The Best One Yet - 🍜 “Gastrodiplomacy 101” — Korea’s kimchi capitalism. Gmail’s blue checkmark. Clear’s looooong line challenge.

Episode Date: May 30, 2023

Fourteen years ago, South Korea’s government made a strategic decision that would change the future of its economy: Encourage Koreans living abroad to open Korean restaurants… aka “Gastrodiplomacy.” Notice something new in your inbox? Gmail has zucked Twitter’s blue checkmark. And since you finished the 3-day weekend in traffic or on the tarmac, we’ve got to look at Clear Secure — Because Clear’s greatest challenge is its own success.$ME $GOOG $METARecorded at Spotify Studios LA Want merch, a shoutout, or got TheBestFactYet? Go to: www.tboypod.comFollow The Best One Yet on Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok: @tboypodAnd now watch us on YoutubeLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. Welcome back. It is Tuesday, May 30th. From Spotify Studios in Los Angeles, today's pod is the best one yet. Go. Kid Chris, I just want to get that out of the way.

I just want to get that out of the way. I was going to tap you at one point on today's pot. Yeties, we've recorded this episode on Friday at the end of our Datchelor Party trip in Los Angeles. But then Jack and I over the weekend, we redid the beginning of the show because of two big pieces of news. First, we got ourselves a debt-sealing deal. We got a debt-sealing deal. Debt ceiling deal, Jack, raise the roof, literally. We haven't been told all the details on the debt deal yet, but it looks like America won't default.

White House says we have a deal when we get the info. More on that tomorrow. It's great news. And the second bit of news is that Waystar Royco just held the most important board meeting in company history. I mean, it's like a huge week for the Roy family, Jack. Huge week. More on that tomorrow, too. In the meantime, Jack, what's our first story for today's show? You may have noticed a new Gmail feature in your inbox. Yes. Blue check marks. Yeties, this isn't about vanity. It's about sanity. For our second story, Clear, the eyeball scanning travel company was supposed to get you through the airport quick. But Clear has found itself a bottleneck problem. And our third and final story

is South Korea. Yes, it is. If you've noticed more Korean restaurants in your neighborhood, you're right. Jack, we got to talk about gastro diplomacy. And we have to talk about the Korean Food Globalization Task Force. And we have to talk about about calorie capitalism. And bin, B'bem Bap. I'm not sure who pronounced that correctly. Yet.

But yet, he's, before we hit that wonderful mix. What a mix for a four-day week? You're looking fantastic, by the way. You're glowing over there. Am I? You're looking great. Gosling? It's the sun.

Borders Almanac Week 167. Things were running out in this economy. Jack and I have been keeping track for you. This week, we are running out of olive oil. We repeat, not a shortage of Crude oil. Crude oil is a plenty. Olive oil is not a plenty.

The more virgin the oil, the more extra the shortage. The reason we have a shortage of olive oil is that Spain is suffering a huge draft. Spain, what's going on? Apparently, Bartholona has had its hottest year ever, and that's a problem. That's a problem because, get this, half of all olive oil in the world. Yes. Comes from Spain. We repeat, one out of every two teaspoons of olive oil is Spanish olive oil.

Spain is the OPEC of olive oil. Spain, you're Saudi Arabia. The grapeia on the olive oil for us. And Spain just had the smallest olive oil crop in 30 years. No Spanish olives, price of oil jumps. That's what we're facing. California and Italy, they're doing their best to make up for it. We're trying to pump it out.

We're trying to get those squeeze. But olive oil prices are popping like a frying pan that's too high. Jack, there, like six grandmas over there stopping on the olives trying to get more oil out. Let's get to the numbers. The price of olive oil is up 46% right now from last year. Yeties, it's a catastrophe for your capraising. And don't talk to us about alternative oils. What he don't want to hear about your nut oil fun?

You can't put can't put canola oil on a cell. Yeah, I can't put vegetable oil on anything. So pasta primavera is about to get pricey. Yeah, your pops pizza, it's about to be a problem. This is a major blow to Baba Ganesh. Oh, an obstacle for the olive oil. Extra virgin olive oil. It's more extra.

And honestly, we can't squeeze our way out of this one. Literally. We can't. Literally. Get me some butter instead. Let's hit our three stories. before this song. Two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm. They had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is a norm. I don't even think they need to practice. 50%

that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're ready to go. We can't wait no more, so just start the show. Start the show. For our first story, Yeties, you may have noticed something in your email lately. Blue checkmarks. Blue check marks. Gmail is launching blue checkmarks because, Vanity beats vanity. The blue check mark. It's really, what would you say, Jack? It's become the Tiffany's necklace of social media.

