Ram

• Ford and General Motors are already selling electric pickup trucks. Ram is playing catch-up. 
• It unveiled the 1500 Revolution concept at CES on Thursday. 
• The sleek, futuristic design previews the electric pickup Ram plans to launch in 2024. 

Ford and General Motors already sell electric pickup trucks in the F-150 Lightning and GMC Hummer EV.The Ford F-150 Lightning.

Tim Levin/Insider

And GM is planning two new e-trucks from Chevy and GMC for 2023. But one major pickup-maker has been conspicuously missing from the conversation: Ram.

Chevrolet

However, the brand just gave the world a glimpse at what it’s quietly been cooking up. And it looks incredibly cool.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

On Thursday at CES 2023, the brand pulled the wraps off of the 1500 Revolution concept, an EV truck that previews the model it plans to launch for real in 2024.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Since it’s just a concept, the Revolution is more of a suggestion of what’s to come than a commitment to anything.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

But it’s safe to say that Ram’s production truck will share some parts of its design and interesting features.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Overall, the Revolution looks smooth, sleek, futuristic, and unlike trucks today.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Read more: Turned off Tesla by Elon Musk? Here are 4 great electric alternatives to its sedans and SUVs.

To reduce drag, the Revolution has cameras in place of regular side mirrors, a feature that isn’t legal on US roads.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Its front and back doors swing open in opposite directions, like on a Rolls-Royce.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

They open up to an interior that Ram says is spacious and endlessly customizable.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Read more: We got an early look at Chevy’s upcoming $105,000 electric pickup truck: See inside the Ford Lightning’s biggest rival

The concept offers third-row jump seats that can be placed inside or outside the vehicle, along with a center console that can be removed entirely to create more space.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

A workstation can unfold from the center console.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Up front, Ram provides two touchscreens for a total of 28 inches of display.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Read more: See the 8 coolest electric cars hitting streets next year, from Chevy’s $105,000 truck to Hyundai’s spaceship-like sedan

The bottom screen can be repositioned a few different ways or detached for use in different parts of the truck.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

A powered midgate can retract to create a pass-through between the pickup’s cab and bed, allowing for bigger cargo.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

That’s a feature we’ll see in the upcoming Chevy Silverado EV as well.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Read more: I’ve driven 15 different electric cars this year — these are the 3 I’d buy (if I had the money)

Ram says the concept lets you haul 18-foot long items with the tailgate closed by laying them down the entire length of the vehicle and into the frunk.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

The Revolution also has tried-and-tested Ram truck features, like a toolbox built into the side of the bed and a tailgate that swings open in multiple directions.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

An exterior projector means the Revolution can make a movie night happen anywhere.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

In terms of capability, Ram didn’t give a range estimate but said the Revolution can add 100 miles of range in 10 minutes.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Read more: Volkswagen’s new electric car is a direct shot at Tesla’s Model 3. Here’s our first look at the ID.7 sedan.

It can charge at a rate of 350 kilowatts, more than most EVs.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

It’s powered by two motors and has all-wheel drive.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

The concept’s rear wheels can turn up to 15 degrees to aid maneuverability in tight spaces.The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

Ram says it will unveil the production version of its electric truck “in the coming months.”The Ram 1500 Revolution concept.

Ram

• Hirakawa Yasuhiro is a master blacksmith for Sasuke in Sakai, Japan.
• Sasuke has been around since 1867 and specializes in scissors in addition to knives.
• Gardeners like Yoshikawa Masakazu believe these shears are the best for maintaining bonsai trees.

Hirakawa Yasuhiro is a master blacksmith for Sasuke in Sakai, Japan, who forges scissors with techniques that were used to make swords, knives, and weapons. Japanese-style gardeners like Yoshikawa Masakazu are willing to wait a year to get their hands on a pair of scissors that’s perfect for maintaining bonsai trees.

Disney

• “Avatar: The Way of Water” passed “Top Gun: Maverick” at the global box office.
• It’s now the biggest movie released in 2022.
• But “Maverick” is still the top movie at the US box office for the year.

James Cameron is the king of the world — again.

