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Editor’s Pick:
[News] Powell's ouster 'one of the largest underpriced event risks over the coming months'
A potential ouster of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell by U.S. President Donald Trump could "collapse" both the currency and bond markets and would lead to a spike in inflation expectations, Deutsche Bank said on Friday.
Earlier this week, Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, accused Powell of "grossly" mismanaging the Fed and said the central bank was "way over budget" on the renovation of its headquarters, with the cost of the project ballooning to roughly $2.5B.
The accusation potentially opens up an avenue for Trump to seek Powell's removal. The President has repeatedly criticized the Fed chief for not lowering interest rates and has called him a range of names. He has reportedly considered dismissing Powell and naming his successor much ahead of the end of his term.
Deutsche Bank's head of FX research, George Saravelos, noted that the market was currently pricing in a very low probability of a Powell ouster. According to prediction platform Polymarket, the odds of such an event currently stand at 15%.
But Saravelos offered a few thoughts on the possible implications.
"The empirical and academic evidence on the impact of a loss of central bank independence is fairly clear: in extreme cases, both the currency and the bond market can collapse as inflation expectations move higher, real yields drop and broader risk premia increase on the back of institutional erosion. Interestingly, the impact on equities has been far more ambivalent given they are ultimately a claim on real assets," he said.
"It is hard to quantify the impact on FX and rates, but on the first 24 hours of an announcement of a Powell removal we would expect a drop in the trade-weighted dollar of at least 3%-4% accompanied by a 30-40bps sell-off in U.S. fixed income led by the back-end," Saravelos said.
As per the analyst, the market's reaction beyond the initial news would depend on if the remaining Fed policymakers "coalesce" around the central bank's independence, Powell's successor pick, and the broader macroeconomic context.
"In sum, we consider the removal of Chair Powell as one of the largest underpriced event risks over the coming months," he added.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
Link to WealthWise Research YouTube Video - Jul. 18, 2025
[News] Nvidia to resume H20 chip sales to China after U.S. assures export licenses
Jul. 14, 2025
“The U.S. government has assured NVIDIA that licenses will be granted, and NVIDIA hopes to start deliveries soon,” the company said in a statement.
Sales had been halted in April despite the chips being designed to bypass export restrictions.
This follows a preliminary trade deal last month that sought China to resume rare earth exports and the U.S. to ease tech export restrictions.
Additionally, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced the launch of a new compliant chip, the RTX PRO GPU that “is ideal for digital twin AI for smart factories and logistics.”
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Link to Nvidia Blog - Jul. 14, 2025
RKLB 0.00%↑ RDW 0.00%↑ #SpaceX
[News] SpaceX eyes using Starship rocket to develop commercial products in space - report
SpaceX (SPACE), the rocket company started and headed by Elon Musk, is working on a plan for experiments that could be done in space that would aid in the development of commercial products.
The program, dubbed Starfall, would bring items such as drugs, semiconductors, food, and beauty products into space aboard the company's Starship rocket in unmanned capsules. Bloomberg News reported.
The capsules would be released into orbit and then fall back to earth for recovery. The idea is that space conditions, such as micro-gravity and relatively high levels of radiation, could establish a new background for manufacturing products.
SpaceX wants to have Starfall operational before 2030, Bloomberg noted, adding that the company is already in discussions with potential customers.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
[News] MP Materials rips to all-time high after $500M deal that ensures Apple supply apart from China
MP Materials (NYSE:MP) closed +20% on Tuesday, posting an all-time intraday high of $62.87, after unveiling its $500M deal with Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) to develop a recycling line for rare earth materials that will allow MP to reprocess rare earth elements for use in Apple products.
The partnership includes a $200M prepayment from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) for a supply of magnets scheduled to begin in 2027, to be produced at MP's (NYSE:MP) Fort Worth, Texas, facility using magnets recycled at MP's Mountain Pass, California, mining complex.
For Apple (AAPL), the deal guarantees a steady flow of rare earths and magnets free from China, and analysts say the cost to support U.S. magnet production pales in comparison to the long-term risk that it could lose access entirely to the critical components.
Apple's (AAPL) move "makes complete sense" given that the company requires significant amounts of rare earth magnets for its devices, "plus, by focusing on a U.S.-based supplier, it does help position Apple more positively in Washington," according to Bob O'Donnell, president at market research firm TECHnalysis Research.
The deal comes days after MP (MP) agreed to a multibillion-dollar deal with the U.S. Department of Defense that will see the Pentagon become the company's largest shareholder and financial backstop.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
GOOG 0.00%↑ GOOGL 0.00%↑ #OpenAI
[News] OpenAI adds Google to its list of cloud infrastructure providers
OpenAI revealed on Wednesday it will use the Google Cloud Platform for ChatGPT and its application programming interface, or API.
OpenAI will continue to use several other cloud providers as well, including Microsoft (MSFT), Oracle (ORCL) and CoreWeave (CRWV).
Google's cloud infrastructure will be utilized by OpenAI in Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, the U.K. and the U.S., according to this list of OpenAI's sub-processors, which was updated today.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
LCID 0.00%↑ UBER 0.00%↑ #Nuro
[News] Lucid shares rally on Uber robotaxi partnership
Uber (UBER) and Lucid (NASDAQ:LCID) are taking on Waymo (GOOG) and Tesla (TSLA) in the robotaxi business with a partnership to develop a “next generation premium global robotaxi program” using Nuro autonomous vehicle technology.
