Elon Musk launches hostile takeover bid of Open AI

February 11th, 2025

Author

SGT
February 11, 2025

Salty Ginger Talk Newsletter

February 11th, 2025

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CURRENT EVENTS

Elon Musk launches hostile takeover bid of Open AI

Our take: 

Apparently Elon Musk doesn’t have enough to do. In spite of owning and running Tesla, Starlink, SpaceX, and X, as well as running the DOGE initiative for the Trump Administration, he launched a hostile takeover bid for OpenAI this week.

Musk founded OpenAI in 2015 with current CEO Sam Altman, but Musk left the company in 2019. The relationship has soured since the company was founded. OpenAI was a leader in the AI space and is still largely seen as a leader in the development of the technology.

We will continue to follow this story as it develops.

COURTESY: MSN

LA wildfire czar agrees to work for free after public expresses outrage over high salary

Our take: Wildfires have devastated the LA area over the past month. Close to 7,000 homes were destroyed, which will necessitate a massive rebuilding effort once the area is safe and clean up has started.

The residences are privately owned, so home owners can make all the decisions they want for their property. That said, the permitting process for building a home from the ground up under even normal circumstances is onerous. If the city is going to meet the needs of the communities that are trying to rebuild, they will need to make some changes to expedite the process.

LA Mayor Karen Bass reached out to a developer with a long history of residential development in the area. This makes perfect sense. The problem is, she agreed to pay him a whopping $500,000 for the 3 month engagement. Bass herself made around $350,000 in total compensation to run the city for the entire year. Also - what a terrible look. Thousands of people lost their homes and everything in them. And this guy swoops in to make half a million dollars to help smooth out the process.

After wide public outrage over the arrangement, the developer has agreed to help the city at no charge. Mayor Bass defended her decision while explaining the developer had agreed to the arrangement.

You would think the leaders in LA would have learned their lessons at this point in the tragedy. You would be wrong.

COURTESY: MSN

App locks you out of social media usage until you walk enough steps

Our take: This story piqued our interest. Many of us struggle with changing habits. Whether we are trying to quit smoking, eat better, write in a journal, or just be more present, it can be hard to shake off the chains of old habits and establish new ones.

The app, Steppin’, disables your preferred social media apps (you pick the apps affected) until you hit a predetermined number of steps. For example, the author states she made 100 steps equal 1 minute of time on her preferred apps. If she wants to spend an hour on Instagram, she would need to walk 6,000 steps.

We thought this was an interesting tool to have available. If you are interested in learning more, check out the article at the link below.

COURTESY: MSN

TIP OF THE DAY

Try to get outside as fast as possible as soon as you wake up. Sunlight hitting your body as soon as possible is a great natural wake up for your body, and can start your day off right.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“If you tell the truth, you never have to remember anything.” - Mark Twain

SOURCES: