August 17, 2026

Presented By

Good morning, and congratulations to Jinny Lu, the winner of the 50th annual World’s Ugliest Dog Contest. In case you need to turn this moment into a LinkedIn post, here’s what the pug with its tongue hanging out of the side of its mouth taught us about perseverance. Jinny Lu’s path to winning the $5,000 prize and eternal bragging rights wasn’t easy: Before being adopted, the pup was abandoned in freezing weather in South Korea. Plus, this was her fourth attempt to clinch the world’s ugliest title, and she finally made it after being first runner-up last year. Take that same energy to prepare for your next sales presentation.

—Abby Rubenstein, Brendan Cosgrove

In today’s newsletter, we’ll look at:

How AI is upending college major choices
The rise of sun-protective clothing
Construction workers who struck gold (literally)

Markets: Year-to-Date

Nasdaq

26,729.16

+15.00%

S&P

7,785.76

+13.74%

Dow

53,732.41

+11.80%

10-Year

4.696%

-0.7 bps

Bitcoin

$63,074.29

-27.92%

Broadcom

$392.99

+13.97%

Data is provided by

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 3:30pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean.

Markets: The economic calendar is light this week, but retail earnings and Wednesday’s release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July meeting should still give investors plenty to chew on.
Stock spotlight: Chipmaker Broadcom is probably ready for a fresh week to start. It dropped nearly 6% on Friday amid AI financing questions.

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Major shift

AI is making college students change their majors

Ccahill/Getty Images

As students return to America’s college campuses, the rise of artificial intelligence means no one has to pull an all-nighter to crank out five paragraphs on religious symbolism in The Brothers Karamazov. But apparently all that time college students are saving using AI is going to something else: existential angst over whether AI is rendering their major useless—and it’s changing what they choose to study.

In a recent survey of US college students by Superhuman, 69% said they feared AI would make it harder to find a job and 22% said they’ve changed their major or concentration because of job market worries.
Another survey published this year by the Lumina Foundation and Gallup found that 13% of bachelor’s degree students and 19% of associate degree students had changed their major or field of study because of AI. Plus, 47% of students surveyed said they had given at least “a fair amount” of consideration to changing their majors due to AI.

They’re not wrong: Researchers at the St. Louis Fed found that AI has created “an additional headwind” for recent grads trying to score jobs.

But the best course of study isn’t clear

One thing that everyone can agree on is that “learn to code” isn’t the job-securing advice it once was. After 15 years as the fastest-growing major, computer science degree enrollments dipped 8.1% last year, according to the Washington Post.

Some schools are letting students specialize in AI: Only four schools offered an AI major in 2020, while researchers at Northeastern University now say 79 schools offer the major—and 100 have a minor or concentration, the Boston Globe reports.

But OpenAI’s VP of education believes employers will be looking for transferable skills like critical thinking, leadership, and collaboration (as well as AI literacy), per Axios.

Other schools are getting creative: Rather than relying on good old reading, writing, and arithmetic, Arizona State University has turned to ring lights, with a major designed to help students become influencers. Critics say content creation isn’t worthy of academic attention, while others say it gives students a career option and transferable skills.—AR

Massive cover-up

Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) clothing is on a hot streak. The trend was on display when actress Anne Hathaway donned a full-body swimsuit on vacation and Kendall Jenner was spotted in a UV-blocking dress.

Do the clothes actually work? According to dermatologists, yes. UPF clothing can help prevent sunburn, slow down the aging process, and protect against skin cancer.

According to CNN, they’re not just popular with celebrities:

UV apparel at US activewear brands was up 12% year-over-year in May, the retail firm EDITED found.
This year, 34% of full-price UPF items have sold out—up 11.4 percentage points from last year, per consumer trend forecaster WGSN.
Google searches for “UV shirt” are up 26% from last year, fashion firm Trendalytics said.

Sun protection rises from the East: The concept has long been popular in East Asia. According to Bloomberg, Japan’s largest clothing company Fast Retailing, which owns Uniqlo, introduced a full collection of UV-protective clothing back in 2011. And the company said demand for the products is now growing in Europe and the US.—BC

Reader Poll

Have you worn UPF clothing?

Yes, I am all about sun protection.
Not yet, but I’d like to try it.
Nah, I can’t find any in my style.
Hard no, I want a tan.

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Calendar

The week ahead

Francis Scialabba

Earnings reports are in store: Earnings season is wrapping up with results from some of the world’s biggest retailers. Home Depot will report tomorrow, followed by Lowe’s, TJX (the parent company of TJ Maxx and Marshalls), and Target on Wednesday. Then, Walmart and Alibaba will deliver results on Thursday, and BJ’s Wholesale Club will follow suit on Friday. Analysts will be closely watching the retail space after last month’s retail data showed a pullback in consumer spending.

