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Stocks extended their decline into the second quarter, as the Dow marked its third consecutive day of losses. Ulta Beauty experienced a significant drop akin to a mascara wand plunging after its CEO disclosed a slowdown in sales, despite the beauty category's overall resilience.

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Finance

Disney Fends Off ‘Hostile Investors’ with Bob Iger

Disney's current leadership will remain in charge following a hard-fought battle against activist investors seeking to reshape the company's direction. Led by CEO Bob Iger, the company's board successfully defended against attempts to replace them with new members.

In what was touted as the most expensive board seat battle, two factions of activist investors vied for shareholder support to install their preferred candidates onto Disney's board. One group, led by Blackwells Capital, was formidable, but the primary challenge came from 81-year-old billionaire Nelson Peltz, the founder of Trian Fund Management, who had pursued a Disney board seat in the past.

Peltz, whose firm holds 1.76% of Disney's shares valued at approximately $3.5 billion, campaigned for two board seats - one for himself and another for former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo. He criticized Iger's succession planning, the company's declining stock price, and the performance of Disney+.

Despite support from influential figures like former Marvel Chairman Ike Perlmutter and Elon Musk, Peltz received only 31% of shareholder votes.

The majority of votes supporting the existing board came from retail investors, who wield significant influence at Disney due to their large numbers. Nearly 75% of individual investors backed Disney's board nominees, likely influenced by the company's substantial campaign expenditure of nearly $40 million and promotional materials featuring beloved characters like Elsa and Anna.

While the proxy war may have concluded, concerns raised by activist investors persist. Questions linger regarding Iger's return as CEO in 2022 without a clear successor, the profitability of Disney+, and the unveiling of plans for a live-action Lion King prequel featuring CGI lions.

Politics

How the No Labels 2024 Presidential Campaign Failed to Launch

No Labels, the centrist organization that had aimed to launch a third-party presidential bid, announced on Thursday that it is abandoning efforts to form a "unity ticket" to contest the White House.

Nancy Jacobson, founder and CEO of No Labels, stated in a release that the organization had committed to offering its ballot line only to candidates with a credible chance of winning the presidency. As no such candidates emerged, Jacobson emphasized that the responsible decision is for the group to step back.

She reiterated that No Labels will continue its efforts to promote unity and represent the sensible majority of Americans.

The announcement marks the collapse of the group's ambitious plan to allocate $70 million for ballot access and form a competitive ticket as an alternative to President Biden and former President Donald Trump in the upcoming election.

Despite citing public dissatisfaction with both Biden and Trump, as well as widespread support for a third-party candidate, No Labels failed to persuade any prominent leaders to spearhead a challenge. This inability to attract notable figures represents a setback for the organization's aspirations to mount a substantial third-party effort, akin to independent Ross Perot's significant showing in the 1992 election.

Tech

Elon Musk Boosts AI Engineer Pay in ‘Craziest Talent War’

Tesla, with a 1.62% increase in its stock, is elevating compensation for its artificial intelligence engineers to deter them from being poached by competitors like OpenAI, stated Chief Executive Elon Musk.

Musk announced on the social-media platform X late Wednesday that his electric-vehicle company is increasing pay due to OpenAI's aggressive recruitment of Tesla engineers with lucrative offers.

Describing the competition for AI engineers as "the craziest talent war," Musk responded to reports from The Information that Tesla machine-learning scientist Ethan Knight left the company to join Musk's AI startup, xAI.

According to Musk, Ethan Knight was considering joining OpenAI, leaving him with the choice between xAI and OpenAI.

OpenAI has not yet commented on these developments.

The surge in AI development has intensified competition in Silicon Valley, with tech companies, both startups and established giants, offering lucrative compensation packages and other incentives to attract talent skilled in generative AI.

While tech companies are investing heavily in AI technology, layoffs continue in other sectors as resources are reallocated to fund AI development.

Musk's remarks also coincide with tensions between him and OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman, with Musk recently filing a lawsuit against OpenAI over its profit-driven direction.

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