logo
Why Intel (INTC) Stock Is Trading Up Today

Why Intel (INTC) Stock Is Trading Up Today

Globe and Mail12-02-2025
What Happened?
Shares of computer processor maker Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) jumped 8.7% in the morning session after Vice President JD Vance announced at the AI Action Summit in Paris that the US will provide regulatory measures to protect the country's artificial intelligence technologies from "theft and misuse."
The global AI race is intensifying across industries, but few are as critical as semiconductors, where AI-powered chips run smart data centers, large language models like ChatGPT, and self-driving cars. Intel has recently won government grants to build facilities to manufacture cutting-edge semiconductor chips on US soil in the coming years, a move that could help improve the company's competitiveness.
The Vice President's comments suggest Intel and other US innovators could benefit from measures that help protect valuable intellectual property, especially in artificial intelligence, ensuring their innovations drive sales and expand market share both domestically and internationally.
Is now the time to buy Intel? Access our full analysis report here, it's free.
What The Market Is Telling Us
Intel's shares are very volatile and have had 21 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today's move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 25 days ago when the stock gained 8% on the news that Bloomberg reported the company could be a potential acquisition target. Bloomberg cited SemiAccurate, a tech site founded by Charlie Demerjian. SemiAccurate claimed it had "read an email about a company attempting to buy all of Intel."
Intel is up 4.4% since the beginning of the year, but at $21.12 per share, it is still trading 54.2% below its 52-week high of $46.15 from March 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Intel's shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $313.24.
Unless you've been living under a rock, it should be obvious by now that generative AI is going to have a huge impact on how large corporations do business. While Nvidia and AMD are trading close to all-time highs, we prefer a lesser-known (but still profitable) semiconductor stock benefiting from the rise of AI. Click here to access our free report on our favorite semiconductor growth story.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Suriname's president vows to make oil wealth 'available to all'
Suriname's president vows to make oil wealth 'available to all'

Calgary Herald

time7 hours ago

  • Calgary Herald

Suriname's president vows to make oil wealth 'available to all'

(Bloomberg) — Suriname officially elected its first female president as the small, Dutch-speaking nation on the Caribbean coast of South America prepares to navigate an oil boom. Article content Lawmakers backed Jennifer Geerlings-Simons and her vice president, Gregory Rusland, on Sunday in the Surinamese capital of Paramaribo after the incumbent party opted against putting forward a challenger. Article content Article content Article content Geerlings-Simons, a 71-year-old former parliamentary speaker who campaigned on a more socially inclusive strategy, is set to be inaugurated on July 16. 'I come into this position to serve and I will use all my knowledge, strength and dedication to make our wealth available to all our people, but with special attention to our youth,' she told the National Assembly. Article content Article content Her National Democratic Party government is taking office as TotalEnergies SE begins development of the offshore GranMorgu project, which is expected to produce 220,000 barrels per day in 2028. The French energy giant and Malaysia's Petronas are searching for more oil in the Guyana-Suriname basin. Article content Suriname's reserves are estimated at 760 million barrels and its $4.5 billion economy is forecast to grow 3.2% this year. Growth is on track to slowly edge up to near 4% by 2027 before a more than ten-fold surge once crude starts flowing. Article content Sunday's unopposed victory by Geerlings-Simons caps a lengthy electoral process in which her NDP won 18 seats in the May 25 national vote. It later negotiated at coalition with five other parties to form a 34-seat majority in the 51-member legislature. The Progressive Reform Party of outgoing President Chandrikapersad Santokhi holds the remaining 17 seats. Article content

How SoundHound AI Is Quietly Building a Global AI Empire
How SoundHound AI Is Quietly Building a Global AI Empire

