Anthropic's Claude artificial intelligence assistant app jumped to the No. 2 slot on Apple's chart of top U.S. free apps late on Friday, hours after the Trump administration sought to block government agencies' adoption of the startup's technology. The rise in popularity suggests that Anthropic is benefiting from its presence in news headlines, stemming from its refusal to have its models used for mass domestic surveillance or for fully autonomous weapons. "The Leftwing nut jobs at Anthropic have made a DISASTROUS MISTAKE trying to STRONG-ARM the Department of War, and force them to obey their Terms of Service instead of our Constitution," President Donald Trump wrote in a Friday Truth Social post. Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he asked that Anthropic be labeled as a supply-chain risk to national security, and therefore, no U.S. defense contractor would be able to draw on Anthropic tools. "It is the Department's prerogative to select contractors most aligned with their vision," Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said in a statement. "But given the substantial value that Anthropic's technology provides to our armed forces, we hope they reconsider." Historically, other AI chat apps have been more popular among consumers than Claude. The Claude iOS app has gained momentum this month. 131 in the U.S., and it bounced around the top 20 for much of February, according to data from analytics company Sensor Tower. In the past year, Anthropic — which was formed in 2021 by former OpenAI employees — has gained momentum as a supplier of models for coding and general corporate use. OpenAI, whose ChatGPT now has over 900 million weekly users, has been responding to Anthropic's surge in business by striking partnerships with consulting firms such as Accenture and Capgemini. On Friday night, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the startup had reached an agreement with the U.S. Defense Department on the deployment of its models. Hours later, pop singer Katy Perry posted a screenshot of Anthropic's Pro subscription for consumers, with a heart superimposed over it. Pete Hegseth directs Pentagon to designate Anthropic supply-chain risk We want to hear from you. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar have all closed their airspaces. A video shared by Flightradar24 showed airplanes deserting the region on Saturday morning. Airspace clearing after strikes by the United States and Israel in Iran. The three major Middle Eastern airlines — Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, and Emirates — operate major hubs that connect passengers to destinations around the world, creating a massive ripple effect of disruptions. A Cirium spokesperson said these carriers collectively carry 90,000 transiting passengers through their hubs daily — not including those destined for the Middle East. Even for flights that don't land in the region, it's a key corridor for flying between Europe and Asia. And it's possible mass diversions could overwhelm certain airports. In a post on X, Emirates said it was temporarily suspending all flights to and from Dubai, its home base. Emirates urged customers to check their flight statuses before visiting the airport. Qatar Airways said all flights to and from the country were suspended until at least midnight UTC, or 7 p.m. Etihad Airways, which is based in Abu Dhabi, said all departures and arrivals to the city were suspended until 2 p.m. local time Sunday. Kuwait's civil aviation ministry said a drone attack left some airport employees with minor injuries and damaged a passenger terminal. Saudia said flights to and from affected airports were canceled until at least Tuesday. For those already in the air during the strikes, many flights diverted to other nearby airports or turned back to their origins. A Qatar flight from New York to Doha crossed the Atlantic but then diverted to Rome after about 10 hours in the air. An American Airlines flight from Philadelphia to Doha had flown for more than six hours when it turned around over Ireland and started heading back across the Atlantic Ocean, flight-tracking data showed. It looks like the total flight-to-nowhere will last about 13 hours. An Air Canada flight from Toronto to Dubai was over the Mediterranean Sea before U-turning. Passengers appear to face a total journey time of 10 hours. In a video statement posted to Truth Social on Saturday morning, President Donald Trump vowed to destroy Iran's missile program and navy, and ensure that the country can "never" have a nuclear weapon. When Iran launched strikes on a US air base in Qatar last June, more than 160 flights were diverted. Air India, for example, had to reroute flights around Pakistani airspace last year, requiring some long-haul services between India and Europe and North America to add a fuel stop in Vienna. Some airlines, like Finnair, still fly the long way around Russia on certain long-haul treks rather than canceling the service altogether.

