The Cynic: October 3

BUSINESS
This Week’s Business News

Musk’s $1 trillion Tesla pay plan faces investor revolt.

A coalition of shareholders and state officials is urging a vote against the record-breaking compensation package at November’s meeting, arguing Tesla’s board has bent too far toward Musk and neglected governance.

Tesla counters that Musk only gets paid if he delivers massive value—“eat what you kill” logic, but with more commas than most calculators can handle.

The vote will test how much investors value visionary leadership versus plain old accountability.

OpenAI asks judge to toss Musk’s xAI trade-secret lawsuit.

OpenAI filed a motion to dismiss claims that it poached employees and stole code for xAI’s Grok chatbot, calling the suit baseless and part of Musk’s broader campaign against the company.

The company stressed that people can switch jobs without sneaking intellectual property out the door—capitalism runs on mobility, not thumb drives.

The real winner so far? The lawyers billing $900 an hour to watch AI companies sue each other.

Nvidia’s UAE chip deal stalls, frustrating executives and U.S. officials.

A multibillion-dollar plan to supply advanced Nvidia AI chips to the UAE is stuck in delays, months after being announced with great fanfare.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is said to be frustrated, and U.S. officials worry the holdup undermines their broader push to build strategic tech ties with Gulf states.

Everyone wants AI influence, but nobody wants the headline “we accidentally exported the crown jewels.”

FINANCE
This Week’s Tool

It's not you, it’s your tax tools

Tax teams are stretched thin and spreadsheets aren’t cutting it. This guide helps you figure out what to look for in tax software that saves time, cuts risk, and keeps you ahead of reporting demands.

Download the Guide

REAL ESTATE
This Week’s Real Estate News

Proptech funding thawing, but climate tech still frozen.

Fifth Wall CEO Brendan Wallace says real estate tech deals are picking back up after a brutal “proptech winter,” though climate-focused startups face longer fundraising timelines and tougher economics.

Core software that makes property transactions faster is attracting investors again, while energy-efficiency and decarbonization projects still struggle to close checks.

The message: landlords love quick returns; saving the planet is still a harder sell.

Government shutdown risks budget cuts and economic drag.

Analysts warn a prolonged shutdown could cost billions per week and complicate Fed policy by halting key economic data releases.

Markets can live with bad news, but no news forces traders to guess at jobs and growth with patchy private surveys.

Budget cuts may look good in speeches, but they make the economy feel like it’s running with the lights off.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac keep lending during shutdown—but expect delays.

The mortgage giants don’t rely on annual appropriations and will stay open, but they’ve issued workarounds to help lenders handle clogged federal systems.

That means loans can still close, though flood insurance programs and IRS verifications could stall some deals.

Borrowers should lock rates early, double-check documents, and prepare for paperwork moving at shutdown speed.

FUN
Riddle Me This

I’m borrowed when I’m cheap,
I’m feared when I’m steep.
I build booms, I break banks,
And Powell won’t stop talking about me.
What am I?

Reply to this email with the answer for a chance to win a surprise

ADVICE
This Week’s Business Advice

Want your advice to be featured on next week’s edition of The Cynic?

Reply to this email with your business advice