Daily Brew // Morning Brew // Update

May 02, 2026

Hold your horses. It’s Kentucky Derby day. A horse named Emerging Market is 15-1 and a popular longshot pick among prognosticators. Consider this your chance to tell people “I’ve got my money in an emerging market,” so you can sound like a savvy investor instead of a casual gambler.

—Brendan Cosgrove, Dave Lozo, Matty Merritt, Sam Klebanov, Abby Rubenstein, Holly Van Leuven

In today’s newsletter, we’ll look at:

Berkshire Hathaway’s first big meeting without Warren Buffett
Spirit Airlines preparing to shutter
An effort to bring back an extinct antelope

MARKETS

Nasdaq

25,114.44

+0.89%

S&P

7,230.12

+0.29%

Dow

49,499.27

-0.31%

10-Year

4.378%

-1.0 bps

Bitcoin

$78,164.61

+2.57%

Apple

$280.14

+3.24%

Data is provided by

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 6:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean.

Markets: The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq have been racking up more records lately than your ex who overidentified with High Fidelity, with both indexes starting May by closing at new heights yesterday. Apple rose a day after delivering better-than-expected quarterly results.

SHARE APPARENT

Omaha stakes: Can Berkshire still deliver the sizzle?

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images, Spencer Platt/Getty Images

It’s not easy taking over hosting duties from a legend (just ask Ken Jennings), but that’s exactly what Berkshire Hathaway’s new CEO, Greg Abel, will be tasked with today at the conglomerate’s annual shareholder meeting. It’s the first time in 60 years that former CEO Warren Buffett will not host the popular event, so the pressure is on—especially since Berkshire has underperformed the market this year.

The Greg Abel Experience

Buffett, 95, remains the firm’s board chair and will be in attendance, but passed the chief executive oracle baton to Abel at the beginning of this year. So, the meeting—long known as “Woodstock for Capitalists”—is kind of like Abel’s welcome party, with an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 guests expected to attend the event this weekend. But while Buffett’s annual Q&A session was known for unlimited folksy wisdom, Abel is decidedly more businesslike and operations-focused (you know, like Woodstock).

That may not be a bad thing, though, because business is what’s on many shareholders’ minds. And Abel isn’t likely to get the same benefit of the doubt that the legendary Buffett did. Per CNBC:

Berkshire shares have trailed the S&P 500 by more than 30 percentage points since Buffett’s announcement last May that he would be stepping down. That underperformance persisted even as Berkshire bought back about $226 million worth of its stock.
Year to date, Berkshire shares are down more than 5%. Over the same period, the S&P 500 rose 4%.

Abel to answer questions. The new CEO will face no shortage of queries, such as: Will he start winding down some of the company’s Buffett-era positions? What’s the long-term strategy for handling Berkshire’s disappointing stake in Kraft Heinz? What will he do with that massive $373 billion pile of cash that Berkshire is sitting on? And how does AI inform what’s next? Then, if there’s time, maybe he can tell us whether he likes Cherry Coke as much as Buffett does.

Earning his place: Berkshire’s Q1 earnings will also be released tomorrow, showcasing Abel’s first quarter as the big boss—yet another reminder that the Buffett era is over. It’s Abel’s Hatha-way or the highway.—BC

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WORLD

Tour de headlines

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Spirit Airlines may be coming in for a hard landing as government talks falter. The struggling budget carrier is preparing to liquidate after it couldn’t get its bondholders and the Trump administration to agree to a bailout that would have given the airline $500 million in exchange for giving the government an up to 90% stake, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday. Without a deal, Spirit is rapidly running out of cash, especially with elevated fuel prices. President Trump said yesterday that the government had given Spirit its “final proposal.”

Iran offered a new deal, but Trump’s “not satisfied” with it. Iran gave the US a new proposal to end the war yesterday, hoping to restart stalled peace talks. The proposal reportedly included some elements of compromise concerning the timing of reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending a US naval blockade. Oil prices fell amid hope for progress, but President Trump swiftly rejected the proposal. “They want to make a deal, I’m not satisfied with it. We’ll see what happens,” he said yesterday.

