The Best One Yet - 🚘 “I own a Waymo” — Toyota’s self-driving deal. Domino’s pizza paradox. The Year-Round Horror Economy.

Starting point is 00:00:00 This is Nick. This is Jack. It is Thursday, the new Friday. May the first. And today's pod is the best one yet. This is T-boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. Yeah, it is breaking news.

Starting point is 00:00:14 Jacks and my children have broken the contract. This morning, Brooks woke up at 5.50 a.m. That's not the deal. No, no, that's not the deal. The deal is we provide food, shelter, and emotional support. And the children in exchange... You give us peace and quiet. morning. You can't wake up until 7 a.m. That's part of the deal, guys. 5.50. That is unacceptable.

Starting point is 00:00:36 So yeah, Nick and I are short on sleep this morning. We don't know what to do about that. But in the meantime, we got three amazing stories for you, Jack, three fantastic tea boys for the show. What do we got, buddy? For our first story, the best way for us to explain the trade war to you today is with the pizza paradox. The pizza paradox. If Domino's pizza is tariff-proof, then why are sales down? For our second story, This one's wild. Waymo just partnered with Toyota to make your personal car a self-driving one, because the biggest business rivalry of the next year will be Google versus Tesla. And our third and final story. Today is officially the halfway point to Halloween, and yet Halloween is everywhere already. So Jack and I will tell you the economic reason

Starting point is 00:01:24 why horror has become a full year in the street. But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful of stories. Whoa, what a fantastic mix of stories. Love the mix today, Jack. The number one meme that's dividing the internet right now. What is it, Nick? Jack, it is 100 men versus one gorilla. The whole internet is wondering, can 100 men beat one gorilla in a fight? A lot of debate out there. A lot of guys, like our buddy Timmy, think they can take down a big ape. True story. I mean, a gorilla can bench press three to four times its weight, Nick. But in the meantime, can we even do one pull-up? Not anymore. But at T-boy, we want to to ask a better question, a business version of the question. And here it is, can 100 men out

Starting point is 00:02:06 earn one gorilla? Who can earn more money? A hundred American men or one gorilla? So Jack and I jumped in T-boy style and we whipped up the numbers for you. All right, here it is. The average man in the United States earned $60,000 a year. Dipso facto, 100 men would earn $6 million a year. But now let's look at the primate. Zoos estimate that gorillas drive 20% of ticket sales. And the Bronx Zoo in New York City has 20 gorillas. And the Bronx Zoo generates $346 million in annual revenue. So, Jack, what's the math on this one? 20% of $356 million divided by 20 gorillas is $3.5 million per gorilla. Add it all up. And 100 men make $6 million, while a single gorilla at a zoo makes $3.5 million. So 100 dudes barely bring home more bread than one gorilla does.

Starting point is 00:02:58 It looks like it doesn't even matter if 100 men could beat one gorilla in a fist fight. Human kind is evolved when it comes to earnings potential. Although it does take 58 of us to out-earn a gorilla. And I still can't do a pull-up. Hey, internet, we just solved the 100 men-vers-one-gorilla question. And again, we barely won me. You're welcome. Let's hit our three stories.

Starting point is 00:03:17 Fifteen years 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. Jack Nick, that's it. 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.

Starting point is 00:03:37 We can't wait no more. So just start the show. Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor. For our first story, Domino's and Pizza Hut just announced earnings bragging that they are America's tariff-proof food. So why did they both also announce that their pizza sales are down? Weird. The answer is the pizza paradox.

Starting point is 00:04:10 The pizza paradox. But yet is, Trade War Almanac Day 30. How tariffs are messing with the economy, Jack and I have been keeping track for you from the tariff trenches. Basically, every day, we found a different angle on the most important story of this economy. And the most important tariff story today, what is it, Jack? It's covered in lactose, meat, and basically 800 calories.

