Author: IQ TIMES MEDIA
People who get health insurance through the Affordable Care Act could soon see their monthly premiums sharply increase as subsidies expire and insurers propose a major premium hike for 2026.Insurers that offer plans through the ACA are planning an average premium increase of 15% for 2026 — the largest increase in seven years, according to an analysis published Friday from KFF, a health policy research group. The analysis is based on filings from more than 100 insurers in 19 states and Washington, D.C.The increase will likely come on top of the loss of enhanced subsidies that helped people pay for…
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump said Coca-Cola agreed to start sweetening its products with cane sugar, rather than high-fructose corn syrup. Whether that will indeed happen remains to be seen; a Coca-Cola spokesperson did not confirm the president’s assertion.Still, Trump said on Truth Social, “You’ll see. It’s just better!”Is it, though?When it comes to potential health impacts, the answer is no, said Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.“Both high-fructose corn syrup and cane sugar are about 50% fructose, 50% glucose, and…
On Fridays, employees at Sendbird’s headquarters are treated to a free lunch — one of the perks of showing up in person.Yeji Yoon, the company’s chief of staff, told Business Insider that the company’s chief financial officer started the office tradition for “selfish” reasons: He loves bahn mi sandwiches, particularly those from a local Vietnamese spot.Fridays aren’t official in-person days. Since early 2024, the company has required those who can come into its San Mateo headquarters to be on-site Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. It’s also rolling out return-to-office mandates at its other offices around the world.But then a few of…
Barcelona, Spain (AP) — The 2031 Ryder Cup will be held in northeastern Spain, the president of the Catalan golf federation has told The Associated Press.Ramon Nogué, president of the Catalan golf federation, told the AP by phone Friday that “next week it will be official” that Girona will be announced as the host of the golfing event between the best male players of Europe and the United States.The choice of Girona’s Camiral Golf course was first reported by Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia.“Any announcement in relation to future editions of the Ryder Cup will be made in due course,” Ryder…
Netflix used generative AI to save money on a recent production — and the company’s co-CEO said he was “thrilled” with the results.Ted Sarandos revealed on Thursday that the streamer used the technology when making “The Eternaut,” an Argentine production based on a popular sci-fi comic.Sarandos said the show is the first Netflix title to use fully AI-generated shots in its final footage, with a sequence that shows the collapse of a building in Buenos Aires. Without AI, Sarandos said, such an effect would not have been cost-effective for a production the size of “The Eternaut.””In fact, that VFX sequence…
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — In the quiet dugout hours before first pitch, as a few teammates begin their pregame routines on the nearby grass, Lou Helmig pauses and ponders his baseball lineage.He holds a bat in his hand. It always seems he has a bat in hand, ready.Helmig also carries a deep family history with every swing and every catch, with every sprint around the basepaths. He has carried it at every level, in every new place he plays, on whatever continent it happens to be in a given moment.The larger-than-life right fielder for the independent Oakland Ballers is a…
While OpenAI has cemented its lead in the U.S., Perplexity is taking a different route — quietly expanding into India to compete in the next phase of AI adoption. The search-focused AI startup is rapidly adding millions of users in the world’s second-largest internet and smartphone market, positioning itself for mass-market scale. This week, Perplexity partnered with Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom operator after Reliance Jio, to offer a free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription — normally worth $200 — to all 360 million Airtel subscribers. Airtel confirmed to TechCrunch that the deal is exclusive, meaning no other telco in the…
HANOI (Reuters) -African swine fever outbreaks are spreading in Vietnam, threatening to disrupt food supplies in the Southeast Asian country, the government warned on Friday.Vietnam has this year detected 514 outbreaks in 28 out of 34 cities and provinces nationwide, the government said in a statement, adding that the authorities have culled more than 30,000 infected pigs.”The risk of African swine fever is on a rising trend, negatively affecting the pig farming industry, food supplies and the environment,” the government said.African swine fever has disrupted the global pork market for years. In the worst outbreak over 2018-19, about half the…
MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) — It was a perfect pitch. The ball sped straight across home plate, where it was met with an equally powerful kick. Perryline Jimmie sprinted toward first base after her kick as her teammates erupted in cheers on the sidelines.Jimmie, 23, is a professional player of kickball, a close cousin of baseball that is beloved by women in Liberia and played all over the country from schoolyards to public squares and dirt fields. Since its introduction in the 1960s, it has become the nation’s second-most popular sport after soccer.Kickball in Liberia has the rules of baseball but…
Washington — Marcella Powell is not a huge softball fan, nor is she a political junkie. So why did she travel more than 1,000 miles from her home in Pensacola, Florida, to Washington, D.C., to take part in Wednesday’s annual Congressional Women’s Softball Game?”When this came up, I was like, ‘I really want to do it.’ So, I did it with no hesitation, no effort, no second thoughts,” Powell said.Unlike their male counterparts, whose annual baseball game pits Republicans against Democrats, the congressional women, who begin practicing months in advance, play together with no party affiliation. It’s just “Team Congress”…