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1.	SoftBank Proposes $1 Trillion Facility for AI and Robotics By Rocket Drew Source: Bloomberg

SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son is pitching companies and governments on setting up a manufacturing center in Arizona that could cost as much as $1 trillion, Bloomberg reported Friday. SoftBank is talking to tech companies including chipmaker TSMC and Samsung on the project, codenamed “Crystal Land.” SoftBank has also approached state governments and the Commerce Department about the possibility of tax breaks for the project, according to the report.

The project aims to replicate the thriving tech hub of Shenzhen, China, possibly by manufacturing AI-powered industrial robots. To this end, SoftBank has compiled a list of robotics companies in its portfolio, such as Agile Robots SE, that could set up shop in the Arizona hub, according to the report.

SoftBank has already made big bets on AI and robotics, including a $10 billion investment in OpenAI and funding the $500 billion Stargate data center project. TSMC has also invested heavily in the U.S., which plans to invest $165 billion in the U.S., including its chipmaking facility in Phoenix, Arizona.

A spokesperson for SoftBank declined to comment.

2.	Investor Enthusiasm for Tech Stocks Fell Since April Turmoil By Ken Brown Source: The Wall Street Journal

Retail investors have lost some of their enthusiasm for giant tech stocks since April’s tariff induced market turmoil.

Buying by individual investors of the so-called Magnificent Seven tech stocks–Alphabet, Amazon.com, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla–has slowed, The Wall Street Journal reported. Retail buying in these stocks as a percentage of total flows fell to 23% in mid June  from 43% at the start of April’s market turmoil, according to Vanda Research

Money appears to be moving to other parts of the markets, according to Morningstar Direct. Exchange-traded funds that buy cheap stocks took in roughly $25 billion this year and international ETFs took in nearly $70 billion. In contrast, tech-focused ETFs had a net $7.1 billion in flows.

3.	Meta Announces Oakley-Branded Smart Glasses By Kalley Huang Source: The Information

Meta Platforms on Friday announced Oakley-branded smart glasses, which are targeted toward athletes. The glasses start at $399 and will be on sale later this summer, Meta said in a blog post.

The announcement comes after Meta in September extended its partnership with EssilorLuxottica, the parent company of Ray-Ban, Oakley and other glasses brands, “into the next decade,” according to a joint press release.

Meta and EssilorLuxottica have sold two million pairs of Ray-Ban smart glasses since 2023, the glasses giant said in February. By 2026, EssilorLuxottica plans to sell 10 million pairs of the glasses annually.

Glasses sales tripled in the last year, Meta said in April, which “partially offset” flagging revenue elsewhere in Reality Labs, its augmented and virtual reality division. Still, the unit’s operating losses have ballooned in recent years, from $4.5 billion in 2019 to $17.7 billion in 2024.

4.	OpenAI Removes Material Related to Jony Ive Deal Following Trademark Lawsuit By Stephanie Palazzolo Source: The Information

OpenAI has removed marketing materials and a video related to its $6.5 billion acquisition of io, an AI devices maker started by iPhone designer Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, following a trademark lawsuit.

Earlier this month, IYO, Inc., another maker of AI devices, sued Ive’s io, alleging trademark infringement. The lawsuit is separate from the deal with OpenAI, which is still set to close, an OpenAI spokesperson said. Earlier this year, IYO and OpenAI held meetings about a potential collaboration and about OpenAI potentially participating in IYO’s fundraising, according to the filing.

“We don’t agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options,” the OpenAI spokesperson said.

5.	Tesla Launches Its Robotaxi Service In Austin By Evan Robinson-Johnson Source: The Information

Tesla’s long awaited robotaxi launch took off Sunday in Austin, Texas—with essentially a babysitter in the passenger seat keeping an eye on the vehicle. In invitations to early testers of the service, Tesla noted that initial rides of the autonomous Model Y cars would include a “safety monitor.” While the invitation didn’t say what role the monitors will play, they will likely be able to stop the ride or take control of the vehicle if it gets into trouble.

There did not appear to be any incidents on day one as people shared their first rides on social media. “Super smooth experience. The future is here. RIP Uber,” one rider wrote. The Tesla robotaxi service is offering limited rides in a geofenced portion of the city where Tesla has been extensively testing to gear up for the launch. That area overlaps with Waymo, the Alphabet-owned service that began in partnership with Uber in the city in March.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who had been worried about cars’ safety, shared several clips of the rides on Sunday, calling them the “culmination of a decade of hard work.” The initial service excludes airports and is operating from 6 a.m. to midnight, with limits due to inclement weather, according to the invite. While Tesla claimed its self-driving technology “can be deployed anywhere it’s approved,” it remains to be seen how quickly the service will expand to cities without the training and monitoring in Austin. By mid-afternoon Sunday, the cars had completed 112 trips for a total of 499 miles, a dashboard at Tesla headquarters showed.

6.	Meta Discussed Buying Safe Superintelligence, Perplexity By Natasha Mascarenhas and Kalley Huang Source: The Information

As Meta Platforms sought to overhaul its artificial intelligence efforts earlier this year, it discussed buying or taking a major stake in several high-profile AI startups, including Safe Superintelligence Inc. and Perplexity, before ultimately striking a deal to invest $14.3 billion in data-labeling firm Scale and hire its CEO.

Meta is now in advanced talks to hire AI investors Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross, who is also a co-founder and CEO of SSI, and to partially buy out Friedman and Gross’ AI investment fund, which holds shares in SSI and Perplexity, among other startups.

Meta earlier this year held talks about buying SSI, which Gross co-founded last year with former OpenAI Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg separately tried to hire Sutskever, they said.

SSI spoke with Meta as it was raising $2 billion in funding at a $32 billion post-money valuation, according to another person familiar with the discussions. It was also exploring whether Meta could provide it with servers to develop its technology, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

The discussions ended with Meta making a small investment in the startup, though that didn’t give Meta rights to receive information about SSI’s business or research progress, one of the people said.

Also earlier this year, Meta discussed an acquisition with AI search company Perplexity, according to two people familiar with the discussions. Perplexity recently closed a funding round at a $14 billion valuation. CNBC first reported on Meta’s talks with SSI. Bloomberg first reported on its talks with Perplexity.

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