Hey Snackers,
Though AI automation is meant to save on labor costs, hailing a ride from a Waymo driverless car is actually five or six bucks more expensive than a ride from Lyft or Uber. During peak hours, Waymo’s average price spikes quite a lot more than a comparable Uber or Lyft trip in San Francisco. Looks like Waymo costs way-mo money! (OK, we stole that joke from Elon Musk.)Â
Markets fell sharply on Friday after Iran launched a retaliatory air strike on Israel, fueling fears of a broader conflict. The move dragged stocks lower across the globe and sent investors flocking to safe haven assets. Oil prices and defense stocks soared, while gold hit a new record and the dollar strengthened. The S&P 500 dropped over 1.1%, wiping out its gains for the week. The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.3%, and the Russell 2000 lost 1.85%, with all three indexes finishing the week in the red.
🧠Trivia time: Take our Snacks Seven Quiz. Here’s the first question:
Which state did Americans visit the most last year?
All right, so when are we really getting AGI?
The hot concept fueling the entire AI trade is the idea that eventually, somebody is going to achieve a somewhat nebulous state known as AGI, or artificial general intelligence. What precisely this means depends on a couple of things, but the most important one is, “How many billions of dollars did you convince this guy to give you and on what terms, precisely?”Â
As a result, the definition of AGI depends on who’s selling the idea and who’s buying it.Â
OpenAI’s charter defines it as “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work.”Â
Elon Musk says it’s AI that is “smarter than the smartest human.”Â
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei thinks AGI is more like a “country of geniuses in a datacenter.”Â
Evocative stuff.Â
But the main thing is that AGI — when a computer can complete most tasks a lot better than humans — is important because whoever gets that first (if ever!) is going to become unfathomably wealthy, as will all their investors, in the process of fundamentally reshaping the American economy with a piece of technology that can efficiently replace every knowledge worker in the country.
So, when exactly can we count on AGI? We made this handy chart for you to figure out what the finest minds in AI have to say about the timeline.
The Takeaway
The median AI honcho is looking at a timeline of two to three years before things get interesting, but it’s worth grokking just how big the range is.Â
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Stories We’re Watching
Congrats to 2025 grads... and condolences on the death of the entry-level job market. The unemployment rate for recent college grads rose to 5.8% in March, the highest level in nearly four years. But some grads are feeling the pain more than others, and anyone who ever doubted the ability of an arts major to get a job should take heed of this particular chart.Â
Is it all AI’s fault? Read more in our four-chart piece.Ex (coffee) machina: Bucking the trend of using AI and automation to replace everything and everyone, Starbucks is going all in on real live human workers, crowning its first global barista champion last week as it pivots back to focusing on the “humanity of service.” CEO Brian Niccol announced that “the biggest human capital investment” is about to happen at Starbucks, exciting staff who’ve witnessed firsthand the decline of employees per store, easily seen here.Â
In any event, it will certainly help baristas muster what their new champion says is the first step in making a winning beverage.
The Best Thing We Read Today
The controversial rise of Franken-pills: Telehealth companies push to mix meds in a single pill
Like two-in-one shampoo and conditioner or the original Four Loko, telehealth companies such as Hims & Hers and Ro are increasingly offering combination pills — for instance, one that treats erectile dysfunction and hair loss at the same time. Hims even offers a “5-in-1” pill and ones that taste like candy. These “personalized” products may differentiate telehealth companies, but are they safe?Â
Read our investigation of these Franken-pills.
Billion Dollar Princess IP Goes High Tech – Last Chance Before Round ClosesÂ
Elf Labs is turning billion-dollar2 fairytale characters into next-gen, immersive entertainment. After winning legendary trademarks to icons like Cinderella & Rapunzel, they’re bringing them to life with patented AI & AR tech.
Backed by a team with $6B in licensing transactions over their careers, & two major distribution deals3, their round is closing early due to limited shares. Invest now before spots are gone.4
What Else We're Snackin'
Meta and Character.AI’s “therapist bots” are practicing without a license and lying about it
Nearly all the Apple iPhones Foxconn manufactured in India are now going to the US
BYD says it’s beating Tesla in Europe for one simple reason
J.M. Smucker has one big crustless silver lining in an otherwise gloomy outlook
Snack Fact Of The Day
Only five websites get more traffic than Yahoo in America.
This Week's Events
 Earnings expected from Lennar
May retail sales and May industrial production
Fed rate decision, May housing starts and building permits
Markets closed in observance of Juneteenth
May leading indicators. Earnings expected from Accenture, CarMax, Darden Restaurants, and Kroger
1 Nasdaq® is a registered trademark of Nasdaq, Inc. The information contained above is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and nothing contained herein should be construed as investment advice, either on behalf of a particular security, digital asset or an overall investment strategy. Neither Nasdaq, Inc. nor any of its affiliates makes any recommendation to buy or sell any security or digital asset or any representation about the financial condition of any company. Statements regarding Nasdaq-listed companies or Nasdaq proprietary indexes are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investors should undertake their own due diligence and carefully evaluate companies before investing.
2 See article for further details.Â
3Â Past performance is not indicative of future performance.
4 Please read the offering circular and related risks at https://elflabs.com. This is a paid advertisement for Elf Labs’s Regulation CF Offering.
Investing in private company securities is not suitable for all investors because it is highly speculative and involves a high degree of risk. It should only be considered a long-term investment. You must be prepared to withstand a total loss of your investment. Private company securities are also highly illiquid, and there is no guarantee that a market will develop for such securities.
DealMaker Securities LLC, a registered broker-dealer, and member of FINRA | SIPC, located at 105 Maxess Road, Suite 124, Melville, NY 11747, is the Intermediary for this offering and is not an affiliate of or connected with the Issuer. Please check our background on FINRA's BrokerCheck.