Globe and Mail

time9 hours ago

  • Globe and Mail

How SoundHound AI Is Quietly Building a Global AI Empire

Key Points SoundHound AI offers integrated and proprietary AI solutions for more than 25 languages. It has huge global opportunities in the automotive and restaurant sectors. It is diversifying into other industries with different monetisation strategies. SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN) might not enjoy the same hype as Nvidia or Palantir in the stock market, but this mid-cap voice AI company is quietly expanding its footprint across the globe. In doing so, it may be building something far bigger than most investors currently realize. While SoundHound AI is best known for powering restaurant drive-thrus and car infotainment systems, there's far more to its growth story. From Asia to Latin America, it's tapping into one of the most significant, overlooked opportunities in AI: the shift to voice as the primary human-machine interface. A multilingual AI voice platform Among the most powerful yet underrated assets SoundHound AI has are its integrated and proprietary solutions for more than 25 languages. That's more than just a technical feat. In global markets, offering a voice AI interface that functions properly in native languages is a must-have. English-only won't cut it. As companies continue to integrate AI into new physical systems, from vehicles to smart appliances, the ability to manage local language and cultural nuances will become a significant competitive advantage. That's precisely why SoundHound has been winning new contracts and partnerships. In the first quarter of 2025, it partnered with Chinese tech giant Tencent to expand its footprint in the global auto market, building on its existing relationships in the industry with manufacturers such as Hyundai, Kia, Stellantis, and Samsung 's Harman division. SoundHound AI also renewed contracts with two Japanese multinational companies that offer services across numerous industries, and it signed a deal to provide a major Latin American resort developer with an AI agent concierge. These partnerships point to something bigger: Demand for AI-powered voice interfaces isn't limited to the U.S. It's a global trend, and SoundHound AI is emerging as a leader in the space. Enormous opportunities for expansion in core industries SoundHound AI's most significant and obvious opportunity lies in the global automotive industry, and it's not hard to see why. In 2024, new light vehicle sales reached 88 million units globally, and this number is expected to increase to 95 million by 2028. Automakers are racing to make vehicles more connected, voice-enabled, and intelligent -- and SoundHound AI is right at the center of that transition. According to the company, its voice AI is in just 3% to 5% of the vehicles sold by its existing customers. In other words, the company has already landed some big clients -- it now needs to grow its relationships with each of them and to sign new deals with other OEMs globally. There are several reasons why SoundHound AI is in the driver's seat when it comes to growing its automotive business. Unlike rival applications like Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant, SoundHound offers a fully embedded voice AI that runs directly on each vehicle's local hardware -- no cloud connection or external ecosystem is required. That matters a lot to automakers, as it allows them to maintain control over user data and retain their branding rather than handing over the user experience to Apple, Amazon, and Alphabet. This independent, customizable platform is a significant selling point in an era when brands want to control their in-car experience from end to end. Another obvious area for global growth is the restaurant industry. In the U.S., SoundHound is already working with prominent chains such as White Castle, Chipotle, Jersey Mike's, and others to deploy its voice AI to handle customer interactions across phone ordering, kiosks, and drive-thrus. But the bigger prize may be overseas. In the U.S., the company views its total addressable market in the space at around 800,000 restaurants, but globally, the number is far higher. Once it has fully proven the value of its product in the U.S., expansion into international franchises will be the logical next step. More industries, more monetization While automotive and restaurants are SoundHound's most established verticals today, the company's long-term opportunity goes far beyond these two industries. As voice interfaces become more capable, reliable, and natural, new use cases are emerging, opening the door to broader monetization. The company has already expanded into areas like: Customer service call centers, where AI agents (leveraging generative AI technologies) can automate routine phone interactions, bookings, and support. Smart home and Internet of Things (IoT) devices, where embedded voice interfaces allow manufacturers to create branded, offline-capable experiences. Hospitality and retail, where AI voice assistants help with check-ins, concierge services, or hands-free assistance in stores. Each of these verticals offers a distinct monetization model -- from usage-based software-as-a-service contracts to per-device royalties to potential revenue sharing in commerce and transactions. As more industries adopt voice AI, SoundHound's diversified revenue streams could help it scale efficiently. What it means for investors SoundHound AI may still be at a fairly early stage of its growth, but it's quietly assembling the building blocks of a global voice AI empire. If voice is indeed going to be the next major digital interface -- and there are plenty of signs that it will be -- SoundHound AI is a company that investors will want to keep a close eye on. Should you invest $1,000 in SoundHound AI right now? Before you buy stock in SoundHound AI, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and SoundHound AI wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $699,558!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $976,677!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is1,060% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to180%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 30, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Lawrence Nga has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, Palantir Technologies, and Tencent. The Motley Fool recommends Stellantis. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

