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☆ OpenAI's releasing a new AI model soon, and there's a lot at stake
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. In today's big story, what to expect from OpenAI's newest AI model that's in the works. GPT-5, the newest model upgrade for OpenAI's chatbot, is coming soon . AdvertisementOpenAI has a lot riding on its newest model, including its ability to get customers to cough up more cash. That's not ideal for a company that's preparing to take on one of the biggest juggernauts in tech: Google's Search.

Persons: —, Z's, Let's, Nordin Catic, OpenAI, Darius Rafieyan, Darius, ChatGPT, Justin Sullivan, Chelsea Jia Feng, it's, Sam Altman, Ned Davis, David Solomon, Goldman Sachs, David Zalubowski, Chiang Ying, Mark Zuckerberg, Jensen Huang, Alexa von Tobel, Tyler Le, Mark Zuckerberg's, It's, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, Annie Smith, Amanda Yen Organizations: Service, Business, Getty, OpenAI, Ned Davis Research, Blackstone, Harvard, Microsoft, Starbucks, Apple, Apple Intelligence, Fed, Meta, Boeing, Kraft Locations: undergrad, New York, China, London

☆ Cramer's Lightning Round: Lowe's is a buy
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Julie Coleman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Borr Drilling's year-to-date stock performance. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Blackstone's year-to-date stock performance. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Dexcom's year-to-date stock performance. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Lowe's year-to-date stock performance. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Joby Aviation's year-to-date stock performance.

Persons: Borr, Blackstone, Abbott, Edwards Lifesciences, Edwards, Joby, Marvell, Matt Murphy, Jim Cramer's Organizations: Borr, Boston Scientific, Joby, Marvell Technology, Marvell

☆ Blackstone's mortgage fund slashes dividend as slump in office puts it under pressure
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Daniel Geiger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Executives at Blackstone Mortgage Trust, or BXMT, have said that it was well-positioned to withstand stresses in the commercial real estate market brought on by the pandemic and sharply rising interest rates. Executives at Blackstone have also said that they see the real estate market bottoming. The fund's loan book is tied largely to strong segments of the commercial real estate market, including residential apartment buildings, industrial warehouses, and hotels. Executives have described its loan balances as conservative relative to the value of the real estate assets that serve as their collateral. AdvertisementBut BXMT has significant exposure to the office market, where value declines have been steep enough to dip below outstanding loan balances in some cases.

Persons: —, behemoth Blackstone, Katherine Keenan, Anthony Marone, Katie Keenan, BXMT, Keenan Organizations: Service, Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Business, Blackstone

☆ The elephant not in the room for Netanyahu's speech: Kamala Harris
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

That is a strategic political calculation, because she knew — and her people knew — that you will not reach the White House if you frolic with war criminals." Kent Nishimura/Getty ImagesThe California Democrat argued that Harris should look toward the example of Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Advertisement'A very tenuous feeling'If Netanyahu's speech on Wednesday was any indication, there's plenty of wiggle room for Harris to pursue a less deferential approach to Israel than Biden. Dozens of progressives issued statements affirming that they were boycotting the speech, engaged in other events, or like Harris, simply came up with convenient scheduling conflicts. He's literally the Trump of Israel," Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida told me.

Persons: Linda Sarsour, Joe Biden's, They'll, Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Kamala Harris, Sarsour, That's, —, Biden, Israel —, Harris, Ro Khanna, Sen, Ben Cardin, Kent Nishimura, Hubert Humphrey, Lyndon B, Johnson, Humphrey, Khanna, Netanyahu, He's, Barack Obama's, Trump, Rep, Maxwell Frost of, Becca Balint of, Balint, Rashida Tlaib, Nancy Pelosi, Rashida, Anna Moneymaker, she's, Israel, Summer Lee of Organizations: Service, Democratic, Business, New York, Black Zeta Phi Beta, California Democrat, Democrats, Becca Balint of Vermont, Democrat, Republican, KFC, Palestinian, White Locations: Palestinian, Indianapolis, Israel, Gaza, United States, Ben Cardin of Maryland, California, Vietnam, —, Iran, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Palestinian American, Michigan, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania

☆ Wall Street is hooked on Zyn. Here's how it is handling the shortage.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-23 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Over on Wall Street, the shortage — dubbed the "Zynpocalypse" — has not always been easy, according to finance-industry workers who spoke to BI about their love of Zyn. The sidewalk kiosk sells everything from gum to magazines to the latest New York City tabloid newspapers and is frequented by Wall Street workers, he said. Mark MoranAs Business Insider reported in January, the product has been hot across Wall Street, with sell-side traders ordering it in bulk, so it's always around. Alex NicollMoran quit Wall Street in 2021 and currently runs investor relations firm Equity Animal. "Some of these kids are just doing it because it's become a staple of Wall Street," Moran said of junior bankers in their early 20s.

Persons: —, Philip Morris, Emmanuel Babeau, Phillip Morris, I'm, Morgan Stanley, Nihal, Zyn, Alex Nicoll, Mark Moran, it's, Moran, Lazard, Alex Nicoll Moran, I'd Organizations: Service, Phillip Morris International, Wall Street, Business, BI, Barclays, Sixth, Velo, Lazard, North America, Washington, Equity Locations: Manhattan, New York City, Washington ,, Kentucky, Colorado, Swedish

☆ Nantucket's wealthy had another problem on their beaches this week
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. The blade of an offshore wind turbine broke into pieces last week and washed ashore on tony Nantucket, the Massachusetts island favored by New Englanders and the very wealthy. Still, all Nantucket beaches were fully open by Wednesday, though the island's Harbormaster cautioned people to wear shoes and keep pets off certain areas. AdvertisementIn April, billionaire Barry Sternlicht's home was demolished due to property damage caused by erosion. It looks like snow, rain, hail, and a little wind turbine debris won't be enough to turn people off of the Gray Lady.

Persons: —, tony Nantucket, Harbormaster, Barry Sternlicht's, Steve Schwarzman, Eric Schmidt, Gray Organizations: Service, New, Business, Vineyard, of Safety, Environmental Locations: Nantucket, Massachusetts, New Englanders, Martha's

☆ Blackstone just raised the stakes on its AI gamble
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Alex Nicoll | Kaja Whitehouse | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Blackstone has been positioning itself to benefit from the AI boom with data centers. Founder Steve Schwarzman set a new lofty new goal in an earnings call Thursday. He said Blackstone aims to be the biggest investor in AI infrastructure in the world. AdvertisementIt's not surprising when AI, a topic of du jour across corporate America, comes up in an earnings call. "Blackstone is positioning itself to be the largest financial investor in AI infrastructure in the world," the Blackstone's chairman and CEO said in the call.

Persons: Blackstone, Steve Schwarzman, —, laud Organizations: Service, Blackstone, Business Locations: America

☆ Blackstone is doubling down on its efforts to woo the wealthy with 2 new funds, flying in the face of BREIT critics
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

AdvertisementBCRED, the firm's first credit fund for individual investors, raised $3.4 billion in this quarter, more than the $1.4 billion raised by BXPE and the $990 million raised by BREIT. AdvertisementSchwarzman combined his analysis of BREIT's success with a rosier picture of the larger macro environment in real estate. Since calling the bottom of the real estate market at the beginning of the year, Blackstone's confidence that inflation is receding has continued to increase, leading to more deployment of capital into real estate. It's also providing more possibilities to exit and realize returns on its real estate assets. The firm, which is deploying nearly $15 billion into real estate this year, according to Gray, sees sunny days ahead.

Persons: —, Steve Schwarzman, Jon Gray, Gray, Blackstone, prorated redemptions, we've, BXPE, prorating, Schwarzman, BREIT, REITs, It's Organizations: Service, Business, Blackstone Infrastructure Partners

☆ French quant firm Capital Fund Management is expanding in the US. Its president tells us where the $15.3 billion manager sees opportunities.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Bradley Saacks | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewDespite its French headquarters, Capital Fund Management has long been connected to the US. Advertisement"There's no way around the US" as a quant fund, he explained, which use a vast amount of data and historical trends to inform computer-driven investment strategies. Alternative managers have turned to the private wealth channel for capital increasingly in recent years, mostly driven by large private equity firms like Blackstone, Apollo, and KKR. Tiger cubs like Tiger Global and Coatue have had long-standing relationships with JPMorgan's private wealth unit. Quant funds operate in a similar fashion, he said, and the firm thinks this can be translated to a broader audience than just longtime hedge-fund allocators.

