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BANGKOK (AP) — A Nasdaq-listed Chinese technology company that makes parts for self-driving vehicles is threatening to sue the U.S. government after it was included in a list of companies the Pentagon says have links to the Chinese military. It was among 17 companies the U.S. Department of Defense recently added to its list of companies it considers “Chinese military companies.”The revised list also includes Megvii, a Beijing-based artificial intelligence company and IDG Capital, a major private equity investment company with holdings in many Chinese technology companies, and major Chinese energy, telecoms and aviation companies. In a statement issued last week, the company said its LiDARs were not designed to conform to military specifications. Under Biden, the U.S. has further limited China’s access to advanced U.S. technology, limited U.S. investments in strategically sensitive Chinese industries and expanded sanctions on leading Chinese companies like Huawei Technologies. The Defense Department periodically updates its list of now nearly four dozen Chinese military companies to counter links between Chinese military and companies and other entities that it says appear to be civilian.

Persons: Yifan “ David ” Li, Li, Joe Biden’s, Donald Trump, Biden, China’s Organizations: Pentagon, U.S . Department of Defense, IDG Capital, U.S . Department of Commerce, Beijing, Huawei Technologies, The Defense Department, Xiaomi Corp, Apple Inc, U.S ., China’s People’s Liberation Army Locations: BANGKOK, Beijing, U.S

☆ Uber's smooth operator Dara Khosrowshahi has done something Travis Kalanick never could: turn a profit
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewWho knows what kind of fate would have awaited Uber had Travis Kalanick decided not to relinquish his power in 2017. But instead of crashing, Uber has seemingly defied the odds thanks to Kalanick's successor, Dara Khosrowshahi. Net profit for the year hit $1.9 billion versus an enormous $9.1 billion loss in 2022, which had been inflated by revaluations of Uber's equity investments. Former Uber boss Travis Kalanick. But having been at the helm of online travel business company Expedia for 12 years before moving to Uber, Dara's success appears to come from his pedigree as an operator.

Persons: —, Uber, Travis Kalanick, Dara Khosrowshahi, Khosrowshashi, Eric Piermont, Khosrowshahi, SoftBank, Didi Chuxing Organizations: Service, Business, AFP Dara's Locations: Silicon, San Francisco, China

☆ Uber beats estimates as revenue and bookings see double-digit growth
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Ashley Capoot | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Uber reported fourth-quarter results Wednesday that beat analysts' estimates on top and bottom lines. Here's how the company did:Earnings per share: 66 cents vs. 17 cents expected by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv. 66 cents vs. 17 cents expected by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv. Uber's net income includes a $1 billion net tailwind thanks to "unrealized gains" from revaluations of its equity investments, according to a release. Uber anticipates an adjusted EBITDA of $1.26 billion to $1.34 billion, compared to the $1.26 billion expected by analysts.

Persons: Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber, LSEG, EBITDA, Khosrowshahi Organizations: APEC, Summit, Moscone West, LSEG, StreetAccount, Mobility Locations: San Francisco , California

☆ World's largest sovereign wealth fund posts record $213 billion profit, boosted by tech stocks
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Norway's giant sovereign wealth fund on Tuesday reported record profit of 2.22 trillion kroner ($213 billion) in 2023, supported by robust returns on its investments in technology stocks. "Despite high inflation and geopolitical turmoil, the equity market in 2023 was very strong, compared to a weak year in 2022," Nicolai Tangen, chief executive of Norges Bank Investment Management, said in a statement. Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, was established in the 1990s to invest the surplus revenues of the country's oil and gas sector. Last year, Norges Bank Investment Management said its return on equity investments was 21.3%, its return on fixed income investments came in at 6.1%, while investments in unlisted real estate returned -12.4%. The fund said a negative year for its unlisted real estate investments was due to rising interest rates and subdued demand.

