San Francisco, CA
Joe Biden is meeting a weaker Xi Jinping in San Francisco
Good morning.
Xi Jinping and Joe Biden met yesterday on the edges of the APEC Summit in California. And that, in and of itself, is a good thing. Two wars in the world at the same time are enough. Peaceful relations between the U.S. and China are critical to global business and society.
But it is also worth noting how much the world has changed since Xi’s last visit, when he was hosted by Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. I’d cite three changes in particular:
—China is no longer the economic juggernaut it was. Growth in China has slowed substantially, real estate problems have become massive, and the once widespread assumption that China would eventually surpass the U.S. as the world’s biggest economic power has evaporated.
—China’s effort to win over the world with “soft” power has faltered. I was struck by a recent graphic prepared by my former colleagues at the Pew Research Center comparing views of the U.S. and China in 24 key countries. The U.S. is seen far more favorably in most countries, and the gap has gotten larger.
—The U.S. is fighting back in the economic competition with China. A surprising combination of Trump and Biden policies have driven perhaps the most dramatic change of U.S. economic policy in my lifetime. For the first time, the U.S. has a robust and quasi-coherent industrial policy designed to protect U.S. business, preserve its technological superiority, and reestablish key domestic industries that were ceded to Asia over the last 20 years.
The difficult question, of course, is whether a weaker China decreases the risk of military conflict…or increases it. And that question is adding to the geopolitical uncertainty weighing on business right now.
By the way, this week’s episode of the Leadership Next podcast features a case study in industrial policy. It features a fascinating woman, Christina Lampe-Onnerud, a central player in both ceding the battery business to China and now fighting to win it back. You can listen on Apple or Spotify.
Also this morning, Fortune is releasing our annual list of the World’s Best Workplaces, compiled with our partners at Great Place to Work. Top 10 on the list:
1. Hilton
2. DHL Express
3. Cisco
4. AbbVie
5. Teleperformance
6. Deloitte
7. Salesforce
8. Stryker
9. Cadence
10. Accenture
More news below.
Alan Murray
@alansmurray
alan.murray@fortune.com
TOP NEWS
Big Four history
EY will appoint Janet Truncale as its next global CEO, replacing outgoing head Carmine Di Sibio. She will be the first woman to lead the global operations of a Big Four accounting firm. Truncale, who is currently EY’s Americas head of financial services, will face an immediate challenge in picking up the pieces from the firm’s failed plan to split up its auditing and consulting businesses. Financial Times
Weak guidance
Cisco shares plunged almost 11% in extended trading after the company lowered its guidance for its full fiscal year, which ends in July. The company now projects up to $55 billion in revenue for the full fiscal year, down from an earlier forecast of $58.2 billion. Cisco argues the soft forecast is the result of earlier strong quarters; its customers are now installing and implementing what they’ve already bought, rather than buying new products. CNBC
Airbnb’s ‘Holy Grail’
Airbnb purchased AI startup GamePlanner.AI for a reported $200 million in what is the travel firm’s first acquisition as a public company. Airbnb is pursuing a goal of becoming an “AI travel agent” that understands “who you are and then can match you to anything you want,” CEO Brian Chesky told Fortune’s Michal Lev-Ram in an interview last week. Fortune
AROUND THE WATERCOOLER
Roblox’s growth plan includes more partnerships with brands like Gucci, which sold $3,000 items in its metaverse by Phil Wahba
Former Googler Adrian Aoun raises $100 million for walk-in AI health care pods by Alexei Oreskovic
Stanford AI professor Fei-Fei Li says we need more human-centered technology. Still, she had to convince herself to share her own story by Emma Hinchliffe and Joseph Abrams
Ultrawealthy charities that are helping no one and report nothing cost U.S. taxpayers billions every year, report says by Irina Ivanova
Billionaire Citadel founder Ken Griffin says employers won’t go the ‘extra distance’ to keep hybrid workers on the payroll: ‘It’s an email to all… and goodbye’ by Eleanor Pringle
Building AI models is an ‘enormous waste of social resources,’ says Baidu CEO one month after his company released its latest AI model by Paolo Confino
This edition of CEO Daily was curated by Nicholas Gordon.
This is the web version of CEO Daily, a newsletter of must-read insights from Fortune CEO Alan Murray. Sign up to get it delivered free to your inbox.
San Francisco, CA
Former San Francisco Giants Slugger Signs Deal With Chicago White Sox
When former top prospect Heliot Ramos finally emerged for the San Francisco Giants this year, their outfield became fairly crowded during the season and when looking ahead towards the future.
Despite Jung Hoo Lee being sidelined with a shoulder injury that ended his rookie campaign, the everyday addition of Ramos alongside Michael Conforto, Mike Yastrzemski, Austin Slater and a rotating cast of minor leaguers because of injuries created a logjam.
Because of that, the Giants decided to ship Slater out to the Cincinnati Reds on July 7 in exchange for pitcher Alex Young.
That ended his eight-and-a-half-year tenure in San Francisco after he was taken in the eighth round of the 2014 MLB draft before becoming a top prospect ahead of his Major League debut in 2017.
But despite a few good seasons during his time with the Giants, namely in 2020 with a 151 OPS+ and in 2022 with a 121 OPS+ across his 125 games, they viewed him as expendable and shipped him out of town.
