The chain shared the featured price drops in a press release on Monday, highlighting a few of the specific products that will have lower prices for summer.
On Truth Social, President Donald Trump credited the price reductions to his administration’s “request to celebrate our great Country’s 250th birthday”. Walmart didn’t mention the White House or the celebration as motives in its press release and has declined to comment on whether the sales resulted from a meeting with the administration.
No matter how these savings came about, I was just happy to see them. Walmart’s known for having low prices, and I was curious how its newly reduced ones would compare with other major grocers’.
So, I wrote down the specific items mentioned in the price-drop announcement and headed to Walmart and two of its biggest competitors: Kroger and Amazon.
Here’s how the prices measured up as I shopped the same list at each retailer.
Ground beef prices were basically the same across the board.
Savannah Born
Walmart’s press release specifically mentions a rollback on the 1-pound roll of 73% ground beef, so that’s what I selected.
As promised, Walmart’s beef, originally $6.94, came to $5.94 for a 1-pound roll. Kroger’s was very close behind at $5.99.
I couldn’t find any 1-pound packages of 73% lean ground beef on Amazon, only a bulky 3-pound roll. It worked out to $6.15 per pound.
Walmart’s price was the lowest, but I wasn’t particularly impressed by any of them.
Walmart had the sweetest corn prices.
Savannah Born
I can’t comment on the actual sweetness in terms of taste, but Walmart’s sweet corn was a bargain. It cost just $0.25 per ear, compared to $0.40 per ear at Kroger and a whopping $1.25 per ear on Amazon.
I added four ears to my cart at each retailer.
Neither Amazon nor Kroger could compete with Walmart on cherries.
Savannah Born
The Walmart press release specifically mentioned 2.2-pound bags of fresh red cherries would be reduced from $11.18 to $5.63. My local store only carried 1-pound bags, but they also came to $2.50 per pound like the ones mentioned.
Kroger’s red cherries were on sale, discounted from $4.49 to $2.99 per pound. Amazon tied with Kroger at $2.99 per pound.
It’s worth noting that Kroger deals like these are only valid with a Kroger Plus Card — which I have, since it’s a free loyalty card. Without it, they’d have cost me the full $4.49.
I was also surprised to find such a great sale in the store since I hadn’t seen it mentioned in Kroger’s weekly flyer. I wondered if it may have been a more last-minute discount to compete with Walmart after the Monday announcement. Kroger did not respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
To my delight, all three retailers had generic 48-ounce tubs of ice cream for under $3.
Savannah Born
Walmart highlighted 48-ounce tubs of its store-brand Great Value ice cream being reduced from $2.97 to $2.50. That’s exactly what I found in the store.
Amazon had the same-sized tubs of Amazon Grocery ice cream available for $2.97, the price Walmart’s was before the cut.
Kroger had the cheapest 48-ounce tubs on sale for $1.99 — marked down from $2.99. With prices this good, I would have happily bought ice cream from all three retailers.
An 8-ounce bag of Lay’s classic potato chips felt like a steal at Kroger, but the deal’s already gone.
Savannah Born
An 8-ounce bag of Lay’s classic potato chips cost $2.50 at Walmart, marked down from $2.97. The same bag of chips was also $2.50 on Amazon.
At Kroger, these chips had several prices in front of it. The 8-ounce bag was originally priced at $3.99, listed at $3.29 with card, and then labeled $1.99 with card and a clipped digital coupon as part of a weekly deal.
Kroger’s price was the best, but I only just caught this deal, which expired July 7. (Kroger’s digital deals refresh every Wednesday, and I visited Kroger on a Tuesday.)
At the time of writing, the deal is already gone.
Frito-Lay Family Fun boxes were comparable at Kroger and Walmart, but I didn’t find the same deal on Amazon.
At Walmart (left) and Kroger (right), I could get a Frito-Lay Family Fun variety pack for under $10.
Savannah Born
Walmart reduced the price of the Frito-Lay Family Fun 18-bag variety pack including a mix of Cheetos, Fritos, Funyuns, Lay’s, and Ruffles from $9.97 to $8.97.
Kroger originally listed the variety packs at $10.99, but price-drop stickers now had them marked $9.99.
On Amazon, this pack was available for $9.99 through Amazon Fresh, which I didn’t use because I’m already a Prime member and wasn’t ordering enough to hit the minimum spend and avoid a delivery fee.
My other option was to order this pack through a low-rated third-party seller for a whopping $21.
