Matt Smith and Emma D'Arcy as Daemon and Rhaenyra Targaryen in "House of the Dragon" season two. Ollie Upton/HBO HBO's "Game of Thrones" spinoff, "House of the Dragon," returns for its third season on Sunday. Season two continued the story of the Targaryen civil war, setting up major moments. Here's a recap of the important events to remember before season three. Spoilers ahead. "The seeds of war are oft planted during times of peace. So has it been in Westeros." That's according to George R. R. Martin's "Fire & Blood," the fictional history book and source material for "House of the Dragon." When the series premiered in 2022, it embodied this observation. The first season of HBO's "Game of Thrones" prequel laid the groundwork for the disastrous Targaryen civil war, known as the Dance of the Dragons, by exploring the family's relationships, power struggles, and budding resentments while King Viserys the Peaceful sat on the Iron Throne. "House of the Dragon" season one was dense and fast-paced, spanning multiple decades of the royal family's lives. Its successor, however, was a slow burn. Season two, which aired in 2024, featured slow, painstaking plotlines that unfurled over several episodes — sometimes to the audience's chagrin. But those seeds will surely bear fruit as the characters continue to grapple with their demons and hurtle toward their fates. The series returns for its third and penultimate season on Sunday. If you need a refresher before returning to Westeros, keep reading for a summary of everything important that happened in our recap of "House of the Dragon" season two. Jace travels north to secure the support of Houses Stark and Arryn Harry Collett and Tom Taylor as Jace Velaryon and Cregan Stark in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO At the end of season one, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) sends her eldest sons to meet with the major houses of Westeros. She needs to reaffirm their support after her father died and her half-brother, Aegon II Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney), took the Iron Throne. Prince Lucerys Velaryon (Elliot Grihault), aka Luke, flies to Storm's End to meet with Lord Borros Baratheon — but he's beaten there by his uncle, Prince Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell), who ends up killing Luke with his dragon, Vhagar. Prince Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett), aka Jace, flies north to Winterfell. Season two opens with a monologue from Lord Cregan Stark (Tom Taylor), telling Jace that he intends to support Rhaenyra's claim to the throne. He pledges 2,000 men to Rhaenyra's cause. "I have thousands of greybeards who have already seen too many winters. They are well-honed. I can ready them to march at once," he tells Jace. "They will fight hard. Like Northeners." In season three, viewers will meet Ser Roderick Dustin (Tommy Flanagan), a ferocious knight known as Roddy the Ruin, and his army of Northmen, known as the Winter Wolves. Jace also brokers the support of Lady Jeyne Arryn (Amanda Collin), who promises to send 15,000 soldiers in exchange for a dragon to protect the Vale. Rhaenyra is still mourning her son, Luke Emma D'Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whiteman/HBO Luke is killed by Vhagar in the final moments of the season one finale. The series picks up immediately in the aftermath of his murder, with Rhaenyra deep in mourning. She goes searching for Luke's body, which prevents her from joining her own war council (and sows discontent among her advisors). When Rhaenyra returns, she declares that she wants Aemond's head. Meanwhile, her husband, Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith), plots his own brutal revenge. Daemon conspires to murder Aemond, but his assassins kill baby Jaehaerys instead Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whitman/HBO Going behind Rhaenyra's back, Daemon hires two mercenaries to sneak into the Red Keep and assassinate Aemond. One of them is a ratcatcher who knows the layout of the castle. Aemond tells them his goal is retribution for Luke's murder: "a son for a son." The two mercenaries, Blood (Sam C. Wilson) and Cheese (Mark Stobbart), don't find Aemond. Instead, they find Queen Helaena Targaryen (Phia Saban) in the nursery with her two toddlers, twins Jaehaerys and Jaehaera Targaryen. Blood and Cheese ask Helaena to point to her son, the king's heir. As they decapitate Jaehaerys in his crib, she carries Jaehaera to safety. When news of the murder reaches Dragonstone, Rhaenyra is disgusted and denies any involvement. She says that as a mother, she would never order such a monstrous act. Unfortunately, the damage is done. Aegon's council spreads word that Rhaenyra is a kinslayer, dubbing her Rhaenyra the Cruel, and many commonfolk turn against her. When Rhaenyra finds out that Daemon hired the mercenaries, they have an explosive fight, and she shuns him. Rhaenyra is devastated that she can't trust her own husband to serve her best interests — and she can sense that he still resents her for being her father's heir. (Rhaenyra's father was Daemon's brother, King Viserys. Yes, that means Rhaenyra's husband is also her uncle. Best not to dwell on it.) Daemon leaves Dragonstone in a fit of rage. Mysaria is imprisoned by Daemon and brought to Dragonstone, where she bonds with Rhaenyra Rhaenyra and Mysaria kiss in "House of the Dragon." Emma D'Arcy, Sonoya Mizuno Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno), a cunning brothel proprietor known as the "White Worm," becomes a more prominent presence in "House of the Dragon" season two. Mysaria is brought to Dragonstone and questioned by Daemon, her former lover. He promises her freedom in exchange for information: who to hire as an assassin in King's Landing. But it's not Daemon that Mysaria forms a bond with at Dragonstone. It's Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra agrees to set Mysaria free, but Mysaria responds to this act of mercy with an act of loyalty. She asks for a seat on Rhaenyra's council so that she may advocate for the smallfolk in the coming war. Thanks to her vast network of spies and informants, Mysaria becomes Rhaenyra's unofficial mistress of whisperers. Rhaenyra and Mysaria grow ever closer during Daemon's self-imposed exile, and later in season two, the women share a kiss. Aegon fires Otto Hightower and appoints Ser Criston Cole as Hand of the King Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Aegon is impressed by Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) and his scheme to kill Rhaenyra: send Ser Arryk Cargyll to impersonate his twin brother, Ser Erryk Cargyll, and stage a sneak attack at Dragonstone. (This plan fails, and both brothers die.) Meanwhile, Aegon is frustrated with Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), his inherited Hand of the King, for being overly cautious. When Otto chastises Aegon for publicly hanging all the Red Keep's ratcatchers as retribution for the Blood and Cheese murder, the young king snaps. Aegon spontaneously fires his grandfather, who has served multiple Targaryen kings, and promotes Cole instead, a soldier with no political experience. Otto, stripped of his power, decides to leave King's Landing and return to House Hightower's seat in Oldtown. We don't see Otto for the rest of the season — until a brief shot of him in the finale, apparently in prison. His captor is unclear. Daemon spends much of season two soul-searching at Harrenhal Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO After he's shunned by Rhaenyra, Daemon flies on Caraxes to Harrenhal, the largest castle in the Riverlands. He intends to use it as a garrison while he gathers an army. Daemon enters the castle expecting a fight, but he finds little more than surrender and disrepair. The castle was partially ruined over a century ago by Aegon the Conqueror, who melted its walls with dragonfire. It's said to be haunted. Still, Daemon remains at Harrenhal because he can't bear to face his shortcomings. As the second son of a king, Daemon has spent his entire life seeking glory and approval — mostly from his older brother — and then stewing in resentment when he doesn't receive it. His insecurities and hangups prevent him from truly accepting Rhaenyra, his brother's chosen heir, as his queen. In private, Daemon plans to betray his wife and seize the Iron Throne for himself. Deep down, Daemon knows that he's not fit to protect the realm, but he needs to do some serious soul-searching to admit it. He finds that opportunity, however reluctantly, at Harrenhal, which is rich with the magic of the old gods. Daemon begins hallucinating his loved ones like a series of trippy, weirwood-induced therapy sessions: he sees a young Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock), his second wife, Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell), his mother, Alyssa (Emeline Lambert), and his brother, Viserys (Paddy Considine). Daemon also befriends Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), a wet nurse at the castle who claims to be a witch. She gives Daemon mysterious potions and urges him to continue his private reckoning. Daemon pledges his support to Rhaenyra in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Daemon's journey at Harrenhal culminates in a fateful vision in the season two finale. When he touches the bark of the weirwood tree, Daemon sees himself drowning. He sees his descendant, Daenerys Targaryen, with her three baby dragons, and he sees the future threat of the White Walkers. He also sees Rhaenyra sitting on the Iron Throne and his niece, Helaena, who has the gift of prophecy herself. (Many Targaryens are known to have "dragon dreams," abstract visions that almost always come true, but usually not in the way the dreamers expect.) "It's all a story," Helaena tells Daemon. "And you're but one part in it. You know your part." The vision helps Daemon come to terms with his role — not as a ruler in his own right, but as Rhaenyra's right-hand man. In his final scenes of season two, he fulfills his promise to rally a host of Rivermen for his queen, and he finally bends the knee. Rhaenyra still doesn't quite trust Daemon, and she resents that her supporters look to him for strength. But it looks like they're on the path to becoming true partners again. Rhaenyra arranges a covert meeting with Alicent at the Sept of Baelor — and they uncover a tragic miscommunication Olivia Cooke and Emma D'Arcy as Alicent and Rhaenyra in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Having grown up with the Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), Rhaenyra believes she can convince her former friend to prevent all-out war. She has Mysaria arrange a secret meeting with Alicent at the Sept of Baelor, where they won't be watched by spies or royal guards. Rhaenyra tells Alicent she's keen to avoid bloodshed and hopes to "uncover some path toward peace." Alicent refuses, largely because she fears Rhaenyra had a hand in the murder of her grandson. (She didn't.) Alicent also continues to insist that King Viserys changed his mind on his deathbed and chose Aegon to succeed him (instead of his long-standing heir, Rhaenyra). When Rhaenyra asks to hear the details of that deathbed conversation, Alicent reveals, "He was weary. It was hard, at times, to understand. But he spoke Aegon's name. He said he was the prince that was promised to unite the realm." In that instant, Rhaenyra realizes Alicent's mix-up. Alicent is not lying; she truly believes that Viserys changed his mind. But Alicent doesn't know about the Azor Ahai prophecy, which is passed down from each Targaryen king to his heir. The prophecy says a Prince That Was Promised will be reborn under a bleeding star to save the realm from darkness. In "Game of Thrones," it becomes clear that the darkness refers to the White Walkers. The prophesier, Aegon the Conqueror, called his dream the Song of Ice and Fire. He believed a Targaryen would need to be in charge when the darkness came, to unite the kingdoms against a common foe. Rhaenyra tells Alicent that she misunderstood Viserys' words, that he was referring to Aegon the Conqueror, not her teenage son with the same name. But blood has already been shed, and Alicent isn't ready to admit that she made a mistake. She tells Rhaenyra to leave King's Landing. Rhaenys and her dragon are killed by Aemond Eve Best as Rhaenys Targaryen in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO In episode four, "The Red Dragon and the Gold," Aemond and Cole set a trap by marching on Rook's Rest, a small castle in the Crownlands. Rook's Rest is controlled by House Staunton, Rhaenyra's loyal supporters, so they expect her to fly to the castle's aid — or send someone else to fly in her stead. Meanwhile, Aemond will wait with Vhagar in the shadows to launch a sneak attack. Indeed, Rhaenyra's council knows that Cole is daring them to respond. But they want to send a dragon anyway. Rhaenyra offers to meet Cole's army — as does her son, Jace — but Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) insists on riding Meleys to Rook's Rest instead. It makes sense, as Meleys is the largest dragon at Rhaenyra's command and no stranger to battle. Feeling disempowered by his brother, Aegon drunkenly decides to join the fight on his own dragon. Aegon and Sunfyre are easily overpowered by Rhaenys and Meleys — but not even the dragon known as the "Red Queen" can overpower Vhagar. Aemond's sneak attack kills Rhaenys and her dragon, crippling Team Rhaenyra's firepower. Cole parades Meleys' head through the streets