As part of the deal, Uber (UBER) will invest $300M in Lucid (NASDAQ:LCID) and a “multi-hundred-million dollar” investment in Nuro.
Uber (UBER) plans to deploy at least 20K Lucid vehicles equipped with the Nuro Driver over the six years. The vehicles will be owned and operated by Uber (UBER) or its third-party fleet partners and will be made available exclusively on the Uber (UBER) platform.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
#BTC #ETH #Crypto
[News] GENIUS Act & CLARITY Act Passes House on Way to Being First Major U.S. Crypto Law
The first significant crypto bill is on its way to being signed into law after the U.S. House of Representatives passed stablecoin-regulating legislation known as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, which now gets forwarded to President Donald Trump.
It follows close behind another major House action to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (known as "CLARITY") — a bill that will establish a full set of rules over the wider crypto markets.
The GENIUS Act passed 308-122. Because it arrived as a Senate bill with a 68-30 approval in that chamber, all it needs now is a presidential signature before it becomes the law of the land.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed the GENIUS Act into law, as expected, creating a long-sought regulatory framework for dollar-backed stablecoins.
The Clarity Act remains the more important of the industry's two legislative goals for this Congress, but lobbyists will now focus their entire attention on that more complex effort. The House's market structure bill passed with a 294-134 vote on Thursday. But the issue now gets taken up by the Senate, which is widely expected to go its own way and remains in the drafting process.
Senator Tim Scott, the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said that he wants the Senate to complete market structure legislation by Sept. 30, and that the House's work will offer a "strong template."
Link to Coindesk News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
#OpenAI
[News] OpenAI launches ChatGPT agent to carry out tasks
The company said ChatGPT carries out these tasks using its own virtual computer, fluidly shifting between reasoning and action to handle complex workflows from start to finish, all based on your instructions.
The ChatGPT agent brings together three strengths of earlier breakthroughs — Operator’s ability to interact with websites, deep research’s skill in synthesizing information, and ChatGPT’s intelligence and conversational fluency, according to the company.
The ChatGPT agent started rolling out on Thursday to Pro, Plus, and Team. Pro received access by the end of the day, while Plus and Team users will get access over the next few days, the company added.
Enterprise and Education users will get access in the coming weeks.
The company said ChatGPT requests permission before taking actions of consequence, and a user can interrupt, take over the browser, or stop tasks at any point.
OpenAI said this release marks the first time users can ask ChatGPT to take actions on the web. This introduces new risks, particularly because ChatGPT agent can work directly with a user's data, whether it’s information accessed through connectors or websites that a user has logged into via takeover mode.
The company said that it has added safeguards for challenges such as handling sensitive information on the live web, broader user reach, and (limited) terminal network access. However, while these mitigations significantly reduce risk, ChatGPT agent’s expanded tools and broader user reach mean its overall risk profile is higher, according to the company.
In addition, OpenAI has implemented mitigations such as Explicit user confirmation: ChatGPT is trained to explicitly ask for user permission before taking actions with real-world consequences, like making a purchase; Active supervision (Watch Mode): Certain critical tasks, like sending emails, require a user's active oversight; and proactive risk mitigation: ChatGPT is trained to actively refuse high-risk tasks such as bank transfers.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
Link to OpenAI Blog - Jul. 17, 2025
[YouTube/Charts] Stocks Break Out All Over The World | TCAF 200
On episode 200 of The Compound and Friends, Michael Batnick and Downtown Josh Brown are joined by TCAF legend JC Parets to discuss: the most important sector in the market, the biggest contrarian call, the only people losing money right now, Bitcoin dominance crashing, what could derail the market, and much more! Here are some my key takeaways:
The level of interest rates doesn't really matter that much, what matters is the speed of change (how fast are the interest rates moving) - WealthWise covered this, in a now iconic assessment of the markets in summer 2024 concluding that the soft landing was here - Link (Timestamped)
Link to Full Video (01:18 Hours) - Jul 18, 2025
News, Facts, Analyst & Market Commentary - Short Reads:
Microsoft remains market leader in capturing gen-AI investments: Morgan Stanley
"Relative to broader software, CIOs expect Microsoft to see the highest forward year spending growth at +6.3%, slightly moderating from +6.5% in our 4Q24 survey, though Microsoft continues to lead the pack as 67% of CIOs also expect an increase in net spending on Microsoft tools, emblematic of the company's AI leadership position," said Morgan Stanley analysts, led by Keith Weiss, in an investor note.
Nearly 60% of respondents expect to increase spending on Microsoft Azure over the next 12 months. Astoundingly, nearly all, or 97%, of respondents expect to utilize some form of Microsoft AI tools over the next year. Morgan Stanley said this was the highest level of adoption since this question was introduced into the survey two years ago.
The survey also demonstrated how enterprises continue to shift their application workloads to the public cloud. CIOs estimated that 44% were running workloads in the public cloud during the second quarter of 2025, compared to 40% one year prior.
"As workloads shift to the cloud, Microsoft and Amazon (AMZN) remain the clear beneficiaries," Weiss said. "Similar to previous surveys, Microsoft and Amazon remain best positioned to gain incremental percentage of IT budgets in 2025 and over the next three years."
