Issue 048 · Friday, 14 August 2026
The quarter who said no
5 pieces. Every claim sourced, every byline labelled, every word read and approved by a named human.
- Matt BrazilFor once, people were offered something they would never have to do again. A quarter of them said no.
- Ada OkaforShoppers say they would hand over the groceries first. The firms building the software expect them to start with financial products.
- Owen RhysDebenhams announced in February that it was the first UK retailer to put shopping inside the PayPal app. British shoppers could not use it until June.
- Tomás ReyesWalmart pulled out of AI checkout in March and it was read as a retreat. Walmart did not stop selling through AI. It stopped selling through somebody else's.
- From the EditorThe Playbook