FEBRUARY 29TH, 2024

THURSDAY’S VIBES

👋 IT’S THE LUCKIEST DAY, CUTIE

⚡️THE HOV LANE

• 🤖 LA’S AI TALENT DEMAND: A January 2024 AI report from Cushman & Wakefield highlights the significant demand for AI talent within our area, positioning Los Angeles as the sixth leading destination for AI-talent attraction within the United States. And as this is so my nerd of an AI area, let’s take a look at some of my takeaways from the full 45-page report:

  • The United States has a little over five thousand AI-related new job openings per month. California is considered to be the most consistent states when it comes to hiring for AI: in other words, hiring for AI careers + AI projects with longer roadmaps as opposed to impulse hires b/c of the nuance seen within AI trends.

  • California is also considered the ‘powerhouse for AI-related talent,’ with the highest concentration of AI firms in the United States, most specifically the Bay Area, Silicon Valley, San Diego and Los Angeles.

    • Of the top one hundred AI firms, California is home to twenty-six.

  • For Los Angeles: 

    • The Greater Los Angeles Area has seen significant growth for both creating and needing AI-related jobs with a growth of 25% YTD, underscoring our region’s importance within the AI sector.

      • The markets + industries within LA that are eager for AI-talent: Consulting, General IT Consulting + Recruiting.

      • Software Developers are considered to be jobs with the most unique AI-related offerings.

    • Though AI is within its infancy stages, AI is being taught in higher education. Universities were ranked based on the university’s exposure, credibility, and incorporation of AI into programs + curriculums.

    • We have three of the top ten highest ranked AI-related universities: California’s Institute of Technology, UCLA and USC.

      • All three of those schools beat out Yale, Harvard and MIT.

  • Takeaway: I’m certain Los Angeles will continue to attract talent, both entertainment and digital. We can even look at LA as an AI Triangle due the presence we have within these sectors (even if consulting for projects outside of our area): entertainment, engineering + development (digital), and commercial real-estate. The commercial real-estate industry continues to invest heavily into AI for blueprints, regulations + legalities, mockups, renderings, and projections. Let the good AI vibes flow, LA!

    • 📖 FULL REPORT: ‘From AI to Absorption: Office Demand, AI Talent Concentrations, and What It Means for Data Centers.’

    • 🔗 CULTURALLY-RELATED: Five vital questions to ask yourself before using AI at work via Mashable

• 📆 TODAY IS: Today is February 29th. A day that is considered to be the luckiest day as it only takes place once every four years. It is also National Time Refund Day and National Toast Day. In celebration of toast, here are the best places to get that favorite type of bread locally within Los Angeles.

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EATS

😋 HEADLINES

• ⚡️GATORADE WATER: Gatorade has introduced a new product called Gatorade Water, which is an unflavored water infused with electrolytes for hydration. This electrolyte-infused water is part of Gatorade's strategy to tap into the growing market of ‘functional water’ that offers additional health benefits and is projected to reach $18bn in sales. Gatorade Water is filtered with a seven-step filtration process and aims to appeal to consumers seeking premium unflavored water with perceived health benefits.

• 🧑‍🍳 BURBANK: The Vegan Chili Cook-Off hosted by Tony’s Darts Away takes place this Saturday from 12:00pm to 4:00pm in Burbank. Patrons are able to partake in the delicious adventures of local vegan chili and California craft beer. Those participating brands this Saturday include Highland Park Brewery, Broxton Brewery, El Segundo Brewing Co: Slide & Pint, ISM Brewery, Tony’s Darts Away and Craft Beer Galore. Tickets can be purchased online via Eventbrite.

• 😋 PASADENA: Masters of Taste takes place on April 7th in Pasadena. This is our chance to enjoy unlimited food, wine, craft beer, sweets, and cocktails. The event will take place at the Rose Bowl Stadium and are now available to purchase with both General Admission and VIP Ticket packages.

