• Stevan Ditter and Alara Taneri are one of the most consistent couples in "Perfect Match" season two.
• They've quickly become a fan favorite due to their loyalty to each other.
• Here's what we know about their relationship on the show and whether they are still together.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for the first nine episodes of "Perfect Match" season two.

Stevan Ditter and Alara Taneri may be the strongest couple in "Perfect Match" season two after the latest episodes.

But it's unclear whether they're still together.

The pair originally appeared in two separate Netflix series, "Too Hot To Handle" and "Dated & Related."

"Perfect Match" series draws together contestants from across Netflix's reality show slate and gives cast members a second chance at love (or boosting their fame). Stevan and Alara seemed to be more focused on the love part.

The couple meet for the first time when they are paired on a date in episode three. At the time, Stevan was matched with another contestant, Xanthi Perdikomatis, but he immediately gels with Alara and chooses to match with her in the next coupling session.

Since then, the pair have been completely focused on each other, even when sent on dates with other contestants.

They may have a chance to become the winning couple in the season two finale, which airs on Friday on Netflix. But, there is a chance they did not make it in the outside world. Here's why.

Stevan doesn't follow Alara on Instagram.

The biggest clue that Stevan and Alara are no longer seeing each other is who they're following on Instagram.

Alara follows Stevan, but Stevan does not follow her back even though he does follow some of his other "Perfect Match" costars.

"Perfect Match" contestant Harry Jowsey said on the latest episode of his podcast released on June 11, "Boyfriend Material with Harry Jowsey," that Stevan is currently dating someone.

Harry mentioned the girlfriend while apologizing for lying that Stevan had sex with Holly Scarfone while filming "Perfect Match" season two.

"He's also happily in a relationship, so I'm deeply sorry to his girlfriend for saying that," Harry said.

Harry didn't specify whether the girlfriend was Alara, which means they could have split.

Alara lives with another "Perfect Match" contestant in LA.

Initially, Stevan and Alara lived far from one another: she in London and he in Los Angeles.

On June 2, "Perfect Match" season two star Micah Lussier said in a TikTok video that she had moved to LA and was living temporarily with Alara.

It's unclear when Alara moved to LA or into the apartment with Micah.

But it is likely that Alara moved to LA after the show was filmed, since she said she lived in London on the show. This could mean that she moved to LA to get closer to Stevan and the pair are still dating.

Fans will likely find out more on Friday, when "Perfect Match" season two finale airs on Netflix.

• Before getting pregnant I wanted more than one child. 
• But pregnancy and postpartum were very hard, so we decided to have an only child. 
• She was diagnosed with autism and I'm glad I have more time and resources for her. 

As the parent of an only child, I often field questions like, "Does she have any siblings?" or "Are you going to have any more?"

While most of the time no one says anything blatantly offensive, it feels like there is underlying judgment when I am questioned about my daughter's status as an only child.

I considered having more kids before I got pregnant

At one point, I considered having more than one child. It felt like something you were supposed to do. I had internalized stereotypes about only children being lonely and spoiled brats. I grew up with siblings, and so did my husband, although his sister was born when he was 9. They didn't have quite the same playmate relationship I did with my close-in-age siblings.

Then I got pregnant. And I was miserable. I started to question whether my body and mind could really keep up with multiple children if my chronic physical and mental health conditions seemed to be making it difficult to even grow one.

Pregnancy seemed to make me into even more of a physical mess, as well as a moody rage machine. And my daughter's newborn days were overshadowed by feeding struggles, reflux, and postpartum depression and anxiety. Unsurprisingly, my husband was fully on board with never, ever having to go through it all again. I couldn't wrap my head around trying to provide care for another small human when it seemed like I was barely managing it with one.

Being a mother is still incredibly challenging for me

As an only child my daughter does get more by default. I've been able to read aloud hundreds of books to her, help her with science experiments, and push her for what seems like hours on the swing without having to juggle another child's needs. We can visit her aunt and uncle in Colorado every other summer and take other trips because we are able to buy three plane tickets instead of four or five. We are able to invest in educational experiences for her and save money for college, which we definitely would not be able to do in the same way or at all with multiple children.

I don't believe more one-on-one time or more finances dedicated to her have made her spoiled, though. She doesn't get lots of presents for Christmas or her birthday. And I believe that children thrive with boundaries, so she's definitely not getting whatever she wants all the time, either. There are plenty of times that she hears no, whether it is to an activity, a toy, or to my husband or me not being able to do something.

