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☆ Wall Street worries about revenue 'round-tripping,' after big AI deals by cloud giants including Amazon and Google
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

These days, this may happen when a big tech company invests in an AI startup, and then that startup buys cloud and AI services from the big tech company. These arrangements are called "round tripping" because the money invested comes right back in the form of cloud spending. When Amazon Web Services invested $4 billion in Anthropic, the AI startup agreed to use AWS as its "primary cloud provider." In recent years, cloud spending growth has slowed as some customers try to save money in the midst of a lackluster economy with high inflation. An Amazon spokesperson declined to say whether AWS revenue numbers include cloud spending by Anthropic or not.

Persons: —, what's, Rishi Jaluria, GCP, Jaluria Organizations: Service, Business, Amazon Web Services, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, RBC Capital, RBC, Amazon Locations: Anthropic

☆ Opinion: Google’s AI blunder over images reveals a much bigger problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Rizwan Virk | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

When asked, Gemini politely refused in some instances to generate images of historically White people, such as the Vikings. In the image space, if you asked previous AI image generators for an image of a CEO or a doctor, they initially almost always showed images of White males. Google announced its Gemini AI chatbot was pausing the generation of people in images after concerns were raised that it was creating historically inaccurate images. What makes censorship and manipulation worse with AI is that today’s AI already has a well-known hallucination problem. It may be a portent of what’s to come with AI and Big Tech leading us into Orwellian territory.

Persons: Rizwan Virk, X, Dave, I’m, OpenAI’s, Gemini, Google’s, Pope, Sundar Pichai, we’ve, ”, didn’t, Michael M, George Orwell’s “, “ Organizations: Labs, MIT, Physics, Eastern, Arizona State University’s College of Global Futures, Center for Science, CNN, HAL, Google, Vikings, Fox News Digital, Gemini, Getty, Big Tech, Microsoft, Apple Locations: zenentrepreneur.com, White, German

Supporters of the state laws say they foster free speech, giving the public access to all points of view. One contrarian brief, from liberal professors, urged the justices to uphold the key provision of the Texas law despite the harm they said it would cause. “Social media platforms exercise editorial judgment that is inherently expressive,” Judge Kevin C. Newsom wrote for the panel. To the surprise of many, some prominent liberal professors filed a brief urging the justices to uphold a key provision of the Texas law. In the second case, Miami Herald v. Tornillo, the Supreme Court in 1974 struck down a Florida law that would have allowed politicians a “right to reply” to newspaper articles critical of them.

Persons: Samuel A, Alito Jr, ”, Scott Wilkens, Ron DeSantis, John Tully, Donald J, Trump, Greg Abbott of, —, Ken Paxton, “, Andrew S, Oldham, Kevin C, Newsom, Lawrence Lessig, Tim Wu of, Teachout, Mandel Ngan, Richard L, “ Florida’s, Moody, Paxton, Robins, William H, Rehnquist, Pat L, Tornillo, Warren E, Burger Organizations: Facebook, YouTube, Columbia University, Big Tech, The New York Times, Gov, Republican, Computer & Communications Industry, New York Times, Fox News, U.S ., Appeals, Fifth Circuit, ISIS, Harvard, Tim Wu of Columbia, Zephyr, Fordham, Twitter, Manchester Union, Citizens United, Agence France, University of California, Miami Herald, Florida, Representatives, Constitution Locations: Florida, Texas, Greg Abbott of Texas, Ukraine, Los Angeles, Campbell , Calif

☆ Opinion: Here’s what’s at risk if Big Tech doesn’t address deceptive AI content
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Opinion Timothy Karr | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

In response, the platforms have pledged to set high expectations in 2024 for how they “will manage the risks arising from deceptive AI election content,” according to the joint accord. This included rolling back election misinformation policies designed to limit “Big Lie” content about the 2020 vote. Their role as conduits of misinformation will likely increase as the sophisticated AI tools needed to create deepfakes of politicians become more widely available to users of social media. As we learned in the aftermath of the 2020 vote, there are dangerous, real-world consequences when platform companies retreat from commitments to root out disinformation. Unless the companies permanently restore election integrity teams and actually enforce rules against the rampant abuse of AI tools, democracy worldwide could well hang in the balance.

Persons: Timothy Karr, ” Timothy Karr, Joe Biden’s, they’ve, Paul Vallas, Vallas Organizations: Free Press, CNN, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Building, YouTube, Chicago mayoral, Federal Trade Commission Locations: United States

☆ A low-cost hedge if Big Tech earnings disappoint and the Nasdaq rally fizzles
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Nishant Pant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

If these tech giants disappoint in their earnings outlook, that would be enough reason for this rally to fizzle out, and Nasdaq could finally see a pullback. Here's a 6-month daily chart of the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ,which closely follows Nasdaq's price movement and can be used as a proxy to trade tech stocks. You may find trading platforms using other names like "put debit spread" or "long put spread," but they all mean the same. I did this because this trade is designed as a hedge against disappointing tech earnings, which are all happening this week, so I don't need a longer expiration date. QQQ 6M mountain QQQ, 6 months Since this trade is taken as a hedge, the expectation should be that if the markets don't tank after tech earnings, I will lose my initial investment.

Persons: Nishant Pant Organizations: Big Tech, Microsoft, Apple, Meta, Nasdaq

☆ Rising rates and commodity prices beginning to weigh on earnings, says Earnings Scout CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailRising rates and commodity prices beginning to weigh on earnings, says Earnings Scout CEONick Raich, The Earnings Scout co-founder and CEO, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss what the economy will look like by the end of the year, if big tech is the new defensive place to be, and much more.

