This Week in Business

How will AI, inflation, and Federal Reserve policy shape the markets in the months ahead? Jeremy Siegel, Wharton Emeritus Professor of Finance and Senior Economist at WisdomTree, shares his outlook on the economy and financial markets.Siegel discusses the outlook for interest rates, the uncertainty surrounding AI investment and corporate profitability, and whether today's market valuations are justified. He also explains why diversification across technology, value stocks, and bonds could be especially important as investors navigate an uncertain economic future.

Holiday sales may rise again this year, but the headline number will not tell the full story of how consumers are feeling or where retailers stand.Peter Fader, Wharton Professor of Marketing, joins the conversation to examine what is really driving holiday retail sales. He discusses the K shaped economy, the return of aggressive Black Friday discounts, the limits of AI shopping agents and why in person experiences still matter to holiday shoppers.

Social Security faces a looming funding shortfall that could force significant benefit cuts within the next decade. Can policymakers save the program before it's too late?Kent Smetters, Faculty Director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model, joins the conversation to explain the financial challenges facing Social Security and the reform proposals under consideration.The discussion explores tax increases, benefit reductions, raising the retirement age, and the economic tradeoffs behind each approach. Smetters also explains why government accounting practices may be obscuring the true scale of the problem.

AI is changing how companies operate, but adopting new technology is only the beginning. Businesses must rethink how work gets done to turn AI investments into meaningful results.Prasanna (Sonny) Tambe, professor of operations, information and decisions at the Wharton School, joins us to discuss the latest research on AI adoption and workforce transformation.The conversation explores AI agents, accountability, job growth, entry level hiring, the growing need to verify AI generated content, and why companies must redesign workflows to get the most from their AI investments.

What happens when a superstar athlete joins a new team? The impact goes far beyond the basketball court.Kenneth Shropshire, Professor Emeritus of Legal Studies and Business Ethics at the Wharton School, examines the expectations surrounding LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers.From ticket sales and team culture to community engagement and special treatment for star players, Shropshire explains the business opportunities and challenges that come with signing a superstar.

Why are young people putting money meant for retirement into sports betting? The answer may lie in how our brains respond to risk, excitement, and the promise of a big win.Michael Platt, Professor of Marketing, Psychology & Neuroscience at The Wharton School, explains the psychology behind the sports betting boom. He explores how dopamine, social influence, and the illusion of control draw people into betting, how mobile platforms make gambling harder to resist, and why the trend could threaten younger generations’ financial futures.

What happens when a company’s social mission clashes with the priorities of its corporate owner? The legal battle involving Ben and Jerry’s raises important questions about who gets to control a brand’s values after a sale.Maurice Schweitzer, Wharton Professor of Operations, Information and Decisions, joins the conversation to examine the dispute between Ben and Jerry’s and its parent companies. Schweitzer explains the challenges of maintaining an independent board, why founders can struggle to preserve their influence, and what businesses can learn about governance, competing priorities and the uncertainty of future conflicts.

AI safety concerns are no longer just hypothetical. As AI systems become increasingly capable, the risks involving cybersecurity, biosecurity and unintended behavior are becoming harder to ignore.Kevin Werbach, Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics at the Wharton School, explains the different categories of AI risk and why companies alone may not be able to manage them. Werbach argues that governments need to establish standards and safeguards for frontier AI, drawing comparisons to the way financial institutions are regulated to protect against systemic risks.

Competition can bring out the best in individuals, but can it actually make an entire team worse? New research suggests that rivalry may come with an unexpected cost.Henning Piezunka, Associate Professor of Management at the Wharton School, joins the show to discuss his research examining rivalry and performance through the lens of professional basketball.Using examples like Larry Bird versus Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant versus Michael Jordan, Piezunka explains why players facing individual rivals may score more while making their teams less effective. He also explores what these findings mean for workplace competition, employee incentives, and managers trying to build successful teams.