Author: openjargon

• Mark Zuckerberg is planning a 75,000-square-foot compound in Lake Tahoe, news site SFGate reported.
• The Meta CEO laid the groundwork by buying adjacent properties in 2018 and 2019 for $59 million. 
• The compound will include a bunkhouse, a guesthouse, and a gym, per documents seen by SFGate.

For years, people have been wondering what Mark Zuckerberg is up to in Lake Tahoe.

We have our first clue.

The Meta CEO plans to build a 75,000-square-foot, seven-building compound on the lake's western shore, according to planning documents seen by California news site SFGate.

Zuckerberg started to lay the groundwork in December 2018, when he bought a 3.5-acre property from the family of the late investment banker Robert Quist for $22 million. The next month, he bought another estate next door for $37 million.

The Quist spread, also called the Carousel Estate, included a pier suitable for a large yacht and a house with seven bedrooms, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cited Zillow. The property next door, known as the Brushwood Estate, had a house with six bedrooms, five bathrooms, and two half-baths.

Those specs seem irrelevant, though, because Zuckerberg has started demolishing the homes, according to SFGate.

According to Lake Tahoe's parcel tracker, the property where he plans to build has been deemed a "project area." SFGate reported that a 2022 letter from the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) sent to the LLC used to buy the properties, Golden Range LLC, gave Zuckerberg the OK to demolish the Carousel Estate.

The demolition paves the way for Zuckerberg's planned seven-building compound. The main residence will be a 20,000-square-foot, 35-foot-tall structure, SFGate reported from the planning documents.

Another construction approved by the TRPA, SFGate reported, features a bunkhouse, a gym, a gatehouse, an office, and a guesthouse. The same documents showed the property will also include fire pits, bridges, and mulch trails.

Zuckerberg can add the Tahoe property to his already extensive real-estate portfolio. He owns another compound in Palo Alto, California, and over 1,200 acres of land in Hawaii. In April, BI calculated Zuckerberg's property holdings were worth about $200 million.

Set against a landscape of breathtaking mountains and forests, Lake Tahoe is a popular vacation destination for many wealthy Californians. Dotted with luxury ski resorts and multimillion-dollar homes, it's also one of the most exclusive and sought-after real-estate markets in the US.

The billionaire founder of Oracle, Larry Ellison, the Kardashians, and singer Liza Minelli have all owned homes in the area at some point.

• Taylor Swift has intertwined time with her recent musical projects, starting with "Midnights."
• Now fans can't get enough of analog clocks.
• She and her army of Swifties have even inspired small businesses to sell time-telling merchandise.

There's much more to being a Taylor Swift fan than memorizing new albums and spending thousands of dollars on concert tickets.

Swifties must also be on high alert whenever the musician nods to old-school clocks.

Since releasing "Midnights" in 2023 and "The Tortured Poets Department" this year, Swift has been noticeably intertwining time into her musical work.

But the Grammy-winning superstar hasn't gone digital — even in a world of iPhones, Apple Watches, and AI.

Instead, the musician has almost exclusively utilized analog technology — a choice that's made a noticeable impact on businesses and her younger fans.

Telling time with Taylor Swift

Time has always held a prominent place in Swift's art.

Lyrically, she began singing about meaningful moments on her debut album. You might remember lyrics like "2 a.m. riding in your truck" from the fan-favorite track "Mary's Song (Oh My My My)."

But Swift introduced time as a theme more heavily in 2023 with the release of her 10th studio album.

During the "Midnights" era, Swift used clock motifs throughout the "Bejeweled" music video, prominently featured them in her massive Eras Tour, and included some as (still-undecoded) Easter eggs, or hidden clues, in her "Karma" and "Lavender Haze" music videos.

Then, when she was nominated for six Grammys this year, Swift arrived on the event's red carpet wearing a diamond-encrusted watch custom-made into a choker.

The Lorraine Schwartz timepiece was a playful nod to her nominated work and a subtle reference to a new project she'd announce that night: her 11th studio album, "The Tortured Poets Department."

But then Swift wore the necklace again, this time while out with friends in Notting Hill on Tuesday night. And fans think the "Anti-Hero" singer is up to something because of it.

Is she more powerful than Father Time? Maybe.