My daughter was also recently diagnosed with autism, and I am glad that we have the resources to get her the therapies and interventions she needs and to be able to send her to a school that is a good fit for her. I don't mean just financial resources but all the time and energy that is involved in filling out paperwork, finding providers, and taking her to appointments. And then implementing behavioral techniques at home and finding and purchasing tools and activities that aren't covered by insurance.

My daughter's developmental delays and autism mean she needs more of my physical and emotional reserves than a neurotypical child. I'm grateful I'm able to spend focused time with her at home and provide her with the therapies she needs because it wouldn't be possible with multiple children.

Although everyone might not see it this way, my daughter being an only child has really turned out to be a blessing for both me and her.

• People on social media are debating "pay your plate" wedding etiquette, calling it tacky.
• Some couples, though, expect their guests to cough up for expensive gifts.
• The high cost of living has led some couples to choose practical investments over lavish weddings.

Weddings are expensive, but guests are saying it's not up to them to help couples make ends meet with pricey gifts.

The idea of "pay your plate" is trending on social media, with some saying it's rude not to try to make up the price of your attendance to a wedding through gifts.

One TikToker, who goes by the name EmpathEyes, posted a video in April which is still causing debate among viewers.

She said that even paying for your meal at a wedding isn't enough,

"Are you guys crazy?" she said. "You don't go to a wedding to just pay for your plate. You go to the wedding to pay for you, you cover your plate, and give them something."

EmpathEyes said she thought that if guests couldn't afford to pay that much they "probably should sit it out."

"I just don't think $50 or $100 is cutting it anymore," she said.

Guests aren't convinced, though.

In response, a fellow TikToker, Kat Thomas, said this opinion was "entitled" and "tacky."

Thomas said she had never once thought that she should have to cover the cost of her own plate at any wedding she had attended.

"I've never even thought about how much a plate of food costs at a wedding because that's not what it's about," she said. "It's about celebrating the bride and the groom, and watching them get married and celebrating a milestone with your friends or family, whoever invited you."

"Have we reached a point in society where capitalism is just rotting people's brains to where they're turning every single thing that they do in their lives into a GoFundMe campaign?" Thomas added.

TikToker Livvy Farmer also weighed in on the debate, saying anyone with this opinion should be mad at themselves for "planning a wedding that is completely out of your budget."

"Because it sounds like you can't afford to have the wedding that you're planning," she said.

Farmer added that couples sometimes act like their weddings are "the Met Gala" and "people are waiting on the edge of their seats" for the event.

"If you're expecting your wedding guests to shovel out 300 plus dollars to attend your wedding, you are out of your fucking mind," Farmer said. "It's not your wedding guests' responsibility to fund your ridiculously expensive wedding."

She added she didn't want to be made to feel like she was "the broke one" for not bringing an expensive enough gift.

The debate continued in the comments. While some said they were brought up to always think of how much a plate would cost and buy a gift accordingly, others said guests should only be expected to gift what they can afford.

One person wrote, "Am I a guest or a customer?" Another said, "An invite is not an invoice."

"I told everyone who traveled to my wedding that their presence was the wedding gift!" one commenter wrote. "Traveling ain't cheap."

Others said they believed guests showing up is a present in itself.

"If they decide to give you a present, that is just a bonus," one person said. "Expecting a gift is so tacky."

Wedding etiquette is a big topic of discussion, down to what you should wear as a guest, how guests should be invited, how much you should fork out on the celebration as a couple, and how much you should actually spend on a gift for the bride and groom.

With rising costs of living, mounting debts, and expensive rental and mortgage payments plaguing Gen Zers and millennials, some couples are deciding a lavish ceremony and party aren't worth the money.

For example, a father recently told Business Insider he gave his daughter $20,000 to spend on a wedding and was happy when she used the money for a down payment on a house instead.

According to a survey by Newsweek last year, while 21% of millennials aged 25 to 35 and 25% of millennials aged 35 to 44 thought a budget of $50,000 or more was appropriate for a wedding, 25% of Gen Z respondents said $10,000 – $20,000 was more reasonable.

• Jeff Bezos and Bernard Arnault have a combined net worth of around $404 billion.
• The two business titans are among the world's richest people, Bloomberg's Billionaires Index shows.
• Despite both amassing vast fortunes, the ways they built their wealth differed significantly.

Jeff Bezos and Bernard Arnault are two of the world's richest people, with a combined net worth of around $404 billion.

As of Monday, Amazon founder Bezos is ranked first on Bloomberg's Billionaires Index, with a net worth of $206 billion. Arnault, the owner of the luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, is ranked third, with a net worth of $198 billion.

Arnault is the CEO and chair of the French luxury conglomerate, with companies spanning fashion, jewelry, watches, perfume, and alcohol, including brands Tiffany & Co and Dom Pérignon.

