Monday, July 13, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1937, Vernon Rudolph fried his first batch of yeast-raised doughnuts in a rented Winston-Salem building, using a secret recipe he’d bought from a New Orleans chef. That was the birth of Krispy Kreme.

Speaking of important state businesses, North Carolina is the No. 2 state for business, down from last year’s No. 1 ranking. Learn more in Top Stories.

Even the best retirement plans can be undermined by avoidable mistakes. Later today, watch for a message from our partner, Fisher Investments, with a free guide covering 13 common retirement investing blunders and how to avoid them.

Today’s sponsor is Frontieras. Nvidia helped power the AI revolution, but AI's next challenge isn't computing—it's energy. As demand for electricity continues to surge, many investors are looking at the companies developing the infrastructure needed to fuel that growth. Frontieras believes it's building technology that could play a key role in meeting that demand, making it a company worth a closer look.

State Health Plan Board Approves Overhaul

The board overseeing North Carolina’s State Health Plan approved a sweeping overhaul on Friday that raises premiums 5% for 2027 and sorts hospitals into new “preferred” and “non-preferred” tiers.

The plan covers roughly 750,000 teachers, state employees, retirees, and their families. Treasurer Brad Briner, who oversees it, said the changes pull the plan back from a projected $507 million shortfall that had threatened insolvency.

UNC Health, Novant Health, and Iredell Health System made the top tier; Atrium Health, Granville Health, and some Duke LifePoint facilities did not. Officials said members who stick with preferred providers could save up to $7,000 a year.

The board also handed its administrator and pharmacy contracts to Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina beginning in 2028. Briner said the real story is member savings, not the roughly $2 to $4 monthly premium increase.

NC Slips to No. 2 for Business

North Carolina slipped to No. 2 in CNBC’s 2026 ranking of the best states for business, behind Ohio and just ahead of Virginia.

It's the sixth straight year the state has finished in the top two. North Carolina ranked first in CNBC’s economy category and third in the workforce category, and it climbed to eighth in technology and innovation.

The state lost ground elsewhere, falling to 35th in cost of living, 34th in quality of life, and 13th in infrastructure, the category CNBC weighted most heavily this year.

Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, called the ranking a “proof” that the state “can't rest on our laurels,” citing housing and infrastructure costs. John Locke Foundation president Donald Bryson credited years of “pro-growth tax reform” and responsible budgeting.

Whatley Wraps up 100-County Tour

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley finished his 100-county tour of North Carolina on Saturday in Yancey County, where he toured a high school program building homes for Hurricane Helene victims.

Whatley, the former Republican National Committee chairman. also stopped in Transylvania and Jackson counties. At Mountain Heritage High School, he praised the Pillars Program, whose students build homes for families displaced by the 2024 storm, and said housing remains one of the state's biggest challenges.

Whatley faces former Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, in November for the seat Sen. Thom Tillis is leaving. Cooper has toured the state on a “Make Stuff Cost Less” message, arguing the administration puts affordability and health care gains at risk.

Flying together with our sponsor

The Nvidia of Energy

Nvidia’s valuation surged by 1,092% in just three years when it became the backbone of AI. But AI has a massive energy problem Nvidia can’t fix.

As AI data centers begin consuming more power than entire nations like Sweden or Argentina, Frontieras North America’s patented technology reforms coal into high-value commodities like hydrogen and diesel without burning it. It creates a technical carbon to replace coal that burns as clean as natural gas. Under a White House that favors energy production on our home soil, it could unlock up to $2.1 Trillion in energy potential.

The company fully subscribed its first Reg A+ round by $25M and reopened it due to increasing investor demand.

Here’s why you shouldn’t miss the chance to invest at $9.01/share:

“FASF” ticker reserved on the NASDAQ
Broke ground on new $850M flagship facility in West Virginia
$30 million raised from 12,000+ investors

As a perfect storm of breakthroughs set up the company for potential valuation impact, this is your opportunity to invest in Frontieras today.

➤ Statewide: North Carolina will eliminate physical vehicle registration cards and license plate renewal stickers, transitioning to electronic registration on Oct. 1 to cut costs and streamline processes. (More)

➤ Western NC: North Carolina has been awarded $48 million in new FEMA funding for recovery projects, nearly two years after Hurricane Helene devastated the mountain regions. Leaders are pushing to rebuild and lure tourists ahead of peak season. (More)

➤ NC Colleges: The names of college students found responsible for sexual assault at North Carolina’s public universities and community colleges are no longer public record under a provision in the new state budget that reverses a state Supreme Court ruling that had required their release. (More)

➤ Cleveland County: The National Weather Service confirmed an EF-1 tornado with 90 mph winds touched down 3 miles north-northeast of Casar during Friday’s storms. Surveyors also confirmed tornado damage in neighboring Lincoln and Catawba counties. (More)

