Trouble Scoring a Restaurant Reservation? Blame the Apps.

Summary

WSJ What’s News – PM Edition (August 13, 2026)

Episode Summary: Trouble Scoring a Restaurant Reservation? Blame the Apps.

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Overview

In this August 13th PM edition, the Wall Street Journal’s Alex Osila leads with the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier rotation in the Middle East, takes a deep dive into Cuba’s energy crisis, covers the latest developments in AI industry regulation, and finishes with a timely investigation into why getting a dinner reservation at a popular restaurant has become so difficult. The episode is filled with reporting, expert interviews, and insight for listeners interested in business, global affairs, tech, and urban culture.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Headline News Roundup

• U.S. Aircraft Carrier Deployment (00:49–02:05)

  • The USS George Washington will replace USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East as planned.
  • The Lincoln’s extended 250-day deployment without a port call has prompted congressional scrutiny over living conditions and sailor mental health.
  • Quote:
    "A Navy official said the military is not experiencing an uptick in mental health issues aboard the Lincoln and that the Navy takes every service member's well being seriously." (01:44)

• Harvard Antisemitism Lawsuit Dismissal (02:05–02:20)

  • A federal judge ruled insufficient evidence of ongoing institutionalized discrimination.
  • Harvard claims steps have been taken, with no comments from university or White House.

• Supreme Court Reform Signal (02:20–02:50)

  • House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries hints at restructuring the Supreme Court if Democrats retake Congress.
  • Notable Quote:
    "The Supreme Court, the conservative right wing majority on the Supreme Court has become, you know, basically a subsidiary of the MAGA Republican Party." — Hakeem Jeffries (02:37)

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2. Cuba’s Humanitarian Crisis Amid U.S. Fuel Blockade

[In-depth Interview with WSJ Reporter Jose de Cordoba, 03:34–06:30]

• Daily Struggles: Food, Water, Sleep (03:34–04:19)

  • Frequent, prolonged blackouts—sometimes lasting days—interrupt sleep, drive unbearable heat, and complicate water access due to electric pumps failing.
  • Food is available but extremely expensive and hard for most Cubans to afford.
  • Notable Quote:
    "All the people that I talk to make a note of saying, you know, it's really difficult to sleep. I haven't slept. It's a zombie nation." — Jose de Cordoba (03:36)

• Medical Care Crisis (04:19–05:09)

  • Citizens must procure essential medicine and medical supplies themselves, often via the black market, before hospital visits.
  • Example: Actress Iris Marino, nearing labor, assembles her own supply of basic drugs and materials to bring to the hospital.

• Fidel Castro Centennial Celebrations (05:09–06:27)

  • Official plans for "Fidel Fest" are starkly low-key due to lack of resources, compounded by widespread electricity and internet outages.
  • Events are targeted more at international supporters than the domestic population, and lavishness at such a time is widely resented.

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3. Tech & AI Industry Updates

• OpenAI and Google Shake-Up (07:24–08:36)

  • Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser leaves OpenAI.
  • At Google DeepMind, Demis Hassabis transitions to chairman/Alphabet chief scientist, reportedly pushing discussions on new, independent AI safety oversight.
  • Notable Quote:
    "All the top AI executives are very worried. They see these mounting threats from the technology they're creating, and they see a huge public backlash against AI." — Amrith Ramkumar (08:08)
  • The AI sector seeks proactive self-regulation to avoid strict government intervention.

• Flock AI Surveillance Safeguards (08:36–09:01)

  • After backlash over privacy and misuse of surveillance cams, Flock pledges new product safeguards.

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4. Markets Update

• Stock Movements (09:01–09:50)
  • U.S. markets up: Nasdaq +0.8%, S&P 500 +0.7% (new record), Dow +0.1%.
  • Positive inflation data calms Fed rate-hike fears.
  • StubHub stock falls despite World Cup revenue spikes, with customer backlash over fraud and refunds.

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5. Main Feature: The Restaurant Reservation Crisis

[Lead story, 09:50–11:28]

• How Reservation Apps Are Changing Dining Out
  • Apps like OpenTable and Resi increasingly reserve the best tables for top users, loyalty/membership club members, or credit card holders.
  • A growing secondary market of apps and bots snatches prime reservations, leaving typical diners with only very early or very late options.
  • Notable Quote:
    "The frenzy is really for the people who want that special table at the peak time at a certain restaurant...to run a restaurant on this kind of level, you need to have someone who's handling all this technology for you." — Heather Haddon (10:33–11:07)
  • Restaurants, despite additional complexity and costs, accept the growing presence of these reservation platforms to fill seats and protect slim margins.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Restaurants know this is where people are going to book reservations and they need butts in seats..." — Heather Haddon (11:13)
  • For more discussion, including on social media’s role, listeners are directed to WSJ’s Tech News Briefing episode from Tuesday.

