The Daily Valet. - 11/8/21, Monday

✔️ This Is a Big One

November 08, 2021

Monday, November 8th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

I was on a plane last night, so I haven’t seen the latest episode of ‘Succession.’ Nobody spoil it.

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s Big Story

The Big Bill That Could

“Finally, infrastructure week,” Biden said.

Friday night was a long one for President Biden, who spent the evening working the phones from the White House to ensure his long-stalled infrastructure bill passed with bipartisan support. By Saturday morning, it was announced as a major legislative victory.

It’s certainly historic. This turns a long-running Washington punchline into a legacy-defining policy achievement (in his first year in office, no less). Biden said he’ll hold a signing ceremony for the $1.2 trillion bill along with the Republicans who were key to its passage in both the House and the Senate—a nod to an idea he campaigned on, that Washington can indeed work for the American people despite deep political polarization.

Democrats have struggled lately to take advantage of their control of the White House and Congress due to both slender majorities and bitter internal divisions. “Welcome to my world,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told the Christian Science Monitor. “We are not a lockstep party.”

In Biden’s view, his job now is to try to “put people at ease and let them know there’s a way through this,” whether it’s the pandemic or the supply chain snarls that have shaken Americans’ confidence lately. As for when we might feel the impact of such a historic investment in the country’s infrastructure, the president said, “probably starting within the next two to three months as we get shovels in the ground.” Of course, the full impact will likely take decades to be fully realized.

What exactly will we be getting? A huge investment in everything from roads and bridges to ports and pipes that’s widely expected to make businesses and deliveries and commuting easier in the U.S. It will cover a vast expansion in public transit along with electric vehicle charging stations and an improvement in both broadband access and an aging electric grid. It also includes a substantial investment to prepare for climate change: $50 billion to help communities grapple with the fires, floods, storms and droughts that scientists say have been worsened by global warming.

Biden called the deal a “once-in-a-generation investment that’s gonna create millions of jobs.” The vast majority of which won’t require a college degree. “This is a blue collar blueprint to rebuild America, and it’s long overdue.”

↦ Meanwhile: The second piece of his agenda, a sprawling package of social programs, is still being negotiated but appears to be advancing.

Welcome Back to the States

U.S. international travel rules have changed

If you've been to an airport recently, you've no doubt noticed how sleepy the nicest areas (meaning the international arrival and departure halls) have been since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. But today, the U.S. is lifting a travel ban on international visitors from more than 30 countries after nearly 20 months.

First instated by the Trump White House and later expanded to include more nations by the current administration earlier this year, the restrictions prohibited most visitors from the EU, U.K., South Africa, India, Brazil and China from flying into the U.S.

According to the New York Times, people from these countries can fly to the United States—or drive, if coming from Mexico or Canada—as they did before the pandemic, provided they can show proof of vaccination. A negative coronavirus test is also required for those traveling by air—but not for those crossing the land border. No quarantine will be required, regardless of how visitors enter.

Industry experts are now expecting a big influx in people flying from Europe, and hope that a broader recovery in travel follows as more people globally get vaccinated, American visa processing speeds up, other countries lift their own restrictions and people feel less scared about getting COVID because of travel.

↦ FYI: All U.S.-bound travelers will be required to provide contact tracing information to airlines in the case of an outbreak following arrival.

Virtual Assistants Keep Getting Smarter

Amazon actually wants you to stop talking to Alexa so much

Do you use Siri? (I do ... a lot.) Perhaps Alexa is your go-to? Or Google Assistant? These virtual assistants have been in our hands or on our countertops for the better part of a decade now, so they're fully integrated into our daily lives.

I never physically look up the weather or a celebrity's age anymore, for instance. I just blurt out my question and wait for my answer. And I'm not alone. Nearly 60% of all consumers are finding their answers this way now. But for these assistants to get smarter, we might have to ask for things less. That's the strategy Amazon is taking.

Tom Taylor, senior vice president of Alexa, told CNBC, “We believe that the future of consumer technology is ambient intelligence, which uses AI to weave together devices and intelligent services.” He said the tech giants are all trying to improve their AI assistants so that they can anticipate what humans want and when they want it.

Amazon expects there to be lots of different AI assistants in the future, performing different roles in different contexts. But they'll anticipate what we need more than simply responding to what we ask for. The first step on this path has been pre-programmed routines. For example, turning off the thermostat when everyone leaves the house, or turning on local news when the alarm goes off in the morning.

↦ Dig Deeper: Tech Research Online compared 10 of the top services to find the best AI assistant of 2021.

Here Comes the Sun

Solar-powered electric vehicles are almost ready to hit the road

Among green-car enthusiasts, solar-powered rides are about the most anticipated vehicles in the world. And they could be hitting the road sooner than we think, because several seem poised for their day in the sun.

Lightyear, a startup in the Netherlands, is developing a four-door car whose solar cells can generate enough electricity to power brief outings after a day of sitting in the sun. While the Lightyear One looks like a more streamlined Tesla sedan, Aptera Motors is taking another route. It's stretching the traditional image of a passenger vehicle by developing a two-seater featuring three wheels and a dolphin-shaped body.

According to the Wall Street Journal, these and other solar-power vehicles now in development are the descendants of spindly, solar-powered contraptions that gear heads from around the globe have been racing across the Australian Outback for decades. They've all got solar cells that work much like the larger solar panels seen on building rooftops—converting sunlight into electricity and storing it in an onboard battery pack.

Of course, the idea isn't new. The vision of sun-powered transportation dates back at least to 1955, when GM displayed a toy car outfitted with solar cells at a Chicago trade show. But others have expressed doubts about the future of the vehicles, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk. “The least efficient place to put solar is on the car,” he said in 2017. But a few years later, he mentioned that the Cybertruck pickup would come with integrated solar cells as an option. So only time will tell.

↦ Watch: Jay Leno drives the solar-powered Aptera Alpha development vehicle.

In Other News

↦ Authorities are Investigating the Causes Behind a Deadly Crowd Surge at the Astroworld Music Festival in Houston

↦ Want to Sound More Confident? Avoid These 11 Words That Make You Look ‘Weak’

↦ This Tribe Helped the Pilgrims Survive for Their First Thanksgiving. They Still Regret It 400 Years Later.

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

The Gucci movie trailer

Supreme x Tiffany’s?

Kieran Culkin on ‘SNL’

Great Gifts for All Kinds of Dads

The best options for your old man, young dad or any father who’s young at heart

The holidays are here and you need to find some solid gift options for your father. Or your partner or perhaps someone dad-like in your life. These are typically guys who don’t want for much. Either they’re simple creatures without many needs or they’re the type of guys who don’t wait around and get themselves whatever they want. Either way, there some options that are all but guaranteed to delight him. From a laid-back robe or cozy cardigan to some impressive tech, we’ve got a lot of your bases covered.

↦ Get It: 20 great gifts for Dad

What We Want

Have you noticed how jeans are loosening up? Because they are. And Buck Mason is now making one of our favorite pairs. It's a relaxed straight leg jean ($175), cut from Japanese selvedge denim, with a slightly higher rise than you might be used to. But slip them on and discover how good they feel. This pair features a light rinse, no break in required, just a classic selvedge indigo jean that doesn't require lunges and squats.

↦ Want more? 5 stylish items to buy this week