For years, Snap has envisioned a future where people wear glasses to view and interact with computer-generated images without having to scroll through their smartphones. The Santa Monica-based tech company will soon see if its multibillion-dollar bet on augmented reality glasses has paid off. Snap said Tuesday it plans to…

Video game performers and producers have hammered out a tentative contract agreement, reaching terms that could end a nearly year-long strike over artificial intelligence. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the game companies came to a resolution on Monday, more than two years after their…

America’s best-known hardware store chain, Home Depot, has found itself at the center of the federal immigration raids in Los Angeles, and the subsequent protests. On Friday, a Home Depot in the Westlake neighborhood was among several locations hit by federal agents, who also raided Ambiance Apparel in the garment…

Benedict Corpuz has always been a “day one” type of person when it comes to fueling his video game habit. Beginning in his high school years, the 45-year-old flight attendant from Kent, Wash., has tried to get his hands on new Nintendo systems on the day of their release, whether…

Dear Liz: My husband’s parents, who are 88 and 93, respectively, have decided to leave their house, worth $800,000, equally, to their three children, who are all in their sixties. The children get along well and all decisions will be made as a group. None of the adult children can…

Paramount Global chairwoman and controlling shareholder Shari Redstone is battling cancer as she tries to steer the media company through a turbulent sales process. “Shari Redstone was diagnosed with thyroid cancer earlier this spring,” her spokeswoman Molly Morse said late Thursday. “While it has been a challenging period, she is…

Job opportunities at the Port of Los Angeles are dwindling as President Trump’s steep tariffs take a hit on global trade and a major economic engine for the regional economy. Nearly half of the longshoremen who support operations at the port went without work over the last two weeks, Gene…

Early this year, private equity firm Blackstone bet big on the future of artificial intelligence by investing $300 million in a Chatsworth company that’s been around for more than two decades. The company, DDN, helps businesses store and manage the massive trove of data that powers AI systems — the…

With new legal muscle, the nonprofit Freedom of the Press Foundation is upping pressure on Paramount Global to abandon efforts to settle President Trump’s $20-billion lawsuit targeting CBS and “60 Minutes.” Respected Washington litigator Abbe David Lowell this week joined the team representing the New York advocacy group, which has…

Los Angeles County fire victims have filed lawsuits against three large home insurers alleging they were systematically underinsured, leaving them without enough money to replace or rebuild their homes after the Jan. 7 blazes. The twin lawsuits, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, allege that USAA, a Texas-based…

Jason Constantine, co-president of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles after a long fight with brain cancer. He was 55. Constantine was a Lionsgate veteran, beginning his career more than 25 years ago at its predecessor company Trimark Pictures as a director of…

A former marketing executive at the Terranea Resort sued the luxury establishment on Wednesday, alleging its president had made discriminatory comments towards pregnant women working at the company. The former marketing exercutive, Chad Bustos, alleges in the lawsuit filed on Wednesday that he was fired in retaliation after he defended…

Eight Mile Style, a company that owns some of Eminem’s most popular songs, is suing social media giant Meta over alleged copyright infringement. The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Michigan, accuses the Menlo Park-based tech company of storing, reproducing and distributing Eminem’s music without obtaining the license to…

California lawmakers on Tuesday moved one step closer to placing more guardrails around artificial intelligence-powered chatbots. The Senate passed a bill that aims to make chatbots used for companionship safer after parents raised concerns that virtual characters harmed their childrens’ mental health. The legislation, which now heads to the California…

Serious followers of healthcare policy in the U.S. didn’t expect much good to emerge from its takeover by Donald Trump and his secretary of Health and Human Services, the anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. But the agency and its leadership managed to live down to the worst expectations May…

With its sale to Skydance Media still beyond its reach, Paramount Global has nominated three new directors to bolster its small board, which has been racked with drama and churn since early last year. The debt-laden New York-based company currently has only five board members, including controlling shareholder Shari Redstone,…

Walt Disney Co. launched another deep round of layoffs on Monday, notifying several hundred Disney employees in the U.S. and abroad that their jobs were being eliminated amid an increasingly difficult economic environment for traditional television. People close to the Burbank entertainment giant confirmed the cuts, which are hitting film…

SAN FRANCISCO — In recent years, San Francisco’s image as a welcoming place for businesses has taken a hit. Major tech companies such as Dropbox and Salesforce reduced footprints in the city by subleasing office space, while retailers including Nordstrom and Anthropologie pulled out of downtown. Social media firm X, formerly Twitter,…

Vanessa Agabo-Davalos has spent hours watching the dystopian drama “Squid Game” on Netflix. But nothing could prepare the 21-year-old college student for seeing one of the show’s actors walk the red carpet a few feet in front of her. She found herself starstruck in the presence of Kang Ae-sim, who…

A new survey of victims of the Palisades and Eaton fires shows most would like to return to their old neighborhoods, but they’re worried that government officials can’t make it happen soon enough. The vast majority of burned-out homeowners surveyed said they intend to rebuild the homes destroyed in the…

Dear Liz: When my husband was approaching 65, he was employed and covered by a high-deductible healthcare plan with a health savings account by his employer. Neither his employer nor our local Social Security office had concrete advice on how to proceed about enrolling in Medicare, but after tremendous research,…

LinkedIn, the professional social network where people search for work, is shedding jobs. The Microsoft-owned tech company has cut 281 workers in California, a notice filed this week to the California Employment Development Department shows. Earlier this month, Microsoft said that it was terminating 3% of staff, or about 6,000…

A federal judge this week dismissed a lawsuit filed by the man who says he invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Richard Montañez had sued Frito-Lay and its parent company PepsiCo last year, alleging they defamed him and hurt his career by denying his role in creating the popular snack. Federal Judge…

