🪦 “RIP META” — Zuck’s metaverse kill. K-Pop’s Demon concert. Asia’s 4-day oil week. +Guinness inspector

0:28This is Nick. To all the besties who sent in that wild headline to us, thanks so much. That really completes the story full circle. But today's pod is so freaking good. What a mix for the real Friday. Jack, what are the three stories in today's pod? For our first story, after five years,$80 billion and a name change, Zuckerberg just officially ended the metaverse. RIP to the metaverse and TBD if they'll change the name again. For our second story, some Asian countries are moving to a four-day workweek, but not for the reason you expect. Yeah, it's oil. Oil hit$119. Asia is in crisis, but America has a secret advantage.

1:05And our third and final story is Netflix, because Netflix is producing a worldwide concert tour for K-pop demon hunters. Pay attention, new CEO of Disney. This is what you get to do when you take creative risks. But yet is before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. I mean, what a mix of stories is the coolest place in capitalism, love it, Jack. Happy March Madness Friday to all those who celebrate. That's right, Yetis. We know you're hitting the local saloon at 3 p.m. today to watch your bracket get broken. And if you do, and if you order a Guinness, watch out for the Guinness police. Get this.

1:40A Guinness inspector is roaming American bars right now and regulating the pores. True story. One of them is named Ryan Wagner, and he carries a stopwatch and a tape measure into each bar. He's actually paid by Guinness, who is ordering him to regulate American bars. Hey, what did you pour over there? Here's what he does. First, he ensures that each bartender uses a Guinness-approved 20-ounce glass for each Guinness. Then he instructs them to fill exactly three quarters of the glass up to the letter N. And then he says, wait 90 seconds. This is the hardest part, because the bar is busy. But you need to let the nitrogen settle.

2:13And then, only then, do you finally get to top off the Guinness, letting the foam rise at least 18 millimeters above the brim. If your Guinness is not overflowing, then that's not an officially regulated perfect Guinness. Best, he's had it all up, and an appropriate pour at Guinness should take exactly 119.5 seconds. No joke. Almost two minutes. The Guinness inspector measures the time down to a millisecond. What, 19.5? He's counting, man. And the inspection actually begins before the pour. That's right, because kegs have to be stored at 38 degrees, and the Guinness pines are stored between 40 and 43 degrees.

2:48And those fluid dynamics, oh, are they a profit puppy, Nick? Because you only order a second Guinness if your first Guinness didn't taste like a dying coffee. The Irish. They're really serious about some things, and Guinness is one of them. So besties, enjoy some fluid dynamics with your March Madness this weekend. Fluid dynamics, I like that, Nick. Yeah, and if you order a beer, remember to bring a ruler, a compass, and definitely a speedometer. I got 121.3. I'm sorry, we got to do this one over. Jack, let's hit our three scores. 15 years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in a dorm.

3:20They had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is the norm. Jack Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50 % that's a fat tip. T-Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, cause we ready to go. We can't wait no more, so just start the show.

3:42Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

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4:22When you need the right person to cut through the chaos, this is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. And listeners of the show will get a$75 sponsored job credit to help get your job the premium status it deserves at Indeed.com slash podcast. So just go to Indeed.com slash podcast right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. That's Indeed.com slash podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need a hiring hero? This is a job for Indeed-sponsored jobs. So yet he's Jack's instituted a new business model for his Airbnb hosting. And Jack, what is it? Here it is. Host equals guest.

4:56Yes. I funnel all my revenue from being a host on Airbnb into one bank account and use that same bank account to book travel for myself. Basically, it's Jack's host guest bank account for when he hosts and when he's a guest somewhere else. When I lived in the city neck, every time my apartment was available on Airbnb, it would get booked like that. I mean, think about how often are you away from home? You got the bridesmaid, you got the shower, you got the bachelorette, you got the wedding. That's three weekends away just for one wedding right there. Plus, you got to visit your mother. Naturally, well, that's a lot of potential hosting that you could be doing on Airbnb.

