Monday Notes for August 17th, 2025

Key Takeaways Gianni Lee, a multidisciplinary visual artist known for exploring themes of racial inequality and technology through post-apocalyptic landscapes, has announced his first curatorial project with SaveArtSpace titled “Postcards, Prophets & Monuments.” The exhibition will transform three billboards across Brooklyn and the Bronx into public art installations beginning September 5,

Key Takeaways * Ghana’s government made a $1 million payment to the University of Memphis, allowing 185 Ghanaian students to remain in campus housing and continue their education * The payment represents partial relief from a $3.6 million debt owed by the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, leaving a $2.2 million outstanding

Key Takeaways * The African Union has officially endorsed the “Correct The Map” campaign, marking the first time the continental body has formally backed efforts to replace the 16th-century Mercator projection with more accurate map representations * The Mercator projection makes Africa appear significantly smaller than it actually is, despite the continent

JFK’s Terminal 6 creates an unprecedented “Museum Row” featuring permanent installations from MoMA, the Met, Natural History Museum, and Lincoln Center, transforming international arrivals into a world-class cultural experience starting in 2026.

Jordan Brand is constantly expanding the colorways of the classic retros. Learn more about the Air Jordan 5 WMNS “Luminous Green” on Nice Kicks.

NFL.com breaks down Week 2 of the preseason, continuing with Sunday’s games.

Key Takeaways ESPN has canceled Spike Lee’s multi-part documentary series about Colin Kaepernick, citing “creative differences” between the network, director, and subject. The project, titled “Da Saga of Colin Kaepernick,” began in 2022 and was completed by Lee in late 2023, but disagreements between Kaepernick and Lee over the direction

Manchester City’s new signings Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki scored on their debuts in a commanding 4-0 victory over Wolves, demonstrating how strategic talent acquisition can deliver immediate organizational impact.

Antoine Semenyo’s racist abuse at Anfield exposes football’s persistent discrimination crisis as authorities grapple with record-high incident reports and the urgent need for sustained action beyond symbolic gestures.

Key Takeaways The Big Ten has proposed a massive College Football Playoff expansion to 24 or 28 teams, eliminating conference championship games and offering significantly more automatic bids to power conferences. In the 28-team model, the Big Ten and SEC would each receive seven automatic bids, while the ACC and

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Key Takeaways * Current and former OpenAI employees are negotiating to sell approximately $6 billion in shares to SoftBank, Thrive Capital, and Dragoneer Investment Group at a $500 billion valuation * The transaction represents a significant jump from OpenAI’s current $300 billion valuation established earlier this year * Only employees with at least

Key Takeaways Gemini has made public its filing for a US initial public offering, confirming plans to list on Nasdaq under the ticker GEMI, positioning itself as the third major cryptocurrency exchange to enter public markets after Coinbase and Bullish. The company reported a net loss of $282.5 million

Key Takeaways OpenAI has reversed course on GPT-5’s personality after widespread user criticism, restoring GPT-4o for paid subscribers and promising a “warmer” version of GPT-5. Nearly 5,000 users signed onto a Reddit backlash thread titled “GPT-5 is horrible,” with users hitting usage limits within an hour and complaining about