Rafe Uddin
@rafeuddin.ft.com
📤 4648
📥 477
📝 51
FT San Francisco Correspondent | Signal: rafeuddin.01 | +1 (415) 718-5729 | Tips:
[email protected]
pinned post!
🚨Inauguration Day: I’ve moved to the FT’s San Francisco bureau to help cover Amazon, Microsoft and Uber as well as enterprise providers inc. Oracle and Salesforce. Shoot me a line if you have any intel/gossip/advice. I’m on Signal: Rafeuddin.01 or email:
[email protected]
10 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
20 days ago
Breaking news: Amazon’s cloud business was hit by an outage on Monday. Websites including Snapchat, Lloyds Bank and BT were all suffering from disruption
www.ft.com/content/f9d1...
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
23 days ago
Salesforce boss Benioff walks back Trump praise after widespread backlash
on.ft.com/4ojL2n0
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Salesforce boss Benioff walks back Trump praise after widespread backlash
Venture capitalist Ron Conway resigns from board of company’s philanthropic arm in protest at comments
https://on.ft.com/4ojL2n0
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NEW: Larry Ellison was back in the spotlight this week with Oracle hitching its wagon to OpenAI with a $300bn five-year deal. Can it deliver? Can the start-up afford it? Investors think so. Fun to help Richard Waters on the
@financialtimes.com
Person in the News.
on.ft.com/46eLlIj
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Larry Ellison, the tech world’s great survivor
[FREE TO READ] At 81, Oracle’s co-founder has reinvented himself as a power in AI to become (briefly) the richest person in the world
https://on.ft.com/46eLlIj
about 2 months ago
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NEW: Earlier this year the FT launched an investigation into UK City Minister Tulip Siddiq’s links to alleged embezzlement in Bangladesh. Our investigation contributed to her resignation, but also invited us to take a deeper look at the alleged looting of billions of dollars.
on.ft.com/4pjqCMi
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Bangladesh’s missing billions, stolen in plain sight | FT Film
[FREE TO READ] Over $200bn was allegedly plundered from Bangladesh during Sheikh Hasina’s time as prime minister
https://on.ft.com/4pjqCMi
about 2 months ago
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I had a lot of fun dragging a cofounder to go and catch Cofounders the Musical. A show that reminds audiences that trillions of dollars in market cap runs on cringe. Column includes thoughts from show-backer Reid Hoffman and co-writer Ryan Nicole Austin.
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3 months ago
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NEW: During a hearing in London, Meta sought to block the disclosure of docs in a employment tribunal. Following a application by the FT, we were able to report claims Meta inflated its ad performance and bypassed Apple’s privacy rules. w/@mshannahmurphy.bsky.social
on.ft.com/4mBbAQf
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Meta inflated ad performance and bypassed Apple’s privacy rules, tribunal hears
[FREE TO READ] Former product manager alleges social media platform misled marketers in push for revenues
https://on.ft.com/4mBbAQf
3 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Nassos Stylianou
3 months ago
New visual story: Inside the relentless race for AI capacity The quest for superintelligence is spurring a data centre boom — but critics question the cost, environmental impact and whether it is all needed
ig.ft.com/ai-data-cent...
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The FT's Visual Storytelling team has published the first part in a trilogy exploring the relentless race for AI capacity and the data centres at the heart of hundreds of billions of dollars in capital investment. It's a tale of breathless ambition:
ig.ft.com/ai-data-cent...
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Inside the relentless race for AI capacity
The quest for superintelligence is spurring a data centre boom — but critics question the cost, environmental impact and whether it is all needed
https://ig.ft.com/ai-data-centres/
3 months ago
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We've encouraged recent visitors to the FT's San Francisco bureau to hail a ride with Waymo. The experience is proving popular in the tech-forward city but how will robotaxis meaningfully scale across the globe? Story with
@tim.fo
and Stephen Morris
on.ft.com/4lKMy0P
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What will it take for robotaxis to go global?
[FREE TO READ] The concept has been proved, but scaling up services beyond a handful of cities will require tens of billions in new investment
https://on.ft.com/4lKMy0P
4 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
4 months ago
Uber agrees multibillion deal with Lucid for electric robotaxi fleet
https://on.ft.com/3GTjvIZ
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Uber agrees multibillion-dollar deal with Lucid for electric robotaxi fleet
Ride-hailing app to buy 20,000 EVs and invest $300mn in Lucid alongside partnership with self-driving start-up Nuro
https://on.ft.com/3GTjvIZ
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NEW: Google is expected to agree a discount deal with the General Services Administration over current cloud contracts. Amazon and Microsoft to follow suit as Trump presses Big Tech, according to a senior GSA official. Story with
@joemillerjr.ft.com
and Stephen Morris
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4 months ago
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NEW: Amazon is discussing plans to invest billions more into AI start-up Anthropic as it tries to position itself ahead of Google and capitalise on Microsoft’s fraying OpenAI relationship. Story with
@criddle.bsky.social
and
@georgehammond.bsky.social
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4 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Matthew Garrahan
4 months ago
NEW: Tony Blair's staff took part in a BCG project for the redevelopment of Gaza along the lines of the 'Trump Riviera' plan
www.ft.com/content/0b1b...