5:29Let someone else stay at your place while you're away. Take that host money and spend it when you're a guest somewhere else. Have a business model like me. If you want to travel more, hosting more is a great way to make it happen financially. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at Airbnb.com slash host.

5:47For our first story, Mark Zuckerberg is killing off the last of has failed metaverse, thy metaverse is dead. And it's actually the smartest move Zuck has done yet because of the bad burrito rule. But first, Yetis, we gather here today to remember a visionary ahead of its time, but behind its product market fit. The metaverse, a bet so big, Zuck renamed the company after it. Yetis, five years ago, in the middle of the pandemic, Zuck said that the future would be lived in a virtual world. You would work and hang out with an awkward, angular avatar version of yourself and avatar versions of your friends.

6:24You can stay in your pajamas all day because the digital version of you would wear a tuxedo over in Pixel Land. Classic Zuck wasn't his idea. The concept of the metaverse was from a 1992 science fiction book called Snow Crash. But this is the world Zuck envisioned as he put it in an epic speech back in 2021. We will teleport around the metaverse with one click, saving commutes and saving the environment too. Peak metaverse hype, someone dropped 2.4 million bucks for a plot of digital land in a virtual world. A ranch that you can't touch. One sec, Jack, I got to go over to the digital Ralph Lauren store to buy some pleated pixel khakis and pay for them with my Dogecoin.

7:00Ironically, they're still expensive even in the digital world. I know, I never really got that part. Now, fast forward five years and here's the news. Horizon Worlds, which is the app manifestation of Zuckerberg's metaverse, is being shut down for good. That's right. Get out while you can. They are shutting it down. Lights are off, people. But classic Zuck, he kind of flip-flopped yesterday. Turns out there was so much last-minute anger from the few people still playing in this metaverse that Zuck kind of walked it back a little bit. Yeah, apparently middle-aged women love working out in the metaverse.

7:30That's right. Moms are huge metaverse fans. You know why, Jack? There's always space in the virtual Pilates class. You're not going to get locked out of Pilates working out if it's virtual. So Horizon Worlds will remain available to owners of MetaQuest headsets, but there will never be an update again. So Jack, let's look at the death certificate here. What is the cause of death for the metaverse? Too much hype, not enough habit. Nick, there were just 200 ,000 monthly active users of Horizon Worlds. Yeah, could you sprinkle on a little real world context for us, please? Roblox, which is the closest competitor to the metaverse, has 80 million monthly active users.

8:03And how's that$2.4 million metaverse ranch looking, man? No ponies, no people, just digital tumbleweed. Now, we should also sprinkle on some clarification here, right, Jack? The end of Zuck's metaverse is not the end of virtual reality. Those are two different things. True. You see, Meta acquired Oculus virtual reality headsets back in 2014, and they sold 2 million of them last year. Not too shabby. People use them to play video games and work out primarily for virtual reality. But they're not using them as virtual offices, digital real estate, or hanging out as a legless avatar as Zuck had promised us.

8:36The way headsets are used in Ready Player One, It's not how people use headsets in the real world. So besties, add it all up and the metaverse is dead, although it's survived by Zuck's next pivot, AI. So a moment of silence, please. The metaverse is in a better place. I'm sorry, Jack, one last question before we go six feet under here. If Zuck's metaverse is dead, what is he going to rename the company to now? Drop your ideas in the comments. Changing your name, though, is an onerous process. Trust me, from experience. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies over at Meta? I mean, Facebook.

9:08Beware of the bad burrito blunder. Yetis, Zuck's ending an experiment that he'd already spent$80 billion on. 80? That is 13 lifts. For$80 billion, Jack, Zuck could have acquired Procter & Gamble, Sony, or every 7-Eleven on the planet. Now, most would say, hey, we've put in too much money into this project to just walk away from it. We gotta keep going. But that would be the sunk cost fallacy, when you let the past cost influence a decision about the future. A smarter move is to ignore what you've spent already and think, what is the best way for me to invest my next dollar? Yeah, the way we think about this is like, just like you take a few bites of a bad burrito, don't finish that burrito.