Swiftie or not, you've probably noticed that most things Swift touches turn to gold.

She brought major attention to small Kansas City businesses during the latest NFL season, and her tour has boosted economies around the globe.

And that's not to mention Swift's impact on the rebirth of vinyl records.

Forbes reported that "1989 (Taylor's Version)" was the highest-selling vinyl of 2023 with 1.4 million copies, and "The Tortured Poets Department" broke the record for largest vinyl sales — more than 700,000 copies — in a single week.

These feats partially result from a popular tactic in which artists release multiple vinyl variants of their albums to boost revenue. Swift has been leading the charge.

Naturally, Swift has also impacted the world of telling time.

Look no further than entrepreneur Victoria P., who created her watch-focused jewelry brand, Joiedevika, two years ago. She first sold her handmade, time-telling necklaces at Los Angeles flea markets. As her designs became more popular, her business expanded to Etsy, Depop, and a personal website.

Speaking with Business Insider, Victoria said friends texted her when they saw Swift wearing a watch necklace at the 2024 Grammys. And instantly, orders came pouring in.

"I Googled 'watch necklace Taylor Swift,' and I found necklaces from my Etsy shop," she said.

Victoria noted that her online shops have received a big boost in recent months, with her Etsy sales this year already surpassing her total for 2023.

"I have a lot of customers asking me for watch necklaces to wear to Taylor Swift parties and events. It's very interesting," she told BI.

And she's not the only one. Eugena Lee of Eugena's Jewelry told BI that her watch necklaces have been especially popular this year. Avery Borders also said she'd noticed the "Taylor Swift Effect" on her small business, Mundus Magica Creations.

"I've seen a few whispers of steampunk elements in the fashion industry lately," Borders told BI. "But Taylor wearing a watch necklace has been super cool. I've seen a boost in sales, a boost in interest, and a boost in inspiration on my end."

Swift has also made some cash on clock-themed merchandise. She previously sold a "Folklore"-themed clock and a "Lover"-themed watch as official merchandise, and four of the "Midnights" vinyl variants she released last year created a clock when displayed together.

Brittany Cheshire, a 31-year-old Swiftie from Arizona, spent $120 on the four records. And no, she doesn't own a record player.

"I was moving into my new house and I was excited to decorate the walls in my office," she told BI. "I needed a clock, and what's better than a Taylor one?"

She also purchased a $50 display set from Swift's official merchandise website, which allows fans to mount the albums on a wall and turn them into functional clocks.

"I totally understand that it's four of the same album. But for me, it's more about the artwork," Cheshire added. "I have all four variants of 'The Tortured Poets Department' on my wall, too. The photos, the composition, everything is beautiful. I'm not just a crazy super Swiftie who has to have everything she puts out."

But maybe more importantly, Swift has inadvertently helped young people learn to read analog clocks — something they've long been accused of not knowing how to do, even by Jimmy Kimmel.

"That's it! I'm learning to tell time! Gimme!" one TikToker commented on a video Swift posted about her clock vinyl variants.

"From teaching about spelling to telling the time, it's official! Taylor Swift is the best teacher you could ever ask for," another fan wrote on X.

So what exactly is Swift saying by wearing her sparkling watch necklace again?

Dedicated fans are scouring the internet for answers, with one woman saying she emailed a journalist to request that they check high-resolution photos to see what numbers Swift had her timepiece necklace set to.

The answer remains unclear, and only time — no pun intended — will tell. But Swifties are determined to beat the clock.

• A judge ruled that celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson's famous "method" is "uncopyrightable."
• In 2022, Anderson sued her ex-employee, Megan Roup, accusing her of copying the workout method Anderson says she invented.
• Anderson's lawyer told BI that the fitness guru "seeks to vindicate her rights against" Roup.

In a blow to celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson, a federal judge ruled this week that the fitness pioneer's famous exercise "method" is "uncopyrightable."

US District Judge Philip Gutierrez issued the ruling Wednesday in the federal lawsuit Anderson brought against one of her former trainers, the Sculpt Society founder, Megan Roup.

In July 2022, Anderson sued Roup in the Central District of California, accusing her of copyright infringement, breach of contract, and other claims. The high-profile fitness guru said in the lawsuit that Roup copied her signature workout, the "Tracy Anderson Method" or "TA Method" — a dance-based workout routine.

