‘Don’t Be Too Nice’: Here’s How to Run the Perfect Video Call, According to Zoom’s CEO

Zoom CEO Eric Yuan founded the video communications company in 2011 when he was 41 years old and took it public in 2019. As of September 2025, Zoom had a market cap of $25.66 billion.

But despite 15 years of daily practice, he still thinks video calls can be better, because the best meetings are when people “can be themselves,” he told The New York Times.

Here’s Yuan’s advice for making your Zoom calls more productive.

Be accessible

Yuan says that he has a Zoom meeting link in his email signature so that people can set up calls with him.

Related: 13 Leadership Lessons from Zoom Founder and CEO Eric Yuan

Preparation is key

Who you invite is as important as why you’re calling the meeting, Yuan said.

“Number one, you need to prepare: who to invite, who not to invite, and a very clear agenda,” Yuan said, per The Times.

Think about the vibes

Yuan said the second most important thing for a productive meeting is to make sure everyone can be themselves.

“Don’t be too nice, too polite,” Yuan said. “In a Zoom call, people tend to be so nice. It’s becoming too formal. It’s OK to interrupt a little bit. And after the meeting, you need to have some follow-up.”

How to exit a call

Don’t be afraid to use the chat.

“Sometimes I just send a channel message: ‘Sorry, I got to do something.’ I use the chat a lot before I leave,” Yuan said.

Related: Zoom CEO Eric Yuan Cuts His Own Pay By 98% Amid Layoffs

Zoom CEO Eric Yuan founded the video communications company in 2011 when he was 41 years old and took it public in 2019. As of September 2025, Zoom had a market cap of $25.66 billion.

But despite 15 years of daily practice, he still thinks video calls can be better, because the best meetings are when people “can be themselves,” he told The New York Times.

Here’s Yuan’s advice for making your Zoom calls more productive.

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https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/zoom-ceo-best-tips-for-running-a-video-meeting/497195




Amazon’s CEO Wants His 1.5 Million Person Company to ‘Operate Like the World’s Largest Startup.’ Here’s How He Plans to Do It.

Andy Jassy is trying to reset Amazon’s culture by getting rid of excess layers of middle management.

The Amazon CEO stated on Tuesday at the company’s annual conference for third-party sellers that he wanted to eliminate bureaucracy to help Amazon grow and innovate more quickly. Bureaucracy is not compatible with “startups” and “entrepreneurial organizations,” but it is “really easy to accumulate,” according to Jassy.

“I would say bureaucracy is really anathema to startups and to entrepreneurial organizations,” Jassy said at the event. “As you get larger, it’s really easy to accumulate bureaucracy, a lot of bureaucracy that you may not see.”

Related: Amazon Tells Thousands of Employees to Relocate or Resign

Jassy wrote in his latest annual shareholder letter in April that Amazon must “strive to operate like the world’s largest startup” by solving real customer problems, working quickly, reducing bureaucracy and being willing to take risks.

Jassy’s latest remarks on Tuesday follow Amazon’s attempts across the past year to flatten its organization and eliminate excess layers.

In September 2024, Jassy asked each team within the company to reduce the number of managers by at least 15%. A leaked guidelines document in January showed that Amazon accomplished this without layoffs by asking managers to increase their number of direct reports, pause hiring new managers, and demote some employees down a level to non-managerial positions.

Managers are now required to have at least eight team members as direct reports, an increase from the six that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos mandated in 2017, according to the document.

Jassy also introduced a “Bureaucracy Mailbox” last year to allow employees to email him examples of unwanted processes or rules that could be changed to help the company run more efficiently. Within a year, the mailbox received 1,500 emails, resulting in changes to 455 processes, Jassy said at Tuesday’s event.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on July 8, 2025. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images

At a November all-hands meeting, Jassy reiterated that he wanted to make changes to middle management to keep the company competitive.

“The reality is that the [senior leadership team] and I hate bureaucracy,” Jassy said at the meeting. “One of the reasons I’m still at this company is because it’s not a political or bureaucratic place.”

Related: Here’s Why Companies Shouldn’t Replace Entry-Level Workers With AI, According to the CEO of Amazon Web Services

Jassy took over as Amazon CEO in 2021, following Bezos. Under his leadership, Amazon laid off 27,000 corporate employees and mandated that employees return to the office five days a week.

Despite complaints from employees and an initial shortage of desks, the return-to-office mandate took effect on Jan. 2.

Amazon states on its sustainability page that it employs 1.5 million people worldwide at the time of writing, making it the second-largest employer in the world.

Andy Jassy is trying to reset Amazon’s culture by getting rid of excess layers of middle management.

The Amazon CEO stated on Tuesday at the company’s annual conference for third-party sellers that he wanted to eliminate bureaucracy to help Amazon grow and innovate more quickly. Bureaucracy is not compatible with “startups” and “entrepreneurial organizations,” but it is “really easy to accumulate,” according to Jassy.

“I would say bureaucracy is really anathema to startups and to entrepreneurial organizations,” Jassy said at the event. “As you get larger, it’s really easy to accumulate bureaucracy, a lot of bureaucracy that you may not see.”