9:48That's what we think was the smart move by Zuck here. Like, the way Zuck sees it, every new dollar now invested in the metaverse is a dollar he's not investing for good ROI in AI. So just because you spent$80 billion on the wrong move doesn't mean you should spend any billion dollars more on it. That is the sunk cost fallacy, or as we call it, the bad burrito blunder. Zuckerberg ending the metaverse is probably his wisest move yet. For our second story, over in Asia, entire countries are suddenly shifting to a four-day work week. But not for fun, for fuel. In the U.S., high oil prices are a risk.

10:26But for the rest of the world, it's a full-on crisis. Yetis two weeks ago, the main economic character of the war in Iran was the Shahed drone. We told you all about it. Last week, we covered the main character on our side, which was the F-35 fighter jet. But besties, the biggest single economic player in the war right now is oil, which continues to rise. On Wednesday, Israel and Iran traded attacks on oil and gas facilities for the first time in this war. The result, price of Brent Oil, the global oil benchmark, hit$119 a barrel. How are prices looking in the U.S., Jack, by the way? $99 a barrel.

11:02In the stock market right now, whatever oil does, stocks do the opposite. Yeah, it's pretty simple, actually. So the NASDAQ and the Dow both are approaching correction territory, down 9 % off their all-time highs. The S &P 500, it's doing a little bit better. It's down only 6 % or 7 % right now. But the biggest impact of the roar in Iran that you're seeing on a daily basis in America, where is it, Jack? At the gas pump. It costs 10 bucks more to fill up your tank. On the other hand, Yetis, in the rest of the world, it is a full-on economic crisis that you should be aware of. So much so that they're resorting to a four-day work week.

11:35This is wild, true story. It began in the Philippines. Government offices moved to a four-day work week. Happened in Vietnam too. Sri Lanka, they canceled all school across the country on Wednesdays. Not happening right now. And Pakistan told the country, stay at home on Fridays indefinitely. Now, across Asia, they're not doing four-day work weeks for some kind of work-life balance experiment with Simon Sinek, are they, Jack? No, it's because of oil. They're trying to save the scarce fuel that they have in their country. Get this. Japan produces zero oil domestically. Zero oil in the entire country.

12:06Japan has to import all their oil, and 90 % of it comes directly through the Strait of Hormuz. South Korea and India, same situation. They get 70 and 60 % of their oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Which is why earlier in the month, South Korea's stock market had their worst day ever. Fell 12 % as the war broke out. That's worse than 9-11. The Strait of Hormuz has become the most important geographic point in the world right now. In Thailand, it feels like the pandemic. The government is telling people right now to work from home in order to save oil. Now, over in Europe, it's not quite as bad a situation, right, Jack, for Emily and Paris?

12:41No, they get their natural gas through land pipelines. And natural gas is up 16%. Not great, but not as bad as in Asia. But over here in America, we are swimming in a petroleum paradise, relatively speaking. And that makes a big difference. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies looking at business's Iran war update? In the game of economic risk, fuel is our firewall. You see, Yetis, for 50 years, American presidents lamented our dependence on Middle East oil. Oil was our oily Achilles heel. But in 2002, we discovered that we could extract gas by fracking into rock underground known as shale.

13:19That's right. And by 2019, the shale revolution made America a net energy exporter. We became self-sufficient, the world's biggest oil producer. Pretty sure Exxon isn't UNICEF. So if Exxon can sell American oil abroad at a higher price, they're going to do that and they are doing that. Still, we're getting a domestic discount. The price Americans pay for oil remains$15 less per barrel than what the rest of the world is paying right now. And the oil we pay for in America is$50 less per barrel than what they're paying in Asia, which is in such a crisis right now. Because unlike with rare earth metals and fertilizer and labubu dolls, we do not need to import oil.

