THE MUSTS

World

here comes the sun, doo-doo-doo-doo

The power of solar power

Apparently, no one can stop the sun from producing energy.

• By 2026, global solar energy should overtake nuclear energy.

• By 2027, it should overtake wind power.

• In 2028, it will overtake hydroelectric dams.

• In 2030, it will leave gas-fired power stations behind and, finally...

• In 2032, it will overtake energy generated by coal.

It is estimated that by the middle of the century, solar energy will become humanity's largest source of primary energy - and not just electricity.

The key to the growth in demand lies in the so-called "Experience Curve" - when processes become cheaper as production doubles:

• Since the 1960s, the levelized cost of solar energy has fallen by more than 1,000x.

• From 1970 - early 2020, cumulative photovoltaic energy shipments increased by a factor of one million, in the same period, prices fell by 500x, representing a 27% reduction in costs for every doubling of installed capacity.

Clean, cheap, acceptable and emission-free energy at the point of generation opens up new opportunities such as (1) air conditioning for sub-Saharan Africa, (2) carbon removal, (3) water desalination and (4) AI/Data needs.

For these reasons and others, the purchase and installation of solar panels has become the largest investment category in electricity production. US$500bn of investment is expected this year, not far short of the sum invested in oil and gas.

No arguments against data

Quick spin around the globe:

• Argentina: Argentinians had a whole week without a rise in food prices for the first time in thirty years! (Read)

• Thailand: The country will become the first Southeast Asian territory to legalize same-sex marriage. (Read)

• Saudi Arabia: More than 1,300 pilgrims died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage due to the extreme heat. (Read)

• United States: Trump enters debate week 10 points ahead of Biden. The most eagerly awaited one-on-one of the year. (Read)

• Norway: A mining company in Norway has discovered the largest rare earth deposit in Europe. (Read)

• Russia & North Korea: Vladimir Putin met with Kim Jong Un on the Russian dictator’s first trip to North Korea in 24 years. (Read)

Texas wants to open its own stock exchange to end NY's dominance

Stocks are going yeeeehaw. Starting next year, the US could get a new stock exchange in the state of Texas.

More than $120 million has already been raised by the Texas Stock Exchange, which is now seeking approval from the SEC, the US securities commission.

• If all goes well, the new market will start operating 100% digitally, but with its headquarters in Dallas.

The relevance: The new market aims to compete with the NYSE and Nasdaq, which are based in New York and are currently the two main American stock exchanges.

Why is this happening? As it happens, Texas is attracting more and more large companies that are interested in the lower taxes the state offers. Institutions are also annoyed by the bureaucracies of more progressive states like California and New York - where diversity targets have been set for company boards.

And why Texas? With a more business-friendly environment, Texas is becoming one of the main financial centers in the US and the world. No wonder important players in the market are keeping a close eye on it:

• BlackRock, the world's largest manager, and Citadel have already declared their support for the opening of TXSE.

• Goldman Sachs is building a campus for 5,000 employees in the state.

• The JP Morgan team in Texas has already overtaken the JP Morgan team in NY.

Bottom-line: The state is tied with New York in the number of Fortune 500 companies in its territory - the two are second only to California, which leads the ranking.

What else in on

• Brazilian stock exchange has one of the worst performances in the world. Falling by more than 10%, Ibovespa was the worst performing stock exchange among the main global economies in the first quarter of the year. The movement is a reflection of the insecurity caused by the stepbacks of the Brazilian government. (Read)

• A girl’s best friend. The diamond industry is facing turbulent times as Anglo American ($AAUKF) plans to spin off or sell its iconic diamond brand, De Beers, amid a massive restructuring. This move disrupts the diamond supply chain (they have more than 60% of marketshare), already weakened by inflation, Russian sanctions, and the rise of cheaper lab-grown diamonds. (Read)

• $56 billion richer. Tesla’s shareholders voted to reinstate CEO Elon Musk’s $55.8 billion pay package, which was rejected by a judge in Delaware earlier this year. Investors also approved the relocation of the company’s incorporation to Texas. (Read)

Technology

doctor, are you in the hospital or home office today?

Doctor performs transplant from 8,000 km away

 DS = Distant Surgery. In the beginning of the month, the first transcontinental transplant in human history took place. A doctor in Rome completely removed a prostate tumor from a patient who was hospitalized in Beijing. The distance between them: more than 8,000 kilometers.

• How was this possible? The telesurgery only happened thanks to a large device with robotic arms affectionately called "Dr. Robot".

Why does this matter Micael? Think that, with this technology, the best surgeons in the world can operate on patients in the most remote regions - as if the geographical barrier between the two didn't exist.

• Imagine in cities and regions where there are few medical resources and structure for more complex procedures. It would be a real game changer.