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https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/amazon-ceo-andy-jassy-is-fighting-against-bureaucracy/497240




AI Is Quietly Writing Your Résumé — and One Tool Could Misrepresent Your Reputation if You Don’t Take Control

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

In the crowded world of AI Assistive Engines, all the attention goes to ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Perplexity. But the most influential contender may be the one hiding in plain sight: Microsoft Copilot.

Why? Because it’s not just another chatbot — it’s deeply embedded in the Windows and Microsoft 365 ecosystem that powers homes, businesses, governments and nearly every Fortune 500 company. Copilot is already sitting on the desktop of the people who decide whether to hire you, partner with you or fund your company.

That makes it the “sneaky” AI — the one shaping your professional reputation before you even enter the room. In this article, you’ll learn how Copilot and other AI assistants are building your “AI Résumé” behind the scenes — and a practical framework you can use to take back control of your digital narrative.

Related: Uncover Hidden Threats to Your Reputation With These Advanced Suppression Strategies

Your AI résumé is already being written

Think about where decision-makers live: Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel. Copilot is inside all of them. It summarizes conversations, drafts proposals and answers the question: “Who is this person?”

Before an investor opens your pitch deck or a prospect reads your proposal, there’s a good chance they’ll ask Copilot to summarize you. What it delivers becomes your AI Résumé — a recommendation from a machine people trust.

That résumé is only as strong as the information Copilot finds. And if your digital footprint is messy, inconsistent or outdated, Copilot will stitch together a confusing narrative.

A costly lesson in digital misrepresentation

I learned this lesson years before generative AI.

After building a successful career as a musician and then founding UpToTen Ltd — an EdTech pioneer competing with Disney and the BBC — I started losing deals worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. The problem?

My Google Brand SERP. Search results for my name highlighted that I’d been the voice actor for a cartoon character, Boowa the Blue Dog. Instead of presenting me as a serious CEO, Google framed me as a children’s entertainer.

The result? Major deals died before they began.

Copilot raises the stakes exponentially. Unlike Google’s static results, Copilot synthesizes information into a story. But its logic is childlike — piecing together fragments without nuance or accuracy. If you don’t control your narrative, the AI will create one for you.

The framework: How to teach the machine

You can’t game the system. The only way forward is to systematically educate AI so it reflects your intended story. My three-phase framework works not just for Copilot, but for ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and beyond.

1. Establish Understandability

The machine must know who you are, what you do and who you serve.

  • Create an entity home: a personal website (e.g., yourname.com) with a clear, 25–50 word executive summary at the top.
  • Make it machine-readable: use Schema.org structured data so algorithms can parse your identity with confidence.

2. Build credibility

Once AI understands you, it needs proof that you’re authoritative.

  • Be consistent: your LinkedIn, X (Twitter), Crunchbase and company bios should all mirror your Entity Home.
  • Get third-party validation: appear on podcasts, contribute to industry media and earn mentions from trusted outlets. Each external confirmation creates what I call an “Infinite Self-Confirming Loop of Corroboration” — the foundation of algorithmic trust.

3. Ensure deliverability

Finally, make sure AI delivers your story when prospects are researching problems, not just names.

  • Answer real questions: build an FAQ section based on client questions, sales calls and customer support insights. One page per question; no accordions.
  • Publish deeper resources: long-form articles that establish you as an authority.
  • Organize for discovery: use topic clusters (siloing) so AI sees you as a subject expert.

Take it further: create a custom GPT or AI assistant trained on your services, client profile, and solutions. Use it to anticipate the questions your market is asking and shape content accordingly.

Related: From Co-Pilot to Co-Worker: Where the AI Assistant Journey is Headed to Next

The next frontier: Ambient research

The ultimate payoff isn’t when someone Googles you — it’s when AI recommends you without being asked.

  • In Excel, Copilot suggests your name while a prospect models ROI.
  • In Teams, the meeting summary highlights you as the expert who can solve a key challenge.
  • In Outlook, your profile surfaces as the trusted consultant to hire.

That’s AI acting as your marketing agent — delivering opportunities before you even know they exist.

The inescapable reality

AI assistants like Microsoft Copilot aren’t futuristic — they’re already reshaping how reputations are built.

Your digital presence is no longer a brochure; it’s a living narrative constantly retold by machines. If you don’t design your AI résumé, Copilot will design it for you — and you may not like the result.

The path forward is clear:

  • Be understandable.
  • Be credible.
  • Be discoverable.

Teach the machine your story, or it will tell its own.

In the crowded world of AI Assistive Engines, all the attention goes to ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Perplexity. But the most influential contender may be the one hiding in plain sight: Microsoft Copilot.

Why? Because it’s not just another chatbot — it’s deeply embedded in the Windows and Microsoft 365 ecosystem that powers homes, businesses, governments and nearly every Fortune 500 company. Copilot is already sitting on the desktop of the people who decide whether to hire you, partner with you or fund your company.

That makes it the “sneaky” AI — the one shaping your professional reputation before you even enter the room. In this article, you’ll learn how Copilot and other AI assistants are building your “AI Résumé” behind the scenes — and a practical framework you can use to take back control of your digital narrative.

