Even when Americans have health insurance, they can have a hard time affording the drugs theyve been prescribed.
About 1 in 5 U.S. adults skip filling a prescription due to its cost at least once a year, according to KFF, a health research organization. And 1 in 3 take steps to cut their prescription drug costs, such as splitting pills when its not medically necessary or switching to an over-the-counter drug instead of the one that their medical provider prescribed.
As pharmacy professors who research prescription drug access, we think its important for Americans to know that it is possible to get prescriptions filled more affordably, as long as you know how before you go to the pharmacy.
Cost of copays ranges widely
When you have health insurance and have to pay for a prescription drug at the pharmacy, youre usually covering the cost of your copay. This is the amount patients or their caregivers are expected to pay after insurance covers the rest of the tab.
If you get your health insurance through Medicaid, the government program that covers low-income Americans and people with disabilities, you should not have to pay anything at all to obtain prescription drugs. If there is a copay, it should be low probably less than US$5.
And if youre insured through Medicare, the government program that mainly covers people who are 65 and older, or get your coverage through a private health insurance company, its important to understand what to expect when you visit a pharmacy.
Most private insurance companies charge US$5 to $50 for prescription drug copays. The copays are tiered based on what the drug costs. Brand-name and specialty medications have higher copays; older generics have lower copays.
Some generic drugs and vaccines may even require no copay at all. While a copay is a flat fee, it can change over the course of the year based on whether or not you have met your deductible. The deductible is the amount of money you have to pay out of pocket before your insurance starts covering your prescriptions. Before your deductible is fully paid, you may be responsible for the full cost of your medications. After youve met your deductible for the year, you will only be required to pay the copay.
As newer, more expensive drugs enter the market, cost-sharing at the pharmacy has increasingly shifted from a copay to coinsurance.
In contrast with a flat copay, coinsurance means your insurance company will cover a certain percentage of the drugs cost, and youll pay the rest. Since the patients share is based on a percentage of the medications price, coinsurance often results in higher out-of-pocket costs than copays do.
New help for patients with Medicare coverage
Two new government programs could help make prescription drugs more affordable for millions of older Americans.
Starting in 2026, people who are insured through Medicare will pay no more than $2,100 out of pocket on prescription drugs over the year. That cap may be much lower than $2,100 due to a quirk in Medicares rules. Prescriptions filled after someone has paid the maximum allowable amount will cost them nothing at all.
In addition, the government launched the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan in 2025. This program, which is available to people over 65, helps spread what patients spend out of pocket on prescription drugs throughout the year, making that expense more predictable and easier to budget for.
Early data indicates that very few Americans are enrolled in the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. Patients insured through private companies do not have similar opportunities.
Consumers should find out if they qualify for state or federal programs on their medications.
Coupons and discount cards
What if you cant afford a copay for your prescription drug?
Before giving up on ever getting it, ask the pharmacist about your options.
It may be worth trying to use a free online tool, such as RxAssist, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, or a discount card from GoodRx, which is a publicly traded company.
GoodRx cards are free. They help people compare local pharmacy prices and to locate coupons that make prescriptions more affordable.
GoodRx works by searching for the lowest available price for the prescription at various pharmacies. Other copay coupons provided by the drug manufacturer may also work similarly by lowering the cost of the medication. On some occasions, the cash price at the pharmacy may actually be cheaper than the copay, and the pharmacist should be able to help you navigate these options.
Heres what you should know before giving GoodRx a try:
GoodRx collects individual data on patients, raising significant privacy concerns.
Some pharmacies do not accept GoodRx. You may have to visit more than one pharmacy to be able to activate its discounts.
These cards may make the most sense for uninsured or underinsured patients, but do not always help those whohave insurance because you might not get a better price. Whats more, if you use a discount card, the amount you pay may not count toward your insurance deductible for the year.
You should weigh the caveats closely depending on your circumstance.
Prescription assistance programs
Prescription assistance programs provide another cost-saving tool for Americans.
Drugmakers, nonprofits, and government agencies sponsor those programs, which help patients who are uninsured or underinsured even if they are on Medicare fill prescriptions either at a discount or for free.
These programs include manufacturer-specific programs as well as charitable pharmacies like Dispensary of Hope, NOVA Scripts Central, and the Patient Advocate Foundation. Qualifying criteria vary for these programs, but typically you must have a low income and be a citizen or a legal U.S. resident.
The Patient Access Network Foundation and RxAssist, two nonprofits that help Americans pay their medical bills, also offer helpful tools to identify programs that could work for you.
Assistance from these programs could cut your copay or even provide a prescription drug at no cost.
Separately, the Trump administration announced in November 2025 that a new White House prescription drug pricing program will soon begin to connect consumers to companies that have agreed to sell certain prescription drugs at a big discount.
Many experts dont expect the program, known as TrumpRx, to help people who have health insurance. Instead, it could be most likely to help those with no insurance at all. The new government program is slated to begin to roll out in 2026.
Direct-to-consumer models
Beyond coupons and assistance programs, a more radical shift is in the works: direct-to-consumer platforms and cash-payment models.
