Tech bros worth billions don’t typically sing for their supper. But breaking bread at the White House is an exception. President Donald Trump’s hosting of U.S. technology leaders shows just how vital the artificial-intelligence boom is to the political and economic landscape.
Meta Platforms boss Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI’s Sam Altman were prominent among those praising Trump’s leadership at Thursday’s event. Their rival Elon Musk—Tesla and xAI head—was conspicuous by his absence, despite being invited.
While keeping in with the president has become a requisite survival skill for CEOs, there are also concrete benefits to such meetings. Trump talked of ensuring the attendees would be able to get enough energy for increasingly larger data centers, as well as signaling who might escape tariffs on semiconductors—with Apple CEO Tim Cook singled out for praise due to U.S. investment pledges.
It’s not as
simple as picking stocks based on the guest list. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang wasn’t there either. Neither was Broadcom’s Hock Tan—who might have been otherwise occupied as the semiconductor
giant reported upbeat earnings on Thursday. Still, both chip companies will benefit from a government-backed wave of AI investment.
The main takeaway from both the dinner and recent earnings is that
infrastructure and hardware stocks continue to be the safest plays on AI, and could receive another boost from Friday’s jobs report, which has a direct read across to interest-rate cuts, easing the costs of capital expenditure. Meanwhile, software plays such as Salesforce are struggling to convince the market they will be able to resist the rise of AI-native competitors.
The question is whether the AI trade is still a tempting appetizer on the investment menu or whether traders should skip to the coffee and head for the exit. Trump’s dinner suggests there’s plenty left to feast on.
—Adam Clark
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Trump’s Legal Team Responds as Fed Dispute Heats Up
President Donald Trump’s lawyers are pushing back on Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook’s bid to temporarily block her firing, urging a federal judge to deny Cook’s request for an emergency temporary restraining order, calling the legal grounds behind the procedural challenge “misguided and futile.”
- Cook has sued to keep her job amid administration officials’ claims of mortgage fraud. The Justice Department investigation into the allegations is ongoing, and Cook hasn’t been convicted of any wrongdoing. She says her firing violated her right to due process and her statutory right to notice and a hearing.
- But now Trump’s legal team says he didn’t have to wait until Cook was proved guilty before moving forward with her removal, and even if she had been given an opportunity to be heard, there’s no evidence it might have changed Trump’s mind.
- Stephen Miran, Trump’s nominee
to fill a vacancy on the Fed board, wouldn’t talk about the Cook matter during a Senate hearing. Asked if it were appropriate for Trump to threaten to fire Fed policymakers, Miran said, “It’s not my prerogative to have views on such and such a question.”
- Lawmakers grilled Miran on his views of Fed independence. Miran said independence is of “paramount” importance for the economy, and for financial markets. He said if confirmed to the role of Fed governor he would act independently.
What’s Next: Both the Trump administration and Cook are seeking a quick ruling. Trump’s legal team specifically asked that Federal Judge Jia Cobb issue her ruling by Sept. 9 so that, if needed, they can seek appellate relief before the Fed’s Sept. 16-17 policy meeting, when it is expected to decide on interest rates.
—Megan Leonhardt
Broadcom Reveals New $10 Billion AI Customer
Chip maker Broadcom said it scored $10 billion in artificial intelligence chip orders from a new qualified customer, something CEO Hock Tan says will “significantly” improve the AI revenue outlook for fiscal 2026. This comes as it beat expectations for the third quarter and issued higher-than-expected guidance.
- For its fiscal third quarter, Broadcom reported revenue of $15.95 billion versus the Wall Street consensus of $15.8 billion. Adjusted earnings came in at $1.69 a share. For the current quarter, Broadcom guided to $17.4 billion in revenue.
- Tan attributed the record
third-quarter revenue to continued strength in custom AI accelerators, networking, and VMware. Its chips compete in several categories including networking, broadband, server storage, wireless and industrial.
- The company is also a leader in the market for high-end artificial intelligence application-specific integrated circuits, or AI ASICs. It helps large technology companies design custom chips for AI. The identity of the customer wasn’t revealed.
- AI revenue was $5.2 billion in the third quarter, up 63% from a year ago. The CEO said they are aiming for acceleration of growth in the current quarter, projecting AI revenue to hit $6.2 billion. It would be the 11th consecutive quarter of growth
for the segment.
What’s Next: Broadcom’s backlog has reached above $110 billion, largely driven by the AI boom, Tan said. Its software segment also has boosted that backlog. Tan told analysts on the conference call that he would continue as CEO of Broadcom until at least 2030.
—Tae Kim and Liz Moyer
Goldman to Invest In T. Rowe Price In Retirement Push
In an arrangement that highlights Wall Street’s push to offer private assets in retirement products,