The rest of this article is locked.

Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/ai-is-quietly-writing-your-resume-and-one-tool-could/494486




The Federal Reserve Cut Interest Rates For the First Time This Year. Here’s What It Means For Credit Cards and Mortgage Rates.

The Federal Reserve, which last cut interest rates in December 2024, lowered interest rates .25% on Wednesday.

Officials implied that there would be two more cuts to follow later this year. The committee meets in two months, on October 28 and 29. “In assessing the appropriate stance of monetary policy, the Committee will continue to monitor the implications of incoming information for the economic outlook,” the committee wrote in a press release.

Related: The Labor Market Has Changed From the ‘Great Resignation’ to the ‘Great Stay’ Because ‘Workers Aren’t Going Anywhere’

EY-Parthenon Chief Economist Gregory Daco told Entrepreneur in a statement that, although inflation is picking back up, “economic activity and employment are simultaneously slowing,” causing the balance to tilt toward more rate cuts. He also predicted that there would be two more rate cuts to follow this year.

Here’s how the interest rate cut could impact your wallet.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks at a news conference at the Federal Reserve headquarters, following the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in Washington, DC, on September 17, 2025. JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Why did the Fed cut rates by a quarter percentage point?

Economists and industry experts predicted a 94% chance of a quarter percentage point (0.25%) cut, following data released earlier this month that showed that hiring was slowing, and inflation was 2.9% in August, an increase from July’s 2.7% and higher than the Fed’s preferred 2% target.

The central bank’s rate-setting committee, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), has kept interest rates within the 4.25% to 4.5% range for the past nine months as its members analyzed economic activity. The FOMC decides on rate cuts based on two broad goals: minimizing inflation and maximizing economic activity in the labor market. Wednesday’s rate cut now lowers the range to 4% to 4.25%.

Related: Here’s What a Federal Rate Cut Means for Small Businesses, According to Analysts

When is the next Fed meeting, and what is expected?

The Fed meets eight times a year in regularly scheduled meetings to set U.S. monetary policy. The FOMC sets the target range for the federal funds rate, the interest rate banks use to lend to each other, which influences broader rates that affect consumers, like credit card interest rates.

The committee meets two more times in 2025: October 28-29 and December 9-10, according to the official calendar.

Officials indicated two more possible rate cuts this year.

How does the Fed affect mortgage rates?

The Federal Reserve’s decision does not directly affect mortgage rates because mortgage rates are tied to 10-year Treasury bonds. So, a lower federal funds rate does not necessarily mean lower mortgage rates, Melissa Cohn, Regional Vice President of William Raveis Mortgage, told Entrepreneur.

“The Fed cut will not cause mortgage rates to change,” Cohn said in an emailed statement.

Instead, “how the bond market reacts to the Fed cut will determine the direction of mortgage rates,” and what Powell says during the press conference will “be key to market reactions,” she wrote.

When faced with market uncertainty, investors buy Treasury bonds, driving mortgage rates down.

However, the bond market has already recently responded to news of a possible rate cut, with mortgage rates dropping to a three-year low on Tuesday ahead of the Fed meeting. As of Wednesday morning, the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.24%, one of its lowest levels since early October of last year.

Related: Barbara Corcoran Says This Is the Interest Rate Magic Number That Will Make the Market ‘Go Ballistic’

How does a rate cut affect credit cards?

Credit card interest rates tend to move in alignment with the federal funds rate, per Bankrate. So the 0.25% cut could have an impact on credit cardholders with a reduction of 0.25% to their interest rates.

Other market conditions, like inflation and the demand and supply of credit, affect the basis for most credit card interest rates. That’s why interest rates for credit cards as a whole have been increasing, from 15% in 2021 to more than 21% in 2025, despite rate cuts last year.

Credit card companies are charging higher interest rates than four years ago, per Bankrate.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/federal-reserve-to-cut-interest-rates-analysts/497236




How to Create a 1-Word Business Plan That Cuts Through Complexity and Drives Results

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Entrepreneurs live in a world of high-stakes decisions and constant motion. Every day, you are bombarded with problems to solve, opportunities to seize and teams to lead. Through the chaos, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and mentally drained. No matter how much gets done, your list continues to grow.

In an attempt to gain control, entrepreneurs spend countless hours attempting to craft the perfect business plan. While most of these business plans are an impressive compilation of detailed objectives, progress trackers and PowerPoint slides, they often end up collecting dust.

The challenge is that most plans are unnecessarily complex, which makes them difficult to execute. Instead, entrepreneurs can simplify this process by focusing their entire business vision on a single, powerful one-word theme for the year. This one-word business plan then acts as a strategic compass as opposed to a rigid map. Focusing on your one word will help the team stay aligned throughout the year and guide every action.

Related: 5 Ways to Simplify Your Business Plan and Almost Anything Else

1. Reflect on your past 12 months

Before you can chart a course for the next 12 months, it’s important to reflect on where you’ve been (and no, this doesn’t have to be at the start of a new calendar year). Schedule time to review the past 12 months, and start by listing your biggest wins, proudest achievements, what worked well and what didn’t. By being brutally honest about your past performance, you can lay the foundation for exploring potential opportunities, challenges and changes you want to focus on going forward.

