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Greetings N2K reader!

Lisa Horn won this week’s world famous News Haiku™ competition about the last ever penny being produced.

Here’s your congratulatory gif, Lisa:

This week’s world famous News Haiku™ competition is about things to be genuinely thankful for this Thanksgiving. Send me your entry — to our spiffy new email address, haiku at cheddar dot com — by noon ET tomorrow (it’s a short week!) for consideration by your Cheddar peers on Wednesday. And now for something completely different!

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

News You Need2Know

• Bots can do your holiday shopping now

• Best early Black Friday deals (no Bots needed)

• Layoffs are piling up, raising worker anxiety

• From landfill to luxury: This designer line is ent …

• This app turns your selfie camera into a stress ma …

• JetBlue launches Milan and Barcelona flights

• Poll of the day: You’re special. Or, wait. Are you …

What’s the stock market up to, eh?

$SPX ( ▼ 0.51% ) $DJI ( ▼ 0.68% ) $NDX ( ▼ 0.41% )

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

Perplexity, $PYPL ( ▲ 0.68% ) , $AMZN ( ▼ 0.01% ) , $PSKY ( ▼ 1.66% ) , $VZ ( ▲ 1.03% )  

Bots can do your holiday shopping now

As bots help shoppers tackle holiday lists, your next gift might just be one click away, powered entirely by AI. Perplexity, an AI startup, is launching a free shopping tool aimed at streamlining consumers’ purchasing experience. Scheduled to launch this week for U.S. users, the product is designed to simplify shopping by enabling seamless purchases directly from search results.

Dmitry Shevelenko, Perplexity’s Chief Business Officer, explained that while shoppers still want to conduct their own research, the new product focuses on personalization and ease, drawing on users’ previous searches to deliver tailored recommendations. Through a strategic partnership with PayPal $PYPL ( ▲ 0.68% ) , users will soon access items from over 5,000 merchants directly through Perplexity's platform.

This isn't Perplexity’s first step into e-commerce. Its earlier paid offering, “Buy With Pro,” introduced similar functionalities, but this free version is more advanced in detecting shopping intent and delivering personalized results. Competitors like OpenAI have introduced comparable features, including "Instant Checkout," allowing ChatGPT users to purchase directly from chat interfaces.

Best early Black Friday deals (no Bots needed)

Just because I’m a nice human guy and not a robot (at least, I don’t think so), I went and found you a bunch of nice early Black Friday Deals that you can snag this week while still pretending you're “working” from home before the holiday, just like my editor today, Sydney. Say, how’s it going, Sydney? Working hard? I BET YOU ARE. (Harder than I cried eulogizing the penny —Ed.)

• Because Alexa listens better than half your family, get the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen) – $31.99 (down from $49.99 at Amazon)

• Live out your tradwife dreams on the cheap! KitchenAid Artisan Mixer – $349 (Down from $499.99, Walmart)

• Make Julia Child’s Boeuf Bourgignon at least once before you let this thing rust, with the Le Creuset Dutch Oven (8 Qt) – $299.99 (Down from $475 at Williams Sonoma)

• Noise-cancel everyone, especially your mom: Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Headphones – $248 (Down from $399, Amazon).

• Who knew they needed a robot vacuum? Your partner, who's been doing all the vacuuming. That’s who. Roomba j7+ Robot Vacuum – $549 (Down from $999, Target)

• Because the “Bluey” episode about going to Hammerbarn means you want to make a “meat lovers’ pizza” and swap it with your neighbor, with incredible results. Ooni Koda 12 Outdoor Pizza Oven – $319 (Down from $449, Amazon)

• Is it expensive? Yes. Is it better than pretending your gym membership is “lost?” Also: yes. Hydrow Rower (Smart Rowing Machine) – $1,695 (Down from $2195, Best Buy)

• For people who take their doomscrolling way too seriously: Logitech MX Master 3S Mouse – $79.99 (Save $20, Amazon)

• Because nothing says “gratitude” like streaming “Die Hard” in 4K on an Ultra HD LG C3 OLED TV (55-Inch) – $899 (Down from $1,499, Best Buy)

You’re welcome!

Song of the day: Sailorr, ‘Locked In’

Sailorr’s new single “Locked In" has drawn positive reviews, described as an addictive track that blends her signature alternative R&B with pop. It’s got a warm, soulful, and catchy sound. The lyrics focus on intense commitment and desire in a relationship. “How do I know we’re really locked in? Never change my face on your lock screen.” #Relatable

Layoffs are piling up, raising worker anxiety

Economic uncertainty is driving companies across industries to implement sweeping layoffs, sparking widespread concern among workers. Businesses are navigating higher operational costs influenced by shifting consumer spending, new tariffs, and corporate restructuring. In particular, major firms such as Amazon $AMZN ( ▼ 0.01% ) , Paramount $PSKY ( ▼ 1.66% ) , and Verizon $VZ ( ▲ 1.03% ) have enacted significant job cuts in recent months.

