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Sports is a “red-hot” sector for investment, thanks to exploding team valuations. But with those rising price tags (Forbes recently found the average NFL franchise value was $5.7 billion, for instance), team ownership is available to only a select few.
Instead, investors are turning to sports technology startups in areas ranging from wearables and performance enhancement to the fan experience. The first half of 2024 featured a record 225 sports tech deals, worth more than $27 billion, a new report from investment bank Drake Star found.
“Whether you talk about the digital media rights, whether you talk about all the FAANGs moving into it—Apple, Amazon—everyone is trying to get a piece of the sports puzzle,” says Mohit Pareek, a principal at Drake Star and the report’s co-author.
FIRST UP
Consumer prices rose 2.4% in September, faster than economists predicted for the first time since March. The hotter-than-expected inflation poses a potential obstacle to the yearslong fight to return to 2% inflation, but it’s still the lowest inflation rate since February 2021.
ChatGPT creator OpenAI is trying to court creators and influencers to its platform, including by hiring for a “Head of Internet Creators” role, according to a new job listing spotted by Forbes. At the same time, the company is facing complaints from creators who are frustrated by reports that it used transcriptions of YouTube videos to train its models underpinning ChatGPT.
BUSINESS + FINANCE
The tariffs proposed by former President Donald Trump would pose a major headwind to stocks globally, according to a report from UBS. If the U.S. implements the 60% import tax on Chinese goods and 10% tariff on other imports backed by Trump, the S&P 500 would end next year at 5,200 and 2026 at 5,650, accounting for any retaliatory policies from U.S. trade partners. That would be 11% and 2% respective declines from the stock index’s record close on Wednesday.
TD Bank’s stock fell around 5% after agreeing to pay $3 billion in penalties to regulators, after it pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an anti-money laundering program. The Justice Department said the bank was aware it allowed money laundering networks belonging to international drug traffickers to flourish.
WEALTH + ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Walter Wang, CEO and owner of Los Angeles-based JM Eagle, one of the world’s largest makers of plastic pipes, made his debut on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans earlier this month with an estimated net worth of $3.6 billion. A new EPA rule announced this week will require the replacement of nearly all the lead pipes in the U.S. in 10 years, and should boost his firm’s revenue by 20% to 25%, according to Wang.
TECH + INNOVATION
At a highly-anticipated event, Elon Musk showed off the company’s new fleet of robotaxis called Cybercabs, with no steering wheel or pedals inside. Musk laid out what he sees as a new vision for Tesla, beyond mainly making and selling electric vehicles and developing AI and autonomous software. The boost would be welcome: The company’s EV sales have dipped 2.3% this year as it has lost market share to other electric car makers, particularly in the U.S.
Redwood Materials, a battery recycling and components maker created by Tesla cofounder JB Straubel, is now recycling electric vehicle batteries that have been damaged by fires and floods to reuse the high-value metals contained inside. Redwood estimates it currently recycles about 70% of spent lithium-ion cells recovered in the U.S., which is enough material to make new battery packs for more than 250,000 EVs a year.
MONEY + POLITICS
Some of the most tightly contested states in next month’s presidential election are dealing with the fallout from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and voters in some of those states have gone to court to try to extend voter registration deadlines in light of the natural disasters. Such efforts have had mixed success: A federal judge on Wednesday shot down an effort to reopen voter registration in Florida, while a judge extended South Carolina’s voter registration deadline by 10 days.
SPORTS + ENTERTAINMENT
In hockey, there’s limited revenue available from endorsement and licensing deals, but CAA, which Forbes ranks as the most valuable sports agency, believes the sport’s financial reality could be changing. That shift wouldn’t be easy: By Forbes’ estimates, only four CAA hockey clients currently make seven figures off the ice annually, along with no more than a handful of others across the league.
