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2025 was unquestionably the year of the AI boom at work. When generative AI like ChatGPT entered the scene a few years ago, it started as a novelty. Early adapters saw its potential to change the way we work, but for most people it was a way to rewrite Keatss poetry in pirate speak, or remix their favorite memes. But in 2025 AI rolled into offices everywhere, taking up residence as the boss who set performance goals, the on-call therapist-cum-coach, and the silent brainstorm partner. A McKinsey study found that 33% of organizations used genAI at work in 2023, and 55% used AI. This year, that leapt to 79% and 88% respectively. Here are five ways AI changed work in 2025. 1. The AI job application Not only is AI changing how we do our jobs, its changing how we get our jobs. AI generated résumés submitted on LinkedIn surged by 45% this year. Job candidates are also using AI to find companies to apply to and help them network. In parallel, overwhelmed by all the AI generated applications, HR departments are using AI to help them keep up. Three-fourths of hiring managers say they use AI to schedule interviews, and over 90% use AI to screen résumés. While interviewing still remains the domain of humans, about 25% of companies are using AI interviewers. Researcher Brian Jabarian even found that AI interviewers are more likely to result in increased job offers. They also improve 30-day job retention by 17% for industries that hire at a high volume, such as customer service. 2. AI as the superstar employee AI arrived on the scene as the perfect employee. It does not ask for a salary or raises, it does not care about getting promoted, and it wont steal someones lunch from the break room. Instead, it can do the automatic, repetitive work thats present in every job that eats up hours of the week offering very little intellectual satisfaction in return. In fact, even as companies waffled on how to train employees on how to use AI and what their AI policies should be, employees took matters into their own hands and figured out how to use AI to make their jobs easier. About 80% of employees at small and medium-size companies were using their own AI tools at work giving rise to BYOAI: bring your own AI. AI has also reduced the barrier to entry for founders: instead of hiring a fleet of programmers, vibe code. Instead of sinking hours into finding client contact information, get AI to suggest leads. 3. The silent copilot Not only is AI the superstar employee, its the perfect confidante since it wont gossip. As such, AI also became the silent copilot who helped workers brush up on their soft skills and stress test their ideas without judgement. In an informal survey Fast Company conducted of employees using LinkedIn, workers reported using AI to organize documents, brainstorm ideas, challenge assumptions, summarize meeting notes, and prioritize tasks. Employees are even asking AI what kind of health insurance they should get. Its not just employees: leaders are using AI to up their game. Studies show that 85% of new managers dont receive training. AI quietly stepped in to fill the gap. James Cross, cofounder of Tenor, an AI leadership company, noted that managers are often more receptive to AI feedback, because theres no emotion attached to it. 4. The rise of workslop AI might be the best employee but its also the worst employee because it knows not what it does. While AI can generate work, that doesnt mean it understands what its doing. 2025 might have seen the ascendance of AI at work, but it also saw the ascendance of AI generated workslop. Stanford researchers found that 40% of employees reported receiving AI-generated work content that masquerades as good work, but lacks the substance to meaningfully advance a given task. Meanwhile, in July, MIT published a report that found that while companies were investing billions of dollars in AI, 95% of companies had found no return on their AI investments. Worse, OpenAIs research found that their models can lie deliberately. AI promises to work easier, but workers may find instead of kicking back, they have a new job: sorting through piles of AI generated trash. 5. AI took all the jobs, or did it just get blamed for it? In addition to being the superstar employee, AI is also everyones favorite scapegoat. Its getting blamed for replacing all the jobs for good reason. First, 2025 was a rough year for layoffs, with layoff announcements totaling over one million. Second, CEOs pinned the blame on AI. Understandably, as wave after wave of layoffs have swept through corporate America, nearly a third of employees say that they think AI will lead to fewer job opportunities. However, experts point out theres little evidence AI is replacing workersAIs impact on the workforce is comparable to earlier technological disruptions such as the rise of the PC and the internet. In a rocky economy, where companies are struggling to trim back, it makes companies look good to their shareholders, to suggest we are deploying AI so well [that] we are now cutting our labor costs, Molly Kinder, a Brookings senior fellow, told Fast Company.
