First-Ever MLB game at Historic Rickwood Field in Birmingham Now Has a Name
Goldman Sachs: AI Investment Could Outpace Historical Milestones, Boost GDP By 2.5-4%
The surge in artificial intelligence (AI) investment could have a more profound effect on the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) than historical milestones such as the invention of electricity or the emergence of personal computers.
That’s according to Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) eonomists Joseph Briggs and Devesh Kodnani. “Generative AI has enormous economic potential and could boost global labor productivity by more than 1 percentage point a year in the decade following widespread usage,” they wrote.
The report, cited by Coindesk, emphasized that for such a transformative shift to take place, businesses must commit to “significant upfront investment in physical, digital, and human capital to acquire and implement new technologies and reshape business processes.”
Global investments in this area could reach roughly $200 billion by 2025, and these investments are expected to precede the “adoption and efficiency gains start driving major gains in productivity,” as per the bank’s analysis.
In the long run, AI investment could account for between 2.5% and 4% of U.S. GDP, and between 1.5% and 2.5% of other AI-leading nations’ GDP.
The report noted, “Despite this extremely fast growth, the near-term GDP impact is likely to be fairly modest given that AI-related investment currently accounts for a very low share of U.S. and global GDP.”
Global investments in this area could reach roughly $200 billion by 2025, and these investments are expected to precede the “adoption and efficiency gains start driving major gains in productivity,” as per the bank’s analysis. The analysts further pointed out that while investment to date has been concentrated on model development, a “substantially larger hardware and software push will be required for generative AI to scale.”
The report concluded that the impact of AI adoption on the U.S. economy is likely to become significant sometime between 2025 and 2030.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Apple’s Q3 Earnings Awaited As Stock Trades Lower
Apple Inc is set to print third-quarter financial results after the market closes Thursday. The stock was trading lower heading into the event.
When the tech giant printed its second-quarter results on May 4, the stock surged 4.69% the following day and continued in its uptrend, which eventually led Apple to reach a new all-time high of $198.23 on July 19.
For that quarter, Apple reported EPS of $1.52 on revenue of $94.8 billion. The company came in ahead of estimates for EPS of $1.43 on revenues of $92.96 billion.
For the third quarter, analysts estimate that Apple will print earnings per share of $1.09 on revenues of $74.24 billion.
Ahead of the event, JP Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee maintained an Overweight rating on the stock and raised a price target from $190 to $235. Read more here…
From a technical analysis perspective, Apple’s stock looks neutral heading into the event, having broken bearishly from a rising channel and negated its uptrend but on low volume, which indicates Thursday’s drop could be a bear trap.
It should be noted that holding stocks or options over an earnings print is akin to gambling because stocks can react bullishly to an earnings miss and bearishly to an earnings beat.
Options traders, particularly those who are holding close-dated calls or puts, take on the extra risk because the institutions writing the options increase premiums to account for implied volatility.
The Apple Chart: Apple dropped under the bottom ascending trend line of a rising channel pattern on Thursday but on lower-than-average volume. If the stock receives a bullish reaction to its earnings print and pops back up into the pattern, it may find resistance at the upper ascending trend line of the channel.
On Thursday, Apple was working to print a doji candlestick on the daily chart, which suggests the stock may trade higher on Friday. If Apple suffers a bearish reaction to the news, however, the candlestick will be negated and the stock could fall to test support at the 50-day simple moving average, which is trending at about $187.
If the stock rises but fails to form a higher high over the next few trading days, a downtrend will be confirmed, regardless of whether the stock temporarily trades back within the channel.
If Apple falls on Friday, volatility in the stock market is likely to increase. Traders wishing to play the potential volatility in the stock market can use MIAX’s SPIKES Volatility products. The products, which are traded on SPIKES Volatility Index (XMIO: SPIKE), track expected volatility in the SPY over the next 30 days.
Apple has resistance above at $194.48 and at $198.23 and support below at $189.61 and at $184.95.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Israeli Firm Uncovers 2-Year Phishing Campaign In Mexico, 4,000 Victims Affected
By Yulia Karra
Israeli cybersecurity company Perception Point recently revealed it has uncovered a widespread phishing campaign in Mexico that lasted for nearly two years and left behind over 4,000 victims.
Perception Point specializes in detection, investigation and remediation of all cyber threats across corporate organizations’ email, web browsers and cloud collaboration apps.
