TechEchelon | Business and Finance

Dow Jumps 700 Points as Markets Rebound From AI-Driven Tech Selloff

U.S. stocks surged Friday as investors stepped back into equities following a bruising week dominated by fears that artificial intelligence could upend the traditional software business model. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed more than 700 points, or about 1.6%, led by strength in industrial and financial shares. The S&P 500 rose roughly 1%, while the Nasdaq Composite added about 0.7%, marking a tentative recovery after days of heavy selling in technology stocks. Desp

Palantir Beats Q4 Estimates as AI and Defense Demand Drive Growth

Palantir Technologies delivered a strong fourth-quarter beat on Monday, fueled by accelerating adoption of its AI platforms across U.S. government agencies and commercial customers, sending shares up roughly 7% in after-hours trading. The software analytics firm reported adjusted earnings of 25 cents per share, topping expectations of 23 cents, while revenue reached $1.41 billion, ahead of the $1.33 billion consensus estimate. Revenue climbed 70% year over year, underscoring

OPINION: The Invisible Threat: Why Inorganic Activity on Social Media Is a Growing Risk for Public Companies and Their Investors

In November 2022, a fake tweet claiming Eli Lilly would begin giving away insulin for free went viral on Twitter . The tweet wasn’t from the company’s official account, but it was convincing enough and amplified quickly enough that it caused Eli Lilly’s stock to plunge and triggered chaos across the pharmaceutical sector. Much of that virality was not organic; it was driven (at least in part) by inorganic users and coordinated inauthentic behavior – accounts that don’t repres

Markets Slide as Trump Revives Trade War Fears Tied to Greenland

Global markets sold off sharply Tuesday after Donald Trump reignited fears of a widening trade war, tying new tariff threats to U.S. efforts to secure control of Greenland. The escalation sparked a broad “sell America” move, pressuring U.S. stocks and bonds while pushing safe-haven assets to record highs. U.S. equities suffered their worst session since October. The S&P 500 fell about 2.1%, the Nasdaq Composite dropped more than 2.4%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid

San Francisco is Still #1 Despite Everything You’ve Heard

San Francisco, CA. For years, the dominant story in tech has been geographic dispersal. Talent left coastal cities, startups followed, and capital became more distributed. San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles were framed as legacy hubs struggling to stay relevant in a remote-first world. That narrative no longer holds up. According to Multipolitan ’s 2026 Start-Up Friendly Cities Index , San Francisco ranks #1 globally, with New York at #5 and Los Angeles at #6. These thr

AI-Backed Super PAC Raises $125M to Push National Tech Policy

A super PAC backed by prominent figures and firms in the artificial intelligence industry raised $125 million in 2025, positioning itself as a major force in shaping U.S. technology policy ahead of the 2026 election cycle. The group, Leading the Future, said it ended the year with $70 million in cash on hand, according to an announcement released ahead of its first formal campaign finance filing. The PAC was formed last summer and is focused on backing candidates who favor fe

Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh to Lead Federal Reserve, Replacing Jerome Powell

President Donald Trump on Friday nominated Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell as chair of the Federal Reserve, ending a months-long selection process marked by unusual political pressure on the central bank. In a post on Truth Social, Trump praised Warsh as a long-time confidant and predicted he would become “one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen.” Warsh, 55, previously served as a Federal Reserve governor and is widely viewed on Wall Street as an experienced policymaker unlikely t

FTC to Appeal Ruling That Cleared Meta of Social Networking Monopoly Claims

The Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday it will appeal a November court decision that found Meta Platforms does not hold a monopoly in personal social networking, signaling the agency’s intent to continue one of the most consequential antitrust fights against Big Tech. The FTC sued Meta in 2020, alleging the company unlawfully cemented monopoly power through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. But in November, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled against the age

Intel Shares Surge After CEO Meets Trump as U.S. Stake Doubles in Value

Shares of Intel jumped roughly 10% Friday after CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with Donald Trump, extending a rally that has seen the stock more than double since the U.S. government took a major equity stake in the chipmaker last summer. Following the meeting, Trump praised both Tan and the company in a post on Truth Social, writing that “the United States Government is proud to be a Shareholder of Intel.” He also highlighted the company’s latest processor as being “designed, built, and

Bernie Sanders Calls AI the Most Consequential Technology Ever, Urges Data Center Slowdown