of King's Landing Freddie Fox and Fabien Frankel as Ser Gwayne Hightower and Ser Criston Cole in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whiteman/HBO This may seem like an insignificant detail, but the decision to parade a severed dragon head before the commonfolk bodes very ill for the crown (and speaks to Cole's lack of savvy). House Targaryen's claim to power is predicated on the belief that dragons are gods, and Targaryens are uniquely bonded to dragons. When Cole carts Meleys' decapitated head through the streets of King's Landing, ostensibly to celebrate his victory in battle, he's actually sabotaging his own king. If dragons are no longer sacred and respected, then neither is the Targaryen dynasty — especially in times when the commonfolk are hungry and suffering. This shift is signaled by the blacksmith Hugh Hammer. As he looks upon the procession, he describes the dragon's head as "meat." Mysaria also tells Rhaenyra that the commonfolk see the corpse as an "ill omen," not a prize of war. "Do not underestimate your subjects," she advises. "To the discontented, rumors are feed." The battle at Rook's Rest leaves Aegon scarred and incapacitated Tom Glynn-Carney and Ewan Mitchell as Aegon and Aemond in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Aemond resents his older brother for being weak and careless, but still becoming king by birthright — much like Daemon long resented Viserys. Aemond didn't arrange the Rook's Rest attack to unseat Aegon, but when he saw an opportunity, he took it. While attacking Rhaenys with dragonflame, Aemond also burns Aegon. The combined force of both Meleys and Vhagar is too much for Aegon's dragon, Sunfyre, who plummets from the sky and crash-lands in the nearby forest. Aegon survives the fall, but he's permanently injured. Burn scars cover half his body, and he's bedridden for the rest of the season. He even says the fight made him impotent — ironic, since Aegon's manhood was the entire reason he was installed on the Iron Throne instead of Rhaenyra. The aftermath of Rook's Rest is "pure rock bottom" for the young king, actor Tom Glynn-Carney told Business Insider. "Even though his physicality has changed now, I don't particularly think for him, in terms of how unpredictable and how volatile he is — I don't think that's going to change at all," Glynn-Carney said. "If anything, there will be more." Alicent reminds us that she has another son, Daemon Olivia Cooke and Freddie Fox as Alicent and Gwayne Hightower in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Alicent seems to know that Aemond had a hand in Aegon's injuries. She's embarrassed by her sons, horrified by what they've become. When Alicent reunites with her brother, Ser Gwayne Hightower (Freddie Fox), she asks about her third son, Prince Daeron Targaryen. Viewers have yet to meet Daeron because he was sent to Oldtown as a young boy. Gwayne, who was also raised in Oldtown, tells Alicent that 16-year-old Daeron is reliable, clever, and kind. The revelation brings tears to her eyes. Although she didn't have a hand in his upbringing, it's a relief that perhaps one of her children could still make her proud. In the season two finale, we see that Daeron and his dragon Tessarion are marching with the Hightower army, led by Alicent's cousin, Lord Ormund Hightower (James Norton). Team Rhaenyra recruits three new dragonriders: Addam, Ulf, and Hugh Emma D'Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen in "House of the Dragon" season two. Theo Whiteman / HBO In episode five, "Regent," Jace proposes a plan to recruit more dragonriders by mining other noble houses for Targaryen ancestry: "There are those of our line who never ruled, those who married into other noble houses, their children born with other names." Rhaenyra initially dismisses the idea. House Targaryen is said to be "the blood of the dragon," descended from the dragonlords of Old Valyria. She says their distant relatives won't have enough Valyrian blood, and that dragons will only accept true dragonlords as riders, "so say the histories." Jace scoffs at this: "Valyrian histories, written to gild us in glory." Perhaps the requirements for claiming a dragon are not nearly as strict as they've been led to believe. Jace's theory is validated in episode six, "Smallfolk," but not in the way he expects. Addam of Hull is pursued by Laenor Velaryon's former dragon, Seasmoke, who bends his neck to the low-born shipwright. Addam is revealed to be Laenor's half-brother, the illegitimate son of Lord Corlys Velaryon — not technically of Targaryen descent, but a family descended from Old Valyria. With Mysaria's encouragement, Rhaenyra decides to widen her search beyond high-born families, seeking the "misbegotten offspring" of past Targaryens. These people are known as "dragonseeds," often fathered in the brothels of King's Landing. "Let us raise an army of bastards," Rhaenyra declares. Jace, however, is against the new plan. Since his own parentage has always been questioned (many suspect he was fathered by Ser Harwin Strong, not Rhaenyra's husband at the time, Laenor), Jace fears that elevating bastards to dragonriders may threaten his own claim to the throne — especially since he doesn't have the typical physical qualities of a Targaryen. "What if one of your baseborn, silver-haired dragonriders decides he wants to rule the Seven Kingdoms?" Jace asks his mother. Still, Rhaenyra decides to go ahead with the Red Sowing. Two low-born men succeed, both hailing from King's Landing: Ulf the White claims Silverwing, while Hugh Hammer claims Vermithor. Corlys is named Hand of the Queen and tries to make amends with his illegitimate son Steve Toussaint as Corlys Velaryon in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Corlys spends much of season two reeling from two losses: his named heir, Luke, and his beloved wife, Rhaenys. Team Rhaenyra brings him back into the fold by naming him Hand of the Queen, though it takes a little prodding from his granddaughter, Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia). When Corlys initially refuses Rhaenyra's offer, Baela scolds him for dishonoring her grandmother's memory. Rhaenys was a Targaryen princess, Baela reminds him, not just a wife — and she wanted to see Rhaenyra ascend the Iron Throne. (Baela herself is engaged to Jace, Rhaenyra's heir, so she has a personal investment in the queen's cause.) Corlys is impressed by Baela's spirit and offers to name her the heir of Driftmark, the seat of House Velaryon. Baela declines: "I am blood and fire," she tells Corlys. "Driftmark must pass to salt and sea." Corlys had so far been reluctant to acknowledge Addam and Alyn of Hull as his sons, partially out of shame for cheating on Rhaenys. Throughout season two, however, Corlys develops respect and admiration for Alyn. The boys grew up in a shipyard, and Alyn in particular is a talented seafarer; the father-son similarities are hard to ignore. Corlys even appoints Alyn as his first mate. However, Alyn is even more reluctant to acknowledge Corlys as his father. While Corlys raised his trueborn children in a castle, Addam and Alyn were left to grow up fatherless, penniless, and nameless. Alyn says Corlys only wants to make amends now because Laenor and Laena are dead. In the season two finale, still on rocky terms, Corlys and Alyn sail toward the Gullet to join the rest of the Velaryon fleet. Rhaenyra sends her three youngest sons to the Vale, then to Essos, for safekeeping Rhaenyra entrusts Rhaena with her sons in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whiteman/HBO Rhaenyra sends her thirdborn son, Prince Joffrey Velaryon, to ward with Lady Arryn in the Vale. She also sends her two toddler sons, Prince Aegon III Targaryen and Prince Viserys II Targaryen, to join him. (Joffrey's father is officially Laenor, while Aegon III and Viserys II were born to Daemon.) Rhaenyra's aim is to keep her youngest children out of harm's way until the war is over. She entreats Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell), who is not yet a dragonrider, to accompany them. "I need you to be the mother to them that I cannot," Rhaenyra tells her niece. Joffrey and Aegon III both have dragons, but they're too small to ride, which Lady Arryn takes as an insult. She pledged her support to Rhaenyra in exchange for a dragon to protect the Vale — not a hatchling bonded to a toddler. As a result, she refuses to send her army to fight for Rhaenyra's cause. Eventually, it's arranged to send the children across the narrow sea, to be sheltered in the free city of Pentos. Again, Rhaena is meant to escort them. Rhaena abandons her duty to find a wild dragon Phoebe Campbell as Rhaena in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whiteman/HBO Rhaena is offended that her aunt-slash-stepmother would send her away to babysit; she feels overlooked by her family members because she has never claimed a dragon. When Rhaenyra's kids are sent away from the Vale at the end of season two, Rhaena abandons her party and runs into the wilderness. She follows burn marks in the grass until she finds Sheepstealer, a wild dragon without a rider. Aemond begs Helaena to help him kill Daemon, but she refuses Ewan Mitchell and Phia Saban as Aemond and Helaena in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO After Aegon and Sunfyre are burned by Vhagar, the king's army is left with only three dragonriders: Aemond, their younger brother Daeron, and their sister Helaena. Unfortunately, Helaena isn't much of a dragonrider and even less of a warrior. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra has recruited three new dragonriders, dwarfing her enemy's count. Aemond recognizes that he's outnumbered and begs Helaena for help. Her dragon, Dreamfyre, is large and ancient. They could stand a chance against Rhaenyra and Daemon together. But Helaena refuses. She's had dragon dreams about the war, and she seems to know how it'll end. "Aegon will be king again. He's yet to see victory. He sits on a wooden throne," she tells her brother. "And you, you'll be dead. You are swallowed up in the God's Eye, and you are never seen again." The Lannister twins are shoring up support for King Aegon Jefferson Hall as Lord Jason Lannister in "House of the Dragon." Theo Whiteman/HBO Tyland Lannister, the master of ships, and Jason Lannister, the Lord of Casterly Rock (both played by Jefferson Hall), have been dispatched to rally armies for Aegon. Tyland has traveled to Essos to meet with the Triarchy, a powerful armada from the free cities, led by Admiral Lohar (Abigail Thorn). He hopes to form an alliance with the Triarchy and use their warships to sail against the Velaryon fleet, breaking Rhaenyra's blockade. Lohar agrees to help, but in exchange, she demands control of the Stepstones, a chain of islands in the narrow sea. In the season two finale, we see Tyland, Lohar, and the rest of the Triarchy sailing toward the Gullet. Meanwhile, Tyland's twin brother Jason is marching with the armies of the Westerlands to face Daemon's army at Harrenhal. Alicent offers to surrender to Rhaenyra Emma D'Arcy and Olivia Cooke as Rhaenyra and Alicent in "House of the Dragon." Liam Daniel/HBO After her secret meeting with Rhaenyra at the Sept, Alicent gradually comes to terms with the breadth of her mistake. She previously thought she could steer the kingdom toward peace and justice, but she is disregarded by her sons and their advisors, sidelined for much the same reason they won't accept a queen. By undermining Rhaenyra's claim to the throne, Alicent inadvertently sealed her own fate. At the same time, it's increasingly clear that neither of Alicent's eldest sons is fit to rule — Aegon is irresponsible, incompetent, and now maimed beyond recognition, while Aemond is violent and cruel — and Alicent's only daughter, Helaena, is miserable since becoming queen. Alicent eventually decides to double-cross her family and secretly travels to Dragonstone. In the season two finale, she promises to open the gates of King's Landing in three days' time for Rhaenyra to take the throne. She also promises that Aemond will be far away with Vhagar, leaving the castle undefended, and agrees to let Rhaenyra execute Aegon as a usurper. In exchange, Alicent wants to go free with Helaena and Helaena's daughter, Jaehaera, "with no ambition greater than to walk where I please and to breathe the open air." Their conversation seems to heal some of their grudges, and the old friends come to an understanding. Alicent even tells Rhaenyra they could run away together, but Rhaenyra replies, "My part is here, whether I will or no. It was decided for me long ago." Aegon escapes the Red Keep with Larys Strong Matthew Needham and Tom Glynn-Carney as Larys and Aegon in "House of the Dragon." Ollie Upton/HBO Rhaenyra seems to trust Alicent, and Alicent seems sincere in her plan for surrender — but in the dowager queen's absence from King's Landing, more secret plans are already in motion. Lord Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), the master of whisperers, can already sense the winds changing. He arranges to sneak Aegon out of the Red Keep, and the two men escape the city in a merchant cart. It's unclear who Larys is actually loyal to, but he definitely doesn't want to be executed by Rhaenyra as a traitor if she takes the throne. When and if Rhaenyra returns to King's Landing, she expects to find Aegon easy prey, as Alicent promised. Instead, she'll find no king from whom to seize the throne — and as long as Aegon is alive, her claim will be contested. Read the original article on Business Insider

