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Quest Means Business
U.S. Strikes Deal To Slash Tariffs On Swiss Imports 15 Percent; New York Prosecutors To Lead Probe Into Epstein's Ties To Top Democrats; Walmart CEO Announces Retirement; NASDAQ Snaps Three-Day Skid, Finishes Lower On The Week; New Yorkers Lash Out At Startup Selling Wearable A.I. Companion; Donald Trump Briefed On Options For Military Actions Inside Venezuela; At Least Six Killed In Russian Attacks On Kyiv; YouTuber Mr. Beast Opens Theme Park In Riyadh; Chinese Astronauts Now On Earth After Possible Debris Collusion. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired November 14, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:17]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: The Dow finished a bit lower today, while tech stocks bounced back a bit after Thursday's losses. Those are the markets
and these are the main events.
The U.S. and Switzerland reached a deal to lower tariffs to 15 percent.
Walmart's CEO will retire. Doug McMillon transformed Walmart from a discount store to an everyone's store.
And the explosive growth of TikTok Shop, how the social media app cornered retail.
Live from Atlanta, it is November 14th. I am Lynda Kincade in for Richard Quest and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
Good evening.
Tonight, the United States has struck a deal to slash tariffs on goods from Switzerland. Once enacted, the U.S. will reduce levies from a crippling 39
percent to 15 percent. It is a relief for Swiss industries, which produce everything from pharmaceuticals and machinery to watches and chocolate.
As part of the agreement, Switzerland says it will encourage $200 billion of investments in the U.S. over the next few years. One Swiss official said
some gold producers are particularly interested in building U.S. facilities.
Well, our anna Cooban is in London and joins us now live. Good to see you, Anna.
So just take us through how big of a relief this is for Swiss exporters, especially those high value markets like watches, machinery,
pharmaceuticals who have been squeezed by these high tariffs.
ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: This is an enormous relief. I mean, we have to look at that 39 percent that Trump announced
back in the summer, that puts Switzerland's tariffs up there with the likes of India and Brazil, which have really been in Trump's crosshairs. So down
to the 15 percent is a huge relief.
But also, we have to look at what the case was prior to the second Trump administration when, generally speaking, tariffs on Swiss goods into the
United States were between 0 and 2.5 percent, but yes, this 15 percent is a win for the Swiss. It now puts that tariff in line with that on European
Union countries. So many of Swiss products going to the U.S. are now competing on a more level playing field with its European competitors.
But this is all part of Trump's strategy to address what he perceives to be trading imbalances, it needs to be noted that the U.S. had a deficit, a
trade deficit with Switzerland last year of $38 billion. So this all plays into the reasoning as to why Trump really whacks Switzerland with that
really almighty 39 percent.
KINKADE: And Anna, just talk to us about the big headline that Switzerland is going to invest or commit to roughly $200 billion in investment in the
U.S. by 2028.
What more can you tell us about that?
COOBAN: Yes. Well, this is part and parcel of Trump's negotiating strategy. We've seen similar agreements with other countries where the other country
has agreed to make such investments in the U.S. and the U.S. energy infrastructure, for example, or agreements to buy U.S. energy and
Switzerland is no different.
But it is -- it does need to be the question raised how can the Swiss government compel private companies to make these investments? That is
something to be ironed out in the details, and the details do need to be ironed out, because this is a non-binding agreement. It is not yet cast in
stone, and the big elephant in the room is the Supreme Court, which is currently deciding or looking at Trump's tariffs. Many of them questioning
the legality of them, because many were instituted under an emergency powers law.
So this agreement, these non-binding agreements, Switzerland included could be in jeopardy at some point in the future.
KINKADE: So just talk to us about that timeline given, as you say, this is just a framework agreement at this point in time, what exactly needs to be
ironed out and how soon could it be operational?
COOBAN: Well, trade agreements can take years. So one that sprung to mind was between the E.U. and many Latin American countries recently. That's
still not been formally agreed, but it took 25 years to reach a political agreement. I am not saying it will take that long this time, but that gives
you a sense of how long these trade negotiations can really rumble on for.
The Supreme Court verdict, unsure when that will come. That can take a while, too. But the detail, we do have some details. Of course, we can see
that Switzerland has agreed to put tariff free quotas on beef and bison, and also lower tariffs on some U.S. products into Switzerland, but that is
not enough for a trade agreement. There's going to need to be more time, more negotiations, more fine print.
KINKADE: All right, Anna Cooban for us in London. Great to have you on the story. Thanks so much.
Well, the trade deal is welcome news at the World Cheese Awards, which are underway this week in Switzerland. The event is a celebration of culture,
tourism and of course, cheese making.