The company’s researchers dubbed the phishing campaign “The Manipulated Caiman” due to the mention of the words “Loader Manipulado” in the script of the cyberattack and the perpetrators’ likely Latin American origin.
The campaign targeted primarily Mexican citizens, who were collectively defrauded out of $55 million.
The researchers say the attackers used a wide variety of tools with an ultimate goal of gaining access to bank credentials of individuals and organizations based in Mexico — only to steal them along with the victims’ funds.
Although the full extent of the attack is still unknown, an initial probe reveals the campaign started sometime in 2021 and continued until at least until May 2023. The Perception Point specialists believe the attackers managed to remain under the radar — and even grow their enterprise — due to Mexico’s relatively lax cybercrime laws.
“The ‘Manipulated Caiman’ operation highlights the dangerous extent of sophisticated attacks that leverage techniques such as geofencing and multi-layered scripting,” Perception Point Incident Response Team Leader Igal Lytzki told ISRAEL21c.
“The fact that the operation flew under the radar for nearly two years underscores the urgency for proactive security measures like advanced persistent threat [APT] and anomaly detection.”
Produced in association with ISRAEL21c
NBA Star ‘Greek Freak’ Recalls ‘Getting Clowned’ For Owning A Google Pixel Instead Of An IPhone
NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, also known as the “Greek Freak,” recalled an incident that occurred during the All-Star Weekend when he faced ridicule for using Google Pixel instead of an iPhone, leading to an exciting twist in the story.
What Happened: During the 2022 NBA All-Star Weekend, Antetokounmpo, the star athlete who is a member of the Milwaukee Bucks, made an innocent move that sparked an unexpected social media frenzy.
While capturing the moments of the event with his Google Pixel, little did he know that he was about to become the subject of trolling on the mean streets of Twitter, now rebranded as “X.”
The Twitterverse, accustomed to seeing millionaire athletes flaunting their iPhones, pounced on the opportunity to mock Antetokounmpo for his choice of a Google Pixel.
A popular NBA Memes account posted a throwback post about the incident.
Instead of getting defensive, Antetokounmpo responded with humor, revealing that his Google Pixel choice caught the attention of the tech giant. They saw an opportunity and reached out to him, offering a sponsorship deal to be the face of Google Pixel for the next two years.
Yea of course I remember the night I got clowned for having a Google phone at the All Star Game because right after @GooglePixelFC called me and wanted me to be the face for the next 2 years
https://t.co/kvmJVUiRWp
— Giannis Antetokounmpo (@Giannis_An34) August 2, 2023
The endorsement deal not only turned the tables on his mockers but also filled Giannis’ pockets with some extra cash. Since then, he has been featured in several Google Pixel commercials, showcasing the phone’s features with his signature charm and style.
Always representing!
— Google Pixel (@GooglePixel_US) August 2, 2023
Why It’s Important: In June, Google launched its “Best Phones Forever” campaign, directly comparing its Pixel phones with the iPhone.
The campaign highlighted numerous Pixel features absent in iPhones and took a playful jab at Apple’s reluctance to adopt the Rich Communication Services (RCS) protocol and the ongoing infamous blue bubble controversy.
Last year, it was reported that the popularity of iPhones among smartphone users was reportedly worrying Google to such an extent that the tech giant decided to double down on its hardware, including its Pixel phones.
In May this year, during Google I/O, the annual developer conference, the company introduced Pixel 7a, Pixel Tablet, and Pixel Fold.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Amazon’s Q2 Results Awaited As Fund Manager Turns Bullish On Stock
E-commerce giant Amazon, Inc. is scheduled to report its second-quarter results Thursday after the market close.
What Happened: Ahead of the results, Dan Niles, founder and portfolio manager at Satori Fund said he is long on Amazon again.
Immediately after Microsoft Corp.’s quarterly results in late July, the fund manager said he sold Amazon stock at $129. He based the action on the readthrough Microsoft’s soft Azure revenue has for Amazon’s AWS Cloud business. He said then he could buy the stock back as his investment thesis was predicated on the retail business.
Niles also suggested he is optimistic about Amazon’s AI opportunity. He quoted comments from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, who said in early July that there is a “high appetite now to ML, generative AI, and LLM training and interference that people are going to use as much compute as you can give them.”