Walmart and Amazon had great prices on disposable plates.
Savannah Born
Walmart’s release highlighted a 200-pack of Great Value disposable plates being marked down from $9.97 to $8.97, or $0.04 per plate.
On Amazon, the same quantity of Amazon Basics plates was $10.60, or $0.05 per plate.
My local Kroger didn’t have any 200-packs, and the closest I found was 150 plates for $9.99. They worked out to $0.07 per plate.
If I ever need such a large quantity of disposable plates, I’m totally turning to Walmart or Amazon.
I got lucky with Coca-Cola and Pepsi deals at Kroger.
Savannah Born
Walmart marked down select 24-packs of sodas, including Coca-Cola and Diet Pepsi. With the rollback prices, they worked out to $0.42 per can.
My local Kroger didn’t have any 24-packs of these drinks, so 12-packs were the next best option.
Kroger’s a 12-pack of Coca-Cola or Pepsi cans typically costs $11.99, or $1 per can. However, when I visited, the store was running a “buy two, get three free” deal, which meant I could get 60 cans for the price of 24. It brought the price per can down to $0.40.
Amazon didn’t have any 24-packs readily available to me, either. I could buy 12-packs, though, so I grabbed two of each. On Amazon, my Coca-Cola came to $0.70 per can, whereas Diet Pepsi was $0.66 per can.
Shopping at Kroger felt like a gamble — and Amazon’s prices seemed to be all over the place.
Savannah Born
Unlike Walmart, where rollbacks tend to last several weeks and are available to any shopper, many of Kroger’s sale prices only last for seven days and require a (free) rewards membership to claim them.
If I hadn’t gotten lucky with the deals running that week, or if I didn’t have a Kroger card, I could have easily shelled out about $30 or more for the same cart.
Like Kroger, Amazon’s prices change often, for better or for worse. I could see exactly how much by using the “price history” feature. For example, the 12-pack of Coca-Cola alone ranged in price from $6.29 to $8.89 over the past 30 days.
Price-wise, Amazon was out of the running for me early on as my cart passed $70.
On the bright side, the higher price came with the most convenience: I wouldn’t have to drive anywhere or pay for delivery, given that I’m already a Prime member. (The membership costs about $139 a year and comes with other perks.)
My Walmart haul came out the least expensive overall, but Kroger was very close behind.
Savannah Born
My Walmart cart, complete with all nine categories of items, came to $52.32.
In an attempt to match the Walmart quantities as closely as possible, my Kroger cart — using my card and the deals available at the time —came to $58.52. I had 150 plates instead of 200, though, and an extra dozen cans of soda (given I wanted 48 cans but got three 12-packs free with my purchase of two).
Sure, this isn’t a perfect science, but the closeness of the totals made Walmart’s price reductions feel a little less impressive — especially since Walmart had a slight advantage in dictating which items I compared.
For reliably low prices, I’d go back to Walmart — but I’m keeping a close eye on Kroger’s rotating deals.
Savannah Born
None of the retailers had the cheapest item in every category, but if it weren’t for my seemingly lucky week and Kroger card, Walmart would have.
Walmart got me the lowest-priced basket this time — though the savings weren’t as big as I’d expected, given that I specifically shopped the chain’s price-dropped items. Kroger really held its own in this battle.
Even so, I’d definitely keep an eye out for Walmart’s future rollbacks and Kroger’s weekly coupons and deals.
This particular price drop aside, I’ve often found competitive grocery prices at Walmart, and I appreciate how the chain’s rollbacks typically last at least a few weeks.
Since most of Kroger’s deals change weekly, I sometimes miss discounted prices before I even realize they’re available. Amazon’s prices seem to fluctuate fairly often.
In the end, the best value comes down to what groceries you need and the current deals available at each place when you buy them.
And, hey, I certainly wouldn’t complain if other retailers want to follow Walmart’s lead and drop more prices this summer.
OpenAI launched a new update to make its Chatbot less awkward.
OpenAI
OpenAI’s new GPT-Live model promises more natural human-to-AI conversations.
It will add “mmhm” or “sure” while the user talks — and nixes its signature pregnant pauses.
The update is part of a trend. AI labs are trying to make conversations feel less like passing batons.
OpenAI wants ChatGPT to stop waiting for its turn.
During a Wednesday livestream, the company unveiled GPT-Live, a new voice model powering ChatGPT Voice. OpenAI says the update is built to make talking with AI feel more like talking to a human.
