Are you ready to hand over your wallet to AI and let it do your shopping for you? Maybe notbut the technology to do it is hitting the market.
On Wednesday, Visa announced Visa Intelligent Commerce, which effectively allows AI agents to find and buy goods or services on behalf of consumers. While Visa itself doesnt create the AI agents, what its done is create the e-commerce backbone to allow it to happen. Consumers could use AI tools to track down potential purchases, but then those platforms would hand control back over to the human to complete the transaction.
The big change with Visas technology is that, with the proper permissions enabled, AI agents can complete the purchase without going back to their human handler. The value-add, Visas Chief Product and Strategy Officer Jack Forestell tells Fast Company, is that it frees up the cognitive load and time, delivering massively better outcomes, and more valueits going to deliver better shopping experiences.
For example, a shopper can now request that an AI agent buy a bouquet for their mom as a Mothers Day gift, and the entire process requires little, if any additional input from the shopper. The AI may be able to find the particular flowers the consumers mother likes, at a desired price point, and have them delivered on or before Mothers Day. The shopper can breathe easy, and not put too much thought or effort into the transactionsomething that their mothers probably wouldnt want to know.
As for the tech itself, Forestell says that getting AI agents set up to make payments involves getting a payment card credential to an agent, which he says is tech thats similar to Apple Pay or Google Paythe agent gets a token that can only be used by that agent. From there, and from Visas standpoint, two things need to occur: Visa needs to get a buy signal from a merchant that indicates an agent is making a purchase, and the confirmation that the transaction has completed.
While there will be some lag between users adopting agentic payments en masse, as merchants, consumers, and financial institutions learn to trust them and use them efficiently. But Forestell says APIs will be available on Wednesday, so people and companies can begin to work with the technology.
Pretend you and 99 peers had to duke it out against a gorilla. Would your squad emerge victorious? That debate has been dividing the internet over the past few days.
The conversation originally surfaced on Reddit back in 2020, when a user posed the question in the r/whowouldwin subreddit. It recently reignited after the question was put to X users last week. The viral postnow with over 288 million viewssuggests that 100 men could defeat a single gorilla if everyone was dedicated to the task.
Since then, arguments have raged across social media. MrBeast even joined the discussion: Need 100 men to test this, any volunteers? he wrote, alongside a fake thumbnail for a YouTube video based on the concept.
Need 100 men to test this, any volunteers? pic.twitter.com/p2iQvOWbYJ— MrBeast (@MrBeast) April 28, 2025
Meanwhile, Elon Musk responded: Sure, whats the worst that could happen?
Naturally, the internet had questions before picking a side. Are weapons allowed? What tactics are in play? Are we talking average guysor 100 Dwayne The Rock Johnsons?
To help settle the debate, some turned to AI and gaming simulators. One viral post on X showed the gorilla dispatching 100 humans with apparent ease.
someone simulated 100 men vs 1 gorilla pic.twitter.com/9F2hTldLDt— juju (@ayeejuju) April 28, 2025
Another user vibe coded a custom battle in Hytopia, a free-to-play gaming world. The gorilla won, they added. In yet another simulation, X users took issue with the unrealistic height advantage given to the gorilla (because, of course, accuracy matters here). The craziest thing about this trend is that it revealed how many people think gorillas are 15 feet tall, one person commented.
someone made a simulator of the 1 gorilla vs 100 men pic.twitter.com/ZnIt7VXuCv— kira (@kirawontmiss) April 28, 2025
A primatologist brought in by Rolling Stone quickly shut the whole thing down, calling the premise entirely unrealistic. While adult male gorillas can weigh over 400 pounds and are estimated to be four to 10 times stronger than humans, they are in fact gentle giants who would avoid this conflict whenever possible, they explained.
Still, as one X user put it: This gorilla conversation is real interweb discussions. Not all that other tomfoolery nonsense. And really, isnt it nice to see the internet putting its debating skills to positive use?
Duolingo launched 148 new language classes that were built by generative AI, the company announced Wednesday.
The move, which more than doubles it current language offering, comes as the gamified learning platform is facing criticism for replacing contract workers with artificial intelligence.
“Developing our first 100 courses took about 12 years, and now, in about a year, were able to create and launch nearly 150 new courses. This is a great example of how generative AI can directly benefit our learners,” Duolingo CEO and cofounder Luis von Ahn said in a press release. “This launch reflects the incredible impact of our AI and automation investments, which have allowed us to scale at unprecedented speed and quality.”
As of Wednesday, the language expansion makes the platforms seven most popular non-English languagesSpanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Mandarinavailable across all supported user interface languages. This means that speakers of languages like Japanese, Hindi, and Mandarin can now learn any of these languages, not just English. According to the company, the new courses will initially focus on beginner levels, with more advanced content to follow in the coming months.
The rapid expansion is part of Duolingo’s bet on artificial intelligence. Von Ahn said in an email to employees and posted to social media on Monday that it was shifting to become an “AI-first” company. That includes phasing out contractors who do work that AI can handle, approving headcount additions if a team can’t automate more of its work, and looking for AI skills when hiring.
“This isn’t about replacing Duos with AI,” von Ahn wrote in the email. “It’s about removing bottlenecks so we can do more with the outstanding Duos we already have. We want you to focus on creative work and real problems, not repetitive tasks. We’re going to support you with more training, mentorship, and tooling for AI in your function.”
Duolingo will likely share more about its mission when it reports first quarter 2025 earnings on Thursday. Shares of the company were up nearly 18% year-to-date on Wednesday afternoon and up 174% from its 2021 market debut.
GLP-1 weight loss treatment can be pricey. But employers who cover the treatments could end up saving on employee medical expenses overall. The finding is according to a new analysis of health insurance claims by global professional services firm, Aon, released Wednesday.The report looked at data for more than 50 million commercially insured people in the U.S., including 139,000 taking GLP-1 drugs, from 2022 to 2024. It found that after an initial spike in costs related to weight loss treatment with drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy, costs fell drastically.
Cost growth for the group receiving GLP-1 treatment trended at half the rate of the control group in the second year of the analysis. The analysis also found a seven-percentage reduction in overall medical costs for the GLP-1 users when compared with workers with similar health conditions who weren’t taking the drugs.
When it came to cardiovascular incidents, the report showed major gains for GLP-1 users, too. 44% experienced fewer hospitalizations caused by cardiac events, such as heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure. They also logged fewer cases of pneumonia, alcohol and substance issues, and more.
“Obesity is an escalating global epidemic, impacting nearly 40 percent of U.S. adults, contributing to more than 60 chronic conditions and costing the U.S. economy up to $1.72 trillion annually,” said Greg Case, CEO of Aon, said in Aon’s report. “Addressing this issue is not only a public health opportunity but also a workforce and economic imperative.”
Case continued, “Our analysis shows that GLP-1 medications, when paired with a holistic adherence program, represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity to prevent and manage chronic disease, improve quality of life and bend the healthcare cost curve.”
The new findings come as access to the drugs has recently been limited. When GLP-1 drugs rapidly gained popularity, tripling in use among adults that don’t have diabetes from 2018 to 2022, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ran into supply issues. That allowed for compounding pharmacies to make cheaper versions of the drugs, which were sold on popular telehealth sites like Hims & Hers. However, when the FDA announced that the supply issues were rectified, it put a deadline on the making of the generic versions. And last week, a federal judge ruled against a compounding trade groups request for a preliminary injunction that would’ve prevented the FDA from interfering with their continued manufacturing of the drugs.However, we’re now seeing telehealth companies and GLP-1 makers begin to work together in order to keep the drugs accessible. This week, Novo Nordisk, the maker of Wegovy, announced it would offer its weight loss drugs on Hims & Hers, Ro, and Life MD. We felt it was really important to work hard to establish a collaboration with telehealth companies so that there could be access to Wegovy as the compounding is winding down, Dave Moore, executive vice president of U.S. operations at Novo Nordisk said, per CNBC.Were really pleased about the level of interest to access branded Wegovy and to start to sort of catch people as they come off of compounded medicine.”