The director’s long-awaited “Avatar” followup, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” became 2022’s biggest movie at the global box office on Wednesday, with $1.5 billion.

It passed the previous top movie of the year, “Top Gun: Maverick,” which earned $1.489 billion worldwide. “The Way of Water,” which opened December 16, managed the feat in just three weeks.

It still has a ways to go to beat “Maverick” in the US, though. “The Way of Water” has grossed $465 million in the US through Wednesday, and “Maverick” earned a total of $718 million.

But the movie is showing strong legs. In the US, it actually earned more in its third three-day weekend than it did in its second, growing 6%.

That’s a rare occurrence at the box office these days, where big-budget tentpoles often see big significant drops week to week. It suggests that the movie could maintain momentum as it faces little competition until Marvel’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp” in February.

That’s one reason it has managed to top the 2022 box office. Another is its ticket sales in China, where it’s showing signs of life despite a lower-than-expected opening weekend and pandemic-related lockdowns in the region.

The movie has grossed $162 million at the China box office so far; the first “Avatar” earned $262 million there, including a successful re-release in 2021.

If “The Way of Water” catches its predecessor, that would be the most impressive feat. The first “Avatar” is the biggest movie of all time, with $2.9 billion at the global box office.

For now, grossing $1.5 billion, with plenty more to come, is an accomplishment. 

Cameron had suggested that the movie needed to earn $2 billion to break even, telling GQ in November that it had to be the “third or fourth highest-grossing film in history.” Variety recently reported that the break-even number was closer to $1.5 billion.

But $2 billion is still within reach, as “The Way of Water” is pacing ahead of the first movie at the same point in its release.

Getty Images

• Mortgage applications sank to a 26-year low in December, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
• Applications for refinancing also fell, dropping by 87% compared to the same period from 2021.
• Higher mortgage rates have weakened demand and affordability for many American households.

After a year of rapid home price growth and surging mortgage rates, fewer Americans were interested in purchasing homes in December — so much so that mortgage demand fell to a 26-year low.

Mortgage applications decreased 13.2% for the week ending on December 30, 2022, marking the lowest reading since 1996, the Mortgage Bankers Association indicated in a Wednesday report. The decline demonstrates just how damaging higher housing costs have been for the US real estate market. 

“Purchase applications have been impacted by slowing home sales in both the new and existing segments of the market,”Joel Kan, MBA vice president and deputy chief economist, said in the report. “Even as home-price growth slows in many parts of the country, elevated mortgage rates continue to put a strain on affordability and are keeping prospective homebuyers out of the market.”

Higher mortgage rates are also responsible for lower refinance volumes. The refinance index — a measure of  applications to refinance an existing mortgage — declined 16.3% and was an astounding 87% lower than the same week in 2021. According to Kan, mortgage rates would have to “decline substantially” to generate additional activity.

In a stark contrast to the homebuying bonanza of 2021, housing demand fell sharply in the fall and winter of 2022. Steeper housing costs, as well as surging inflation that kept the cost of living elevated throughout the United States, weakened affordability for many would-be buyers. This led to a substantial pullback in new and existing home sales, as well as housing construction. It’s a predicament that could cool down the housing market further in 2023 — especially if mortgage rates remain above 6%. 

Although mortgage rates were on a downward trajectory throughout December — offering many cash-strapped buyers some much needed relief — they have already begun to reverse course in January. The average US fixed rate for a 30-year mortgage rose to 6.48% this week, according to a Thursday report from Freddie Mac. That’s significantly higher than the pandemic low of 2.68% seen in December 2020, and means Americans still have a long way to go before rates come back down to earth. 

There’s a glimmer of hope: Inflationary pressures, which have partially been responsible for the surge in mortgage rates, are finally beginning to ease. 

The latest inflation report shows that data came in cooler than expected in November. The lower inflation falls, the more likely the Federal Reserve will be convinced that their rate-hike strategy in combatting inflation is working. This could lead to the Fed slowing its pace of interest rate hikes, which may in turn result in a drop for the 10-year Treasury bond price and ultimately mortgage rates as the average rate on a 30-year mortgage closely correlates with long-term Treasury yields. 

