Squawk Pod

Microsoft President Brad Smith discusses cyber risks in the digital age, and explains his company’s effort to support federal, state, and local governments in building safe online infrastructure. He details Microsoft’s pledge to invest $20 billion in cybersecurity over the next 5 years and the chip shortage hitting global markets. Disney and Marvel Studios’ “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rin...

In August, the US economy added only 235,000 jobs, much less than economists were expecting. The hiring blitz at bars and restaurants came to an abrupt halt in August as more Covid-19 cases and a scarcity of willing workers kept employers from adding to payrolls. CNBC’s analysis of the August 2021 jobs report shows a loss of 42,000 jobs in food services and drinking places last month. Nela Richard...

At least 22 people were killed as the remnants of Hurricane Ida battered New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. NBC meteorologist Bill Karins reports on Ida’s path and the record rain and flooding that deluged the region and triggered states of emergency on Thursday. CNBC’s Ylan Mui and Walter Isaacson, history professor at Tulane and renowned author, discuss how the extreme weather may impact pr...

As students return to physical classrooms, cases of Covid-19 are ticking up among children. The Academy of American Pediatrics President Dr. Lee Savio Beers discusses classroom safety and a timeline for a kids’ vaccine. In a survey of 400 U.S. CEOs, KPMG found that American executives are optimistic about the economy, despite more and more delays to the return to office. Paul Knopp, KPMG U.S. CEO...

America’s 20-year war in Afghanistan came to an end as the Americans stationed there finished their evacuation. CNBC’s Eamon Javers details the military’s next steps for extracting the remaining group of Americans in the country, as well as the Biden administration’s strategy to monitor the Taliban. CNBC’s Frank Holland reports on how residents of New Orleans are planning for the days ahead as the...

Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana on Sunday as a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 miles per hour, one of the strongest storms to hit the region since Hurricane Katrina. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) discusses the damage caused by Hurricane Ida as over one million people in the region--including his own family--are without power. The United States is a day away from ending its evacuation mis...

The U.S. and its allies have warned that more terrorist attacks in Kabul are likely, as the deadline for military withdrawal from Afghanistan draws near. CNBC’s Eamon Javers reports on the latest information gathered after the twin suicide bombings in Kabul. Children are now being hospitalized in record numbers across the United States, and doctors are warning that it could get worse as physical c...

Delta Air Lines is the first company to raise health insurance premiums for employees that are not vaccinated against Covid-19. Shellye Archambeau, board member of Verizon, Okta and Nordstrom, discusses whether this move is the beginning of a movement from employers, and shares how executives are weighing vaccine incentives and ultimatums in the boardroom. J.M. Smucker CEO Mark Smucker says inflat...

Johnson & Johnson announced that it has enough data to support administering a booster dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. Following the announcement, the CDC tweeted that they need more data and information before recommending a booster dose from J&J. CNBC’s Meg Tirrell reports on the new research supporting the booster. Tim Cook was named CEO of Apple 10 years ago. He took over Apple at a turbulent ti...

The House has once again delayed a planned vote to advance two key proposals that make up President Joe Biden’s economic agenda. Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) and Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO) discuss the path forward for an infrastructure deal and a budget resolution. Major companies – from Walt Disney to Walmart – have already mandated Covid-19 vaccines for some or all of their employees, and now that the...

The FDA has fully approved Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine. Director of the National Institutes of Health Dr. Francis Collins explains what this approval might mean for vaccine hesitancy across the country. He also answers questions about vaccine safety for children, as young people prepare to return to school amid an uptick in cases of the Delta variant. Beloved game show Jeopardy! is host...

In an extended interview, sports icon and 39-time Grand Slam champion Billie Jean King discusses the 2021 U.S. Open Tennis Championship amid pandemic and her autobiography, “All In.” As more and more professional athletes speak out about mental health in sports, King considers her own experience with mental health, the media, and activism. In a conversation exclusive to Squawk Pod, Joe Kernen shar...

Social media giants Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube each have differing policies on how the Taliban can interact with their platforms. As the group gains control in Afghanistan, investor Kevin O’Leary and Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt debate social media’s responsibility to censor the Taliban, or not. A third vaccine shot in the U.S. has prompted a global debate about vaccine acces...

