Author: openjargon

• Apple was not a pioneer in AI. But it may be winning the AI race, anyway.
• Analyst Ben Thompson says that's because of Apple's leverage: All the AI companies want access to Apple's users.
• And that means Apple's own AI efforts can be smaller.

The tech world has had a few days to digest Apple's big AI announcement, and there are still lots of questions unanswered. Like, for starters: How big a deal is it for Apple to get into AI? And how risky is it for Apple? And who has the power here — Apple, or its AI partner OpenAI?

When I try to get my head around big, complicated tech questions, I often rely on Ben Thompson, the influential tech analyst who writes the Stratechery newsletter. So I called him up to talk it through.

Thompson's main takeaway is that Apple is using its leverage as a phone maker to make AI companies — in this case, OpenAI — do much of the expensive and difficult work. And that Apple gets the upside of AI without incurring many of the costs and risks other tech players are taking on.

But it's worth reading Thompson's comments at length. The following is an edited excerpt of our conversation.

Peter Kafka: You seemed pretty enthusiastic about Apple's AI efforts before they announced them on Monday. You seem even more so after the fact. What do you like about what Apple showed off?

Ben Thompson: I think what's so compelling is actually how little they're doing.

This entire moment is about generative AI. And I'm not sure people quite realize that Apple's not really doing any generation.

They do have image generation, which is fairly tightly constrained. But [primarily] they are leveraging this capability to do interesting things that were not possible previously, like tying together different vertical apps.

I thought the most compelling demo was the presenter getting the message from her mom about her plane arriving, finding the dinner reservation that was in an email, getting information about real-time flight data, and incorporating that all together. It just resonates because that's a real problem that people have.

It felt like Apple at its best: We're not selling whiz-bang technology; we're selling thoughtful solutions that are super-obvious once you see them.

I thought that really came through. And it sidesteps a lot of the challenges around generative AI. Like hallucinations, like getting stuff wrong. They're basically just handing that off to OpenAI. And it's going to be branded OpenAI. And you're going to be [told] you're going to OpenAI. And if it screws up? Well, go talk to OpenAI.

The reason why this is compelling, and why I was optimistic even before the presentation, is that it speaks to their position in the value chain. They own the interface where people conduct their lives. And that gives them the luxury of solving problems only they can solve.

And then having an interface for the folks that want to spend billions of dollars to do these huge large language models, to plug in and sort of take it or leave it — it's Apple leveraging their position of being the trusted device in people's lives, and getting everyone to dance to their tune.

Peter Kafka: You mentioned hallucinations, which people understand comes with AI. The Washington Post asked Tim Cook about them, and he said he couldn't promise there wouldn't be any. But it sounds like you're saying the hallucination problems are going to be from the OpenAI queries. And they'll be OpenAI's problems.

Ben Thompson: I think the hallucination bit is maybe overrated. It's something that's very easy to sort of latch on to, like glue on pizza. It's very funny and kind of embarrassing.

But if you go to ChatGPT.com, you go into it knowing it might come up with something weird. And actually, 99% of the time, it doesn't.

And [OpenAI] is very confident, and I think it's reasonable to be confident it's going to continue to get better in that regard. And the fact of the matter is 100 million people or whatever it is, are still using it despite these dangers. Which speaks to the tremendous utility that does exist.

Apple doing what Apple does best

Peter Kafka: But back to the airport scenario. That sounds great, right? But what if — whether it's a hallucination or a more basic error — I rely on Apple to tell me when I'm picking mom up, where we're going, and they get it wrong? Isn't the risk there much, much higher than a garden-variety hallucination?

Ben Thompson: Yes. I would say this is the No. 1 risk facing Apple.

I think there are two risks Apple faces. One is some massive AI breakthrough, such that the phone becomes the commodity, as opposed to Apple making the AI the commodity. Like: Who's commoditizing who? That one is TBD and somewhat out of Apple's control. But it's worth mentioning.

The real risk is execution risk. Apple does have the luxury of coming to market later, and they benefited from a huge amount of research and improvements. Like shrinking down these models, giving them high efficiencies, so they can run on-device. They've had all those benefits.

What they are proposing to do — to actually orchestrate different apps and different bits of data — no one has done well, yet. Apple's bet is they can do it well because they have the data, because they are on the device. But there is a real execution risk.

There is so much of AI that demos well and dies down on the edge cases. And there's a gazillion edge cases. So to the extent this does not work out and does go badly, [the risk] is there.

Apple is not a fast follower here. They are a leader. And whether this is a place that they have the skills and capabilities to lead effectively is by far the biggest open question.

Peter Kafka: Do you take Apple at face value when they say this tech only works on our latest, greatest, highest-end machines?

Ben Thompson: 100%. The No. 1 constraint in running these models is memory. And every single device that supports this has eight gigabytes of RAM as a minimum. That's just the long and short of it.

I think this is evidence, honestly, about how Apple was late. To develop phones, the whole process runs over several years. I think if they could go back in time, they would have made the base iPhone 15 have eight gigabytes of RAM [so it could run the new AI features].

Will Apple spark more iPhone sales?

Peter Kafka: Do you think this spurs device sales? That's obviously the question Wall Street's wondering about.

