Back on December 15th, Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg became the youngest player in NBA history to score more than 40 points in a game. It was also just the third time a teenager had 40 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the leagues 79-year history.
The only other two players to achieve that last stat line were LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Given that elevated company, and the fact that James, Durant, and about 65% of the NBA wear Nike shoes, it is still a bit of a shock to see Flagg donning New Balance.
View this post on Instagram
The privately-owned, Massachusetts-based shoemaker has gradually built a comparatively small, but elite roster of athlete ambassadors over the past decade. Despite its sizeNew Balances 2024 sales were about $7.8 billion, compared to Nikes $51.4BFlagg shares the shoe brand with reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen, and Major League Baseball MVP Shohei Ohtani. Not to mention WNBA standout Cameron Brink, as well as fellow NBA stars Tyrese Maxey, Kawhi Leonard, Jamal Murray, Darius Garland, and Zack Levine. Many star in the brands newest ad that dropped on January 5th.
CMO Chris Davis says the goal is not to be the biggest, but to be the best, most boutique sports marketing brand in the world. We had to find that core component of our identity that enabled us to succeed for the first 110 years of our existence, says Davis. And it was rooted in the idea of being the ultimate challenger brand. We always say internally that we’re a brand with heritage, not a heritage brand. A heritage brand purely relies on its past. A brand with heritage honors its past, but is obsessed with innovating into the future.
That mentality has fueled New Balance as it’s disrupted streetwear, fashion, and sports. But as its business has grown by 20% or more in each of the past five years, the challenge now is maintaining that boutique challenger status amid the significant growth.
Pushing forward with new design
As Flagg, Ohtani, and Allen are scoring in sports, New Balance is also able to maintain and build on its streetwear and fashion bonafides with innovative looks like the new Gator Run (a flat style trainer), and of course the snoafer (aka 1906L). Meanwhile, the Abzorb 2000 and SC Elite V5 have been named among the best sneakers of 2025.
Davis says that the original seeds for its current star-studded athlete roster were its heritage in running combined with its ties to streetwear and sneaker culture.
In those early stages, it was certainly about resonating with our ascension, particularly in the streetwear space, he says. And then of course, it was about the trusted innovations that we’ve been putting forth in running for decades.
Now, the driving force is the brands commitment to its independence and what that affords them in how they work with athletes and other collaborators.
The fact that we are privately owned certainly facilitates a unique mindset, says Davis. And the fact that we don’t have to make decisions based on Wall Street or quarterly earnings reports, it enables us to take a long-term vision, build a strong foundation, and primarily to do things because we believe that they are the right thing to do, the right thing for the brand, the right thing for our people internally and the right thing for all our partners.
The evolving brand of New Balance
He credits the brands independent identity with attracting the first in its wave of new athletes over the past decade. But another pillar to Davis athlete strategy is partnership over sponsorship. Athletes arent silod in a single sports category of basketball or tennis, but part of the brand as a whole. This is embodied in launches like the recent collab between fashion label Miu Miu and Gauff.
We work collaboratively on everything that our major athletes touch, he says. So we co-author our storytelling, we co-author our product, and we co-author our business strategies together. They have a massive input on how we’re coming to market collectively. That not only enhances their sphere of influence, but it makes them more connected to our brand.”
As 2026 kicks off, the challenge facing Davies is the same as it was 12 months ago: Continued growth without sacrificing the culture that got it here. But New Balance recognizes that perception of its brand has changed, and that’s helpd their momentum. Years ago, it was New Balance pitching athletes and other partners to team up, now the company turns down about 99% of inbound requests.
The best indication of future behavior is past behavior, and success breeds success, says Davis. At the end of the day, being the best version of ourselves is one of our major goals. But, I don’t think it’s gotten easier because our expectations have gotten higher.
A group of former government workers are developing a plan that a future administration can use to rebuild government services damaged by DOGE.
Tech Viaduct, an initiative launched by the left-leaning think tank Searchlight Institute, is made up of former senior government officials with experience in agencies including U.S. Digital Service (USDS), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and General Services Administration (GSA). Its goal is to create a plan for how the federal government might repair and improve its digital presence, services, and processes. And fast.
The group’s thinking is that actual implementation of government reform requires a long lead time, but political party mandates only last until the next electionso the next administration can’t afford to spend two years studying the problem. Instead, the next president needs to hit the ground running.
“It’s the combination of rigid short deadlines, such as legislation or election calendars, and every action happening extremely slowly,” Mikey Dickerson, a former administrator of USDS from 2014 to 2017 who’s now working in leadership for Tech Viaduct, says of the slow pace of government work.
“It’s good to slow down and be careful when figuring out how a change is going to impact people,” he tells Fast Company. “It’s not good when minor technical decision requires approval from 35 committee members, representing 40 different agendas. That second type of slowness needs to be pruned way back.”
