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Disney World raises prices of annual passes

Disney World raises prices of annual passes

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Walt Disney World has raised the prices on all levels of its annual passes to its four theme parks, effective immediately.

The Disney Incredi-Pass, the top level of passes, which allows entry for a year without any block-out dates, now sells for $1,629. It has been priced at $1,549 since an increase last October. It’s up 5.2%.

The Disney Sorcerer Pass now costs $1,099, up from $1,079, an increase of 2.7%. This level is designated for Florida residents and Disney Vacation Club members. These passes come with block-out dates during the November-December holiday period.

The new Disney Pirate Pass price is $869, up from $829, a 4.8% increase. This level is for Floridians and features about 50 block-out dates in the next year, including around key holidays and peak periods such as spring break.

Finally, the Disney Pixie Pass now goes for $489, up from $469, a 4.3% increase. This ticket allows theme park entry Mondays through Fridays, although there are block-out dates for some weeks.

Annual passholder receive complimentary parking at the theme parks as well as various degrees of discounts on food and merchandise.  The resort’s park reservations policy, instituted as Disney World reopened from its pandemic shutdown in 2020, remains in place. read more

Is there an AI bubble? Financial institutions sound a warning

Is there an AI bubble? Financial institutions sound a warning

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By KELVIN CHAN and MATT O’BRIEN, AP Technology Writers

LONDON (AP) — Lingering doubts about the economic promise of artificial intelligence technology are starting to get the attention of financial institutions that raised warning flags this week about an AI investment bubble.

Officials at the Bank of England on Wednesday flagged the growing risk that tech stock prices pumped up by the AI boom could burst.

“The risk of a sharp market correction has increased,” the U.K. central bank said.

The head of the International Monetary Fund raised a similar alarm hours after the Bank of England’s report.

Global stock prices have been surging, fired up by “optimism about the productivity-enhancing potential of AI,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.

But financial conditions could “turn abruptly,” she warned in a speech ahead of the organization’s annual meeting next week in Washington.

FILE – Sam Altman, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, OpenAI,... FILE – Sam Altman, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, OpenAI, testifies before a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, file) ARCHIVO – El logotipo de OpenAI aparece en un teléfono... ARCHIVO – El logotipo de OpenAI aparece en un teléfono móvil frente a una pantalla de computadora con datos binarios aleatorios, el 9 de marzo de 2023, en Boston. (AP Foto/Michael Dwyer/Archivo) FILE – A sign for a Nvidia building is shown... FILE – A sign for a Nvidia building is shown in Santa Clara, Calif., May 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

1 of 3 FILE – Sam Altman, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, OpenAI, testifies before a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, file)

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Is there an AI bubble?

“Bubbles obviously are never very easy to identify, but we can see there are a few potential symptoms of a bubble in the current situation,” said Adam Slater, lead economist at Oxford Economics. read more

Fed minutes: Most officials supported further rate cuts as worries about jobs rose

Fed minutes: Most officials supported further rate cuts as worries about jobs rose

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By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER, AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Most members of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate setting committee supported further reductions to its key interest rate this year, according to minutes from last month’s meeting released Wednesday.

A majority of Fed officials felt that the risk unemployment would rise had worsened since their previous meeting in July, while the risk of rising inflation “had either diminished or not increased,” the minutes said. As a result, the central bank decided at its Sept. 16-17 meeting to reduce its key rate by a quarter-point to about 4.1%, its first cut this year.

Rate cuts by the Fed can gradually lower borrowing costs for things like mortgages, auto loans, and business loans, encouraging more spending and hiring.

Still, the minutes underscored the deep division on the 19-person committee between those who feel that the Fed’s short-term rate is too high and weighing on the economy, and those who point to persistent inflation that remains above the central bank’s 2% target as evidence that the Fed needs to be cautious about reducing rates. read more

Staffing shortages cause more US flight delays as government shutdown reaches 8th day

Staffing shortages cause more US flight delays as government shutdown reaches 8th day

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By RIO YAMAT and JOSH FUNK

Staffing shortages led to more flight delays at airports across the U.S. on Tuesday as the federal government shutdown stretched into a eighth day, while union leaders for air traffic controllers and airport security screeners warned the situation was likely to get worse.

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The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing issues at airports in Nashville, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia, and at its air traffic control centers in Atlanta, Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The agency temporarily slowed takeoffs of planes headed to the first three cities. read more

Ten years after prototype, anti-drunken driving tech ready for rollout

Ten years after prototype, anti-drunken driving tech ready for rollout

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By Grant Schwab, The Detroit News

LEESBURG, Virginia — Ten years after unveiling a prototype, a key public-private research effort is taking a major leap toward getting its advanced alcohol detection technology into the hands of the country’s top auto manufacturers.

“We’ve converted a wild, audacious idea that everybody thought would fail — people laughed us out of the room — into a viable technology suite,” said Rob Strassburger, president and CEO, Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety.

“I might just break down and start crying,” he said of the 10th anniversary. “This has been a very challenging effort, and a very interesting effort, technologically and scientifically. But we have never lost sight of why we’re doing this.”

Strassburger’s group is home to the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety project, or DADSS. The parentally nicknamed project has worked with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the federal government and automakers in an effort to develop technology solutions to someday end the deadly plague of drunken driving on American roads. read more