The lower rates fall, the more likely Americans are to return to the US housing market.

“Homebuyers are waiting for rates to decrease more significantly, and when they do, a strong job market and a large demographic tailwind of Millennial renters will provide support to the purchase market,” Khater said. “Moreover, if rates continue to decline, borrowers who purchased in the last year will have opportunities to refinance into lower rates.”

Hardline Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives rejected Kevin McCarthy’s speakership bid for a ninth time on Thursday even after he offered to curb his own clout, raising questions about the party’s ability to wield power.

After failing to put a majority behind the Republican McCarthy’s candidacy, the House reached a level of dysfunction not seen since 1859, when it took 10 votes to select a leader in the turbulent run-up to the Civil War.

As a 10th vote in three days got under way, there was as yet no sign McCarthy had a path to nailing down the job.

With its inability to choose a leader, the 435-seat House has been rendered impotent – unable even to formally swear in newly elected members let alone hold hearings, consider legislation or scrutinize Democratic President Joe Biden and his administration.

Republicans won a slim 222-212 House majority in the November midterm elections, meaning McCarthy cannot afford to lose the support of more than four Republicans as Democrats united around their own candidate.

McCarthy, a congressman from California who was backed by former President Donald Trump for the post, offered the holdouts a range of concessions that would weaken the speaker’s role, which political allies warned would make the job even harder if he got it.

At least 200 Republicans have backed McCarthy in each of the votes this week. Fewer than 10% of Republican lawmakers have voted against him but they are enough to deny him the 218 votes needed to succeed Democrat Nancy Pelosi as speaker.

“What you’re seeing on this floor does not mean we are dysfunctional,” said Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna as she nominated a McCarthy rival, Byron Donalds, for the 10th vote.

McCarthy’s supporters say they are making progress in closed-door talks, but none has predicted a resolution any time soon.

“I can tell you there’s some good things happening,” said Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a McCarthy supporter who is among the most outspoken conservatives in the House. “I think we’re going to see some movement.”

McCarthy’s opponents remained unyielding, saying that they do not trust him to stick to the scorched-earth tactics they want to use against Biden and the Democratic-controlled Senate.

“This ends in one of two ways: either Kevin McCarthy withdraws from the race or we construct a straitjacket that he is unwilling to evade,” said Republican Representative Matt Gaetz, who voted for Trump for speaker.

As speaker, McCarthy would hold a post that normally shapes the chamber’s agenda and is second in the line of succession to the presidency behind Vice President Kamala Harris. He would be empowered to frustrate Biden’s legislative agenda and launch investigations into the president’s family and administration in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election.

In a late-night bargaining session, McCarthy offered the holdouts greater influence over what legislation comes up for a vote, according to a source familiar with the talks.

He also offered the ability for any single member to call a vote that could potentially remove him from the post – a step that helped drive at least one prior Republican speaker, John Boehner, into retirement.

Those concessions could potentially help McCarthy win over some of the holdouts but would leave him more vulnerable to the hardliners through the rest of the next two years if he ultimately wins the speakership.

That has even alarmed some Democrats, who have largely served as bystanders in the drama of the past three days.

“With every concession, he has to wake up every day wondering if he’s still going to have his job,” Democratic Representative Richard Neal told reporters.

The inability to agree on a leader also raises questions about whether Republicans will force a government shutdown or risk default later this year in a bid to extract steep spending cuts. Some of the holdouts say they expect McCarthy or any other Republican leader to take that approach.

If McCarthy ultimately fails to unite Republicans, they would have to search for an alternative. Possibilities include No. 2 House Republican Steve Scalise and Representative Jim Jordan, who have both backed McCarthy. Jordan received 20 votes when nominated by the holdouts on Tuesday.

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When the 118th Congress attempted to get underway on Tuesday, the presumptive Speaker-in-waiting, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, half-joked to reporters that he was used to spending time on the House floor that he hoped to soon lead. “I have the record for the longest speech ever on the floor,” he told reporters after a contentious meeting with fellow Republicans. “I don’t have a problem getting a record for the most votes for Speaker.”

