The Index Fund Problemtunity

We Hate the Inflation

This week: Inflation hit its highest rate in three years thanks to skyrocketing energy prices. Felix Salmon [https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:zxqezqfhjwidbrsvk66ded57], Elizabeth Spiers [https://www.elizabethspiers.com/], and Emily Peck [https://www.axios.com/authors/epeck], parse through what the various inflation numbers mean and discuss the Fed’s and Donald Trump’s blasé reaction to the situation. Then, with the trustees warning of its depletion by 2032, the hosts talk about the possible consequences of losing Social Security. And finally, they look at the natural experiment that revealed the unexpected connection between the iPhone and lower birth rates.  In the Slate Plus episode: Is Anthropic vs OpenAI the new Coke vs Pepsi? Want to hear that discussion and hear more Slate Money? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slate-money/id876523888] and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2AgxNbNcUOckZSww9mk8mX]. Or, visit slate.com/moneyplus [https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=plus_pod&utm_content=Money&utm_source=episode_summary] to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Money Talks: 500 Years of the Dollar

In this Money Talks: Author and financial journalist Brendan Greeley [https://www.ft.com/brendan-greeley] tells Elizabeth Spiers [https://www.elizabethspiers.com/] about his new book The Almighty Dollar [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/634502/the-almighty-dollar-by-brendan-greeley/]—and the astonishing power this currency held long before the founding of the United States. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slate-money/id876523888] and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2AgxNbNcUOckZSww9mk8mX]. Or, visit slate.com/moneyplus [https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=plus_pod&utm_content=Money&utm_source=episode_summary] to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

The Index Fund Problemtunity

This week: Google’s parent company announced an unexpected move to raise $80 billion for their AI ventures. Felix Salmon [https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:zxqezqfhjwidbrsvk66ded57], Elizabeth Spiers [https://www.elizabethspiers.com/], and guest host Mary Childs [https://www.marychilds.com/]– host of the new show Mary in America [https://www.youtube.com/@MaryinAmerica]–discuss the logic behind Alphabet's stock-based fundraise, which includes a $10 billion share sale to Berkshire-Hathaway.  Then, Mary explains why it’s getting harder for investors to avoid exposure to AI [https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/ai-ipo-stock-market-spacex-anthropic-openai.html] thanks to the index funds who are bending their rules for companies like SpaceX. And finally, they examine why Spain’s unemployment rate has dropped significantly [https://www.ft.com/content/eec2ec91-6e1f-4b6e-b59d-d5718a82a5be?syn-25a6b1a6=1] and what that tells us about the relationship between immigration and the labor market.    In the Slate Plus episode: Is “f— you” money a myth? Want to hear that discussion and hear more Slate Money? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slate-money/id876523888] and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2AgxNbNcUOckZSww9mk8mX]. Or, visit slate.com/moneyplus [https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=plus_pod&utm_content=Money&utm_source=episode_summary] to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli and Cheyna Roth. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Least Cool Ferrari Ever

This week: Ferrari revealed its new EV designed by Jony Ive and it looked so bad it became a meme. Felix Salmon [https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:zxqezqfhjwidbrsvk66ded57], Elizabeth Spiers [https://www.elizabethspiers.com/], and Emily Peck [https://www.axios.com/authors/epeck], discuss the reaction to the $640,000 Ferrari Luce and how this story fits into the overall state of the electric vehicle market. Then, the hosts dig into the stat dashboard the U.N. wants to replace GDP as the main prosperity metric and debate whether GDP is even relevant enough for it to matter. And finally, they’ll examine why the UK and Europe are still so resistant to air conditioning despite being plagued by deadly heatwaves [https://hannahritchie.substack.com/p/heat-guns-america-europe]. In the Slate Plus episode: The lawsuit loophole used to report on the JP Morgan sex scandal. Want to hear that discussion and hear more Slate Money? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slate-money/id876523888] and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2AgxNbNcUOckZSww9mk8mX]. Or, visit slate.com/moneyplus [https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=plus_pod&utm_content=Money&utm_source=episode_summary] to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli and Cheyna Roth. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Money Talks: What to Love About Limitations

In this Money Talks: Elizabeth Spiers [https://www.elizabethspiers.com/] is joined by David Epstein, author of Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/737494/inside-the-box-by-david-epstein/], who explains his research into how limitations often lead to breakthroughs. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slate-money/id876523888] and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2AgxNbNcUOckZSww9mk8mX]. Or, visit slate.com/moneyplus [https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=plus_pod&utm_content=Money&utm_source=episode_summary] to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli and Cheyna Roth. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.