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Get ready to hurry up and wait. As delays and cancellations continue to pile up at the nations busiest airports during the weeks-long government shutdown, some travelers who have been anticipating extra headaches are hedging their bets with extra insurance protections. According to data shared with Fast Company from the price comparison service InsureMyTrip, 10% of travel insurance policies purchased in September and into October have included cancel for any reason (CFAR) coverage. Thats the highest percentage of the year so far and above the average of 8% seen from January through August, InsureMyTrip says. The additional protection, which can increase your insurance costs by upwards of 50%, according to NerdWallet, can be a kind of safety net for travelers who are willing and able to spend the extra cash. Travel delays are among the most visible impacts of prolonged government shutdowns, adding increased uncertainty and chaos as air traffic controllers who are being forced to work for partial or no pay call in sick or take leave. Over the weekend, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that staffing shortages were causing delays at airports in Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, and Newark, according to Reuters. With no end in sight to the political impasse that led to the shutdown, the problem is likely to get worse as thousands of air traffic controllers are expected to miss their paychecks at the end of this month. A hedge against government dysfunction Travel disruptions caused by government regulations are not covered under standard insurance plans, according to InsureMyTrip. Additionally, travelers who had planned to visit one of Americas national parkswhich are only partially open or have reduced services during the shutdownmight find they have little recourse under a standard plan. CFAR coverage offers more protection against the unexpectedor against the expected, depending on your level of confidence in our governments ability to function the way its supposed to. The increased interest in CFAR coverage tracks with a recent report from the trade publication Insurance Business, which cited consumers seeking extra protections in a perpetually uncertain world. According to InsureMyTrip, travelers who opt for that extra coverage can be reimbursed up to 75% of their trips non-refundable costs, provided they cancel 48 hours before they actually leave. Would-be fliers may be considering doing just that. Data from flight tracking service FlightAware shows that delays and cancellations into, within, and out of U.S. airports spiked again this weekend, with some 7,806 delays on Sunday alone. window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}}); Americas tourism industry was already facing headwinds before the shutdown, with the U.S. Travel Association expecting total inbound spending to fall 3.2% to $173 billion in 2025, its first decline since 2020. Still, domestic leisure travel had been a bright spot. It’s expected to grow 1.9% to $895 billion this year, according to the associations fall travel update. Whether or not it hits that number might yet depend on a number of possible outcomes, including the most unlikely of all: elected officials doing their jobs.
Category:
E-Commerce
President Donald Trump responded to this weekend’s massive No Kings protests with an AI-generated video of him in a fighter jet, dropping what appears to be sewage (or poop) on American protesters, and told reporters on Sunday that the nearly 7 million people who attended the nationwide rallies “are not representative of the people of our country.” “The regime can’t decide if this was a violent insurrection or if it was such a bust that it never happened, but regardless, Trump is clearly pissed,” Ezra Levin, co-executive director of the protest’s organizing group, Indivisible, said in a statement emailed to Fast Company. In that 19-second video, which Trump posted on Truth Social, the president of the United States is pictured riding in the cockpit of a fighter plane, wearing a crown, in what appears to be a nod to the movie Top Gun as its iconic “Danger Zone” song by Kenny Loggins plays in the background. Loggins requested his music be removed immediately, according to Rolling Stone. This is an unauthorized use of my performance of Danger Zone, Loggins said in a statement. Nobody asked me for my permission, which I would have denied . . . I cant imagine why anybody would want their music used or associated with something created with the sole purpose of dividing us. Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance took to Bluesky in what also appeared to be an attempt to mock the protests, posting a black-and-white AI-generated meme of Trump wearing a crown and pulling out a shiny sword, as former House Speaker and current U.S. representative Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats bend down on one knee to him. (Some critics have said Trump and Vance’s posts only prove the protesters point that he is, in fact, acting like a King.) It’s not the first time this administration has used generative AI to mock Democrats. Amid the government shutdown, Trump posted a deepfake video on Truth Social with doctored audio of Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer saying, nobody likes Democrats, we have no voters because of our woke, trans b-shit,” and standing next to House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had a fake mustache and was wearing a fake sombrero. And according to NBC News, Trump has posted dozens of such AI-generated videos to his Truth Social account since the beginning of his second term, half of which appeared in August and September. Those videos came from other accounts and were then promoted by Trump. Looking back even further, to his campaign, Trump also posted on Truth Social a fake AI-generated image of musician Taylor Swift endorsing him for president along with other such “Swifties for Trump” memes. The original image depicted Swift as Uncle Sam, and read, Taylor wants you to vote for Joe Biden. The singer said Trump’s meme inspired her to endorse Kamala Harris for president.
Category:
E-Commerce
Apple stock just soared to an all-time high, and it might be thanks to the new iPhone 17. On October 20, Apple shares (NASDAQ: AAPL) surged to more than $264 apiece, topping out their last peak at $258.10 in December 2024. As of this writing, the company is trading up 8% since the start of the year and more than 11% year-over-year. The spike appears to be a reaction to a study published today by the technology market research firm Counterpoint. According to the report, the iPhone 17 series has outsold the iPhone 16 series by 14% in its first 10 days of availability in the U.S. and China. While the numbers are not yet official (Apple is expected to share more details in its fourth-quarter earnings report on October 30), investors appear to be optimistic about the companys current trajectory. Why is Apple stock soaring? The iPhone 17 series, which was unveiled on September 9 and debuted for purchase 10 days later, is one of the companys most significant product launches of the past several years. It includes the base model iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and the new iPhone Air, Apples skinniest iPhone ever. Several key software and hardware updates have been made across the iPhone 17 suite. These include ProMotion, which offers smoother on-screen motion through a higher refresh rate; a 48-megapixel ultrawide camera; increased storage and charging speeds; an improved chip; and a sturdier glass called Ceramic Shield 2. Counterpoints report found that, so far, the iPhone 17 base model is driving the launchs success in the U.S. and China, with sell-out up nearly one-third compared to the iPhone 16 series launch in 2024. This model is performing particularly well in China. The base model iPhone 17 is very compelling to consumers, offering great value for money, Mengmeng Zhang, a senior analyst at Counterpoint, said in a press release. A better chip, improved display, higher base storage, selfie camera upgradeall for the same price as last years iPhone 16. In the U.S., the iPhone 17 Pro Max is the model thats seen the highest spike in demand, a trend that Counterpoints analysts attribute to deals offered by T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon. Reached by Fast Company, Counterpoint declined to share specific sales numbers from the iPhone 17 series thus far. In a note to clients on October 20, Loop Capital senior analyst Ananda Baruah cautioned clients that todays share spike is baking in some degree of outperformance from AAPLs iPhone 17 family of products. Still, he added, we believe there remains material upside to Street expectations through CY2027.
Category:
E-Commerce
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