Author: openjargon

• Netflix and Paramount are battling to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery.
• Social media users are posting memes about the high-stakes Hollywood bidding war.
• The merger could impact streaming prices, content output, and jobs in the entertainment industry.

The Hollywood bidding war between Paramount Skydance and Netflix has created a meme frenzy.

The two media giants are in an all-out battle for Warner Bros. Discovery after it accepted Netflix's offer to acquire its studio and streaming businesses for an equity value of $72 billion. David Ellison's Paramount launched a hostile $30-per-share bid for all of WBD on Monday.

Warner Bros. Discovery owns the Warner Bros. film studio, HBO, the HBO Max streaming service, and TV networks such as CNN, TNT, and TruTV. It confirmed receipt of Paramount's unsolicited offer on Monday.

Both entities have made their cases on why they'd be the best owner for WBD. Although internet comedians don't have a say in where the deals land, it hasn't stopped them from weighing in with viral jokes about the dueling companies and their quest to acquire WBD.

Some social media users are poking fun at the back-and-forth with memes about how far each company is willing to go to gain WBD's favor. One post compared the battle for the best offer to a scene from the HBO business drama "Succession," a title Netflix would own if the deal goes through.

The Instagram meme account Litquidity used parody images that appeared to be AI-created of two business leaders speaking at the DealBook Summit to mock how each company is trying to prove its offer is better.

Some people seem to be using humor to cope with the idea of more consolidation in Hollywood. They are pushing back on both offers with memes about stopping the looming acquisition completely.

"I'm putting together a team to fight the Netflix Warner Bros merger," one X user captioned a compilation video of various actors and famous filmmakers.

Others speculated on what the movie-watching experience could be like under Warner Bros. Discovery's new ownership. One TikTok video showed a man sitting down to watch a movie, only for the intros to include a confusing mix of studios, backers such as Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, and even a DJ, being played before the movie began.

In the midst of all the jokes, Netflix argues that its offer would be better for consumers and creators, while Ellison says Paramount is more likely to win regulatory approval and offers Hollywood more certainty.

What all of this means in the long run is unclear so far. It could lead to job cuts in the entertainment industry as the giants consolidate their power. The trends of streaming services getting pricier and fewer movies hitting theaters could also continue, as companies release less content, Business Insider previously reported.

Either way — as with many serious big business deals — consumers and industry insiders are finding ways to laugh through it.

• Data from Strava and AllTrails found that hiking clubs became more popular in 2025.
• Hiking clubs grew in 2025, and National Parks attendance broke a record in 2024.
• Hiking and walking groups can feel more low-key and accessible than run clubs.

The run clubs that took off in the past few years were outpaced by hiking.

That's according to new data from Strava, a fitness tracking app, and AllTrails, a hiking navigation app.

Strava's end-of-year report, analyzing data from over 30,000 users, found that hiking clubs grew sixfold in 2025 — nearly double the pace of run clubs. In 2025, AllTrails saw a 20% increase in users (i.e., people who created an account on the app) to 90 million.

Online, you can find hiking clubs for seemingly every preference, whether you're a creative in LA looking for a morning workout, a woman who doesn't want to hike alone in North Carolina, or a "hot girl" on the hunt for new travel companions.

While run clubs are still popular, hiking and walking have an advantage: simplicity. They offer similar health benefits and social perks — without requiring the same stamina or potentially pricey gear.

A pandemic trend that keeps peaking

COVID lockdowns famously drew people to the outdoors, whether they joined run clubs or sought out nearby hikes.

And then there were National Parks, which experienced a surge of visitors since 2020 during the pandemic — and don't seem to be losing their allure. According to the National Parks visitation data, 2024 broke the record for the highest number of visitors of all time at over 331 million, a 28% increase since 2020.

Five years after the pandemic, National Parks continue to be popular destinations. "When you start looking at that number as feet on the trail, bodies in the visitor's center, cars on the road, you see that the parks have exploded," Jason Frye, a hiking writer who most recently published a National Parks guidebook, told Business Insider. Strava reported that hiking was the second most popular reason for traveling, behind winter sports.