The fund manager also suggested AWS could have fared better than Azure.
Long $AMZN again. Believe Q1 improvement in retail profits continued in Q2. Jassy 7/6/23- “There is such a high appetite right now to do ML, generative AI and LLM training and inference that people are going to use as much compute as you can give them.” AWS Q2 better than Azure? https://t.co/hS1YWVdmbG
— Dan Niles (@DanielTNiles) August 2, 2023
Why It’s Important: AWS is the leader in the cloud computing business, with a dominant 32% share of the global cloud market in the first quarter. Microsoft Azure and Alphabet, Inc.’s Google Cloud boasted 23% and 10%, market share, respectively.
AWS is a key business for Amazon as it has relatively high margins than the company’s core retail business and contributes the bulk of the operating profit.
The e-commerce retailer is expected to report second-quarter earnings per share of $0.32, reversing from a loss of $0.20 a year ago. The top line, however, is expected to slip 1.4% year-over-year to $119.57 billion.
Smaller rival Shopify, Inc. reported Wednesday better-than-expected second-quarter results and issued upbeat revenue guidance for the third quarter.
Amazon closed Wednesday’s session at $128.21, down 2.64%.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Google Cloud Validates Celo Network, Boosting Security And Blockchain Adoption
Google Cloud has become a validator on the Celo network, a move that is set to bolster the network’s security.
Google Cloud now joins a diverse group of validators, including Deutsche Telekom and impactMarket, in validating the Celo platform.
This collaboration is part of a broader effort to scale blockchain technology for mainstream adoption.
Recently, the Celo community voted in favor of transitioning from an independent layer-1 blockchain to an Ethereum layer-2 solution.
To facilitate this transition, cLabs will use Google Cloud’s Blockchain Node Engine, a fully managed node-hosting service.
This service will streamline node operations for participants in the Celo network, ensuring reliable and secure transaction relays.
The Celo ecosystem currently includes over 1,000 projects in more than 150 countries. Among these are decentralized applications (dApps) such as the universal basic income (UBI) distributor GoodDollar and community inclusion currencies (CICs) on Grassroots Economics.
Xochitl Cazador, Celo head of ecosystem growth, praised the partnership, stating, “Google Cloud and the Celo Foundation have a shared mission to leverage blockchain technology and innovation to bolster sustainable solutions for everyday people and the planet.”
Google Cloud director Carlos Arena echoed these sentiments, stating, “At Google Cloud, we’re focused on strengthening the Web3 ecosystem by offering founders and developers the tools they need to scale their applications.”
The Celo Foundation continues to be a founding partner in Google Cloud’s new Web3 startup program, which offers up to $200,000 in Google Cloud credits over two years and up to $1 million in grants allotted by the Celo Foundation for future mission-driven projects.
The partnership between Google Cloud and Celo was initially aimed at supporting sustainability-focused startups in the Celo ecosystem with cloud infrastructure for building and scaling Web3 applications.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Nikola’s Hydrogen Trucks Garner 200+ Sales Orders, Reflecting Growing Demand
Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ:NKLA) said on Thursday it had amassed more than 200 sales orders for its Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles, as announced via its HYLA brand.
Nikola said its hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks, with a range of up to 500 miles and a refueling time of just 20 minutes, have generated notable interest across various industries.
The company’s Coolidge, Arizona manufacturing facility is now in full gear, according to a tweet by the company. Deliveries are slated to commence later this year, following the completion of a demonstration program.
Michael Lohscheller, Nikola’s President and CEO, hailed the achievement as a reflection of the industry’s growing appetite for sustainable solutions. “This remarkable demand for our hydrogen fuel cell electric truck confirms the industry’s trend toward sustainable transportation solutions,” he stated.
Juicy Incentives: Nikola’s hydrogen truck success is driven by key factors: incentives and partnerships. The California Air Resources Board’s HVIP program speeds up sales with incentives of $240,000 to $288,000 per truck. Canada’s iMHZEV Program expands influence with up to C$200,000 incentives for hydrogen trucks and C$150,000 for battery-electric. NJ-ZIP offers more rebates for qualifying entities.
Hiccups? Nikola’s accomplishment, however, is not without challenges. The global push towards hydrogen fuel cell technology has garnered skepticism from industry figures like Tesla’s Elon Musk, who favors batteries as a more efficient energy storage solution.