In 2025, several manufacturers offered to sell medications directly to patients on websites and patient portals at cash prices. For example, the drug manufacturer Eli Lilly is offering its popular weight-loss medication, Zepbound, on its website.
These websites have out-of-pocket costs that can run upward of $300 a month, making them too high for many, if not most, Americans to afford. And insurance companies have so far refused to cover them.
To be sure, the systems underlying these programs are still being built. We believe that the Trump administration would need to make a bigger effort to make it easier for millions of Americans to be able to afford filling their prescriptions.
Sujith Ramachandran is an associate professor of pharmacy administration at the University of Mississippi.
Adam Pate is a clinical professor of pharmacy practice at the University of Mississippi.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Tesla lost its crown as the worlds bestselling electric vehicle maker on Friday as a customer revolt over Elon Musks right-wing politics, expiring U.S. tax breaks for buyers, and stiff overseas competition pushed sales down for a second year in a row.
Tesla said that it delivered 1.64 million vehicles in 2025, down 9% from a year earlier.
Chinese rival BYD, which sold 2.26 million vehicles last year, is now the biggest EV maker.
It’s a stunning reversal for Musk, who once dismissed BYD as a threat as Tesla’s rise seemed unstoppable, crushing traditional automakers with far more resources and helping make him the world’s richest man.
For the fourth quarter, sales totaled 418,227, falling short of the 440,000 that analysts polled by FactSet expected. The sales total was impacted by the expiration of a $7,500 tax credit that was phased out by the Trump administration at the end of September.
Tesla stock was up 0.5% at $451.60 in early trading Friday.
Even with multiple issues buffeting the company, investors are betting that Tesla CEO Musk can deliver on his ambitions to make Tesla a leader in robotaxi service and get consumers to embrace humanoid robots that can perform basic tasks in homes and offices. Reflecting that optimism, the stock finished 2025 with a gain of approximately 11%.
The latest quarter was the first with sales of stripped-down versions of the Model Y and Model 3 that Musk unveiled in early October as part of an effort to revive sales. The new Model Y costs just under $40,000 while customers can buy the cheaper Model 3 for under $37,000. Those versions are expected to help Tesla compete with Chinese models in Europe and Asia.
For fourth-quarter earnings coming out in late January, analysts are expecting the company to post a 3% drop in sales and a nearly 40% drop in earnings per share, according to FactSet. Analysts expect the downward trend in sales and profits to eventually reverse itself as 2026 rolls along.
Investors have largely shrugged off the falling numbers, choosing to focus on Musk’s pivot to different parts of business.
He has been saying that plunging car sales dont matter as much now because the future of the company lies more with his new driverless robotaxis service, the companys energy storage business and building robots for the home and factory. To make his task worthwhile, Teslas directors awarded Musk a potentially enormous new pay package that shareholders backed at the annual meeting in November.
Musk scored another huge windfall two weeks ago when the Delaware Supreme Court reversed a decision that deprived him of a $55 billion pay package that Tesla doled out in 2018.
Musk could become the world’s first trillionaire later this year when he sells shares of his rocket company SpaceX to public for the first time in what analysts expect would be a blockbuster initial public offering.
This story has been corrected to show that BYD sold 2.26 million vehicles last year, not 2.26.
Associated Press
A group of about 19 Buddhist monks and their rescue dog, Aloka, are walking from Fort Worth, Texas, to Washington, D.C., to promote world peace. Their planned route spans approximately 2,300 miles across 10 states and is expected to take 120 days to complete.
Here’s what to know about their journey and how to follow along in real time:
Why are the monks walking?
The group has been sharing updates about their journey on their official Walk for Peace Facebook page. According to the Facebook page, the walk is intended to promote the awareness of peace, loving kindness, and compassion across America and the world.
Their movement has drawn massive support across social media, attracting more than 575,000 Facebook followers and over 618,000 Instagram followers. The group even has social media accounts for their furry companion, Aloka the Peace Dog, who has some 210,000 followers on Facebook.
They use the Facebook page to share updates, photos, and messages of hope with their supporters. The monks are accepting support along the way. The group welcomes anyone, regardless of their beliefs, to show support by donating, volunteering, or sharing their message.
When did they start walking and how long will it take?
The group left the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth, Texas, on October 26, 2025, and should arrive in Washington, D.C., in mid-February.
Theyre walking at a mindful pace of 20 to 30 miles each day. Along the way, the monks have been greeted by crowds of supporters.
The walking journey has not been without obstacles
In November, while walking about 30 miles east of Houston, Texas, two monks were injured after a car hit one of the groups escort vehicles.
Venerable Maha Dam Phommasan, a senior monk, was flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital. His injuries were severe, resulting in the amputation of one of his legs. After spending over a month in the hospital, he returned to his home temple in Snellville, Atlanta.
The renaming group members have continued their mission while he offers support from afar. Earlier this week, the group stopped to visit with him when they passed through his city.
Since the incident occurred, local police departments have stepped up to volunteer to escort the monks as they continue their cross-country endeavor.
Where are the monks now?
Today, theyre making their way to Monroe and Good Hope, Georgia, according to an early-morning post on Facebook.