After Target delivered second quarter financials topping all analyst expectations, CEO Brian Cornell sits down with Becky Quick to discuss his business investment strategies. The two talk omnichannel growth, employee support, and consumer tastes. The U.S. government is recommending vaccinated adults take a booster Covid-19 vaccine, and former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb explains who, when,...

New York is not dead, according to Jerry Seinfeld, New Yorkers, and real estate mogul Jeff Blau, CEO of Related Companies. Blau discusses the real estate rebounds in NY-based rentals and sales, and shares his outlook for Hudson Yards tenants and Covid safety. CNBC’s Robert Frank shares statistics on the city’s rebound, but flags low subway ridership and office presence as potential obstacles to re...

The Afghan government has fallen to the Taliban, and global politics are shifting in response. CNBC’s Dan Murphy in Abu Dhabi considers the global and regional ramifications of the Taliban’s movements, as well as what’s at stake for President Biden, as he weighs an American response. Former State Department Official Evelyn Farkas, a longtime proponent of withdrawing U.S. forces from Afghanistan, c...

Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb discusses the FDA’s approval of a booster Covid-19 vaccine for immunocompromised Americans. In an extended interview, he discusses cases of the Delta variant, longevity of vaccine efficacy, and what’s to come in the fall. Plus, CNBC’s Kate Rogers explains what all this means for small businesses and restaurants. In a conversation exclusive to Squawk Pod,...

Bitcoin, ethereum, blockchain, the Senate, and a whole lot of volatility. Andrew Ross Sorkin explains why so many people are talking about the cryptoeconomy, in a conversation exclusive to Squawk Pod. Capitol Hill, the SEC, and the global public are grappling with what these tokens are--securities, maybe--and how to regulate them. Alesia Haas, CFO of Coinbase, the world’s largest cryptocurrency ex...

In an extended interview, legendary short-seller Jim Chanos discusses AMC’s meme stock journey, movie theaters, apes, Reddit, and all. Short interest in AMC is rising in the wake of AMC’s quarterly financial report, but Wall Street is warning retail investors that the “Mother of All Short Squeezes” that they’re waiting for, may not be as fun a play as they’re expecting. Hosted by Simplecast, an Ad...

While President Biden and leaders across corporate America have been encouraging, incentivizing, and even requiring that employees get vaccinated, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has vocally opposed mask mandates, vaccine mandates, and Covid-19 passports. In a lively interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin and Becky Quick, Senator Cruz defends his stance on masks in schools and weighs in on employer rights to r...

U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo are teaming up to expand and prepare America’s workforce. The bipartisan infrastructure bill working through Congress aims to invest $100 billion in job creation, supporting small businesses as they recover from and power through the pandemic. In an extended interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin, the two secretaries discu...

The economy added 943,000 jobs in July, the best pace in nearly a year and nearly 100,000 more than economists expected. Kate Moore, head of thematic strategy for BlackRock’s global allocation team, Austan Goolsbee, former Council of Economic Advisers chairman, break down the numbers. CNN has terminated three of its employees for lying about their Covid-19 vaccination statuses and coming to the of...

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is prioritizing his customers’ experiences, investing in driver acquisition to alleviate price surging and wait times as ride hailing gets back on track. Khosrowshahi also defends his decision not to mandate vaccines for all riders and drivers. The meme stock mania continues with the company that started it all: Robinhood. Now a meme stock itself, Robinhood has announced...

SEC Chair Gary Gensler shares his plan for taming the “Wild West” that is the cryptocurrency ecosystem. After years of leadership in finance regulation and teaching blockchain technology at MIT, Gensler praises innovation, but calls for “guard rails.” China is aiming to curb new Covid cases, and New York City has a new access pass for its social scene: proof of vaccination. Plus, CNBC’s Eamon Jave...

After 17 months and three vaccines, Covid cases continue to tick up, even in the U.S. Senate. Operation Hope Chairman and CEO John Hope Bryant offers a progress report of his nonprofit’s efforts to alleviate financial strain on American workers amid the pandemic; he’s partnered with various U.S. corporations to provide financial coaching to employees. Delta CEO Ed Bastian attests to the impact thi...