Good Morning! Today’s edition is 885 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• Senate votes down health bills

• UK museum heist

• White Christmas, anyone?

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Big Stories

Disney Partners with OpenAI

• Disney is investing $1 billion in OpenAI and licensing Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars characters for use in Sora-generated videos, the first major content partnership for the AI tool. Fans will be able to create and share short videos, some of which may appear on Disney+.

• Disney will also become a major OpenAI customer, using OpenAI technology to build internal tools and consumer products. Both companies say the deal aims to promote innovation while protecting creators' rights amid growing concerns over deepfakes and AI-generated 'slop.'

• On the same day, Disney sent Google a cease-and-desist letter calling its use of Disney content to train Veo and Imagen models 'massive infringement.' The company has also taken copyright action against Meta, Character.AI, and Midjourney.

Time Person of the Year

• Time magazine named the 'Architects of AI' as its 2025 Person of the Year, recognizing the technology's seismic impact across American life. The recognition includes tech leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Jensen Huang, Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, and Elon Musk.

• Time Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs compared the moment to the Gilded Age, saying 'Never before since then has so much power been concentrated in so few individuals.' The selection reflects how AI moved from debate to widespread deployment this year. Nvidia's Huang called AI 'the single most impactful technology of our time.

• Time's Person of the Year recognizes who had the most influence on events, for better or worse. Previous winners include Trump in 2024 and Taylor Swift in 2023.

Senate Rejects Health Bills

• The Senate rejected health care bills from both parties Thursday, leaving 22 million Americans facing doubled insurance premiums next month when enhanced Obamacare subsidies expire Dec. 31. Neither bill reached the 60-vote threshold needed to advance.

• The Democratic bill to extend subsidies for three years failed 51-48, with four Republicans joining Democrats. The Republican bill replacing subsidies with savings accounts and lower-premium catastrophic plans also failed 51-48, with Rand Paul voting no. President Trump said he likes the GOP bill's "concept" but hasn't endorsed it or offered his own plan.

• Congress leaves next week for the holidays, making it unlikely that subsidies will be extended before they expire. Democrats say they may try again in January.

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Quick Stories

US News

• Indiana's Republican-controlled Senate rejected a Trump-backed congressional map designed to eliminate the state's two Democratic districts, with 21 Republicans joining Democrats. (More)

• Minnesota fraudsters spent hundreds of millions in COVID meal funds on luxury cars and Maldives resorts instead of feeding children, leading to 61 convictions. (More)

• A judge ordered immigration authorities to immediately release Salvadoran Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who they wrongfully deported to a mega-prison, brought back for trial, then detained again without legal authority. (More)

World

• Bulgaria's prime minister resigned Thursday after weeks of protests against tax increases and corruption, likely forcing new elections in a country that's held seven snap elections since 2020. (More)

• Over 600 British Empire artifacts were stolen from a Bristol museum in September. Police are seeking four suspects captured on CCTV during the burglary. (More)

• US nuclear bombers flew with Japanese fighters after Chinese planes locked targeting radar on Japanese aircraft during joint China-Russia drills that encircled Japan and South Korea. (More)

Business & Economy

• US stock markets closed mixed on Thursday (S&P +0.21%, Nasdaq -0.26%, Dow +1.34%). The Dow hit a record high as a Fed rate cut and weak Oracle earnings drove investors to rotate from high-flying tech stocks into companies that benefit from economic growth. (More)

• Mortgage rates ticked up slightly to 6.22% this week but remain well below last year's 6.6%, as borrowing costs stay near their lowest point in 2025. (More)

• Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald will step down on January 31 after seven years amid declining sales in the Americas, rising tariffs, and intense competition from athleisure rivals. (More)

Sports & Entertainment

• The SEC released its first nine-game schedule, headlined by Lane Kiffin's September return to Ole Miss with LSU after his controversial departure and a Georgia-Alabama rematch in October. (More)

• Soccer fans accused FIFA of "monumental betrayal" after World Cup tickets hit $8,680 for the final and $180 for group games, vastly exceeding the promised $60 minimum price. (More)

• Michael Jordan's NASCAR team won its antitrust lawsuit after NASCAR agreed to make team charters permanent. (More)

Science, Health, & Tech

• Imagining positive encounters with someone can make you like them more by engaging the same brain learning systems as real experiences. (More)

• Electric vehicle maker Rivian unveiled a custom chip, car computer, and AI models that will enable self-driving features for its upcoming vehicles. (More)

• South Carolina's measles outbreak hit 111 cases with 27 new infections since Friday. Low vaccination rates below 95% and holiday gatherings are accelerating the spread. (More)

Extra Credit

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