As the weather warms up, nationwide protests against the Trump Administration are getting larger. More Americans are taking to the streets, town halls, and public forums in every state and major U.S. city to voice their growing disapproval of the administration’s handling of everything from the economy to immigration.
It’s no coincidence that the next big protest is happening this Thursday, May 1, on May Day, or International Workers’ Day. It comes as many American workers face layoffs, skyrocketing living costs, and overall economic uncertainty as a result of widespread tariffs since the beginning of Trump’s second term.
Americans from all walks of life and all corners of the country have joined anti-Trump protests this year, including: retirees worried about cuts to Social Security and Medicare; teachers at schools under attack for DEI, where funding has been pulled; struggling middle class families with small children; and government workers who were recently laid off amid job cuts by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
May Day protestors are expected to include men and women, girls and boys, the young, middle aged, and old. That’s because this movement is a populist one, representing the general sentiment of Americans who increasingly disapprove of the way Trump is governing, punctuated by his sinking approval ratings.
What protests are happening on May Day 2025?
Organizers are holding “a national day of action” on Thursday, May 1, with more than 1,100 events slated for nearly 1,000 cities across the country in all 50 states. Major cities include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix, Raleigh, San Francisco, St. Paul, MN, and Washington, D.C. (Here is a list of May Day events and locations.) Organizers expect about 70,000 protesters.
“This May Day we are fighting back” organizers posted on the May Day website. “We are demanding a country that puts our families over their fortunespublic schools over private profits, healthcare over hedge funds, prosperity over free market politics.”
Like the recent “Hands Off” protests earlier this month, which drew hundreds of thousands of Americans, the May Day protests are organized by a broad coalition of groups, including unions, non-profits, educators, and progressive political groups. Some of those organizers include: MoveOn, Womens March, Indivisible, American Federation of Teachers, Greenpeace USA, Massachusetts Teachers Association, 50501, The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, Union of Southern Service Workers, and Florida National Organization for Women, just to name a few.
Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is among the many people slated to speak, and he is expected join one of the rallies in Philadelphia at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday.
Organizers have emphasized that “nonviolence is a ‘core principle’ behind the action,” aimed at “fighting back” against President Donald Trump “and his billionaire profiteers [who] are trying to create a race to the bottomon wages, on benefits, on dignity itself.”
“We’re coming together to send a loud and clear message to Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the rest of the billionaire oligarchs trying to destroy our democracy,” Saqib Bhatti, executive director of Bargaining for the Common Good, one of the May Day protests’ sponsors, said in a statement. “There will be no business as usual.”
No, its not April Fools’ Day, but despite some erroneous reports that Walmart will be closing at least 11 stores across multiple states in 2025, Walmart says it will not be closing any of its stores this year.
“There are no current plans to close any stores in 2025,” a spokesperson for Walmart told Fast Company. “The erroneous claim originated from a late March US Mirror story, and that article was updated following our call to the editors for a correction. Unfortunately, other outlets have incorrectly reported the store closures without checking with our team, leading us to seek corrections from them as well.”
Some of those news outlets included MSN and The Hudson Valley Post. The list of stores supposedly closing included locations in Georgia, Maryland, Ohio, Wisconsin, Colorado, and California.
What is true is that the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retail giant did close those 11 locations in 2024, but to put that in context, Walmart pointed Fast Company to a January 2024 post from Walmart US CEO John Furner, which explains the closures came at the same time the company pledged it would be “building or converting 150 new stores over the next several years.” That initiative kicked off last year with new locations in Charlotte, North Carolina, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, and Atlanta, Georgia.
On Tuesday, the company opened its first new Supercenter in more than four years, in the Houston area, and has more openings planned for 2025 in California, Utah, Alabama, and Florida.