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While besting the record of 133 rounds of balloting to pick a Speaker is probably not in the cards for a defiant McCarthy, after failing on nine consecutive rounds to secure sufficient support among his Republican colleagues, he surely must feel like history is inching closer than he’d like.

McCarthy has long held the dream of wielding the gavel, but his chase has become an undisputed nightmare. A cascade of headlines have some combination of Kevin McCarthy and humiliation in them. Twitter is gleefully spiking his shortfalls. Democrats, who started the week amused that, for once, it wasn’t them in disarray, have started to seethe at the chaos—but are nonetheless sticking united behind their own leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York. And, despite all of this, McCarthy doesn’t really seem to have a strategy to win other than to wait out his hostage-takers.

Lawmakers are growing more irritated by the day, as a handful of far-right Republicans have refused to allow McCarthy to win with a majority. Even though 90% of the Republican majority supports McCarthy—or at least his bid to become Speaker—a small minority of 20 holdouts simply won’t let him pass the threshold. The only victory for House Republicans so far has been a narrow majority vote, and that was to stop voting altogether and adjourn on Wednesday night.

Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesThe face of House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy is seen reflected as Rep. Elise Stefanik tallies votes in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House on Jan. 5, 2023.

Around Washington, insiders have started to shift their conversation in a crucial way. At the start of the week, a lot of the chatter was about what McCarthy could trade away to win over the Never Kevins, the bloc of lawmakers who insisted they’d never support his ascent to Speaker. During closed-door meetings and hallway interventions, McCarthy and his allies have offered a seemingly never-ending raft of concessions: two seats on the powerful Rules Committee for the Freedom Caucus, plus another seat for one of their friends; allowing for one member to call a vote of no confidence in the Speaker at any time; a redo of the budgeting process to split the major spending bills into 12 pieces; and a vote on term limits.

On the outside, the nominally independent campaign arm aligned with McCarthy pledged it would no longer use its deep pockets to meddle in open primaries, meaning the far-right elements were free to nominate fringe candidates without fear of the Establishment working to block them. (It was reminiscent of Senate Republicans’ decision to take a hands-off approach; ask Minority Leader Mitch McConnell how that worked out.)

The House holdouts accepted the wins. But they still couldn’t get to yes on McCarthy as the person at the top of the heap. They just didn’t trust him, even after Donald Trump himself directly intervened to help his most useful supplicant. They cashed millions of dollars in checks from him and his allies, but money wasn’t going to buy loyalty.

Which is why it might be time for Washington to stop treating this like any other negotiation. McCarthy has traded away much of his potential power as Speaker, offloading a lot of the prerogatives to a vocal minority that, for the most part, doesn’t even seem to care much about its legislative muscle. Even if McCarthy emerges with a gavel in his hand, his knuckles will be bloodied by the rulers his far-right tormenters have been using to whack him. His hold will be weak, given a single malcontent can call for his removal—and be guaranteed a vote on it. And the powerful appropriators won’t have final say over spending, given an open-ended amendment process that could turn a tightly written spending package into an Amazon wish list on the fly. The damage, even in McCarthy’s uncertain victory, has been done.

Maybe it’s time to call the goal here what it actually is: chaos. This isn’t about policy. It’s about personality and personal aggrandizement. McCarthy allies asked the holdouts last night what they wanted, and they couldn’t get an answer. “Behind closed doors, tell us what you actually want, or shut the f— up,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw of Texas fumed. He wasn’t alone.

Kent Nishimura—Los Angeles Times/Getty ImagesRep. Chip Roy gestures while speaking in endorsing Rep. Jim Jordan for Speaker of the House on Jan. 3, 2023.

“The Taliban 20” is how some lawmakers have started referring to their intransigent colleagues. Others are branding them “The Band of Others.” Rep. Chip Roy of Texas has emerged as perhaps the most sincere of the GOP holdouts in pushing for achievable changes to actual rules. Yet his demands have been largely drowned out by those wanting…well, something. Even some of the House’s most unpredictable right-wingers lined up behind McCarthy, including Marjorie Taylor Greene, meaning this wasn’t about chasing conspiracy theories or kook agenda pieces. Motivating the opposition here is owning McCarthy, making this hurt, showing how a few insurrectionists can derail normalcy in the name of, frankly, fun.