Persons: Nicolai Tangen, Norges Bank Investment Management's Tangen Organizations: Fund, Norges Bank Investment Management, Technology, Norges Bank Investment Locations: America, China

☆ This income-paying asset could be poised to rise in 2024 as interest rates cool
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-02 | by ( Darla Mercado | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

With interest rates expected to come down in 2024, real estate — a sector beloved for its steady income payments — could see upside in the new year. "When rates are low, a lot of income-oriented investors see that REIT dividend as very attractive, and they are willing to take the risks associated with equity investment to have this dividend payment." Jefferies is neutral on the office REIT sector but has raised its rating on Boston Properties to buy from hold. The senior housing occupancy rate was 84.4% in the third quarter of 2023, according to the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care . That's up more than 6 percentage points from the pandemic low of 77.8%, but it's still off from the pre-pandemic occupancy rate of 87.1%.

Persons: REITs, Kevin Brown, Jefferies, Peter Abramowitz, Morningstar's Brown, it's, Brown, JPMorgan's Anthony Paolone, Ventas, — CNBC's Michael Bloom, Chris Hayes Organizations: Federal Reserve, Treasury, Boston Properties, Boston, National Investment Center, Seniors Housing & Care, Realty Locations: U.S, Boston, Friday's

☆ Elon Musk heats up the AI wars. He's seeking $1 billion for xAI.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk wants to raise up to $1 billion for his AI startup xAI, according to an SEC filing. AdvertisementElon Musk is looking to raise up to $1 billion to help fund his AI startup xAI. And this isn't Musk's first foray into AI: Years before the billionaire launched xAI, Musk actually cofounded OpenAI with Sam Altman in 2015. But in 2018, Musk left OpenAI because his offer to run the company was rejected, he's said. It comes as there's a lot of money sloshing around AI: OpenAI has reportedly been seeking a share sale that could value it at $90 billion.

Persons: Elon Musk, xAI, —, Elon, ChatGPT, Bard, Meta, Grok, Twitter —, Musk, Sam Altman, he's, Altman, OpenAI, xAI didn't Organizations: SEC, Service, Microsoft, Google, Twitter, Securities and Exchange Commission Locations: —, OpenAI

☆ Here’s how activist Elliott could build shareholder value amicably at Phillips 66
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Business: Phillips 66 is an energy manufacturing and logistics company. Percentage Ownership: n/a Average Cost: n/a Activist Commentary: Elliott is a very successful and astute activist investor. On Wednesday, Elliott sent a letter to Phillips 66, announcing that it has taken a $1 billion stake and is seeking up to two board seats. While we do not generalize like that, it is hard to imagine a more amicable and constructive activist campaign than what Elliott is proposing at Phillips 66. When implemented, Phillips 66 saw costs increase relative to peers, burning shareholders' confidence in the management team's ability to achieve its goals.

Persons: Phillips, Elliott, Mark Lashier, Ken Squire Organizations: Phillips, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Valero Energy, Marathon Petroleum, Valero, 13D Locations: Chevron, U.S, Europe, COOs

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addresses her speech during the question time at the upper house of parliament in Rome, Italy November 23, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Italy will provide 100 million euros ($108.91 million) to a new fund to help poor countries cope with "loss and damage" due to climate change, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Friday, adding she would invest 70% of her 4.2-billion euro Climate Fund in Africa. "We are contributing to the loss and damage fund with 100 million euros to help achieve the goals of this COP28," she told an event at the COP28 climate conference in Dubai. Italy's Climate Fund is part of a commitment by rich countries to funnel at least $100 billion a year in developing economies through green transition projects under the form of state guarantees, loans and equity investments. In late 2021, under Meloni's predecessor Mario Draghi, Italy set aside 840 million euros per year between 2022 and 2026 for the programme plus an additional annual endowment of 40 million euros starting from 2027.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Remo Casilli, Rome, Mario Draghi, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, William Maclean Organizations: Italy's, REUTERS, Rights, Fund, Energy, Reuters, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Africa, Dubai

☆ Private-asset binge exposes insurance to new risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The concept is not new: Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) has used its insurance premiums to help fund everything from railways to cowboy-boot makers. The prospect of insurance companies buying risky loans or private equity investments has raised eyebrows. Many private credit assets, for example, rely on so-called private letter ratings based on confidential data. Given the private nature of private credit, it’s hard to see from the outside how big these risks are, or where they lurk. Besides, even if the share of life insurance assets that are mis-rated or undercapitalized is tiny, smaller insurers could carry more concentrated risk.

