Many companies use the term artificial intelligence, or AI, as a way to generate excitement for their products and to present themselves as on the cutting edge of tech development.

But what exactly is artificial intelligence? What does it involve? And how will it help the development of future generations?

Find out the answers to these questions and more in AI 101, a brand new FREE report fromBusiness Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, that describes how AI works and looks at its present and potential future applications.

To get your copy of the FREE slide deck, simply click here.

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• Nathan Handwerker opened Nathan's Famous hot-dog stand on Coney Island, New York, in 1916.
• That same year, launched a hot-dog-eating contest to publicize his restaurant.
• The contest started with only a dozen people, but has turned into an internationally recognized event watched by thousands of people around the world.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Following is a full transcript of this video.

- Jake Gabbard: Quick to make and easy on the wallet, hot dogs are a fast way to a New Yorker's heart. Tons of spots cook them well, but one Coney Island icon stands high above the rest. This is Nathan's, and it's been serving New York's most legendary hot dogs since 1916.

Customer: This is the spot. This is the family spot, when you come in the summer and stuff.

Customer: Even in January, it doesn't matter. We would come to Nathan's.

Jake: We're here on Coney Island to visit Nathan's Famous hot dogs. Now, I'm super excited, 'cause I'm a bit of a hot dog enthusiast. I even have a supercool hot dog tattoo. Now, we're here in the off-season, which personally for me is my favorite time to come to Coney Island, because hopefully it'll be a little bit less crowded and we can get an awesome sneak peek at what makes Nathan's so famous.

Nathan's is iconic, if not the most iconic, hot dog in America, if not the world. And one of the most recognizable things about Nathan's is the hot-dog-eating contest on the Fourth of July. How did that get started?

Bruce Miller: Well, it's a funny story. You know, he wanted to publicize Nathan's, so you didn't have TV and radio in those days, in 1916, so you had to come up with a gimmick, and Nathan's was pretty smart. So he says: "You know what? I'm gonna conduct a hot-dog-eating contest right in front of the store." So as people were walking by, he'd say, "How many hot dogs can you eat?" It was, like, a dozen people, and then they would eat. If they ate 12 hot dogs, it was a lot.

All: Three, two, one, go!

Jake: Today, crowds pack together closely in the peak heat of summer to see competitors like Joey Chestnut funnel 74 hot dogs in 10 minutes. But before Nathan's won over Coney Islanders, there was another go-to place for fresh franks.

Legend has it that Feltman's, opened by German immigrant Charles Feltman, was the first to introduce the cheap eat to Coney Island, in 1867. But about 50 years later, one of Feltman's employees found a way to do it better.

Nathan Handwerker left Feltman's to open his own hot dog stand on the corner of Surf and Stillwell avenues, using his wife's secret recipe. He sold each frank for $0.05, and customers loved it.

Customer: And I'm from Brooklyn, not from here, but I used to bring my children to the beach. And they all go: "Mommy, are we going to Nathan's? Mommy!" So, I got three kids, so I had to spend a lot of money from all those years, so Nathan owes me a free hot dog. [laughs]

Jake: Now, on a good day in the summer, how many hot dogs do you think you guys are selling?

Bruce: We sell anywhere between 4,000 to 10,000 hot dogs.

Jake: In one day?

Bruce: In one day.

Jake: [laughs] Wow.

The go-to order is an all-beef hot dog with deli mustard and sauerkraut, plus a side of salty crinkle-cut fries.

When you're eating the Nathan's hot dog, it's, like, a full-on experience. You've got the flavors, and you've got the smells, but then you've got the texture thing with the snap, where it just cracks in your mouth and just tastes so fresh and unique.

Customer: I've been coming to Nathan's for 40 years.

Customer: And I've been coming for 60 years.

Customer: You can't drive through Brooklyn without going to Nathan's.

James Walker: It's really the nucleus of the neighborhood. So, Coney Island, it really in many ways is Nathan's, and Nathan's, for many years, was Coney Island. So what started as a small hot dog stand now encompasses an entire city block behind us, so it's hard to miss. It really is that tent pole to Coney Island.

Jake: Nathan's roots are deep in Coney Island, but its name is known across the world. The once small stand can now be found at 58,000 stores in over 10 different countries, and still, locals and tourists seek out the original.

Customer: We are from France. We're here at Nathan's because it's the king of hot dog. It's excellent.

Jake: It's, like, quintessential New York. When you move to New York, you feel you don't fit in, or you come to New York, it's very overwhelming, it's very loud, there's a lot of, like, crazy sights, and there's something about just, like, the New York hot dog that makes you feel like you're a part of it, so, like, every time I come out here I feel like I'm not just this kid from the Midwest, I'm like, I'm a New Yorker now. It makes me feel like I fit in. This is what people have been eating here for 100 years.

Bruce: Yeah, it's all about the history. It's the longevity. You know, it's the community. It's the loyal customer base. Almost like a cult that we have that follows us, but that's what it's about. That's what made Nathan's famous.

Customer: I love it.

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• Anthony Joshua just became a two-time heavyweight world champion.
• The British fighter overcame nervous moments to defeat Andy Ruiz Jr. on Saturday, December 7 at the Diriyah Arena in Saudi Arabia.
• With a jabbing strategy, Joshua out-pointed Ruiz Jr. and reclaimed his world title belts.
• After the win, Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn called him the king.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Anthony Joshua reclaimed his world heavyweight titles with a masterful but nervous performance, keeping Andy Ruiz Jr. at bay with a long jab on Saturday in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.

With victory, he moved to 23 wins (21 knockouts) against one loss, but, far more importanly, was able to banish a bad memory. Six months ago, it was a humiliating, crushing defeat. On December 7 in the rematch, with a disciplined and cerebral strategy, he out-thought, out-jabbed, and out-boxed Mexico's first heavyweight champion.

Considering how easily he was dominated in the first fight, dropped twice in rounds three and seven, concussed, and beaten in his American debut, Joshua had much to adjust, download, and activate in the rematch.

It was not long into the "Clash on the Dunes" when Joshua's tactics became apparent. With feints — of his upper body, lead jab, even his footwork — it was clear he wanted to use boxing acumen, box at range, and use the full space of the 22-foot ring to frustrate Ruiz Jr., the heavier champion, and make him move and not plant his feet through every minute of every round that the bout would last.

Having exchanged cuts in the opening rounds, Ruiz Jr. found that, when he was able to close the gap, punch in the clinch, he had success. The only problem for him was that it was a type of fight Joshua refused to engage in, happier to instead fight on the move.

With ring generalship, Joshua was able to win all four of the opening four rounds on Business Insider's unofficial scorecard. It was clear he was wary of the champion, perhaps nervous about having to compete opposite the man who had humiliated him so badly just six months prior, a stiff and long jab alone was enough to win the rounds.

Varying his punch output, Joshua clobbered Ruiz Jr. with a mean hook in the sixth, a punch launched with enough venom that it snapped the Mexican's head sideways.

Ruiz Jr. had his best moment in the fight in the eighth, swarming Joshua's head with fizzing shots from fast hands, panicking the challenger completely. It was the first round of the night where the champion out-landed the challenger (12 punches to six), according to Compubox data.

The following round, Joshua did what he could to avoid similar confrontation, instead relying on a Wladimir Klitschko-esque jab-and grab — landing his powerful orthodox lead punch, before initiating an embrace to prevent Ruiz Jr. unleashing a combination.

If the difference between fight one in June and fight two in December was not already apparent, it was clear toward the final third of the bout. If Joshua landed, he would back off and return to the outside, rather than the inside, patiently waiting for another opportunity. If Ruiz Jr. landed, he would do whatever he could to evade rather than engage.

By the time the ringside judges' scorecards were announced, it was clear it was the correct call. Joshua prevailed by way of unanimous decision with scores of 118-110, 118-110, and 119-109, reclaiming all of the world titles he had lost six months ago, exorcising the demons from humiliation in New York City.

"The first time was so nice, I had to do it twice," Joshua said after the win, regarding his new status as a two-time heavyweight champion. "Stay hungry, stay humble. I'm humble in defeat, remaining humble in victory."

Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn lavished praise on Joshua. "You're the king, trust me!"