The movie “The Big Short” — dramatizing the reckless behavior in the banking and mortgage industries that contributed to the 2008 financial crisis — captures much of Wall Street’s misconduct but overlooks a central player in the collapse: the federal government, specifically through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These two…

Federal Communications Commissioner Anna M. Gomez traveled to Los Angeles this week to sound an alarm that attacks on the media by President Trump and his lieutenants could fray the fabric of the 1st Amendment. Gomez’s appearance Wednesday at Cal State L.A. was designed to take feedback from community members…

CBS has notched another small victory in its legal battle with Sony Pictures Television, winning an appellate court ruling that allows the network to continue to distribute “Wheel of Fortune” and “Jeopardy!” as its court case continues. Sony owns the shows and produces them on its Culver City lot. Last…

Elyse Walker made a bet in 1999: that residents of Pacific Palisades and Brentwood would rather shop for designer fashions in their neighborhood than drive to Beverly Hills. Her eponymous boutique, initially just 800 square feet, became the cornerstone of a retail empire that now stretches from Tribeca to Newport…

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. has laid off the presidents of Knott’s Berry Farm and Six Flags Magic Mountain and will cut scores of other jobs in California as part of a major shake-up at the theme park giant. The company, which operates 42 amusement parks across North America, plans to…

As Southern California Edison faces scrutiny over the role its equipment may have played in sparking the deadly Eaton fire, the utility giant is facing some pushback from ratepayers over plans to seek another increase in electricity rates. The California Public Utilities Commission is expected to make a decision this…

Louis Vuitton is gearing up to go over the top again in Beverly Hills. With plans for an ultra-opulent hotel on Rodeo Drive stymied by voters two years ago, the Paris fashion house’s owners are back with a proposal for a theatrical flagship store designed by architect Frank Gehry that…

At the top of a hill in a sprawling Santa Clarita industrial park in the shadow of Magic Mountain’s roller coasters, a significant chapter in the history of motorsports was written. But the story isn’t finished yet. From the outside, the building is nothing special. Behind its walls, however, Honda…

Dear Liz: I inherited my mother’s Roth IRA when she died in 2015 and have been taking yearly required minimum distributions based on my age. My spouse is my primary beneficiary on this inherited Roth IRA. What happens if I pass away before she does? Can she just roll it…

A chaotic blue alien and the high-flying escapades of Tom Cruise propelled the Memorial Day weekend box office to record heights, giving relief to theater owners still struggling from a post-pandemic malaise among moviegoers. Walt Disney Co.’s live-action film “Lilo & Stitch” hauled in $183 million in its opening weekend…

In the last several years, YouTube has become an increasingly formidable competitor to streaming services and entertainment studios, providing videos from amateur and professional creators, as well as livestreaming major events and NFL games. Now its growing threat to studios is playing out in the courts. The Google-owned platform recently…

Carolyn Bennett remembers flipping through a yellow telephone book in the 1980s to find carpet stores and workers who refinished wood to help renovate her home. Today, the 67-year-old uses a chatbot to help her shop. Bennett has turned to ChatGPT, which she refers to as “Chat,” to find vendors…

In a room inside a North Hollywood warehouse, dozens of pets are ready for their owners to take them home. Boots, a young black-and-white domestic shorthair cat, lies on his back, pawing playfully at the air. A trio of red, yellow and green parrots and cockatiels sit on wooden perches,…

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook can’t seem to catch a break. Last month, Apple appeared to secure a major win when the Trump administration agreed to remove tariffs on certain electronics imported from China following concerns that the prices of smartphones and computers could rise. But Trump threw Apple another…

SEOUL — The winner of South Korea’s upcoming presidential election will be faced with the task of uniting a country riven by political acrimony since the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who sparked national outrage after declaring martial law in December. But first, they will have to contend with President…

State waste officials have taken another stab at rules implementing a landmark plastic waste law, more than two months after Gov. Gavin Newsom torpedoed their initial proposal. CalRecycle, the state agency that oversees waste management, recently proposed a new set of draft regulations to implement SB 54, the 2022 law…

Jony Ive, a former Apple executive known for designing the iPhone, is joining forces with OpenAI, the San Francisco startup behind popular chatbot ChatGPT. On Wednesday, OpenAI said it’s buying io, an AI devices startup that Ive founded a year ago, for nearly $6.5 billion in an all-stock deal, the…

The United States and China are locked in a standoff with no resolution in sight. The U.S. wants to reshore manufacturing, and China wants to sell its manufactured products into the American market. It will take a creative solution to overcome this impasse, but it’s very possible. President Trump himself…

On the Shelf Who Knew By Barry DillerSimon & Schuster: 336 pages, $30If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores. Barry Diller has seen nearly every evolution of the entertainment business. He pioneered the “Movie of the…

Director Darren Aronofsky has pushed artistic boundaries with movies including “Requiem for a Dream” and “Mother!” Now his production company is working with Google to explore the edge of artificial intelligence technology in filmmaking. Google on Tuesday said it is working with several filmmakers to use new AI tools as…

The federal government is offering real estate investors an unusual opportunity — the chance to buy a historic courthouse and office building in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. The landmark U.S. Courthouse built in the 1930s on Spring Street near City Hall has been slated for “accelerated disposition” by…

Bankrupt genetic-testing firm 23andMe agreed to sell its data bank, which once contained DNA samples from about 15 million people, to the drug developer Regeneron Pharmaceuticals for $256 million. The sale comes after a wave of customers and government officials demanded that 23andMe protect the genetic data it had built…

Dear Liz: There is a lot of dysfunction and drama in my family so in my will, I’ve named a friend to be my executor. But I don’t think she’s the best person for my advance healthcare directive. She’s too nice and I think she would cave under pressure from…

The state law that shielded Southern California Edison and other utilities from liability for wildfires sparked by their equipment came with a catch: Top utility executives would be forced to take a pay cut if their company’s safety record declined. Edison’s safety record did decline last year. The number of…

