🦄 SoftBank’s AI revelation

…and Taylor Swift and Beyoncé boost local economies   Masa has a new vision (Alessandro Di Ciommo/Getty Images)   Last Week’s Market Moves   Dow Jones 33,727 (-1.67%) S&P 500 4,348 (-1.39%) Nasdaq 13,492 (-1.44%) Bitcoin $30,889 (+17.29) Dow Jones 33,727 (-1.67%) S&P 500 4,348 (-1.39%) Nasdaq 13,492 (-1.44%) Bitcoin $30,889 (+17.29) Hey Snackers, It’s “Silicon Valley” meets Jake Paul: Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky [said]( last week that he’d “challenge any leader in tech to bench press,” days after Mark Zuckerberg agreed to cage-fight Elon Musk. It may be time to turn Earth off and back on again. For the first time in a month and a half, markets ended last week lower than the week before. Investors’ hopes for an extended #Powse in rate hikes were dashed when the J-man himself said that two more could hit this year, which dragged stocks into some summertime sadness. Btw... Do you want to start getting Snacks daily? Or prefer to unsubscribe? Manage your subscription preferences [here](. Slide Tech titan SoftBank dreams of an AI-inspired comeback, but risks reliving regrets Late-night heart-to-hearts… with ChatGPT. After 3 a.m. [convos]( with OpenAI’s bot, [SoftBank]( CEO Masayoshi Son had a revelation: AI could lead SoftBank out of its rut. Its stock popped last week after an AI-centric investor presentation. The Japanese tech investment firm is known for its Vision Fund, which has held major stakes in companies like WeWork, Uber, and Alibaba. Here’s a storytime, with quotes from SoftBank’s quirky earnings decks: - “Valley of Coronavirus”: SoftBank’s iconic cartoon of [unicorns falling]( into a ditch illustrated its struggle in early 2020 as the value of its Vision Fund plunged with billions in losses. - “Producer of Golden Eggs”: In 2021 it posted a $46B profit (a record for Japan) as shares in holdings like DoorDash and Coupang surged during IPO-palooza. - “Many Regrets”: [Slide 11]( poetic sentiment reflected SoftBank’s mood after a record $23B quarterly loss (its investments plunged as rates soared). It sold entire stakes in holdings including Nvidia (which recently soared to a $1T valuation… womp). - “What is Mankind?”: After posing this q on [slide 4]( of last week’s presentation, SoftBank concluded that its future is artificial intelligence. AI of the tiger... Son wants SoftBank “to lead the AI revolution,” presumably through investments. He also said ChatGPT helped him brainstorm 600+ ideas, some of which the bot apparently praised as “feasible and wonderful.” He’s not the only one who’s caught the AI bug. A few stats: - 168: # of times Big Tech leaders mentioned “AI” in recent earnings calls. - +30%: The techy Nasdaq’s gains this year, significantly outperforming the S&P 500. AI-associated names like Nvidia, Symbiotic, and C3.ai have soared. - 1 in 4 new unicorns this year are AI startups. THE TAKEAWAY Chasing the hype train is risky… when it’s barreling at full speed. AI investments could give SoftBank a boost, but going all in could risk repeating mistakes: last year, Son said he’d become "somewhat delirious" after tech valuations soared, and regrets all the $$ he funneled into startups like WeWork. While AI looks likely to stick, it’s hard to know what applications (and companies) will stay valuable when the initial boom fades. Sponsored by Masterworks A Banksy got everyday investors 32% returns? Mm-hmm, sure. So, what’s the catch? We know it may sound too good to be true. But thousands of investors are already smiling all the way to the bank, thanks to the fine-art investing platform Masterworks. These results aren’t cherry-picking. This is the whole bushel. Masterworks has built a track record of 13 exits, realizing +10.4%, +27.3%, and +35.0% net returns, even while financial markets plummeted. But art? Really? Okay, skeptics, here are the numbers. Contemporary art prices: - Outpaced the S&P 500 by 131% over the last 26 years - Have the lowest correlation to equities of any asset class Got your attention yet? Snacks readers can [skip the waitlist with this exclusive link]( Events Coming up this week Checking on Chex… Snack star General Mills is happy to spoil your dinner. When the Minnesota-based maker of Dunkaroos, Yoplait, Chex Mix, and cereals like Cheerios last reported, it beat sales-growth expectations. Higher prices played a role, but General Mills has more than just inflation going for it. Nearly half of US consumers are now eating at least three snacks a day, up 10% in the past two years — with snack sales hitting $181B last year. We'll see if the munching momentum continued when General Mills reports Wednesday. Too many swooshes… Nike reports on Thursday, and the world’s biggest shoe seller has a sneaker problem. Overstock has plagued the company like a wet