The Face of the New Meme Stock Frenzy
Eric Jackson, 53, manages his own tiny hedge fund, EMJ Capital, in Toronto. He's been around for awhile, having made a name for himself a decade ago with a 99-page presentation to Yahoo's board on why the tech company should oust its now-former CEO. Years later he was back in the news, talking up Opendoor Technologies and Carvana. 'Of these two—Carvana and Opendoor—I have more confidence in Opendoor,' he said in a June 2022 interview.
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Forbes
19 minutes ago
- Forbes
The Sydney Sweeney Ad Did The Impossible — It Got People Talking About Advertising Again.
Outside of what has become an annual American tradition of reviewing Super Bowl commercials, it has been years since I've heard or been sent so many reviews, opinions, and hot takes on a :15 or :30 second commercial spot. Until now. Last week, American Eagle came in hot with a series of ads featuring one of America's most popular rising stars. Actress Sydney Sweeney, 27, launched her new collaboration with the retailer, titled 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans'. And it did not disappoint (or perhaps it did, depending on who you ask) From the South China Morning Post to the Daily Mail, and Vanity Fair to NPR - outlets across time zones, age brackets and industry verticles are chiming in on their thoughts and perspectives and symbolism of the ad. On social media, the ad is the talk of TikTok, X, and Instagram with influencers and everyday people eager to record videos to share their opinion, all while replaying the ad for their users to see, of course. Even the President commented! What's all the talk about? The pun/double entendre of language between genes and jeans, the intersection of visual identity and sex appeal, and the pretty privilege of "traditional" beauty. Quite simply, this ad has unlocked America's culture war about looks, influence, and eugenics? American Eagle Is An Unlikley Catalyst American Eagle Outfitters, while a longstanding international retail brand and manufacturer, is an unlikely catalyst for this moment. But what their story tells you is that GREAT ADVERTISING is effective when done correctly. In recent years, advertising has been an industry under siege by both clients, who hire out the creative agencies that make the work, and by consumers who have multiple ways they can avoid watching ads. Recent trends are continuing to accelerate this. Last month's Omnicom's much anticipated $13.5 billion acquisition of rival Interpublic was approved by the FTC, creating the world's largest advertising agency. In the U.S., the firm would become the largest media buying ad agency as well. The new Omnicom will have over 100,000 expert practitioners with the combined entity forecast to yield $750 million in annual cost savings, highlighting the ongoing drive toward consolidation on Madison Ave. Some argue that this consolidation hurts creativity due to the red tape and corporate-leaning culture. It's not to imply advertisements aren't all around us. The average person sees hundreds of ads every day, but the reality is that due to the squeeze from both sides, the creative product is not as memorable as it could be. When asking people if they can recall the ads that they see, the response is only between 1%-10%. From AI, to ad-free streaming to 'skip now', advertising has seemed to become "in the way" of what we are trying to consume vs enhancing the experience of the time we are forced to commit. And as algorithms become more powerful in serving custom ads, it's become more complex and harder for brands and audiences to be able to recall advertising as they once were immediately. Gone are the days of 'Yo Quiero Taco Bell', 'The Geico Caveman', 'Mac vs PC', or 'Spuds McKenzie' Opposing Voices Don't Hold as Much Weight As the dust settles, American Eagle has stood by their ad campaign despite the criticism and controversy. Saying in a recent Instagram post, they shared their ad campaign "is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story. We'll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone." The 'Sydney' jeans which the commercial was advertising, have completely sold out, and the stock price is at its highest point in nearly 6 months ($13.39 at the time of writing), showing that a great ad holds value for companies. Beyond that, the brand is now in minds and lips of millions across the world. Could this American Eagle campaign be the tipping point to inspire a new era of creativity? And could the formula of painting the line on social issues surrounding privilege and race be the new formula? I believe the answer is yes, and I for one am looking forward to actually watching them - regardless of what side of the debate I'm on.