Ben Thompson: I think so. And I think it doesn't just spur device sales. I think it potentially spurs higher ARPUs [average revenue per user]. I'm very curious if Apple's going to actually ever start talking about RAM. Because RAM is the key constraint here. If you got a phone with more RAM, you could theoretically run a better model. Are they going to talk about that such that you don't just upgrade your phone, but you actually spend more, to get a higher-end phone? There's definitely the opportunity to do that.

Peter Kafka: You've been speculating about whether Apple is paying OpenAI, or OpenAI is paying Apple. There's no real reporting out there about the arrangement between the two companies.

Does it matter in the end whether Apple is cutting a check for several billion dollars or getting a check for several billion?

Ben Thompson: I don't think it matters. I think it's more interesting as to what it says about the relative power in this value chain.

In my initial article, I assumed Apple would be paying OpenAI. After the keynote, and [seeing] the degree to which OpenAI was diminished — it's just a link, basically, and they're going to warn you every time you go there, and there was no Sam Altman onstage, and this was all Apple stuff — that made me feel like Apple could have done the exact same presentation without OpenAI. And just say if you want to do chatting, open an app.

Because of that, I think that they're in a stronger bargaining position. And my guess is there's just no money changing hands at all.

(Editor's note: Following my interview with Thompson, Mark Gurman at Bloomberg reported that, as Thompson suggested, neither company is paying the other, though they both imagine the deal could generate revenue by getting iPhone users to sign up for paid services sold by OpenAI.)

• Ukraine appeared to take out a Russian S-400 system in Crimea with Western ATACMS missiles.
• The S-400 air-defense system is more advanced than the older ATACMS.
• Experts told BI that S-400s are Russia's best, but their performance in Ukraine has been mixed.

Ukraine's latest claimed strike on Crimea is likely another example of how its older, Western-supplied missiles can foil even Russia's most advanced air-defense systems.

Ukraine's General Staff said Ukrainian forces targeted two Russian S-400 antiaircraft missile units and an S-300 antiaircraft missile unit on the Russia-annexed peninsula overnight on Sunday into Monday, damaging at least two of the units significantly.

It did not say what type of missiles were used, but Washington DC-based think tank the Institute for the Study of War said it was "likely with ATACMS" — US-made tactical ballistic missiles.

Rybar, an influential Russian military blogger, said on Monday that Ukraine had attacked Crimea with at least 12 ATACMS missiles.

The S-400 is Russia's most advanced air defense system. It first became operational in 2007, more than two decades after the ATACMS, which have been in service since 1986.

Ukraine said none of its missiles were downed in the attack, while mocking Russia's descriptions of its own air defenses.

"None of our missiles fired were intercepted by the enemy's 'highly effective' air defense," Ukraine's General Staff said.

The S-400 is Russia's best

Rajan Menon, director of the Grand Strategy program at the US think tank Defense Priorities, described the S-400 to BI earlier this year as Russia's "top-of-the-line air defense system."

But he said its performance in Ukraine has been "mixed," with Ukraine able to take some out.

Ukraine's General Staff said on Wednesday that it destroyed another S-400 and another S-300 in Crimea, without detailing what it used in the attack.

The S-400 was developed as a rival to the US' Patriot system, and the head of Rosoboronexport, the Russian state-owned military company that oversees much of Russia's military exports, has called it the "best long-range air defense system in the world."

Experts told BI that the system is clearly very capable and feared by Ukraine.

But they said it has proved vulnerable in Russia's ongoing invasion, and credited Ukraine with using skilled and creative tactics to go after the weapons.

Last November, the UK Ministry of Defence said that Ukraine had likely destroyed at least four Russian long-range air-defense systems in a week, with Russian reports saying three of them were S-400s.

A Russian Telegram channel that claims to have sources in Russia's police and military agencies said at the time that ATACMS were used.

Ian Williams, the former deputy director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last year that the S-400s "seem to have struggled against Storm Shadows," referring to missiles supplied to Ukraine by the UK and France, which were first used in 2003.

Fredrik Mertens, an analyst at the Hague Center for Strategic Studies, told BI that "we clearly know that Ukrainian missiles are getting through and at rates that they really pose a problem for the Russians."

Meanwhile, George Barros, a Russia analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, told BI this week that the problem could actually become worse for Russia.

He said that new permissions given by some allies to allow Ukraine to use Western-donated weapons to strike military targets in Russia will put its S-400s and other air defenses — those once outside Ukraine's strike range — at risk.

Crimea at renewed risk

At the same time, Ukraine said last month that it used Western-supplied ATACMS to strike the Russian Kerch ferry crossing into Crimea.

Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, in a move that was condemned around the world. Most countries do not recognize the territory as part of Russia.

Ukraine has vowed to retake the region, which Russia uses to launch attacks on Ukraine.

Philip Karber, a military analyst with expertise on Ukraine, said in April that Ukraine is now in a position to use ATACMS to make Crimea "militarily worthless."