Although both billionaires have built their own empires, how the pair acquired wealth is vastly different.

This is how they made their fortunes:

Jeff Bezos’ first job was at a McDonald’s.

The billionaire said in a 2001 interview with Fast Company that his job at a McDonald's restaurant in Miami was "really hard."

"They wouldn't let me anywhere near the customers. This was my acned-teenager stage. They were like, 'Hmm, why don't you work in the back?'" Bezos said.

Bezos majored in computer science at Princeton University.

A book called "The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon" said he joined a telecommunications startup called Fitel after graduating from Princeton. He then quit Fitel and went to work for Bankers Trust as a product manager, where he focused on selling software pension-fund clients.

After two years at Bankers Trust, he joined the hedge fund D. E. Shaw, and became a senior vice president after only four years.

He left his hedge fund job in 1994 to start what would become Amazon.

Bezos decided books were the best products to start selling online. He then started Amazon.com in a garage in Seattle.

Amazon sold books to people in all 50 US states and more than 45 countries in the first month of its launch.

Amazon went public in 1997.

In March 1997, Amazon had about 80,000 average daily visits, TechCrunch reported. It had only 256 employees that year.

In the years that followed, Amazon extended its product range beyond books to include electronics, tools, toys, CDs, and more.

Bezos invested $250,000 in Google in 1998, before its IPO in 2004.
Time Magazine then named Bezos as its Person of the Year in 1999 after Amazon rapidly grew.

Bezos had the same annual base salary of $81,840 for decades while he was CEO, but his annual total compensation for many years exceeded $1 million, owing to costs related to security and business travel.

Bezos founded space tourism company Blue Origin in 2000.

He also bought The Washington Post for $250 million in 2013.

He became the world's richest person for the first time in 2017, briefly overtaking Microsoft's Bill Gates. That same year, he said he'd sell $1 billion worth of Amazon stock annually to fund Blue Origin, per Reuters.

Bezos announced he was stepping down as Amazon’s CEO in 2021

After spending 27 years leading the company, Bezos announced he was transitioning to become Amazon's executive chairman.

Amazon hit nearly $575 billion in net sales in 2023.

The company has hundreds of fulfillment centers around the world. It sells millions of products, including appliances, clothing, groceries, and toiletries, and it also offers cloud computing services.

Bezos reportedly owns a $500 million megayacht, which set sail last summer. But in 2022, he pledged to give away most of his wealth to charity, CNN reported at the time.

Amazon had a market cap of $1.8 trillion in February.

Arnault started out working for his father's construction company after college.

After studying engineering at the École Polytechnique, Arnault went to work for his father's construction firm Ferret-Savinel, Bloomberg reported.

Arnault acquired Agache-Willot-Boussac in 1984, which was verging on bankruptcy.

The company owned brands like French department store Bon Marché and Christian Dior, The New York Times reported. He renamed the firm Financière Agache and kickstarted a turnaround effort, which helped it earn $1.9 billion in revenue just a few years later, the Times reported.

He bought a chunk of capital of the French luxury fashion house Celine in the late 1980s. Years later, it was integrated into the LVMH group.

He went on to become LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s largest shareholder.

Champagne company Dom Pérignon was one of the initial brands part of Moët Hennessy, which later merged with Louis Vuitton to create LVMH in 1987.

He spent $2.6 billion buying up shares to become the company's largest shareholder and eventually its chairman and CEO by 1989, per The Times.

Arnault quietly built a 20.2% stake in Hermès in the years that followed through its subsidiaries and equity swaps, Bloomberg reported.

His 5 children also work for LVMH and its brands.

In 2011, he acquired the Italian jewelry brand Bulgari when it was struggling, Reuters reported.

LVMH now owns more than 75 brands, its website says.

The luxury goods group made €86.2 billion in 2023.

Arnault said in January, when its earnings were released, "Our performance in 2023 illustrates the exceptional appeal of our Maisons and their ability to spark desire despite a year affected by economic and geopolitical challenges."

It seems like Arnault has no plans to slow down. He told The Financial Times in 2019, "we're just getting started."

• An automated announcement told United passengers to put on oxygen masks during a Transatlantic flight.
• A passenger on the flight told aviation news outlet Simple Flying that some people panicked.
• Cabin pressure was normal the whole time, a United spokesperson told Business Insider.

Dozens of United Airlines passengers started to panic when an automated emergency announcement told them to put on oxygen masks, even though there wasn't any danger.

The Boeing 777 was flying from Paris to Washington, DC, last Wednesday when the unusual incident occurred.

