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A few presenters at this years Oscars made jokes at Donald Trumps expense, without ever mentioning him by name. The real rebuke to the president, howeverand to some other aspects of our current momentcame from genuine displays of humility in the winners speeches. Although an actors livelihood literally depends on faking emotions, most of last nights winners appeared truly humbled by their victory, and grateful to those who helped them achieve it. Taken together over the 3.5-hour broadcast, they created a perfect contrast to a government and tech sector whose gauche displays of dominance feel as unwelcome as they are unearned. Trumps grotesquely narcissistic self-regard may have been more jarring back when he first became president. He seemed to embody every quality that parents tend to dissuade their children from adoptingconstantly boasting about his own qualities and accomplishments, real or imagined. In 2026, the consequences and limits of his notorious, self-aggrandizing vanity are now on shameful display for the entire world. After recklessly rushing into war with Iran, and declaring victory at every shaky turn, he is trying desperately to strongarm allies into joining his conquest, rather than even attempting to entreat or inspire them. Paul Thomas Anderson backstage during the live 98th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 15, 2026. [Photo: Etienne Laurent / The Academy] Beyond this administration, the AI industry is similarly dripping with arrogance. The executives pushing the techs inherent utility in every aspect of modern life seem to have never considered, for instance, polling that shows widespread deep reservations about it. Instead, they plow forward, with an air of gruesome inevitability, dragging the hesitant masses along whether they like it or not. Given that nihilistic egotism is now as common as the data-center-polluted air we breathe, it was refreshing this week to see a class of Oscar winners with such clearly articulated appreciation of community, legacy, and the fact that pride should ideally be deserved and respectful. Autumn Durald Arkapaw accepts the Oscar for Cinematography during the 98th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 15, 2026. [Photo: Etienne Laurent / The Academy] In it together You make a guy work hard for one of these, One Battle After Another director Paul Thomas Anderson said upon winning an award for Best Director, his second Oscar of the night. (He would ultimately accept a third, for Best Picture.) That line referred to Andersons prior dearth of Oscars, despite having been an acclaimed director and recurring nominee for the past 30 years. Apart from making one mild joke about the long, strange path to victory, though, Andersons speeches emphasized his gratitude, with his strained voice and constant fidgeting suggesting he wasnt just paying lip service. In contrast with a certain someone who forever grumbles about not getting a Nobel Peace Prize, he betrayed zero bitterness about being passed over in the past. Elsewhere, he stressed the community aspect of filmmaking. Anderson recognized all of his collaborators, ceding the spotlight to his producer, Sarah Murphy, to make a speech after winning Best Picture together. He was especially a class act, though, when it came to his competitors, whom he counted as worthy peers. During his acceptance speech for that final award, Anderson used a moment in movie history to laud the directors hed just beaten out for it, waving away his own films supposed superiority. I just want to say that in 1975, the Oscar nominees for best picture were Dog Day Afternoon, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Jaws, Nashville, and Barry Lyndon, the filmmaker said. There is no best among them. There is just what the mood might be that day. ZHUN, EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, and NHD pose backstage with the Oscar for Original Song during the live ABC Telecast of the 98th Oscars at Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 15, 2026. [Photo: Etienne Laurent / The Academy] What we owe history Another first-time winner, Michael B. Jordan, was similarly magnanimous when accepting a Best Actor award for his performance in Sinners, the nights other front runner. He thanked his parents, his collagues, the executives who green lit the movie, the audiences who loved it, and the voters who voted for it. But he also placed himself humbly as the inheritor of a legacy. Michael B. Jordan backstage during the live 98th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 15, 2026. [Photo: Etienne Laurent / The Academy] I stand here because of the people that came before me, Jordan said, before listing six prominent Black actors who had previously won Oscars. To be up amongst those giants, amongst those greats, amongst my ancestors, amongst my guysthank you to everybody in this room for supporting me in my career. While Jordan appeared touched at becoming part of that cinematic lineage, Autumn Durald Arkapaw reflected the honor of starting a new one. Earlier in the night, the Sinners cinematographer