Read more:

If Anthony Joshua beats Andy Ruiz Jr. his promoter says he might raise his middle fingers to say 'f--- you' to all his haters

'They know what I possess': Deontay Wilder says Anthony Joshua will keep avoiding him even if he beats Andy Ruiz Jr.

Saudi Arabia's Andy Ruiz Jr. vs. Anthony Joshua fight is littered with athletes who have been busted for drug use

The $100 million Andy Ruiz vs. Anthony Joshua fight is 'masking a darker truth' in Saudi Arabia, and boxing is burying its head in the sand

Wladimir Klitschko says Anthony Joshua should never have lost to Andy Ruiz Jr. and expects him to dominate once again at heavyweight

Deontay Wilder says Andy Ruiz Jr. has Anthony Joshua's weaknesses all figured out

Insiders are confident Anthony Joshua will beat Andy Ruiz Jr. in style the second time around despite 3 problems ahead of their first fight

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 5 things about the NFL that football fans may not know

• Former Rep. Katie Hill wrote a piece in The New York Times about the fallout from her resignation from Congress.
• In October, media outlets published leaked nude photos of Hill. She also admitted to having had a relationship with one of her campaign staffers, though she denied a separate allegation of having a relationship with her legislative director.
• "In the days leading up to my resignation, my life was just like everyone's worst nightmare," Hill wrote.
• Hill said she struggled with suicidal thoughts, but is now motivated to advocate for victims of cyber exploitation, also known as "revenge porn."
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Former Rep. Katie Hill wrote in a New York Times op-ed that she struggled with suicidal ideation in the aftermath of an alleged "revenge porn" incident. 

Hill was elected in November 2018 to serve as the US representative for California's 25th Congressional district. She announced her intent to resign from Congress roughly one year later, after news broke that she had been in a relationship with a campaign aide.

Nude photos of Hill were also published by two media outlets without her consent. Hill said she believes her estranged husband Kenny Heslep was behind the leak, although she notes that he has said he was hacked. Hill and Heslep are divorcing.

"Many people have nightmares in which they're naked in public, trapped and trying to escape," Hill wrote. "In the days leading up to my resignation, my life was just like everyone's worst nightmare."

Read Hill's entire piece in The New York Times.

SEE ALSO: Rep. Katie Hill says she will campaign against revenge porn after nude photos prompted her to resign from Congress

READ MORE: What happened to Katie Hill wasn't millennial carelessness — it was sexual violence

SEE ALSO: There are revenge porn laws on the books in 46 states, but victims say not enough is being done to protect them online

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• Two slain US service members who have been hailed for their perseverance during the mass shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida recently finished their introductory training in the Navy.
• Family members of two of the reported victims, Joshua Watson and Mohammed Haitham, say they were notified that the men tried assisting authorities during the shooting.
• Both service members had recently graduated from their respective introductory training stations.
• A previous incident during a mass shooting in Florida bore some semblance to the victims Naval Air Station incident.
• Fifteen-year-old Peter Wang, an aspiring US Army soldier in the school's Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) program, was killed in the Parkland shooting after he held open a door to help dozens of classmates and school staff members escape.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Two slain US service members who have been hailed for their perseverance during the deadly shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida, recently finished their introductory training in the Navy, paralleling another story marked with bravery from an aspiring troop wishing to serve in the armed forces.

The Navy announced the men's identities on Saturday. They also confirmed that a third man, an airman apprentice named Cameron Scott Walters, was also killed.

Twenty-three-year-old Joshua Watson of Alabama was one of the three people killed in the shooting on Friday. Watson, an aspiring naval pilot, recently graduated from the US Naval Academy.

According to a Facebook post from his brother, Adam, Watson had informed first responders of the shooter's details and location, despite "being shot multiple times." 

"Today has been the worst day of my life," Adam said in the Facebook post. "My youngest brother gave his life for his country in a senseless shooting."

"He died a hero and we are beyond proud but there is a hole in our hearts that can never be filled," Adam added. 

Watson, who was conducting flight training at the base, was the officer on deck during the shooting, his father, Benjamin, told USA Today. He added that his son wanted to join the military since he was five years old.

"Heavily wounded, he made his way out to flag down first responders and gave an accurate description of the shooter," Benjamin told USA Today. "He died serving his country."

Nineteen-year-old Mohammed Haitham of Florida, another victim, was also hailed for his service, his mother, Evelyn, told local media.

"The commander of his school did call me," Evelyn, a Navy veteran, told the Tampa Bay Times. "He told me my son did try to stop the shooter."

Haitham graduated from high school in 2018, joined the Navy, and had recently graduated from basic training. He was assigned to flight crew training in Florida, where he was expected to finish this month.

"He said he was going to get his flight jacket for Christmas," Evelyn said. "Now that's not going to happen."

Capt. Tim Kinsella, the commanding officer at NAS Pensacola said in a statement that the sailors showed "excepctional heroism and bravery in the face of evil."

"When confronted, they didn't run from danger; they ran towards it and saved lives," Kinsella said. "If not for their actions, and the actions of the Naval Security Force that were the first responders on the scene, this incident could have been far worse."

A previous incident in Florida bore some semblance to the victims Naval Air Station shooting. On February 14, 2018, a gunman opened fire at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people.

Fifteen-year-old Peter Wang, an aspiring US Army soldier in the school's Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) program, was one of the students who was shot multiple times and killed.

Wang, who was in his JROTC uniform during the shooting, held open a door to help dozens of classmates and school staff members escape from the carnage. He was posthumously accepted to the US Military Academy at West Point "for his heroic actions."

SEE ALSO: Trump and his team are going out of their way to tell everyone how sorry Saudi Arabia is about the shooting at a Florida naval base

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NOW WATCH: We can thank the US military for the smelliest weapon in the world

• Investigators are reportedly looking into anti-American tweets sent shortly before a deadly shooting on Friday at a Navy base in Pensacola, Florida.
• Three victims were killed in the attack and authorities fatally shot the gunman, whom authorities have identified as a Saudi national named Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani who was training in the US.
• The SITE Intelligence Group said the tweets contained words that echoed Osama Bin Laden, though they did not claim allegiance to any specific group.
• The New York Times reported that the account had criticized American foreign policy, calling the US a "nation of evil."
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The FBI is reportedly looking into several anti-American tweets shortly before a deadly shooting at a Florida Navy base were sent by the gunman.

The Pensacola News Journal reported that the tweets were posted at 4:39 a.m. Friday, just hours before the shooting was reported. Three victims were killed in the attack and authorities fatally shot the gunman, whom authorities have identified as a Saudi national named Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani who was training in the US.

The SITE Intelligence Group described the tweets as containing words that echoed Osama Bin Laden, though they did not claim allegiance to any specific group.

The account has since been suspended, but the group said that the Twitter account had a name and photograph that matched the identity of the gunman. Law-enforcement agencies have not officially commented on the tweets.

The New York Times reported that the account had criticized American foreign policy, calling the US a "nation of evil."

"I'm not against you for just being American," the posts said, according to The Times. "I don't hate you because your freedoms, I hate you because every day you supporting, funding and committing crimes not only against Muslims but also humanity."

The tweets are just some of a number of disturbing details about the suspect that have come to light since the shooting, including that the gunman reportedly hosted a dinner party not long before the attack, in which the guests watched mass shooting videos.

Yet despite the details, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Saturday he could not confirm whether the attack was an act of terrorism, and that investigators needed to continue working to determine the motive.

• Read more:
• The 2 US Navy sailors being hailed as heroes in the Pensacola shooting were fresh out of military training
• The Pensacola Navy base shooter reportedly used a loophole to buy his gun legally
• Trump and his team are going out of their way to tell everyone how sorry Saudi Arabia is about the shooting at a Florida naval base
• Suspect in deadly shooting at Florida naval base hosted a dinner party to watch mass shooting videos before the attack, according to a US official

Join the conversation about this story »

• Nicki Minaj has never been shy when it comes to flaunting her fashion choices. 
• The rapper, whose lyrics are often as controversial as her outfits, has raised eyebrows not only for her music video style, but also on the red carpet. 
• Minaj ensures her accessories are just as bold as her clothing, from crazy Marge Simpson-esque wigs to fried chicken bone necklaces. 
• To celebrate the singer's 37th birthday, Insider has rounded up 28 of the popstar's most daring outfits.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Nicki Minaj's fearless style is not only represented in her risqué music videos, but also on the red carpet where she always stands out from the crowd.

