In 2015, a group of Silicon Valley heavy-hitters met for a dinner that would change tech history. They believed that the time had come to build a super-intelligent AI, and they founded a non-profit lab to try to do it. In part 1 of our series, Artificial: The OpenAI Story, we explore the company’s idealistic origins and speak with early employees about the struggle to make their AI dream a reality. Further Reading: - Elon Musk Tries to Direct AI—Again  - The Contradictions of Sam Altman, AI Crusader  Further Listening: - The Company Behind ChatGPT  - The Hidden Workforce That Helped Filter Violence and Abuse Out of ChatGPT   - OpenAI’s Weekend of Absolute Chaos  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billionaire investor Charlie Munger died Tuesday, just weeks short of his 100th birthday. Munger was vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, and he was best known for his close partnership with CEO Warren Buffett. As WSJ’s Jason Zweig explains, Munger often played Buffett’s sidekick, but his investing expertise made him a celebrity in his own right. Further Reading: - Charlie Munger’s Life Was About Way More Than Money  - The Secrets to Charlie Munger’s Success  - Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s Partner and ‘Abominable No-Man,’ Dies at 99  Journal Swag: - ‘The Journal’ Merch shop  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dubai, a city known for private jets, giant yachts and other symbols of carbon-heavy living, is an awkward location for a conference on climate change. The man organizing the COP28 summit also runs the country’s national oil company. WSJ’s Ed Ballard digs into the contradictions at the heart of this month’s climate summit and why they may not be that unusual.  Further Reading: - Welcome to COP28, the U.N. Climate Conference Hosted by an Oil Giant  - What’s at Stake at COP28 in Dubai  Further Listening: - The Fight Over Climate Change's Price Tag  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Journal investigation reveals a years-long culture of sexual harassment and intimidation at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a government agency that regulates banks. WSJ's Rebecca Ballhaus on the allegations and how some of the problems went all the way to the top. Further Reading: - Strip Clubs, Lewd Photos and a Boozy Hotel: The Toxic Atmosphere at Bank Regulator FDIC  - FDIC Chair, Known for Temper, Ignored Bad Behavior in Workplace  Further Listening: - Can the Government Contain a Banking Crisis?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI was founded in 2015 as an idealistic nonprofit. Its goal was to build artificial general intelligence or AGI — an AI that could do most jobs better than a human could. In the years that followed, OpenAI’s pursuit of AGI led them to develop the viral chatbot ChatGPT. The company became one of the top AI labs in the world. But to get there, OpenAI’s leaders would compromise nearly every one of their founding ideals. Over four episodes, we explore how a little-known startup built one of the world’s most viral tech products … and nearly tore itself apart in the process. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Shares of Estée Lauder, the beauty giant, have plunged about 50% this year. And the members of the Lauder family are at odds about what to do. WSJ's Emily Glazer reports on the company's business mistakes and its rumblings of succession. Further Listening: - The World’s Richest Person Is Planning for Succession  Further Reading: - The Estée Lauder Family Built a Beauty Empire. A Succession Rift Threatens It  - Estée Lauder Stock Plunges After Another Profit Warning  - Estée Lauder’s Big Bet on China Is Looking Not So Pretty  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Changpeng Zhao built Binance into the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, and became one of the faces of crypto in the process. Last week, he appeared in federal court and pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering laws and agreed to step down as CEO. WSJ’s Patricia Kowsmann explains what the deal means for Zhao, Binance, and the future of crypto itself.  Further Listening: - The Trial of Crypto’s Golden Boy  - A Crypto Exchange Crackdown  - The Rise of Binance - And The Effort to Reel It In  Further Reading: - Inside Binance’s Guilty Plea and the Biggest Fine in Crypto History  - The World’s Biggest Crypto Firm Is Melting Down  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re off today, but we still have a great episode for you. A texting scam that originated in China is on the rise in the United States. It’s more sophisticated than scams of the past, and it has already cost American victims more than $400 million. WSJ’s Robert McMillan explains how pig-butchering works, and one victim shares how it’s impacted her. This episode originally published in November 2022.   Further Reading: -A Text Scam Called ‘Pig Butchering’ Cost Her More Than $1.6 Million  -Online Scams Cost Americans Billions. Here’s How to Avoid the Worst of Them.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ocean Spray’s farmers are responsible for 65% of the world’s cranberries. It’s not a publicly traded company. It’s not a traditional private company, either. It’s a cooperative founded nearly a century ago and owned by roughly 700 families. WSJ’s Ben Cohen tells the story of how the cranberry got into the can, and how the company is planning for a future beyond your Thanksgiving table.  Further Reading: - These People Are Responsible for the Cranberry Sauce You Love to Hate  Further Listening: - Are Rotisserie Chickens 'Inflation-Proof'?  - The Twinkie: From Bankruptcy to Billions  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cheap drones, once the domain of hobbyists, are now in high demand on battlefields. Following Hamas's attack on October 7, Israel has been flooding suppliers with requests for drones: it wants as many as possible, as soon as possible. WSJ’s Heather Somerville unpacks the benefits and perils of the use of off-the-shelf drones in modern warfare. Further Reading: -Israel Wants Inexpensive Drones. Chinese, American—It Doesn’t Matter.  -How the Technological Revolution in Ukraine Is Reshaping Modern Warfare  -U.S. Drone Startups See an Opening in Ukraine  Further Listening: -The Surprising Origins of Russia’s Drones  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OpenAI unexpectedly fired its CEO and co-founder Sam Altman on Friday. The move kicked off a series of twists and turns that left the company and its staff in upheaval. WSJ’s Deepa Seetharaman wades through the chaos and explains what might be next for the company. Further Listening: - A Conversation with OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Mira Murati  - The Company Behind ChatGPT  Further Reading: - OpenAI Employees Threaten to Quit Unless Board Resigns  - Sam Altman Is Out at OpenAI After Board Skirmish  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Wall Street Journal investigation found that only 14% of emergency departments nationwide have been certified to treat kids. WSJ’s Melanie Evans explains why this is a problem across the country, and one family recounts their son’s experience in an ER. Further Reading: -Find Hospitals Deemed Ready to Treat Children in Your Area  -Children Are Dying in Ill-Prepared Emergency Rooms Across America  -Emergency Rooms Are Failing Kids. This Hospital Stepped Up.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inflation has been a big problem in the U.S. economy over the past couple of years. The Federal Reserve has been trying to tamp it down without crashing the economy. WSJ’s Amara Omeokwe explains why a so-called soft landing is coming into view. Further Reading: - Cooling Inflation Likely Ends Fed Rate Hikes  - The Elusive Soft Landing Is Coming Into View  - The Global Fight Against Inflation Has Turned a Corner  Further Listening: - Why a Soft Landing for the Economy Could Be Hard  - Will the Fed Stop Raising Interest Rates?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The longest actors strike in Hollywood history finally came to an end last week. WSJ’s Joe Flint explains why it took so long, and how the industry might change as a result. Further Listening: -The Case of the Hollywood Shutdown  -2023: The Year of the Strike  -One Hollywood Writer on the Industry’s ‘Dire’ Situation  Further Reading: -The Actors Strike Is Over. Now Comes the Wait for New Films and Shows.  -The Sticking Point That’s Keeping Actors on Strike  -Hollywood Actors Reach Agreement With Studios, Streamers to End Strike  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Monday, Israeli troops reached Gaza’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa where Israel says Hamas conceals a major command center. WSJ’s Chao Deng and Margherita Stancati discuss what's happening at the hospital, where thousands of people, including patients and doctors, are trapped because of the fighting.  Further Listening: - For Palestinians Trapped in Gaza, There’s No Way Out  - The War Between Israel and Hamas  Further Reading: - Israeli Forces Reach Gate of Gaza’s Largest Hospital  - Israel Pushing for Hamas to Surrender Stricken Al-Shifa Hospital  - Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital Goes Dark at Center of Israel-Hamas Battle Zone  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An economic downturn in China has resulted in historically high youth unemployment. At the same time, China’s leader Xi Jinping thinks the countryside is in need of rejuvenation. WSJ’s Brian Spegele explains how the Chinese leader is trying to tackle both issues in one fell swoop. Further Reading: -China Has an Idea for Its Legions of Unemployed Youth: Send Them Away  -How Bad is China’s Economy? Millions of Young People Are Unemployed and Disillusioned  Further Listening: -Why Millions of Chinese Young People Are Unemployed  -China’s Property Market Crisis  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried is over. Rachel Humphreys and Caitlin Ostroff reflect on their month at court and answer outstanding questions about what happened at FTX, the trial and what comes next. Plus they reveal the final court cafeteria coffee tally. Further Reading: - Smoked Fish, Shaggy Hair and Tears: 8 Unforgettable Moments From Sam Bankman-Fried’s Trial  Further Listening: - The Trial of Crypto’s Golden Boy  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Meta engineer Arturo Bejar thought he could help make Instagram safer after his daughter experienced harassment on the platform. But Bejar said that his concerns were not sufficiently addressed by senior leadership at the company and that teens are still at risk for harassment and bullying on Meta's platforms. Further Listening: -The Facebook Files  Further Reading: -His Job Was to Make Instagram Safe for Teens. His 14-Year-Old Showed Him What the App Was Really Like.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oregon became the first state to decriminalize all drugs in 2020. The goal was to steer people to treatment who otherwise might have faced jail time. WSJ’s Zusha Elinson explains why many in Oregon have since turned against the decriminalization initiative. Further Reading: - Oregon Votes to Decriminalize All Drugs, Allow Psilocybin for Mental-Health Treatment  Further Listening: - The Highs and Lows of Diversifying the Cannabis Industry  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

WeWork, the office space coworking company, filed for bankruptcy yesterday. The company’s decision comes after it struggled with debt and a slump in the commercial real estate market. WSJ’s Eliot Brown recounts how the embattled startup ended up in bankruptcy. Further Listening: -WeWork’s CEO on the Future of Work  -WeWork: The Enablers  Further Reading: -Adam Neumann Wounded WeWork. An Office Market Bust Finished It Off.  -WeWork, Once Valued at $47 Billion, Files for Bankruptcy  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices