Relaxing in a United Airlines Club lounge is now going to cost airline regulars much more. United is overhauling its lounge membership program, reducing amenities and increasing the cost to enter the dozens of United Clubs worldwide, including locations in Tokyo, Chicago and Los Angeles. At a time when lounges are more in demand than … Read more
Within the Trump administration’s Defense Department, Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocketry is being trumpeted as the nifty new way the Pentagon could move military cargo rapidly around the globe. In the Commerce Department, SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service will now be fully eligible for the federal government’s $42 billion rural broadband push, after being largely shut … Read more
The genetic testing company 23andMe filed for bankruptcy protection on Sunday after months of uncertainty over its business model and mounting concerns about the security of the troves of customer data it holds. In a statement, 23andMe said it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to “facilitate a sale process to maximize the value of … Read more
The Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings wants more researchers and students to ask deep questions about artificial intelligence and its potential to upend human norms. To that end, Mr. Hastings has donated $50 million to Bowdoin College, his alma mater, to create a research initiative on “A.I. and Humanity” — the largest gift to the liberal … Read more
The United States could run out of cash to continue paying its bills by mid-July if Congress does not take action to raise or suspend the nation’s debt limit, according to an analysis on Monday by the Bipartisan Policy Center. That deadline, known as the “X-date” — the moment when the United States is unable … Read more
DoorDash customers can now take out a loan for a $40 order of burritos or a $50 pizza delivery. The financial tech company Klarna and the delivery company DoorDash said that they had partnered to provide a “buy now, pay later” loan option for orders. The arrangement, announced on Thursday, lets customers defer the cost … Read more
In most states, playing slot machines online for real money is illegal. But a group of companies known as sweepstakes casinos has found a way around the law to let users play classic casino games online. Their revenues have grown 10-fold in the last five years, and they’re now large enough to feature ads with … Read more
A foul cell in a Moscow detention center was about the last place an American businessman named Michael Calvey expected to find himself after spending 25 years building a flourishing venture capital firm in Russia that transformed some tech startups into global brands. First, beefy agents from the F.S.B., the federal security service, ransacked his … Read more
Times are tough on Sesame Street. Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit responsible for Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and the rest of the stars of “Sesame Street,” is confronting what executives have described as a “perfect storm” of problems. The organization is losing its lucrative contract with HBO, which has paid $30 million to $35 million … Read more
Disney’s latest remake, “Snow White,” arrived in theaters on Thursday night as one of the most snakebit projects in the company’s 102-year history. Almost everything that could have went wrong did, resulting in a torrent of negative prerelease publicity. Did the tumult have an impact on the box office? It certainly didn’t help: Based on … Read more