From prancing around in crazy Marge Simpson-esque wigs to wearing some peculiar accessories — a chicken bone necklace, for example — Minaj always brings her A-game.

She's raised a few eyebrows for her array of provocative outfits, but no one can deny that the rapper is pushing boundaries.

And proving that fashion is as important to her as music is, Minaj often raps about fashion too, whether it be referencing Louis Vuitton or her love for expensive shoes.

To celebrate the rapper's 37th birthday, Insider has taken a look at her most daring looks.

See them below in chronological order.

Diamonds are certainly Minaj's best friend as the rapper celebrated her 26th birthday in a pearl and rhinestone-encrusted, sheer bodysuit at the TAO Las Vegas club in 2010.

Minaj looked like a modern art installation in this neon-embellished dress, which featured a 3D rib-cage created by Indian designer Manish Arora for the 2010 AMAs.

The rapper flew into the BET's Rip the Runway event in 2010 wearing this space-inspired topographical black and white bodysuit, paired with a bold black lip and candy floss-colored wig.

Minaj wore a long blonde and blue wig with a patch quilt colored skirt and matching bandeau with pink lips and blue eyeshadow for the 2011 AMAs.

The rapper danced around the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in 2011 wearing this multi-colored peplum skirt and orange bustier with disco ball shoulder pads.

She took inspiration from her birth decade wearing this 80s looking outfit with big earrings, hair and a pink leather jacket with a plastic see-through skirt for her appearance on "Good Morning America" in 2011.

Minaj caused an uproar when she crawled into the 2011 Grammy Awards wearing a full cheetah-print bubble dress with matching leggings and headwear. The vintage Givenchy Haute Couture costume was sourced from the label's 2007 Fall show.

Nicki went all out from head to toe in this outlandish Japanese-inspired outfit complete with a cartoon-patterned face mask for the 2011 MTV VMAs.

Minaj must have been hungry when she arrived at the iHeart Radio Music Festival in 2011 wearing this pink fried chicken necklace with her lavender ballerina-inspired ensemble.

Minaj stood out wearing this bright green wig complete with palm leaves in her hair when she wore this custom Versace bodysuit in 2011.

She must have been somewhere over the rainbow when she wore this psychedelic number for her performance for the "I'm Still Music" festival in 2011. The wig has serious Marge Simpson vibes.

Nicki dressed as a human candy bar when she wore this yummy gum-ball looking outfit with a pair of custom-made teddy bear shoes for the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

Minaj took her daring style to new heights when she arrived at the Narita International Airport in 2012 showing off her love for Japanese streetwear in this neon sporty look.

Minaj wore this very pink and plastic outfit, paired with a bright Barbie lip, beret and platinum blonde locks for her "Pink Friday: Roman: Reloaded" album launch in 2012.

Eyes were all on front-row attendee Minaj at the Betsey Johnson Spring 2012 fashion show when she wore this outrageous blue wig and another yummy necklace — this time a purple pretzel.

The rapper wore this multi-colored pompom ball outfit with neon green leggings and a blonde beehive wig for the 2012 Carolina Herrera fashion show.

For the 2012 Grammys, Minaj sought fashion inspiration from the Vatican by choosing to cover up in this nun / LittleRed Riding Hood-hybrid outfit. And to truly make a fashion statement, she even accessorized with a Pope impersonator.

Minaj showed everyone who's boss when she wore this officer-style hat with bejeweled bodysuit and stilettos to the 2012 MTV VMAs.

Nicki Minaj dressed up as a bad fairy for Halloween in this sequin-encrusted leotard with a tutu at the 1 OAK Nightclub in Las Vegas in 2015.

The rapper wore this BDSM inspired outfit adorned with black belts and glitter to the Met Gala in 2016.

Nicki went full dominatrix in this patent leather getup from head to heels, even covering her face in a spike-encrusted mask for the 2017 Billboard Music Awards.

Nicki wore a latex bubblegum pink jumpsuit with silver locks and almost floor-length hair for the 2017 MTV VMAs.

Praise the lord that Nicki came in this red hot Oscar de la Renta gown for the 2017 Met Gala, inspired by the night's theme of "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination."

Nicki was arguably the most extra at the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets game in 2018 when she watched on in black Anna Wintour-style sunglasses, black latex dress, and silver jacket.

Minaj was pink perfection when she trailed into the 2019 Met Gala wearing a campy ballerina outfit with a long train, perfectly abiding to the "Camp" theme.

• China is waging a widespread, coordinated mass crackdown on its Uighur Muslim minority.
• Though the brutal campaign is most active in the western Chinese region of Xinjiang, the Uighurs' homeland, many Uighurs abroad say they have also been targeted by Chinese agents.
• Members of the Uighur diaspora described receiving mysterious automated calls, eerie Facebook comments, and being threatened by Mandarin Chinese speakers in real life.
• Uighurs abroad have also discovered their relatives in Xinjiang vanished days after they spoke out against China's human-rights record.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

China's unprecedented oppression of Uighur Muslims goes beyond the borders of Xinjiang, the western Chinese region where most of the ethnic minority live, former residents told Business Insider.

Under President Xi Jinping, China is waging a widespread counterterrorism campaign on Xinjiang, also known to Uighurs as East Turkestan. It is a paranoid move in response to a spate of ethnic riots between Uighurs and Han Chinese, the dominant ethnic group in the country, ten years ago.

The Communist Party sees Uighurs' religion — Islam — as a threat, and often conflates it with religious extremism.

For this reason, China apparently feels the need to control the Uighur diaspora outside the country in case they return home and carry out attacks.

Leaked classified documents, published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists last month, showed a concerted effort by regional officials to keep a close eye on Uighurs with foreign citizenship, wherever they are.

"For those still outside the country for whom suspected terrorism cannot be ruled out, the border control reading will be carried out by hand to ensure that they are arrested the moment they cross the border," one government bulletin said.

"For those ... whom suspected terrorism cannot be ruled out, they should first be placed into concentrated education and training for examination," it added, referring to tightly-secured detention camps in the region, where former inmates say they are physically and psychologically tortured.

'Family and friends suffer the consequences'

Several members of the Uighur diaspora told Business Insider they've also been spooked by China without even having to step foot in the country.

Rushan Abbas, a Uighur activist living in Herndon, Virginia, discovered last September that her sister had been disappeared by Xinjiang authorities six days after she spoke out against China's human rights record. She still has no idea of her whereabouts.

"The Chinese government is basically holding her hostage for my speaking out about the horrific blatant human rights abuses of the Chinese government," Abbas told Business Insider last month.

"My sister's story is not unique. China harasses Uighurs in the diaspora's relatives back home, presenting them with heartbreaking choice: Keep silent about the horrific violations of human rights, or let your family and friends suffer the consequences for your choice for speaking out," she said.

"I am an example of that."

An entire business gone

Abbas is not the only foreign Uighur who has been punished in Xinjiang for their actions outside the region.

Bahram Sintash, a Uighur-American living in Chantilly, Virginia, has been campaigning for his father's release from the Xinjiang camps since October 2018. He has called on the Chinese government to reveal the whereabouts of his father, a retired magazine editor, through social media, protests, and speaking to journalists.

Sintash has been living in the US since 2008, but continued to visit his family in Xinjiang until 2015, when his Chinese visa was inexplicably revoked. That same year, he had opened a company in Urumqi, Xinjiang's capital city, to provide fitness supplements and workout plans to Uighurs in the region.

Sintash requested anonymity for his company to protect its former employees. But he said the business flourished, and had earned close to a million dollars.

That success came to an end in October 2018 — exactly two days after Sintash spoke to Radio Free Asia about his father's disappearance for the first time.

Multiple police officers went to the company's office in Urumqi, took photos of every corner of the office, and told employees to leave as soon as possible, Sintash told Business Insider.

Shortly after the raid, police officers further questioned his colleagues, shut down his office, storage warehouse, and corporate social media accounts, he said.