2. Identify new opportunities

Beyond looking inside your organization, it’s important to take a look outward for new opportunities. Are there any trends that you haven’t capitalized on yet? Are there new markets or revenue streams that are untapped? A good way to identify these opportunities is to stay current by participating in industry events, reading relevant industry publications and networking.

Look for opportunities that involve new technologies, changing consumer behaviors and an evolving competitive landscape. Once you have a list of these new opportunities, you can identify which ones align with the strengths of your business and team, especially those that your competitors would struggle to replicate.

3. Pinpoint your biggest challenges

The next step is to turn your attention to what’s holding you back. Internal challenges might include gaps like outdated software, inefficient team processes or a lack of clear communication. External challenges could include supplier availability, growing competitor market share or changes in laws or regulatory requirements.

Entrepreneurs often have blind spots when it comes to identifying challenges in their business, so this is a good opportunity to gather feedback directly from your team. An outside perspective from a professional business coach or consultant can also be incredibly valuable.

Related: The Inevitable Challenges You’ll Face as Your Business Grows — and How to Handle Them

4. Craft your future vision

If you could wave a magic wand, where would your business be a year from now? As you craft this vision, consider all of the elements that you have evaluated up to this point. Think about what challenges you look to overcome and what opportunities you plan to seize.

A good practice is to write this vision in the present tense. For example, “my business has doubled its sales” or “I’ve created processes for my team that allow me to have a better work-life balance.” Writing in the present tense can help you envision how your future will feel and boost your excitement and motivation.

5. Brainstorm and choose your word

This is the creative heart of the process. Start by brainstorming a list of words associated with your vision. The key is to not censor yourself. Embrace the process and write down every word that comes to mind.

Once you have a list of a few dozen words, start eliminating them one at a time until you’ve found the one that aligns best with your vision. For example, a pest control company that wants to streamline its operation to reduce costs, improve customer response times and boost productivity might focus on the word “Processes.” A marketing agency that feels it has lost its creative edge might choose the word “Authenticity” to guide its campaign development.

If you don’t find a word that resonates with you deeply, don’t be afraid to scrap the list and try again. It’s important to get this right.

Related: How to Use Your Business Plan Most Effectively

6. Make it actionable and engage the team

Now that you have your chosen word, it’s time to let it drive your actions. The first step is to translate your word into concrete initiatives. Start by building a mind map of projects, changes and opportunities that support it.

For the pest control company I coach, focusing on “Processes” might mean a goal of streamlining a key process by 25%. For the marketing agency I coach, “Authenticity” might lead to a new policy to only work with brands that share their values. Ultimately, your word should be the primary filter for all decisions throughout the year.

Of course, the most powerful vision is a shared one. Your chosen word will only be effective if your entire team understands it. Take the time to communicate your word clearly and explain the vision behind it. Tell them the story of how you chose it and show them how their individual roles and tasks contribute to the larger theme. When your team is truly aligned, they can make decisions with confidence, solve problems more efficiently and work as a cohesive unit toward a common goal.

Embracing the one-word business plan can be an exciting new approach to leadership. It’s all about doing more of what matters most and trading complexity for clarity. By distilling your vision into a single, powerful word, you can transform your business, empower your team and ensure that every choice you make moves you in exactly the right direction.

Entrepreneurs live in a world of high-stakes decisions and constant motion. Every day, you are bombarded with problems to solve, opportunities to seize and teams to lead. Through the chaos, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and mentally drained. No matter how much gets done, your list continues to grow.

In an attempt to gain control, entrepreneurs spend countless hours attempting to craft the perfect business plan. While most of these business plans are an impressive compilation of detailed objectives, progress trackers and PowerPoint slides, they often end up collecting dust.

The challenge is that most plans are unnecessarily complex, which makes them difficult to execute. Instead, entrepreneurs can simplify this process by focusing their entire business vision on a single, powerful one-word theme for the year. This one-word business plan then acts as a strategic compass as opposed to a rigid map. Focusing on your one word will help the team stay aligned throughout the year and guide every action.

The rest of this article is locked.

Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/starting-a-business/how-a-1-word-business-plan-can-transform-your-company/496262




I Pushed Through Brain Fog for Years Before Discovering the Power of Root-Cause Clarity

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Brain fog. Fatigue. Trouble bouncing back after long days or stressful quarters. Many executives dismiss these symptoms as the inevitable price of leadership. But what if they aren’t just stressed? What if their bodies and environments are quietly working against them?

That question sits at the heart of what I call root-cause clarity: identifying the hidden triggers that undermine energy, focus and resilience long before they show up as major problems.

Related: Why Top Leaders Are Turning to Energy Medicine for an Edge

My turning point

At the height of my career in tech, I was struck by a car while seven months pregnant with my third child. The accident forced me to slow down and pay attention to my health in ways I had never considered. What began as a fight for survival became a search for deeper answers.

That search eventually led me into the world of diagnostics, functional wellness and culinary medicine. I became certified through a program accredited by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and I founded Small Hinges Health to help others ask the same question I had to face: what hidden factors might be quietly sabotaging your potential?

