Good Afternoon. Wall Street has its opinions, now we want yours.

Every edition of Afternoon Finance includes our Your Opinion Matters poll at the bottom, where you give us feedback on that day’s newsletter. Today, we’re adding a quick reader check-in to see how you’re feeling about the markets.

So tell us: Are you bullish or bearish heading into fall? 🐂🐻

Cast your vote below.

—Rosie, Wyatt, Evan & Conor

🔥 What’s Hot: 🔥

🥶 What’s Not: 🥶

1. SoftBank Bets $2B on Intel

The News: SoftBank is sinking $2 billion into Intel stock at $23 a share, giving the chipmaker a much-needed boost as it tries to claw back market share in the semiconductor race. The deal, announced Monday, sent Intel stock up more than 5% after hours. The investment deepens ties between the two tech giants. Intel’s new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, has a decades-long relationship with SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son, and both see the partnership as key to bolstering U.S. chipmaking capacity. It follows earlier collaborations, including a $70M joint venture to develop power-efficient memory for AI data centers.

Why It Matters: Intel has lost half its market cap in two years and is under pressure as Nvidia and AMD dominate AI chips. SoftBank’s vote of confidence gives Intel cash and credibility just as the U.S. government weighs taking its own stake under the CHIPS Act. If Intel can turn this capital into real breakthroughs, the comeback narrative is on. And when your investor literally owns their own internet ending (.softbank), you know the check is going to clear.
Source: group.softbank

2. Eight Sleep Raises $100M for AI Sleep Agent

The News: Eight Sleep, the New York sleep-tech startup, secured $100 million in Series D funding to accelerate its AI-powered "Sleep Agent," expand into medical applications, and grow internationally. The round was led by HSG (formerly Sequoia Capital China) with backing from Valor Equity Partners, Founders Fund, Y Combinator, and even Formula 1 names like Charles Leclerc and McLaren CEO Zak Brown. The new funding brings Eight Sleep’s total raise to $260M and follows strong commercial traction of over $500 million in Pod sales, 1 billion hours of sleep data analyzed, and presence in 30+ countries, with China expansion next on the roadmap.

Why It Matters: Yes, you read that right, there’s now something called a “sleep agent.” Sleep has become the latest frontier of performance optimization and health tech, with Eight Sleep pushing beyond tracking into AI-driven prediction and intervention. If successful, its "digital twin" approach could make tossing and turning a problem of the past though it also raises a new question: when your bed is smarter than you, who’s really in charge at bedtime?
Source: morningstar.com

3. Home Depot sales rise but miss Wall Street expectations

The News: Home Depot posted Q2 sales of $45.28 billion, up 4.9% from last year but just shy of Wall Street’s $45.41 billion forecast. Earnings per share also missed expectations at $4.58 versus the $4.72 analysts anticipated, marking the retailer’s second straight quarterly miss. Still, comparable U.S. sales rose 1.4% — the third consecutive quarter of growth after a long slump with customers focusing on smaller projects and gardening instead of big-ticket renovations.

Why It Matters: Home Depot is proving that even in a tight economy, homeowners keep spending — they’ll just trade in kitchen remodels for raised garden beds. While Wall Street wants blockbuster growth, the company’s steady gains suggest the home improvement downturn may be bottoming out. For investors, it’s less “Home Makeover” and more “Weekend Project,” but that may be enough to keep the foundation solid.
Source: abcnews.go.com

4. US housing starts surge 5.2% in July, defying forecasts

The News: U.S. housing starts surprised to the upside in July, rising 5.2% to an annualized 1.428 million units, defying forecasts of a slowdown. The gain was driven by a surge in apartment construction, with multifamily projects jumping 11.6% to their highest level since 2023. Single-family housing starts also climbed 2.8% to 939,000 units, snapping a recent slide. But signs of caution remain: permits for future construction fell 2.8% to a five-year low, led by a sharp drop in multifamily permits. Meanwhile, builder confidence sank for the 16th straight month, with over a third of builders cutting prices to attract wary buyers.

