Nintendo's Big Bet on Switch 2

Four years after launching a regulatory crackdown that plunged the tech sector into turmoil, China’s President Xi Jinping sat down publicly with Alibaba Group’s co-founder Jack Ma, whose firm bore the brunt of that campaign, and a number of other tech titans. On today's Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Lucille Liu and Opinion columnist Catherine Thorbecke about Xi’s shifting stance and where the tech industry goes from here. Read more: Xi’s Embrace of China Tech CEOs Spurs Hope of Big Economic Shift - Bloomberg Further listening: China’s New Game Plan For Dealing with Trump Tariffs See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

26 Feb 15min

More than half of Americans enrolled in Medicare receive their coverage from a private insurer through a program called Medicare Advantage. But according to whistleblowers, some of those companies may be overcharging the government and getting billions of taxpayer dollars in the process. Several Justice Department investigations have followed those claims. On today’s Big Take podcast, we hear from one of those whistleblowers and Bloomberg health-care reporter John Tozzi about how Medicare Advantage took off and the questions these fraud allegations raise about how taxpayer dollars are spent. Read more: Major Insurers Are Scamming Billions from Medicare, Whistle-Blowers Say Medicare Advantage Fraud Case Settled for Up to $100 Million UnitedHealth Falls on DOJ Probe Into Medicare Billing See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

25 Feb 16min

Doug McMillon has been running Walmart since 2014. He’s credited with pushing the company into the digital age and successfully steering it through the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, he’s turning his attention to the company's next chapter and new challenges ahead. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Jaewon Kang and Devin Leonard travel to Bentonville, Arkansas, to interview McMillon about navigating a second Trump presidency, appealing to higher-end shoppers and the company’s ambition to go after Amazon’s e-commerce crown. Read more: Walmart Wants to Be Something for Everyone in a Divided America Inside Walmart’s Corporate Culture Clash Over E-Commerce How Walmart Keeps an Eye on Its Massive Workforce See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

24 Feb 16min

The price of eggs was up 15% in January, driving overall inflation higher. The cause? Bird flu. We’re joined by farmer Jim Hayes, as well as the hosts of Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast, Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway, to talk about how bird flu threatens the chicken supply chain and public health — and what, if anything, can be done to lower egg prices. Listen to Beak Capitalism from Odd Lots.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

21 Feb 16min

Monday marks the three year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. And over the last few days, Trump has revealed his approach to ending the conflict. It would reverse years of US foreign policy in the region and has, so far, left Ukraine out of direct conversations with Russia. On today’s Big Take DC podcast, Bloomberg reporter Iain Marlow takes us inside the historic US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia and explains what Trump’s pivot in policy and alliances could mean for America’s role on the global stage.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

20 Feb 13min

Over the last four-and-a-half years, the footprint of Elon Musk’s Texas business empire has undergone rapid expansion. It now includes SpaceX facilities and a sprawling Tesla gigafactory outside the state capital. New Bloomberg reporting shows that undocumented workers helped to build some facilities — even as Musk ratcheted up his anti-immigration rhetoric and advocated for a border crackdown.On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Julia Love investigated how undocumented workers ended up at these sites — and the conditions they encountered — and joined host Sarah Holder to share what she found. Read more: The Undocumented Workers Who Helped Build Elon Musk’s Texas GigafactorySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

19 Feb 19min

Since its US launch in 2022, Chinese marketplace Temu has rapidly risen to become America’s biggest e-commerce platform after Amazon, thanks to ultra-low prices on almost every product imaginable. On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha speaks to Bloomberg’s Spencer Soper and Rachel Chang about Donald Trump’s order to close a tariff loophole and what it means for American shoppers and the giants supplying them with goods direct from China. Further listening: The Tariff Wars Are Here — And They’re MessySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

18 Feb 16min

Prospera is a city-state operated by a private company on the Honduran island of Roatan. It offers businesses single-digit tax rates and the ability to choose their own regulations. Its proponents have touted it as a poverty relief initiative for the country and as the most ambitious experiment in self-governance ever undertaken.But that dream is now facing an existential crisis. A little more than a decade after Honduras changed its constitution to allow for places like Prospera, a new political party is in charge — and they’re looking to shut the whole thing down. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg Industry Group’s Umar Farooq and Bloomberg’s Michael McDonald join host Sarah Holder to break down the $11 billion battle over the fate of a special economic zone in the Caribbean. Read more: A Libertarian Island Dream in Honduras Is Now an $11 Billion NightmareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

17 Feb 19min