This is what happens when celebrity is treated as a substitute for governing chops. You get obstruction for the sake of it, leaving legitimate concerns about the legislative process from Roy lumped with the tantrums. A tyranny of the minority has left the House stuck in park as Republicans look for the keys they already have in the ignition. They just can’t bring themselves to turn over the engine, because apparently turning on themselves is so much more delightful.

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(JTA) – The Israeli ministry responsible for engaging with the half of the world’s Jews who don’t live in Israel has gotten a new name — and a leader who disdains the values of many American Jews.

Amichai Chikli announced during his swearing-in ceremony Monday that his ministry was changing its name from the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs to the Ministry for Diaspora Affairs and the Struggle Against Antisemitism. The name change is a sign that Chikli could plan to focus on the problems of the Diaspora more than his predecessors, who have focused largely on promoting Israel to Diaspora Jews.

Chikli is the son of a Conservative rabbi who lives on a kibbutz founded by the Conservative movement of Judaism, which he defends but says he no longer identifies with. He vaulted into prominence within Israel last year when he became the first member of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, to break with then-Prime Minister Naftali Bennett over Bennett’s decision to form an alliance with left-wing and Arab parties.

Though Chikli holds some views promoted by Diaspora Jews, he is disdainful of Reform Judaism, the largest denomination in the United States, and of the politics of American liberals, including President Joe Biden, who won a wide majority of U.S. Jews’ votes. He has said he believes the Pride flag is an anti-Zionist symbol and also equates public criticism of the Israeli government with antisemitism, a position that American Jewish groups have been fastidious about saying they do not hold.

“I have a problem with the trend of Reform Jews seeking to assimilate and affiliate themselves with groups who are anti-Israel,” Chikli told the Forward last year.

“The Reform movement has identified itself with the radical left’s false accusations that the settlers are violent, so they have earned the criticism against them, and I cannot identify with them,” he told the Jerusalem Post, also last year. “They are going back to their roots in Germany of anti-Zionism and anti-nationalism. It’s a tragedy that they are going there.”

Chikli’s appointment comes as Israel inaugurates a right-wing government that includes extremist parties, as well as one minister who has been convicted of inciting violence. The government and its priorities have drawn sharp criticism from Diaspora Jews, including from hundreds of U.S. rabbis who have pledged not to invite any members of extremist coalition blocs to speak to their communities.

Unlike some of his colleagues in the new government, Chikli says he believes there should be a space for egalitarian prayer at the Western Wall, a priority for many Diaspora Jews. He also criticized a haredi rabbi’s condemnation this week of Amir Ohana, a gay ally of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who is the new Knesset speaker, saying on Twitter, “There is no disease more dangerous than baseless hatred.”

But he appears to be on the same page as some of the extremist politicians about the propriety of LGBTQ demonstrations, calling Tel Aviv’s Pride Parade a “disgraceful vulgarity” in a Facebook post this summer. (He said he believes sexual identity should be “subdued.”) He also shares their disdain of Reform Judaism, a frequent target for some of the Religious Zionist politicians who are part of the governing coalition.

In his new role, Chikli faces the task of winning over American Jewish leaders who may well be skeptical of or dismayed by Israel’s rightward shift. With his coalition seeking to narrow the definition of who is considered Jewish, make it harder to move to Israel, and strip rights from minority groups within Israel, including LGBTQ Jews, Israeli Arabs and non-Orthodox Jews, that task could be quixotic.

One area of ideological overlap, though, is in the fight against antisemitism, which watchdogs say is on the rise in the Diaspora.

Israel has gotten more involved in fights over antisemitism and anti-Zionism in the United States in recent years, appointing actress and activist Noa Tishby as its first ever “special envoy for combating antisemitism and delegitimization” last year. Tishby’s travels have included visiting the campus of the University of California-Berkeley in the midst of a student anti-Zionist controversy at that school, and making appearances as a talking head on Fox News.