A tactical plan for the future
Tech Viaduct’s objectives are to draw up a tactical plan for a future administration with options that vary based on political circumstances, including day-one executive actions and wider ambitions that could pass with support from Congress. With three more years left in President Donald Trump’s final term, the scope of their work is a moving target.
Part of their work is administrative, technical, and boring to the average civilian, like reforming government procurement, personnel, and oversight systems. But another part is public-facing: building visibility in order to drive adoption and support for the initiative. Americans often compare government services to that of the private sector, and the government is often found wanting. A brand rehab has long been in order.
Before it folded last year, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was created out of USDS, the executive branch’s digital office. In place of those entities is the National Design Studio, a new office that launched last August and is headed by Airbnb cofounder Joe Gebbia. The office has given Trump initiatives the sheen of Silicon Valley web design, masking an agenda of government cuts in a shiny wrapper. This initiative is less interested in such window dressing, according to the plan it’s outline so far.
Tech Viaduct’s idea for day-one digital repair
Dickerson says he imagines a future president’s day-one executive orders could include a direction that agencies cooperate with a “triage team” to determine digital risks and needs, or stabilize and restore government programs so that they an perform their intended purposes.
Other executive orders could instruct agencies to stop illegal or unsafe abuse of private data. He says hed like to see a transparent accounting of what happened to public data under DOGE. His bigger goal is the long-term, systemic improvement to government procurement and the civil service.
“It won’t be an overnight miracle,” Dickerson says. “It’s not possible to build, fix, or repair as quickly or dramatically as you can do demolition.”
Project Searchlight says it will take years to correct DOGE’s damage, but the group also learned something from DOGE’s efforts: Changing government fast is possible if there’s sufficient political will.
“What could be done if the mandate and power of and urgency of DOGE was used to build more effective government services instead of tear them down?” Dickerson asks. Tech Viaduct seeks to find out.
Ozempic-maker Novo Nordisk turned to the actors from Apple’s 2000s “Get a Mac” ads to differentiate its GLP-1 medication amid a rising sea of competitors.
On January 20, the Danish pharmaceutical company announced its “There’s Only One Ozempic” campaign starring Justin Long and John Hodgman. The actors are reprising their roles from Apple’s Mac vs. PC ads playing the personifications of a name brand and the alternativebut now for weight-loss drugs.
[Video: Novo Nordisk]
Long personified Mac in the original Apple campaign by dressing in a more youthful, casual way than Hodgman, who personified a stuffy, dorky PC by wearing glasses and a suit and tie with a closely cropped haircut. (Think Steve Jobs versus Bill Gates.) In the Apple ads, Mac was always portrayed by Long as more cool and capable.
In the new Ozempic ad, Long personifies Ozempic, facing off in a mock game show against Hodgman, who plays all of Ozempic’s competitors wrapped up in one dull brown T-shirt. (His hardworking name is “Other GLP-1s for Type 2 Diabetes.”) Hodgman’s character gets the game show’s single question right after the host asks which GLP-1 is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to lower the risk of worsening chronic kidney disease. The answer is, of course, “Ozempic,” which ultimately makes his win bittersweet.
The “Get a Mac” campaign was created by Apple’s ad agency TBWA\Media Arts Lab; 66 total spots aired from 2006 to 2009. In 2010, Adweek named it the best ad campaign of the 2000s for connecting technology to humanity. Now Novo Nordisk is hoping some of that magic can rub off.
The new campaign aims to reassert Ozempic’s brand equity in the public sphere as it faces business headwinds. It follows both layoffs and lower sales growth at the company, even as its U.S. competitor Eli Lilly is ascendent. The ad also drops shortly after Novo Nordisk’s other GLP-1, Wegovy, hit the market in pill form.
In such a competitive landscape, Novo Nordisk is working to make its brand name the standard. “There’s Only One Ozempic” plays up Ozempic’s unique selling proposition in a practical sense, as a solution to chronic kidney disease. But with a jingle based on the song “Magic” and a pair of actors remembered for selling computers, it’s also positioning its drug as the most desirable GLP-1.
Want more housing market stories from Lance Lamberts ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter.
Among the 24 price forecasts tracked by ResiClub in our final 2026 home price forecast roundup, the average prediction is a +1.43% increase in U.S. home prices in 2026.
Keep in mind that roundup mentioned above looks at forecasts for nationally aggregated home prices. On a regional and neighborhood basis, home price swings can vary greatly from the national figure. For example, on a year-over-year basis, U.S. home prices as measured by the Zillow Home Value Index are up +0.1%, while home prices in the Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, Connecticut metro area are up +4.6% and home prices in the Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, Texas metro area are down -6.0% during that same timeframe.
