🏡 “iHome” — Apple’s living room strategy. Bumble’s Kate Hudson moment. AI’s casino stocks. +Zuck’s Guiness

0:28This is Nick. Park up on the whiteboard. If you are coming to our live show in Boston tonight and you've got the best fact yet, we want to get you on the stage. If it's about Pesky's poll, you get double credit. We got a link in today's episode description. But in the meantime, before we hit the pasta jack, what are the three fantastic stories for the coolest show in capitalism? For our first story, Apple just unveiled an armada of smart appliances to live in your home. Behold the home view. Do I need one? No. Am I getting one? Yes. For our second story, Bumble is getting acquired for$1.3 billion in a happy ever after private equity ending.

1:03The women first dating app just got bought by a couple of dudes. And our third and final story, AI investors treat the stock market like gamblers treat a casino. That's a quote from a top AI CEO. So we'll tell you what to actually do with it. But besties, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. What a mix of stories. Also, I love that Kate Hudson's getting a shout out today. More on that in a sec. We're going to do an intro on somebody who would not feel welcome in Fenway Park. All right, what do we got? Because the biggest challenge for AI leaders right now, what is it next? It's not data centers, it's not frontier models, and it's not not destroying the world.

1:33It's attempting to look normal while drinking a beer. Specifically drinking a Guinness beer. Now to sprinkle in some context, people liked George W. Bush because, and I quote, I'd want to have a beer with him. Well, Zucky Zuck Zuckerberg wants what Bush is having. So Mark Zuckerberg went on a podcast last week and he ordered a pint of Guinness. Relatable. But the first sip nearly made him throw up. Not relatable. The clip has gone viral. He takes the tiniest sip of that Guinness pint. But he's sipping the big brown glass of beer like it's a life sentence. And it takes him, we counted, 17 seconds to physically recover from the tiniest sip of Guinness.

2:10The most try-hard moment in Zuck's career so far. You can't code your way out of this one, Mark. Bet you a billion GPUs Zuck won't split the G either, Jack. Nick, it's wild. His business card literally says, I'm CEO, Bia. But Pasta Podjack, because besties, we're not hazing, Zuck. We're not peer-pressuring. As we all know, a Guinness can be an intense experience. Although the numbers suggest it's not. Because get this, Guinness actually has fewer calories than a Budweiser. 20 % fewer. An ounce for ounce, a Guinness weighs less than most beers. 15 % less. And it's got half the ABV of the IPAs that you're sipping on.

2:43A Guinness is just 4.2 % out. Add it all up, besties. And the next time you find yourself at a pub with Mark Zuckerberg, just remember this. Mark's a Smirnoff guy. Ice of Jack. Let's hit our three story.

3:17the show.

3:21Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

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5:30See website for full details, restrictions, and important safety information. For our first story, Apple's newest product sits on your kitchen counter and controls five new Apple smart appliances. But here's the big question. It's big. Will you let Siri run your home, especially if she has a Fran Drescher nanny voice? Wait, can you customize it to Fran Drescher? I don't know, Jack. Yet it's just five weeks after revealing to us the folding iPhone, the iPhone Duo, Apple wants another bite of the Apple. And it's called the HomeView. Okay, that's enough. Okay, that's enough. Picture the HomeView.

6:08The HomeView. It's an Apple HomePod speaker, but with a seven-inch square-shaped iPad mini perched on top. Now, Jack, I'm looking at the numbers here. HomePod that Apple already makes costs$300. And the iPad mini costs$600. So you'd think this new HomeView, which combines the two, would be priced at$900. Add it all up. But it's not. No. It's priced to sell at$299 each. And the job of this brand new HomeView is to make it so you don't need your iPhone when you're in the kitchen. Now, Nick and I were thinking about this HomeView, as it's called, and we think the best use case is for cooking. Cooking.

6:38Like you ask Siri AI for a recipe and she shows you it on the HomeView screen. And then when the meal's over, you can ask this thing for a FaceTime call. You ask Siri to call your mom while you're cleaning the dishes. And if your mom hangs up on you because she's sick of you, you ask Siri to run down tomorrow's schedule while you're enjoying your second dessert. And when this thing's not on, you're not using it, its screensaver is a digital photo frame. Right, it's going through all the photos of your family just through your life. That's honestly like the best use case. It's a digital photo frame.