Starting point is 00:04:32 If you round down, pizza, it is the most tariff-proof meal in the United States. And in this economy, it is recession-resistant, baby. Just look at Domino's. They get nearly 100% of their ingredients within the United States. True story. Their cheese, their bread, their sausage. It's all made in the U.S.S. Pause the pod.

Starting point is 00:04:49 Shocker, Domino's is not importing mozzarella from Naples every week like your thought. So from a supply perspective, pizza is protected from this trade war. Basically, your pepperoni ain't from Poolea. It's from Pittsburgh, and that is good for the economics. So pizza sales should be popping, right, Nick? Yeah, they should be popping, Jack. It's tariff-proof. But they're not.

Starting point is 00:05:10 Domino's just announced that for the average store in the United States, their sales shrank in the first quarter. Sales at Domino shrank, even though Domino's just launched Stuff-Crust pizza. Just two days later, Pizza Hut announced their earnings and their sales shrank in the first quarter, too. Honestly, Papa Johns announces earnings next week, and we're predicting it's going to look more like Papa Ron's. In fact, Young Brands, the company that owns Pizza Hut,

Starting point is 00:05:34 it's the perfect patry dish to examine our eating trends right now. Exactly, Jack. Because Yum brands also owns Taco Bell, and Taco Bell's sales jumped by 9% last quarter. They also owned KFC, and fried chicken sales also jumped in the first quarter. So we're staring at this pepperoni problem right now, and Pizza Hut is the only brand owned by Yum whose sales just shrank. 100% American-made pizza should be the unofficial food of the trade war. Why isn't it? Jack, I'm even looking at Detroit-style pizza, which I know is your favorite style of pizza? It's Chicago deep dish, but it comes in a restaurant.

Starting point is 00:06:08 rectangular pan. Even Detroit-style pizza sales are down, so Jack wants the takeaway for our buddies who are everyone consuming pizza. Pizza is tariff-proof. Frozen pizza is recession-proof, too. And that is the pizza paradox. Yeties, here's the surprise. Restaurant-made pizza is tariff-proof, like Jack just said, but it is still affected by tariffs indirectly. Consumers are still eating pizza right now, but they're choosing frozen pizza. In fact, it is a resurgence. It is a recession indicator that Jack and I have seen before. 2009, the pandemic, frozen pizza sales jumped 20%.

Starting point is 00:06:45 In this economy, you do want pizza, but you're sticking a tombstone in the microwave instead. Hey, Ma, let's toss in the Red Barons, Pronto. I was shopping at Costco this weekend. Yeah, Jack? They sell a four pack of Kirkland frozen pizzas for $13.

Starting point is 00:07:00 It's like three slices of dominoes. Dominoes can't compete with that. No, no, no, they can't. And yet that is the pizza paradox of the trade war. Pizas are tariff-proof, but frozen pizzas are recession-proof too. So the trade war, it can be understood by the Mamma-Mea Pizza Paradox. For our second story, Waymo is partnering with Toyota to build personally owned robocars. Your own Waymo.

Starting point is 00:07:29 Real thing. And if we get this, it will be thanks to competition from Tesla. Now, yeties, Jack and I told you a story a few months ago, how Waymo, the Robotaxi already passed Lyft for rides completed in San Francisco. While they just announced something even bigger, they're completing 250,000 fully self-driving rides every week. A quarter of a million rides every week is done in a Waymo. Well, Jack, I got something even crazier for you than that number,

Starting point is 00:07:57 and that number is the growth number. Because 250,000 per week in April is up from 200,000 per week in February. That's right, this Robotaxy business owned by Google, called Waymo just grew 25% in just two months. Sit down, stand up, and buckle up again. But then yesterday we got this banger. Waymo is officially partnering with Toyota to create personal self-driving cars. We repeat, not a robo taxi. This would be a robo car. It's the biggest partnership in cars since Aston met Martin. Yeties, the announcement was light on details, but this is an impressive get for Waymo. And it's impressive because Toyota is year in and year