Persons: —, Philippe Jordan, Jordan, Stifel, Blackstone, Bobby Jain's, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, there's Organizations: Service, Capital Fund Management, Business, CFM, Stratus, Apollo, KKR, Products, Abu, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, UBS, HSBC, Bloomberg Locations: New York, Chicago, London, America, Paris, Louis, Abu Dhabi

☆ AI tools and startups are helping workers bluff their way through job interviews. Just don't call it cheating.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-09 | by ( Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Read previewMichael Guan wants you to use AI to bluff your way through that job interview. He's the cofounder and CEO of Final Round AI, a startup building artificial intelligence-powered tools for job seekers. There's a debate in Silicon Valley about the appropriateness of candidates using AI in job interviews. An AI-powered proxy interview demoArjun, a professional interview proxy, hopped on a call to explain how it worked and then gave a demo. Guan argued that using AI during a job interview isn't underhanded; it shows the worker's ingenuity.

Persons: —, Michael Guan, Otter.ai, There's, Guan shrugged, Otter, it's, Arjun, AiApply, Aidan Cramer, Cramer, Buddy, that's, résumé, Guan, Jay Ma, Copilot, Ma Organizations: Service, Business, AWS, Google, Microsoft, Hub, Intel, Nvidia, Wayback, Bureau of Labor Statistics, YouTube Locations: Silicon Valley, Facebook, WhatsApp, London, San Francisco, Francisco, China, Seattle, TikTok

☆ Paramount agrees to merge with Skydance
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Paramount Global will merge with Skydance, capping off a months-long negotiation that included various twists and turns, and will see the Redstone family step away from control of the storied movie studio and media company. Paramount's special committee agreed to the merger on Sunday, days after Shari Redstone's National Amusements, the controlling shareholder of Paramount, once again reached a preliminary agreement with Skydance. The latest iteration of the deal will see the buying consortium, which includes RedBird Capital Partners and KKR, invest more than $8 billion into Paramount and to acquire National Amusements. The deal gives National Amusements an enterprise value of $2.4 billion, which includes $1.75 billion in equity. A completed Skydance merger would mark a major shift for the ownership of Paramount, as well as for Hollywood as a whole.

Persons: Shari Redstone's, it's, Jeff Shell, Ellison, Forrest, —, David Ellison, Skydance, Larry Ellison Organizations: Paramount Studios, Paramount, Skydance, RedBird Capital Partners, KKR, National, Shell, Hollywood, CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon, Oracle Locations: Los Angeles , California

☆ Private equity is booming. How to get a job in the finance industry's newest 'it' sector.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-05 | by ( Kaja Whitehouse | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Getty Images; Shutterstock; BIThe traditional path to private equity starts with an investment banking job out of college. In 2023, private equity firms started reaching out in July before junior investment bankers finished their summer training. But at its core, private equity is in the business of making money by buying and running companies. Samantha Lee/InsiderA small group of headhunters and other advisors hold power over the private equity recruitment process. More on private equity pay and hiring:Have private equity's 'Hunger Games' recruiting tactics gone too far?

Persons: —, Blackstone, Apollo isn't, Goldman Sachs, it's, David Wurtzbacher, Wurtzbacher, Wharton, Graham Weaver, you've, Samantha Lee, We've, Jon Gray, Drew Angerer, Skye Gould, Steve Schwarzman, Jonathan Gray, Gray, Thoma Bravo, Atlantic's, Carlyle, Warburg Pincus, Wharton's, Axel Springer Organizations: Service, Apollo, KKR, Business, Getty, CPA, BI, Alpine Partners, Alpine's, Harvard Business School, Stanford's Graduate School of Business, Alpine, of Foreign Labor, Bain Capital, Blackstone, Harvard, Games, Wall, Citadel, headhunters, dealmakers, Private, PJT Partners, Centerbridge, of Michigan Locations: San Francisco, UPenn, Carlyle, Blackstone, Axel

☆ Ted Cruz's leaked donor docs show how money in politics really works
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-20 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Read previewOn Tuesday, reporter Pablo Manríquez discovered a collection of documents that appear to belong to Sen. Ted Cruz's campaign. Each individual at the dinner had pledged between $1,000 and $2,500 to Cruz's campaign, according to the documents. AdvertisementFor each of those New York meetings, Cruz was supplied with detailed biographies of his interlocutors, a list of their recent political contributions, and directions on how much money to ask for. For some meetings, Cruz is directed to ask a single donor whether they will contribute $119,200 to his race. Advertisement"Ask [donor] to talk to your team about outside efforts" isn't a 'solicitation' under federal campaign finance law," Ghosh wrote on X.