Trump threatens 25% tariff on EU cars and trucks. Accusing the 27-nation bloc of not complying with a trade deal struck last year that capped tariffs on most EU imports to the US at 15%, President Trump said on Truth Social yesterday that he’d be increasing the tariffs on vehicles imported from the European Union next week. Trump did not explain how he thought the EU had violated the deal. The renewed trade fight comes amid global economic uncertainty from the Iran war. While European-made cars are a small part of the US auto market, the US is the second-biggest market for EU car exports.—AR

BUCK AROUND AND FIND OUT

Mad scientists want to bring back an extinct antelope

Colossal

Colossal Biosciences, the company that claims it can reverse extinction, announced it has taken steps to restore the bluebuck antelope, which was native to Africa and vanished from the planet around 200 years ago.

The biotech firm—with its $10 billion valuation and a nightmare blunt rotation of investors that includes Peter Thiel, Tom Brady, and Paris Hilton—extracted DNA from a bluebuck specimen from the Swedish Museum of Natural History in 2024. Now, people in white lab coats who probably get cornered at parties when they mention their jobs are cooking up new bluebucks in a lab.

However: The scientific community says that Colossal technically isn’t bringing back extinct species; it’s creating new hybrids by editing them into the modern genome of a similar animal.

Applications for the living: CEO Ben Lamm said that the reason for revealing the company’s bluebuck work now is because the technology could be used to preserve endangered antelope species, of which there are 29 in the world.

What’s next: The bluebuck’s original habitat is likely gone, so Colossal is partnering with nonprofit Advanced Conservation Strategies to find potential new host countries. The company is also collaborating with private landowners and governments to create a reintroduction plan.—DL

READER POLL

Should scientists bring back extinct species?

Yes, these are important breakthroughs.
No, I have seen Jurassic Park.
In some cases, maybe, but there should be guardrails.

This week’s question

What’s a purchase you made while traveling that you were really pleased with?

Sam’s answer to get the juices flowing: “I bought a pair of gorgeous leather shoes in a small town outside of Bogotá, Colombia, for $60, and wore them almost daily for two and a half years. They were the most comfortable footwear I’ve ever owned.”

Submit your response here.

RECS

Gift: Get mom something nice that you can personalize without cracking out the macaroni art.**

Get the lay of the land: A map of which US states are drawing the most foreign investment.

Go back in time: This website shows you where on Earth your house (or any place else) was 320 million years ago.

Drive: Check out this year’s new license plates (and see if your state has one).

Enhance your home: Fragrance is the fastest way to elevate your space. Aura House’s cold-air diffusion wraps every room in a signature scent. Use code BREW10 for 10% off.*

^{*A message from our sponsor. **This is a product recommendation from our writers. When you buy through this link, Morning Brew may earn a commission.}

PLAY

Brew Crossword: Your sample clue from our biggest puzzle of the week is “Star Trek zapper.” Play the Crossword here.

Open House

Welcome to Open House, the only newsletter section scared to death of termites. We’ll give you a few facts about a listing and you try to guess the price.

Zillow

Today’s home is in Huntington, WV, and its builders seem to have gotten a deal on bulk two-by-fours. The 6,372-square-foot home sits on just over 16 acres of Appalachian forest. Amenities include:

4 beds, 5 baths + onsite barn
Massive wraparound porch
Sunken living room

How much for the big teal house?

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ANSWER

$799,000

Word of the Day

Today’s Word of the Day is: queries, meaning “questions.” Thanks to Allen from Virginia for the unquestionably good suggestion. Submit another Word of the Day here.

✢ A Note From Cytonics

This is a paid advertisement for Cytonics’ Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://cytonics.com/.

Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. There is no guarantee of performance. Past performance does not predict future results. All investments involve risk, including loss of principal.

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