Those on board were instructed by a pre-recorded message to wait for oxygen masks to fall from the ceiling and then put them on, Simple Flying reported. Few, if any, masks actually deployed.

A United Airlines spokesperson told Business Insider that "a small number of oxygen masks inadvertently deployed."

Parker Pitman, a passenger on board the flight, told Simple Flying that he couldn't see any masks on the plane. He added that some people tried to force open the ceiling compartments in a panic.

"One person had a panic attack and ran to the aircraft door, presumably to open it," Pitman added. "None of the flight crew nor cabin crew had ever heard the announcement before, and it was a very odd situation."

Travel news site Paddle Your Own Kanoo reported that flight attendants announced that they were struggling to contact the pilots.

Passengers later learned that the 26-year-old aircraft wasn't in trouble after all, and the flight continued on to Washington, DC. Two days later, the plane made its next flight.

The United spokesperson added, "The air pressure in the cabin was normal for the entire flight. The aircraft landed safely as scheduled, and customers deplaned normally."

The airline has faced much scrutiny from regulators this year following a string of safety incidents, like a tire falling off a Boeing 777 and another plane veering off the runway.

United was prevented from launching new routes while it was investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration. Last month, the airline indicated it had been allowed to restart such activities, but the FAA said its review was "ongoing," per the Associated Press.

• Dubai is adding a Cybertruck to its fleet of luxury police vehicles. 
• Elon Musk is thrilled, but the Tesla pickup is unlikely to be chasing down criminals anytime soon.
• It's unclear how effective the Cybertruck would be as a police vehicle. 

Dubai has added a Cybertruck to its fleet of luxury police vehicles — much to Elon Musk's satisfaction.

Its police force said on X it now had the Tesla as part of its "tourist police" patrol fleet, posting an image of a Cybertruck in green and white livery.

"The Dubai Police General Command has added the Tesla Cybertruck, the modern electric car with a futuristic design, to its tourist police luxury patrol fleet," wrote the police force — with the Tesla CEO hailing the addition as "cool" in a reply.

Despite its paint job, this Cybertruck is unlikely to be taking part in high-speed car chases anytime soon.

Dubai's luxury patrol fleet, which also includes Bugattis, Lamborghinis and an Aston Martin, is mostly used as a tourist attraction, CNN reported.

It is unclear how effective a police vehicle the Cybertruck would be.

Tesla says the distinctive pickup is bulletproof, but a test by the YouTube channel JerryRigEverything showed that while it could withstand small-caliber guns, larger weapons could cause serious damage to the Cybertruck's stainless steel exterior.

The Cybertruck's offroad ability has also come under scrutiny, with videos appearing online of the 6,600 lb pickup getting stuck on a sandy beach, struggling in the snow, and having difficulty climbing a small hill.

Experts have also warned that the Cybertruck poses a risk to pedestrians, telling Business Insider the truck's rapid acceleration and stainless steel frame could turn it into a "guideless missile."

The vehicle has endured a bumpy rollout since it went on sale last November.

In April Tesla recalled all 3,878 Cybertrucks it had shipped by that point over a fault that regulators found could cause the accelerator pedal to get stuck at full throttle.

Owners have also complained about a wide variety of quality issues, including panel gaps, rust spots, and an automatically-closing frunk that has a tendency to crush people's fingers (an issue Tesla has now fixed).

More recently, several posters on a Cybertruck buyers forum have claimed that deliveries of their pickups have been delayed due to an issue with its enormous windshield wiper.

Tesla and Dubai police did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

• A new study by Mercer ranked 226 cities in the world based on how expensive they are to live in.
• Four of the most expensive cities are in just one country. 
• One Canadian city ranked highest for finding the balance between cost and quality of living. 

Some expats seek a better quality of life in a cheaper city; others follow a dream job posting to an expensive metropolitan hub.

But whatever the reason, finding the sweet spot between the cost and quality of living in a new city is a major consideration in deciding to move abroad for work.

New research by consulting firm Mercer has revealed the ten most expensive cities for international employees to live in in 2024.

The study ranked 226 major cities around the world, analyzing factors like the cost of a basket of goods, rental prices, and other living expenses.

Hong Kong, Singapore, and Zurich are the three most expensive cities for international workers due to their competitive housing markets, high transport costs, and high costs of goods and services.

Following Zurich in the rankings are Geneva, Basel, and Bern, making Switzerland the next most expensive place you can move to. The central European country is known as a haven for the super-wealthy. And while it offers employees very high wages, a coffee can set you back $9.

In the US, Mercer named New York, Los Angeles, Honolulu, and San Francisco as the most expensive cities to live in.

The high cost of living at home is pushing an increasing number of fed-up Americans to move abroad in search of a better lifestyle.

