The Best One Yet - 💋 “ScarJo vs AI” — OpenAI’s Scarlett Johansson drama. Target’s value meal. Sonos’ $450 headset strategy.

Episode Date: May 22, 2024

The ScarJo/ChatGPT drama just got juicer — It turns out OpenAI asked actress Scarlett Johansen last year about using her voice for their chatbot, but she said no… and that’s just the start.Target is slashing the prices on 5,000 products this summer, just as McDonald’s and Wendy’s dropped prices too — Because we’re about to enter Hot Value Summer.And Sonos just launched its 1st ever over-ear headphones — Because earphones are the most successful wearable tech in history.Plus, Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day — On this day, 14 years ago, a Florida man bought 2 pizzas with 10,000 Bitcoin that today would be worth… $680 million.$SONO $AMZN $MSFTWatch us on YouTubeGet the Saturday Newsletter: tboypod.com/newsletter  Submit Shoutout Requests Submit The Best Fact YetFollow us: on InstagramAnd connect with us on Nick’s LinkedIn & Jack’s LinkedInAbout Us: The daily pop-biz news show making today’s top stories your business. 15 minutes on the 3 biz stories you need, with fresh takes you can pretend you came up with — Pairs perfectly with your morning oatmeal ritual. Hosted by Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Wednesday, Sanfiche Wednesday, May 22nd. And today's pod, today's pot is the best one yet. Did you say May 22nd? I did say May 22nd. Happy one-third of a birthday. I was afraid I was going to have to call you out on it.

Yadies, on this special day, we're whipping up the top three pop business news stories you need to know today. You know, Jack, it's been four months since my last birthday. Eight months until my next birthday. It feels like a moment of reflection. I got to be honest. This is like the pit stop of birthday celebrations. I assume a small to medium-sized gift is in the mail. In the meantime, Jack, what a T-Boy for today.

First story for the show. What do we got, man? For our first story, Scarlett Johansson just lawyered up after Open AI tried to rip off her voice for their chat box. Because in AI, it's move fast and break things all over again. For our second story, Target is slashing the prices on 5,000 products this summer. Because every company in America is about to launch their own version of a value meal. And our third and final story is Sonos. Sonos just announced their first ever headset.

Because the most successful wearable tech in the history of technology is the headphone. The headset. So they made a really expensive headset. You said headphone, I headset, headset, and I think that's something the industry is to work on. True. But yet is, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. I mean, what a mix of stories for my one third birthday. I'm feeling blessed.

14 years ago, the most expensive food delivery in history was ordered. Yetis, 14 years ago, a man in Florida ordered two pizza pies from Papa John's. And those pies were pricey. But it wasn't the extra pepperoni on those pizza pies that made that pizza more expensive. The reason it was pricey is that the man paid for the two pies in Bitcoin. 10,000 Bitcoins. Yeti's, happy Bitcoin Pizza Day. We celebrated it every year.

Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day, a holiday commemorating the first time a human being bought a physical thing with a digital coin. On May 22nd, 2010, Laslo Hines was an early developer who was working on this new thing called Bitcoin. And this pioneer of crypto payments tested the crypto with pizza. This man's like the Marco Polo of crypto. It's like the Buzz Aldrin of Bitcoin. Well, Buzz Aldrin was second. I know, I know, but I feel like Lance Armstrong didn't totally move. Neil Armstrong.

Oh my God, a double error in the intro. Anyway, yeah, it is it's next foot one third birthday. Give him a break. Well, it's also Bitcoin Pizza Day. And every Bitcoin pizza day, Jack and I ask the same exact question. What would those 10,000 Bitcoins be worth today? Now, at the time that he made that pizza purchase, crypto was worth pennies. So 10,000 Bitcoin was just $41.

But today, 10,000 Bitcoin is worth $680 million. Sit down, stand up, and reheat the pizza. We repeat, if Laslo had held those 10,000 bitcoins for 14 years, he'd be worth $680 million. But instead, he bought two pizzas. Holy Ben the Bitcoin. Here's the wildest part of the story you don't know. That wasn't Laslo's only Bitcoin pizza party, was it, Jack? That summer, he went on to spend 100,000 more Bitcoin on a whole bunch more pizza.