Carly Smith, chief marketing officer for AllTrails, said its data shows many hikers search for locations over 200 miles from their home. "So we know that people are using us for planning travel and then for navigating and exploring National Parks and other destinations," she said.

Smith believes part of the reason hiking and National Parks continue to be hot is that, for many, life still hasn't changed all that much since the peak-remote work pandemic years. "There are more people working remotely than there were in the past," she said. "Hiking clubs in particular can give people a good sense of community in ways that maybe they aren't finding in other parts of their life."

A more approachable workout

Running isn't the cardio workout for everyone. It's also not the only — or best — way to burn fat.

While sprinting at a very fast pace (zone 4 or zone 5) is great for your heart health, it consumes more carbs than fat compared to a brisk walk or light jog.

Hiking long distances with a heavy backpack can help hit two goals: shedding fat while building muscle.

That's partly why rucking, or walking with weights, became a buzzy fitness trend last year. We saw a boom in networking events where people chat shop while breaking a sweat.

Price-wise, hiking, rucking, and walking also more financially accessible than joining a luxury gym. Weighted vests, the walking accessories du jour, cost about $30-$40 on Amazon — though a backpack from GoRuck, one of the biggest players in this space, starts at $115.

Plus, in many cases, hiking and walking can be interchangeable: not all hikes have to be strenuous to count, making them less physically and financially daunting.

Frye, who lives in Wilmington, North Carolina, near Great Smoky Mountains National Park, said there are many hiking trails nearby that are "really walks in the woods more than true hikes."

"You can hop out of the car and do it in your flip flops from most of them," he said — no high-tech gear needed.

Yearning for low-stakes socializing

According to Strava's report, walking was the second-most tracked activity in 2025, after running. Along with hiking, both activities can feel like a more low-stakes group activity than a seven-mile run.

Jonathan Jacobs, who started a men's walking group in LA this year, previously told Business Insider that the accessibility of walking made newcomers more likely to show up.

"Men who come to the walks repeatedly tell me that the low barrier to entry — no need to sign up or pay a fee to join — makes it easier for them to commit," he said.

City dwellers who partook in walking Manhattan from "tip to tip" — another popular TikTok trend of the year — also cited it as a memorable (but still low-key) experience with their friends.

Frye believes the hiking hype is all part of the same phenomenon behind the renewed interest in dumb phones and old-school activities like pickling and crocheting.

"There seems to be this cultural shift, away from the digital and more toward the analog," he said. "We're looking at these ways to return to easier things, and it doesn't get much easier than hiking."

• A Ukrainian security source said naval drones attacked and damaged an oil tanker on Wednesday.
• The tanker was part of Russia's "shadow fleet," which is used to move oil despite sanctions.
• Ukraine has attacked three of these ships in a matter of days as it targets Russia's energy sector.

Ukrainian forces used naval drones packed with explosives to attack an oil tanker identified as part of Russia's "shadow fleet" in the Black Sea on Wednesday, a security source told Business Insider.

The naval drone strike on the tanker, Dashan, marks the third such attack in less than two weeks as Ukraine ramps up its long-range strike campaign against Russia's energy sector, increasingly gunning for ships at sea in addition to land-based oil facilities.

Sea Baby naval drones hit the tanker and caused "critical damage" to the vessel, with early indications indicating that the strike completely disabled the vessel, the source in the Security Service of Ukraine, the country's main internal security agency, revealed on Wednesday.

The SBU source, only authorized to speak anonymously to discuss sensitive military developments, said the Dashan was flying the Comoros flag and moving through Ukraine's exclusive economic zone in the direction of Novorossiysk, a Russian port city and major oil terminal.

Publicly available ship-tracking data last showed the Dashan in the middle of the Black Sea.

The tanker was sailing at maximum speed with its transponder turned off, the security source said. They added that the attack was carried out in cooperation with the Ukrainian navy and shared footage captured by the Sea Baby drones showing multiple hits on the ship.

