Hello, my most beloved subscribers!

I can’t wait for you to read today’s poll results from Friday. It turns out you Cheddheads are a decisive bunch on a whole host of issues. But first, the…

News you Need2Know

• America’s stocks within 3% of their record

• Just in time! New York ends paper routes for young …

• Grok chatbot’s focus on racist conspiracy theories …

• 5 years of the ‘Higher Learning’ podcast

• Returns, reimagined: How ReturnPro uses smart tech …

#NotFinancialAdvice, but buy the dip, guys. BUY THE DIP.

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

P.S. Did you know we offer paid subscriptions that mean you never have to see an ad in this newsletter?

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

$SPX ( ▼ 0.01% )  $BAC ( ▼ 0.25% )  

America’s stocks within 3% of their record

I’m glad you kept your money in the market during the recent death spiral tumult and didn’t take it all out in a panic—because your patience has been rewarded, my most beloved subscribers!

U.S. stocks had a strong week last week, surging within 3% of record highs set in February. The S&P 500 $SPX ( ▼ 0.01% ) climbed by 0.7%, marking a fifth straight daily gain and its third winning week in the last four. At this rate, it will definitely make the playoffs.

This rebound comes as optimism builds around potential tariff reductions following international trade deals. President Donald Trump’s trade war has cast a shadow over markets, with fears of economic recession and rising inflation due to tariffs.

Economists at Bank of America $BAC ( ▼ 0.25% ) called it “a week to remember” (perhaps comparing it to the previous weeks they’d prefer to forget), though they acknowledged lingering volatility. “There is still huge uncertainty regarding the impact of tariffs on economic activity and inflation,” they noted in their report, echoing a sentiment found among many N2K readers.

Despite these gains, concerns remain. The University of Michigan noted U.S. consumer sentiment continues to weaken, and inflation expectations rising to 7.3% for the next year. High inflation forecasts could fuel a cycle of negative financial behaviors.

JPMorganChase $JPM ( ▼ 0.14% ) chief executive Jamie Dimon is not so optimistic. He said there is still “uncertainty” on the tariff front but the pauses are a positive for the economy and market. His firm’s chief U.S. economist said in a note to clients on Tuesday that the recession outlook is “still elevated, but now below 50%.” “Even at this level, you see people holding back on investment and thinking through what they want to do,” Dimon told Bloomberg.

Just in time! New York ends paper routes for younger kids

True story: I got fired from a paper round (as we call it in Old Blighty) when I was 15. One of the unjust reasons for this was that I was throwing a bunch of the papers I was supposed to deliver over the back wall of our house and into a builder’s yard. I put another third into a dumpster fairly regularly. What can I say? Those things were heavy, and the Croydon Guardian only paid me £5 a week, which is, now that I think of it, absolutely outrageous.

Meanwhile, for decades delivering newspapers was a rite of passage for kids as young as 11 in New York State. Dodging dogs, braving snowstorms, and flipping papers onto porches became part of growing up for young paperboys and papergirls. But those days have officially come to an end. A change to New York’s child labor laws, passed as part of the state budget, now prohibits children under 14 from working paper routes.

The truth is that traditional paper delivery by kids has been fading for decades. With more newspapers shifting to online publishing and morning deliveries handled by adults with cars, the need for youth paper carriers has drastically declined. “The workforce of kids to go throwing newspapers on stoops is just a thing of the past,” said Allan Bloom, an employment attorney with the Proskauer law firm.

But how are these kids going to learn character if they can’t shirk responsibility on their first job?

Today on the ‘gram: That’s fast

Post of the day: Taxes on social security?

Quote of the Day

Grok chatbot’s focus on racist conspiracy theories was ‘unauthorized’

All is not well at Elon Musk’s AI company: The Grok chatbot, a product of his artificial intelligence company xAI, found itself at the center of controversy last week after repeatedly raising unsolicited claims about South African racial politics. Grok’s responses — focusing on the alleged “genocide” of white South African farmers — were described by xAI as the result of an “unauthorized modification” to the chatbot's programming.

The company said in a statement that the issues arose from a “specific response on a political topic” being introduced without proper authorization, violating xAI’s internal policies. In other words they didn’t want this to happen but it did.

Grok kept posting publicly about “white genocide” in response to users of Musk’s social media platform X who asked it a variety of questions, most having nothing to do with South Africa. One exchange was about streaming service Max reviving the HBO name. Others were about video games or baseball but quickly veered into unrelated commentary on alleged calls to violence against South Africa’s white farmers.

Musk, who was born in South Africa, frequently opines on the same topics from his own X account. Musk has also criticized rival AI systems for being too “woke.” He has also admitted to using the drug ketamine “once every other week or something like that.”