13:55For better or for worse, U.S. presidents can now mingle in the Middle East with less worry about the economic consequences than in the past. because besties in the game of economic risk, fuel is now our firewall. Now, a quick word from our sponsor. NetSuite by Oracle. Yetis, on our show, you know, we love to sprinkle on some context. Because news doesn't mean anything if you don't have a sense of history, the competitive situation, etc. Yada, yada, yada. Well, it's the same with AI. If your AI tool doesn't know anything about your biz, then it's not going to be the best one yet. That's why we're pumped to promote NetSuite by Oracle.

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15:01If your revenues are at least in the seven figures, get your free business guide, Demystifying AI, at netsuite.com slash tboy. The guy is free to use at netsuite.com slash tboy. Netsuite.com slash tboy. Monarch. When I had student debt, I tracked my progress on an Excel spreadsheet I manually updated each month. Oh, I was Jack a spreadsheet jockey because when he was paying off his student debt, Monarch didn't exist yet. Well, one year ago, I proudly killed that spreadsheet I'd been building for 12 years. RIP spreadsheet. Because Monarch is a way better solution. All your financial accounts are linked to Monarch.

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16:06Set yourself up for financial success in 2026 with Monarch, the all-in-one tool that makes proactive money management simple all year long. Use code T-boy at monarch.com for half off your first year. That's 50 % off your first year at monarch.com with code T-boy. For our third and final story, Netflix is taking K-pop demon hunters on a worldwide concert tour. That's right, Netflix, they're doing concerts. And they're teaching Disney something about storytelling. That sequels are for soul suckers. Soul suckers. But Jack, you know, I gotta ask you, what do you do after a breakup? What's the first move?

16:42What are you thinking, man? An Abercrombie and Fitch Hall. A little retail therapy, and then you book a solo trip to Tulum. That's what you do. But one month ago, Netflix thought they were spending the rest of their life with Warner Brothers. Yeah, they did. They were in love. In fact, the CEOs of Netflix and Warner Brothers, they even did a CEO photo shoot. It was adorable. Just like you did when you got engaged. But since Paramount became Mr. Steal Your Girl and swept in, Netflix finds itself all alone. Although Netflix did get a$3 million breakup fee, so, you know, eat, pray, love. That's what you do.

17:13They're spending all that money and distracting themselves with a shiny new thing, a concert tour. And it's with K-pop Demon Hunters, the most watched Netflix film ever with 500 million views. Jack, can you sprinkle on some context, please? That is twice as many views as Squid Games and twice as many views as Zootopia 2. Wow. The best box office movie of last year. Oh, and remember, K-pop has got eight songs from the movie that are a hit Billboard Top 100. That's the craziest part. Not just a great movie, like the top music album of last year. And I'm sorry, the envelope, please. Golden is the first K-pop song to win a Grammy and an Oscar, the featured song of K-pop Demon Hunters.

17:51And again, it's a song from a movie, not just like a song song. Besties, Jack and I have seen books turn into movies and we've seen movies turn into musicals, right? But this is the first time we've seen a movie turn into a concert tour. Saja Boys, not allowed. Besties, this is what Jack and I find fascinating about this. Netflix has now experimented with every type of media out there, right, man? They started with shows and movies, obviously, but they've experimented with gaming, live sports, podcasts, and now concerts. And the wildest part, this all goes back to a Christmas present. Actually, a lack of Christmas presents.

18:28Because K-pop Demon Hunters was such a surprise success that Netflix's merch team wasn't prepared to make toys to sell over the holidays. Back in December, parents were punching each other for just another Saja doll that didn't exist out there. No, it was like Etsy creators were the only ones selling K-pop demon hunters. So here's Netflix's strategy. They're looking at how they can make up for not making a bunch of money on the toys that they should have had in place. So they're thinking Taylor Swift made$2 billion on the Aeros tour. Ticketmaster stock has had an all-time high. Why don't we try a concert, Nick?