7:07But it's not actually an iPad, we should point out. Surprisingly, there's no Netflix app that you can download, so it's unclear if you can watch shows or movies while you're cooking. And also, interestingly, the HomeView is not available in the European Union. Because Apple hasn't cleared its AI regulations over there. Not possible. But the next best use case of this big new Apple Home product, it's to look at the screen and see who's standing at the front door. Because sit down, stand up, and get the door. Apple also unveiled Apple Home Collection. Five smart appliances for your home. That's right.

7:39Apple is turning your home into a command center bat cave, and Siri is your new Alfred. Quick side note, though. Yes. It's wild how accurate Bloomberg's journalist, Mark Gurman, is at his reporting. Because he called all this last week, and we waited to actually see it happen, and it did. He must have a spy at Apple who tells him the press releases before we all see it. Yeah, the old PFWTM. But Apple besties, Apple is now all in on your home. They're going full Joanna Gaines on your living room. Pimp this casa. You see, Apple Home Collection is actually a partnership with LG Electronics and Schneider Electric.

8:11They unveiled yesterday two new Apple-branded security cameras. One that's a doorbell and one that's a floodlight, kind of like Amazon's Ring. And they unveiled an Apple thermostat, which kind of looks like Google's Nest. Exactly like Google's Nest. And then they also unveiled Apple's first ever front door locks. One has a keypad and one is just a deadbolt. And you can control them all with your iPhone and this new HomeView product. Although I should point out, Jack, while the HomeView ships in November, the other home appliances from Apple, there's TBD. No ship date yet. They're coming soon. But Apple is still going A-B-L-E able.

8:44Always be launching everything. Even if there's no ETA for arrival. But this is what Jack and I find fascinating. For the last decade, Apple has been obsessed with your body. Mainly with AirPods and Apple Watches. Yeah, think of Apple's own apps. They're all focused on health. They track every bead and fluid going up and down your veins. But with the new CEO, John Ternus, maybe Apple's next 10 years are going to be outside your body. Maybe their next 10 years are about being inside your living room. If Siri AI actually works, which three quarters of the time it doesn't for me still, this HomeView will be a hit and so will the smart appliance.

9:15Which leads to the final most important use case for Apple. Privacy. And when are you going to launch that iToylet, Apple? The iTushy. I think the biggest concern is how they'll demonstrate the product in the Apple stores, Nick. Hey, Apple, either way, just make product number two priority number one. And Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Apple? Don't ever do that again, Nick. Apple's advantage? It's a warm security blanket. Yetis, there was a hacking on Monday. At 500 grocery stores in Europe, hackers cranked up the temperature in refrigerators to 122 degrees and spoiled all the food.

9:51What a bizarre hacking, by the way. Right. Why would you want to spoil all the produce in grocery stores over in France? But it's a vivid reminder that interconnected smart appliances can get hacked. But back to Apple Home. If you're going to let a smart AI device with cameras inside your home, then trust is going to trump everything else. And that's why Apple's marketing isn't about design or style or big values. it's simply about privacy and security. Great powers come with great privacy, and your data is private property. That's what Apple said yesterday. You see, the HomeView is secured by Face ID.

10:24The smart appliances, they're co-built by Apple and run on Apple's secure software. If smart, connected, AI-optimized homes are the next frontier for tech profits, then Apple's advantage is their reputation for privacy and security. Which, interestingly, is not the marketing message we saw from Zuck with Meta's Ray-Bans. No, it was only after they called them perv glasses. Then he started to think about that security. Apple's key to retention, Yetis. It's a warm security blanket.

10:54For our second story, like the happy ending of a love story, Bumble stock is up 138 % on news. It's found it's Prince Charming. Two men will now run this women first dating app, but they have the queen bee's blessing. Now Yetis, a little bit of behind the scenes here, but Jack and I love to study storytelling. And there's a familiar cliche that you'll notice in the plots of rom-coms. Boy meets girl, girl rejects boy, boy rescues girl, boy and girl live happily ever after. And that cliche also, we noticed, happens to be the story of Bumble's recent stock rise. Financially, Bumble shareholders have been Kate Hudson to Wall Street's McConaughey.

11:31In this analogy, Jack is the movie producer, right, Jack? Because I'm a long-term shareholder. I thought it was awesome that Bumble was building an entire brand, an entire company based on female. And I hear you, Jack. You invested in it. And on Monday, Bumble stock surged 50%. On reports, it was getting acquired. And on Tuesday, it surged 50 % again. On confirmation, it was. Voila, a happy ending forever after. Call us Roger Ebert, because one month ago, Nick and I predicted that Bumble would get acquired. Are you thinking about our podcast we did on September 11th, Jack? We said that fallen millennial brands were acquisition targets.

