🌏 Elon’s big Tesla bucks still blocked

Good morning, Quartz readers!

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

China replied to U.S. computer chip sanctions with its own. After America said China can’t buy certain semiconductor materials, China said America can’t buy the minerals to make those materials.

Intel’s outgoing CEO will get about $10 million in severance pay. Despite struggling to compete with Nvidia, Pat Gelsinger will sail off into the sunset on a golden parachute.

The FTC disputed an AI facial recognition company’s claims of “zero” gender or racial bias. IntelliVision will have to walk back the boast as part of a consent decree.

Frontier Airlines is introducing a first-class offering to its budget flights. The “luxurious, spacious seats” will be available at the tail end of 2025.

The 10th-most-expensive Michelin-starred restaurant has a $685 tasting menu. Things only get pricier from there.

Musk still can’t touch his money

After Tesla shareholders re-approved Elon Musk’s massive $56 billion pay package from 2018 that was struck down by a Delaware judge, Musk thought he was in the clear to get his huge payday. But that has not been the case.

The same judge struck down the revised package because she said shareholder approval did not mean it was fiscally sound. Writing angrily on his X social media platform, Musk said that “shareholders should control company votes, not judges.”

What is Tesla going to do now to get Musk his money? Quartz’s William Gavin previews the next part of the ongoing legal drama.

Cyber Monday clicked on all cylinders

Though Black Friday was as big as it’s ever been this year, Cyber Monday was even bigger. The annual online shopping occasion brought e-tailers a record $13.3 billion in 2024.

Nearly a billion of those dollars came from installment methods like buy-now-pay-later, suggesting that consumers want to spend even if they don’t have all the funds on them at the time of purchase. The growing till totals also mark the continually growing importance of URL shopping over traditional IRL browsing.

What other precedents did Cyber Monday set this year? Quartz’s Francisco Velasquez broke down the annual internet buying bonanza.

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SURPRISING DISCOVERIES

Paleontologists are struggling to get their hands on dinosaur bones. Rich people have turned them into an investment vehicle instead. (paywall)

Child labor remains rife in the food industry. Employers have been assigned $15.1 million in penalties for violating federal child labor laws, nearly double last year’s amount.

RFK Jr. posed nude in an ad for his wife’s candle business. “Honey, you can’t take a shower right now, I’m doing a video!” Cheryl Hiles said while continuing to shoot and later post said video. (paywall)

Ms. Rachel is the Sesame Street of kids’ YouTubers. Her videos are considered more challenging than peers like Blippi or CoComelon. (paywall)

Texas has a previously undiscovered bee in its bonnet. The Andrena androfovea is blue, lives underground near the Mexican border, and doesn’t have a stinger.

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Our best wishes on a safe start to the day. Send any news, comments, harmless bees and bridge loans for Elon Musk to [email protected]. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Melvin Backman and Kevin Ryan.