Bloomberg Money Minute: Jobless Claims Steady, PayPal Acquires AI Chatbot Platform, Blue Origin Plans Satellite Network

US Labor Market Remains Strong

• 📌 Initial jobless claims were little changed last week, steadying at low levels after a volatile holiday season, increasing by 1,000 to 200,000.
• 📉 Continuing claims, a proxy for people receiving benefits, fell to 1.85 million in the previous week, reaching the lowest point since November.

PayPal Expands Merchant Offerings with AI Acquisition

• 💡 PayPal has agreed to acquire Symbio, a platform focused on helping merchants sell products via AI chatbots.
• 🛒 This acquisition aims to make PayPal a one-stop shop for merchants looking to sell through chat bots, which consumers increasingly use for product discovery.

Blue Origin to Launch Satellite Network

• 🚀 Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos, plans to deploy over 5,400 satellites into Earth's orbit.
• 🛰️ This new satellite communications network is intended to rival Starlink and will serve data centers, businesses, and governments, with services expected to begin in late 2027.