Anthropic PBC is in discussions with Alphabet Inc.’s Google about a deal that would provide the artificial intelligence company with additional computing power valued in the high tens of billions of dollars, according to people familiar with the matter.The plan, which has not been finalized, involves Google providing cloud computing services to Anthropic, according to the people, who asked not to be named because the information is private. Google is a previous investor in, and cloud provider for, Anthropic ...

Market Reaction to Tariffs - U.S. stocks experienced significant declines following President Trump's announcement of 10% tariffs on all trading partners, leading to corrections and bear markets for major equity indexes, with the Nasdaq entering bear market territory [1] - On April 9, Trump announced a temporary reduction in tariff rates to 10% for 90 days, resulting in a historic surge across U.S. markets [2] Market Performance - The S&P 500 surged over 9%, marking its third-largest single-day gain since World War II, while the Dow posted its strongest percentage gain since March 2020, and the Nasdaq Composite had its best single-day performance since January 2001 [3] - The Nasdaq-100-based ETF, Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (QQQ), increased by approximately 12% on April 9 [3] Semiconductor Sector Performance - Semiconductor stocks were particularly notable, with six of the top eight performers in the Nasdaq-100 being semiconductor companies, and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) advancing 17.2% on April 9 [4] - Top-performing chip stocks included Microchip Technology Inc (up 27.1%), Arm Holdings PLC (up 24.8%), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (up 23.8%), ON Semiconductor Corp (up 22.7%), Marvell Technology Inc (up 21.9%), and NXP Semiconductors NV (up 21.1%) [5] AI Market Developments - Companies are increasingly showcasing their AI product roadmaps, positively impacting chip stocks, with OpenAI valued at $300 million in a new $40 billion fundraising round led by SoftBank [6] - OpenAI's CEO announced that GPT-5 is set to launch in "a few months," indicating advancements beyond initial expectations [7] - Meta launched the first version of its open-source Llama 4 AI model family, with the most powerful model still under development [8] - Other key players in AI include Google with Gemini 2.5, Anthropic with Claude AI models, Elon Musk's xAI with Grok models, and China's DeepSeek preparing new open-source models [9] Semiconductor Industry Challenges - NVIDIA, a leading semiconductor company, faced a 17% stock drop in 2025, with concerns over margin pressure as it scales production of next-gen Blackwell AI chips [11] - In 2023 and 2024, semiconductor stocks outperformed software companies, but interest in data center infrastructure stocks has cooled in 2025, leading to increased scrutiny of AI stocks [13] - The U.S. is tightening restrictions on semiconductor exports to China, particularly targeting high-performance chips for AI systems and advanced computing [13] Investment Opportunities - Despite challenges, developments in the AI field have kept the semiconductor sector active, with recent valuation corrections seen as beneficial [14] - Investing in semiconductor ETFs such as SMH, iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX), SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD), and Invesco Semiconductors ETF (PSI) could be advantageous if market recovery continues [14]

Core Viewpoint - Microsoft faces internal protests regarding its AI products being used by the Israeli military, raising ethical concerns about the company's involvement in military applications and human rights violations [1][2][3][5]. Group 1: Internal Protests - A software engineer, Ibtihal Aboussad, interrupted Microsoft’s 50th anniversary event, accusing the company of enabling genocide through its AI products sold to the Israeli military, claiming that 50,000 people have died as a result [1][2]. - Aboussad expressed her moral obligation to speak out after witnessing the suppression of dissent within the company, stating that employees from the Arab, Palestinian, and Muslim communities have faced intimidation and harassment [5]. - Another engineer, Vaniya Agrawal, also protested during a separate event, declaring her resignation and labeling Microsoft as complicit in the military-industrial complex [9][10]. Group 2: Ethical Concerns and Company Actions - Aboussad highlighted that she was unaware her work would contribute to military applications, emphasizing that she did not intend to violate human rights [8]. - Agrawal described Microsoft as a "digital weapons manufacturer" and called for collective accountability among employees, asserting that all workers contribute to the system, regardless of their direct involvement with AI [11]. - The protests come amid a trend where AI companies are increasingly collaborating with defense contractors and military agencies, raising questions about the ethical implications of such partnerships [6][7].