"The Court finds that Anderson's routines are clearly an unprotectable process, system, and/or methodology," Gutierrez wrote in his recent ruling.

"Courts have found that 'exercises, while undoubtedly the product of much time and effort, are, at bottom, simply a process for achieving increased consciousness. Such processes, even if original, cannot be protected by copyright,'" the order read.

The order added, "And because the TA Method is uncopyrightable, the Court need not reach the issues of whether the TA Method could be considered choreography and if TAMB [Tracy Anderson Mind and Body] actually owns the copyrights."

Anderson's lawyer Gina Durham told Business Insider Friday that her client is looking forward to the trial, which will proceed on a breach of contract claim.

"Tracy Anderson initiated this lawsuit against Megan Roup and The Sculpt Society to protect her art form that she built from the ground up through decades of research, development, testing, and investment," Durham said.

"Ms. Anderson seeks to vindicate her rights against Roup and The Sculpt Society, who have improperly capitalized on, and benefitted from, Ms. Anderson's decades of hard work," she added.

Durham said that Gutierrez's ruling "did not fully analyze specific choreographic works that Ms. Anderson has registered with the Copyright Office" and that they will "continue to pursue protection of those works and unauthorized uses under the law."

Nathaniel Bach, a lawyer for Roup, celebrated the judge's ruling in a statement to BI.

"We are pleased with the Court's ruling unequivocally rejecting Tracy Anderson's copyright claim, finding that the TA Method is not copyrightable, full stop," Bach said.

"This is not only a win for Megan, who built The Sculpt Society from the ground up — attracting a broad and welcoming community devoted to the joy of physical movement — but a ruling benefitting the entire fitness industry, making clear that no one owns physical exercise or dance cardio," said Bach. "We look forward to prevailing on what little remains of the case at trial."

Roup founded a workout app called the Sculpt Society in 2017 shortly after leaving Anderson's namesake fitness company, where she worked for more than five years.

Anderson's lawsuit against Roup says that while Roup was a trainer at Tracy Anderson, she had "access to all material necessary to replicate the TA Method and related business, and she wasted no time in doing so."

In the lawsuit, Anderson accuses Roup of copying "choreography movements, sequences, and routines," "organizational structure and format," and "aesthetic elements" from 19 of Anderson's fitness DVDs. These DVDs, released between 2008 and 2014, include "The Method for Beginners" and "Unleash Your Inner Pop Star."

Roup has denied the allegations and has tried to get the lawsuit dismissed. The case is slated to proceed to trial later this year on the remaining claim.

Anderson, who has trained celebrities including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lopez, and Victoria Beckham, has long been fearful that her trainers would leave and steal her clients and her method.

In 2023, two of Anderson's ex-trainers, who now run their own fitness companies, told BI that they received warning letters from Anderson's attorneys accusing them of stealing Anderson's movements and violating a non-compete agreement.

Two other former employees said a member of Anderson's management team asked them to monitor ex-trainers' social-media accounts for any signs they might be stealing Anderson's movements.

Another former trainer said that while she was still working at Tracy Anderson, she was reprimanded by management for merely liking former instructors' Instagram posts.

• A pilot's error caused a Southwest flight to nearly crash into the ocean, Bloomberg reported.
• The captain let his "newer" first officer control the plane near Hawaii, according to the report.
• Another flight almost crashed into the sea in the same area in 2022 due to poor weather conditions.

A Southwest Airlines flight in April almost crashed into the ocean off the coast of Hawaii after a pilot accidentally sent the plane into a dive, Bloomberg reported.

In an internal memo sent to pilots last week viewed by Bloomberg, the airline explained that despite bad weather forecasts, the plane's captain put his "newer" first officer in control of the Boeing 737 Max 8 plane.

When bad weather forced the plane to abort its attempted landing at Kauai's Lihue Airport, the less-experienced pilot "inadvertently" pushed the steering yoke forward before reducing the plane's speed, Bloomberg reported, citing the memo.

That caused the plane to plummet from an altitude of 1,000 feet down to just 400 feet above the ocean in only a few seconds, according to the report.