Persons: Blackstone, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, Fitch, Kroll, Egan, Jones, DBRS Morningstar, Banks, SVB, Jonathan Guilford, Neil Unmack, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Apollo Global Management, KKR, Global Atlantic, Investments, National Association of Insurance, England’s Everton FC, Rivals, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Athene, P Global, Insurance, SVB, Thomson Locations: Global, Delaware , New York, Iowa, New York, London

The logo of Atos is seen on a company building in Nantes, France, March 11, 2022. It is also in advanced negotiations with Kretinsky's EP Equity Investment (EPEI) vehicle to "modify and simplify" some terms of its proposed 2 billion euro ($2.11 billion) sale of Tech Foundations, the group said. AlphaValue analyst Helene Coumes attributed the drop to "the endless uncertainty on the deal on Tech Foundations, the financing issues and how the change of some terms of the agreement will be favorable for the minority shareholders". The Tech Foundations deal would also see Kretinsky take a 7.5% stake in the group's cybersecurity unit Eviden, which is what would be left of Atos. Reporting by Diana Mandiá; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Robert Birsel and Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Stephane Mahe, Daniel Kretinsky, Helene Coumes, Atos, Diana Mandiá, Kirsten Donovan, Robert Birsel, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Tech Foundations, Kretinsky's, Equity Investment, Tech, Thomson Locations: Nantes, France, Czech, Atos

☆ More Americans can buy investments earmarked for the rich. Why doing so may be risky, say experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Anyone can generally buy the stock of public companies on a stock exchange, or buy pools of stocks or bonds via publicly available mutual funds and exchange-traded funds. By comparison, private investments let people invest in companies that aren't listed on a public exchange. Julio Estela, 41, who lives in Wantagh, New York, made his largest private investment in 2021, in Green Coffee Company. Why private markets are 'two-tiered'Hxyume | E+ | Getty ImagesSome of the largest U.S. investors, such as pension funds, often have some exposure to private investments, proponents say. As with public stock, betting on one private investment instead of pooling risk in a fund of many private companies is an even riskier strategy, experts said.

Persons: Micah Hauptman, Charles Failla, Cassandra Borchers, Thompson Hine, Borchers, it's, Michael Cembalest, Mike Curtis, Shaka Tea, Julio Estela, he's, Curtis, Estela, Hauptman, Failla Organizations: SEC, Consumer Federation of America, Sovereign Financial Group, Sovereign Financial, Morgan, Wealth Management, Shaka, Green Coffee Company, rehabbing, American Investment Council, Pensions, Cambridge Associates Locations: Honolulu , Hawaii, Wantagh , New York, Hawaii

☆ China wealth manager Zhongzhi flags insolvency, $64 bln in liabilities
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BEIJING, Nov 23 (Reuters) - China's Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, a leading wealth manager, told investors it is heavily insolvent with up to $64 billion in liabilities, threatening to reignite concerns that the country's property debt crisis is spilling over into the broader financial sector. The firm, which has sizable exposure to China's real estate sector, apologised to its investors in a letter that said it had total liabilities of about 420 billion yuan ($58 billion) to 460 billion yuan ($64 billion). The liabilities compared to Zhongzhi's estimated total assets of about 200 billion yuan, according to the letter, which was issued on Wednesday and was seen by Reuters. 'ENORMOUS' HOLESigns of trouble at the Zhongzhi group first came to light in July when Zhongrong International Trust Co, a leading trust company controlled by Zhongzhi, missed payments on dozens of investment products. "The Zhongzhi group deeply apologises for the losses caused to investors.