How can I follow the monks along their journey?
Despite encountering some challenges along the way, the monks are now more than halfway through the planned journey.
You can track their progress and see where the monks are in real time on a live interactive map created with Google Maps. Their Facebook page is the best resource for up-to-date information on the daily route.
After years of career experiments, two clear life paths stand out to me. Just two choices people make, sometimes without realising it. Decisions that define almost every area of our lives. The most successful people pick one of these paths early. And stick around long enough for it to work. Everything that follows grows from those two decisions. The work you do. The skills you build. And the doors that open for you. Ive seen both work. Different roads. But they can all help you build the life you want. You dont need to have it all figured out. You cant. No one can. But once you understand these two choices, you start aiming for what you want.
Choice one: Be the best at one thing
Hone your specific knowledge. This path cannot be any clearer. You pick one skill. One craft. One path. And you go all in. Not ten things. One. You wake up thinking about it. You go to sleep obsessing over it. You become it. And own it. This choice scares people. It feels limiting. Like youre closing doors. You are. Thats the point. Choice one is the engineer whos been solving similar problems for decades. Or the writer whos still honing her craft after everyone quits. The rewards compound over the years. Skills stack in your favour. Reputation grows. Doors open because people trust you to deliver. When you commit to one thing, you know what to say yes to. You know what to ignore. That alone puts you ahead of most people. But you have to get it right from the start. Think ten, twenty years down the line. Are you still happy doing the same thing? Will automation reduce the demand for your skill?
Specific knowledge matters. It runs the primary systems we all rely on. For a writer, its their voice. For a surgeon, its a skill. The stuff people cant Google in five minutes. If you become the best at something, really the best, you can be so good they cant ignore you. But the process takes time. You need more than ten thousand hours for that. Being the best takes sacrifice. Years. Maybe decades. Youll have to say no to almost everything else. And hope AI doesnt disrupt your path to the life you want. This route works. But its rare. And its not for everyone.
Choice two: Master meta-skills
You build range on purpose. You are not great at just one thing. But youre very good at two or more. You stand out by combining many strengths. Meta-skills are skills that help you learn other skills faster. They travel with you. Things like learning how to learn, writing clearly, thinking in systems and talking or listening to people. Mastering meta-skills means you are not attached to one identity. You know how to ask good questions, how to break problems down. And how to teach yourself new things. You switch between different sets.
You collect experiences. You learn fast by adapting. Different roles. Different industries. Different people. Ive seen friends do this well, too. They easily go from design to marketing to product. They are good at connecting dots that other people miss. You dont need to be the smartest person in the room. You need to adapt faster than the room changes. And it changes a lot.
If youre good at coding and public speaking you have leverage. Most programmers cant pitch. You can. That becomes your strength. Or maybe youre solid at business strategy and strong at storytelling. That combination makes you unstoppable. The secret is to stack rare but useful skills. It creates a mix thats hard to copy. Thats how you become irreplaceable. Be interesting and useful in a combination of ways.
How the two choices work together
This is the part people struggle with. If you only pick one thing, you risk getting stuck when things are changing. But you can still win if you pick right. And hone a few meta-skills too. If you only collect meta-skills, you stay indispensable. Together, they compound. Your specific skill makes you extraordinary. Your meta-skills give you range. You become irreplaceable without getting rigid. You can pivot without starting from zero. Thats how careers last. Thats how confidence grows.
Ive changed my one thing more than once. Each time, the meta-skills came with me. If you are already on a specific path, what skills would make you better at learning anything else later? Keep an open mind. Designing your extraordinary life is not really about which option is better. But the path that works better for you. For the life you want.
By all means, pick one thing. And own it. But then, look up. Learn the skills that let you keep moving. Use your specific knowledge as a foundation.
A great life is the work youre known for, connected by the wisdom you apply daily. Dont let your one amazing skill become your entire personality. Let it be the foundation. Then build everything else on top of it with the meta-skills.
President Donald Trump signed a New Year’s Eve proclamation delaying increased tariffs on upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for a year, citing ongoing trade talks.Trump’s order signed Wednesday keeps in place a 25% tariff he imposed in September on those goods, but delays for another year a 30% tariff on upholstered furniture and 50% tariff on kitchen cabinets and vanities.The increases, which were set to take effect Jan. 1, come as the Republican president instituted a broad swath of taxes on imported goods to address trade imbalances and other issues.The president has said the tariffs on furniture are needed to “bolster American industry and protect national security.”The delay is the latest in the roller coaster of Trump’s tariff wars since he returned to office last year, with the president announcing levies at times without warning and then delaying or pulling back from them just as abruptly.The Trump administration on Wednesday also signaled it may back away from a steep tariff proposed on Italian pasta that would have put the rate at 107%. The U.S. had threatened to add a heavy tariff on Italian pasta makers after the U.S. Commerce Department launched what it said was a routine antidumping review based on allegations that the pasta makers sold product into the US at below-market prices and undercut local competitors.A final decision on the sanctions was scheduled for Jan. 2, with the option of extending it.The Commerce Department said Wednesday that based on a new review, the rates would be lowered to between 2.26% and 13.89% for the pasta makers because they had addressed many of the department’s concerns. A final decision is now set for March 12.Italian farm lobby Coldiretti and another food industry association, Filiera Italia, welcomed the development. The two lobby groups had strongly objected to the original tariffs and urged the Italian government to intervene.The two associations said the original proposed tariffs would have doubled the cost of a plate of pasta for American families, “opening the door to Italian-sounding products and penalizing the authentic quality of Made in Italy.”They reported that in 2024, Italian pasta exports to the U.S. amounted to 671 million ($787 million).“Coldiretti and Filiera Italia will continue to defend our premium pasta exported to the U.S. market, which we have also supported with a strong campaign in the international media,” the associations said in a statement.