You know what I want for my birthday? I just want a blue checkmark. In April, we told you that the blue checkmark had transformed from a badge to a fashion accessory. Instead of verifying that this was a famous person, Twitter started selling blue check marks, didn't they, Jack? Yes, they did. For eight bucks a month, you could buy a blue check mark on Twitter. Funny thing, right after Twitter did that. What did Zuck over at Meta?

do. Zuck does what Zuck does. Yes, he copied the idea. He did. He brought it to Facebook and Instagram. He started charging check marks on those platforms for 15 bucks a month. Well, get this, Yetis. Now everyone in tech is copying each other. It is a stage five zucking. Pinterest has check marks. Tinder has check marks.

Other ones have check marks, but we just can't think of any. The blue check marks become the social equivalent of a humble brand. Yes, it has Jack. A digital signal of legitness, not officialness. Exactly. So Yeties, here's what shocked Jack and me over the last few weeks.

For the first time ever, the blue checkmark is jumping from social media to regular media. Gmail has added blue check marks. Yes, it has. We started seeing them first on May 3rd. And at first, Jack and I'm like, okay, this is interesting. Let's see if we get more emails like this. Why is the New York Times have a blue checkmark next to it? Why does the official Netflix email have a blue checkmark next to it?

Coyo sneakers wants me to buy Coyo sneakers. Coyo sneakers are great. I just ordered a pair of Coyo sneakers, Jack. Why do they have a blue checkmark? It's interesting. There's a blue checkmark next to it. Gmail has blue checkmarks now. And this isn't just a jump from social media to a more functional app like your inbox.

This is what Jack and I thought was fascinating. This is a jump to a massive user base for the blue check mark. Gmail is huge. It is. Over half of all emails in the U.S. are Gmail. But Nick and I think it's way more than that. Full disclosure, Jack, our baby hasn't been born yet, but I've already secured the g-mails. Yes, I've secured the g-mails.

We don't even have the name picked out, but. I've got a few options. Baby Martel at Gmail.com. It's like real estate. You got to grab these g-mails before they're gone. So now Gmail has blue check marks. They are verifying businesses to make sure they are who they say they are. But Jack and I think Gmail is doing this for a very different purpose than everyone else.

So Gossling, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Gmail? If the number one trending word right now is AI, then the number two trending word will be verified. Yeties, every one of you has a gmailing. You just do. And Google depends on keeping that space safe. Because your inbox is your source of truth. Yes, it is. It is where a lot of your personal, intimate information exists.

I mean, think about this, besties. Unlike social media apps, your inbox for email, it holds your receipts, pictures of your driver's license. It probably has your social security number, right? We've all emailed their social security numbers to ourselves. We've all done that. But with sophisticated artificial intelligence, the risk of impersonation and scams is higher than ever. So verified Gmail, it is.

It isn't about giving your ego a boost like Twitter or Pinterest or Instagram or doing. No, verified Gmail is to verify that the sender is who they say they are. Exactly. Because AI could power a flood of fake email scans. The way Jack and I see it, this isn't about vanity. It's about sanity. Because if AI is the number one trending word, then the number two word should be verified. For our second story, South Korea wanted to boost trade and relations with the United States.

And they decided to do it through an interesting strategy. through food. They're doing it through food. It's called gastro diplomacy. Yes, it is. And it's one, the hearts and minds of Americans. Okay, Yetis, first of all, one rule you should have in your life, at least one night every year should end with karaoke in Koreatown.

Yeah. Just the thing. Even though the Roy children hate karaoke. That was like an awkward one, wasn't it? I love karaoke. It was a great karaoke. Leave on it. Elton John, that's my go-to.

I don't know why, but that's my go-to. Yeah. You're just gosling being gosling over there. Yeties, here's what Jack and I wanted to chat with you about. Have you noticed there are more Korean tastes and smells around you lately? Have you noticed more of those hot stone bowl bibbibabs recently? Have you noticed craving those Bimbi Boles lately? Hold that thought for a second.

Who won the Oscar for Best Picture three years ago? Well, Jack, that best picture was the Korean film, Parasite. What's the number one most recognized pop group in the world right now? Well, Jack, that would be K-pop's BTS boy band. And what is the top country getting investments from Netflix outside of the world? of the United States. Yeties, this is wild. Netflix's biggest investment outside the United States

is $2.5 billion in Korean schmovies. Little old South Korea. It's actually a top 10 economic power in the world. It's actually ahead of Russia in terms of GDP. It's got Kia. It's got Hyundai. It's got Samsung. It's got LG.