Persons: —, Pablo Manríquez, Sen, Ted Cruz's, Cruz, Cruz —, Colin Allred, who's, Donors, Cruz's, Saurav Ghosh, it's, reelect Cruz, ade Organizations: Service, Texas Republican, Business, Democratic Rep, Washington , DC, Juneteenth, GOP, Capitol, Republican, Senate, Committee, Ericsson, National Association of, Texas GOP, National Republican, @tedcruz, TX GOP Locations: America, Washington ,, Texas, New York, York, Manhattan

☆ Investors are the most bullish since November 2021, a widely followed survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Investors are the most bullish they've been since November 2021, according to the global fund manager survey (FMS) released Tuesday from Bank of America Securities. Halfway through 2024, the S & P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite are each at records , on Monday closing once again at all-time highs. .SPX YTD mountain S & P 500 in 2024. In November 2021 — the last time Wall Street was this bullish — the S & P 500 capped off a strong year, advancing more than 26%. 1 risk on investors' minds (according to 32% of investors, down from 41% in May), followed by geopolitics (22%, up from 18%), and the U.S. presidential election (16%, up from 9%).

Persons: they've, Michael Hartnett Organizations: Investors, Bank of America Securities, Nasdaq, Bank of America, Federal Reserve, U.S, CNBC

☆ National Amusements stops discussions with Skydance on Paramount deal, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-11 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

National Amusements has stopped talks with Skydance on a proposed merger with Paramount Global , CNBC's David Faber reported Tuesday. The deal had been awaiting signoff from Redstone, CNBC previously reported. She has approved of their ideas and leadership during their short tenure, CNBC previously reported. This is why it was no surprise when Paramount and Skydance agreed to merger terms earlier in June, CNBC reported. Under those terms, which were still being ironed out up until Tuesday, Redstone would have received $2 billion for National Amusements, CNBC reported.

Persons: Skydance, CNBC's David Faber, Shari Redstone, David Ellison's Skydance, Spokespeople, Redbird, It's, George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy, Brian Robbins, Bob Bakish, Paramount's Organizations: Paramount Studios, Amusements, Paramount Global, Paramount, RedBird Capital, KKR, CNBC, National Amusements, Street, CBS, Paramount Media Networks, Paramount Pictures, Redstone, Apollo Global Management, Sony, Skydance Locations: Los Angeles , California, Redstone

☆ JPMorgan upgrades this beaten-down payments stock, says it can surge 50%
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-06 | by ( Pia Singh | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

An overseas investment idea investors shouldn't overlook is StoneCo., a Brazilian financial technology and software solutions company headquartered in the Cayman Islands that JPMorgan has grown bullish on. He maintained his $20 year-end price target, which implies roughly 50% upside from the stock's latest close. "We believe [a] Stone re-rating depends mostly on banking deliveries (i.e., deposits and healthy credit growth) rather than [the] macro environment." Stone's differentiated business model, based on a close approach to clients via hyper-local distribution centers, has allowed it to quickly expand its market share, Fernandes said. He estimates Stone has about 20% market share in the core micro, small and medium-sized businesses (MSMB) market .

Persons: Yuri Fernandes, Stone, Fernandes, Pedro Zinner, Stone's Organizations: JPMorgan, Stone, Reuters Locations: Brazilian, Cayman Islands, U.S

☆ Dollar finds footing as traders turn to U.S. services data
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

US Dollar notes and euro coins are arranged for a photograph on Sept. 11, 2017. The dollar steadied on Wednesday as traders pared back on riskier bets in emerging markets while waiting on an interest rate decision in Canada and on U.S. services data. Japanese real wages fell for a 25th straight month in April, data on Wednesday showed, as inflation outpaces nominal pay rises. The Swiss franc rose for a fourth straight session on the dollar overnight and at 0.8902 per dollar is close to breaking through its 200-day moving average. The New Zealand dollar was steady at $0.6173, while the Canadian dollar held the middle of a months-long range at C$1.3678 per dollar.