Should you check your 401(k) today?

👍️ 

Yep.

5 years of the ‘Higher Learning’ podcast

We celebrated five years of the hit podcast 'Higher Learning' with hosts Rachel Lindsay and Van Lathan on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange last week.

Talking about the podcast, Van described it as "about culture. It's about analyzing culture, translating culture." They aim to take "cultural happenings" and process them to "make sense to what they mean in the larger scheme of things."

"Our show is like family. We’re friends. We feel like family at this point. We want our audience to feel the same way," said Rachel.

The video element of their podcast has also been a significant factor in their growth. Van joked, "I’m extremely handsome. So it would make a lot of sense to do a podcast." Rachel added that Spotify's support for their video element helped them "grow our audience."

When asked about what they wished they had learned sooner, Van spoke about the importance of staying consistent for the audience's trust. I’d say he might want to take off that ridiculous cowboy hat for the same effect but you know. Each to their own.

Rachel mentioned how she sometimes forgets "that other people are watching" and admitted, "sometimes I have a tendency to be a bit negative or a little judgmental."

It’s true. I once commentated on Prince William’s marriage to Kate Middleton on Fox8 in New Orleans, and said I thought her dress looked like it was “off the rack” and that their marriage was like an “Uptown boy marrying a girl from Chalmette.”

They didn’t let me do any more live segments after that.

Rachel reflected on needing to "restructure how I say things." Still, despite these challenges, their five-year milestone proves they're clearly doing something right.

Returns, reimagined: How ReturnPro uses smart tech to simplify send-backs

ReturnPro CEO Sender “As In, Return to…” Shamiss joined us to discuss how his company is changing the way we make returns.

Sender shed light on the complex world of product returns and how it impacts retailers and consumers. He emphasized the sheer magnitude of the issue, stating, "There's $890 billion of product that gets returned every year. It represents about 16.9% of every single thing that's purchased from the United States."

This staggering figure highlights why reverse logistics is becoming increasingly critical for businesses.

Before we go further I should emphasize that I never return things to shops. I think it’s rude and entitled and everything that’s wrong with America. Still. This is America. So. Also I did once return two pairs of chinos to Ralph Lauren when the crotch ripped in the first two days. It’s not because I’m fat. It’s because their seams were badly sewn and I stand by that.

Return Pro focuses on "solving returns," which, according to Sender (I’m sorry but really, that is his name…), "means everything from pre-purchase all the way through the final disposition of the item itself. We handle software supply chain and re-commerce."

The firm’s comprehensive approach addresses every stage of the return process for various businesses, from small enterprises to major retailers.

Most importantly, Sender stressed the importance of a positive return experience: "If a customer's not happy with the returns process of a retailer, they're just not coming back," he said. He pointed to reports indicating that "80% of customers won't come back, some as high as 96%" after a negative experience with a return.

Poll of the Day

Poll Results: Money, trade, Airbnb, and the Pope

Poll Friday, as we all know, included four reasonably high-quality polls. Here are the results!

1. We asked: Do you feel better about your personal finances than you did a year ago?

You answered:

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Yes, and I'm ready to spend money at Walmart as a result. (115)

 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 No, and I'm less inclined to spend money at Walmart as a result. (910)

1025 Votes—via @beehiiv polls

2. We asked: Do you expect a sustainable solution to the truce in the U.S./China trade war to follow soon?

You answered:

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Yes, I think everybody realizes we need to deescalate. (171)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 No, I think we're likely to see another flare-up for whatever reason. (658)

829 Votes—via @beehiiv polls

3. We asked: How much should the Pope's childhood home sell for?

You answered:

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Up to $199,000. What is this, some sort of shakedown? (316)

 🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ Between $200,000 and $300,000. I'm no chump. (153)

 🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ More than $300,000. Hallelujah! (85)

554 Votes—via @beehiiv polls

4. We asked: Does Airbnb needs more b's?

You answered:

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 They should stick to destroying the hotel industry. (331)

 🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ I'm all for it! Get me a spa treatment and do my laundry, guys! (204)

535 Votes—via @beehiiv polls

Coming soon: The Business of Beauty

Airing on Thursday, May 22nd at 8pm ET wherever you watch Cheddar, dive into our new show, "The Business of Beauty" where one celebrity dentist reveals the secrets behind Kylie Jenner and J.Lo's dazzling smiles, showcasing his unique, custom-made veneers process. Then, witness the revolutionary tech behind painless tattoo removal, promising a chance to erase at least some of your regrets. Finally, explore one firm’s bold claims about unlocking the "Fountain of Youth" through supplements, backed by scientific research. Discover how these innovations are reshaping beauty standards and empowering personal transformation!