"The police warned my partners to stop communicating with me and told them I was the enemy of the country living overseas," Sintash said.

"I couldn't get my money back from the region," he added. "I can no longer contact any business partners or my teammates or my customers."

Sintash said he learned the news of his company's collapse not from any official correspondence from Xinjiang authorities, but from one of his customers.

There's no other way to verify it: His mother blocked him on WeChat last year for fear of getting in trouble with authorities, and all his phone calls to regional authorities about his father have gone unanswered.

Mysterious automated calls and Facebook messages

As some Uighurs lose touch with their family on the phone, others have received menacing messages from Chinese-speaking agents.

Guly Mahsut, a Uighur Canadian living in Ottawa, reported receiving multiple automated calls from Mandarin Chinese-speaking agents in recent weeks.

A female caller had identified herself as the Chinese embassy and told her to pick up some documents. Mahsut told Business Insider that even as she kept blocking the numbers calling her, she kept receiving the same automated calls from other numbers.

It's not clear how the caller got Mahsut's phone number, what documents she is referring to, and why Mahsut was receiving these calls. Earlier this year she publicly questioned China's claim that it had released most inmates from Xinjiang's detention centers, telling Agence France-Presse she knew of a cousin and two friends still in the camps.

Listen to one of the recordings Mahsut received below, accompanied with a rough translation of the message verified by Business Insider:

The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa told Business Insider this call was a "telecommunications fraud," calling the caller "law breakers [who] use technical means to disguise phone numbers as embassies and consulates." It added that the alleged scam is "not targeted at a specific group of people."

Some 30 members of the Uighur diaspora in Norway have received dozens of automated calls from phone numbers connected to the Chinese embassy in Oslo, Al Jazeera reported last month.

One of the Uighurs, a naturalized Norwegian citizen, said she started receiving the calls after attending an anti-China rally on October 1.

The Chinese embassy in Oslo denied the calls in a similar manner to the London embassy, saying they were part of a scam.

Uighurs living in the US and France also told The Daily Beast and Foreign Policy last year that they had been asked for personal information including license plate numbers, bank details, ID photos, and marriage certificates— and threatened harm to their families in Xinjiang if they did not comply.

Sintash, the fitness company owner, has also received messages in Chinese threatening to harm his family.

In January 2019, he received a comment in simplified Chinese on Facebook, in response to a comment he had left in the Uighur language on another person's page.

"You are a good son of the Chinese Communist Party. Your father has been released now," the comment read, without providing any evidence.

"I reckon you can keep selling your white powder [crying-eyes emoji]," the comment continued, in what Sintash took to mean his fitness supplements. "Strongly support you."

The account was registered under a Chinese name, and its profile photo was of a young Chinese woman.

The entire account has since been deleted. Business Insider last saw the post in February, and has preserved screenshots of the comment.

"What I understood [from the comment] was: 'Keep obeying the Chinese Communist Party and shut your mouth. Your father is in our hands,'" Sintash told Business Insider.

"I felt threatened by the CCP."

Trolling people is not a new Chinese tactic. The country's propaganda department pays some two million people to publish pro-government posts and attack critics on social media, a Harvard University report found in 2016.

These commenters are known as the "wumao dang," which translates to "50 cent party" in Chinese — a reference to the amount of money in yuan they are allegedly paid per post. That's about $0.07.

'Your mother has died'

Another bizarre run-in with Chinese speakers took place in late October, when Sintash and other Uighur activists staged a protest outside the Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, DC.

As Sintash and 13 others held up signs and chanted slogans, a Han Chinese man — the largest ethnic group — went up to them and said: "Your mother has died" five times.

Video shows the group looking at the man, puzzled, as he walked away.

"He was a pro-CCP Chinese citizen who could've said anything to define [himself] ... but he chose to tell us 'your mother has died,'" Sintash said.

"I was shocked at the time. I never expected someone to deliver such an evil message while in the United States."

Those words were particularly jarring to Sintash, who hadn't spoken to his mother or anyone else in his family since February 2018. To this day, he still has no idea who that man was.

Will these threats stop Uighurs from speaking out for their families trapped in China? Probably not.

"They cannot control us," Sintash said. "China looks for people who are weaker mentally. I am different ... I have the US behind me."

"I never cared about politics in the past," he added. "What China is doing to the people in the region — we have to speak up. We have to stand up."

• Read more:
• Relatives of China's oppressed Muslim minority are getting blocked online by their own family members, who are terrified to even tell them how bad their lives are
• Maps show 500 suspected 're-education' camps and prisons where China is locking up and torturing its Muslim minority
• Medical experts say China is falsifying organ donation data, after it was accused of harvesting body parts from Uighur Muslims in prison camps
• China tells Uighur Muslims they are abducting their families so they can cleanse their brains like they have a disease, leaked documents show

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: We can thank the US military for the smelliest weapon in the world

• The founder of self-driving truck firm TuSimple, Xiaodi Hou, says that truck drivers being required to work long hours on the road is a "tarnish on the glory of humanity."
• Hou was responding to a question about human truckers who fear that automated trucking might lose them their jobs.
• TuSimple, which is valued at over $1 billion, develops tech to automate long-haul truck journeys without human intervention needed, though its vehicles still have a human as a failsafe. The company straddles both China and the US.
• Speaking to Business Insider, Hou also explained why traditional trucking associations are actively working with, and not against, his firm.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The founder of self-driving truck unicorn TuSimple says that human truck drivers being required to work long hours on the road is a "tarnish on the glory of humanity."

Xiaodi Hou is the founder, president and chief technology officer of TuSimple, which develops tech for automating long-haul truck journeys without human intervention needed. The self-driving trucks still have a human truck driver and an engineer present at all times, as a failsafe.

The company is based in San Diego, California, and splits its operations with China. The firm's US presence comprises offices in San Diego, California and Tucson, Arizona, from which it oversees its long-haul US operations.

It also boasts offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Fukuoka, Japan. Hou said he will expand its presence further in the next two to three years – a goal he said stemmed from "the confidence of our general stability."

Founded in 2015, TuSimple has enjoyed huge investor interest. It was valued at just over $1 billion after a $95 million Series D fundraise in February. It went on to add a further $120 million, bringing the round to $215 million. Its backers include global delivery giant UPS, US chipmaker Nvidia, and Chinese tech firm Sina, owner of Weibo.

Though TuSimple currently retrofits existing trucks for pre-existing truck companies, it aims to have a factory-produced self-driving truck on the road by 2023.

TuSimple doesn't think it will completely replace drivers with self-driving trucks

Speaking to Business Insider, Hou was asked how he'd respond to truckers who (rightly or wrongly) fear that their jobs are at risk.

"This is my first time responding to this question in English, but here goes," he said. "To drive a truck for 11 hours per day, without even taking a shower every day, and getting far away from their home, is really a tarnish on the glory of humanity.

"You don't hire chimney sweeps nowadays, and people don't harvest the way they did 500 years ago."

Asked what he'd say to those truckers who value the work, Hou said his company complements – and doesn't compete with – the traditional trucking industry.

"The transition is actually slower than you thought," he explained. "The transition is not like, 'tomorrow, all of sudden, trucks will be autonomously driven.' It's not like that. Autonomous driving is more likely to involve the retrofitting of existing trucks rather than the building of new trucks.

"It'll be a very gradual thing, and truck drivers still need to [drive] trucks. Think about the gap we have [in terms of] truck driver shortage. The average truck driver age is 51. I don't think even [on] a very optimistic view, we can fill up that gap within the time frame it needs to be filled."

According to a July 2019 report by the American Trucking Associations, the US trucking industry was 60,000 drivers short of the number required to meet industry needs in 2018, up nearly 20% from 2017's shortage of 50,700.

"Secondly, we don't actually think self-driving trucks are going to deprive any truck drivers [of their jobs]," Hou continued. "I don't think we're going to be enemies of the truck drivers. We're actually very good friends with the American Trucking Associations.

"We're helping the associations to solve problems that they can't solve alone, by themselves."

