Google searches for lab grown diamonds have soared

Sherwood News

Pandora’s CEO thinks lab-grown diamonds will reign in 10 years

Looking for that special sparkly something? Synthetic diamonds would like a word.

8/14/24 4:38AM

Pandora has posted another shining quarter, with the Danish jeweler bumping its revenue guidance for the second time in 2024. One part of the business that glistened in Q2? Lab-grown diamonds, sales of which rose 88% year-on-year.

Although less than 1% of the company’s overall revenues, CEO Alexander Lacik expects the synthetic stones to play a much bigger part in his brand and the wider industry in the coming years. Speaking to Bloomberg, Lacik said that lab-grown diamonds are “disrupting in a big, big way”, before predicting that they will account for the “vast majority” of diamond sales in 10 years’ time.

Crowned jewels

Many, including Lacik, have pointed to lab-grown diamonds being relatively easier on the planet (and much easier on the wallet) as potential reasons for their rising popularity. Back in Q1, for example, natural diamonds were almost 4x as expensive as lab-grown alternatives, according to data from industry expert Paul Zimnisky. Indeed, while the eco-friendly credentials of the gems have come under more scrutiny in recent years, they’ve caught consumers’ attention.

Data from Google Trends shows that interest in the lab-grown stones reached a peak last December, perhaps as people conducted some hurried research into Christmas gifts. Interest has even consistently outranked the search volume for natural diamonds… a word which was never really needed as a distinguishing descriptor until lab-grown started to take off.

Claire Yubin Oh

Scentsible

11h

Estée Lauder’s Jo Malone is launching an “AI Scent Advisor” to convince people to buy perfumes without smelling them

Gen Z is driving a perfume and fragrance boom.

Max Knoblauch12/4/25

Netflix is down amid reports it’s leading the Warner Bros. bidding war as Paramount cries foul

Netflix’s charm offensive appears to be working.

Netflix is reportedly emerging as the leader in the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery after second-round bids this week, edging out entertainment juggernaut rivals Comcast and Paramount Skydance.

Investors don’t appear psyched by the streaming leader’s turn of fortune: the stock is down on Thursday morning, a day after closing down nearly 5% following reports that scooping up HBO Max wouldn’t necessarily result in a big market share boost.

Paramount, which has reportedly made five bids for Warner Bros. Discovery, doesn’t love the current state of play, either. The company sent WBD a letter questioning the “fairness and adequacy” of the process, highlighting reports that WBD’s board favors Netflix and is resisting Paramount.

Any offer would be subject to regulatory approval — a fact that may have weighed against Netflix’s offer given that cofounder Reed Hastings’ politics are vocally to the left, very much at odds with the current regulatory regime. Paramount seems confident in its ability to get approval, reportedly boosting its breakup fee to $5 billion should its potential acquisition fall apart in the regulatory process.

Paramount questions Warner Bros. Discovery on 'fairness and adequacy' of sale process: Read the full letter

Hyunsoo Rim

PEAK CONSULTING?

12/3/25

After three decades of pretty constant growth, the consultancy boom just hit an AI-shaped wall

Accenture has a new deal with OpenAI — did ChatGPT’s launch top-tick consulting employment?

Human hand and AI hand on the yellow background

Max Knoblauch12/3/25

Delta says the government shutdown will cost it $200 million in Q4

The 43-day government shutdown that ended last month will result in a $200 million ding for Delta Air Lines, the airline said in a filing on Wednesday.

That’s about $100,000 per shutdown-related canceled flight. (Delta previously said it canceled more than 2,000 flights due to FAA flight reductions.) When the company reports its fourth-quarter earnings, the shutdown will lop off about $0.25 per share.

Delta initially stayed calm about the shutdown, with CEO Ed Bastian stating in early October that the company was running smoothly and hadn’t seen any impacts at all. One historically long shutdown later, Delta wasn’t able to remain untouched.

The skies have since cleared, though, and Delta’s filing states that booking growth has “returned to initial expectations following a temporary softening in November.”

Delta’s shares were up over 2% as of Wednesday’s market open.

Delta Air Sees $200 Million Hit from Shutdown Fallout

The skies have since cleared, though, and Delta’s filing states that booking growth has “returned to initial expectations following a temporary softening in November.”

Delta’s shares were up over 2% as of Wednesday’s market open.

Tom Jones

amassed media

12/3/25

Netflix reportedly made a mostly cash offer for Warner Bros. Discovery over the weekend

The WBD bidding war is heating up — what will the winner get?