Angela Cullen / Bloomberg: Claude Guillemot, co-founder of Ubisoft and chairman of gaming hardware company Guillemot Corporation, died at 69 after a plane crash in France  —  Claude Guillemot, who co-founded French video-game publisher Ubisoft Entertainment SA with his brothers in 1986, has died, according to the company.

According to the pros, sandals with metal accents are in, but espadrilles are out. Edward Berthelot/Getty Images We spoke with stylists and designers to find out which sandal trends are in and out for summer. They said suede sandals and pairs with metal accents are popular this season and can elevate a look. Meanwhile, chunky espadrille sandals and basic rubber flip-flops are starting to fall out of favor. Warm weather means sandal season is officially here. Whether you're looking for an everyday pair or something a little more fashion-forward, some styles are taking off this summer while others aren't worth the closet space. Business Insider asked stylists and designers to share the sandal trends they're getting on board with this season — and which ones they're ready to ditch. Here's what they had to say. Suede is having a moment. Suede can elevate a simple sandal. Edward Berthelot/Getty Images Suede detailing is everywhere right now, according to Molly West Coe, a New York-based fashion stylist and founder of StyledBuy and StyledGuy. The suede trend started with fall and winter pieces but has carried into summer footwear as well. Whether on flip-flops or strappy sandals, this material can add a more refined touch to casual outfits. Minimal thong wedges are sliding into summer. Jeremy Moeller/Getty Images According to Laura Unruh, designer and founder of luxury footwear brand LOU.EARL, thong wedges are gaining traction again. She credits the trend's resurgence to renewed interest in Carolyn Bessette Kennedy's signature minimalist style. The late icon (and her fashions) were recently featured in the popular FX miniseries "Love Story." Featuring a simple thong upper and a wedge sole, these sandals often come in neutral colors and clean silhouettes that reflect Kennedy's understated aesthetic. Unruh said the versatile style pairs particularly well with simple looks — think: vintage denim, white T-shirts, and monochromatic outfits. Huarache-style woven-leather sandals are a solid pick. Huarache-style sandal Estrop/WireImage Patrick Kenger, the lead personal stylist and founder of styling and image consulting company Pivot, said huarache-style shoes are among the biggest men's sandal trends he's seeing this season. Huarache sandals have been around for centuries, with their origins commonly traced to indigenous communities of Mexico. These shoes typically feature an intricately woven leather top and either an open or closed toe. Woven-leather sandals can be an easy choice for summer because they're durable and breathable. They can also help "dress up " a look, Kenger added. Hardware accents are making their way onto sandals. Sandals with rings or metal accents may be popular. Edward Berthelot/Getty Images According to Letam "Ley" Duson, founder of Ley All Day Personal Styling, metallic accents are a growing trend in the sandal space. Instead of plain thong sandals, the stylist said she's seeing styles adorned with gold-tone details, rings, bands, and other decorative hardware that add visual interest to an outfit. "I would think of it as like jewelry for your feet," Duson told BI. On the other hand, chunkier gladiators are being replaced by barely-there sandals. We may not see many reaching for knee-high gladiators this summer. Edward Berthelot/Getty Images Several of the stylists BI spoke with agreed that chunky gladiator sandals are being replaced by sleeker, less bulky designs. Unruh said the sandals — especially when they go high up a leg — can feel overly complicated and difficult to style compared to more modern options. If you want a similar look that's more updated, Coe said, try a pair of barely-there sandals with thin straps. "The look is kind of as naked as the foot can be," she told BI. "It's a very clean look. It's a very minimalist look." Traditional rubber flip-flops are falling out of favor. Moritz Scholz/Getty Images Kenger told BI that rubber sandals and basic thong-style flip-flops aren't as popular as they once were. He said that cross-strap sandals are becoming a popular alternative to these, especially among men. These styles feature wider straps across the foot and offer an updated take on warm-weather footwear. Muted colors are being swapped for brighter shades. Jeremy Moeller/Getty Images Duson said neutral-toned sandals are taking a back seat to brighter, bolder colors this season. From neon orange and hot pink to bright blue, these vibrant shades can bring a more playful touch to summer outfits. "If you're doing a monochrome look and you don't want to do too much with the clothes, then the pop of color for the feet is a good option," Duson told BI. Espadrille sandals can feel a bit dated. Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images Known for their chunky raffia-wrapped soles, espadrille sandals have been a summer staple for a long time. However, according to Duson, some of these styles are starting to feel dated. Instead, the stylist recommends trying leather wedges or platform sandals this summer. These styles can give off a more modern, streamlined look while still providing height and versatility. She added that platform sandals pair well with so many styles, from maxi dresses to wide-leg jeans and a simple top. Read the original article on Business Insider

