🐹 Blow-drys for hamsters? OK, sure

‘AI is not a writer:’ Why the writers’ strike deal matters beyond Hollywood

You don’t have to be a screenwriter to toast the end of the Writers Guild of America’s 148-day work stoppage — but if you are one, you’ll have a little more in your champagne budget.

After a bruising campaign, the WGA secured a new three-year labor agreement on Sunday that increases pay, raises streaming residuals, and stabilizes writers’ rooms.

But it’s the deal’s AI provisions that’ll be particularly impactful, as they’ll be felt far beyond studio backlots.

How AI will be governed in Hollywood

AI was a final sticking point to be resolved, per Variety. The agreement’s basics include:

• “AI is not a writer”: The deal clarifies that AI can’t write or rewrite literary material, be used for source material, or supplant a writer’s credit.
• Optional usage, mandated disclosure: Writers can use chatbots as they please, but no studio can require them to use AI software. Studios must also disclose to writers if materials they’re provided have been generated by AI.
• Scripts will fuel AI development: WGA’s big concession here was that existing scripts can be used to train AI models.

What it means for everyone else

The WGA deal is one of the first (and most high-profile) contracts to place formal worker protections around AI, and it’ll set the stage for other negotiations, including but not limited to active strikes involving actors, animators, and video game performers.

As such, it will help direct the pace of AI adoption across industries. The deal also initiates standard employee safeguards; as one attorney involved in AI negotiations told Bloomberg, “Consent, compensation, and clarity have been missing from the equation up until now.”

At the very least, by guaranteeing human writers’ involvement in all projects, the WGA has ensured the scenario its members fear (i.e., AI stealing jobs) won’t happen — for the next three years, at least.

ChatGPT hacks for business professionals

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Stay savvy out here. Take our ebook of ChatGPT hacks you can use across sales, marketing, management, and customer support.

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There are new ways to wrangle your workload.

The FCC plans to restore net neutrality rules, which require broadband providers to treat all traffic equally.

The strikes continue: Two Las Vegas culinary and bartending unions, representing 60k workers, voted Tuesday to authorize a strike. If a walkout occurs, the strike could impact 36+ casinos and hotels.

Meta is paying ~$181m — about seven years worth of rent — to end its lease on a London office location. The company had 18 years left on the lease and has never used the property.

Nevermind: Snap is closing its AR-for-businesses unit, designed to let retailers use its AR tech on their websites, after six months. A memo revealed it was too expensive and complex to execute.

Astronaut Frank Rubio has returned to Earth after 371 days on an ISS mission, the longest spaceflight by a US astronaut.

The Art Institutes, a network of for-profit US art colleges, will close its remaining eight schools this week. There is currently no set plan to help its 1.7k enrolled students continue their education.

The economics of dollar stores

Dollar stores are everywhere. Really, we mean it — everywhere.

• In the US, there are more dollar stores than there are CVS, Walgreens, Target, and Walmart locations combined.
• Together, the two largest chains — Dollar Tree and Dollar General — have ~40k US locations.
• Dollar General told The Hustle that ~75% of Americans live within 5 miles of one of their stores.

OK, so they’re everywhere — How do they make money?

Despite selling items for as little as $1, dollar stores rake in billion-dollar revenues, thanks to elite profit margins.

• Dollar General, for instance, makes ~30 cents for every dollar in sales. That’s better than Target and Walmart.

So, are these stores really as wallet-friendly for consumers as we think they are?

In this video, we break down what makes dollar stores so profitable, and why some believe dollar stores have created a false economy.

Tiny pets are having a big moment

Move over, cats and dogs — there are some new, tiny attention hogs in town.

Lizards, hamsters, guinea pigs, and other mini pets are reaping the benefits of owners willing to spoil them rotten, per The Wall Street Journal.

Those perks include some pretty adorable products designed specifically for them:

• Rock and Scott sells everything from habitats to tiny party hats for small pets.
• GuineaDad makes customizable wooden castles for guinea pigs.
• Pocket’s Pet lists snacks, chew toys, and accessories on Etsy.
• Norm’s Piggy Pen offers spa services like nail trims and blow-drys for guinea pigs, rabbits, and ferrets.

And, after customers complained that pet habitats were eyesores in their homes, PetSmart partnered with HGTV designers Nate Berkus and Jeremiah Brent to create small-pet decor, including faux leather and sherpa couches.

The pets may be small, but the potential profit is big: Businesses are vying for a piece of the ~$136.8B pet market.

While little pets are getting more popular…

… dog ownership is dwindling. The number of American households with dogs fell 5.6% YoY to 65.1m.

Despite an adoption boom during the pandemic, shelters have been filling back up and owners are skimping on dog and cat food.

But people are still bringing home pint-sized friends: The number of American households with small pets has risen 7% this year.

We leave you with this important note as we approach Halloween: Tiny pet costumes are a thing.

📺 On this day: In 1951, retailers received the first color TVs, developed by CBS. They were discontinued weeks later after the National Production Authority requested color TVs not be shipped during the Korean War. 

💌 That’s interesting: The world’s oldest post office is located in Scotland, ~50 miles south of Glasgow. The 311-year-old site just welcomed its 17th owners.

🥘 Haha: How a fake restaurant became a real one, just for one night.

🕰️ That’s cool: A look inside London’s Big Ben.

🐈 Aww: And now, time to go in the cup.

Note: Our wallets aren’t actually empty — they’re full of coffee shop stamp cards. We aren’t about to miss out on a free cup. (Link)