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Notable Quotes

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|-------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 02:37 | Hakeem Jeffries | "The Supreme Court...has become, you know, basically a subsidiary of the MAGA Republican Party." | | 03:36 | Jose de Cordoba | "It's really difficult to sleep. I haven't slept. It's a zombie nation." | | 08:08 | Amrith Ramkumar | "All the top AI executives are very worried...they see a huge public backlash against AI." | | 10:33 | Heather Haddon | "If you are one of those people, it's going to make finding one of these tables very hard." | | 11:13 | Heather Haddon | "Restaurants know this is where people are going to book reservations and they need butts in seats..." |

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Aircraft Carrier News, Harvard Lawsuit, Supreme Court: 00:49–02:50
• Cuba Energy Crisis Interview: 03:34–06:30
• AI Industry/Safety Developments: 07:24–08:36
• Markets Update: 09:01–09:50
• Reservation App Deep Dive: 09:50–11:28

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Memorable Moments

• The heartfelt description of Cuba as a "zombie nation" due to rolling blackouts and total economic slowdown (03:36).
• Revealing how even giving birth in Cuba now requires families to privately source basic medical supplies (04:26).
• The depiction of “Fidel Fest” as a showy yet hollow gesture, highlighting the divide between government priorities and people’s hardship (05:21).
• Candid analysis from Heather Haddon exposing technology’s central role in both creating and solving the “reservation crunch” at America’s hottest restaurants (10:33–11:28).

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Conclusion

This episode delivers a sharp survey of pressing international, economic, technological, and social issues, culminating in a relatable urban-American struggle: the challenge of booking a decent restaurant table. Themes of scarcity, systems under strain, and adaptation—whether in geopolitics, AI, or dining out—thread throughout, offering the well-rounded perspective listeners have come to expect from What’s News.

For additional context on the restaurant reservation discussion, listeners are encouraged to check out WSJ’s Tech News Briefing from earlier in the week.

Transcript

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[Alex Osila]

Seven months into the US Fuel blockade, everyday Cubans are struggling to meet their basic needs without power.

[Jose de Cordoba]

All the people that I talk to make a note of saying, you know, it's really difficult to sleep. I haven't slept. It's a zombie nation.

[Alex Osila]

Plus the AI safety pitch that a Google scientist was making before a management shakeup and can't get a dinner reservation at a buzzy restaurant for a time when people actually eat, Blame the apps. It's Thursday, August 13th. I'm Alex Osila for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of what's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today. We begin tonight's show with AN EXCLUSIVE the U.S. is preparing to send the aircraft carrier USS George Washington to the Middle east to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln. Officials familiar with the matter say it's part of a previously scheduled rotation plan, but the Lincoln has been under particular scrutiny because it's had such a long deployment. It's been deployed for 250 days and hasn't made a port call in 200. That's caused lawmakers to press the Pentagon for more information about the living conditions and reports of mental health issues for sailors aboard the carrier during the Iran war. A Navy official said the military is not experiencing an uptick in mental health issues aboard the Lincoln and that the Navy takes every service member's well being seriously. Also today, a federal judge dismissed the government's lawsuit alleging anti Semitism at Harvard University, saying there isn't sufficient evidence of ongoing institutionalized discrimination there. Harvard has said it's taken steps to address antisemitism on campus. Neither the school nor the White House responded to requests for comment, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has signaled that Democrats would look to overhaul the Supreme Court if they regain control of Congress, as they hope to do this fall. Here he is speaking today at the national association of Black Journalists convention in Atlanta.

[Hakeem Jeffries]

There's a variety of different options that are on the table. And I think that we can't foreclose any single one of them. The Supreme Court, the conservative right wing majority on the Supreme Court has become, you know, basically a subsidiary of the MAGA Republican Party.

[Alex Osila]

Even if Democrats do take control of the House and Senate in the midterms, passing any court related legislation would require hitting a 60 vote threshold in the Senate unless Democrats end or change the filibuster rule. And even if a measure does pass, Trump could veto it. Cuba has been dealing with a U.S. blockade of its oil since January. In those seven months, its economy has more or less ground to a halt. Residents frequently go without electricity and there's practically no fuel for cars. Journal reporter Jose de Cordoba recently spoke with a number of residents on the island and joins me now. Jose, let's start with the basic human needs, food, water, sleep. How are people doing with all of these things?

[Jose de Cordoba]

All the people that I talk to make a note of saying, you know, it's really difficult to sleep. I haven't slept. It's a zombie nation. They all say that. The reason being that there are energy blackouts that go 20 hours a day. But some of the times it's days at a time. So you don't have air conditioning and you don't have electricity for fans and the heat becomes unbearable. The lack of electricity also makes getting water for a lot of people very difficult because that depends on pumps that are powered by electricity. There appears to be food, but it's very expensive. Getting the money to pay for it is very, very hard.

[Alex Osila]

Wow. What about people who need medical care? In your story, you highlighted a woman named Edis Marino. What's the situation she's in?

[Jose de Cordoba]

Iris is an actress in Kamaway and she is having her second child any day now in terms of going to the hospital to give birth because there are no medicines in Cuba, people get by hook or by crook. They ask their relatives, they go into the black market. They do everything to try to get every kind of medicine that they will need before they go to a hospital. Basic stuff from aspirin to in her case, she was getting sutures and tape to bring with her. She was trying to leave absolutely nothing to chance.

