From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
ROBINHOOD IPO FIZZLES
Online brokerage firm Robinhood had one of the worst public debuts for a company of its size in more than a decade, as critics lambasted the investing app and co-founder Vlad Tenev fell under investigation for failing to register with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a top Wall Street regulator. The stock started trading at $38 per share, already on the low end of its range, before plummeting 10 percent and ending the day around $34 per share, bumping up to $35 on Friday. Big-name investors such as Michael Burry and Warren Buffett criticized the company, which has presided over the recent boom in retail investing, for encouraging excessive risk-taking.
TECH EARNINGS MIXED
Tech earnings were a mixed bag this week. For Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's first quarter at the helm, the e-commerce giant reported another $100 billion quarter but missed sales expectations for the first time in a long time. Shares dropped 7 percent on the news. At Facebook, digital ad spending fueled a 56 percent pop in revenue, even as the company warned of a longer-term slowdown due to headwinds in the changing ad targeting business. Google parent company Alphabet, meanwhile, crushed Wall Street expectations, with a 69 percent jump in total ad revenue.
EVs: GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS
EV companies saw rallies, IPOs, and fraud charges this week. Tesla's stock soared Thursday on the news that the infrastructure package coming out of Congress could include $7.5 billion to build 500,000 electric vehicle chargers throughout the country. Lucid Motors also made its public debut via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, as reservations for its electric luxury sedan stack up and CEO Peter Rawlinson hopes to vie for the status of the "Next Tesla." In the meantime, a federal grand jury charged Trevor Milton, founder of electric truck company Nikola, with three counts of criminal fraud for lying about multiple aspects of his business.
ACTIVISION WALKOUT
Stocks of Activision Blizzard slumped this week as employees staged a walkout after California filed a lawsuit against the video game company alleging widespread discrimination and sexual harassment of women and other marginalized groups. The workers demanded better working conditions and an end to the abusive practices. CEO Bobby Kotick issued a statement calling the company's response so far "tone deaf."
MCWINNING
Chicken sandwiches and celebrity-sponsored meals powered an earnings beat at fast-food giant McDonald's this week. The company reported a 25.9 percent jump in same-store sales, crediting its new Crispy Chicken Sandwich and its "famous orders" promotion, which pairs meals with big-name pop stars. The latest promotion brought together an order of McNuggets and special sauces with K-pop group BTS. Next on the docket is hip-hop star Saweetie, whose "Saweetie 'N Sour" will include a Big Mac, four-piece Chicken McNuggets, medium fries, a medium Sprite, and BBQ sauce.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
U.S. sports betting is booming as NFL and college football fuel massive activity. BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt breaks down trends, growth, and what’s next.
President Donald Trump says a deal struck by Netflix last week to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share. The Republican president says he will be involved in the decision about whether federal regulators should approve the deal. Trump commented Sunday when he was asked about the deal as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. The $72 billion deal would bring together two of the biggest players in television and film and potentially reshape the entertainment industry.
Disney's changes to a program for disabled visitors are facing challenges in federal court and through a shareholder proposal. The Disability Access Service program, which allows disabled visitors to skip long lines, was overhauled last year. Disney now mostly limits the program to those with developmental disabilities like autism who have difficulty waiting in lines. The changes have sparked criticism from some disability advocates. A shareholder proposal submitted by disability advocates calls for an independent review of Disney's disability policies. Disney plans to block this proposal, claiming it's misleading. It's the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while stopping past abuses by some theme park guests.
With a merger this big, creators, studios, and theaters all face uncertain futures. Here’s what experts are worried about and what good could come from it.
With disengagement rising and hybrid work shifting, 'Everybody Matters' author Bob Chapman explains why treating people well could define the future of work.
We sat down with Ali Furman, U.S. Consumer Markets Industry Leader at consulting firm PwC to ask what trends she garnered from the initial data this year.