19:01And they're doing it. K-pop demon hunters will tour globally, targeting arenas with 20 ,000 seats. That's the size of Madison Square Garden. Not too shabby. Although there is still one huge question TBD, according to PFWTMs. Before this thing actually happens in 2027, they're going to have to figure out who sings the actual music on stage. Yeah, Netflix still hasn't figured that out yet. Like, is it going to be the real human singers who did the soundtrack? EJ, Audrey, and Ray? Those are the ones who sang at the Oscars last week. Exactly. Or at the concert, are you going to see holograms of the animated characters projected on the stage like Star Wars?

19:34Either way, it's been a wild rebound for Netflix after getting rejected by Warner Brothers. Netflix's stock, it is up 20 % since they got rejected by Warner Brothers, and they're loving every minute of it. It's the summer of Netflix, Nick. Last year, Netflix opened their first mini theme parks, and now Netflix is going on tour. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our concert buddies over at Netflix? Sequels are for suckers. Soul suckers. Yetis, earlier this week, Jack and I told you that the new CEO of Disney had his first day of work. But Disney stock is down 50 % in five years. And a key reason is our franchise fatigue.

20:11Franchise fatigue. In the last year and this year, we've had Zootopia 2. We're getting Toy Story 5, Marvel Infinity. I mean, you know, safe, reliable, but basic movies. But Netflix's surprise original hit with Demon Hunters that shows a different path. K-pop Demon Hunters was a bet on novelty. It was a bet on originality. Not on an existing franchise or a revived nostalgic one. It was completely new. For Disney to return to their glory, they need to take more big, risky, creative bets like Netflix did with K-pop Demon Hunters. We should be clear, by the way, Netflix is going to do a K-pop Demon Hunter sequel.

20:46But Netflix earned it with taking a huge risk on something totally original, so original they weren't even ready for Christmas with toys. Disney, we're not telling you not to make Toy Story 5. I'm looking forward to that. But what's the next Toy Story? Well, Toy Story 6, Jack. But with great risk comes great reward. Besties, and Netflix tells us how sequels are for suckers. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us to head into the weekend? After$80 billion and a company name change, Meta has ended their metaverse, and that actually takes guts. But besties, by quitting now, Zuck is avoiding the bad burrito blunder.

21:23For our second story, the war in Iran is wreaking economic havoc abroad, especially in oil-dependent Asian countries. Yeah, they got four-day work weeks. But here in America, domestically produced fuel is our firewall. And our third and final story, Netflix's K-pop Demon Hunters is going on tour next year, showcasing the music from the soundtrack. Netflix's first concert tour. It's a note to Disney about the importance of original bets. Sequels are for soul suckers. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, Uber is hunking up with another company on a self-driving deal.

21:56This time, it's Uber smooching with Rivian. Uber is buying$300 million of Rivian stock. Eventually, they may buy up to$1.25 billion of Rivian stock. But Jack, some conditions here. It's only if Rivian can deliver Uber 50 ,000 R2 robo-taxis by the year 2030. Uber wants to be the Switzerland of self-driving. They're not doing it themselves. They're partnering with everyone else except Tesla. And second, Fed Chairman Jay Powell pointed out something really interesting on Wednesday that we've never heard articulated before. He pointed out that due to negative immigration and a low birth rate in this country, the U.S.

22:31economy is creating no new jobs right now. And Wild Part here pointed out that this is the first time in American history that's ever happened. Our population has always grown since the very beginning through babies and immigrants until now. And finally, in the bizarre ongoing end of that leisure story that apparently only Jack and I are covering right now. Last week, we told you that Fabletics was launching jeans, and then Viore launched jeans the next day. Okay, but then get this. The newest addition to Lululemon's board of directors, who is it, Jack? The former CEO of Levi's Jeans. Now, time for the best fact yet.