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E-Commerce
This holiday season, an unexpected treat has stepped into the limelight and onto the buffet table at many a festive gathering: the Jell-O shot. But the shot in question, which is currently going viral on TikTok and popping up on high-end menus across New York City, is nothing like the ones you probably remember from the sticky basement of a college frat party. Instead, these treats are sleek, refined, classy, and covetedin short, the opposite of electric green slime in a plastic cup. View this post on Instagram A post shared by s o l i d w i g g l e s (@solidwiggles) Brooklyn-based Solid Wiggles, cofounded by pastry chef Jena Derman and mixologist Jack Schramm, is among the pioneers of this Jell-O shot revival. Founded in 2020, the company describes its mission as reimagining the nostalgic Jell-O shot with its “cocktail jellies” that double as edible art. Flavors include margarita, espresso martini, and mezcal negroni, all presented in eye-catching cubes with epertly layered colors, flavors, and designs. A 40-piece, full-menu sampler costs $115. After just five years in business, Solid Wiggles are on the menu at 20 bars and restaurants in the U.S., including NYCs ultrapopular restaurant Tatiana, helmed by James Beard award-winning chef Kwame Onwuachi. According to Derman, the brands sales have roughly doubled every year for the past three years, and its gearing up to release its own cookbook with Penguin Random House in 2026. A clear trend is emerging: the Jell-O shot is getting a rebrand as a classy treat for a more mature drinker (foodie?) In a growing number of circles, its no longer a kitschy throwback, but instead a fashionable food statement. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Victoria Granof (@victoriagranof) The Jell-O shot’s tasteful rebrand To get a taste of the Jell-O shots newfound popularity, one need only search the term on TikTok and brows through some of the most popular videos. Maturing is realizing your friends will take jello shots if you call them edible cocktails, reads the caption of one recent TikTok with 13,000 likes, starring Jell-O shots with encased maraschino cherries cut into cubes. Another TikTok of lychee martini jello-shots with cherries, once again artfully cubed (and this time dusted in powdered sugar), amassed nearly 140,000 likes in just two days. And a third YouTube Short, also sharing a lychee martini shot recipe, recently surpassed half a million views. Im 27, and a real shot sends chills through my literal spine these days, creator @babytamazz explains in the clip. Im still gonna take them, but a Jell-O shot is just preferred at this time. Plus, theyre so fun and bitchy and an awesome party pull. Perhaps the most popular video, though, was created by the publication Punch and features Solid Wiggles unique take on the Jell-O shot. Derman says its now been viewed more than eight million times across social media, leading to what she described as a “colossal” spike in sales just before the holidays. Solid Wiggles has spent five years trying to convince consumers that the Jell-O shot can be cooland, clearly, its paying off. View this post on Instagram A post shared by s o l i d w i g g l e s (@solidwiggles) Recipe for success Derman and Schramm met back in 2014, when they both worked at the popular dessert spot Milk Bar. They parted ways when Derman pursued commercial bakery consulting and Schramm went on to work in upscale cocktail bars. After reconnecting during the pandemic, they founded Solid Wiggles. In 2020, all the bars that I was working at were closed, Schramm says. Jena, ever entrepreneurial, was working on this jelly project where she was using coconut water as a clear base to make these big, elaborate, beautiful jelly centerpieces, but wanted to branch out into some new flavors. She reached out to me because I had centrifuge expertise to make juices clear, and we met at her apartment and made some really tasty jellies. View this post on Instagram A post shared by s o l i d w i g g l e s (@solidwiggles) That first day, Schramm recalls, he said, Lets put some booze in these”and the pair havent looked back since. Not your mother’s Jell-O shot Jelly desserts have existed for centuries, from France in the Middle Ages to Mexico City in the 40s, but Solid Wiggles is perhaps the first business to pioneer the edible Jell-O shot art category. Though creative uses of gelatin often evoke an ill-advised recipe from the 1950s (savory Jell-O salad, anyone?), Derman says Solid Wiggles customers are a grown and sexy crowd. These are folks who are sick of just bringing a bottle of wine to a dinner and want to wow their hosts with something new. We spend all this time making it so that when it finally hits your mouth, you can’t distinguish any of the texturesit all should read as one,” she says. “It should come across as being really simple, even though it’s not so simple. Schramm believes one of the main factors driving enduring interest in the dessert is that it’s broadly nostalgic. I think the nice thing about Jell-O in general is it’s not limited in terms of demographics that enjoy it, Schramm says. It’s sort of universally enjoyed by all ages, all demographicseven frat bros grow up at some point and want something delicious that’s also a little bit more beautiful.
