Big Tech’s big downgrade

And now that I’m back in NYC, here’s what’s on tap:

• Google, Amazon, and Meta are making their core products worse — on purpose.
• A Rivian owner shares his buyer’s remorse story.
• Billionaires like Peter Thiel are betting big on longevity.

If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.

SVB, Trump, & Musk

• First Citizens Bank has agreed to buy most of Silicon Valley Bank. It’s the latest twist in the banking turmoil. Here’s everything you need to know.
• Trump’s Truth Social posts attacking the Manhattan DA ahead of a possible indictment were “ill-advised,” Trump’s own attorney says. More here.
• Elon Musk’s plan to charge $1,000 per month for Twitter checkmarks is “outlandish” and makes them “meaningless,” companies say. The full story.

Big Tech’s big downgrade

As Ed Zitron writes, simple searches often lead to pages dominated by sponsored links and low-quality, search-engine-optimized affiliate content.

Google isn’t the only tech giant with a slowly deteriorating core product. Facebook constantly floods users’ feeds with sponsored — or “recommended” — content, and seems to bury the things people want to see under what Facebook decides is relevant.

All of these miserable online experiences are symptoms of an insidious underlying disease: In Silicon Valley, the user’s experience has become subordinate to the company’s stock price. As a result, our collective online experience is getting worse.

Rivian, immortality, & more

• A Rivian buyer waited three years for his car. Just days later, his car was dead and he was facing a $2,100 bill. Read the full story.
• This exclusive club for the ultra-rich is on the search for immortality. Members of R360, a club with a $100 million net-worth minimum, are seeking to push the limits of the human lifespan. Find out how.
• “Fake work” in the tech industry. People have long accused tech workers of failing to pull their weight, but experts say the notion of fake work is actually just an excuse for “bad management.” The full story.
• Auto dealers are facing an existential crisis. Car-buying isn’t what it used to be, and for that, customers are glad. But auto dealers are being forced to evolve in order to keep up. How they’re coping with the changes.
• The benefits of taking afternoons off. A remote worker who starts his job at 7:30 a.m. and takes afternoons off says that the schedule “makes it a lot easier to manage my focus, my energy, and just my overall attitude.” Read more.
• A lawyer who quit to become an OnlyFans performer says she now makes more money and is happier. Her legal role paid $75,000 a year, but the 27-year-old made that much in February alone on OnlyFans. Here’s how she did it.
• The twisted undercurrent of Tom and Greg’s relationship is on full display in the “Succession” season 4 premiere. Ever since the pilot episode, Tom and Greg have made an odd couple. What was once plausibly just a funny “bromance” is now a nuanced — if twisted — portrait of male intimacy. Spoiler warning — more here.

Pros and cons

TikTok’s Congress moment

Keep up with Insider

• Get Insider’s app and notifications to be the first to find out about the stories you want to know — from tech to business. Download it here.
• Become an Insider subscriber to get actionable, high-value news and insights to improve your career, company, and community. Subscribe here.
• Want more of Insider in your inbox? Sign up for our newsletters here.