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Tony Blair’s staff took part in ‘Gaza Riviera’ project with BCG
Former UK prime minister’s institute participated in meetings on plan to turn shattered enclave into trading hub
https://www.ft.com/content/0b1bc761-c572-4b61-882a-fb4467259dcd
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Rafe Uddin
Alexandra Heal
5 months ago
SCOOP! Sachin Duggal, founder and "chief wizard" of the now defunct tech unicorn
Builder.ai
, made $20mn from selling shares in the company
Builder.ai
collapsed last month, after raising half a billion dollars, when revenues had to be dramatically restated With
@bondhack.ft.com
on.ft.com/4k8t44A
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Builder.ai ‘Chief Wizard’ Sachin Dev Duggal made $20mn in share sales
[FREE TO READ] Former chief executive of collapsed Microsoft-backed start-up also borrowed against holdings
https://on.ft.com/4k8t44A
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Rafe Uddin
Hannah Murphy
5 months ago
After months of reporting (and even my own attempt at a jiu jitsu class), my FT Magazine cover story on Mark Zuckerberg’s metamorphosis to red-blooded “Maga Mark” is out! Is this political expediency, a midlife crisis or who Zuck has been all along?
on.ft.com/4nsoktx
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How Mark Zuckerberg unleashed his inner brawler
[FREE TO READ] The boss’s transformation shocked liberals at Meta, but his closest allies say this is who he was all along
https://on.ft.com/4nsoktx
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EXC: Microsoft has considered walking away from talks with OpenAI over the future of their partnership, instead sitting on a favourable contract that runs until 2030. Story from
@criddle.bsky.social
,
@tabbykinder.bsky.social
and
@georgehammond.bsky.social
on.ft.com/3ZCHyCp
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Microsoft prepared to walk away from high-stakes OpenAI talks
[FREE TO READ] ChatGPT maker’s plans to convert into a for-profit leads software giant to make contingency plans
https://on.ft.com/3ZCHyCp
5 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
5 months ago
Barbie-maker Mattel partners with OpenAI to make artificial intelligence child’s play
https://www.ft.com/content/7a9d0c47-5294-46b7-9d06-181654129d43
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Barbie-maker Mattel partners with OpenAI to make artificial intelligence child’s play
Toymaker and tech group team up to ‘bring the magic of AI to age-appropriate play experiences’
https://www.ft.com/content/7a9d0c47-5294-46b7-9d06-181654129d43
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
5 months ago
Oracle shares jump after upbeat forecast for cloud division
https://www.ft.com/content/dadc5cbe-67a5-44c9-9b7b-5c23bf4e77ee
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Oracle shares jump after upbeat forecast for cloud division
Chief says cloud infrastructure business was expected to grow more than 70% in the next fiscal year
https://www.ft.com/content/dadc5cbe-67a5-44c9-9b7b-5c23bf4e77ee
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
5 months ago
Microsoft to rank ‘safety’ of AI models sold to cloud customers
https://www.ft.com/content/02f39b33-fa6e-4bb7-b1f4-8171b50738af
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Microsoft to rank ‘safety’ of AI models sold to cloud customers
Tech group’s corporate clients use its ‘leaderboard’ to assess rival offerings by likes of OpenAI and Elon Musk’s xAI
https://www.ft.com/content/02f39b33-fa6e-4bb7-b1f4-8171b50738af
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
5 months ago
Triumphing under Trump: the corporate winners and losers
https://www.ft.com/content/368586a4-80e6-4715-b56e-dd63f8c7df59
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Triumphing under Trump: the corporate winners and losers
How global companies have fared since the US president’s inauguration
https://www.ft.com/content/368586a4-80e6-4715-b56e-dd63f8c7df59
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Uber looks to be readying for life after Dara Khosrowshahi, but one former executive tells the FT that they can't conceive of a business where he might hold the same amount of control.
