👋 Good morning. Be extra nice to your Gen Z co-worker today — they might be lonely: 91% of the generation’s workers say they want more balance between virtual and in-person work, according to a survey from Harris Poll. Most (82%) say they want to feel more comfortable being with others in person, and more than two-thirds blame tech for feeling isolated from their co-workers and industry.
🎧 On the pod: How can a company offer a free phone plan?
NEWS FLASH
🤖 They grow up so quickly: Our little ChatGPT is going to college. OpenAI partnered with the California State University system to bring ChatGPT Edu, an education-focused version of the chatbot, to 460k+ students and 63k+ faculty and staff across 23 campuses. The rollout — the largest deployment of ChatGPT yet — will integrate AI into things like curriculum development, training and certification programs, and apprenticeships.
🐓 Back so soon? Production company Rooster Teeth closed in 2024 after 21 years following parent company Warner Bros. Discovery’s failure to sell it. The move left its ~150 employees and contractors in the lurch, but a new chapter has emerged: Founder Burnie Burns, who left Rooster Teeth in 2020, announced that his company, Box Canyon Productions, acquired its remaining assets and that he looks forward to “the challenge of bringing Rooster Teeth back to its roots.”
🍺 Drink your peas: Norwegian researchers found that field peas, beans, and lentils can simplify the process of brewing sour beers, or what study co-author Bjørge Westereng called “the beer enthusiast’s alternative to champagne.” Sour beer relies on wild yeast in a process that can take months or years and be far less predictable than other beers. Peas contain sugars that yeast can’t metabolize but that can feed bacteria, reducing brewing time while still producing a tasty beer with no “beany” pea flavors.
MORE NEWS TO KNOW
Houston, we have a problem: Boeing’s total losses on its Starliner spacecraft have surpassed $2B. Boeing has recorded losses on the Starliner program every year since 2014 when it received a ~$5B contract from NASA.
Oh… oh my. Remember when Google promised it wouldn’t use AI to pursue weapons or surveillance? The company has removed those details from its AI ethics policy.
You’re invited: Apple released Apple Invites, a new app that lets iPhone users create and share invitations, RSVP to events, add to shared albums, and collaborate on Apple Music playlists.
THE BIG IDEA
Can you really get a free phone plan?
A mobile service provider just launched something that seems unreal: a free phone plan.
Helium Mobile’s Zero plan — currently available via waitlist — offers 3 gigabytes of data, 300 texts, and 100 minutes per month for $0. Its more robust, paid plans top out at $30/month.
Coco Tang, general manager of Helium Mobile Subscribers, called the offer “a movement to make wireless service accessible, affordable, and rewarding for everyone,” via a release.
For reference, the average US phone bill was $144 in 2024, perCNBC Select.
So, how is Helium so cheap?
Maintaining network infrastructure is expensive, which is why the nation’s three big carriers — AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile — cost more than mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) like Mint Mobile or Republic Wireless, which buy wholesale data in bulk. Those bills average $77/month.
Helium operates as both an MVNO on T-Mobile’s network, as well as a decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN), meaning its infrastructure isn’t controlled by a single entity, but multiple parties who contribute in exchange for blockchain rewards.
Participants in the Helium Network use its Hotspot devices to share bandwidth in exchange for cryptocurrency. Helium cites 28k+ Hotspots across the US.
Helium users earn Cloud Points by sharing anonymized location data (which it uses to assess coverage needs), referrals, and more. The points can be redeemed for gift cards, merch, or other rewards.
CEO Amir Haleem toldFierce Network that the model appeals to people who dislike traditional telco companies, want to earn tokens or save money, or are interested in expanding local networks.
OK, but is it sustainable?
Free and freemium phone plans have struggled in the past, but Helium is a major player in the DePIN space, hyped by crypto and blockchain enthusiasts.
Helium is confident in its hybrid model’s ability to keep prices low while subscribers expand its network, and has forged partnerships with Trackpac, a company for tracking things like packages and pets, and Telefónica, a multinational telecommunications company.
Helium’s free plan launched just this week, so time will tell. But for die-hard deal-seekers, free is free.
Don’t have $7m lying around? A PR pro offers tips on Super Bowl ad alternatives.
Talk about rags to riches: A toy company founder shares how he went from making $1 a day to racking up billions.
DATA POINT
A case of the Mondays: When you return to work after Sunday's Super Bowl LIX, don’t expect it to be business as usual. A record 22.6m US workers plan to be OOO the Monday after the Super Bowl, up from 16.1m in 2024, according to a new survey by HR services provider UKG.
The no-shows’ 2025 game plans: putting in advance notices (8%), swapping shifts (3%), and playing hooky (4%).
Even among those who plan to clock in, many will be sidelining work — 12.9m plan to stroll in late, and 36% of employees who plan to watch the big game expect to be less productive than usual, with 40% saying they’ll be distracted by Super Bowl coverage, up 12% YoY.
Between Americans’ love of football and these glaring stats, it’s no surprise that 43% of employed Americans think Super Bowl Monday should be a national holiday.
AROUND THE WEB
📚 On this day: In 1937, author John Steinbeck published his novella Of Mice and Men, two years before winning the Pulitzer Prize for The Grapes of Wrath.
✏️ That’s cool: Remember playing with the Spirograph? Here’s an online version.
😨 Haha: A browser extension that adds jump scares to websites you’re trying to avoid.
🖥️ That’s interesting: Whatever happened to wacky screen savers?
We now know what you're probably doing next Monday (not going to work), but yesterday, we asked about your plans for Super Bowl Sunday.
The majority (57%) said they’ll be tuning in, while 24% said they’ll only resort to the game if they’re bored enough and 19% said definitely not.
Of those partaking, 53% will be viewing from their couch, 12% are hosting parties, 25% will be a guest to someone else’s gathering, and the rest are up to something else.
The majority (58%) of hosts said they only plan to spend $0-$50 on food and supplies for their party, followed by $50-$100 (24%) and $100-$200 (13%).
As for what you’ll be chowing down on, wings were the most popular pick, followed by nachos, various versions of chips and dip, and the reader who we wish we could fine for saying “a fruit plate.”
SHOWER THOUGHT
Why don’t we trust pasta? Why must we have a window on the box that proves there’s pasta inside?SOURCE