A SpaceX rocket firing SpaceX A version of this story originally appeared in the BI Tech Memo newsletter. Sign up for the weekly BI Tech Memo newsletter here. New Levels.fyi analyses show how equity grants at frontier tech companies have turned into life-changing sums. A SpaceX Software Engineer II offer from August 2022 included a $155,000 salary and a $365,000 equity grant that vested over five years. At SpaceX's IPO valuation, that grant is estimated to be worth more than $4 million, assuming it was held. At Anthropic, engineers who joined in 2023 may now be sitting on equity worth tens of millions of dollars after the AI company's valuation surge. OpenAI shows a similar pattern, with some 2022 and 2023 equity grants to engineers now valued at over $50 million. These are not guaranteed windfalls: variables such as vesting, dilution, and lockups mean employees may end up with less. And don't forget those huge tax bills. Still, these estimates give a real taste of the wealth that Silicon Valley has created — and spread among workers. Sign up for BI's Tech Memo newsletter here. Reach out to me via email at abarr@businessinsider.com. Read the original article on Business Insider

On average across all 50 states, the US middle-class households earn between $53,935 and $161,806 annually. Bilanol/Getty Images Earnings vary widely across the US, and what constitutes the middle class does too. Massachusetts has the highest median household income in the US, while Mississippi has the lowest. The middle class is considered to earn between two-thirds and double the median income. You've been hearing about the K-shaped economy and the shrinking middle class, but what does it actually mean to be in the middle class at all in the US today? For many, the label can describe a suburban, non-excessive way of life, but the actual income it implies can span a wide range. A recent SmartAsset study calculated the income needed to be considered middle class in every US state. The study used the US Census Bureau's 2024 one-year American Community Survey median household income estimates for all 50 states. It applied a variation of the Pew Research Center's definition of middle class — households that earn between two-thirds and double the median income — to identify a middle-class salary range. Rankings were then determined by comparing the upper limit of middle-class income among states and ranking those earnings from highest to lowest. In five states, households earning over $200,000 can still be considered middle class, while in seven, you can be counted in the category even with household incomes of under $45,000. In Massachusetts, the highest-ranked state, a household can earn up to $209,656 and still be considered middle class, while in Mississippi, the lowest-ranked, earning more than $118,254 puts you above the threshold. Meanwhile, in West Virginia, the second-lowest, a household earning $40,532 can be considered middle class, while in New Jersey, the second-highest, it takes an annual income of $69,529 to do so. See how much money you really need to earn to be in the middle class in every US state. ALABAMA Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $44,439 to $133,318 Median household income: $66,659 Rank: 44 out of 50 ALASKA Juneau, Alaska. Lana2011/Getty Images Middle-class range: $63,777 to $191,330 Median household income: $95,665 Rank: 11 ARIZONA Tempe, Arizona. Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $54,324 to $162,972 Median household income: $81,486 Rank: 20 ARKANSAS Rdlamkin/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $41,404 to $124,212 Median household income: $62,106 Rank: 47 CALIFORNIA f11photo/Getty Images Middle-class range: $66,766 to $200,298 Median household income: $100,149 Rank: 5 COLORADO Nicholas Campbell/Getty Images Middle-class range: $64,742 to $194,226 Median household income: $97,113 Rank: 8 CONNECTICUT New Haven, Connecticut. Ashley RK Smith/Getty Images Middle-class range: $64,033 to $192,098 Median household income: $96,049 Rank: 10 DELAWARE Dewey Beach, Delaware. Tyler Smiley/Getty Images Middle-class range: $58,356 to $175,068 Median household income: $87,534 Rank: 13 FLORIDA St. Augustine, Florida. Bilanol/Getty Images Middle-class range: $51,823 to $155,470 Median household income: $77,735 Rank: 26 GEORGIA Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $53,327 to $159,982 Median household income: $79,991 Rank: 23 HAWAII Iryna Olkhova/Getty Images Middle-class range: $67,163 to $201,490 Median household income: $100,745 Rank: 4 IDAHO Boise, Idaho. knowlesgallery/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $54,111 to $162,332 Median household income: $81,166 Rank: 21 ILLINOIS Chicago. Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Middle-class range: $55,474 to $166,422 Median household income: $83,211 Rank: 18 INDIANA Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Middle-class range: $47,973 to $143,918 Median household income: $71,959 Rank: 41 IOWA Des Moines, Iowa. Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Middle-class range: $50,334 to $151,002 Median household income: $75,501 Rank: 34 KANSAS Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Middle-class range: $50,343 to $151,028 Median household income: $75,514 Rank: 33 KENTUCKY littleny/Getty Images Middle-class range: $43,017 to $129,052 Median household income: $64,526 Rank: 46 LOUISIANA Baton Rouge, Louisiana. George Dodd/Getty Images Middle-class range: $40,657 to $121,972 Median household income: $60,986 Rank: 48 MAINE SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $50,961 to $152,884 Median household income: $76,442 Rank: 30 MARYLAND Baltimore. Thomas Berberich/Getty Images Middle-class range: $68,603 to $205,810 Median household income: $102,905 Rank: 3 MASSACHUSETTS Boston. Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Middle-class range: $69,885 to $209,656 Median household income: $104,828 Rank: 1 (the highest middle-class ceiling in the US) MICHIGAN Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $48,259 to $144,778 Median household income: $72,389 Rank: 37 MINNESOTA GummyBone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $58,078 to $174,234 Median household income: $87,117 Rank: 14 MISSISSIPPI Jackson, Mississippi. SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $39,418 to $118,254 Median household income: $59,127 Rank: 50 (the lowest middle-class ceiling in the US) MISSOURI Perry Spring/Getty Images Middle-class range: $47,726 to $143,178 Median household income: $71,589 Rank: 42 MONTANA Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Middle-class range: $50,227 to $150,680 Median household income: $75,340 Rank: 35 NEBRASKA Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $50,917 to $152,752 Median household income: $76,376 Rank: 31 NEVADA Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $54,089 to $162,268 Median household income: $81,134 Rank: 22 NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord, New Hampshire. Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Middle-class range: $66,521 to $199,564 Median household income: $99,782 Rank: 6 NEW JERSEY bluebeat76/Getty Images Middle-class range: $69,529 to $208,588 Median household income: $104,294 Rank: 2 NEW MEXICO Albuquerque, New Mexico. GummyBone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $45,211 to $135,632 Median household income: $67,816 Rank: 43 NEW YORK Wirestock/Getty Images Middle-class range: $57,213 to $171,640 Median household income: $85,820 Rank: 15 NORTH CAROLINA Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $49,305 to $147,916 Median household income: $73,958 Rank: 36 NORTH DAKOTA Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $51,914 to $155,742 Median household income: $77,871 Rank: 25 OHIO RudyBalasko/Getty Images Middle-class range: $48,141 to $144,424 Median household income: $72,212 Rank: 39 OKLAHOMA Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $44,099 to $132,296 Median household income: $66,148 Rank: 45 OREGON Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Middle-class range: $56,813 to $170,440 Median household income: $85,220 Rank: 16 PENNSYLVANIA Pittsburgh. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $51,697 to $155,090 Median household income: $77,545 Rank: 27 RHODE ISLAND Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $55,669 to $167,008 Median household income: $83,504 Rank: 17 SOUTH CAROLINA Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $48,233 to $144,700 Median household income: $72,350 Rank: 38 SOUTH DAKOTA EunikaSopotnicka/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $51,254 to $153,762 Median household income: $76,881 Rank: 29 TENNESSEE Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $47,998 to $143,994 Median household income: $71,997 Rank: 40 TEXAS Houston. Kruck20/Getty Images Middle-class range: $53,147 to $159,442 Median household income: $79,721 Rank: 24 UTAH Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Middle-class range: $64,439 to $193,316 Median household income: $96,658 Rank: 9 VERMONT Jim Espey/Getty Images Middle-class range: $55,153 to $165,460 Median household income: $82,730 Rank: 19 VIRGINIA Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images/iStockphoto Middle-class range: $61,393 to $184,180 Median household income: $92,090 Rank: 12 WASHINGTON Engel Ching/Getty Images Middle-class range: $66,259 to $198,778 Median household income: $99,389 Rank: 7 WEST VIRGINIA Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Middle-class range: $40,532 to $121,596 Median household income: $60,798 Rank: 49 WISCONSIN Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Middle-class range: $51,659 to $154,976 Median household income: $77,488 Rank: 28 WYOMING HABesen/Getty Images Middle-class range: $50,355 to $151,064 Median household income: $75,532 Rank: 32 Read the original article on Business Insider