Associated Press writer Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report.
Michelle L. Price, Associated Press
Zohran Mamdani became mayor of New York City on Thursday, taking over one of the most unrelenting jobs in American politics with a promise to transform government on behalf of the city’s striving, struggling working class.Mamdani, a Democrat, was sworn in at a decommissioned subway station below City Hall just after midnight, placing his hand on a Quran as he took his oath as the city’s first Muslim mayor.After working part of the night in his new office, Mamdani returned to City Hall in a taxi cab around midday Thursday for a grander public inauguration where U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of the mayor’s political heroes, administered the oath for a second time.“Beginning today, we will govern expansively and audaciously. We may not always succeed, but never will we be accused of lacking the courage to try,” Mamdani told a cheering crowd.“To those who insist that the era of big government is over, hear me when I say this: No longer will City Hall hesitate to use its power to improve New Yorkers’ lives,” he said.Throngs turned out in the frigid cold for an inauguration viewing party just south of City Hall on a stretch of Broadway known as the “Canyon of Heroes,” famous for its ticker-tape parades.
Mamdani wasted little time getting to work after the event.He revoked multiple executive orders issued by the previous administration since Sept. 26, 2024, the date federal authorities announced former Mayor Eric Adams had been indicted on corruption charges, which were later dismissed following intervention by the Trump administration.Then he visited an apartment building in Brooklyn to announce he is revitalizing a city office dedicated to protecting tenants and creating two task forces focused on housing construction.
‘I will govern as a democratic socialist’
Throughout the daytime ceremony, Mamdani and other speakers hit on the theme that carried him to victory in the election: Using government power to lift up the millions of people who struggle with the city’s high cost of living.Mamdani peppered his remarks with references to those New Yorkers, citing workers in steel-toed boots, halal cart vendors “whose knees ache from working all day” and cooks “wielding a thousand spices.”“I was elected as a democratic socialist and I will govern as a democratic socialist,” Mamdani said. “I will not abandon my principles for fear of being deemed ‘radical.'”Before administering the oath, Sanders told the crowd that most of the things Mamdani wants to do including raising taxes on the rich aren’t radical at all.“In the richest country in the history of the world, making sure that people can live in affordable housing is not radical,” he told the crowd. “It is the right and decent thing to do.”Mamdani was accompanied on stage by his wife, Rama Duwaji. Adams was also in attendance, sitting near another former mayor, Bill de Blasio.Actor Mandy Patinkin, who recently hosted Mamdani to celebrate Hannukah, sang “Over the Rainbow” with children from an elementary school chorus. The invocation was given by Imam Khalid Latif, the director of the Islamic Center of New York City. Poet Cornelius Eady read an original poem called “Proof.”In addition to being the city’s first Muslim mayor, Mamdani is also its first of South Asian descent and the first to be born in Africa. At 34, Mamdani is also the city’s youngest mayor in generations.
Free child care and bus rides
At the watch party on Broadway, onlookers stood shoulder to shoulder gazing up at several jumbotrons and singing and dancing to stave off the cold, with some passing out hot cocoa and hand warmers. Many described feeling as though they were witnessing history.Among them was Ariel Segura, a 16-year-old Bronx resident, who had arrived five hours earlier to secure a place near the front of the crowd.“I’m out here fan-girling a politician, it’s kind of crazy,” he said, wiping away tears as Mamdani concluded his speech. “Now it’s time to hold him accountable.”In a campaign that helped make “affordability” a buzzword across the political spectrum, Mamdani ran on a focused platform that included promises of free child care, free buses, a rent freeze for about 1 million households and a pilot of city-run grocery stores.Mamdani insisted in his inaugural address that he will not squander his opportunity to implement those policies.“A moment like this comes rarely. Seldom do we hold such an opportunity to transform and reinvent. Rarer still is it the people themselves whose hands are on the levers of change. And yet we know that too often in our past, moments of great possibility have been promptly surrendered to small imagination and smaller ambition,” he said.But he will also have to face the everyday responsibilities of running America’s largest city: handling trash and snow and rats, while getting blamed for subway delays and potholes.In his speech, Mamdani acknowledged the task ahead, saying he knows many will be watching to see whether he can succeed.“They want to know if the left can govern. They want to know if the struggles that afflict them can be solved. They want to know if it is right to hope again,” he said. “So, standing together with the wind of purpose at our backs, we will do something that New Yorkers do better than anyone else: We will set an example for the world.”