Xiaomi launched its latest flagship smartphones globally on Saturday as an unprecedented surge in memory chip prices threatens to dampen sales. In the first quarter of the year so far, memory prices have soared between 80% and 90%, Counterpoint Research said. This surge has been driven by a shortage of memory chips with supply being directed toward data centers for AI. Memory is an expensive component in a smartphone. Smartphone prices could rise 13% in 2026, according to a Gartner forecast from Februrary. IDC forecasts the smartphone market to decline 12.9% in 2026 as a result of the chip crunch. Analysts suggest companies selling more expensive phones will be more insulated and able to absorb the cost. The bulk of Xiaomi's volume comes from mid-range devices, a category that could take a hit to demand from any price rises. While its higher end devices will be unlikely to offset any losses. "This year will be even worse because Xiaomi does not have a very strong premium share which means that they cannot rely on the premium segment to offset low margins in other devices like Apple and Samsung can," Francisco Jeronimo, a vice president for data and analytics at IDC, told CNBC. In November, Xiaomi management warned that the industry would likely have to raise smartphone prices in 2026. Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said that Xiaomi will likely have to hike prices of their low-to-mid-tier devices. While Xiaomi still makes the bulk of revenue consumer electronics, the company has been ramping up its electric vehicle business in China, which now accounts for around a quarter of all sales. That's become an important source of revenue amid the memory crunch. Xiaomi reported a 3% year-on-year decline in smartphone revenue in the September quarter, the last publicly-available financial figures. But sales at its electric car business surged nearly 200%. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox

Park Chan-wook's "No Other Choice" and Sam Raimi's "Send Help" imagine what happens when workers in bad situations, whether a stagnant job market or a toxic workplace, are pushed to their limits, with murderous consequences. Last year, U.S. employers added only 181,000 jobs, compared to 1.46 million in 2024, making it the worst year for hiring since 2020, and the worst since 2003 outside of a recession. As of January, 1 in 4 unemployed people, roughly 1.8 million Americans, have been looking for work for more than six months, according to BLS data. Meanwhile, those with jobs are anxious about losing them amid economic uncertainty, AI adoption, and layoffs. Job cuts announced in January hit their highest monthly total to start a year since 2009, according to a report from global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. And the quits rate of workers voluntarily leaving their jobs — which can reflect their degree of confidence in the job market — stayed relatively low at around 2% throughout 2025. Against this backdrop, the films offer "a way to feel in control of something you can't control," says Alicia Grandey, co-author of "Emotionally Charged: How to Lead in the New World of Work" and a workplace psychology professor at Penn State University. The films make our work anxieties feel "distant and more controllable, like you can turn it off." That could be welcome distance for many feeling powerless in the job market and workplace today. Fear of losing your job can be "paralyzing" and feel "like you have absolutely no control over the situation," career and leadership coach Phoebe Gavin previously told CNBC Make It. The fact that "work is the single most important way of proving your worth" as a person in the U.S., Steven Vallas, professor emeritus of sociology at Northeastern University, previously told Make It, "can really compound those feelings of shame and the anxiety about being unemployed." "It's taking these feelings that many, many people have to an extreme, so that you know it's not real," Grandey says. And then, she adds, "when you come back to the real world, it by contrast doesn't seem as bad." He tells his first victim, "Sorry, but you must disappear for me to live." Job hugging has made headlines in recent months, a phenomenon that describes workers "holding onto their jobs for dear life" amid global uncertainty, fears of AI disruption and a tough job market, Korn Ferry consultants wrote in August. When Choi Seon-chul, a hotshot at a rival paper firm says he's swamped at work, Man-su tells him to faint so the higher-ups will hire Man-su to help divvy up the work. "No Other Choice" also touches on anxieties around AI-related job disruption. In this moment we see his prize is a dismal job, and one likely headed towards obsolescence at that. Even conventional markers of career success, like getting a long sought-after job, disappoint. We see that disappointment at work in "Send Help." Worker bee Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams), has been snubbed for a promotion, had credit for her work stolen, and otherwise contended with a toxic workplace permeated by bro culture, all spearheaded by her awful boss, nepo baby CEO Bradley Preston (Dylan O'Brien). When Linda and Bradley are the only survivors of a plane crash on a deserted island, she sees an opportunity to turn the tables on her boss and get revenge for how he's treated her. It's "a fantasy of every person who's been mistreated at work," Grandey says. There's a clear reversal of the manager-report power dynamic and gender roles the pair had in the office, where Bradley as CEO wielded power over Linda, who had hit a glass ceiling in their boys' club of a company. On the island, Liddle, a "Survivor" contestant hopeful, shelters and feeds them, hunting boar to quite literally bring home the bacon, while a sullen Bradley attempts to spell "HELP" in the sand but only manages "HEPL." As Linda reminds him, "We're not in the office anymore, Bradley." In both films, the protagonists feel so disillusioned with the existing systems of finding, keeping and succeeding at work that they believe their only hope is outside these systems. Man-su, of course, goes an extrajudicial route in his killings. She closes out "Send Help" with a bold, if dispiriting, piece of advice: "No help is coming, so you better start saving yourself." In the real world, workers and job seekers don't see outcomes as dramatic or decisive as Man-su and Linda get on-screen. But some are sticking it out in roles they're unhappy in or feeling like they're sending job applications into a black hole. "There are major seismic shifts" happening in the market and the world, Grandey says, "that are pushing everyone to feel job insecure." The relatability of the protagonists' struggles "allows us to feel more in control and empowered, because we can feel like them in that two-hour period," Grandey adds. "And then we have to go back to our lives, but we carry a little bit of that empowerment with us." Learn more about the world of CNBC Make It