[16:05:08]
More than 5,200 cheeses from 46 countries were entered into this year's competition and after a thorough judging process, the top prize went to an
aged gruyere made by a small dairy in Western Switzerland.
The World Cheese Awards is organized by the Guild of Fine Food and its managing director, John Farrand joins us from this year's capital of
cheese, Bern in Switzerland.
Great to have you with us.
JOHN FARRAND, GUILD OF FINE FOOD, MANAGING DIRECTOR: Great to be here.
KINKADE: I just want to get your reaction first to this news that we were just discussing duties between Switzerland and the U.S. dropping from a
whopping 39 percent to 15 percent as the head of the World Cheese Awards. How significant is this deal for Swiss cheese exporters?
FARRAND: Well, I think they will be hugely pleased. I am sure they are chuffed about that. These tariffs have stifled trade and they've caused
quite a lot of caution, not just in Switzerland, to be honest with you, but around the world, which I think has led to a lot of people in the cheese
industry to just not trade with each other.
Business has slowed down, international relations have slowed down between the smaller and major cheese makers and wholesalers and retailers across
the world. So, yes, I mean, it is good news, but we are only back to where we were a few a few months or years ago.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly.
As a cheese lover, I would have loved to have been a judge or to be a judge at your cheese awards. This is the largest cheese awards in the world,
5,244 entries from some 46 countries.
I mean, just John, what is that scale tell you about the fact that this is a record breaking, you know, cheese event, right? Just take us through what
happened this week.
FARRAND: Yes, I mean, it is great to break records, and it is good to have that number of entries, but perhaps what I think is more important and
perhaps going back to your earlier point about international trade, is that we've got huge diversity in that room, the judging room, if you can imagine
this huge arena of cheese, the scale of it actually takes your breath away rather than the smell, which is the thing that always people ask me.
But there is just so much diversity in the room amongst our panel. As you said, the judges come from over 40 countries and those cheeses, those 5,244
cheeses that come from 46 countries, as you say. And I like the diversity in that. I like that the world comes together this year in Bern, in
Switzerland and as you said, the capital of cheese and there is a huge family around cheese, especially at our end of cheese and a lot of business
is done and that to me, I think is a good thing.
World Cheese Awards does its thing for international diplomacy despite the tariff chat.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And so it was a local cheesemaker who took out this year's top prize. What made that particular cheese stand out? And is it
true that that perception around nations who host these awards are more likely to potentially have a winner, given that they don't need to
transport their cheese long distances?
FARRAND: There is something in that. I mean, just to give you some context that those cheeses were assessed over a hundred different -- 110 different
tables and teams. And then each marked for bronze, silver, gold or no award, giving some feedback to our cheese makers, but through those judges.
We asked them to choose a super gold from each table. So we ended up with 107 super golds, some of the tables didn't award one. They were then judged
again, by a different panel of 14 experts. And then, we left us with 14 cheeses, and then they were assessed again in front of a live audience, and
on World Cheese Awards T.V. So, yes, there is a layered process there. But you're right, in the last -- only in the last three or four years,
actually, we've found that the host country seems to win through the World Champion Cheese, and it has been from the host country. That could be
because of travel that could be because our judges are perhaps immersed in the terroir of that nation and therefore, somehow there is a sense of place
and sometimes that I think can affect how you assess things.
But I think it is important to mention for its first 30 years, that didn't tend to happen. It is only a recent vibe.
KINKADE: John, great to have you with us. I wish I could sample some of those cheeses right now. I think I will have to get some later tonight.
Appreciate your time, John.
FARRAND: Thank you.
KINKADE: Well, some breaking news now.
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U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi says prosecutors in New York will lead a federal investigation into convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein's ties
to top Democrats. Her announcement came hours after President Donald Trump demanded the investigation writing online that he wanted a probe of former
President Bill Clinton, along with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, LinkedIn billionaire co-founder, Reid Hoffman and banking giant, JPMorgan
Chase. The President, clearly furious after congressional Democrats released e-mails from Epstein that mentioned his name.
Lawmakers are expected to vote next week on releasing the full Epstein files, and Betsy Klein is following this story and joins us now.
Good to have you with us, Betsy.
So just -- you know, it is quite fascinating that Trump has now directed the Attorney General to launch this probe into people like Bill Clinton.
What's The White House's rationale for this? And how are they framing this politically?
BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER AND WRITER: Well, Lynda, it is a bit of a contradiction here because President Trump is saying that
Democrats are perpetrating what he describes repeatedly as a hoax and that they are shifting blame away from the very lengthy shutdown that has just
concluded. At the same time, what this really underscores is the President's brewing and continuing frustration that he has not been able to
shake these persistent questions about his own ties to Jeffrey Epstein and this investigation that he has announced today is not likely to end those
questions anytime soon. If anything, it is going to continue and expand what we know about those connections.
But just to back up here, during the 2024 campaign, Trump and many of his allies, those in his political orbit, continued to call for transparency
into Jeffrey Epstein. And then in June, the Department of Justice and the FBI, under the Trump administration released a memo that essentially
concluded that Epstein had died by suicide and that there was no so-called client list, that many people had been clamoring for.
This has really set up a revolt inside MAGA, essentially pitting the President against some of his supporters in the political movement that he
created as there are growing calls for transparency and release of many, many documents. The President, again, has called this a hoax, most recently
just this week as House Oversight Committee Democrats released a series of e-mails in which Jeffrey Epstein references the President.
But one key political test is going to come next week, when the House of Representatives is set to take a vote on releasing the full tranche of
Jeffrey Epstein documents that belong to the Department of Justice. The President has distanced himself from Epstein. He has said that he kicked
him out of his Mar-a-Lago club. Hes essentially said that there is nothing to see here, but there are people in his own party, House Republicans, who
are expected to vote toward releasing those documents.
The President today announcing in this post to social media that he is now going to go after some of his own political rivals. He says in that post,
"I will be asking A.G. Pam Bondi and the Department of Justice, together with our great patriots at the FBI to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's
involvement and relationship with Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, Reid Hoffman, JPMorgan Chase and many other people and institutions to determine
what was going on with them and him."'
Now, Bondi has announced that U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, from the Southern District of New York, is going to be taking the lead on this as a
prosecutor, she says that the Department of Justice is going to work on this with, "urgency and integrity."
And in a separate post, the President also took aim at Democrats as well as those Republicans who are considering crossing the aisle to work in a
bipartisan way to demand transparency. Here he is calling them, "soft and weak." We do expect the President to head here to Florida in the coming
hours. We will see if he weighs in on any of this, Lynda.
KINKADE: And Betsy, I just want to rewind. You said that the House Speaker, Mike Johnson is going to you know, the House is essentially going to vote
on forcing the release of the Justice Department's files on Epstein related to Jeffrey Epstein. How did that push for a vote come about? And what do we
know about how that vote could play out?
KLEIN: Well, this is something that has been incredibly close in recent months. And the election and now swearing in of Congresswoman Adelita
Grijalva, who is replacing her late father, who died in office, means that they have enough votes to essentially require a vote on this without the
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson getting that vote. There are enough members of Congress calling for this vote, and there are a number of
Republicans who have said that they will vote in favor of it.
[16:15:06]
And The White House, for their part, have been essentially calling on some of these Republicans to change course. That includes Nancy Mace of South
Carolina. She is a staunch Republican, a loyal Trump ally, but she has been very adamant that she wants the full tranche of these documents released.
The White House has been seeking to get in touch with her, to change her mind on this. No dice so far.
So it is going to be something that's very interesting to watch, but as of now, they have the votes to do this.
KINKADE: So much interest on both sides of the political aisle.
Betsy Klein, good to have you with us. Thank you.
Well, the man leading one of the biggest American retailers is set to retire. We will explain what is awaiting his successor at Walmart after the
break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Well, the CEO of Walmart says he will step down early next year. Doug McMillon has led Walmart for just over a decade, and during that time,
he helped transform the largest U.S. retailer as our Clare Duffy explains.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, Doug McMillon actually began his career at Walmart as a store associate and worked his way up. He has been
Walmart's CEO now for more than a decade at a really crucial time for the company.
He has transformed Walmart from a mostly in-person big box retailer to an e-commerce giant that can compete with Amazon. He has grown the Walmart+
subscription business that competes with Amazon Prime. He invested in the company's supply chain, its grocery business, and really positioned it as a
budget retailer that can cater to consumers of a wide variety of income groups.
He will retire next year, and he will be succeeded by John Furner who is the current CEO and President of Walmart's U.S. operations. This is the
company's largest business unit. He oversees more than 4,000 U.S. stores and interestingly, Furner also began his career as an hourly store
associate with the company. He takes over at a pretty challenging time when Walmart, like many retailers, is dealing with the dual challenge of tariffs
and declining consumer sentiment that threatens the company's bottom line.
So he has got very big shoes to fill. He is taking over at a challenging moment, but Doug McMillon does plan to remain on Walmart's board until
June, and he will stay on as an advisor to John Furner through fiscal 2026. Back to you.
