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| Here’s your daily business briefing. - 🧠 Apple to unveil AI strategy at June 10 conference
- 🔍 Deep Dive: Europe car sales soar 11% in January
- 🚗 BYD profit jumps 80% as EV leader beats Tesla
Thanks for reading! Shriram
p/Shriram | |
| 1 | | Apple's ($AAPL) annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is scheduled from June 10 to June 14, emphasizing the unveiling of the company's highly anticipated artificial intelligence (AI) strategy. The conference will be accessible for free on Apple's website and app, with the first-day announcements being held in person at the Cupertino campus. More: - Apple's upcoming iOS 18 upgrade will prominently feature its AI strategy, bringing new proactive features to assist users in their daily activities.
- The American multinational corporation's marketing chief, Greg Joswiak, referred to the importance of the AI focus when he called the event "Absolutely Incredible."
- The firm is in discussions with possible partners like Google and OpenAI for generative AI services, but it does not have plans to develop its own generative AI chatbot.
- iOS 18 is a significant iPhone update, with minor changes for the Apple Watch and the first major update for the Vision Pro headset operating system.
Zoom Out: - The announcement follows the Department of Justice's lawsuit against the hardware giant for alleged monopolistic practices related to the iPhone, revealed just a week earlier.
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What the numbers say: In January, European passenger car deliveries rose by 11% to 1.02 million units, with fully electric vehicles representing 11.9% of total deliveries, up from 10.3% last year, indicating increased demand for electric cars. However, despite the overall growth in car sales, the market share of electric vehicles hit its lowest level in a year, suggesting potential hurdles in the EV sector. Relevance: Rising car sales signal a rebound, yet challenges persist, particularly in the electric vehicle sector, as growth slows and market share plateaus. Economic slowdowns and consumer concerns about borrowing costs could impede future sales, prompting manufacturers to reassess strategies amid waning enthusiasm for EVs and increased regulatory pressure to cut CO2 emissions. More data: Analysts predict minimal growth in EV market share, potentially reaching just 16% of total sales, reflecting subdued consumer interest, while rollbacks of government incentives in countries like Germany dampen demand. Tesla's price pressures are causing used EV prices to decline, dissuading potential buyers, prompting car manufacturers to delay new model launches, and rental companies to scale back fleet purchases, underscoring broader issues in the automotive industry. | | | |
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| 3 | | BYD's ($BYDDY) net profit skyrocketed to $4.2B in 2023 from $2.3B the previous year, despite challenging global conditions characterized by high inflation and economic downturns. In the fourth quarter of 2023, BYD surpassed Tesla as the leading seller of electric vehicles, with 525,409 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) sold compared to Tesla's 484,507. More: - With a 62% rise from 2022 to 2023, BYD sold 3.02 million vehicles globally, a record amount that included 1.44 million plug-in hybrids.
- In 2023, Tesla retained its lead in BEV sales over BYD, delivering 1.8 million vehicles compared to BYD's 1.57 million.
- BYD offers more budget-friendly vehicles than Tesla, with its base model priced at around $10,000 in China, whereas Tesla's least expensive option, the Model 3, starts at nearly $39,000.
- The Chinese multinational manufacturing company has recently lowered the price of models like the Seagull hatchback, demonstrating its continued competitiveness in the face of intense competition and a pricing war negatively affecting profit margins.
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| 4 | | Last week, Canva, the Australian design software developer, completed its acquisition of the U.K.-based design platform Affinity, aimed at professional users, marking its most significant acquisition in 11 years. Canva agreed to an undisclosed combination of cash and stock to privately owned developer Serif for Affinity, which produces photo-editing, illustration, and graphic design software for professionals, positioning itself as a competitor to Adobe. More: - Canva intends to cater to designers seeking specialized tools beyond its cloud platform, which boasts approximately 175 million users.
- Users have created over 20 billion designs, including presentations, photo collages, business cards, logos, and social media posts, using templates and a vast library of resources.
- Canva began turning a profit in 2017 and now brings in over $2B in recurring income annually, up from $1.4B the previous year.
- The company recently finalized a secondary share sale valued at $26B and opted to list in the U.S. to leverage enhanced capital and investor knowledge.
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| 5 | | Robinhood ($HOOD) introduces its Gold Card, a credit card with no annual or foreign transaction fees, exclusively for Robinhood Gold members at $5 per month or $50 annually, following its acquisition of credit card startup X1 for $95M eight months ago. The Gold Card also allows for cash-back investments, a feature initially developed by X1, and offers the option to provide cards for up to five family members with their accounts. More: - Customers with Gold Cards receive 3% cash back in all categories, such as dining out and groceries, and 5% when they make travel reservations through Robinhood's recently launched travel platform.
- Users can deposit cash back they've earned into brokerage accounts for investment needs.
- The Gold Card, featuring an APR ranging from 20.24% to 29.99%, implements numberless physical cards for enhanced security.
- Robinhood's foray into credit cards targets competition with Apple Card, boasting attractive cash-back rewards and transparent fee structures.
Note: Inside.com Founder and CEO Jason Calacanis is an investor in Robinhood. | | | |
| 6 | | Seven prominent U.S. gaming firms, including FanDuel, DraftKings ($DKNG), and BetMGM, have established the Responsible Online Gaming Association (ROGA) to advocate for responsible gaming measures. ROGA marks the first initiative where competitors will collectively exchange information about problem gamblers, fostering collaboration in addressing gambling-related issues. More: - The consortium, representing over 85% of the U.S. legal online betting market, commits over $20M to fund ROGA initiatives.
- ROGA pledges to focus on education, responsible gaming guidelines, and ethical advertising practices.
- According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, about 2 million adults in the U.S. struggle with severe gambling addiction, while an additional 5-8 million have mild to moderate issues.
- ROGA is viewed with skepticism by certain insiders in the gambling industry, who see it as a publicity ploy meant to fix a PR issue.
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| 7 | | Quick Hits: - Pattern released a 30-page insights report for beauty brands selling on Amazon.*
- Visa and Mastercard have struck a $30B deal with U.S. retailers after years of conflict over interchange fees, potentially impacting the revenue of banks such as BofA and Citi.
- Check-Cap announced its acquisition by real estate marketplace Nobul, with Nobul shareholders set to become the majority owners of the merged entity.
- AbbVie will acquire drug developer Landos Biopharma for up to $212M, as part of its efforts to enhance its portfolio of medications targeting immune system disorders.
- SK Hynix, a supplier for Nvidia, intends to invest approximately $4B in constructing an advanced chip packaging facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, according to a report by the WSJ.
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 | Freelance Writer | | Shriram is pursuing Master’s in Business with Marketing at Warwick Business School. He worked as a Senior Consultant in Tech and Political Consultancies before his Masters. He is passionate about Tech, Marketing, Strategy, Anthropology and Politics. He is also the Postgraduate Ambassador for Warwick Business School. | | This newsletter was edited by Shriram Jeevakumar | |
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