Every time Sinéad publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! By clicking “Sign up”, you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Iran launched missile strikes into at least six countries in retaliation for the Saturday morning attack by the US and Israel. Iran said it targeted at least four bases hosting US forces in the Middle East. Some have reported damage, injuries, and at least one death from debris. At least one US base appears to have been hit. Bahrain's state news agency said that the US Navy's 5th Fleet service center was the subject of a missile attack, without offering details or reporting any casualties. The agency also reported Bahrain's defense forces saying that its air-defense systems successfully intercepted multiple missiles from Iran. Qatar's defense ministry said it successfully intercepted three waves of attacks that had targeted multiple areas of the country, and that all missiles were intercepted before they reached the country's territory, the state-run Qatar News Agency reported. Every time Sinéad publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! Stay connected to Sinéad and get more of their work as it publishes. By clicking "Sign up", you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Jordanian state media reported that the country's air defense systems successfully intercepted two ballistic missiles that targeted the country. The country's Public Security Directorate said there have been 12 separate incidents caused by falling debris across the country, causing some damage but with no reported civilian casualties. The Muwaffaq Al-Salti Air Base in Jordan, which is key for the country's air force and also has a US military presence, was targeted, Iranian state media reported. It did not give any details on whether the reported attack was successful, and the US has not confirmed any attack. The United Arab Emirates' defense ministry said it intercepted Iranian ballistic missiles across multiple attacks. It said one person was killed by falling debris in Abu Dhabi, the country's capital. It shared images of what appear to be downed Iranian missiles. It said that missile debris also damaged some infrastructure. Explosions were also reported in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Its Al Dhafra Air Base hosts US forces. It said there was a fire that is now under control. Kuwait's army said its air defenses intercepted missiles that were detected in the country's airspace. It said several employees received minor injuries, and there was some damage to its Terminal 1. Successful attacks have been reported in Iran, and its people are trying to flee the capital city, Tehran. Iranian officials said an Israeli attack on a girls' elementary school in southern Iran killed at least 85 people. Israel has released video footage of strikes in Western Iran against missile launchers and other targets. US President Donald Trump said that he would destroy Iran's missile program and navy and make sure that the country can "never" have a nuclear weapon. Flights have been cancelled across the region with multiple countries closing their airspaces, creating major disruption in one of the world's busiest flight routes.

Berkshire Hathaway reported a big decline in its operating earnings for the fourth quarter, due in large part to weakness in the conglomerate's insurance business. Earnings from operations totaled $10.2 billion in Q4. That's down more than 29% from $14.56 billion in the year-earlier period. This was the final quarter under Warren Buffett as CEO, who announced he was stepping down at the annual shareholders meeting last May. Greg Abel took the reins to start 2026 and vowed in Berkshire's annual letter accompanying Saturday's results to continue the culture Buffett built of financial strength and capital discipline. For the full-year 2025, operating earnings totaled $44.49 billion. That's down from $47.44 billion in the year prior. Insurance investment income for the year eased to $12.5 billion from $13.6 billion a year prior. Overall earnings, which include gains or losses from the conglomerate's stock market investments, fell slightly in the fourth quarter to $19.2 billion from $19.7 billion a year prior. However, those numbers were impacted by a $4.5 billion impairment from Berkshire's investments in Kraft Heinz and Occidental Petroleum. Investment gains came in at $13.5 billion. "The amount of investment gains (losses) in any given quarter is usually meaningless and delivers figures for net earnings per share that can be extremely misleading to investors who have little or no knowledge of accounting rules," the company said in its earnings release. Buffett again refrained from buying back Berkshire shares despite ending Q4 along the flatline. Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares rose 10% in 2025, lagging the S&P 500's 16.4 advance. Still, Buffett's leadership has led to unparalleled wealth creation for shareholders. Since 1965, Berkshire Hathaway has seen compounded annual gains of 19.7%. Overall gains for Berkshire exceed 6,000,000% over that period, while the S&P 500 has gained just 46,061%, including dividends, Abel noted in his first annual letter to shareholders as CEO. We want to hear from you. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