SEOUL — In South Korea, the Trump administration’s 25% tariff on imported cars has sent local automakers Hyundai and Kia scrambling to protect one of the country’s most valuable exports. But General Motors, which last year shipped 418,782 units from its factories here to American consumers — or 88.5% of its total…

Charter Communications and Cox Communications plan to merge in a $34.5-billion deal that would unite Southern California’s two major cable TV and internet providers to sell services under the Spectrum brand. The proposed consolidation, announced Friday, comes as the industry grapples with accelerating cable customer losses amid the shift to…

When Los Angeles City Council members took up a plan to hike the wages of tourism workers this week, they received some carefully worded advice from city lawyers: Don’t vote on this yet. Senior Assistant City Atty. Michael J. Dundas advised them on Wednesday — deep into their meeting —…

Epic Games on Friday said that its popular game “Fortnite” will be offline on Apple devices because the iPhone maker blocked its recent app update. The dispute comes just weeks after Epic Games and other app developers cheered a judge’s ruling that limited the commissions that Apple makes through third…

A locally owned grocery store fed up with a rise in theft in its Inland Empire community is trying to crack down on the problem by restricting the use of large personal shopping bags in the store. On a Facebook post in April, Matthew and Allison Whitlow announced their ownership…

Microsoft is slashing its Silicon Valley workforce. The tech giant, which is based in Washington but also has Bay Area offices, is cutting 122 positions in Silicon Valley, according to a layoff notice sent to the California Employment Development Department this week. Microsoft cited a reorganization and restructuring within the…

The Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to approve a sweeping package of minimum wage increases for workers in the tourism industry, despite objections from business leaders who warned that the region is already facing a slowdown in international travel. The proposal, billed by labor leaders as the highest minimum…

An electric boat company with roots in Torrance is taking steps to bring battery-powered workboats and charging infrastructure to the Port of Los Angeles, where diesel-burning vessels emit tons of carbon dioxide. Arc Boat Co., a Southern California startup that sells electric boats for recreational use, said it will open…

Google agreed to pay $50 million to settle a lawsuit alleging the search engine giant was racially biased against Black employees. The settlement, which was reached after mediation and certified by a U.S. District Court judge in Oakland on Friday, covers some 4,000 Google employees in California and New York.…

Jamie Lee Curtis didn’t expect to be at the forefront of the artificial intelligence debate in Hollywood. But she didn’t have a choice. The Oscar-winning actor recently called out Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg on social media, saying the company ignored her requests to take down a fake AI-generated advertisement…

So-called Hollywood ambassadors Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone joined with a coalition of entertainment industry groups for a letter delivered this week to President Trump urging him to support tax measures and a federal tax incentive that would help bring film and TV production back to the U.S. The letter…

SAN FRANCISCO — Earlier this month, a mysterious store selling a vision of the future opened its doors in downtown San Francisco’s Union Square district. A cryptic message appeared on the storefront window: “World is the real human network. Anonymous proof of human and universally inclusive finance for the age of AI.…

After fielding a storm of complaints at a community meeting about how State Farm General is handling Los Angeles wildfire claims, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said Saturday that regulators might launch a formal inquiry into the company’s practices. Lara made his comments during a Zoom session attended by more…

Dear Liz: My husband and I built a home on a hillside over 30 years ago in a desirable neighborhood with a beautiful view. We thought it would be our retirement home, but life had different plans. Now seniors, dealing with age, stairs and progressive health issues, we have been…

In-N-Out Burger is expanding its footprint in California and beyond. The beloved burger joint recently added to its Grand Openings catalog three new locations in California: Indio, Modesto and Monrovia. The trio of stores will open in 2025 alongside a previously announced Sylmar, Calif., site and three other locations across…

Three Democratic U.S. representatives for California visited the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on Friday to voice their concerns after President Trump told reporters that the slowdown of activity at the ports was “a good thing.” Trump has argued that tariffs are needed to boost manufacturing jobs in…

It’s been a chaotic week in Hollywood. Less than a week ago, President Trump called for 100% tariffs on movies made outside the U.S., a move meant to bring productions home that most people in the industry believe would have devastating consequences for the entertainment business. Then industry trade publication…

Mexican business leaders and executives lauded statements from Apollo Global Management Inc. Chief Executive Marc Rowan emphasizing the need for a trade partnership between the U.S. and Mexico, which propelled a view that a global trade war could make the U.S.’ southern neighbor a winner amid uncertainty. “The U.S. and…

Southern California Edison was hit with another lawsuit in the wake of the Eaton fire Wednesday, with lawyers claiming families living in or near areas devastated by the Eaton fire may have suffered from dangerous levels of lead, asbestos and other toxic substances. The Los Angeles County Superior Court suit…

Americans have become woefully familiar with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the purveyor of flagrant misinformation about medical treatments. And with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the minimizer of health crises such as the spreading measles outbreak. And with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the antivaccine crusader. Now…

With Paramount Global’s sale stuck before federal regulators and a potential settlement looming with President Trump in a dispute over CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” Paramount co-Chief Executive George Cheeks on Wednesday sought to project a sense of business as usual. Cheeks and CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach unveiled the network’s…

Walt Disney Co. plans to expand its empire to the Middle East with a new theme park in Abu Dhabi, the company said Wednesday. The park will be located on Yas Island, which is already home to several theme parks, including Ferrari World, Warner Bros. World and SeaWorld. It will…

Shortly after President Trump stunned Hollywood with his call for tariffs on films produced overseas, California Gov. Gavin Newsom waded into the debate with an unexpected offer. Despite the public enmity between the two, Newsom reached out to the White House in hopes of working together on the creation of…

A chair of a trial committee of the Writers Guild of America West has called out the union’s handling of disciplinary proceedings against one member accused of flouting the union’s rules during the 2023 strike. In a four-page letter, Jill Goldsmith, a former public defender from Cook County, conveyed profound…