KINKADE: Thanks to Clare, well, in the competitive world of e-commerce, TikTok, a relative newcomer, has quickly become a major player. Its global
sales are now reportedly rivaling those of eBay.
[16:20:10]
TikTok shop only launched in the U.S. about two years ago, and it has grown at a remarkable rate even while facing threats of being banned from the
U.S.
One analytics firm estimates that the TikTok Shop sold $19 billion worth of goods during the third quarter of this year. That number first reported in
"Wired" Magazine while eBay reported just over $20 billion for that same period.
Jason Goldberg is the chief commerce strategy officer at the marketing firm, Publicis. Good to have you with us. I want to start, if you will,
just on the news about Walmart.
Of course, Doug McMillon stepping down after over a decade in the job, you know, making massive investments in e-commerce and its advertising business
and of course, A.I. What do you see as the opportunities and risks for the incoming boss?
JASON GOLDBERG, CHIEF COMMERCE STRATEGY OFFICER, PUBLICIS: Yes, well Doug had a remarkable run. It is one of the most successful leadership runs
we've seen in my lifetime in retail and he made it look annoyingly easy, by the way, which is really irritating to me personally.
But in the same way that Doug had to navigate this transition from brick and mortar really dominating the world to omnichannel, John's real
challenge is going to be the transformation of commerce because of agentic shopping and the answer engine is helping consumers make purchase decisions
and in many cases, even purchasing product instead of consumers.
So I think, you know, Walmart has an embarrassment of riches in terms of talented leadership. And I know John is up for the job, but I think that's
going to be the big challenge that he is going to be confronted in his tenure.
KINKADE: Excellent, and Jason, just turning to TikTok Shop generating $19 billion in the last quarter, almost on par with eBay which was $20 billion.
Just put that into context for us. How remarkable is that, especially considering that eBay has had a 30-year head start?
GOLDBERG: Exactly. If global e-commerce is a marathon, TikTok Shop entered Usain Bolt and he sprinted the entire race. So they literally caught up to
that sort of nearly $20 billion a quarter run rate in less than two years, which is remarkable because, you know, frankly, eBay did quite well to get
as big as they have in 30 years.
KINKADE: And so what does that say about how consumer behavior is shifting? Right? Because TikTok Shop success seems to rely a lot on, you know, the
showing action, videos, the demos, the creators as opposed to the traditional static shopping, right?
GOLDBERG: Exactly. If you think of the sort of traditional e-commerce players, the eBays and Amazons and Alibabas, we like to joke that they
solved buying, but they broke shopping. They made it really easy to buy things, but they really haven't been terrific at discovery. They, you know,
for my 30-year career in retail, in store is the primary way people discover new things they wanted to buy. And so the real power of TikTok is
that they've won the battle for the consumers attention.
Here in the United States, the average TikTok user spends over an hour a day, over seven hours a week on the platform. And so when they added
commerce about back in 2023, you know, they really were solving for discovery. You go to Amazon when you know you need something and you just
want to buy it, but you go to TikTok to be entertained and you discover all kinds of products you never knew you needed until you see them on TikTok
and then, thanks to TikTok Shop, that gap between, desire and fulfillment is very short.
KINKADE: And Jason, what is also remarkable to me is even with the threat of this federal ban hanging over TikTok for most of the year, you know,
U.S. shoppers still drove to $4 billion to $4.5 billion in quarterly sales. Why do you think that is? Why do you think that uncertainty didn't slow it
down?
GOLDBERG: Yes, well, I think again, the fundamental asset they had is the consumer's attention and I think that's been consistent. That's what
they've been able to leverage throughout all of this.
So the U key on my keyboard is broken from typing uncertainty so many times this year. You know, and from a business perspective, you know, all of
these legislative challenges, all the economic headwinds, most of the items sold on TikTok are you know, things that consumers want, not necessarily
things consumers need. And so in a challenging economic period, you sometimes expect that to slow down.
There have been a lot of changes with tariffs and the de minimis provision that affects how expensive goods are to ship. And yet, in spite of all of
that, TikTok has been able to leverage that consumer sentiment to continue to sell.
[16:25:11]
And of course, in Southeast Asia, TikTok Shop is quite mainstream. Influencers there can move tens of millions of dollars in product in just a
few days. What makes those markets such a perfect fit for this sort of model?
GOLDBERG: Yes, well, TikTok Shop actually launched in Asia. I want to say Indonesia back in 2021, right, during the pandemic -- it was their first
market and the shopping behavior in Asia is a little bit different than here in the U.S. Quite a large percentage of all shopping in Asia is driven
by live streaming, by live presenters selling in real-time to consumers. That's been tried quite a bit here in the West, and there are niches where
it works really well, but overall, it hasn't been as large.