Persons: Zhongzhi, Xu, Xing Zhaopeng, Christopher Beddor, Beddor, Ziyi Tang, Ryan Woo, Sumeet Chatterjee, Muralikumar Organizations: Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, Reuters, International Trust Co, Big, ANZ, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, Beijing, Zhongzhi, China's, China

☆ China wealth manager Zhongzhi flags insolvency, liabilities of $64 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The firm, which has sizable exposure to China's real estate sector, apologised to its investors in a letter that said it had total liabilities of about 420 billion yuan ($58 billion) to 460 billion yuan ($64 billion). The liabilities compared to Zhongzhi's estimated total assets of about 200 billion yuan ($27 billion), according to the letter, which was issued on Wednesday and was seen by Reuters. China's highly indebted property sector has been reeling from a liquidity crunch since 2020. Signs of trouble at the Zhongzhi group first came to light in July when Zhongrong International Trust Co, a leading trust company controlled by Zhongzhi, missed payments on dozens of investment products. "The Zhongzhi group deeply apologises for the losses caused to investors.

Persons: Zhongzhi, Ziyi Tang, Ryan Woo, Sumeet Chatterjee, Muralikumar Organizations: Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, Reuters, International Trust Co, Big, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, Beijing, Zhongzhi, China's, China

☆ Zhongzhi Enterprise Group: Chinese shadow bank can’t pay its bills
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New Delhi/Hong Kong CNN —A major wealth management company in China has told investors it can’t pay all its bills, reigniting fears that the country’s long-running real estate slump may be spilling over into the $3 trillion shadow banking sector. Zhongzhi Enterprise Group (ZEG) wrote to investors on Wednesday, disclosing that it was “severely insolvent,” according to a report in Chinese state-owned news outlet lanjinger.com, citing a letter from the shadow bank, which it also published. CNN is unable to verify the letter or its contents, and ZEG did not respond to a request for comment. Analysts have estimated that the trust industry, or “shadow banking” sector, is worth $2.9 trillion, making it bigger than the French economy. Shadow banks typically provide financing through off-balance-sheet activities or via non-bank financial institutions, such as trust firms.

Persons: ZEG Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Zhongzhi Enterprise, Reuters, CNN, Zhongrong, Trust, Investors Locations: China, New Delhi, Hong Kong, Beijing

☆ China wealth manager Zhongzhi flags insolvency, $64 billion in liabilities
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

☆ Alibaba’s U-turn casts dark clouds over China tech
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Anshuman Daga | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Alibaba (9988.HK) scrapped the spinoff of its prized cloud computing business, blaming U.S. curbs on advanced chips. The U-turn dashes market expectations of stability among technology companies after the end of Beijing’s years-long regulatory crackdown. Add in so-so results from Alibaba’s main businesses, also reported on Thursday, and it is hard to see a silver lining in the dark clouds gathering over China’s technology sector. The technology giant reported revenue of 224.8 billion yuan ($31 bln) in the three months to September, up 9% year-on-year, and in line with market estimates. Alibaba posted a net profit attributable to shareholders of 27.7 billion yuan versus a net loss of 20.6 billion yuan, due to an increase in the value of its equity investments.

Persons: Lisi Niesner, Daniel Zhang, Zhang, Alibaba, Francesco Guerrera, Thomas Shum Organizations: IFA, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, HK, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, Rights SINGAPORE, Hong Kong, U.S, China

☆ Multipolar world opens up surprising safe havens
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Felix Martin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

This new-look cap table leaves the U.S. much more vulnerable to the vagaries of foreign investors than before. In a crisis, foreign investors would rush to buy even more U.S. debt. Reuters GraphicsA less orthodox option would be to invest in emerging markets instead. The last time net equity investment in the U.S. NIIP dipped close to negative territory was as the dot-com bubble was deflating in 2001. In the next six years the U.S. saw net equity outflows equivalent to nearly 30% of GDP.

