Bloomberg Tech went live coast-to-coast, with Caroline Hyde in New York and Ed Ludlow in San Francisco, providing an extensive overview of the week's most significant developments across the technology sector and broader markets. The session commenced with a focus on a monumental acquisition, significant market movements, and ongoing discussions shaping corporate governance and technological innovation.
A major headline was SpaceX's acquisition of spectrum licenses in a $17 billion deal, split between cash and SpaceX stock. Kelsey reported that this transaction provides EchoStar with a much-needed infusion of cash, helping the company navigate a regulatory probe from the FCC that could have resulted in the loss of valuable spectrum licenses due to underutilization. This deal enables EchoStar to partner with SpaceX to deliver direct-to-device services, a long-held goal for SpaceX. Caroline Hyde noted that while EchoStar receives capital, it effectively steps away from being a standalone fourth wireless competitor, instead shifting to a partnership model with T-Mobile and AT&T. Ed Ludlow emphasized the significance of SpaceX gaining more spectrum, positioning it to offer its own direct-to-device service on a standalone basis, a move that could make SpaceX more independent.
The discussion then shifted to the broader economic landscape, with public markets showing a "risk-on" sentiment, up 1% and outperforming the S&P and Dow. This optimism is fueled by expectations that new data this week might signal the Federal Reserve could cut rates as much as the market currently prices in, contributing to new record highs. An analyst expressed cautious optimism, noting strong market performance in the second quarter and resilient company earnings, particularly in technology, communications, and discretionary sectors. The analyst highlighted that AI and capital expenditure spending are propping up U.S. economic growth, representing about 1% of all GDP so far in 2025, and have even overtaken consumer spending as a contribution to GDP growth. This incremental demand from AI/CapEx spending is a significant driver for investor excitement. The consensus among technology investors, the analyst added, is that a Fed cut in September is "very likely," barring any surprises in this week's data.
However, this confidence is tempered by macro risks, including a weakening labor market, potential inflation impacts from tariffs, and geopolitical nuances, making a "cautiously optimistic" stance prudent.
Trade policies were also a key focus, with Mike Shepard detailing the U.S. proposal for annual approvals for exports of chipmaking supplies to Korean giants like SK Hynix and Samsung for their Chinese manufacturing facilities. This represents a compromise to prevent disruptions after the revocation of blanket waivers that allowed unrestricted supplies. While it offers some relief from the prospect of thousands of individual license requests, it creates an annual bureaucratic hurdle and places these companies directly in the middle of U.S.-China competition. Separately, Mike Shepard reported on challenges faced by South Korean firms like Hyundai and LG Energy in staffing their U.S. facilities, such as a battery plant in Georgia, due to limited H-1B visas. The annual cap of 85,000 H-1B visas, with only 2,000 allocated to South Korea, is insufficient for companies bringing in critical engineering talent for their U.S. investments, posing another conflict in their business operations.
In the realm of automotive technology, Qualcomm and Google Cloud are deepening their partnership to bring AI agents to cars, as reported by Ed Ludlow. The Qualcomm CEO emphasized the need to view cars as "digital first" platforms, where new experiences will emerge, much like with smart glasses. With integrated cameras, computing power, and AI models running on the edge, cars can offer a "gent experience," enabling users to search, navigate, ask for stories, or get restaurant reviews while driving. This aligns with the broader trend of foundational AI models evolving to operate both in the cloud and on edge devices.
Cognition AI also made headlines with a new valuation of $10.2 billion post-money following a $400 million funding round. Ed Ludlow noted the "massive acceleration" for Cognition since acquiring Windsurf, which Scott Wu, Cognition's CEO, attributed to the strong synergy between their product experiences, particularly in code, where AI has rapidly changed workflows. Wu explained that prior investors were highly supportive of the Windsurf acquisition, recognizing the "synergy" and providing the necessary backing. Despite a fast-moving, intense culture that "is not for everyone," Wu highlighted the company's efficiency, having spent only about $20 million since its late 2023 founding, and the new capital will enable larger model training and faster business scaling. He emphasized the team's passion for teaching AI to program, calling it "the funniest thing" they could work on.
Shifting to corporate governance, Professor Shane Goodman, an advisor to Tesla's special committee, discussed Elon Musk's pay package, which he described as "pay-for-performance" rather than "pay-for-promises". The package is designed to work under Texas law and in every other state. Goodman explained that the package is tied to ambitious performance goals, including achieving a million robots and 20 million EVs on the roads, reflecting Tesla's transition from a traditional EV manufacturer to an AI-focused robotics and energy transformation company. The board, including Elon Musk's brother, recused itself from the vote on the proxy and implemented safeguards, such as a fully informed, disinterested committee and independent advisors, to address past concerns about conflicts of interest from the 2018 pay package. Goodman stressed that the $1 trillion headline value of the package "chases results" and that "there is no pay unless there is performance". Roblox CEO David Baszucki joined the conversation, following a successful developer conference that reinforced the company's growth prospects. He introduced "Roblox Moments," an in-platform feature allowing users to capture and share short videos of their gaming experiences, enabling others to jump directly into games they like. Baszucki highlighted new AI improvements and the company's long-term goal to transparently distribute as much cash as possible to creators, demonstrated by a recent increase in the DevEx rate, allowing creators to earn 8.5% more. Roblox has been an "AI shop" for over four years, developing 400 AI models for various functions, with a vision for AI to be live inside every experience, fostering creativity in areas like fashion and vehicles. Despite "servers melting" from peak concurrency, reaching over 45 million people playing simultaneously, Baszucki noted this is a "good problem," managed by their own data centers and cloud partners. He also emphasized Roblox's proactive approach to safety, particularly for its 40% user base under 13, by implementing facial age estimation and other tools to adjust communication based on age, setting a new industry standard.
Finally, Mark Gurman offered insights into Apple's impending launch of the iPhone 17 Air, describing it as a "much slimmed-down phone, about one-third thinner" than current iPhones. While the iPhone 17 Pro line, with its new design and substantial camera upgrades, is expected to drive sales, the Air model will feature a breakthrough design with a 6.6-inch screen and 120 hertz refresh rate. Gurman compared the iPhone Air's anticipated evolution to that of the MacBook Air, which initially had limitations but improved over time. He clarified that this release is primarily a hardware showcase, with Apple "doubling down on what they are good at," and not expected to feature many new generative AI features yet, as Apple needs to "test these things in the wild" before releasing a foldable phone to their quality standards.