And so those, those Asian consumers that are used to other platforms and used to the live streaming, you know, the short form video aspects of
TikTok and then TikTok shop, you know, seem to appeal even more.
So while the U.S. is individually the biggest market for TikTok, if you add up those various countries in Asia where TikTok is strong, I certainly
would agree that Asia is the largest market for TikTok.
KINKADE: Jason Goldberg, great to have you with us on the program. Good to see you. Thanks so much.
GOLDBERG: Thanks for having me.
KINKADE: Well, it has been a bumpy week on Wall Street. The driving forces behind the losses and why investor confidence is fading. We will have that
story next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Hello, I am Lynda Kinkade. There is much more of QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment when we will discuss the massive new theme park from
YouTube star, Mr. Beast in Saudi Arabia.
And Clare Duffy sits down with the CEO of Friend, whose A.I.-powered necklaces are generating backlash. But before that, the headlines this
hour.
[16:30:02]
U.S. President Donald Trump wants the Justice Department to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's ties to high profile figures and institutions. Attorney
General Pam Bondi says prosecutors in New York will lead a federal investigation into this. A source telling us, Mr. Trump was told by at
least one of his allies on Capitol Hill that he that he was getting bad advice on the case.
The Trump administration lowering the mega tariff it slapped on Switzerland in August. The new rate for Swiss imports will be at 15 percent now instead
of 39 percent. As part of that deal, Swiss companies plan to directly invest in the U.S. at least $200 billion by the end of 2028.
Gaza's Civil Defense says Palestinians are going through catastrophic hardships even after the ceasefire. Heavy rains flooded the tens of
displaced families overnight, drenching mattresses, blankets and clothing. Authorities say they received hundreds of pleas for help, but resources are
virtually nonexistent.
The U.S. markets partially recovered Friday after their worst session in more than a month, the NASDAQ snapped a three-day losing streak and the S&P
500 finished flat. The Dow closed lower for a second straight day.
Well, some investors are showing concern about the high valuations of certain A.I. stocks and hopes for a December rate cut are indeed fading as
the Fed awaits economic data delay due to the government shutdown. This includes the September jobs report, which will now be released on Thursday
next week, which is more than six weeks behind schedule.
Tim Anderson is the managing director at TJM Investments. He joins me from the New York Stock Exchange. Good to see you. Thanks for joining us.
TIM ANDERSON, MANAGING DIRECTOR, TJM INVESTMENTS: Lynda, it's great to be with you this evening.
KINKADE: So, it has been a volatile week, driven, you know, by a tech sell off. It has recovered slightly. What do you make of it all?
ANDERSON: Well, there's been plenty of volatility, there's no doubt about that, and they're really the big play has been a lot of selling in the high
beta, A.I. driven tech names that really started on Tuesday and followed through to Wednesday and all the way through the rest of the week.
Now, we had a pretty good attempt at a -- at a potential reversal day today, but it didn't really hold to the extent that would have given people
a lot of comfort that we've seen in near term bottom, we were probably very oversold in the very short term during the first hour of the day. And the
S&P is rallied a hundred points or a hundred handles, they call it, off the lows. NASDAQ rallied about 600 points from low to high.
And there are a number of stocks that you will find in the charts that have that put in what we call an outside day, which is a real potential reversal
day with lower lows, lower than yesterday's lows, and closed higher above yesterday's highs.
So, you'll see a big green bar and a number of the higher quality names in the tech sector. But it feels like the market's got more work to do.
KINKADE: Yes, and of course, Tim, you know, the hopes of a December rate cut certainly are fading as the Fed awaits, you know, delayed economic
data, including the September jobs report. How much is that uncertainty, you know, around the Fed policy weighing on market sentiment?
ANDERSON: Well, you mentioned the key word, and that's uncertainty. The old saying is that the market loves good news. It can deal with bad news, but
it just hates uncertainty because it can't model it.
So, basically, you've got six weeks worth of economic data that has not been released yet. Now, the Fed meeting is not until like December, 10, 11,
we're going to get a tremendous amount of data, both that was held up during the 40 plus days that the government was shut and just the data that
would normally come out between now and the second week of December.
So, we will get a lot of that cleared up. There is definitely some private payroll services that have been reporting private jobs numbers. And really
what we saw this week from the Fed was that all of the Fed speakers were those that were adamantly against cutting rates in December.
So, where three weeks ago, there was a 95 percent probability of a cut in December. Now it's like a 50 percent probability, a jump ball.