Yahoo
37 minutes ago
- Yahoo
SES AI Reports Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results
Reports second quarter revenue of $3.5 million Affirms 2025 revenue guidance of $15 million to $25 million Released MU-0.5, the latest version of Molecular Universe software and services platform for all batteries and chemistries Expands Reach into Energy Storage Systems with Agreement to acquire UZ Energy WOBURN, Mass., August 04, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SES AI Corporation ("SES AI", the "Company," "we" or "us") (NYSE: SES), a global leader in the development and manufacturing of AI-enhanced high-performance Li-Metal and Li-ion batteries, today announced its business results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2025 and affirmed its previously issued financial guidance for the year ending December 31, 2025. Second Quarter 2025 Highlights: Revenue of $3.5 million for a total of $9.3 million in the first half of 2025 Gross Margin of 74%, primarily from strong service performance Cash used in operations of $10.8 million, a 51% decrease from 2Q24 and a 53% decrease from 1Q25 Quarter end liquidity position of $229 million with no debt More than 30 companies are Molecular Universe enterprise-level trial users Affirms 2025 revenue guidance of $15 million to $25 million The Company posted a Letter to Our Shareholders on its Investor Relations website from Founder and CEO Dr. Qichao Hu and Chief Financial Officer Jing Nealis, which provides a business update, details on its second quarter 2025 results, and its guidance for 2025. Qichao Hu, Founder and CEO of SES AI, noted, "Last week in our preliminary earnings release, we stated that our path to profitability remains strong, and we are on track to reach our year-end revenue target of between $15 million to $25 million. MU-0.5, our most recent version of Molecular Universe, continues to gain traction with battery OEMs, as we now have more than 30 enterprise-level trial users, including several battery OEMs from Japan who join our existing Chinese and Korean trial customers. "In addition, we also announced an agreement to acquire UZ Energy, an established player in the ESS space in Europe, Australia and Asia. We are excited to leverage UZ's strong marketing team and hardware platform to expand our market share in not only the global $300 billion ESS market but specifically in the United States. For the remainder of 2025, we will continue to be disciplined in deployment of our excess liquidity in potential M&A and share repurchases, developing the next release of Molecular Universe to meet customer needs and building on UZ Energy's strengths in ESS," Hu added. The Company will hold a conference call on Monday, August 4, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. ET. A webcast of the live conference call will be available through SES's Investor Relations website, The conference call can also be accessed live over the phone by dialing the following numbers:United States (Toll Free): +1 833-470-1428International: +1 404-975-4839https:// Access Code: 681928 A webcast replay will be available shortly after the call at: About SES AI: SES AI Corp. (NYSE: SES) is powering the future of global electric transportation on land and in the air with the world's most advanced Li-Metal batteries. SES AI is the first battery company in the world to accelerate its pace of innovation by utilizing superintelligent AI across the spectrum of its business, from research and development; materials sourcing; cell design; engineering and manufacturing; to battery health and safety monitoring. Founded in 2012, SES AI is an Li-Metal battery developer and manufacturer headquartered in Boston and with operations in Singapore, Shanghai, and Seoul. Learn more at SES AI may use its website as a distribution channel of material company information. Financial and other important information regarding SES AI is routinely posted on and accessible through the Company's website at Accordingly, investors should monitor this channel, in addition to following SES AI's press releases, Securities and Exchange Commission filings and public conference calls and webcasts. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, about us and our industry that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or our future financial or operating performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as "will," "goal," "prioritize," "plan," "target," "expect," "focus," "look forward," "opportunity," "believe," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "project" and "pursue" or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of the management of the Company. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that its plans, intentions and expectations reflected in or suggested by these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot provide assurance that it will achieve or realize these plans, intentions or expectations. Should one or more of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results or performance may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include, but are not limited to, among other things, that conditions to the closing of the acquisition of Shenzhen UZ Energy Co. Ltd. and its related entities ("UZ Energy") may not be satisfied, the potential impact on the business of the Company due to the announcement of the acquisition of UZ Energy, the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the purchase agreement therefor, changes in the financial condition, business or prospects of UZ Energy or the Company's discovery of additional information relating thereto, general economic conditions, and other factors described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including in the "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and other documents that we have filed, or that we will file, with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements made by us in this press release speak only as of the date on which they are made and subsequent events may cause these expectations to change. We disclaim any obligations to update or alter these forward-looking statements in the future, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. View source version on Contacts For the media: pr@ For investors: ir@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NFL and NFLPA agreed to keep collusion findings secret, per report
The NFL and NFL Players' Association agreed to keep the arbitration decision from earlier this year regarding potential collusion by the league and owners confidential, according to ESPN. The two sides stuck a confidentiality agreement after arbiter Christopher Droney ruled in January that the league had not colluded despite evidence commissioner Roger Goodell and former general counsel Jeff Pash instructed teams at the March 2022 league meeting to limit guaranteed money in players' contracts. Because of the confidentiality agreement, the collusion grievance's findings did not become public until "Pablo Torre Finds Out" reported on the 61-page ruling by Droney in June. The NFLPA is appealing the decision, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The person was granted anonymity because of the ongoing legal process. The person also said the arbitration ruling had been discussed with player leadership (such as the executive committee, which includes NFLPA president Jalen Reeves-Maybin and 10 vice presidents) since January, although ESPN reported Howell simply relayed the NFLPA had lost and didn't reveal any findings or details. A three-person panel will hear the appeal. The union hired law firm Wilmer Hale, according to ESPN and confirmed by USA TODAY Sports, to review the activities of executive director Lloyd Howell, who was elected to the position in June 2023. The NFLPA already had legal teams look into Howell's involvement with a licensing group started jointly by the NFLPA and Major League Baseball Players' Association called OneTeam Partners that became the focus of an FBI investigation last month for misuse of funds. ESPN also reported Howell has been a paid, part-time consultant for The Carlyle Group since March 2023, three months prior to his election as head of the union. The Carlyle Group is one of the few private-equity firms currently approved by the league that could seek to invest in NFL franchises. A union lawyer apparently questioned Howell about his involvement and advised him to resign his position at Carlyle, per ESPN. A spokeswoman for the company said in a statement to ESPN "(Howell) had no access to information about the NFL and Carlyle process beyond public news reports due to strict Carlyle information barriers in place" and was not aware of the request from union lawyers for Lloyd to resign from Carlyle. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFLPA head Lloyd Howell facing controversies on multiple fronts