Sen. Bernie Sanders said artificial intelligence represents the “most consequential technology in the history of humanity,” warning that its rapid development is outpacing public debate and democratic oversight. Speaking Sunday on State of the Union, Sanders argued that Congress, the media, and the public have not sufficiently grappled with how AI will reshape the economy, labor markets, and society at large. “This technology will transform our country. It will transform the

Alphabet Raises the Stakes on AI Infrastructure Spending

Alphabet is resetting expectations for artificial intelligence infrastructure spending, signaling that the cost of staying competitive in the AI race is rising faster — and to higher levels — than Wall Street anticipated. On Wednesday, Alphabet said it expects 2026 capital expenditures of $175 billion to $185 billion, a figure that would be more than double what the company spent in 2025. While Alphabet beat Wall Street expectations on fourth-quarter revenue, earnings, and cl

SpaceX to Acquire xAI as Musk Builds Integrated AI–Space Platform Ahead of IPO

Elon Musk is combining SpaceX with his artificial intelligence startup xAI, creating a vertically integrated entity spanning rockets, satellites, AI models, data centers, and social media as the company prepares for a potential blockbuster public offering. Musk announced the transaction Monday in a blog post, describing the merged company as “the most ambitious, vertically integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth,” uniting AI, launch services, space-based internet, and

CoreWeave Shares Jump After Nvidia Invests $2B to Expand AI Data Center Capacity

Shares of CoreWeave surged on Monday after Nvidia announced a $2 billion equity investment aimed at accelerating the buildout of large-scale AI data center capacity. Nvidia purchased CoreWeave Class A common stock at $87.20 per share, according to the companies, a discount to Friday’s close of $92.98. The deal values the investment as a strategic vote of confidence and sent CoreWeave shares up as much as 12% in early trading. The capital will help CoreWeave speed its plan to

OpenAI Introduces Age Prediction for ChatGPT Consumer Accounts

OpenAI said Tuesday it is rolling out an age prediction model across ChatGPT consumer plans, a move aimed at better identifying users under the age of 18 and automatically applying additional safety protections. The model uses a mix of account-level and behavioral signals, including usage patterns over time, account age, typical activity hours, and a user’s stated age, according to the company. OpenAI said the system is designed to flag accounts likely belonging to minors wit

Gmail Adds AI Features as Google Pushes Email Toward a Personal Assistant

Google is rolling out a new slate of artificial intelligence features for Gmail, signaling a major shift in how the world’s most widely used email platform functions, from inbox to AI-powered personal assistant. The new capabilities, announced Thursday, are designed to help users write more effectively, surface information buried across years of email, and proactively generate daily to-do lists. Google is initially launching the features in English for users in the United Sta

Dow Jumps 700 Points as Markets Rebound From AI-Driven Tech Selloff

U.S. stocks surged Friday as investors stepped back into equities following a bruising week dominated by fears that artificial intelligence could upend the traditional software business model. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed more than 700 points, or about 1.6%, led by strength in industrial and financial shares. The S&P 500 rose roughly 1%, while the Nasdaq Composite added about 0.7%, marking a tentative recovery after days of heavy selling in technology stocks. Desp

Alphabet Raises the Stakes on AI Infrastructure Spending

Alphabet is resetting expectations for artificial intelligence infrastructure spending, signaling that the cost of staying competitive in the AI race is rising faster — and to higher levels — than Wall Street anticipated. On Wednesday, Alphabet said it expects 2026 capital expenditures of $175 billion to $185 billion, a figure that would be more than double what the company spent in 2025. While Alphabet beat Wall Street expectations on fourth-quarter revenue, earnings, and cl

SpaceX to Acquire xAI as Musk Builds Integrated AI–Space Platform Ahead of IPO

Elon Musk is combining SpaceX with his artificial intelligence startup xAI, creating a vertically integrated entity spanning rockets, satellites, AI models, data centers, and social media as the company prepares for a potential blockbuster public offering. Musk announced the transaction Monday in a blog post, describing the merged company as “the most ambitious, vertically integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth,” uniting AI, launch services, space-based internet, and

Palantir Beats Q4 Estimates as AI and Defense Demand Drive Growth

Palantir Technologies delivered a strong fourth-quarter beat on Monday, fueled by accelerating adoption of its AI platforms across U.S. government agencies and commercial customers, sending shares up roughly 7% in after-hours trading. The software analytics firm reported adjusted earnings of 25 cents per share, topping expectations of 23 cents, while revenue reached $1.41 billion, ahead of the $1.33 billion consensus estimate. Revenue climbed 70% year over year, underscoring

