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How one startup is reinventing the restaurant

Jul 31, 2024
The restaurant business has been struggling, but an innovative multicuisine operation called Wonder is capitalizing on efficiencies.
At Wonder, customers can get food from multiple restaurants in one order.
Sabri Ben-Achour/Marketplace

Is the tide turning against noncompete agreements?

A recent economics study seeks to quantify just how much noncompete clauses restrict worker mobility and wages.
"The estimates range between 18% and 40% of the American workforce is impacted by [noncompete] agreements," said Marketplace senior economics contributor Chris Farrell.
golibtolibov/Getty Images

Could nuclear fusion solve the climate crisis?

Jan 10, 2022
A small British company says it is on track to decarbonize the economy with an abundant, safe and cheap source of energy — eventually.
Tokamak's latest nuclear fusion reactor, the ST40, which emulates the way stars generate energy, CEO Chris Kelsall says.
Photo courtesy Tokamak Energy

Could new Texas anti-abortion law hamper high tech recruitment?

Sep 22, 2021
One Austin high tech entrepreneur said he's already hearing from potential workers who have questions about whether the state is a good cultural fit.
Abortion rights activists rally at the Texas State Capitol on Sep. 11, in Austin, Texas.
Jordan Vonderhaar via Getty Images

A tour of the remote-work industrial complex

Aug 19, 2021
The remote-work revolution has spawned an industry unto itself: remote-work consulting.
People are likely to be working from home for some time, so some employers are investing in services like feng shui consulting and virtual reality.
Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP via Getty Images

Mastercard is saying goodbye to the magnetic stripe

Aug 18, 2021
Credit-card changes are driven by security concerns, and it turns out that signature swipe has its own swath of problems.
Mastercard plans to swap the swipe payment process for the chip and touchless tap.
Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images

Boosting American innovation might involve immigration reform

Jul 12, 2021
Experts say U.S. progress in STEM fields is closely tied to immigration policy.
Congress is worried the U.S. is losing its technological edge. Experts say immigration reform is the answer.
Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Hotels try to follow restaurants' lead and hook consumers on QR codes

May 6, 2021
Will the QR code stick around in the long run? Perhaps, if users find the information the codes deliver useful.
From marketing to menus, QR codes have gained traction since the beginning of the pandemic.
Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

U.S. falls out of top 10 in measure of innovation

Feb 3, 2021
When Bloomberg launched the rankings, America was first. Now South Korea leads the pack.
An engineering student works on a robot. Engineering is one of the fields in which the U.S. lags, according to the Bloomberg Innovation Index.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The Pivot Point

Jul 31, 2020
What technology will help us transition to a post-pandemic future?
Dr. Paul McKay, who is working on an vaccine for COVID-19, looks at bacteria containing the coronavirus' DNA fragments at Imperial College School of Medicine in London on Feb. 10.
Tolga Akmen/AFP via Getty Images