Target Abandons "Everything Store" Strategy — Bets on Busy Families and Baby Care Morning Brew
New Target CEO Michael Fiddelke told investors the retail chain will refocus on the needs of "busy families" — more baby care and groceries, less of being an everything store. The pivot comes after Target's fourth straight quarter of declining store and online traffic.
Target's latest earnings (quarter ending Jan. 31) told a mixed story: revenue came in even lower than Wall Street's already low expectations, but earnings beat estimates. Same-day deliveries — competing with Walmart and Amazon — grew more than 30%. The company plans to invest an additional $1 billion in its supply chain, technology, and stores. Target projects 2% net sales growth for this fiscal year, and expects to exit its slump soon. Some customers told CNBC that store inventory feels lacking and they're unhappy with Target's DEI rollbacks.
Texas Senate Shakeup: Talarico Wins Democratic Primary, Cornyn-Paxton Head to Runoff Morning Brew 1% Better
State Rep. James Talarico, a 36-year-old Presbyterian seminarian, defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett to become the Democratic nominee for US Senate in November's midterms. No Democrat has won a Texas statewide race in over 30 years.
On the Republican side, incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton advance to a May 26 runoff after neither eclipsed 50% of the vote. Rep. Wesley Hunt finished third and conceded. All three Republicans had campaigned on ties to President Trump, who declined to endorse. A Trump endorsement in the Cornyn-Paxton runoff is widely expected to be decisive. Crockett's campaign announced plans to sue over reported voting irregularities in Dallas. In North Carolina, Democratic former Gov. Roy Cooper and Republican Michael Whatley won their respective Senate primaries.
Mexico's $7.5 Billion "Dry Canal" Could Rival the Panama Canal by June 1% Better
Mexico is nearing completion of the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a $7.5 billion rail-and-port megaproject connecting the Pacific and Gulf coasts across 300 kilometers of southern Mexico. Final construction is expected by June 2026.
The corridor is designed to move containers coast-to-coast in under six hours, with projected capacity of 1.4 million containers annually. Planners estimate it could divert up to 5% of typical Panama Canal traffic during drought-related slowdowns. The project includes industrial parks, free-trade zones, and an estimated 3,200 jobs. The Panama Canal Authority acknowledged monitoring the project while expressing confidence in its own 180-route, 170-country network. See video overview.
Google's Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Fastest, Cheapest AI Model at 1/4 the Cost of Anthropic's Haiku Rundown AI
Google rolled out Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite, its fastest entry in the Gemini 3 lineup — providing near-instantaneous responses and upgraded intelligence while undercutting rivals on price.
Flash-Lite rounds out Google's tiered Gemini 3 release weeks after the Pro model, giving a budget option for high-volume work that doesn't need a flagship. The model scored a 12-point jump on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index over its predecessor — beating even larger prior-gen Gemini models on reasoning. Flash-Lite costs 1/4 of Anthropic's Haiku and 1/8th of Gemini 3.1 Pro, though output pricing triples from the 2.5 version it replaces. Cheap, fast models are becoming the real battleground in AI, and Flash-Lite's benchmarks suggest Google isn't sacrificing much intelligence to get there.
DOJ Reverses Course — Revives Defense of Trump's Executive Orders Targeting Law Firms Morning Brew
A day after the Justice Department abandoned its defense of Trump's executive orders targeting law firms that opposed him, it reversed course — telling an appeals court it wants to continue defending the orders.
The orders targeted four firms — Jenner & Block, WilmerHale, Perkins Coie, and Susman Godfrey — stripping their government contracts and security clearances. While nine other firms struck deals with the White House to avoid being targeted, these four mounted legal challenges. Several lower court judges have already ruled Trump's executive orders are unconstitutional. The DOJ's reversal signals the administration intends to press on with the appeals rather than let the lower court rulings stand.
Anthropic Academy Launches: 13 Free AI Courses With Certificates — Bootcamps Once Charged $2,000 1% Better
Anthropic just made professional AI education free with the launch of Anthropic Academy, a 13-course platform covering practical AI skills for developers, business teams, and beginners alike.
Featured courses include Claude 101, Claude Code in Action, Model Context Protocol, API Development, and AI Fluency. Certificates are included at no cost, where bootcamps once charged up to $2,000 for similar content. Courses focus on real projects and hands-on practice. The launch comes as Anthropic has seen a surge in new user sign-ups following OpenAI's Pentagon controversy.