Several Western countries and the European Union have sanctioned the $30 million tanker, which has been used for Russian oil exports and is known to sail with its transponder switched off, Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said.

Business Insider could not independently verify the extent of the damage. Russia's defense ministry and its embassy in the US did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The attack on Wednesday appears to mark the third time in the last two weeks that Ukraine has disabled a tanker belonging to the "shadow fleet." In late November, the SBU used naval drones to strike and damage two vessels before they loaded at Novorossiysk.

The "shadow fleet" is a collection of hundreds of vessels that Moscow uses to transport oil and circumvent sanctions on its energy exports, a major source of revenue. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly urged Kyiv's international partners to do more to prevent the ships from operating.

"The SBU continues to take active measures to reduce the receipt of petrodollars to the budget of the Russian Federation," the security source said on Wednesday, according to a translation of their remarks shared with Business Insider.

Ukraine has been stepping up its attacks against the Russian energy sector, the revenue from which fuels its war efforts, in recent months. Kyiv has used long-range drones to strike oil refineries and other facilities and infrastructure across the country.

The three tanker attacks appear to reflect a new shift for Ukraine — one that now increasingly attacks ships at sea rather than just land targets.

• Elon Musk has amassed a $491 billion fortune through his work at Tesla, SpaceX, and more.
• The 54-year-old is also the father of at least 14 children and finds time to post on X almost daily.
• Here's how the Tesla CEO structures his days.

Elon Musk is a busy man.

He's the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, the social media platform, X — and he's also a father of at least 14 children.

According to Forbes, he's amassed a fortune worth $491 billion, making him the world's richest person. Musk has said he didn't get there by working a typical 40-hour week, and is instead known to have a strenuous schedule that he said has demanded 120-hour workweeks in the past.

Still, the South African mogul shares similarities with the average person in his typical daily routine. Like many of us, Musk enjoys a sweet treat in the morning and spends time scrolling social media.

Here's how his days usually go, according to interviews and posts by Musk himself over the years.

Musk wakes up around 9 a.m. and says he starts every morning with steak and eggs

Musk told The Wall Street Journal in 2023 that he usually goes to bed around 3 a.m. and sleeps for six hours. So, he's typically waking up around 9 a.m. each day.

He might've been trolling when he wrote a response to a doctor that same year on X saying he eats "a donut every morning," but a quick search of Musk's posts reveals he's quite a fan of the pastry.

Speaking on "The Katie Miller Podcast" in December 2025, he gave an updated glimpse into his morning routine, saying his typical breakfast is "steak and eggs and coffee."

His mornings usually start with his phone in his hand

Musk said in 2022 that he was trying to break the cycle of checking his phone as soon as he woke up. While on the Full Send Podcast, Musk described it as "a terrible habit" he hoped to escape.

But, as of 2023, he still wakes up and immediately looks at his phone for emergencies, the Journal reported.

If his posts on X are any indication, the habit persists. He has been active on the platform since before he acquired it in a $44 billion deal in 2022, often posting at odd hours and in the middle of the night.

It's unclear if Musk slots in time to post and respond to others each day, but it certainly looks like he rarely takes a day off from the app.

"Some days I wake up and look at Twitter to see if it's still working," Musk told Walter Isaacson in the "Elon Musk" biography.

Showering is an important part of his daily routine

Musk previously credited showering with having the biggest positive effect on his daily life.

During an AMA session on Reddit in 2015, a user asked which of his daily habits impacted his life the most.

"Showering," Musk responded.

He decides which Tesla to commute to the office in

As the CEO of one of the leading EV makers in the US, it's no surprise that Musk has more than one option for his daily commute.

When an X user posted a meme about deciding between driving a Cybertruck without autopilot or a Tesla Model S with self-driving technology, Musk responded that it's a choice he faces "every day."

The Cybertruck has been in the backdrop of many celebrity paparazzi shots and Instagram posts since its official launch in November.