Instead of waiting for a clean pause at the end of every sentence before responding, for example, the assistant can listen and speak simultaneously, OpenAI says. It will also acknowledge the user with an intermittent “mmhm,” “yeah,” and “got it” while the human is still talking.
In one demo, a user asked ChatGPT to fact-check the date of a coming meeting while also checking the weather and traffic along their route. ChatGPT responded with short acknowledgments like “hmm” and “sure,” then continued working through the request without losing the thread as the user added more information requests.
OpenAI also showed off ChatGPT’s ability to translate language in real time. Previous turn-based assistants had to wait for the speaker to finish before translating. Now, a full-duplex assistant — one that can listen and talk at the same time — can keep pace more naturally as a conversation unfolds, the company said.
Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s president, described the update during the livestream as a “much more natural way of interacting with your computer.”
OpenAI is not the only company trying to make AI voice assistants feel less like a baton-passing chatbot and more like an active listener. In May, Thinking Machines, the AI lab led by former OpenAI chief technology officer Mira Murati, teased similar technology. The company said its interaction models are designed to handle input and output continuously across audio, video, and text, instead of relying on the stop-and-start rhythm of traditional chatbots.
Thinking Machines said the updated models can “handle interaction natively” and smooth out human-to-AI interactions “rather than forcing humans to contort themselves to AI interfaces.”
The update also arrives as AI language models have become an internet punchline. Creators regularly mock their oddly chipper tone, their overuse of phrases like “awesome,” and the awkward little pause before an answer arrives.
NATO’s new strategy relies on uncrewed vehicles, like this Hunter Wolf unmanned ground vehicle, as a first response to an attack.
Spc. Mariam Diallo/US Army
New documents reveal NATO is building a vast AI network to deter Russian aggression.
It is part of a larger shift that foresees uncrewed systems as the first response to an attack.
The strategy “does not replace tanks, artillery, fighter aircraft, or soldiers,” an official said.
Along NATO’s eastern flank, the military alliance is no longer relying solely on tanks, fighter jets, and troops. Instead, it is building a vast digital battlespace network made up of thousands of sensors, drones, satellites, and artificial intelligence. The goal: to detect an attack on allied nations as early as possible and block the attacker before they can penetrate deeper into Alliance territory.
The concept is called the Eastern Flank Deterrence Initiative (EFDI). In documents obtained by BILD — which, like Business Insider, is part of the Axel Springer Global Reporters Network — one potential adversary is explicitly identified: Russia. It is intended not only to offset Russia’s advantage in mass and momentum — large troop numbers and rapid advances — but also to discourage Moscow from launching an attack in the first place. NATO refers to this principle as “deterrence by denial.” It is expected to rely on systems from Palantir and other leading Western defense contractors.
The new strategy creates a vast AI-guided network to detect and strike targets — not unlike the powerful web Russia has built fighting Ukraine. But it is just the beginning of a much larger shift, where uncrewed systems like attack drones and remote-controlled machine gun turrets will be NATO’s first line of defense.
The New Iron Curtain
Following Finland’s accession to NATO in 2023, the Alliance’s shared border with Russia expanded significantly. Today, NATO’s eastern border stretches from Finland through Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland to Romania on the Black Sea. It also includes the border with Belarus, Russia’s close ally. Along this entire line, EFDI is intended to strengthen the Alliance’s defense through a system of sensors, drones, command networks, and conventional military forces.
Bild
For decades, NATO relied on the principle of “deterrence by punishment.” The idea was that if Russia attacked NATO territory, tanks, artillery, fighter aircraft, and ground troops would repel the assault and later recapture lost territory. These conventional capabilities will remain the backbone of NATO’s defense. Leopard 2 tanks, M1 Abrams tanks, HIMARS rocket launchers, artillery, and F-35 fighter jets will continue to play an essential role.
What is new, however, is an additional layer of defense. Its purpose is to detect, delay, and engage an adversary before NATO’s conventional ground forces come into contact with it, allowing those forces to preserve their combat power and be committed only at the decisive moment.
“EFDI does not replace tanks, artillery, fighter aircraft, or soldiers,” said Maj. Matt Blubaugh, a spokesman for US Army Europe and Africa. “It is designed to help preserve their combat power and give commanders more time and decision advantage.”
Bild
The New Strategy
NATO’s new strategy calls for uncrewed systems like drones to be the first response to an invasion or attack.