"The conventional American lifestyle just wasn't in our reach anymore," one couple who moved from Denver to South America previously told Business Insider.

For those looking for the least expensive cities, the top 10, according to Mercer, are:

• Havana, Cuba
• Windhoek, Namibia
• Durban, South Africa
• Dushanbe, Tajikistan
• Blantyre, Malawi
• Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
• Islamabad, Pakistan
• Lagos, Nigeria
• Abuja, Nigeria

But in addition to prices, Mercer highlighted that quality of life, eco-friendliness, seamless connectivity, and safety and security are also important considerations when choosing where to live.

Montreal may have it all, though. The Canadian city ranked highest for its balance between a low cost of living and a high quality of life.

It was followed by the European cities of Ljubljana, Slovenia; Warsaw, Poland; and Budapest, Hungary.

• A Pennsylvania-based couple is struggling to afford a home despite their six-figure incomes. 
• They each work remotely, but expanding their home search across the US hasn't solved their problem.
• Some Americans are struggling to buy a home due to high housing prices and mortgage rates. 

When Madelyn Driver and her husband began house-hunting, they thought they had a few advantages.

First, they were in pretty good financial shape, Driver told Business Insider via email. The 30-year-old makes over $100,000 working in the tech industry, according to a document viewed by BI — and she said her husband also has a six-figure income. After taking stock of their finances, the couple decided to focus on homes valued at no more than $700,000.

Second, they had the flexibility to search for homes across the country. That's because, while they're currently based in Pennsylvania, Driver and her husband both work remotely. While they've explored several areas, Driver said Colorado, the Carolinas, and Virginia have been of particular interest.

However, despite their income and geographic flexibility, the couple has continued to bump up against affordability challenges.

"We're finding that even in a vast country like the US, housing options that align with our desires for green spaces, a somewhat metropolitan vibe, and cultural vibrancy are surprisingly out of budget," Driver said.

Driver is among a group of Americans with six-figure incomes who are having trouble meeting some of their financial goals. These people are sometimes called HENRYs — or high earners, not rich yet. In recent years, as inflation has weighed on people's finances, a $100,000-a-year salary hasn't gone as far as it used to.

"I remember thinking that earning $100,000 felt like an unimaginable milestone," Driver said. "Now, my husband and I both exceed that number. Yet, we hardly feel rich."

The US housing market has proven particularly challenging for some millennials like Driver. In recent years, high home prices and elevated mortgage rates have propelled the cost of homeownership in the US to near-record-high unaffordability levels.

"If expenses — especially housing costs — were more reasonable, I'd feel much more financially secure and rich," Driver said.

To be sure, some high-earning millennials probably think their incomes are quite sufficient. In part, this could be because they're among the roughly 52% of millennials who owned a home as of 2022 — many of whom bought homes before the spike in home prices and mortgage rates over the last few years.

Of course, for the majority of Americans who don't have a six-figure income — the average annual full-time salary was about $84,000 as of March — affording a home is even more of a challenge.

As of the first quarter of 2024, the homeownership rate for US households with a family income below the median income was about 53%, according to Census Bureau data. For households with a family income greater than or equal to the median income, the homeownership rate was about 79%.

Driver shared her homebuying strategy and priorities — and what she and her husband plan to do if the housing market doesn't shift in their favor.

Avoiding being "house-poor" is a top priority

Driver and her husband have given their home search a lot of thought. When developing their home budget, they agreed it was important not to overextend themselves.

"Our incomes could support a much higher housing price, but we really want to avoid being 'house-poor' and trapped in a higher monthly mortgage amount," she said.

Additionally, they developed a list of the top characteristics they were looking for in the area surrounding their home. Driver said their ideal location would have a highly educated population, diversity, plenty of green space, and milder weather than the Northeast.

To get a feel for each area they were considering, the couple decided that they needed to "experience it as locals." Driver said they stayed in long-term Airbnbs and pet-sat for extended periods to immerse themselves in different communities.

"This approach certainly has its logistical challenges, but it's been essential for us to see beyond the internet searches and experience what daily life would actually feel like in a new city," Driver said.

Going forward, Driver said they won't rush to buy a home if they can't find anything that checks enough of their boxes. If they're still searching a year from now, she said they might reevaluate some of their priorities.

"We won't compromise on things like a safe area and neighborhood, square footage, and property acreage," she said. "But, if we can't find the perfect home, we'd be open to buying a less expensive house that might need more serious work."

Are you making over $100,000 a year? Are you willing to share your story and the impact this income has had on your life? If so, contact this reporter at jzinkula@businessinsider.com.

