A Few of Today's Reads (Friday, October 6, 2023)

• Millennials and Boomers are Competing for Homes. Guess Who’s Winning? Rising prices, high rates, and demographics are reversing millennial gains. (Financial Times)

• Spotify Adds Audiobooks to its Subscription, Thickening the Plot with Amazon:“Sapiens” at 2X speed… Spotify is coming to Audible. The Swedish streamer is giving paid subscribers 15 hours of audiobook listening a month, offering 150K+ titles. If listeners get stuck on a cliffhanger, they can pay an additional $11 per month for 10 more hours. The literary perk launched in the UK and Australia this week and is expected to entertain commuters in the US and other markets this winter. The move could help Spotify retain and attract subscribers, especially after it raised prices this year. (RobinHood)

• The 4 Billion Pieces of Paper Keeping Global Trade Afloat: The vast majority of trade is conducted using paper documents, but fraud is fueling a clamor to digitize the system. (Bloomberg)

• A New Study Finds Returns on ESG ETFs to be “Unremarkable”: Investors searching for alpha—to beat the market—won’t find it in socially responsible investing. A new study examining a decade of data finds portfolios of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that follow environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing strategies did not perform any better than standard index funds. (Qz)

• The Cash Machine Is Blue and Green: Selling people on the idea of a machine that spits out money was obviously not easy. But then a freak weather event happened, and everything began to click. (Tedium)

• An Airbnb Guest Who has Overstayed for 542 Days was Kicked Out of Another Rental Just 2 months Earlier: Elizabeth Hirschhorn was kicked out of a $2.6 million rental in Oakland, California, in July 2021, DailyMail.com reported. According to the media, Hirschhorn subleased the property from landlords Brian and Gordon Bishop in September 2019. According to legal documents reviewed by DailyMail.com, a harmful substance was found in the property. Hirschhorn asked Lewin, the primary tenant, to have it professionally cleaned. (Business Insider)

• No, China Isn’t Shifting Away From the Dollar or Dollar Bonds: China’s reserves have shifted from Treasury to Agency and made increased use of offshore custodians. The available evidence suggests that it still holds about 50 percent of its reserves in dollar bonds. (Council on Foreign Relations)

• An Orange County Entrepreneur’s $60-million Legal Battle to Stop Apple from Steamrolling Startups: Apple hatched a plan to obtain or emulate the technology without paying for it. Instead of acquiring it, Apple decided it could simply emulate its technology while raiding its brain trust. A decade later, they are locked in an acrimonious legal battle, alleging Apple infringed on his patents and stole trade secrets. If Kiani wins, it could stop Apple Watches, which are manufactured in China, from being imported into the U.S. (Los Angeles Times)

• How the Elon Musk Biography Exposes Walter Isaacson: One way to keep Musk’s myth intact is simply not to check things out. (The Verge)

• New 'Pornocrime' Report Reveals Damning Figures: 90% of the pornographic videos hosted by the four most visited sites in France—Ponnhub, HVideos, Xnxx, and Xhamster—feature real acts of physical, sexual, or verbal violence against women. This is one of the conclusions of a report presented last week by the French High Council for Equality between Women and Men, after more than a year and a half's work.(Statista)

• The Ends of Knowledge: Academics need to think harder about the purpose of their disciplines and whether some of those should come to an end. (Aeon) see also The Worth of Wild Ideas: Even if a leading theory of consciousness is wrong, it can still be useful to science. (Nautilus)

• You Gorged on Your European Vacation but Lost Weight. Why? Americans who eat their way through Europe sometimes come home surprised to see a lower number on the scale. (Wall Street Journal)

• Stage That Once Hosted William Shakespeare was Found: St George's Guildhall in King's Lynn is the oldest working theatre in the UK, dating back to 1445. During recent renovations, timber floorboards were found under the existing auditorium, and they have been dated back to the 15th century. The theater claims documents show that Shakespeare acted at the venue in 1592 or 1593. (BBC)