Staff Sgt. Reece Heck/US Army National Guard
When people think of border defense, they often imagine walls, anti-tank trenches, or soldiers guarding fences. EFDI is neither a wall nor a new front line. Instead, it is a distributed defense architecture supporting NATO’s entire eastern flank from Finland to Romania. The NATO documents frequently refer to a “Kill Web.” The term describes a tightly connected digital network. If one node fails, others immediately take over its functions.
Bild
These nodes include satellites in orbit, reconnaissance drones, radar systems, ground sensors, cameras, and electronic surveillance assets. Together, they continuously collect information about activity along NATO’s eastern flank.
In the recent past, engaging a newly detected target often took considerable time. A drone, for example, would first report the target to headquarters, where the information was analyzed before a firing order was passed through tactical commanders on to a military unit like a squadron. This process consumed valuable time.
In the near future, information collected by all NATO members is intended to flow into a shared digital network and be distributed immediately. Artificial intelligence will analyze the data in real time, helping commanders build a common operational picture as quickly as possible.
The new strategy is expected to incorporate technologies from a wide range of defense contractors through NATO’s open-architecture approach. At the core is Palantir’s Maven Smart System (MSS), which serves as the AI “brain” of the EFDI by processing data from all-domain sensors and enabling faster decision-making. The initiative also integrates systems such as Perennial Autonomy’s Merops AI drone interceptor, alongside capabilities from companies including RTX, Rheinmetall, Saab, Lockheed Martin and Boeing, all connected through the EFDI Data Backbone into a unified sensor-to-shooter network.
In practical terms, if a drone detects a Russian armored formation, the information will immediately be cross-checked with satellite imagery, radar data, and information from ground sensors. Commanders can then select which weapons — such as drones, artillery, rocket launchers, or other weapons — should engage the target. Weapons can be chosen by their range, their likelihood of hitting moving or static targets and also the importance of the targets.
NATO summarizes the principle in three simple steps: “See first. Decide first. Strike first.”
Machines Fight First
The front line itself is also expected to change significantly. Under NATO’s plans, uncrewed systems would be the first to confront an attacking force. A forward zone is envisioned where drones, ground robots, sensors, and other autonomous systems engage the enemy before conventional troops do.
The idea is straightforward: machines — not soldiers — should absorb the initial attack. This saves time and preserves NATO’s frontline combat formations.
“EFDI buys us time and clarity but at the end of the day, soldiers, tanks and aircraft are still needed to secure and hold ground,” Blubaugh said.
Bild
Lessons from Ukraine
The war in Ukraine has shaped the new concept. NATO is incorporating lessons learned by the Ukrainian military directly from the battlefield.
Specifically, thousands of low-cost drones, robotic systems, and sensors are intended to complement conventional weapons and offset Russia’s advantages in mass and momentum — its ability to field large numbers of troops and advance rapidly.
Luca-Marie Hoffmann is a BILD journalist based in Berlin, focusing on military affairs and crisis reporting.
The Axel Springer Global Reporters Network harnesses the resources of the company’s newsrooms to publish ambitious scoops, investigations, interviews, opinion pieces and analysis. It allows journalists — including those from POLITICO, Business Insider, WELT, BILD, Onet and Fakt — to collaborate on major stories for an international audience of hundreds of millions across platforms: online, print, TV and audio.
“The US built more new units in 2024 than any year in the past half-century, but that boom largely bypassed the Northeast and coastal California, which is exactly why rental competition there is so intense,” Zillow senior economist Kara Ng said.
Zillow ranked the hottest rental markets heading into the summer by looking at metros where rents increased quickly, vacancies dropped, and rental concessions — like waived fees or a month free off the rent — were rarely offered.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that big cities like New York and San Francisco are regularly the busiest rental markets in the country; vacancies are low, and rents are climbing. However, Zillow found that one Northeastern city with a population that’s roughly 2% of New York City’s took the cake for hottest market: Providence, Rhode Island.
“In Zillow’s hottest rental markets, the math is simple: More people want to live there than there are homes to rent — whether for access to amenities, strong job markets or family ties, renters are competing over a limited supply,” Ng said.
Providence, Rhode Island, a city with a population of about 195,000, is small, and its size plays a factor in its ranking. It’s recently been labeled an unaffordable place to buy a home, mainly due to its lack of housing inventory, which, in turn, can drive up rental prices. Providence also has the lowest share of concessions in the top 10.
Read below to see the top 10 hottest markets for renters, according to Zillow.
The chain can be a really great place to find trendy decor, small furniture pieces, and a range of other household items that suit all sorts of styles.