Hollywood executives scrambled Monday to interpret President Trump’s call for stiff tariffs on movies produced outside the U.S. — a bombshell proposal that would upend how movies have been made for years. Trump on Sunday night announced that he was authorizing a 100% tariff on movies “coming into our Country…

Skechers, the Manhattan Beach footwear brand, is going private in a $9.4-billion deal. New York investment firm 3G Capital will acquire the company in a transaction that is expected to close in the third quarter, the company said Monday. Skechers had a market value of about $7.4 billion before the…

Looking to boost the production of Hollywood movies in the U.S., President Trump on Sunday announced a new 100% tariff applied on films produced overseas. For more than two decades, major studios have shifted movie production to cheaper countries, including Canada, U.K., Bulgaria, New Zealand, Australia and other countries that…

They may not be the Avengers, but the motley crew of Marvel Studios’ “Thunderbolts” punched their way to the top of the box office this weekend, continuing a strong season for theaters as Hollywood’s summer movie season gets underway. The movie, which stars Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan as part…

Dear Liz: I’m engaged to someone who just confessed that they have not filed tax returns for the last several years. How do we fix this? If they owe a lot of money, could the IRS come after me if we’re married? Answer: Technically, debts incurred before marriage are considered…

Amid a wave of unprecedented tariffs, anxiety is running high for truck drivers like Helen, who makes her living delivering cargo containers from the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors to warehouses and other customers around Southern California. After a strong start to the year, the number of jobs has…

A decades-old shipping loophole that made imported goods cheaper for customers and boosted foreign e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu sunsetted Friday. The 1938 provision, called the “de minimis” exception, formerly allowed shipments under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free. Trump last month signed an executive order eliminating the…

Novartis AG has agreed to buy U.S. biotech firm Regulus Therapeutics Inc. in a deal that could be valued at up to $1.7 billion. The Swiss company will pay $7 a share in cash up-front through a subsidiary, equivalent to $800 million, according to a statement Wednesday. Regulus Therapeutics shareholders…

Electronic Arts, the global video game company, is slashing its workforce again. The company, based in Redwood City, Calif., has eliminated several hundred positions, including about 100 jobs at Respawn, a video game development studio based in Los Angeles. “As part of our continued focus on our long-term strategic priorities,…

Some importers who are still receiving shipments are scrambling to rent space in bonded buildings where they hope to buy time for the tariff tensions to ease. As steep tariffs on imports throw Los Angeles-area ports into turmoil and chill industrial property leasing, one rare type of building is suddenly…

Apple Inc. violated a court order requiring it to open up the App Store to third-party payment options and must stop charging commissions on purchases outside its software marketplace, a federal judge said in a blistering ruling that referred the company to prosecutors for a possible criminal probe. U.S. District…

The chief executive of Southern California Edison’s parent company said on Tuesday that the company was likely to suffer “material losses” related to the deadly Eaton fire, which ignited on Jan. 7 and burned more than 14,000 acres. Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing and have not…

As CBS-owner Paramount Global enters mediation this week to resolve President Trump’s $20-billion “60 Minutes” lawsuit, one question looms: How much should the company pay to settle a dispute that 1st Amendment experts have deemed frivolous? Paramount’s board during an April 18 meeting agreed on parameters for a possible settlement…

Southern California Edison has repeatedly insisted that its former government affairs manager, state Assemblywoman Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier), was never an executive with the company. But that’s not what Edison told the federal government. Calderon is sponsoring legislation favored by Edison that would slash the credits that many homeowners receive for…

Juanita’s Foods, a prominent manufacturer of Mexican food products, announced that it has sold a majority stake in the company to Miami-based private equity firm Apex Capital. Financial terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1946 in Wilmington, Juanita’s Foods is the nation’s top seller of canned Mexican food staples, including…

Evan Richardson grew up in Silicon Valley, surrounded by big tech companies that transformed how people live, socialize and work. As a curious kid, Richardson took apart electronics and put them back together. A career in technology seemed like a natural and safe path after his service in the military.…

For two decades, Jim Sanfilippo has designed high-wattage, specialized LED lights for stadiums, the U.S. House of Representatives and Hollywood film and television productions, including the James Bond movie “Quantum of Solace.” Now the Pasadena small-business owner is bracing for uncertainty as the U.S. confronts its highest average effective tariff…

Dear Liz: I lived in a house for 45 years. During that time, my daughter and her family moved in due to the 2008 financial crisis. I have not charged her rent. However, I moved out five years ago, and her family is still there rent-free. I understand that when…

Google is the only company that can offer the level of features and functionality that its popular Chrome web browser has today, given its “interdependencies” on other parts of the Alphabet Inc. unit, the head of Chrome testified. “Chrome today represents 17 years of collaboration between the Chrome people” and…

Faced with potential federal spending cuts that threaten health coverage and falling childhood vaccination rates, Monica Soni, the chief medical officer of Covered California, has a lot on her plate — and on her mind. California’s Affordable Care Act health insurance exchange covers nearly 2 million residents and 89% of…

Canada’s largest Asian grocery chain is continuing its expansion into California with plans to open a new location in Irvine early next year. It will be among the first storefronts in the state for T&T Supermarket, which has more than 33 stores in Vancouver, Toronto and other Canadian cities. The…

Tenants hunting for office space in the Los Angeles area are in the driver’s seat as vacancies plague many landlords trying to fill their buildings with people. The greater Los Angeles office rental market started the year with a turbulent first quarter and historically high vacancies as tenant demand was…

Salinas-based produce supplier Taylor Fresh Foods is facing lawsuits from nine victims of a November E. coli outbreak that was not disclosed to the public. The outbreak — which killed one person and sickened at least 88 more — was linked to romaine lettuce and spanned at least 15 states,…