To better understand how regional home prices may vary in 2026, ResiClub reached out to economists at Zillowwhose forecast of U.S. home prices rising by +2.1% in calendar 2026 is slightly above the average modeland economists at Moodys Analyticswhose forecast of U.S. home prices rising by +0.8% in 2026 is slightly more bearish than the average modelto gather their metro-level home price forecasts.
Lets take a look at the metro-level forecasts.
window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}});
When we published our final roundup of national home price forecasts for 2026, Zillow was forecasting +1.2% for 2026; however, over the weekend they slightly upgraded that to +2.1%.
Zillow economists write the following:
With supply no longer as tight as it was during the pandemic, price gains are likely to stay modest. Buyers should see a bit more time and leverage when they shop, while sellers can still build equity, just at a slower pace than in past boom year(s) . . . Looking ahead, Zillow projects sales will strengthen in 2026 as mortgage rates trend lower and affordability improves. Existing home sales are forecast to reach 4.3 million next year, a 5.2% yearoveryear gain. After two slow years, the recovery is expected to be led by the Southeast and West, where demand is more ratesensitive and is starting to rebound as borrowing costs ease.
window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}});
The forecast by Moodys chief economist Mark Zandi has U.S. home prices, as measured by the Moody’s repeat sales index, rising just +0.8% in calendar year 2026, followed by +1.5% uptick in 2027.
When I recently reached out to Moodys Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi for his updated home price forecast, he said his long-term outlook for the U.S. housing market remains largely unchanged: He expects a prolonged period of stagnation as affordability gradually improves. Following the historic run-up in prices during the pandemic housing boom and the subsequent mortgage rate shock, Zandi believes resale activity/existing home sales will likely stay frozen for several more years.
Affordability has to be restored for housing to regain its mojo, Zandi told ResiClub a few months ago. Flat home prices [adjusted for inflation] is the healthiest path forwardits the only way for incomes to catch up.
Zandi expects nominal national home prices to move sideways over the next 12 to 18 months, with local variation: markets in the South and West, where building has been stronger, seeing some modest declines, while tight-inventory markets in the Northeast and Midwest remain more stable.
The worst of the pain in the housing market might be now and in the next six to nine months. After that, things will begin to feel a little betterbut not good, Zandi told ResiClub in October. The housing market will heal . . . but its going to take timeand a lot of patience.
Over the next decade, Zandi projects U.S. home prices will rise roughly in line with inflation, meaning no real [adjusted for inflation] house price gains for around 10 years.
We expect homes for sale to steadily increase as more existing homeowners need to sell for demographic reasonsdeath, divorce, children, job changeand lower mortgage rates help ease their interest rate lock. The [potentially] lower rates will also support housing demand, but the increase in housing supply will be even more significant, weighing on house price gains, Zandi tells ResiClub.
What is ResiClubs take?
The housing market is still working through a cyclical cooling phase, with many of the nations fastest-growing Sun Belt boomtowns undergoing a deeper recalibration after experiencing greater overheating during the pandemic housing boom. This adjustment period wont last forever, and the long-term growth fundamentalssuch as rising populationin many of these Southern markets remain attractive. However, in 2026, ResiClub believes the market is still within that normalization window (but weregetting closer to exiting it).
Broadly speaking, housing markets where inventory (i.e., active listings) has climbed well above pre-pandemic 2019 levels have experienced softer/weaker home price growth (or event outright declines) over the past 42 months since the pandemic housing boom fizzled out. Conversely, housing markets where inventory remains far below 2019 pre-pandemic levels have, generally speaking, experienced more resilient home price growth over the past 42 months.
Using active inventory/months of supply as a short-term guide, we expect the greatest pricing resilience in 2026 to be in Midwest and Northeast markets, while the greatest pricing softness is still likely in Gulf markets such as Austin and Punta Gorda, Florida. (I think both Zillow and Moodys are a little too optimistic about Southwest Florida in particular, which I believe is still in correction modealthough it is starting to create some interesting buying opportunities.)
Regardless of how regional inventory (see our latest monthly inventory update here) or regional home prices (see our latest monthly home price update here) perform in 2026, well be closely tracking the trends to keep you informed of any shifts.
In the world of business, we tend to believe that success is a direct result of talent, resources, and a “great idea.” We expect that if a company has a track record of dominance, like Google, Amazon, or Apple, they are a sure bet for the next big thing. Yet, the history of innovation is littered with the wreckage of unexpected flops launched by industry giants.
From the futuristic promise of the Segway to the early dominance of MySpace, these failures prove that even a massive war chest and a visionary concept cannot guarantee market survival. Here are some of the traps that companies fall into.
The ‘Solution in Search of a Problem’ Trap
One of the most common reasons for failure is based on “technology push” versus “market pull.” This happens when a company develops a sophisticated piece of technology and then hunts for a problem to solve, rather than starting with a genuine consumer need.
