The 11th Hour Dispatch — Monday, October 1, 2018
BINGE WATCH
If Black Mirror wasn’t terrifying enough, you’ll be pumped about its upcoming fifth season. When it drops in December, the Netflix show will include at least one choose-your-own-adventure episode, and you’ll be free to Inception yourself and play out a story about the social implications of tech through tech. Fun! It’s part of what Bloomberg reports is a ramping up on interactive efforts by Netflix. This isn’t the first time the streaming giant has done such a thing, but it is the first time that an adult-oriented series is getting the interactive treatment, and it will also be the first time a Netflix live-action show has included the feature. Interesting and mildly creepy stuff!
YOUNG MONEY
Elon Musk has agreed to step down as chairman of Tesla in order to settle his lawsuit with the SEC. He’s also been slapped in the face with a $20 million fine. In addition, Tesla itself will have to shell out $20 million, and it will also have to appoint two independent directors to its board. It will also now be Musk’s public persona babysitter to make sure he doesn’t share something in the future as compromising as the tweet that got him here. Musk’s net worth is currently sitting somewhere around $20 billion, so it’s really nothing more than a slap on the wrist for him, but it is a surprising move from the typically impulsive entrepreneur. The SEC actually offered a similar settlement when it announced the lawsuit last Thursday, but Musk quickly rejected and made it seem like he was going to put up a fight.
BIG BUSINESS
California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill this morning that makes California the first state to require major California-headquartered companies to have at least one woman on their board by next year. This includes most of the household name tech giants. And, depending on the size of the company’s board, they may be required to have at least three women on their board by 2021. The fine is steep for this new law: $100K for the first offense and $300K for any additional violations. According to Recode, around a quarter of publicly traded California companies do not currently have a woman on their boards. In a message, Brown said, “Given all the special privileges that corporations have enjoyed for so long, it’s high time corporate boards include the people who constitute more than half the ‘persons’ in America.” Currently, a good number of corporations would be in hot water, including Alphabet, Apple, Facebook, Snap, and Tesla, among others, for not having an appropriate amount of women on their boards for the size of their companies. As you might imagine, the law is already facing backlash from various business groups, which allege that the bill encourages preferential hiring of women. Brown noted that he recognizes “potential flaws” in the bill, but emphasized the importance in its passing.
NOTHIN’ BUT NET
This tweet of Celine Dion freestyling an EDM remix is truly a piece of art.
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