Tech

Deal-making among ultra-high-net-worth family offices slowed significantly in 2025, with direct investments down 63% year-over-year in October. Despite the downturn, AI remains a key focus, attracting substantial capital. Notable deals include Winklevoss Capital’s investment in Crusoe and Hillspire’s investment in Reflection. Family offices also participated in fusion energy funding rounds. While deal volume decreased, overall ticket size remains substantial, driven by AI’s surging valuations and a shift towards larger, mature deals, as family offices seek greater returns and build in-house expertise.

Google has launched its seventh-generation Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), Ironwood, now generally available to cloud customers. This custom-designed AI accelerator aims to rival Nvidia GPUs by offering specialized, high-performance computing power for AI workloads like training LLMs and real-time inference. Ironwood boasts interconnectivity of up to 9,216 TPUs in a single pod. AI startup Anthropic has pledged to utilize up to 1 million Ironwood TPUs. The move underscores Google’s commitment to AI infrastructure amid growing cloud revenue and increased capital expenditure.

Key market developments include the Supreme Court hearing challenges to Trump’s tariffs, a shareholder vote on Elon Musk’s compensation package, and an FAA-mandated flight capacity reduction due to the government shutdown. Social media stocks show divergent performances with Snap soaring and Pinterest plummeting after earnings reports. Warner Bros. Discovery faces strategic decisions amid disappointing results, with a potential acquisition offer on the table. Finally, tariffs are impacting retailers unevenly, with prices on Amazon rising faster than competitors.

Cybersecurity firm 1Password, backed by celebrity investors, surpasses $400 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR). CEO David Faugno anticipates exceeding $1 billion ARR, driven by increasing cyber threats fueled by AI. 1Password secures over 1.3 billion credentials for 180,000 businesses including IBM and Salesforce. The company, valued at $6.8 billion, strategically appointed new executives and is considering a potential IPO in 2026 or 2027, focusing on sustained growth and product innovation.

Metropolis, an AI-powered platform transforming urban commerce, raised $1.6 billion in debt and equity, valuing the company at $5 billion. The funding will fuel expansion into retail, including gas stations and drive-thrus, leveraging its computer vision technology to redefine customer experiences. Metropolis currently operates the largest parking lot network in the U.S., reaching over 20 million people. The company aims to create a “Recognition Economy” by bridging the digital and physical worlds, offering seamless, ticketless payments and data-driven insights to businesses.

Duolingo’s shares fell 27% after releasing weaker-than-expected guidance, signaling a focus on user growth over immediate revenue. While Q1 revenue surged 41% to $272M, exceeding estimates, bookings guidance for the next quarter disappointed. Despite a rise in paid subscribers to 11.5 million, daily and monthly active user numbers missed expectations. The company is leveraging AI for new features and courses but the market reacted negatively to the profitability outlook amid increased investment in long-term user acquisition.

Ripple secured $500 million in funding, valuing the company at $40 billion. Led by Fortress Investment Group, Citadel Securities, and others, the funding reflects institutional interest and a perceived favorable shift in US crypto regulation. Ripple will use the capital to expand its product portfolio beyond payments through strategic acquisitions. While not currently focused on an IPO, Ripple aims to deepen relationships with financial partners and contribute to its ongoing “record year of growth”, focusing on digital asset solutions for institutions including crypto asset custody and stablecoins.

Axon Enterprise (AXON) shares fell 9% after Q3 earnings missed expectations due to tariff headwinds, causing a margin decline to 62.7%. While revenue grew 31% to $711 million, driven by a 24% increase in connected devices revenue, the company reported a net loss. Axon is mitigating tariff impact by expanding its software and services, growing 41% to $305 million. The full-year revenue guidance was raised to $2.74 billion. Axon also announced the acquisition of Carbyne for $625 million, aiming to enhance emergency response systems with cloud and AI.

Pinterest (PINS) shares plummeted 21% after its Q3 earnings report revealed advertising revenue challenges impacted by tariffs. While revenue met expectations at $1.05 billion, adjusted EPS fell short at 38 cents. Analysts cite limited customer diversification and sensitivity to macroeconomics. Q4 revenue forecast also disappointed. Despite short-term concerns and increasing competition, many analysts maintain a positive outlook, citing Pinterest’s investments in AI and unique visual discovery platform. The platform aims to leverage AI to enhance user experiences and drive commerce.

OpenAI’s AI browser debut raises questions about the AI investment boom, tied to ad tech giants like Google, Meta, and Amazon who are heavily investing in AI infrastructure. They aim to enhance existing advertising models, though AI could disrupt these models. While pushing for AGI is a long-term goal, the immediate urgency is to protect ad-driven revenue streams from competitors like OpenAI and Microsoft, which rely less on advertising. The sustainability of this AI investment, crucial to the tech ecosystem, hinges on its impact on the established advertising-centric economy.