I hope your Monday is starting strong, friend. Funny thing, launching a multibillion-dollar business doesn’t always begin with suits and venture capital meetings. When Airbnb was just a scrappy side hustle with a confusing name, the founders had to get creative to pull together their first seed money. No crypto jackpots. No fancy Kickstarter campaigns. Just good old-fashioned hustle.

🤔 How did the founders of Airbnb raise their first $30,000? A) Selling old furniture on Craigslist, B) Renting out their own apartment, C) Charging for Wi-Fi in coffee shops, or D) Selling cereal boxes? Find the answer at the end along with links to my conversation with one of Airbnb’s cofounders. 

🫶🏻 Quick favor: I’m working hard to improve my email deliverability so the big email providers don’t flag me as spam. You can help, just hit “Reply” to this email. That’s it. It makes a bigger difference than you know. Thank you! Now, on to the smarts you need to stay tech ahead and not get left tech behind! — Kim

Just last year, I had an IT pro on my team with over 20 years of experience. Smart guy. Talented. But when it came to AI, he dug in his heels. “It’s a fad,” he told me. “In two years, people will go back to Google and search the web. They won’t trust AI.” 

Yeah, right after fax machines and Blockbuster stage their glorious return.

He couldn’t see the writing on the wall. And in tech, or any industry, that’s the kiss of death. 

You have to be able to innovate. To adapt. To grow with change, not fight it. That mindset clash is exactly why he’s no longer with the company. 

AI isn’t just the future. It’s now. Here’s the best part: You don’t need a computer science degree to get going. Anyone can learn the basics. And yes, even you, with your 37 open tabs and a healthy fear of “technical stuff.”

There are free, powerful tools and courses that anyone can tap into. I’ll show you where to begin.

🤖 Why you should care about AI

According to McKinsey, at least 80% of businesses will use AI by 2030. 

Even if you’re not a techie, learning how AI works will make you more valuable in your job, help you think more critically about the tech you use, and might even spark a career pivot.

🎓 Try these totally free AI courses

As you’re looking through these classes, you’ll see they’re free, but some offer optional certifications you can buy. Should you spend the money?

Here’s my take: Check out job postings in the field you’re interested in. If you see that certification popping up under the “qualifications” section, it might be worth it. Otherwise, just enjoy the free learning!

1. Elements of AI
Offered by the University of Helsinki, this fun and friendly course is designed for people who don’t have a tech background. It breaks down complex ideas into plain English.
🔗 elementsofai.com

2. IBM SkillsBuild
IBM is giving away tons of free AI, cybersecurity and data courses through this platform. You can also earn digital badges, which look great on LinkedIn.
🔗 skillsbuild.org

3. Coursera – AI For Everyone by Andrew Ng
One of the most popular beginner AI classes out there. It’s short, clear and shows how AI is already changing business and society.
🔗 coursera.org/learn/ai-for-everyone

4. Harvard’s CS50 AI
Want something more advanced? Harvard offers this free class through edX for those who want to dive into the techy side.
🔗 cs50.harvard.edu/ai

Pick one of the courses above and give it just 20 minutes a day. That’s less time than most people spend scrolling social media. Soon, you’ll understand what’s under the hood of today’s smartest tech. And that’s a very smart move.

😂 Reminds me of a Sunday school class. The teacher asked, “If I were to sell my house, my car, donate my possessions to charity and give my money to the church, would I get into heaven?” All the kids said, “No.” So the teacher asked, “So how do I get into heaven?” A little boy raised his hand and said, “You have to be dead!” There is that.

📅 New week, same desk, unless you upgrade it with these goodies.

• Keep your pens ready to roll with a two-pack of rotating pen holders ($19).
• This mini desktop vacuum ($13) sucks up keyboard gunk like a pro.
• An adjustable laptop stand (25% off) lifts your screen and your posture.
• Print right from your phone with a wireless mini label maker (53% off).
• Snag a paper shredder (7% off), so sensitive docs are confetti. 
• No more juggling cables with this USB-C hub (25% off) that turns one port into five.

😎 Shop my tech picks that are on sale right now!