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
Apple reportedly racing towards F1 streaming deal in U.S. outbidding Disney's ESPN
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has become the frontrunner to secure U.S. streaming rights for Formula 1 races, beating the current rights holder, Walt Disney's (NYSE:DIS) ESPN unit, The Business Insider reported, citing a source familiar with the matter.
The iPhone maker has offered at least $150M annually to buy the rights to stream F1 races in the U.S. from 2026, a bid ESPN, which has been reportedly paying about $85M per year for its rights, isn't expected to match or beat.
While negotiations are ongoing, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is poised to secure rights for its third sports streaming offering starting next year, assuming there are no last-minute changes, the publication reported.
The Cupertino, California-based tech giant currently holds rights to stream some pro baseball games and the full slate of Major League Soccer's games.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
Amazon Prime Day drives a 30% jump in online spending across the retail sector
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced on Saturday that its Prime Day event, which ran from July 8 to July 11, was its biggest Prime Day event ever.
Adobe released final figures on Saturday for the Prime Day event.
U.S. retailers drove $24.1 billion in online spend from over the four-day Amazon Prime Day period, representing 30.3% growth year-over-year. Adobe noted that the tally was the equivalent of more than two Black Fridays. Mobile was the dominant transaction channel during the Prime Day event, driving the majority of sales and contributing $12.8 billion in online spend.
Appliances online sales were up 112% compared to average daily sales in June.
Other categories with strong growth included office supplies (up 105%), electronics (up 95%), books (up 81%), tools & home improvement (up 76%), home & garden (up 58%), and baby & toddler (up 55%).
Adobe’s forecast was based on more than 1M customer visits to U.S. retail sites across 18 product categories and 100M stock-keeping units.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
U.S. utilities seeking big hikes in electricity rates as data center demand booms
Utilities across the U.S. have requested or received approval to increase rates for this year's H1 by $29B, more than double the cumulative amount of rate increases requested and approved at this point last year, the PowerLines report said.
U.S. customers of National Grid (NYSE:NGG), for example, who are located primarily in New York and Massachusetts, are expected to see their monthly bills increase by up to $50/month as the utility received approval to increase its rates by $708M, according to calculations by the Financial Times.
"What we're... seeing is a deer-in-headlights dynamic," PowerLines executive director Charles Hua told FT. "A lot of states don't have a playbook for how they can meet rising demand while balancing affordability and utility bills."
The requested rate increases are also coming as coal and natural gas plants are being retired, with not enough replacement sources being built.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 12, 2025
CRCL 0.00%↑ HOOD 0.00%↑ BAC 0.00%↑
Crypto firms move toward mainstream banking amid U.S. regulation shift: FT
Several major players in the digital asset space including Ripple, Circle (NYSE:CRCL) and BitGo applied for national trust bank charters, which would let them offer a limited set of banking services without needing licenses in every state. Meanwhile, crypto exchange Kraken is preparing to roll out both debit and credit cards in the coming weeks, signaling a broader pivot toward financial services.
Although national trust banks can safeguard assets and facilitate payments, they do not have the authority to issue loans or accept consumer deposits. Still, gaining such status simplifies operations and enhances financial system access by eliminating the need for state-by-state licensing.
The industry’s banking ambitions come as lawmakers in Washington debate legislation to regulate stablecoins, which are digital tokens pegged to currencies like the U.S. dollar.
Stablecoins are increasingly used for both trading and cross-border payments.
The proposed Genius Act would strengthen rules around these tokens by linking them more closely to U.S. Treasury assets. Under the bill, only regulated banks and select licensed non-bank entities would be authorized to issue dollar-backed stablecoins.
Ripple Chief Executive Brad Garlinghouse confirmed that the company has also submitted an application for a master account with the Federal Reserve, which would allow it to hold reserve funds directly with the central bank, the FT reported.
Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD), the retail brokerage that derived over half of its trading revenue from crypto last year, plans to launch consumer banking services in the fall.
London’s Revolut, another fintech with significant crypto revenue, has long-term plans to obtain a U.S. banking license. Meanwhile, Klarna (KLAR) Chief Executive Sebastian Siemiatkowski has expressed interest in incorporating crypto into the Swedish firm’s offerings.
Large financial institutions like Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) are also eyeing stablecoin issuance, pending final regulatory guidance.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 13, 2025
Meta CEO plans to invest $100's of billions on AI, bring first 1GW-plus supercluster online
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company plans to invest hundreds of billions of dollars on artificial intelligence infrastructure, as it remains on track to bring the world's first 1 gigawatt-plus supercluster online next year.
"For our superintelligence effort, I'm focused on building the most elite and talent-dense team in the industry," Zuckerberg said on Monday in a post on Threads. "We're also going to invest hundreds of billions of dollars into compute to build superintelligence. We have the capital from our business to do this."
Part of this buildout includes the construction of massive data centers, including one dubbed Prometheus. It is expected to come online in 2026 and be the first supercluster to break 1 GW. It is powered by 500,000 Nvidia (NVDA) GB200/300 GPUs, according to data by SemiAnalysis.
"We're actually building several multi-GW clusters," Zuckerberg said. "We're calling the first one Prometheus, and it's coming online in '26. We're also building Hyperion, which will be able to scale up to 5GW over several years. We're building multiple more titan clusters as well. Just one of these covers a significant part of the footprint of Manhattan."
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 14, 2025
FSLR 0.00%↑ NXT 0.00%↑ ENPH 0.00%↑
Trump’s energy bill reshapes clean tech winners and losers: Mizuho
Mizuho Securities analyst Maheep Mandloi’s top picks in the new policy landscape include First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR), Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE) and Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN), three companies poised to benefit from expanded subsidies and favorable technology mandates.