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E-Commerce
Its normalperhaps even biologicalto slow down at the end of the year. Winter weather brings less sunlight, causing our bodies to produce more melatonin and less Vitamin D. Humans have to fight the urge to hibernate like bears because of the exhausting holiday season. If you find yourself behind and needing to cross off some last-minute items on your to-do list, heres a handy guide to your options on Christmas Day 2025. Are banks open on Christmas? No. Christmas is a federal holiday, so brick-and-mortar locations are closed. Online banking and outdoor ATMs are available. Is mail delivered on Christmas? The United States Postal Service will not deliver mail on Christmas, and post offices are closed. The only exception: Priority Mail Express is delivered on the holiday. Is the stock market open? No. Both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq exchange are closed for the holiday. What grocery and convenience stores are open? Trader Joes, Costco, and Aldi are closed. That’s bad news for shoppers but good news for their employees. The following stores are open: Acme Market: Some East Coast locations are open. Albertsons: Some stores are open; hours vary by location. Caseys General Store: Opens at 10 a.m. Circle K: Most locations are open 24 hours, even on Christmas, but check your local store to be sure. Cumberland Farms: Hours vary by location. Safeway: Some locations are open; hours vary by location. Wawa: Most are open 24 hours. 7-Eleven: Most are open 24 hours. Are big-box retailers open? Most major retail chains, including Walmart and Target, are closed on Christmas. What about major pharmacy chains? CVS: Most locations are open with reduced hours; check your local store. Walgreens: Some locations are open 24/7, though most are operating with reduced hours; check your local pharmacy. Are fast-food restaurants open on Christmas Day? Its hard to pinpoint which fast-food restaurants are open because many are franchised, so its up to the individual owners discretion whether or not to remain open. Here are some that should be available. McDonalds: Most locations are open, but check your local restaurant for hours. Burger King: Most are open with reduced hours; schedules vary by location. Starbucks: Many locations are open, but check your favorite spot ahead of time for hours. What about other restaurants? If you pull a Scott Calvin from The Santa Clause and burn the turkey, never fear: Many restaurants are open on Christmas Day. Its important to note, however, that these establishments will most likely have reduced hours and potentially limited menus. The following restaurants will be open with hours that vary by location unless otherwise specified; check the individual location finders for local hours. Applebees Buffalo Wild Wings Dennys (This is Scott Calvins restaurant of choice.) Huddle House: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. IHOP Papa Johns Perkins: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Red Lobster Waffle House Many Chinese restaurants are also open on Christmas Day. Are movie theaters open? Buttery popcorn and good flicks? Yes! Most movie theaters are open for business on Christmas Day. Families and those young at heart can check out Zootopia 2 from Disney or The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon. If youre in the mood for a sexy, suspenseful drama, consider The Housemaid starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried. Sci-fi fans can catch James Camerons latest epic, Avatar: Fire and Ash. Artsy types will enjoy Marty Supreme from A24. Star Timothée Chalamet is already getting early Oscar buzz for his performance.
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E-Commerce
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