12:04They were highly eligible bachelorettes. Because five years ago, Bumble was living its best life. Hey, IPO, they hit a$14 billion valuation. That's worth two lifts, man. 31-year-old Whitney Wolf Hurd became the youngest woman to take a company public and the youngest female billionaire. Full stop. But post-pandemic, Gen Z told dating apps, it's just not that into you. Bumble was burned out. It was. They had eight straight quarters of revenue shrinkage that's still going today. And the stock is down 90 % from its high, with Jack still holding on for dear life. So Bumble tried to eat, pray, love their share price.

12:37backup. Yeah. First, they brought back their founder, Whitney Wolf Hurd, as a boomerang CEO. And they gave the app a makeover. They let men start making the first move. And then they did the ultimate breakup. They let go of 30 % of Bumble employees, basically a third of the company. But Stella never quite got her groove back. No. The low stock price for Bumble left it ripe to be acquired. So on Tuesday, Bumble confirmed that it's happening. They're being bought for 1.3 billion bucks. Ithaca, a private equity company, is buying Bumble for$6.05 per share. Oh, not too shabby at 138 % premium to their stock price from just last week.

13:10But it's not the most happy ending. I know what you're thinking, Jack. The co-CEO's two dudes will be former executives from Meta and Instacart. But it's also, like any good rom-com, also a full circle moment. Because six years ago, when Bumble IPO'd, its biggest shareholder, was a private equity firm, Blackstone. Nick and I were rooting that AI would acquire Bumble, but we said that PE would most likely do it. And now it's happened. But Whitney Wolf heard, she said in the announcement, she's into it. These guys share her vision, she said, and she believes that Bumble's best days are still to come.

13:42And Nora Ephron would approve of that. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies over at Bumble? A new area of finance is being born. It's called DOPE. DOPE stands for D-O-P-E, Digital Only Private Equity. Historically, private equity acquires struggling physical companies, makes some changes, and hopes to resell them at a higher price. Picture factories, car wash chains, jersey mic submarine sandwiches, all bought by private equity. They fixed the finances, then they hope to IPO. Or as Richard Gere did in Pretty Woman, no IPO. He just buys the physical businesses and sells them for parts.

14:16But Jack and I are noticing a new wave of private equity that buys struggling digital brands. And not necessarily to resell, maybe just to hold them for the cash flow. Yahoo, TechCrunch, and Engadget got acquired by Apollo, a New York-based private equity firm. Eventbrite, Evernote, Vimeo, AOL, all acquired by Italy's Bending Spoons, a publicly traded private equity firm. Squarespace, GoDaddy, WebMD, and now Bumble, all bought by different PE firms. Besties, rundown factories still have a lot of value, and rundown internet brands do too. PE, it's adopting to the internet era with dope. Digital only.

14:48Private equity. Now, a quick word from our sponsor. NetSuite. Yetis, remember we told you Warren Buffett reads 500 pages a day? Well, the world's greatest investor, he's not reading Moby Dick for the 15th time. No, we got Warren's reading the latest report from NetSuite Next. NetSuite Next is the next-generation business management suite trusted by over 44 ,000 companies. And if you're curious how AI can open up new business opportunities, then you gotta download their latest piece. It's NetSuite Next's new expert-created business guide with a ridiculously relevant title. Here it is, Aligning for the Agentic Era, How AI is Changing Everyday Work.

15:25And right now, it's absolutely free to you. Warren Buffett loves a story with a good subtitle. He does, Jack. So after you finish that 83rd chapter of Herman Melville's White Whale Classic, pick up some lighter material on the modern day economy. And see how AI could really reshape work across your company in this guide and how you can prosper from it with NetSuite. If we needed this product, it's what we would use. If your revenues are at least in the seven figures, go to netsuite.com slash tboy. Get your free guide at netsuite.com slash tboy. netsuite.com slash tboy. netsuite.com slash tboy.

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16:30For our third story, the stock market is now mandatory and a casino at the same time. Here's how to own a piece of our growing economy without out gambling on it. Now, Yeti, sometimes Jack and I go full mashed potatoes on the news. We had a couple of headlines here. We're going to smoosh into one story. First headline is that corporate profits now represent 12 % of America's GDP. That's an all-time high, A-T-H. But those gains for corporate profits have come at the expense of our paychecks. You see, workers' share of GDP is now at all-time lows. So profits have eaten away at wages. Rising prices, lagging wages, besties.