Can you spot the difference between an ALICE and a HENRY? Are you too much of a dingus to know your DINKs? Would you ever consider joining the FIRE movement?

These days, coverage of the US economy is chock-full of jargony acronyms and descriptors for demographic cohorts. Some have been around for years, or at least represent groups that have long been relevant. Others are brand new — and recent economic developments, as well as the influence of platforms like TikTok, help explain why certain terms have spiked in popularity lately.

Kory Kantenga, a senior economist at LinkedIn, pointed to the "Great Resignation" — which some have rebranded as the "Great Reshuffle" — as a turning point. Coined in 2021 by Anthony Klotz, then an associate professor of management at Texas A&M, the term helped open the door for a larger conversation about Americans' jobs and finances.

"The Great Reshuffle led to many of us rethinking where, how, and why we work," Kantenga said. "While many aspects of the Great Reshuffle have faded, the paradigm shift of talking more openly about work has endured. That change, along with the proliferation of viral content, has likely supported the emergence of viral workplace terms."

The terms DINK (double income, no kids), FIRE (financial independence, retire early), and HENRY (high earner, not rich yet), meanwhile, appear to have originated in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. They've been making a comeback as economic conditions have made them more relevant. DINK, for example, is used in part to highlight the financial benefits of not having children. As the costs of raising children have ballooned, the DINK lifestyle has started to resonate with couples.

It's difficult to pinpoint just how many Americans fall into each category — they're generally not officially tracked. But the terms' recent popularity suggests people want to understand how they fit into the broader economy beyond standard measurements. Together, they offer a glimpse into different groups working to get by. "I think part of why they've become popular again is because these acronyms succinctly describe various forms of financial limbo that, until relatively recently, weren't well represented in society," said Eric Anicich, an associate professor of management and organization at the USC Marshall School of Business.

Keeping track of them all is crucial to understanding how the system works, but it can get confusing. Henry, a geriatric millennial ALICE and half a POLK with his wife, Alice, feels ostracized from his DINK, DIPS, FIRE, and HENRY friends, especially since his peak boomer parents are leaving him no inheritance. What?

To make your life easier, Business Insider has compiled a glossary of terms, from the frequently used to the more exotic. Say hello to your new economic ABCs.

ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed

ALICEs are stuck in no-man's-land. Their incomes put them above the federal poverty level — $31,200 for a family of four, or $15,060 for an individual — and too far afield of the threshold to qualify for government benefits like food stamps, rental assistance, or Medicaid. But their earnings aren't high enough to shield them from financial precarity, and the rising costs of living expenses like food and housing over the past few years haven't helped.

Take Sarah, a single mother of two who works one full-time job and two part-time jobs. While she's employed, her ability to bring in enough money to support her family is a source of never-ending stress.

"Every month is a struggle to make sure all the bills are paid — there's never enough for savings," she said. "My car loan, my car insurance, rent, and food take up almost my entire paycheck." (Sarah asked to use a pseudonym to prevent identification by a prior partner she said was abusive.)

Sarah earned less than $60,000 last year across her jobs. In the past, she qualified for some government benefits like SNAP. Now she's eligible only for some rent assistance through a state program. But that, too, is uncertain: She said she was "dangerously close" to losing the aid because her income is too high.

ALICEs tend to be older or younger workers, and while they're represented across racial groups, they're more likely to be Black or Hispanic. And data from the nonprofit organization United Way, which coined the term in 2009, show that about a third of the population fell below the ALICE line in 2021. (This also includes people in poverty.)

DINK: Double Income, No Kids

Perhaps the most popular acronym of them all (and the most satisfying to say aloud) is DINK, an umbrella term for couples who are certain they'll never have kids, those who don't want kids at the moment, and those who feel their economic standing dictates whether they can have kids. There are even offshoots, like DINKWAD, which throws a dog into the mix.

The term was around in the 1980s, when the yuppie — an old-school economic nickname in its own right — dominated the culture. In a 1987 article, the Los Angeles Times used "DINK" to describe a new class of child-free baby boomers relishing their wealth. Think Big and Carrie from "Sex in the City" nursing endless martinis and stocking closets full of designer shoes.

Nowadays, DINKs are having a moment as millennials and Gen Zers increasingly opt to forgo kids amid shifting attitudes toward parenthood, economic uncertainty, the climate crisis, and rising childcare costs. And many are reaping the financial benefits.

Brenton and Mirlanda Beaufils are a married couple in their early 30s who work in real estate and property management in Dallas. The influencer couple bring home six figures each year and have no plans to give up the DINK lifestyle anytime soon. They said they were taking the time to do all the things they wouldn't be able to do if they had children.

"We have a good amount of disposable income," Mirlanda said. "Last weekend, we went to Neiman Marcus and bought ourselves some fun stuff."

DIPS and POLK: Double Income, Public School; Parents of Little Kids

BI's Katie Notopoulos coined "DIPS" and "POLKs" earlier this year, arguing that American parents are economically divided by one key factor: whether their kids are old enough for a free public education or still require expensive childcare.

Families with young kids are burdened by a childcare system that requires working parents to shell out thousands of dollars a month for day care or a nanny. But as kids age into public school, many parents finally begin to save some cash.

Paige Connell, a married mother of four children under 7, has seen the divide play out under her roof.

Connell and her husband live outside Boston. They have two kids who attend public school and two younger children who still require childcare, which costs the family about $60,000 a year.

Connell, an operations manager, and her husband, a first responder, make a "decent" salary for living in Massachusetts, she said. But they still spend 20% to 30% of their income on childcare.

She acknowledged that older kids are still expensive — hers attend camps and extracurricular activities. But childcare makes the difference. "We talk about our life in terms of what comes after childcare," Connell said. "How will we invest this money? What will this money go toward?"

FIRE: Financial Independence, Retire Early

Chrissy Arsenault, a 31-year-old marketing director in Colorado, has pursued a FIRE lifestyle since her mid-20s, when she and her husband learned about the movement online. Over the past several years, they've grown their combined net worth to roughly $800,000. Arsenault said their goal is to have about $2.5 million in total investments and retire in 10 to 15 years.

Generally, people who've embraced the FIRE movement are trying to grow their savings so they can achieve financial freedom and retire as early as possible — though some choose to keep working. Many FIRE advocates trace the movement's philosophy to the 1992 best-selling book "Your Money or Your Life." As many Americans struggle to save for retirement — and as Social Security's future remains precarious — the FIRE movement offers a potentially lucrative blueprint for people who crave security and control over their finances.

For Arsenault, retiring early is about having freedom at an earlier age. "Retiring at 65-plus years old just doesn't sound appealing," she said, summing up the couple's financial strategy as "spend less, make more, and invest more."

HENRY: High Earner, Not Rich Yet

A defining trait of a HENRY is their desire to no longer be a HENRY.

HENRYs are keyed into their finances and always looking to reach the next financial tier. The term seems to have originated in 2003, but today's HENRYs are typically between 27 and 42, live in metropolitan areas, and make $80,000 to $500,000, depending on where they live.

That may seem like a lot of money to the average Joe, but HENRYs often don't feel wealthy, and caution around spending and saving is common. (The precise parameters of a HENRY are difficult to define and appear to be based more on vibes than a specific tax bracket.)

Take Christopher Stroup, a 33-year-old financial advisor in Santa Monica, California, who earned roughly $130,000 last year. Stroup said he didn't feel rich. He's still paying down his student debt while trying to reach his savings goals for making a down payment on a home, starting a family, and retiring. He said he sometimes joked that he felt like he'd need to save $250,000 to buy a home or start a family — but he could pick only one.

"I wouldn't consider myself rich yet because I haven't achieved any of those goals," he said. "Versus the traditional arc of life, I feel behind financially."

HIFI: High Income, Financially Insecure

HIFI is the latest acronym to join the club. Sherwood News described it as representing people who make good money but remain financially insecure because of overspending.

HIFIs are characterized by their steep spending and obsession with items and experiences that exude luxury. Pandemic stimulus checks, online shopping, and "buy now, pay later" options have helped fuel HIFIs' spending in recent years.

But even with government checks long gone, and as inflation and the cost of living have risen, HIFIs haven't necessarily curbed their affluent spending — leaving a sharp divide between their aspirations and their financial realities.

Geriatric millennial: The oldest members of the millennial generation

If you're in your late 30s or early 40s, hearing someone use the word "geriatric" to describe you might make you want to curl into the fetal position. Don't fear — it's meant to distinguish between two groups in a relatively young generation. Millennials are generally considered to be those born between 1981 and 1996. But the youngest and oldest are in quite different life stages.

In a 2021 Medium post, Erica Dhawan defined "geriatric millennials" as millennials born in the early 1980s. Dwahan, who has spent years researching ways to encourage better collaboration in the workplace, previously told Business Insider that geriatric millennials were well suited to working with both younger and older generations.

The past two decades have been a financial roller coaster. Many geriatric millennials were in the early stages of their careers during the Great Recession, which hampered their employment and earnings. In a 2018 report, researchers with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said they found that the wealth of millennials born in the 1980s was 34% below what was expected based on prior generations' experiences.