Persons: Hubert Védrine, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, ’, Donald Trump’s, exceptionalism, NIIP, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, French, U.S, United, United States, Treasury, Equity, U.S . Treasury, Japan, Democratic, Cooperation Council, Peterson Institute for International, Fed, ECB ”, Thomson Locations: United States, tatters, United, U.S, China, Hong Kong, Switzerland, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Vietnam, India, Chile, Democratic Republic of, Congo, Washington

☆ China moves to clean up Huarong’s “bad bank” brand
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of China Huarong Asset Management Co is seen at its office in Beijing, China, April 16, 2021. REUTERS/Thomas Peter Acquire Licensing RightsSINGAPORE, Nov 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - What’s better than cleaning up your battered brand? That’s the view of China Huarong Asset Management (2799.HK), one of the country’s four so-called bad banks created after the 1997 Asian financial crisis to buy soured loans from state-owned lenders. Late on Wednesday, it renamed itself “China CITIC Financial Asset Management” after its top shareholder, state-owned financial conglomerate CITIC group. Now that Huarong has taken up the CITIC brand, the state’s support of the bad bank has more at stake if its troubles don't go away.

Persons: Thomas Peter Acquire, Lai Xiaomin, Huarong, Yawen Chen, Francesco Guerrera, Thomas Shum Organizations: Asset, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Asset Management, HK, Financial, Management, CITIC Ltd, CITIC, X, Goodyear, Alstom, Thomson Locations: China, Beijing, Rights SINGAPORE, Huarong, CITIC's Hong Kong

☆ Alibaba stock drops as chip war nixes its plan to spin out cloud business
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —Alibaba has dropped plans to spin off its cloud computing arm, sending its stock tumbling, because of US controls on chip exports to China which the company said had created “uncertainties” for the division’s prospects. “We will focus on developing a sustainable growth model for Cloud Intelligence Group under the fluid circumstances,” the company said. During talks with Biden Wednesday, Xi described the restrictions as “technological containment,” according to a senior US official. Biden said in response that the United States is not going to provide technology to China that could be used against it by the Chinese military. Alibaba’s revenues for the June-to-September quarter climbed 9% on the previous year to 224.8 billion renminbi ($31 billion).

Persons: London CNN — Alibaba, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, BABA, ”, Xi, Biden, Tim Cook, Tesla, Elon, ” Xi, Jack Ma Organizations: London CNN, Cloud Intelligence Group, Biden Wednesday, US, San, Apple Locations: China, London, Hong Kong, United States, Beijing, San Francisco

☆ US-China chip war nixes Alibaba’s plan to spin out cloud business
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —Alibaba has called off plans to spin off its cloud computing arm, saying recent tightening of US controls on chip exports to China has created “uncertainties” for the division’s prospects. “We will focus on developing a sustainable growth model for Cloud Intelligence Group under the fluid circumstances,” the company said. And days after the announcement of the latest US chip restrictions, Beijing unveiled plans to restrict exports of graphite, a mineral required to make batteries for electric vehicles. Alibaba’s revenues for the June-to-September quarter climbed 9% on the previous year to 224.8 billion renminbi ($31 billion). Net profit was 26.7 billion renminbi ($3.7 billion), compared with a net loss previously, due to an increase in the value of the group’s equity investments.

Persons: London CNN — Alibaba, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, BABA, ”, Xi, ” Biden, Biden, Tim Cook, Tesla, Elon, ” Xi, Jack Ma Organizations: London CNN, Cloud Intelligence Group, Alibaba’s, Biden Wednesday, San, Apple Locations: China, United States, Beijing, San Francisco, Hong Kong

Signs of Chinese yuan and U.S. dollar are seen at a currency exchange store in Shanghai, China August 8, 2019. "I hope over time, we will be more than just a Middle East investor in China. I want us to be perceived also as a local Chinese investor," Ben-Gacem told Reuters, adding that the final fundraising size will depend on investor appetite and market conditions. Some private equity and venture funds are stepping up efforts to raise yuan funds. ($1 = 7.2884 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Roxanne Liu and Kane Wu; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Aly, Investcorp, Investcorp's, Hazem Ben, Gacem, Ben, Mubadala, LSEG, China Everbright, Fung, Roxanne Liu, Kane Wu, Sumeet Chatterjee, Gerry Doyle Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Electronics, Middle, Rongsheng Petrochemical, CYVN Holdings, NIO Inc, Gulf Cooperation Council, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Rights BEIJING, Bahrain, East, Abu Dhabi, Investcorp, Shandong, Tengzhou, Middle East, Gulf, U.S, Hong Kong, Chinese, Guangdong, Macau

