Michael Waters
Staff Writer, The Hustle

The Manhattan high-rise that shrunk itself down

Animation: Zachary Crockett In the fall of 1992, residents of the Upper East Side of Manhattan could not escape the sense that they were...
Michael Waters • February 4, 2023

The quiet disappearance of the safe deposit box

In the opening sequence of The Bourne Identity, a young Matt Damon wakes up with no idea who he is. All he has is...
Michael Waters • December 2, 2022

The fight to build more public bathrooms in America

One spring evening in 2005, Carol McCreary filed into a meeting of her neighborhood association in Portland, Oregon. The group was setting its agenda...
Michael Waters • November 4, 2022

The small town that saved its only grocery store — by buying it

In the final days of May 2020, residents of Erie, Kansas, received a letter in the mail from their city government. The self-addressed envelope...
Michael Waters • September 10, 2022

The people making millions off Listerine royalties

For the 26 years that Catherine Schweitzer has worked at the Baird Foundation, a nonprofit based in Buffalo, New York, her organization has relied...
Michael Waters • July 28, 2022

Made a spreadsheet typo? Call an Excel fixer

There’s a growing industry of spreadsheet fixers, whom big companies hire to clean up their pivot table typos.
Michael Waters • October 16, 2020

Venmo and Cash App are a scammer’s paradise

Fraud rates on payments apps are 3x to 4x more than on debit or credit cards.
Michael Waters • October 14, 2020

Private coroners are suddenly in the spotlight

The little-known micro-industry is having a busy year -- and it’s been a long time coming.
Michael Waters • October 13, 2020

Can tech companies make bike commutes safer?

US cities aren’t well-designed for biking. But tech companies might be able to help.
Michael Waters • October 13, 2020

Free samples are coming to online shopping

Clicking on clown makeup on Walmart.com? Don’t be surprised if it shows up in the mail.
Michael Waters • October 12, 2020

The company that has a monopoly on ice cream truck music

In 1973, an electrical engineer named Bob Nichols was watching the film The Sting when a song on the soundtrack — Scott Joplin’s 1902...
Michael Waters • October 9, 2020

How much data do podcasts have on you?

They might be hurtling toward a micro-targeted future.
Michael Waters • October 9, 2020

Meet MacKenzie Scott, Amazon’s billionaire 1st employee

She’s bringing a new brand of philanthropy to the tech world.
Michael Waters • October 8, 2020

‘Streaming farms’ are Spotify’s newest credibility problem

Streaming giants might accidentally be shelling out ~$300m to bot listeners.
Michael Waters • October 7, 2020

The dentist’s office is getting an Insta-friendly makeover

*sunglasses emoji* Dentists are cool now.
Michael Waters • October 7, 2020

Why are VCs paying $300m+ for an insect farm?

Everything’s coming up beetles.
Michael Waters • October 7, 2020

Tech’s favorite virtual call center is the gig economy gone too far

Arise Virtual Solutions says it isn’t a customer service company, exactly -- it’s a “platform.”
Michael Waters • October 6, 2020

Truckee, California: America’s foremost ‘Zoom town’

How small, scenic towns are winning 2020.
Michael Waters • October 2, 2020

Roundup, Montana: The town with more Amazon packages than people

You might have this town to thank for your last Amazon order.
Michael Waters • October 2, 2020

Cheyenne, Wyoming: American crypto hub?

What Delaware is to corporations, Wyoming is to crypto.
Michael Waters • October 2, 2020

A peek inside the vote-tech industry

A small industry of tech companies ensure your ballots get counted.
Michael Waters • October 1, 2020

The big business of honey laundering

There’s about a ⅓ chance the honey on your shelf isn’t real.
Michael Waters • September 30, 2020

Can you fund a social media company like a video game?

The startup Yubo runs on in-app purchases.
Michael Waters • September 30, 2020

The hottest campus job is ‘COVID influencer’

Reminding other students to wear masks? Your school might pay you for it.
Michael Waters • September 29, 2020

The gig economy is coming for elder care

The platform Papa wants you to give company to older people on the side.
Michael Waters • September 28, 2020

Now you can find out which websites are tracking you

A new tool called Blacklight airs all the dirty ad-tech laundry.
Michael Waters • September 25, 2020

Forget gold: Meet the Diamond Standard

Diamonds really want to become more investor-friendly.
Michael Waters • September 24, 2020

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