If I Could Load Up on Any Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock, It Would Be This One (Hint: It's Not Nvidia)
If I Could Load Up on Any Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock, It Would Be This One (Hint: It's Not Nvidia)

Globe and Mail

time10 hours ago

  • Globe and Mail

If I Could Load Up on Any Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock, It Would Be This One (Hint: It's Not Nvidia)

Key Points Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) produces the vast majority of all high-performance AI chips. High-performance chips (which include AI chips) accounted for 59% of TSMC's total revenue in the first quarter of 2025. TSMC has been expanding its manufacturing operations to different countries outside of Taiwan. Artificial intelligence (AI) has been around for a while, but it gained mainstream popularity in early 2023 due to the rise of generative AI tools like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Alphabet' s Google Gemini. Plenty of tech stocks have seen their valuations skyrocket because of the AI boom, but the biggest beneficiary has undoubtedly been Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). Over the past three years, its stock has increased by nearly 920%, while the S&P 500 has risen around 64% over the same period. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » Nvidia has gotten a lot of attention, and rightfully so. Its graphics processing units (GPUs) and AI software are very important to the AI ecosystem. However, there's another company that Nvidia relies on heavily that's just as important, and it's a stock I'm loading up on: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM) (TSMC). TSMC's role in the AI pipeline At first glance, calling a manufacturing company like TSMC an AI stock might seem unusual, but it's a pivotal player in how the technology all comes together. Let's take a look at how its business works. TSMC is the world's largest semiconductor (chip) manufacturer and the pioneer of the foundry business model. You can't buy TSMC chips in a store or online like a smartphone or laptop. Instead, companies go to TSMC with their chip designs, and it manufactures them, bringing those designs to life. For example, it makes chips for Apple 's iPhones, Tesla 's self-driving technology, AMD 's processors, Nvidia's GPUs, and plenty of other applications. TSMC's relationship with Nvidia and other AI-chip designers is why I'm willing to consider it an "AI stock," even as a chip manufacturing company. In fact, TSMC manufactures the vast majority of all high-performance AI chips, so there's a strong case to be made that without the company and its capabilities, the AI landscape would look significantly different -- for the worse. Money coming in to back up the hype The increased demand for AI chips is showing up in TSMC's financials. In the first quarter, its revenue increased 35% year over year to $25.5 billion. It expects its Q2 revenue to come in between $28.4 billion and $29.2 billion, representing year-over-year growth of 36% to 40%. That's impressive for a company of TSMC's size. Data by YCharts. Just three years ago, in Q1 2022, smartphone chips accounted for 40% of TSMC's revenue, while high-performance chips (HPCs), which include AI chips, accounted for 41%. Fast-forward to Q1 this year, and HPCs accounted for 59% of revenue, while smartphones accounted for only 28%. This shift in the composition of the company's top line isn't showing any signs of slowing down. Play the long game One of the risks facing TSMC's business is the geopolitical tension between Taiwan and China. However, management is working to address this concern by expanding its operations globally. TSMC currently has (or will have soon) manufacturing plants in the U.S., Germany, and Japan. This can help reduce some of its geographical risk. There's a reason so many of the world's top companies rely heavily on TSMC -- it's the best at what it does. Having the most technologically advanced foundries and a large customer base that often signs long-term contracts puts TSMC in a position to have consistent and reliable growth for quite some time. Trading at 28.9 times trailing earnings as of this writing, TSMC stock isn't "cheap" by most standards, but it's less expensive than other well-known AI stocks like Nvidia and Broadcom. And in this case, it's worth paying the slight premium for this undisputed industry leader, especially if you're looking for a long-term buy-and-hold position. Should you invest $1,000 in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing right now? Before you buy stock in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $699,558!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $976,677!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is1,060% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to180%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. *Stock Advisor returns as of June 30, 2025 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Stefon Walters has positions in Apple and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Alphabet, Apple, Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store