OpenAI won WWDC 2025
For many of the new Apple Intelligence features the company announced on Monday, it was quick to note users could turn to OpenAI's models, instead of its own in-house systems, to carry out a task. Don't like the portraits of your friends Image Playground is generating? ChatGPT can help. How about the analysis offered by Visual Intelligence? If Apple's model isn't doing it for you, ChatGPT can assist there, too.
Those are just two examples. There are others. OpenAI's models are also available through the updated Shortcuts app, and, perhaps most notably, in the new version of Apple's Xcode app development suite. In fact, according to Engadget managing editor Cherlynn Low, who was on the ground in Cupertino, the news that ChatGPT would come built directly in Xcode got one of the loudest cheers of the presentation.
It all felt like an admission by Apple that its own AI models, even the more private, on-device one it would make available to developers through a new framework, aren't up to snuff. Apple's dependence on OpenAI is not new. ChatGPT has been an integral part of Apple Intelligence since the start, but what is surprising is how much deeper that dependence has become.
Before Monday, we all knew the company was behind in the AI race. At WWDC 2025, Apple offered few reassurances it would catch up anytime soon. For instance, it had almost nothing to say about the more personalized Siri it previewed at last year's conference.
"As we've shared, we're continuing our work to deliver the features that make Siri even more personal," said Craig Federighi, the company's senior vice president of software engineering. "This work needed more time to reach our high-quality bar, and we look forward to sharing more about it in the coming year."
The time frame of "in the coming year" would suggest the new Siri may not arrive before the start of 2026 at the earliest. Six months to a year is an eternity in the tech world, especially when Apple's competitors are moving so quickly.
As if to punctuate things, OpenAI announced on Saturday it had begun rolling out an update to Advanced Voice that gives ChatGPT more subtle intonation, realistic cadence and expressiveness. Those are all upgrades that Siri could use.
Of course, the irony that Apple should choose to turn to OpenAI for help in the AI race is one almost certainly not lost on anyone at either company.
In May, OpenAI announced it was buying Jony Ive's io hardware startup (for a reported $6.5 billion) to support its ambition to build an AI device. In an interview with The New York Times about the acquisition, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman didn't explicitly mention Ive's former employer, but he was obviously thinking about Apple and the iPhone throughout the conversation. "We've been waiting for the next big thing for 20 years," he said at one point. "We want to bring people something beyond the legacy products we've been using for so long."
The fact the AI devices we've seen so far, including the AI Pin and R1 , haven't been a success, does not mean Apple is safe from disruption. For one, the pedigree of OpenAI and Jony Ive (even if you include misses like the MacBook Pro with its terrible butterfly keyboard) surpass that of Humane and Rabbit. One of the people that is now working for OpenAI as part of the io deal include Evans Hankey , who was Apple's head of hardware design for three years after Ive's departure from the company.
You could make the argument that Apple has found itself in similar situations before and come out unscathed. For years, the company has depended on Google to offer access to a search engine to its users (and Maps before that), but this feels different to me. What's going on in the AI industry doesn't play to the company's usual strengths. The technology is moving faster than Apple's annual release schedule, with new, more powerful models being announced almost every week. It's not a space where the company can rely on its usual strategy of waiting for others to work out the wrinkles before it dives in itself.
It's too early to know if Apple's partnership with OpenAI will ultimately hurt the tech giant, but it's safe to say OpenAI isn't content with being merely a supporting player. Apple is still one of the wealthiest companies in the world, with billions of dollars of cash on hand — but being so dependent on OpenAI is a rare sign of vulnerability in a crucial part of the tech industry.