became the first woman ever to win in that categoryand made the victory about something bigger than herself. During her acceptance speech, Arkapaw asked every woman in the audience to stand up, because I feel like I don’t get here without you guys. Needless to say, they largely complied. Compare this groundbreaking winners appreciation of her place in history with that of, say, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, who recently boasted of having zero introspection because, Ive found that people who dwell on the past get stuck in the past. All the wrong people have impostor syndrome In an era when the people who might benefit most from a crisis of confidence never seem to have one, its nice to see public figures celebrate themselves appropriately. Perhaps the prime example at this years Oscars was K-pop star EJAE, one of the artists behind Best Original Song winner, Golden. Despite the tracks enormous success prior to the Oscarsif youre the parent of a young child, you probably hum this tune in your sleepthe songwriter looked shocked into utter disbelief as she slowly glided to the stage. Once she arrived there, however, as the enormity of her achievement seemed to sink in, she began to exult in her triumph. But modestly so. Growing up, people made fun of me for liking K-pop, she said through tears, but now everyone’s singing our song and all the Korean lyrics. I’m so proud! As if humility werent sufficiently on display at the Oscars, it seems worth noting that one of the least humble nominees did not win. Timothée Chalamet, who has been upfront throughout this awards season about his desire to be recognized as one of the greats, walked away without an Oscar for his performance in Marty Supremedespite having been considered a mortal lock for the award earlier in the Oscar race. Who said theres no such thing as a Hollywood ending? One of the main functions of movies is to offer escapism, a chance for viewers to nope out of their own lives for a while and visit another world. Last nights Oscars broadcast did the same thing, in its own way. The winners offered viewers a brief but glorious escape from a moment in time when arrogance is rewarded and humility is for suckers.
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E-Commerce
A new research note just named Waymo the Kool-Aid man of the ride-haling economy. And it might leave Uber, Lyft, and Tesla playing catchup. The study, published on March 16 by Wall Street research firm MoffettNathanson, is a 21-page exploration into how Alphabet’s self-driving car company is poised to disrupt the existing ride-sharing landscape as it continues to aggressively scale. Waymos incursion into the U.S. rideshare narrative reminds us of the Kool-Aid commercials from our childhood, the analysis begins. The Kool-Aid man kicks down walls, causes havoc, screams oh yeah, and runs off into the next scene. In the case of Waymo, it continues, theyre kicking down the walls of an entrenched industry, wreaking terror on the multiples, and then running off to the next city announcement. The analysts demonstrate that Waymo has amassed a major head start against other players in the autonomous vehicle (AV) space, and is beginning to pose a competitive threat to Uber and Lyft, which currently corner the market on ride-haling in the United States. Meanwhile, the researchers argue, Waymos expansion in multiple major cities is leaving Teslas self-driving efforts in the dust, casting doubt on whether Elon Musk’s EV company will ever be able to compete in an industry its been desperate to enter. Whats next for Waymo? Waymo had a big year in 2025, and MoffettNathansons researchers believe that the companys upward trajectory is only getting started. In early 2025, Waymo was fully operational in five U.S. cities. By early 2026, the company had expanded its reach to active operations in 10 U.S. cities and was testing its services in at least 19 other locations. According to MoffettNathansons analysis, the company expanded its total share of the ride-hailing economy from 0.2% to 0.8% over the course of 2025, reaching a total of 450,000 weekly rides by the end of the year. While those numbers are still relatively small, they forecast an upcoming shift in the industry as driverless tech expands. MoffettNathanson predicts that Waymos total rides will grow by over 100% in 2026 to 34 million, in line with the companys stated goal to end 2025 with a rate of 1 million trips per week. If those estimates prove accurate, Waymo could snag 1.2% of the rideshare market by the end of 2026 and 4% by the end of 2028an outlook that MoffettNathansons analysts say they do not consider to be overly optimistic. What this means for Uber and Lyft Waymos projected expansion leaves competitors like Uber and Lyft in a bit of a tricky position. Waymo and Uber have partnered together to bring Waymos robo-taxi services to Austin, Atlanta, and Phoenix. MoffettNathanson notes that the partnership has been promising, but the researchers said “we would be surprised” if it were to keep expanding, given Waymo’s head start in self-driving and its success in San Francisco. Essentially, Waymo