If California were its own country, its economy would now rank as the fourth-largest of any nation in the globe, Gov. Gavin Newsom said this week. Newsom announced the state’s new economic ranking Wednesday after recently released data from the International Monetary Fund and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis…

A bill to sharply reduce the energy credits given to homeowners with rooftop solar panels is pitting union electrical workers and the state’s big utilities against people who benefit from the solar credits — and one of the first skirmishes took place in the City of Industry on Wednesday. Waving…

The Southern California union representing hospitality workers has reached a deal to secure employment for about 100 workers at the Long Beach Convention Center. The agreement between United Here Local 11 and ASM Global, the company that operates the city-owned convention center, resolves a dispute that erupted last month after…

Tesla is off to a bumpy start this year. The electric vehicle giant’s profit plunged 71% in the first quarter to $409 million as the company faced a flurry of setbacks, including looming tariffs and a brand crisis perpetuated by Chief Executive Elon Musk’s prominent role in the Trump administration.…

A number of otherwise skeptical senators took at face value the pledge by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at Senate hearings in January to “follow the science” on issues related to the causes of disease in the U.S., helping him receive confirmation as secretary of Health and Human Services. As he…

Walgreens has agreed to pay up to $350 million in a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department after allegations that the pharmacy chain illegally filled millions of invalid prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances. Filed early this year, the complaint that led to the settlement accused Walgreens of filling…

Nearly 2 million California rooftop solar owners could lose the energy credits that help them cover what they spent to install the expensive climate-friendly systems under a proposed state bill. The bill’s author, Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier), is a former executive at Southern California Edison and its parent company, Edison…

A planned new residential skyscraper for downtown Los Angeles has cleared a key regulatory hurdle to be built in an unusual location — on top of an existing parking garage. The proposed tower would be one of the city’s tallest at 53 stories, rising in the center of one the…

Want to make a living with your delicious cooking? Check out Hotplate, a site that helps professional chefs as well as home cooks organize their food sales. What is Hotplate? Hotplate is a software-as-a-service company that automates scheduling, order flow and pickup of food in exchange for a percentage of…

A group of property owners affected by the January wildfires is suing major California insurer carriers, including the state’s largest, State Farm, for allegedly violating California’s antitrust and unfair competition laws. The lawsuits follow others regarding insurers’ handling of the aftermath of the Eaton and Palisades fires, including against Insurance…

This Easter weekend, theaters from Torrance to Temecula will be showing films like “A Minecraft Movie” and Ryan Coogler’s vampire thriller “Sinners.” Alongside those movies, many will also be showing an eight-hour “binge fest” of the latest season of “The Chosen,” the popular streaming series that chronicles the life of…

The long-awaited Porto’s Bakery & Cafe is one step closer to serving up its pastries, cakes and famed potato balls for visitors heading to the “Happiest Place on Earth.” Disney filed demolition permits this month for the building that previously housed La Brea Bakery in Downtown Disney just steps away…

Seeking succor when the world seems to be closing in on you is a quintessentially human habit. Some people do it by gorging on comfort food like macaroni and cheese, others choose drink, or drugs, or gardening, or the warmth of a puppy. I always know when I’m feeling blue,…

Three congressmen from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce are raising concerns over data privacy weeks after the genetic testing company 23andMe filed for bankruptcy, putting millions of customers’ personal information up for sale. The Republican representatives — Brett Guthrie from Kentucky, Gus Bilirakis from Florida and Gary Palmer…

Uncertainty about which imports will be socked with new tariffs and when they’ll go into effect has thrown a cloud over home builders and other real estate developers trying to pay for new construction throughout Southern California, including neighborhoods scorched by the January wildfires. Many builders are trying to budget…

Sebastien Lagree would like to make one thing clear: “This. Is. Not. Pilates.” Signage at the West Hollywood location of the Megaformer Studio. (Stella Kalinina/For The Times) The global fitness entrepreneur is talking about the Lagree Method, his patented workout. You may be familiar: About 50 SoCal studios currently license…

In so many ways the Trump administration has given us a window into a dystopian world — flouting a unanimous decision by the Supreme Court, elevating scientific myth into healthcare policy and so on. But its latest attack on the Social Security system is arguably the most frightening of all.…

Zoox, the autonomous driving technology company owned by Amazon, is preparing to begin testing its vehicles in Los Angeles this summer. The city will be the sixth testing location for the Bay Area-based venture, which does not yet offer rides to the public. Founded in 2014 and acquired by Amazon…

Popular Gen Z retailer Revolve is facing a $50-million lawsuit alleging that the brand’s social media marketing tactics deceived at least a million consumers. A class-action lawsuit, filed Friday in California Central District Court, accuses the Cerritos-based online retailer of violating federal trade law by operating an advertising “scheme” in…

WASHINGTON — American technology companies hoping for relief from President Trump’s trade war with China grappled with further uncertainty Monday, left to decipher whether a government policy exempting businesses that are core to the U.S. economy from crippling tariffs could be relied upon. An industry that plans product launches and manufacturing years…

An age-old debate has roared back to the forefront in Hollywood. The so-called theatrical window has long been a hot topic for studios and movie theater owners. The discussion about how long a film is in movie theaters before it’s available for home viewing ramped up during the pandemic, when…

QUANG NINH, Vietnam — When Le Ngoc Tram became sales manager for a new industrial park in northern Vietnam, the goal was to turn it into an easy alternative for manufacturers leaving China to avoid the tariffs of the first U.S.-Sino trade war. Three years later, with less than half of the…

When Fang Chen was growing up in the wealthy city of San Marino in the 1980s, it was still a majority white community, one where locals occasionally exploded into ugly moments of racism at the arrival of new Asian residents. Today, the community is nearly 70% Asian, with nearly half…

