Structured Products Are Back. Why the Boom and What’s the Catch?

As AI-generated images ping pong around the internet, the Walt Disney Company has been mostly playing defense, using litigation to protect its intellectual property. But last week, Disney announced a $1 billion deal with OpenAI, licensing more than 200 of its iconic Disney characters for use on OpenAI’s video platform, Sora. On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Bloomberg tech reporter Shirin Ghaffary and entertainment reporter Thomas Buckley about the terms of the deal, the opportunities and risks for each side and whether it might spur other similar partnerships. Read more: OpenAI Deal to License Disney Characters Is Entirely in Stock Hosted by: Sarah Holder; Produced by: Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by: Shirin Ghaffary and Thomas Buckley; Edited by: Tracey Samuelson; Fact-checking by: Naomi Ng and Eleanor Harrison-Dengate. Engineering by: Katie McMurran. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin. Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

19 Dec 19min

The trucking industry has long been dominated by older white men. But as those truckers steer toward retirement, who will replace them? On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder hits the road with Bloomberg’s Jaewon Kang, who’s been exploring how one company is trying to transform its trucking workforce. And we hear from MIT’s Chris Caplice, DAT Freight and Analytics’ Dean Croke and two Walmart truckers about what’s working for the industry and the challenges it faces on the road ahead. Read more: Walmart’s $115,000 Starting Pay and Better Rigs Draw Women to Trucking Hosted by Sarah Holder Produced by Julia Press Reported by Jaewon Kang Edited by Tracey Samuelson Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky Engineering by Katie McMurran Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver Executive Producer: Nicole BeemsterboerSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

18 Dec 15min

Treating cancer is a massive business. In 2024 alone, cancer treatments generated at least $200 billion in worldwide sales for the pharmaceutical industry, more than the obesity drug rush. But a Bloomberg News analysis showed that fewer than half of treatments reviewed — some of which have painful side effects — have been shown to extend patients’ lives. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg senior healthcare reporter Robert Langreth takes host David Gura inside what some doctors call the “cancer-industrial complex” — from the regulatory landscape that ushered in a wave of lucrative new drugs to the damaging financial and health impacts some treatments can have on patients. Read more: Cancer Drugs Cost More Than Ever. They Often Don’t Extend Lives. The Implants Were Supposed to Dissolve. They Didn’t. Pharma Is Pushing $200,000 Cancer Drugs When Cheaper Doses May Work Cancer Doctors Are Making a Fortune Off Drug-Trial Participants One Generic Cancer Drug Costs $35. Or $134. Or $13,000.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

17 Dec 19min

The Philippines is no stranger to typhoons, but this year’s storms exposed something far uglier: a vast corruption scandal. On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha speaks to Bloomberg’s Andreo Calonzo and Rosalind Mathieson about how billions of dollars earmarked for flood control vanished and what the crisis means for the country’s political and economic stability.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

16 Dec 19min

All year, the jobs market, consumer sentiment, AI and inflation flashed warning signs about the economy — but 2025 managed to avoid a recession. On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks with Bloomberg’s Stacey Vanek Smith and Moody’s Analytics Mark Zandi to understand what this year’s wonky economy can tell us as we head into 2026 and what to watch for in the new year. Read more: US Recession Risk Is Receding as We Move Into 2026See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

15 Dec 18min

Depending on who you talk to, AI is the key to remaking industries and jobs – or a bubble ripe to pop. And if you’re an investor, you’re already exposed. So what’s the best strategy for investing in AI now? On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder and Bloomberg personal finance reporter Suzanne Woolley talk to experts – ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, Fidelity International’s Taosha Wang, Allspring Global Investments’ Michael Smith and Janus Henderson Investors’ Denny Fish – about coming AI investment waves and potential warning signs. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

12 Dec 16min

From rising costs to shifting markets, American farmers are struggling to make ends meet. Now, the White House is stepping in. On today’s Big Take podcast, David Gura sits down with Bloomberg agriculture Reporter Erin Ailworth and a fifth-generation farmer to discuss President Trump’s $12 billion farm aid plan. What prompted the move, which sectors will be eligible and how ongoing tensions between the US and China have upended the market for certain crops and shifted how the US exerts its influence overseas. Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-08/us-farmers-say-12-billion-bailout-won-t-end-industry-slump See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

11 Dec 19min

On Wednesday, the Federal Open Market Committee cut rates by 25-basis points. It was the scenario a lot of close watchers of the Federal Reserve expected — but what comes after this Fed Meeting is an open question. With President Trump poised to name Chair Jerome Powell’s replacement by early 2026, both markets and the Federal Reserve itself could start to look to Trump’s nominee for guidance. Kevin Hassett has emerged as the front-runner for the role, who currently serves as director on Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers. On Today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg Economics’ Chief US Economist Anna Wong joins host Sarah Holder to break down the economic impact of the latest rate cut and what the Federal Reserve could look like next year if Hassett is nominated to succeed Powell. Read more: Fed Cuts Rates With Three Dissents, Projects One Cut in 2026See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

10 Dec 21min