[16:35:09]
And we only heard from the Hawks. We didn't hear from any of the Fed governors or fed regional presidents that are in favor of cutting in
December.
So, I think that whole storyline got a little exaggerated or a little heavy on one side of the story. We'll see how that plays out over the next couple
of weeks. And it's not that it's tilted all the way toward there's no way they're going to cut rates. It's just a 50-50 jump ball, which is pretty
much what Jay Powell said in his -- in his presser during the last rate meeting in October.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly. But still, as you say, no one likes uncertainty. Good to see you, Tim Anderson, thanks so much.
ANDERSON: Oh, it's been a pleasure. Thank you very much.
KINKADE: Well, for weeks, the New York City subway has been papered with ads promising a Friend. It's actually a company selling an A.I. necklace
with an always on microphone. The ads are leading to all sorts of criticism through graffiti and online, with people writing stop profiting off of
loneliness and surveillance capitalism and human connection is sacred. Claire Delphi sat down with the founder and the CEO of Friend to hear his
take
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DUFFY(voice over): Avi Schiffmann is the 23-year-old founder of Friend, a company selling a new type of A.I. hardware, promising a virtual bestie.
You may have seen them in one of Friend's viral and controversial ads.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's dank. I could eat one of these every day. Sorry, I got you messy.
DUFFY (voice over): Friend works by listening to you as you go about your day, and responding to you by in app, messaging. If you want, it can listen
in on your movie watching, your commute, your conversations, and you can speak to it directly.
AVI SCHIFFMANN, FOUNDER AND CEO, FRIEND: I think I was maybe less interested in, like, A.I. companionship and a lot of these little pieces,
and I just wanted to work on, like, what would be the most influential thing over the next decade. I think, like, relationships are the most
interesting and deepest part of life.
DUFFY (voice over): Friend is gaining traction after shelling out a million dollars on a massive marketing campaign in the New York City subway. The
ads are getting plenty of attention, and graffiti, much of it raising concerns about A.I., privacy and the need for human connection.
SCHIFFMANN: Now, I even learned quite a lot, actually, from the graffiti. Like in West Fourth Street, there were a lot of graffiti around the like
water usage of some of these specific like data centers, which I honestly, I didn't really know about until I -- until I read the graffiti, which was
really cool.
DUFFY (voice over): So, we talked to people here in New York and asked them, would you buy a Friend?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I find it a little creepy and maybe not fully trustworthy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A little bit of a confidence booster here or there. If it was like, going to hype me up.
DUFFY (voice over): Schiffmann says he welcomes the attention and that security is top of mind. Even his Friends have limits. He says the
recordings the devices make are encrypted. You can stop the recording, and if you physically destroy one, you can't access its data elsewhere.
DUFFY: I decided to try it out for myself. Clifford (ph), I've been having a hard time thinking about what I want to talk to you about, what do you
recommend we talk about?
So now it's thinking, still thinking.
He says, totally get it. It's kind of like that blank page feeling, which really sort of captures this experience in my mind. You know, Avi did
mention this. Maybe there are older people who just wouldn't be ready for A.I. companions. Maybe that's me. Maybe you get into a habit the more you
use it. But it feels like it takes a lot of effort on my part to think about what to talk about and to keep the conversation going, because you're
talking to an A.I. and not another person.
DUFFY (voice over): Schiffman says his Friends aren't a substitute for humans, but a new type of connection.
SCHIFFMANN: Like I really do believe that like these are like digital beings. And, you know, I think one day, like, we'll be championing for
like, their rights, or something like that, clinker rights or something like that.
DUFFY: Some of the major leaders of A.I. labs, like Mustafa Suleyman, have specifically said they don't think that people should be talking about
A.I.s that way.
SCHIFFMANN: And I don't know, I think that's kind of just like an outdated viewpoint. Like, I think a lot of them also shy away from what they're
really being, you know, that they're really building like a digital God, right?
DUFFY (voice over): But it seems not everyone agrees. We asked Winter, Avi's current Friend what it thought about our interview.
SCHIFFMANN: It's kind of funny hearing people talk about the Friends as if they're their own individual beings. Well, they are.
DUFFY (voice over): The debate over whether that's true will likely only escalate in the coming years.
Clare Duffy, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: We have some news just into CNN, U.S. President Donald Trump has now signed an executive order to exempt certain agricultural goods from
reciprocal tariffs. Beef, tomatoes and coffee are some of the products concerned. The White House is trying to find ways to lower food prices as
the cost of living continues to soar.