When warning alarms started going off in the cockpit, the captain commanded the first officer to accelerate, causing the plane to "aggressively" climb back up into the sky at a rate of 8,500 feet a minute, according to Bloomberg.

The flight returned to Honolulu, and no one was injured, according to the report.

While the Bloomberg report referred to the first officer as the "less experienced" pilot on board, it should be noted that even a first officer on a major airline still has a wealth of flying experience.

Southwest did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

"Nothing is more important to Southwest than safety," Southwest Airlines said in a statement to Bloomberg. "Through our robust Safety Management System, the event was addressed appropriately as we always strive for continuous improvement."

The April flight—which had not been previously reported—echoes a flight over Hawaii in 2022 that plummeted after leaving Maui.

UA Flight 1722 was headed to San Francisco in December in heavy rain conditions when a "miscommunication" caused the plane to dive within 800 feet of the ocean, the National Transportation Safety Board said.

On that flight, a first officer misheard what level to sets the plane's flaps, ultimately causing the plane to nose-dive for roughly 10 seconds.

• Elon Musk's $44 billion deal to acquire Twitter triggered a rollercoaster of chaos.
• Musk renamed the platform X, let go of thousands of workers, and made major changes to the website.
• Here's a timeline of what's gone down at Twitter since Musk took over.

Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion in late 2022, following a tumultuous, months-long legal battle. Since then, the billionaire has implemented a number of controversial changes that have made both the website and the company nearly unrecognizable.

Musk spent much of 2022 musing about buying Twitter and rapidly buying shares in the company, while publicly accusing the platform of undermining free speech, censoring conservative voices, and exhibiting left-wing bias.

By the spring of 2022, Musk had acquired a 9% stake in Twitter and made an offer to buy it outright for $44 billion. Initially, Twitter responded with a "poison pill" to dilute Musk's stake and stave off a hostile takeover. But by late April, Musk and Twitter struck a deal for $44 billion.

Within weeks, Musk was threatening to back out of the deal, blaming Twitter for failing to provide information on spam bots and fake accounts. Twitter sued Musk to force him to follow through with the deal, and Musk countersued Twitter. But Musk backed down later that year, shortly before the case was set to go to trial, and agreed to the original $44 billion deal.

Since the acquisition, Musk and X have faced a number of lawsuits, slashed 80% of Twitter's workforce, and overhauled the platform in a number of ways. And though the company has aimed to become profitable in 2024, Musk has also publicly said the company has struggled mightily with a drop in advertising revenue. Some estimates have valued the company as being worth 71% less than when Musk bought it.

From strolling into Twitter's San Francisco headquarters with a bathroom sink, to renaming the company X, here's a timeline of how Musk's chaotic takeover of the company unfolded, and how his reign has impacted workers and users alike:

October 2022

On October 28, 2022, same day Musk officially acquired Twitter, the billionaire ousted a number of its executives, including CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal, chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde, and senior legal counsel Sean Edgett.

All four of those executives have since sued Musk and X, alleging that they're owed $128 million in unpaid severance, and over $1 million apiece in legal fees they accrued during their Twitter careers.

Along with the acquisition, Musk also took Twitter private, meaning it is no longer a public company, and was officially delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in November 2022. The move gave Musk complete control, freeing him up to make changes without any boards or meddling shareholders to restrain him.

A day before the deal was finalized on October 27, Musk walked into Twitter's San Francisco headquarters carrying a large bathroom sink, seemingly a reference to it "sinking in" that he was becoming Twitter's new leader. 

One of his first orders was to direct Twitter engineers to work on a relaunch of video app Vine. 

After Musk's first all-hands meeting with Twitter staff, many learned that Yoel Roth, the head of trust and safety, had resigned. Robin Wheeler, who was previously the advertising sales leader, also resigned but was convinced to stay. 

Twitter sent engineers a memo calling for "maniacal" work and a willingness to suggest ideas to Musk. Engineers were also told to reach out to Musk directly with "cool product" pitches for the platform.

Musk tweeted on October 30 that "the whole verification process is being revamped right now." 

Cofounder Jack Dorsey retained an indirect stake in Twitter even after Musk took over. Dorsey agreed to roll over his 2.4% stake to Musk's holding company, X Holdings I Inc. Dorsey's 18 million shares were valued at just over $1 billion, according to SEC filings.