Google became a powerhouse in smartphones by creating the Android operating system and partnering with handset makers in need of an answer to Apple's iPhone. Now the search giant has a similar plan for tackling robotics. Earlier this week, Google announced that Intrinsic, an internal robotics software project, will be moved from the "Other Bets" category into the main company. Just as Android runs across phones and tablets from devices made by Samsung, Motorola, China's Xiaomi and others, Intrinsic does the same for robotic systems, though the partnering companies have far less recognizable names. McKinsey projects the market for general purpose robots could reach $370 billion by 2040, opening up a potentially large opportunity for Google as artificial intelligence moves from the digital world of chatbots, image generation and AI agents to the physical world. Intrinsic says on its website that it's building an operating system so manufacturers "can focus more on solving the problem, and not the plumbing." Like with Android, developers tap ready-made capabilities from Intrinsic to develop applications more efficiently. "We're trying to make it accessible for anyone," Intrinsic CEO Wendy Tan White told CNBC in an interview last year. "It doesn't matter what the hardware is and it doesn't matter what the AI model is. By being inside Google, Intrinsic will be closer to the company's AI models, infrastructure and cloud tools. It will continue operating as a distinct group within Google, remaining under the Intrinsic brand and the leadership of Tan White, who helmed the company as it graduated from Alphabet's X "moonshot factory" in 2021. In 2013, Alphabet bought Boston Dynamics, known for its walking robots, and Schaft, a Japanese humanoid robotics company. After several years spent trying to build a clear business in the space, Google sold Boston Dynamics and Schaft in 2017 to SoftBank for an undisclosed amount. In mid-2025, Google debuted two new AI models, Gemini Robotics and Gemini Robotics-ER (extended reasoning), bringing generative AI into physical action commands to control robots. Google said in a blog post at the time that it would partner with Apptronik, a Texas-based robotics developer, to "build the next generation of humanoid robots with Gemini 2.0." Last month, Google teamed up with Boston Dynamics to integrate Gemini into Atlas humanoid robots built for manufacturing environments. In November, Google's DeepMind unit hired the former CTO of Boston Dynamics. It will also work more closely with Google's Gemini, infrastructure and cloud teams. Intrinsic technology chief Brian Gerkey said in an interview that the company has the advantage of building on top of DeepMind's models, adding specialized data and "standing on the shoulders" of its technology. AI server manufacturing in its current form is primarily a mix of rigid automation and manual production. Amin Vahdat, Google's AI infrastructure boss, told employees that the company has to double its serving capacity every six months in order to meet demand for AI services, CNBC reported in November. "You want to push into the areas where there's a lot of investment going into the end market," Tan White said. "And right now, the electronics market is just going nuts, partly because of the need for more products and compute. A 2025 Deloitte survey of 600 manufacturing executives found that 80% of respondents plan to invest 20% or more of their improvement budgets in smart manufacturing initiatives, with a focus on foundational tools and technologies. Intrinsic's flagship product, Flowstate, is a web-based platform that allows users to build robotic applications without having to write thousands of lines of code. "He said this is the Android of robotics," Tan White said, noting that Pichai worked on Chrome and Android before he became CEO. "I think he has a lot of credibility." WATCH: AI robots may outnumber working human population in a few decades Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox

NASA is preparing to launch a mission to the moon — and it's making history for more reasons than one. "The benefits of the Artemis program are technological, but they're also cultural," Glover, who is a decorated U.S. Navy captain and has traveled to the International Space Station, said in a 2024 NASA video. "What really means something to me is the inspiration that will come from it, inspiring future generations to reach for the moon, literally to reach for the moon." Koch began her career at NASA, starting as an engineer and going on to conduct scientific research before becoming an astronaut in 2013, also traveling to the International Space Station. "The one thing I'm most excited about is that we are going to carry your excitement, your aspiration, your dreams with us on this mission," Koch said at the 2023 press conference when the mission's astronauts were announced. Danielle Wood, a professor in the astronautics department at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said this mission builds upon decades of NASA's work, including lessons learned from its previously failed endeavors. "NASA's been thinking through this whole process, two decades' worth, of what we're going to do is prepare the government to focus on these harder, next-generation missions and be able to do things that are not already demonstrated," Wood told CNBC. Wood said she's also thankful that NASA has created a commitment to sending more diverse astronauts to space who "represent society in a more broad way." Though the space agency initially emphasized military training for astronauts, she said opening up those requirements has led to exciting developments. "It is still the case that there are many firsts, many glass ceilings, that need to be broken by Black women and Black men and women in general — that's still real," Wood added. The mission is also working in conjunction with other countries, like Saudi Arabia and Germany, as part of "goodwill" agreements to pool together resources for moon research, Wood said. "That's just one step for this bigger, new form of operation," she said. Space historian Amy Shira Teitel, who's been studying space for more than two decades, said Artemis II is the beginning of NASA's next chapter of research. "It's marking a new era of leaving low Earth orbit, which we haven't done since 1972," she told CNBC. Still, Teitel has her doubts about whether this launch will be the first step toward a lasting presence on the moon. Between budget restraints, multiple launch delays and complicating political factors, Teitel said the rocket launching this mission is "widely regarded as a huge boondoggle." Elon Musk's SpaceX announced earlier this month that it was shifting its efforts from Mars explorations to moon explorations. Texas-based rocket and spacecraft builder Firefly Aerospace and Houston-based space startup Intuitive Machines have both sent spacecraft to the moon. And NASA plans to retire the International Space Station in favor of smaller space stations focusing on the moon and Mars, with costs adding up. The U.S. Senate has also advanced legislation to support NASA's advancements and create thousands of aerospace jobs, especially in Alabama, where the Marshall Space Flight Center is located. Though the Artemis II launch will mark a significant step in NASA's history, Teitel said she is choosing to remain cautiously optimistic about the future of space exploration, despite the hurdles. "There's so many challenges with this program right now stemming from policy, not from the astronauts or the engineers, just stemming from the fact that space is so complicated and so rooted in politics and so expensive that it's hard to be that thrilled about this as the next step when everything else feels so tenuous," Teitel said. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox

Follow CNBC's live coverage of the U.S.-Israel strikes in Iran Iran retaliated with strikes on Israeli and U.S. bases across the Gulf. Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates — each home to a U.S. base — all confirmed they had intercepted missiles from Iran. CNBC's team in the UAE confirmed hearing several loud explosions in both the UAE's capital, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. Bahrain, home to U.S. Central Command, confirmed via its news agency, "The services center affiliated with the Fifth Fleet was subjected to a missile attack." The Kingdom also confirmed its "readiness to place all its capabilities at their disposal in support of any measures they may undertake." Israel, which took part in the joint operation against Iran with the United States, said earlier on X through its Israeli Defense Forces account that an "additional barrage of missiles was launched toward Israel. The Aerial Defense Array is currently identifying and intercepting threats." Israel confirmed air sirens continued throughout Saturday as missiles were launched from Iran. U.S. embassies across the region have instructed staff and Americans in countries to shelter-in-place (i.e., take cover) until further notice. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday in a statement on Truth Social, "The United States military began major combat operations in Iran. Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people." The UAE confirmed a temporary closure of its airspace as an "exceptional precautionary measure," and flights have already been diverted around the major aviation hub of Dubai. Air Arabia, another UAE carrier based out of Sharjah told CNBC that "due to the evolving situation and airspace closures, our flights to Iran, Iraq and other parts of the region on 28 February have been cancelled. Several other flights may experience delays or rerouting as a result." Qatar Airways also confirmed a "temporary suspension of its flights to, and from, Doha due to the closure of Qatari airspace." German carrier Lufthansa said it was suspending flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut and Oman until March 7, Reuters reported. Dutch airline KLM reportedly canceled flights from Amsterdam to Tel Aviv. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox

Market watchers are bracing for turbulence after the U.S. confirmed it has launched "major combat operations" in Iran, a move investors say could carry far greater market consequences than the recent run of geopolitical flare-ups. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has begun "major combat operations" in Iran. Several ministries in the southern part of the Iranian capital, Tehran, were targeted, Reuters quoted an unidentified Iranian official as saying. Follow CNBC's live coverage of the U.S.-Israel strikes in Iran Markets have been unfazed and accustomed to absorbing recent geopolitical and economic shocks and headlines, including Trump's announcement of a hike in U.S. tariffs on all imports to 15%, as well as the administration's capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. "This has definitely bigger ramifications than Venezuela," said Florian Weidinger, CIO at Santa Lucia Asset Management. "Venezuela was ... only really relevant for people who care about that particular heavy crude," Weidinger told CNBC. The country's heavy, sour crude can be challenging to extract, though it is prized by specific, complex refineries, particularly in the U.S. You would expect oil to tick up a bit more violently next week as a result of that," he added. [Iran] is a chokepoint story," said Kenneth Goh, director of private wealth management at UOB Kay Hian in Singapore. In June 2025, when Israel struck Iranian nuclear sites, equities sold off sharply at the open, then recovered once it became clear the strait was not disrupted. "That is the pattern markets will reference on Monday," Goh said, adding that there could be a flight to safety with a strengthening of the U.S. dollar, Japanese yen, and a rush into gold. Alicia García-Herrero, chief economist for Asia-Pacific at Natixis, similarly expects a "rough and risk-off" open on Monday, with global equities potentially down 1% to 2% or more, U.S. Treasury yields falling 5 to 10 basis points, and oil jumping 5% to 10%. But "no hero bets," she said, cautioning that investors should wait for Iran's response. That said, some money managers said that risk-off positioning has been building for weeks, potentially providing some buffer against initial volatility once trading gets underway. Weidinger noted that some cross-asset moves have already reflected "a little bit of a crisis environment," citing firmer oil and stronger demand for Treasurys in recent weeks. Quantum Strategy's David Roche framed the market impact in terms of duration and whether Iran would attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz. If it turns into a longer, three-to-five-week "regime change endeavor," markets would react "rather badly" as investors price in a wider conflict and longer oil disruption. A prolonged retaliation by Iran would also be particularly impactful for Asian markets, given their reliance on stable energy supplies and trade routes, said Global X ETFs' investment strategist Billy Leung, who expects global equities to open lower with heightened volatility, especially in high-beta and cyclical sectors. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox

Every time Tim publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! By clicking “Sign up”, you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. As companies pour billions into AI, Wall Street is seeking evidence that those bets are worthwhile — and many CEOs are feeling the pressure. In response, some are offering a simple proof point: They need fewer workers to get the job done. The most recent example of a CEO cutting workers en masse while talking up AI's transformative power is Block cofounder and CEO Jack Dorsey. On Thursday, he announced plans to lay off about 40% of the company's workforce, shrinking it from more than 10,000 employees to fewer than 6,000. Block isn't alone in tying cuts to AI. In the absence of standardized metrics demonstrating AI productivity, job cuts are becoming an easily digestible signal to investors. Doing so, he said, can indicate that a company's integration of AI has progressed to the point where it's past experimentation and that its employees can now get more done with less coworker support. Blank said that weakness in the labor market means it would likely also be easier for an employer to rehire for roles that a company finds out aren't as easy to replace with AI as it had hoped. It's often otherwise difficult for companies to clearly articulate how they're getting benefits from AI, Gary Cohn, the former director of the National Economic Council, told CNBC on Friday. "The one KPI that they can tell you is 'We've cut heads,'" he said. I ultimately don't think that's the truth," Cohn said. "Block must have uncovered a secret sauce, perhaps within the software development process, to claim all of these jobs are AI-related," Jason Schloetzer, a business administration professor at Georgetown's McDonough School of Business, recently told Business Insider's Sarah E. Needleman. During Block's earnings call on Thursday, Dorsey said the company is a leader in efforts to use AI to produce efficiency gains — a posture he expects "all companies will eventually" adopt. There can be good reason for slimming down company ranks. Alexandra Mousavizadeh, cofounder and co-CEO of Evident, which tracks AI use in the financial sector, said that if a company is carrying too much "weight" — too many engineers, for example — it can make sense to build with a leaner team. At the same time, Mousavizadeh cautioned, companies sometimes need to cut costs for other reasons — and AI can become a convenient rationale. Ultimately, she said, few companies have fundamentally remade their workflows to the point where they can run with minimal supervision. He's the CEO of Laivly, a company that uses AI agents to support customer service work for Fortune 500 companies. Fettes said that for some customers who have made AI work, the result isn't fewer jobs. In some cases, it's the opposite: Clients that have used AI to boost sales, for example, often want to expand those teams, he said. Because AI is helping them to deliver at scale in a way that they weren't before," Fettes said. Companies contemplating layoffs in the name of AI — or simply because competitors are doing so — should tread carefully, said Wayne Cascio, a distinguished professor of management emeritus at the University of Colorado Denver who has studied corporate downsizing. He told Business Insider that companies frequently cut too deeply — and too quickly — only to realize later that they've eliminated critical skills and institutional knowledge. "Then what happens is companies wind up hiring back many of the very people that they laid off," Cascio said. That can result in companies needing former employees to return as consultants or full-time workers. Cascio noted that a typical corporate downsizing trims about 10% of the workforce. Do you have a story to share about AI's effect on your career?

Every time Naomi publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! By clicking “Sign up”, you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The software sell-off sparked by recent updates from Anthropic and worries about a labor-market disaster scenario presented by Citrini have only added fuel to the fire. Even Nvidia earnings couldn't shake investors out of their AI fear funk. "It's kind of amazing to me how violent the sell off has been," John Belton, a Gabelli portfolio manager focused on growth names, told Business Insider. Every time Naomi publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! Stay connected to Naomi and get more of their work as it publishes. By clicking "Sign up", you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Freedom Capital Markets' head of tech research, Paul Meeks, who has more than 30 years of investing experience, said he went from expecting tech outperformance in 2026 to expecting the sector to lag the broader S&P 500. The private credit space has caught investors' attention, and Newman said he thinks there is reason to worry. Concerns about private credit were reignited by headlines around Blue Owl Capital, with economist Mohamed El-Erian and JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon stating that they thought the headlines reports swirling around the firm were reminiscent of 2007, just before Great Financial Crisis. "There's going to be continued controversy about AI will never make any money," Paul Meeks said, explaining he expects pressure on lenders funding AI buildouts will continue. Beyond private credit, banks are also at risk of AI disruption themselves. "Maybe banks are just a broader candidate for disruption that hasn't really been built in yet. I mean, banks are exposed to the labor market, not so much like a new AI company creating a bank, but there's indirect exposure if the labor market turns," Belton added. Physical AI, meaning AI systems that interact in the physical world like automated machinery or self-driving cars, is expected to be a significant frontier for technology. Citi projects the total addressable market for warehouse-automation systems alone will grow to $112 billion by 2029. The analysts say that automated guided vehicles and autonomous mobile robots present significant use cases for physical AI. Paul Meeks expects opportunities around physical AI to be "fast and furious." As investors have moved out of tech, it has accelerated an ongoing market rotation into cyclical plays. This rotation could leave investors more exposed to physical AI disruption within industrials. Belton suggested the current preference for cyclical plays like consumer staples and industrials could end up backfiring, and saif that some stocks are being perceived as "immune to AI," stretching their valuations. It's creating a "vulnerable pocket of the market" if AI does fuel major economic disruption. Newman expects that the sub-sector will bounce back, but it won't be an even recovery. He thinks that application software companies that went public during the SaaS craze and are focused on specific features are likely to be consolidated into a larger platform or eliminated entirely. Newman sees software names without a data moat, not part of a larger platform, or otherwise exposed to agentic AI replacement, at risk of further declines before sentiment bounces back.