23:09This one whipped up by Jack and I, because we got a wild fact on Eid al-Fidder. All right, we're at the end of Ramadan. The 30 days of fasting during the day of both water and food for Muslim people. Closes with an epic feast tonight, the Eid al-Fitr, but here is the wild economic twist that we discovered. Even though Ramadan is about fasting, food demand during this 30-day holiday actually rises. Get this, over in Egypt, grocery sales actually go up 150%, even though the population isn't eating during the day. The reason? The family gatherings at the end of the day. Breaking the fast. It's a ritual, and you want to make sure you have the right food for that.

23:45So even though Muslims are not eating or drinking water during the day, which is incredibly brave, I did it one time, Nick. I almost passed out like at four o 'clock. Jack can't even get through this podcast without a burrito, which by the way, stop eating the burrito, Jack. We just did a whole takeaway on it. Some cost fallacy, man. Grocery sales during Ramadan actually rise. But to all our Muslim listeners, congrats on finishing the Epic Fast. Yetis, you look fantastic all week long. Congrats. We got some wins to celebrate this weekend, right, Jack? We're close to the New York live show. Yetis, Nick and I have a live show on April 8th at the New York City at Irving Plaza.

24:20and we still have some tickets left. Link in the episode description to buy yours. Honestly, this weekend, if you do anything, grab a couple tickets for you and a buddy. You're going to have a fantastic time. You'll impress your boss or you'll impress your date either way. DC was an unbelievably awesome show. Jack was eating burritos for the whole thing of it. Yeti, celebrate the wins this weekend and Jack and I will see you Monday.

24:43And before we go, a happy birthday to legendary Yeti, Tanner Odle in Akron, Ohio. His fiance forgot to give him a birthday shout out the last three years of listening. So happy 28th, 29th, 30th, and 31st birthdays. Happy birthday to Marvin Bernal, a Canadian living in New York City. Keelan Say, enjoy that 18th birthday. You just got into UF and you're going to be a Gator, baby. Happy 13th birthday to Caden Niffin in Albuquerque, New Mexico. And Taken Goodson in New York City is running the Boston Marathon next month with the birthday vibes this weekend. Happy birthday to Mindy Nguyen and Angelino celebrating the birthday in Japan.

25:15And Eric Guo, happy 24th birthday for your year of the horse. Happy birthday to Anastasia. This 15-year-old is fiercely fabulous in Titusville, Florida. And Lindsay Doras is celebrating the birthday with the new baby, Camille, and a military move to California. Congrats and thanks for the service, guys. Happy birthday to Jet Fry. Amazing name for this 8-year-old boy in Orange County, California. And cat lover Katie Hayden in Fishers, Indiana has got meow the best birthday yet. And happy birthday to Tim Huang, turning 27 in Pittsburgh, PA. And legendary husband Chris Sparks is celebrating the birthday in Burlingame, California with a very nice peanut.

25:50And happy eighth birthday to Will Diekman in Boonville, Indiana, listening with his dad and brothers on the way to school. First lacrosse season this year. And to Geek and Kirsten, congrats on the beautiful new baby and an anniversary to celebrate the wins in Iowa City. And congrats to Samuel Lopez, a longtime Yeti who just got into med school in Los Angeles. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins.

26:16This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix and Disney. Nick own stock of Lululemon. And we both own ETFs of the S &P 500. This is Robert Mason, The Athletic Football Show. The men's warehouse is here to make you look and feel good no matter the occasion. From formal to casual, dressed down to dressed up, their in-store experts will help you find the right outfit for that thing you got on the calendar. And their on-site tailors will make sure the fit is perfect for your body. suits, tuxes, sport coats, jeans, shorts, chinos, t-shirts, polos, loafers, sneakers, sandals, underwear. Get ready to look and feel good for anything from head to toe by visiting Men's Warehouse today.

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