Persons: Nick Raich Organizations: Scout

The government says the online safety bill passed this week will make Britain the safest place in the world to be online. Here's a closer look at Britain's law:WHAT IS THE ONLINE SAFETY LAW? The government says the law takes a “zero tolerance” approach to protecting kids by making platforms legally responsible for their online safety. Senior managers at tech companies also face criminal prosecution and prison time if they fail to answer information requests from U.K. regulators. The law also sets up a clash between the British government and tech companies over encryption technology.

Persons: They'll, haven’t, Meta Organizations: Google, Facebook, U.S, European Union, Services, IF BIG TECH, Companies, Ofcom, Rights Group, Electronic Frontier Foundation, U.S . Locations: Europe, U.S

☆ Naver's 'Webtoon' CEO says barrier for new entrants is high
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Joyce Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The global webtoon industry made $4.7 billion in 2021 and is projected to make $60.1 billion by 2030, according to Spherical Insights & Consulting. But Kim Junkoo, CEO and founder of Webtoon Entertainment - a unit of Naver which originated the format in 2004 - says rivals will struggle to build a viable business. Webtoon Entertainment and its subsidiary have run amateur artists' debut programmes for years, generating 1.6 million titles from 900,000 creators as of January. Naver said in recent earnings calls that it expected to list the Webtoon business in the United States next year, but did not elaborate on size, timing or venue. Webtoon Entertainment reported a 13 billion won operating loss in the April-June quarter, smaller than the 21.4 billion won loss in the first quarter.

Persons: Kim Junkoo, Kim, we've, Apple, Naver, 1,330.1200, Joyce Lee, Sam Holmes Organizations: WEBTOON, REUTERS, Consulting, Amazon Japan, Apple, Webtoon Entertainment, Entertainment, Korea Creative Content Agency, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, SEOUL, Korean, Silicon, Japan, Korea, United, United States

☆ The 5 largest mega-cap stocks are responsible for most of the rally in the S&P 500 this year - but the market can still gain if Big Tech fades
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon have fronted the S&P 500's advance so far in 2023. But if the rally in those mega-caps fades, the market can still post gains, said BMO Capital MarketsAlso, narrow market breadth generally "does not represent a bad omen for S&P 500 performance." In the 12 months afterward, the S&P 500 climbed an average of 22.2%. Six months out, the S&P 500 was up more than 12%, and 12 months out, it had tacked on 43.6%. "Our work shows that the S&P 500 index recorded a 13.2% annualized price return during these periods of narrowing market breadth with the only loss coming in 2001-2003," he wrote.

Persons: —, peters, ChatGPT, Brian Belski, Belski Organizations: Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, BMO Capital Markets, Service, Amazon, BMO

☆ CNBC Daily Open: Goodbye for now, default fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Progress on U.S. debt ceiling talks and a sign of health at one regional bank gave markets the confidence to rally Wednesday. This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. PacWest, another regional bank, surged 21.7%, while the broader SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) rose 7.4%. Subscribe here to get this report sent directly to your inbox each morning before markets open.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: Farewell for now, default fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Progress on U.S. debt ceiling talks and a sign of health at one regional bank gave markets the confidence to rally Wednesday. This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Progress on U.S. debt ceiling talks and a sign of health at one regional bank gave markets the confidence to rally Wednesday. PacWest, another regional bank, surged 21.7%, while the broader SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) rose 7.4%.

☆ Big-tech stocks are bouncing back in 2023. Now they face their first big test
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

"This is the first real test we've had in a while for big tech stocks," said Adam Sarhan, CEO of 50 Park Investments. Tech companies have already demonstrated that they are bracing for slower growth with a string of recent cost-cutting announcements and layoffs that have left few stalwarts untouched. Sarhan expects most technology companies to surpass expectations, in part because estimates have come so much. Some analysts remain optimistic heading into earnings season, viewing this period as a potential reset for dismal expectations. Companies often use this earnings season as an opportunity to guide for the year ahead.

PARIS/STOCKHOLM, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Telecom operators are pushing the European Union to implement new laws that would make Big Tech pay for network costs, following Australia's example, according to four sources close to the matter. "GSMA is coordinating a proposal that speaks to Big Tech contribution to European infrastructure investment," said John Giusti, GSMA's chief regulatory officer, without elaborating on the content of the proposal. Google, Facebook, Netflix, Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Australia's recently-adopted laws in its own spat with Google and Facebook have emerged as the most-favoured weapon for telecoms operators in their dispute with Big Tech companies, the sources said. The rules, first aimed at compelling tech giants to pay for news content online, allow an Australian government-appointed arbitrator to set fees if Big Tech companies and news publishers fail to find a common ground over copyright.

☆ CNBC Pro Talks: Hedge fund manager Dan Niles bought Meta shares. Here's his strategy for tech names
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailCNBC Pro Talks: Hedge fund manager Dan Niles bought Meta shares. Here's his strategy for tech namesThe Satori Fund founder Dan Niles has more than three decades of market experience, with a focus on large-cap technology companies. That space has been hit hard in 2022, leaving many investors wondering if Big Tech stocks are still the leaders of the pack. Dan, who is in the green this year, shares his macro analysis of the sector, when he thinks the market will hit THE bottom, and which names he thinks are poised to rebound going into 2023.

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