*By Michael Teich*
Amazon inked a new partnership with American Express, but don't expect the financial industry to be the next area the tech giant jumps into.
"The thing that people misunderstand is that tech companies don't want to manufacture financial products," said Lex Sokolin, Global Director of Fintech Strategy at Autonomous Research. "It's about making the ecosystem and the platform more powerful, and finance is just a feature inside of that."
American Express announced Tuesday it will launch a co-branded Amazon credit card for small businesses. The move accelerates Amazon's foray into financial products and strengthens its position as a lender. The goal, Sokolin said, is to enable small businesses to finance their activities, getting more products on Amazon's platform, and ultimately driving more commerce.
Plus, the opportunity costs of devoting itself to the financial industry are too high.
"Amazon has tremendous high-growth, super interesting, blue oceans to explore,” he said. "They could be investing in building a mortgage business, or they can build artificial intelligence business."
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/amazon-bolsters-financial-prowess-with-new-credit-card)
AdTheorent just the latest company to go public via a SPAC. The company specializes in digital advertising, using AI and machine learning as a tool to move marketing forward. AdTheorent to close its SPAC merger with MCAP Acquisition today and will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ADTH. CEO Jim Lawson spoke with Cheddar ahead of the move.
Although still early in development, blockchain technology, Web3, also known as Web 3.0 has been getting a lot of attention from some top tech names lately. Web3 is based on blockchain technology, which powers NFT’s and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. With Web3, users would ideally control their own data, rather than have it be controlled by a few large companies. But, Tesla CEO Elon musk isn't buying into Web3 just yet, tweeting over the weekend that the decentralized iteration of the internet seems more like a marketing "buzzword" right now than reality. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey also chiming in to the conversation, expressing doubt over whether or not Web3 would actually be decentralized if ownership still belonged to venture capital firms. Parker McCurley, co-founder & CEO of Decent Labs explains the significance of Web3 catching the eye of the tech giants, and what Web3 could mean for the future of the internet.
The FDA has granted emergency use authorization to Pfizer's pill to treat covid-19. The treatment, called Paxlovid, is the first antiviral covid-19 pill that people can take at home.
Pfizer says the pill can reduce the risk of severe illness by 90 percent and is intended for people at high risk for severe disease, including those over 65, people with obesity, diabetes, or a weakened immune system. Professor Peter Pitts, Founder, Center for Medicine in the Public Interest & Former FDA Associate joined Wake Up with Cheddar to discuss.
On December 20th, the TSA reported that for the fourth day in a row, it had screened more than 2 million people through its airports as the Omicron variant continues to rage and spread rapidly throughout the country. The CDC now reporting that roughly 73% of all covid cases are caused by the Omicron variant ahead of President Biden’s remarks aimed towards curbing the virus and helping hospitals battle rises in hospitalizations. Dr. Nasia Safdar breaks down the latest on traveling during the pandemic.
Ahead of a four day week for the markets due to the upcoming Christmas holiday, investors hoping for a quiet end to the year, or even a Santa Claus rally, may not be in luck. Investors are still digesting the latest from the Fed regarding a quicker than expected taper, as well as ever increasing blow back as the Omicron variant spreads. Octavio Marenzi, CEO of Opimas LLC, explains why the markets have been so volatile ever since the emergence of the latest variant and what to expect going forward into 2022.
Carlo and Baker cover the heartening news on the Covid front ahead of the holiday, plus President Biden punting student loan repayments again, a new space telescope and Love, Hate, Ate: Christmas Eve Eve Edition!