It's unclear if Musk is keeping up with the daily lifting routine he spoke about in 2023

Like many, Musk appears to have had ups and downs in his relationship with physical exercise over the years. In 2021, he told Joe Rogan that he'd avoid it altogether if he could.

"I almost never work out, except for picking up my kids & throwing them in the air," he said on X in June 2023.

But less than two months later, he said he was "lifting hard almost every day." Around the same time, talk of Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg going head-to-head in a fight swirled online.

He skips lunch but is a foodie, and often dines out for dinner

Musk told Miller during his December 2025 podcast appearance that he often skips lunch or eats something "small" for his midday meal.

Dinner, though, can be "anywhere," he told the podcast host, who is married to White House advisor Stephen Miller.

"I like the wide range of cuisine," Musk said, with "American" food like cheeseburgers and pizza being his favorites.

He added, "If I had to say, like, there's only one thing you can ever have for the rest of time, which admittedly would be a bit monotonous, but it would probably be a cheeseburger, because cheeseburgers are amazing. It's a genius invention."

No wonder his Tesla Diner in Hollywood features burgers prominently on the menu.

Sometimes, his work days can last all night

Musk has admitted on several occasions that running more than one company isn't easy. He splits time between his companies depending on the "crisis of the moment," the 54-year-old said in 2021.

One X user pointed out in January 2023 that Musk had testified in a lawsuit in the morning, attended an event at a Nevada Tesla factory in the evening, and worked with Tesla on AI at night — all in one day.

Musk responded that he'd also spent time at "Twitter HQ past midnight."

And then was at Twitter HQ past midnight. Very long day.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 26, 2023

"I go to sleep, I wake up, I work, go to sleep, wake up, work—do that seven days a week," Musk told the Journal in 2023. "I'll have to do that for a while — no choice — but I think once Twitter is set on the right path, I think it is a much easier thing to manage than SpaceX or Tesla."

On the Tesla earnings call in April 2024, Musk said: "Tesla constitutes the majority of my work time, and I work pretty much every day of the week. It's rare for me to take a Sunday afternoon off."

Musk goes to bed around 3 a.m. and gets about 6 hours of sleep every night

Although he's not getting eight hours a night, Musk has upped his sleeping schedule from being nearly nonexistent in the past.

In May 2023, Musk told CNBC that he's no longer pulling all-nighters. Instead, he said he tries to get at least six hours of sleep.

According to Isaacson's biography of Musk, the billionaire has spent many nights awake and pondering the issues his companies face. His former partner Claire Boucher — known by her stage name Grimes — also told Isaacson that Musk once stayed up all night playing the "Elden Ring" video game when it first came out.

He has a history of sleeping on the floors of his offices and the Tesla factory.

After purchasing Twitter in 2022, Musk all but moved into its San Francisco headquarters. He said there's a couch in the library that he would crash on from time to time.

• The Federal Reserve cut rates for the third time this year at its final 2025 meeting.
• A rate cut could lower borrowing costs for mortgages and credit cards, bringing relief to consumers.
• The central bank penciled in one cut for 2026.

The Federal Reserve made its final decision of 2025, cutting interest rates for the third meeting in a row — and it set the tone for where interest rates will go in the new year.

The call will have ripple effects across consumer prices, the job market, and Corporate America through 2026 and beyond. Here's how the decision will affect you.

Thirty-year fixed mortgages, two-year auto loans, and credit card rates tend to fluctuate alongside the federal funds rate. And, while inflation remains above the Fed's 2% goal, mortgage rates have largely cooled in recent months in anticipation of rate reductions.

A quarter-point cut could mean lower returns on investment for savers using high-yield savings accounts or certificates of deposit, though it would become cheaper to pay off credit cards. Lower rates would also make home equity lines and small business loans more accessible to Americans.

Elizabeth Renter, senior economist at NerdWallet, told Business Insider the cut could be a positive sign for people applying to roles in the sluggish labor market: If job seekers "hear that the Fed is responding to an unfavorable labor market, that's going to feel good to them; they may feel like relief is on the horizon," she said.