Google Glass is a fine example. Technically, it was a marvel, an engineering feat that brought augmented reality to a wearable form. However, Google failed to articulate why the average person needed it. It lacked a defined purpose. The device made people uncomfortable regarding privacy (the “Glasshole” effect), leading to it being banned in bars and theaters before it even hit mass-market shelves.
Similarly, the Segway was heralded by Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos as a revolution in urban transport that would “reshape cities.” But for the consumer, it was an expensive, bulky solution to a problem that didn’t exist. It was too fast for sidewalks and too slow for roads. It was a great idea in theory, but a failure in the real world.
The Arrogance of Success Trap
When a company is dominant in one field, it can become blind to its limitations. They try to force the approach of their successful core business into a completely different field.
Amazons Fire Phone failed because Amazon treated hardware like its retail platform. They packed the phone with “Dynamic Perspective” (a 3D effect) and “Firefly”a button to scan products to buy on Amazon. These were clever technical features, but they served Amazons needs more than the users. Users wanted a robust ecosystem of apps and a reliable interface; they didn’t want a shopping cart in their pocket. Amazons immense success in e-commerce blinded them to the specific needs of the smartphone market.
The ‘First Mover’ Trap
It is a common precept that being first to market is an advantage. However, Friendster and MySpace prove that being first is a double-edged sword. Friendster had the great idea of social networking long before Facebook. It failed because it couldn’t handle its own success. The servers crashed constantly, and the site became unusable. This technical failure allowed MySpace to take the lead. But MySpace eventually fell into the same trap: It became cluttered with ads and customizable profiles, failing to evolve its user experience as the audience matured. These companies didn’t fail because their ideas were bad. They failed because they couldn’t scale as demand grew.
The Timing Trap
Bill Gross has studied what makes some start-ups succeed and so many fail. He analyzed the histories of 200 startup companies and compared five factors: the idea, the team, the business model, the funding, and the timing. You can see him relate his findings in his Ted talk, The single biggest reason why start-ups succeed.
His findings were striking. The most important factor was timing, then the team, and then the idea. Many startup companies with great teams and innovative business ideas fail because the timing of their launch is unfortunate. And this can be down to luck.
The timing trap applies to big companies too. If you launch a product too early, you have to educate the market which is expensive. If you launch too late, youre fighting for scraps.
An idea might be great, but the world isn’t ready yet. For example, the online grocery business Webvan failed during the dot-com bubble (Webvan) because high-speed internet and mobile logistics weren’t mature. Twenty years later, the same idea is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Similarly, Google Glass might have succeeded today in an era of TikTok creators and remote assistance, but in 2013, the culture was far more sensitive to “always-on” cameras.
Is it Just Luck?
In his book The Black Swan, Nassim Taleb argues that we often underestimate the role of randomness in success. A sudden shift in the economy, a competitors unexpected move, or even a global pandemic can make a “great idea” look like a disaster, or a “mediocre idea” look like a stroke of genius.
Luck plays a role, but “luck” depends on preparation and timing. Successful companies that fail usually have the preparation but miss the timing. They are so focused on their internal roadmap that they lose sight of the external environment.
Lessons for Todays Leaders
These failed ventures can teach us some powerful lessons:
Solve a Real Problem: You should be able to explain the problem your product solves in one concise sentence. Leave out buzzwords like revolutionary, ground-breaking, or next-generation.
Social Context Matters: Technology does not exist in a vacuum. How will people feel when they use it? How will others feel around them?
Minimun Viable Product: Build a small cheap prototype or model and show it to discerning customers. Ask, Does it solve your problem? Would you pay money for it? What needs to change?
Kill The Losers: Successful companies often suffer from “sunk cost fallacy.” They keep pouring money into a failing venture because they are too proud to admit the “great idea” isn’t working.
Agility Over Ego: The ability to pivot is critical. When Slack found that their video games was a flop they switched to producing a communication tool.
A great idea is just a hypothesis. The failures of Google Glass, the Fire Phone, and the Segway teach us that the market is a harsh laboratory. Success requires more than just a breakthrough in engineering. It requires an alignment of cultural timing, user-centric design, and the humility to adapt when reality contradicts your vision. Even the giants can fall. It is vital to look at the world through the eyes of the user and stop admiring your own designsno matter how brilliant they appear.
The Tesla Cybertruck is the new Ford Edsel, taking the crown from one of the biggest flops in American car history.
Last year, the Cybertruck spiraled into market irrelevance while the rest of the EV market found its footing, as the pickup experienced the single biggest sales collapse of any electric vehicle in the United States.
Elon Musks flailing company managed to move only an estimated 20,237 Cybertrucks in 2025. And thats counting the units that Musk reportedly bought for himself through SpaceX and xAI to avoid further ridicule.