Starting point is 00:08:37 out the most profitable car company in the world. Every Toyota owner that I know absolutely loves their Toyota and will never drive another car because they're still driving a Toyota Camry from 1992. But Jack, what would this Toyota Waymo partnership mean? What would it look like? In the future, you could buy a new Toyota Tacoma and it would have eyes, ears, and a brain installed by Waymo so that it can drive itself. But besties, Jack and I want to take this further because what this would mean owning your own Waymo-powered Toyota is the birth of a new industry. A personal robo-s chauffeur. Like, if you have an early flight, your Waymo would drive you to the airport while you sleep in the car. And then when your flight returns, you can summon your Waymo to pick

Starting point is 00:09:20 you up at the airport. It wasn't parked in the, you know, paid parking the whole time. It was in your driveway the whole time. Now, full disclosure, we've driven Waymo many times. I literally just took a Waymo to the studio we're recording in today. We can tell you it's safe. And there's Also data, 250,000 rides a week, and there's no accidents. Like the accidents that are happening tend to be caused by the other driver, not by the Waymo. Which means another industry is getting involved here. Your six-year-old Susie needs to get the soccer practice? Well, your Waymo chauffeur car in the Toyota will take her.

Starting point is 00:09:53 To all the parents listening, imagine how much time could be saved if you didn't have to drop your kids off at places. What we are saying is that your car would become a form of child care for you because of this Waymo Toyota Partnership. Oh, another point. In theory, your Waymo could start earning money for you by doing ride hail while you're not using it. Basically, if you own this Toyota Waymo, you would just turn on taxi mode and beep, beep, boop, there you go. It'd probably partner with the Uber app. It'd start operating in the Uber network. And then when you need it, it comes back to your driveway after making like $75 bucks for you. Sir, your Toyota Corolla drops you off at work and then picks up Rando Richard to take him somewhere like a taxiwood. Yeah, he's your car sits idle.

Starting point is 00:10:34 95% of the time. If it can drive itself, car ownership could go from a big cost to an income source. Just like homes can now generate income thanks to Airbnb. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Waymo Toyota? Competition drives innovation. Yet he's alphabet-owned Waymo has been the undisputed leader in the autonomy industry since testing began in San Francisco back in 2021. Waymo has predictably expanded its taxi service city by city, but There's never been any discussion of personally owned Waymos until now. Interesting timing, because Tesla is now arriving at the destination. Starting in June or July, 20 self-driving Tesla model-wise will be operating as Robotaxies in Austin, Texas.

Starting point is 00:11:22 They even launched a beta version of a new app at Tesla. It's called Robotaxy, and employees are using it already. Now, since Tesla's are 25% of the cost to produce as a Waymo is, it is possible that Waymo loses its epic Robotaxie lead. And that's what's driving Waymo to innovate right now. Yes, it is. It's the threat from Tesla. The result?

Starting point is 00:11:42 Well, us consumers get more options. We get better services and more time not driving cars. Waymo versus Tesla is the heavyweight matchup of technology in 2025. We're calling it because the seed of innovation is competition. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, the number one theme in the economy right now is horror. It's shocking, literally. But the business of spookiness has become a year-round industry, and we'll explain why.

Starting point is 00:12:17 But first, a happy half-Hawlovene to all those who celebrate it out there. Yeah, Nick discovered it. Total luck, by the way. But today is the official halfway point for Halloween. Yeah, it's basically Halloween's half birthday. By the way, that means, yes, when it comes to thinking about costumes, you are already behind. You need it to start like two months ago. Nick, we are as far away from Halloween as the calendar allows.

Starting point is 00:12:41 So why is horror at an all-time high across the economy? Get this, Yeti. Sinners, the vampire movie out now? Brought in $123 million at the box office so far. It's been number one, two weekends in a row, and it's the rare film where the second weekend was almost as good as the first. Okay, Jack, next up, 28 years later. third film in the zombie trilogy comes out in June. You know what we're talking about. Wow. Like that kind of thing? Yeah, yeah. It's like the first zombie movie and it, I watched the trailer. It's horrified. I started watching it last night. I turned it off. Well, that comes to theater on June 20th.