A New York judge set a trial date of May 5 for Sean “Diddy” Combs, and ruled he will stay behind bars until then after his attorneys failed to secure bail. Combs was arrested last month in New York following a federal indictment on charges of racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
SCIENCE + HEALTHCARE
Startup Cytovale has developed the first rapid lab test for sepsis that’s been cleared by the FDA, and announced Thursday it raised $100 million to ramp up the commercialization of its technology. The test is already in place in six hospitals across two health systems, one of which has reported a reduction in sepsis mortality of over 30% after a year.
TRAVEL + LIFESTYLE
Marriott agreed to pay $52 million in a settlement with a coalition of 50 state attorneys general for failing to adequately protect customers’ personal data over the past decade. Between 2014 and 2020, Marriott was hit with three high-profile cybersecurity breaches, the largest of which exposed the personal data of 500 million customers globally, including 132 million living in the U.S.
DAILY COVER STORY
How Elon Musk Muzzled Government Employees From Talking About xAI’s New Supercomputer
TOPLINE Nearly six months ago in Memphis, before residents or even city councilors knew that Elon Musk was building “the world’s largest supercomputer” in their backyard, the billionaire’s team met secretly with a host of local and national law enforcement agencies.
The meeting, which has not been previously reported, concerned Musk’s growing AI startup xAI, according to the Greater Memphis Chamber, an economic development group that had been steering the deal behind closed doors since March.
Chamber chief economic development officer Gwyn Fisher offered them a tour of Musk’s new facility on one condition: that they sign non-disclosure agreements with an entity called CTC Property, a mysterious shell company controlled by Musk’s fixer and personal banker, Jared Birchall.
Forbes was first to report that government officials in Memphis had signed NDAs with xAI, and subsequently obtained the agreement and other internal documents through a series of public records requests. It’s “unethical” that agencies consented to xAI’s confidentiality terms, said Scott Banbury, conservation director of the Sierra Club Tennessee Chapter, who believes their primary accountability should be to the citizens of Memphis.
The FBI and Shelby County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the meeting with xAI, and the remaining law enforcement agencies did not respond to Forbes’ multiple outreach attempts. However, documents show that both the Memphis Police Department and sheriff’s office delivered signed NDAs to xAI’s corporate security chief Logan Beach. It’s unclear whether any of these agencies are providing protective services for the AI company.
Musk’s companies have a long history of using NDAs to silence government officials about projects in their towns, and Memphis appears no different.
WHY IT MATTERS “The AI frenzy has caused a boom in the development of hyperscale data centers, and to outpace his competitors, Elon Musk found a city willing to push his supercomputer across the finish line,” says Forbes senior writer Sarah Emerson. “Built in just four months, xAI’s facility stands to become the largest power and water consumer in Memphis. But for months, many of the city’s lawmakers were completely unaware of the project. It has quickly become the latest example of Musk’s desire to accelerate at any cost.”
MORE Inside Elon Musk’s Mad Dash To Build A Giant xAI Supercomputer In Memphis
FACTS + COMMENTS
Social security benefits will increase 2.5% next year to help “tens of millions of people keep up with expenses even as inflation has started to cool,” according to Martin O’Malley, Commissioner of Social Security:
$50 per month: The average amount Social Security retirement benefits will increase starting in January 2025
68 million: The number of Social Security beneficiaries
$1,976: The average monthly benefit for all retired workers, but the amount can reach as high as $4,018 per month
STRATEGY + SUCCESS
Many people only turn to their professional network in the middle of a job search, but the strongest, most genuine connections are built when you don’t need immediate help. And it’s important to look outside of your workplace—a strategic network includes individuals from different industries, roles and locations. Some of the best connections are made through informal conversations like a casual lunch.
VIDEO
QUIZ
Alaska’s Fat Bear Week tournament held by Katmai National Park and Preserve ended after a winner was crowned in a landslide. What was the name of the champion?
A. 128 Grazer
B. 32 Chunk
C. 164 Bucky
D. 806 Yearling
Check your answer.
Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire, Chris Dobstaff and Caroline Howard.