The legendary $4.99 rotisserie chickens from Costco are under fire this week as a proposed class action lawsuit claims the big box retailer has been misleading customers.
Two California shoppers noticed something that might seem obvious in retrospect: To sell an entire, slow-roasted chicken in a plastic bag, Costco added two preservatives. Problem is, the Issaquah, Washington-based company had promised on the packaging, in-store displays, and online that the chicken contained no preservatives.
The lawsuit filed last week with the Southern District claims that Costcos promise that its rotisserie chickens contain no preservatives signals to reasonable consumerslike the two women who are plaintiffs in the casethat nothing was added to preserve the taste, flavor, texture, or shelflife of the product. But two preservativessodium phosphate and carrageenanare listed on the ingredient list.
Costco Wholesale Corporation has systemically cheated customers out of tensif not hundredsof millions of dollars by falsely advertising its Kirkland Signature Seasoned Rotisserie Chicken as containing no preservatives, the lawsuit reads, in part.
Consumers reasonably rely on clear, prominent claims like No Preservatives, especially when deciding what they and their families will eat, Wesley M. Griffith, the California managing partner with Almeida Law Group, which represents the plaintiffs in this lawsuit, said in a statement. Costcos own ingredient list contradicts its marketing. Thats unlawful, and its unfair.
INGREDIENTS IN FOCUS
Costco has already taken steps to address the main concern of the lawsuit.
To maintain consistency among the labeling on our rotisserie chickens and the signs in our warehouses/online presentations, we have removed statements concerning preservatives, a company representative said in a statement to KTLA 5 News. We use carrageenan and sodium phosphate to support moisture retention, texture, and product consistency during cooking. Both ingredients are approved by food safety authorities.
These ingredients have landed other big companies in hot water in the past: In late 2024, a judge ruled that Kraft Heinz must face a proposed nationwide class action lawsuit that similarly focused on the companys use of sodium phosphate in its macaroni and cheese products. And the addition of carrageenan in products labeled as natural or organic has been the subject of several lawsuits in recent years.
Whats more, Costco has faced criticism of its use of carrageenan in the past. The Cornucopia Institute, an organic food watchdog group, sent a letter to Costco in 2023 urging it to remove carrageenan from organic products. And the ingredient is one of many targeted by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
SUIT SEEKS MONETARY DAMAGES
In the latest lawsuit filed against Costco, the plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages, and if a judge approves a class action lawsuit, that might mean the retailer has to pay out anyone else who bought the chicken during a specified time period.
Interestingly, the plaintiffs said they might have still opted to purchase the rotisserie chicken had they known about the two ingredients, but would have paid significantly less for it. It might be hard for some people to imagine paying even less, as Costcos rotisserie chicken is considered a loss leader, meaning the company realizes very little or no profit selling it.
Costco shares fell nearly 1% in mid-day trading on Thursday, extending a selloff of more than 3% in the past week.
Tax filing season is underway, and the IRS expects 164 million people will file returns by April 15.
The average refund last year was $3,167. This year, analysts have projected it could be $1,000 higher, thanks to changes in tax law. More than 165 million individual income tax returns were processed last year, with 94% submitted electronically.
People with straightforward returns should not encounter delays, but because of an exodus of IRS workers since the start of the Trump administration, the national taxpayer advocate has cautioned that the 2026 tax filing season is likely to present challenges for those who run into problems filing.
While last year IRS employees were not permitted to accept a buyout offer from the Trump administration until after the taxpayer filing deadline, many of those customer service workers have now left. The IRS started 2025 with about 102,000 employees and finished with roughly 74,000 after a series of firings and layoffs led by the Department of Government Efficiency.
Heres what to know:
When refunds will go out
If you file electronically, the IRS says it should take 21 days or less to receive your refund. If you choose direct deposit, it should take even less time. If you file a paper return, the refund could take four weeks or more, and if your return requires amendments or corrections, it could take longer.
The IRS cautions that taxpayers not rely on receiving a refund by a certain date, especially when making major purchases or paying bills.
How to check the status of your refund
Taxpayers can use the online tool Wheres My Refund? to check the status of their refund within 24 hours of e-filing and generally within four weeks of filing a paper return. The Wheres My Refund? tool will also provide projected deposit dates for most early EITC/ACTC refund filers by Feb. 21, according to the IRS.
Information related to this tool is updated once daily, overnight. To access the status of your refund, youll need:
Your Social Security or individual taxpayer ID number (ITIN)
Taxpayers can also consult the IRS2Go app, or their IRS Individual Online Account, to check their refund status.
How tax refunds work
If you paid more through the year than you owe in tax, due to withholding or other reasons, you should get money back. Even if you didnt pay excess tax, you may still get a refund if you qualify for a refundable credit, like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or Child Tax Credit. To get your refund, you must file a return, and you have three years to claim a tax refund.
Who qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit
To qualify for the EITC, you must have under $11,950 in investment income and earn less than a specific income level from working.
If youre single with no children, your income level must be $19,104 or below. And if youre married filing jointly with three or more children, you must make $68,675 or below. To determine if your household qualifies based on your marital status and your number of dependents you can use the online EITC Assistant tool.
Who qualifies for the Child Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit
If you have a child, you are most likely eligible for the Child Tax Credit. The credit is up to $2,200 per qualifying child. To qualify, a child must:
Have a Social Security number
Be under age 17 at the end of 2025
Be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, or a descendant of one of these (for example, a grandchild, niece or nephew)
Not provide more than half of his or her own support for the tax year
Have lived with you for more than half the tax year
Be claimed as a dependent on your tax return
Not file a joint return for the year (or filed the joint return only to claim a refund of taxes withheld or estimated taxes)
Be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or a U.S. resident alien
You qualify for the full amount of the Child Tax Credit for each qualifying child if you meet all eligibility factors and your annual income is not more than $200,000 ($400,000 if filing a joint return).
You qualify for the Additional Child Tax Credit if ($1,700 per qualifying child) if you meet these factors and have little or no federal income tax liability. You must have earned income of at least $2,500 to be eligible for the ACTC.
When the tax credits will become available
The IRS expects most refunds for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Child Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit to be available in bank accounts or on debit cards by March 2 for taxpayers who choose direct deposit. Some taxpayers may receive their refund earlier, depending on their financial institution.
Whats different this year
This year, most taxpayers must provide their routing and account numbers to receive refunds directly deposited into their bank accounts. That’s because the IRS began phasing out paper tax refund checks on Sept. 30 in accordance with an executive order.
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The Associated Press receives support from the Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.
Cora Lewis, Associated Press
Virginia-based Gerber Products Company is voluntarily recalling limited batches of Gerber Arrowroot Biscuits, a cookie-like snack meant for children 10 months or older.
On January 26, the baby food and snack producer issued the voluntary recall due to the potential presence of soft plastic and paper pieces that “should not be consumed,” the company said this week.
The material comes from a supplier of arrowroot flour that initiated its own recall, Gerber said. The company said it was no longer working with the supplier, though it did not name the supplier in its recall notice on Monday.
No illnesses or injuries have been reported. Gerber says it is issuing the recall “out of an abundance of caution.” On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published the recall notice on its website.
What products are included in the recall?
The nationwide recall applies to limited batches of 5.5-ounce Gerber Arrowroot Biscuits, produced between July 2025 and September 2025. Gerber emphasizes that no other products are impacted.
Product packaging images and other details are included n the FDA’s website. Gerber markets the products as “crawler snacks,” and “baby’s first biscuit,” noting that the treats dissolve easily. It alternatively describes the product as cookies.
Customers should check the back of the product packaging to verify whether their package is included in the recall.
Each package has a 10-digit batch code listed next to the best-before date. The best-before dates range from mid-October into mid-December 2026. The full list of batch codes is available on Gerber’s website.
[Photo: via FDA]
Fast Company contacted Gerber to ask for more information about the arrowroot flour supplier. We will update this story if we get a reply.
Impacted products should not be consumed
Customers who have purchased the impacted product should not feed it to their child. They should return the product to the retailer where it was purchased for a refund. All-day consumer support is available by calling 1-800-4-GERBER (1-800-443-7237).
Gerber is a subsidiary of Swiss multinational food giant Nestlé S.A.
Journalist Ira Glass, who hosts the NPR show This American Life, is not a computer scientist. He doesnt work at Google, Apple, or Nvidia. But he does have a great ear for useful phrases, and in 2024, he organized an entire episode around one that might resonate with anyone who feels blindsided by the pace of AI development: Unprepared for what has already happened.
