September 23, 2024 | Listen Online | 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. Elon's X bans certain accounts to get restored in Brazil after defying orders for 3 weeks

Elon was in a dispute with Brazil's Justice Alexandre de Moraes over free speech:

Elon had previously repeatedly vowed not to.
He has not commented on this reversal.
X has also agreed to pay fines, per its lawyers.
Brazil's top court has given X 5 days to produce certain documents.
300+ social media accounts have been ordered blocked by Moraes since 2019.

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3. Intel reportedly gets takeover bid from Qualcomm, $5B investment offer from Apollo

Intel stock +3% on Friday, following the Qualcomm news:

Google Finance: Intel stock.

Qualcomm may sell some of Intel's assets or parts to get the deal done.
The deal would be the largest-ever transaction for the growing chip market.
Intel recently struck a $B+ deal with AWS for a custom AI chip.
The chip maker also planned to separate its foundry operations.
"Equity-like" $5B offer from Apollo Global is still in discussions.

Qualcomm stock was -3% on Friday, with investors signaling they did not like the idea of taking over Intel

Google Finance: Qualcomm stock.

4. Perplexity reportedly in talks with top brands on ad model to challenge Google

Nike and Marriott among the brands in discussions.
The move could break Google's domination in the $300B digital ads industry.
Perplexity is said to redesign the auction-based ad model.
$50/ 1,000 impressions will be the CPM model by the startup.
2024-end: when the ads system could be rolled out.

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6. Cerebras crosses 2K tokens per sec. on Llama 3.1 8B, 550 tokens per sec. on 70B

Artificial Analysis.

Cerebras launched the "world's fastest inference" service in Aug.
Azure, AWS, and others are in the race against Cerebras.
Faster output tokens would help back games, chatbot use cases.

7. 26+ U.S. states trying to regulate GenAI usage in election

Axios.

19 states have passed deepfake-focused laws.
At least 7 states are considering laws to crack down AI usage in election.
Alaska, Oklahoma and Louisiana introduced AI bills this year.

8. Toyota, VW, and GM lag in developing critical software for vehicles

FT, Gartner.

Only 3 legacy carmakers made it to the top 10 list.
China's Nio, Xpeng, and BYD dominated the space.
Tesla, Rivian, and Lucid are also on the list.

Software is expected to make up 40%+ to $3.5T of auto revenues by 2040, vs. the current $300M or 3%

FT, Accenture.

Stellantis is aiming to generate $22.4B in annual software revenue this year.
+40% YoY: Ford's paid software subscriptions during 1H.
Operating system development costs $11B+ for any carmaker, per a Goldman Sachs analyst.

9. U.S. PE deals +12% in H1, but exits remain stagnant

PitchBook.

$325.2B worth of PE deals in H1 2024 in the U.S.
4,210 PE deals closed in the U.S. in 2024 to date.
$713.1B PE deal value recorded in 2023, with a 7,800 deal count.

626 PE exits were seen in the U.S. in H1 2024, vs. 1,243 in the entire 2023

PitchBook.

+9% in PE deal volume growth projected by an EY analyst, with Q4 accelerating volumes.

10. Interesting videos, posts, and memes

Big Fed rate cuts, AI killing call centers, $50B govt boondoggle, VC's rough years, Trump/Kamala

The rulebook MrBeast followed to build his $1B creator empire

"The Future of AI is Here" — Fei-Fei Li Unveils the Next Frontier of AI

Reading Caroline Ellison's Steamy Diary Entries

11. Other headlines

AI

Google CEO Sundar Pichai announces $120M fund for global AI education.
Brazil's Lula seeks to lead push for global AI rules during G20 presidency.
OpenAI staffers raised concerns over proposed ChatGPT logo redesign.

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Tech

TSMC, Samsung discuss building chip factories in UAE: report.
Zoom to cut back on stock-based compensation, joining Salesforce, Workday.
SpaceX plans to send 5 uncrewed Starships to Mars in 2 years.
Samsung invests additional $1.8B in Vietnam for OLED manufacturing.
Biden, Modi announces plan to set up semiconductor plant in India.
Google Ventures's first 15 years: a look at.
Enfusion, valued at $1.1B, explores options, including sale: sources.

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Tech & law

Próspera declared unconstitutional by Honduras Supreme Court.
U.S. to propose ban on Chinese tech in connected vehicles.
SEC intends to seek sanctions against Elon in Twitter probe.
Ukraine bans official use of Telegram over fears of Russian spying.
iServer's phishing-as-a-service platform closed by law enforcement agencies.

Biotech

FTC sues 3 major drug "gatekeepers" over high insulin prices.
Novo Nordisk to face Senate grilling on Tue over price of weight loss drugs.
AstraZeneca's self-administered nasal spray flu vaccine gets FDA approval.
Covid linked to worse memory, cognition in new study.
Gavi, international vaccine alliance, faces challenges over fund crunch.

Business

China's central bank lowers 14-day reverse repo rate, injects liquidity.
Citigroup's China expansion reportedly held up by U.S. regulators.
GM to lay off about 1,700 workers at Kansas plant.
Boeing's space and defense chief exits.
Southwest Airlines warns staff of "tough decisions."

Crypto

Harris vows to help grow crypto investments in pitch to NYC donors.
SEC approves BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF options listing.
Balaji's goal of founding new countries: a look at.

U.S. politics

Speaker Johnson unveils 3-month stopgap bill without proof-of-citizenship.
Harris to release new economic proposals this Wed on wealth creation.
Trump says he will not run again if he loses in November.
Harris at 54% on Nate Silver's forecast after strong polls.
Harris campaign reports spending ~3x as much as Trump in Aug.
Trump says he met with Qatari leaders, including PM Sheikh Mohammed.
Mark Robinson sees several top operatives stepping down after porn scandal.

World

Israeli military launches most widespread wave of air strikes against Hezbollah.
Hezbollah fires 100+ rockets into Israel, with some landing near Haifa.
Iran's Guards ban communications devices after strikes on Hezbollah.
Electronic warfare spooking airlines, pilots globally.
Ukraine's Zelensky heads to U.S. with "victory plan" at perilous moment.
World leaders at climate meetings warn of growing mistrust between nations.

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