The Trump administration late Friday said they would exclude electronics like smartphones and laptops from “reciprocal” tariffs, a move that could help keep the prices down for popular consumer electronics that aren’t usually made in the U.S. It would also benefit big tech companies like Apple and Samsung and chip…

On Tuesday, a trickle of visitors traversed the sidewalks of star-studded Hollywood Boulevard, which is usually bustling this time of year with families and students on spring break trips. Parked open-air tour buses and vans were largely empty. But Jose Ayon, manager at La La Land, a souvenir and gift…

Warner Bros. Discovery struggled throughout 2024, but there were few headwinds for Chief Executive David Zaslav’s pay package, which increased to nearly $52 million. The lofty compensation plan — which swelled 4% from the previous year — maintains Zaslav’s standing as one of the most handsomely paid executives in America,…

Dani Schlarmann, a recruiter, noticed something fishy about the job applicants. Cover letters and resumes sounded identical. Candidates embellished their experience to match the job description. On top of that, engineers were caught using artificial intelligence tools to “cheat” on live coding tests. The California resident, who works for blockchain…

A robot on wheels could serve up your next meal thanks to a partnership between DoorDash and Coco Robotics that’s bringing food delivery robots to Los Angeles sidewalks. The food delivery service DoorDash announced Thursday that eligible customers in Los Angeles and Chicago can order food through their app to…

Demand for warehouses used to move goods through Los Angeles County ports is expected to fall if widespread tariffs take effect, potentially damaging the economic vitality of one of the world’s largest industrial real estate markets. Leasing of buildings used to collect and distribute imported goods has slowed at least…

WASHINGTON — President Trump walked back plans on Wednesday for a global trade war that sparked fears of economic panic and recession, a dramatic reversal after a week of market turmoil that led to a historic surge of relief on Wall Street. But the president further escalated his standoff with China over…

When her 14-year-old son took his own life after interacting with artificial intelligence chatbots, Megan Garcia turned her grief into action. Last year, the Florida mom sued Character.AI, a platform where people can create and interact with digital characters that mimic real and fictional people. Garcia alleged in a federal…

WASHINGTON — Canada will begin imposing 25% tariffs on select U.S. car imports Wednesday, ratcheting up tensions between Washington and Ottawa as the rest of the world grapples with President Trump’s ongoing assault on the global economic order. Canada’s move came hours after Beijing vowed that China would “fight to the end”…

California lawmakers are pursuing legislation that could give drivers for apps like Uber and Lyft the ability to form unions, while still being classified as independent contractors. Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) and Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) plan to introduce Assembly Bill 1340, also titled the Transportation Network Company Drivers Labor…

WASHINGTON — As the fallout over President Trump’s tariffs continues to roil the world economy, a few Republicans in Congress have begun discussing how to curb the president’s ability to levy tariffs — taking a rare step to rein in the party leader. Republican leaders have largely struck a “wait-and-see” attitude toward…

Stay in LA, the grassroots campaign aimed at boosting film and television production in Los Angeles, held a rally in Sun Valley on Sunday to draw attention to the struggling local entertainment industry. The rally at SirReel Studio Services featured a series of speakers from across the entertainment industry as…

“A Minecraft Movie” injected some much-needed life into the slumbering box office with a record-breaking $157-million domestic opening and $144 million overseas. The movie, starring Jason Momoa, Jack Black and Jennifer Coolidge, shattered expectations, doubling some pre-weekend estimates. It took the top slot for a video game adaptation, eclipsing “The…

For the Rams, a house isn’t necessarily a home. There’s the Sunday sanctuary of SoFi Stadium — also known as Rams House — but the franchise that returned to Los Angeles in 2016 has turned its attention to creating a permanent home in Woodland Hills, where it will spend the…

SAN FRANCISCO  — The iPhone is a quintessentially 21st century product — Californian in its creation and design and now enmeshed in the global economy. Apple makes most of its iPhones in China, though in recent years the Cupertino-based company has made more of its products in India, Vietnam and other…

Dear Liz: I have a retirement account at work and a stock portfolio. Both are down significantly this year and I’m tired of losing money. What are the safest options now? Answer: Before the “what” you need to think about the “why” and the “when.” Why are you investing in…

WASHINGTON — A second day of market devastation shook Washington on Friday, vanishing more than $5 trillion in value in one of the largest 48-hour losses on record — an extraordinary rout caused not by pandemic, war, terrorism or bank failure, but by policy set by the American president. The policy, announced…

MEXICO CITY — Mexico has avoided the worst of the Trump tariff onslaught. At least for now. That was the message of relief that Mexican officials were sending Thursday, a day after the Trump administration unveiled its much-anticipated “Liberation Day” tariff regimen, imposing import levies on scores of nations worldwide. Spared in…

As with many of his political positions, President Trump’s extraordinary new tariffs are based on the presumption that the United States is being treated unfairly by the rest of the world. He proclaims his tariffs are merely “reciprocal.” “They do it to us, and we do it to them,” Trump…

The old political adage that “where you stand depends upon where you sit” has been getting aired out in Washington. Republicans and conservatives used to celebrate judges’ issuance of nationwide court injunctions to block Biden policies or progressive government programs. Now that nationwide court injunctions are being used to block…

After getting into a car accident last month, Debbie Boyd held out hope that her Chevy Volt could be repaired. But the car was declared a total loss on Monday, three days before President Trump’s 25% tariff on imported cars and light trucks is set to go into effect. “It’s…

It started on Jan. 31, when someone named Mike Russo showed up at the Social Security Administration offices outside Baltimore and started introducing himself as a representative of DOGE, the federal budget-cutting service headed by Elon Musk. Over subsequent days, he urged seniorSocial Security Administration officials to take the deferred…

