Business
Hims & Hers Big Game commercial
A screenshot of Hims & Hers’ Super Bowl commercial (Sherwood News)

Hims & Hers threw a Super Bowl Hail Mary that landed incomplete. Now the receiver is on the sidelines.

Hims & Hers did get increased attention from the ad, but the product it showcased for millions of people is no longer at the center of its business model.

Hims & Hers Super Bowl ad attracted controversy, but it also led to a spike in web searches and drove a bump in traffic to the tele-pharmacy’s site.

The commercial focused on weight-loss drugs, though less than two weeks after it was shown to millions of people, the Food and Drug Administration took semaglutide off its shortage list, meaning Hims & Hers can no longer sell copies of Ozempic or Wegovy. The company now has to rethink its strategy on weight-loss drugs.

The ad also ruffled Big Pharmas feathers, with Novo Nordisk (which makes Ozempic and Wegovy) buying full-page ads in The New York Times and USA Today the Monday after the Super Bowl, questioning the safety of compounded drugs. As Hims & Hers figures out how to move forward, one wrong move could potentially trigger a lawsuit from the Danish pharmaceutical giant.

A Super Bowl ad reportedly cost $8 million per 30-second slot, and Hims & Hers ad was one minute long, suggesting it likely cost them about $16 million before production and agency costs.

The company did not immediately respond to a request to comment, including an inquiry about much the ad cost it. Hims & Hers typically spends about half its revenue on marketing, with nearly $679 million spent on marketing last year.

Google searches of Hims & Hers spiked on the day of the Super Bowl, according to Google Trends data. But that didnt necessarily translate to sustained traffic to the company’s website.

Data from Similarweb shows that web traffic to hims.com and forhers.com spiked the day of the Super Bowl, but on a month-over-month basis was less in February than in January, which is typical. (The domain forhims.com also redirects to hims.com, though its traffic is much lower.)

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Uber launches “digital tasks” in the US, paying some drivers to train AI

Beginning later this fall, US Uber drivers will be able to earn money by completing short “digital tasks” like uploading restaurant menus or recording audio samples.

CEO Dara Khosrowshahi teased the new gig income stream back in June at the Bloomberg Tech conference.

At that time, Khosrowshahi said drivers and couriers were “labeling maps, translating language, looking at AI answers, and grading AI answers.” According to Thursday’s announcement, the tasks won’t be so focused on Uber’s business, but instead on connecting workers with “companies that need real people to help improve their technology.”

Per Uber, digital tasks can be done when drivers aren’t on a trip, be it at home or when not driving, and will take only “a few minutes” each.

At that time, Khosrowshahi said drivers and couriers were “labeling maps, translating language, looking at AI answers, and grading AI answers.” According to Thursday’s announcement, the tasks won’t be so focused on Uber’s business, but instead on connecting workers with “companies that need real people to help improve their technology.”

Per Uber, digital tasks can be done when drivers aren’t on a trip, be it at home or when not driving, and will take only “a few minutes” each.

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Apple TV dropped the “plus” as streamers keep pulling back on originals

After the spray-and-pray approach led to a wave of cancellations, Hollywood is settling into an era of just making fewer shows.

Hyunsoo Rim10/15/25
business

The average price of a new vehicle in the US passed $50,000 for the first time ever in September

The average price of a new vehicle in the US surpassed $50,000 in September, according to Cox Automotive’s Kelley Blue Book.

At $50,080, that’s the highest industry average ever, reflecting the price hikes faced by new car buyers in recent years amid pandemic supply shortages, tariff-induced increases, and the high cost of EV production. The figure marks a 3.6% jump from the same month last year.

“Tariffs have introduced new cost pressure to the business, but the pricing story in September was mostly driven by the healthy mix of EVs and higher-end vehicles pushing the new-vehicle ATP into uncharted territory,” Cox executive analyst Erin Keating said. Passing the $50,000 mark was inevitable, Keating said, especially considering that the country’s bestseller is a Ford truck that “routinely costs north of $65,000.”

Year over year, new vehicle prices rose nearly 6% for GM, while Ford’s climbed 2.5%. Volkswagen new prices were up 12.5%.

As prices climb, so do delinquencies on loans to borrowers with lower credit scores. Recent data from Fitch Ratings shows the portion of subprime US auto loans 60 days or more overdue reached 6.43% in August.

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