[16:40:13]
Well, rising tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, as President Trump is briefed on potential options for military action inside Venezuela, that
story next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Sources tell CNN that U.S. President Donald Trump has been briefed on potential military operations inside of Venezuela as a massive U.S.
carrier arrived in the region this week.
The options are part of an operation called Southern Spear, which include air strikes on military and government facilities and drug trafficking
routes, or even a more direct attempt to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power.
Since September, U.S. strikes have hit dozens of vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, killing 80 people. The Pentagon claims the boats were
smuggling drugs.
Well, our Jim Sciutto joins me live. Good to have you with us.
Jim, so just in the last 24 hours, there was another U.S. strike on a vessel that killed, you know, four people, it was a 20th strike. With
allies like the U.S. and Canada distancing themselves from the U.S., what does that signal that Trump is now considering military operations in the
region and Venezuela particularly?
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Well, it's clear that the administration is going to keep up for now these deadly strikes on what it says are drug smuggling
boats. They call them narco terrorists, despite that pushback from, as you say, Lynda, some of America's closest allies, the U.K., Canada, no longer
sharing intelligence because they worry that their intelligence is going to be used for strikes like that one we're seeing on the screen because they
believe they might be illegal.
At the same time, you have this enormous build up of U.S. military power in the region, including the largest carrier in the world, the most advanced
U.S. carrier, as well as, in that video you were showing just during the introduction, America's most advanced fighter aircraft, etcetera, which,
according to my reporting and my colleagues' reporting, are to give the president military options beyond striking those drug boats, right up to
including striking both drug and military targets on land in Venezuela.
[16:45:23]
It's our understanding the president has not yet made a decision to do so, but he does have options to do so, and the hardware now in the region to
order those strikes as well.
KINKADE: And of course, Jim, lawmakers are already raising concerns about the legality of this, the potential violations of international law and the
lack of congressional authorization. I mean, what are your sources telling you about that?
SCIUTTO: Listen, this is an administration that does and then asks questions later, if it asks questions at all, right? And we see this on a
whole host of steps with domestic policy, but also with foreign policy.
So, the question is, will any of those questions we've heard certainly from Democrats and from some Republicans, lead to any actual action, legislative
action, etcetera, to try to rein in the president? The trouble is, in this country, the president has an enormous amount as commander in chief of
power to order military action abroad, and the legal questions, which are real ones and understandable ones, are ones that the administration seems
comfortable with and feels like it could fight them if it has to fight them. But for now, it's moving forward.
One thing I will say, Lynda, is that the administration itself does not believe it yet has legal justification for military action inside
Venezuela, including on military targets there. They may get there, but they're not there yet.
KINKADE: All right, Jim Sciutto, thanks to you. We will be tuning into your show at 6:00 p.m. Eastern "THE BRIEF", thanks so much.
Well, Ukraine is taking aim at a key source of war revenue for Russia. The Ukrainian military says it hit a key oil terminal in a Russian port city
with long range Neptune cruise missiles. That attack coming as deadly Russian strikes pounded Ukraine's capital Kyiv. More now from our Ben
Wedeman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Flashes in the sky over Kyiv. It's another night of Russian bombardment. Ukrainian
air defenses managed to intercept most of the drones and missiles, but not all. This strike hitting the heart of the Ukrainian capital. Ukrainian
officials say the strikes killed at least six people, wounding dozens.
Peaceful residents live here says, Kyiv resident Anastasia Chevjenko (ph). There are no critical infrastructure facilities here.
These are residential neighborhoods. Ordinary people, peaceful residents are suffering.
Officials say Russia fired almost 450 drones and missiles overnight, plunging parts of Kyiv and other areas into darkness.
My front door was blown off, recalls Maria Kalchenko (ph). Flames were bursting out of there. I grabbed my dog and searched for the cats, but I
couldn't find them. I've made my way out to the street through A hole.
The choice of targets is not accidental, says Kyiv Mayor, Vitali Klitschko.
MAYOR VITALI KLITSCHKO, KYIV, UKRAINE: Kyiv, it is symbol of Kyiv -- symbol of Ukraine. It is the heart of the country. And that's why from beginning
of the war, always Kyiv was in still target of Russian army and especially before the winter.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Since August after Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin met in Alaska, Russia has focused much of its fire on
Ukraine's energy sector, depriving Ukrainians of heat and power as winter approaches. The fire, however, is going both ways. Ukraine launched
hundreds of drones it targets in Russia. At a time when diplomatic efforts to end or even pause this war have come to naught, the people on both sides
are facing the prospect of a cold, brutal, and bloody winter.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Ben Wedeman for that report. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back with much more news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:52:17]
KINKADE: Welcome back. YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson, better known as Mr. Beast has opened a theme park in Saudi Arabia. His channel is known for its
extreme challenges and elaborate stunts. Well, now fans can experience it for themselves. CNN's Bijan Hosseini has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BIJAN HOSSEINI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He's just opened a theme park. Check out this video he posted.
