Episode summary
Bloomberg Businessweek Weekend - September 11th, 2026 | Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek Daily
· · 53 min · Hosts: Carol Massar, Tim Stenovec
Summary
The weekend show opened with Apple’s first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman argued that the new device could sell out because Apple finally married hardware and software in a way that makes the foldable feel uniquely polished. He said the phone starts at about $2,000 and rises to $3,200, while the new iPhone 18 Pro models, AirPods, and Apple Watch updates were mostly incremental. He also said Apple’s real AI strategy is to keep the iPhone at the center of a larger device ecosystem.
The next conversation centered on Bill Cohen’s new book, Money to Burn: The Unvarnished Truth About Leon Black, Apollo and the Rise of a New Wall Street. He described Leon Black, Apollo, and the firm’s origins at Drexel as a sweeping Wall Street story shaped by Michael Milken’s high-yield innovation, the rise of private credit, and the succession battles that made Mark Rowan and Josh Harris billionaires. Cohen also discussed Leon Black’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and said he sees private credit as a possible source of the next financial crisis.
The episode closed with Dr. Mark Jacobson, who recounted being in the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the building. He said the counterterrorism machinery is better now than it was then, but warned that the threat has not disappeared and that USAID remains an undervalued tool for preventing extremism before violence starts.
Key takeaways
- Mark Gurman said Apple’s $2,000 iPhone Duo could sell out because the hardware-software integration is unusually strong for a foldable.
- Gurman said Apple’s AI strategy is to keep the iPhone as the center of a broader ecosystem of glasses, rings, watches, and other peripherals.
- Bill Cohen argued that Michael Milken’s junk-bond model created the intellectual foundation for today’s private credit market.
- Cohen said Apollo’s succession politics turned Mark Rowan and Josh Harris into billionaires and helped define the firm’s culture.
- Cohen warned that private credit and retail exposure could help plant the seeds of the next financial crisis.
- Mark Jacobson said the U.S. counterterrorism apparatus is stronger than it was on September 11, but the threat is still real.
Notable quotes
“They represent the very best of Apple. the curiosity to imagine what's possible, the care to get every detail right, and the conviction to build products that make a real difference in people's lives”
“what was 2008? It was credit and debt. And if that shuts down, if those markets shut down, then then everybody is fighting for capital”
“no”
How the episode opens
Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio, news. — This is Bloomberg Business Week Daily, reporting from the magazine that helps global leaders stay ahead with insight on the people, companies, and trends shaping today's complex economy. Plus, global business, finance, and tech news as it happens. The Bloomberg Business Week daily podcast with Carol Masser and Tim Stenc on Bloomberg Radio.
Hi everyone, welcome to the Bloomberg Business Week weekend podcast. A holiday shortened trading week, but it was a busy week and September certainly seemed to kick into high gear. We had a big Apple product announcement.
The foldable phone from Apple iPhone Duo, it is here and super important. Also this past week, inflation reports that got the attention of investors ahead of this coming week's meeting and decision by the Federal Reserve. And uh let's not forget US Canada trade tensions intensifying and the US war with Iran continued with no signs of backing down.
That by the way driving the price of Brent crude to spike big time.
It's the beginning of September and Friday marked 25 years since the September 11th terror attacks. More on that this hour with a man who was at the Pentagon the day that tragedy struck. We also mentioned Apple just a moment ago. Yes, indeed. All eyes on Certino and the debut of Apple's first foldable iPhone. Unfolding all of the details. Bloomberg's managing editor for global consumer tech and our Apple guru Mark German.
Plus, renowned financial journalist and best-selling author Bill Cohen charts the rise and fall of Wall Street billionaire Leon Black and the firm he founded, Apollo Global Management. It's all in Bill Cohen's new book. — All that to come. We begin though with the debut of Apple's first foldable phone. It's called the iPhone Duo.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- business news
- finance markets
- technology
- politics
- economics
Watch the episode
Watch “Bloomberg Businessweek Weekend - September 11th, 2026 | Bloomberg Businessweek” on YouTube
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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