Why It Matters: The housing market is caught in a strange split-screen: more groundbreakings today, but fewer plans for tomorrow. With mortgage rates easing to to their lowest level since October, builders are betting cautiously on demand returning, yet affordability remains the industry’s biggest brick wall. For buyers, more homes are going up, but falling permits mean this extra supply might not last. For sellers, new builds and price cuts from builders could make the market more competitive. For investors, multifamily starts are surging as more Americans rent instead of buy but with permits dropping, today’s boom could be tomorrow’s squeeze. In housing, even good news comes with a footnote.
Source: reuters.com

5. Bud Light Looks to Rebuild Its Reputation by Potentially Partnering with Sydney Sweeney

The News: Bud Light is reportedly in talks with actress Sydney Sweeney to become a new brand ambassador, in what could be a $10M deal aimed at reviving the beer’s battered image. The move follows the brand’s 2023 partnership with Dylan Mulvaney, which sparked backlash, shaved $1.4B off U.S. sales, and sent revenue down 15.3%. Sweeney is being considered after her wildly successful American Eagle jeans campaign, which drove denim sales up 23% and boosted the retailer’s stock. Industry watchers say her mainstream appeal and proven marketing pull make her a strong candidate to reconnect Bud Light with its base.

Why It Matters: Anheuser-Busch, the parent company of Bud Light, has been in crisis mode for nearly two years, trying to shake off boycotts and tumbling market share. A Sweeney partnership would signal a return to the brand’s old playbook: lighthearted, star-powered ads aimed at broad appeal. Sweeney’s already proven she can move product, so if the deal goes through, don’t be surprised if Bud Light ends up right in America’s back pocket again.
Source: foxbusiness.com

1. Air Canada Strike Ends After Pay Deal

The News: Air Canada and the union representing 10,000 flight attendants reached a tentative agreement early Tuesday, ending a four-day strike that grounded over 2,500 flights and stranded half a million passengers. The breakthrough came after overnight mediation, with the deal addressing the union’s core demand: pay for previously unpaid ground duties like boarding and safety checks. Flights will begin resuming tonight, though the airline says it could take up to 10 days to restore normal operations.

Why It Matters: The settlement marks a major win for organized labor, which defied both government back-to-work orders and a ruling that deemed the strike illegal. For Air Canada, the cost is more than just lost revenue—it’s a reputational hit at the height of summer travel season. For Air Canada, the strike may be over, but the turbulence isn’t, untangling the backlog will take days, if not weeks. Travelers who thought their vacation headaches ended with the strike may find the real journey is just waiting to board.
Source: aircanada.com

2. Foxconn, SoftBank Launch AI Manufacturing Hub in Ohio

The News: Taiwan’s Foxconn and Japan’s SoftBank are teaming up to produce AI servers and data center hardware at a newly acquired $375 million facility in Lordstown, Ohio. The 6.2 million square-foot complex, six times the size of Foxconn’s Houston plant, will serve as a cornerstone of the $500 billion Stargate project, President Trump’s flagship initiative to build America’s next-generation AI infrastructure. SoftBank will own the facility outright, while Foxconn co-runs the manufacturing operations through a 50-50 joint venture. Once a General Motors and later Lordstown Motors EV plant, the site is being reborn as a strategic hub for AI hardware manufacturing, part of a nationwide buildout already spanning Texas and beyond.

Why It Matters: The pivot from cars to chips in Ohio highlights how America’s industrial base is being remade around artificial intelligence. With trillions in projected data center spending and Stargate pulling in global giants like OpenAI, Oracle, and Foxconn, Lordstown is becoming less about assembly lines and more about server racks. If all goes to plan, a little silicon might finally shake the rust off the Rust Belt.
Source: bloomberg.com

3. DeepSeek rolls out V3.1, but big questions remain

The News: Chinese AI startup DeepSeek unveiled version 3.1 of its flagship model on Tuesday, touting a larger context window that allows for longer conversations and deeper document analysis. The update, announced quietly on WeChat, lacked technical details and has yet to appear on major platforms like Hugging Face, suggesting the company is still testing the waters before a wider release. The launch comes as pressure mounts over delays to DeepSeek’s long-hyped R2 model, which has been pushed back indefinitely amid struggles training on Huawei’s Ascend chips instead of Nvidia’s. The company’s cautious rollout contrasts sharply with Western rivals, who often flood the market with benchmarks and flashy demos.

Why It Matters: DeepSeek stunned the AI world earlier this year by showing you don’t need billions to build a competitive model. But with usage sliding and rivals catching up, the V3.1 feels less like a knockout punch and more like a jab to buy time. If R2 keeps stalling, DeepSeek risks being remembered less for shaking up AI economics and more for overpromising. Or put another way: the context window may be bigger, but the patience window is shrinking.
Source: bloomberg.com

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