CBS has asked the Federal Communications Commission to end its investigation into edits of its “60 Minutes” Kamala Harris interview, arguing that the federal government risks becoming “a roving censor” trampling on free speech rights. President Trump was furious over last October’s “60 Minutes” interview with then-Vice President Harris in…

Director Bong Joon Ho’s sci-fi thriller “Mickey 17” had a slow start in theaters this weekend, amid a sluggish last few weeks for the domestic box office. The Warner Bros. Pictures film opened in the U.S. and Canada to $19.1 million, landing it in first place. But “Mickey 17” was…

Dear Liz: My mother passed away a little over a year ago, and my father about 18 months prior to her. I discovered that my parents saved up quite a lot of cash (in the six figures), and I’m afraid to deposit it without triggering the IRS. My parents routinely…

A top State Farm executive was fired this week after saying the insurer’s California rate hikes are “kind of” orchestrated and after making disparaging remarks about Pacific Palisades homeowners that were caught on an undercover video. Haden Kirkpatrick, State Farm Mutual’s vice president for innovation and venture capital, was recorded…

Two months after twin fires destroyed large swaths of two Southern California communities, many of the businesses left behind are struggling to revive sales in the face of displaced customers, road closures and a massive rebuilding effort that is projected to drag on for years. The secondary crisis has hit…

Search giant Google still faces a potential breakup under President Trump’s administration. The Department of Justice on Friday reaffirmed a proposal that a court force the tech company to sell off its popular Chrome browser to restore competition. The federal government made the demand last year after a federal judge…

President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to establish a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” and a stockpile of U.S. digital assets. The move came after Trump’s proposal for a crypto reserve sparked unexpected blowback from tech leaders because he initially said over the weekend that digital assets other than bitcoin…

Stater Bros. Markets has laid off dozens of clerks in its Southern California stores for the first time in its 89-year history, blaming inflation and tariffs for its decision. “I don’t think it’s any secret that in the last four years, we’ve seen significant inflation, more than I’ve ever seen…

MEXICO CITY — In a dizzying turn, President Trump said Thursday that the U.S. would temporarily reverse the sweeping tariffs it imposed just days ago on most Mexican products. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he would delay for one month the imposition of 25% taxes on Mexican imports that…

In the waning days of the Biden administration, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a series of lawsuits against financial companies it accused of running roughshod over the public. Now, the agency under a new interim director is rapidly withdrawing those cases and others, with the CFPB most recently filing…

MEXICO CITY — One day after President Trump’s sweeping tariffs took effect, ending decades of free trade across North America, Mexicans reacted with a mix of fear and defiance. “There will not be submission,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said at her daily news conference Wednesday. “Mexicans are valiant and strong.” Sheinbaum reiterated her…

California lawmakers will consider a bill intended to expand protections for migrant workers who come to California through temporary work visa programs for jobs in agriculture, nursing, domestic care and other industries. The legislation, Assembly Bill 1362, would require that all contracted foreign labor recruiters register with the state and…

MEXICO CITY — Mexico and Canada vowed retaliation for sweeping tariffs imposed Tuesday by President Trump on all goods from their countries, a move that overnight upended free trade in North America and sent shock waves through the global supply chain. As of midnight Tuesday, the U.S. was expected to start levying…

Serena Williams is expanding her portfolio of professional sports organizations to include a WNBA team. The tennis legend was announced Monday as a co-owner the Toronto Tempo, an expansion team that is set to start play in 2026. Williams is joining an ownership group that is headed by Larry Tanenbaum,…

Over the weekend, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials knocked on the doors of a handful of Los Angeles-area homes. And last month, U.S. Border Patrol agents conducted a three-day raid in rural parts of Kern County targeting Latino farmworkers and day laborers soliciting work in the parking lots of…

When the Lakers acquired Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks this month, fans in Los Angeles knew they were getting a phenomenal young player who is a five-time All-Star selection, led the league in scoring last season and took his team to the NBA Finals in June. One thing those…

Technicolor Group, the storied visual effects, motion graphics and animation company behind some of Hollywood’s most memorable films, is shuttering operations, including in California. The company is laying off 217 workers and permanently closing its Culver City studio on Lindblade Street, according to a notice filed with California‘s Employment Development…

For more than 20 years, Sherman Oaks florist Mark’s Garden has designed the towering greenery and blooming displays seen at the Oscars. Getting that Hollywood awards-season work is key, particularly during the business’ typically slow first quarter of the year. And the free advertising that comes with your floral arrangements…

MEXICO CITY — Facing a Tuesday deadline, the government of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is once again mounting a full-court press to dissuade President Trump from implementing potentially devastating tariffs on Mexican exports to the United States. This week, she delivered a symbolic gift: the transfer to the United States of 29…

Another round of layoffs hit the San Francisco Bay Area’s volatile tech industry. HP Inc. plans to lay off up to 2,000 more employees as the company looks for ways to slash costs amid economic uncertainty and eyes more investments in artificial intelligence. The job cuts are part of a…

Just as uncontrollable financial, demographic and other forces have wreaked havoc in Hollywood, California’s wine industry is now reeling from epochal stresses that are grinding down yet another mainstay of the state’s economy. The aging of baby boomers who long served as the industry’s mainstay, changing tastes among young consumers,…

Los Angeles County could lose $4.6 billion to $8.9 billion in economic output over the next five years from the Palisades and Eaton fires, a Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. study released Thursday predicts. Federal, state and local governments are estimated to miss out on up to $1.4 billion…

Mattel has reclaimed highly coveted rights to create action figures and collectibles based on DC characters such as Batman and Superman starting in the second half of 2026. “It’s a huge deal. You’re dealing with some of the greatest superheroes and some of the best action figure potential in the…

Ursula Boschet, the iconic Hollywood costume designer, whose shop draped celebrities and civilians for more than half a century, has died. She was 90. Boschet died Monday afternoon of pancreatic cancer surrounded by family at her home in Chatsworth, a spokesperson for the family confirmed. In a career that defied…