Meanwhile, he downgraded Fluence Energy (NASDAQ:FLNC), Nextracker (NASDAQ:NXT), Shoals Technologies (NASDAQ:SHLS) and Enlight Renewable Energy (NASDAQ:ENLT) due to increased policy headwinds and market saturation risks.
Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN), a leader in residential solar leasing, saw its price target jump 62% to $21 as OBBB reinstates the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for leases through 2030. However, outright purchases, previously backed by the 25D tax credit, will lose support after 2025, dealing a blow to inverter manufacturers tied to solar loans like Enphase (NASDAQ:ENPH) and SolarEdge (NASDAQ:SEDG).
Mizuho cut its rating on Nextracker (NASDAQ:NXT) and Shoals (NASDAQ:SHLS) to Neutral from a previous rating of Outperform and shaved Nextracker’s (NXT) price target 3% to $65. The team also reduced its outlook for Englight (NASDAQ:ENLT) to Underperform from Neutral.
First Solar and Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) are positioned to gain, with U.S.-based factories now qualifying for subsidies. Mizuho raised Canadian Solar's (NASDAQ:CSIQ) target by 13% to $17 and First Solar's (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 1% to $278.
In a surprise move, the bill reinstates the 30% ITC for natural gas-powered fuel cells, supporting companies like Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE), which saw its target raised 19% to $31. Meanwhile, new nuclear technologies also receive extended tax credit support through 2033, with Mandloi identifying the space as a long-term winner under OBBB.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 14, 2025
GOOG 0.00%↑ #xAI #Anthropic #OpenAI
Google, Musk's xAI, Anthropic win $200M US defense contracts
OpenAI, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN)-backed Anthropic, and Elon Musk’s xAI have each secured contracts worth up to $200 million from the U.S. Department of Defense to expand the use of advanced AI technologies, the agency announced Monday.
The DoD and General Services Administration are working to make the AI tools from these developers available for use across the federal government. The contracts cover the development of agentic AI workflows for use in critical national security.
Separately, xAI on Monday released a “Grok for Government” suite of products for federal, state and local governments. The products utilize its latest Grok 4 AI model.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)-backed OpenAI won a $200M contract in June as well to develop prototype AI capabilities for “warfighting and enterprise domains.”
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
[Newsletter Exclusive] UK unveils £650M EV grant scheme, offering up to £3,750 off new electric cars
Drivers across the UK are set to benefit from discounts on dozens of new electric vehicle models following Tuesday's announcement by the Transport Secretary of a £650 million grant scheme.
The initiative will offer up to £3,750 per vehicle, aiming to make electric car ownership more accessible and affordable for thousands as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
Supporting the manifesto commitment to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, the £650 million Electric Car Grant (ECG) will back UK and other manufacturers, with eligibility dependent on the highest manufacturing sustainability standards.
Discounts up to £3,750 will be available at the point of sale for new eligible electric cars priced at or under £37,000, the government said in a statement.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Google, Brookfield sign $3B hydropower deal in largest clean energy agreement of its kind
The first contracts executed under the agreement are 20-year deals for Brookfield's (BAM) Holtwood and Safe Harbor hydroelectric facilities in Pennsylvania, representing more than $3B of power and 670 MW of capacity.
Under the deal terms, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) has the ability to procure electricity from up to 3,000 MWs of hydroelectric assets that will be relicensed, overhauled, or upgraded to extend the asset’s useful life and continue adding power to the grid, with the first assets consisting of hydroelectric facilities in Pennsylvania that Brookfield (BAM) is relicensing.
Brookfield (BAM) and Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) will initially focus in the mid-Atlantic PJM and mid-continent MISO electricity markets, with the flexibility to expand into other U.S. regions.
Google (GOOG) (GOOGL) also plans to spend $25B in data centers across Pennsylvania and neighboring states over the next two years, Semafor reported.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Electrovaya secures $4.5M in new battery orders from Fortune 100 customer
Electrovaya (NASDAQ:ELVA) announced new purchase orders totaling ~$4.5M.
The orders come via its OEM sales channel and are from a Fortune 100 e-commerce company in the U.S. and Canada.
The orders are for Infinity lithium-ion battery systems used in material handling electric vehicles at multiple distribution centers.
This brings total fiscal 2025 orders from the customer to over $20M.
Continued demand expected for additional sites in the calendar year 2025 from this customer.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Baidu and Uber announce partnership to deploy autonomous vehicles
Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) and Uber (NYSE:UBER) announced on Tuesday a multi-year strategic partnership to deploy thousands of Baidu’s Apollo Go autonomous vehicles on the Uber platform across multiple global markets outside the U.S. and mainland China.
This collaboration will focus on increasing the supply of affordable ridesharing options by bringing Baidu’s autonomous vehicles onto Uber’s extensive network.
The first deployments are expected in Asia and the Middle East later this year. After launch, if a rider requests a qualifying Uber trip, they may be presented with the option to have their trip fulfilled by a fully driverless Apollo Go autonomous vehicle.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Oceaneering tapped by Exxon for work offshore Angola
Oceaneering (NYSE:OII) +0.8% pre-market Tuesday after saying it was awarded a contract by Exxon Mobil (XOM) for work off Angola, in a deal that already has started and expected to generate $80M-$90M in revenues over its three-year term.
