In this issue

📰 TikTok survives in the US
📰 OpenAI and Oracle $300B deal
📰 Fed rate cuts
📰 Gmail adds a Purchases tab
📰 New tariffs bring ‘maximum chaos’
🏪 Steelfit & Fungies case study
🛠 Shopify’s updates this week
📚 Gemini tops iOS
🧠 How to get ChatGPT to recommend your product

STORY OF THE WEEK

TikTok survives in the US

After years of back-and-forth, TikTok looks set to keep operating in the US. A framework deal between the US and China is expected to bring in Oracle, Silver Lake, and other American investors to take over TikTok’s US operations. The exact structure is still unclear. That includes whether ByteDance will retain any role and who will ultimately control TikTok’s recommendation algorithm. Presidents Trump and Xi are expected to speak later this week as the deal moves forward.

Read the full story.

OTHER NEWS THIS WEEK

Oracle + OpenAI sign $300B cloud deal

OpenAI has signed a $300B contract with Oracle for computing power starting in 2027, one of the largest cloud deals ever. Oracle shares surged as the deal briefly made Larry Ellison the world’s richest man, though questions remain about how OpenAI (still unprofitable) will foot the bill. Read the full story.

Fed rate cuts

The Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates (by the time you’re reading this, they may have already) in a move closely watched by markets. Lower rates could impact consumer spending, borrowing, and investment ahead of Q4. Read the full story.

Gmail adds a Purchases tab

Google is rolling out a new Purchases tab in Gmail to consolidate order confirmations and shipping updates. This is only a few weeks after they added smarter filters in Promotions and a single view to manage email subscriptions. Read the full story.

New tariffs bring ‘maximum chaos’

US shoppers are getting hit with surprise import duties after exemptions on goods under $800 expired. Some customers report being billed hundreds or even thousands by carriers like DHL and UPS, leading to rejected shipments and growing confusion. Read the full story.

STORE OF THE WEEK

Steelfit & Fungies

A few weeks ago I sat down with Rob Kaufman who runs both Steelfit, a sports nutrition brand, and Fungies, a fun twist on functional gummies. Rob told me how he originally built and managed both Shopify stores himself, but as his businesses grew, so did the time required to run them effectively. He was spending full days in Shopify writing Liquid and getting stuck managing his CMS.

He partnered with Platter to build Steelfit, which was such a success that he came back to build Fungies. The new stores have had a big impact:

• 27% increase in conversion rate

• 23% increase in AOV

• Consolidated numerous apps, saving thousands annually.

• Replaced 27 page templates with one reusable CMS setup, saving tons of time.

Read the full case study.

Thinking about building (or rebuilding) your Shopify store?

Meet with our expert team and get a free storefront analysis and learn what’s possible with Platter.

Book your free audit

SHOPIFY UPDATES OF THE WEEK

Filter orders by order metafields

You can now filter orders by custom order metafields to quickly identify orders with special requirements. View details.

Secure workflows with hashing in Flow

Hash sensitive data like PII or API keys directly in Flow using Liquid filters (sha1, sha256, md5). View details.

Native exchanges for Meta orders

Shopify’s native exchanges and return fees now work seamlessly with Facebook (Meta) orders. View details.

Override default resource ID in Flow

You can now choose to override the resource ID used by actions in Flow for more control. View details.

See all of Shopify’s updates in their changelog.

OTHER COOL CONTENT THIS WEEK

Google Gemini takes #1 spot for iOS downloads

Gemini has overtaken ChatGPT as the most-downloaded app on iOS, showing how quickly Google’s AI push is gaining traction with consumers.

How to get ChatGPT to recommend your product

Lenny Rachitsky (from Lenny’s Podcast) shared takeaways from Ethan Smith on how startups can position themselves to be surfaced inside AI tools like ChatGPT.

PARTNER OF THE WEEK

This week’s partner spotlight is on Giannuzzi Lewendon, a boutique law firm that’s helped some of the biggest consumer brands like Vitaminwater, Oatly, BodyArmor, Vital Proteins, and Sir Kensington’s scale from startup to household name.

They focus exclusively on consumer brands, bringing big-firm expertise with the agility and specialization founders actually need. From formation to exit, they have decades of experience working with the fastest-growing brands in food, beverage, beauty, wellness, and lifestyle.

Build your brand with the team that’s helped scale the best. Learn more about their capabilities at gllaw.us.