An end is in sight for Kroger’s bid to acquire the Albertsons grocery biz. The antitrust trial attempting to stop the two from merging begins today in Oregon federal court, and could ultimately change where consumers purchase their foodstuffs.

Kroger’s bid to acquire the Albertsons grocery biz resembles the meme of three Spider-Men pointing at each other. To placate the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and hopefully swing the lawsuit in their favor, Kroger and Albertsons say they would sell 579 stores to C&S Wholesale Grocers, which operates Piggly Wiggly and Grand Union stores. C&S would become the eighth-largest grocery company, with about the same number of stores as Trader Joe’s.

“We will be a leader in the industry,” C&S CEO Eric Winn said. Less clear: Does the company want to be?

• In recently unredacted internal documents regarding the Kroger case, Bob Palmer, the former CEO of C&S, asked last year, “Do we have to say that we won’t close stores?”
• He acknowledged stores would stay open during the sale, but posited, “Then what?”

The FTC is seeking a preliminary injunction to move the trial to its in-house court. Most companies give up on their plans to merge if an injunction is granted to the regulator.

But Kroger wants the deal to close so it can better compete with discount grocery giants Costco and Walmart. Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen said the merger is “squarely focused on ensuring we bring customers lower prices starting day one.”

What about shoppers? University of Buffalo School of Law professor Christine P. Bartholomew said that if this merger goes through, more will follow: “The risk is more deals, more concentration and potentially higher prices and less consumer choice.”

In order to win, Kroger will need to prove that C&S has the infrastructure and ambition to operate the stores. Experts believe the trial will play out over three weeks.—HVL

Three of the scariest words in the lexicon, if we’re being real. And with summer’s end just around the corner, you definitely don’t wanna hear yourself saying ’em.

It’s time to go big, and AT&T In-car Wi-Fi can help.

They’re offering a four-day Labor Day test drive, where you can get unlimited AT&T In-car Wi-Fi for free. That’s right: Hit the open road while staying connected—for free. Forget about late-summer FOMO.

Wanna sing your fave tunes with the homies? Stream that show you’ve been binging? Or maybe you gotta hop on a quick 1:1 for work? Whatever you need, AT&T In-car Wi-Fi has your back.

Don’t finish out your summer with regret.

Starliner astronauts won’t return home until February 2025. NASA made the announcement on Saturday that it will turn to SpaceX to bring Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore back from the ISS due to ongoing problems with the Boeing capsule that brought the duo into space in June. The Boeing capsule will return home without the astronauts, while SpaceX will send its capsule to the ISS with two empty seats. The original flight with Williams and Wilmore was only scheduled to last about nine days, but problems with the propulsion system and the safety issues that ensued will leave them stranded in space for another six months.

Authorities open a manslaughter probe into the sinking of superyacht. It wasn’t a sudden storm that caused the vessel to sink off the coast of Sicily, killing British tech mogul Mike Lynch and six others last week—it was the result of actions by the crew, according to prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio. “We are evaluating all of the factors to see whose behavior fault can be assigned to,” he said. The coast guard initially reported the boat was hit by a tornado and the European Severe Weather Database reported a waterspout—a tornado at sea—around the same time. If the ship's hatches were left open, something authorities have yet to confirm, it would explain why the superyacht sank so quickly, an official said.

Australians now have the right to turn off work notifications (sometimes). August 26 marked the start of a new “right to disconnect” law that aims to restore boundaries between work and life after the pandemic smushed them together. While bosses can still message workers at any time, the employees can no longer be punished for failing to read or respond to the messages outside of work hours. But there’s a caveat. According to the law, workers are protected “unless such refusal is unreasonable.” A legal definition of reasonable does not yet exist in any corner of the world, but Australia joins about two dozen other countries in trying to give their employees some cover to have a life.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov may be used to ice-cold baths, but he still got a shock to the system on Saturday. The 39-year-old billionaire, who is a citizen of France, was arrested at an airport outside Paris as part of a preliminary investigation into his platform’s alleged role in illegal activity.

Telegram is an encrypted messaging app that’s been valued at over $30 billion, but it has attracted controversy—and now legal action—because it lacks content moderation, which French authorities say has led to it being used for criminal ends, including drug trafficking and child pornography. Durov refused to cooperate with the police on these issues, which prompted the arrest warrant, according to French newspaper Le Monde.

How we got here: Durov founded Telegram in his home country of Russia in 2013 to be able to speak freely amid censorship of what the government called “opposition communities.” Since then, it’s become a major app despite its counter-cultural bent.

• It’s considered a communication lifeline by people who live in countries with heavy censorship.
• Ukrainian officials and the Russian government have used the app amid their ongoing war.

Speaking of…Moscow asked the French to “ensure the protection of [Durov’s] rights” on Sunday. Elon Musk posted “#FreePavel” on X and made other posts claiming that Europe is attacking free speech.—CC

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Soft serve has fallen on hard times. The number of iconic Mister Softee ice cream trucks in operation is now 630 across 21 states, compared to over 2,000 that happily roamed America’s streets across 38 states in the ’60s. While inflation has damaged many truck owners’ businesses, which are independent franchises, other issues have contributed to the Messrs. Softee’s woes:

• A rise in bougie ice cream shops that sell flavors like “toasted caramel dreamsicle” has created competition.
• Too-hot hot weather means people aren’t going outside as much, and if they are, they’re looking for electrolytes, not dessert.

And that’s just the real Mister Softees: Corporate suits at Mister Softee HQ are cracking down on rogue trucks that have tried to rip off its signage and jingle.

Coco Gauff begins the defense of her US Open crown today: Novak Djokovic will be doing the same on the men’s side while looking for the 25th Grand Slam singles title of his career, which would break a tie with Margaret Court for the overall record. Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz, who are parked on the other side of the women’s and men’s brackets, respectively, are the betting favorites. Sportsbooks have no odds on how many $23 Honey Deuces will be sold at the tournament yet, but smart money says you should take the over.

US and China will sit down and talk things over: Jake Sullivan, the national security advisor to President Joe Biden, will embark on a three-day diplomatic trip to China starting on Tuesday. He will meet with China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, in the latest get-together designed to ease tensions between the countries that grew rocky after the US shot down a Chinese spy balloon that entered US airspace last year. Topics of discussion are expected to include limiting the trafficking of fentanyl, China’s support for Russia and its invasion of Ukraine, and tariffs on Chinese imports like semiconductors and EVs.

A billionaire, a retired fighter pilot, and two SpaceX employees walk into space: On Tuesday, the Elon Musk-helmed rocket company is attempting to send four people on the first private spacewalk mission. The walk is scheduled for Thursday. It will be a test for SpaceX’s astronaut suits and one small step for Musk on the way toward his dream of colonizing Mars. Until now, only government astronauts from the US, the Soviet Union/Russia, the European Space Agency, Canada, and China have conducted spacewalks.

Everything else…

• Nvidia will drop its Q2 numbers on Wednesday. Investors will also look for an update from CEO Jensen Huang about reported delays in production of the company’s highly anticipated new Blackwell chips.
• The Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games begin on Wednesday. About 4,400 athletes will compete in 549 medal events across 22 sports. Find out how to watch here.
• College football’s soft opening was this past weekend. This Saturday marks the first full slate of the NCAA season.