Coined by science journalist Alex Steffen, the phrase captures the unsettling feeling that the experience and expertise youve built up may now be obsoleteor, at least, a lot less valuable than it once was.
Whenever I lead workshops in law firms, government agencies, or nonprofit organizations, I hear that same concern. Highly educated, accomplished professionals worry whether there will be a place for them in an economy where generative AI can quicklyand relatively cheaplycomplete a growing list of tasks that an extremely large number of people currently get paid to do.
Seeing a future that doesnt include you
In technology reporter Cade Metzs 2022 book, Genius Makers: The Mavericks Who Brought AI to Google, Facebook, and the World, he describes the panic that washed over a veteran researcher at Microsoft named Chris Brockett when Brockett first encountered an artificial intelligence program that could essentially perform everything hed spent decades learning how to master.
Overcome by the thought that a piece of software had now made his entire skill set and knowledge base irrelevant, Brockett was actually rushed to the hospital because he thought he was having a heart attack.
My 52-year-old body had one of those moments when I saw a future where I wasnt involved, he later told Metz.
In his 2018 book, Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, MIT physicist Max Tegmark expresses a similar anxiety.
As technology keeps improving, will the rise of AI eventually eclipse those abilities that provide my current sense of self-worth and value on the job market?
The answer to that question, unnervingly, can often feel outside of our individual control.
Were seeing more AI-related products and advancements in a single day than we saw in a single year a decade ago, a Silicon Valley product manager told a reporter for Vanity Fair back in 2023. Things have only accelerated since then.
Even Dario Amodeithe co-founder and CEO of Anthropic, the company that created the popular chatbot Claudehas been shaken by the increasing power of AI tools. I think of all the times when I wrote code, he said in an interview on the tech podcast Hard Fork. Its like a part of my identity that Im good at this. And then Im like, oh, my god, theres going to be these (AI) systems that [can perform a lot better than I can].
The irony that these fears live inside the brain of someone who leads one of the most important AI companies in the world is not lost on Amodei.
Even as the one whos building these systems, he added, even as one of the ones who benefits most from (them), theres still something a bit threatening about (them).
Autor and agency
Yet as the labor economist David Autor has argued, we all have more agency over the future than we might think.
In 2024, Autor was interviewed by Bloomberg News soon after publishing a research paper titled Applying AI to Rebuild Middle-Class Jobs. The paper explores the idea that AI, if managed well, might be able to help a larger set of people perform the kind of higher-valueand higher-payingdecision-making tasks currently arrogated to elite experts like doctors, lawyers, coders and educators.
This shift, Autor suggests, would improve the quality of jobs for workers without college degrees, moderate earnings inequality, andakin to what the Industrial Revolution did for consumer goodslower the cost of key services such as healthcare, education and legal expertise.
Its an interesting, hopeful argument, and Autor, who has spent decades studying the effects of automation and computerization on the workforce, has the intellectual heft to explain it without coming across as Pollyannish.
But what I found most heartening about the interview was Autors response to a question about a type of AI doomerism that believes that widespread economic displacement is inevitable and theres nothing we can do to stop it.
The future should not be treated as a forecasting or prediction exercise, he said. It should be treated as a design problembecause the future is not (something) where we just wait and see what happens. We have enormous control over the future in which we live, and [the quality of that future] depends on the investments and structures that we create today.
At the starting line
I try to emphasize Autors point about the future being more of a design problem than a prediction exercise in all the AI courses and workshops I teach to law students and lawyers, many of whom fret over their own job prospects.
The nice thing about the current AI moment, I tell them, is that there is still time for deliberate action. Although the first scientific paper on neural networks was published all the way back in 1943, were still very much in the early stages of so-called generative AI.
No student or employee is hopelessly behind. Nor is anyone commandingly ahead.
Instead, each of us is in an enviable spot: right at the starting line.
Patrick Barry is a clinical assistant professor of law and director of Digital Academic Initiatives at the University of Michigan.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
A startup called Adapt is betting that it can be an AI hub connecting other software tools to help answer questions and get things done.
When users pose questions or ask for help with a business task, Adapt can answer based on information from the web and business data to which its been given access, similar to other AI tools. But it can also automatically launch a virtual machine, essentially a computer in the cloud from which it can connect to a wide range of internet-based software, pull information from databases, and craft custom code to analyze data and create charts and visualizations.