Amazon recently announced plans to eliminate 14,000 corporate jobs — nearly 4% of its workforce — as it redirects investments toward AI while trimming costs elsewhere. Meanwhile, Verizon CEO Dan Schulman, justified the company’s layoffs of over 13,000 employees, saying these decisions aim to “simplify operations and reorient” the business.

The public sector has also been hit hard. Federal workers faced heightened instability following a record-setting 43-day government shutdown, payroll interruptions, and subsequent mass cuts. This turbulence reflects broader anxieties, with gender and racial disparities looming in the labor market. For example, according to the National Women’s Law Center, Black women over the age of 20 experienced unemployment rates climbing to 7.5% last month.

As layoffs continue to pile up across sectors, analysts warn of lasting impacts on workforce morale, hiring practices, and economic outlook. For workers, the pressure is rising as they navigate the challenging landscape.

How are you doing out there, Chedd-heads? You okay? I hope so. 🙏

Quote of the Day

From landfill to luxury: This designer line is entirely up-cycled

A new wave of sustainable design is turning waste plastic into high-end materials and products. One company at the forefront of this movement is on a mission to completely change how the industry views recycling, creating award-winning materials from what others discard. Designer Hamilton Perkins started his journey with a magazine recycling business in middle school, which led to creating products like backpacks from plastic bottles and billboard vinyl. He sold more than 50,000 bags. Now, brands and manufacturers are approaching the company to transform their complex waste streams.

"We make award-winning products and materials all from waste plastic. We're on a mission to change the way the industry looks at recycling,” he said.

They are moving from gram and kilogram scale to the next challenge — ton scale — and are actively seeking new partners. The company has already sold proof-of-concept handbags, with some fetching hundreds to thousands of dollars. Perkins sees this as a crucial time for the industry, stating, "Now’s the time to turn those scraps into higher value, into revenue. Why not do it with recycling? Why not create a better future in the process?" 

Why not, indeed?

Should you check your 401(k) today?

🤣 

It was up a lot on Friday, then again, it was down an awful lot on Thursday, and every day for the week before that. So…I think you should probably check it just for “funsies,” but be prepared for a bit of a shock, yeah? Or you could just, you know…not. It’s a bit of a wild ride at the moment, the stock market! 📈 📉

This app turns your selfie camera into a stress management tool

Mio Health is revolutionizing “biofeedback therapy” by making it accessible to everyone, all through a smartphone. Biofeedback is a mind-body technique that uses electronic sensors to give you real-time information about your body's functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle tension. The information, or "feedback," allows you to learn how to consciously control these involuntary processes to manage stress, reduce pain, and improve health.

“I was diagnosed with a chronic illness myself. And on my journey to figure out how to treat, I've seen a lot of doctors, seen a lot of specialists, and no one could really help me out,” said founder Charlotte Boivin. Realizing medications weren't effective for a disregulated nervous system, she tried biofeedback, which was “really expensive, although super effective. It was the first therapy that actually helped improve my symptoms.”

This led to the creation of Mio Health, which uses your phone’s front camera. “We use a selfie camera to measure your meditative states…We are able to measure key biomarkers with computer visions from your selfie camera,” Boivin said. This technology encapsulates the benefits of biofeedback, making it something “anyone can do it from anywhere.”

The app uses guided breathwork to shift your nervous system into homeostasis, or balance, and helps users reach Zone Three — “the deep meditative state.” According to Boivin, the goal is "to help you learn how to do reach Zone Three so that you can help your nervous system working more efficiently, recovering from stressors, and that's what helps reversing chronic symptoms like brain fog, inflammation, and chronic pain."

Research suggests that using the app for 10 minutes daily for three weeks helps reverse some chronic conditions. The future is bright for Mio Health, with Boivin noting, “Today actually we have incredible health systems partners that are prescribing Mio to their patients.”

JetBlue launches Milan and Barcelona flights

JetBlue Airways $JBLU ( ▼ 8.51% ) is set to broaden its European footprint next year, targeting high-spending travelers with new seasonal daily flights from Boston to Milan and Barcelona. The Barcelona route will launch on April 16, followed by Milan on May 11.

The airline is leveraging its Airbus A321LR, long-range narrow-body jets, for these routes. A JetBlue spokesman highlighted the Milan flight as the longest in the carrier’s network, spanning approximately nine hours westbound and seven hours and 45 minutes eastbound. These jets represent a cost-efficient breakthrough, carrying fewer passengers than traditional large twin-aisle planes like Boeing 777s, while requiring less fuel.

JetBlue has strategically reworked its network to cut less profitable routes and emphasize destinations served by A321LR jets, which feature its Mint business class designed for premium travelers. Looking ahead, JetBlue's first-ever lounge at JFK International Airport is expected to open this year.

Poll of the day: You’re special. Or, wait. Are you?!

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