Starting point is 00:13:16 Add it all up. And already, overall, 12% of movie tickets sold this year were to horror films. That's the second highest chair in cinema history. Jack, we almost forgot the number one show on TV right now. What is it? The last of us. Have you seen episode two yet? It was wild. Not in a mental state to watch a zombie-themed show. It was the Battle of Winterfell, but in Jackson Hole. I don't need to know I'm already concerned.

Starting point is 00:13:44 Yeti's Universal, Sony, Warner Brothers, they are all launching more horror movies this year than last year. Midsummer Ghosts. Sounds like a Shakespeare play. It's actually just a business trend. Now Yeti's Jack and I've been studying this for a few weeks now, and we call this phenomenon the boo boom. the boom, boom. Yeah, that kind of boo. Because year-round horror is in more than just the movie

Starting point is 00:14:07 industry these days. Bloomberg just did a deep dive on the theme park industry, because horror theme parks are now a 12 months a year of business. The new $7 billion epic universe down in Orlando, it opens this month, and they've got a permanent spooky section to the place. They have a permanent universe, actually. It's called the Dark Universe, and it features a Frankenstein roller coaster. Now, that is down in Florida, but up in Las Vegas, they're opening a new universe horror unleashed in August. It has an exorcist experience in a Texas chainsaw massacre ride. Basically, you could spend Memorial Day on a murder-themed roller coaster pretty soon. Even Disney is getting freaky neck. They're opening a villain-themed show this month in Orlando

Starting point is 00:14:48 with like Cruella and all the scary villains from all the Disney movies. Because Crewella is scary. Basically, the new business model out there is for you to wet your pants any month you choose any day of the year, baby. If peeing your pants is crazy. cool. We're Miles Davis. Yeties, Halloween, it is no longer seasonal. There is year-round demand for spooky. So Jack, I got to ask, what's the takeaway for all our buddies who are really scared? New thing. Economic empathy. Yeties, the way people feel in an economy, it actually transcends into what we connect with and what we buy. The products we surround ourselves with can reflect our economic vibe. There's actually an article we found in psychology today.

Starting point is 00:15:31 that experiencing emotions like fear when you're watching a film actually helps you cope with real-life stress. Because we've all felt it. It's fun being scared when you know you're in a safe environment. So, one economic theory why consumers are demanding horror year-round right now? It's ironically to provide comfort in this scary unknown economy. The big question we're wondering is whether this full-year horror bet, the boo-boom, can actually last long term.

Starting point is 00:15:57 But in the meantime, midsummer Halloween is a profit puppy. Oh my God, Jack, watch out behind you. Oh, my God, Nick. Mid-Summer night's scream. Oh, my God. That's the Shakespeare line. That's the line. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us for the new Friday?

Starting point is 00:16:15 Dominoes and Pizza Hut are immune from the trade war, but not from a recession. That is the pizza paradox. You're going from delivery pizza to the Giorno pizza. For our second story, Waymo is partnering with Toyota to develop self-driving cars for personal ownership. It's a robo-s chauffeur, and why is this? happening? Well, competition from Tesla. And competition drives innovation. And our third and final story was the business of scary. It's now a year-round thing in movies, TV, and theme parks. We call it the boo-boom. And it reflects a new thing, economic empathy. Or Jack, what was the other

Starting point is 00:16:48 term we just came up with? Like on the spot? The Shakespearean one? It was so good. You just had it. A midsummer night's scream. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That works. But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, yesterday and today, full. Four of the magnificent seven companies are reporting earnings. Ding, ding, ding. Amazon and Apple announced today after markets close, but Meta and Microsoft announced yesterday after markets closed. Investors are curious about spending on AI and advertising revenue. Those are the two areas of focus. Well, over at Microsoft and Meta, everything looks solid. Both of their stocks jumped after beating earnings expectations. And second, the U.S. economy officially shrank in the first quarter.