17:11To survive in this economy, you must own stocks. Because the winners of growing corporate profits - Who is it, Jack? Shareholders who own stocks of corporations. So besties, that's why it makes sense that a record number of Americans are rushing into the stock market trying to get a piece of it. We've encouraged it on this pod. We have. Paychecks alone rarely get you ahead in modern America. You need to own. You need to own. You need the upside of equity. equity is exciting. Equity in a house or equity in stocks? It could start with as little as$100, which leads to headline number two. The CEO of a top chip company just said that the stock market has become a casino.

17:49He basically says the NASDAQ has become Caesar's Palace. He actually literally called it a casino. Now, besties, we don't talk about Broadcom much, do we, Jack? But how big is Broadcom? It's worth$1.7 trillion. That's a lot of lists. It's the ninth most valuable company in the world. You see, Broadcom is a low-key winner of the AI boom. Because as Broadcom says, 99.9 % of internet traffic globally goes through their chips or infrastructure. And that other 0.1 %? Duck, duck, go. I'm not kidding. I don't know. So everyone is trying to buy Broadcom, and that is worrying the CEO, Hawk Tan. Which is what lead him to say on Monday, a quote, lot of investors have no clue what they are investing in.

18:31And then he added, it's almost like they're in a casino. So where is Mr. Tan seeing this gambling-like behavior out there? Look on X. After 10Xing from 2022 to 2025, Broadcom stock has been flat for the last 12 months. So on X, you're seeing a lot of angry traders right now hating on Broadcom for not delivering the returns they expected. They're trolling the CEO. They are. It's the same guys who'd be yelling at the Eagles for losing on Sunday or yelling at the Horace for losing the Kentucky Derby or yelling at the blackjack tabored down in Atlanta City. In 2026, they're also yelling at the CEOs behind the stocks they're owning that aren't making them rich.

19:06And all that trolling has now led to a casino quote that literally moved the markets. Yeah. Hawk Tan's very candid remarks that the stock market feels like a casino, that's concerning for the whole market and sent stock prices down, especially AI stocks. Chip stocks fail because of that one single quote, so we got to add it all up here. Headline number one, you must invest in stocks if you want to get ahead in this economy. But headline number two, a lot of people are treating the stock market like a casino. Our takeaway shows how to invest without gambling. Hit me. Hit me for the takeaway. Sir, you have 17.

19:39I recommend you stay. Jack, you know I like to live dangerously. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies looking to invest? Warren Buffett's only invest in what you know, versus FOMO. But there's a third choice. Yeti's, some of our favorite investment advice came from Warren Buffett. Only invest in the companies you understand. But Warren Buffett didn't understand Silicon Valley. Nope. So he got left out on the sidelines of the tech and AI booms. Okay. So that's one end of the spectrum. But on the other side of Warren Buffett, you have Roaring Kitty on Reddit who invests in any hot stock because he doesn't want to miss out.

20:13He basically says FOMO. But FOMO quickly becomes no money. As in FOMO rallies run out and go in reverse and a lot of people can lose a lot of money. So besties Jack and I see both sides here. Regular people can't possibly understand all the details happening inside of a secretive AI lab. But you still want a piece of the AI boom that has way more upside potential than the S &P 500. Which is why Jack and I see a third choice, which is AIETFs, funds specifically full of AI stocks. I have most of my money in the S &P 500 and other diversified funds and some of the stocks I mentioned at the end of the episode.

20:47But I also put some of my money in Ives, an ETF invested in AI Labs. Or DRAM, which is an ETF of memory stocks. You see, besties, there's Warren Buffett's Invest in What You Know, and then there's Roaring Kitty's Total FOMO. But there's a third option for those who want to go to the moon, but not gamble. You just got to remember five letters, A-I-E-T-Fs. It's risky, but not live dangerously risky. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for Ceviche Wednesday? Apple's home view is$299. It's first shot at an R2-D2 smart AI for your home. Apple's competitive advantage, it's the warm security blanket of privacy.

21:28For our second story, Bumble has been sold to former executives of Meta and Instacart. Whitney, the founder, will remain involved. And the rom-com business story here, it's a dope deal. Digital only private equity. And our third and final story, Broadcom CEO is worried that the stock market is being treated like a casino. But between Warren Buffett's slow-mo and Roaring Kitty's FOMO, there is a middle ground. And what is it, Jack? AI ETFs. Five great letters. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, a happy third quarter earnings season to all those who celebrate, including Jamie.

