138. What is Elon Musk really up to?

Robert and Steph catch up after another gruelling week of Trump’s “America-first” agenda. They question the thinking behind his tariffs, and predict who will really pay the price for them. With cautious optimism, the pair also consider whether or not the UK and Europe could pull together to regenerate their economies and their militaries. Is Trump the shock that could reverse decades of European decline? Discover the Vanguard Managed ISA today! Visit https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/investing-explained/stocks-shares-isa/we-do-it-for-you Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley, Alice Horrell Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robert returns from his trip to the US with the PM, to the mayhem of the collapse of relations between Trump And Zelenskyy. He and Steph assess the significance of Trump withdrawing support from Kiev. They also look at whether US/UK trade deals are on the cards, whether Starmer’s decision to slash aid to fund defence makes sense, and whether King Charles has just proved he is value for our money. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley, Alice Horrell Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite being called a dictator by Trump, President Zelensky has agreed a deal that would see the US make billions from Ukraine’s minerals. Steph catches up with The Rest Is Politics’ Alastair Campbell as they ponder how the deal might play out. Plus the impact of Musk’s meddling on geopolitics and what Starmer needs to be doing and saying to Trump in their pivotal meeting this week. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robert and Steph speak with Michael Tory about the underperformance of the UK stock market compared to other countries, and why this has done so much damage to all our living standards. They discuss whether the government is doing enough to compel or encourage the funds that manage our money to invest in UK businesses Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley + Alice Horrell Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robert and Steph discuss why inflation won’t disappear but is no worse than feared, how AI is both replacing humans and making some more productive according to Anthropic’s new data and what’s really motivating Trump in his rapprochement with Putin. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley, Alice Horrell Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robert and Steph find out how AI will radically change how people will shop in the future. Retail consultant Kate Ancketill explains how every cursor movement and click is being analysed to provide retailers with ways to predict, and therefore manipulate, how we buy. All that plus we chat about the role of AI assistants, celeb avatars, and how retailers are tackling theft and low consumer confidence. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As Musk continues his hostile takeover of the US government, Robert and Steph look at the impact his dramatic overhaul is having. It sounds like chaos but could it pave the way for a more radical approach to public finances in the UK? Plus we discuss what Musk wants from OpenAI. And whether all this drama will end with a spectacular Trump/Musk fallout. Or have they both got too much to lose? Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robert and Steph catch up after a dramatic week of Trump's trade tariffs and consider their ripple effects across the globe. Will consumers pay the price for an "America-first agenda"? And, is there any genius in Trump sowing economic uncertainty? Also, will the Bank of England’s “careful and gradual” approach to cutting interest rates to 4.5%, go far enough?   Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Steph and Robert are joined by Praful Nargund, founder of the Good Growth Foundation, and Chris Curtis, MP for Milton Keynes North, to speak about Rachel Reeves’s growth targets. They consider what growth actually means to everyday people, whether it’s felt evenly, or if Labour should be prioritising something else altogether. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Steph and Gordon Corera, host of The Rest Is Classified and the BBC’s Security Correspondent, discuss the security risks posed to the UK by Rachel Reeves’ new ploy to secure Chinese investment. Also, how Huawei was replaced by Tik Tok, and then DeepSeek, as the latest digital threat to the West and why an era of subtle ‘cognitive warfare’ has been ushered in by social media. Sign up to our newsletter to get more stories from the world of business and finance. Email: [email protected] X: @TheRestIsMoney Instagram: @TheRestIsMoney TikTok: @RestIsMoney goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: India Dunkley Producer: Ross Buchanan Head of Content: Tom Whiter Exec Producers: Tony Pastor + Jack Davenport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices