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OpenAI will deploy six gigawatts of AMD GPUs. (0:15) Fifth Third and Comerica merge. (1:09) Granny Shots ETF riding high. (1:56)
This is an abridged transcript of the podcast:
Our top story so far, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) signed a pact with Microsoft (MSFT)-backed OpenAI to roll out AI infrastructure.
The deal that is expected to deliver tens of billions of dollars in revenue for AMD, whose shares are soaring, up about 25%.
The companies inked an agreement for OpenAI to deploy six gigawatts of AMD GPUs over multiple years. AMD has issued OpenAI a warrant for up to 160 million shares, which will vest upon achievement of milestones.
The first tranche vests with the initial 1 gigawatt deployment, with additional tranches vesting as purchases scale up to 6 gigawatts.
The targets require AMD’s stock price to continue to increase in value, and future exercise points include a tranche tied to a share price of $600. AMD closed at $164.67 on Friday.
AI bulls at Wedbush called the deal a “major moment” and said “any lingering fears around AMD should now be thrown out the window as this gives them a major platform to monetize the AI Revolution.”
Among active stocks, Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) and Comerica (CME) are merging in a $10.9 billion deal. The combination will create the 9th-largest U.S. bank with $288 billion in assets.
The swap values Comerica at $82.88 a share, a 20% premium to Comerica’s 10-day average price.
Verizon (VZ) slid after it appointed former PayPal (PYPL) chief Dan Schulman as its new CEO.
And can we call this a Bond selloff?
Aston Martin (OTCPK:AMGDF) is tumbling after the automaker issued a profit warning, flagging persistent tariff-related challenges.
The company now expects its 2025 adjusted EBIT to fall below the lower end of market expectations and has scrapped plans for positive free cash flow in the second half, prompting an immediate review of spending.
In other news of note, Fundstrat Capital’s Granny Shots U.S. Large-Cap ETF (GRNY) – ticker symbol GRNY — has surpassed $3 billion in assets under management just 11 months after its launch.
The ETF is called Granny Shots after the underhand free-throw technique. Fundstrat founder Tom Lee says that echoes his investing style, which may look old-fashioned but gets results with fundamentals.
GRNY is up more than 25% year to date, compared to a 15% gain in the S&P 500. The top three holdings are Lam Research (LRCX), Robinhood (HOOD) and Tesla (TSLA).
And Adobe predicts U.S. online sales will rise 5.3% year-over-year this holiday season to hit $253.4 billion. That pace would be a slowdown from the 8.7% growth seen last year from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31.
The firm expects a record 10 days will see consumers spend more than $5 billion in a single day. Cyber Week, starting in late November, is expected to drive 17.2% of overall spending, at $43.7 billion
And in the Wall Street Research Corner, It’s all about the emotional IQ for Wall Street’s next generation.
Goldman Sachs’ summer interns say emotional intelligence is the one skill artificial intelligence can’t replace.
In a survey of roughly 2,150 Goldman Sachs interns, 66% ranked emotional intelligence as the most irreplaceable workplace skill, underscoring the growing value of empathy and communication in an increasingly automated world.
Leadership and influence followed at 48%. A handful of singularity fans (2%) believed AI would eventually replicate all human skills.
For its part, OpenAI’s ChatGPT said the interns “nailed it.”
“As AI keeps getting sharper at logic, language, and pattern recognition, what’s left — what truly matters — are the things that aren’t just data: empathy, timing, tone, curiosity, humor.”
“It’s also a nice twist of humility coming from Goldman interns — people already tuned for high-stakes precision, admitting that emotional fluency may be the ultimate differentiator.”
Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.
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