Every time Jake publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! By clicking “Sign up”, you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. American forces are actively engaged in air defense operations in the Middle East, a US official told Business Insider, as Iran launches retaliatory missile strikes at countries across the region. Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency said that the IRGC, or Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, launched missiles at US bases in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. Qatar's defense ministry said it shot down Iranian missiles targeting the country in multiple waves. Bahrain's state news agency said that 5th Fleet was attacked. Every time Jake publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! Stay connected to Jake and get more of their work as it publishes. By clicking "Sign up", you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The Israeli military said it detected multiple waves of missiles fired from Iran, with air defense systems working to intercept them. The US embassies in several Middle East countries, including Qatar, Bahrain, and Jordan, issued warnings earlier that missile strikes were imminent, warning American citizens to shelter in place. The US has surged military forces into the region in recent weeks, assembling a substantial presence capable of conducting air defense operations. American fighter jets and air defense batteries are also operating in the region. President Donald Trump announced early Saturday that the US had begun "major combat operations" in Iran aimed at degrading the country's nuclear and military capabilities. In June 2025, American forces bombed Tehran's nuclear facilities as part of Operation Midnight Hammer.

OpenAI has struck a deal for the Department of Defense to use its AI models, CEO Sam Altman announced late on Friday. The Department of Defense is now moving to designate Anthropic a supply chain risk, a significant escalation by the government that could threaten how the AI startup does business with other US-based companies. OpenAI's Altman said in a post on X: "Tonight, we reached an agreement with the Department of War to deploy our models in their classified network. "In all of our interactions, the DoW displayed a deep respect for safety and a desire to partner to achieve the best possible outcome. Two of our most important safety principles are prohibitions on domestic mass surveillance and human responsibility for the use of force, including for autonomous weapon systems. The DoW agrees with these principles, reflects them in law and policy, and we put them into our agreement." Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X that he would be directing his department to label Anthropic a "supply-chain risk to national security." "Effective immediately, no contractor, supplier, or partner that does business with the United States military may conduct any commercial activity with Anthropic," Hegseth said in the post. Anthropic said in a statement that it will fight back. It insisted that "no amount of intimidation or punishment from the Department of War will change our position on mass domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons."

Every time Katherine publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! By clicking “Sign up”, you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Burger King is tweaking its Whopper — and the changes don't just freshen a decades-old recipe; they also reposition its flagship product as part of the fast-food industry's broader premiumization push amid years of value wars. The chain is betting that highly visible upgrades — including what a press release described as "a more premium, better tasting bun," and packaging designed to prevent the dreaded squish — can compete against its fellow quick-service restaurants as diners increasingly demand both quality and value. However, as chains lean into discounts, they also face a ceiling: consistently cutting prices can erode margins and dull brand appeal. Every time Katherine publishes a story, you'll get an alert straight to your inbox! Stay connected to Katherine and get more of their work as it publishes. By clicking "Sign up", you agree to receive emails from Business Insider. In addition, you accept Insider's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. In response, competitors have begun pushing premium upgrades to core menu items. McDonald's has tweaked its burgers — with changes like cooking patties in smaller batches, glaze-like sauces, and richer buns — as part of its broader menu refresh and McValue strategy. Taco Bell's Luxe Cravings boxes and premium limited-time offerings signal a similar attempt to mix higher-end cues with value structures. "Guests today expect higher-quality execution without losing the familiarity of their favorites," Curtis told Business Insider. "Anytime a brand changes its most iconic product, there is risk," Kelly O'Keefe, founding partner at Brand Federation, told Business Insider, pointing to New Coke as a cautionary tale: "consumers were furious, and the new product was killed faster than a new Cracker Barrel logo." "If they don't stray too far from what their customers love about a Whopper, I think this could be very successful." Sharma also suggested that Burger King's narrative about listening to fans likely intersects with franchisee pressure, noting that, by parent Restaurant Brand International's admission, the development process took years. Curtis didn't dispute franchisee involvement, saying franchisees "were an important part of this process," and adding that their operational input helped ensure the changes could be executed consistently. Analysts say that premiumization, when done right, can help brands protect traffic and pricing power even as consumers remain value-focused. Sharma described the dynamic as a potential "glass half-empty" defensive move — one that prevents customers from moving to higher-end competitors — or a "glass half-full" opportunity to draw in diners who are trading down but still demand quality. Mike Perry, founder of the creative agency Tavern, which has worked on rebranding efforts with companies including Burger King, described the clamshell-style box as "the most innovative thing they've done" because it signals care and structure that customers remember from earlier eras of fast food. If the bet works, Burger King could demonstrate a path forward for legacy fast-food brands trying to thread a needle: keep the value-minded core, win back lapsed customers who've traded up, and do it all without breaking the emotional contract customers have with an icon.

