Shopify reportedly plans to base raises on numerical scores assigned to employees based on their skill level.Employees will be eligible for a raise only when their score increases within a certain amount of time, Seeking Alpha reported Tuesday (April 23), citing a paywalled article by The Information.Reached by PYMNTS, a Shopify spokesperson provided an emailed statement: “We’re kicking down the corporate ladder and breaking the cycle of passionate crafters getting funneled into management career paths they ...

There was nothing electric about electric vehicle (EV) maker Tesla’s latest financial results.The company reported its first quarter 2024 earnings results Tuesday (April 23), disclosing a 55% drop in profits when compared to the same period last year.“We experienced numerous challenges in Q1, from the Red Sea conflict and the arson attack at Gigafactory Berlin, to the gradual ramp of the updated Model 3 in Fremont. Excluding Cybertruck and unscheduled downtime, our COGS [cost of goods sold] per unit decline ...

Visa is seeing continued momentum in Tap to Pay and digital credential issuance, as consumers continue to spend on their debit and credit cards.CEO Ryan McInerney said on the call that overall payments volume in the second fiscal quarter was up 8% year over year (YoY), while U.S. payments volume was 6% higher YoY. International payment volume grew 11%, while cross-order volume was 16% higher YoY. Processed transactions grew 11%.The consumer payments opportunity is “enormous,” said the CEO, with an estimated ...

Apple will reportedly launch new products in a May 7 online event.The company sent invitations to the media Tuesday (April 23), and those files feature a graphic that includes the iPad stylus, Apple Pencil, CNBC reported Tuesday.The graphic can also be seen on the Apple Events page.New iPad models are expected to be released this year because none were announced in 2023, according to the report. The company could also announce changes to the iPad Pro and the iPad Air, the report said.The report also noted t ...

For Walmart, buy now, pay later (BNPL) may offer the means by which the retail giant pushes even further into financial services and toward super app status.And the low-hanging fruit for BNPL may be found at checkout for groceries and healthcare.The move, we note, also sets the stage for competition — or perhaps what might be termed a complementation — with Affirm, already a payment option entrenched with Walmart.As had been widely reported Tuesday (April 23), initially by CNBC, One, the FinTech that is maj ...

Economic Outlook and Consumer Health - The US economic boom is described as "unbelievable" with strong employment and healthy consumer finances [1] - Consumers are expected to remain in good shape even in the event of a recession [1] - Inflation and higher interest rates could persist longer than anticipated [1] Challenges and Risks - National debt, inflation, and geopolitical conflicts are highlighted as potential risks to the economy [1] - Persistent inflation pressures are noted as unpredictable [2] - The full effect of quantitative tightening on a large scale remains uncertain [2] Regulatory and Competitive Landscape - There is a call for a more harmonious relationship between lenders and regulators [1] - Regulatory frameworks for banks may increase the cost of delivering financial services [2] - Private markets and FinTechs are gaining market share due to less stringent regulations and greater transparency compared to traditional banks [3] Policy and Leadership - Dimon advocates for more inclusive economic growth and addresses policy issues such as US military power and political polarization [1] - Dimon has expressed interest in contributing to government roles to help the country [2]

Perplexity has reportedly raised $63 million as it aims to compete with Google’s search engine.The new funding round values the artificial intelligence (AI) startup at $1 billion, marking a two-fold jump in valuation so far this year, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday (April 23).As the report notes, the not yet 2-year-old company offers an AI chatbot that summarizes search results, offers citations for its answers and helps users hone their queries for the best responses. Fans include Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, ...

Apple has stepped up its foray into artificial intelligence (AI) by acquiring Datakalab, a Paris-based AI tech startup. The acquisition, finalized on Dec. 17, was quietly noted in a filing with the European Commission and reported by French media. It’s part of Apple’s reported push into AI. Datakalab, founded in 2016 by Xavier Fischer and Lucas Fischer, specializes in making efficient AI algorithms that consume less power and are ideal for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. According to the compan ...

UPS is looking to returns and big-and-bulky deliveries to expand its addressable market at a time when its shipping volumes have been decreasing. The company saw a slower rate of decline in shipping volumes during the first quarter while still facing a challenging macroeconomic environment, UPS executives said Tuesday (April 23) during the company’s quarterly earnings call.During the three months ended March 31, the company saw average daily volumes decrease 3.2% year over year in the U.S. domestic segment ...

Google aims to move faster and get closer to its customers as it meets “systemic” challenges.Prabhakar Raghavan, senior vice president at Google responsible for search, assistant, geo, ads, commerceand payments products, told employees this during an all-hands meeting in March, CNBC reported Tuesday (April 23), citing an audio recording of the event.Raghavan will require his reports to complete certain projects more quickly, while Google plans to build teams in India, Brazil and other key markets to get clo ...