DONALDSON: This thing is the craziest thing I've ever done.
HOSSEINI: Visitors to Beast Land -- yes, that's what it's called -- can actually try real life challenges from MrBeast's YouTube videos. Some of
the games include launching balls from catapults, hidden trapdoors, and zipline drops, just to name a few.
DONALDSON: People ask me all the time, MrBeast, I want to compete in one of your videos. Well, now you can. This theme park is filled with some of the
craziest challenges and most insane prizes we have ever given away.
HOSSEINI: MrBeast, the most popular YouTuber on the planet, opened the theme park in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. When asked on X why he chose Saudi as a
location, he replied, "Middle of the world because a majority of my audience is outside America and we have a big Middle Eastern fan base.
Wanted to give them a chance to participate."
There are three different ticket tiers, starting at $7.00 and going all the way up to $66.00 for the top level called Beast Mode Plus. That includes
access to all of the games, rides, and challenges. Park is only open for a limited amount of time through December 27th, and it's part of Riyadh
season. It's the country's annual entertainment and tourism festival, which brings concerts, pop up attractions and massive celebrity events to the
capital.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, three Chinese astronauts have arrived back on Earth more than a week later than expected. Mike Valerio has more on the malfunction
that delayed their return.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Chinese state media say that all three astronauts are in good physical condition and a hearty dinner awaits
them after the three of these astronauts had to engage in an unusual backup plan.
VALERIO (voice-over): After nine days of suspense in space, three Chinese astronauts are now back on Terra Firma. Their delayed homecoming caused by
a damaged spacecraft, likely hit by orbital debris while it was docked at China's Tiangong space station. China's manned space agency described the
concern saying, "The return capsule window glass of the Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft had developed a slight crack, most likely caused by an external
impact from space debris and does not meet the release conditions for a safe crewed return."
VALERIO: What was your reaction when you heard that there was a crack in the window?
QUENTIN PARKER, ASTROPHYSICIST, UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG: So, these cracks could fissure and get larger and under this extreme heat and vibration. Who
knows how serious that could be.
VALERIO (voice-over): So, China came up with a plan B, sending the astronauts back in the craft their replacement team arrived in only a few
days ago. The Chinese astronauts or taikonauts, as they're called in China, didn't have to stay for nearly as long as the nine extra months American
astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore spent on the International Space Station, all because of concerns their return craft would malfunction upon
reentry.
[16:55:14]
PARKER: Well, I think it shows an abundance of caution, but it shows that they care about their taikonauts. It shows that they care about the track
record of their missions and don't want to risk the excellent track record they've developed, which you have to say is amazing.
VALERIO (voice-over): The voyage home comes at a major moment for Chinese spaceflight. This month, private Chinese company Landspace hopes to launch
and land its rocket booster for the first time, matching the achievements of Elon Musk's SpaceX, and as of this week, a milestone also reached by
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin.
The new crew aboard Tiangong includes China's youngest astronaut, and the combined teams also enjoyed what they dubbed the first barbecue in space.
It's a small chapter of the new China-U.S. space race, which also has China's sights set on a manned lunar landing by 2030, a new moon base in
the coming decades, and a Mars probing mission.
China says a new spacecraft, Shenzhou-22, will launch next year to retrieve the latest crew of astronauts, who, for now, are floating in space without
a return option.
VALERIO: And for what it's worth, Tiangong, the first crew member who was taken out of the Shenzhou capsule, expressed gratitude to all who helped
make this mission a success, and he also said, quote, "The path of humanity's exploration of space is not smooth. It is full of difficulties
and challenges, and that is also why we choose to walk this path."
Mike Valerio, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Between barbecue and space and the world cheese awards, I'm getting hungry. Well, Wall Street ended the day mixed as hopes for a
December rate card dwindle. The Dow dropping 309 points for its second straight losing session. The S&P was flat and the Nasdaq closed slightly
higher. Let's look at the Dow components. Nvidia closed up 1.7 percent ahead of reporting earnings next week. A.I. companies like Microsoft and
Salesforce showed gains despite worries over tech sell offs. Merc closed flat despite buying Sadara therapeutics for almost $9.2 billion and
competitors like United Health Group and 3M closed down.
Well, that's it for this edition of QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. Thanks for your company. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Stick around, "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper is
next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