Big picture: The procedure was carried out at the Chinese Army Hospital. With this, Beijing aims to make it possible to carry out remote surgeries during military operations, attending to wounded soldiers in war zones.

More tech:

• OpenAI could become a for-profit business: Long organized as a nonprofit, the AI firm is contemplating governance changes — eliminating the nonprofit board that once ousted CEO Sam Altman over how “forthcoming” he was with business leaders. (Read)

• Grandpa Bill (Bill Gates) puts $1 billion of his own money into nuclear energy. Since leaving Microsoft, Bill Gates' main goal has been to find a way to generate electricity on a large scale without polluting the planet. His solution was to build a nuclear reactor in a strategic town in the state of Wyoming. (Read)

• TikTok is trying to copy Instagram... again. ByteDance, owner of TikTok, has launched Whee, a new photo-sharing app with a layout very similar to Instagram. The app's proposal is to be like a BeReal, with posts bringing spontaneous, unedited authenticity to social networks. (Read)

Fun fact of the day: According to uncle Mark Zuckerberg, Brazilians send more stickers, interact in more polls and send 4X more voice messages on WhatsApp than any other population. The curiosity was revealed at the Meta Coversations Event in Sao Paulo. - I’ve never felt more Brazilian.

brat by Charli xcx: I've always been a fan of Charli for her understated influence on the music industry. But with her sixth album, BRAT, she transcends all narratives and delivers a work piece that is imperious and cool, nuanced and vulnerable — arguably one of the best pop albums of the year.

While her previous album, Crash, represented Charli at her most polished and mainstream, ending a contract with her old label, BRAT is a sonic journey that smashes its surroundings, embodying an 'unleash the beast' ethos from start to finish.

Leaning hard into her iconoclasm on BRAT, she plays the no-shits-given VIP room ringmaster with golden results. As Pitchfork aptly states:

The album's textures are defiantly underground—panel-beating, serrated, darkly bubbling with acid—crafted with the likes of Daniel, AG Cook, Easyfun, Hudson Mohawke, and Gesaffelstein.

BRAT made me want to revisit Charli's entire discography, reminding me why she is one of the most influential artists in music today. Lyrics like "I’m famous but not quite / But I’m perfect for the background / One foot in a normal life" encapsulate her unique position in the industry. The penultimate track, "I Think About It All The Time," is a gorgeous, metronomic meditation on motherhood, the biological clock, and existential musings—topics you wouldn’t expect to see in electro-pop, except by Charli.

In summary, BRAT is a masterclass in modern pop, blending innovation with introspection. Charli was been for years, musically speaking, the vanguard for pop. Now, it feels as if she’s creating a new model of how to be a pop star, too.

ps: BRAT is one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year, now ranking among the top 20 all-time on Metacritic with a score of 95.

Best songs: the whole album.

For those that like Sophie, Rina Sawayama, Tove Lo, and FKA twings. (Rating 10/10)

Hello beautiful people,

I know many of you were eagerly waiting for this edition to find out where I'm working and what my life will be like after the last edition. But not this time! I still want to stabilize a bit before sharing that, and honestly, I want to talk about a very special moment for me today.

Last week, I had my final performance in my twerking class - remember when I mentioned I started taking it? Although I was very happy with the result (even if I wasn't perfect), today I want to talk about my mental process leading up to the performance.

I feel like I went through all the stages of denial:

• First, I said I wouldn't participate. I didn't feel ready and didn't think I was at a level that I considered good enough for myself.

• Then I started thinking: "Why not?" Out of embarrassment?” There will be several people dancing, and honestly, no one cares.” So I decided to participate but without inviting anyone, just doing the performance for the pride of doing it for myself.

• After I started feeling confident with the choreography, I thought, "Wow... But such a cool memory, and I won't have any photos to remember it? Nothing to share with my kids in the future?" So I decided that if I had the chance, I would invite one person to take pictures.

• On the day of the performance, super excited, super confident, and feeling ready, I ended up getting two tickets and inviting two people who are very important to me.

Sharing this with them was wonderful. Knowing that there were people cheering for me was wonderful. And that's not natural for me. You know, when I was a kid and did theater, I used to ask my parents not to come to watch me. And I didn't do it for drama; I genuinely didn't want them to come. I felt more comfortable that way.

And what changed? 

I think the main thing is that I was doing it for myself and no one else. When I did theater, I wanted people to think I was the best actor in the world, a talent to be discovered, I wanted my parents to be proud of my performance, and that trapped me. But last week, I was super proud of my progress, feeling like the hottest person in the world, and just wanting to share my talents with the people I love. My success there came from me and no one else. I was just sharing my success with them.

So today's lessons are: Make your success something that comes from you and not from others - and after that then, you can share it with those you love.

And don't be afraid to twerk with a group full of girls. It can be really fun.

With love,

Micael.

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