👁️ Stripe is taking PayPal to the bank...
Welcome to Wednesday, futurists.
We didn’t expect to start the day with a major fintech shakeup, but here we are.
Stripe and Boston-based PE firm Advent have made a formal offer to acquire PayPal for $53B, a move that would combine a major provider of merchant-payments infrastructure with one of the world’s best-known consumer wallets. PayPal shares jumped about 15% earlier this morning following the news.
According to reports, Stripe was considering the purchase back in February, but early conversations never escalated. But the timing may be just right, considering PayPal’s continued turnaround efforts are only now starting to show momentum. Alex Chriss, who was initially hired to reverse the company’s poor performance, was replaced by Enrique Lores on March 1. For its Q1, which ended May 31, 2026, PayPal saw revenue hit $8.35 billion, up 7% year-over-year and ahead of its $8.05 billion estimate. Total payment volume reached $464 billion, a 11% increase over 2025, and an all-time high for the company.
This whopper of a headline just launched earlier today, and there is no formal comment from PayPal yet, so there is definitely more to come. For one, the deal will certainly face significant regulatory scrutiny, given the scope of the businesses involved. We’ll provide updates as soon as we have them.
But for now, the rest of the news. We’ve got the latest CPI data, Shein is (finally) going public, and OpenAI wants to be the new COO of your household.
Keep That Energy.
June's CPI fell 0.4%, the sharpest one-month drop since the 2020 crash. The headlines are treating it like a win, but if we look past the gas pump, there’s not much more to uncover. Energy dropped 5.7% (gasoline -9.7%), but core CPI sat relatively flat, especially in commodities. And while shelter rose just 0.1% in June, the smallest monthly gain since January 2021, it increased 3.3% year over year. This is a possible area to watch as we inch closer to the holiday shopping season. If consumers feel the squeeze on household expenses, it will undoubtedly trickle down to discretionary spending and gift-giving.
“Does This Suit Make Me Look Ripped?”
In a recent interview with Liza Amlani, a former Ralph Lauren exec-turned-consultant, we broke down how the normalization of GLP-1s has changed fashion trends. While sizing demand and inventory allocation are a big part of the conversation, a new Wall Street Journal piece confirms that aesthetic shifts are even trickling into men's fashion.
Our Take: There’s a valid argument that GLP-1s are having a much broader impact on the modern economy, from grocery sales and food formulations to airplane fuel usage. But one of the most fascinating cultural implications concerns how GLP-1s are shaping modern beauty standards. They have contributed to the protein-maxxing and looks-maxxing trends, both of which have come to the forefront following Louis Theroux’s 2026 documentary “Inside the Manosphere.”
A Shoo-In for Shein?
Shein may finally see its years-long dream of going public come true. After seeing setbacks in New York and London, the fast-fashion retailer has won approval for a Hong Kong IPO. Now, it can organize investor roadshows and prepare for hearings with the Hong Kong stock exchange’s listing committee to go public as early as September or October. Donald Tang, the company’s executive chairman who facilitated relationships with politicians, regulators, and investors, is expected to step down as a result.
You Reap What You Sow.
General Mills, Walmart, and ADM are working together to drive regenerative agriculture across 40,000 acres of Midwest wheat. For initial projects, the companies will tap American Farmland Trust and Ducks Unlimited for technical assistance to improve soil health, water quality, and carbon sequestration. This partnership aligns with the initial commitment General Mills and Walmart made in 2023 to advance regenerative agriculture across 600,000 shared acres by 2030. Programs are underway across more than 560,000 wheat acres in the US.
No Quiero Diarrhea.
Taco Bell is being investigated for its role in the cyclosporiasis outbreak wreaking havoc on US citizens. The foodborne illness that causes “explosive” diarrhea and dehydration is found in many types of produce, especially lettuce. Some Taco Bell locations have already stopped serving lettuce, pico de gallo, guacamole, and cilantro as a result.
Spricy News.
Coca-Cola has filed a trademark application for the term “Spricy,” giving us possible hints into its innovation pipeline. The company filed the trademark on July 9, noting it has a “bona fide intention” of using the phrase for soft drinks. Coca-Cola launched a spiced version of its classic soda in 2024, but it was discontinued seven months later. This could be a way for the company to formally get into the savory soda game, which started as a niche social media trend.
OpenAI Wants to Be Your Home’s New COO.
A new Bloomberg report claims that OpenAI is working on a top-secret, screen-free smart speaker for the home. Unnamed sources call it a “humanlike AI companion” that will act as your home's Chief Operating Officer, controlling smart-home functions, media playback, and interactive responses. Built upon the core features of ChatGPT, the device will integrate with existing accounts and become more personalized and proactive over time.
The device leak comes as OpenAI navigates some legal woes tied to, you guessed it, hardware. Apple sued the company and two former employees, alleging a coordinated effort to steal confidential product information to support OpenAI’s push into the sector. This could be a months- or years-long endeavor, and with Apple selling its own home speaker (HomePod), who knows how this will impact OpenAI’s anticipated release.
All Stuffed Up.
Phia, the AI shopping startup funded by major celebs ranging from Khloé Kardashian to Hailey Bieber, has been accused of taking credit on purchases it didn’t actually generate. The accusations come from a Bloomberg investigation, and a separate one from an independent consultant and a competitor.
Phia has raised more than $40M for its browser extension, which is designed to help shoppers find the lowest-priced items across various retailers and find the best discount codes to use. The company follows an affiliate marketing revenue model, so it takes a cut from every purchase made. Bloomberg alleged that even when a user visited a retailer site on their own or through another affiliate program, Phia would open a new tab in the background and override referral codes from other sources to inject their own. This “cookie stuffing” allows the app to take credit for a sale, even if it didn’t play a role in that specific shopping journey.
Many are now associating the business with Honey, the PayPal-owned app that has been the subject of class-action lawsuits alleging similar cookie-stuffing practices.
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