The Craigslist founder is speaking out in favor of the Giving Pledge. He tells @forbes.com he thought it would be “funny” to publish an op-ed telling billionaires to “pony up some dough”:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Jeffrey #Epstein had access to tech billionaires like Thiel and Musk. But he walked away from deals with major startups—including Spotify & SpaceX—that could have netted him hundreds of millions in total.
Deep dive from @iainmartin.bsky.social + me for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
2/3. Experts told us the sums they supposedly paid for estate planning services were unusually high.
Some of the contract language is also “suspicious,” one said. “It sounds like something nowadays you’d plug into AI and say, ‘Can you make up some BS for me?’”
1/3. @giacomotognini.bsky.social and I have uncovered two new billionaire clients of Epstein’s in the latest batch of files: real estate mogul Mortimer Zuckerman and Ariane de Rothschild, heir by marriage to the Rothschild banking fortune.
The DOJ’s new Epstein files release shows that billionaire Gordon Getty both had a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and allegedly brushed off his crimes: “well, we ALL have similar kinds of problems.”
Read more in my latest for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
New nonprofit tax filings have been released showing that Bill Gates gave $2 billion more than previously known to his ex-wife Melinda's foundations, I report for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Trump's new FTC pick has advocated for "country of origin" disclosure rules for over a year, so we have a good idea of what he'd push for if confirmed.
David MacNeil would be the 12th known billionaire/billionaire's spouse in Trump's admin. My profile for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Your medical data is more vulnerable than you might think.
A new lawsuit from healthcare software giant Epic is shining a light on systemic issues with how patient records are transferred between providers.
My latest for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Interesting twist: Melinda French-Gates gave about five times as much to the Gates Foundation last year as her ex Bill Gates did, reports @mhunterhart.bsky.social for @forbes.com based on newly released filings #philanthropy www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Billionaire Gordon Getty has never spoken out about Trump publicly—but privately called him a possible psychopath, emails in the Epstein release show:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Great BI story on this quietly exploding industry.
"As the megarich have multiplied, so too have their mansions, planes, and yachts that need to be staffed."
For many, that's a "lucrative alternative to climbing an increasingly wobbly corporate ladder."
www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-billio...
3/3 In the wake of the company's most profitable quarter yet, and of cofounder and CEO Steve Huffman becoming a billionaire, I took a look at how Reddit’s business model has evolved over time and how the platform is alternately fighting and embracing the AI age:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
2/3 All of this is because authentic human content — Reddit’s specialty — is an increasingly hot commodity. AI companies need troves of it to train their models. And as bots and sponsored content crowd the internet, Reddit’s recommendations are seen as more reliable.
1/3 Reddit’s popularity has exploded in recent years.
Daily users have approximately doubled since the summer of 2023. It’s become one of the top sources cited by AI chatbots. And organic search to the platform has skyrocketed (you may have noticed more Reddit results when you Google these days).
@forbes.com mgt, led by CEO Sherry Phillips and CCO Randall Lane, have proposed 1.25% annual bumps for staff, not even keeping up with inflation--when many in the newsroom go YEARS without a raise. #journalismjobs @nyguild.bsky.social
2/2 Edwin Chen worries that AI models are too often optimized to send users down "delusional rabbit holes." He thinks artificial general intelligence is still 20 years away. And he hired a drummer with no tech experience as his 5th employee. My kinda guy. Give it a read!
1/2 Amazing story from my colleague @pheebini.bsky.social about the CEO & founder of Surge AI, which is generating more revenue than any other AI company focused on data labeling (labeling = a crucial step in the process of training AI models).
www.forbes.com/sites/phoebe...
Jared Kushner has cofounded an AI startup, Brain Co, with VC Elad Gil and Luis Videgaray, the former Mexican foreign minister, to help corporates and government deploy AI www.forbes.com/sites/giacom...
The sale dooms the nationwide 5G mobile network he'd promised, and with it hopes of a more competitive cell service market anytime soon.
It also means the end of some cutting-edge software EchoStar had been developing. (2/3)
It's a great week for telecom billionaire Charles Ergen.
His company EchoStar announced it would sell spectrum to AT&T. Its stock soared and his wealth more than doubled.
But the consequences for consumers are more complicated. (1/3)
The sale dooms the nationwide 5G mobile network he'd promised, and with it hopes of a more competitive cell service market anytime soon.
It also means the end of some cutting-edge software EchoStar had been developing. (2/3)
Here's the story, out today from me and my incredible former colleague @jemimamcevoy.bsky.social — her last story with @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
Pierson—who portrays herself as an advocate for women and for mental health—berates her mostly-female staff, often sending employees to tears.
“There was this culture of Danny having two personalities,” says an ex-worker. “One was online, and with us she was different.” (3/4)
But not all is as it seems.
A Forbes investigation reveals that Pierson has been exaggerating revenue, subscriber, and other numbers for years. Her masterful self-promotion and hyperbole have helped her attract ever more investors, partners, and elite friends. (2/4)
Daniella Pierson appears to embody success. She’s started four companies, one with Selena Gomez. She shows off a luxurious lifestyle and celebrity friend network on social media. Forbes even called Pierson one of the richest women of color in the U.S. in 2022, pegging her net worth at $220m. (1/4)
3/ In my latest story for @forbes.com, I dig into the real reasons for Wayfarer’s closure — and the impact it’s having on the foundation’s nonprofit grantees:
www.forbes.com/sites/monica...
2/ At the time, many outlets reported that the shutdown was motivated by financial difficulties. But my reporting indicates otherwise.