He had his private companies buy hundreds if not thousands of Cybertrucks, wrote Fred Lambert at EV blog Electrek. Thats an eye-popping 48.1% crash from the 39,000 units sold in 2024. Elon, seriously, stop this embarrassment and kill this polygonal joke already. I laughed at first but now its painful to watch.
To understand the magnitude of this failure, the all-electric Ford F-150 Lightningan EV pickup so unsuccessful that Ford officially ended its production in December 2025 to pivot to a new hybrid modelstill managed to humiliate Tesla from the grave. Ford sold 27,307 Lightnings in 2025, making it the best-selling EV pickup truck in America.
Both companies tried to buy their way out of trouble with heavy discounts and 0% financing offers. But while aggressive incentives helped Ford clear inventory and post growth, the same tactics failed to save the apocalypse-proof” pickup from becoming a sales armageddon. Think about that for a minute: A discontinued EV truck outsold the Tesla truck by nearly 7,000 units and got canceled. Come the truck on.
I already called the Cybertruck a flop, but the final sales tally is even worse than I imagined. Its officially the biggest flop in decades, according to Forbes. This is especially humiliating when Musk overpromised sales of 250,000 Cybertrucks annually by 2025. Tesla reached barely 8% of that target.
Cybertrucks at a Tesla dealership in October 2025 [Photo: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group/Getty Images]
Plenty of reasons for failure
The reason for the Cybertruck’s collapse isn’t a mystery. Its not the EV slump. It’s the inevitable result of shipping a beta product to customers as a finished vehicle, a design failure since its inception. The truck isn’t just ugly, its fundamentally broken. In 2025 alone, Tesla issued recalls covering a combined 115,912 Cybertrucksmore than double the number of recalls in 2024. That averages out to 318 recalls per day.
We are not talking about inconsequential software updates. These were dangerous, amateur-hour defects. The largest recall campaign involved 46,096 trucks that risked shedding their stainless-steel exterior trim while driving, turning the vehicle into a shrapnel grenade on the highway. Another 6,000 trucks were recalled because their optional light bars were attached with the wrong primer and could simply fall off. This follows a chronicle of disasters documented since Musk shattered the unshatterable pickups glass.
Weve seen the “stuck pedal” trap that locked accelerators at full throttle, critical system failures where owners drove a mere mile off the lot before the truck died with a “red screen of death,” losing steering and braking redundancy, and misaligned doors and uneven surfaces that Musk himself admitted in leaked emails stuck out like a sore thumb. That’s just a selection of this disaster on wheels.
As Adrian Clarkea professional car designer who now writes design critiques for the automobile publication The Autopiantold me when it was about to come out the factory line: The Cybertruck is a low-polygon joke that only exists in the fever dreams of Tesla fans that stands high on the smell of Elon Musks flatulences. Back then, Clarke also called out the terrible design choices that were going to lead to the bevy of manufacturing and quality problems, all part of the design and brand crisis that Tesla has been experiencing since 2023.
Bu there’s a third component that completes the Cybertruck’s failure trifecta: Musk’s former bromance with Donald Trump and his DOGE antics. Turns out not all press is good press, as these moves killed the Tesla brand perhaps more than the model stagnation, deadly car accidents, and mechanical failures. Musks political radicalization led many of Teslas existing customers to regret their purchases and potential clients to avoid them, both in the U.S. and abroad. As dealerships got torched and cars vandalized, the Cybertruck arguably became “America’s most hated car.
The 2025 sales figures just confirm what we have known for more than two years now. The Cybertruck is not the disruptor Musk sold to the world and Tesla shareholders. It is a finger-chopping brick that depreciates faster than used bridal dresses. An ugly failure that is doing nothing but draining resources and further damaging the brand’s reputation (if it still has one).
Its time to bury what’s already dead, Elon. The experiment is over. Sink this polygonal mess deep underground, along with all your failed promises, and call it a day.
Six years ago, Atari announced ambitious plans to build a gamer-themed hotel in Las Vegas, featuring an e-sports studio and a movie theater. The legacy video game companys management at the time saw hotels as a way to revitalize the brand’s name, which was largely a nostalgia play.
“I love the idea. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” said then-CEO Fred Chesnais. “I always wanted to make an amusement park, and hotels could be the first step.”
But now the company tells the Las Vegas Sun that the project has been shelved after “the deal didn’t come to fruition.” It’s the latest in a series of disappointments for Ataris lodging ambitions. Only one of what the company had hoped would be at least eight hotels across the U.S. is still in any stage of development. And construction has yet to begin on that project.
Chesnais bought Atari in 2013 for just 400 euros following the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing (inheriting with it a debt load of 34 million euros). But he was replaced as CEO in 2021 and formalized his exit from the company in 2022.
Despite his departure, the hotel plans pushed forward. Atari continued to look for potential land partners through 2024planning to make announcements in the first half of that yearbut was unable to secure a deal.