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40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Stock market today: S&P 500, Nasdaq leap to fresh records as Vietnam trade deal boosts hopes ahead of key jobs report
US stocks moved higher to clinch more record highs on Wednesday as optimism over US trade deals rose at the same time that more signs of an intensifying labor market slowdown bolstered the case for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was just below the flat line. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose nearly 0.5%, closing at an all-time high of 6,277.42. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved up more than 0.9%, also hitting a record close at 20,393.13. Apple (AAPL) stock rose after an upgrade from Jefferies (JEF) analysts, and Tesla (TSLA) shares climbed after the EV maker produced more vehicles globally than expected in the second quarter even as sales plummeted. The benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq moved firmly higher Wednesday after President Trump announced a trade deal with Vietnam, lifting investor hopes that more agreements will come before the July 9 tariff pause deadline. Meanwhile, the labor market showed more signs of a cooldown in June. ADP data showed US private employers unexpectedly cut 33,000 jobs in the month, badly missing expectations of around 98,000 jobs added. It was the first month of job losses in the private sector in over two years. The data lays the ground for the release of the June US jobs report on Thursday, seen as a key factor for the Fed as investors bet an interest-rate cut could land sooner rather than later. According to CME data, the majority of Fed watchers still do not expect the central bank to cut rates in July. But almost all are betting on at least one rate cut by September, with over 20% now pricing in two cuts by that meeting. Read more: The latest on Trump's tariffs Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" is also in focus as it heads to the House after clearing the Senate thanks to Vice President JD Vance's tie-breaking vote. But split Republican factions are threatening to delay a potential final vote as Trump pushes to sign it by July 4. US stocks moved higher on Wednesday as optimism over US trade deals rose at the same time that more signs of an intensifying labor market slowdown bolstered the case for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was just below the flat line. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose nearly 0.5%, closing at an all-time high of 6,277.42. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved up more than 0.9%, also hitting a record close at 20,393.13, with Apple (AAPL) stock rising after an upgrade from Jefferies analysts and Tesla (TSLA) shares climbing after the EV maker produced more vehicles globally than expected in the second quarter even as sales plummeted. The June jobs report is expected to show hiring slowed while the unemployment rate moved higher. The data's release will come as investors closely watch for any further signs of slowing in the US labor market amid growing debate over when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data is slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday. Economists expect nonfarm payrolls to have risen by 110,000 in June and the unemployment rate to have moved up to 4.3%, according to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg. In May, the US economy added 139,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate held flat at 4.2%. Here are the numbers Wall Street is expecting Thursday, according to data from Bloomberg: "We think labor demand is slowing, but so far the slowdown is modest," Morgan Stanley chief US economist Michael Gapen wrote in a note to clients. Read more here. At the midway point of 2025, the S&P 500 is at an all-time high and has gained more than 6%. Five sectors — Technology (XLK), Financials (XLF), Utilities (XLU), Communication Services (XLC), and Industrials (XLI) — all gained more than 8% in the first six months of the year. On a headline basis, these are returns most investors would be satisfied with. But perhaps underrated within those headline numbers is just how chaotic the first half of 2025 was for investors. Research from Exhibit A co-founder Matt Cerminaro shows both the Tech and Communication Services sectors fell more than 22% from their most recent high at some point this year. With both sectors now among the best performers of the year, this market action is a prime example of why stock strategists often point out that the biggest losers amid a market drawdown often later become the biggest winners off the bottom. It also serves as a simple reminder of an often-cited market phrase, "volatility is the price of admission" for investors seeking long-term gains in the stock market. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports: Read more here. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferre reports: Read more here. Robinhood (HOOD) shares touched a record high of $100 for the first time ever on Wednesday, driven by momentum around the trading platform's continued expansion. The stock soared 7% during the session, extending a monster year-to-date rally of more 160%. Earlier this week Robinhood unveiled tokenized stock and ETF trading in the European Union, as the platform aggressively builds on its offerings. With tokenized stocks, Robinhood's European app transitions from a crypto-only app to a broader offering where customers can invest in stocks and ETFs. Wall Street is bullish on the stock, with Bernstein analysts recently highlighting Robinhood's major expansion in the crypto space. "HOOD leaned early into crypto in 2021 and persisted through the regulatory headwinds in 2022/2023, while other brokers played conservative and are only now waking up to the crypto opportunity," Bernstein analysts wrote in May, noting Robinhood now forms 30% of US retail crypto trading revenues. DA Davidson analyst Gil Luria reiterated his view that Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) needs a "complete breakup" to unlock the value of its individual businesses, maintaining his Hold rating on the stock. Luria wrote in a note to clients on Wednesday, "We believe the only way forward for Alphabet is a complete breakup that would allow investors to own the businesses they actually want." Google is waiting for a federal judge's ruling in the remedy phase of its antitrust case with the Department of Justice, in which the company was found liable for illegally monopolizing the general search engine market and the market for general search engine text "We see Google Cloud (GCP) as potentially one of the best standalone software stocks," Luria wrote. "GCP is not only a top 3 hyperscaler expected to generate $ 55bn of revenue this year, but provides a full suite of tools around that core offering that is competitive with the two leaders Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure." Luria noted that Google Cloud "has an architecture advantage" because of its access to in-house AI chips (Google's TPUs, or tensor processing units) in addition to its Nvidia (NVDA) servers. He said shares of Google Cloud as a standalone stock would trade at $56 per share. Footwear stocks led by Nike rose in morning trade on Wednesday after President Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to share that he "made a Trade Deal with Vietnam." Nike (NKE), On Holding (ONON), Deckers (DECK), and Lululemon (LULU) spiked in immediate response to the news. Retail and footwear stocks tempered initial gains as Trump outlined details of the deal in a subsequent post, which said Vietnam will pay a 20% tariff on all good sent into the US and a 40% tariff on goods that are subject to transshipping, meaning routed through Vietnam with a different country of origin, like China. After an initial pop to rise as much as 4%, Nike stock was up about 1.7% in mid-morning trade on Wednesday. Shares of ON were up more than 3.5% to lead the rally among footwear names, while Deckers and Lululemon shares were fractionally higher. Read more here. Intel stock fell 3.7% after Reuters reported that the struggling chipmaker's new CEO is considering scrapping the company's long-awaited 18A technology for external customers — a chip manufacturing process that analysts have said is Intel's greatest hope for succeeding in a turnaround and becoming competitive with TSMC (TSM). According to Reuters, CEO Lip-Bu Tan has said that 18A was losing its appeal with customers. So far, Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) have signed on to build their own chips using Intel's 18A process. Intel opened up its manufacturing business to outside clients in 2021 under former CEO Pat Gelsinger. But Wall Street analysts, investors, and executives grew exasperated with his strategy and what they saw as unrealistic goals for the business, which lost $13.4 billion in 2024 despite recording a revenue of $17.5 billion. Tan joined the company in March, and analysts and former executives told Yahoo Finance the new CEO needed to release 18A for outside customers to show that the company can execute after a history of delays and cancellations of its products and manufacturing processes. But Tan would instead like to focus on 14A, the manufacturing technology that is the successor to 18A. President Trump announced a trade deal with Vietnam, lifting investor sentiment that more agreements could come before the July 9 tariff-pause deadline. "The Terms are that Vietnam will pay the United States a 20% Tariff on any and all goods sent into our Territory, and a 40% Tariff on any Transshipping," Trump wrote on social media on Wednesday morning. "In return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade," he added. "It is my opinion that the SUV or, as it is sometimes referred to, Large Engine Vehicle, which does so well in the United States, will be a wonderful addition to the various product lines within Vietnam," wrote Trump. Investors have been closely watching developments on the trade front as July 9 approaches — the deadline following a 90-day pause of reciprocal tariffs announced in April. The US recently announced a framework agreement with China, a major trading partner. Insurance stocks dropped across the board Wednesday following the passage during the prior trading session of Trump's "big, beautiful" tax and spending bill, which would gut federal healthcare spending over the next decade. UnitedHealth (UNH) fell nearly 3%, while Aetna parent company CVS Health (CVS) dropped over 2%. Cigna (CI) declined 3%, while Elevance Health (ELV) fell almost 9%. The megabill's provision to slash federal spending on Medicaid and Affordable Care Act marketplaces by about $1 trillion would leave almost 12 million people without insurance by 2034, NPR reported. Tesla stock climbed nearly 3% early Wednesday after the EV maker reported global electric vehicle deliveries that came in below Wall Street's low projections but produced more cars than expected. Tesla said Wednesday it delivered 384,122 EVs in the second quarter, less than the 389,407 projected by Wall Street analysts tracked by Bloomberg consensus estimates. The company's deliveries for the period marked a 13% drop from the prior year, but an increase from the 336,681 vehicles delivered in the first quarter. Read the full story here. Apple (AAPL) stock climbed about 1% Wednesday before the market open following an upgrade from analysts at Jefferies, who raised their rating to Hold from Underperform previously. Citing Counterpoint Research, Jefferies analyst Edison Lee said global iPhone sales rose 15% in April and May from the prior year, the strongest growth since the third quarter of 2021. Lee estimated that iPhone sales in China grew 19% in that period, partly due to targeted discounts and government subsidies as well as "pulled-in demand," or Chinese consumers buying phones ahead of anticipated tariffs. "This is a strong sign that AAPL is determined to defend market share in China, and Chinese consumers are still willing to buy iPhone at lower prices," Lee wrote. But he also said the release of the iPhone 17 in the second half of 2025 may not provide the boost Apple needs. Lee wrote that "sales could be at risk since there remains a lack of new features, and AI is not yet a game changer." Apple shares jumped 1.3% Tuesday following a report from Bloomberg that the iPhone maker is considering using AI technology from startups Anthropic ( or OpenAI ( to power a new version of Siri. Still, the stock was down 17% for the 12 months through Tuesday. Nvidia (NVDA) stock continued to retreat from its record high of $157.99 on Monday. Shares were down 1.2% in premarket trading. The AI chipmaker had reclaimed the top spot among the most valued companies worldwide in June, with a market cap of around $3.73 trillion, as of July 1. Microsoft (MSFT), the second most valued company, has a market cap of roughly $3.65 trillion. From Reuters: Read more here. Private employers unexpectedly cut 33,000 jobs in June, the latest signal of an intensifying slowdown in the US labor market. On Wednesday, data from ADP showed private payrolls fell by 33,000 last month in June, below the 29,000 job gains seen in May and the 98,000 additions expected by economists. This marked the first month of job losses in the private sector since March 2023. May's initial reading of 37,000 private payroll additions had been the lowest monthly total since March '23. "Though layoffs continue to be rare, a hesitancy to hire and a reluctance to replace departing workers led to job losses last month," ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said in the release. "Still, the slowdown in hiring has yet to disrupt pay growth." Read more here. Some of the world's most influential stocks are dragging the S&P 500 Index (^GSPC) down. The names Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA) and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) — part of the Mag 7 and synonymous with growth and value seem to be preventing the S&P 500 from reaching further highs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Apple's (AAPL) is reportedly considering using AI tech from outside firms to power new version of Siri. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is on an aggressive recruitment drive to poach top AI researchers and engineers. They're both signs of a key shift, Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban reports in today's Morning Brief: Read more here. Tesla (TSLA) is expected to report yet another quarter of declining global deliveries on Wednesday, though disappointing sales are nothing new for investors and analysts following the company. Data for June has brought a mixed message. Sales dropped for a sixth straight month in France, Sweden, Denmark and Italy, but rose in Norway and Spain — an early sign that the revamped Model Y is getting some buyers. Shares of Tesla were edging into the green in premarket before the quarterly data, following a 5% loss on Tuesday as CEO Elon Musk's feud with President Trump flared up again. Yahoo Finance's Pras Subramanian reports: Read more here. Earnings: No notable earnings releases.. Economic data: MBA Mortgage Applications (week ending June 27); ADP employment change (June); S&P Global US services PMI (May final); Challenger job cuts (May) Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning: Apple and Meta are proving it: AI is going corporate Bets on 'Goldilocks' stocks bump up against reality Trump's 35% threat feeds Japan's worst-case tariff fears 'Irrational exuberance' stock gauge sparks fresh bubble worries Opinion: Musk is right about the Trump tax bill's failures Tesla's quarterly deliveries to fall short again Paramount settles Trump's '60 Minutes' suit for $16 million Bessent: Fed could lower interest rates by September Social Security checks slashed for millions this month Shares of Centene (CNC) tumbled over 25% in premarket trading after the healthcare insurer withdrew its financial guidance for 2025, warning that its earnings will fall far short of expectations. The company said late Tuesday that recent data showed that fewer people were enrolling in the Medicaid and Affordable Care Act marketplaces, and those who did enrol were sicker than expected. Those trends went against Centene's assumptions are likely to lead to a shortfall of $1.8 billion in federal payouts, the company said. Centene expects the issue to pull its full-year earnings per shares down by $2.75 a share. Wall Street had previously estimated adjusted EPS of $7.28. Shares of industry peers Elevance Health (ELV) and Oscar Health (OSCR) also struggled, down 4% and 7%, respectively. US stocks moved higher on Wednesday as optimism over US trade deals rose at the same time that more signs of an intensifying labor market slowdown bolstered the case for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was just below the flat line. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose nearly 0.5%, closing at an all-time high of 6,277.42. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved up more than 0.9%, also hitting a record close at 20,393.13, with Apple (AAPL) stock rising after an upgrade from Jefferies analysts and Tesla (TSLA) shares climbing after the EV maker produced more vehicles globally than expected in the second quarter even as sales plummeted. The June jobs report is expected to show hiring slowed while the unemployment rate moved higher. The data's release will come as investors closely watch for any further signs of slowing in the US labor market amid growing debate over when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data is slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday. Economists expect nonfarm payrolls to have risen by 110,000 in June and the unemployment rate to have moved up to 4.3%, according to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg. In May, the US economy added 139,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate held flat at 4.2%. Here are the numbers Wall Street is expecting Thursday, according to data from Bloomberg: "We think labor demand is slowing, but so far the slowdown is modest," Morgan Stanley chief US economist Michael Gapen wrote in a note to clients. Read more here. At the midway point of 2025, the S&P 500 is at an all-time high and has gained more than 6%. Five sectors — Technology (XLK), Financials (XLF), Utilities (XLU), Communication Services (XLC), and Industrials (XLI) — all gained more than 8% in the first six months of the year. On a headline basis, these are returns most investors would be satisfied with. But perhaps underrated within those headline numbers is just how chaotic the first half of 2025 was for investors. Research from Exhibit A co-founder Matt Cerminaro shows both the Tech and Communication Services sectors fell more than 22% from their most recent high at some point this year. With both sectors now among the best performers of the year, this market action is a prime example of why stock strategists often point out that the biggest losers amid a market drawdown often later become the biggest winners off the bottom. It also serves as a simple reminder of an often-cited market phrase, "volatility is the price of admission" for investors seeking long-term gains in the stock market. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports: Read more here. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferre reports: Read more here. Robinhood (HOOD) shares touched a record high of $100 for the first time ever on Wednesday, driven by momentum around the trading platform's continued expansion. The stock soared 7% during the session, extending a monster year-to-date rally of more 160%. Earlier this week Robinhood unveiled tokenized stock and ETF trading in the European Union, as the platform aggressively builds on its offerings. With tokenized stocks, Robinhood's European app transitions from a crypto-only app to a broader offering where customers can invest in stocks and ETFs. Wall Street is bullish on the stock, with Bernstein analysts recently highlighting Robinhood's major expansion in the crypto space. "HOOD leaned early into crypto in 2021 and persisted through the regulatory headwinds in 2022/2023, while other brokers played conservative and are only now waking up to the crypto opportunity," Bernstein analysts wrote in May, noting Robinhood now forms 30% of US retail crypto trading revenues. DA Davidson analyst Gil Luria reiterated his view that Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) needs a "complete breakup" to unlock the value of its individual businesses, maintaining his Hold rating on the stock. Luria wrote in a note to clients on Wednesday, "We believe the only way forward for Alphabet is a complete breakup that would allow investors to own the businesses they actually want." Google is waiting for a federal judge's ruling in the remedy phase of its antitrust case with the Department of Justice, in which the company was found liable for illegally monopolizing the general search engine market and the market for general search engine text "We see Google Cloud (GCP) as potentially one of the best standalone software stocks," Luria wrote. "GCP is not only a top 3 hyperscaler expected to generate $ 55bn of revenue this year, but provides a full suite of tools around that core offering that is competitive with the two leaders Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure." Luria noted that Google Cloud "has an architecture advantage" because of its access to in-house AI chips (Google's TPUs, or tensor processing units) in addition to its Nvidia (NVDA) servers. He said shares of Google Cloud as a standalone stock would trade at $56 per share. Footwear stocks led by Nike rose in morning trade on Wednesday after President Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to share that he "made a Trade Deal with Vietnam." Nike (NKE), On Holding (ONON), Deckers (DECK), and Lululemon (LULU) spiked in immediate response to the news. Retail and footwear stocks tempered initial gains as Trump outlined details of the deal in a subsequent post, which said Vietnam will pay a 20% tariff on all good sent into the US and a 40% tariff on goods that are subject to transshipping, meaning routed through Vietnam with a different country of origin, like China. After an initial pop to rise as much as 4%, Nike stock was up about 1.7% in mid-morning trade on Wednesday. Shares of ON were up more than 3.5% to lead the rally among footwear names, while Deckers and Lululemon shares were fractionally higher. Read more here. Intel stock fell 3.7% after Reuters reported that the struggling chipmaker's new CEO is considering scrapping the company's long-awaited 18A technology for external