Musk's stake in Twitter, now known as X, now sits at around 79%.

November 2022

Musk gave more details on the coming changes to Twitter's verification model on November 1. He tweeted that Twitter's "lords & peasants system for who has or doesn't have a blue checkmark is bullshit." He added: "Power to the people! Blue for $8/month."

Hundreds of employees were let go in Musk's first round of Twitter layoffs on November 4. A week after Musk took the helm, he sent employees an email confirming rumors that layoffs were imminent.

The memo said they would find out the next day if their roles had been affected by the cuts. However, some staff received notice they'd lost their job that same evening. Some Twitter employees lost access to their email accounts and company systems that night. 

The following week, Musk issued remaining employees an ultimatum: work at an "extremely hardcore" rate to build "Twitter 2.0" or accept a three-month severance package. Musk sent employees an email at midnight PT on Wednesday, a timestamp on the email seen by Business Insider showed. The self-described "chief Twit" said in the email that employees were expected to work "long hours at high intensity."

Several dozen Twitter employees were fired by Musk the night before Thanksgiving, despite saying in an all-hands meeting the week before that there would be no more layoffs.

Hundreds of former Twitter employees who were fired upon Musk's takeover have since sued X for unpaid severance.

After Musk launched the Twitter Blue subscription, which allows anyone to pay to be verified, it led to a wave of bizarre and comical impersonations of public figures and brands. Some users couldn't distinguish whether it was an official account belonging to public figures or brands – or impersonators. 

December 2022

Musk said expenses were "reasonably under control" after claiming in November that Twitter bankruptcy was a possibility for the company.

He relaunched Twitter Blue, which included gold check marks for verified business accounts. 

Dozens of unused offices in Twitter's San Francisco HQ were turned into bedrooms in December for Musk's confidants, including Jared Birchall. San Francisco officials later said the city was investigating and ordered Twitter to label them as sleeping areas or convert them back. 

January 2023

Musk cut a major fertility benefit for Twitter employees. Staff were told via an email that a benefit that covers up to $80,000 in fertility-related costs would be halved. 

Twitter offices in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Mexico, and Africa started shutting down in a bid to cut costs.

February 2023

Musk announced that Twitter API access would no longer be free, revealing plans to start charging $100 per month for the basic tier of the API in a bid to get rid of bots. 

The next month, Twitter started to roll out tiered access to its API, charging different amounts depending on the user.

March 2023

Twitter announced it would be sunsetting its legacy blue-tick verified program — which Musk called "deeply corrupted" — on April 1, 2023.

Before Musk's acquisition in October 2022, Twitter gave out blue checkmarks to authenticate active accounts of "public interest" such as those belonging to politicians, public figures, celebrities, and journalists. The platform independently verified such accounts.

April 2023

Twitter scaled back its paid leave for new parents from 20 weeks to two weeks and didn't notify employees, which angered some staff.

Musk moved forward with a generative AI project, revealed as xAI in July, after he signed an open letter calling for an industrywide halt to any AI training for several months.

May 2023

Musk named Linda Yaccarino as Twitter's new CEO after saying in May that a new chief would start in around six weeks. He tweeted: "@LindaYacc will focus primarily on business operations, while I focus on product design & new technology. Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app."

Musk also walked back the changes to Twitter's paid parental leave. The company's HR told employees in an email that it would give them seven weeks of paid leave and birthing parents would receive nine additional weeks.

Twitter announced that companies sharing information as a public service will be able to start using Twitter's API for free again.

As of May 2023, Twitter's full-time employee count numbered about 1,000, down from around 7,500 employees when Musk first took over.

June 2023

Representatives from software firm Oracle started calling current and former Twitter staff to seek payment for past-due invoices, which was at least six figures. Musk also has outstanding payments owed to companies, including Amazon and Google's cloud services and landlords of its offices in the US, Europe, and Asia. 

An internal Twitter document reportedly showed ad revenue was down 59% from April to May, according to internal documents, despite Musk's claims that "almost all advertisers have come back."