Persons: Jane Foley, Ryozo Himino, Narendra Modi, Chris Weston Organizations: Swiss, Bloomberg News, Bank of, Rabobank, BOJ, Westpac, New Zealand, African National Congress, Morena Locations: Canada, U.S, Bank of Japan, Asia, Japan, Morena

The current leadership of Paramount Global presented a go-forward plan at the company's annual shareholder meeting Tuesday in the event a sale of the company doesn't happen. Redstone has been supportive of the Office of the CEO leadership team that has run the company since former CEO Bob Bakish stepped down in late April. The plan that Paramount Global shareholders are hearing on Tuesday will essentially serve as Redstone's alternate option if she chooses not to sell. "We'll be thoughtful with how we deploy capital, with our world-class content being the priority," said Robbins during the presentation Tuesday. On Tuesday, Robbins said the company has been "aggressively exploring all options" when it comes to partnerships with other streamers.

Persons: George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy, Brian Robbins —, —, David Ellison's, Shari Redstone, Bob Bakish, Robbins, Cheeks, McCarthy Organizations: Paramount, SAG, Paramount Global, CBS, Paramount Media Networks, Paramount Pictures, Media, RedBird Capital, KKR, CNBC, Amusements Locations: Los Angeles , California, U.S

☆ Blackstone's Nadeem Meghji: Data centers are the most exciting asset class across our entire firm
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-29 | 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 EmailBlackstone's Nadeem Meghji: Data centers are the most exciting asset class across our entire firmNadeem Meghji, global co-head at Blackstone Real Estate, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss if data centers are the most interesting section of real estate, the states in the mix for data centers, and more.

Persons: Blackstone's Nadeem Meghji, Nadeem Meghji Organizations: Blackstone Real

☆ Homes on billionaire hot spot Nantucket are falling into the ocean at an alarming rate — but the wealthy won't stop buying
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-24 | by ( Madeline Berg | Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Over the past two centuries, Nantucket has gone from a whaling town to a hippie refuge to a holiday hot spot for billionaires. "To use a well-worn phrase, come hell or high water, people are still buying multimillion-dollar homes on Nantucket." Between 2030 and 2100, the number of structures exposed to coastal erosion is expected to go from 113 to 860. "Without erosion, this would be an extremely valuable area," Baxter Road resident Joshua Posner told BI. "It's not inexpensive, but it is worth doing," Posner told BI.

Persons: Steve Schwarzman, Eric Schmidt, Barry Sternlicht, Elizabeth Gibson, David L, Ryan, Bruce Percelay, Edward Sanford's, he'd, Percelay, Greg Mckechnie, you'd, Barry Sternlicht's, Suzanne Kreiter, Shelly Lockwood, who's, I'm, Joshua Posner, Jack Welch, Bill Belichick, —, Sanford, Lockwood, Nature, Yorker Brendan Maddigan, Maddigan, Mckechnie, Schwarzman, She's, Posner, he's, Helmut Weymar, Anne Atherton Organizations: Resilience, Business, Boston Globe, Getty, Estate, Nantucket, Coastal, Nantucket's Cisco, Cisco, Beach, Patriots, Yorker, Preservation Fund, Baxter, Conservation, Conservancy, The New York Times, Conservation Commission, Nature Locations: Nantucket, England, Cape Cod, Nantucket's, Madaket, Sconset, Brant, Baxter

☆ Billionaire investor Barry Sternlicht, master of the downturn, is now embroiled in one
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-24 | by ( Daniel Geiger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewBarry Sternlicht became a real estate billionaire by snapping up commercial properties on the cheap during market downturns. The 63-year-old Miami-based executive, who built his firm Starwood Capital into a more than $100 billion real estate investment behemoth, has now found himself on the flipside of that formula. The situation is a reversal of fortune for Sternlicht, who is more used to capitalizing on real estate dips than becoming entangled in them. But investor sentiment darkened as interest rates rose and put pressure on real estate asset values. "They're concerned that there may be more markdowns in net asset value if interest rates stay higher for longer.