customers — a chip manufacturing process that analysts have said is Intel's greatest hope for succeeding in a turnaround and becoming competitive with TSMC (TSM). According to Reuters, CEO Lip-Bu Tan has said that 18A was losing its appeal with customers. So far, Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) have signed on to build their own chips using Intel's 18A process. Intel opened up its manufacturing business to outside clients in 2021 under former CEO Pat Gelsinger. But Wall Street analysts, investors, and executives grew exasperated with his strategy and what they saw as unrealistic goals for the business, which lost $13.4 billion in 2024 despite recording a revenue of $17.5 billion. Tan joined the company in March, and analysts and former executives told Yahoo Finance the new CEO needed to release 18A for outside customers to show that the company can execute after a history of delays and cancellations of its products and manufacturing processes. But Tan would instead like to focus on 14A, the manufacturing technology that is the successor to 18A. President Trump announced a trade deal with Vietnam, lifting investor sentiment that more agreements could come before the July 9 tariff-pause deadline. "The Terms are that Vietnam will pay the United States a 20% Tariff on any and all goods sent into our Territory, and a 40% Tariff on any Transshipping," Trump wrote on social media on Wednesday morning. "In return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade," he added. "It is my opinion that the SUV or, as it is sometimes referred to, Large Engine Vehicle, which does so well in the United States, will be a wonderful addition to the various product lines within Vietnam," wrote Trump. Investors have been closely watching developments on the trade front as July 9 approaches — the deadline following a 90-day pause of reciprocal tariffs announced in April. The US recently announced a framework agreement with China, a major trading partner. Insurance stocks dropped across the board Wednesday following the passage during the prior trading session of Trump's "big, beautiful" tax and spending bill, which would gut federal healthcare spending over the next decade. UnitedHealth (UNH) fell nearly 3%, while Aetna parent company CVS Health (CVS) dropped over 2%. Cigna (CI) declined 3%, while Elevance Health (ELV) fell almost 9%. The megabill's provision to slash federal spending on Medicaid and Affordable Care Act marketplaces by about $1 trillion would leave almost 12 million people without insurance by 2034, NPR reported. Tesla stock climbed nearly 3% early Wednesday after the EV maker reported global electric vehicle deliveries that came in below Wall Street's low projections but produced more cars than expected. Tesla said Wednesday it delivered 384,122 EVs in the second quarter, less than the 389,407 projected by Wall Street analysts tracked by Bloomberg consensus estimates. The company's deliveries for the period marked a 13% drop from the prior year, but an increase from the 336,681 vehicles delivered in the first quarter. Read the full story here. Apple (AAPL) stock climbed about 1% Wednesday before the market open following an upgrade from analysts at Jefferies, who raised their rating to Hold from Underperform previously. Citing Counterpoint Research, Jefferies analyst Edison Lee said global iPhone sales rose 15% in April and May from the prior year, the strongest growth since the third quarter of 2021. Lee estimated that iPhone sales in China grew 19% in that period, partly due to targeted discounts and government subsidies as well as "pulled-in demand," or Chinese consumers buying phones ahead of anticipated tariffs. "This is a strong sign that AAPL is determined to defend market share in China, and Chinese consumers are still willing to buy iPhone at lower prices," Lee wrote. But he also said the release of the iPhone 17 in the second half of 2025 may not provide the boost Apple needs. Lee wrote that "sales could be at risk since there remains a lack of new features, and AI is not yet a game changer." Apple shares jumped 1.3% Tuesday following a report from Bloomberg that the iPhone maker is considering using AI technology from startups Anthropic ( or OpenAI ( to power a new version of Siri. Still, the stock was down 17% for the 12 months through Tuesday. Nvidia (NVDA) stock continued to retreat from its record high of $157.99 on Monday. Shares were down 1.2% in premarket trading. The AI chipmaker had reclaimed the top spot among the most valued companies worldwide in June, with a market cap of around $3.73 trillion, as of July 1. Microsoft (MSFT), the second most valued company, has a market cap of roughly $3.65 trillion. From Reuters: Read more here. Private employers unexpectedly cut 33,000 jobs in June, the latest signal of an intensifying slowdown in the US labor market. On Wednesday, data from ADP showed private payrolls fell by 33,000 last month in June, below the 29,000 job gains seen in May and the 98,000 additions expected by economists. This marked the first month of job losses in the private sector since March 2023. May's initial reading of 37,000 private payroll additions had been the lowest monthly total since March '23. "Though layoffs continue to be rare, a hesitancy to hire and a reluctance to replace departing workers led to job losses last month," ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said in the release. "Still, the slowdown in hiring has yet to disrupt pay growth." Read more here. Some of the world's most influential stocks are dragging the S&P 500 Index (^GSPC) down. The names Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA) and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) — part of the Mag 7 and synonymous with growth and value seem to be preventing the S&P 500 from reaching further highs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Apple's (AAPL) is reportedly considering using AI tech from outside firms to power new version of Siri. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is on an aggressive recruitment drive to poach top AI researchers and engineers. They're both signs of a key shift, Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban reports in today's Morning Brief: Read more here. Tesla (TSLA) is expected to report yet another quarter of declining global deliveries on Wednesday, though disappointing sales are nothing new for investors and analysts following the company. Data for June has brought a mixed message. Sales dropped for a sixth straight month in France, Sweden, Denmark and Italy, but rose in Norway and Spain — an early sign that the revamped Model Y is getting some buyers. Shares of Tesla were edging into the green in premarket before the quarterly data, following a 5% loss on Tuesday as CEO Elon Musk's feud with President Trump flared up again. Yahoo Finance's Pras Subramanian reports: Read more here. Earnings: No notable earnings releases.. Economic data: MBA Mortgage Applications (week ending June 27); ADP employment change (June); S&P Global US services PMI (May final); Challenger job cuts (May) Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning: Apple and Meta are proving it: AI is going corporate Bets on 'Goldilocks' stocks bump up against reality Trump's 35% threat feeds Japan's worst-case tariff fears 'Irrational exuberance' stock gauge sparks fresh bubble worries Opinion: Musk is right about the Trump tax bill's failures Tesla's quarterly deliveries to fall short again Paramount settles Trump's '60 Minutes' suit for $16 million Bessent: Fed could lower interest rates by September Social Security checks slashed for millions this month Shares of Centene (CNC) tumbled over 25% in premarket trading after the healthcare insurer withdrew its financial guidance for 2025, warning that its earnings will fall far short of expectations. The company said late Tuesday that recent data showed that fewer people were enrolling in the Medicaid and Affordable Care Act marketplaces, and those who did enrol were sicker than expected. Those trends went against Centene's assumptions are likely to lead to a shortfall of $1.8 billion in federal payouts, the company said. Centene expects the issue to pull its full-year earnings per shares down by $2.75 a share. Wall Street had previously estimated adjusted EPS of $7.28. Shares of industry peers Elevance Health (ELV) and Oscar Health (OSCR) also struggled, down 4% and 7%, respectively. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
TechCrunch
an hour ago
- TechCrunch
OpenAI condemns Robinhood's ‘OpenAI tokens'
OpenAI wants to make clear that Robinhood's sale of 'OpenAI tokens' will not give everyday consumers equity — aka stock — in OpenAI, the company said in a post on X from its official newsroom account. OpenAI says it does not endorse Robinhood's effort, nor was it involved in facilitating the token sale. 'These 'OpenAI tokens' are not OpenAI equity,' said OpenAI's newsroom account. 'We did not partner with Robinhood, were not involved in this, and do not endorse it. Any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval—we did not approve any transfer. Please be careful.' These 'OpenAI tokens' are not OpenAI equity. We did not partner with Robinhood, were not involved in this, and do not endorse it. Any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval—we did not approve any transfer. Please be careful. — OpenAI Newsroom (@OpenAINewsroom) July 2, 2025 OpenAI's statement is a response to Robinhood's announcement earlier this week that it would started selling so-called tokenized shares of OpenAI, SpaceX, and other private companies to people in the European Union. Robinhood says the launch represents an attempt to give everyday people exposure to equity in the world's most valuable private companies via blockchain. Hours after announcing these token sales, Robinhood's stock price shot to an all-time high. But stock in private companies like OpenAI and SpaceX are not available to the public. That's what makes them private. They sell shares to investors of their choosing. So OpenAI is openly disavowing Robinhood's effort. In response to OpenAI's condemnation, Robinhood spokesperson Rouky Diallo told TechCrunch that OpenAI tokens were part of a 'limited' giveaway to offer retail investors indirect exposure 'through Robinhood's ownership stake in a special purpose vehicle (SPV).' Techcrunch event Save $450 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW That suggests Robinhood owns shares of a SPV that controls a certain number of OpenAI's shares. Like the tokens, shares of SPVs are not direct ownership of shares, either. They are ownership in a vehicle that owns the shares. In one way or another, Robinhood seems to be tying the price of its new tokenized product to the OpenAI shares in that SPV. But shares prices in an SPV can also differ from prices of an actual share of stock, as well. OpenAI declined to comment further. Robinhood did not respond to TechCrunch's additional questions about its SPV. Private companies are known to push back against anything that could influence how their equity is valued. In recent months, humanoid robotics startup Figure AI sent cease-and-desist letters to two brokers running secondary markets that were marketing the company's stock. Of course, these situations are different, but most startups don't want people to believe that they've authorized share sales if they haven't.
