OpenAI’s board of directors on Friday rejected a $97.4 billion bid by Elon Musk and a consortium of investors to gain control of the artificial intelligence company, deepening a feud between Mr. Musk and OpenAI’s chief executive, Sam Altman. In a statement, Bret Taylor, the chairman of the OpenAI board, said, “OpenAI is not for … Read more
The Energy Department began laying off staff as the Trump administration accelerated sweeping cuts across the government, according to three people familiar with the matter. Around 1,000 federal workers, all probationary employees, were told they were losing their jobs on Thursday, according to one of the people. More than 300 of those workers were employed … Read more
President Trump on Thursday ordered his advisers to determine new tariff rates on America’s trading partners, a move that he said would “correct longstanding imbalances in international trade.” As part of his plan, Mr. Trump has taken aim at the value-added tax, a system used widely in Europe and elsewhere to tax the consumption of … Read more
This article is part of Overlooked, a series of obituaries about remarkable people whose deaths, beginning in 1851, went unreported in The Times. In 1949, as the chef Lena Richard stirred steaming pots of okra gumbo and shrimp bisque on live TV in New Orleans, viewers across the city — mostly white housewives and the … Read more
Watch out for interest rates. Not the short-term rates controlled by the Federal Reserve. Barring an unforeseen financial crisis, they’re not going anywhere, especially not after the jump in inflation reported by the government on Wednesday. Instead, pay attention to the 10-year Treasury yield, which has been bouncing around since the election from about 4.8 … Read more
It’s possible to amass $1 million in special health savings accounts to use in retirement, a new analysis finds, with several big caveats. You have to start young, contribute the maximum each year and leave the money untouched for decades instead of spending it on medical needs. Health savings accounts, known as H.S.A.s, let people … Read more
Elon Musk’s growing power in government appears to be making some of his businesses more of a magnet for investors. Case in point: Banks have managed to sell off most of the $12.5 billion worth of debt owed by X, his social network, to eager buyers. Investors are essentially betting that the company’s future is … Read more
When President Trump announced he would impose new tariffs on imports from countries around the world, he launched a frontal attack on the global free trade system created in the aftermath of World War II. Mr. Trump’s move, announced Thursday and set to begin as soon as April, represents a bet that the United States … Read more
Liquor lobbyists gathered in a ritzy private club on a recent rainy evening in Brussels to swill cocktails with names like “Toasts Not Tariffs” and fret over the potential disaster confronting their industry. Again. Seven years ago, the spirits industry found itself a casualty in a worldwide trade war as President Trump unleashed tariffs on … Read more
Economic jargon is usually confined to textbooks and business school seminars. But every once in a while, something happens in the world that drives the lingo out of obscurity and into popular discussions. One such emergence happened late last month when, following a weekend of alarm over the viability of A.I. investments, Microsoft’s chief executive, … Read more