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NeeDoh squishies have gone viral. 'It wasn't intentional,' the CEO tells me.

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The Nee Doh gumdrop squishy has a very pleasant handfeel. Katie Notopoulos / Business Insider NeeDoh squishies have gone viral on social media over the last few months. They're made by Schylling, a 50-year-old Massachusetts company that makes vintage-style toys. NeeDohs are now hard to find. Now, there are knock-offs and huge prices from resellers. Courtney Sullivan, a lawyer in Scottsdale, Arizona, was tasked with a mission: Her nieces in Texas wanted NeeDoh squishies, but their dad (her brother) discovered they were sold out everywhere he looked. Luckily, Sullivan found some in a local store and mailed them over state lines to her nieces. NeeDohs, colorful rubbery balls and cubes of varying textures, have gone viral on social media — and the demand is outpacing supply. It's caused a mini- Labubu effect : Kids (and parents and aunts) are desperate to find them in stores, while knock-offs flourish and resellers jack up prices on the real thing. The "Nice Berg...
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Sources: Musk requires banks seeking roles in SpaceX's IPO to subscribe to Grok and advertise on X; some banks are spending tens of millions integrating Grok (Maureen Farrell/New York Times)

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Maureen Farrell / New York Times : Sources: Musk requires banks seeking roles in SpaceX's IPO to subscribe to Grok and advertise on X; some banks are spending tens of millions integrating Grok   —  Mr. Musk is requiring Wall Street firms to purchase subscriptions to his A.I. chatbot if they want to advise on one of the largest initial public offerings in history. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/CiPksuR
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KPMG's chief economist says the only clear way out of the Iran war for global economies is a 'deep recession'

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Gas prices in Arlington, Virginia in early April sat above $4.00 a gallon. Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images Stagflation and labor-market risks are growing as the Iran war continues. KPMG chief economist Diane Swonk says the "only clear way out" for the economy is a "deep recession." Swonk says the Fed is in a bind because the economy is being hamstrung by supply-side constraints. As the Iran war raises stagflation risks for the global economy, a "deep recession" may be the only way out, says KPMG chief economist Diane Swonk. In mentioning stagflation, Swonk is referring to a dreaded scenario defined by persistently high inflation and sluggish growth. It can be worse than recession, because the Federal Reserve is unable to comfortably move interest rates in either direction. Swonk notes the Iran war has driven multiple supply shocks that have resulted in product shortages and higher prices. For the other side of the stagflation equation, Swo...
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Mental health startup Kintsugi is shutting down and open-sourcing its AI tech to detect depression and anxiety, after failing to secure FDA clearance (Robert Hart/The Verge)

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Robert Hart / The Verge : Mental health startup Kintsugi is shutting down and open-sourcing its AI tech to detect depression and anxiety, after failing to secure FDA clearance   —  Instead, a mental health startup shut down and open-sourced its tech. … For the past seven years, the California-based startup Kintsugi … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/Mg7IRF8
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OpenAI acquires popular tech news show TBPN; the show will stay the same and will continue to air live at 11am PT weekdays (John Coogan/@johncoogan)

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John Coogan / @johncoogan : OpenAI acquires popular tech news show TBPN; the show will stay the same and will continue to air live at 11am PT weekdays   —  TBPN has been acquired by OpenAI! The show is staying the same and we'll continue to go live at 11am pacific every weekday. This is a full circle moment for me as I've worked with @sama for well over a decade. He funded my first company in 2013. Then helped us fix a serious from Techmeme https://ift.tt/y4PQmWZ
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I tried 38 of Trader Joe's seasonal spring products, and there are only a few I wouldn't buy again

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I tried 38 spring products from Trader Joe's. Trader Joe's, Abanti Chowdhury/BI I tried the seasonal foods at Trader Joe's for the spring and reviewed them. The coffee creme Joe-Joe's and Meyer lemon cookies were both delicious and adorable. The chain's cheese-filled fiocchetti and taco salad kit are both good entrée options. Trader Joe's stocks its shelves with a variety of seasonal products every spring. So, I've been trying the spring offerings from my local store as part of an ongoing series where I review the grocery chain's seasonal foods . Keep reading to see which items I'll be stocking up on and which I'll skip. Editor's Note: This post was originally published in April 2021. Although many seasonal spring foods return, item availability is subject to change. I was excited to try the cheese blintzes from Trader Joe's. Savanna Swain-Wilson A blintz is a popular breakfast treat that's essentially a lightly s...
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