China’s Luckin Coffee is the nation’s top coffee retailer, overtaking even Starbucks. That would be notable itself, but less than 4 years ago the company filed for bankruptcy, making its comeback even more unlikely. The turnaround is in part thanks to the chain’s automated stores, cut-price deals and innovative drinks that appeal to local tastes.

Today on The Big Take Asia, host K. Oanh Ha speaks with Bloomberg’s Rachel Chang on how Luckin managed to turn around its failing business to overtake Starbucks, and asks whether it can hold on to its success as coffee takes off in China, and more rivals emerge.

Read more: China’s Luckin Coffee Is Back From the Brink and Beating Starbucks

Further listening: What Does China’s Economic Slowdown Mean For the Communist Party? 

China’s Luckin Coffee is the nation’s top coffee retailer, overtaking even Starbucks. That would be notable itself, but less than 4 years ago the company filed for bankruptcy, making its comeback even more unlikely. The turnaround is in part thanks to the chain’s automated stores, cut-price deals and innovative drinks that appeal to local tastes.
Today on The Big Take Asia, host K. Oanh Ha speaks with Bloomberg’s Rachel Chang on how Luckin managed to turn around its failing business to overtake Starbucks, and asks whether it can hold on to its success as coffee takes off in China, and more rivals emerge.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-06-06/china-s-luckin-coffee-lkncy-is-back-and-beating-starbucks-sbux">China’s Luckin Coffee Is Back From the Brink and Beating Starbucks</a>
Further listening: <a href="https://omny.fm/shows/the-big-take/what-does-china-s-economic-slowdown-mean-for-the-c/embed?size=square">What Does China’s Economic Slowdown Mean For the Communist Party? </a>

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

Big Take

Understanding Asia is essential to understanding the global economy and the world of business. This region is home to the world's fastest-growing economies and is where the only real threat to the US superpower status will rise and is rising. Asia is a story of new guards, mounting power and in many cases, of unheard-of scale.



Every week, we will bring you the most important story from the region with an in-depth look at what happened, how we got here, and why this has financial and/or business ramifications across the globe.

Understanding Asia is essential to understanding the global economy and the world of business. This region is home to the world's fastest-growing economies and is where the only real threat to the US superpower status will rise and is rising. Asia is a story of new guards, mounting power and in many cases, of unheard-of scale.
 
Every week, we will bring you the most important story from the region with an in-depth look at what happened, how we got here, and why this has financial and/or business ramifications across the globe.

Big Take Asia

The Chinese Coffee Chain Beating Starbucks

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/d2df8ebb-1c0c-4384-823c-b1a801296e97/transcript

In April of 2023, a man carrying a small, black box walked into one of the nation’s most secure buildings, right next to the White House. In the box were ingredients that could be used to create a bioweapon. What the man revealed about how he got his hands on these ingredients was even scarier: an AI chatbot had given him the recipe.

On today’s Big Take, host David Gura speaks to Bloomberg healthcare reporter Riley Griffin about why that stunt alarmed White House officials and woke them up to the potential dangers of AI-made bioweapons. 

Read more: AI-Made Bioweapons Are Washington’s Latest Security Obsession

Further listening: 
We Can’t Opt Out of AI (But We Can Try)
AI Wreaks Havoc on Global Power Systems

In April of 2023, a man carrying a small, black box walked into one of the nation’s most secure buildings, right next to the White House. In the box were ingredients that could be used to create a bioweapon. What the man revealed about how he got his hands on these ingredients was even scarier: an AI chatbot had given him the recipe.
On today’s Big Take, host David Gura speaks to Bloomberg healthcare reporter Riley Griffin about why that stunt alarmed White House officials and woke them up to the potential dangers of AI-made bioweapons. 
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2024-08-02/national-security-threat-from-ai-made-bioweapons-grips-us-government?srnd=homepage-americas">AI-Made Bioweapons Are Washington’s Latest Security Obsession</a>
Further listening: 
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-29/openai-scarlett-johansson-google-s-ai-overview-and-news">We Can’t Opt Out of AI (But We Can Try)</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-06-24/microsoft-apple-amazon-ai-energy-needs-straining-ireland-us-malaysia-power-g">AI Wreaks Havoc on Global Power Systems</a></li>
</ul>

The Threat of AI-Made Bioweapons

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/13633dbb-1230-4237-9193-b1c0013179e8/transcript

If you’ve applied to a job and never heard back, you may have fallen prey to a ghost job — an online listing for a role that never actually existed.

Ghost jobs aren’t just leaving job seekers frustrated. They’re also muddying the waters of the labor market when it comes to assessing the strength of the economy.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Sarah Holder digs into the ghost job phenomenon with Molly Smith, an editor on Bloomberg’s US economy team.

If you’ve applied to a job and never heard back, you may have fallen prey to a ghost job — an online listing for a role that never actually existed.
Ghost jobs aren’t just leaving job seekers frustrated. They’re also muddying the waters of the labor market when it comes to assessing the strength of the economy.
On today’s Big Take podcast, Sarah Holder digs into the ghost job phenomenon with Molly Smith, an editor on Bloomberg’s US economy team.

Ghost Jobs Are Haunting the Labor Market

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/b414af0a-7099-4a7d-8332-b1bf014b86f6/transcript

Each year in April, the US conducts a lottery that shapes the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. And each year, only around 85,000 are granted an H-1B visa for highly-skilled workers. With skyrocketing application numbers, the odds of winning have only gotten slimmer. But new data obtained by Bloomberg News has revealed how certain companies have manipulated the system, gaining an advantage over people who play it fair. In other words, the game was rigged.

On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder speaks to investigative journalists Eric Fan and Zachary Mider who explain how outsourcing companies and staffing firms exploited loopholes in the H-1B system to get extra shots at the lottery. 

Read more: How Thousands of Middlemen Are Gaming the H-1B Program

Each year in April, the US conducts a lottery that shapes the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. And each year, only around 85,000 are granted an H-1B visa for highly-skilled workers. With skyrocketing application numbers, the odds of winning have only gotten slimmer. But new data obtained by Bloomberg News has revealed how certain companies have manipulated the system, gaining an advantage over people who play it fair. In other words, the game was rigged.
On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder speaks to investigative journalists Eric Fan and Zachary Mider who explain how outsourcing companies and staffing firms exploited loopholes in the H-1B system to get extra shots at the lottery. 
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-staffing-firms-game-h1b-visa-lottery-system/">How Thousands of Middlemen Are Gaming the H-1B Program</a>

How Companies Gamed the H-1B Visa Lottery

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/dfa142b9-d880-49db-9707-b1be015ec81b/transcript

The Chinese Coffee Chain Beating Starbucks

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