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Workplace training invites are dropping in many employees inboxes now that the new year is underway. Most employers require staff to complete multiple HR modules annually: training on harassment, workplace relationships, or conflicts of interest, for example, followed by a quick quiz. Recently, however, a new TikTok trend imagining fake workplace training modules is going viral. Its 5 pm and you notice one of your colleagues is crying at their desk, creator @pepsimasc posted in November. Do you A: check in and ask how theyre doing, or B: tell them to shut the fuck up? the skit begins. He continues on to the next imaginary scenario: Youre in a meeting and notice one colleague bullying another. Do you A: stand up for them, B: report it to HR, C: offer them a lift home and crash the car, or D: all of the above? In the final scenario, he explains: Youre walking to the lunchroom and notice someone has smashed a glass on the floor and left it there. Do you A: contact facilities, B: clean it up immediately, or C: spill baby oil around it so someone can fall onto the glass? For those well-acquainted with this type of training, the multiple-choice framing should be painfully familiar. The videos even share that familiar elevator music that plays in the background as you click your way through the slides. (Listen long enough, and you can feel your brain slowly powering down.) Across TikTok, creators are posting their own parody HR trainings, riffing on the fact that after years of mandatory workshops and assessments, theyve got the scripts practically memorized and the tone down to a T. Another creator parodies a common phishing prompt. You get an email with a link that you think might be a scam. Whats the appropriate course of action? A: tell HR, or B: throw out your laptop. Another, in a video watched more than 8.2 million times, asks viewers to select the example of harassment. Option one: Jane gives you a high five. Option two: Marcus gives you a pat on the back. Option three: John runs at you fully erect. The comments are filled with corporate workers who feel seen by the skit. One said: And then theyre like, actually its ALL of them. This is so funny, another wrote. And unfortunately, accurate.
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E-Commerce
Its not just XRP that is having a good 2026 so far. One of the worlds oldest assets, gold, is also having a good run in the first week of the year. Heres where the precious metal stands, and why its price is rising. An ounce of gold is close to its all-time high The price of one ounce of gold reached $4,497.20 on Tuesday, according to data from Yahoo Finance. That price represents a 1% gain for the precious metal for the day so far, or an increase of $45.70 per ounce. At over $4,497, gold is now near its all-time high of $4,549.74, which it reached just weeks ago on December 26. Since the year began, gold has now risen about 2.8%. As Reuters notes, 2025 was a phenomenal year for gold. The precious metal rose 64% in the yeara gain of that magnitude has not been seen since 1979. Why is gold rising? That gold is up again near an all-time high is of little surprise given the investment history of the metal. Gold has traditionally been a safe-haven asseta resource people turn to when there is volatility or uncertainty in the markets or the world. And 2026 has kicked off with a high level of geopolitical volatility and uncertainty thanks to America’s attack on Venezuela over the weekend to forcibly extradite its president, Nicolás Maduro. The U.S government has indicted Maduro on a number of charges, including drug trafficking. The foreign intervention from the United States has left governments around the world uncertain about Americas next steps under President Trumps leadership. The forcible extradition of a sitting head of stateand apparent threats to use force against more countrieshave many wondering if America may be on the cusp of a new doctrine that prioritizes military might over international rules-based norms. Such a shift in policy would have wide geopolitical and economic ramifications, and the uncertainty about how far the Trump administration is willing to go down this new path has sent many investors seeking relatively safe-haven assets like gold, which generally fluctuates less in times of uncertainty than other assets, such as stocks. Venezuela isnt the only reason gold is up Yet Americas strike on its South American neighbor isnt the only reason gold is rising. Several economic factors are also driving people to the safe-haven asset, Reuters points out. Those factors include U.S. manufacturing activity contracting more than expected in December and the chance Americas jobless rate could increase in the near future. Both those factors can have negative consequences for the broader economy and signal a potential economic downturn. Safe-haven assets are a way for investors to hedge against such downturns. Other precious metals up, too Gold isnt the only precious metal rising. The price of platinum is currently up more than 5% today to $2,404. Silver is also up significantly, rising by more than 4.6% today as of the time of this writing. The metal had a somewhat volatile December, rising and then falling at various points throughout the month. But it’s up more than 161% over the last year. Interestingly, all this comes as traditional stock markets also continue to perform well. The S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq Composite are all in positive territory for the week so far and close to record highs.