Tim Fernholz / TechCrunch: An interview with Smartbird CEO Nadia Carlsten about the shoe company Allbirds becoming an AI infrastructure company, plans to deploy compute clusters, and more  —  When Allbirds pivoted to AI in April, it felt like a joke from “Silicon Valley” breaking free of the TV: The direct …

Nathan (middle) turned to his grandfather (left) for business advice with his brother, Jacob (right). Courtesy of Nathan Bennett Jacob Bennett used a pitch deck to recruit his brother, Nathan, to his fintech startup. Nathan reached out to their grandfather, who is in business with his brother, for advice. Their grandfather told them to keep ego out of their business and not talk badly about each other. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Nathan Bennett, co-founder of Crux Analytics. It has been edited for length and clarity. When my brother started asking me more and more questions about the financial technology company he wanted to start, I could see where things were heading. Jacob's great with big ideas, and he had identified a problem in the market. He needed my engineering expertise to make his solution a reality. One day, about three years ago, Jacob asked me to read his pitch deck for accuracy. The last slide was the team. There was Jacob, and next to him was my name. Under my bio, it said something along the lines of "Nathan knows he wants to jump ship from his job to work with his brother." Jacob was right; we'd always had a dream of building something together. But I've always been the more cautious brother. Leaving my well-established career in medical devices felt risky. So, I reached out to our grandfather, Michael, to help me make the decision. My grandpa is in his 90s and still working with his brother Michael has been in business with his own brother, Maurice, for more than 70 years. Today they're 91 and 93, and they still work together. Most of their career has been in women's fashion, and more recently in men's shoes. I told my grandfather to give me the good, the bad, and the ugly of working with your brother. I knew that if a startup didn't work out, I had other career options I could fall back on. But I worried that being in business together might alter the great sibling dynamic that Jacob and I have. We each have our own skillset My grandfather said he and Maurice had different areas of expertise and different strengths, so they were never trying to prove anything to each other. No one had to assert dominance because they each filled different niches. Like Michael and Maurice, Jacob and I have very different skill sets. Jacob's got the big ideas, and I'm the planner. If we were on a hike, Jacob would just start walking and figure it out, while I would analyze every possible route. Jacob jokes we're like the Transformer toys that were popular when we were growing up in the 90s. We each have our own superpowers, but when you put us together, we become something even stronger. We're intentional in how we talk about each other Our grandfather had another piece of advice. He and our grandfather are very close with Maurice and his wife; they even live within walking distance of each other. When Michael and Maurice started in business together, our grandfather told our grandmother that the friendship between the couples was always going to come first. Sometimes, that meant my grandfather didn't tell my grandmother everything that happened during his day. He never wanted a little tiff at work or disagreement to cloud his wife's ideas about Maurice. That's an example Jacob and I follow. We're very careful about how we talk about each other and the business with other family members. Business has kept our family close Being in business with my brother, I know with absolute certainty, all the time, that Jacob has my best interest at heart. There's almost a telepathic connection between us, and a lot that doesn't need to be said. Partnerships with friends or co-founders might come close, but they don't have that same foundation that we've been building since Jacob was born. Because our grandfather is in business with his brother, our families have been extremely close. When I called my grandfather that day, he emphasized that above all else, working with his brother has been fun and rewarding. That's the legacy Jacob and I hope to carry on. Read the original article on Business Insider

The White Horse Tavern in Rhode Island, opened in 1673, is the oldest restaurant in the country. Wangkun Jia/Shutterstock The White Horse Tavern in Rhode Island is the oldest operating restaurant in the country. The restaurant opened in 1673, over a century before the start of the Revolutionary War. It's now a fine-dining establishment that pays homage to classic New England fare. Years before the Revolutionary War and the Salem witch trials — and long before the United States even existed — this iconic Rhode Island restaurant was already serving up classic New England fare. The White Horse Tavern, housed in a distinctive red colonial building in the quaint seaside city of Newport, dates back to 1673, making it the oldest restaurant in Rhode Island and one of the oldest continuously operating restaurants in the United States. It is also widely recognized as the 10th-oldest operating restaurant in the world, drawing international attention and making it a popular destination for visitors. A witness to America's earliest history The White Horse Tavern opened in 1673 as a tavern and meeting place. George Wirt/Shutterstock Originally built in 1652 as the home of merchant Francis Brinley, the property later became a tavern where locals, sailors, and other travelers gathered for food, drinks, and conversation. During a time when public meeting places were scarce and when Newport was one of the busiest ports in the colonies, the tavern operated as a hub for the Colony's General Assembly, Criminal Court, and City Council, according to the restaurant's website. The tavern also played a small role in the Revolutionary War era, when British troops and loyalists were quartered there during the British occupation of Newport in the late 1770s. While The White Horse Tavern is often cited as one of the world's oldest restaurants, its run wasn't entirely uninterrupted. The building underwent a major restoration beginning in 1954 and reopened as a restaurant in 1957 after several years of closure. That distinction separates it from establishments such as Boston's Union Oyster House, which has operated continuously since 1826 and is recognized as one of the oldest continuously operating restaurants in the United States. Today, the White Horse Tavern is recognized as a National Historic Landmark, and many of its original historic features remain intact. Thick wooden beams stretch across the ceilings, fireplaces crackle during colder months, and candlelit white-tablecloth dining room tables help transport guests back in time. An evolving menu The historic restaurant's highlights local ingredients and a few British favorites. Latoya G./Yelp The menu highlights products sourced from Rhode Island and the surrounding region, including local seafood, artisanal cheeses, and honey, as well as classic British dishes like beef Wellington and Scotch eggs. While some items are on the pricier side — the beef Wellington costs $59 — the menu has received favorable reviews, with guests praising the restaurant's "top-notch" service, traditional New England food, and upscale atmosphere. For visitors to Newport, a meal at The White Horse Tavern offers more than dinner. It provides a rare opportunity to experience history firsthand, one bite at a time. Read the original article on Business Insider

A seismic wave from the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake bounced off the Earth’s core and hit Japan from below, shifting the entire mainland a quarter-inch eastward.