The scope of work includes the provision of multiple work-class ROVs, ROV tooling, intervention workover control systems, satellite communication systems, and subsea inspection, hydrate remediation, and engineering services.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Joby Aviation set to double production at California facility
With an area of 435,500 square feet, the expanded facility will be able to produce 24 aircraft per year, double the current capacity. In addition to increased production, the California site will provide FAA production certification, conforming ground and flight-testing components, pilot training simulators, aircraft maintenance, and strengthens the company’s manufacturing network, including its newly-renovated Dayton, Ohio facility.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
AMD stock climbs over 7% following sale of MI308 chips set to resume in China
Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) jumped over 7% on Tuesday after the company stated that it will resume shipments of its MI308 chips to China after receiving the US government approval.
The California-based chip company’s spokesperson told Bloomberg that the U.S. Commerce Department has informed the company that license applications for its MI308 would move forward for review.
Earlier in April, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) stated that new licensing requirements to export its MI308 artificial intelligence chips to China may result in charges of up to $800M.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Enterprise adoption of Microsoft Copilot continues to climb: Jefferies
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Copilot continues to be adopted by enterprises at a decent clip and could reach $11B in revenue for the company during calendar year 2026, according to a recent survey by Jefferies.
The survey, which included 40 enterprises, found adoption of M365 Copilot had increased to 82% compared to 67% in September 2024. It also revealed that 80% of respondents planned to increase their spending on Microsoft products by 4% in 2025 and 2026.
As a result, Jefferies reiterated its Buy rating and $600 price target and named Microsoft as a "Top AI winner."
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Broadcom starts shipping new Tomahawk Ultra networking chip
Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) said it has started the shipment of its breakthrough Ethernet switch, Tomahawk Ultra, for high-performance computing and AI workloads.
The chip intends to compete with Nvidia's (NASDAQ:NVDA) NVLink Switch chip which has a similar purpose, but the Tomahawk Ultra can tie together four times the number of chips, said Ram Velaga, a Broadcom senior vice president, in an interview to Reuters.
Both companies' chips help data center makers and others tie together as many chips as possible within a few feet of each other, a technique the industry calls "scale-up" computing, according to the report.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Oklo selects contractor to build its first Aurora nuclear power plant
Oklo (NYSE:OKLO) said Tuesday it selected Kiewit Nuclear Solutions as the lead contractor for its first commercial Aurora powerhouse in Idaho, at Idaho National Laboratory.
Under a newly executed master services agreement, Kiewit will begin to support the design, procurement, and construction of the Idaho, with pre-construction expected to begin in 2025 and commercial operations targeted for late 2027 to early 2028.
Because a significant portion of the Aurora powerhouse's construction scope is non-nuclear, Oklo (NYSE:OKLO) said it can leverage Kiewit's experience in delivering large-scale industrial and infrastructure projects.
Oklo (OKLO) expects to submit an application for its small reactor design to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by the end of this year, and the Idaho plant may be complete by late 2027, CEO Jacob DeWitte told Bloomberg.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
EQT to supply natural gas for massive Pennsylvania data center power plant
EQT Corp. (NYSE:EQT) said Tuesday it signed a deal to supply natural gas to power the 4.4 GW facility that will serve the Homer City Energy Campus, a planned 3,200-acre artificial intelligence and high-performance computing data center campus in Pennsylvania currently under construction and anticipated to begin producing power in 2027.
The project will transform the site that previously was home to Pennsylvania's largest coal-burning power plant into a next-generation power and data infrastructure hub, combining high-performance AI computing with a fully integrated, on-site natural gas generating station.
EQT (NYSE:EQT) said it will serve as the exclusive gas supplier to the project, providing supply through both the Texas Eastern Transmission and Eastern Gas Transmission & Storage pipeline systems.
The transaction, which will unlock natural gas supply of up to 665K MMBtu/day, is one of the largest single-site natural gas purchases in North American history, the companies said.
GE Vernova (GEV) will supply seven high-efficiency 7HA.02 natural gas turbines for the Homer City project, with deliveries set to begin in 2026; Kiewit Power Constructors is leading engineering, procurement, and construction.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Constellation plans to spend billions in Pennsylvania, pursue New York nuclear project
Constellation Energy (NASDAQ:CEG) plans to pursue a nuclear project in upstate New York, CEO Joe Dominguez told Bloomberg in an interview Tuesday.
Constellation (NASDAQ:CEG) already has three plants in New York, and these would be logical sites for a new reactor, Dominguez said on the sidelines of the Pennsylvania Energy & Innovation Summit.
Also on Tuesday, Constellation (CEG) announced commitments to spend billions of dollars on nuclear energy projects in Pennsylvania.
The company said it expects to accelerate the restart of the Crane Clean Energy Center, which is now expected to return to service in 2027, about a year ahead of schedule, adding 835 MW of reliable energy to the grid in Pennsylvania.
Constellation (CEG) also said it has asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to renew the operating license of the Peach Bottom Clean Energy Center to run until at least 2054, and is planning to operate the Limerick Clean Energy Center well into the 2040s and is working to secure customer commitments to increase its capacity by an additional 340 MW.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Trump's revelation of $92B of investments for Pa. AI hub sends bullish signal for sector: Wedbush
Constellation Energy (NASDAQ:CEG) plans to pursue a nuclear project in upstate New York, U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) announced investments totaling $36B for data center projects and another $56B for energy projects today during the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit at Carnegie Mellon.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
#FLY
Firefly Aerospace to go public after landmark moon landing
Firefly Aerospace (FLY) officially filed for an initial public offering in the U.S. earlier in the week. The Texas-based company aims to list its shares on the Nasdaq Global Market.
