4 things to know for July 21: Extreme heat, Strikes, AI, E-cigarettes

Here are 4 things you need to know for July 21

1 Extreme heat

More than 100 million people are under heat alerts across the southern US today as state and federal aid programs attempt to help people cool down. Abnormally high temperatures from coast-to-coast are also expected this weekend — and meteorologists say the heat isn’t letting up soon. There have been more than 1,900 record-high temperatures in the US so far this month, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NASA scientists also warned Thursday that we haven’t even seen the worst of El Niño and next year will likely be even warmer for the planet. The increased temperatures will generate about $1 billion in health care costs every summer as more people get rushed to the emergency room or admitted to the hospital to treat temperature-related conditions, a recent study found.

2 Strikes

A Broadway strike was averted Thursday after a deal was reached by the union representing 1,500 stagehands and other theater workers. A strike would have shut down shows in New York City and touring shows across the US today. The walkout threat came as 160,000 actors who are represented by SAG-AFTRA, as well as 11,000 members of the Writers Guild of America, are already on strike against major film studios and streaming services. And beyond the world of entertainment, there are many other unionized workers threatening to go on strike. More than 340,000 union members at UPS will go on strike against the package delivery giant on August 1 if there’s no deal on a new contract. Separately, looming strikes in the auto and hospitality industries are also threatening new rounds of walkouts.

3 Artificial intelligence

Microsoft, Google and other leading AI companies committed today to put new artificial intelligence systems through outside testing before they are publicly released, the White House announced. The companies also committed to clearly labeling AI-generated content which may lead to the widespread watermarking of AI-generated audio and visual content to combat fraud and misinformation. These voluntary commitments — agreed to by the White House and seven major AI developers — including Amazon, Meta, OpenAI, Anthropic and Inflection — aim to govern the rapidly growing industry for safety and security purposes. President Joe Biden is expected to meet with top executives from all seven companies at the White House today to discuss guardrails and potential legislation to regulate AI.

4 E-cigarettes

Over 1 in 10 young adults in the US regularly use e-cigarettes, according to a new report from the CDC. While previous findings have shown that cigarette use has fallen to record lows, e-cigarettes have increased in popularity. From 2020 to 2022, e-cigarette sales jumped to 22.7 million products sold each month. More brands — particularly disposable e-cigarette products — entered the market, while fruit and candy flavors that appeal to younger audiences became more popular. The CDC report arrives just days after the American Heart Association released a statement warning again that e-cigarettes carry risks for heart and lung disease. “The only people who should be using e-cigarettes are people who are smoking cigarettes and trying to quit,” said Dr. Joanna Cohen, director of the Institute for Global Tobacco Control at Johns Hopkins University.