Its an approach that cofounder and CEO Jim Benton says lets users with minimal coding experience work with data from a wide variety of sources, from customer-relationship management software to email programs, without needing to involve engineers or download and manipulate cumbersome datasets on their own computers. Adapts AI can provide detailed information about everything from sales trends to marketing spending based on live access to relevant data, and it can freely merge and compare data from multiple cloud-based business software products in ways that the AI increasingly built into those individual products often cant, says Benton.
The challenge that we see in the market right now is that people have all sorts of different, fragmented tools in their company, Benton says. So if you want to understand the business, you are trying to stitch together all these different pieces.
Adapt ships with built-in integrations with a variety of common software, and it can generate the SQL code needed to pull information from database systems. And it can also write code to connect to less common tools and custom software if its provided with API documentation and the right credentials. That means that to answer a question about, say, customer churn, the AI might pull numbers and written notes from a CRM, a credit card processor, and a customer support ticketing system, merging and processing all that data without the need for human coding expertise.
[Screenshot: Adapt]
Once it accesses and analyzes the relevant data, it can provide quick answers through chat or Slack, generate charts and slideshows, andunlike some competing AI toolspush updated information to external cloud systems.
One of the most incredible things about Adapt is giving it permission to write data, which I never thought I would be okay with an AI getting, says Jonathan Nahin, founder of corporate gift-giving platform RevSend.
[Screenshot: Adapt]
Nahin says RevSend uses Adapt for tasks like crunching sales numbers and validating that custom gifts that its customers commission match their design requirements. But RevSend also uses the tool to update its sales contact databases, merging in information like contact locations from other data sources. Thats a pain to do manually and even to automate with other tools, Nahin says, but easy to explain verbally to the Adapt AI, which can set up a suitable process and run it on a regular schedule.
Tech-savvy users can also review Adapt-generated code before relying on it for important figures or database updates, and users can ask the AI to make tweaks to its processes as needed, Benton says.
You can go through the code and see exactly what the query was, says Benton.
[Screenshot: Adapt]
Other companies have also recently announced AI tools that can help with work tasks and data analysis, like Anthropics Claude Cowork and Slacks recently upgraded Slackbot. But Benton says he believes that San Francisco-based Adaptwhich just announced a $10 million seed round, on top of a $3 million pre-seed round announced in Augusthas an edge through its ease of integration with other software and its virtual machine approach, which doesnt require users to locally run its software or data. The company initially onboarded new customers individually, aiding with integration, and recently added self-service options.
Unlike some other AI tools, Adapt doesnt charge a monthly per-user fee, instead charging based on usage. Charges cover the cost of connecting to a variety of AI models, with Adapt routing different queries to different models based on their expertise, and computation by the virtual machines. Businesses can set up spending alerts and thresholds to avoid surprise charges, says Benton. And Adapt, which calls itself the AI computer for business, works with customers to help ensure they get a good return on their spending, often by letting humans focus on work other than data manipulation.
I think you’re just going to find that there’s more time for the humans to tackle the real work nd the real value than stitching together and chasing down the metrics, Benton says.
Want more housing market stories from Lance Lamberts ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter.
In the second half of 2025, there was a notable jump in delistings, as some home sellersparticularly in the Sun Beltwho couldnt get their desired price decided to pull their homes off the market. Indeed, U.S. delistings as a share of inventory ticked up to 5.5% in fall 2025a decade-high reading for that time of year.
In December 2025, ResiClub noted to readers: Looking ahead, in markets seeing the biggest jumps in delistings right now, many of those listings will likely return to the resale market in spring 2026or test out the rental market.
Fast-forward to January 2026, and we are indeed seeing an upswing in relistings, according to Compass chief economist Mike Simonsens analysis of Altos Research data.
A relisted property is a home that was previously listed for sale, taken off the market (expired, withdrawn, or canceled), and then later put back on the market.
Relistings as a share of single-family housing inventory for sale:
January 24, 2025 > 10.1%
January 23, 2026 > 11.0%
Total relistings:
January 24, 2025 > 64,410
January 23, 2026 > 76,426
What housing markets are most likely to see the biggest upswing in relistings over the coming months?
