238 cities are fighting for Amazon HQ2, the skill now worth millions, and more trending news

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From Chihuaha to Chicago to Calgary: Lured by the promise of 50,000 high-paying jobs, 238 cities and regions across North America threw hats in the ring to win Amazon’s HQ2, the tech giant announced. Just seven US states stayed out of the race for the $5 billion project, including Walmart’s home state of Arkansas (paywall); even hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico submitted a bid. Atlanta is emerging as a potential frontrunner, followed by Boston, Austin, and Toronto, according to popular betting site Paddy Power. The e-tailer will announce the winning region next year. ? Share your thoughts: #AmazonHQ2

AI experts are a hot commodity. There’s a major labor shortage in artificial intelligence, and that means experts are earning big bucks. There are only about 10,000 people in the world who have the experience and skills to do deep research on AI, reports The New York Times — and those specialists are increasingly sought after as the technology gains traction, with yearly compensation ranging from $300,000 to double-digit millions. Firms like Facebook and Google aren’t just competing with traditional tech rivals, but also with auto companies as the self-driving car race heats up. ? Share your thoughts: #AIWorkerShortage

GE wants to rethink executive pay as part of the “comprehensive changes” to its overall compensation plan, The Wall Street Journal reports. It’s part of wider adjustments and cost-cutting measures from new CEO John Flannery; he’s also recently ditched the corporate jets and announced plans to sell $20 billion in assets. While the manufacturing giant didn’t elaborate on potential compensation shifts, experts told the Journal they may involve aligning performance metrics to short-term goals instead of long-term targets — which can spark immediate changes. GE’s stock just dropped the most in six years in the wake of a reduced 2017 profit forecast. ? Share your thoughts: #GECompensation

Snap is putting the brakes on hiring. Snapchat's parent company laid off workers across teams, including 18 from its recruiting operation. More cuts are likely to come, reports Business Insider, and the company also said in a letter last month that hiring will slow in 2018. Snap already laid off about a dozen people working on its Spectacles camera glasses in September; according to The Information (paywall), the company overestimated demand and “now has hundreds of thousands of unsold units sitting in warehouses.” ? Share your thoughts: #SnapSlowdown

Netflix is raising $1.6 billion to fund its content kingdom. The streaming service is selling new debt to support up to $8 billion in content costs next year — efforts that will see the release of some 80 original films, the company has said, on top of its television programming. Netflix’s biggest fundraising target yet, it’s the fourth time in the past three years the company has raised at least $1 billion through bonds; Netflix also recently announced that it would raise prices for the first time in two years. Those expenditures have helped boost subscribers, with the entertainment firm adding a more-than-expected 5.3 million. ? Share your thoughts: #NetflixFundraising

Idea of the Day: “In an uncertain and changing world, there is still a competitive advantage to being human,” writes Kellogg School of Management CIO Betsy Ziegler. One key way to stay ahead? Learn how to learn.

“Often students believe that once they cross the graduation stage, they are done – they have reached the finish line. In today’s world this is an impossible end point – they can not stand still, they must have the confidence and persistence to assess their skills, understand their gaps and seek help in closing them.”

What's your take? Join the conversations on today's stories: #AmazonHQ2 | #AIWorkerShortage | #GECompensation | #SnapSlowdown | #NetflixFundraising

— Katie Carroll / Share this using #DailyRundown