As much as I enjoy shopping at the home-furnishing store, there are a few things I avoid getting there.
I get my larger furniture pieces, such as sofas, somewhere else.
Paynter Rhed
HomeGoods can be a great place to buy a stool or a small side table, but I wouldn’t buy larger furniture pieces here.
For example, many of the sofas and big chairs I’ve seen in the store look amazing from afar, but the quality hasn’t impressed me much.
Plus, at HomeGoods, you typically buy floor models. Your couch could be on the sales floor for weeks, with hundreds of strangers sitting on it or carts bumping into it at every turn.
There may be some hidden gems at a reasonable price, but when it comes to large pieces that will get lots of use, I’m not willing to gamble on quality. I’d rather shop at dedicated furniture stores, like a CB2 or West Elm, or seek out made-to-order options.
The candles are too hit-or-miss for me.
Paynter Rhed
The candle aisle at HomeGoods is my favorite part of the whole store. But as fun as the section is to peruse, the wide variety of brands, shapes, and scents can be a mixed bag.
I’ve found that many of the candles I’ve bought at the chain either don’t burn very well or lose their scent pretty quickly, even though they look great and smelled amazing in the store.
A lot of these candles are just fine in a pinch — and you might get lucky with a great one — but I’d rather spend more to buy something I’m confident is higher quality from an actual candle store.
Many of the large mirrors don’t pass my basic quality test.
Paynter Rhed
In the age of the mirror selfie, I completely understand the desire to add the perfect floor-length mirror to a space. After all, they’re essential for good outfit-of-the-day posts.
That said, the large mirrors I’ve seen at HomeGoods haven’t impressed me yet.
Mirrors can be massive statement pieces, so I suggest taking the time to look for high-quality options.
One way I like to test the quality of mirrors in a store is by standing far away from them to see whether my reflection gets distorted. If I start to look funky, I’ll pass on the mirror.
It can be hard to find a solid set of pots and pans at HomeGoods.
Paynter Rhed
Many of HomeGoods’ pots and pans look amazing — again, brands and quality vary — but I buy mine elsewhere.
Although you might get lucky and find name-brand items in the store’s aisles, I’ve bought many random pots and pans from here that looked nice but haven’t held up well.
Getting a full, matching set of cookware from HomeGoods is also tricky since not all stores carry the same pieces or multiples of a design.
If I’m supplying a kitchen from scratch or hoping to build a collection, I’d rather invest in a matching set from a trustworthy cookware brand.
Skip the kitschy letters and signs with quotes and phrases on them.
Paynter Rhed
Choosing the perfect finishing touches for a space can be one of the trickiest tasks. However, I’ll never waste money on hanging letters or signs with quotes. Quotes are meant for journals, not walls.
I’ve seen a lot of signs at HomeGoods with overused phrases and cringeworthy quotes. Some pieces with basic labels like “coffee” and “tea” even feel like they’re paying homage to farmhouse design in an untasteful way.
I suggest choosing text-free art pieces and decor items instead for a classier look. (Luckily, HomeGoods has a lot of aisles filled with these, too.)
Full-priced holiday decor is rarely worth it to me.
Paynter Rhed
HomeGoods has an impressive array of decor for every holiday and season I can think of — and it’s often on shelves long before whatever it’s celebrating begins.
However, as a frequent HomeGoods shopper, I’ve learned that if you wait until one day after the holiday, you can sometimes get up to 50% off on some seasonal items.
It can be risky, since the pieces you love may go out of stock before then, and sales aren’t guaranteed. However, the deals can be great and, as a planner, I actually prefer preparing for a holiday almost a year before it returns.
HomeGoods has some tasteful items for desk organization, but I still skip this section.
Paynter Rhed
HomeGoods is generally a great place to find one-off special items, but not so much coordinated or matching sets.
I like matching sets too much to consider buying desk decor or office supplies here, from letter organizers to pencil cups.
I’d shop elsewhere for finishing touches for my home office — maybe Target or even Ikea.
This story was originally published on December 21, 2023, and most recently updated on July 7, 2026.
Priyanka Devi Ramesh (left), Iren Azra Zou (center), and Udit Mehrotra (right) say many common assumptions about working in tech miss the mark.
Priyanka Devi Ramesh (left), Iren Azra Zou (center), and Udit Mehrotra (right)
Business Insider asked six tech workers about the biggest misconceptions in the industry.
Workers challenged assumptions about AI, Big Tech, and what their jobs actually involve.
