Good Morning! The OpenAI drama continues, with Sam Altman assuring staff there’s no plan for him to score a 'giant equity stake' in the company. OpenAI posted a $5 billion loss on $3.7 billion in revenue, and Apple has also pulled out of its investment round. Meanwhile, the U.S. aims to triple its nuclear power by 2050, the Fed’s favorite inflation gauge shows signs of cooling, and some analysts are calling Cava the next Chipotle. Plus, Trump is selling a $100k watch and the deck a solo GP used to raise $50 million.

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_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Zuck’s $200B Glow-Up

It seems like just a few years ago, Meta was in the gutter. The stock kept getting burned for its unprofitable metaverse bets - and Mark Zuckerberg was the laughing stock of tech CEOs (and popular meme target for just about everyone).

But while everyone’s been focused on AI darlings like Nvidia… Mark Zuckerberg has quietly been building a comeback. Last week, Zuck finally closed in on the $200 billion net worth club, joining Elon Musk ($272B), Jeff Bezos ($211B), and Bernard Arnault ($207B).

Since November 2022, Meta’s stock has rallied almost 525%. According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, Zuck added $73.4 billion to his net worth in 2024, bringing him up to $201 billion.

At his net worth's yearly average rate of growth, Zuckerberg could become a trillionaire by the start of the next decade.

In addition to being the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, Meta has also been spending heavily on data centers and computer power. Meta is also investing in AI-generated creators - and the stock has rallied over 60% YTD.

At Meta Connect 2024, Zuckerberg unveiled sleek new AR glasses and hinted that Meta AI could become the world’s most popular assistant, already closing in on 500 million monthly users.

Takeaway: Zuckerberg doubling down on the metaverse looked like a colossal mistake at the time, with Meta losing $700 billion in market cap at one point. But his relentless focus has sparked one of the biggest comebacks in tech. And as if turning Meta around wasn’t enough, Zuck’s aura has hit a new level. Recently, he’s been sporting some powerful fits, including a shirt at Meta Connect that read "Aut Zuck aut nihil" — Latin for "all Zuck or nothing."

_{PRESENTED BY BILL}

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_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• Citi warns some employees about misconduct by staff (Reuters)

• Sam Altman tells OpenAI staff he didn't receive a 'giant equity stake' (CNBC)

• OpenAI was a research lab — now it’s just another tech company (Verge)

• Apple drops out of talks to join OpenAI investment round (Reuters)

• OpenAI sees roughly $5B loss this year on $3.7B in revenue (CNBC)

• Fed's go-to measure confirms slowing inflation (Axios)

• Why analysts are calling Cava the next Chipotle (CNBC)

• What it’s like to get an investment from Nvidia's CEO (YF)

• The U.S. wants to triple nuclear power by 2050 (CNBC)

• New Trump watch collection includes watches selling for $100k (Axios)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Market Commentary

The Dow soared to a new record high on Friday, fueled by a batch of encouraging U.S. inflation data, while the Nasdaq lagged behind. Headline PCE inflation clocked in at 2.2% year-over-year in August, marking the lowest level since 2021, with core PCE at 2.7%, right in line with forecasts.

Energy and utilities powered the gains, as tech stocks struggled, with NVIDIA slipping 2% on reports of China's push to curb local firms' use of the company’s chips.

Meanwhile, global markets followed suit—Japan’s Nikkei surged over 2%, and China’s CSI 300 Index posted its best five-day rally since 2008, up over 15%, thanks to a fresh wave of stimulus from Beijing.

Inflation continues to move in the right direction, bolstering optimism that the Fed’s rate-cut narrative remains on track. Goods prices dipped for the fourth consecutive month, even as housing inflation stubbornly stayed high.

Meanwhile, the stock market’s leadership has shifted in Q3, with utilities and real estate emerging as the top-performing sectors, outpacing tech.

With the S&P 500 up nearly 22% year-to-date, this broader market rally is setting the stage for a strong finish to the year, as investors bet on a soft landing and the potential for further Fed rate cuts to boost economic growth without a recession in sight.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Rocket Lab USA ($RKLB) +13% after KeyBanc upgraded the space exploration company.

• (+) Wynn Resorts ($WYNN) +7% because Morgan Stanley upgraded the casino company.

• (–) Cassava Sciences ($SAVA) -11% after the pharmaceutical company settled an SEC dispute.

Private Dealmaking

• Mendaera, a medical robotics developer, raised $73 million

• Marvel Fusion, a nuclear fusion startup, raised $70 million

• Qure.ai, a disease diagnostics startup, raised $65 million

• Utility Global, a hydrogen and gas production startup, raised $53 million

• Mirai Bio, a genetic medicines platform, raised $50 million

• Dinii, a restaurant management platform, raised $48 million

For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

A Brief History of Intelligence

In the last decade, capabilities of artificial intelligence that had long been the realm of science fiction have, for the first time, become our reality. AI is now able to produce original art, identify tumors in pictures, and even steer our cars. And yet, large gaps remain in what modern AI systems can achieve—indeed, human brains still easily perform intellectual feats that we can’t replicate in AI systems.

How is it possible that AI can beat a grandmaster at chess but can’t effectively load a dishwasher? As AI entrepreneur Max Bennett compellingly argues, finding the answer requires diving into the billion-year history of how the human brain evolved; a history filled with countless half-starts, calamities, and clever innovations. Not only do our brains have a story to tell—the future of AI may depend on it.

Now, in A Brief History of Intelligence, Bennett bridges the gap between neuroscience and AI to tell the brain’s evolutionary story, revealing how understanding that story can help shape the next generation of AI breakthroughs. Deploying a fresh perspective and working with the support of many top minds in neuroscience, Bennett consolidates this immense history into an approachable new framework, identifying the “Five Breakthroughs” that mark the brain’s most important evolutionary leaps forward.

Each breakthrough brings new insight into the biggest mysteries of human intelligence. Containing fascinating corollaries to developments in AI, A Brief History of Intelligence shows where current AI systems have matched or surpassed our brains, as well as where AI systems still fall short. Simply put, until AI systems successfully replicate each part of our brain’s long journey, AI systems will fail to exhibit human-like intelligence.

“A Brief History of Intelligence offers a paradigm shift for how we understand neuroscience and AI.”

_{DAILY VISUAL}

German Exports

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Deep Work

In our age of constant distraction, the ability to focus deeply is becoming increasingly rare and valuable.

Cal Newport defines "deep work" as professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push cognitive capabilities to their limit.

This type of work creates new value, improves skills, and is hard to replicate.

Newport argues that cultivating deep work is not just productive, but also leads to more fulfillment in our professional lives.

To practice deep work, one must deliberately carve out focused time, embrace boredom, and reduce shallow activities.

By mastering deep work, we can produce at an elite level in an increasingly competitive world.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• The deck Nicole Wischoff used to raise $50 million

• The worst etiquette mistakes people make in the office

• 5 scientifically-proven ways to enhance your work output

• Why great leaders know that control is an illusion

• How to make better decisions with 2nd-level thinking

• How to stop overthinking your happiness

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day