Walmart is also remodeling 650 existing stores as it invests in what it calls “stores of the future.” Expect wider aisles, bigger and “bolder” signage and displays, and expanded online delivery and pickup to accommodate online orders, according to USA Today. The company also plans to open or remodel more than 45 fuel stations this year, expanding its existing network of more than 400 fuel locations in 34 states.
The retail giant is expected to announce its fiscal first-quarter earnings for 2026 next month, before the stock market opens on Thursday, May 15.
Shares of Walmart (WMT) fell slightly in early morning trading on Tuesday but rebounded, up less than 1% by midday at the time of this writing.
The U.S. economy contracted for the first time in three years, an initial measurement by the Commerce Department revealed on Wednesday.
During the first quarter of President Trump’s return to office, the gross domestic product (GDP) shrunk at an annual rate of 0.3%. The economic decline follows a 2.4% growth for the last quarter in 2024. Additionally, personal consumption fell from the last quarter, increasing by a 1.8% annualized rate in comparison to the previous 4% rate.
While the GDP measurements reflect data from January to March of this year, Trump has taken to social media to blame his predecessor, former president Joe Biden, for the economic decline.
“This is Bidens Stock Market, not Trumps,” Trump said via Truth Social. “This will take a while, has NOTHING TO DO WITH TARIFFS, only that he left us with bad numbers.”
Economists left surprised by contraction
The economic shrink was fueled in part to “an increase in imports” and a “decrease in government spending,” the advanced estimate said. The decline comes as a surprise, with economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal having anticipated a 0.4% growth.
A volatile and uncertain economic landscape leading up to the report has already led various companies to adjust or withdraw their economic forecasts for 2025.
Proctor & Gamble, PepsiCo, and Chipotle lowered their economic forecasts, citing volatility and changing consumer habits. Meanwhile, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and Southwest Airlines withdrew their full-year guidance for 2025.
Major stock indexes were lower on Wednesday as investors absorbed the unpleasant news: The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite were respectively down 0.74%, 1.05%, and 1.51% in late-morning trading.
Have you ever used ChatGPT to draft a work email? Perhaps to summarise a report, research a topic or analyse data in a spreadsheet? If so, you certainly arent alone.
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are rapidly transforming the world of work. Released today, our global study of more than 32,000 workers from 47 countries shows that 58% of employees intentionally use AI at workwith a third using it weekly or daily.
Most employees who use it say theyve gained some real productivity and performance benefits from adopting AI tools.
However, a concerning number are using AI in highly risky wayssuch as uploading sensitive information into public tools, relying on AI answers without checking them, and hiding their use of it.
Theres an urgent need for policies, training and governance on responsible use of AI, to ensure it enhancesnot undermineshow work is done.
Our research
We surveyed 32,352 employees in 47 countries, covering all global geographical regions and occupational groups.
Most employees report performance benefits from AI adoption at work. These include improvements in:
efficiency (67%)
information access (61%)
innovation (59%)
work quality (58%).
These findings echo prior research demonstrating AI can drive productivity gains for employees and organisations.
We found general-purpose generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, are by far the most widely used. About 70% of employees rely on free, public tools, rather than AI solutions provided by their employer (42%).
However, almost half the employees we surveyed who use AI say they have done so in ways that could be considered inappropriate (47%) and even more (63%) have seen other employees using AI inappropriately.
Sensitive information
One key concern surrounding AI tools in the workplace is the handling of sensitive company informationsuch as financial, sales or customer information.
Nearly half (48%) of employees have uploaded sensitive company or customer information into public generative AI tools, and 44% admit to having used AI at work in ways that go against organisational policies.
This aligns with other research showing 27% of content put into AI tools by employees is sensitive.
Check your answer
We found complacent use of AI is also widespread, with 66% of respondents saying they have relied on AI output without evaluating it. It is unsurprising then that a majority (56%) have made mistakes in their work due to AI.
Younger employees (aged 18-34 years) are more likely to engage in inappropriate and complacent use than older employees (aged 35 or older).
This carries serious risks for organisations and employees. Such mistakes have already led to well-documented cases of financial loss, reputational damage, and privacy breaches.