Some said AI has changed the nature of tech work — but not in the ways many people think.
If you ask tech workers what people misunderstand about working in their industry, they’ll tell you — plenty.
In interviews with Business Insider, tech professionals from companies including Amazon, Google, and Snap challenged assumptions that their jobs are mostly coding, that AI has made their work easier, and that Big Tech is the only worthwhile career path. Some focused on misconceptions held by people outside the industry, while others pointed to misunderstandings from people already working in tech.
These professionals — including engineers, data scientists, and product managers — are working in an industry that’s changing rapidly. They say many people’s understanding of tech jobs hasn’t kept up.
Here’s what six tech workers believe are the biggest misconceptions about working in tech. (Their responses have been edited for length and clarity.)
My job is about much more than coding
Priyanka Devi Ramesh says working in tech involves much more than writing code.
Priyanka Devi Ramesh
Priyanka Devi Ramesh is a business intelligence engineer at Amazon. She’s 30 and lives in Virginia.
One of the biggest misconceptions is that working in tech is all about coding. People assume if you work in tech, you sit in front of a screen writing code all day. But my role as a business intelligence engineer is deeply rooted in understanding the business, talking to stakeholders, cleaning messy data, and telling stories through dashboards.
A huge part of my job is communication — translating complex data into something a non-technical customer or vendor can act on. Tech is far more cross-functional and people-oriented than most outsiders realize.
The perks are real. So is the pressure.
Sreeja Apparaju says working in tech is more demanding than many people realize.
Sreeja Apparaju
Sreeja Apparaju is a machine learning engineer at Snap. She’s in her 20s and lives in New York.
One misconception is that tech jobs are all hoodies, ping pong tables, and a four-hour workday. The perks are real, but they exist alongside the genuine intensity of on-call rotations, launch crunches, performance reviews, and the constant pressure to keep learning as the stack evolves under you.
There’s also the assumption that the work is purely solitary and screen-bound. The technical problems are only half of it; the other half is people: understanding what users actually need, negotiating priorities with partners, and communicating clearly enough that the right decisions get made even when you’re not in the room.
AI can’t do your thinking for you
Udit Mehrotra says AI can’t replace critical thinking.
Udit Mehrotra
Udit Mehrotra is a head of product at Amazon. He’s in his 30s and lives in Seattle.
The biggest misconception I come across right now is that you can outsource your thinking to AI. A lot of people have discovered that AI tools are genuinely impressive at producing output quickly, and the temptation is to let the tools drive.
The problem is that the quality of what comes out is almost entirely determined by the quality of thinking you put in. Garbage in, garbage out, except now it’s faster and looks more polished.
The bar keeps getting higher
Mike Kostersitz says AI hasn’t made his job easier.
Mike Kostersitz
Mike Kostersitz is a senior director, product management at Nike. He’s 60 and lives in Oregon.
A common misconception is that tech workers are coasting — making a lot of money for very little work because AI does the rest. That gets it backwards. AI doesn’t hand you free time; it removes the repetitive work that used to crowd out the important work.
The job hasn’t gotten easier — the bar has gotten higher. We’re expected to think more clearly, decide faster, and lead through more change in a quarter than we used to in a year.
Tech is much bigger than software engineering
Prerit Pathak says working in tech is about much more than software engineering.
Prerit Pathak
Prerit Pathak is a security engineer at Google. He’s in his 20s and lives in New York City.
I think many people mistakenly believe that being a “tech employee” is synonymous with being a software engineer. The reality is that technology is a vast ecosystem of roles like Product Management, UI/UX Design, Data Science, and Cybersecurity.
These specialists act as the architects, maintainers, and protectors of the digital world, ensuring that technical tools solve important problems for our future generations.
Big Tech isn’t the only path
Iren Azra Zou says Big Tech isn’t the only rewarding career path.
Rachel Wisnewski for BI
Iren Azra Zou is a software engineer at the trucking logistics startup Double Nickel. She’s in her 20s and lives in New Jersey.
I think some people in tech over-focus on working at the most famous tech companies. Those can be great, but they’re not the only path, and often not the best fit for everyone.
There are countless small and mid-sized companies doing interesting, meaningful work. I see a lot of people limit themselves because they think it’s either “Big Tech” or something boring and non-technical. That’s just not how the industry actually looks.
Do you have a story to share about how you’re navigating a career crossroads? If so, please reach out to the reporter via email at jzinkula@businessinsider.com, or via Signal at jzinkula.29.