[Alex Osila]

So in the middle of all of this, the Cuban government is planning a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Fidel Castro. Is it expected to be sort of a low key affair given everything that's going on?

[Jose de Cordoba]

Well, yeah, I call it the Fidel Fest and it's been going on all this week. It has to be lower because Cuba doesn't have the resources to really make a giant splash out of it. And also because there is no television or radio or Internet most of the day, not a whole lot of people know about it. So they've sent out invitations to foreign guests from all over the world and they have been having a symposium in the palace of Conventions, which is a really nice air conditioned place. That sort of thing upsets a lot of people because although it's not a giant expenditure, it's a very showy expenditure at a time when Cuba is on fumes. But it's something that's really aimed at an international public of Castro supporters so Cuba can send a message saying, hey, we're resisting here. We need your solidarity.

[Alex Osila]

That was WSJ reporter Jose Da Cordoba. Thanks Jose.

[Jose de Cordoba]

You're very welcome.

[Alex Osila]

Coming up, OpenTable Resi credit card perks for restaurants Playing ball with all the different reservation providers is getting complicated and expensive. That story and more after the break.

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[Alex Osila]

A few items from the World of Artificial Intelligence Today there's been another high profile departure from OpenAI. Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser will be stepping down after less than a year at the company. Meanwhile, over at Google's AI unit, a recent management shakeup saw Demis hassabis named as DeepMind's chairman and Alphabet's chief scientist. Now we're exclusively reporting that in the weeks leading up to that, before he gave up his role as CEO of DeepMind, Hassabis held discussions with government officials and the leaders of other AI labs about forming a new independent industry safety entity. That's according to people familiar with the matter. Journal Tech Policy reporter Amrith Ramkumar told our Tech News Briefing podcast that those concerns are shared across much of Silicon Valley.

[Amrith Ramkumar]

All the top AI executives are very worried. They see these mounting threats from the technology they're creating, and they see a huge public backlash against AI. And they also see the US Government and other governments around the world largely not doing enough to rein in some of these risks. So the goal is to have industry play a big role in setting the standards, and they want to do that so that they don't get saddled with some really burdensome regulation down the road.

[Alex Osila]

Hasabis didn't respond to requests for comment. A Google spokesperson said that the company sees ensuring the safety of advanced AI models as vitally important to society. And Flock, which makes AI enabled surveillance cameras to photograph the backs of passing vehicles and collect license plate data, says it'll add new safeguards to its products. The move comes after months of public backlash and privacy concerns following reports of incidents where police officers have allegedly used Flock's cameras for stalking. In markets, U.S. stocks rose and treasury yields retreated after new data on producer prices came in softer than expected. Along with yesterday's reading on consumer inflation, investors are more confident that the Federal Reserve won't hurry to raise rates. The Nasdaq gained 0.8%, while the S&P 500 added 0.7% to hit a new record, and the Dow rose 0.1% and shares of StubHub fell 10% after yesterday's earnings report. The World cup helped its revenue surge, but also wiped out its profit and left it battling customers who were angry about fraudulent tickets and slow refunds. We had a whole interview with Journal reporter Hannah Krueger about that on yesterday's show, so check it out. And finally, we're getting close to the weekend, and once upon a time I would have been planning for dinner out with friends instead of reading Green Eggs and Ham to my toddler for the thousandth time. But if you are one of those people headed out and lucky you, you may find that it's basically impossible to get a table at your desired restaurant if you don't want to eat at 10pm that's in part because of the growth of reservation apps like OpenTable and Resi that lock in tables for top users. There are also membership clubs and credit card blocks and a whole secondary market of apps and bots, journal reporter Heather Haddon told our Tech News Briefing podcast. If you just want a seat at your neighborhood restaurant, you're probably fine.

[Heather Haddon]

But the frenzy is really for the people who want that special table at the peak time at a certain restaurant. So if you are one of those people, it's going to make finding one of these tables very hard. For restaurants, it means that they are increasingly having to juggle reservations coming from so many different platforms because all these different platforms are offering different perks or types of customers. And so increasingly to run a restaurant on this kind of level, you need to have someone who's handling all this technology for you because it's just become

[Alex Osila]

so much paying for all that is worth it for many restaurants because of how tight their margins can be.

[Heather Haddon]

Restaurants know this is where people are going to book reservations and they need butts and seats. And if these are tools that are going to help fill their seats at all hours of the day and weekends, then they need to pay those service fees to be able to make sure their restaurants are full.

[Alex Osila]

To hear more from Heather, including how social media is exacerbating these trends, check out Tuesday's episode of Tech News Briefing. And that's what's news for this Thursday afternoon. Today's show is produced by Danny Lewis with Deputy editor Chris Zinsley. I'm Alex Osola for the Wall Street Journal. We'll be back with a new show tomorrow morning.

[Unknown/Foreign Language Speaker]

Thanks for listening. Foreign

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