July 2023

Meta launched Threads, a new text-based social-media network, in July and that same night Musk's lawyer sent the company a cease-and-desist letter claiming it was a "copycat" app. The letter claims Meta hired "dozens of former Twitter employees" to help build its rival app Threads. It also claimed Meta had been "crawling and scraping" Twitter data on users.

The weekend prior to Threads' launch, Twitter's "rate limit" was temporarily imposed on the number of tweets users could view and users were locked out from viewing posts for several hours. Musk later said it was necessary because AI companies were scraping "extreme levels" of data from the platform, which meant it had to "bring large numbers of servers online on an emergency basis."

However, Musk and Yaccarino didn't brief staff on these changes. Staff in the sales and advertising division didn't get a response about what they should say to clients about how the limit would impact ads.

Musk announced he was renaming the company as "X" and making it into an "everything app". Soon after he scrapped Twitter's bird logo in favor of a monochrome X and had a giant X sign installed on its San Francisco headquarters. The sign was removed three days later after complaints rolled in. 

August 2023

Musk said X would keep ad revenue from content creators who don't have a Blue premium subscription. He continued to bring in sweeping changes such as removing headlines of articles from X posts.

X was fined $4,447 by San Francisco's Department of Building Inspection for installing the X sign on the roof, which attracted 24 complaints, including concerns that it looked unstable and the flashing strobe light from it could disturb nearby residents.

September 2023

Musk laid off more employees who worked on the trust and safety team in the first week of September. The roles involved keeping the platform safe for advertisers and users. Between five and 10 people were affected by the layoffs.

Yaccarino appeared at Code Conference and had a car-crash interview where she seemed undermined by Musk, and appeared to struggle to answer questions concisely. In one segment, she was asked about X's daily active user numbers, and she responded with only estimates, saying it had 200 million to 250 million daily active users or "something like that."

A biography on Musk by Walter Isaacson hit the shelves in September.

It included revelations about his upbringing and character, such as him going into "demon mode" — "when he goes dark and retreats inside the storm in his brain," according to his ex-girlfriend Grimes. 

An EU Commission report found X had the highest amount of Russian disinformation out of the major social media platforms. It called for Musk to ramp up its efforts to tackle disinformation. The European Commission's vice-president, Vera Jourova, advised Twitter that "we are watching what you are doing."

October 2023

The SEC revealed it was investigating Musk's acquisition of Twitter and asked a California federal court to force him to comply with a May subpoena asking him to sit for testimony. 

The filing revealed what the agency said has been "an ongoing nonpublic investigation by the SEC regarding whether, among other things, Musk violated various provisions of the federal securities laws" with his initial secret collection of Twitter stock in early 2022 and his later purchase of the company, along with statements he made about the deal.

Data provided exclusively to Business Insider's Lara O'Reilly by the marketing consultancy Ebiquity showed that a large majority of X's biggest-spending advertisers have stopped advertising on the platform since Musk acquired the company.

Just two of Ebiquity clients, which accounts for 70 of the top 100 top-spending advertisers, had purchased ads on X in September, down from 31 brands 12 months earlier. 

Musk announced the launch of two new tiers of X premium subscription service.

"One is lower cost with all features, but no reduction in ads, and the other is more expensive, but has no ads," he said in a post on X.

Musk told his followers that they could get updates on the Israel-Hamas conflict by following accounts known for peddling misinformation. He deleted the post after three hours, but by that time it had been seen by 11 million users.

Spring 2024

Musk's Tesla began advertising on X. It's the circle of life.

Tesla is famous for not advertising because it didn't need to: People loved the product, and Musk was really good at promoting it, for free, on X.

Now Musk has overpaid for Twitter, has seen many of his advertisers flee, and is now (theoretically) paying to advertise there himself. 

That wasn't the only surprise of the season. As of May 17, Twitter.com began redirecting to the X.com domain. The company had started using the X domain long before then, but users could still access the Twitter.com URL if that's what they typed into their browsers.

The company notified users of the change with a pop-up message saying, "We are letting you know that we are changing our URL, but your privacy and data protection settings remain the same."

In June, Musk implemented another change he had long been musing about: X users' "likes" are now private.

Users used to be able to see all the tweets or posts that other users liked, but Musk said he wanted people to have the ability to like posts without getting "attacked" for it. Now, users are free to like controversial, edgy, or NSFW content without fear of retaliation.