Quick rise to power
Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and Mahmood Mamdani, an academic and author. His family moved to New York City when he was 7, with Mamdani growing up in a post-9/11 city where Muslims didn’t always feel welcome. He became an American citizen in 2018.He worked on political campaigns for Democratic candidates in the city before he sought public office himself, winning a state Assembly seat in 2020 to represent a section of Queens.Now that he has taken office, Mamdani and his wife will depart their one-bedroom, rent stabilized apartment in the outer-borough to take up residence in the stately mayoral residence in Manhattan.The new mayor inherits a city on the upswing, after years of slow recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Violent crime has dropped to pre-pandemic lows. Tourists are back. Unemployment, which soared during the pandemic years, is also back to pre-COVID levels.Yet deep concerns remain about high prices and rising rents.In opening remarks to the crowd, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez praised New Yorkers for choosing “courage over fear.”“We have chosen prosperity for the many over spoils for the few,” she said.
Dealing with Trump
During the mayoral race, President Donald Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from the city if Mamdani won and mused about sending National Guard troops to the city.But Trump surprised supporters and foes alike by inviting the Democrat to theWhite House for what ended up being a cordial meeting in November.“I want him to do a great job and will help him do a great job,” Trump said.Still, tensions between the two leaders are almost certain to resurface, given their deep policy disagreements, particularly over immigration.Several speakers at Thursday’s inauguration criticized the Trump administration’s move to deport more immigrants and expressed hope that Mamdani’s City Hall would be an ally to those the president has targeted.Mamdani also faces skepticism and opposition from some members of the city’s Jewish community over his criticisms of Israel’s government.Still, Mamdani supporters in Thursday’s crowd expressed optimism he’d be a unifying force.“There are moments where everyone in New York comes together, like when the Mets won the World Series in ’86,” said Mary Hammann, 64, a musician with the Metropolitan Opera. “This feels like that just colder.”Associated Press writer Jake Offenhartz contributed to this story.
Anthony Izaguirre, Associated Press
Every week, another executive asks me: Where do we even start with AI? As we enter 2026, this question drives explosive demand for AI upskilling platforms and AI-powered learning solutions. Yet most enterprise AI training programs fail because they lack a systematic framework that moves the organization from confused to fluent to truly differentiated. Think of it as Maslow’s hierarchy, but for AI capability development. And 2026 is the year to climb that hierarchy.
An effective AI upskilling platform must address five levels of organizational capability: foundational literacy, company-specific application, durable skills development, breakthrough innovation, and co-intelligence integration.
THE FOUNDATION: BUILD YOUR BASE CAMP
Just as you can’t achieve self-actualization without food and shelter, you can’t build an AI advantage without foundational literacy. Yet most organizations skip this step, rushing to deploy tools before their people understand what they’re actually working with.
The three non-negotiables at the base:
1. Understand what AI actually is. Not the marketing promises, but the reality. When your teams understand the underlying mechanics, they make better decisions about when and how to apply these tools. The goal isn’t turning everyone into data scientists. It’s eliminating the dangerous combination of over-confidence and ignorance.
2. Safety and ethics literacy. Fear of “doing it wrong” stops more AI adoption than any other factor. People need clear guardrails: What data can we use? When must we disclose AI assistance? Without this clarity, your talented people will simply avoid AI entirely.
3. Core application skills. Everyone in your organization should understand how to effectively communicate with AI systems. In 2026, this isn’t optional AI literacy anymoreit’s as fundamental as email proficiency was in 2005.
THE CRITICAL MIDDLE: YOUR COMPANY’S POINT OF VIEW
Here’s where good companies separate from mediocre ones. The best organizationsShopify, Zapier, Duolingodon’t just teach generic AI skills. They build a distinctive point of view on how AI should work in their specific context.
This means answering hard questions: What should AI do here? What should it never do? How does AI use align with our values and competitive positioning?
Your “company POVAI sandbox” becomes the space where teams safely experiment within defined boundaries. It’s structured freedomclear enough to prevent dangerous mistakes, open enough to enable innovation.
Then comes personalization. Generic training fails because a software engineer’s relationship with AI looks nothing like a customer service representative’s. Breaking down use cases by team, role, and workflow transforms abstract concepts into concrete daily practice.
This is where enterprise AI upskilling platforms differentiate themselves, by enabling personalized AI training that adapts to each team’s workflow context. Research shows that personalizing training by role achieves much higher adoption than generic training programs.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN AN AI UPSKILLING PLATFORM
Organizations succeeding with AI transformation share common infrastructure:
Cohort-based learning for peer accountability and shared discovery
Workflow integration that brings training into daily work contexts
Role-specific pathways rather than generic content
Safe experimentation environments (AI sandboxes)
Progress tracking that measures fluency, not just completion
The right AI-powered learning platform doesn’t just deliver contentit builds organizational AI capability systematically across the hierarchy.
THE TRANSFORMATION ZONE: DURABLE SKILLS
Here’s the insight that escapes most organizations entering 2026: Crossing from competent to breakthrough doesn’t require more AI skills. It requires human skills that AI amplifies.
