Did the intern hit send too early on the brand’s 2026 April Fool’s Day joke? Was this AI image slop designed to distract us from their abysmal stock market performance? Are we actually living in some weird alt-protein simulation? Honestly, I had all those same gut reactions! And while those “hot takes” might be funny…my comedic skills hardly warrant any attention from strangers. So then, what’s the key takeaway from Beyond Meat launching protein beverages? Just because you can…doesn’t mean you should! And unfortunately, many leaders (plain and simple) lack the strategic discipline required for innovation to strengthen a brand rather than dilute it.