Correction — June 13, 2024: A previous version of the text misidentified what antiaircraft units Ukraine said were targeted overnight on Sunday. It was two Russian S-400s and one S-300, with at least two of the units reportedly damaged. In addition, the UK Ministry of Defence said in November that Ukraine had likely destroyed at least four Russian long-range air defense systems in a week, but it was Russian reports that identified three of them as being S-400s.

This article is part of "5G and Connectivity Playbook," a series exploring some of our time's most important tech innovations.

Nestled next to a park and tucked inside an inlet, Wahoo Bay boasts a half-acre of glistening, shallow water in Pompano Beach, Florida, home to tropical fish and endangered seagrass.

But below the surface, the mini marine sanctuary is also a test bed for underwater technology that may take researchers to literal new depths.

Seven years ago, Wahoo Bay started as a vision for a snorkel park, but COVID-19 delayed its development. That delay "was a bit of a silver lining for us because it got us thinking more about creating an educational environment," said Rob Wyre, the chairman of Shipwreck Park, the nonprofit behind the Wahoo Bay project. The Wahoo Bay team was introduced to scientists from different universities who saw the marine area as a place of the right size and depths and with the right protections to assess new underwater technologies.

IoT, or the Internet of Things, refers to a network of connected devices and the technology that allows them to collect and share data. On land, this could look like a home security system sending an alert to your phone or a fitness tracker synced with an app that gives you real-time insights into your health. In the ocean, Underwater IoT could look like floating sensors, swarms of crewless vehicles, or a tetherless, wireless robot. Interest in ocean IoT is increasing because of its potential scientific, military, commercial, and conservation applications.

While only about 5% of the ocean has been explored, experts anticipate that underwater IoT, which can collect and share data from uncharted waters, could expand our understanding of the unknown and unlock the future of ocean conservation.

Underwater IoT can be tricky

Existing wireless technologies aren't much help underwater because of how they work. On land, IoT devices connect through communications technologies like Bluetooth and WiFi that use radio waves at specific frequencies to transfer information. But standard IoT technologies are ineffective in the ocean because radio signals weaken underwater. Ocean IoT often uses a different type of signal to communicate: acoustic signals or waves.

Waleed Akbar, a research assistant at the MIT Media Lab, said that while developing underwater IoT is challenging, it's necessary. "We know more about the far side of the moon than we know about the ocean," Akbar said.

Akbar said underwater IoT could do more than satisfy curiosity about what's below the water's surface. Because these devices can transmit data from unexplored areas, they could enable unprecedented environmental monitoring, such as measuring contaminants or observing coral reefs — providing information that's helpful in curbing the climate crisis.

Using acoustic energy to power new projects

Akbar is part of an MIT research group developing low-cost, low-power, batteryless IoT technologies to support underwater networks.

For example, the group invented a battery-free wireless underwater camera powered by acoustic energy — it converts mechanical energy from sound waves into electrical energy, and it uses sound waves to transmit data. The camera could support marine-life discovery, submarine surveillance, and underwater monitoring, among other endeavors.

"In the water, there's no central entity like a router you can connect to," Akbar said. "So what we have is a base station, and then sensors can communicate with that using acoustic signals."

But acoustic signaling has narrow bandwidth, long delays, and high costs. There's also the issue of energy consumption: Generally, preliminary underwater IoT devices have used batteries with limited capacity. Akbar told Business Insider that it's difficult to scale when technologies consume too much power.

"If you want to make sensors at a large scale, or you want to cover a large area like a chunk of the ocean, you want to make sure that these sensors are cost-effective," he said.

Researchers have been working on underwater acoustic communication technologies for over half a century. For example, in 1945, the US Navy developed an underwater phone that transmitted and received sound waves instead of radio waves.

More recently, scientists and engineers have started to leverage this technology to make underwater IoT a reality. Early projects include autonomous underwater vehicles that can spot ancient shipwrecks, sensors that can help with disaster forecasting, and sensor networks that can measure ocean temperatures.

Today's underwater technology is often hindered by limited battery life and tethers to ships on the surface. Dimitris Pados, a professor at Florida Atlantic University and the director of the Center for Connected Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence, said that to monitor and model the ocean with the granularity necessary to understand how climate change is influencing it, researchers need to access parts of the ocean that existing tech can't reach.

"It's a field that's catching people's attention," Akbar said. "The technology is developing, and there is a growing awareness that we need to know more about what is happening to the ocean."

A hotbed of ocean tech

In late May, Wahoo Bay hosted its inaugural field trip. Fourth graders, equipped with swim masks and pool noodles, splashed above bright-yellow porkfish and silver pinfish. For many, it was their first time snorkeling. Pados said he expects Wahoo Bay will be home to many firsts and innovations.

Through a partnership with Florida Atlantic University, professors, students, and others can bring new underwater technologies to the site — and more projects are in the works.

Pados told BI the team had installed water- and weather-monitoring systems and was working on AI-assisted fish-identification software that relies on a self-cleaning 360-degree underwater camera.

More futuristic tech is in the pipeline, including an underwater GPS and a school of AI robotic fish. "You can imagine that, as long as they can connect with each other, it will be like having a moving network of underwater sensors you can direct to wherever you want," Pados said. "If everything goes well, they'll get outside the bay and into the ocean."