Starting point is 00:17:30 It was the GDP report, and it showed our economy. got 0.3% smaller from January through March. Yeah, it's the first GDP decline, actually, since 2022. It was driven by a surge in imports ahead of tariffs, but the real question will be second quarter GDP. Because the bulk of the trade war, and actually started in April. And our third and final story is no more Mr. Nice Guy.

Starting point is 00:17:53 Chat GPT just updated their AI because it was being too nice to us. Sam Alman actually admitted that their artificial intelligence was like being too sycophantic. It was basically sucking up to you. How so? Like, how is it being sycophantic? I did notice, like, I asked it a question about, like, researching some data point. And you're like, wow. What a great question.

Starting point is 00:18:12 Nice query. You must be working on a great project. Right away, Mr. Nick. Right away. So, Vesties, if you notice chat cheap T being too complimentary, it's going to stop being so starting right now. And if you notice chat chiptie giving you shade, it's because of this update. We just told you about. Now, time for the best fact yet.

Starting point is 00:18:31 This one, sent in by a legendary Yeti, George Madelich from Kinnibunk, Maine, who I actually met in New York City at a wonderful restaurant, Charlie Bird, last week. George came up, fantastic guy. Well, apparently George listened to yesterday's show, because we told you about Borilla's pasta playlists to perfectly time the cooking length of pasta. And now, George, a fan of pasta, points out that spaghetti and meatballs is a classic on Italian menus in the United States, but it is not actually Italian. In Italy, meatballs are usually served on their own or in soups, and pasta is eaten as a separate course, not with the meat. Now, interesting reason for this. Between 1880 and 1920, Italian immigrants, like my family, they came to America and found

Starting point is 00:19:13 meat more affordable than it was back in Italy. So they said, you know what, meat? It doesn't have to be a main course. It can be a topping on pasta. Yeah. Or my grandma would make meatball sandwiches now that I think about this, Jack, which would probably get spat out if she served them in the home country. If you're here, your family, we're referring to.

Starting point is 00:19:29 referring to the United States. Yetis, you look fantastic today. And if you are one of the men trying to fight a gorilla today, just remember, if you lose, at least you're earning more money than that gorilla. Doesn't matter if you can't do a pull-up. Now, besties, the best way you can help share the pod is to tell someone, H-Y-H-T-B-O-Y,

Starting point is 00:19:51 and drop down and give us a five-star rating and review. We love reading all of them. Nick and I, we'll see you tomorrow. And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti Ella Jang in San Mateo, California, who also just completed her first month of daycare. Congratulations. Happy birthday to Carlos Benito from Houston, Texas, who is soon moving to the Pacific Northwest. And to Leah Duhmoline in Oslo, Norway is dancing and saving the world with neuroscience and a birthday. Happy birthday to Stefan Chumelousky in Ellensburg, Washington. And Andrew Dolphins in Hickory,

Starting point is 00:20:30 North Carolina is celebrating not just a fantastic birthday, but also a job promotion. And happy birthday to Tyler Eck, the knife sharpener in Las Vegas. Keep sharpening those knives, baby. And a special shout out to legendary bestie, Amanda Wittam outside of Boston, who had an entire conversation about T-boy with her lift driver, H-Y-H-D-B-O-I. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins. This is Jack. I own stock of Disney and Amazon, and Nick and I both on stock of Airbnb and Apple. Dude, I am a top 1% snapper. That is impressive, Jack. Look at that. Can't whistle.

Starting point is 00:21:16 But boy, can I snap. What can I snap?

The Best One Yet - 🚘 “I own a Waymo” — Toyota’s self-driving deal. Domino’s pizza paradox. The Year-Round Horror Economy.

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