Firefly (FLY) attracted considerable attention earlier this year when it became the first private company to successfully land and operate on the Moon with Blue Ghost Mission. The achievement marked the first fully successful U.S. lunar surface landing since the Apollo era over 50 years ago.
The company's SEC filing revealed that Firefly (FLY) saw a 10% revenue increase in 2024 to $60.8 million and posted $55.9 million in revenue for the first quarter of 2025. The company's contract backlog nearly doubled, fueled by new government and commercial deals, and its valuation reached $2 billion following a funding round in late 2024.
Despite its rapid growth, Firefly (FLY) continues to operate at a net loss, reporting a net loss of $60.1 million as of March 2025. The proceeds from the IPO are expected to help repay outstanding debt and fund further expansion, including a busy launch calendar and upcoming lunar missions.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Aeva to accelerate scaled production of 4D LiDAR for autonomous trucks
Aeva (NASDAQ:AEVA) and Daimler Truck North America to expand their agreement for the series production of Aeva’s 4D LiDAR.
Aeva plans to install production capacity of up to 200,000 LiDAR units annually in North America to support growing customer demand.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Rigetti hits 99.5% fidelity milestone on modular 36-qubit system
Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) announced it has reached a key mid-year milestone, achieving 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity on its modular 36-qubit system—a twofold improvement in error rate over its previous best on the 84-qubit Ankaa-3 chip.
The new 36-qubit system is built from four 9-qubit "chiplets" using Rigetti’s proprietary modular chip technology, marking a critical step toward its goal of delivering a 100+ qubit chiplet-based system.
The company plans to launch the 36-qubit platform on August 15 and remains on track to release its larger system, also targeting 99.5% fidelity, by the end of 2025.
While many quantum computing companies create qubits by trapping ions or atoms, Rigetti utilizes superconducting qubits. When these materials are driven down to extremely low temperatures, they lose electrical resistance and maintain quantum states for longer periods of time.
"We benefit from the many advantages of superconducting qubits, including gate speeds more than 1,000x faster than other modalities like ion trap and pure atoms, and scalability," said Rigetti CEO Subodh Kulkarni. "By leveraging well-known techniques from the semiconductor industry, we've developed proprietary technology that we believe is critical to enable scaling to higher qubit count systems."
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Tempus gets FDA nod for Tempus ECG-Low EF
Tempus AI (NASDAQ:TEM) said that it has obtained 510((k)) clearance from the U.S. FDA for Tempus ECG-Low EF software.
This software utilizes artificial intelligence to help identify patients who may be experiencing a low left ventricular ejection fraction, a measure of heart function.
With this new clearance, Tempus ECG-Low EF becomes the second AI-powered ECG device approved by the FDA of the company, following the earlier approval of Tempus ECG-AF.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Trump says firing Powell is 'highly unlikely,' denying prior report
President Donald Trump asked a group of Republicans whether he should fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, and the group expressed approval of such a move, according to a media report on Wednesday.
On late Tuesday, Trump had gathered a group of Republicans that had blocked a procedural vote that would have advanced crypto legislation, to convince them to let the legislation advance. The president showed a draft of a letter firing Powell to the group, the New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the meeting. Trump said he hasn't drafted such a letter.
Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday that Trump was likely to fire Powell soon, citing a White House official. Earlier, CBS News said the president has been floating the possibility of firing the head of the central bank for cause in public and private remarks, citing sources inside the administration.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that it's "highly unlikely" he'll fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, "unless he has to leave for fraud."
Asked if he would rule out firing Powell, Trump said, "I don't rule out anything," but that it was highly unlikely.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 16, 2025
[Newsletter Exclusive] Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing GAAP EPADR of $2.47 beats by $0.14, revenue of $30.07B misses by $1.23B
In the second quarter, shipments of 3-nanometer accounted for 24% of total wafer revenue; 5- nanometer accounted for 36%; 7-nanometer accounted for 14%. Advanced technologies, defined as 7-nanometer and more advanced technologies, accounted for 74% of total wafer revenue.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Trump softens rhetoric on China in bid for Xi summit and trade deal
Trump is now focused on cutting purchase deals with Beijing similar to one he forged during his first term and celebrating quick wins instead of addressing the root causes of the trade imbalances, Bloomberg reported.
In meetings with his staff, Trump is often the least hawkish voice in the room, some people familiar with internal deliberations said.
US officials are preparing to delay an Aug. 12 deadline when U.S. tariffs on China are set to snap back to 145% after the expiration of a 90-day truce. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled in a Bloomberg Television interview this week that the deadline was flexible.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
MSFT 0.00%↑ #QuNorth
Novo Nordisk owner partners with Denmark to acquire Microsoft's quantum computer
The Novo Nordisk Foundation, the non-profit that controls pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk (NVO), and Denmark's Export and Investment Fund (EIFO) said in a statement they would invest in the initiative called QuNorth.