Five surfaces collapsed into one declarative layer. Here's the full story of Materialized Lake Views in Microsoft Fabric - from syntax to the new GA capabilities The post Materialized Lake Views in Microsoft Fabric: When Your Medallion Fits in a SELECT Statement appeared first on Towards Data Science.

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Tests of age-verification technology show the risks of life-altering errors.

Nikita Ostrovsky / Time: A look at Russia's push to develop homegrown AI talent, as the country is hampered by scarce access to AI hardware and a brain drain of top technical talent  —  Nikita Ostrovsky … In early April, on a stage in the southwestern outskirts of Moscow, a moderator at Russia's annual Data …

The new Siri AI is conversational, omnipresent, and actually helpful.

Elon Musk's net worth hit $1 trillion the day that SpaceX went public. Samuel Corum/Getty Images Tech mogul Elon Musk has become the world's first trillionaire His estimated fortune reached new heights after SpaceX's historic IPO in June 2026. His net worth dwarfs that of other billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. Elon Musk's net worth has skyrocketed to a whole new stratosphere. The SpaceX and Tesla chief is the world's first trillionaire. He reached the milestone just seconds after SpaceX went public in June 2026. Musk's wealth is now more than triple that of other famous billionaires, like Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. How has Musk's net worth changed over time? Musk, who was born in South Africa, moved to Canada and dropped out of a Ph.D. program at Stanford. He became a millionaire before he hit 30 thanks to Zip2, a website that provided city travel guides to newspapers. He cofounded the venture with his brother, Kimbal Musk, and the pair sold it to Compaq for more than $300 million in 1999 when he was 27. His next big move came two years later, when he reinvested some of his profits to help start an online bank called X.com. The site soon merged with Peter Thiel's Confinity to become PayPal, which eBay bought for $1.5 billion in 2002. That same year, Musk cofounded space exploration company SpaceX, and in 2004, he became an investor in and the chairman of EV company Tesla, which eventually became his first cash cow. During the 2008 financial crisis, Musk saved Tesla from bankruptcy, investing $40 million and securing a $40 million loan. That same year, he was named Tesla's CEO. It was "the worst year of my life," Musk said, with problems in his personal life compounding Tesla's poor performance and SpaceX's trouble launching the Falcon rocket. By 2009, Musk was living off personal loans. Things turned around in 2010, when Tesla went public, sending Musk's net worth climbing. In 2012, he debuted on Forbes' Billionaires List with an estimated wealth of $2 billion.  Musk, meanwhile, kept building. In 2016, he set up his tunnel-digging business, the Boring Company, and the next year, he founded the neurotechnology startup Neuralink. It wasn't until the start of the pandemic that Musk's net worth began its rapid ascent, thanks to Tesla's stock price. Musk started 2020 with an estimated net worth of just under $30 billion. He was worth about $170 billion one year later — a more than five-fold increase. His fortune reached an estimated $340 billion in November 2021. Still, Tesla's stock is famous for its volatility — meaning Musk's net worth would also fluctuate. The company's share price jumped following the 2024 election of Musk ally Donald Trump, only to drop by more than 50% amid a vehicle sales slump, the Tesla boycott movement, and Musk's stint in the US government. While Tesla's stock has largely rebounded, SpaceX's growth has been more stable over the past couple of years, pushing Musk's net worth up and to the right. An insider share sale in December 2024 valued the company at $350 billion, sending Musk's net worth up about $50 billion in one day and making him the first billionaire to reach the $400 billion mark. One year later, Musk's net worth broke records again when he confirmed SpaceX was planning an IPO. After an insider share sale valued the private company at $800 billion, Musk's fortune surpassed $600 billion. SpaceX's IPO, the largest in history, took place in June 2026 and became the most formative wealth-generating event of Musk's life. SpaceX — which Musk had combined with xAI, the parent company of X, formerly known as Twitter — was quickly valued at more than $2 trillion when it debuted on the public markets, pushing the CEO's net worth to more than $1 trillion. Where does Musk's fortune come from? Musk's wealth, which used to be largely dependent on Tesla shares, is now dominated by SpaceX. The rocket, satellite, and AI firm accounts for more than 70% of his net worth. Tesla represents a 13% stake, and Neuralink and The Boring Company make up the rest. For his work at both Tesla and SpaceX, the CEO is largely compensated with stock options awarded when the company meets challenging performance metrics. In SpaceX's case, those goals include a colony on Mars and orbital data centers, while at Tesla, he's been charged with getting one million robotaxis on the road. That gives Musk billions of reasons to make his sci-fi dreams a reality. Read the original article on Business Insider

AI users are turning to bots for life's decisions, and researchers worry they're losing the habit of thinking for themselves. Dilara Irem Sancar/Anadolu via Getty Images Some AI users now ask chatbots what to eat, what to text, what to wear, and when to go to bed. Researchers worry they're losing the ability to think for themselves and letting AI shape beliefs. A Wharton researcher says AI users risk becoming "followers of unthought thoughts." People are giving away their most powerful tool to AI: The ability to think. Across TikTok and Substack, users are posting about how they have become so dependent on AI that they use it to make basic and personal life decisions — what to eat, what to wear, how to phrase a message to friends, or how to navigate a toxic relationship. What may seem like a harmless convenience is becoming increasingly common. And researchers say it could have profound consequences. The more people rely on AI to make decisions, the less practice they get making difficult decisions on their own. Over time, that risks weakening the cognitive and social skills people develop through experience, uncertainty, and trial and error. In more extreme cases, AI researchers say it could begin shaping not just what people do, but also the beliefs they hold. "We want to believe we're becoming more powerful thanks to our [AI] tools," Cornelia C. Walther, a Wharton senior fellow and pro-social AI researcher, said. "But in fact, we're giving away ever more power." "We are only half a step away from reliance and maybe in a not-too-far future full-blown addiction," she said. Should I stay or should I go? Carolyn Yoo, a former software engineer who worked in tech for nine years until mid-2024, felt the draw of a decision-making chatbot firsthand. For months, Yoo had been wrestling with the question of whether to leave tech, until she turned to Anthropic's chatbot, Claude, for help. She spent up to two or three hours a day asking the chatbot to map out different versions of her future. "I kept seeking AI's reassurance to confirm whether this was a good life choice," she said. "Every single day, whether I was talking to a new person who made me feel a bit unsure, I would go back to it again," she said. Carolyn Yoo. Courtesy of Carolyn Yoo Other users say they are turning to chatbots to help navigate relationships. In a Substack post titled, "I've Outsourced My Judgement to AI. So Has Everyone Else," financial writer and comedian Dominic Frisby described how he uploaded his entire WhatsApp exchange with an ex-partner for advice. "I was stuck in a toxic relationship I couldn't seem to break out of, even after we separated. At one point, I thought I was going mad," he wrote. The bot's explanation of their relationship and personality types finally gave him clarity on how to move on. Some apps are capitalizing on indecision by offering AI tools that explicitly claim to help users make decisions on their behalf — Moot is one example. The AI-powered decision-making app, launched earlier this year, allows users to ask questions, which are debated by different AI personas that then vote on the best path forward. @colton.thoughts Lowk fr tho😭🙌 love the moot app for the best decisions #fyp #real #relatable #viral #mootpartner ♬ original sound - [errorz0ne] Have you found yourself relying on AI to make basic decisions? We want to hear from you. Contact this reporter via email at tspirlet@businessinsider.com or Signal at thibaultspirlet.40. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely. The rise of 'cognitive surrender' Researchers worry that overdelegating decisions to AI could gradually weaken the critical thinking and judgment skills that underpin independent thought. Over time, people may become less comfortable with uncertainty, less practiced at weighing competing options, and more likely to defer to AI rather than trust their own judgment. John Nosta, founder of the innovation think tank NostaLab, has warned that a heavy reliance on AI can create a kind of "cognitive codependent relationship," in which people become more productive in the short term while quietly losing the underlying skills the technology is replacing. Vivienne Ming, a theoretical neuroscientist and founder of Socos Labs, described the process as a classic case of "use it or lose it." By repeatedly outsourcing mental effort to AI, she worries people may engage less often in the kinds of thinking that strengthen memory, attention, learning, and decision-making over time. Some researchers say the consequences could extend further. What begins with everyday choices could eventually shape how people think about relationships, politics, and society. Wharton School researchers have dubbed this phenomenon "cognitive surrender," in which users shift from treating AI as a tool to treating it as an authority, accepting its answers rather than actively evaluating them. Steven Shaw, a postdoctoral researcher in marketing at Wharton, said people could become "passive followers of unthought thoughts," adopting ideas generated by AI without fully processing them. Getting sucked in So why is AI so hard to resist in the first place, and why are we turning to it for life decisions? Well, AI doesn't get tired, impatient, or uncomfortable. It responds instantly and can mirror reassurance back in seconds, often making it an appealing alternative to a friend or partner. Joanna Stern, chief technology analyst at NBC and author of "I Am Not a Robot," said that after spending a year using AI throughout her work and personal life, the most unsettling part was seeing the relationship you can have with a computer. "Even for people that seem well-adjusted, you can get so, so sucked into it," Stern said in a recent interview on journalist Kara Swisher's podcast. But your sycophantic AI best friend isn't necessarily good for your long-term people skills. "When AI systems are optimized to please, they erode the very feedback loops through which we learn to navigate the social world," Anat Perry, a Helen Putnam Fellow at Harvard University, said. "Over time, this could also recalibrate what people expect feedback to feel like, making honest human responses feel unnecessarily harsh by comparison," she said. Some users described using AI to make life decisions. Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images 'Sit in our own uncertainty' For Yoo, stepping back from AI meant relearning how to sit with uncertainty instead of immediately reaching for an answer. She began relying more on notebooks, meditation, writing groups, and conversations with other people. "The whole purpose is to sit in our own uncertainty and come to our decisions ourselves," she said. "That's the only way you can really feel integrity in the choices you make." Carolyn Yoo. Courtesy of Carolyn Yoo Still, some users say that outsourcing parts of their judgment to AI can help them make better decisions and avoid mistakes they might otherwise regret. As Frisby writes on Substack, "I'm done with bad decisions. I've made enough wrong decisions for one life. I'm 56 now. I just want to make optimum choices and have a really good next three or four decades, or however long I've got left." Read the original article on Business Insider