And 100,000 Bitcoin today would be worth $7 billion. Instead of buying pizza the summer of 2010, he could have held onto the Bitcoin, and today he could have bought Lyft. That's all one lift. That's what we're talking about, Yeti's. But the real shocker isn't Laslo. What did Papa John's do with the Bitcoin? Yeah, he's what Jack and I want to know.

It was 7 billion Bitcoins paid for pizza. Papa John, what are you doing right now? Better pizza, better ingredients, but no Bitcoin. Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day, Jack. Let's say that three stories. 15 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.

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. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

Our first story, Scarlett Johansson just lawyered up after Open AI tried to rip off her voice for their new chatbot. But it turns out there was way more to the story than Scarlett Johansson, ChatsyPT, and the drama that you already know. All right, Jack, is this another headline that wasn't on our 2024 bingo card or what, man? Yesterday we mentioned an awkward situation at the end of our pod. Yeah, Scarjo versus ChatGPT. OpenAI's chat bot sounds just like her. Her, as in her, the 2013 movie starring Joaquin Phoenix, a physical human who falls in love with an AI girlfriend.

That AI girlfriend is voiced by Scarlett Johansson. You never see her because she's an artificial intelligence bot in the movie. Well, 11 years after Jack and I scarily saw that movie in theaters, just last week, Open AI, announced a new version of their chatbot. And it included a new voice for their chatbot that sounded more human-like than any of the previous ones. Now, the name of this new chatbot is Sky, but it happens to sound a lot like a voice that we've heard before, right, Jack? It sounds like Scarlett Johansson's AI from the movie Her.

Let's go to the videotape so you can compare yourself. Hi. How you doing? Now here's Sky's voice in last week's Open AI demo. Me? The announcement is about me. Jack, we are not judging jury, but what are you thinking over there? They're eerily similar.

Now, yeties, we should point out, Sam Altman of OpenAI, says this about their new chatbot's voice. The voice of Sky is not Scarlett Johansansans, and it was never intended to resemble her voice. But again, Scarlett Johansson says otherwise. In fact, on Monday, Scarlett Johansson revealed new details about chat GPT that are worthy of the front page of TMZ magazine. And they go back a full year. Apparently back in September of last year, Sam Altman asked Scarlett Johansson if they could use her voice for their chatbots in the future. Allegedly, he said to Scarjo, your voice would be comforting to people just like in your

movie. But Scarlett Johansson declined. She didn't want her voice to be the voice of the chat bot that we all use in the future. Yeah, she didn't want to Siri herself is what we're saying. But then last year, Sam Altman gave a speech. And he referenced the movie Her. He couldn't stop thinking about the voice from the movie Her. He said that voice from the movie Her was the inspiration for ChatGPT products.

And then last week, Sam Altman tweeted one word during the Open AI demonstration that we all saw. And what was that word, Jack? Her. And now we just met Sky, the new voice of Chat ChAPT, who sounds just like Scarlett Johansson. Exhibit A, the defense rests their case, Jack. It seems like Sam Altman is obsessed with the movie Her, obsessed with the voice of the AI, the movie her and just launched a chat bot that sounds just like the voice in the movie her which belongs to scarlet johansen so jack we just pause the pod and add all this up for a second

in the last year sam altman has highlighted scarjo's movie in a speech he's tweeted about her movie and he's asked her to use her voice as the voice of chat gpt but now he's saying there's no connection at all so besties let's just put aside the problem with always selecting female voices for voice assistance for a moment. Alexa and Siri, you know what we're talking about. Now, Scarjo is considering suing Open AI for an attempt to impersonate her voice without her permission. As if Hollywood needed another reason not to trust AI.