Chikli has indicated that colleges and universities are an area of special interest for him. “I am very worried about what is happening on the campuses,” he said in the Jerusalem Post interview. “It is heartbreaking to see Jewish young people who concede their connections to their people and their heritage in order to connect to the latest fashionable movement that they are calling woke.”

The Israeli government also involved itself in recent legal negotiations that resulted in regional rights to ice-cream maker Ben & Jerry’s being sold to an Israeli company after the Ben & Jerry’s U.S. board attempted to halt the sale of its products in “occupied Palestinian territories.”

Like U.S. Jewish leaders (and Biden), Chikli vociferously opposes the movement to boycott, divest from and sanction Israel, known as BDS. He believes that anti-Israel sentiment is inherently antisemitic, issuing a stern warning to American Jews in his Forward interview.

“Don’t think that joining anti-Israel movements will help you with anything,” he said. “In the end, the folks from the BDS movement will attack you and your children because it’s not Israel that they hate, they hate Judaism.”

On Wednesday, Chikli accused Yair Lapid, the opposition leader and past prime minister, of being “the spearhead of the BDS movement” because Lapid plans to speak critically to U.S. audiences about the new government.

“What Lapid is doing now as an outgoing prime minister is a disturbing irresponsibility,” Chikli said in public comments that he also tweeted. “He does not understand that when he tells the whole world that this is a ‘dark’ government, the world does not make a separation between government and state. That’s exactly how BDS does its work.”

Chikli’s predecessor, Nachman Shai, met early in his tenure with the heads of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox movements in the United States to push the message that Israel would embrace all denominations of Judaism equally.

On the occasion of the new government, Shai recently said that Israel could soon become hostile to Reform and Conservative Judaism.

Exactly how Chikli plans to engage with Diaspora Jews in his role, and when, is not yet clear; he did not respond to a request for an interview on Thursday. But he has started his tenure by taking action — canceling a 5 million NIS ($1.4 million) contract with a nonprofit group that Shai had struck shortly after the election. Chikli said the group, which has ties to Israel’s left, was “political” but that he was canceling the contract because it was inappropriate to strike one when the ministry’s leadership was set to change.

Another plan approved shortly before the election also faces an uncertain future: a $2.3 million contract with the Reform and Conservative movements in the United States to improve Israel’s image among young and liberal American Jews.

This article originally appeared on JTA.org.

The post Meet Amichai Chikli, Israel’s new Diaspora minister, who opposes BDS and Reform Judaism appeared first on The Forward.

Photo illustration by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

• OpenAI is in talks to sell shares of its company in a tender offer, according to the Wall Street Journal. 
• A tender offer is a bid to purchase some or all of shareholders’ stocks in a company.
• If the deal goes through, OpenAI would be one of the most valuable US startups despite generating minimal revenue.

The year has started off strong for ChatGPT, the viral new chatbot that uses artificial intelligence to write essays, cover letters, and may ultimately give Google a run for its money as a search engine.

According to the Wall Street Journal, OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT, is in talks to sell existing shares of its company in a tender offer that would value the company at $29 billion. 

Venture capital firms Thrive Capital and Founders Fund are in talks to invest in the deal, and their investment would total at least $300 million in share sales, the Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter. 

A tender offer is one in which investors buy shares from existing shareholders. In this case, that includes OpenAI’s employees, the Journal reported. 

Tender offers are typically made publicly and set a specific window of time for shareholders to sell. Oftentimes, shareholders are offered a price above the market price for the shares.

No deal has been reached yet and the terms of the deal might be subject to change, the Journal reported. However, if the deal does go through it would make OpenAI one of the most valuable US startups even though it hasn’t generated much revenue, it also reported. 

Amid a chilly environment where venture capital investors have largely pulled back from funding new startups, OpenAI would also be one of the few startups to raise money at a higher valuation on the private market, according to the Journal. 

OpenAI is also the company behind Dall-E 2, the artificial intelligence based image-generating platform. 

A spokesperson for OpenAI told Insider that the company is not commenting on the deal.

