Welcome back to Insider Weekly! I'm Matt Turner, the editor in chief of business at Insider.
What does the peril facing the Chinese megadeveloper Evergrande mean for the rest of the world?
Insider columnist Linette Lopez looked to spell that out in a recent analysis, bringing together her years of experience covering the Chinese economy with her trademark voice. As she explained, the Evergrande drama is part of a bigger story.
"Beijing is walking an economic high-wire act, trying to replace its economic model with something unknown," she wrote in her analysis. Read on for a Q&A with Linette on what's going on in China and why it matters.
Also in this week's newsletter:
- Lambda School promised a fast track for tech careers. Leaked documents tell a different story.
- Zillow is selling most of its homes in Atlanta, Phoenix, and Houston for less than it paid.
- At Microsoft, there was an exodus of senior women after it hired Jeffrey Ma, a famous MIT card-counting whiz who has shifted the strategy of the company.
Let me know what you think of all our stories at [email protected].
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China's economy may collapse - and bring the world down with it
Here's a chat with Linette Lopez about her explosive analysis on China's economy and what it means for the rest of the world:
What prompted you to write this piece?
Every few years, the Chinese property market starts making rumbling noises like it's going to blow. But every time that happens, the Chinese government steps in with a plan to keep the market moving and kicks the can down the road. This time, though, the Chinese government is letting the most indebted of these companies sweat it out. If they don't lay out something soon, we'll see more convulsions in markets across the globe.
What's the biggest thing you hope readers take away from your analysis?
There is so much noise in the world and in the economy right now that I think it's hard for people to tell what's important. I want readers to know that China's changing, closing, slowing economy is here to stay. Beijing is prepping the Chinese people for it politically. This is going to be a huge part of what the global economy is going to look like when the dust settles, and it means slower growth for the planet.
Why is this topic so important right now?
The United States and China sometimes seem destined for conflict, cold or hot. The only way we'll avoid something like that is through clear communication between nations and a clear-eyed understanding of each other's capabilities. For years, we've heard academics talk about China's growing power and what that could mean for the world, but looking at the economic and demographic data, we need to consider that we may have reached peak China already. If that is the case, what is happening to China (and the region) will become a story none of us can escape.
Read the full story here: If China's economy keeps stumbling, it won't just take down Beijing - the whole world will collapse with it
Lambda School may not be what it seems
Lambda School promises to teach students with no technical experience the skills required to get lucrative professions in Big Tech.
But leaked documents showed that the school placed only about 30% of its graduates in qualifying jobs in the first half of 2020 - even though it advertised a 74% placement rate for the year prior.
Read our Lambda School investigation.
Zillow home sales continue to raise questions
After Zillow announced it would pause homebuying for the rest of 2021, questions around its homebuying business began to circulate.
To find out more, Insider examined 960 Zillow-owned homes across cities such as Atlanta, Phoenix, and Dallas. Nearly two-thirds of the houses were listed for less than Zillow paid for them.
Take a look inside Zillow's homebuying business.
Microsoft MIT card-counting whiz prompts exodus of senior women, insiders say
Jeff Ma
When Microsoft hired Jeffrey Ma - a serial entrepreneur and famous MIT blackjack star - to run its startup business, an exodus of senior women and HR complaints followed, insiders said.
Microsoft was banking on Ma to bring Silicon Valley star power to its business, but he's faced allegations of treating women unfairly at work and denying some women leadership positions. The company said it found no evidence of discriminatory practices, though people said Ma brought a toxic "boys' club" culture to the workplace.
Here's more on the allegations at Microsoft.
More of this week's top reads:
- Mailchimp execs sold the company to Intuit and doled out small bonuses to employees. The staffers are devastated.
- Elon Musk isn't the only major player in the electric-vehicle revolution. These 13 power players from across the industry are set to make waves.
- Insider compiled an oral history of the January 6 insurrection, told by 34 people who lived through it.
- An ex-Google staffer said she used a third-party therapist after enduring discrimination and a toxic workplace - and that it was a decision she'd always regret.
- Zibby Owens, the daughter of a billionaire Wall Street CEO, has become New York's top book influencer - here's how she did it.
- Instagram Reels or TikTok? See the leaked documents that compare their algorithms.
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Compiled with help from Phil Rosen and Jordan Erb.