Colin Joust, weekend update. Your turn. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at OpenAI? The AI industry is making tech's biggest mistake again. moving fast and breaking things. Daddy's quick reminder here. But one year ago, Jack and I did a pod on how thousands of scientists asked AI leaders

to pause AI. They asked to pause AI because AI could inadvertently take over human beings. They wrote that it was an existential threat to mankind in the future. All right, well, Jack, it's been one year since then. And what does the situation look like right now, man? Well, Sam Altman is the leader of AI,

and he's done the opposite of pausing. Yeah, he's instead of pausing. causing AI, it appears Sam Allman has moved really fast and seems to be breaking a bunch of things along the way. One example, Open AI was sued by the New York Times and other publishers for digesting and regurgitating their paywall journalism without their consent. Well, just like Zuck, Sam Alman is breaking rules and norms to stay ahead of the market. And just like Zuck a decade ago, he doesn't mind if he breaks things along the way. In fact, Open AI just disbanded the entire internal team that was focused on ethics and safety at OpenAI. And the new details on Scarlett Johansson's voice chat bot,

this just adds to the perception of open AI moving fast and breaking things. So, besties, when it comes to AI, tech is moving fast and breaking things. The same mistake again. For our second story, Target just announced it's slashing prices on 5,000 products this summer. Target's actually borrowing a strategy from McDonald's. Target is creating a value meal. But Jack, if you want, want to run into some dinks this weekend. Where do you think you got to go, man?

Go to Target, because there's nothing at double income No Kids Couple Likes more than Saturday at Tarje. Funny, I think we need more candles. Why not? Let's do it. But here's the problem. Target sales fell last year for the first time in eight years. Yeah, it is. Now, Target is thinking what people didn't think would happen. Dinks are finally pushing back on prices. So Target just announced a solution. They announced they're cutting the prices on 5,000 everyday products this summer.

Yeah, it is because you're deflated by inflation. Target is slashing stickers faster than Crazy Eddie. They're cutting prices on name brands you can buy at Target. Like Clorox wipes, they're 14% off. And they're also cutting prices on Target's own brands. Target's own unsalted butter is 5% off. But most interesting of all to Nick and me, Target created an entirely new brand that does only one thing.

Low prices. That's it. The name of the brand is dealworthy and its target products that just have a lower price. That's the brand. This is bottom shelf stuff. You're going to find cheap crayons, cheap underwear, cheap table lamps, all sold at Target under the deal worthy brand. Because Target wants dinks dinking it up on Saturdays just like the old days. But let's zoom out like a deal scout. I love that, Jack. It's not just Target that's announcing high value deals right now, is it? No, it is not, Jack. Like our buddies over at McDonald's are launching a $5

value meal this June. A burger, fries, and a drink for just five bucks. And then yesterday, Wendy's launched a $3 breakfast value meal out of nowhere. Bacon, egg and cheese and a hash brown for three bucks. I guess, Jack, if you add up this McDonald's and Wendy's value meals, you can have breakfast lunch and dinner for like 13 bucks. Yeah, if you're okay having a bun product instead of a bun. I think that's one third of a sweet green salad, Jack. Now, what McDonald's and Wendy's just did was actually strategic. They didn't cut prices on their menu. they created packages instead. Yes, brands are lowering prices, but then packaging those products into a meal.

It's the classic value meal. We know them from fast food restaurants. And frankly, the way we think about it, that's basically what Target just did with its new deal-worthy brand. Target basically just launched a value meal. Yeah, they did. It's a classic fast food tactic that Target is serving up and throwing over to our mouths. Just without the fries and without the bun product. Yet.

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies? is at every retail chain. Prepare for hot value summer. Hot value summer. Yeties, there is strategic value to creating a value meal instead of just doing a discount sale. Because a sale creates confusion, but a meal creates action.

Yeties, with a value meal, Target and Wendy's lure you into the store with an understandable discount. A discount you can visualize. Knowing the specific products in the value meal mean you're more likely to go into the store. And frankly, with credit cards maxed out and consumer exhaustion over inflation,

Jack and I are expecting more brands in more industries to launch their own value meal. Just like Target did yesterday with their deal-worthy brand. Yeah, what do you think? A crop top, some aligned leggings, and those new Lulu shoes, 20% off? The way to get attention in America this summer is value deals.