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5 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Josh Spero
5 months ago
FT Wealth is out in today’s paper, with a fresh redesign and fabulous stories, from India’s Instagram prince to the chances of a billionaire tax. You can read all the stories here too
www.ft.com/ft-wealth
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
5 months ago
New York Times agrees first AI deal with Amazon
https://www.ft.com/content/bc73404e-6f01-4b9e-9563-1a5f055d2c98
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New York Times agrees first AI deal with Amazon
Paper will license its editorial content to ecommerce giant to train its artificial intelligence models
https://www.ft.com/content/bc73404e-6f01-4b9e-9563-1a5f055d2c98
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SpaceX rocket goes boom. Again.
on.ft.com/43ii3bN
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SpaceX Starship rocket fails to deploy satellites and explodes on re-entry
[FREE TO READ] Company unable to deploy payload on test flight while part of vehicle explodes on return into the atmosphere
https://on.ft.com/43ii3bN
6 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Humanoid robots spark debate about safety, form and function
https://www.ft.com/content/02f72125-dbc9-451d-84f8-1dc9e8bfb8ee
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Humanoid robots spark debate about safety, form and function
Demand for humanlike two-legged machines is growing fast
https://www.ft.com/content/02f72125-dbc9-451d-84f8-1dc9e8bfb8ee
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This week various tech chiefs gathered on screen at Microsoft's Build dev conference in Seattle, reflecting how dependent they've become on a half-century-old software giant. The likes of Elon Musk, Sam Altman and Jensen Huang are relying on Microsoft to make AI work.
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6 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Microsoft to offer Elon Musk’s xAI models to cloud customers
https://www.ft.com/content/ea49c61c-4ad2-4221-838b-617f762125d4
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Microsoft to offer Elon Musk’s xAI models to cloud customers
Tech giant’s move is latest signal of cooling relations with OpenAI
https://www.ft.com/content/ea49c61c-4ad2-4221-838b-617f762125d4
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
FT Weekend, the Saturday edition of the Financial Times, is now on Bluesky. Follow us for the best of our journalism, from Life & Arts, HTSI magazine and House & Home to FT Weekend Magazine, FT Money and FT Globetrotter's city guides
bsky.app/profile/ftwe...
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates said in an interview that Tesla chief Elon Musk had acted through ignorance during what Gates described as misguided cuts to US development assistance
www.ft.com/content/bdd9...
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NEW: Amazon's Zoox has secured a site in the Bay Area to ramp up production as it seeks to expand in Waymo's backyard in San Francisco.
on.ft.com/4d7VPwm
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Amazon’s Zoox to scale up robotaxi production for US expansion
[FREE TO READ] Self-driving start-up is opening a facility in California’s Bay Area to increase its fleet significantly
https://on.ft.com/4d7VPwm
6 months ago
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
DoorDash strikes £2.9bn deal for Deliveroo
https://www.ft.com/content/641f2cbc-e7d7-494d-b698-b794fd75f656
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DoorDash strikes £2.9bn deal for Deliveroo
Takeover comes after UK company has struggled since going public four years ago
https://www.ft.com/content/641f2cbc-e7d7-494d-b698-b794fd75f656
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'Escape from Alcatraz' aired on PBS last night. Less than 24 hours later and US President Donald Trump said he would tariff movies made overseas and reopen the notorious prison. Cinema truly moves people.
add a skeleton here at some point
6 months ago
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Chinese exporters ‘wash’ products in third countries to avoid Donald Trump’s tariffs
https://www.ft.com/content/147fddbb-7031-4347-9251-4425614e138d
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Chinese exporters ‘wash’ products in third countries to avoid Donald Trump’s tariffs
Asian neighbours wary of becoming staging posts for trade actually destined for US
https://www.ft.com/content/147fddbb-7031-4347-9251-4425614e138d
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Rafe Uddin
Robert Smith
6 months ago
Warren Buffett just announced his retirement!
www.ft.com/content/2d8a...
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Warren Buffett to step down from Berkshire Hathaway after six decades
The ‘Oracle of Omaha’ announces plans to retire from his sprawling conglomerate at annual meeting
https://www.ft.com/content/2d8a6430-574b-4941-a120-f9e204639948
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Jeff Bezos to sell up to $4.75bn in Amazon stock
https://www.ft.com/content/bc4465d2-59ae-41fd-8b1a-8c39a9091cd4
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Jeff Bezos to sell up to $4.75bn in Amazon stock
Latest share sale disclosed after e-commerce giant warns of impact from Donald Trump’s global trade war
https://www.ft.com/content/bc4465d2-59ae-41fd-8b1a-8c39a9091cd4
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Rafe Uddin
Clara Murray
6 months ago
New 📈✍️ with
@rafeuddin.ft.com
Trump execs suggest robots can fill US manufacturing labour gaps after reshoring. But experts say cost and lack of skilled workers mean companies can't "pivot on a dime". China & Korea's 🤖 booms came after lots of government subsidies. US robots will be tariffed...