Pados said that while Wahoo Bay is a testing ground, he and his team want to give visitors — whether they're elementary-school students on a field trip or curious Pompano Beach residents on a stroll — a firsthand look at the developing technology.

Wyre said he hopes that when young people see the tech that Pados and his colleagues are working on, they'll walk away with new ideas.

"We've got to support the scientists of tomorrow," Wyre said. "We hope that when students see what's going on in the water of Wahoo Bay, they'll be inspired."

• I rode the Hamptons Streamliner from the Hamptons to New York City for $195 one-way. 
• The seats were incredibly comfortable, and a bus attendant made sure I had everything I needed.
• I had my choice of drinks and snacks, and I got a complimentary travel kit full of luxury products.

As of May, New Yorkers have a new luxurious way to travel to the Hamptons for the weekend: The Hamptons Streamliner.

The upscale bus service is a new collaboration between elite helicopter service Blade and luxury bus company The Jet.

The Streamliner offers a high-end travel experience that's a bit longer (but far cheaper) than Blade's $1,050 one-way helicopter rides.

I'd typically hop on the Long Island Railroad or the Jitney Bus to get home from the Hamptons, but I had the chance to experience the sophisticated alternative over Memorial Day weekend.

I ended up being the only passenger on an off-hour Friday return trip, but the Streamliner honored my ticket without hesitation.

Here's what my ride was like and why my $195 one-way ticket was worth every penny.

The seats were extremely comfortable — I didn't feel a single bump on the road.

The first thing I noticed on the bus was the luxurious chairs. They looked similar to the comfortable seats on The Jet, which I rode for the first time last year.

The memory-foam, motion-canceling Hoverseats were undoubtedly the highlight of the journey. The holiday weekend stop-and-go traffic was transformed into a smooth, almost gliding experience.

The reclining seats also had so much legroom — I could fully extend my legs and still not reach the seat in front of me. Combined with the built-in footrest and provided cashmere blanket, it rivaled the comfort of a first-class airplane seat.

I sipped and snacked in style.

One of the joys of traveling on the Streamliner is the complimentary beverage service.

During my ride, I was offered three complimentary alcoholic drinks, including fun options like espresso martinis. There was also an assortment of teas, coffees, and other nonalcoholic drinks.

Even the sparkling water was luxurious since it was served in a stylish custom tumbler.

A selection of snacks (mainly bags of chips and cookies) was also available throughout my trip.

If I had been taking the trip from NYC to the Hamptons, I could've enjoyed PopUp Bagels (morning buses), Sweetgreen salads (afternoon/evening buses), and fresh chocolate-chip cookies (all buses).

I had attentive and personalized service from a bus concierge.

A dedicated bus attendant was at my service throughout the trip.

If I needed something or had a question about my seat, the attendant was quick to help and ensured my journey was as comfortable and enjoyable as possible.

Each bus has only 19 seats, so I imagine the attendant could still be attentive to each customer even if they're on a fully booked ride.

I didn't hesitate to use the bus bathrooms.

Even the bathrooms on the Hamptons Streamliner are designed with luxury in mind.

I found all the necessary amenities, including ample toilet paper, soap, and hand sanitizer. The backlit vanity mirror was perfect for my makeup touch-ups, and the full-length mirror in the spacious room made it easy to change into comfy clothes for the ride.

I loved being able to work and play on the go.

The high-speed internet was exceptional — I could even use my design programs seamlessly while coasting along Long Island's busy highways.

The connectivity allowed me to remain productive and work from the bus. But it's also great if you're just looking to stay entertained throughout the ride.

I think the amenity kit alone was worth the ticket price.

The journey came with a delightful surprise: an amenity kit filled with luxury products from the Streamliner's partners.

I received a claw clip along with wellness and beauty products from higher-end brands like Kiehl's, Replica, Saie, and Maison Margiela.

The 1-ounce bottle of Symbiome serum in the complimentary kit retails for $200 on its own. With the $40 perfume sample set, $22 lip oil, $40 box of vitamin-C packets, and more, I'd say I definitely got my money's worth — and then some.

It was a lovely gift that added to my overall enjoyment of the trip.

The Streamliner was an incredibly worthwhile investment for comfortable travel.

When it comes to Hamptons transportation options, the Streamliner makes the most sense for me — even with the high price tag.

Reliable internet access means I can work on board instead of wasting a day of PTO. Plus, the food, beverages, and amenity kit more than made up for the cost of the ticket.

Overall, the trip was worth the $195, and I'll be taking the Hamptons Streamliner for all future trips.

• A British couple headed to Spain ended up in Lithuania due to an airport error.
• The couple, with disabilities, booked special assistance and were put on the wrong plane.
• They told BBC News that the incident left them "distraught" and "scared."

A British couple who booked a flight to Spain ended up in a different European country after airport staff escorted them onto the wrong plane.

Andrew and Victoria Gore, both 47, told BBC News that they had intended to board a flight to Barcelona with the budget airline Ryanair as part of a package vacation worth £1,500, or around $1,915, on Saturday, May 25.

They had booked the trip with their family to celebrate Andrew's birthday.

But Andrew, who is an amputee, and Victoria, who is autistic, ended up on a different flight to Lithuania after booking special assistance at Bristol Airport in England.

Passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility are legally entitled to special assistance without an additional charge when flying from the UK, the US, and many other countries.

Bristol Airport's website states that special assistance can be booked by passengers who have mobility issues or hidden disabilities to help with check-in, getting through security, and boarding the plane. It is facilitated through the airport's service partner, ABM, the website states.

"We have been away lots of times and always had special assistance, so this was nothing new to us," Victoria told the BBC.

"The minibus took us to the Ryanair plane and they checked our boarding pass and let us on the plane," she said.

The couple said their boarding passes were checked by airport staff multiple times, and they were also reassured that their family was already on board.

They didn't realize there had been a mix-up until they arrived at Kaunas Airport in Lithuania.

"When I woke up, it didn't look like Spain out the window, I turned my phone on and it said 'Welcome to Lithuania'," Andrew said.

"I was distraught, and scared. I didn't stop crying," Victoria said.

The couple said the airline provided them with overnight accommodation and transportation to Riga, the capital of neighboring Latvia, where they could board a flight the following day.

However, their bags didn't arrive in Barcelona until two days later.

Andrew and Victoria's experience follows a trend of travel nightmares that are sometimes experienced by airline passengers with disabilities.

A Department of Transportation report recorded a 108% increase in complaints from flyers with disabilities, from 76 in May 2019 to 158 in May 2022.

In a statement sent to Business Insider, a Ryanair spokesperson said special assistance is "provided by Bristol Airport's special assistance provider — not Ryanair."

"As these passengers did not board their flight to Barcelona, their bags were removed from the aircraft at Bristol Airport in line with standard safety procedures," part of the statement said.

"When it was realised that these passengers had been misrouted in error by Bristol Airport's special assistance provider, and rerouted to Barcelona, their bags were rushed from Bristol Airport to Barcelona to them.

"We sincerely apologise to these passengers for any inconvenience caused as a result of Bristol Airport's special assistance provider's error and have assured that they will be fully compensated by Bristol Airport," the statement concluded.

A spokesperson for Bristol Airport told BI that the situation is being investigated, and the couple will be contacted to "direct their complaint to the correct business partner for resolution."

Representatives for ABM did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• Argentina is holding talks to send five fighter jets to Ukraine, Argentine media reported.
• Its Super Étendard jets are inoperable due to a Falkland War-era embargo, local outlet Infobae said.
• France could fit ejection seat cartridges as part of a weapons swap with Argentina, per the outlet.

An unusual legacy of the Falklands War could help Ukraine get a new set of fighter jets.

Argentine news outlet Infobae reported on Tuesday that the country is holding talks with NATO, the US, and France to provide Ukraine with five Super Étendard fighter jets.

The jets have been out of use and stored at an air-naval base since Argentina acquired them in 2019, due to a Falkland War-era embargo the UK imposed on Argentina, according to the outlet.

The Falklands War, a ten-week undeclared war between the UK and Argentina, took place in 1982 over control of the Falkland Islands.

Under existing UK sanctions, the South American country can't get cartridges needed to enable the pilot's seat to eject in case of emergency, the outlet reported, making the jets inoperable.

Argentina is now holding talks with France to swap the jets for other military gear, such as drones and helicopters, it said.

According to the outlet, the plan, approved by Argentina's President Javier Milei, would allow France to then fit the ejection seat cartridges and make them operable for use in Ukraine.

Argentina's foreign and defense ministries and the Élysée Palace in France didn't immediately respond to requests for comments.

According to the outlet, Argentina's foreign minister, Diana Elena Mondino, discussed the issue in a meeting held at NATO headquarters in Brussels with her French counterpart, Stéphane Séjourné, and during an unannounced visit with US national security advisor Jake Sullivan at the White House.

It didn't specify when these talks took place or what role the US and NATO are playing.

Earlier this month, President Emmanuel Macron said France would send Mirage 2000 fighter jets to Ukraine.

The jet — a multi-role fourth-generation fighter manufactured by French company Dassault Aviation — is a combat-proven aircraft like the F-16, having flown sorties in conflicts in the Middle East and the Balkans.

But its effectiveness is limited by its air-to-air missiles, Justin Bronk, an airpower and technology expert at the UK-based Royal United Services Institute think tank, told BI last week.

Meanwhile, an unnamed Ukrainian military source told Reuters in May that F-16s are expected to start arriving in Ukraine in either June or July.

They could play a vital role in helping Ukraine reclaim Crimea, Frederik Mertens, a strategic analyst at the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, told BI last month.

• When I moved in 2019 I was excited to meet other parents.
• Yet, the closest friend I've made is in an entirely different generation.
• We bonded over workouts and time on the lake.

About a month ago, I was sitting in a café with my friend. I'm not one to fret about aging, but I was having some feelings about turning 35 that week. The number felt very much like approaching middle age and leaving the youthful chaos of my 20s and early 30s behind.

"Don't worry. If I could go back to any age, it would be my 40s," Dorian told me.

I knew this wasn't just a shallow platitude. Dorian is 26 years older than me, so if she was telling me that the best was yet to come, I believed her. It immediately made me feel better. Not for the first time, I was so happy to have a friend of an entirely different generation to give me the perspective I just can't get from my peers.