SEE ALSO: The self-driving-truck startup that's been quietly moving UPS loads just pulled in $120 million in fresh funding

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• Netflix has denied a claim it blocked a Twitter user for spoiling the plot of one of its upcoming shows.
• Netflix shared the trailer for "Messiah" on Tuesday, asking followers: "Who do you think he is?"
• A Twitter user called "Muعad" posted a thread explaining how it was clearly a rip of the Islamic tale of al-Massih ad-Dajjal, meaning "deceiver Messiah."
• Twitter users identifying themselves as Muslims aware of the story rolled their eyes at the streaming giant after Muعad posted screenshots alleging Netflix blocked him.
• Netflix told Insider: "We have not blocked this person."
• Muعad did not confirm the block was genuine when asked by Insider, but said: "It goes to show how they want to censor criticisms of their show by hiding replies to the comment section of their post."
• The Islamic story revolves around a false Messiah coming to earth and mobilizing support, before the real Messiah defeats him in battle. "Messiah" appears to be an explicit 21st century rendering.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. 

Netflix denied blocking a Twitter user for exposing the plot of a new show, which was likely familiar to some of the 1.8 billion Muslims in the world anyway.

In a post to Twitter on Tuesday, Netflix shared the trailer for "Messiah" ahead of its 2020 launch, asking followers: "Who do you think he is?"

A Twitter user identifying himself as "Muعad" retweeted the trailer, saying he was "getting Dajjal vibes." 

Muعad was referring to the Islamic tale of al-Massih ad-Dajjal in the Hadith (sayings of the prophet Muhammad) who is described as "the great deceiver."

Dajjal arrives on earth, collects vast swathes of followers, and claims to be Allah. The real messiah, ʿĪsa, comes down to earth and defeats him in battle. 

The tweet got 25,000 retweets and 32,000 likes.

Teaser footage in the Netflix trailer appears to directly match the tale of Dajjal, but in a 21st century setting

A CIA agent trying to expose the "Messiah" as a fraud and a threat to the world order appears to have replaced ʿĪsa in the Netflix show.

Muعad tweeted "I bet he'll 'accidentally' lose an eye" in the show, referring to an event in the ancient story.

After tweeting his prediction, Muعad posted screenshots appearing to show that the official Netflix Twitter account and Messiah's official Twitter account had blocked him.

A spokeswoman for Netflix told Insider: "This story is untrue, we have not blocked this person."

Muعad told Insider: "It goes to show how they want to censor criticisms of their show by hiding replies to the comment section of their post," without giving an answer to a question on whether the Twitter block was genuine.

People identifying themselves as Muslims on Twitter wrote that naming the main character al-Massih (Messiah) was a dead giveaway, but Netflix remonstrated at length on Twitter that it wasn't his name.

IMDB list the title character's name as al-Massih, but Netflix do not in their press pack for "Messiah."

"Messiah" launches on Netflix on January 1, 2020.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A podiatrist explains heel spurs, the medical condition Trump said earned him a medical deferment from Vietnam

• The Dubai Mall is one of the biggest shopping centers in the world.
• I found that I couldn't get to grips with it even after two different visits over two separate days, and even when I used the mall's own app to navigate.
• But I did find that it was filled with entertainment options to break up the shopping, like selfie rooms and a giant aquarium.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Dubai Mall is the world's biggest shopping mall by land area, and I was curious to see what it was like to experience more than 10 million square feet of shopping in a city known as one of the most luxurious on Earth. 

It doesn't have a ski slope like its rival Mall of the Emirates, which I tried out while I was there, but it has a huge aquarium and access to the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.

The mall actually does a good job of providing entertainment and light to stop things from getting too claustrophobic or overwhelming.  But I still found the experience to be exhausting, and repeatedly got lost, couldn't get the mall's navigation systems to work, and spent 20 minutes trying to find a way out before relenting and queuing for 10 minutes for a taxi.

I visited over two separate days, and still couldn't get to grips with the place.

This is what my visits were like:

The Dubai Mall is the world's biggest shopping mall by land area, and promises more than 1,200 stores and hundreds of food outlets over more than 10 million square feet (one million square meters).

Source: Visit Dubai

On a recent trip to Dubai, I decided to visit it. Partly because I was curious about its sheer size, and partly because I wanted to check out the city's legendary shopping.

But first, I actually needed to get there — and that journey gave me a glimpse of the scale of what was in store. I decided to take the metro, which was very convenient until I realized that the raised passage from the train to the mall took 10 whole minutes to walk down.

It gave views of Dubai's famous skyscrapers and, as you got closer, the outside of the luxurious mall.

It also felt bizarre that the journey was filled with ads for the mall itself. Everyone in th passage was going to the mall already, so why bother?

I was delighted when I finally saw a sign that told me I'd reached the mall ...

.... only to realize that I wasn't fully in yet, and was instead in an area filled with smaller, more tourist-focused stands.

A few minutes later and, finally, I'd made it!

The first thing I noticed was just how large every individual store was — you couldn't see the back of most.

The mall is divided up so it never actually feels that big when you wander around. Every section almost feels like its own mall, so it takes a while to get to grips with the sheer scale of the complex.

I unintentionally ended up in the decadent "Fashion Avenue" area almost immediately.

It felt like its own, self-contained mall, filled with luxury brands.

Even the cafés were extremely decadent.

I made my out of the luxury section, and got another glimpse into the glitz of the mall. From inside the huge Nike store, I could see the famous Dubai Fountain.

The mall was filled with signs, but they didn't make things that much clearer to me. Aquarium? Underwater Zoo?? Are those not the same thing???

I never managed to figure out the difference, but I did see huge crowds gathered to watch the aquatic life that could be seen without paying to enter, as well as the huge queues to get inside. It was pretty cool to have my shopping interrupted by views of sharks, rays, and fish.

The aquarium has a 10-million liter tank, and describes itself as "the largest suspended aquariums in the world."

You can go through a long tunnel, take a glass boat tour, or even meet an otter or a shark while in cage — big experiences for a mall.

It was time to return to wandering around, where I saw things like "selfie rooms" that I assumed were designed to break up the slog of navigating the place.

I ducked in to one that was filled with lights. (My selfie game is not very strong).

There were also decorated walls that were hugely popular with visitors.

After walking around some more, I was exhausted and decided it was time to leave. But there was a problem: I couldn't figure out how, unless I took the metro again.

There were no signs for an exit, and it took me 15 minutes to reach a door that looked like it led to the outside. I wanted to order an Uber, but ended up crossing an enclosed taxi rank and emerging in a huge car park.

I desperately wanted to get out, so I settled on taking a regular taxi. I walked five minutes to the taxi rank entrance ... and then had to queue for 10 minutes.

I was so tired that I actually almost convinced myself of a conspiracy that the building design was the result of some sort of lobbying by the taxi industry to force people to take cabs.

I thought I was free of the place, but ended up back there with a colleague five days later. This time, I decided it was time to test the mall's app, which uses your location to tell you how to get to particular stores. It worked great ...

... until it didn't. It sometimes just didn't give the proper information, so we had to go to the information screens. There were always queues of lost people waiting to use them, and not nearly enough for the size of the mall.

We ended up in entirely new parts of the mall that I didn't discover last time, including luxury jewelry and watch stores that had closed doors and heavy security.

There were also lots of famous American stores, like Bloomingdale's.

Leaving turned out to be a huge struggle — again. We needed to find a certain hotel connected to the mall to get to the bar on top of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, but neither the app, Google Maps, nor the information screens were any help.

We actually had to ask staff at the concierge service for help twice, and were still a bit confused by what we had to do. We ended up leaving through what appeared to be very fancy entrance to the Fashion Village, which felt like somewhere we absolutely were not supposed to walk through.

Finally, finally we made it outside. It felt like it had been days since I'd actually breathed fresh air. Like all malls, The Dubai Mall is designed to make you forget about the passage of time. And while it had lots of natural light to stop you getting claustrophobic and lots of entertainment options, I still found it totally overwhelming, even when experiencing it for a second time.

