April 4, 2025

What's Happening

Economy

It's Time To Factor Tariffs Into Your Monthly Budget

What's going on: Nearly every facet of American life is about to get more expensive as President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs take effect tomorrow. A minimum 10% import tax will be slapped on every single item shipped into the US. For context: The US bought more than $4 trillion worth of goods from overseas in 2024. The tech industry is expected to take one of the hardest hits, considering most phones, computers, parts, and batteries are made in China. Nearly 97% of America’s clothing and shoes are also made in Asia. As far as groceries go, the US doesn’t grow enough bananas, coffee, or avocados (despite Chipotle’s best efforts), to meet demand, and about 90% of tomatoes are imported. Chocolate, vanilla, French wine, and Scotch whisky? Also likely to cost more. But hey, tap water is still free… for now.

What it means: Americans are set to pay a staggering price for Trump’s tariffs, which are expected to total $6 trillion over the next decade, making this one of the largest tax hikes in US history. The Yale Budget Lab projects the average household could see an extra $3,800 in annual costs, while inflation could jump another 2.3%. It’s no secret that lower-income households will likely be hit the hardest. The White House insists prices will spike only temporarily before stabilizing, but many Americans can’t afford to wait it out. Meanwhile, businesses aren’t eager to absorb the extra costs. Wall Street saw its worst day since 2020 on Thursday, with the Dow plunging 1,600 points. Companies like Nike, Apple, and Best Buy suffered double-digit losses, and one CEO had a profanity-laced reaction. No comment though from the sole inhabitants of Heard and McDonald Islands: Penguins.

Related: China Response to Trump Goes Beyond Retaliatory Tariffs (NYT Gift Link)

Education

The Price of Diversity? For Some Schools, It Could Be Millions

What's going on: The Trump administration is telling public schools nationwide: Prove you’ve cut DEI efforts — or risk losing federal funding. A Department of Education memo sent Thursday gives state officials 10 days to certify their schools don’t engage in “programs to advantage one’s race over another.” The threat leans on a broad interpretation of civil rights law and a Supreme Court decision that applied only to colleges — but the administration says K-12 schools must now comply. The memo doesn’t spell out what qualifies as a DEI program, leaving school leaders scrambling to figure out what might put them in violation — and how to balance that with supporting students and staff. Officials also warned that noncompliance could lead to lawsuits from the Justice Department.

What it means: Public schools across the country — especially those serving low-income students — could lose millions in funding. The federal government covers about 8% of public school budgets, but the reliance varies. States like Alaska, West Virginia, Mississippi, and North Dakota depend more heavily on federal dollars — and in Detroit, nearly half of the district’s funding comes from the federal government. Rural and high-poverty districts could be hit hardest. The administration’s sweeping approach could ripple across everything from admissions practices and staff hiring to race-conscious scholarships and culturally specific graduation ceremonies. A Trump administration civil rights official has said “federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right.” Others have called the strategy “regulation by intimidation.”

Related: RFK Jr. Wants Whole Milk Back in Schools (CNN)

Tech

Could AI Outsmart Us All by 2027?

What's going on: For years, authors, filmmakers, and experts have imagined both utopian and dystopian futures for AI — from M3GAN to 2001: A Space Odyssey. Now, a nonprofit group founded by two prominent AI researchers has weighed in, and... it’s not exactly reassuring. The AIFutures Project spent a year honing hundreds of AI predictions and then hired a writer to fictionalize and explain what’s in store. Their final product, “AI 2027,” predicts that within a few years, AI systems will surpass human intelligence, functioning as “autonomous agents that are better than humans at everything.” They foresee chatbots disrupting the global order, Chinese spies stealing AI secrets, and models going rogue. No biggie…

What it means: Not everyone buys into the predictions of “AI 2027” — one AI lab expert dismissed it as out of touch with “the reality of how things are evolving in AI.” But the report comes from two prominent researchers in the space — one a former OpenAI employee, the other known for accurately predicting world events. Bill Gates seems to agree with their ethos, recently predicting that within a decade, humans won’t be needed “for most things." While many in the AI space are taking “AI 2027” with a grain of salt, some tech companies are already preparing for a future where AI surpasses human-level capabilities. Is anyone else suddenly nostalgic for that annoying dial-up internet sound, or is it just us?

Related: How This AI-Enhanced Treatment Is Helping People With Parkinson’s Symptoms (WaPo Gift Link)

Let us do the work for you

Skimm+ is a new membership that helps you live one step ahead. Just one way we’re doing that: our thoughtfully crafted scripts for life’s tricky conversations. Join the waitlist to be notified when a Founding Member spot is open for you. 

Settle This

Which popular payment service is shutting down its app?

Extra Credit

Eat

The only thing better than dessert? Eating it for breakfast — particularly when it’s How Sweet Eats’s Pistachio Lemon Loaf. Each bite of this impressive-yet-simple cake is perfectly tender, satisfyingly tangy, and delightfully nutty, thanks to the mix of greek yogurt, lemon juice and zest, and crushed pistachios. Top it with a zesty lemon glaze and some extra pistachios, and well, it’s basically a slice of sunshine on your plate.

Game Time

Kick your weekend off with Pile-Up Poker, a brand-new game where poker meets solitaire. Create as many poker hands as possible to earn cash and climb the leaderboard. We’re all in.