About a third (35%) of employees say the use of AI tools in their workplace has increased privacy and compliance risks.
Shadow AI use
When employees arent transparent about how they use AI, the risks become even more challenging to manage.
We found most employees have avoided revealing when they use AI (61%), presented AI-generated content as their own (55%), and used AI tools without knowing if it is allowed (66%).
This invisible or shadow AI use doesnt just exacerbate risksit also severely hampers an organisations ability to detect, manage, and mitigate risks.
A lack of training, guidance and governance appears to be fuelling this complacent use. Despite their prevalence, only a third of employees (34%) say their organisation has a policy guiding the use of generative AI tools, with 6% saying their organisation bans it.
Pressure to adopt AI may also fuel complacent use, with half of employees fearing they will be left behind if they do not.
Better literacy and oversight
Collectively, our findings reveal a significant gap in the governance of AI tools and an urgent need for organisations to guide and manage how employees use them in their everyday work. Addressing this will require a proactive and deliberate approach.
Investing in responsible AI training and developing employees AI literacy is key. Our modelling shows self-reported AI literacyincluding training, knowledge, and efficacypredicts not only whether employees adopt AI tools but also whether they critically engage with them.
This includes how well they verify the tools output, and consider their limitations before making decisions.
We found AI literacy is also associated with greater trust in AI use at work and more performance benefits from its use.
Despite this, less than half of employees (47%) report having received AI training or related education.
Organisations also need to put in place clear policies, guidelines and guardrails, systems of accountability and oversight, and data privacy and security measures.
There are many resources to help organisations develop robust AI governance systems and support responsible AI use.
The right culture
On top of this, its crucial to create a psychologically safe work environment, where employees feel comfortable to share how and when they are using AI tools.
The benefits of such a culture go beyond better oversight and risk management. It is also central to developing a culture of shared learning and experimentation that supports responsible diffusion of AI use and innovation.
AI has the potential to improve the way we work. But it takes an AI-literate workforce, robust governance and clear guidance, and a culture that supports safe, transparent and accountable use. Without these elements, AI becomes just another unmanaged liability.
Nicole Gillespie is a professor of management and chair in trust at Melbourne Business School.
Steven Lockey is a postdoctoral research fellow at Melbourne Business School.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Every friend group has one person whos always running late. If you cant think of one, chances are you’re that friend.
Now, a newly launched app called Lately is here to help you stay on time for everything from meetings to dinner plans. Created by developer Erik MacInnis, Lately sends users timely nudges30, 10, and five minutes before it’s time to leave.
As the self-acknowledged late one in his friend group, MacInnis tells Fast Company that the idea for Lately struck during a fishing trip gone wrong. He had assumed it would take 20 minutes to get there, got sidetracked by replying to emails, left five minutes late, and the drive ended up taking 30. When I arrived, my friend was understandably annoyed and I literally said out loud, I need something where I can just input when and where I need to be and it makes sure I leave on time. At the time I was looking for a new idea, and I was like thats it.
To help users stay on track, Lately turns punctuality into a game, featuring a point-based reward system and four difficulty levels. To tackle time blindness and time optimism, Lately is working to leverage every tool it can to keep the user aware of when to leave, says MacInnis. That includes a countdown, watch app, and smart notifications.
His favorite feature? The lock screen progress bar. It’s readily visible, intuitive, and eliminates the need for any mental math, he adds. If its not close to the end, I can relax and if its almost full, I have to get going.
Time management can be especially tough for those with attention deficit disorder (ADHD or ADD). Everyone runs late now and then, but for people with ADHD, it can become a definingand frustratingtrait. Timers, alarms, and productivity apps are essential tools, and now theres one more to add to the arsenal.
Lately is currently available on iOS, with an Android version in development. A premium subscription unlocks bonus features for $3 a month or $10 a yearfor those looking to take their punctuality to the next level.
MacInnis also plans to launch a social feature called Lately Friends, which will automatically notify friends when a user leaves, is five minutes away, and when they arrive. This has been the most requested feature, he adds.
