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Walk into any Silicon Valley office in the late 2010s, and you’d probably see at least one pair of Allbirds.

Updated at 6:58 p.m. ET on April 16, 2026
The White House has reportedly urged Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to avoid talking about vaccines, but this morning he had no choice. When he appeared before the House Ways and Means Committee—the first of seven congressional testimonies that he’s scheduled to give in the coming days as part of the 2027-budgeting process—members pressed him on the issue, which he has written and spoken about nearly nonstop for two decades.

Hasan Piker has attracted millions of followers across multiple social-media platforms, making him one of the most popular left-wing streamers. He has been the subject of several flattering magazine profiles that have lingered over what they describe as his handsome looks and bodybuilder physique. Some progressives see him as their long-sought entry point into alternative media that can reach a young, mainly male, audience.

I had the strangest dream. I dreamed that my shoes—my comfortable, unfashionable wool shoes—were pivoting to AI. “But you’re a shoe company,” I said. “Just go out of business! Keep your dignity!”
My shoes thanked me politely for the great question and then tried to walk me off a bridge. That was how I knew that their pivot to AI was complete. From Allbirds to AIlbirds (see, that L is an I!). Maybe I’ve cracked, I said to myself.

Tomas Montoya has sold festival foods—funnel cakes, burgers, hot dogs—across the American Southwest for years. But lately, business has been rough. Costs are up, so he’s increased his prices. Employees are begging for hours he can’t give them. In Arizona, where he lives, Montoya pays $6 a gallon to fill up his food trucks with diesel. This summer, he may have to skip the California leg of his festival route because fuel is even more expensive there.