The answer, of course, is the markets that saw the most delistings last fall. Last fall, Midwestern marketswhich, relatively speaking, remain on the tighter sidesaw the fewest delistings. Meanwhile, weaker and softer housing markets in places like Texas and Florida saw the highest levels of delistings.
Why should buyers pay attention?
Rising relistings can create buying opportunities. A relisted home often signals that the property was previously marketed, failed to transact at the sellers desired price, and is now returning with perhaps more realistic expectations. That dynamic can produce real seller fatigue, as months of showings, price cuts, and stalled negotiations reset pricing psychology and increase willingness to negotiate on price, concessions, repairs, or rate buydowns.
Relistings also give buyers an information advantage by revealing prior list prices, time on market, and whether earlier deals fell apart, helping anchor offers to true market-clearing levels rather than aspirational pricing.
Savvy buyersand their agentsshould always do their homework and confirm whether a property was listed in the prior year, how pricing evolved, and why it didnt sell, as that context can materially strengthen negotiating leverage.
AI slop seems to be everywhere. Low-quality digital content made with artificial intelligence has flooded our feeds, screens and speakers. Is there anything we can do about it?
If you want fewer cartoonish videos of dead celebrities, creepy or absurd images or fake bands playing synthetic tunes, a few platforms have rolled out settings and features to help minimize AI-generated content.
Here is a guide on how to use them. But first, a caveat from Henry Ajder, who advises businesses and governments on AI and has been studying deepfakes since 2018. He warned that it’s incredibly difficult to entirely remove AI slop content entirely from all your feeds.
He compared AI slop to the smog generated from the industrial revolution, when there weren’t any pollution controls in place.
It’s going to be very, very hard for people to avoid inhaling, in this analogy.
Pinterest
Pinterest’s move to lean into the AI boom made it something of a poster child for the AI slop problem, as users complained that the online moodboard for pinning inspirational material by themes has become overrun with AI content.
So Pinterest recently rolled out a tuner that lets users adjust the amount of AI content they see in their feeds.
It rolled out first on Android and desktop operating systems, before starting on a more gradual rollout on iOS.
Now, users can dial down the AI and add more of a human touch, Pinterest said, adding that it would initially cover some categories that are highly prone to AI modification or generation, such as beauty, art, fashion, and home decor.
More categories have since been added, including architecture, art, beauty, entertainment, mens, womens, and childrens fashion, health, home décor, and sport, food, and drink.
To use the tuner, go to Settings and then to refine your recommendations, and then tap on GenAI interests, where you can use toggles to indicate the categories you’d like to see less AI content.
TikTok
It’s no surprise that AI-generated videos proliferate on TikTok, the short-video sharing app. The company says there are at least 1.3 billion video clips on its platform it has labeled as AI-generated.
TikTok said in November it was testing an update to give users more control of the AI-generated content in their For You feeds. It’s not clear when it will be widely available. TikTok did not respond to requests for comment.
To see if you have it on the TikTok mobile app, go to Settings, then Content Preferences, then to Manage Topics where you’ll see a set of sliders to control various types of content, such as dance, humor, lifestyle, and nature.
You can also access the controls from the For You feed, by tapping the Share button on the side of a post, then tap Why this Video, then Adjust your For You, and then Manage topics.
There should be a new slider that allows you to dial down or turn up the amount of AI-generated content that you receive. If you don’t see it yet, it might be because you haven’t received the update yet. TikTok said late last year that it would start testing the feature in coming weeks.
These controls are not available on the desktop browser interface.
You won’t be able to get rid of AI content altogether TikTok says the controls are used to tailor the content rather than removing or replacing it entirely from feeds.
This means that people who love AI-generated history content can see more of this content, while those whod rather see less can choose to dial things down, it said.
Deezer
Song generation tools like Suno and Udio let users create music merely by typing some ideas into a chatbot window. Anyone can use them to spit out polished pop songs, but it also means streaming services have been flooded with AI tunes, often by accounts masquerading as real artists.
Among the music streaming platforms, only Deezer, a smaller European-based player, gives listeners a way to tell them apart by labeling songs as AI.
Deezer has been really, really pushing the anti-AI generation music narrative, said Henry Ajder.
Deezer says 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks, or more than 39% of the daily total, are uploaded to its platform every day and last year it detected and labeled more than 13.4 million AI tracks. The company says the people doing it are trying to make money by fraudulent streams.
