August 05, 2024 | Read Online

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0. Data and calendar

All values as of 6 AM ET / 3 AM PT, other than S&P500 and NASDAQ close (4 PM ET / 1 PM PT).

All times are ET.

1. Japan's Nikkei -12%, most since 1987, Nasdaq futures -4% as recession worries rise

WSJ.

Global carry trades unwind, with the yen +3% to 142.
Friday's employment came in much worse than expected:
- Unemployment rate at 4.3%, vs. 4.1% exp.
- 114K new jobs, vs. 185K exp.
Talks that the Fed could be behind the curve in lowering rates have been intensifying.
BTC briefly hit $49K, now at $53K.

2. Google acquihires Character AI, with founders rejoining their prior employer

"Most" of Character AI's team will remain in place.
Avoiding of regulatory scrutiny likely explains the acquihire model, also used by Microsoft's $650M deal with Inflection and Amazon's ~$439M with Adept.
Broader availability of foundational models have changed the landscape, Character AI admitted in a blog post.

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4. Warren Buffet's Berkshire cuts Apple stake by 49% to $84B

Bloomberg.

$174B as of Dec. 2023.
~400M Apple shares: Berkshire Hathaway's current position.
Stock was +28% in Q2.

Apple's current P/E of 34 is the highest since Covid and 2007

CompaniesMarketCap.

Berkshire's cash position reached a record high of $277B, suggesting a cautious Buffett

FT.

5. Big Tech AI CAPEX spending +64% YoY to $58B in Q2

FT.

271 mentions of AI on earning calls in Q2 by Magnificent 7 companies ex-NVIDIA, vs. 244 in Q2 2023 and 68 in Q2 2022.
60 mentions of CAPEX on earnings calls in Q2 by Magnificent 7 companies ex-NVIDIA, vs. 60 in Q2 2023 and 22 in Q2 2022.

6. UnitedHealth charging Medicare $2.7K per nurse home visit

WSJ.

$3.8B charged by UnitedHealth in 2021, out of $5.6B of all insurers.
60% of UnitedHealth visits generated 1+ new "revenue-producing diagnosis of a condition no doctor was treating," vs. 39% for Humana, the #2 Medicare insurer.

7. Interesting videos, posts, and memes

#58: The Death of Friends

Kamala surges, Trump at NABJ, recession fears, Middle East escalation, Ackman postpones IPO

I'm Starting A Revolution

8. Other headlines

AI

NVIDIA's new Blackwell chips delayed by 3+ months.
OpenAI has internal tool that detects use at 99.9% accuracy.
Meta offering celebrities millions for right to record, use voices.
Secretaries of state urge Musk to fix false election info on Grok.

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Tech

Thrive Capital raises $5B for early-stage ($1B), late-stage ($4B) funds.
CrowdStrike accuses Delta of ignoring help during outage.
Revolut informs staff of $500M stock sale at $45B valuation.
23andMe "disappointed" in CEO's $0.40 take-private proposal.

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Tech & law

TikTok sued by DOJ over "massive-scale" privacy violations of kids <13.
US plans to propose restricting Chinese software in autonomous vehicles.
Tesla judge unlikely to allow Elon pay package, even after 2nd vote.
Chinese firms succeeding in averting AI bans, more evidence suggests.

Biotech

Neuralink successfully implanted 2nd patient: Elon.
Lecanemab improved Alzheimer's cognition over 3 years in new study.
AI-made bioweapons worry unprepared federal government.
Neuralink's brain chip: a look at.
Walking linked to lower epigenetic age acceleration.

Business

Adani's succession plan: retiring at 70, letting heirs decide what's next.

Crypto

DeFi liquidations hit yearly high of $350M over 24 hours.
Jump Crypto seen liquidating crypto positions.
Genesis completes restructuring, begins paying out $4B to creditors.

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U.S. politics

Harris 50.5%, Trump 48.8% in Nate Silver's latest forecast.
Harris interviews Shapiro, Walz, Kelly for VP.
Trump tariffs see opposition in GOP senators.
Trump seeks FOX debate on Sep. 4, Harris ABC one on Sep. 10.
Ex-Trump WH officials, dozens of Republicans endorse Harris.
Trump says Zuckerberg called him "a lot" after assassination attempt.
Elon-linked America PAC: a look at their use of voter data.

World

Iran signals attack on Israel, says it seeks to avoid war.
Biden aides press Israel for renewed talks to get Gaza ceasefire.
Bangladesh prime minister reportedly resigns amid protests.
Maduro locks up 2K+ Venezuelans in toughest crackdown.
North Korea says it deployed 250 new mobile launchers that could hit U.S.
UK's Starmer says rioters will face full law force after days of protests.
Singapore testing biometric immigration processing.

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