Jack, what was our favorite dish over at Momafuku? The bosom pork. The bosom pork. It was huge and it was spectacular. It was real. It was fantastic. Eddie's last week, Jack and I talked to you about the year of Japan. Japan is having a moment. Their stock market was at a 33-year high. They had the G7. They had a lot of things going on.

But honestly, Korea is having a moment as well. But Korea's been having a moment for a few years, and it's for a very particular reason. The reason for South Korea's economic moment is all thanks to a government plan set up 14 years ago focused on food. Here was the problem, Yeties. Let's go back to 2009. Korea was ranked number 33 on the list of top travel countries, and the government wasn't happy about that. So the president of South Korea set a goal to hit the top 15 most traveled two countries for tourists.

And they decided to do it through food. Interesting strategy, Cotton. Let's see if that works out for it. Well, that same year, South Korea's government created the Korean Food Globalization Task Force. That sounds intimidating, Jack. Let me say that again. The Korean Food Globalization Task Force. And here's what the thesis was.

If people in America or other countries enjoy Korean food, then they're more likely to travel to Korea or buy Korean products. Interesting thesis. So they gave the task force $40 million. $40 million. To encourage Koreans living abroad to open up Korean restaurants abroad. Okay, now this is wild. They didn't just give them money with this $40 million. They provided business plans and templates and even recipes for how to make the perfect Korean barbecue.

They wanted to make it as easy as possible. For a Korean American, for example, in L.A. to open a Korean restaurant. And then they got strategic with this. They invested in, like, top-tier white-glove fancy restaurants so that those restaurants would get, like, press attention for Korean food. But they also helped quadrupled the number of regular old neighborhood Korean restaurants. And then this is what Jack and I love about this.

They went even further. They created the World Kimchi Institute. We repeat the World Kimchi Institute. To make sure that kimchi is being made properly. So it's delicious and the reputation goes up. You got to standardize that cabbage, Jack, before you ferment it. Which is why season four of White Lotus is going to be in Korea. It is definitely going to be in Korea.

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over in South Korea? What Korea has pulled off is known as gastro diplomacy. Gastro diplomacy. Yet he's, that's a concept coined by the economist, gastro diplomacy. Or Jack and I like to call it calorie capitalism. It's when you use food to build a cultural connection abroad and then parlay that into good trade and good diplomas. Well, Jack and I jumped in T-boy style.

Turns out Thailand institutionalized gastro-diplomacy before South Korea did. Thailand created an administration for Thai restaurants abroad way back in 2002. Same concept here. Simply said, food connects people. And relationships built on food can grow. But a relationship built on turbines

or other economic things, that's less likely to grow. Gastro diplomacy. It's when countries use food to win friends and win trade. And Korea has pulled it off with the United States. For our third and final story,

Clear Secure. You've seen it at airports. And it's growing fast as frequent flyers want to breeze through TSA. But the biggest challenge to Clear maybe Clears success. Yetis, you just got back

from a travel weekend. Actually, you may still be on the way back from a travel weekend right now. Right, you might be. What's the slowest thing in the world? I mean, the slowest thing in the world, Jack, is a line you do not want to be in a line in.

That's the slowest. thing in the world. It's the worst thing. And that's why you may be listening to us in a line right now. And Clear Secure was created to solve that long line. Exactly. Specifically at the airport, Clear Secure is for getting through the long lines at an airport faster. It's a publicly traded company worth $4 billion, which means it's more valuable than less. And here's the business. Instead of a human scanning your ID with their eyeballs, Clear scans your eyeballs. It's a biometrics company. Exactly. 16 million people are enrolled into their eye and palm scanning programs. That's up from the 12 million last year.

So they've grown by 30%. It's a big business. 16 million people are paying $189 a year for their subscription. And you know who those 16 million people are because they've told you that they have clear. And they've told you you should get clear. Full disclosure, this is Nick. And Jack, you should come join me. I'm in the lounge already.

I'm not 100% convinced I need. It's true, it's true. Well, last quarter they launched in 12 new airports, including Bradley. Bradley International. The old BDL. Shout out Hartford. The home of the Whalers. But yet he's here.

What is what Jack and I found fascinating about this story. There's a really interesting challenge facing Clear. Well, the first impression is the only impression for Clear. Unlike a Netflix subscription, you only interact with Clear infrequently. You only interact with Clear when you go to the airport. Right. Which is, I don't know, 10 times a year? Yeah, let's say it's 10 times a year.