Change your platform
If you can tear yourself away from Big Tech platforms, there is a new generation of apps targeting users who want to avoid AI.
Cara is a portfolio-sharing platform for artists that bans AI-generated work. Pixelfed is an ad-free Instagram rival where users can join different servers, or communities, including one for art that does not allow AI-generated content. Spread is a new social media platform with content for people who want to access human ideas and escape the flood of AI slop.
Watch out for the upcoming launch of diVine, a reboot of Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s defunct short-form video app Vine. The app has only been available as a limited prerelease for Apple iOS. It promises No AI Slop and uses multiple approaches to detect AI. An Android beta app is expected soon. The company plans to launch it in app stores soon but needs more time to get ready for unexpectedly high demand.
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Is there a tech topic that you think needs explaining? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your suggestions for future editions of One Tech Tip.
Kelvin Chan, AP business writer
Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Companys weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. Im Mark Sullivan, a senior writer at Fast Company,covering emerging tech, AI, and tech policy.
This week, Im focusing on a new class of AI video generation tools that could let scammers speak with a completely different face and voice on video calls. I also look at how Apple employees see Tim Cooks appeasement of President Donald Trump, and why OpenAI models got worse at writing.
Sign up to receive this newsletter every week via email here. And if you have comments on this issue and/or ideas for future ones, drop me a line at sullivan@fastcompany.com, and follow me on X @thesullivan.
A scammers dream
Video generation models have been improving over the past several years. Weve always known that things could get weird when generative video becomes nearly indistinguishable from real video, and were entering that phase now. Weve already seen convincing political and sexual imagery deepfakes. Another devious application of AI generative video will be phishing scams.
Over the past six months or so, people have been posting on X about new AI tools that are capable of face swapping in real-time video. For example, the AI might make it look like its Leonardo DiCaprio or Scarlett Johansson saying my words and performing my facial expressions during a Zoom call. The AI analyzes the users facial movements and vocalizations in real time and sends them out via the faces of another person entirely.
Some of these AI tools can generate a new face overlay using a single still image. So it may be possible for a scammer located anywhere in the world to find an image of a person on social media, use the AI to develop a reasonably convincing AI face from it, and then call one of the persons relatives asking for money. The scammer might use a sample of the persons voice to simulate the sound of the AI overlay character.
Of course, the first people to be targets of such deepfake calls would likely be the elderly. They might be happy to hear from a grandchild, for instance, and perhaps less likely to question the authenticity of the video. They may not even know that such a simulation is possible. Theres a special place in hell for the perpetrator of such a scam, but it appears to be technically feasible.
How Apple employees see Tim Cooks relationship with Trump
Like other tech leaders, Apple CEO Tim Cook has chosen to engage with, rather than ignore, Donald Trump. Cook has never publicly endorsed Trump or donated to his presidential campaigns. But he did personally donate to Trumps inauguration fund, has visited the White House numerous times, and is in at least semi-regular contact with the president.
During Trumps first term, Cook spoke out against the Muslim travel ban, the transgender military ban, and the presidents good people on both sides response to a deadly white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. In contrast, Cook has been quiet about the more extreme policies and actions Trump has brought to his second term. Until now. This week, Cook was forced to speak out, at least to Apple employees.
Cook came under fire from employees and customers for attending a private VIP screening of Amazons new Melania Trump documentary at the White House on January 24, the same day that federal Customs and Border Patrol agents shot and killed VA hospital nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. This followed a January 7 incident in which an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed Minneapolis resident Renee Good.
Cook was silent about the Pretti shooting until the evening of January 27, when he reportedly sent a memo to Apple employees saying he is heartbroken about the Good and Pretti deaths and calling for de-escalation. He also said hed had a conversation on the matter with Trump. It may have had an effect. On Wednesday Trump tried to calm the backlash against ICE. Were going to de-escalate a little bit, he said, using the same term Cook did. (No actual de-escalation has taken place.)
I suspect Cooks relationship with the president is purely transactional and strictly business. As people, Cook and Trump couldnt be more different.
Based on conversations Ive had with people who work at Apple, the internal narrative is that Cook is dealing with Trump in the way thats most likely to ward off tariffs on iPhones, new regulations, and government probes of Apples various businesses. And, the narrative goes, Cook is speaking to Trump in language Trump understands.