sock, with inventory swelling 16% and 44% in the past two quarters. Foot Locker, which says Nike makes up 70% of its sales, recently cut its annual outlook and will likely have a glut of Nike kicks to move through markdowns. The shoe surplus comes as Nike pulls back on its direct-to-consumer efforts and pivots back to wholesale, which outpaced D2C growth last fall. Zoom out Stories we’re watching Halo Effect… With pop icons like Beyoncé and Taylor Swift on tour, local economies are feeling their star power as fans travel to see their idols. Last month economists said Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” concert stops in Stockholm likely lifted Sweden’s inflation as hotel prices surged. It's not just Queen Bee: Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour could add nearly $5B to the US economy. The average concertgoer is spending $720 over their budget for things like flights and food. Morgan Stanley expects more pop-star “blips.” Double dough… Two of the largest grain-shipping and crop-processing companies, Bunge and Viterra, plan to merge into the world’s second-biggest agri-business. Farmers say the megadeal could limit crop competition and drive up food prices. Bunge already reaped higher gluten profits after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine hit global grain supplies. Several countries’ regulatory authorities are expected to weigh in on the merger, but carb consolidation is standard: 90% of global grain trading and processing is controlled by four companies. ICYMI Last week's highlights - [Cluck]( Lab meat is coming to US menus. For the first time, the USDA approved the sale of cell-grown chicken from two companies. The next challenge for cell-grown: overcoming the “ick factor.” - [Homer]( The FTC sued Amazon, alleging it used “trickery” to get Prime sign-ups and made it hard to cancel. The suit says Amazon internally referred to the process for canceling Prime as “The Iliad.” - [Rx]( Bristol-Myers Squibb joined Merck is suing the US gov’t over a Medicare drug-pricing law that could cost them billions. Eli Lilly's CEO said the potential revenue loss could also stunt R&D of future drugs. What else we're Snackin' - [History]( A former OceanGate employee said he was fired in 2018 after raising safety concerns about its deep-sea sub. Five people are presumed dead following a tourist expedition to the Titanic's wreck. - [Vacay]( Type-A travelers are booking summer getaways a full year out to secure sought-after hotels, flights, and cruises. Meanwhile, Delta's CEO said “revenge travel” shows no signs of stalling. - [Bitter]( Apple's trying to trademark literal apples, fighting for rights to apple logos in dozens of countries including Switzerland. The country's 111-year-old Fruit Union Suisse said, “Apple didn’t invent apples.” Want your Snacks daily? The Daily Newsletter Get fresh takes on financial news every week day. Try a sample: 🐔 [Lab meat on the menu]( • Jun 23, 2023 ❌ [Amazon Prime “trickery”]( • Jun 22, 2023 💊 [Drugmakers fight discounts]( • Jun 21, 2023 [Subscribe to the Daily]( Snack Fact Of the Day Geckos scale walls by syncing electrons in their feet to ones on surfaces [Read more]( This Week - Monday: Earnings expected from Carnival - Tuesday: May new-home sales. Earnings expected from Walgreens - Wednesday: Earnings expected from General Mills and Micron - Thursday: Initial jobless claims. Earnings expected from Nike - Friday: SAG-AFTRA contract expires. Earnings expected from Constellation Brands Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Apple, Amazon, Delta, Nvidia, and Uber *Advertiser Disclosure: See important disclosures at [masterworks.com/cd](. No money or other consideration is being solicited, and if sent in response, will not be accepted. No offer to buy the securities can be accepted and no part of the purchase price can be received for an offering until the offering statement filed by the company with the SEC has been qualified by the SEC. Any such offer may be withdrawn or revoked, without obligation or commitment of any kind, at any time before notice of acceptance given after the date of qualification. An indication of interest involves no obligation or commitment of any kind. After the offering statement for a particular offering has been publicly filed you may obtain a copy of the preliminary offering circular that is part of that offering statement [here](. Correction: In Friday’s Snacks we misstated the loan amount scored by Ford. It was $9.2B, not $9.2M. We regret the error. Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... [See more]( [Sherwood Terms and Conditions]( • [Our Editorial Principles]( • [Contact Us](mailto:hellosnacks@sherwoodmedia.com) • [Privacy Policy]( • [Advertise with us](mailto:advertising@sherwoodmedia.com) [Unsubscribe](