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Space

The first-ever commercial space mission just launched… and already made history

At least they have a billionaire on board in case they need to stop for gas. On Tuesday morning, SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission kicked off with the launch of the four-person civilian crew that attempted the first-ever private space walk. However, the mission was already one for the record books.

It took a while to liftoff: Originally scheduled for August 26, SpaceX withdrew from the launch to conduct additional preflight inspections when they discovered a helium leak, thus deciding to try again the next day. However, inclement weather caused the launch to be postponed multiple times before Mother Nature finally gave in this Tuesday.

Who’s on board?

Jared Isaacman, a multibillionaire entrepreneur, is captaining SpaceX's Dragon capsule for the mission (and also funding it), along with former Air Force pilot Scott "Kidd" Poteet, and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

• Polaris Dawn is Issacman’s second launch to orbit, as well as the second space mission he has backed with his own finances.

This is the first of three planned SpaceX spaceflights called the Polaris Program, which aims to advance space technology and exploration for moon and Mars expeditions.

Record-breaking run

Only hours after being launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, SpaceX confirmed the crew had reached a peak altitude of 870 miles (1,400 kilometers), which surpassed the record set by NASA’s 1966 Gemini 11 mission.

• Menon and Gillis are now the highest-flown women in history.

• The milestone marks the highest point achieved by a crewed mission in more than a half-century… and it was by civilians.

However, the main focal point of the Polaris Dawn mission was the commercial spacewalk, which had never been done before in history. The walk in the vacuum of space is the culmination of years of development and research.

What else will they be doing up there? Until Sunday, the crew will be testing an excess of things, such as Starlink laser-based communications systems, medical technologies, and the new cutting-edge SpaceX spacesuits (check them out here).

Regulation

After 8 years, Ireland will receive $14 billion from Apple

I think the only thing they’d want more than the $14B is potatoes and whiskey. In a major victory for European regulators, the European Union's Court of Justice upheld a decision Tuesday forcing Apple to pay billions in back taxes to Ireland after an eight-year battle.

How’d that happen

Apple was required to pay back what it owed in 2016 after the executive branch of the EU found that Ireland gave Apple unfair tax breaks. Well, that was eight years ago. So why was it drawn out for so long?

Because both Apple and Ireland fought the case.

• Apple obviously just didn’t want to pay the $14 billion, totally understandable. But Ireland didn’t want to receive it either.

• The country wanted to maintain that it was business-friendly and keep Apple’s business flowing in the country, even with $14 billion on the table.

Regardless, the eight-year-long legal battle ended with Tuesday’s ruling by the European Commission:

• Apple claims they “there has never been a special deal,” although other companies were never allowed the same tax arrangements (since it is illegal).

• Ireland stood firm that it doesn’t give preferential tax treatment to companies… but said it will still accept the money.

So what will they do with the $14 billion (besides buy beer)? No one is completely sure, but the huge sum amounts to about 15% of the nation’s upcoming budget, and with elections on the horizon it will certainly be a topic of discussion.

Fun fact: Former two-division UFC champion, Connor McGregor, expressed his interest in running for the Republic of Ireland's presidential race in 2025. The retired UFC star said “I am the only logical choice,” on social media.

Google grilled by the DOJ for the second time this year

Antitrust regulators keep stacking up wins against big tech, and now Google has been through the wringer twice. For the second time in less than a year, Google appeared in court Monday to defend itself after being declared a monopoly by antitrust regulators.

The new lawsuit could not only cost the globe’s biggest online advertiser a significant portion of its ad revenue but also change how you see advertising online. It might even break up Google from its advertising unit.

Yet another lawsuit

A federal judge criticized Google's hegemony in search engine dominance as anti-competitive about a month ago. Now, regulators are attempting to demonstrate that Google unjustly controls the digital ad market as well.

The Department of Justice, joined by a group of several states, said this about Google’s online advertising:

• Google holds a huge portion of the market share in its package of products for ad sellers (91%), ad buyers (40% to 80%), and real-time ad auctioning (at least 50%).

  • Securing a monopoly on the software that powers both the supply and demand sides enables Google to retain 36% of every dollar invested in advertising deals that it conducts.

On the contrary: Google claims the government’s case is outdated, as they focused on website ads instead of what the market has expanded to, like apps, streaming, and social media. The company compared the DOJ’s case to a “time capsule with a Blackberry, an iPod, and a Blockbuster video card.”

• The tech giant also argued that it owns a large portion of the market because it’s simply the best product.

However, the DOJ says that still doesn’t allow you to stifle competition. Neal Mohan, the CEO of YouTube, will testify that Google has occasionally forced ad vendors to adopt an all-or-nothing approach, making them use all Google features or none at all to discourage them from using rivals' products.

End game: The government is looking for Google to cut ties with its Ad Manager unit, which would hypothetically open up competition and allow for better privacy regulations in online advertising.