🪩 CULTURE

• 🍔 WENDY’S BACKLASH: Yesterday, Wendy’s nixed their idea to implement surge pricing after backlash came in the masses from both fans and critics alike. Burger King’s response? Free Whoppers.

🚀 OPENINGS

• 🍨 SANTA MONICA: Van Leeuwen, an artisanal ice cream chain, will open their tenth SoCal store at what was once Erin Mckenna’s Bakery in Santa Monica. This new store will offer a variety of flavors, including both dairy and unique vegan options. The store will serve a full menu of ice cream, vegan ice cream, chocolate chip cookies, cookie sandwiches, sundaes, and milkshakes. The opening hours are from 11:00am to 12:00am daily with a grand opening date to be announced soon. | 🖥️ View Website | 📸 @vanleeuwenicecream

• 🍷 CENTURY CITY + ECHO PARK: A Paso Robles winery, Tooth and Nail, is opening two tasting rooms: Echo Park by the end of May and Century City by this Thanksgiving. The Echo Park store will be located on W. Sunset with an undisclosed location in Century City that will become publicly announced at a later date.

🧭 GUIDES

• 🍜 TIMEOUT: LA: The best ramen in Los Angeles

• 🍞FOURSQUARE: Reminder: the best places to get toast in Los Angeles

EVENTS

🔮 TRENDING FUTURES

🧭 GUIDES

• 🇲🇽 DE LOS (LA TIMES): Five Latino art shows to check out right now

• 🙈 SECRET LOS ANGELES: Ten LA attractions to visit at least once in our lives

• 💃 MADY MAIO: Happenings by Camber this week

• 💯 LIFEHACKSLA: The best five venues at Level 8

ACTIVITIES

• 🛍️ THE GROVE + UCLA: Skinnovation Station by Dr. Jart+ takes place this weekend at two separate locations, The Grove (March 1st + March 2nd) and UCLA (March 4th). Skinnovation Station allows patrons to feel great about themselves with skincare from Korea is said to deliver instant results. In this interactive pop-up, the Cicpair collection will be explored, a product that helps soothe and repair sensitive skin. There will be also old-school games with new twists, prizes, and many chances to grab free skincare swag.

• 🎸 HOLLYWOOD BOWL: Bob Dylan will join Willie Nelson’s Outlaw Festival Tour which will make a stop at the Hollywood Bowl this July. The announcement also includes Dylan playing all twenty-five shows during the annual touring festival. Both groups are set to play at the Hollywood Bowl on July 31st. Tickets are available online starting tomorrow, March 1st. PREVIEW: 🔗 via Santa Monica Daily Press.

• 🤝 BURBANK: A Mix + Mangle will take place with the Burbank Noon Rotary at the Cambria Hotel Burbank Airport on March 5th from 5:00pm to 8:00pm. The Burbank Rotary will extend an open invitation to the entire community for a peek into Burbank’s sophisticated surroundings while providing strong networking, unity, community and neighborly warmth. The mixer starts at 5:00pm with light bites and a cash bar. Folks will also be at the hotel’s outdoor patio playing beloved bunkered-in games like Jenga, cornhole, Connect Four and more! ℹ️

• 🖼️ DTLA: Catherine Goodman’s first solo-exhibit in Los Angeles opened yesterday, ‘Catherine Goodman. New Works.’ Goodman is a London native and studied at London’s Camberwell School of Arts & Crafts and the Royal Academy Schools, the oldest art school within the United Kingdom. Goodman also established The Royal Drawing School with King Charles III, delivering free education to individuals that are disadvantaged and young. Her exhibit is on-display until March 5th at Hauser & Wirth Downtown. Admission is free.

COMMUNITY

• 🏥 LONG BEACH: MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center has achieved accolades from Newsweek making their World’s Best Hospital List for 2024. This is the sixth year in a row that the hospital has received such high honors. Long Beach Medical Center is ranked within the top one hundred hospitals nationwide, the top-fifteen statewide, and a top-five hospital within the region.