Other planned hotels in Austin, Chicago, Denver, San Francisco, San Jose, and Seattle also are no longer being discussed publicly and have shown no progress since the company first revealed those locations.
That leaves Phoenix, where Atari Hotels (now being run by Intersection Development) is still hoping to salvage at least part of the project. Originally expected to open in 2022, that location is now slated for a late-2028 grand opening, although even that date is hardly set in stone.
The developer is appealing to Atari fans to help pay for the project. A fundraising page for the Phoenix hotel says the facility has raised $14 million and secured land (for a project with a total development budget of $124 million). Participants can make a minimum investment of $500, for which they will be part of the hotel’s loyalty program. Those who cough up $50,000 will receive a physical brick in the gaming-area walkway of the hotel, the builders say. (A “digital brick” runs $25,000.)
Intersection aims to raise between $35 million and $40 million from investors as part of its next phase.
Atari never positioned the hotels, even the Las Vegas one, as casinos, though the investment deck does mention a “state-of-the-art sports betting arena with immersive screens and premium gaming experiences. Instead, it hoped to blend video games, music, and entertainment in an immersive, tech-heavy facility, with a rooftop pool and “sci-fi inspired rooms” being promised for the Phoenix location.
In recent years, hotels were just one of the ways Atari considered in its effort to revitalize the brand. In 2018, the company announced plans to launch its own cryptocurrencies: the Atari Token and the Pong Token. The company acquired a minority stake in Infinity Networks, which was developing a decentralized blockchain for digital entertainment platforms, and recruited Anthony Di Iorio, who cofounded Ethereum and Jaxx, to assist with the launch. The Atari Token peaked in 2021 at around 78 cents. Today, it trades for $0.0001935.
Founded by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in 1972, Atari has been bought and sold numerous times through the years, often balancing on the precipice of becoming nothing more than nostalgia. In its fiscal 2025 earnings report released in July, the company reported a 14 million euro loss. Half-year results for fiscal 2026, released in December of last year, showed a net loss of 6.4 million euros.
A few years ago, I discovered a tomato sauce recipe that was surprisingly simple: just canned tomatoes, butter, salt, and an onion. It inspired me to experiment, adding this and that each time to see how the flavor changed. Today, Id call myself an amateur sauce expert. I know exactly how long it needs to simmer, what shade of red signals its ready, and how to improvise with whatevers in the fridge.
As my kitchen exploits remind me, experimentation is part of learning. It wouldnt be the same if Id just asked ChatGPT how to make sauce each time. Id be outsourcing my culinary creativity and losing the teachable moments that come from trial and error.
As New Yorker writer Joshua Rothman observed, [I]ts becoming clear that artificial intelligence can relieve us of the burden of trying and trying again. A.I. systems make it trivially easy to take an existing thing and ask for a new iteration.
AI can boost creative thinkingor eliminate it entirely. As the CEO of a company built on automation, Ive found that the key is to treat AI as a creative collaborator, not a replacement.
Here are a few rules of thumb for striking the right balance.
1. Use AI for idea generationnot final decisions
When generative AI became widely available, a lot of hype swirled around its implications. Professionals, from knowledge workers to authors and beyond, feared that AI would take their jobs. AI seemed destined to keep improving, outpacing the skills and intelligence of its human counterparts.
More recently, the technologys limits have become more apparent. While AI tools remain powerful workplace tools, their progress is unlikely to be endlessly exponential. As Cal Newport notes, critics argue that the technology is important but not poised to radically transform our lives; it may not get dramatically better than it is today.
AI wont write the next great novel or compose symphonies to rival Bach. But it is an excellent brainstorming partner. Wharton professor Christian Terwiesch, who tested ChatGPTs idea generation against college students, explained: Its cheap. Its fast. Its good. Whats not to be liked? Worst case is you reject all of the ideas and run with your own. But our research speaks strongly to the fact that your idea pool will get better.
Let AI tools like ChatGPT help you generate more, better ideas. Start with your own thoughts, and use AI to generate alternatives. Then, apply your own human judgment to refine and select the best path forward.
Treat prompts like a conversation, not a command
One of the strengths of generative AI tools like ChatGPT is their conversational nature. Think of your first prompt as an icebreakerits just there to get the dialogue started.
While I recommend being as specific as possible, that is, giving the tool enough context to generate strong, accurate replies, you can always refine as you go. To offer a visual, imagine your dialogue with AI as a funnel: wide at the top and narrowing as you move toward the bottom.
You might start by asking ChatGPT to generate ideas for a marketing campaign. Once it produces a list, ask it to refine those ideas for a specific target audiencesay, tech entrepreneurs in their 20s to 40s, or suburban parents.
Keep iterating until you land on the output that works best for you.
Create space for experimentation
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it certainly wont kill your company. In fact, a healthy sense of curiosity among employees will strengthen it. Research-backed benefits include boosted innovation, reduced group conflict, fewer decision-making errors, and improved communication.