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E-Commerce
While the Lego Group has dipped its toes into tech waters before, the company hasnt strayed far from its analog roots. But on Monday, the 94-year-old company unveiled a new product line that embraces the digital age, without abandoning its core business. At CES, Lego announced the upcoming launch of the Lego Smart Play system, an interactive technology that lets users Lego creations respond to player actions with tailored sounds, lights, behavior, and more. The company says its a way to further engage digital native kids without having them stare at yet another screen. While the toy market has struggled for the past few years, sales at the Lego Group have remained strong; 2024 was a record year, with revenues of $10.8 billion, and the first half of 2025 showed further growth. But the competition for kids’ attention continues to grow. Through Smart Play, the company hopes to keep younger Lego enthusiasts engaged. [Image: Lego] Everything that we do is driven with an appetite for innovation, says Julia Goldin, chief product and marketing officer of the Lego Group. It took a long time to craft the technology that would enable us to do it in a way that’s also lesson-based. The first three products, launching March 1, will be Star Wars-themed: Luke Skywalker’s 548-piece X-Wing ($100), Darth Vader’s TIE Fighter (743 pieces, $69), and a 962-piece set that includes the Emperor’s Throne Room and an A-Wing for $160. [Photo: Lego] Lego showcased the technology in demos at CES, showing how Smart Play could work in a number of scenarios. When a Lego minifigure robber tried to steal a police car, for instance, an alarm sounded, but when the police minifigure sat in the drivers seat, it triggered a siren. Lego ducks quacked. And car wheels squealed when players took sharp turns with their Lego creations. Those were just tech demos and not something Lego plans to release. The Star Wars sets will mark the debut of Lego Smart Play at retail. Like the demos, though, the X-Wing and TIE Fighter make the same sounds fans know from the big screen as players pretend to fly them through the air. Crash the X-Wing (or turn it upside down) and R2-D2 will scream in terror. [Photo: Lego] Lego will begin taking preorders on Jan. 9 through its website and retail stores. (Other retailers will as well.) And while the initial focus is on kids, Goldin says, based on early feedback, she’s confident the technology will find its way to larger Lego kits tailored to adults. A long time coming Work on Lego Smart Play started eight years ago, with more than six years of technological development. The result is a system that incorporates three interactive elements: Lego Smart Tags, Lego Smart Bricks, and Lego Smart Minifigures. Those three elements work in tandem. Smart tagsflat-topped two-by-two pieces that sit atop the Smart Brickscontrol the sounds, lights, and behaviors that are performed. And multiple smart tags can interact with each other, making for a more complex (and interactive) experience. The Smart Brick itself is loaded with sensors, accelerometers, a mini speaker, and moreand powered by a newly created silicon ASIC chip that’s smaller than one standard Lego stud. Smart Minifigures, meanwhile, have their own personalities, with programmed moods and reactions that are heard through the Smart Brick’s speaker. [Image: Lego] The Smart Brick reacts differently depending on how its moved, twisted, and turned. And because it has a synthesizer embedded, it can create any sound the programmers want, versus a limited set. In total, Lego has filed 25 patents for the new technology, and the company says at its peak, the production line for the Smart Brick was as long as seven school buses. Some of the interactive elements almost didn’t happen. Lego spent years developing the positioning system that lets Smart Bricks know precisely how close they are to other Smart Bricks, Smart Tags, and Smart Minifigures and react appropriately. Deadlines came and went. Finally, just as executives decided to scrap the concept, the team tweaked the system one last timeand managed to get it working One of the key factors in designing and building the new type of Lego brick, says Lego Group senior vice president and head of Creative Play Lab Tom Donaldson, was to create something that would have the same longevity as the classic bricks (which were introduced in 1958). “We want to [build] a platform that lasts for a period of time,” he says. “If you have a Lego brick from this year, it works with a Lego brick from 10 or 30 years ago. We spent a lot of time thinking how do we build a system that lasts rather than a system that you have to upgrade? We don’t expect consumers will have to replace their bricks every two years. We want them to keep the same bricksand that brings a lot of challenges.” That doesn’t mean the technlogy won’t improve. Donaldson says the company will push software upgrades in years to come, rather than update the hardware, giving players new abilities without having to invest in new technology. The Lego Smart Bricks will come with a wireless charger. Battery life will vary depending on how hard users play with the bricks. Times can range from roughly 40 minutes to a couple of hours, says Soren Holme, a design director at Lego. They can interact with each other from as far as 23 feet away in open spaces, he adds. [Photo: Lego] And to ensure the Smart Bricks can be played with for years, they hold their charge in a coil, much like an electric toothbrush. That not only makes them easier to charge wirelessly, it ensures a longer lifespan. The new bricks are loaded with all manner of tech, but what you won’t find included is artificial intelligence. While so many other products at CES are hopping on board the AI bandwagon, Lego decided to abstain with its new productfor now, at least. When we first started, we expected to bring in AI at some point, but it wasn’t the first thing to bring in, says Donaldson. At the moment, we think we have some tremendous opportunities that don’t require AI and that’s where we really want to focus today. Should we see an opportunity where AI can play a role, it’s possible to integrate and evolve it in the future, adds Goldin. But we wanted to design an experience the consumers would really loveand we didn’t think we needed AI for that experience.
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E-Commerce
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