AMD surpassed a $1 trillion market valuation for the first time, while Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang advocated for accelerating artificial intelligence development. Meanwhile, Amazon blocked Meta's AI agent from its retail platform and pledged $20 million toward water conservation. Apple also opened claims for a $250 million settlement, and Kairos Power secured $100 million in funding.
01Company specific
Amazon Restricts Internal Use of Meta's Muse AI Agent Over Security Concerns
Platform owners can protect their proprietary commerce and consumer data moats by unilaterally blocking third-party agentic web scrapers under standard terms of service.
Amazon began blocking Meta Platforms' newly launched Muse assistant from its online store on Sunday night after Meta declined a formal request to remove the site from the bot's automated capabilities. The giant displayed pop-up notifications to users stating that continued access by an unauthorized AI agent violates its conditions of use. Amazon cited security concerns regarding customer credentials and data, while noting that third-party shopping agents must identify themselves and secure prior authorization. The retailer also prohibits automated tools from browsing and purchasing items from its catalog to protect its recommendation systems and advertising streams. The block extends beyond Meta, with Amazon having previously restricted agentic purchasing tools from OpenAI and Google since 2025 as part of a broader defense of its retail storefront.
AMD Reaches $1 Trillion Valuation on Strong AI Demand
Combining central processors with AI accelerators into full server systems allows AMD to simultaneously erode Intel's traditional CPU dominance while capturing market share from Nvidia.
Advanced Micro Devices topped a $1 trillion for the first time on Monday after its shares hit an intraday high of $613.92. The stock surged 9% during the session, capping a five-day winning streak in which shares gained about 24%. The broader sector rallied as the PHLX Semiconductor rose more than 3% amid optimism surrounding server CPU suppliers and demand. Meta's new AI agent application, Muse, reached the top spot among free apps on Apple's App Store, driving particular interest in server central processing units. In the second quarter, AMD reported of $11.54 billion, up 50% from $7.69 billion a year ago. Its unit contributed $6.7 billion of that total, representing a 107% increase from the prior-year period. Non-GAAP diluted rose 246% to $1.66 during the same quarter. CEO Lisa Su stated on the company's call that management expects to double data center sales in 2027. Nvidia currently holds a market cap of about $5.4 trillion as the primary AI chip leader.
AMD Q2 Revenue ($B)
Q2 revenue rose 50% year-over-year to $11.54 billion
Compute hardware dominance lets chip suppliers dictate adoption velocity, leaving software safety controls dependent on vendor release cycles rather than industry consensus.
cbsnews.com reports that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told CBS News the tech industry should accelerate development rather than heed warnings to slow down. Huang stated that the Santa Clara-based chipmaker will push forward as fast as possible while ensuring product safety. The remarks come as for the company surpassed $5 trillion amid the ongoing AI boom. Industry concerns about rapid development intensified after Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon resigned earlier this month to warn that security protocols are being rushed. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei subsequently echoed cautions about exponential growth and industry risks.
Amazon Faces Scrutiny Over Water Usage in Sustainability Efforts
Excluding off-site power generation from data center water-efficiency metrics risks regulatory and investor pushback as tech firms claim water positivity while expanding energy-intensive infrastructure.
Amazon plans to spend $20 million on water conservation projects along the Colorado River as tech companies face mounting scrutiny over the water consumption of , theverge.com reports. The initiative includes the launch of a Colorado River Basin Collaborative aimed at raising $100 million over two years to support the dwindling waterway, which supplies 40 million people across seven Western US states and two Mexican states. In Orange County, California, Amazon pledged $2.2 million over the next three years to patch leaks and conserve 189 million gallons annually. The company has a goal of becoming water positive by the end of the decade, and its chief sustainability officer Kara Hurst noted the firm is 75 percent toward that target. In June, Amazon disclosed that its global data centers used 2.5 billion gallons of water in 2025. Data centers owned and operated directly by the company reduced water consumption by 2 percent in 2025 compared to the prior year, marking a 52 percent improvement in water efficiency since 2021. Amazon reported using 0.12 liters of water per kilowatt-hour of electricity. Environmental advocates and sustainability reports from rivals like Microsoft and Google highlight that such efficiency metrics exclude total consumption and secondary impacts like water used in electricity generation. A 2025 Guardian investigation cited internal documents alleging Amazon used 10.5 billion gallons of water in 2021 when including electricity generation, a report an Amazon spokesperson called misleading and based on outdated data.