• President Donald Trump brought on stage one convicted and one accused war criminal at a highly secretive GOP fundraiser in Florida on Saturday night, the Miami Herald reported.
• The president debuted former US Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance and former US Army Maj. Mathew Golsteyn at the Statesman's Dinner in Aventura, the Herald said.
• The event was highly secretive, with attendees having to store their cellphones in locked cases before entering, and reporters not allowed in, the Herald reported.
• Lorance was convicted of ordering soldiers to engage three unarmed Afghan men and was sentenced to 19 years in prison, while Golsteyn was accused of killing an unarmed Afghan man in 2010.
• Trump granted clemency to both their cases last month.
• The Daily Beast reported two weeks ago that Trump had been mulling bringing Lorance, Golsteyn, and Navy SEAL Chief Edward Gallagher on the 2020 campaign trail with him.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump showed off two pardoned US troops at a highly secretive Republican fundraising event in Aventura, Florida on Saturday night, the Miami Herald reported.

He brought on stage former US Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance and former US Army Maj. Mathew Golsteyn during his hour-long speech at the state Republican Party's annual Statesman's Dinner, the Herald reported, calling the move "unusual."

Lorance was convicted of ordering soldiers to engage three unarmed Afghan men and was sentenced to 19 years in prison, while Golsteyn was accused of killing an unarmed Afghan man in 2010.

Trump pardoned both men last month by granting clemency to both their cases. Golsteyn had been awaiting trial at the time.

This year's Statesman's Dinner was particularly secretive, with attendees having to check their cellphones into individual locked cases before entering the event at the JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa, which is in Aventura, the Herald reported. The dinner was also closed to reporters.

The dinner raised a total of $3.5 million for the state's Republican Party, the Herald said.

During his speech, which lasted more than an hour, the president also did impressions of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and GOP Rep. Jim Jordan — two key lawmakers involved in the impeachment investigation— and brought on stage son-in-law Jared Kushner, the Herald reported.

Attendees told the newspaper Trump was "hilarious" and "in rare form."

The debut of Lorance and Golsteyn at the fundraiser comes two weeks after The Daily Beast reported that Trump was considering having pardoned US troops join him on the 2020 campaign trail.

The Beast cited two unnamed sources saying they overheard Trump discussing appearances by Lorance, Golsteyn, and Navy SEAL Chief Edward Gallagher, who was convicted of posing with a corpse of a dead ISIS fighter.

Trump in November told the Navy to reverse its decision to demote Gallagher, against the advice of military officials, cause controversy and ultimately forced the resignation of Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer.

The fundraiser comes as Trump faces increasing risk of getting impeached. Pelosi announced last week that the House would move forward with articles of impeachment against the president. The White House on Friday refused to take part in impeachment hearings.

• Read more:
• Clint Lorance says he can't get a job 'even at Walmart or Target'
• How Nancy Pelosi went from scoffing at the idea of impeaching Trump to leading the charge to remove him
• Over 500 law professors say Trump engaged in 'impeachable conduct' in his dealings with Ukraine

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Anthony Joshua easily beat Andy Ruiz Jr. in a world heavyweight championship rematch on Saturday.
• Combat sport statistician Compubox highlighted three statistics that help explain Joshua's victory.
• Joshua had relied on his jab, boxed at range, and minimized Andy Ruiz Jr.'s punch output.
• These are things he did not do in the first fight, a knockout loss, six months ago.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Anthony Joshua was easily able to beat Andy Ruiz Jr. in their rematch on Saturday, and there are three statistics that help explain why.

The British heavyweight boxed at range, relied on his jab, and minimized the former champion's punch output in their 12-round tactical battle at the Diriyah Arena in Saudi Arabia.

Joshua's dominance in the do-over contrasted the humiliation he endured when he was toppled four times by Ruiz Jr. in June. There he was defeated for the first time as a professional boxer at New York City's Madison Square Garden, and surrendered his world championship belts to the Mexican.

This weekend he won them all back.

And Compubox, a data specialist in combat sport, used statistics to help explain why.

1. 65 of Joshua's 107 landed punches were jabs
2. 93% of the fight was at distance
3. Ruiz landed just 23% of his total punches

Reliance on the jab

More than 60% of Joshua's punches were jabs. This is a stark contrast to the first fight, in which he deserted the jab for power, particularly in round three, where he exchanged knockdowns with his opponent.

A consistent jab in the rematch allowed Joshua to keep Ruiz Jr. at arm's length, which utilized the physical advantages he had over the Mexican.

At 6-foot-6 and with an 82-inch reach, Joshua is taller and longer than Ruiz Jr., who is four inches shorter and has a wingspan inferior by eight inches.

By making the rematch a jabbing fight, Joshua fought his fight, not Ruiz Jr.'s.

Boxing at distance

In the first fight six months ago, Joshua had Ruiz Jr. down in the third round but got greedy and sought the finish. When he did so, he entered a space that Ruiz Jr. relishes — the inside.

As soon as Joshua was on the inside and in range of Ruiz Jr.'s shorter, crisper, and faster punches, he found himself on the floor, fighting the rest of the fight with a concussion.

Joshua did not make the same mistake in the rematch. He boxed at range instead of the inside, and by keeping the fight at a distance for 93% of the 12-round and 36-minute duration, he ensured he kept himself out of danger.

Staying away from Ruiz Jr.

Relying on his jab and boxing at distance provided an excellent defense against Ruiz Jr., who as a result was only able to land 23% of his total punches.

Read more:

Andy Ruiz Jr. says he lost his world titles to Anthony Joshua because he was undertrained, overweight, and partied for 3 months

A nervous Anthony Joshua exorcised his New York humiliation by outboxing Andy Ruiz Jr. to win his world titles back in style

Deontay Wilder says Anthony Joshua will keep avoiding him even if he beats Andy Ruiz Jr.

Saudi Arabia's Andy Ruiz Jr. vs. Anthony Joshua fight is littered with athletes who have been busted for drug use

The $100 million Andy Ruiz vs. Anthony Joshua fight is 'masking a darker truth' in Saudi Arabia, and boxing is burying its head in the sand

Wladimir Klitschko says Anthony Joshua should never have lost to Andy Ruiz Jr. and expects him to dominate once again at heavyweight

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Uber held its annual company holiday party Wednesday night, and Business Insider went along to say hello.
• Uber faces an imminent ban on operating in London.
• Insiders at the party don't think the ban will happen anytime soon.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Uber's London headquarters held its annual company holiday drinks-'n'-canapes party Wednesday night at the Groucho Club in Soho, and Business Insider went along to say hello.

Needless to say, there was one existential question hanging over the get-together: Will Uber escape the November 25 ruling barring it from operating in the city?

The answer we heard was "yes, probably."

The ban on Uber operating in London — one of its biggest revenue sources — is set to come into force on or about December 16.

Here is what Business Insider staffers learned while mingling with management and drinking free Champagne:

• Uber's legal team is confident it will win an appeal of the ban. The appeal is expected to be filed in a magistrates court within the next few days.
• The appeal will put the ban on hold for months, as the magistrates ruling can also be appealed to higher courts.
• One likely argument Uber will make is that a ban of the entire company from the entire city is a disproportionate response given the "crime": The ban was imposed because 14 drivers out of 45,000 had falsified their identities. Uber could argue that it might regain its "fit and proper" status by taking measures against those drivers and closing the loophole that allowed their fraud.
• Jamie Heywood, the regional general manager for the UK and Europe, appeared unruffled by the ban, even though it pushed Uber stock down 6% on the day it was announced.
• Mayor Sadiq Khan is playing a game, Uber insiders speculate. Khan has to show he is supportive of the driver unions that have campaigned against Uber and helped persuade the transport regulator, Transport for London, to ban the service. But he is up for reelection in 2020 and is probably afraid of a backlash from Uber's 3.5 million city users if Uber is actually banned. So while Khan officially supports the ban, unofficially he is probably hoping some kind of compromise will allow Uber to continue operating.
• Uber is thus hoping the stars will align behind the idea that a complete ban is an extreme response and that a more graduated approach would be a better solution.
• The prime minister's senior special adviser, Sheridan Westlake, was in attendance. Last year, the cabinet member Matt Hancock attended. Uber in London has always been politically well-connected to the Conservative Party, as evidenced by ...
• ... the presence of Uber London comms chief Lottie Dominiczak. She was once named in a ranking of Westminster power couples by Politico. Her husband works for Lynton Crosby's CTF Partners, the consultancy that has advised the Conservative Party on the election campaigns of the prime ministers David Cameron, Theresa May, and Boris Johnson. She also used to work for the former Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan Smith's social-policy think tank, the Centre for Social Justice.