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Microsoft wins Big Tech’s first earnings battle since Donald Trump’s tariffs
https://www.ft.com/content/6ed1f0ed-935a-4bd2-9c54-e340651b0b28
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Microsoft wins Big Tech’s first earnings battle since Donald Trump’s tariffs
Apple and Amazon lose out as trade war threatens to hit hardware and ecommerce hardest
https://www.ft.com/content/6ed1f0ed-935a-4bd2-9c54-e340651b0b28
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Amazon falls after profit forecast misses expectations
https://www.ft.com/content/fb135172-c94a-4060-9034-f7abb9bc05fe
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Amazon falls after profit forecast misses expectations
Ecommerce giant also sets lower sales guidance range below Wall Street forecasts
https://www.ft.com/content/fb135172-c94a-4060-9034-f7abb9bc05fe
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Microsoft shares jump after software giant’s earnings top forecasts
https://www.ft.com/content/9443ca4b-09c1-4f21-ba71-3953b3e0a714
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Microsoft shares jump after software giant’s earnings top forecasts
Profits rise nearly 20% in March quarter sending stock up nearly 6% after-hours
https://www.ft.com/content/9443ca4b-09c1-4f21-ba71-3953b3e0a714
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
White House lashes out at ‘hostile and political act by Amazon’
https://www.ft.com/content/a06e80e7-97d0-4f29-9153-1e4219a88713
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White House lashes out at ‘hostile and political act by Amazon’
Spat comes after report alleged the tech giant was planning to display price increases caused by Trump’s tariffs
https://www.ft.com/content/a06e80e7-97d0-4f29-9153-1e4219a88713
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New: Amazon is pressuring suppliers to cut prices to dampen the impact of tariffs as it races to save its third quarter when a bumper Prime Day sales event is planned. My rundown of the e-commerce giant’s tariff playbook.
add a skeleton here at some point
6 months ago
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
6 months ago
Amazon’s rival to Starlink makes first satellite launch
https://www.ft.com/content/f9668af9-657c-4567-9f73-ed19cca10dd1
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Amazon’s rival to Starlink makes first satellite launch
Project Kuiper aims to compete with Elon Musk’s satellite internet network
https://www.ft.com/content/f9668af9-657c-4567-9f73-ed19cca10dd1
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
7 months ago
Demand slump fuelled by Trump tariffs hits US ports and air freight
https://www.ft.com/content/967a0c1a-6ae5-4d72-bd78-b7a8bdabccea
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Demand slump fuelled by Trump tariffs hits US ports and air freight
Bookings plunge as importers hold off on shipping goods to America in hope of Beijing-Washington deal
https://www.ft.com/content/967a0c1a-6ae5-4d72-bd78-b7a8bdabccea
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Rafe Uddin
Sam Learner
7 months ago
NEW from the team: another look at the supply chain behind the iPhone and why it would be impractical to manufacture in the US:
ig.ft.com/us-iphone/
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Rafe Uddin
John Reed
7 months ago
Scoop: Apple aims to source all US iPhones from India in pivot away from China
on.ft.com/42vIHNX
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Apple aims to source all US iPhones from India in pivot away from China
[FREE TO READ] FT Exclusive: Tech giant plans to shift assembly as soon as next year in response to Donald Trump’s trade war
https://on.ft.com/42vIHNX
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reposted by
Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
7 months ago
Musk forced back to the boardroom as Doge ‘blowback’ pummels Tesla
https://www.ft.com/content/0e6bcdc2-aa2e-43e9-a4cb-c986147af8d5
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Musk forced back to the boardroom as Doge ‘blowback’ pummels Tesla
Billionaire’s foray into government coincided with increased competition from Chinese rivals
https://www.ft.com/content/0e6bcdc2-aa2e-43e9-a4cb-c986147af8d5
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Rafe Uddin
John Reed
7 months ago
on.ft.com/4is53V9
India under tariff pressure to give Amazon and Walmart’s Flipkart full market access
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India under tariff pressure to give Amazon and Walmart’s Flipkart full market access
[FREE TO READ] Trade talks set to discuss giving US ecommerce giants a level playing field with local rivals
https://on.ft.com/4is53V9
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Rafe Uddin
Robert Smith
8 months ago
CoreWeave, the cloud computing group seeking to launch a blockbuster $32bn IPO, violated several key terms of a $7.6bn loan last year, triggering a series of so-called technical defaults. Full details only in the FT, w/
@tabbykinder.bsky.social
and
@antoinegara.bsky.social
on.ft.com/4c4F44x
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CoreWeave triggered defaults after breaching terms on Blackstone loan
[FREE TO READ] US cloud company seeking blockbuster $32bn IPO had to remedy serious administrative errors in December
https://on.ft.com/4c4F44x
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Rafe Uddin
Financial Times
8 months ago
From attending Trump’s inauguration to airing old episodes of ‘The Apprentice’ on Amazon Prime Video, Jeff Bezos has executed a sharp public reversal in his relationship with Trump that has surprised even longtime associates. Here’s why he has changed his tune:
www.ft.com/content/00e8...
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