This cannabis startup pioneered “rapid onset” gummies

Most people prefer to smoke cannabis but that isn’t an option if you’re at work or in public.

That’s why we were so excited when we found out about Mood’s new Rapid Onset THC Gummies. They can take effect in as little as 5 minutes without the need for a lighter, lingering smells or any coughing.

Nobody will ever know you’re enjoying some THC.

We recommend you try them out because they offer a 100% money-back guarantee. And for a limited time, you can receive 20% off with code FIRST20.

Shop Now.

Grab Bag

Apple’s iPhone 16 event was glowing

Amid a plethora of problems, like antitrust suits and meager sales, Apple is looking for a ‘glow up’. The tech giant held its “Glowtime” event on Monday, revealing its new product lineup and showcasing how Apple Intelligence AI software will be integrated into the products.

The new iPhone

If you want to upgrade or just want to know the deets on Apple’s newest piece of tech, here’s the rundown:

Tech:

• The phone sports a new A18 chip, which Apple says is 30% faster than the iPhone 15’s while using 30% less power.

  • Its GPU is also 40% faster than the previous model.

• It will have increased battery life, processing power, as well as better water and dust resistance (plus no fall damage).

Physical changes:

• The iPhone 16 has two cameras: a 48-megapixel main camera and a new autofocusing ultra-wide camera.

  • The latter boasts the “equivalent” of four lenses by using a 2x crop mode and macro mode.

• It comes with a new “Action Button” and Camera Control button, which allows you to tap or swipe to control the camera app and a simple press to take a picture.

Performance:

• It features better gaming performance (thanks to the new chip) and ray-tracing capabilities, so they look better than ever.

  • The new phone will be able to run AAA games like Fortnite, Resident Evil 4, and Assassins Creed Mirage.

AI:

The iPhone 16 will be the first model to fully utilize Apple Intelligence, with plenty of new features:

• Siri got an AI upgrade, allowing the iPhone assistant to find info lodged deep in your phone for you, summarize and send emails and texts, and send photos from your camera roll.

• The highly anticipated ability to make custom emojis using AI.

• A new Visual Intelligence feature, which could pull up the breed of a dog that you take a picture of, for example.

  • You’ll be able to use this feature with the new Camera Control button.

The iPhone 16, like the previous models, will come in the standard version and a larger iPhone 16 Plus option (which is a little over half an inch bigger). The standard model starts at $799 while the Plus model starts at $899 and both have 128 GB of storage (without upgrades). They’re set for release on the 20th, with preorders starting on the 13th.

That wasn’t all: Other products Apple talked about were the Apple Watch, which is 10% slimmer but has a larger screen, the next-gen (😏) AirPods Pro 2, which has a premium version with a hearing-aid feature, and its new camera features, which The Weeknd recorded a music video with. See a full overview here.

Onlyfans is only getting more fans

Don’t worry, you don’t have to pretend you don’t know what this one is. The self-proclaimed “subscription social platform” posted very strong earnings late last week, proving yet again that OnlyFans is yet to hop off its post-pandemic boom.

So strong, in fact, that the owner of the platform, Leonid Radvinsky, was paid a $472 million dividend last year alone. Since 2020, Radvinsky has earned over $1 billion from the subscription platform.

OnlyGrowing (not like that)

The adult content business continues to show that it’s an industry that won’t slow down. OnlyFans, despite its 18+ age limit, has enough fans to keep business booming:

• Spending on the platform increased to a record $6.6 billion in 2023, with a 28% increase in users to 305 million.

  • The number of creators grew as well, rising 29% to 4.1 million.

• In November 2023, revenue reached $1.3 billion, a 20% increase, while profits reached $485.5 million, another 20% increase.

Why is it making so much money? User-generated content, which is an extremely profitable business model. Creators sell pretty much anything, like videos, pictures, and private messaging, which happen through a single purchase or subscriptions to gain access to reoccurring content.

Oh, and OnlyFans gets 20% of all profits on the platform.

Standing out: OnlyFans has over double the sales of MindGeek, which operates the biggest adult content sites in the world (just Google it).

Fast Facts

Catching Cats: A study found that four out of 10 cats can play fetch, a much higher share than originally thought, especially among dog supremacists. 

Mushroom Machines: Scientists at the University of Cornell made biohybrid robots that are powered by a king oyster mushroom that has its mycelium intertwined with the hardware.

Weapons Firing: A Navy commander was relieved of his duties after a photo surfaced of him using a rifle with the scope mounted backward, prompting a “loss of confidence” in his ability to command. That’s embarrassing.

Galaxy Guess: Photos from the James Webb Telescope show three galaxies forming what resembles a question mark in outer space. I’m just as confused as the stars are. 

Crypto Quit: The business Puffpaw raised $6 million to market unique e-cigarettes that give cryptocurrency tokens to users who cut back on their nicotine usage. That’s one way to quit.