In the months before Block CEO Jack Dorsey laid off 40% of staff on Thursday, workers were embracing AI tools in what one called an almost "celebratory" way. Dorsey and other company leaders had made no secret of their interest in AI, but the company was profitable, and some workers couldn't imagine the technology fully replacing humans at scale any time soon, they told Business Insider. Block, the parent company of financial tech firms including Cash App and Square, had executed a series of smaller performance-based cuts in previous months. At least one employee said he'd had a nagging feeling that the AI tools he was using had gotten really good. "I had a hunch that, at some point, the company would cut people because of AI. I just didn't think it would be right now," Ivan Ureña-Valdes, a data analyst who was laid off after four years at Block, previously told Business Insider in an as-told-to essay. When Dorsey dropped the hammer via a memo posted on X, he said AI was the reason 4,000 workers were losing their jobs. "A significantly smaller team using the tools we're building can do more and do it better," Dorsey told analysts on Block's earnings call on Thursday following the news. One asked if his hat was appropriate given the context. Throughout the meeting, he was flooded with waves of emojis from muted participants, three attendees told Business Insider. Popular reactions were the thumbs-down, thinking face, and crying-laughing emojis, two people said. Some were laid off on Thursday; others lost their jobs in recent performance-based cuts. So it came as a shock to see half the company chopped in one fell swoop. The alarm over a potential white-collar jobs apocalypse has gotten louder in recent months. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has signaled that AI could lead to white-collar job cuts at the company. "I've seen a lot of public commentary about this layoff and how workers need to be using AI to protect our jobs," said one nontechnical worker laid off on Thursday. "I was actively building with AI and know that many of my impacted colleagues were doing the same." Dorsey has planted a flag in painting Block as an AI-forward company. He said on Thursday's earnings call that Block was "one of the first to harness agentic capabilities." And in July, Dorsey made headlines for using an internal coding tool called Goose to vibecode a "weekend project" that led to the messaging app Bitchat. Investors appeared to favor Dorsey's narrative of cutting costs with AI: After being down roughly 16% year to date before the layoffs, Block's stock ended Friday up nearly 17% on the day. "Jack loves AI and was constantly pushing us to use it," Ureña-Valdes said previously. One former software engineer said that Block had many internal AI demos and that her coworkers' feelings about AI were "mostly celebratory." Another former software engineer let go during performance cuts earlier in February said the company had warned that output expectations for engineers would increase. He said the company's head of engineering voiced productivity expectations that left them worried quality would suffer. After this week's layoffs, his team shrank from eight engineers to one. One employee laid off on Thursday said she had embraced AI at Block, but saw that it required human oversight. Inside Business stories reveal the inner workings of companies from Silicon Valley to Wall Street that are shaping our world today. Several researchers and former Block employees say they're skeptical about AI's actual role in the layoffs. "Block must have uncovered a secret sauce, perhaps within the software development process, to claim all of these jobs are AI-related," said Jason Schloetzer, a business professor at Georgetown's McDonough School of Business. On Thursday's earnings call, Dorsey said there has been a marked improvement in AI's capabilities and that "Block wanted to get ahead of this shift rather than be forced into it reactively." "And it's really shown a path forward in terms of us being able to apply it to nearly every single thing that we do." Some former Block employees, as well as others in the industry, said pandemic overhiring, rather than AI, spurred the layoffs — a common refrain for Big Tech in recent years. "They're not conducting audits of who took an AI course," Kaufman said. "They're making macro decisions about cost structure and organizational design. That's usually just looking at headcount and salary across the board." Being AI savvy, Kaufman said, "can increase productivity, but I don't think it is any way layoff insurance." Danielle Bell, a business communications professor at Northwestern University, said it's obvious the workforce — both inside Block and out — is worried about AI. This engineer said she noticed that performance reviews were moved up from their February start. "People were tense, even after good news would come through," she said. "Lots of rumors flying around the office in person."