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Remi never intended to secretly outsource her job. It sort of just happened. That's the opening line of Rob Price's latest reporting on the rise of "shadow stand-ins." He reports: Across the globe, a wave of workers are secretly outsourcing parts or all of their jobs. Labor has never been easier to invisibly offload, thanks to a perfect storm of factors: globalized social networks, ubiquitous software tools, and the pandemic. An inadvertent byproduct of the rapacious, profit-seeking impulse that drives our global economy, this corporate subterfuge stretches from high-powered Silicon Valley techies to legions of low-paid helpers in India and Pakistan. Read the full story at Business Insider. https://lnkd.in/e7NHsYj7

Do you feel like it's suddenly gotten harder to get promoted? As Aki Ito writes, promotions were down last year. And it's about to get even harder to land one. From her story: Gone are the frenzied days of 2021 and 2022, when employers were handing out bigger titles and pay packages like gold stars at a kindergarten art show. In 2023, according to data compiled by Workday, companies across every industry promoted fewer employees than they did the previous year. The cutbacks were especially stark in tech, where promotion rates plunged by 25%. And corporate America has only gotten stingier since. Read the full story at Business Insider. https://lnkd.in/eAQh73fv

The big winners of the AI boom are the most boring companies imaginable Jennifer Sor reports: The AI revolution could be a boon for a number of construction, utility, and electrical companies that make up the data-center landscape. Typically viewed as the market's most boring and defensive sectors, they could offer some of the most exciting investment opportunities. Read the full story at Business Insider.

Investment banker. Consultant. Software engineer. Venture capitalist. They’re among the best-paid and highest-status jobs in corporate America.    They’re also about to be transformed by AI. Goldman Sachs plans to have AI tools available to its workforce as soon as next year, with the potential to change the roles of junior bankers in particular. Read more from Reed Alexander here: https://lnkd.in/eDvAtmcf Consulting firms are also adapting to a deluge of client questions about implementing AI. One senior partner at McKinsey told Business Insider that helping clients use generative AI might become most of the firm's work in the future. Read more from Lakshmi Varanasi here: https://lnkd.in/eQcDT_my In Silicon Valley, the use of AI copilots in software engineering has become so common that there’s a debate over whether to allow these tools in technical interviews where job applicants have historically been asked to showcase their expertise. Read more from Melia Russell here: https://lnkd.in/eyuU5yHN Some venture capitalists have gone further, using AI to replace associates. Read more from Ben Bergman here: https://lnkd.in/ePxPtmxa The impact of AI on these professions demonstrates the sharp difference between this technological revolution and earlier advancements. Whereas in the past, lower-wage workers felt the effects of automation and increased competition, this time, it’s white-collar workers who face the biggest impact. That includes me. I used AI to help edit this post.

Amazon is secretly working on a ChatGPT killer. Eugene Kim reports: The secret internal project is code-named "Metis," likely in reference to the Greek goddess of wisdom. The new service is designed to be accessed from a web browser, similar to how other AI assistants work, according to people familiar with the project and an internal document obtained by Business Insider. Get all the details here: https://lnkd.in/gh2G5kxF

Jain Global is the most anticipated new hedge fund in years. A top exec explains told Bradley Saacks how it will be different. The new multistrategy fund from former Millennium exec Bobby Jain will launch July 1. It will manage more than $5 billion in assets, and has hired more than 200 people. Chief operating officer Jonathan Barton told Bradley that the fund is focused on scalability. "And more specifically, scalability without incremental cost," he said. Read the full story at Business Insider. https://lnkd.in/etrBGUxH

Venture capitalists have spent the last 18 months racing to bet on artificial intelligence. Now, they're finding AI might just disrupt venture capital itself. Ben Bergman spoke to one venture capitalist who's using AI to replace associates. Many others are using it to find hot companies. Read the full story in Business Insider. With insights from Matt Krna, Sri Chandrasekar, Christina Melas-Kyriazi, Andy McLoughlin, and more. https://lnkd.in/ePxPtmxa

Amazon’s bookselling business is booming. The e-retail giant sold $16.9 billion worth of books in the first 10 months of 2022, an internal document obtained by Business Insider shows. The figure demonstrates how Amazon’s original business is thriving 30 years after its inception. Eugene Kim reports for Business Insider https://lnkd.in/er8skH33

Alpine Investors, a $17 billion private-equity firm, is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after workplaces for business school grads. That’s thanks to Alpine’s CEO-In-Training program. The program places MBAs in leadership positions at companies within just a few weeks, and promises to turn them into CEOs in a few years. It’s not easy, though: Just 1.6% of applicants got a spot this year. Alex Nicoll reports for Business Insider. https://lnkd.in/eveNhrHT

The Cannes Film Festival is where celebrities go to feel like normal people. The Cannes Lions is where advertising people go to feel like celebrities. That was one of Lara O'Reilly’s takeaways from the Cannes Lions last week, aka summer camp for the ad industry. The biggest names in marketing made for the south of France, and Lara and Julia Hood were among them. What follows is a quick Q&A. What was the overall mood? Lara O’Reilly: Jubilant. The sun was shining, the rosé was flowing, and companies were back to spending big on their enormous setups along the beach. No signs of the so-called “ad downturn” along La Croisette this year. What were the topics du jour? LO: Artificial intelligence. Or, more specifically, why the industry needs to stop talking about AI — and other under-the-hood tech — and instead refocus on the kind of creative ideas that make a cultural and business impact. Julia Hood: Sports was the star of the show. Athletes on site included Megan Rapinoe, Sue Bird, the Kelce brothers, and many more. Sports is accelerating as a convener of people across the political spectrum — a safe way to bring people together. What did the event reveal about the industry? LO: For all the talk of automation, advertising remains a relationship business. Yes, this place is a hedonist’s playground of partying, VIP yacht experiences, and questionable ROI, but (I’m told) deals do actually get done here. What was the hottest ticket in town? JH: Wednesday night was the time to party for a lot of the attendees. Highlights included The Chainsmokers at Yahoo Beach and Arcade Fire at Spotify Beach. On Thursday morning, Jason and Travis Kelce recorded their “New Height” podcast at Stagwell’s Sport Beach. Despite the rumors, Taylor Swift was not seen. Check out Business Insider’s list of the most innovative CMOs of 2024. https://lnkd.in/eRZQyYFR