We met at the gym

I met Dorian back in 2021 when I joined a CrossFit-style gym. The world was opening up after quarantine, and I knew virtually no one in the town I'd moved to in 2019. I joined the gym largely for a social outlet.

The mid-morning group classes drew a mixed crowd. I was in my early 30s and usually the youngest person there. There were a few parents in their 40s, with kids similar ages to mine (who were 4 and 8 at the time), and people in their 50s and 60s. Out of everyone, I really clicked with Dorian.

I can't explain why — she was one of the quieter people in the class and we were never partners for exercises. Maybe it was her "Gym and Tonic" t-shirt that made me laugh or her "Zookeeper" vanity license plate that reminded me to embrace the wilder moments of life. Perhaps because we couldn't bond over the frustrations of parenting, we were nudged toward more meaningful topics.

When it was just us training together, we became close

If she were closer to my age, I would have suggested Dorian and I get a drink or do a lake day with the kids, but I felt funny moving our gym friendship into the real world because of our age gap. Looking back, I think I was worried she would think it was odd. Really, my hesitation was just a good old fear of rejection.

Luckily, fate intervened. In the summer of 2022, our gym suddenly changed its model. Many of the customers felt like the rug had been pulled out from under us, so we started a co-op-style training program at a different local gym. During the switch, the mid-morning class size dwindled. Often, it was only Dorian and I working out together.

That's when our friendship blossomed. Since we were a duo rather than a group, we really got to know each other. When my daughter's pony died unexpectedly, Dorian hugged me while I cried and made burial arrangements. When she was overwhelmed with helping plan her daughter's upcoming summer wedding, I let her vent and reminded her it would all turn out perfectly.

It was years until I realized Dorian was the same age as my mom

Despite seeing each other at least five times a week, we never mentioned our age gap. I figured Dorian was about 20 years older than me, but at this point, it didn't matter at all — we were buddies. I asked her about plants, and she tried to help me overcome my brown thumb. We shared recipes. We gossiped and giggled over small-town dramas.

Then, in 2023, I was talking about planning a surprise 60th birthday celebration for my mom. Dorian responded that she hoped to slip quietly out of her house on her upcoming 60th. Turns out, my new best friend was almost exactly the age of my mom. We also have the same age difference between me and my oldest daughter.

Yet, that difference doesn't matter at all. If anything, it enhances our friendship. We're not brought together just by shared circumstances or obligations. We've formed a connection just because we like each other. When we get coffee, go for a walk, or spend a day on the dock at Dorian's lake house, we can enjoy spending time together just because.

On the day of my 35th birthday, Dorian handed me a card. It had the silhouette of a powerlifter squatting on the front, and she'd drawn a ponytail to make the card look a bit more like me. I had recently made a longtime squat goal, so this was perfect. Seeing how well Dorian knew me made me, I so appreciated her friendship, and that we didn't let our age gap get in the way.

• Francesca Bridgerton marries John Stirling, the Earl of Kilmartin, in "Bridgerton" season three.
• But the show makes a major creative choice at the end of the season that will deeply affect her story.
• It still remains to be seen how "Bridgerton" will handle it — but it will require some maneuvering.

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for "Brigerton" season three and the book "When He Was Wicked."

"Bridgerton" season three wrapped up Penelope and Colin's love story — but its finale set up a revelatory future for Francesca Bridgerton that's a major divergence from the books.

For those who have been praying for one of the Bridgerton siblings to get a queer storyline, season three delivered. Benedict Bridgerton experienced his first kiss with a man via a threesome with his paramour, Lady Tilley Arnold. But perhaps more shockingly, the show has staged a queer romance for Francesca, one that promises a deviation from her novel "When He Was Wicked."

By the end of season three, Francesca has finally married John Stirling, the Earl of Kilmartin. At the end of the season, at a ball hosted by Penelope Featherington's sisters, she finally gets to meet another member of John's family — his cousin, Michaela Stirling, played by Masali Baduza.

Book readers will note this as a significant change: In Quinn's novels, Michaela is actually Michael, John's cousin and a close friend of Francesca's after their marriage. He's also Francesca's eventual love interest after John dies suddenly two years into his marriage with Francesca.

"Bridgerton" doesn't really mince glances in the finale. Francesca is immediately visibly attracted to Michaela, tripping over her words as they meet and even briefly forgetting her own name. Even if you haven't read the books, the implication is clear — Francesca is going to fall in love with this woman.

"Bridgerton" has made some significant changes to Quinn's novels in the past — most notably, it asserted Queen Charlotte's Blackness, and takes place in a version of Regency-era London where people of color can hold titles. But three seasons in, it has yet to meaningfully change any of the siblings' love stories, making a divergence of this level unprecedented.

Showrunner Jess Brownell told Glamour that Francesca's story, and feeling of otherness, resonated with her as a queer woman and lent itself to this kind of change.

"I felt like there was fertile ground thematically in her book to nod toward telling a queer story," Brownell said.