Along the way, I met others who had walked the same path — from pain to purpose — and were building solutions to help people uncover their own root causes. Their journeys echo the same lesson: clarity doesn’t just heal, it transforms how we lead and live. Here are two of those stories.

Carrie’s story: From illness to educator

Carrie Drinkwine’s life looked picture-perfect from the outside. She was ambitious, vibrant and determined. But behind the scenes, she was in constant pain. She grew up in a home with hidden mold and later faced an onslaught of chronic health challenges — relentless fatigue, widespread pain and infertility that defied explanation.

Doctor after doctor offered prescriptions, but no lasting relief. The disconnect between her outward success and her private suffering grew wider until she realized she had to dig deeper for herself.

Through years of research and trial, Carrie began exploring detoxification, regenerative approaches and cellular-level wellness. Piece by piece, she uncovered the root causes undermining her health. That transformation reshaped her purpose.

She went on to found Wise Wellness Clinic and later The Institute of Regenerative Health, where she now trains practitioners worldwide to help clients move beyond symptom-chasing and toward true root-cause analysis.

For executives, her story is a reminder: ignoring fatigue and brain fog isn’t resilience — it’s risk. The leadership lesson is simple: pushing through may win you short-term results, but true resilience comes from addressing what’s quietly draining performance.

Related: Why a Stress Detox Is Vital for an Entrepreneur

Jason’s story: From survival to advocacy

Jason Earle’s early years were marked by illness so severe that doctors once suspected cystic fibrosis. He was allergic to nearly everything in his environment, and his childhood was defined by inhalers, medications, and limitations.

Then, after his parents’ divorce, Jason moved out of his musty childhood home — and almost overnight, many of his symptoms disappeared. At the time, doctors attributed it to “spontaneous remission.” Years later, he realized something more fundamental: the damp, mold-filled environment he grew up in had likely been the root cause of his suffering.

Life dealt him further blows. At 14, he lost his mother to suicide. At 15, he was diagnosed with Lyme disease, leading to missed school and mounting setbacks. By 16, he had dropped out and was pumping gas for $7 an hour.

But in an unexpected twist, a chance encounter at that gas station opened the door to Wall Street. Within a year, Jason had become the youngest licensed stockbroker in U.S. history, earning a Guinness World Record at just 17. He built a successful career in finance, but the mystery of his early health struggles stayed with him.

When he later discovered the connection between mold and chronic illness, it reframed his past—and gave him a mission. He founded 1-800-GOT-MOLD? and developed the GOT MOLD?® Test Kit, giving people accessible tools to evaluate the air quality in their homes and workplaces.

For leaders, Jason’s message is clear: you cannot change what you refuse to measure. Hidden factors in your environment and body affect performance whether you acknowledge them or not. Clarity begins with data.

Lessons for leaders

For executives, these stories carry a powerful message. Brain fog and fatigue aren’t just signs of overwork – they may be signals of unseen obstacles draining performance. The real risk isn’t in asking too many questions, but in waiting until it’s too late.

Related: 5 Ways to Improve Productivity By Breathing Easier

Practical ways to start

  • Test your environment. Environmental toxins and nutrition imbalances can all impact how you show up at work.
  • Seek deeper diagnostics. Go beyond standard panels to uncover what might be quietly affecting resilience.
  • Invest in education. Learn enough to be your own advocate – because no one will prioritize your health more than you.

Carrie, Jason, and I share one truth: adversity can fuel more than just your mission, it can fuel clarity. Executives are trained to optimize systems and strategies, but the most important system – the body – is often ignored until it fails.

Root-cause clarity isn’t just a wellness strategy. It’s a performance strategy. And in leadership, clarity is the ultimate competitive edge.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/living/why-executives-should-stop-ignoring-brain-fog-and-start/496685




Healthcare Data Breaches Hit Millions Last Year Alone — Here’s What Founders Must Do Now

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

One of the most valuable commodities of our time now flows through our algorithms, powers the devices tracking our movements and fuels the newest health innovations — our data.

The list of items tracked is staggering, ranging from every step we take to our heartbeats and everything in between.

These moments are fueling a booming healthtech economy built on a skewed exchange: People generate data, and companies extract the value.

Related: Why Proactivity With Data Security and Privacy Is More Important Than Ever — and How to Be on Top of It

Under pressure

However, that architecture is cracking. Almost 193 million people are estimated to have been affected by the largest healthcare breach on record, the 2024 Change Healthcare attack. In 2024 alone, at least 14 data breaches hit one million patient records, with almost 238 million people exposed across these incidents. If our most valuable asset can leak at that scale, it would be fair to say data extraction isn’t just a moral grey area, but it’s operationally unsound as well.

In recent times, consumers have begun telling founders what they want instead: control. In April 2025, Pew reported 55% of U.S. citizens wanted more personal control over how AI is used in their own lives. This showcases a demand for agency in the new systems shaping our healthcare choices.

There is one fundamental thing entrepreneurs and founders should understand when building healthcare platforms today — treating your contributors as stakeholders rather than subjects will go a long way.

This means building products and policies where value flows inwards, not just outwards. The form can be as direct as paying for contributions, or strategically, by granting early access to features, premium analytics and dashboards or credits that unlock opportunities in research and care.