• Maybe in Your Lifetime, People Will Live on the Moon and Then Mars: Through partnerships and 3-D printing, NASA is plotting how to build houses on the moon by 2040. (New York Times)

• Starlab Gets a Boost from Voyager and Northrop Grumman: Voyager Space, a leading space exploration company, has partnered with Northrop Grumman, a global aerospace and defense company, to develop and deploy autonomous docking technology for the Cygnus spacecraft, which will supply cargo to the Starlab space station. Starlab is a joint venture between Voyager Space and Airbus Defence and Space, a European aerospace giant, to build and operate a free-flying space station in low-Earth orbit (LEO). (Interesting Engineering)

• The Truth About the Taylor Swift, Jets Game, Google Search Conspiracy Theory: This week, the results for “Taylor Swift jets” look very different than they would have a month ago. Why? Last Sunday, Swift and a bunch of famous pals like Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, and Shawn Levy were spotted at the New York Jets game. Previously, searches related to Swift and jets would have turned up results about the Grammy winner’s use of private jets and those jets’ carbon emissions, leading some folks (OK, Vulture) to ask: “Did Taylor Swift Attend a New York Jets Game to Detract From Her Private Jets?” (Wired)

* Photo or Image of the Day:

Thirty years ago, Russian President Boris Yeltsin resolved the standoff with the 'Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation'  by having the building shelled and stormed, causing many casualties, but more importantly the loss of faith in the Russian Federation's democracy. Ever since, the country has been characterised by an executive branch substantially more powerful than the legislative and judiciary.

New documents released on 04/Oct./2023 by the National Security Archive provide an insight into how Washington and the Kremlin viewed the situation. From both angles, the picture was black and white at that time: democratic and liberal reformers sided with Yeltsin and the communist and fascist opposition trying to push the country back to the totalitarian past. Because power in Russia has never been exchanged beyond a transfer to a chosen successor, a full public examination of the evidence about the events of 1993 has never taken place. Although limited, the selection of documents released sheds light on the complexity of events and the great danger that the Clinton administration witnessed in Russia in the fall of 1993.

* Notable Statistics: Men’s Haircut Price

* Video Worth Watching: ITALY IS ABOUT TO DISAPPEAR FROM THE MAP! Demographic, Economic & Political Crisis Explained

* Ken's Product Pick: The Business Playbook: How to Document and Delegate What You Do So Your Company Can Grow Beyond You

* Cool Site of the Day - Recur Email provides access to actionable information on thousands of founders, including verified email addresses, LinkedIn, and funding data. Engage with decision makers of businesses looking to grow quickly. Why not use Apollo or Zoominfo instead? Because VCBacked has no export limit. Download thousands of leads from day one.

The Ultimate List Of Everything Elon Musk Owns

What Companies Does Elon Musk Own?

Elon Musk owns six companies that span a range of industries, from electric vehicles to an underground tunnel company to the social media giant formerly known as Twitter. Elon Musk’s companies include SpaceX, Tesla, X (formerly Twitter), The Boring Company, Neuralink, and xAI. The newest Elon Musk company is xAI; it was formed in July 2023 as a rival to ChatGPT creator OpenAI. Musk was one of the original founders of OpenAI but resigned from the board in 2018. Most of the companies Elon Musk owns are worth billions of dollars; xAI’s value is unknown.

Companies Owned by Elon Musk and How Much They’re Worth

• Tesla: $770.2 billion as of August 2023

• SpaceX: $150 billion as of July 2023

• X (formerly Twitter): $15 billion as of June 2023

• The Boring Company: $5.7 billion as of April 2022

• Neuralink: $5 billion as of June 2023

• xAI: Unknown value

Which Companies Does Elon Musk No Longer Own?

Our compendium also includes everything Elon Musk owned that he no longer has any ownership of. Elon Musk’s first company was Zip2, an online business directory that he started with funding from his father and sold in 1999 for $307 million to Compaq Computer Corporation. With that money, he started an online financial service company called X.com, which merged with Confinity a year later to form PayPal. Two years later, PayPal was sold to eBay for $1.5 billion, which allowed Musk to found and invest in several of the companies he still has today. Musk invested in his cousins’ solar energy company, SolarCity, back in 2006; it was acquired by Tesla ten years later for $2.6 billion in stock. Elon Musk was also one the co-founders of OpenAI until his resignation from the board in 2018.