Many Gen Z and millennial workers said that their avoidance of phone calls costs them opportunities. Israel Sebastian/Getty Images A new survey of 2,000 young workers by RiseGuide found that 42% avoid phone calls. Many Gen Z and millennial workers said that their avoidance of phone calls costs them opportunities. RiseGuide said that technology provides people "countless ways to delay real conversations." A fear of phone calls may be costing young workers raises and career opportunities. A new survey of 2,000 Gen Zers and millennials by the self-improvement app RiseGuide found that 42% don't answer phone calls, while 58% script or rehearse conversations before making them. The consequences may extend beyond anxiety. Among respondents who avoid spoken conversations, 78% said the habit has cost them earnings or opportunities. The findings come as anxiety around phone calls appears to be growing. RiseGuide coined the term "callergy" for the reluctance to speak over the phone and finding workarounds like texts, emails, and social media messages. Jaimee Campanella, a time strategist and productivity consultant at RiseGuide, said that the convenience of technology now provides people "countless ways to delay real conversations" so that communication skills don't get to improve through practice. "Text messages, emails, and social media give us time to edit our responses, while face-to-face communication requires us to engage in the moment," said Campanella. "The more we postpone difficult conversations, the more intimidating they can seem." "Unfortunately, avoidance often creates bigger problems than the conversation itself," Campanella added. "We miss opportunities, strain relationships, and spend unnecessary time and energy worrying about issues that could have been resolved through a direct discussion." Spontaneous calls are more stressful than breakups The current tough job market for young workers, however, may be nudging some out of their comfort zone. Adrian Poon, a Gen Z HR worker trying to transition from temporary contracts to a more permanent position, told Business Insider — over text messages — that he overcomes his anxiety about answering calls only when he is "in job applying mode." He usually won't pick up unless the caller is a friend. "I would mentally register that as a blind box opening," said Poon of getting a call from a number not in his contacts. Poon said that although he has been actively job-seeking, he has never cold-called a recruiter and generally prefers to connect in other ways. Having a prescheduled call with a clear agenda also helps, says Poon. "This is more of a talking to people thing in general, especially if they're busy people: I need to know what I need to ask," Poon said of calling others, including friends. "Like I figure out what I need to tell them and what I need to ask so that I don't waste my time with them." GenZers and millennials have a complicated relationship with their devices, especially smartphones. While younger workers often prefer texting to talking, many are also trying to spend less time on their devices altogether. More people are making digital detoxes part of their lives, turning to app blockers like Brick or "dumb phones" to curb screen time. Being more conscious of screen time doesn't necessarily mean young people are eager to pick up the phone: In RiseGuide's survey, one in 10 respondents said a spontaneous call is the most stressful form of communication for them — more than a breakup or a job interview. Read the original article on Business Insider

KFC's new sauce line includes Chimichurri Ranch and Hot Honey, while its Kwench drink lineup features new shakes and boba drinks. KFC KFC's new strategy focuses on staying relevant across generations, not only targeting Gen Z. Design head Christophe Poirier said too many brands target a single age bracket and get stuck. KFC's new boba drinks and immersive designs aim to adapt what's trending for broader audiences. Every brand wants Gen Z to think it's cool. KFC's design chief thinks that's the wrong goal. "It's all about Gen Z, Gen Z, Gen Z," Christophe Poirier, KFC's global chief concept officer, told Business Insider. As KFC rolls out a sweeping global overhaul spanning new menu items, drinks, restaurant designs, and branding, Poirier said the fried chicken chain isn't trying to become a Gen Z brand. "Gen Z won't stay Gen Z forever," he said, "At some point, the Gen Zs will be like me." Instead, the goal is to stay relevant across generations. "We need to be in constant evolution to be forever young," Poirier said. The philosophy comes at a pivotal moment for the brand. KFC has spent the past year trying to regain momentum in the US after years of pressure from rivals, including Chick-fil-A, Raising Cane's, and Wingstop. Recent visit trends suggest some progress: KFC has posted positive year-over-year visits-per-location growth nearly every month since August 2025, according to Placer.ai, which attributed gains to menu innovation, value offers, and the return of nostalgic favorites like potato wedges. The approach runs counter to a broader trend in retail and restaurants, where companies increasingly build products, marketing campaigns, and loyalty programs around younger consumers. Poirier argues brands can become too focused on chasing a specific demographic. Instead, KFC's new strategy aims to adapt to changing consumer habits without abandoning the identity that made it successful in the first place. The company is betting heavily on specialty beverages. Its new global drink platform, Kwench by KFC, includes boba refreshers, sparkling lemonades, iced coffees, and shakes designed to attract customers outside traditional meal occasions. "People drink more and more often than they eat," Poirier said. KFC has also spent years trying to improve how customers perceive the brand. According to Forrest Morgeson, associate professor of marketing at Michigan State University and director of research emeritus at the American Customer Satisfaction Index, KFC significantly narrowed its customer-satisfaction gap with Chick-fil-A between 2015 and 2024 before slipping in 2025 as competition intensified from newer chicken chains. The strategy appears to align with broader industry trends. Nik Allen, Euromonitor's global insight manager for consumer foodservice, said younger consumers increasingly seek customization, novelty, and "allowable indulgences" from restaurant brands. Poirier's goal isn't necessarily to win over Gen Z. It's to make sure KFC remains relevant long after Gen Z stops being the industry's favorite consumer cohort. Poirier pointed to Pixar as a model: movies that work for children while still giving adults something to enjoy. KFC, he said, needs to do the same. "If a 7-year-old kid goes to KFC with the 77-year-old grandparent, the grandparent should still find what he wants," Poirier said. Read the original article on Business Insider