The bottom line is alignment. Richer, more consistent streams of high-quality data are generated when people feel they have an element of ownership. This richer data makes better algorithms, and better algorithms deliver products that justify the relationship.

Transparency is the friend of alignment

Make the data flows legible in the product: Tell people what you collect and why, where it goes and how long it stays there. Replace vague consent boxes with optional permissions that let a person authorize one use of their data and decline another, and show, in the product, how those toggles change access. When people can see and steer the flow, privacy stops being a legal document and becomes an experience.

Private companies are not the only ones who can benefit from implementing such systems, with public-sector research leaning into the same logic. The NIH’s All of Us program is designed to return value to participants while opening access for researchers. It has more than 866,000 participants, creating one of the most diverse health datasets in the world. It is clear that when participation is treated as a partnership, rather than a data grab, both the company and the individual benefit.

Related: What Brands and Consumers Can Do to Build a Privacy-First Digital Future

Ownership models

Switzerland is a great example of why ownership models matter. The country’s MIDATA initiative enables individuals to maintain their own health records, contribute to research on their own terms and govern the platform as members.

We see many companies built using blockchain technologies that often discuss delegating ownership of data, but traditional institutions can also take a leaf out of that book. You don’t have to tokenize anything to learn from that structure.

The shift begins with the story you tell. Instead of asking users for data so you can build, reframe it, ask them to build with you, and allow users to share the value their data creates. Map your data flows and surface them in the product itself.

By designing an incentive mechanism that is simple to understand and sustainable to manage, one that puts people at the center of the process, you will reap the rewards later and ensure you have the backing of your users as well.

One of the most valuable commodities of our time now flows through our algorithms, powers the devices tracking our movements and fuels the newest health innovations — our data.

The list of items tracked is staggering, ranging from every step we take to our heartbeats and everything in between.

These moments are fueling a booming healthtech economy built on a skewed exchange: People generate data, and companies extract the value.

The rest of this article is locked.

Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/science-technology/why-its-time-to-rethink-the-health-data-economy/496524




How Working With Rivals Can Actually Unlock Bigger Opportunities

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

For decades, business leaders were told to “crush the competition.” Market share was a zero-sum game; if your rival won, you lost. But in today’s interconnected economy, that thinking feels outdated. Companies that are thriving in 2025 aren’t just fighting competitors harder; they’re practicing something counterintuitive: co-opetition.

Co-opetition, the blend of cooperation and competition, is about partnering with rivals when doing so creates mutual value. You may still compete for customers, but you also collaborate where interests align. Think of it less like a boxing match and more like building a bigger stadium where both sides can play.

Related: Win-Win: Strategically Partner With Your Top Competitors

Why co-opetition is taking off

Several global trends are making co-opetition not just smart, but essential:

Complex supply chains: No company controls everything end-to-end anymore. Collaboration helps reduce costs and speed up innovation.

Customer expectations: Buyers want seamless solutions, and sometimes that requires rivals to connect services.

Technology ecosystems: Look at how Apple and Microsoft, once sworn enemies, now integrate their products for remote workers.

Capital efficiency: For startups, teaming with a competitor can open doors to distribution, investors or bundled products that would otherwise be out of reach.

In other words, co-opetition has shifted from a “nice to have” to a growth strategy.

Famous rivalries that turned into partnerships

Some of the most creative partnerships in recent years came from companies that used to fight fiercely.

  • Spotify and Uber: When Spotify partnered with Uber to let riders control music during trips, both sides benefited. Spotify gained listening hours; Uber improved the rider experience without building a music feature.
  • BMW and Toyota: These two auto giants co-developed fuel cell tech and sports cars. Instead of duplicating billions in R&D, they shared costs while still competing in the showroom.
  • Pepsi and Coca-Cola: You’ll never see them share a Super Bowl ad, but behind the scenes, they teamed up on recycling. Both brands win when packaging becomes more sustainable and cost-effective.

The lesson: True co-opetition creates value that neither party could generate alone.

Related: Why Partnering With Your Competition Could Be Your Key to Success

Why entrepreneurs should care

For founders and small businesses, the stakes are even higher. Limited resources make co-opetition a powerful lever.

  • Bigger reach: Two SaaS startups, one in HR, another in payroll, might compete for small business budgets. But if they bundle services into a joint package, they can land bigger clients together.
  • Credibility boost: Teaming up with a competitor signals strength. It tells customers and investors you’re focused on expanding the pie, not just hoarding your slice.
  • Lower costs: Joint marketing events, shared research or co-authored thought leadership can cut expenses in half.

In fact, a study in the Strategic Management Journal found that firms engaging in co-opetition often see stronger innovation outcomes than those going it alone.

How to partner with a rival (without losing your edge)

Of course, collaboration with competitors isn’t without risks. Done poorly, it can leak sensitive info or create brand confusion. Here’s how to do it right:

  1. Pick the right rival: Choose a competitor with complementary strengths, not a mirror image of your business.

  2. Set clear boundaries: Use agreements to define what data is shared, what’s off-limits and how success is measured.

  3. Start small: Pilot a low-stakes project like a joint webinar before committing to deeper collaboration.

  4. Keep the customer central: The partnership should improve the end-user experience. If it doesn’t, it’s not real co-opetition.

