All year, the jobs market, consumer sentiment, AI and inflation flashed warning signs about the economy — but 2025 managed to avoid a recession.

On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Bloomberg’s Stacey Vanek Smith and Moody’s Analytics Mark Zandi to understand what this year’s wonky economy can tell us as we head into 2026 and what to watch for in the new year.

Read more: US Recession Risk Is Receding as We Move Into 2026

All year, the jobs market, consumer sentiment, AI and inflation flashed warning signs about the economy &mdash; but 2025 managed to avoid a recession.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Bloomberg&rsquo;s Stacey Vanek Smith and Moody&rsquo;s Analytics Mark Zandi to understand what this year&rsquo;s wonky economy can tell us as we head into 2026 and what to watch for in the new year.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2025-us-recession-risk/?srnd=undefined">US Recession Risk Is Receding as We Move Into 2026</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

Wait, Weren’t We Supposed to Have a Recession in 2025?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/647dce89-8e16-49f3-ab9c-b3b4016ad18d/transcript

Four years after Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis, its booming market is at a crossroads. Initial high hopes for a tourism surge and a billion-dollar industry have been replaced by an oversupply of shops and a fierce public backlash.

On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Patpicha Tanakasempipat about what went wrong and whether the industry can weather a political firestorm.

Read more: Weed Backlash Grows in Thailand as Kids Turn to Cannabis

Hosted by K. Oanh Ha; Produced by Yang Yang, Naomi Ng; Reported by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Edited by Paddy Hirsch, Julia Weaver

Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Taka Yasuzawa

Senior Producer Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer Julia Weaver; Executive Producer Nicole Beemsterboer

Four years after Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis, its booming market is at a crossroads. Initial high hopes for a tourism surge and a billion-dollar industry have been replaced by an oversupply of shops and a fierce public backlash.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg&rsquo;s Patpicha Tanakasempipat about what went wrong and whether the industry can weather a political firestorm.
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-21/thai-election-thailand-grapples-with-cannabis-law-after-recreational-use-boom?srnd=undefined">Weed Backlash Grows in Thailand as Kids Turn to Cannabis </a>Hosted by K. Oanh Ha; Produced by Yang Yang, Naomi Ng; Reported by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Edited by Paddy Hirsch, Julia Weaver
Fact-checking by Eleanor Harrison-Dengate; Engineering by Taka Yasuzawa
Senior Producer Naomi Shavin;&nbsp;Deputy Executive Producer Julia Weaver;&nbsp;Executive Producer&nbsp;Nicole Beemsterboer

Behind Thailand’s Push to Recriminalize Cannabis

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/e123e960-dde9-40b6-9f42-b3e6015c7d85/transcript

The Department of Justice released another batch of documents from the so-called Epstein Files on Friday. It brings the total number of pages the DOJ has made public since December to nearly 3.5 million.

On today’s Big Take, host David Gura is joined by Bloomberg investigative reporter and podcast host Jason Leopold to discuss what was and wasn’t in the latest document release — and what we’ve learned about Epstein and his business connections.

Further listening: 
Jason’s Disclosure podcast
What to Expect in the DOJ Epstein Files Release

Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Jason Leopold; Edited by Jeff Grocott.

Fact-checking by David Fox and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

The Department of Justice released another batch of documents from the so-called Epstein Files on Friday. It brings the total number of pages the DOJ has made public since December to nearly 3.5 million.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take, host David Gura is joined by Bloomberg investigative reporter and podcast host Jason Leopold to discuss what was and wasn&rsquo;t in the latest document release &mdash; and what we&rsquo;ve learned about Epstein and his business connections.
Further listening:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Jason&rsquo;s <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/disclosure/id1847986591">Disclosure</a> podcast</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/big-take/id1578096201?i=1000740292697">What to Expect in the DOJ Epstein Files Release</a></li>
</ul>
Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Jason Leopold; Edited by Jeff Grocott.
Fact-checking by David Fox and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

What Is (And Isn’t) in the Latest Epstein Files Release

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/553091cd-1b64-4834-9436-b3e5017530a4/transcript

In the AI industry, there's always a hot new thing. First it was ChatGPT. Then it was the image generators. There was the DeepSeek moment. In the latter half of last year, everyone was excited about how good Google's Gemini was. In January 2026, the new hot thing everyone is talking about is Claude Code. But of course, the AI models have been able to generate lines of code for a long time now. So what is it about Claude Code that has people so excited? Why is it that people are asking: "Is this AGI?" On this episode of Bloomberg's Odd Lots, hosts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway speak with Noah Brier, the co-founder of Alpehic, a consultancy firm that helps large organizations implement AI technology. Noah has been using the Large Language Models for longer than just about anyone, since even before ChatGPT existed. He explains the evolution of AI-assisted coding, what Claude Code actually is, and why it is that traditional software firms have been getting destroyed in the stock market lately.

Read more:
Meta Begins Job Cuts as It Shifts From Metaverse to AI Devices
AI Coding Startup Replit Nears Funding at $9 Billion Valuation

Only http://Bloomberg.com subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox each week, plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at  bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots

Subscribe to the Odd Lots Newsletter
Join the conversation:discord.gg/oddlots

In the AI industry, there's always a hot new thing. First it was ChatGPT. Then it was the image generators. There was the DeepSeek moment. In the latter half of last year, everyone was excited about how good Google's Gemini was. In January 2026, the new hot thing everyone is talking about is Claude Code. But of course, the AI models have been able to generate lines of code for a long time now. So what is it about Claude Code that has people so excited? Why is it that people are asking: "Is this AGI?" On this episode of Bloomberg's Odd Lots, hosts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway speak with Noah Brier, the co-founder of Alpehic, a consultancy firm that helps large organizations implement AI technology. Noah has been using the Large Language Models for longer than just about anyone, since even before ChatGPT existed. He explains the evolution of AI-assisted coding, what Claude Code actually is, and why it is that traditional software firms have been getting destroyed in the stock market lately.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-13/meta-begins-jobs-cuts-after-shifting-focus-from-metaverse-to-phones?utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=podcast&amp;utm_campaign=odd_lots&amp;utm_content=article" data-prosemirror-content-type="mark" data-prosemirror-mark-name="link">Meta Begins Job Cuts as It Shifts From Metaverse to AI Devices</a> <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-15/ai-coding-startup-replit-nears-funding-at-9-billion-valuation?utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=podcast&amp;utm_campaign=odd_lots&amp;utm_content=article" data-prosemirror-content-type="mark" data-prosemirror-mark-name="link">AI Coding Startup Replit Nears Funding at $9 Billion Valuation</a>
Only <a href="http://Bloomberg.com" data-inline-card="" data-card-data="">http://Bloomberg.com</a> subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox each week, plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at&nbsp; <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots?in_source=oddlotspodcast" data-prosemirror-content-type="mark" data-prosemirror-mark-name="link">bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots</a>
<a href="http://bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots" data-prosemirror-content-type="mark" data-prosemirror-mark-name="link">Subscribe to the Odd Lots Newsletter</a> Join the conversation: <a href="https://discord.gg/oddlots" data-prosemirror-content-type="mark" data-prosemirror-mark-name="link">discord.gg/oddlots</a>

Weekend Listen: Why the Tech World Is Going Crazy for Claude Code

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/6b948b3a-d34c-4947-8a7c-b3e400e83f63/transcript

Wait, Weren’t We Supposed to Have a Recession in 2025?

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