👋  Good morning, friend. Nearly four in 10 US adults are part of an online community, according to Pew Research Center, and that share rises to about half for young adults ages 18-29. Social media sites and apps like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok top the list of where people find community online, of course, followed by online discussion forums, video sites and apps, and video games. Might we suggest a humble newsletter?

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

The most interesting business stories of the week

• Make it so (eventually): Startups are still eyeing Mars: Every year, it seems like a new, ambitious startup wants to boldly go where no one has gone before and build the first city on Mars. The startups leading the way today are kind of like generation after generation of USS Enterprises — each one better than the last.  Read more
  
  
• Romance bookstores are having a meet-cute moment: Just when you thought love was dead for independent bookstores, thanks to online shopping and social media, those very forces helped drive an IRL resurgence — especially for romance bookstores.  Read more
  
  
• Williams-Sonoma furnished a comeback — without homebuyers: When the housing market slows down, home and furniture retailers feel the impact too.But while some retailers like Value City Furniture liquidated, Williams-Sonoma Inc. saw its stock rise by more than 200% over three years.  Read more
        
• Feed me, Seymour! People are hungry for carnivorous plants: Plant lovers are snapping up flytraps and other carnivorous plants in record numbers, helping to grow the bottom line of specialty nurseries that sell these unusual plants.  Read more
  
  

WORTH A CLICK

👵  An oldie but a goodie:  The $40m bet that made South Korea a food and cultural power

🔥  One of our most-read stories this week:  What happens when the AI bubble pops?

⚒️  A free resource:  How to use AI as your personal assistant

AROUND THE WEB

🦞  Game: Get this lobster home!

🌏  Need a geography refresher?: This’ll do the trick.

🔒  That’s funny: You think 2FA is bad? Try cracking thirty-factor authentication for celeb accounts.

💻  Bored?: Pretend you’re a hacker.

💀  Get in the spooky mood: Guess the animal from its skull.

🐶  Aww: A very studious little guy.

SHOWER THOUGHT 

Perhaps our ears never stop growing as we age to direct more sound to our degrading eardrums. SOURCE