It's notable that 'Bridgerton' has seemingly committed to a queer romance

"Bridgerton" has previously dabbled in queer relationships, but only between men. In season one, Benedict befriends an artist named Henry Granville, who's engaged in a secret relationship with another man. Granville is married and tells Benedict that he and his wife have an understanding that allows him to pursue the relationship — though only behind closed doors.

More prominently, in "Queen Charlotte," the king and queen's footmen, Reynolds and Brimsley, are also in a secret relationship that appears to have dissolved by the time they reach adulthood.

"Because of the world they inhabited, it was still a hangable offense to be gay, and it was just not possible," Hugh Sachs, who plays older Brimsley, told Vulture.

The rules between men and women differed at the time: Sodomy was a capitol offense in England until 1861, per the Encyclopedia Britannica, while lesbian sex acts didn't fall under any legislation. Obviously, "Bridgerton" is far from historical text, but it seems unlikely that an open, romantic relationship between two women would fly even in the show's alternate history. The show won't be able to write a romance between Francesca and Michaela without actively engaging with what it means to pursue a relationship with another woman in high-society Regency London.

That doesn't preclude their happiness though, according to Brownell.

"There are also some elements of her story that allow us to make sure we can tell a pretty happy ending for Francesca and Michaela," Brownell told Glamour. "It was important for me in telling a main queer story for us to be able to give them a happily ever after, as we have with every other couple."

Changing Michael to Michaela has other major plot implications

In "When He Was Wicked," Michael is forced to reluctantly assume John's title as Earl after Francesca miscarries, preventing it from passing on to one of John's sons. To make matters worse, he's also been in love with Francesca since they first met and does his best to conceal that through cultivating a rakish reputation. After John's death, he flees to India for four years, leaving Francesca to manage the Kilmartin estate.

"Bridgerton" has gone to great pains to remind us that women cannot inherit titles, especially in season three. Inquiries from the Crown leave the Featheringtons scrambling to produce a male heir (congrats to Penelope on winning that race), and the Mondrich family inherits the Kent estate after their young son miraculously turns out to be Lady Kent's closest male relative.

Michaela won't be able to inherit John's Earldom, nor presumably be able to sequester herself in India for years at a time, after his death. And as a presumably unmarried woman herself, she'll likely be facing pressure to marry, or living life as a spinster.

That doesn't mean that "Bridgerton" can't make adjustments to clear a thoughtful path for Francesca and Michaela. In the books, Francesca decides to pursue a second marriage after John's death not out of a need for companionship, but rather because of her desire for children. In fact, she's rather secure in her position as a widow, afforded the rare freedom to live an independent life as a woman. Should she not miscarry and give birth to John's son in the show, she would retain that freedom without question of which man would assume the title.

Brownell told Glamour that despite the change from Michael to Michaela, she still plans to "honor" the book on television.

"Obviously, some changes will have to be made to the storyline, but there are ways to honor a lot of the book," Brownell said.

At this point, we can't be certain of how "Bridgerton" will manage Michaela's gender swap, and her eventual romance. But for this gentle writer, it's heartening to see "Bridgerton" take a big swing like this — and set up a sweeping queer love story for one of its main characters.

• Patrick Synge fired one of his employees for secretly working a second remote job.
• He shared how he caught the employee and why he decided to fire them. 
• He says overemployment is "unethical" and hurts worker productivity. 

This as-told-to essay is based on an email conversation with Patrick Synge, the cofounder and CCO of the business-process-outsourcing and remote-recruitment company Metrickal. The business is headquartered in Barcelona and has 10 full time, fully remote employees, in addition to more than 200 contractors worldwide. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I'm the CCO of a business where every employee works fully remotely. In January, I caught one of them secretly working a second full-time remote job.

Here's how it all played out — and why I decided to fire them.

My business is headquartered in Barcelona, but one of my employees was based in Peru. He was hired in 2022, and in the beginning, he did his job very well. But then, I started to receive complaints from clients about missed assignments and deadlines. He had also become quite unresponsive. These complaints from clients started to become somewhat regular.

When this employee started refusing certain shifts he usually worked, I became suspicious. I had a feeling that he was doing something on the side, but because there was no proof, I didn't want to jump to any conclusions.

So instead, I had one-on-one meetings with him to discuss his job performance. When the same issues continued, I told him that if things didn't change, I'd have to let him go.

While he showed some signs of improvement, his overall performance didn't change much. This put a significant burden on the rest of the team, who had to cover his shifts and deal with missed deadlines.

How I ultimately caught him

In December, unrelated to this particular employee, my company rolled out the time-tracking software called DeskTime.

My long-term goal is to introduce a four-day workweek at my company, and I decided the first step in this process would be understanding how my employees spend their time and what could be optimized to boost productivity.

So our entire team of full-time employees and freelance contractors started using DeskTime. They each had to install the app on their computers, so everyone was well aware that this was being implemented.

After a few weeks, I looked through the tracking data of the struggling employee and noticed there was another company's name — a US business — that regularly appeared in the data. It became clear to me that this employee had worked on some other company's tasks.

I fired them the next day.

The DeskTime data showed that the employee was using software during the workday that was unrelated to his job tasks. It also included a screenshot feature that captured his computer screen — and showed him working on a platform where the other company's name was visible.