Maybe a Lulu lemon value meal. That's why this summer is hot value summer. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, Sonos just unveiled their first ever pair of headphones. They're taken on Apple, Sony, and Bose, and they are confident about it. But Sonos actually thinks this $450 headphone competes against nobody. Yeah, it is funny thing. There's actually one Fortune 500 company that Jack and I have covered that's based in Santa Barbara, California.

And they're the preferred home speaker of Gwyneth Paptra. Yeah, they are. Jack, I believe they're not. number one on the goop list. Sonos. The $2 billion publicly traded company based in Santa Barbara sales boomed for Sonos speakers during the pandemic. Yeah, Sonos was booming during the work from home era as you pimped out your everything. Because Gwyneth decked out her guest bungalow with surround sound sonos speakers. And the power move on your Zoom calls was a Sonos speaker sitting comfortably over in your living room. But since the pandemic, sales of Sonos speakers and soundbars

sank for two straight years. Sonos' stock has dropped 60% from its all-time high. Sonos is feeling no-mos. So, this company took a break from eating olives and drinking wine, and they finally announced their turnaround plan. Speakers for your head. Guinness Paltrow, sit down, stand up, and juice cleanse again. What are we talking about, Jack?

It's called the Sonos Ace. They debuted it yesterday. It's a $450 noise-canceling wireless headphones. Yeah, it is. What Jack and I are saying here is that to, Turn around the Sonos company. They're launching their first ever headphones. But why would you bet your comeback on a headset?

It's kind of a good question. Like, headsets, they've been around a while. Why would you bet the farm on headphones? Because headphones are the most successful wearable technology in history. Yeah, Yeties. We just said it and we'll stick by it. Because the headphone was actually invented in the 1880s for telephone operators. 140 years later, headphones are still growing double digits.

It's insane. Headphones are enjoying double-digit sales after 140 years. We don't know if Apple's spatial reality goggles are going to be a success, but their AirPods business is headphones, and it's thriving. Yet is there's one thing, Jack, and I can guarantee you, this Christmas, your uncle, who you haven't seen in a year, is probably going to give you headphones as a gift. So Sonos thinks there's more room in the ear market

for another set of expensive headphones. A $450 set of headphones. And Jack, what does this expensive set of headphones look like exactly? It's got vegan leather on the outside. It includes spatial audio and head tracking. So it all basically sounds like a Mercedes Benzat. It also includes physical buttons,

which I appreciate. Because with my AirPods, I currently have to like swipe up or swipe down. I don't like that. I can't see what I'm swiping. I like the tactile physical buttons. Yeties, there's also one unique feature that Sonost was obsessed with bragging about when they

just launched these new headphones. This headphone sinks instantly. with your other Sonos speakers that you have in your house. So what we're saying is, if you're watching TV through your Sonos soundbar and then you push a button, the audio will automatically switch over to your headphones. Instantly. And Sonos was obsessed with that little nuanced feature. And that actually reveals who they're targeting as customers.

So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies who are anyone trying to sell anything? To quote, Crosby Stills and Nash, love the one you're with. Yeti stick that on a pillow. Love the one you're with. Because the person most likely to buy your product is your existing customer. There is one person and one person only that Sonos is targeting with this new headset. Existing Sonos customers. People who already have a Sonos speaker in their home, they want a Sonos headset too.

And Sonos confirmed it. They asked their customers and 10,000 of them said that their number one request from Sonos was a headset. And for Sonos, it also happens to be more profitable going after. existing customers. Because to win a new customer who doesn't have Sonos products yet, Sonos has to pay for ads. And those Instagram ads can erase your profit margin. But to convert an old customer, Sonos will just email its existing user base for free. And for each 1% of Sonos's existing customers who click that email to buy these headphones,

Sonos will generate $69 million in new revenue. So Basi, Sonos, they got zero interest competing for new customers with Apple, Sony, and Bose. That sounds expensive and scary. Instead, they're targeting existing customers. Because the person most likely to buy your product is the one who's already bought your product. Or as Crosby stills and Nash said, because if you can't be with the one you love, honey, love the one you're with. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for Saviche Wednesday? Scarlett Johansson didn't give OpenAI permission for her voice to be used, but they basically used it anyway.