The foundation and the Danish government will invest €80 million ($93 million) in a Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)-powered quantum computer to boost technological development in the Nordic region.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), which has its largest quantum lab in Denmark, will provide software and Atom Computing will build the quantum computer. Construction will begin in autumn and the computer is expected to be ready by the end of next year. The quantum computer will start operating with 50 logical qubits, Jason Zander, Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) executive vice president, told Reuters.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
US-UAE data center deal using Nvidia chips slowed down amid security woes - report
Some officials from the Trump administration are holding up efforts to finalize a deal that would let the United Arab Emirates buy billions of dollars of Nvidia’s (NASDAQ:NVDA) AI chips due to national-security concerns, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
The disagreement may not be resolved unless the U.A.E. agrees to different terms to address the U.S. officials’ concerns related to national-security, according to the report.
The officials have discussed, for example, cutting off direct access to chips by Abu Dhabi-based AI startup G4, which was expected to get access to about 20% of the chips as part of the deal.
Now, the Commerce Department does not intend to approve chips going to G42, though it may in the future, the report added.
On Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and other U.S. officials met with representatives from the U.A.E. at a tech and energy event in Pittsburgh and talked about how to move the agreement forward, as per the report.
Some administration officials are concerned that Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies, which has been trying to sell chips in the Middle East, could capitalize on the delay.
At the heart of the matter related to the holdup are some of the most advanced semiconductors available, chips from Nvidia that would power AI data centers.
Last month also it was reported that the multi-billion dollar deal to build data centers for AI, Stargate UAE, using U.S. technology is far from being completed due to continuous concerns related to security.
Under the tentative terms, the U.A.E. would get hundreds of thousands of Nvidia chips over years and help build data centers. Most of the chips would go to U.S. tech companies operating the data centers.
OpenAI and Microsoft are among the companies which are expected to operate data centers in the U.A.E.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
[Newsletter Exclusive] Enphase Energy begins shipments of IQ Battery 5P with higher domestic content
Enphase Energy (NASDAQ:ENPH) announced on Thursday initial shipments of the IQ Battery 5P supplied from manufacturing facilities in the United States with higher domestic content than previous models.
The higher domestic content batteries comply with the new requirement in the U.S. federal budget law, which retroactively enforces a 45% U.S.-sourced materials threshold for solar and battery products starting June 16, 2025.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
BWX Technologies wins naval nuclear reactor component contract worth up to $2.6B
BWX Technologies (NYSE:BWXT) +1.4% in early trading Thursday after saying it was awarded contracts totaling ~$2.6B including future options, to manufacture components for nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier for the U.S. Navy.
The contracts primarily support Virginia and Columbia-class submarines as well as some work for certain Ford-class aircraft carrier components, and build on the $2.1B in awards the company announced in February.
Products contracted with the awards will be delivered during the next 6-8 years, BWXT (NYSE:BWXT) said.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Oklo on the rise after completing NRC pre-application assessment for Aurora powerhouse
Oklo (NYSE:OKLO) +3.4% in early trading Thursday after saying it successfully completed the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s pre-application readiness assessment for its first commercial Aurora powerhouse project at Idaho National Laboratory.
Oklo (NYSE:OKLO) said the assessment affirmed its readiness to move forward and found no significant gaps that would prevent the NRC's acceptance of the application.
The company plans to submit the first phase of the Aurora-INL combined license application this year as part of its strategy to enable efficient and repeatable deployment of its Aurora powerhouses for commercial and federal customers.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
GOOG 0.00%↑ GOOGL 0.00%↑ #Waymo
Waymo doubles Austin footprint as robotaxi battle heats up
Waymo’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (GOOGL) robotaxi coverage in Austin now spans 90 square miles—more than double its previous footprint—as it aims to cement its lead with what it calls the city’s only fully autonomous, 24/7 ride-hailing service, a veiled dig at Tesla (TSLA) which only offers invite-only, supervised rides between 6am and 12am within a 42 square mile range.
Through its exclusive partnership with Uber (UBER), Waymo (NASDAQ:GOOG) (GOOGL) now offers autonomous rides in new neighborhoods that include Crestview, Windsor Park, Franklin Park, Sunset Valley and The Domain and McKinney Falls State Park.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Energy Fuels surges to three-year high as it begins heavy rare earth production
Energy Fuels (NYSE:UUUU) posted its highest close since April 2022, +11.2% in Thursday's trading, after saying it began producing heavy rare earth element oxides on a pilot scale at its White Mesa mill in Utah.
The company said it could be in a position to produce separated heavy rare earth oxides on a commercial scale as early as Q4 2026 from existing feed sources and, if a production decision is made in 2025, from its permitted Donald project by the end of 2027.
Energy Fuels (NYSE:UUUU) said it is now in the process of producing dysprosium oxide at a minimum purity of 99.5% and potentially exceeding 99.9% purity at pilot scale, and expects to complete production of its first kg of dysprosium oxide within the next 30 days; it plans to continue producing dysprosium oxide on a pilot scale until the end of September, when it expects to have produced ~15 kg, generating enough residuals to feed its terbium circuit in October.
Energy Fuels (UUUU) operates the only U.S. licensed uranium mill at White Mesa, from which it also produces critical minerals such as vanadium and rare earth element oxides.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Talen Energy to buy Ohio, Pennsylvania power plants for $3.5B
Talen Energy (NASDAQ:TLN) +14.8% post-market Thursday after saying it agreed to acquire a power plant in Pennsylvania and another in Ohio for ~$3.5B after adjusting for estimated tax benefits.
