A new AI-powered website called LooksMapping is turning heads in the restaurant world by ranking eateries based on the attractiveness of their customers, not their cuisine. Targeting 9,800 restaurants in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, the site rates diners on a scale of 1 to 10 using profile photos pulled from millions of Google reviews.
Veteran-owned construction software firm BuildOps has selected Raleigh, North Carolina, for its latest expansion hub, turning down Austin in favor of $2.8 million in incentives. The company plans to hire 291 employees over five years, offering average salaries of $110,000—well above Wake County’s current average of $76,643.
Autonomous taxi company Waymo has suspended operations in parts of downtown Los Angeles after five of its vehicles were set on fire during violent anti-ICE riots over the weekend. The company, owned by Alphabet Inc., confirmed it pulled vehicles from the area “out of an abundance of caution” after the attacks.
Klarna, the buy now, pay later (BNPL) giant, has reported a sharp increase in losses as more customers struggle to repay loans. The company’s first quarter net loss surged to $99 million—double last year’s $47 million loss—driven by a 17 percent spike in consumer credit defaults, which hit $136 million. Klarna’s BNPL model allows shoppers to split payments into installments, but it profits from fees charged to merchants and customers who miss payments.
Portland’s flagship luxury high-rise, the $600 million Ritz-Carlton tower, may soon change hands as its developers prepare to surrender the property to their lender. Struggling with the economic aftershocks of COVID-19 and years of downtown unrest, the 35-story tower—Block 216—has failed to reach profitability.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has announced a major deal to supply 18,000 AI GPUs to Humain, Saudi Arabia’s newly launched state-sponsored artificial intelligence company. The announcement was made during the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh, coinciding with President Donald Trump’s visit to the kingdom.
Microsoft confirmed it is laying off 3% of its global workforce, affecting an estimated 6,840 employees across all divisions. The cuts, which began Tuesday, will impact staff in the U.S. and abroad, including teams at LinkedIn and Xbox.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has lost its appeal to block Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of gaming powerhouse Activision Blizzard, dealing another blow to the Biden administration’s aggressive regulatory stance against Big Tech mergers.
Two Israeli nationals were found murdered in separate homes in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley on Saturday, with police confirming that the brutal killings occurred just hours apart. While authorities have not established a direct link between the homicides, the back-to-back murders have left the Jewish community on edge.
Seattle's controversial payroll tax has failed to meet revenue expectations as major businesses continue to leave the city. Last week, Mayor Bruce Harrell announced that Seattle collected $47 million less in payroll taxes than projected in 2024. The city had anticipated over $400 million in revenue but brought in only $360 million, compounding an already staggering $260 million budget deficit.