22:03Banks go first. JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Citibank, and Goldman Sachs all reported strong profits yesterday, but interest rates are messing with their fixed income divisions. Investment banking fees dropped in Q3 because Q2 had that record setting SpaceX IPO. Also, JPMorgan announced they're blocking AI agents like Muse from accessing customer accounts. And second, Crumble Cookies, the$2 billion Utah-based cookie chain just had its first bankruptcy. One franchise is going out of business, and that could be an early indicator. According to Restaurant Business, all of Crumble's 2024 sales gains were erased just last year.

22:39Crumble surged on viral weekly cookie drops with 2 ,000 calories, but always beware of the three Fs of fads. Fitness, fashion, and food. And finally, Kelly Clarkson is beefing right now with a small business in Brooklyn, and it's got a business takeaway. You see, the singing star went to a small shop over in BK and tried to buy a$15 ,000 toy bird. The store said, no, it's not for sale. But Kelly Clarkson said the store is lying and posted about it on Instagram. She said she was shamed like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. You thinking about that quote, Jack? Huge mistake. Huge. But despite being attacked by 8 million fans of Kelly Clarkson online, the store has handled it gracefully by not getting angry and inviting her to return.

23:19That's a case study in Crisis PR straight out of TMZ. Now time for the best fact yet, which because Jack and I are in Boston for our live show and are at MIT today to speak to a bunch of students, you gotta go in front. Okay, MIT, known for math and numbers, right? So they send out their undergraduate acceptance letters on Pi Day, March 14th. Okay, 3.14, don't ask me the rest. But Nick, on March 14th, 2015. Yeah. Super Pi Day. 3.1415. They sent out their admission decisions at 9.26 in order to continue the next three digits of pi. 3.14159926. If only the year were 5 ,359 AD, Jack. That's going to be a huge celebration on the MIT campus.

24:06So thanks to NoMo, sir, the MIT Sloanies out there, all the business school students at MIT. Thanks for hosting us. Do they go by Sloanies? Noam's actually right here. What do Sloan students call themselves? Sloanies. Somewhere there's a financial proof in that statement, Jack. somewhere deep inside. Yetis, you look fantastic for our live show in Boston Day. Jack, you were glowing before hair and makeup. Did you hear makeup? No. No, I'm actually sweating. We can't wait to see you at the sold out show tonight. It's going to be a blast. Oh, and if you've got the best fact yet and want to come on stage, we want to get you on stage.

24:41So DM us your best fact yet about Boston. And if we love it, we'll bring you up on stage to perform it live. But in the meantime, Jack and I, we've got to rest the voices, hair and makeup. and Dishvitz Jack over here. Nick and I will see you tomorrow. Can't wait.

24:59And before we go, a happy birthday to legendary Yeti, Emily Pepper, spending that B-Day in Boston for our live show. Happy birthday to Kate Keenan, who loves corgis and has got a birthday just outside Boston. See you tonight in recent Chance Kramer, brother and sister, same birthday, celebrating in South Korea. Happy birthday to Ryan Adkins, running his first marathon for his birthday down in Texas. And Nate Namek, the panda of North Carolina, has got the best birthday yet. And Travis Schroeder, happy birthday in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. And Lucas Garcia, we wouldn't miss your 32nd birthday down in lovely Los Angeles.

25:29Happy birthday to Ana Ocean in Abuja, Nigeria. And Julian and Anoushe, I have an anniversary in Zurich, Switzerland. They're listening together right now in Somewhere Beautiful. Happy eight years together to Brett Taylor and Annika Ross, celebrating our live show tonight. And Allie Berman, our favorite lawyer for crazy copyrights and tricky trademarks, is leaving the law. She's leaving the law! But she's doing something delicious. She's launching Etta's Bakery down in Atlanta, and the chocolate chip cookies look like profit puppies. Terms and conditions not included. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-boy.

26:03Celebrate the wins.

26:07This is Jack. I own stock of Bumble, Lyft, and Netflix, and ETFs of Ives and Dram. And Nick and I both own stock of Apple. I own one share of SpaceX. Nick owns more than one. and we both own ETFs of the S &P 500. This intelligence podcast is sponsored by Business Travel on Hotels.com. Does booking business travel feel like another job? Hotels.com makes booking work trips easy and rewarding. It's easy because you can set your preferences once and get results tailored to your business travel needs every time. It's rewarding because with Hotels.com's free rewards program, you can save instantly on your next work trip and earn rewards for future travel.

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