Claims Window Opens for Apple Siri Privacy Lawsuit Settlement
Settles over delayed software features turn promotional keynote demos into legal liabilities when hardware sales rely on unreleased functionality.
Apple opened the claims window for a $250 million class-action settlement resolving allegations that it misled consumers over delayed features in the iPhone 16. US owners of an iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or any iPhone 16 model purchased between June 10th, 2024, and March 29th, 2025, are eligible to submit a claim. Claimants can receive an estimated $25 per device, which could increase to $95 depending on total participation. The lawsuit alleged Apple created a reasonable expectation that AI capabilities previewed at WWDC 2024 would launch with the hardware. Apple denied wrongdoing in the settlement. The deadline to file a claim is December 21st, 2026. A final approval hearing is scheduled for February 24th, 2027.
Using primary listing proceeds to settle tax liabilities rather than fund hardware R&D shifts Oura's growth thesis entirely onto its high-margin subscription software.
Oura launched its initial public offering on Monday, aiming to raise up to $2.2 billion by offering 50 million shares at a price range of $40 to $44 apiece. The smart ring maker applied to list on the Global Select Market under the ticker symbol OURA, with trading expected to begin next week. Existing stockholders are offering 36.5 million of the shares, while Oura itself is offering 13.5 million. The company will not receive proceeds from the shares sold by existing stockholders, who intend to grant underwriters a 30-day to purchase up to 7.5 million additional shares. At the $42 midpoint of the price range, Oura expects net proceeds of $532.6 million, and plans to use about $526.4 million of that to satisfy accumulated tax obligations related to employee share grants vesting at the time of the . That leaves the company with roughly $6.2 million for general corporate purposes, while existing shareholders collect about $1.53 billion. Forerunner Ventures, the company's second-largest shareholder, is selling its entire 9.3% stake of about 28.7 million shares for approximately $1.20 billion before fees and taxes. Eli Lilly has signaled it may buy up to $100 million worth of shares, and Dragoneer has expressed interest in acquiring up to $300 million. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and J.P. Morgan are serving as lead underwriters, with Allen & Company and Jefferies acting as joint lead book-running managers. In the nine months ended June 30, Oura generated $1.21 billion in , up from $697 million in the same period a year earlier. Membership revenue more than doubled to $240.5 million, carrying an 89% , while hardware sales reached $974 million. Trading is expected to begin next week.
Kairos Power Secures $100 Million Samsung Investment for Nuclear Reactor Supporting Google
Samsung C&T's equity investment ties global nuclear construction expertise directly to Kairos's salt-cooled reactor, de-risking the physical execution of Google's long-term power purchase agreement.
Kairos Power secured up to $100 million in investment and in-kind engineering services from Samsung C&T to build a 50 megawatt demonstration reactor for Google. TechCrunch reports that the package includes a $70 million equity investment from the engineering firm, which has previously built about a dozen nuclear reactors globally. The project is part of a broader agreement signed in fall 2024, in which Google tapped Kairos to generate about half a gigawatt of electricity by 2035. Kairos is currently constructing two reactors in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, following its receipt of Nuclear Regulatory Commission construction approval in November 2024. The first facility, Hermes 1, is a low-power demonstrator designed to refine commercial layouts, while Hermes 2 serves as the first commercial-scale unit and will provide the initial 50 megawatts for the Google contract. Hermes 2 is scheduled to begin operating by 2030. The reactor utilizes a fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature design and TRISO fuel, an arrangement designed to keep pressure levels low and prevent meltdowns.
Rapid tech expansion is driving massive market valuations and nuclear energy investments, but software friction and infrastructure demands continue to create operational hurdles. Whether AI agents will face broader platform restrictions remains unresolved.
This, every morning.
SuMarket writes Technology Sector every morning, along with every other section of the market and the companies and topics you follow. Free to read.