A bombing in Ankara, Apple Pay hits China, fairy tales for robots
Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Apple Pay arrives in China. A year and a half after it launched in the US, the mobile payment app becomes available for Chinese iPhone users, where analysts think conditions are ripe for it to be a hit. AliPay, a mobile wallet owned by e-commerce giant Alibaba, has 350 million registered users who made 2.3 billion mobile transactions in a single quarter last year.
India starts selling a $4 smartphone. The Freedom 251 runs the Android Lollipop operating system and is priced at a jaw-dropping Rs251. How can it possibly be so cheap? Reports suggest it is being subsidized by the Indian government.
A fraught election day in Uganda. At least one person has been killed in clashes leading up to the country’s presidential vote. Most Ugandans were born after 1986, when president Yoweri Museveni was first elected, and many of these so-called “Museveni babies” want change.
Walmart seeks a turnaround. Analysts expect the world’s largest retailer to post a drop in quarterly earnings and revenue. Walmart is responding to pressures including fierce competition from Amazon with plans for a new mobile app, its own gas stations, and fewer “Express” stores.
While you were sleeping
An explosion in Turkey’s capital killed 28 people. A government spokesperson said the blast near military and government buildings in Ankara injured as many as 61. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but officials believe it was caused by a car bomb that targeted vehicles carrying military personnel.
Nike dropped Manny Pacquiao for his hateful comments about gay people. The sportswear giant ended its multimillion dollar endorsement deal with the boxing champion, who said in a video that gay people “are worse than animals.” Pacquiao is a legislator in the Philippines and is running for a senate seat.
Angela Merkel pushed to keep Britain in the EU. The German chancellor urged lawmakers to listen to the UK’s “reasonable” points for renegotiating its status within the European Union. She also backed a compromise deal that would allow Britain to vote on its membership as early as June.
The Fed is worried about the global economy. Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s meeting last month showed that policymakers were deeply concerned about economic turmoil hurting the United States. That bad news was good news for equity markets, which rallied on the decreased likelihood of higher interest rates.
American Express is cutting $1 billion in costs. CEO Ken Chenault said in a statement that AmEx would reorganize management and consolidate its marketing efforts. The credit card company is struggling to figure out how to attract new customers while also dealing with the loss of its biggest retail partner, Costco.
Quartz obsession interlude
Amy Wang with a complete guide to reading—and even enjoying—classic literature. “You’ve been hearing about these supposedly elite, magnificent books for forever, yet you’ve never really picked one up and cracked open its cover. Or clicked, in this digital age. Still, it’s likely you’ve wanted to read a classic novel at least at some point in your life. The time is now.” Read more here.
Market haiku
Noah probably
Matters of debate
Silicon Valley’s gender bias begins with stay-at-home moms. That’s one reason why VCs are loath to fund women.
Strategies for academic success may backfire at work. “Good student” behavior is antithetical to success at work.
Scaling up is not always a smart business move. Growth can kill the spark that made success possible in the first place.
Surprising discoveries
A coffee pioneer was buried inside one of his iconic espresso makers. Renato Bialetti, 93, sold 330 million Moka coffee pots.
Married couples become similar on a molecular level. Sharing a roof means developing matching immune systems.
Fables could teach robots the difference between right and wrong. Hopefully they’ll be less likely to kill us in a bloody uprising.
There’s a worldwide epidemic of nearsightedness. The culprit is probably less time spent outdoors.
Your boss may know when you stop taking birth control. Companies are monitoring health care spending to anticipate sick days and maternity leave (paywall).
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, Moka coffee pots, and molecularly similar couples to [email protected]. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.