Companies Elon Musk No Longer Owns

• Zip2: Sold to Compaq Computer Corporation in 1999

• PayPal: Sold to eBay in 2022

• SolarCity: Acquired by Tesla in 2016

• OpenAI: Resigned from board in 2018

Do you hope to one day be as rich as Elon Musk? While his level of wealth may not be attainable, there are ways to invest your money now to be able to live a comfortable life during your retirement. Learn more about the different retirement investment options that are available, such as a Self-Directed IRA that allows you to invest in alternative assets or a Directed Trust to guarantee the safety and continuity of your family’s wealth.

The Complete List of Everything Elon Musk Owns

SpaceX

• Company’s Purpose: Space transportation and satellite-based Internet service

• Musk’s Title: CEO, chairman, CTO

• Year Founded: 2002

• Cost to Start Company: $100 million

• Company’s Value: $150 billion as of July 2023

Tesla

• Company’s Purpose: Designs and manufactures electric vehicles, solar energy generation systems, and battery energy storage products

• Musk’s Title: CEO

• Year Musk Invested: 2004

• Amount Musk Invested: $6.5 million to become largest shareholder

• Company’s Value: $770.2 billion as of August 2023

The Boring Company

• Company's Purpose: Infrastructure and underground tunnel construction services

• Musk’s Title: Founder

• Year Founded: 2016

• Cost to Start Company: $113 million, including around $102 million from Musk

• Company’s Value: $5.7 billion as of April 2022

Neuralink

• Company’s Purpose: Develops implantable brain-computer interfaces

• Musk’s Title: Founder

• Year Founded: 2016

• Cost to Start Company: $158 million in funding, including $100 million from Musk

• Company’s Value: $5 billion as of June 2023

X (Formerly Twitter)

• Company's Purpose: Social media service

• Musk’s Title: Chairman and CTO (stepped down as CEO in 2023)

• Year Musk Purchased Company: 2022

• Purchase Price: $44 billion

• Company’s Value: $15 billion as of June 2023

xAI

• Company's Purpose: Rival to ChatGPT creator OpenAI

• Musk’s Title: Founder

• Year Founded: 2023

• Cost to Start Company: Unknown

Musk Foundation

• Description: Nonprofit that supports renewable energy, pediatric research and education, and developing safe AI to benefit humanity

• Musk’s Title: President

• Year Founded: 2001

Value of Assets: $9.4 billion as of 2021, $5.7 billion of which was donated by Tesla

Companies Elon Musk No Longer Owns

Zip2 

• Company's Purpose: Online business directory

• Musk’s Title: Co-founder, removed as CEO in 1996

• Year Founded: 1995

• Cost to Start Company: $28,000 in funding from Musk’s father

• Year Sold: 1999 to Compaq Computer Corporation

• Amount Sold For: $307 million

PayPal (formerly X.com)

• Company's Purpose: Online financial services

• Musk’s Title: Co-founder, removed as CEO in 2000

• Year Founded: 1999, merged with Confinity in 2000 to form PayPal

• Cost to Start Company: $12 million

• Year Sold: 2002 to eBay

• Amount Sold For: $1.5 billion

SolarCity

• Company's Purpose: Sold and installed solar energy generation systems

• Musk’s Title: Chairman

• Year Founded: 2006, by Musk’s cousins

• Amount Musk Invested: $10 million

• Year Sold: 2016, acquired by Tesla Energy

• Amount Sold For: $2.6 billion in stock

OpenAI

• Company's Purpose: AI research company

• Musk’s Title: Co-founder

• Year Founded: 2015

• Cost to Start Company: $1 billion from founders, including $50 million from Musk

• Year Sold/Left: Resigned from board in 2018