➤ Greensboro: Norwegian soccer star Erling Haaland and teammates Sander Berge and Jørgen Strand Larsen played a round at Sedgefield Country Club, home of the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship, while Norway's national team trained at UNC-Greensboro before the World Cup. (More)

➤ Outer Banks: Bioluminescent phytoplankton are creating electric blue glowing waves and glittery water off North Carolina's Outer Banks this summer, best viewed by kayak in dark sounds near Cape Hatteras. (More)

Enjoy reading Flyover North Carolina? Click here to share with your friends and family. ✈️

➤ North Carolina schools saw eight collegiate athletes have their names called on Day 1 of the MLB Draft, including UNC’s Jake Schaffner, who was picked the highest, going at No. 20 overall to the Boston Red Sox. (See Results)

➤ Meanwhile, Wake Forest took a recruiting hit when Southside Christian pitcher and Wake Forest commit Carson Bolemon was selected No. 29 overall by the San Francisco Giants. (More)

➤ Former Duke men’s basketball standout Isaiah Evans struggled in his NBA Summer League debut on Saturday, shooting just 2 for 15 from the field, including a 0 for 9 performance from three-point range. (More)

➤ Charlotte Hornets General Manager Jeff Peterson publicly addressed the trade sending LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Naz Reid, calling it the hardest decision of his career and part of a long-term rebuild. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: Wimbledon | MLB | WNBA | NASCAR | Golf

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Harvard Discovers Why Diets Fail After 50. It's not willpower—it's your GLP-1. This "weight loss hormone" controls appetite and fat burning but declines with age. Now a breakthrough botanical can naturally boost your body's own GLP-1 production in seconds daily—no costly injections or dangerous side effects required. (Learn More)

➤ North Carolina lawmakers allocated $3 million to establish the UNC Kenan Institute’s new Economic Forecasting Initiative, providing statewide and county-level nowcasts and projections for GDP, employment, housing, and job skills. (More)

➤ The new state budget raises North Carolina’s tax on sports-betting revenue from 18% to 23% and steers more of it to public university athletics. It also creates a 6% tax on prediction-market operators. (More)

➤ Attorney General Jeff Jackson is leading a coalition of 49 attorneys general urging the FCC to tighten rules that let scammers obtain legitimate phone numbers, citing the 29.6 billion scam calls Americans received last year. (More)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Big AC companies are panicking over this new cooling invention that helps Americans stay cool for less. Stop suffering from extreme temperatures and high electric bills. Get instant cooling in summer and cozy warmth in winter with CoolCove. Learn More.

Flying together with our sponsor

The Next $435B Energy Empire Is Being Minted

In today’s dollars, John D. Rockefeller would be worth $435 billion. But “oil money” is old news, and what’s next might surprise investors in 2026: a $2.1 Trillion opportunity in “clean” coal.

Now is the “Rockefeller” moment for Frontieras as they reform coal into hydrogen, diesel, and other valuable commodities (just like Rockefeller did with oil). And they just broke ground for their flagship coal reformation plant. With a White House that favors domestic energy and the NASDAQ ticker FASF reserved, Frontieras is positioned for potential valuation impact.

The company fully subscribed its first Reg A+ round by $25M. Now their offering has reopened at $9.01/share due to increasing investor demand.

Join 12K+ investors and become an early-stage shareholder in Frontieras today.

➤ The Grandfather Mountain Highland Games wrapped their 70th anniversary this weekend at MacRae Meadows near Linville, drawing 108 Scottish clans and families for caber tosses, bagpipes, and Highland dancing. Organizers call it the oldest Highland Games in the South. (See Photos)

➤ The Network for Endangered Sea Turtles logged its 34th nest of the 2026 season on Friday after finding a loggerhead nest in Duck. Volunteers say the count is running a bit ahead of the seasonal average. (See Photos)

➤ The Dix Park sunflowers in Raleigh hit peak bloom amid a celebration on Saturday featuring live music, activities, and food trucks that drew thousands to the field. (See Photos)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ New Hidden Panic Button That Saves Lives. InvisaWear lets you secretly call for immediate help whenever you feel unsafe – without needing to reach for your phone or draw attention to yourself. Learn More.

The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the links will take you directly to these stories:

➤ Think the King's English is the "original" English? Turns out the poshest accent in Britain is one of the newest, and the oldest sounds are hiding somewhere surprising. (Hear Where)

➤ Firefighters spent decades spraying a foam that saved lives, and now more than a dozen states are racing to destroy every last drop of it. (Hear Why)

➤ You can learn to spot an AI deepfake in about an hour, and the six telltale signs aren't what you'd expect. (Hear How)