Talen (NASDAQ:TLN) said it will purchase Caithness Energy's Moxie Freedom Energy Center in Pennsylvania and Caithness Energy and BlackRock's (BLK) Guernsey Power Station in Ohio, both combined-cycle gas-fired plants located in the PJM power market.
The company said the net purchase price reflects an acquisition multiple of 6.7x 2026 EV/EBITDA for "two of the most efficient natural gas plants in PJM," and it expects the deals will be immediately accretive to free cash flow per share by more than 40% in 2026 and more than 50% through 2029.
Talen (NASDAQ:TLN) said it will issue ~$3.8B in new debt to fund the acquisitions and refinance target debt, using both secured and unsecured instruments.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
[Newsletter Exclusive] GitLab launches new platform to deepen collaboration between developers and AI agents
GitLab (NASDAQ:GTLB) has launched a public beta version of GitLab Duo Agent Platform, a platform designed to create asynchronous collaboration between developers and artificial intelligence agents.
Developers can utilize multiple agents in workflows to make precise changes to codebases and repositories, the company said. It also features a more sophisticated chat experience with the AI agents. The platform offers various IDEs support and Model Context Protocol client support as well.
"GitLab Duo Agent Platform isn't just another AI tool; it's a fundamental reimagining of software development from isolated, linear processes into dynamic, intelligent collaboration," said GitLab CEO Bill Staples. "By leveraging GitLab's unique position as the system of record for the entire software development lifecycle, we're providing AI agents with unprecedented context and capabilities. This enables our customers to work with AI agents that have comprehensive context about their codebase, their workflows, and their organizational goals to help boost productivity, velocity, and efficiency."
The new public beta version is available today for Premium and Ultimate customers. General availability is expected by the end of the year.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 17, 2025
Trump grants two-year regulatory relief to coal, chemical, and high-pollution industries
President Donald Trump on Thursday granted two years of regulatory relief from certain regulations for coal-fired power plants, chemical manufacturers, and other high-pollution industries.
The move is aimed at rolling back environmental rules put in place during the Biden administration, which Trump argues are overly restrictive.
In a series of proclamations issued late Thursday, Trump granted temporary exemptions to several industries he described as critical to national security.
The proclamations cover coal-fired power plants, taconite iron ore processing facilities used to make steel, and chemical manufacturers that help produce semiconductors and medical device sterilizers.
The proclamations allow the facilities to comply with Environmental Protection Agency standards that were in place before rules imposed in recent years by President Joe Biden's administration, the White House said.
"Biden-era emissions standards impose costly and, in some cases, unattainable compliance requirements on these industries essential to national interests," the White House said in a fact sheet.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
Crispr director George buys $51.5M of shares
Crispr Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) has disclosed a $51.5 million stock purchase by board director Simeon George in an SEC filing.
Crispr surged as much as 21% on Friday, marking its biggest intraday gain since February, after. The stock is now up around 58.4% year-to-date.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
#BTC #ETH
Blockchain Association CEO: New crypto laws will make US ‘Crypto capital of the world’
“The guardrails provide the customer protections that were needed to ensure that those who want to be invested in this space have the protections in place that they need,” Summer Mersinger, CEO of the Blockchain Association and former CFTC commissioner stated.
“I see stablecoins as a bridge to traditional finance,” she explained. “It’s only going to make financial services more accessible, more convenient, and those are all good things for the financial industry.”
Beyond stablecoins, she emphasized the broader implications for blockchain technology across various sectors, representing over 130 companies that are “doing really amazing things using blockchain technology.”
According to Mersinger, regulatory clarity is crucial for continued innovation in the space. “You don’t want to invest in technology that you fear the regulators will come in and shut down,” she noted.
“Having some clarity, having some certainty, will really help these industries continue to do the amazing things. We’re seeing blockchain technology used in everything from cellular phone service to topography services.”
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 18, 2025
YouTube:
[Ted Talk/Al Gore] Why Climate Action Is Unstoppable — and “Climate Realism” Is a Myth
In this urgent and hard-hitting talk, Nobel Laureate Al Gore thoroughly dismantles the fossil fuel industry’s narrative of "climate realism," contrasting their misleading claims with the remarkable advancements in renewable energy.
Drawing on data showing clear signs of progress across the world, Gore makes a powerful case that we already have everything needed to solve the climate crisis — and reminds us of what the most valuable renewable resource actually is.
Link to Full Video (24:10 Mins) - Jul 4, 2025
Charts & Technicals:
Netflix helps boost TV viewership via streaming in June; broadcast declines to a new low
Time spent streaming accounted for 46% of total TV viewing in June. Cable made up 23.4% of total TV viewing, and broadcast's share was 18.5%.
"On the whole, broadcast viewing was down 5% to represent 18.5% of total TV, marking the first time the category has fallen below a 20.0% share," Nielsen said on Tuesday.
In streaming, YouTube (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) continued to lead the pack in June with a 12.8% share, followed by Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) with 8.3% and Disney (NYSE:DIS) with a 4.8% share.
However, the report said streaming giant Netflix saw a 13.5% viewing increase over May, the best percentage gain amongst rivals.
"Netflix’s performance was so strong, it accounted for 42% of streaming’s total monthly gain. The considerable upswing for Netflix was powered by a slate of highly successful content," Nielsen said.
Link to Seeking Alpha News Article - Jul. 15, 2025
Disclosure: We own positions in some/all of the tickers mentioned in this article.