• Read more:
• London's Uber ban shows how much of the company's business is based on regulatory arbitrage

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Most maps of Louisiana aren't entirely right. Here's what the state really looks like.

• Goldman Sachs' global equity strategists recently added a new variable to the firm's bear market indicator.
• Although they concluded that bear-market risks are fading, they also provided a reality check for investors after one of the strongest years of this bull market performance-wise.  
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Goldman Sachs has good and not-so-good news about the future of the stock market. 

The good news is that the risks of a bear market— technically defined as an S&P 500 drop of at least 20% — are fading away, according to Peter Oppenheimer, the firm's chief global equity strategist. 

But going forward, he says investors should not expect to earn the quality of returns the market has delivered this year. The S&P 500 has gained more than 25% in 2019 and is on pace to outperform every calendar year except one since 2009.

Oppenheimer addressed the risks in a recent note to clients against the backdrop of a phenomenal year in the ongoing bull market and the economy's record-long expansion. He also unveiled an addition to the variables that go into Goldman Sachs' bear market risk indicator. 

When the indicator was first compiled it in 2017, Oppenheimer and his colleagues examined more than 40 variables and grouped them as either macroeconomic data, market-based indicators, and technical indicators. 

They then set a threshold level for each one, and observed how each performed in the lead up to bear markets. Every variable that made the cut met or exceeded its threshold at least 60% of the time prior to bear markets since 1960. 

They applied their own judgments in some cases and relied strictly on the data in others to whittle the variables down from 40 to the most significant six. 

Here they are, starting with the one that was just introduced: 

1. Private sector financial balance: This refers to total household spending less total income. The logic is that when people are using debt to spend more much more than they are earning, they create a private-sector deficit and put financial stability at risk. 

Goldman's economists have found this balance to be a catch-all gauge of overspending in the private sector and an empirical predictor of recessions about 24 months out.  

2. Unemployment: They found that periods of both low unemployment and a high Shiller price-to-earnings ratio tend to be followed by negative stock-market returns.

3. Inflation: This variable tends to be associated with excessively tight monetary policy, since the Federal Reserve usually hikes interest rates to try and contain inflation.

4.The yield curve: Many bear markets are preceded by flat or inverted yield curves. Goldman finds that the 0-to-6-quarter forward spread — the gap between the current fed funds rate and the expected rate six quarters ahead — serves as a useful bear market indicator.

5. ISM at a high: Very high levels of indicators such as the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index are usually followed by lower market returns once they start to slow. 

6. Valuation: While high valuations are rarely the sole trigger for bear markets, they usually combine with other fundamental factors to raise the risk of a market drop.   

Limited upside for stocks

The indicator currently shows the risk of a bear market is fading and currently stands at 61%. Although this risk is fading, Oppenheimer doesn't expect the bull market to accelerate from here. 

"We would normally expect to see such an acceleration only when the indicator falls to very low levels (sub 40%) — although downside risks are constrained by the ongoing low level of interest rates and recession risks," he said. 

Oppenheimer added: "But, at the same time, the prospects for relatively low profit growth through 2020 and 2021 should limit the upside for equities. Our profit growth forecasts are for single digit growth, on average, over the next couple of years, and the absence of further rate cuts and lower yields suggests that valuations are likely to be close to peak."

The biggest downside risk for 2020 — and one that is not captured by the bear market indicator — is an election result that pushes down stocks, Oppenheimer said. 

And so with lower returns on the horizon, what's an investor to do? Goldman offered the following investing advice: 

• Focus on 'growth at a reasonable price:' stocks that hold the potential for strong growth but don't have the extreme valuations of many secular growers.
• Long-term investors who prefer value stocks can dig into Goldman's dividend growth basket for ideas. It contains stocks with above-average dividend yields, reasonable growth prospects, and near-record valuation discounts. 

SEE ALSO: A Wall Street expert who called the stock market's late-2018 meltdown warns another plunge could arrive in December — and shares his investing advice for 2020

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NOW WATCH: A big-money investor in juggernauts like Facebook and Netflix breaks down the '3rd wave' firms that are leading the next round of tech disruption

• The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are set to break some major royal Christmas traditions as they spend their first holiday season without the Queen and the rest of the royal family. 
• The couple has spent every Christmas at the Queen's Sandringham Estate since they got engaged in 2017. 
• This year, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and their son Archie will spend the holiday with the duchess' mother, Doria Ragland, likely at her home in LA. 
• With a different location comes a whole new Christmas experience for the family, who will miss out on the monarch's annual Christmas Eve afternoon tea and exchange of gifts.
• Scroll below for a complete list of every tradition the family will break this year, as well as some traditions they could actually keep while being in the US. 
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

1. They won't attend church with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip

Every year, the royal family is photographed walking to St Mary Magdalene church, close to the Queen's Sandringham Estate, for the annual Christmas day service.

This year, Harry, Markle, and their son Archie are spending Christmas with the duchess' mother, Doria Ragland. Although the location they will be spending the holiday has not been officially disclosed, it's believed the family will spend it in LA, where Ragland lives.

2. It won't be a black-tie affair this year

The couple will also miss the royal family's annual dinner and drinks on Christmas Eve, which is a black-tie event, according to Pop Sugar.

3. Harry and Meghan won't exchange gifts over afternoon tea on Christmas Eve with the rest of the family

Grant Harrold, former butler to Prince Charles, told Insider that the royal family has a set time schedule when it comes to giving and receiving their Christmas gifts.

"The Queen arrives a few days before everyone else, like any good hostess, to ensure everything is ready," Harrold said.

"Then most of the royals will arrive on Christmas Eve. They will have afternoon tea, which is traditionally held between 4 pm and 6 pm, where they will exchange gifts."

Harrold added that most of the gifts aren't meant to be taken seriously. The former butler said he has heard (although not personally witnessed) that the family "tend to give each other humorous gifts."

"What do you give people who have everything?" he added.

Here's hoping the Queen doesn't mind breaking the tradition so the couple's son, Archie, can receive his first Christmas gifts in time for the big day. 

4. They'll miss out on the annual palace staff party also attended by the Queen and the royal family

Harrold said the black-tie party, held "behind closed doors" at St James's Palace is a traditional event where palace staff gets to mingle with the Queen, Prince Charles, and other members of the royal family.

"I was able to see Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall and exchange a few words. Princes Harry and William were there as well," he said.

"During the first [party] I got to sit down and have lunch with Prince William. Not many people can say they had a meal with the future King," he added.

It is not known whether the duke and duchess plan to host a different party for staff at their Frogmore Cottage base in Windsor.

5. Markle's decorations won't be as traditional as the Queen's

The royal family recently released pictures of their traditional Christmas decorations at Windsor Castle, which include a 20-foot-high Nordmann Fir Christmas tree in St George's Hall.

Her Majesty's annual speech, pictured above, shows the family favors traditional decor, such as garland draped across the mantle-place.

According to a 2015 interview, when Markle hosts Christmas she likes to add her own unique twist to the decorations.

"Traditionally garland or magnolia branches are used to adorn a stairwell banister or mantle," the former actress told Grazia.

"Take this concept and trim the outline of a mirror or beautiful piece of artwork that is centrally located in your entry hallway or living room."

6. They likely won't have a royal chef to cook Christmas dinner

The Queen's personal chef cooks dinner for the family every year, and her former chef Darren McGrady once shared the meals served to them during previous years.

"It was the same meal every year," McGrady told Hello! Online."They're actually boring when it comes to festivities! They didn't do hams or anything, just traditional turkeys. We did three turkeys for the Queen and her family in the royal dining room, one for the children's nursery and then more for the 100 or so staff, so everyone had a Christmas lunch."

It's unlikely that Harry and Markle will have a royal chef to cook Christmas dinner for them in LA. However, Markle once shared her favorite festive recipes that she makes herself— including her own almond milk spiced holiday cocktail and maple glazed potato wedges — so she's probably got it covered.

However, there are a few traditions the couple could keep, even all the way from the US

One tradition the couple could easily keep up from overseas is the annual royal Christmas card. This is a tradition that was started by Queen Victoria, according to Harrold, who says the monarch would send cards with portraits of her family on the front of them.