That explains the flattery and lavish gifts hes brought to the White House, the most recent of which hits some of Trumps favorite notes. The commemorative glass piece (resembling a silicon wafer) is mounted on a 24-karat gold base and engraved with Trumps name. The president loves gifts, he loves gold things, and he loves his own name.
As I wrote for Fast Company earlier this week, the shootings of U.S. citizens Good and Pretti in Minneapolis may put Big Tech leaders political alliance with Trump to the test like never before. Even transactional friendships should be subject to some standards of trust and decency. If more violence happens, Cooks calls with Trump could become far less amicable.
OpenAI sacrificed writing skill for coding skill in GPT-5
There was some backlash among users against OpenAIs latest model, GPT-5.2. People felt that the new model had less personality, less of a voice of its own. And these shortcomings are reflected in its writing, which many users say is harder to read and less natural-sounding than that of earlier models.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged this week that GPT-5.2 isnt as good a writer as its predecessor GPT-4.5 was. I think we just screwed that up, Altman said during an internal developer town hall on January 26.
With so much money on the line, I doubt it was a simple screwup. OpenAI was entertaining a different set of priorities when developing GPT-5.2. We put most of our effort in 5.2 into making it super-good at intelligence, reasoning, coding, engineering, that kind of thing, Altman said. And we have limited bandwidth here and sometimes we focus on one thing and neglect another.
OpenAI may also have been responding to an industry-wide shift toward chatbots that are brainier but somewhat dullerthat sound less like unconditionally supportive friends and more like responsible adults. There are safety and liability reasons for this. OpenAI is now facing multiple legal claims that its chatbot failed to push back when vulnerable users (including minors) began talking about plans to end their own lives.
OpenAI may also have felt pressure from Anthropics increasingly popular Claude Code tool, used by many developers to generate production-ready software code. GPT-5.2, which now underpins OpenAIs Codex coding tool, is better than earlier models at reasoning and coding skill.
Whats unclear is why OpenAI cant have a model thats both a strong writer and a good coder. Anthropic seems to have achieved that with Claude.
More AI coverage from Fast Company:
Chip firm ASML to slash 1,700 jobs and posts record profit for 2025 thanks to AI boom
Got an AI skill? Now you can prove it on LinkedIn
Why Yann LeCun left Meta, and what it means for AIs next frontier
How K-12 schools are left on their own to develop AI policies
Want exclusive reporting and trend analysis on technology, business innovation, future of work, and design? Sign up for Fast Company Premium.
How much Trump violence will tech industry stomach before backing away
Coffee giant Starbucks just announced its rewards program is about to get a major overhaul.
On Thursday, the chain said its newly revamped rewards program will make its debut on March 10. According to Starbucks, it will feature a new, three-tier membership structure that will allow for “greater earning power” for its 35.5 million active North American members.
The new program will allow consumers to move through three tiers: green (the starter level), followed by gold, and finally, its reserve membership tier. To achieve gold status, 500 stars are required. To become a reserve member, you’ll need to accumulate 2,500 stars within a 12-month period. The higher the tier, the more earning potential gets unlocked, with green members earning one star for every dollar spent, gold members earning 1.2 stars per dollar, and reserve members earning 1.7.
The company also stated that, in response to customer feedback, it will be allowing customers to access rewards quicker with a new “60-star redemption tier.” After just 60 stars, members will be entitled to $2 off any item.
Were redefining the industry with customer-focused benefits that set a new standard and ignite fandom,” Tressie Lieberman, Starbucks global chief brand officer, said in a press release. “Starbucks Rewards has always been about creating connection, and were evolving the program based on what our members told us matters most, offering faster, more meaningful benefits that make them feel appreciated. This evolution is a key milestone in our Back to Starbucks strategy and will reinvigorate what it means to be a Starbucks Rewards member.
Starbucks’ announcement comes a day after the company released its first quarter fiscal earnings report, which showed the company made some major strides. Starbucks announced earnings per share of $0.56, just short of the company’s projection of $0.59. However, Starbucks traffic rose for the first time in eight quarters (two years). And, per the report, its earnings exceeded revenue expectations, earning $9.9 billion — more than the $9.7 billion it had anticipated.