Critical thinking. Curiosity. Entrepreneurial agency.
These durable AI skills separate organizations that use AI to do the same things faster from those that reimagine what’s possible. Leading corporate AI training platforms focus on developing these capabilities through experiential learning and peer collaboration, not just content consumption.
This tier splits into two paths:
Scale and efficiency growth: AI’s ability to generate and personalize at near-zero marginal cost fundamentally changes business economics. Smart companies systematically examine every workflow, asking: Where does AI change our cost structure?
Human-first breakthrough: The harder path, with far higher returns. This requires asking: How can AI make our company more human? How do we free people from tedious work to do more creative, caring, human work? How do we use AI to create experiences that are more personalized and genuinely helpful than humans alone could deliver?
Most organizations stop at efficiency. The winners push through to augmentation and transformation.
THE SUMMIT: CO-INTELLIGENCE
At the peak sits a different relationship with AI entirelyone that forward-thinking organizations are achieving in 2026. Not tool and user, but genuine co-intelligencewhere AI seamlessly integrates into workflows, giving your people capabilities they never had before.
This is where empowered, curious, AI-native talent emerges. These individuals don’t think about “using AI.” They think through problems with AI as a natural extension of their cognitive toolkit.
Organizations at this level aren’t just AI-fluent. They’re AI-native in their decision making, customer experience, and innovation process.
YOUR 2026 AI TRANSFORMATION ROADMAP
Whether you’re evaluating AI upskilling platforms or building internal corporate AI training programs, this hierarchy provides your 2026 roadmap. The organizations winning with AI aren’t those with the most toolsthey’re those with the most systematic approach to workforce AI capability development.
The beauty of this hierarchy is its clarity:
If you’re at zero: Start with foundations. Build understanding, safety literacy, and basic skills across your organization.
If you’re past foundations: Develop your company POV. Create your sandbox. Personalize by role and workflow.
If you’re operationally fluent: Identify your catalysts. Build their durable skills. Set them loose on breakthrough opportunities.
If you’re pushing toward co-intelligence: You’re writing the next chapter.
The path isn’t easy. But it is clear. And in 2026, as AI capabilities accelerate and organizations remain paralyzed at the base, simply moving systematically up this hierarchy creates a genuine competitive advantage.
The question isn’t whether your organization will become AI-fluent. It’s whether you’ll get there in 2026 before your competition doesand whether you’ll stop at efficiency or push through to transformation.
Start climbing.
Candice Faktor is co-CEO of Disco.
Six years ago, the commercial production process for Fortune 500 companies, tech innovators, and global giants meant six-figure budgets, and months of research, scripting, and voice actor castings. Every campaign was a marathon of design thinking and strategic storytelling. Today, however, with the help of AI tools, those very steps can unfold in a fraction of the time, and a quarter of the cost. For marketing and communications leaders, the landscape has drastically shifted overnight.
The most innovative brand leaders have always thrived on speed. What allowed them to exist beyond the curve was their ability to stay ahead of the story, and see around corners before anyone else could. This has always been important, but the velocity at which were witnessing ideas go from ideation to execution is differentand alarming. Every week seems to introduce a new AI tool that promises to do things smarter, faster, and better for half the price.
The constant pressure to adopt or be left behind is palpable. In fact, according to Marketing Weeks 2025 Language of Effectiveness survey, 57.5% of marketers currently use AI to generate campaign content and creative ideas. Yet, 85% of those surveyed by Adweek say they feel pressure to keep up with the latest tools. The question that keeps arising for many leaders isnt whats next, but instead, at what cost?
ETHICAL INTELLIGENCE: A BRAND DIFFERENTIATOR
Debates about AI are often argued in extremes, either as magic wands or existential threats. Whats missing from that conversation is the middle ground. A place where brand leaders can lean into true stewardship, and where human values and intuition can meet machine precision. Its the space where empathy meets foresight.
The future of influence wont be determined by who adopts the next big tool first, but by who uses it responsibly. Ethical intelligence is the muscle every leader needs to strengthen to discern which AI tools to trust, and how best to use them. Because, when you rely on a chatbot or content platform, youre not just trusting its outputs, you are trusting its creators ethics, awareness, and intentions. Leadership in this new world of storytelling understands the cost, and therefore asks the harder questions: Who does this tool serve? And who could it harm?
To build ethical intelligence in storytelling and content creation, brand leaders should anchor their choices by asking three questions:
1. Empathy: Have we considered how technology impacts the communities it touches?
Large language models still struggle to detect the cultural nuances that build audience trust. This often shows up in subtle ways, like failing to capitalize Black and Brown when referring to ethnic communities, a detail that carries deep significance. At my agency, for example, we refrain from using chief for executive roles or pipeline to describe processes, out of respect for Indigenous communities. Language evolves daily, and the nuance of storytelling cant be replaced by technology. The more we automate narratives, the greater the risk of eroding the human nuance that builds trust for audiences and consumers. Instead, we should look to culturally-attuned tools that are created or informed by the audiences you speak to, such as Aisha, an AI-powered guide informed by the Black experience.