Our current Queen Elizabeth II sends 750 Christmas cards every year, according to the royal family's official website.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex shared their first joint Christmas card last year, which featured an elegant black-and-white photo from their wedding day.

They could also present their staff with Christmas gifts, just like the Queen does every year

Her Majesty also sends out 1,500 Christmas puddings every year to staff throughout the royal palaces, the Court Post Office, and the Palace police.

However, the monarch isn't the only member of the family that traditionally gives Christmas gifts to her staff, so it's likely this is something Harry and Markle partake in too.

"I've been given lovely gifts from Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall," Harrold told Insider. "I've received teacups and saucers, trays, crystal glasses, and more personal gifts."

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• Warning: This post contained gruesome images of a boxing injury.
• Alistair Overeem was hit with a punch so hard it burst a hole in his face.
• The heavyweight was winning every round of his UFC fight in Washington, DC, but then lost by knockout in the final seconds.
• His opponent Jairzinho Rozenstruik hit him with an overhand right that left his lip in need of medical attention and stitches.
• Overeem said after the fight that the stoppage was early and that he could have continued.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Heavyweight Alistair Overeem had been winning every round of his UFC fight until he got hit with a punch so hard it left his lip hanging off his face, and lost by knockout.

If the heavyweight fight at the UFC on ESPN 7 event in Washington DC on Saturday ended five seconds sooner, Overeem would have claimed a victory on the judges' scorecards. ESPN said at the time that he was leading four rounds to zero.

But, with four seconds to go, everything changed. His opponent, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, hit him with a punch so hard it dropped Overeem to the floor, burst a massive hole in his lip, and left him in need or medical attention.

The referee rewarded Rozenstruik with a knockout win.

Look at the photographs of the injury below. Warning: They are not for the faint-hearted.

"Getting stitched up," Overeem tweeted after the loss. "Lip not to [sic] sexy at the moment."

He added that he could have continued, and thinks the referee was quick to stop the fight. "A little bit of a fast stoppage if you ask me — but hope you guys enjoyed the fight."

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Esports viewership is on the rise.

Thanks in part to streaming services such as Twitch, the number of esports fans globally is anticipated to surge 59% over the next four to five years.

This rapid expansion, coupled with the tendency for esports spectators to be younger and more receptive to sponsorship, is driving brand investment into competitive gaming.

In The Brand Investment in eSports Report, Business Insider Intelligence details the explosive growth of the eSports audience, and breaks down the different channels brands can take to reach eSports fans.

This exclusive report can be yours for FREE today.

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• The UK will hold a general election on December 12.
• In his final Sunday news appearance before the vote, Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted he was nervous but repeatedly refused to say if he would step down if the Conservative Party fails to win a parliamentary majority.
• Numerous polls have put the Tories on course to win a majority, but there are growing influential voices telling voters not to vote for Johnson.
• On Sunday Johnson also vowed to reduce immigration, reiterated claims that a leaked government document was wrong, and admitted to inflating figures on a Conservative manifesto pledge to hire more NHS nurses.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has refused to say whether he would quit if his Conservative Party fails to secure a majority in the country's upcoming general election.

Though numerous polls have put Johnson on course to win a majority in the December 12 election, Johnson told Sky News' "Ridge on Sunday" he was "nervous" about the vote and that he is "fighting for every vote." On Friday, former Conservative Prime Minister John Major urged voters to reject Johnson.

Johnson demurred each time Sophy Ridge, the programme's host, asked if he would resign as prime minister if his party failed to secure a parliamentary majority. Ridge put the question to him three times, the Evening Standard noted.

"If you don't mind, Sophy, what I'm going to do is concentrate on the five days before us because that is what I think the people of this country would expect," Johnson said.

"We have got a very short time to get our message across, it's a message of hope and optimism about this country."

During the Sunday interview Johnson also pledged to reduce immigration, reiterated claims that a leaked government document on the post-Brexit economic impact was "wrong," and admitted to giving inflated figures on a Conservative pledge to hire more nurses for the National Health Service (NHS).

Here's a rundown of what happened:

• Johnson admitted that only 31,000 of the "50,000 more nurses" that the Conservative manifesto pledged to provide to the NHS would be new recruits. The 19,000 other nurses refer to existing nurses whom he said would not leave the service.
• He reiterated his claim that a Treasury document leaked by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, which confirmed there will be checks on goods traveling between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK after Brexit, was "wrong."

• Johnson promised to reduce immigration into the UK by introducing an economy-focused Australian-style system, which evaluates whether migrants enter the country by allotting them points for their education, language proficiency, and work experience.
• "You've got to have a system by which politicians can say to people: 'Well yes, we are letting people in but we're doing it in a way that is controlled and checked,'" Johnson told Ridge. But experts say such a system would actually increase immigration levels.
• He struggled to say what the "naughtiest" thing he had done was, and consulted his advisers before finally saying: "I may, sometimes, have not always obeyed the law by cycling on the pavement."

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• Australia was just named Travel + Leisure's Destination of the Year for 2020.
• As someone who recently returned from visiting the country for the first time, I'm not even remotely surprised by its latest accolade.
• I only spent a fortnight in the country — in Sydney and Melbourne, which are two very different cities — but it was enough to make it abundantly clear to me why everyone should visit Australia.
• From the beaches to the brunch, here are 14 reasons everyone should plan a trip to Australia in 2020.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Australia is hardly an under-the-radar destination.

Popular with all sorts of tourists, from backpackers to pensioners from across the world, the country offers something for everyone.

In November 2019, Australia was announced as Travel + Leisure's Destination of the Year for 2020.

That same month, I visited the country for the first time, and despite only visiting Australia's two main cities, Sydney and Melbourne, it was immediately clear to me why it won its latest accolade.

Here are 14 reasons you should visit Australia.

1. The coastline.

The Bondi-Coogee coastal walk in Sydney is a tourist essential for a reason: it's stunning. You walk along rugged cliffs looking down at clear blue sea and crashing waves.

2. The beaches. Whether you prefer something quiet and secluded ...

... or big and busy, there are plenty of beaches to suit you in Australia.

3. The saltwater pools, which are far superior to indoor swimming pools. Icebergs pool in Bondi (below) may be Sydney's most famous ...

... but I actually preferred the one at Bronte Beach (below).

4. The brunches. You may think Australian cuisine is just avocado on toast and BBQ, but if you ask me, the country's real culinary strength lies in brunch. There were so many inventive dishes such as the below: herb and chilli scrambled eggs on zataar bread with halloumi, sujuk sausage and parmesan, and lots of acai bowls. Go there, eat everything, return home heavier and happier.

5. The Asian food. As a country that has a lot of immigrants from all across Asia, Australia has no shortage of fantastic Asian restaurants.

6. The coffee. Not only is the coffee in Australia exceptionally good (seriously, I didn't have one bad coffee), it's also far cheaper than what I'm used to in London.

7. The friendliness. The Australian accent makes anyone sound friendly, but people genuinely are. When I ordered a coffee in Manly, Sydney, I said my name was Rachel. What did the barista write? "Rach," like we were already friends. It was nice.

8. The hummus. Look, I know hummus isn't traditionally Australian, but I was amazed at how much and how many different types there were on offer. It was really quite excellent.

9. The public transport ferries. Forget the subway or buses — cities like Sydney and Brisbane have public transport ferries to take you around. You could seriously upgrade your commute ...

... and going home at the end of a night out has never been more fun.

10. The wine. Sure, you can get Australian wine across the world, but it is essential to sample regional specialties and support local businesses while traveling, after all.

11. The architecture. I barely scratched the surface of Australia, but it struck me that there was a particularly huge range of architectural styles, which made Melbourne and Sydney especially interesting to explore on foot.

12. The weather. How much sunshine you get really depends on where in Australia you are — the weather in Sydney is a lot better than in Melbourne, for example — but on the whole you're likely to see a fair amount of blue sky.

13. The green spaces. Australia is a huge country, which means the cities really sprawl and there's a lot of green space.

14. There's so much more to see! From the Great Barrier Reef to Perth, you could spend years traveling around Australia and not see everything. I already can't wait to go back.

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