Business
/ArcaMax

Auto review: 2023 Genesis G80 gets electrified
As upscale brand, Genesis still tries to squeeze as much out of the review pie as possible, they deliver to Grasso’s Garage their Electrified G80 AWD.
Back in 2021, we reviewed the G80 and were very impressed with the overall stature, aesthetics and comfort while noting a price tag “cheaper than the rest.” Well, well, well, some good ...Read more

Gaming platform Roblox fails to protect child gamers from predators, sexual content, lawsuit claims
After Quisha Smith allowed her young daughter to open an account on the hugely popular Roblox gaming platform, she was surprised to see that when the girl went into a bathroom in a role-playing game, someone asked her to take off her pants, Smith alleges in a lawsuit against the company.
Roblox claims more than 66 million daily users globally, ...Read more

Casey Williams: 10 books every automobile enthusiast should read
I have a deep library at home that I’ve accumulated over decades to feed my interest in all things automotive. From personal memoirs of rock stars to accounts of industry-changing research, safety advocacy, giant-slaying upstarts, epic marketing mistakes, and even mid-century style, here are 10 books I treasure and recommend for true ...Read more

Auto review: 2024 Genesis GV60 EV is a brilliant all-rounder
The old saying that you don’t get something for nothing is apropos when talking about electric vehicles.
While EVs lack tailpipe emissions, their batteries store electricity generated elsewhere that pollutes. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 60.2% of all U.S. electric generation in 2022 was from fossil fuels, and ...Read more
AI is likely to create more jobs than it kills
Artificial intelligence holds far-reaching consequences for modern economies. Many of the jobs we are asked to do will change; a lot of them might disappear altogether. Facing this existential upheaval, experts advise that smart AI regulation will be needed — well, who could object to smart regulation? But the forms it should take, its methods...Read more

US labor market defies slowdown forecasts in broad strengthening
The U.S. labor market unexpectedly strengthened in November with pickups in employment and wages, deflating bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates early next year.
Nonfarm payrolls increased 199,000 last month following a 150,000 advance in October, a Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed Friday. The return of striking auto workers...Read more

Michael Hiltzik: The war on 'junk fees' is gaining ground, but the fight is not yet won
"I talk to a lot of of banks," Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pennsylvania, told Rohit Chopra, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, "and they're really not happy with your agency."
He urged Chopra to "be responsive to the clientele you're supposed to be helping."
With admirable restraint, Chopra replied: "Just to be clear, the clientele ...Read more

The new Motor City? California is home to the 21st century auto startup boom
LOS ANGELES — On a sunny afternoon this fall, automotive engineers and marketers with Mullen Automotive welcomed new customers to check out a fleet of brands, including SUVs, utility trucks and a sports car. The customers got test rides with experts and a look at future products.
But the startup automaker isn’t located in Motor City, ...Read more

Liam Denning: Musk's Cyberbeast has a weight problem
Among the Tesla Cybertruck’s unusual selling points, such as stopping various projectiles, is this one:
If you're ever in an argument with another car, you will win.
That was Elon Musk talking tough at the launch of Tesla Inc.’s latest model. While any autos executive will talk up safety specs, framing a crash as a contest to be won or ...Read more

Auto review: Family Thanksgiving in the 3-row Acura MDX Type S
DETROIT — Dinner in Motown, Wings game, paddle tennis, shopping, Bocce ball, dinner, snow, snow and let it snow. Just your typical jam-packed Thanksgiving weekend for the Payne family six-pack of mom, dad, two boys and their wives.
Good thing we had a three-row, six-seat SUV to negotiate it all.
This week’s test mule was a 2024 Acura MDX ...Read more

Jeff Bezos to sell a Seattle-area property, reports say
Billionaire Jeff Bezos, who recently announced his plans to move to Miami, is looking to offload at least one of his Seattle-area homes, according to media reports and property listings.
The Amazon founder owns a 4,300-square-foot, five-bedroom home in the Eastside town of Yarrow Point currently listed for nearly $4.4 million, Business Insider ...Read more

Five big takeaways from Sam Altman's conversation with Trevor Noah
When Sam Altman was abruptly fired last month as CEO of artificial intelligence powerhouse OpenAI, the rupture left him with a lot of thinking to do.
But looking back on the experience, Altman told comedian Trevor Noah in a video podcast released Thursday morning, there may have been some upside.
"The empathy I gained out of this whole ...Read more

Congressional watchdog: Stop paying big farmers' crop insurance
A new report from a congressional watchdog calls out subsidies for crop insurance to more than 1,000 of the nation's largest farmers as a waste of taxpayer money.
The Government Accountability Office, an independent, nonpartisan oversight agency, published a 73-page report this week highlighting that some of the $17.3 billion the federal ...Read more
California may require homeowners to replace broken A/C units with heat pumps starting in 2026
California may require homeowners to replace their broken air conditioning units with heat pumps or more efficient HVAC systems beginning in 2026, draft rules released last month by state energy regulators show.
Encouraging the adoption of heat pumps, which both cool and heat homes using electricity, is key to the state’s carbon neutrality ...Read more

Santa Cruz plans high-rise living as a fix for sky-high housing costs -- and meets opposition
You can sense it in the ubiquitous "Help Wanted" posters in artsy shops and restaurants, in the ranks of university students living out of their cars and in the outsize percentage of locals camping on the streets.
This seaside county known for its windswept beauty and easy living is in the midst of one of the most serious housing crises ...Read more

Here's how many jobs LA lost during the Hollywood strikes
Entertainment employment in the greater Los Angeles area took a big hit during the writers' and actors' strikes, according to a study released Thursday by the Otis College of Art and Design in conjunction with Westwood Economics and Planning Associates.
But the strikes were not the only causes of the contraction, the report found.
The study �...Read more
Minneapolis Fed survey predicts tough times ahead for commercial and residential developers
A new survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis shows deepening concerns about the health of residential and commercial construction companies in the Fed's six-state region, while companies that build industrial and infrastructure projects are more optimistic.
Across all sectors, however, the industry is seeing some improvements as ...Read more

Conor Sen: Frustrated homebuyers are about to catch a break
Homebuyers have suffered some severe whiplash in recent months. After all, when mortgage rates hit 8% in late October, it was reasonable to think the housing market would stay on ice throughout the winter. The move cemented a narrative of negativity about poor affordability and homeowners with low-rate loans being unwilling to sell. Seven weeks ...Read more
UAW hits major threshold in organizing drive at Volkswagen in Tennessee
More than 30% of Volkswagen AG workers at the German automaker's only U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tenn., have signed union authorization cards in less than a week, the United Auto Workers said in a news release Thursday.
That includes more than 1,000 workers, according to the union, which last week formally launched a campaign to organize ...Read more

Black-trimmed homes, tiny libraries and other signs your neighborhood is about to be gentrified
LOS ANGELES — A shift in demographics. Affordable apartments transformed into luxury condos. A coffee shop called something like "Brew Slut."
The signs of gentrification take many forms. A newly opened art gallery can serve both as a communal space and a harbinger of the displacement to come. Remodeled homes might boost a street's curb appeal...Read more
Popular Stories
- The new Motor City? California is home to the 21st century auto startup boom
- Black-trimmed homes, tiny libraries and other signs your neighborhood is about to be gentrified
- Five big takeaways from Sam Altman's conversation with Trevor Noah
- Santa Cruz plans high-rise living as a fix for sky-high housing costs -- and meets opposition
- Inside Amazon warehouses, workers worry about risk of unsafe chemicals