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Good morning:.

My writing will be a bit choppy this week … and I may miss some days … as I leave for a 3-day golf excursion … with great excitement and anticipation as my “new” goal is to break 95 … which I feel is do-able if I can just stay out of the sand traps … and the water.

Like many others, I am increasing my use of AI … and my understanding.

A few things stand out.

First, the privacy issue.

It seems that if you use ChatGPT or one of the other sites, the information you plug in could be used for training … and is not necessarily private.  So, if you put in confidential corporate … or client … information … or download some kind of statement asking for an opinion … it is possible that it, in part, may be retrievable by others.

Another situation is related to cost … and the first article below certainly tells of what a company faced simply by not fully understanding the rules … though I must admit it sounds like an impossible story as the claim is a company was charged $500 million for one month of AI use.

It seems that “tokens” are used up with every conversation … be it on ChatGPT, Claude, Grok or others.  And these can add up … especially since the info you receive (output) is 6-8 times more expensive than what you plug in.  I don’t know what an individual will actually face in costs for normal use … but you can be sure some of the firms putting this stuff together will certainly adopt whatever ways they can to recoup some of their costs.

That will about wrap it up for me this morning as I get my dog prepared for a kennel … and have to bug the vet to get a copy of a “rabies certificate” … which I hope is something to easily get or I have a problem.
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Meanwhile I will be keeping an anxious eye on the stock market … which appears as if it will up again at the open … as … following a 9-week “winning streak” … the news just doesn’t seem fantastic enough to keep the flames going as high as they’ve been.

I mean … stocks have, historically, returned around 10% a year and we just went through a period when the gain was over 16% in two months alone … making me nervously wonder if we are heading towards the fairway

… or about to land in the water.

Have a great day,

Joseph G. Witthohn, CFA

Have any questions? Please contact info@teamemerald.com

A Look At The News | June 1, 2026

As of 8:10 AM today …

This is certainly a story for which you would want to pay attention. A company is on the hook for a ridiculous amount as using AI could result in surcharges … ouch (SupercarBlodie)

https://tech.supercarblondie.com/company-spends-500000000-claude-ai/

 

Would you like a housekeeper … free?  A company, hoping to train its household robots, will clean your home if you agree to use your place to “train” a robot maid (Gizmodo)

https://gizmodo.com/a-company-will-clean-your-nasty-apartment-for-free-if-you-let-them-record-it-2000765296

 

… and while we might have thoughts that humanoid robots are kind of cute, some military minded people have other ideas and could eventually train them to kill (CNBC)

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/30/humanoid-robots-ukraine-war-foundation-military-ai.html

 

Costco has some items (such as their famous rotisserie chicken and the hot dog in the food court) but in some locations they sell gas cheaper than others.  How do they do it?  Read on (CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/31/business/costco-cheap-gas

 

Last week I wrote about parents supporting their kids … but it sometimes becomes more than a few dollars here and there. With housing prices jumping, mom and dad are often needed (cnbc)

https://www.cnbc.com/select/how-parents-are-helping-children-buy-homes-in-2026/

 

… because how does a young adult save when hiring has slowed?  Even entry-level summer jobs have teens running into roadblocks (USAToday)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/economy/2026/05/31/teen-summer-jobs-hiring-record-fall/90258555007/
The statements above are supplied for educational purposes only. The statements depict the viewpoints and opinion of the author and are not necessarily the views of Emerald Asset Management or its affiliates. The information described herein is taken from sources which are believed to be reliable, but the accuracy and completeness of such information is not guaranteed by us.

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The statements above are supplied for educational purposes only. The statements depict the viewpoints and opinion of the author and are not necessarily the views of Emerald Asset Management or its affiliates. The information described herein is taken from sources which are believed to be reliable, but the accuracy and completeness of such information is not guaranteed by us.