The labor market has shown signs of weakness in recent months. Job seekers of all ages have told Business Insider that they've been through grueling application cycles without an offer, while recruiters are drowning in resumés. Over the summer, the number of Americans looking for work eclipsed the number of available jobs and labor force participation has been trending downward. The unemployment rate, however, is still relatively low, hovering a little above 4% for most of this year.

Sustained rate cuts would bolster the job market by making it easier for businesses to borrow and invest money. This would free up more funds for companies to hire and pay employees, which could lead to higher consumer spending — all factors needed for a healthy economy.

And lower interest rates are historically good news for the stock market. When it's cheaper to borrow money and approve loans, both companies and individuals are more likely to invest. With more funds in the market, Wall Street could see a boost in 2026.

Madison Hoff contributed reporting.

• The Navy's investing almost half a billion dollars on a new, Palatir-powered AI system for shipbuilding.
• Ship OS sped up the workflow for submarine jobs.
• This capability is starting with private and public yards and will steadily expand into other shipbuilding programs.

The Navy is pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into an artificial intelligence system that it says has sped up key shipbuilding processes.

In one case, the AI cut painstaking processes of submarine schedule planning — mapping out how the many pieces of construction fit together and making sure people, parts, and yard space are available at the right time — from many hours to only minutes.

The Navy is launching the new Shipbuilding Operating System, or Ship OS, as it tries to break out of decades-old shipbuilding problems rooted in outdated technologies and work practices. The service announced a $448 million investment Thursday, saying it will accelerate the adoption of AI and autonomy across the industrial base.

The Ship OS technology is powered by Palantir's Foundry and Artificial Intelligence Platform and began in pilot programs at submarine shipyards.

At General Dynamics Electric Boat, a long-time submarine yard located in Connecticut, submarine schedule planning saw a dramatic reduction from 160 manual hours down to under 10 minutes. And at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine, material review times for submarines went from taking weeks to under an hour.

The $448 million investment will go toward the submarine industrial base and then expand. It'll be deployed across two major shipbuilders, three public yards, and 100 suppliers, Palantir said in a press release.

"This investment provides the resources our shipbuilders, shipyards, and suppliers need to modernize their operations and succeed in meeting our nation's defense requirements," said Navy Secretary John Phelan in a statement.

"By enabling industry to adopt AI and autonomy tools at scale, we're helping the shipbuilding industry improve schedules, increase capacity, and reduce costs," he added, explaining "this is about doing business smarter and building the industrial capability our Navy and nation require."

Maritime Industrial Base Program, a Navy initiative to revitalize US shipbuilding and repair capabilities, and Naval Sea Systems Command are overseeing the implementation of Ship OS. Both are gathering data from multiple sources to identify where the hiccups are in submarine shipbuilding, how the processes, including engineering, can be sped up, and what specific risks can be mitigated through technology.

Problems in the Navy’s submarine industrial base — from shipbuilders to the repair yards — have been building for decades. Submarines are central to any Pacific fight and a top Pentagon priority, yet major programs like the upgraded Virginia-class submarines and new Columbia-class ballistic missile subs have repeatedly run into delays and cost overruns.

The Government Accountability Office, a government watchdog agency, has documented long-standing problems in the Navy's plans for purchasing and constructing submarines, as well as shipyard deficiencies such as worker inexperience, aging facilities and equipment, and inadequate construction space.

The introduction of the new Ship OS capability aims to address some of these problems facing US submarine shipbuilding. And once the technology has been used for the submarine programs, the Navy said, it'll apply lessons and adapt them to surface ship programs.

• While many people downsize as they age, 75-year-old New Yorker Laurence Gerowitz did the opposite.
• In 2024, he and his wife swapped their small apartment for a larger condo on the Upper East Side.
• Now they have more living space and fun for their grandkids, who love the building's many playrooms.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with 75-year-old Laurence Gerowitz, a real estate litigator, about his move into a larger condo in New York City. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

I lived on the Upper East Side for most of my adult life: about 48 years, starting in the late 1970s. My wife and I bought into a co-op on 85th Street in 1999 for $265,000 and lived on the third floor of the five-story walk-up.