Well, you only actually interact with Clear for two minutes when you're at the airport. So Clear has just two minutes every month to prove they're worth that $189. bucks. Two minutes, that's it. That is a small margin of error. And according to Bloomberg reporting, it is increasingly unclear to Clear members if Clear is worth it. Because of the long lines. Not the long TSA standard security lines. No, no, no, no, good point. Long lines for Clear, which is supposed to have no lines. On my flight down to L.A. Jack, I was waiting in a line and it was a clear line. So Clear's got problems with its core product and it's still unprofitable. That's why the stock is down 50% from its IPO.

Clear needs a fix. And we have got a takeaway. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Clear? If everybody cuts in line, then there will be a line of line cutters. Yeties, those are the prophetic words of a former TSA airport agent. It's a fascinating issue for Clear. Clear is the victim of its own success. Here's the funny problem, Clear faces.

So many people have signed up to skip the line with Clear that Clear now has a line. Clear is trying to hire more people so that their long line gets short again. But no matter how many people they hire, there is still an existential limit to Clear's business. Because if everybody cuts in line, then there's going to be a line of line cutters. Yeah. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us for the four-day week? Blue check marks have arrived in your Gmail to combat scams and impersonation. Yeah, ladies, when it comes to your inbox, it's not about vanity, it's about sanity.

For our second story, South Korea's food moment has turned into... a trade, tourism, and international relations moment. What Korea pulled off was gastro diplomacy, calorie capitalism. And our third and final story is clear, secure. Their members are frustrated that it might not be worth it anymore. It's like an existential thought. If everybody cuts in line, then the line cutters will have a line. And then they'll want to get back into the old line.

Which no longer has a line. I think we found the trick here, check. I think we found the loophole. Now, time for the best fact yet. sent in by a couple legendary Yetis who teamed up Savannah Westwood from Florida and Kelsey Black from Texas. The mango. The mango. Oh, the mango. We just love that mango, don't we?

The mango is a powerful fruit. It's hard to cut open, but it is great to indulge it. The mango is actually the national fruit of not one, not two, but three countries. Which has got to be a record for any type of fruit. I don't think the blueberry's got four, man. It's the national fruit of Pakistan and India and the Philippines. And the reason why, Jack? Mangoes are the most commonly eaten fruit in the world.

Yeties, you look fantastic today. Jack, you've been looking glowing all week, Mr. Gosling. You're looking great. It's the whole skincare routine. You're looking great. Go on. Yeties, the datchel party continues until the debt ceiling gets fixed. Yes, so Congress, help us out over here.

If you want to see some videos, Jack and I whipped up over the weekend to go to T-BoyPod on Instagram. That's at T-Boy Pot. see you there? Yes. We'll see you tomorrow. Can't wait. And before we go, congratulations to Yeti Dochong, who's launching a durian fruit brand. That is a powerful fruit, by the way, down in Oklahoma. Congratulations to Dan Wilkinson, who got promoted down in New Zealand. And Lucas and Mika just got engaged where they met on the campus of Santa Clara University. Congratulations to Amy and Tyler Perlmutter, who just had a baby girl named Remy Lou in Chicago. Congratulations. And Kendra and Ben, they got a seven

10th anniversary down in Shreveport, Louisiana. Happy anniversary to Stacey Hoffman and Matt Clayman in Brooklyn. And Jared Simpson, congrats on that first year of law school in the books down in Pittsburgh. And Nick, like Adama, just got a job again. Okay. Which means she and her partner are dicks. They just became dinks. And a happy birthday and MBA graduation to Jonah Berg over in Evanston, Illinois at Kellogg.

Happy birthday to Gillian Steyer's Barnett in Greenwood, Indiana. Samir Kan Bai, happy birthday down in Providence, Rhode Island on Federal Hill. Happy 11th birthday to Miles Vaski, who's ripping Twan down in Wheeling, West Virginia. And Chuka, enjoy that 35th birthday down the street in lovely Los Angeles. Happy 70th birthday to Mike Thompson in Mansfield, Ohio. And Jarrett Pras is celebrating his birthday by taking the kids to school in Bel Air, Texas. Jarith, give him a big hug for us. Celebrate the wins.

This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix, and I also own stock. of clear, even though I'm not a clear member. And Nick is. I've had too much coffee. I mean, I've only had one before breakfast. And then there was the second breakfast. You're like a Hobbit.

Well, that was my pre-coffee. That didn't count as a coffee. You see this Hobbit stuff. I don't know how you know about this. Because I know you don't watch the movie. I don't know how you know. That coffee doesn't count. That was advertiser coffee.

What about second breakfast? What about elevensey's coffee?