CrowdStrike to Acquire Identity Security Startup SGNL for $740 Million

CrowdStrike announced Thursday that it will acquire identity security startup SGNL in a deal valued at nearly $740 million, underscoring the company’s push to expand its platform amid a surge in AI-driven cyber threats. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of CrowdStrike’s fiscal 2027. Once completed, SGNL’s technology will be integrated into CrowdStrike’s flagship Falcon platform, enhancing customers’ ability to manage both human and AI identity access r

Former Cybersecurity Professionals Plead Guilty in BlackCat Ransomware Scheme

Two former employees of prominent cybersecurity incident response firms have pleaded guilty to participating in BlackCat (ALPHV) ransomware attacks that targeted U.S. companies in 2023, federal prosecutors said. Ryan Clifford Goldberg, 33, of Watkinsville, Georgia, and Kevin Tyler Martin, 28, of Roanoke, Texas, admitted to conspiring to obstruct commerce by extortion. Both face sentences of up to 20 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for March 12, 2026. Goldberg, a fo

NIST Expands AI Security Playbook With New Cybersecurity Framework Profile

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is extending its influence over how organizations secure artificial intelligence, releasing a draft companion to its widely adopted Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) that directly addresses AI-related risks and defenses. The new Cybersecurity Framework Profile for Artificial Intelligence, published Tuesday, is designed to help organizations map AI-specific security considerations onto the CSF, one of the most commonly used

Palo Alto Networks Unveils AI Agents to Automate Cyber Defense

Palo Alto Networks is launching a new generation of artificial intelligence agents designed to help companies automatically detect and respond to cyber threats as attacks grow more complex and relentless. The cybersecurity giant unveiled its new system, Cortex AgentiX, on Tuesday. The AI agents can autonomously handle investigations, respond to email breaches, and coordinate threat intelligence across multiple security vendors. The tools are available immediately through Palo

Noma Security Secures $100M Series B to Lead Enterprise AI and Agent Security Push

Noma Security, a rapidly emerging leader in AI security, has raised $100 million in a Series B funding round to accelerate adoption of...

Business and Finance

Dow Jumps 700 Points as Markets Rebound From AI-Driven Tech Selloff

Palantir Beats Q4 Estimates as AI and Defense Demand Drive Growth

OPINION: The Invisible Threat: Why Inorganic Activity on Social Media Is a Growing Risk for Public Companies and Their Investors

Markets Slide as Trump Revives Trade War Fears Tied to Greenland

San Francisco is Still #1 Despite Everything You’ve Heard

Politics

AI-Backed Super PAC Raises $125M to Push National Tech Policy

Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh to Lead Federal Reserve, Replacing Jerome Powell

FTC to Appeal Ruling That Cleared Meta of Social Networking Monopoly Claims

Intel Shares Surge After CEO Meets Trump as U.S. Stake Doubles in Value

Bernie Sanders Calls AI the Most Consequential Technology Ever, Urges Data Center Slowdown

Artificial Intelligence

Alphabet Raises the Stakes on AI Infrastructure Spending

SpaceX to Acquire xAI as Musk Builds Integrated AI–Space Platform Ahead of IPO

CoreWeave Shares Jump After Nvidia Invests $2B to Expand AI Data Center Capacity

OpenAI Introduces Age Prediction for ChatGPT Consumer Accounts

Gmail Adds AI Features as Google Pushes Email Toward a Personal Assistant

Featured

Dow Jumps 700 Points as Markets Rebound From AI-Driven Tech Selloff

Alphabet Raises the Stakes on AI Infrastructure Spending

SpaceX to Acquire xAI as Musk Builds Integrated AI–Space Platform Ahead of IPO

Palantir Beats Q4 Estimates as AI and Defense Demand Drive Growth

Cybersecurity

CrowdStrike to Acquire Identity Security Startup SGNL for $740 Million

Former Cybersecurity Professionals Plead Guilty in BlackCat Ransomware Scheme

NIST Expands AI Security Playbook With New Cybersecurity Framework Profile

Palo Alto Networks Unveils AI Agents to Automate Cyber Defense

Noma Security Secures $100M Series B to Lead Enterprise AI and Agent Security Push