Marketplace All-in-One

To address pain at the pump, President Donald Trump and some Congressional Republicans are floating the idea of temporarily pausing the federal gas tax. The thing is, that gas tax helps pay for the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, and more. Today, we delve into how the tax shows up in our everyday lives. Then, we head to Boston to hear how a small college there is serving low-income, first-generation students.

Household debt ticked up slightly in the first three months of this year, increasing by $18 billion, according to the New York Fed. Credit card debt is actually down slightly, but mortgage balances, home equity lines of credit, and car loan balances all grew. We unpack. Plus, later in this morning's show, how might economic tensions appear at the summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping?

In order to write her new book “I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI To Do ‘Almost’ Everything," journalist Joanna Stern decided to invite artificial intelligence into every aspect of her life — including her family life.

She has a wife and two sons. On their spring break, she took them to Phoenix, where it's easy to hail a driverless car. They rode in a bunch of them, including one that totally freaked out.

She brought home an AI-powered toy (which her four-year-old quickly tired of), and says she realized her kids will "grow up never knowing a world without computers as smart as them.”

Marketplace’s Stephanie Hughes spoke with Stern about how she hopes her children will navigate that world.

Inflation was up 3.8% in April, according to the latest CPI. Economists say the war with Iran has caused “transitory” inflation — that’s short-lived inflation from a specific inflationary event. It’s also how experts characterized Trump’s tariffs and the COVID-19 pandemic. But if inflation stays put for, say, five years, is it really still transitory? Also in this episode: Small business owners fret over rising costs, MIT students graduate with majors in AI, and Quebec brings hydropower to the Northeast U.S.

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Marketplace is more than a radio show. Check out our original reporting and financial literacy content at marketplace.org — and consider making an investment in our future.

After a pandemic-era boom, the fine art market is going through something of a bust. Many galleries have closed due to climbing overhead costs and sales just aren’t what they used to be. Author and freelance journalist Julie Belcove joins Kimberly to demystify the inner workings of the global art market and what a slump could mean for the those who work in the arts.