Tech companies like Google and Meta have been pouring billions into artificial intelligence. But investors have been waiting for those investments to pay off. We’ll get into what the latest earnings report from Google’s parent company signals about AI’s money-making potential. And, American companies are responding to former President Trump’s tariff promises by preparing to raise prices. Plus, guest host Matt Levin makes us smile about the Los Angeles Dodgers’ World Series run.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Companies ready price hikes to offset Trump’s global tariff plans” from The New York Times




• “More than a quarter of new code at Google is generated by AI” from The Verge




• “Google’s Cloud Business Powers Accelerating Revenue Growth” from The Wall Street Journal




• “World Series: Ice Cube performs ‘It Was a Good Day’ ahead of Yankees vs. Dodgers Game 2” from Fox Sports

We love to hear from you. Email your comments and questions to [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

Today we’re sharing an excerpt from our live show at WBUR CitySpace in Boston featuring our special guest, historian Heather Cox Richardson. (Check out the first part of our live show here.) Richardson, a professor at Boston College, talked with us about the high stakes of this year’s election, how the economy is woven into political narratives, and what we can do to protect the health of our democracy. Plus, she shares what she had wrong about hummingbirds.

Where should “Make Me Smart” go next? Let us know at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

News outlets aren’t mincing words about the offensive and racist remarks featured at former President Donald Trump’s rally in New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday. We’ll talk about the media backlash to the event, which was intended to be a part of Trump’s closing argument against Vice President Kamala Harris. Then, we discuss reports of ballot drop boxes on fire and give tips on how to ride out the last few days before Election Day. Plus, a story that has us waltzing through our emotions.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Hundreds of Ballots Damaged in Drop-Box Fire in Washington State” from Bloomberg

• “No More Euphemisms: Media Gets Real on Trump’s MSG Hate Rally” from Parker Molloy on Substack

• Post about the 2024 U.S. presidential election’s impact on Europe from Benjamin Haddad on X

• “Hear a Chopin Waltz Unearthed After Nearly 200 Years” from The New York Times

We can’t do this show without you. Send us your questions, comments or wild suggestions at [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART!

Kai and Kimberly host our weekly happy hour episode, “Economics on Tap,” live from the stage of WBUR CitySpace in Boston. We’ll dive into the biggest headlines making waves this week while sipping on our favorite drinks. Plus, Drew joins the stage to host a round of our favorite game, Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “‘Washington Post’ won’t endorse in White House race for first time since 1980s” from NPR




• “Exclusive: Europe seeks to underpin Russia sanctions, fearing Trump overhaul” from Reuters




• “German finance minister warns of retaliation if U.S. kicks off trade war” from CNBC




• “American Airlines Cracks Down on ‘Gate Lice’ With New Boarding System” from The New York Times




• “Axiom Space, Prada Unveil Spacesuit Design for Moon Return” from Axiom Space




• “Every Yankees vs. Dodgers World Series matchup in two charts” from CNN




• “Salem Mayor predicts another record-breaking year of Halloween tourism” from WBUR News




• Tweet from Tyler Perry at a Harris campaign rally




• “Last-minute Boston-themed Halloween costumes” from WBUR

We can’t do this show without you. Send us your questions, comments or wild suggestions at [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART!

Hey Smarties! We’re on the road to Boston for a live taping of “Make Me Smart” with special guest, historian Heather Cox Richardson. So today we’re bringing you an episode from the latest season of “How We Survive,” Marketplace’s climate solutions podcast. In this episode, Kai Ryssdal and the “How We Survive” team head to the very, very top of Alaska to understand how climate change and national security are converging in the Arctic.

Want to join Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams for our live taping of “Make Me Smart” in Boston on Oct. 25? In-person tickets are sold out, but you can still join us virtually. Get your tickets here.

As Election Day looms closer, the emails and texts from campaigns pleading for money continue to flood voters’ inboxes. A CNN investigation found that some of these tactics have misled elderly Americans into giving away millions of dollars. We’ll get into the financial consequences of aggressive campaign fundraising strategies. Then, we’ll discuss how Republican pundits are responding to former President Donald Trump’s shocking statements about military affairs. And, we’ll talk about a payment owed from a defamation case: a luxury New York apartment.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Trump: ‘I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had’” from The Atlantic




• “How elderly dementia patients are unwittingly fueling political campaigns” from CNN




• “Brains and Losses: Aging and Financial Vulnerability to Scams” from Marketplace




• “Do presidential candidates really need your money at this point in the race?” from Marketplace




• “Giuliani ordered to surrender apartment, valuables to Georgia election workers” from Reuters

Join Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams for a live taping of “Make Me Smart” on Oct. 25 in Boston. In-person tickets are sold out, but you can still join us virtually. Get your tickets here.