CNET
2 hours ago
- CNET
Early July 4th Apple Deals: 17 Top Offers Including Up to $170 Off MacBooks, $200 Off iPads and More
Apple makes some of the best tech on the market, but that level of quality can come with a hefty price tag. While direct discounts from Apple are rare, it's not totally impossible to find deals on its products. Right now, retailers are slashing prices on Apple tech for the Fourth of July, giving you a chance to grab the company's latest devices for less. Major retailers like Best Buy and Amazon are offering serious savings on Apple laptops, smartwatches, tablets, earbuds and more, and we've rounded up the best deals. There's no guarantee they'll stick around through Independence Day, so we'd recommend taking advantage of these discounts while you can. We'll continue to update this page as offers come and go, so be sure to check back for the latest and greatest bargains. Best early July 4th Apple deals Apple MacBook Air M4 (13-inch): $849 The M4 MacBook Air is the latest model in Apple's lightweight lineup, and it's our overall favorite laptop on the market right now. The basic model comes with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, with plenty of more-advanced configurations also on sale. Details Save $150 $849 at Amazon Close Apple AirPods 4: $159 The latest AirPods with active noise cancellation are dust-, sweat- and water-resistant, perfect for all your summer adventures. Even the spatial audio works with compatible content in supported apps. Details Save $20 $159 at Amazon Close Apple iPad A16: $299 This 2025 iPad is the latest model in Apple's flagship lineup, and it's our top pick for the overall best tablet of 2025. It features an 11-inch display, 12MP front and rear cameras, Wi-Fi 6 support and an updated A16 processor. Details Save $50 $299 at Amazon Close Apple Watch Series 10: $299 Apple's latest wearable is the top smartwatch of 2025, and you can grab it at a record-low price of just $299 right now. This GPS model has a 42mm Always-On Retina display and all the top fitness and connection features you'd expect from our highest-recommended model. Details Save $100 $299 at Amazon Close Apple Pencil Pro: $99 This Apple Pencil Pro is $30 off and pairs perfectly with your compatible iPads to draw, take notes and more. This Pro version is more precise and use gestures and haptic feedback for a better user experience. Plus, it attaches magnetically for wireless pairing and charging. Details Save $30 $99 at Amazon $99 at Walmart Close More Apple July 4th sales and deals Does Apple offer early July 4th sales? It's important to note that, while the Apple Store doesn't run sales for the Fourth of July (and rarely offers discounts outside of educational promos), deals on Apple devices and accessories can be found from authorized retailers, including Amazon. The best deals usually accompany big events like Amazon Prime Day or a major holiday, both of which are coming up. There are plenty of sales where you can find discounted Apple products, including Best Buy and Walmart, making it an excellent time to shop for Apple sales on several devices. If you're looking to spend less, try forgoing the latest releases. You'll find bigger discounts on previous-generation models or refurbished devices. Should I wait until Prime Day for deals on Apple products? There's no definitive way to say whether Fourth of July sales or Prime Day deals are best. Both sales offer plenty of deals, including some of the best prices we'll see all year. Plus, in all likelihood, the two sales are going to blur into one big discount extravaganza, given their proximity on the calendar. Fourth of July sales offer more variety in retailers, though much of your shopping may take place on Amazon anyway. There are also plenty of non-Amazon retailers that will keep their sales rolling through mid-July, often directly competing with Amazon Prime prices. Since you'll be able to shop so many Fourth of July sales in just a few weeks, you'll be able to check out the deals, grab what you need and then keep tabs on Prime Day deals later for anything you miss out on. How does CNET select the best July 4th deals? Our team of expert shoppers and deal hunters has spent years helping buyers understand which major sales and deals are legitimately good and which are more routine. That includes Black Friday, Prime Day, Memorial Day and countless other shopping events. We've gotten good at weeding out scams and superficial deals on tech of every kind, so you see only the best offers, including Apple deals. At CNET, we look for real discounts, quality reviews and remaining sale time when choosing a deal to show you.
