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Capitalist Insider: Trump-linked group locks in massive $13.7B AI chip deal
Trump to governors: Welcome AI data centers or lose the jobs war
Treasury may unleash $1 trillion cash for massive bond buybacks
New Fed Chair Warsh’s first Jackson Hole speech could rock markets
Equal-weight S&P 500 ETF smashes $100 billion asset milestone
Amazon’s “toaster” robotaxis just started charging real fares
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Capitalist Insider: Trump-linked group locks in massive $13.7B AI chip deal
Hello Capitalist Insiders!
Trump to governors: Welcome AI data centers or lose the jobs war
President Trump said any governor or mayor should want to welcome an AI data center or plant into their community because of enormous construction jobs and tax revenue, warning others will otherwise be left behind.
Jobs and taxes: Trump stated the construction jobs are enormous and the taxes paid are just enormous, noting many data centers are designed in a very beautiful way.
Stargate investment: On Jan. 21, 2025, he announced the Stargate joint venture to invest up to $500 billion in U.S. AI infrastructure, with the Abilene, Texas flagship partially operational.
Permitting and power: A July executive order expedites permitting for data centers, and the administration encourages developers to secure new electricity sources to ease grid pressure.
Public opposition noted: A May Gallup poll showed most Americans oppose data centers in their communities over environmental impact and large electricity and water needs.
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Citi sees Nvidia soaring after blowout revenue outlook
Citi expects Nvidia to report July-quarter revenue of about $93 billion, roughly $1 billion above estimates, driven by stronger B300 shipments and AI networking, while maintaining a Buy rating and $300 price target.
Strong sequential growth: Data-center revenue is forecast to rise 15% in the July quarter and 14% in October, exceeding Street expectations of 13% growth in both periods.
October outlook raised: Citi projects October-quarter revenue of $105 billion, about $1.5 billion above consensus and representing a 13% sequential increase.
Blackwell shipment ramp: Fiscal 2027 Blackwell GPU shipments are seen reaching 7.7 million units, while the Rubin estimate was lowered to 2 million units from 2.2 million.
Memory supply secured: The firm believes Nvidia has secured sufficient high-bandwidth memory for 2026 and 2027, potentially allowing estimates to move higher.
Alibaba eyes $10.2 billion share sale to supercharge AI
Alibaba Group is seeking to raise about HK$80 billion or $10.2 billion by offering 710 million shares at HK$112.7 each, a 3.6% discount, to fund full-stack AI capabilities and infrastructure expansion.
Record Hong Kong deal: The placement would be Hong Kong’s biggest follow-on offering by a company on record and the city’s biggest share sale since 2021.
Heavy AI spending: Alibaba has ratcheted up quarterly capital spending to almost $10 billion amid competition for global AI leadership, with Qwen as the world’s most popular model family.
Profit pressure shown: June-quarter profit plunged more than 75% to 10.5 billion yuan or $1.6 billion, with a free-cash outflow of $6.6 billion from rising AI costs.
Lockup and arrangers: The company faces a 90-day lockup, with arrangers including China International Capital, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and UBS.
Treasury may unleash $1 trillion cash for massive bond buybacks
The U.S. Treasury is weighing use of its nearly $1 trillion General Account to fund expanded long-term bond buybacks, after doubling the maximum purchase size to at least $4 billion per operation.
Account balance high: The General Account stood near $950 billion, built by Secretary Scott Bessent using tax collections, well above the prior $550-600 billion target.
Buyback window set: Larger operations for 10-to-30-year securities run from September 9 through November 4 after the August 19 announcement.
Funding via borrowing: Purchases are funded through the Treasury General Account by taxes or new borrowing, treated as swapping one liability for another.
Debt load elevated: The federal debt load sits at $40 trillion as the buyback program expands.
New Fed Chair Warsh’s first Jackson Hole speech could rock markets
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh will deliver his first speech at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, with investors seeking clearer signals on inflation after long-term yields climbed to a two-decade high.