While leaders often claim to value curiosity, they tend to stifle it, preferring that employees stay within the lines. Instead, leaders should give employees the freedom to explore. Build enough slack into their schedules so they can test and tinker with AI tools without the pressure to prove immediate ROI. Lead by example: Share your own experimentswhether its trying a new AI feature or recounting an automation gone awry. Getting it wrong can be valuable, too.
Ask for employee feedback to uncover what theyre curious about: new systems or tools theyd like to try, or better ways the company could operate. It might feel inefficient, like a misuse of employee time and effort, but in the AI era, staying competitive depends on curiosity and experimentation. Like a chef giving their team full access to the kitchen, leaders must create workplaces where both creativity and experimentation can thrive.
As we move into 2026, it’s time to examine the subtle behaviors that undermine our professional impact. As someone who works with mid- to senior-level leaders, I see and hear the ways in which communication behaviors and patterns get in their way. Small changes can create influential outcomes!
Here are three critical habits to eliminate if you want to project true confidence and gravitas.
Breaking these three habits isn’t about becoming someone you’re notit’s about removing the barriers between your capabilities and how others perceive them. True executive presence combines confident delivery with substantive content, and that starts with eliminating the small behaviors that undermine your authority.
1. Using Passive and Tentative Language
The Habit: Softening your statements with phrases like “I think maybe we could consider . . .” or “The report was completed by the team” instead of owning your ideas and actions.
Why It Matters: Tentative language signals uncertainty, even when you’re confident in your position. Passive voice distances you from your accomplishments and makes your contributions invisible.
Break It: Replace hedging language with direct statements. Say “I recommend this strategy” instead of “I think this could work.” Use active voice: “I led the initiative” rather than “The initiative was led.” This shift isn’t about arroganceit’s about clarity and ownership.
2. Relying on Verbal Fillers and Rushed Responses
The Habit: Punctuating your speech with “uh,” “um,” “like,” and “you know,” or immediately jumping to answer questions without pausing to think.
Why It Matters: Verbal fillers make you appear unprepared or nervous, undermining your credibility. Rushing to respond can make you seem reactive rather than thoughtful, and it robs you of the power that silence provides.
Break It: Practice embracing pauses. When asked a question, take a breath before respondingthis demonstrates that you’re considering the question seriously. During presentations, pause after making an important point. That brief silence creates emphasis and gives your audience time to absorb what you’ve said. The discomfort you feel in silence is temporary; the authority you project is lasting.
3. Neglecting Nonverbal Communication
The Habit: Being unaware of how you enter spaces, sit, stand, gesture, or control your facial expressionsessentially letting your body language happen unconsciously.
Why It Matters: Your body speaks before you do. How you walk into a room, whether you slouch in your chair, fidget during difficult conversations, or fail to make appropriate eye contact all send powerful messages about your confidence and composure. You can have brilliant ideas, but if your nonverbal cues signal discomfort or uncertainty, your message loses impact.
Break It: Become intentional about your physical presence. Notice how you enter meetingswalk with purpose, not hurried but not hesitant. Pay attention to your posture when sitting or standing; it should convey engagement and authority. Use gestures deliberately to reinforce your message rather than as nervous habits. Master your facial expressions so they remain appropriate and controlled even under pressure. Practice using space confidently, whether at a conference table or presenting to a group.
The Path Forward
Executive presence develops continuously throughout your career. Each email you send, every videoconference you lead, and all the presentations you deliver are opportunities to practice these principles. Focus on crafting messages that are organized, clear, concise, audience-centered, and compelling. Master your vocal deliverytone, volume, pitch, articulation, and pacing all add meaning to your words.
Remember: confidence can be quiet. It’s not about being the loudest voice in the room, but about projecting self-assurance, composure, and poise. Gravitas comes from conveying dignity and substance, not from dominating every conversation.
As you break these three habits in 2026, you’ll find that your voice carries more weight, your ideas gain traction more easily, and your leadership presence strengthens naturally. The goal isn’t perfectionit’s progress toward communicating with the clarity and conviction that marks an effective leader.
From greater flexibility to a sense of ownership and the hope of financial gain, solopreneurship feels like the new American dream. However, there’s a hidden cost to that dream that has nothing to do with the unending hustle that comes with being both a business owner and that business’s sole employee. It’s the undeniable cost to the planet.
In 2025, about 41 million businesses in the U.S. were run by a sole individual who is both its owner and only employee. As AI allows for solopreneurs to automate a growing number of tasks, the technology is enabling small businessesfrom gigs like content creation to event planner or even niche work like dog grooming or jewelry making, and moreto absolutely thrive with a team of only one. Therefore, while an individual with an idea may have needed an entire team to turn that idea into real cash flow in the past, it’s now completely feasible (and massively popular) to do so with the help of AI.
