kind of rage baiting. Yeah, I don't think she likes it actually. Rage baiting.

[B]

The barista. They worked hard on that thing.

[A]

Now I just feel guilty. Now time for the best fact yet. This one sent in as a response to the story we did yesterday on smell.

[B]

Did you know that sommeliers literally grow a larger smell processing area in their brain than non sommeliers?

[A]

That's right. Wine sommeliers. The wine experts at restaurants who smell your wine before they serve it to you.

[B]

Years of aroma training increased the size of that brain region that handles scent and memory.

[D]

Wow.

[A]

Ain't no schnoz like a sommelier, schmaz.

[B]

No, this is about his brain, not his schnoz.

[A]

See, that's rage Baiting what you did right there, Jack, that's rage baiting. Yetis, you look fantastic tomorrow. The tickets for our live 2026 IPO tour go on sale tomorrow.

[B]

It is the ultimate expression of Nick and me in this show and, and, man, I am so pumped to go on the road next year.

[A]

We can't wait to see you there. Don't worry, we'll remind you again tomorrow to snag your tickets before they go. In the meantime, celebrate the wins.

And before we go, a happy 60th birthday to legendary Eddy Eric John Tra in Tyler, Texas, who's been listening to this show since the early days and is coming to our Austin live show. We'll see you there. Hey O Happy birthday to Teddy Panzer.

[B]

Over in Montclair, New Jersey.

[A]

And Evan Frederick in Columbus, Ohio, loves to spell out O H I O.

[B]

I see what you did there, Evan, and I don't like it.

[A]

Bradley t is turning 30 years old celebrating the big one in Lovely Connecticut.

[B]

Happy 23rd birthday to Libby Guy Eisler in West Hartford, Connecticut. This is a finance gal.

[A]

Karen Braswell over in San Francisco is a ballroom dancer with the best birthday yet.

[B]

Happy 10th birthday to Cassidy Felix in Bellmore, New York. And, and a big cheer competition coming this weekend. Be excited, be excited.

[A]

And Lauren Lyon, our number one listener, the princess of Ross the Queen in Northern California. Thank you for making the best one yet and the best idea yet. Your best yet.

[B]

And get this, Rodrigo Tomaz, his Spotify wrapped had both of our shows as number one and number two.

[A]

Oh, and we got some more of those. Jack.

[B]

Oh, Rodrigo, you're a legend. We, we want to give you a hug at our live show.

[A]

And finally, to Brian Johnson. Congratulations on now having a girlfriend. Lucky guy. Lucky guy.

[B]

This is Jack. Nick owns stock in Nike and we both own stock in Spotify and Apple.

If you like the best one yet, you can listen ad free right now by joining Wondery and the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts.

[A]

Prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music.

[B]

And before you go, tell us a little bit about yourself by filling out a short [e-mail] survey.

[A]

We want to get to know you.