Persons: —, Barry Sternlicht, SREIT, Sternlicht, Matt Malone, REITs, Malone, Kevin Gannon, Gannon, Jon Mechanic, Fried Frank, Mechanic, Barry Organizations: Service, Starwood Capital, Starwood, Income Trust, Business, Federal Reserve, Shareholders, Westin, Caesars, Opto Investments Locations: Miami, Vegas, SREIT

☆ America's highest-earning CEO was awarded a staggering $162 million last year — but there's a catch
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Broadcom boss Hock Tan is the highest-earning CEO in the US, per a Wall Street Journal analysis. But Tan has to fulfill certain criteria to get his full $162 million pay package. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAmerica's highest-paid CEO isn't Apple's Tim Cook, Tesla's Elon Musk, or Meta Platforms' Mark Zuckerberg — it's Broadcom's Hock Tan, The Wall Street Journal found in an analysis published this week. Tan was awarded $162 million in compensation last year, but it comes with a catch: he'll only receive the full amount if his company's stock hits a certain level by 2025, the WSJ said.

Persons: Hock Tan, Tan, Nikesh Arora, Steve Schwarzman, —, isn't, Tim Cook, Tesla's Elon, Mark Zuckerberg, Broadcom's Hock Tan Organizations: Broadcom, Palo Alto Networks, Service, Journal, Business

☆ AI infrastructure startup CoreWeave raises $7.5 billion in debt deal led by Blackstone
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-17 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Fresh off a $1.1 billion equity funding round, artificial intelligence infrastructure startup CoreWeave has raised $7.5 billion in debt to more heavily invest in its cloud data centers. That means CoreWeave, backed by Nvidia, is going up against the world's top cloud infrastructure operators, including Amazon and Google . On its website, CoreWeave claims to have lower on-demand prices than any major cloud company. Even Microsoft , the world's second-largest provider of cloud infrastructure, has started relying on CoreWeave to help supply OpenAI with the computing power it needs. Such GPUs were used as collateral in a $2.3 billion debt round last year, Reuters reported.

Persons: Michael Intrator, CoreWeave, ChatGPT, Colette Kress Organizations: CNBC, Investors, Nvidia, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Citigroup, Reuters Locations: Carlyle, BlackRock

☆ Why the biggest real estate funds still struggle
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-17 | by ( Daniel Geiger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Read previewBlackstone, the world's largest landlord, contends the worst is over for commercial real estate. In the first quarter, shareholders in Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, or BREIT, its $59 billion flagship real estate investment fund, pulled out almost a billion dollars a month on average, according to the company's first-quarter earnings statement. A similar investment fund operated by Barry Sternlicht's Starwood Capital has had an even greater retreat by investors. Share pricing is determined through appraisals of the value of the underlying real estate holdings. In May, Blackstone Real Estate Partners X also completed the $3.5 billion acquisition of Tricon Residential, an owner of single family rental homes.

Persons: —, Barry Sternlicht's, Kevin Gannon, BREIT, reinvigorating, anemic, REITs, Jonathan Gray, Blackstone Heidi Gutman, NBCUniversal, Jon Gray, they're, Gray, outperformance, redemptions, Blackstone, Gannon, They're, Sternlicht, Todd Henderson, REIT, Henderson, It'll Organizations: Service, Investors, Income Trust, Business, Barry Sternlicht's Starwood Capital, Starwood Real, Blackstone, Starwood, KKR, Apollo, Federal Reserve, Communities, Blackstone Real Estate Partners, Tricon Locations: Blackstone, Brookfield, BREIT, Tricon, Nashville, DWS

☆ Blackstone says the real-estate market is bottoming. Here are 7 ways it's getting ahead of the situation.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. We found the firm has been spending on distressed real estate, such as its purchase of loans from the FDIC after the failure of Signature Bank, as well as investments in buzzy real estate, like data centers. In a January earnings call, Blackstone president Jonathan Gray announced that commercial real estate, which recently suffered its biggest price declines in half a century, could soon hit bottom. "While it will take time, we can see the pillars of a real estate recovery coming into place." Here are the 7 recent real estate and real-estate-adjacent deals that show how Blackstone is trying to get ahead of the CRE bottom in chronological order.

Persons: Jon Gray, Blackstone, Gray, Jonathan Gray Organizations: Business, Signature Bank

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