Ukraine is ramping up production of ground robots to replace soldiers on a battlefield that has become increasingly deadly. Jake Epstein/Business Insider KYIV REGION, Ukraine — Near the front lines in eastern Ukraine, a routine supply run can be a death sentence. Mines, artillery, and drone-saturated skies have expanded the kill zone, threatening soldiers carrying food or ammunition to troops in the trenches. "If you send a human driver to deliver such things, there is a huge chance that he will be killed," Andrii Kushnierov, a platoon leader with Ukraine's 59th Assault Brigade, told Business Insider. So Ukraine is increasingly sending robots instead. These machines are no longer the crude, remote-controlled carts loaded with bombs that appeared early in the war. Business Insider went inside a factory in the Kyiv region, far from the front lines, where workers were rapidly assembling a new generation of battlefield robots. The vehicles rolling off the line inside the factory looked a little like military-grade golf carts, except that they didn't have seats or steering wheels. They weren't built for a soldier to climb aboard and drive into battle. They're designed to keep the driver out of the kill zone. Once workers fit them with electronics, heavy-duty tires, and sensors, remote Ukrainian operators will send them toward the front lines, where they'll haul ammunition, evacuate wounded troops, lay mines, launch other drones, attack Russian positions, and try to keep moving under fire. Many won't survive for long. Some may be destroyed within days of arriving at the front. For Ukraine, that's an acceptable trade-off. These machines can be easily replaced. A soldier can't. That also means Ukraine will need many more of these vehicles. Factories across the country are racing to replace battlefield losses and expand production, offering a glimpse of what it takes to sustain a war increasingly dominated by drones. It's a wartime manufacturing race for cheap, rugged machines that can be built quickly, adapted easily, repaired when possible, and replaced when destroyed. Ground robots are evolving from explosive carts into battlefield workhorses Taras Ostapchuk used to manufacture street lamps before the war. Now he is CEO of Ratel Robotics, one of the hundreds of Ukrainian companies making ground robots. "Most important is to save our soldiers' lives," Ostapchuk told Business Insider. Ukraine is replacing soldiers with robots for dangerous missions as the kill zone expands near the front lines. Jake Epstein/Business Insider Ratel built its first ground robot in late 2023, producing a small machine packed with anti-tank mines and designed to drive toward Russian targets and detonate. Now, Ratel's roughly 350 employees can produce hundreds of uncrewed ground vehicles, or UGVs, a month. Its robots cost between $2,000 and $40,000, depending on size and function, making the prices far lower than comparable European systems, Ostapchuk said. "We know how to produce the cheapest battle-proof robots," he said. Ukraine has built much of its wartime defense industry under pressure, with limited resources and heavy dependence on foreign support. The same pressures are shaping its robotics industry, and companies are racing to build low-cost, adaptable machines for a war that consumes equipment almost as quickly as it can be produced. The war machines coming off Ratel's factory floors are built for the kinds of jobs Ukrainian soldiers are increasingly trying to avoid: hauling hundreds of kilograms of cargo or ammunition across the battlefield, laying mines, evacuating the wounded, launching FPV drones, and attacking Russian outposts. The company is also developing robots that can launch interceptor drones for air defense missions and execute amphibious casualty evacuation, logistics, and assault missions. Testing for the latter was scheduled to begin last month, with scaled production expected to follow quickly to support operations in southern Ukraine. Business Insider reporters traveled across Ukraine to document how new technologies, tactics, and industries are radically changing warfare. Read more dispatches from Ukraine: Western arms makers are lining up to test their weapons on Ukraine's battlefields Ukraine's weapons makers found a way to get interceptor pilots out of danger while extending their reach Ukraine's drone hunters are evolving. The next generation is getting faster. "We need to destroy Russian enemies in the left bank" of the Dnipro River, Ostapchuk said, referring to the intense fighting near the Ukrainian city of Kherson. Ratel's operation is part of a broader national effort, and Ukrainian UGVs are being sent into battle and tasked with unusual and increasingly ambitious missions. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said recently that robots had captured Russian positions and forced soldiers to surrender without direct infantry involvement. Ukraine is building tens of thousands of ground robots and sending them into the kill zone The push for more robots is accelerating quickly. Ukraine contracted 25,000 ground robots in the first half of 2026 — twice as many as in all of 2025 — and Zelenskyy wants 50,000 produced by the end of the year. Zelenskyy said in April that Ukrainian-made robots had logged more than 22,000 missions since the start of the year. By June, that number had climbed to more than 50,000. In 2022, only a few Ukrainian companies were making warfighting robots, and they were limited in function. Now, 550 different models made by 280 companies are delivering hundreds of tons of cargo to the front every week, said Andrii Hrytseniuk, the CEO of the state-backed innovation platform Brave1. Ukraine's defense ministry wants ground robots to eventually handle 100% of its battlefield logistics. Ukraine's ground robots are designed for logistics, casualty evacuation, attack, and mine-laying operations. Jake Epstein/Business Insider "We should not risk our soldiers," Hrytseniuk told Business Insider. "Everything that is possible to replace by drone, we are replacing with drones," he said, referring broadly to uncrewed systems. The Ukrainian president and the country's defense ministry have praised the life-saving potential of UGVs. Troops say these robots do more than keep human soldiers out of danger: They also strengthen Ukraine's armed forces. Grek, a UGV company commander with the 21st Unmanned Systems "Kraken" Regiment, told Business Insider that the robots increase Ukraine's "operational endurance" because they don't fatigue on missions the way humans do. Equipped with cameras and sensors, they also provide troops with greater situational awareness than they would have on their own. And like other uncrewed systems, they deliver cheap mass. The rush to build UGVs points to a key lesson with implications beyond Ukraine. Future fights may demand more than exquisite systems that take years to produce, and instead call for large quantities of cheap robotic systems that armies can afford to lose. In future wars, production speed and replaceability may be decisive factors. Ukraine expects many of its war robots won't survive Kushnierov, the platoon leader, said that near the front lines, the ground robots may survive only five to 10 missions before being destroyed. That is a loss Ukraine is willing to absorb if it keeps soldiers alive. Ground robots often have short lifespans; a tradeoff Ukraine is eager to make to spare soldiers. Jake Epstein/Business Insider Although vehicle combat losses are expected, companies are taking steps to make UGVs more survivable. Ratel began installing anti-shrapnel armor on the robots this year, turning them into mini tanks of sorts with extra protection. The company is also developing technology that allows the robots to fire netting as a defense against incoming Russian first-person-view, or FPV, drones. They're already quite durable, though. Video footage captured by a UGV, which Ostapchuk shared with Business Insider, shows the uncrewed vehicle moving down a desolate road near the front lines when a munition suddenly strikes it from above, creating a small fireball and a plume of smoke. The robot drives out of the smoke and keeps moving. Ratel's war robots are also designed to keep going even when obstacles like pervasive electronic interference try to cut them off. Operators can control them via Starlink, mobile networks, or radio, and Ratel is developing a feature that would allow a robot to automatically reverse 100 meters along its route if it loses connection. Multiple cameras give operators a 360-degree view of the battlefield, while some robots are fitted with doorbell cameras, allowing UGV operators to speak to wounded troops as the machines carry them away from the front. UGVs have a fundamental limitation, though: They see the battlefield from the ground. A Ratel instructor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for security reasons, said soldiers often use aerial drones to map main and alternate routes for UGVs before sending the ground robots forward. Pairing the systems can maximize their battlefield impact. Ukraine contracted 25,000 ground robots in the first half of 2026, and wants 50,000 produced by the end of the year. Dmytro Smolienko/Ukrinform/NurPhoto Ukraine is rushing to train soldiers for its expanding robot force A short drive from the factory Business Insider visited, Ratel operates a training facility where soldiers can hone their driving skills on a dirt track lined with tires, resembling a motocross course. Last year, the company taught more than 500 operators to use its UGVs. Driving a UGV is like driving a remote-controlled car, only larger and often armed or rigged to explode on target. Ostapchuk said soldiers with FPV drone experience can learn to operate the robots in a day. Those who haven't played video games, however, might need closer to a week, still a short training window for uncrewed systems. At Ratel, these machines move quickly from the factory floor to the training track to the battlefield. In any given day, workers are assembling ground robots in one facility, soldiers are learning to drive them at another, and front-line units are requesting more because the machines don't often last long in front-line combat. More and more units are starting to use UGVs, Kushnierov said. "It's too dangerous now to send logistics by manned vehicles." That's the core of Ukraine's bet on UGVs. The robots rolling off factory production lines may be built for missions they're not expected to survive. But the machines can be replaced, unlike the soldiers they spare. Read the original article on Business Insider

Mishal Husain / Bloomberg: Q&A with Signal's Meredith Whittaker on why online child safety efforts risk mass surveillance, leaving the markets that demand weakening of encryption, more  —  Meredith Whittaker has spent years arguing that privacy is a prerequisite for a free society.