• 🎨 WEST HOLLYWOOD: The City of West Hollywood’s Design District is hosting an Art Walk around Melrose Avenue tomorrow from 11:00am to 8:00pm. The Art Walk highlights the vibrant art scene on Melrose Avenue and those nearby surrounding areas.

• 🏖️ SANTA MONICA: Tripadvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards has provided Santa Monica with bragging rights for having a top-ten beach in America. The Santa Monica State Beach was ranked as the seventh best beach within the award category of ‘Best of the Best Beaches.’

• 👩 LOS ANGELES MAGAZINE: Kris Jenner has been named as Los Angeles Magazine’s Woman of The Year.

• 🤏 TINY LA LANDMARKS: The Valley Relics Museum is showcasing tiny replicas of LA roadside landmarks made by a local curator, Don Solosan. The artifacts include The Tamale in East LA, Pasadena’s late Toed Inn, a model of Fairfax Avenue’s Sphinx Realty and others.

• 🚓 PARAMOUNT: The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department will have a DUI checkpoint this Friday, March 1st from 6:00pm to 2:00am. The DUI checkpoint will be in the City of Paramount at an undisclosed location. Fines for a DUI can be upwards of $13,500 and the additional burden of having one’s license suspended. ℹ️

• 👮 SANTA MONICA: The Santa Monica Police Department will also have a DUI checking point this Friday, March 1st from 6:00pm to 2:00am. The DUI checkpoint will be in Santa Monica at an undisclosed location. ℹ️

DEVELOPMENT

• 🏳️‍🌈 WEST HOLLYWOOD: Developments are being made for ‘The Now’ in West Hollywood as an office building + digital signage rises. The Now' project is a cutting-edge 61,000 square foot office building at La Cienega and Sunset. Designed by Mithun | Hodgetts + Fung, it features a modern aesthetic and sustainable elements like green roof terraces. With three levels of underground parking and a focus on community well-being, setting to redefine the Sunset Strip landscape.

• 🏗️ SOUTH LA: LA Clippers’ Russell Westbrook is investing within the South LA community by bringing life back to an area on the corners of Vermont + Manchester Avenues. Westbrook’s investment will allow for affordable housing under the project name, ‘Evermont,’ which broke ground in 2019. Yesterday marked the eight-month mark of when the project is slated for completion. When completed, Evermont will provide 180 affordable housing units for both seniors and low-income households, a Target, a college prep school, and retail for smaller businesses like South LA Cafe.

• 🏥 CARSON: The first component of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center’s campus is starting to take shape according to Urbanize. The $1.7bn project is expected to have a Fall 2026 completion date for the clinic building, followed by a December 2027 completion for the full project. The revamp involves the construction of a new inpatient tower that is capable of holding 346 beds, an outpatient tower, and various support facilities to enhance patient care. The building will stand at six stories with over 370,000 square feet of clinical and medical space.

BUSINESS

• 🏎️ TESLA: Elon Musk announced that the Tesla Roadster will ship to customers in 2025. The new Roadster is a 2+2 coupé with a removable glass roof, designed by Franz von Holzhausen. It features three electric motors for all-wheel drive and torque vectoring during cornering. The vehicle will have a 200 kWh battery and various trim levels beyond the base specifications, including a SpaceX package with rocket thrusters for improved performance. The Roadster is expected to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in under one second, with top speeds exceeding 250 mph. The claimed range on a single charge is 620 miles, setting new benchmarks in electric vehicle performance.

   

• 🏃‍♀️ WEST HOLLYWOOD: Emmy Award-winning dancer Julianne Hough announced the grand opening of the first brick-and-mortar studio for the dance and fitness platform that she founded, KINRGY. The studio is located in West Hollywood at 7111 Santa Monica Boulevard, and provides the community a transformative dance fitness program that creates + supports a judgement-free environment, empowering each person to connect back to their true nature and uniquely express their authentic selves. The studio will have its grand opening tomorrow followed by a public ribbon cutting on Friday evening.