Move fast and break things. Tech is doing it all over again. For our second story, it's Target. They're cutting the prices of 5,000 things this summer and also creating a new value brand. It's the retail theme of the summer. Hot value summer. Everyone is launching a value meal. And our third and final story was Sonos. They have a new high-end headphone that targets people who already have Sonos speakers in their homes.

To quote, Crosby Stills Nash and not young, if you can't be with the one you love, honey, love the one you're with. But Yetis, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. Well, perfect timing on Bitcoin pizza day. It's not just Bitcoin bumping up right now. Ethereum's price has jumped 30% this week. Ethereum's like the number two crypto. And it's up for similar reasons that Bitcoin was up earlier in the year.

Yeah, the SEC may approve an Ethereum ETF giving broader access to the Ethereum cryptocurrency. Ethel, our Ethereum loves it. And second, Microsoft, excited the tech. community this week by launching the first AI personal computers. Apparently, Microsoft's new laptops have hardware built in that processes AI. And different from other laptops that depend on the cloud to process AI. So this would be the first ever AI PC. And early reviews say that the PC could actually become cool again.

Microsoft, living look is 1997, Jack. And finally. Or not, or not, or not. Dude, you are getting a doubt. And finally. It'd be Morgan Chase, America's biggest bank, just held their annual shareholder meeting. And every year, legendary CEO Jamie Diamond jokes about his retirement. But this time, he was more serious.

He said the bank is well on his way to choosing his successor, which means his 18 years could come to an end soon. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Morgan Trouder from lovely Lakewood, Ohio. Last week, on National Bike to Work Day, we connected the Wright brothers to bicycles. We talked about the Wright brothers, the inventors of the airplane with the bicycle, which is how they got their start. But Nick and I neglected to mention the Wright sister, Catherine Wright. Catherine Wright, the younger sister of Wilbur and Orville Wright.

She was actually the boss of the Wright household on top of being a teacher at the same time as her brothers were running the bicycle shop and beginning their flight experiments. In fact, Catherine Wright worked behind the scenes in the brothers' test flight operations, helping them get the funding, promoting sales, and handle the PR around the first ever flight. She was basically the chief operating officer of Wright Airplanes LLC. It sounds like, Jack, we've got to change some license plates. It wasn't just the right brothers. It was the right siblings who invented the airplane. Yeties, you look fantastic for Cevice Wednesday.

And for the prompt of the day on YouTube and Spotify, here's what Jack and I want to know. Is AI moving too fast? We want to know your opinion. Our follow-up question, should Morgan Freeman be the voice of chat GPT? Or just who should be the voice of the next AI chatbot? Remember, if it's Jack and me, people are probably going to get annoyed. So we're stepping down from the competition. Maybe it should be Neil Young.

I think you mean Neil Armstrong, Jack. Yodies, hit us up in the comments on YouTube or in the Q&A on Spotify. HYHT, B-O-I. Have you heard the best one yet? Nick and I, we'll see you tomorrow. If you know, you know. And before we go, a happy birthday. a Yeti Levi Kavanaugh in Washington, who's rocking the girl dad life,

driving his little Yeties all the way off to daycare. And congratulations to podcaster Haley Jade Scott. Eminem's daughter just got married. And Simon and Audrey Allen and Orinda, California, have got a legendary anniversary. The fours up, UCLA, if you know, you know. And good luck to Marisa Issa of Dallas, Texas, who's got a CFA level one exam this weekend.

I just rounded up, give him a level three. And Mikey Pollock in New York City is moving from the upper west side to the Upper East side. That is actually a huge change, Jack. Huge change. Mikey, keep track of bananaflation whichever side of Manhattan you live on. And Cole and Kelly Pennell from Raleigh, North Carolina, just got married last weekend, and they are celebrating that win. And to anyone else who's celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins. And Cole and Kelly, send us those wedding fix.

This is Jack. Nick and I both own stock of Apple. We both own one Bitcoin, and we both own some Ethereum.