🖥️ Heard of WorkComposer? That’s the tool your boss might be using to watch everything you do on your computer. It just leaked over 21 million screenshots online, and some could include your logins, emails or company info. The data was left wide open in the cloud. Argh.

📧 Heads-up, Gmail users: Google’s phasing out text message 2FA codes for logging in. If you don’t update your security settings in time, you could get locked out. You’ll now need to set up a passkey or use an authenticator app instead. To update: Go to Google Account Settings > Security > How you sign in to Google > and choose passkey or app.

🚗 Want to own your own Waymo? Not me, thank you. This is a sneaky way to offload old inventory. Why? Tesla’s rolling out its own self-driving taxis in June, and they’re supposed to cost just 20% to 25% of Waymo’s. 

👎 Social media is over: That’s what Mark Zuckerberg says. Meta’s being sued by the government for acting like a monopoly, but Zuck says every app does the same thing. TikTok and YouTube are just news, celebrity promos and AI slop now, like Meta. So really, what hold do they have? The days of friends posting real updates are long gone (paywall link).

🖼️ Adobe’s new app protects your work: It’s called Content Authenticity, and it lets you add tamperproof metadata to images. There’s also an option to label files with things like “don’t train AI on this.” It’s free for now … you just need an Adobe account.

🤳 Selfie sin? Yep, it happened. Some folks actually took selfies next to Pope Francis’ body at St. Peter’s Basilica (paywall link). Blasphemy? Definitely, but the problem isn’t just tech. Phones are changing how we act in public. From loud music on buses to zombie-like sidewalk scrolling, it’s like we’re losing track of what’s OK to do in public. What do you think?

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The only way to keep your business yours is with a VPN. A virtual private network encrypts your data and hides your IP address, giving you an extra layer of protection from snoops, advertisers and Big Tech companies looking to profit off you.

Some VPNs slow your connection or, worse, track your internet activity and compromise your security. Not ExpressVPN. Plus, you can connect in just one click from a Windows PC, Mac, iPhone, Android, iPad — you name it.

🚨 Deal alert: Get an extra FOUR months free since you subscribe to my newsletter.

⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Netflix buffering on Fire Stick? Hold the center and play/pause buttons together to restart it — like a mini reboot.

🖥️ Show the desktop on a Mac: Shift all your open windows to the side and get to the shortcuts on your desktop by holding down Cmd and pressing F3. Pressing F3 on its own shows you all the windows you have open. Easy‑peasy!

🛡️ App armor: Fake Google Play Store links are out there. One wrong tap and you’ve downloaded an app full of malware. Turning on Improve harmful app detection lets Google scan shady apps for a safety check. Open the app, tap your profile icon (top right) > Play Protect > Settings > toggle it on.

🖨️ Proof in the print: Need to print your text messages? For iPhone, iExplorer lets you access, view and transfer music, messages, photos and files from any iOS device to Mac or PC. On Android, you can use SMS Backup & Restore.

👱‍♀️ Face value: Your profile pic matters online. You’re 14 times more likely to get noticed with a professional photo on LinkedIn. Selling on Facebook Marketplace? A friendly image builds trust, while a grumpy face can scare people away. And smiling leads to more right swipes on dating apps.

Hear the world: If you ever ask anyone to repeat something they said, check out the new, dual-processor, almost invisible hearing aids from Hear.com. The company has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, a 4.9 out of 5 rating with Consumer Affairs and a 100% money-back guarantee. Click here now for a risk-free trial.* 

🥣 The answer to our Airbnb riddle: D) Selling cereal boxes. 

Yep, Airbnb’s first big cash infusion came from marketing Obama O’s and Cap’n McCain during the 2008 election. They sold politically themed cereal for $40 a box, pulled in $30K, and somehow that paid for what is now a $73 billion company. Crunchy capitalism at its finest.

🎤 Check this out: I had a chance to sit down with Airbnb’s cofounder Nate Blecharczyk. He had a lot to say about what it takes to start and run a $73 billion company, as well as their hidden camera problems. Click to hear the podcast or watch the interview on YouTube.

Tomorrow: This is nuts. A family is making fun of a grandmother who fell bad for a deep fake scam, plus more tech smarts in the best newsletter in the USA! Until then remember, you’re the algorithm behind your own success. 🔍🏆 — Kim

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