But in recent years, many geriatric millennials have seen their wealth surge thanks to rising home and stock prices. While some younger millennials feel boxed out of the housing market because of high prices and interest rates, elder ones are more likely to already own a home — setting themselves up for future wealth creation.

Peak boomer: Baby boomers born between 1959 and 1964

Peak boomer — a once disparaging term for someone displaying comical levels of "old person" behavior — has come to mean something new as the youngest members of America's largest generational cohort reach retirement age.

By the end of 2024, all baby boomers — those born between 1946 and 1964 — will be 60 or older. The increase in retirees is likely to be a significant burden on the US economy that could last decades. But for many in this "peak boomer" group, their biggest concern is their own financial security.

A recent study found that more than half of the 30 million peak boomers staring down retirement had $250,000 or less in assets. The analysis, which looked at Federal Reserve and University of Michigan Health and Retirement study data, suggested these people would be forced to rely primarily on Social Security income. But that program's fate is increasingly uncertain, and a reduction in benefits could leave millions of older Americans in dire straits.

Jewel Benjamin, 64, retired from her job as a Georgia law-enforcement officer in 2018 — but not by choice. An injury forced her out of the workforce at 59, much earlier than she had planned. Retiring early meant Benjamin had to wait two years before she could start drawing from Social Security.

These days, Benjamin receives Social Security benefits and money from her retirement plan each month. Those payments still leave her living "paycheck to paycheck," she said, as she deals with medical bills and other living expenses. (Many peak boomers are also considered ALICEs, underscoring the intersectionality of some of these demographic groups.)

"I am concerned about my finances down the road if costs don't get lower," she said. "My mortgage is really high. And it seems like I'm always owing taxes."

And beyond these groups, there are lots more ways to describe how Americans work:

• Bare-minimum Mondays: Start your workweek by doing as little work as possible!
• Career cushioning: Scared of looming layoffs? Make a backup plan while you're still employed.
• Corporate girlie: The TikTok aestheticization of clocking in for a 9-to-5.
• Greedflation: The theory that corporate America's suits are exploiting inflation to earn record profits.
• Lazy-girl jobs: Born of the antiwork movement, lazy-girl jobs are mindless, well-paying gigs for the burned-out employee.
• Overemployed: If you want to covertly pump up your finances, consider working multiple jobs.
• Productivity paranoia: Hybrid and remote work means your boss can't see what you're doing at all times. They've responded by micromanaging you even more.
• Quiet quitting (See also: grumpy staying; loud quitting): The post-pandemic death knell of hustle culture.

Erin Snodgrass is a reporter Business Insider's news team. She covers various topics, including history, education, and migration.

Jacob Zinkula is a reporter on Business Insider's economy team. He writes about a variety of subjects, including the job market, the gig economy, and remote work.

• Apple plans to offer a thinner iPhone by next year, Bloomberg reported.
• It also aims to make slimmer MacBook Pro and Apple Watch devices, per the report. 
• Some Apple devices have become heavier and bulkier in recent years. 

A thinner iPhone could be yours to buy next year.

Apple also plans to make slimmer versions of the MacBook Pro and Watch devices, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman wrote in a newsletter on Sunday.

Some of the company's devices have grown bulkier in recent years.

The iPhone 15 Pro is 0.32 inches (8.25 mm) deep, compared with 0.29 inches (7.4 mm) for the iPhone 12 Pro, per Apple's website. The smartphones have grown to accommodate better cameras, while the MacBook Pro expanded to take bigger batteries, Gurman wrote.

However, the iPad Pro revealed last month was slimmer than previous models but had the same battery capacity and desktop-level processing ability, according to the report, indicating Apple is able to slim down products without sacrificing performance.

Gurman wrote that the company wants to offer the "thinnest and lightest products" on the market.

The insight into Apple's thinking comes after it said last week that forthcoming products and services will get an AI boost.

Apple announced at the Worldwide Developers Conference it would integrate its new AI software, Apple Intelligence, into the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. The AI features will roll out later this year with Apple's iOS 18 update, but will only be available to iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max users.

It's not just Apple that's seeking to give its smartphone an AI upgrade. Google unveiled new capabilities for its Pixel, Samsung, and other Android phones at its I/O conference last month.

Android chief Sameer Samat previously told Business Insider that it plans to seize the moment to "reinvent" what phones can do.

AI, in general, could transform the entire smartphone market. According to analysts at Bank Of America Securities, smartphones could be replaced by the "IntelliPhone" — devices that have AI integrated into them.

The BoA analysts predict IntelliPhones will have staple AI features, which include personal assistants, a tool to recognize objects and people, real-time translation, and content creation tools.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.