Slater’s tenure with the Reds was short, only playing in eight games before they sent him to the Baltimore Orioles ahead of the trade deadline.
Upon the season ending, the veteran outfielder elected to hit free agency, and according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post, he has now signed a Major League deal with the Chicago White Sox, although the terms have not been revealed.
The White Sox are coming off a historically poor campaign last year, so with them looking to turn the corner by getting established MLB talent into the mix, there’s a chance Slater gets a good amount of playing time.
San Francisco, CA
SF Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie's new transition team includes OpenAI co-founder, former fire chief
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — San Francisco Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie announced his new transition team on Monday nearly two weeks after he was elected as mayor.
The team consists of co-chairs and advisors. Some include Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO OpenAI, and former San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White.
MORE: Daniel Lurie delivers first remarks as San Francisco Mayor-elect, shares vision for city
“I’m excited to introduce this talented and diverse team who will help guide our transition and lay the groundwork for the change San Franciscans demand,” Lurie said in a press release to ABC7.
“Every one of these incredible leaders brings a track record of shaking up the status quo to deliver results. My transition co-chairs share my commitment to building an accountable, effective government to tackle the many challenges confronting our great city.”
Lurie says the co-chairs will be providing counsel to him and his advisors.
Daniel Lurie’s transition team, co-chairs:
- Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of OpenAI
- Joanne Hayes-White, former SFFD Fire Chief
- José A. Quiñonez, founding CEO of Mission Asset Fund
- Ned Sega, Co-Chair of the Daniel Lurie for Mayor campaign
- Michael Tubbs, former Mayor of Stockton
- Nancy Tung, Chief of the Vulnerable Victims Unit and Community Partnerships at the SF DA’s Office
- Paul Yep, SFPD Commander in the Chief of Staff’s Office
Daniel Lurie delivers first remarks as San Francisco Mayor-elect, shares vision for city
Daniel Lurie made his first public announcement since becoming San Francisco’s mayor-elect after Mayor London Breed conceded the race.
Advisors
- Sara Fenske Bahat– Transition Director
- Ann O’Leary – Transition Counsel
- Ben Rosenfield – Senior Advisor
Lurie is succeeding incumbent Mayor London Breed, who conceded to Lurie on Nov. 7, after election results showed Lurie receiving more first-place ranked-choice votes than Breed.
It is the first time since 1991 that an incumbent mayor has been unseated.
VIDEO: SF Mayor London Breed gives concession speech for mayoral race
San Francisco Mayor London Breed conceded to challenger Daniel Lurie on Thursday and said she called to congratulate the Levi Strauss heir.
Lurie said he would declare a fentanyl state of emergency on his first day in office, without offering further details about what that would entail.
Lurie is an heir to the Levi Strauss estate, a father of two and a San Francisco native.
He founded and served as the CEO of the nonprofit organization Tipping Point Community in 2005 to focus on anti-poverty initiatives such as housing, education and job training.
Lurie will be sworn in as San Francisco’s 46th mayor on Jan. 8.
Bay City News contributed to this report
Copyright © 2024 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco remembers traffic victims 10 years into 'Vision Zero' commitment
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — It was a powerful symbol in San Francisco Sunday of the dangerous toll of our roads.
A vigil honored the hundreds of people killed on San Francisco streets as the city pushes to make them safer. This comes as San Francisco marks 10 years of “Vision Zero” efforts meant to stop traffic deaths.
Three hundred and seventeen pairs of white-painted “ghost shoes” lined up on the steps of San Francisco City Hall Sunday.
Each was with a name, every one of them representing someone killed on city streets–on bikes and scooters, in cars and on foot.
It was the total of victims since 2014, when the city committed to Vision Zero and efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate traffic deaths by making roads safer.
MORE: SF eliminating 14,000 parking spaces as CA’s new Daylighting Law takes effect: Here’s what it means
“We never want to contribute more ghost shoes to this memorial. It’s the hardest part to see this number grow,” said Jodie Medeiros, executive director of Walk San Francisco. Medeiros noted noted that while the overall number of victims is down so far this year, the number of pedestrians killed remains the same.
“The same number of pedestrians since the policy was passed in 2014. And Walk San Francisco being the pedestrian advocacy organization trying to make San Francisco the most pedestrian-friendly city, this does hit us the hardest, and this is why we do push on our city to make sure that our streets are safe for people walk,” Medeiros said.
Among the safety measures they’ve pushed for are speed cameras.
“We worked really hard. Walks in Francisco and families receive streets and getting the speed camera pilot to come to San Francisco,” Medeiros said.
MORE: SF divided over ‘Slow Streets’ program: Here’s what residents are saying
Those efforts mean a lot to families like Jenny Yu’s. Her mom was hit by a speeding driver in 2011.
“A speeding driver turning left struck her with an SUV and threw her body to the other side of the road, where she needed to have surgery to remove her brain cap, because it was too much pressure, but they saved her,” Yu said, explaining her mom hasn’t been the same since. “She now needs 24/7 cae. She’s physically here, but she can’t be by herself.”
And, that’s why advocates are calling for another commitment from the city.
“San Francisco learned a lot in 10 years. So, how do we build on those learnings to make a really smart policy for the next decade?” Medeiros said.
Copyright © 2024 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
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