• 📺️ NETFLIX: Dan Lin has been named as the Head of Film for Netflix, becoming the successor to Scott Stuber who announced in January that he will step-down from Netflix in March. Lin is the producer behind the Lego movies and the new live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender.📍Hollywood |💲NASDAQ: NFLX

• 💼 IMAX EARNINGS: IMAX Corporation reported financial results yesterday for both 2023’s fourth quarter 2023’s full-year. For full-year 2023, IMAX grew net income by $48m with adjusted EPS by 88 cents. Adjusted EBITDA by 52% with system installations at nearly 40%. IMAX believes that the strength of technology demand, their unique premium model, and a clear preference among consumers worldwide for the IMAX Experience is what enabled the company to report profitable results for both last quarter and last year. 📍USA HQ: Playa Vista | 💲 NYSE: IMAX

ENTERTAINMENT

🎬️ HEADLINES

• 🍿 WARNER BROS. MERGER HALTS: Warner Bros. Discovery has decided to halt merger talks with Paramount Global, marking a significant development in the media industry. The decision comes after several months of discussions and considerations. Despite this pause, other potential buyers like Skydance Media and media mogul Byron Allen are still exploring the possibility of acquiring Paramount. Comcast, on the other hand, has shown disinterest in purchasing Paramount but is looking into a partnership that could involve bundling or merging streaming services with the brand.

• 🎤 SHANE GILLIS: Standup comedian Shane Gillis, who recently hosted Saturday Night Live, has a buyer for his new comedy series, ‘Tires.’ The series was just bought by Netflix and will debut this upcoming May.

🪩 OUR CULTURE

• 🎞️ RHIANNA + A$AP ROCKY: Both Rhianna and A$AP Rocky have gone Hollywood Old School with a new short film, ‘Born to Steal: Yours, Mine, Ours.’ The film was released yesterday for RiRi’s Fenty Beauty where the couple play in a film noir with Rhianna casted as the femme fatale.

• 💼 NETFLIX HR HELPED COMEDIAN: Leslie Liao worked for Netflix in Los Angeles within Netflix’s HR Department. Now, a comedian, Liao talks with Cracked about how her role with Netflix helped her blow up in comedy.

• ⏪️ COMMERCIALS FROM THE 1990S: I found myself hooked to vintage TV commercials the other day. So, def wanted to share with all.

• 💎 CELEBRITIES + THEIR FANS: Also, am I the only one that gets hooked with YouTube Videos of celebrities surprising their fans/street performances?

• 🦅 BALD EAGLE CAM REMINDER: A reminder that three baby bald eagles are about to hatch in the San Bernardino Mountains. Now, at anytime…

🏆️ AWARD SEASON

• 🎞️ THE OSCARS: The first wave of A-List presenters has been announced for this year’s 96th Oscars. The lineup includes notables: Nicolas Cage, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, Matthew McConaughey, Al Pacino + others. This year’s Oscars take place Sunday, March 10th at Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and will be aired on ABC. Jimmy Kimmel is set to host.

• 🎨 BRANCHING OFF: The Academy will separate short films and feature animation branch into two individual branches.

SPORTS

• 🏀 LAKERS VS. CLIPPERS: The Lakers overcame a twenty-one point comeback win against the Clippers last night in a house-divided game at Crypto Arena, 116 - 112. LeBron had thirty-four points and scored nineteen of those during a nail biting fourth quarter for the Lakers. A game ending highlight happened when Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard missed a twelve footer with five seconds to play. With a Lakers rebound, LeBron threw a long pass to Cam Reddish for a dunk that added celebrations to the comeback victory for the Lakers. Up next for the Lakers: vs. Washington, tonight in LA at 7:30pm. For the Clippers: vs Washington in LA on Friday. | 📦️ Lakers vs. Clippers Box Score

CELEBRITIES + FANS

Vons, Albertsons, Pavilions were the most shopped grocery stores for our CuratedLA Family. Ralphs came in second, followed by Whole Foods at third.

CU TOMORROW, LA!