CEO Brian Niccol expressed optimism about the company’s future on CNBC’s Squawk Box, saying This is really just the beginning,” Niccol said. In fiscal 2026, were going to be shifting to play offense and to innovate. Were not finished with our Back to Starbucks plan or our broader transformation, but I am confident in our strategy, our progress, the pace of change, and the opportunity ahead of us.
The company also outlined a long-term growth strategy, and is projecting that by 2028, U.S. same store sales will grow by at least 3% with operating margins of 13.5% to 15%. According to an analysis by InvestingPro, Starbucks has a market capitalization of $108.41 billion and annual revenue of $37.7 billion. The chain is trading at its Fair Value, with shares up 13% year-to-date.
After years of studying leaders across industries and cultures, Ive noticed something fascinating. The truly great ones, the ones who lead with clarity, curiosity, and imagination, all share the same rhythm. Its not a checklist or an app that beeps with notifications. It is something quieter and something more human.
Great leadership is less about managing time and more about mastering rhythm. And every day, without fail, these leaders do five things that keep that rhythm alive.
1. They honor their body as the first classroom
Before they answer an email or step into a meeting, great leaders move. They understand that motion fuels meaning and ideas: a walk, a stretch, a moment to breathe deeply before the day begins.
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They treat the body not as an accessory to thinking, but as its foundation. Neuroscience backs this up: physical movement increases blood flow to the prefrontal cortex, enhancing executive function and creative problem-solving. When you move your body, you move your mind- and therefore ideas flow. The most effective leaders Ive observed dont schedule exercise around their work; they recognize that movement is the work of staying sharp.
2. They guard white space like treasure
In a world that rewards busyness, these leaders protect stillness. They leave gaps in their calendars for moments that arent filled with doing. That white space becomes the oxygen for new ideas.
While others rush to fill the silence, great leaders pause long enough to listen to what silence is saying. This isnt laziness disguised as strategy. Its the recognition that innovation rarely emerges from a packed schedule. The best insights arrive in the margins- during a walk between meetings, in the quiet of an unscheduled afternoon, in the space between stimulus and response. Leaders who guard their white space arent avoiding work; they are creating the conditions for their best work to emerge.
3. They rest to remember
Great leaders understand that rest is not the opposite of work. It is the continuation of it. They know that when the conscious mind quiets down, the subconscious begins to connect the dots.
They take small moments of recovery throughout the day: a pause between calls, a walk without a phone, a minute of looking out the window. They rest not to escape, but to return clearer, sharper and more creative. This is the science of incubation at work. Research on creative problem-solving shows that stepping away from a challenge allows the brain to continue processing in the background. These leaders dont power through exhaustion;they design recovery into their rhythm, understanding that strategic rest is what transforms effort into insight.
4. They listen between the lines
Ive watched extraordinary leaders in conversation, and they have a rare ability to hear what is not being said. They pay attention to tone, tension, hesitation, and hope.
Listening, for them, isnt about waiting to respond, but rather about creating space for truth to emerge. And in that space, trust takes root and creativity flourishes. This kind of deep listening is increasingly rare in our distracted age and increasingly valuable. When people feel genuinely heard, they offer their most honest assessments, their boldest ideas, their real concerns. Leaders who master this practice dont just gather better information; they build the psychological safety that makes innovation possible.
5. They lead with wonder, not certainty
My favorite teachers have been the ones who dont hesitate to acknowledge what they dont know, and then invite me to join them in discovering answers.
Similarly, the most creative leaders are not the ones who claim to know it all. They are the ones who stay curious. They ask questions that begin with What if?; I wonder? And Why not?. They treat ambiguity as an invitation, not a threat.
Wonder keeps them flexible, alive, and open to surprise. And that openness is where innovation begins. In a business environment that often rewards the appearance of certainty, these leaders have the courage to say I dont know; and mean it as an invitation rather than an admission. They understand that the questions we ask shape the possibilities we can see. Wonder fuels discovery.
The rhythm that matters
So what do great leaders do every day? They move. They think. They rest. They listen. They wonder. But more than that, they do all of it with rhythm.
Great leadership isnt about what you know. Its about how you move through the world. When you master that rhythm, creativity stops being something you reach for, and becomes part of your capacity for working better, smarter and with innovative outcomes.
The best leaders do not manage energy, they design energy.
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