Behind Target's big bet on AI 🤖

Plus: How to talk to your kids about safe sex [Plus: How to talk to your kids about safe sex] View this email as a [web page]( [Star Tribune]( [Essential Minnesota logo] ESSENTIAL MINNESOTA [Essential Minnesota logo] ESSENTIAL MINNESOTA Good morning, Minnesota! I'll be on vacation tomorrow. Scroll to the end to meet your substitute newsletter writer 📝 On to the news 📢 [Eder Campuzano] By Eder Campuzano TODAY’S TOP STORIES - ['Rare' storm sends torrents of water down Duluth's hillsides as flash floods wash out roads]( - [Some homebuyers are beating high interest rates with 1980s-era assumable mortgages]( - [Mayor wants Mounds View to be first to require deeds be stripped of racist language before home sales]( - [Mother of 4-year-old Hopkins boy who drowned calls for more autism services]( - [Rice County approves gravel mine near Nerstrand Big Woods State Park despite residents' environmental concerns](   Target is rolling out AI chatbots to answer employees' questions quickly, more efficiently Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune At one point earlier this week, storms knocked out the power that fed some of the refrigerated food and produce sections at the Target store in Champlin. So Steve Noon pulled up the retailer's new AI chatbot, Store Companion, and asked how to protect the temperature-sensitive items. The assistant gave Noon a step-by-step guide on rescuing the wares with a tarplike material and guided him through which items to throw out. The chatbot's rollout — it'll be live in all 2,000 of the retailer's stores by August — is just one way Target is leaning into AI to power some of its operations. The company has already begun using AI in the search function on its website and app, which allows customers to use conversational language to navigate its systems. The in-store chatbot should make work quicker and easier for employees, company officials say, because they'll similarly be able to ask informal questions to help customers instead of thumbing through physical handbooks or navigating Target's internal help sites. Nicole Norfleet has the [full story behind Target's big AI push here](. GOING OUT - [5 dishes from Twin Cities restaurants that will get you hooked on fish]( - [5 not-to-miss artworks in Walker Art Center's reinstallation of its permanent collection]( - [Downtown Minneapolis streets will close for party celebrating 40th anniversary of Prince's 'Purple Rain' album](     How to talk to your kids about safe sex Kendall Warner/Virginian Pilot/TNS A recent survey of college students showed that nearly two-thirds of women reported being choked during sex. And about 40% of those women reported being between 12 and 17 years old the first time it happened. The practice, once reserved for adults deep into kink, has seemingly become mainstream. And, columnist Laura Yuen argues, its proliferation necessitates some potentially uncomfortable conversations between parents and their children about consent and safe sex. Among the tips an expert provided this week: Strive for a conversation that leads to further communication and connection. Let them know you’re not going to judge them for their choices. It’s perfectly fine to state your values around sexual health and what you would expect from a healthy sexual interaction. Break down rigid gender stereotypes of male domination and women being coerced. Speak early and often about consent and the importance of setting boundaries. Yuen has more [tips and a broader conversation with experts about the troubling trend in teen sex — and how to talk about it — here](. [Share this newsletter with friends]( Do you enjoy Essential Minnesota? Encourage your friends and family to [sign up](. You also can share it using the links below. Meet 2024's spring sports all-stars - [Amelia Morton of Maple Grove is the Metro Player of the Year in girls golf]( - [Torger Ohe of Edina fills a gap and becomes the Metro Player of the Year in boys golf]( - [Tanay Panguluri of Wayzata, wizened leader amid youth, is Metro Player of the Year in boys tennis]( - [Claire Kohler of Minnetonka, hurdler, sprinter and especially teammate, is Athlete of the Year in girls track and field]( - More to come later today at StarTribune.com BEHIND THE STAR TRIBUNE: ZOË Jackson Provided Zoë Jackson is a reporter on the Today Desk. She's worked for the Star Tribune since 2020, although she interned here in 2019. Zoë moved to Minneapolis from Detroit and is one of our Essential Minnesota writers. She'll pen Friday's edition. Get to know her a little: Describe a perfect day in your neck of the woods. For me, a perfect day in Minneapolis entails coffee or matcha at SK Coffee (usually an espresso tonic or iced matcha), brunch at Marty’s Deli with my partner and meeting friends to read and chat at the beach while the sun sets over one of our beautiful lakes. Where, other than the Star Tribune, do you get your news? I subscribe or contribute to Racket, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Cut and the Current. Tell us which social platform you use most and why you think people follow you there. I love wasting hours of my one precious life on TikTok, especially post implosion of Twitter/X. People follow me there for my impeccable book recommendations. 🙂 If you enjoy literary fiction, shoot me an email. Maybe I can recommend a book! What’s been your favorite Star Tribune assignment? I love assignments where I’m looking for a story or feature where I have time to wander around, talking to people and looking at things as I figure out what the story is. Preferably with a decent driving distance on the way back so I can think through what I learned. What’s your favorite State Fair attraction? People watching! Preferably with corn or ice cream in hand. Is there a Star Tribune reporter or coverage area you'd like us to go in-depth with? Send suggestions to essential@startribune.com. And follow our behind-the-scenes account on Instagram: [@btstartribune](. IN OTHER NEWS - [Beyond the gay bar: In the Twin Cities, LGBTQ+ nightlife is evolving]( - Racket - [The Mille Lacs Band will see the return of 18 acres of state trust land]( - MinnPost - [Historic building damaged during George Floyd protests reopens as Black-owned business incubator]( - Sahan Journal - [You really need to read this deep dive into the broken promises behind the federal government's post-Civil War '40 acres and a mule' program](     THE MINNESOTA GOODBYE What do you call a group of high-priced bikes parked together in front of a coffee shop in southeast Minneapolis? Wrong answers only. Comedian and columnist Pearl Rose caught sight of these three (probably) exorbitantly priced specimens recently and it had us wondering: How exactly are we supposed to refer to them? A gaggle? A murder? Or should we stop overthinking it and just call them a "trio"? Personally, I'm fond of "bevy." A bevy of bikes. Thanks for reading Eder Campuzano, reporter David Taintor, editor [Email]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Manage email preferences]( • [Subscribe to Star Tribune]( • [Privacy Policy]([Unsubscribe from this newsletter]( [Unsubscribe from this newsletter]( [Manage]( your preferences | [Opt Out]( using TrueRemove™ Got this as a forward? [Sign up]( to receive our future emails. View this email [online](. 650 3rd Ave. S. Suite 1300 | Minneapolis, MN 55488 US This email was sent to {EMAIL}. To continue receiving our emails, add us to your address book.