  5. Stay competitive: Remember, you’re still rivals. Healthy competition drives performance even as you cooperate.

The mindset shift founders need

Many entrepreneurs avoid co-opetition because they think it signals weakness. In reality, it signals confidence. It says: “We’re strong enough in our lane to work with others, not threatened by them.”

It also helps you avoid the scarcity mindset. Instead of seeing opportunity as a fixed pie, co-opetition shows you how to expand the pie. This is especially powerful in sectors like fintech, health tech and mobility, where no single company can solve every problem.

Related: How to Play Nice With Your Competitor(s) So Everyone Wins

The future is co-opetitive

Look around, and you’ll see this becoming the norm:

  • Amazon’s third-party marketplace partners with sellers who also compete with its own brands.
  • Google and Samsung teamed up to strengthen the smartwatch ecosystem against Apple.
  • Airlines, as one of the toughest, most cutthroat industries, build alliances like Star Alliance to expand global reach.

For entrepreneurs, the message is clear: The next decade of growth won’t just come from competing harder, but from collaborating smarter.

As the saying goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” In today’s world, that might even mean going together with your rival. The logic is simple: No single company can own every resource, technology or market. By finding areas where interests align, even rivals can unlock new customers, share costs and shape industries in ways that would be impossible alone.

Co-opetition isn’t about abandoning competition; it’s about knowing when to compete and when to collaborate so that everyone grows stronger in the long run.

For decades, business leaders were told to “crush the competition.” Market share was a zero-sum game; if your rival won, you lost. But in today’s interconnected economy, that thinking feels outdated. Companies that are thriving in 2025 aren’t just fighting competitors harder; they’re practicing something counterintuitive: co-opetition.

Co-opetition, the blend of cooperation and competition, is about partnering with rivals when doing so creates mutual value. You may still compete for customers, but you also collaborate where interests align. Think of it less like a boxing match and more like building a bigger stadium where both sides can play.

Related: Win-Win: Strategically Partner With Your Top Competitors

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‘I’m Play-Fighting With My Best Friends’: How WWE Superstar Chelsea Green Keeps It Light While Delivering Heavy Blows

Some people overcome career obstacles. Other people punch obstacles in the face.

Such is the case for WWE superstar Chelsea Green, who joined the How Success Happens podcast and shared her “follow your instincts” approach to making career decisions. Chelsea was studying kinesiology in college and aiming to become a physical therapist when she realized it wasn’t her “calling.” She thought about becoming a personal trainer, but after seeing a wrestling match—by chance—on TV, the plan changed. The drama, the athleticism, and the choreographed violence she saw on the screen immediately spoke to her: “Something triggered in my mind that is what I need to be doing,” she says.

She enrolled in a wrestling school that happened to be just down the road, putting her on a path to wrestling stardom and being crowned the first Women’s United States Champion. “Never be afraid to try new things,” Chelsea advises, “and also don’t be afraid to say, ‘This isn’t for me, I’m going to try something else.'”

Listen to Chelsea’s insights on ambition, resilience (i.e., finishing a match despite having freshly broken bones), and carving out her own version of success here or watch the conversation above. And check out her hard-earned success tips below. And grab a bag of ice — some of this advice hits hard.

Three Things Chelsea Green Suggests Ditching ASAP

Asking “What’s Next?”
Chelsea revealed how her early career was dominated by relentless goal-setting: “I set goals, and the minute that I hit that goal, I am immediately onto the next.” This constant chase left her unable to celebrate her victories, even when she made history as the first-ever United States Women’s Champion. “I was so focused on what’s next… I couldn’t enjoy what was happening in the moment.” She has since reframed her mindset: “In wrestling, it can be here today, gone tomorrow,” and now makes a conscious effort to savor each achievement.

Takeaway: Celebrate accomplishments as they come instead of always racing toward the next milestone.

Doing Homework
Chelsea’s journey was shaped by listening to her gut—even when it meant dramatic pivots. From leaving a kinesiology degree to traveling abroad and then abandoning a future as a personal trainer, she recalls: “I was on my computer doing some homework and wrestling came on TV. I just could not take my eyes off the screen. They were doing everything that I’ve ever wanted to do combined — they need to be fit and healthy, they’re dramatic, they’re doing stunts,” she remembers. That moment led her to drop out and enroll in wrestling school, launching her storied career.

Takeaway: Trust inner signals—sometimes the opportunity meant for you appears when least expected.

Setting a Routine
Unlike many athletes, Chelsea avoids strict pre-show routines: “Every venue is different… I never want to rely on a routine or a schedule that’s going to get messed up.” Her philosophy is “easy breezy,” ensuring she’s always ready. She keeps the pressure in check, telling her team before matches: “Girls, in 10 minutes we’re gonna be done and on our way to bed.” She credits her success with an ability to keep things light. “Look, you’re watching me play fight in my underwear with my best friends. It’s not that serious.”

Takeaway: Flexibility and humor can be powerful antidotes to stress—especially when stakes feel high.