Shareif Ziyadat/Getty Images; The Parent Company

• The Parent Company and Jay-Z’s Roc Nation and SC Branding have established a revised strategic agreement to restructure their partnership, the companies announced to Insider. 
• Jay-Z, Roc Nation, and their affiliates will return approximately 7.1 million common shares of The Parent Company “to preserve shareholder value,” the companies said. 
• Through the agreement, The Parent Company will have an eight-year exclusive license to distribute Monogram, Jay-Z’s cannabis line, in California. 

TPCO Holding Corp., a consumer-focused California cannabis company known as “The Parent Company,” has entered into modification agreements to restructure its partnership with Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter’s Roc Nation and SC Branding, the companies announced exclusively to Insider. 

As part of the restructured arrangement, Jay-Z, Roc Nation, and their affiliates will return approximately 7.1 million common shares of The Parent Company and “enable the organization to save approximately $33.5 million in top-line costs over an eight-year period,” the companies said.

In a release sent to Insider, the parties laid out the terms of the new agreement and its implications for their established social equity venture: 

As to preserve shareholder value, Roc Nation has agreed to forgo future The Parent Company equity payments pursuant to the original partnership and SC Branding has agreed to forego future cash and/or equity payments. The mutually-agreed upon terms allow for Roc Nation and JAY-Z affiliates, who are expected to remain substantial shareholders, to continue work with The Parent Company across innovation, brand strategy and social justice fair equity opportunities.

Desiree Perez, CEO of Roc Nation and Dania Diaz, Managing Director of Philanthropy at Roc Nation will remain in their roles with the Company’s social equity ventures investment advisory committee as both entities work collaboratively on initiatives to help repair the harms created by the prohibition of cannabis. The parties are united in their drive to empower entrepreneurs in underserved communities by providing a platform for those who have been historically marginalized and disenfranchised by the unequal application of legislation.

Under the terms of the new agreement, ownership of Jay-Z’s cannabis line Monogram will transfer from The Parent Company to an entity under SC Branding, while The Parent Company will have an exclusive and royalty-free eight-year license to distribute the Monogram brand in California.

“Collectively, we have agreed to restructure our partnership in order to afford The Parent Company the best opportunity to execute a longstanding and successful strategy,” Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter said in a statement to Insider. “We are excited for the continued growth of The Parent Company and our future together in the cannabis industry.”

“I want to sincerely thank JAY-Z, Desiree Perez and the entire ROC team for their significant creative contributions. I look forward to continuing our exciting work together to create products and brands that address the needs of consumers in the world’s largest cannabis market,” said Troy Datcher, CEO and chairman of The Parent Company. “Importantly, this arrangement significantly reduces our ongoing financial commitments and protects shareholders from future dilution while transforming our business into a platform for future brand collaborations. We will continue to leverage our position as a world-class brand builder by working with authentic leaders and innovators in the industry. As we prepare our Company for potential national exposure, I’m thrilled with the innovative brand developments we expect to roll-out in the coming months.”

Desiree Perez, CEO of Roc Nation, added, “We’re eager to work alongside The Parent Company in this progressive capacity. The cannabis industry necessitates adaptability and critical thinking, and this collaborative approach puts us in a more versatile position to address social equity issues and create better opportunities for multicultural business leaders. Our hope is that we’ll be collectively poised to create comprehensive and longstanding change across the cannabis industry for decades to come.”

Later this month, The Parent Company’s social equity venture will launch a “Brand Success Program,” a 12-week program “implemented to provide minority owned brands with guaranteed shelf space and individualized mentorship by TPCO Sales, Marketing, Retail, and Operational Leaders,” a rep for the company said.

“Brands will learn best practices, operational procedures, and tips that can be applied to any retail outlet nationwide,” they continued. “The goal of the program is to empower each Brand with the knowledge and opportunity to scale their business, market efficiently, increase brand awareness while building customer loyalty, and boost sales.”

The program will launch in mid-January with the brand CRONJA from CEO and co-founder Bryant Bowens. It’ll follow up with the launch of the brand Disco Jays by MAKR House, from activist and entrepreneur Amber Senter.

vgajic/Getty Images

• Research shows most of the well-paying tech jobs on offer today are in non-tech industries.
• That means that jobseekers with strictly tech backgrounds need to position themselves differently.
• Insider spoke with four recruiters and careers coaches for their best tips.