is in a unique position as one of the only current players in the AV industry that’s scaling broadly (aside, perhaps, from Amazon’s Zoox, which is growing on a much smaller scale), leaving Uber with limited chips to bargain with. Further, MoffettNathansons analysis notes that Waymo announced its plans to independently test in new locations. Where Tesla stands in the AV race Meanwhile, MoffettNathanson’s analysis essentially writes Tesla out of the AV ride-share competition. Tesla first launched its own robotaxi services in Austin in June 2025 and in the San Francisco Bay Area in July. For years, CEO Elon Musk has been touting the companys autonomous driving goals as an inevitable futureand those goals became even more important to the company amidst a catastrophically difficult year for Tesla in 2025 and Waymos expanding success in the market. However, as Fast Company has reported, Teslas robo-taxi aspirations currently seem more like a pipe dream than a reality. Whereas Waymo operates driverless vehicles in multiple major cities, almost all of Teslas first robo-taxis launched with human drivers at the wheel, presumably as an added safety measure. We acknowledge the potential of the companys [full self-driving] technology, but until Tesla is consistently operating at scale without a human in the car and without accident rates above humans, we believe robotaxis market share impact will be limited, MoffettNathansons analysis reads.
Category:
E-Commerce
Nearly 4,000 workers at a Colorado meatpacking plant went on strike on Monday, marking the first labor strike at a U.S. slaughterhouse in more than four decades. The strike began early Monday morning at the Swift Beef Co. plant, which is owned by JBS USA, a subsidiary of the largest meatpacking company and protein producer in the world. About 3,800 workers, represented by United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7, are involved in the strike. The union says that the company has committed multiple unfair labor practicesincluding retaliation against workers, threats to withhold bonuses or pension payments if workers strike, and intimidation. The Colorado action is the first at a U.S. slaughterhouse since workers went on strike at a Hormel plant in Minnesota in 1985, which ended up lasting for more than a year. JBS has also charged workers to offset the costs of safety equipment, has proposed wage increases of less than 2% per year, and has raised health care premiums in a way that workers say is consuming their wages as the general cost of living rises, the union says. In a statement to Fast Company, JBS says its Greeley, Colorado, location complies fully with all federal and state labor and employment laws, and that it is committed to open communication with workers and to safe operations. What’s the beef? The union and JBS have been negotiating a new contract for nine months. In February, 99% of union members voted to authorize a strike; the previous contract expired Sunday night. They continue to increase chain speeds and create dangerous working conditions, all while reducing hours for workers, Leticia Avalos, a JBS worker, said in a statement in early February. Safety conditions are a big concern for such workers. Meatpacking is considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the country. At poultry, beef, and pork processing plants, workers are exposed to dangerous equipment, slippery floors, and biological hazards related to feces and blood; they can even breathe in bacteria from infected animals or be exposed through cuts. Despite these conditions, labor disputes in the industry are rare. Union workers say thats because such plants often rely on vulnerable workers like refugees and immigrantsincluding those who are undocumented, who make up anywhere from 30% to 50% of the meatpacking workforce. The industry hasnt had a labor dispute for a very long time, and its because they hire a very vulnerable workforce and the expectations are they keep their head down, Kim Cordova, president of UFCW Local 7, told The Guardian. Theyre doing the work, frankly, no one in this country wants to do. Cordova also suggests the company has been emboldened by the Trump administration. Pilgrims Pride, a subsidiary of the JBS conglomerate, donated $5 million to the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committeewhich is more, Sen. Elizabeth Warrens office noted, than contributions from Apples CEO plus Amazon, Meta, and Google combined. Meat prices are soaring in 2026 In the background of the strike is the fact that U.S. meat prices are skyrocketing. In December 2025, prices for beef in particular were up 15% year over year, and those prices have continued to rise nearly 7% so far in 2026. Experts say those increases are affected by overall inflation, a parasitic fly crisis in Mexico, and the fact that the U.S. cattle herd is at a 75-year low. Its not yet clear if the strike will affect those prices even more. A JBS spokesperson said the company is adjusting production across its network in order to minimize disruptions.
Category:
E-Commerce
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