🪴  Clearing the air

👋  Good morning. If you logged on to a barrage of emails from your employer about AI, know that one worker found a way out. A research administrator at the University of Kentucky obtained a religious exemption from his employer, which excused him from using AI at work. The 45-year-old identifies as a humanist, saying tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot were at odds with his beliefs. While he’s the first humanist to receive an AI exemption, a Unitarian Universalist software engineer received one earlier this year. What religion opposes meetings at 9am on a Monday?

NEWS FLASH 

🚓  Now that’s quite a career pivot: Five years after stepping down from the force, English detective-turned-founder Steven Richardson’s company, 22one, is now valued at $400m. While it’s still unclear what exactly his company does — its website just flashes the word “investigate” — 22one has been described in vague terms as making AI tools that make police forces more effective. What is clear: 22one’s name is a nod to Sherlock Holmes, whose address is 221b Baker Street.

🛳  Hope floats… but only so far: Remember that buzzy luxury cruise ship that promised to continuously ferry its residents around the world for a minimum of 15 years? Unfortunately for the 200+ people who purchased six-figure cabins aboard the Odyssey — many of whom sold their homes to do so — they are now, only two years in, stranded in Cambodia. The ship’s operator, Villa Vie Residences, ran out of money and suspended operations, citing fuel costs 4x higher per ton.

🤝  It’s not what you know, it’s who you know: And for those who don’t have anyone to call, SuperMe is building a network of AI profiles built on the learnings of real experts. Users can ask professional questions through the company’s site — such as requesting feedback on a startup pitch deck — and get answers from AI subject matter experts. Follow-up questions can be asked in the group, and direct messages can be sent to individual AI profiles.

MORE NEWS TO KNOW

• “Healthwashing”: A Celsius customer is pursuing a class action suit against the energy drink maker for deceptive marketing, alleging that the cans lead with bogus health claims and hide disclaimers in small print on the back.
  
• Hate AI summaries on Google?: Sorry, but more are coming, and they’re gonna be loaded up with more ads. Per Alphabet, the shift toward AI-led search has tamped down ad revenues, but that’s nothing they can’t solve by serving up results alongside a heavier dose of ads. Hooray.
  
  
• Even the planet is having a down quarter: Chile’s copper mines reported their worst quarterly output in two decades. It’s not great news for anyone: the nation supplies more than 20% of the world’s mined copper.
  
• The skyscraper of your dreams: Dream Technologies Inc. launched with $17m in funding to develop AI models — trained on 100m square feet of US real estate — capable of generating hundreds of architectural design variations in minutes. 
  

YOUR NEW ASSISTANT

Your CRM should already know

Most CRMs are just expensive filing cabinets. You log the call. You research the lead. You write the follow-up. You move the deal. Rinse, repeat, burn out.

HubSpot Smart CRM is designed to handle the busywork before you even open your laptop.

What runs quietly in the background:

• Calls: Logged and summarized the moment they end.
• Leads: Researched with a first outreach drafted, automatically.
• Deals: Next steps flagged before you have to ask.
• Workflows: Repetitive tasks automated — no code required.

It's not the CRM you have to manage. It's the one that may just manage itself.

See it work

THE BIG IDEA

This startup is using plants to help toxic workplaces

Those of us who have endured toxic workplaces know to avoid them like the plague. But what if all we needed was a bit of greenery to feel better?

The startup Greenairy is developing smart plant towers that remove toxic gases from offices and other indoor spaces, per TechCrunch.

Just how bad is indoor air?

Not great:

• Indoor air can be 2-5x, even up to 100x, more polluted than outdoor air
  
• Americans spend ~90% of their time indoors
  
• Indoor pollutant concentrations have increased due to synthetic building materials and cleaners
  
• Can irritate eyes, nose, and throat and cause headaches, dizziness, fatigue, and worse

While air purifiers filter particulates like dust and pollen, many are less effective at removing formaldehyde, benzene and other volatile organic compounds (VOC). These VOCs contribute to the menacing-sounding "sick building syndrome" and other adverse health effects.

Greenairy's co-founders, Tanvi Thombre and Lakshya Saraf, were inspired to investigate the invisible risks of indoor air quality as engineering students after Thombre's friend was hospitalized after inhaling toxic fumes from laser cutters, soldering irons, and 3D printers.

Let it grow

There's debate over how effective plants are at removing VOCs, but NASA research shows that certain plants can make a difference. Harvard research also reveals that better air quality can improve productivity and cognitive function.

Rather than plopping down a bunch of plants, Greenairy plant towers draw in contaminated air through vents to the plants' root zone, where roots and microbes metabolize gases via phytoremediation, releasing purified air into the room.

The company conducted pilots in its Singapore offices and found that the tower reduced VOC levels by 50% — a greater and faster reduction than those achieved by a medical-grade ionizer and a HEPA air filter. 

Bonus: employees enjoyed the plants' natural scent and vibe.

The pair plans to scale up manufacturing once results are certified by German firm TÜV SÜD.

Other startups clearing the air

• Neoplants bioengineered plants to purify air 30x better than conventional ones.
  
• Airy developed air-purifying pots for plants.
  
• The Sill installs massive plant displays in tech offices.
  
• Others are developing office air purifiers like Yoga and Zomato

So, plenty of ways to clear the air at the office — though we can't say the same for your toxic coworkers.

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HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Have a TripAdvisor account full of grievances? There’s a business reason behind every last hotel complaint. 

NEWSWORTHY NUMBER

Number of years NYC’s “Naked Cowboy,” Robert John Burck, has performed daily in Times Square in his underwear, per Business Insider.

He’s turned the gig into a $150k+-a-year business through tips, Cameo videos, merch, and even a side venture, Naked Cowboy Oysters.

Burck has never had health insurance, never taken the subway, and still uses the same Ohio bank and credit card he’s had for 30 years. And you better believe he owns the Naked Cowboy trademark — don’t even think about it. Please.

AROUND THE WEB

📅  On this day: In 2000, the first residential crew boards the International Space Station. It has been continuously occupied by humans ever since.

📺  That’s interesting: Bhutan was the last country without TV. What happened when its ban was lifted?

🎶  History lesson: The backstory of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.”

🧩  Play: A Mondrian-themed puzzle game.

🍎  Aww: Everyone’s stocking up for winter.

SHOWER THOUGHT

Rubik’s Cubes should only be sold scrambled. That way, seeing a solved one would be far more impressive.  SOURCE

Today's email was brought to you by Ben Berkley and Danny Jensen.

Editing by: Sara "Turning over a new leaf" Friedman.

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