Looking for a job in tech? You’re in luck. There’s rarely been a better time to do so.

This might sound counterintuitive based on recent headlines. Amid lingering economic uncertainty, the bloodbath in Silicon Valley has been brutal: Amazon is cutting 18,000 jobs, Meta slashed 11,000 roles, and Twitter fired 3,750 people. 

And yet research suggests that well-paying tech jobs are abundant — they’re just not in the tech industry. Job postings for tech-focused roles were up 25% from January to October 2022 compared with the same period in 2021, according to a report from Dice, the tech careers site. Around 60% of the top 100 employers of tech talent were from sectors like healthcare, consulting, defense, and banking.

Meanwhile, a study from workforce data provider Revelio Labs found that nearly three-fourths of the laid-off tech workers last year found a new job within three months; more than half found a job that paid more than what they previously earned.

“It’s a reminder of just how expansive the tech workforce is — it’s not just Silicon Valley,” said Tim Herbert, the chief research officer at Comptia. “Every industry sector hires tech professionals and there are tech hubs around the country in many cities that may fly under the radar.”

So if you’re a tech worker looking to pitch yourself to a new industry, what’s the best way to go about it? How can you get the attention of recruiters? And how can you use your non-traditional background to your advantage? Insider spoke with four recruiters and coaches for their best tips.

Pay special attention to keywords and language

If you’ve spent your career in Big Tech, applying for a job in healthcare or banking might seem like a leap for a recruiter who’s inundated with resumes. That’s why you need to help them connect the dots, said Kyle Elliott, a career and interview coach based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Elliott suggested using keywords from the job posting and rewriting your resume in its image. For example, let’s say the posting requires that a candidate has project management skills and leadership experience.

“You should write bullet points with those keywords and that explain how your past experience fits,” he said. “You’re saying, ‘You’re looking for these skills: I have them.'”

Another pro-tip: Using the language of the industry you’re targeting. In your past life, you might have called customers “users.” But in healthcare, they’re called patients and in banking, they’re called clients. 

“Think of the job posting as a recipe card,” he said.

Soft skills can really shine

Many jobs have technical screeners to them, so soft skills like “polish and presentation” can really make a candidate stand out, said Tyler Martin, the vice president of talent supply at freelancing platform Toptal.

“You can’t just go into a hole, code by yourself for three months, and not tell anyone what you’re doing,” Martin said. “Exceeding in the softer skills is something that will set aside most of the tech talent from each other honestly.”

Letting these soft skills shine includes being yourself, said Abhi Shrikhande, the vice president and general manager for technology services at Toptal. He emphasized that people do their best work when they feel comfortable.

“Typically where it doesn’t go as well is when somebody came into the engagement — or somebody came into the interview process — trying to win the job as if it’s a win-loss thing, as opposed to trying to find the right fit,” Shrikhande said.

Think about your ‘playbooks’

You might be inclined to hide or be bashful about your non-traditional background, but Elliott and other experts say there’s no need. Rather, he advised using your cover letter to call attention to the advantages you have over other candidates. Your experience elsewhere is actually a virtue.

“Don’t hide it — shine a light on why you’re a strong candidate even though you come from a different industry,” said Elliott.

Given the amount of flux in the tech labor market, keeping an open but clear mind is important during the job search, added Christy Schumann, the senior vice president of talent operations at Toptal.

“You want something that you enjoy and that’s motivating for you, but look at the opportunities that are presented holistically,” Schumann said. “Promote multiple aspects of your experience on your resume, including all the certifications, because now is the time to just make sure you have a holistic view of yourself.”

Be thoughtful and smart about how you position yourself, said Allison Hemming, CEO of Hired Guns, a digital talent agency. “Think about what playbooks you have to offer and how they apply to Fortune 2000 companies,” she said. 

In others, think about ways to translate your past experience and achievements to a new sector. Perhaps you helped create a data strategy, or you designed a cybersecurity system, or you wrote the code for a digital software product. Ask yourself: How could I do similar things in a new industry?

“If you can show how you’ll transfer your expertise and knowhow, that’s a compelling offering.”