Tariff deadline looms: Trade negotiators from the US and Canada are rushing to get a deal done before a tariff deadline (again). If they can’t work it out, at 12:01am on Wednesday, 50% tariffs will take effect on $20 billion worth of Canadian products that range from wine to cement. Though talks have been contentious, trade officials are getting closer to a deal that would avert the new punitive tariffs, the Washington Post reported. Whatever happens could set the stage for broader renegotiations concerning the US–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), the trade deal that President Trump signed during his first term.

Reddit subs in: Online forum king Reddit is set to join the S&P 500 tomorrow, replacing real estate investment trust AvalonBay Communities. Reddit’s shares jumped more than 12% on Friday after the news broke, because its inclusion means it’ll be bought up by a slew of passive funds that track the index. TL;DR: Reddit’s accumulating more karma.

But wait, there’s more:

Season 18 of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia premieres on FXX/Hulu today.
Meta is headed to federal court in California tomorrow for another social media addiction trial. The case stems from a 2023 lawsuit filed by attorneys general from 29 states.

BRENDAN’S GOT GOOD NEWS

There’s gold in them thar walls

Gold found by construction workers in Belgium

Lokale Politie Dendermonde via Facebook

Mondays are bad enough, so the Brew’s own Brendan Cosgrove scoured the internet for a positive news story to help you start the week off right.

A team of construction workers in Belgium stumbled upon a golden opportunity last week while converting the site of an old brewery into a homeless shelter. Literally. While installing new sewage pipes, they discovered a hidden stash of Victorian-era gold bars and coins worth around $10 million in a cellar wall. Now that’s the kind of paywall we can get behind.

Finders keepers? It’s unclear who’ll get the gold. Descendants of the family known to have lived on the property could be entitled to it. Or someone else could claim it, if they can prove they’re the rightful owner. But if that doesn’t happen within the next five years, it’ll be split between the finder (the builders) and the property’s owner (the charity putting up the homeless shelter), according to the BBC. Either way, there’s worse crap to find while installing sewage pipes.—BC

Nutrition facts

Here are the ingredient lists for two treats. Can you figure out what they are? (Hint: one has nuts and the other doesn’t.)

No. 1: Corn Syrup, Sugar, Coconut, Almonds, Vegetable Oil (Palm Oil, Shea Oil, Sunflower Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, &/Or Safflower Oil), Lactose (Milk) Contains 2% or Less of: Reduced Protein Whey (Milk), Chocolate, Skim Milk, Cocoa, Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil, Cocoa Processed With Alkali, Corn Syrup Solids, Whey (Milk), Salt, Lecithin (Soy), Vanillin (Artificial Flavor), Sodium Metabisulfite (To Maintain Freshness)

No. 2: Corn Syrup, Coconut, Sugar, Chocolate, Cocoa, Vegetable Oil (Palm Oil, Shea Oil, Sunflower Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, &/or Safflower Oil), Contains 2% or less of: Salt, Lecithin (Soy), Milk Fat, PGPR, Sodium Metabisulfite (To Maintain Freshness), Natural Flavor

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Answer

No. 1 is Almond Joy and No. 2 is Mounds

Word of the Day

Today’s Word of the Day is: pilfered, meaning “stolen.” Thanks to Rob F. from Taiwan for a suggestion we don’t mind taking for ourselves. Submit another Word of the Day here.

✢ A Note From Walmart Marketplace

*Offer subject to eligibility criteria, promotional savings will vary by seller. See full terms and conditions for offer details. For full terms and conditions: https://marketplace.walmart.com/nss-offer-details/.

✳︎ A Note From State Street Investment Management

Disclosure:

Important Risk Information

Investing involves risk including the risk loss of principal.

Nasdaq®, Nasdaq-100®, Nasdaq-100 Index®, and NDX® are registered trademarks of Nasdaq, Inc. (which with its affiliates is referred to as the “Corporations”) and are licensed for use by [Insert Name of Client]. The Product(s) have not been passed on by the Corporations as to their legality or suitability. The Product(s) are not issued, endorsed, sold, or promoted by the Corporations. THE CORPORATIONS MAKE NO WARRANTIES AND BEAR NO LIABILITY WITH RESPECT TO THE PRODUCT(S).”

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Expiration 6/30/2027

Written by Abigail Rubenstein and Brendan Cosgrove

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