It’s already midweek, fam, which is a head trip. But here’s something to blow your mind a bit more: days before Boeing’s malfunctioned Starliner was set to return autonomously from Earth (the astronauts are stuck at the ISS until February), there was apparently a “strange noise” emanating from the spacecraft. NASA said it was due to a complex “audio configuration” between Starliner and the ISS, but don’t lie if you think there’s even the tiniest chance that it’s a stowaway alien.

In other news… startups ditch their employees, YouTube takes the TV crown, and the summer movie season made a great comeback.

Want to discover even more newsletters? Here are some of our favorites

• YouTube – Nightbitch 

• X (Twitter) – Stranger Things 5 

• Google – Drew Starkey

• Reddit – Tim Burton

• TikTok – “Something Like That” - Tim McGraw 

• Spotify – “Zero Sum” - The Smile 

.BUSINESS.

Startups are shrinking in the US

Small business growth is skyrocketing across America due to cultural and economic changes during COVID, but the startups are hiring fewer employees than they used to.

The Big Picture: There’s now a record number of entrepreneurs but fewer opportunities for people simply looking for full-time employment.

Between the Lines: WSJ calls the new breed of businesses “pint-sized startups.”

• Census Bureau data found that startups had an average of 5.8 employees at the beginning of the century. Now they have 4.6, and it’s been trending sharply downward since COVID.

• Part of the reason is that entrepreneurs are taking on more roles at their own companies to keep overhead as low as possible and be flexible in what feels like a constantly changing economy.

• Additionally, founders are relying more on contractors (a mix of part-time and full-time; US-based and international), gig workers, and AI tools to scale up/down depending on demand and goals.

Closing Thoughts: Small businesses are the backbone of employment growth in America, accounting for 60% of jobs created between 1995 and 2023. But as startups shift to smaller headcounts, more people may be forced to consider starting their own business if they want to be employed — a riskier endeavor considering that most startups fail within their first year.

Go Deeper: Silicon Valley is obsessed with the idea of staying in “founder mode” — founders taking on larger roles at their companies instead of delegating to reports (in other words, needing fewer employees).

58% of you voted Yes in yesterday’s poll: Is Hollywood behind the curve in recognizing YouTube talent?

“I think Hollywood is behind the game in many respects.”

“The fact of the matter is YouTube is the equivalent to TV or other streaming platforms like Netflix with original content. If the buzz and viewership are there, I think its shows should be considered for awards.”

“We spend more time looking for entertainment on YouTube than anything else we subscribe to.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT YAZIO.

Healthy eating habits? There’s an app for that

It’s called YAZIO.

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Media, Music, & Entertainment

• The summer movie box office landed 10% lower than last year at $3.67 billion, which has all of Hollywood breathing a sigh of relief after a rough start to the season that projected a 30% drop.  [Read More]

• Peacock is getting into live comedy programming with New York After Dark, hosted by SNL players Colin Jost and Michael Che. [Read More]

• Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA!) is working on a long-shot bid to unionize film and TV production assistants. [Read More]

Fashion & E-Commerce

• Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher has become the newest Stone Island ambassador, ensuring that pieces will be heavily featured during Oasis’ reunion tour next year. [Read More]

• Uniqlo tapped Givenchy alum Clare Waight Keller as its new creative director. [Read More]

• Gorton’s Seafood, the 175-year brand famous for its fish sticks, is getting into fashion with a Gen Z favorite: bucket hats. [Read More]

Tech, Web3, & AI

• Waymo is partnering with Magna on a new assembly facility as rides hit 100,000 per week. [Read More]

• Amazon has recruited Anthropic as its newest AI partner to give Alexa an LLM update. [Read More]

• OpenAI called ChatGPT to the stand as a witness during a copyright infringement trial. [Read More]

Creator Economy

• NBC Sports has drafted seven digital influencers to hype up three NFL games during a 10,000-mile road trip. [Read More]

• Brazil says bye-bye to X after Elon Musk refused to suspend accounts at the government’s request. [Read More]

• Instagram is introducing public comments to Stories… but they’ll also disappear after 24 hours. [Read More]

.ENTERTAINMENT.

YouTube takes the TV crown

YouTube has become the first streaming platform to break 10% of TV viewership and the first streamer to account for the most TV viewership in a single month.

The Big Picture: YouTube is officially TV now, which could reshape how the company does deals on everything from ad sales to sports rights.

Between the Lines: YouTube had a great July, per Nielsen’s TV distribution rankings.

• 10.4% of all TV viewership came from audiences watching YouTube on TV, with people 17 and under accounting for 30% of that viewership (that’s what happens when school is off).

• It’s the first time this year that Disney (which includes all of its brands) was dethroned. It moved to second place at 9.9% of viewership.

• NBCUniversal also had a good month, thanks to the Olympics — it jumped from 8.5% of TV use in June to 9.5% in July.

Closing Thoughts: YouTube’s popularity on TV demonstrates how top digital creators don’t necessarily need to transition to a premium platform to command premium viewership. But they still may need to if they want premium money.

Go Deeper: YouTube has had a bumpy road to TV dominance. Remember YouTube Originals?

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT HEAR.COM.

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• Listen: Scriptnotes chats with Ryan Reynolds about writing, acting, producing, and living and breathing the Deadpool franchise.

• Watch: WSJ explores Oman’s $2.6 billion plan to turn Muscat, the nation's capital, into a smart city.

• Read: Ted Chiang, the prolific sci-fi author best known for the short story that became Arrival, writes in NYT why AI is simply unable to make real art.

The greatest use case for AI yet.

LATEST PODCAST EPISODE

Today, on an extra special bonus episode of Future Forecast, our hosts Boye and Chris sit down with Andrew Kenward, the President and COO of Almost Friday Media. Andrew was an agent at WME in the digital media department at WME before being brought into the Almost Friday universe in 2021. We chat with him about his career, his goals for the brand moving forward, and what it's like working in media today.