Despite these debates, Nikola’s strides indicate a clear appetite for innovative transport solutions, setting the stage for a future powered by sustainable alternatives.“This remarkable demand for our hydrogen fuel cell electric truck confirms the industry’s trend toward sustainable transportation solutions.
Price Action: Shares in Nikola closed 3.21% down at $3.02 on Wednesday and were 1.66% lower in premarket trading on Thursday, according to data from Zenger News Pro.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Practical Innovation Transforms Traditional Industries With Breakthrough Products
Tuna cans and automotive filters aren’t the kind of products we give much thought to. As useful as such traditional items may be, they’re rather dull and uninspiring.
But Tal Leizer, formerly VP-marketing for an Israeli cooking oil producer, saw a lot of potential in the low-tech staples of daily life.
She founded Practical Innovation to bring out and commercialize that potential.
“A strong economy stands on traditional industries, not high-tech,” Leizer tells ISRAEL21c.
“These industries have a hard time finding their next generation of products, to find growth engines and profitable products. The margins are very low and they are struggling,” she says.
“I thought if we put time and effort into bringing a culture of innovation to traditional industry, we could see big breakthroughs.”
For the past 14 years, Practical Innovation has worked with a wide variety of traditional manufacturers in Israel and abroad, developing products and services that present new possibilities to previously ho-hum sectors.
Tal Leizer, founder and CEO of Practical Innovation. Photo courtesy of Practical Innovation
“So far, we have launched over 80 products for customers from industries including agriculture, cosmetics, printing, paint, metal, automobiles, plastics, food, health services, textiles, retail and more,” says Leizer.
“The Israel Innovation Authority, which started with high-tech, has opened a channel for traditional industry and approved us as an innovation consultant.”
The 12-employee company works with hundreds of academic and industrial specialists from Israeli and worldwide who have the expertise clients need.
Practical Innovation has an active satellite office in Brazil – where one of its clients is paper company Suzano — and just opened a branch in Dubai.
Leizer emphasizes that the intellectual property for every invention, once patented, is owned fully by the client. Practical Innovation does not sell products, only conceptualizes and creates them.
Many industries produce waste that is difficult and expensive to get rid of, says Leizer.
“Our approach is to turn this waste into a new product that is more profitable than the core product of the company,” she says. This approach is dubbed “Golden Waste.”
Practical Innovation helped olive oil producer Shemen-Shan find a unique revenue stream for dealing with its nearly 5,000 tons of skins, pits and leaves left over every year after pressing.
A pile of waste olive leaves and branches from the production of olive oil. Photo by Agsaz via Shutterstock.com
“These waste products are filled with antioxidants but they are 1,000 times stronger than the human body can handle, so it’s actually toxic,” says Leizer.
“We have turned that olive waste into the world’s healthiest flour. It’s gluten-free, high in fiber, and the antioxidants are in exactly the amount the human body needs.”
The olive flour is already being used to bake breads and crackers commercially. The flour itself is sold in the olive oil company’s own stores.
“We are now talking with investors to enlarge the line, and are in discussions with large European olive oil makers about this innovative product,” says Leizer.
Practical Innovation solved a different problem for Lord Sandwich, an Israeli company seeking to go global.
The problem: With a growing number of consumers wanting to eat fewer carbs and more proteins, the sandwich category is stagnating. Furthermore, traditional sandwiches have a five-day shelf life, making export unfeasible.
The solution: Full Wrap, a flexible and sturdy gluten-free tortilla wrap made of vegetable protein. It can be integrated into any sandwich production line, says Leizer.
Lord Sandwich has received prizes for Full Wrap, including first place in the Future Food-Tech innovation challenge with Kraft Heinz in 2021 that sought innovative ways to use beans or pulses.
Israel’s A.L. Group specializes in filtration solutions for the automotive industry.
With gas and oil filters going obsolete due to the rise of electric vehicles, A.L. was seeking a way to make air filters more intrinsic to the driving experience.
“Drivers don’t think about the air filter in their car because it doesn’t affect the performance of the vehicle. We wanted to create something you cannot drive without,” says Leizer.
Welcome to A.L.’s unique Auto Wellbeing System.
This filter holds scent capsules that release an app-controlled choice of aromatherapy oils with names like Happy, Focus, Calm, Boost and Bliss. The capsules are restocked when the filter gets its annual change at the car mechanic.
Steelbird International of India has signed a strategic partnership with A.L. Group to market the aromatic Israeli filters to its established OEM clientele throughout India and South Asia.
Practical Innovation began working on a “green” outdoor air conditioner for a military contractor but then a group of investors established a startup dedicated to this product.
Kensho by Green Konoko addresses the fact that al fresco events are challenging in the age of climate change. Existing fan or water-mist solutions can be noisy and uncomfortable and need a power source.
This elegantly designed unit lowers the temperature by 10 degrees using only liquid nitrogen. It’s quiet and includes insect-repellant and disinfection capsules.
Some other inventions Practical Innovation has dreamed up:
iPaint, a reusable backpack kit outfitted with a bag of paint, roller, flexible hose and electronic pump. The paint is poured from the bag through the hose to the roller, ready to apply to the wall.
A gluten-free, sugar-free, single-calorie meringue kiss that dissolves in seconds to sweeten hot beverages, made with probiotic fibers and vegetable protein.
A spurt-free, air-release tuna can with an award-winning pump that facilitates draining the oil or water without danger of cutting fingers. It can be integrated on any tuna canning line and is made from recyclable materials.
On-trend seasoning products from Israel’s largest salt company, Salt of the Earth. CEO Ofer Rokni said, “Most of us were surprised to realize that salt can be a source of innovation.”
Produced in association with ISRAEL21c
Tesla’s Deliveries Surge 83% YoY, Beating Estimates
By Chris Katje
Electric vehicle leader Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) reported second-quarter delivery and production figures on July 2, 2023.
With the latest report, here is a look at how many vehicles Tesla delivered and produced in each quarter dating back to 2019.
Tesla Q2 Deliveries: In the second quarter, Tesla delivered 466,140 units, which was up 83.0% year-over-year. The total deliveries beat the estimate of 446,823 from analysts.
The Model 3 and Model Y represented 446,915 deliveries in the quarter, making up around 86% of all deliveries by the company. The company reported 19,225 Model S and Model X deliveries in the second quarter.
Tesla produced 479,700 units in the second quarter, which was up 85.5% year-over-year.
The electric vehicle leader will report second quarter financial results on July 19 after market close.
The company said it remains on track to hit an internal goal of 1.8 million vehicles delivered for the full fiscal year.
Tesla Production Numbers By Quarter: Here’s a look at how Tesla has fared in producing vehicles each quarter dating back to 2019:
Q1 2019: 77,138
Q2 2019: 87,048
Q3 2019: 96,155
Q4 2019: 104,891
Q1 2020: 102.672
Q2 2020: 82,272
Q3 2020: 145,063
Q4 2020: 179,757
Q1 2021: 180,338
Q2 2021: 206,421
Q3 2021: 237,823
Q4 2021: 237,823
Q1 2022: 305,407
Q2 2022: 258,580
Q3 2022: 365,923
Q4 2022: 439,701
Q1 2023: 440,808
Q2 2023: 479,700
Tesla Vehicle Deliveries By Quarter: Here’s a look at how Tesla has fared in deliveries of vehicles in each quarter dating back to 2019:
Q1 2019: 63,019
Q2 2019: 95,356
Q3 2019: 971,86
Q4 2019: 112,095
Q1 2020: 88,496
Q2 2020: 90,891
Q3 2020: 139,593
Q4 2020: 180,667
Q1 2021: 184,877
Q2 2021: 201,304
Q3 2021: 241,391
Q4 2021: 308,650
Q1 2022: 310,048
Q2 2022: 254,695
Q3 2022: 343,830
Q4 2022: 405,278
Q1 2023: 422,875
Q2 2023: 466,140
Key Takeaways: A quick look at the figures shows production has increased in each sequential quarter with the exception of two quarters in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic with lockdowns and factory restrictions, as well as the first and second quarters of 2022, which were also affected by COVID-19 lockdowns in China.
During its first-quarter financial results, Tesla said it remained on course to meet its goal of production increasing an average of 50% annually.
“We are planning to grow production as quickly as possible in alignment with the 50% CAGR target we began guiding to in early 2021. In some years we may grow faster and some we may grow slower, depending on a number of factors. For 2023, we expect to remain ahead of the long-term 50% CAGR with around 1.8 million cars for the year,” the company said.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Edited by Jason Reed and Newsdesk Manager
