Are you a gatekeeper or groveler?

Interstellar Returns.

With SpaceX now going public, the lunar economy may be closer than we expected. The company had retail traders and fund managers clamoring for a piece of interstellar history, paying $135 per share. The company is aiming to raise $75B at a $1.77T valuation, making it the largest IPO ever. But that doesn’t mean the company has clear skies ahead. Elon Musk’s extremely hands-on leadership remains a concern, especially as public criticism intensifies. Protesters plopped a large inflatable (and shirtless) Musk in the middle of Times Square yesterday as a public pushback against the IPO, and people gathered outside of NASDAQ ahead of the company’s official first day of trading.

Daddy Issues Be Damned.

US prices for May may have increased at their fastest rate in three years, but that’s not stopping consumers from celebrating the dads in their lives. Father’s Day spending is expected to hit a record $27.9B, with consumers spending an average of $226.58, up from last year’s $199.38 record. While most plan to keep it simple with greeting cards (60%) and clothing (58%), the 55% of consumers who plan to celebrate with a special outing expect to spend the most. This is an experience economy, after all. Mother’s Day saw a similar, though slightly more dramatic, increase year over year, with consumers spending a record $38B on the holiday, up from $34.1B in 2025.

‍

‍Craft Converts.

Etsy’s ad awareness among American adults has seen a nice jolt with the launch of its “Celebrate Being Human” campaign. While overall recall increased from 13% to 17%, awareness among women spiked from 14% to 24% over two weeks. The brand’s attention score also increased from 16% to 22% over the same period. 

“Celebrate Being Human” appears to be hitting consumers where it hurts the most: more than 80% of Etsy customers say they’re concerned about technology’s impact on society. The ad taps into the humanity tethered to creativity, and how supporting Etsy means you’re supporting a maker, and in turn, another human. The campaign comes after Etsy reported a 7.6% revenue jump, its sale of Depop, and a more focused portfolio strategy.

‍

Who Says Money Can’t Buy Love?

The US matchmaking industry is valued at nearly $1.5B, making it a hyper-niche, uber-profitable industry. And now, it’s getting even more specialized. Matchmakers are revealing that a very specific type of client (tech entrepreneurs) is acquiring their services to find a very specific type of trad wife. We explored the rise of trad-wife culture with bestselling author and journalist Jo Piazza, and what is most fascinating about its evolution is that it now has bipartisan appeal. The article explores the roots of the market demand and how it is powering one of the world’s most powerful commercial operations: romance.

Dollars and Scents. 

How does consumers’ interest in goods fluctuate as prices increase? For Sephora shoppers, interest in skincare drops by 50% with every unit increase in price. For fragrance, interest rises by 25% with the same price change, while makeup remains flat. The analysis delves into a deeper story about perceived value and how we calculate it through the lens of technological and emotional considerations. “Technological goods” have a very clear definition of what they should do. As a result, consumers measure their value based on their ability to fulfill their roles. For “contingent goods,” it becomes more abstract and depends on our personal beliefs, feelings, and experiences. 

‍

WWTCD at WWDC?

It’s been nearly 15 years since Steve Jobs’ passing, but any time Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference rolls around, we can’t help but wonder What Would Steve Jobs Do? This feeling was especially strong this year, as there were some major questions about Apple’s AI Vision. During WWDC, though, Apple rolled out a range of fixes to buggy features and officially unveiled Siri AI and the next wave of Apple Intelligence, which includes tab management for Safari, one-tap password updating, and cross-app context awareness. We weren’t alone in our skepticism, but overall, user response has been positive, especially because the major headlines address some major complaints about the foundational UI and experience.

Let the Chips Fall. 

Intel’s share prices are surging after The Information reported that Google has ordered more than 3M tensor processing units, its specialized AI chips. Nvidia is also determining whether Intel's technology can be used to build a processor that combines four graphics chips into a single unit, though no formal orders have been placed. The AI boom has led to a surge in chip demand and a possible market shakeout. The current market leader, Taiwan’s TSMC, is struggling to bring in enough supply, creating an ideal opening for Intel to gain more market share.