TMTB Morning Wrap
Good morning. Futures +80bps to start following through on yesterday’s strength. Korea +8% overnight with Hynix +13% and Samsung +8%. In the U.S., semis +2% leading the way higher while Software (flat) lags. Early Semis strength being led by memory and Neoclouds. AAPL following through to the downside after a disappointing WWDC yesterday,. Overnight, Trump said peace talks were on track: “We’re in the throes of what will be a very, very good deal…and we’ll declare total victor on Iran in two weeks.” Oil -2% while yields drop 2-4bps across the curve.
We get NET investor day at 1pm, DDOG DASH conference at 10ET, ZS ZenithLive at 4pm ET, and NBIS Inflection at 5ET.
Lots to get to this morning, so let’s get right to it:
Anthropic: Mythos believed to go public today - Sources
OpenAI: Files for IPO
China AI: China Preps $295 Billion Plan to Fund Nationwide AI Buildout
China is preparing to spend around 2 trillion yuan ($295 billion) over the next five years on building data centers across the country, fueling Beijing’s ambition to propel the domestic AI sector and surpass the US in a potentially game-changing technology.
Key government agencies including the National Development and Reform Commission are drafting a blueprint to erect a network of inter-connected computing hubs across the country, people familiar with the matter said. State firms such as China Mobile Ltd. and China Telecom Corp. will operate the bulk of the data centers and ensure they’re connected, one of the people said. The idea is to rely on local suppliers including Huawei Technologies Co. for at least 80% of technology such as AI chips, effectively squeezing out Nvidia Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc., the people said.
China AI: Taiwan Mulls Curbs on AI Chip Exports to China to Align With US
Taiwan authorities are considering much stricter export controls on AI chip sales to China to further align with US measures, according to people familiar with the matter, an effort to address semiconductor smuggling that risks drawing a rebuke from Beijing.
The idea is to give authorities more legal tools to address diversion of advanced hardware, like AI servers with Nvidia Corp. chips, from Taiwan to China. Such sales are already banned under US regulations unless companies get Washington’s permission, per curbs the US first imposed in 2022 to prevent Beijing from using advanced Nvidia processors to gain a military edge.