Known Thief, Humor Clift, Overlooked Causes 🩺

AI systems crave data like wolves on a hunt. As a result, major tech companies are now paying publishers for access to their archives. 

But what happens when AI carelessly scours the internet, grabbing data without permission or payment? This reckless behavior has landed AI startups Suno and Udio in legal hot water.

Warner Records, Sony Music, and Universal Music Group have filed federal lawsuits against Udio in New York and Suno in Massachusetts for blatant copyright violations, according to a Reuters report. The suits argue that… 

• these AI-generated songs can mimic hits like The Temptations' "My Girl" and Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You” without any permission or purchase of rights. 
• AI is producing voices indistinguishable from iconic singers like Michael Jackson and ABBA. 

The startups have been evasive about their data sources, further suggesting the guiltiness of massive copyright infringement.

The lawsuits demand up to $150,000 per song, totaling over $99 million for Suno and $250 million for Udio. While this is the first legal action against music-generating AI companies, it’s not unexpected. Looking at the trend of lawsuits against AI firms for illegal data use, it was only a matter of time before the music industry also got in.

Layoffs have been ubiquitous since the markets turned in 2023. They’re been occurring for a load of reasons — inflation, recession, lack of funding, bearish sentiments, etc. But there is one more important reason that has been overlooked — one that has been heavily affecting layoffs recently: rising healthcare costs due to hospital mergers.

The National Bureau of Economic Research's study, released last week, establishes a link between increased healthcare costs and job cuts. Analyzing mergers from 2000 to 2020, researchers found that increased hospital charges elevate the cost of employee health coverage.  Therefore, when health care prices increased, non-health care employers responded by reducing their payroll and cutting middle-class jobs.

The research also shows that middle- and lower-wage workers are particularly affected because companies pay the same per-person contribution for medical coverage, regardless of salary. In 2019, this cost averaged $12,000 per year, a significant expense for lower-paid employees. Consequently, companies save more by laying off workers earning between $20,000 and $100,000 annually rather than higher earners.

The research further indicates a 5% price increase from a hospital merger results in $32 million in lost wages, $6.8 million in reduced federal tax revenue, and a death from suicide or overdose. The study highlights that unless the U.S. adopts a tax-based health insurance system, lower-paid employees will continue to bear the brunt of rising healthcare costs.

A recent PwC survey reveals that a higher proportion of workers expect to switch employers in the next 12 months compared to the "Great Resignation" period of 2022. 

About 28% of over 56,000 surveyed workers indicated they are "very or extremely likely" to leave their current jobs, up from 19% in 2022 and 26% in 2023.

Reasons?

Approximately 45% of surveyed workers reported increased workloads and a faster pace of workplace changes in the past year, with 62% noting more changes compared to the previous year. The findings also suggest that job satisfaction is no longer enough. Employees want better pay and better work resources, and more stability. 

🍦 Summer w/ Less Ice-cream - It's summertime, but the FDA is recalling products from over 13 ice cream brands, including Hershey’s and Yelloh, over contamination concerns. 

🥑 Avocado Hand - Injuries incurred from cutting avocados is so common that surgeons now have a name for it. 

📺 Halving TV - Almost all major US streamers, including Netflix and Disney+, have been cutting, even halving, their original TV output this year. 

👩‍💻 Korea & Coding - North Koreans are sneaking into American coding jobs. Here's how. 

😆 The Humor Clift - Here's a statistical expression of how our sense of humor changes with age.