Our apartment was 1,200 square feet and had a very nice layout, as well as a working fireplace. The building had no amenities whatsoever, but we were still very happy to be there. We lived there for 25 years and essentially raised our son in that apartment.

In 2008, he moved to Villanova, Pennsylvania — near Philadelphia — for college, and over the years it became clear he was never moving back to New York. He's now married and they live there with their two young children.

New York suits me just fine, but not so much for my son — between the impossible parking and our three-story walk-up, he wasn't interested.

I understand why. When he used to visit, I'd have to go downstairs to help him haul everything up. We did have two bedrooms, which is a luxury in Manhattan, but there still wasn't a comfortable place for him and his family to sleep, and I'd end up on a blow-up mattress.

It was just untenable; they didn't enjoy visiting.

It was time for something new

About two years ago, my wife noticed that a new complex was being built around the corner from us called the Harper. She's a painter and interior decorator, so she wanted to take a look.

We toured a two-bedroom apartment, which we thought was very nice, but it was also small. Still, we thought the building's amenities were fantastic. They have a gym, music room, game room, playroom, and creative studio — which we thought would be great for our grandkids.

We sat with the idea for a while. A couple of months later, we went back to see a larger unit — a model of about 1,853 square feet with an 80-square-foot terrace and three bedrooms, one of which could be used as an office.

After that tour, it didn't take us long to decide to move to the Harper. In the end, it took a couple of months to stage our old co-op, and then a few more months to sell.

We have more space and activities for the kids here

The best things I've ever done in my life are being a good father and grandfather. My son texts or calls me at least once a day, and that's my proudest accomplishment — even more than being admitted to the bar at 48 after going to night school for four years while supporting a family.

A big reason we decided to upsize and buy the condo was that my wife and I love being around my son and his family, and we really wanted to create a place where the kids would want to come visit.

We moved into the Harper in March 2024. It's just around the corner from our old place. It wasn't a far move, but we've spent decades living on the Upper East Side for a reason — we love the neighborhood.

Our new condo has a really well-thought-out layout. We have three bedrooms, including a home office, and two-and-a-half bathrooms. When you walk in, you can turn left into one wing, down that hall are the primary closet, the primary bedroom and bathroom, and the terrace.

If you go to the right instead, a quick left takes you into the kitchen and great room. Further to the right are the guest bedroom and bathroom, a third bedroom that I use as my office, and a small laundry area.

Besides having a larger apartment and living in a building that actually has an elevator, we're especially happy about the amenities. It's such a contrast to our old place, where the only extra space was the boiler room.

Our grandkids especially love the building's music room. They can bang on the drums, sing into the microphone, and strum a guitar. There's also a playroom with a ball pit.

In the beginning, whenever the grandkids would come over, they would go down to the ball pit three times a day. In the mornings, I'd have to plead with them to finish their breakfast before heading down to play.

It's obvious they love visiting our new home. The grandkids talk about it all the time, and it's cute to see them arrive, dragging their little suitcases, already excited to play.

Our family enjoys visiting, it's not an obligation

I have very fond memories of our old place — it was the first home I ever bought. But over time, living there became stressful.

I was on the board, constantly worrying about the building — especially whether the boiler would work. It was an older property with no central air, just radiators, so there were always issues with the heat.

Here at the Harper, it's a completely different experience. Everything works, we have three separate HVAC zones that you can set to the exact degree, and the staff is great. My biggest dilemma now is whether to go to my gym on 91st Street or just head downstairs.

I think upsizing later in life is a good thing if you're in a position where it makes sense for you.

If it's within your means to make that choice, do it. You're not just gaining more physical space; you're also giving yourself and your family more options.

When my son and his family visit, they have their own rooms and are well taken care of. I think they genuinely enjoy coming now; it no longer feels like an obligation.