New York is the $1.35 trillion fund's only office outside mainland China besides Hong Kong. CIC asked Bai Xiaoqing, who was in charge of some of its private equity investments from Beijing, to move to New York for the North America head role, the sources said, requesting anonymity because the move has not been publicly announced. U.S. authorities have been especially suspicious of investments originating from entities close to China's communist government, like CIC. CIC is also a significant investor in U.S. private equity funds, as so-called alternative assets comprise almost half of its portfolio. One of its most prominent investments has been a $2.5 billion Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) private equity fund aimed at investing in companies that can benefit from closer U.S.-China ties.

Persons: Bai Xiaoqing, Zhang Hong, Bai, Zhang, Peng Chun, Larry Fink, Milken, Echo Wang, Roxanne Liu, Kane Wu, Greg Roumeliotis, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: China Investment Corp, North America, CIC, Foreign Investment, American Enterprise Institute, Public, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, China -, China - U.S . Industrial Cooperation Fund, Britain, BlackRock Inc, BlackRock, China's Ministry of Finance, Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, U.S . Treasury, Thomson Locations: North, New York, China, Hong Kong, Washington, Beijing, United States, U.S, China - U.S, BlackRock

Google and Character AI did not respond to requests for comment. The demographic is helping the company position itself as the purveyor of more fun personal AI companions, compared to other AI chatbots from OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Bard. Character.AI is also in talks to raise equity funding from venture capital investors, which could value the company at over $5 billion, sources said. The talks with Google are ongoing and terms of the deal could change, said the sources, who requested anonymity as the discussions are private. Anthropic uses Google's cloud services as well as its latest version of TPUs.

Persons: Character.AI, Noam Shazeer, Daniel De Freitas, Billie Eilish, Character.AI's, Google's Bard, Andreessen Horowitz, Lina Khan, Krystal Hu, Anna Tong, Jeffrey Dastin, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Google, Reuters, Microsoft, . Federal Trade Commission, Thomson Locations: OpenAI, ., San Francisco, New York

☆ Private equity superstores overstock the shelves
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

LONDON, Nov 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Private equity investors seem happier these days shopping for returns at specialty shops over supermarkets. U.S. private equity funds raised some $240 billion in the first nine months of 2023, according to research outfit PitchBook, 13% less than a year earlier. New York-based CD&R in August raised $26 billion for its 12th-generation private equity fund while Eurocentric CVC managed an even more eye-popping $29 billion in July. A better explanation, from the consultants who advise LPs on where to put their cash, is that private equity supermarkets may be cannibalising themselves. Until they can prove otherwise, the more scattered private equity superstores risk losing more ground to the specialists.

Persons: Clayton, Blackstone, Steve Schwarzman, Marc Rowan, don’t, Rowan, Rob Lucas, Blackstone’s, they’re, Lucas, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Rice, CVC Capital Partners, Apollo Global Management, Blackstone Capital Partners IX, “, IX, CVC, Apollo, Blackstone, U.S, Thomson Locations: Dubilier, New York, Blackstone, Asia, Luxembourg, Europe, Americas

☆ Uber reports third-quarter results that miss analysts' expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Uber reported third-quarter results Tuesday that missed analysts' expectations on top and bottom lines but showed strength in other areas, like gross bookings, which exceeded the company's guidance from the second quarter. Here's how the company did:Earnings per share: 10 cents vs. 12 cents expected by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv. Uber reported adjusted EBITDA of $1.09 billion, up $576 million year-over-year and above the $1.02 billion expected by analysts polled by StreetAccount. Gross bookings for the quarter came in at $35.3 billion, up 21% year over year and above the company's guidance last quarter. The figure is also in line with the $1.28 billion Uber reported last quarter when Khosrowshahi told CNBC freight has remained a challenging spot for the company.

Persons: Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi, StreetAccount, Gross, Khosrowshahi Organizations: GE, Chelsea Industrial, LSEG, Uber, Mobility, CNBC Locations: New York City

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