In a first-of-its kind move, Hawaii lawmakers are ready to hike a tax imposed on travelers staying in hotels, vacation rentals and other short-term accommodations and earmark the new money for programs to cope with a warming planet.State leaders say they’ll use the funds for projects like replenishing sand on eroding beaches, helping homeowners install hurricane clips on their roofs and removing invasive grasses like those that fueled the deadly wildfire that destroyed Lahaina two years ago.A bill scheduled for House and Senate votes on Wednesday would add an additional 0.75% to the daily room rate tax starting Jan. 1. It’s all but certain to pass given Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers and party leaders have agreed on the measure. Gov. Josh Green has said he would sign it into law.Officials estimate the increase would generate $100 million in new revenue annually.“We had a $13 billion tragedy in Maui and we lost 102 people. These kind of dollars will help us prevent that next disaster,” Green said in an interview.Green said Hawaii was the first state in the nation to do something along these lines. Andrey Yushkov, a senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization, said he was unaware of any other state that has set aside lodging tax revenue for the purposes of environmental protection or climate change.
Adding to an already hefty tax
The increase will add to what is already a relatively large duty on short-term stays. The state’s existing 10.25% tax on daily room rates would climb to 11%. In addition, Hawaii’s counties each add their own 3% surcharge and the state and counties impose a combined 4.712% general excise tax on goods and services including hotel rooms. Together, that will make for a tax rate of nearly 19%.The only large U.S. cities that have higher cumulative state and local lodging tax rates are Omaha, Nebraska, at 20.5%, and Cincinnati, at 19.3%, according to a 2024 report by HVS, a global hospitality consulting firm.The governor has long said the 10 million visitors who come to Hawaii each year should help the state’s 1.4 million residents protect the environment.Green believes travelers will be willing to pay the increased tax because doing so will enable Hawaii to “keep the beaches perfect” and preserve favorite spots like Maui’s road to Hana and the coastline along Oahu’s North Shore. After the Maui wildfire, Green said he heard from thousands of people across the country asking how they could help. This is a significant way they can, he said.
Hotel industry has mixed feelings
Jerry Gibson, president of the Hawaii Hotel Alliance, which represents the state’s hotel operators, said the industry was pleased lawmakers didn’t adopt a higher increase that was initially proposed.“I don’t think that there’s anybody in the tourism industry that says, ‘Well, let’s go out and tax more.’ No one wants to see that,” Gibson said. “But our state, at the same time, needs money.”The silver lining, Gibson said, is that the money is supposed to beautify Hawaii’s environment. It will be worth it if that’s the case, he said.Hawaii has long struggled to pay for the vast environmental and conservation needs of the islands, ranging from protecting coral reefs to weeding invasive plants to making sure tourists don’t harass wildlife, such as Hawaiian monk seals. The state must also maintain a large network of trails, many of which have heavier foot traffic as more travelers choose to hike on vacation.Two years ago, lawmakers considered requiring tourists to pay for a yearlong license or pass to visit state parks and trails. Green wanted to have all visitors pay a $50 fee to enter the state, an idea lawmakers said would violate U.S. constitutional protections for free travel.Boosting the lodging tax is their compromise solution, one made more urgent by the Maui wildfires.
A large funding gap
An advocacy group, Care for Aina Now, calculated a $561 million gap between Hawaii’s conservation funding needs and money spent each year.Green acknowledged the revenue from the tax increase falls short of this, but said the state would issue bonds to leverage the money it raises. Most of the $100 million would go toward measures that can be handled in a one-to-two year time frame, while $10 to $15 million of it would pay for bonds supporting long-term infrastructure projects.Kwika Riley, a member of the governor’s Climate Advisory Team, pointed to the Hawaiian saying, “A stranger only for a day,” to explain the new tax. The adage means that a visitor should help with the work after the first day of being a guest.“Nobody is saying that literally our visitors have to come here and start working for us. But what we are saying is that it’s important to be part of of the solution,” Riley said. “It’s important to be part of caring for the things you love.”
Audrey McAvoy, Associated Press