In the weeks after Hurricanes Helene and Milton hit the Southeast, the price to rebuild has become a topic of contention in the home insurance market. For years, home insurers have identified climate change as a threat, cut coverage and increased premiums for properties in disaster-prone areas. But now, home insurers are also using new technologies such as drone footage and artificial intelligence to identify other high-risk areas in urban and suburban neighborhoods.

Then, we’ll get into what headline inflation measures leave out of the cost of housing. And, how do we prepare for the upcoming Election Day in the shadow of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol? Later, we’ll hear from listeners on voting from overseas and the origins of trick-or-treating.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Home Insurance is a Really Big Problem” from Kyla Scanlon on Substack

• “Rising insurance costs are making homeownership even more expensive” from Marketplace

• “How Higher Property Insurance Premiums Mirror Climate Risk” from Knowledge at Wharton

• “How the Home Insurance Market Became So Distorted” from The New York Times

• “The Home Insurance Crunch: See What’s Happening in Your State” from The New York Times

• “Can lawmakers save the collapsing Florida home insurance market?” from Bankrate

• “The Very Real Scenario Where Trump Loses and Takes Power Anyway” from Politico

• “America’s Most Famous Inflation Gauge Is Easing — But Some of Your Biggest Expenses Are Left Out” from Bloomberg

Do you have an Election Day tradition? Maybe you like to mail your ballot or treat yourself to coffee after hitting the polls. Let us know what your voting routine looks like at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.

Across the country, pharmacies big  and small are closing. The closures have disproportionately affected rural and low-income communities, leaving residents with limited access to prescription drugs and creating so-called “pharmacy deserts.” We’ll discuss a New York Times investigation about the middlemen driving pharmacies out of business. Plus, should the American Dream be a townhouse? And, introducing the real “househusbands” of Wall Street.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Housing costs are rising everywhere — but especially in swing states” from The Washington Post




• “The new American Dream should be a townhouse” from The Washington Post




• “The Powerful Companies Driving Local Drugstores Out of Business” from The New York Times




• “The real reason Walgreens and other pharmacies are failing” from MSNBC




• “Behind Many Powerful Women on Wall Street: A Doting ‘Househusband’” from The Wall Street Journal

Join Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams for a live taping of “Make Me Smart” on Oct. 25 in Boston. In-person tickets are sold out, but you can still join us virtually. Get your tickets here.

New research from the Federal Reserve shows that wealthier Americans are driving retail spending while lower-income Americans have been squeezed by higher prices. We’ll discuss how this disparity could help explain the United States’ often unexpectedly strong consumer economy, and what the Birkin bag side of TikTok can tell us about this divide. And, Cuba is enduring a nationwide power outage. We’ll explain how a grid failure today has left millions in the dark. Plus, we’ll play a spooky season edition of This or That!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “How to Watch the Bright and Speedy Orionid Meteor Shower” from Smithsonian




• “Cuban electrical collapse causes island-wide blackout, paralyzes economy” from The Washington Post




• “Wealthier Americans are driving retail spending and powering US economy” from AP News




• “Chocolate is on its way out. Why Halloween is about gummy candy now.” from The Washington Post

Join Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams for a live taping of “Make Me Smart” on Oct. 25 in Boston. In-person tickets are sold out, but you can still join us virtually. Get your tickets here.

Companies in the United States spend billions in political donations each election cycle with the aim of gaining more influence in government. But all that spending comes with risks. We’ll get into it. And, we’ll explain why many Americans impacted by recent hurricanes will have to wait for disaster assistance from the Small Business Administration and how former President Trump’s plans for mass deportations could send shockwaves through our nation’s food supply chain. Plus, why are tech companies like Amazon and Google investing in nuclear energy?

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Why companies spend all that campaign donation money” from Marketplace




• “SBA disaster loan program out of money after hurricanes, Biden says” from Axios




• “Trump’s proposed mass deportations could ‘decimate’ the US food supply” from Grist




• “Trump Faces Tough Questions From Hispanic Voters, but Largely Defends or Dodges” from The New York Times




• “Big Tech has cozied up to nuclear energy” from The Verge




• “Amazon goes nuclear, to invest more than $500 million to develop small modular reactors” from CNBC

Join us tomorrow for Economics on Tap. The YouTube livestream starts at 3:30 p.m. Pacific time, 6:30 p.m. Eastern.