2. Transparency: Are we being clear about how and why AI is shaping our stories?
Consider recent headlines about Sora, OpenAIs AI app and video generator that puts deepfake capabilities into users hands. A product like this tells us that authenticity and source are no longer a barrier or concern. Ive witnessed these risks firsthand when my son created an AI-produced video of me getting my driver’s license (a milestone that never actually happened). Curious, I posted on my Instagram close friends list to see if anyone could spot the inauthenticity. No one did. Instead, my DMs were filled with congratulatory messages.
While this example can be considered harmless, the broader consequences can be far more serious. In the wrong or ill-informed hands, AI-generated content can perpetuate inequity and racial stereotypes if left unchecked. Take the case of Liv, an AI-powered digital influencer. Marketed as a breakthrough in representation, Liv was created by an all-white male development team to personify a Black, queer woman. Lacking authentic oversight, the bot inevitably fell into harmful caricatures reminiscent of the Mammy stereotype from early American media.
As scholar and author, Ruha Benjamin, observed in her book Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code, Technology is not creating the problems. It is reflecting, amplifying, and often hiding preexisting forms of inequality and hierarchy. Liv became a case study in the urgent need for accountability and diverse perspectives in the development and deployment of AI-driven narratives.
3. Equity: Are we creating in ways that protect human dignity over data dominance?
Its worth asking what this constant reliance on technology is doing to our minds. People are doing so much cognitive offloading of their thinking that its reducing their critical thinking skills in ways that dont bounce back, notes X. Eyeé, AI expert and CEO of the consultancy Malo Santo.
As AI-generated content becomes more advanced, many leaders are using it to expedite proposals, campaigns, and creative productions. When it comes to data, the direction has been about volume. Yet some organizations are taking an opposing stance by embedding clauses into their contracts to restrict AI use. Not because they reject efficiency, but because they are signaling a pillar of their values that speed should never come at the expense of authenticity.
In the future, transparency will be at the forefront of the most innovative companies. Where AI already plays a role in your workflows, be upfront about it with your team, clients, stakeholders, and audience. The next generation of brand leadership will be shaped by those who prioritize ethics and integrity in every decision about the way AI is used, and set a new standard for responsible innovation.
Rakia Reynolds is a partner at Actum and founder/executive officer at Ski Blue Media,
Sprinkles Cupcakes, the company known for its sweet treats and iconic cupcake ATMs, is no more.
Candace Nelson, the company’s founder, ended 2025 by confirming that all Sprinkles locations were shutting down as of December 31.
In a video shared to Instagram and TikTok, Nelson said, This isnt how I thought the story would go. I thought Sprinkles would keep going and be around forever. I thought it was going to be my legacy.
Sprinkles has yet to make a formal announcement, but its Instagram profile appears to be gone and the store locator tab on its website now produces an error message. Fast Company reached out to the brand’s PR contact for additional details.
Nelson started Sprinkles in 2005, but has held no stake in the company since selling it to private equity in 2012. KarpReilly LLC announced an investment in Sprinkles shortly after.
That decision over a decade ago has led many social media users to question exactly how Nelson thought Sprinkles would live on and prosper under private equity ownership.
While Nelson asked people to share their special Sprinkles memory or story with her, many of the comments under her post instead take a vehemently anti-private equity stanceand blame her for the demise.
Below is just a sample of the types of comments Nelson has received:
Selling to private equity was the beginning of the end.
What did you expect? Private equity has literally NEVER made things better for customers only for board members’ and investors’ pockets.
You sold it to PE and expected it to not close?? What planet are you living on? I dont begrudge you for selling as thats entirely your choice but to think any PE firm cares about a company in the slightest is insanity.
Legacies cant be abandoned before theyre legacies.
PE fingerprints on many retail bankruptcies
In recent years, private equity deals have appeared to play a role in the dismantling of a number of legacy retail brands, including restaurants Red Lobster and TGI Fridays, and fabrics chain Joann Inc. Private equity firms have a reputation for stripping down companies parts and leaving them saddled with debt, sometimes leading to bankruptcy.
Fast Company has reached out to KarpReilly for comment and will update this post if we hear back.
Individuals in the comment sections also claim that Sprinkles employees were blindsided with only one day’s notice and no severance.
In response to one such claim on Nelsons TikTok post, a purported former employee wrote, Some of us don’t have backup plans we loved sprinkles and planned to be here forever.
Nelson responded to the above comment, Im so sorry this is heartbreaking.