Based on the DeskTime data, I estimate that he had spent close to half of his work time working for this other company. It seems that he forgot about the tracking software since once it's downloaded, it doesn't require any manual switching on and off.

To be honest, all the other signs — missed deadlines, lack of flexibility, and unresponsiveness at certain times — had already made me quite certain that he was doing something else during working hours. I would have probably fired him anyway, but the tracked data was the missing hard proof.

I believe he was working for the other company full time because soon after I fired him, he updated his LinkedIn profile to reflect that he was working full time at the other company.

Why I think overemployment is unethical

I know some people may judge me, but I really don't support the trend of overemployment. I think it's unethical and just wrong.

First of all, I don't think it's fair to the rest of the team who have to cover up for someone else's low performance. This is why keeping this employee of mine in the company wasn't an option. He wasn't fair and respectful to the team, and that's something I can't tolerate — his actions were just selfish.

Secondly, I don't believe a person can productively do two jobs at the same time, even if you use AI or other tools. Their attention will be scattered, so the quality of their work will suffer. As an entrepreneur, I have to think about my business and clients first. I can't afford to lose clients because someone wants to make extra money.

I really don't mind people having side hustles to earn extra income. But this should be something they do on their own time and that doesn't affect the quality of their day job.

Are you working multiple remote jobs at the same time and willing to provide details about your pay and schedule? Has a coworker or employee of yours done so? If so, reach out to this reporter at jzinkula@businessinsider.com.

Correction: June 13, 2024 — An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Patrick Synge was the CEO of Metrickal. He is the CCO.

• Average air conditioning costs in the US could reach a 10-year high this summer due to extreme heat.
• Heat waves now happen six times a year on average, up from twice a year during the 1960s.
• Advocates are calling for more funding to help low-income residents with their energy bills. 

Many Americans are cranking up the air conditioning this summer to cope with scorching temperatures. And it's costing them.

The cost to keep homes cool between June and September could reach a 10-year high this summer, say two groups advocating for programs to help low-income residents pay their energy bills. The groups projected that the average cost across the country could be $719, a nearly 8% increase from the same period last year. In some regions that figure is higher; in Southern states like Texas, the average cost could hit $858.

"There's a price to ignoring climate change," said Mark Wolfe, the executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, which conducted the analysis with the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate. "The amount of electricity people use is going to go up, and it's a reaction to extreme heat."

The forecast comes as the Southwest swelters under a heat wave that's moving across the US this week. Federal data indicates heat waves happen six times a year on average, up from about twice a year during the 1960s. Meanwhile, climate scientists said May was the hottest month on record globally, continuing a 12-month streak where each one was warmer than the last.

The culprit is the climate crisis, and burning fossil fuels for electricity is the largest source of greenhouse-gas emissions trapping heat in the atmosphere. The US still relies on natural gas and coal to produce 60% of its power.

The forecast for summer cooling costs is based on federal data on regional electric prices, summer temperatures, and residential air conditioning, Wolfe said. His group's predictions are slightly higher than those by the US Energy Information Administration in June, which forecast average monthly bills of $173, or a 3% increase over last year.

"We are assuming a higher rate of temperature change, and recent heat waves are bearing this out," Wolfe said. "We also assumed a slightly higher rate for electricity."

Many factors affect electricity prices, including the costs of fuel, renewable energy, and power-grid maintenance. Wolfe said the cost projections would've been higher if natural-gas prices hadn't been falling since the global energy crisis in 2021. But he emphasized that burning more fossil fuels would worsen the already deadly and expensive heat waves causing Americans to use more energy.

Wolfe argued that federal, state, and local policymakers needed stronger policies and programs to protect vulnerable people during scorching summers. Cities with typically hot summers — including Phoenix; El Paso, Texas; and St. Louis — set up public cooling centers, but that isn't enough to help people stay safe, Wolfe said.

A 2020 survey from the US Energy Information Administration found that nearly 20% of families earning less than $20,000 had no air conditioning. Those who do may not turn it on in an effort to avoid higher bills, Wolfe said. Meanwhile, 33 states don't prevent utility companies from disconnecting residential power during extreme heat, putting children and older adults in particular at risk.

Wolfe argued that more states and cities should adopt shutoff protections and that Congress should boost funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which covers a portion of low-income families' utility bills. He estimated that about 1 million fewer households would get financial help this year because Congress approved less funding for the program than it did for fiscal 2023.

Homeowners could also install energy-efficient appliances, such as electric heat pumps, and take advantage of tax credits and rebates under the Inflation Reduction Act to make retrofits more affordable.

Some states are expected to this year start doling out rebates to homeowners with low and moderate incomes. The program is designed to offer point-of-sale discounts on heat pumps, electric stoves, insulation, new breaker boxes, and wiring — capped at $14,000 per household. Landlords who rent to people in low and moderate income brackets are also eligible. New York this month became the first state to open up applications.

"We need to change the way we think about helping families during the summer and how to upgrade their homes so they can stay cool while not increasing energy use and emissions," Wolfe said. "Now is the time to prepare for higher temperatures."

Are you struggling to pay your energy bill this summer or worried about power shutoffs? Contact cboudreau@businessinsider.com