Amazon is in talks with some big Wall Street banks to launch a checking account geared towards its younger customers. The e-commerce giant is in the early stages of talks with banks like JPMorgan, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Amazon is not trying to become a bank but rather wants to offer Amazon-branded checking accounts. This would be the second partnership Amazon has with JPMorgan. Earlier this year, the company announced it was teaming up with JPMorgan and Berkshire Hathway to create an independent healthcare company.
Apple will reportedly unveil a cheaper MacBook Air and noise-canceling headphones later this year. Longtime Apple analysts are predicting the cheaper MacBook Air could comes as soon as the second quarter of this year. The current version of Apple's MacBook Air costs $999. The newer version will reportedly be a 13-inch model. And according to Bloomberg, Apple is planning to release noise-canceling headphones, similar to ones made by Bose and Beats by Dre. Those are expected out at the end of this year.
Ashley Jenkins, host of Rooster Teeth's "The Know," joins us to talk about the alleged meeting between President Trump and video game makers. So far, no gaming companies have received invitations for the meeting which is supposed to take place this week. The goal of the meeting is to address violence in video games and what effect it could potentially have on people. Jenkins notes there are no studies showing any link between video game consumption and behavior. She also touches on Twitch's new user guidelines which will strictly enforce anti-hate speech and harassment rules. Jenkins says the new rules will allow Twitch to ban users with more uniformity.
Plus, we're recapping the 90th annual Academy Awards with Bonnie Fuller, editor-in-chief at Hollywood Life. The biggest prize of the night, Best Picture, went to Guillermo del Toro's "The Shape of Water." Fuller was excited to see Frances McDormand win Best Actress for her role in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." She also weighs in on McDormand's speech, calling for actors to make use of inclusion riders in their contracts. The show also gave some airtime to the #MeToo and Time's Up movements, with actresses like Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino taking the stage to call for action.
'Top Gun: Maverick' making an estimated $156 million domestically for its four-day opening weekend. Daniel Loria, SVP of Content Strategy and Editorial Director at Boxoffice Pro, joins Cheddar News to weigh in on the long-awaited sequel and the summer box office.
The holiday weekend saw Disney+ and Netflix competing head-to-head for streaming views as the Disney behemoth kicked off the unofficial start to summer with its release of "Obi-Wan Kenobi" and Netflix responded with the first part of "Stranger Things" Season 4. The streaming giants caught the eye of Wall Street, and Seth Schachner, the managing director at consultancy Strat Americas, joined Cheddar News to break down the heavy hitters. "This is a very tough, competitive game, and I don't see it getting any easier," he said. "I think you'll probably see more consolidation."
The founder and president of Cyborg Mobile Kobie Hatcher has been on a strong trajectory to disrupt his industry with a program called The New Technologists. It's not only meant to address the diversity gap within large tech companies but also help pave the way to transform the lives of young BIPOC students. He joined Cheddar News to talk about how he's working to make a difference with the lack of diversity in tech. “There's truly no lack of talent out there. It's just identifying them and letting them know that, hey, I've been in the tech sector for over 20 years. I see you. I know what you can bring, bring it, we need it," Hatcher said.
Catching you up on the entertainment headlines of the day with "Top Gun: Maverick" soaring up to a record opening at $160.5M, Harry Styles also hitting number one on Billboard with "Harry's House," Netflix released images of Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein in "Maestro," and more.
Constituent service platform Indigov recently raised $25 million in a Series B funding round. Indigov bills itself as a constituent relationship management tool that helps elected officials improve the way they organize, respond to, and engage those they serve. The startup's services are being used by federal, state, and local governments across the country, including the U.S. House of Representatives. Alex Kouts, founder & CEO of Indigov, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
The 2022 NBA playoffs are intensifying as four teams vie for an NBA finals berth. Tonight, Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors can book their finals ticket with a win over the Dallas Mavericks, while Miami will be feeling the 'heat' tomorrow night, facing elimination against the Boston Celtics.
And with the growing popularity of sports betting, the NBA playoffs offers a potential money-making opportunity for fans. Trysta Krick, host of BetMGM Tonight, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
As the holiday weekend arrives, travelers are bracing themselves for higher gas prices amid the inflation surge, but Robert Sinclair, AAA spokesperson, joined Cheddar News to discuss how the higher costs likely won't hold people back this Memorial Day Weekend. “We're near pre-pandemic levels. Nearly 40 million people are traveling. And of that total, about 35 million will be driving to their destinations," he said.