The year 2025 was scary good for investors.It was scary because the U.S. stock market plunged to several historic drops on worries about everything from President Donald Trump’s tariffs to interest rates to a possible bubble in artificial-intelligence technology. In the end, though, it was a good year for anyone with the stomach to stick through the swings.S&P 500 index funds, which sit at the heart of many savers’ 401(k) accounts, returned nearly 18% in 2025 and set a record high on Dec. 24. It was their third straight year of big returns.Here’s a look at some of the surprises that shaped financial markets along the way:
Tariff tremors
Trump dropped the biggest surprise on “Liberation Day” in April, when he announced a sweeping set of tariffs that were more severe than investors expected.It immediately triggered worries about a possible recession and spiking inflation. The S&P 500 plunged nearly 5% on April 3 for its worst day since the 2020 COVID crash. The very next day, it dropped 6% after China’s response raised fears of a tit-for-tat trade war.The tariffs’ impact went beyond the stock market. The value of the U.S. dollar fell, and fear even shook the U.S. Treasury market, which is seen as perhaps the safest in existence.Trump eventually put his tariffs on pause on April 9 after seeing the U.S. bond market get “queasy,” as he put it, which sent relief through Wall Street. Since then, Trump has negotiated agreements with countries to lower his proposed tariff rates on their imports, helping calm investors’ nerves.Wall Street motored higher through a remarkably calm summer thanks to euphoria around artificial-intelligence technology and strong profit reports from companies. The market also got a boost from three cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve.Trade worries can still cause havoc in markets, and Trump sent stocks spiraling as recently as October with threats of higher tariffs on China.
Trump and the Fed
Another surprise was how hard, and how personally, Trump lobbied to get the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.The Fed has traditionally operated separately from the rest of Washington, making its decisions on interest rates without having to bend to political whims. Such independence, the thinking goes, gives it freedom to make unpopular moves that are necessary for the economy’s long-term health.Keeping interest rates high, for example, could slow the economy and frustrate politicians looking to please voters. But it could also be the medicine needed to get high inflation under control.As inflation stubbornly remained above the Fed’s 2% target, the central bank kept rates steady through August. This drew Trump’s ire even though it was his own trade policies that were driving fears about inflation higher.Trump continuously picked on Fed Chair Jerome Powell, even giving him the nickname “Too Late.” Their tense relationship reached a head in July when Trump, in front of cameras, accused Powell of mismanaging the costs of a renovation of the Fed’s headquarters. Powell, in turn, shook his head.Even though Wall Street loves lower rates, the personal attacks caused some queasiness in financial markets because of the possibility of a less independent Fed. Powell’s turn as Fed chair is set to expire in May, and the wide expectation is that Trump will choose a replacement more likely to cut rates.
Good but not first
“America first” didn’t extend to global markets. Even as U.S. stocks soared to another double-digit gain, many foreign markets fared even better.The technology frenzy that helped fuel gains for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq composite drove Korea’s KOSPI higher in 2025, enjoying its biggest gain in more than two decades. South Korea is a technology hub and companies including Samsung and SK Hynix surged amid the focus on artificial intelligence investments and advancements.Japan’s Nikkei 225 had a double-digit gain for a third straight year. Besides the focus on AI and the technology sector, the gains were boosted in October and November following national elections and plans for a $135 billion stimulus package.European markets also had a strong year. Germany’s DAX got a boost as the government announced plans to ramp up spending on infrastructure and defense, which could fuel economic growth in Europe’s largest economy.The European Central Bank spent the first half of the year cutting interest rates, which helped give financial markets across Europe a boost. France’s CAC 40 was a laggard, but still gained more than 10%.
Crypto’s ups and downs
Even with a reputation for volatility, cryptocurrencies still managed to surprise market watchers.Bitcoin dropped along with most other assets early in the year as Trump’s trade policies scared investors away from riskier investments.The most widely used cryptocurrency roared back as the White House and Congress threw their support behind digital assets and the Trump family launched a number of crypto ventures. Retail investors joined in by pouring money into bitcoin ETFs, stock-like investments that allowed them to benefit from the run-up in price without having to actually store bitcoin in digital wallets. Some companies, notably Strategy Inc., made buying and holding crypto the crux of their business and their stocks jumped.Bitcoin hit a high around $125,000 in early October. But, almost as quickly, digital assets tanked as investors worried the prices for shining stars such as tech stocks and crypto had jumped too high. As of Wednesday afternoon, bitcoin traded around $87,700, down roughly 30% from the peak and 6% below where it started the year.
What’s ahead?
Many professional investors think more gains could be ahead in 2026.That’s because most expect the economy to plod ahead and avoid a recession. That should help U.S. companies grow their profits, which stock prices tend to track over the long term. For companies in the S&P 500, analysts are expecting earnings per share to rise 14.5% in 2026, according to FactSet. That would be an acceleration from the 12.1% growth estimated for 2025.But some of last year’s concerns will linger. Chief among them is the worry that all the investment in artificial-intelligence technology may not produce enough profits and productivity to make it worth it. That could keep the pressure on AI stocks like Nvidia and Broadcom, which were responsible for so much of the market’s gains last year.And it’s not just AI stocks that critics say are too pricey. Stocks across the market still look expensive after their prices climbed faster than profits.That has strategists at Vanguard estimating U.S. stocks may return only about 3.5% to 5.5% in annualized returns over the next 10 ears. Only twice in the last 10 years has the S&P 500 failed to meet that bar.At Bank of America, strategist Savita Subramanian says the S& P 500 could rise by less than half as much as profits do in 2026. She said that could be a result of companies reducing stock buybacks, as well as global central banks implementing fewer rate cuts.__Reporter Damian Troise contributed.
Stan Choe, AP Business Writer