That’s true for solopreneur Dan Mazei, who was formerly communications and marketing leader for organizations like Reebok, Tinder, Activision Blizzard, and Ford, and a long-time agency leader for major clients like Nintendo and Unilever. Now, Mazei runs his own business as the founder and principal of All Tangled Roots, a marketing consultancy for brands, with the help of AI. Mazei tells Fast Company that AI is crucial to his business model, as it can “level the playing field for a solo service provider against a sea of heavily staffed agencies” that are doing the same kind of work.
That same is true for Samantha Levitin, a solopreneur and founder of Levitin Collective, a boutique PR firm working across lifestyle, wellness, hospitality, and consumer brands, in NYC. (She’s also a new mom to a 15-month-old baby.) Levitin says that AI enables her to manage the dreaded mental load that comes with running a business while being a parent. “Starting my own firm meant knowing Id be doing everything myself, and AI helped fill gaps that would normally require a small team, which I was used to,” Levitin says.
The solopreneur adds that she began building her business while on maternity leave, and, ultimately, it’s given her both “flexibility and balance.” She says, “I intentionally designed the firm to be small . . . and AI gives me back time and mental space so I can focus on what matters most in my field: creative thinking, relationship building, and hands-on client work.”
Still, we can’t talk about AI’s incredible power to turn dreams into reality without talking about the cost. While there are many challenges that may come from running a business made up of onesuch as working around the clock, or the significant financial risksthere are also clear environmental costs which are largely being ignored.
According to a 2024 MIT report on the environmental impact of AI, the energy demands that come from both training and using AI are massive and growing all the time. In North America, electricity requirements increased from 2,688 megawatts at the end of 2022 to 5,341 megawatts by the following year, mostly due to the growing demand for generative AI. And experts worry we simply aren’t concerned enough about that stark reality.
Noman Bashir, lead author of the environmental impact paper, and a Computing and Climate Impact Fellow at MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium (MCSC) and a postdoc in the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), says, per MIT, that the impact is massive but “everyday user doesnt think too much about that.” According to Bashir, the reason is two-fold. The ease of use of generative AI interfaces and the lack of information about the environmental impacts of my actions means that, as a user, I dont have much incentive to cut back on my use of generative AI,” Bashir explains.
Jonathan Schaeffer, an AI researcher and CEO of a startup called Kind, agrees. Schaefer tells Fast Company that not enough attention is being paid to the hidden environmental costs of the widespread technology. AI tools can significantly increase the energy consumption involved, particularly from the massive data centers required to support cloud-based AI systems, the CEO explains. These data centers, housing thousands of servers running AI models, consume large amounts of electricity, much of which is still sourced from nonrenewable resources, contributing significantly to carbon emissions.
Schaefer adds that the technology also comes with a hidden financial cost that most people dont realize they may end up paying for themselves. In many jurisdictions, the capacity to feed these data centers contributes to a significant increase in the price of electricity, a cost that is often passed on to consumers.
Moreover, the CEO says that data centers require more than energy to operate, but “they also need cooling systems to prevent overheating” which would increase their environmental footprint further. According to Bloomberg, which analyzed data from DC Byte, electricity costs in areas located near significant data center activity rose 267% over a month when compared to data from five years earlier.
Kevin Gast, cofounder and CEO of VVater, a next-generation water treatment company dedicated to using advanced technologies to address global water challenges, is mostly concerned with the pace at which AI is moving. “When you multiply millions of daily AI interactions across businesses worldwide, you’re looking at a significant environmental load that most people simply aren’t aware of,” Gast tells Fast Company. “Data centers are already using billions of gallons (of water) annually, and as AI becomes more embedded in everyday business operations, that demand is only accelerating. We’re seeing increased pressure on freshwater resources in certain regions, especially where facilities overlap with areas already managing water.” According to a 2025 global study from Arizona State University, freshwater resources have been drying up since 2002 at an unprecedented rate.
On the bright side, Gast says solutions are being developed almost as quickly. “We’re seeing serious investment in closed-loop water recycling systems, advanced treatment technologies, and strategic facility placement in regions with better water availability and natural cooling climates.” He continues, The challenge now is accelerating that progress to keep pace with how quickly AI is being adopted across every sector.”
While more and more individuals are certainly turning to AI to run their businesses, that doesn’t mean they aren’t all totally in the dark about its impact. Mazei says that, on a human level, he’s cautious of big tech’s “overreach”, such as “potentially integrating someone else̵s code into our most personal choices.” Still, the solopreneur credits the technology with helping him “choose a professional path that he didn’t believe was viable just a few short years ago.”
As the cost of living continues to soar, and even talented and driven professionals struggle to find well-paying jobs, solopreneurship may find that putting aside their concern for the environment is a small price to pay for making good on the American dream that feels otherwise hard to come by.