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WWE | Getty Images

Some people overcome career obstacles. Other people punch obstacles in the face.

Such is the case for WWE superstar Chelsea Green, who joined the How Success Happens podcast and shared her “follow your instincts” approach to making career decisions. Chelsea was studying kinesiology in college and aiming to become a physical therapist when she realized it wasn’t her “calling.” She thought about becoming a personal trainer, but after seeing a wrestling match—by chance—on TV, the plan changed. The drama, the athleticism, and the choreographed violence she saw on the screen immediately spoke to her: “Something triggered in my mind that is what I need to be doing,” she says.

She enrolled in a wrestling school that happened to be just down the road, putting her on a path to wrestling stardom and being crowned the first Women’s United States Champion. “Never be afraid to try new things,” Chelsea advises, “and also don’t be afraid to say, ‘This isn’t for me, I’m going to try something else.'”

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https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership/how-wwes-chelsea-greens-punched-her-way-to-success/497091




Here’s How People Are Actually Using ChatGPT, According to OpenAI

Since its launch in November 2022, ChatGPT has changed the way people write emails, manage their social media accounts, and generate code. Now, a new report from ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is giving fresh insight into how people are really using the chatbot.

OpenAI’s researchers published a 64-page study on Monday with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) that found nearly 80% of all conversations with ChatGPT were concerned with three categories: practical guidance, seeking information, and writing help. The study, which was based on more than one-and-a-half million ChatGPT messages sent from May 2024 to July 2025 by 130,000 users, is the largest of its kind to date.

Here’s what it found:

Related: ChatGPT’s New Update Can Create PowerPoint Presentations and Excel Spreadsheets for You

What Are ChatGPT’s Demographics?

ChatGPT’s demographics have changed in the years since its launch.

The percentage of male users has declined from 80% in the first few months after the chatbot’s drop in late 2022 to 48% as of June 2025, which makes the chatbot’s primary user base now primarily female.

Meanwhile, nearly half of all messages sent to the chatbot since launch were sent by users under the age of 26. Gen Z is embracing AI, with a survey conducted by International Workplace Group earlier this year finding that close to two-thirds of Gen Z respondents were teaching their older colleagues how to use AI.

OpenAI also announced on Tuesday that it was creating a different version of ChatGPT for teen users under the age of 18 that prioritized teen safety.

How Are People Using ChatGPT?

  • Practical guidance

The most common use case was “practical guidance,” which is defined in the report as encompassing activities, such as tutoring, teaching, how-to advice, and coming up with creative ideas.

  • Seeking information

The next most popular category involved “seeking information,” which is labeled as searching for information about people, products, and current events, like conducting a web search.

The final popular use case included writing tasks that automatically generate emails and documents, and editing text. Writing was the most common use case at work, with an average of 40% of work-related messages on ChatGPT stemming from writing queries. Most requests asked ChatGPT to look at text the user had already written instead of creating something new. In other words, two-thirds of writing messages asked ChatGPT to edit, translate, critique, or modify text instead of generating new text.

“Writing dominates work-related tasks, highlighting chatbots’ unique ability to generate digital outputs compared to traditional search engines,” the study read.

Related: ChatGPT’s Creators Are Worried We Could Get Emotionally Attached to the AI Bot, Changing ‘Social Norms’

The study also classified messages another way, using three categories based on the kind of output the user was looking for: Asking, Doing, or Expressing.

“Asking” applies to nearly half of all messages sent to the chatbot (49%), which occurs when a user seeks information about a subject or a solution to a problem. “Doing” refers to tasks where a user wants an output, especially writing activities, and applies to 40% of all messages. “Expressing,” which refers to 11% of all messages, happens when a user communicates their views or feelings without asking for any information or action.

Based on these classifications, users were more likely to use ChatGPT to find answers to questions rather than to carry out tasks or express opinions. ChatGPT users tapping into the chatbot at work were most likely to use it to seek information and find information.

“Overall, we find that information-seeking and decision support are the most common ChatGPT use cases in most jobs,” the study reads.

Related: Is Your ChatGPT Session Going On Too Long? The AI Bot Will Now Alert You to Take Breaks

Despite discussion from tech leaders like Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, it seems like vibe coding is still niche. The study found that comparatively few users were tapping into ChatGPT to code; only 4.2% of messages were related to computer programming, much less than 33% of all work-related conversations with competing chatbot Claude from Anthropic.

Also, only a small percentage of users were using ChatGPT for companionship or guidance on social issues. Less than 2% of ChatGPT messages were about relationships and personal reflection, per the study.

Since its launch in November 2022, ChatGPT has changed the way people write emails, manage their social media accounts, and generate code. Now, a new report from ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is giving fresh insight into how people are really using the chatbot.

OpenAI’s researchers published a 64-page study on Monday with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) that found nearly 80% of all conversations with ChatGPT were concerned with three categories: practical guidance, seeking information, and writing help. The study, which was based on more than one-and-a-half million ChatGPT messages sent from May 2024 to July 2025 by 130,000 users, is the largest of its kind to date.

Here’s what it found:

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https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/how-people-are-using-chatgpt-openai-study/497193