Rocky communications start: Warsh has offered limited insight and avoided forward guidance since taking the role, drawing scrutiny after the July policy meeting.
Yields at highs: Long-term bond yields reached a two-decade high after July comments, remaining elevated by sticky inflation and fiscal deficit concerns.
Inflation data focus: Economists estimate the PCE price index rose 3.6% annually in July, the smallest increase in four months, as oil prices rise.
Reform task forces: Five task forces are reviewing Fed operations including communications as Warsh faces pressure to clarify the reaction to inflation.
Walmart e-commerce explodes 23% as company raises outlook
Walmart reported global e-commerce sales rose 23% in the second quarter while U.S. e-commerce climbed 24%, driving revenue to $187.9 billion and prompting a raised full-year outlook.
Revenue growth solid: Second-quarter revenue reached $187.9 billion, up 5.9% from a year earlier, with strength in store-fulfilled delivery and marketplace.
Sam’s Club boost: Sam’s Club U.S. e-commerce sales jumped 26% in the quarter, driven by club-fulfilled pickup and delivery options.
CEO price pitch: CEO John Furner said customers choose Walmart for price, speed and convenience across a broad assortment.
Guidance raised: The company raised its full-year outlook after the multi-year e-commerce growth showed a stronger and more durable business model.
Equal-weight S&P 500 ETF smashes $100 billion asset milestone
The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF surpassed $100 billion in assets under management for the first time this month after attracting more than $12 billion in 2026.
Outperformance clear: The equal-weight approach outperformed the market-weight S&P 500 by roughly 3% year-to-date through August 21 amid broader market participation.
Mag 7 concentration: The Magnificent 7 make up roughly one-third of the S&P 500 and posted flat performance in the first half while the index gained 9.3%.
Top 10 weight: The top 10 names account for nearly 40% of the S&P 500, raising concentration risk concerns especially in AI themes.
Diversification appeal: Analysts note equal weighting solves concentration risk and lets investors participate if market leadership continues to broaden beyond mega-caps.
TikTok settles COPPA case with massive $400 million payout
TikTok and ByteDance will pay $400 million to settle a Justice Department case over Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act violations, with $300 million due immediately.
Payment structure set: Of the $400 million total, $300 million is due immediately and $100 million upon vacating a prior Musical.ly consent decree.
Largest privacy cases: The settlement ranks as one of the largest ever reached in a case involving the children’s privacy act.
DOJ officials praise: Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward called it a major victory for American children and parents.
Company changes noted: Since the 2024 lawsuit, TikTok has altered ownership, management, compliance functions and privacy practices for younger users.
Amazon’s “toaster” robotaxis just started charging real fares
Amazon’s Zoox toaster-shaped autonomous vehicles without steering wheels, dashboards or pedals have started charging for rides in Las Vegas while also operating across San Francisco as the first of their kind.
First Driverless Service: The all-electric cars can drive in either direction and hold up to four passengers who sit facing each other, with windows stretching across much of the vehicle sides.
Robotaxi Market Outlook: Goldman Sachs expects the growing robotaxi market to reach nearly $19 billion in sales by 2030 from $376 million last year as Amazon seeks major player status.
Regulatory Approval Limits: The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration allowed Zoox to charge for rides in up to 5,000 vehicles over two years but restricted operations in heavy rain, snow or over 45 mph.
Fleet Size And Plans: Zoox’s current fleet of about 100 vehicles is assembled at a Hayward, California plant with capacity for 10,000 a year, with testing underway in Austin and Miami for soon service.
AI data centers.... OH HELL NO!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jobs and taxes because of new AI centers. Maybe, but they take people's homes, land and in many cases their livelihoods. I do not care if they put them in cities but when they confiscate rural acreage deplete the remaining water resources and require more land to bring in power we lose big time. The jobs for the construction are temporary areas is permanent. The permeant jobs brings in a bunch of liberal fools that will politically change our conservative lifestyle. I find the rush interesting and understand why, however, in 20 years they will all likely be obsolete and the replacement data centers will smaller but the damage will be done.