Venture capital investment surged in 2025, nearing its 2021 peak with $339.4 billion in deals. The catch? A staggering 65.4% of all that money went to AI and machine learning companies, creating a massive imbalance in the funding landscape.
While Wall Street fixates on AI, a group of leaders in banking, autos, pharma, and industrials are quietly executing stunning transformations. From Citigroup’s comeback to Ralph Lauren’s luxury pivot, here are the performances you missed.
A sobering note from Goldman Sachs suggests the massive AI spending spree by tech giants is on a collision course with reality. Analysts warn that to justify current investment levels, companies need over $1 trillion in annual profit, but consensus estimates are only for $450 billion.
GameStop has announced a massive, entirely at-risk compensation package for CEO Ryan Cohen. He gets nothing unless he can increase the company’s market value more than tenfold to $100 billion and hit major profit goals.
China is escalating export controls on rare earths and related tech to Japan, targeting a key vulnerability. Japanese firms have tried to diversify for a decade, but a 3-month disruption could still cost $4.2 billion and hit GDP.
Consulting giant Accenture is moving to acquire Faculty, a UK-based AI company. The deal aims to significantly expand Accenture’s ability to deploy advanced AI solutions for its global clients.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says he isn’t worried about a potential California tax targeting billionaires. The proposed 5% levy on assets over $1 billion would apply retroactively to residents as of January 1, 2026.
Walmart is rolling out an AI advertising assistant powered by its “Marty” agent to all Sponsored Search advertisers later this half. The move comes as its retail media business, a major profit driver, grew 33% year-over-year last quarter. But what does this actually mean for the ad world?
DoorDash CEO Tony Xu has vehemently denied allegations from a viral Reddit post that a food delivery app uses a “desperation score” for drivers. Xu stated he would fire anyone who tolerated such a culture. The unverified post’s claims have sparked outrage and come as new legislation, like California
PayPal is launching a major new advertising platform built on its “transaction graph” of real purchases. The move directly challenges the “walled gardens” of traditional tech giants by offering verified sales data, not just modeled intent. Early results, like a 20% sales lift for Ulta Beauty, show t