Fashion retailer Forever 21 is preparing to close at least 200 stores and lay off more than 350 employees in its corporate office as it struggles for viability. The chain has been stumbling since filing for bankruptcy in 2019 and has struggled to stay relevant among emerging brands and cheap…

State Farm General, California’s largest home insurer, estimated Tuesday that it will cost $7.6 billion to settle its Los Angeles-area fire claims, but it said reinsurance will lower its losses to about $612 million. The company disclosed it has already paid $1.75 billion to cover about 9,500 claims and will…

When her teen with autism suddenly became angry, depressed and violent, the mother searched his phone for answers. She found her son had been exchanging messages with chatbots on Character.AI, an artificial intelligence app that allows users to create and interact with virtual characters that mimic celebrities, historical figures and…

An Arizona woman has been awarded $7.25 million by a federal court in California after a day of magic at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter with her grandson ended with her in an ambulance. Earlier this month, a jury found Universal Studios Hollywood responsible for the crushed spine that…

Calling the trend of children buying antiaging skin care “ridiculous and a paradox,” a state legislator has introduced a bill that would ban the sale of such beauty products to customers under the age of 18. The recent obsession among so-called Sephora Kids for skin care containing potent chemicals has…

Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms said it’s working on the world’s longest undersea cable as part of the social media giant’s efforts to connect more people to high-speed internet. Called Project Waterworth, the massive cable spanning more than 31,000 miles will bring “industry-leading connectivity” to the United States, India, Brazil,…

Farmers Insurance, the state’s second-largest home insurer, said it expects to lose at least $600 million from the Los Angeles fires, a substantially smaller figure than some other major insurers have announced. The Los Angeles-based company said the figure includes payments from its reinsurance program but not an expected assessment…

Nikola, the startup that sought to build fleets of electric heavy-duty trucks, has filed for bankruptcy and plans to shut down. The company, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday, expects to sell all or most of its assets in order to maximize value for shareholders and ensure an “orderly…

MAMMOTH LAKES, Calif.  — On a clear, cold day in mid-February, we had spent hours on backcountry skis trudging up and across a remote mountainside in the eastern Sierra when we noticed that the trees directly above us were much smaller than the others we had passed along the way. Still…

Can prefab homes accelerate the rebuilding of Altadena and Pacific Palisades? The new foundation launched by Rick Caruso is hoping they will, announcing on Wednesday a $15-million pledge from an Airbnb co-founder to provide nearly 100 prefabricated homes in communities ravaged by wildfire. The donation from Joe Gebbia, who is…

Trader Joe’s has recalled a popular frozen dish over possible plastic contamination, the grocery chain said. The organic acai bowl, which sells for $3.99, may contain plastic material, the retailer announced last week. The company encouraged customers who had purchased the bowls, which include berries, bananas, granola and dried coconut,…

Following a loud public outcry about job cuts at the National Park Service — and a relentless media campaign from outdoors enthusiasts across the country — it looks like the Trump administration has reconsidered. A plan to eliminate thousands of seasonal workers at the beloved federal agency appears to have…

By the time “Emilia Pérez” had garnered 13 Oscar nominations, including for best picture, Netflix’s Spanish-language musical about a transgender drug lord had already been mired in controversy. Critics skewered the film’s portrayal of trans issues and Mexican culture. Then Karla Sofía Gascón’s old social media posts resurfaced in which…

Herbalife has named a new chief executive, marking a new chapter for the Los Angeles nutrition products company as it continues to rebuild after a string of controversies over the last decade. Stephan Gratziani, who started as an independent distributor at Herbalife nearly 34 years ago, will take over the…

People who toil on the Universal Studios lot out of the public eye recently got an upgrade to their workplace meant to bring it more in line with its glamorous image as a historic movie factory and theme park known to the world. The old campus was so uninspired and…

A group of Los Angeles fast food workers walked off the job Tuesday to urge city officials to approve a law that would give them more control over their work schedules. Fast food workers have long complained of unstable schedules that make it difficult to plan their finances, child care,…

Thousands of University of California healthcare, research and technical employees voted to authorize a strike, citing what they described as systemic and ongoing staffing shortages that erode patient care and hurt research operations. The strike authorization comes amid strained negotiations between the university and University Professional and Technical Employees-CWA Local…

Apple and Google have restored TikTok to their U.S. app stores after President Trump delayed enforcement of a law that requires the popular video app to divest or face a nationwide ban. The tech companies removed TikTok nearly a month ago to comply with the law, which went into effect…

California’s insurance commissioner on Friday turned down a request by State Farm General for an emergency 22% hike of its home insurance rates due to the Los Angeles wildfires, saying the company hadn’t proven it was warranted. Commissioner Ricardo Lara said the state’s largest home insurer has failed to prove…

Russia. China. Venezuela. Iran. More than a dozen countries make gasoline at state-owned refineries. Could California be next on the list? California policymakers are considering state ownership of one or more oil refineries, one item on a list of options presented by the California Energy Commission to ensure steady gas…

Google’s YouTube and Paramount Global have struck a new distribution contract, averting a threatened blackout of CBS and other television channels for nearly 8 million YouTube TV customers. The deal was clinched Saturday night, about 48 hours after the previous pact expired. The two sides then extended a deadline to…

More than a decade ago, outcries about the lack of diversity in the tech industry reverberated across major Silicon Valley companies from Facebook to Google. Women and minorities spoke out about feeling out of place in male-dominated professions, civil rights activists urged businesses to do more and tech workers like…

Los Angeles County’s sizable Asian immigrant communities are bracing for disruption and heartache as rumors swirl of mass deportations to be carried out under sweeping new orders issued by the Trump administration. At religious centers and job sites, community leaders are hosting “Know Your Rights” training sessions in Bangla, Chinese,…