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Happy Tuesday, TFP. It’s no secret that plenty of college students are using AI to complete assignments, but one university is officially making the tech a centerpiece of its learning. Ohio State University is rolling out an “AI Fluency” plan as part of its syllabus, which will teach all undergraduates generative AI basics, host gen AI workshops, and much more starting with the class of 2029. What’s the over/under on it also generating some new entry-level jobs when the students graduate?

Warner Bros. Discovery announced that the entertainment conglomerate will be split in two — with one company housing “Streaming & Studios” and the other comprising the “Global Networks.”

The Big Picture: WBD isn’t the first entertainment giant to announce such a move — Comcast threw off its high-revenue (yet declining) cable assets into Versant, and Lionsgate separated its studio division from Starz. With streaming now the norm and efficiency the corporate Holy Grail, it was only a matter of time before the debt-laden WBD joined the divorce club.

Behind the Scenes: In 2022, Warner Bros. and Discovery joined forces… three years later, they’re kind of splitting apart.

Last Transmission: WBD has been setting the stage for the split all year, recently rebranding the now-profitable Max back to HBO Max, signaling a return to a less-is-more model that values quality over scale to keep people engaged (only 25% of HBO Max viewing comes from the linear networks). Meanwhile, the networks division can engage in roll-up deals with other stranded cable brands — ones that can also absorb the debt weighing down the prestige assets.

It’s no surprise that Wall Street loved the move, sending WBD’s stock up 13%.

Prediction: Most analysts expect a sale of the streaming and studio assets to be Zaslav’s endgame, so ridding it of debt and CNN (news divisions are always problematic) may make it a much more enviable M&A target.

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Ballers, which bills itself as a social-sport venue and members club, raised a $20 million Series A round in the run-up to the opening of the company’s first flagship location in Philadelphia.

Why It Hits: Ballers is in the racket sports and golf business — two sports blowing up in popularity with Gen Z, not just for the exercise but also as a setting for building community. Is this the evolution of the country club?

Between the Courts: Ballers co-founder David Gutstadt (who created it with Amanda Potter) says he wants to “bring country club sports to the city.”

Final Set: According to RacquetX, nearly half of racket-sports players are what it calls “crosscourt consumers,” which means they like to play more than one of the sports that Ballers will have in their space. Pickleball, especially, is culturally on the rise, with the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) reporting that it’s the fastest-growing sport in America — participation has skyrocketed by 311% in the past three years.

All those new pickleball courts popping up everywhere? No accident.

Prediction: If Ballers takes off, typical nightlife may soon include a round of pickleball with your drinks… which could reshape your Friday-night fashion and food and beverage choices.

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52.9% of you voted No in yesterday’s poll: Do you think AI-generated artists can attract genuine fan bases?

“Not yet anyway.”

“All it will take is one unbelievably catchy song, and listeners will give in — regardless of whether it’s from a human. What’ll be bananas is if people start buying tickets to AI concerts, which is already happening with holograms.”

“There will only be one or two per decade that really have broad, profitable fan bases, and managing the ecosystem of that AI pop star will be a ton of money and involve a lot of human labor to keep it going. No matter how much entertainment execs salivate, there’s no ‘print money’ button.”

“Yes, for two main reasons: 1) People build parasocial relationships with fictional characters all the time — an AI artist isn’t much different from Shrek or Frodo. 2) We already listen to music with edited voices all the time — think Auto-Tune. If the live experience is fun and entertaining, people will go.”

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.

🎭 The Tony Awards, which was led by Maybe Happy Ending winning six awards, saw ratings rise by 40% to 4.85 million viewers.

📺 Disney+ is getting the rest of Comcast’s Hulu stake for $439 million — billions less than Comcast had hoped for.

🎵 Sony Music Publishing is acquiring Hipgnosis Songs Group, which has recently purchased several top catalogs, for an undisclosed amount.

🤖 Meta is finalizing a $10 billion investment in data-labeling leader Scale AI.

🔥 Waymo has grounded service in LA after several of its vehicles were set on fire during the ongoing ICE protests.

🦾 Tesla has lost its head of the Optimus robotics division, Milan Kovac.

😵‍💫 YouTube is loosening moderation standards across its platform to favor “freedom of expression.”

🫠 President Donald Trump is planning to postpone the TikTok ban deadline… for a third time.

📱 Instagram will roll out weekly and monthly metric recaps for creators.