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Following the Mao Zedong meme controversy, which brands have so far cut ties with or taken action against French football star Kylian Mbappé? Among the names, we see international brands such as Dior, RIMOWA, and Nike. Why should speaking the truth come at such a heavy commercial cost? Dongpeng Beverage, Mengniu Dairy, and Milkground have formally announced the termination of all cooperation with him. Other brands and platforms—including On, Dior, RIMOWA, Hublot, Nike, Xiaohongshu, and Tencent—have taken measures such as removing advertisements or deleting promotional content featuring him. Meanwhile, China’s state broadcaster CCTV has suspended broadcasts of La Liga matches and related content involving Mbappé, and pulled commercials featuring him, extending the boycott to broadcasting and advertising channels.

Is Germany’s car industry done? Mercedes joins BMW and VW in cutting its outlook amid the China shock, targeting a car margin of just 2–3%, down from up to 5%. Shares plunged 5.4%, bringing this year’s loss to over a third. Germany’s Big Three are worth just €106bn combined; Tesla alone is worth €1.4tn, over 13 times more. China, once their profit engine, has become a liability. September vehicle exports hit 1.05m, up 61% year-on-year, while total sales fell 8.4%. Weakening domestic demand is pushing more Chinese cars into markets German brands depend on.

JD Vance: “I’ve never met Putin in person. I’ve spoken to him on the phone. He was calmer than you might expect. The American media has a stereotype of him. He’s very deliberate and measured in his words.”I’ve never met Hitler, Mussolini, Castro, or Putin, but their actions tell me they represent the worst of humanity. A calm voice does not make a brutal leader any less brutal.

BREAKING: Elon Musk, Tesla, and SpaceX are facing a brand and reputational crisis. Could this even prevent Trump from completing his presidential term? According to The Telegraph, Musk proposed to Donald Trump that Starlink services in Ukraine be slowed down. Four people familiar with the matter said the billionaire tech entrepreneur suggested the slowdown to Trump, then serving as U.S. president, hampering Ukraine’s drone defense operations. Musk later distanced himself from the move over concerns about lost revenue for his companies in Europe. Such behavior is appalling. Killing civilians is acceptable, but losing revenue is not… Trump is now directly implicated in service disruptions that led to Ukrainian civilian deaths. This goes far beyond an energy deal. It is more than betrayal: he and his administration have effectively become complicit in war crimes and the killing of civilians in Ukraine.

Tesla’s flying Roadster blends engineering showmanship, brand marketing, and Musk’s personal passion. Cold-gas thrusters are old technology; putting them in a car is hard. Practical value seems limited, and safety comes first. For Tesla, the buzz may matter more to its stock than car sales.

JUST IN: Is Musk actually building a rival e-commerce brand, or just throwing a tantrum because Amazon blocked SpaceX’s Grok Bot? Elon reacted with: "Maybe we should start a competitor to Amazon." Good luck disrupting an e-commerce juggernaut over a bot dispute. As Bezos said in 2023: "I don’t really know Elon very well. I know his public persona." That public persona is back at it again. HUGE claim, if real.

Warren Buffett once asked: "Can you name me one super-wealthy economist who's ever made money out of securities?"Yes, easily: John Maynard Keynes consistently outperformed the market. David Ricardo, pioneer of comparative advantage, became the equivalent of a modern billionaire. Buffett's claim misses the mark. Furthermore, his own empire was built less on pure economics and more on insider connections, elite networks, and regulatory access. Ultimately, his carefully curated personal brand may well collapse after his passing.

This clearly shows that 'losing at the starting line' is a false premise. It also proves that as long as you work hard to catch up, you still have a chance. In Silicon Valley today, the competition among major AI models like Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, and Grok has only just begun, making it hard to tell who will ultimately come out behind.