AnalytixInsight

Last week Dow Jones fell 1.2%, S&P 500 lost 1.4%, Nasdaq composite was down 2.1%. Sector rotation and AI disruption fears hit stocks, rolling across sectors. Software stocks continue to endure their worst rout since 2002. Shopify epitomized the volatility, falling 11% despite reporting 31% revenue growth and a US$2 bullion buyback program. Investors remain skeptical of legacy SaaS revenue growth and margins as AI giants like OpenAI and Anthropic threaten to disrupt traditional enterprise workflows. The “SaaSpocalypse” could stall expected 2026 IPO momentum, with firms like Visma and Liftoff Mobile delaying listings. Private equity giant Thoma Bravo is viewing the panic as a “bargain” opportunity, arguing that “AI is software” and public markets are failing to discern winners from losers. The AI and private co funding supercycle continues unabated. Anthropic raised US$30 billion at a US$380 billion valuation, fueled by a US$14 billion revenue run rate. Databricks raised US$7 billion in fresh capital. Stripe is eyeing a US$140 billion valuation in a new tender offer, marking a significant valuation rebound. Alphabet is tapping the bond market for US$20 billion to fund exploding Capex. Supply chains remain a bottleneck as memory chip prices soar; SK Hynix shares have surged 150% since September. To protect the AI boom, the Trump administration is reportedly planning tariff “carve-outs” for hyperscalers like Amazon and Google, tying exemptions to TSMC’s US$165 billion investment in U.S. domestic manufacturing. In Canada, Cohere hit a US$240 million ARR milestone, setting the stage for a potential 2026 IPO alongside SpaceX and OpenAI. Apple continued its quiet acquisition spree in Kitchener-Waterloo, snapping up database startup Kuzu. In the MicroCap space, Sophic client Cybeats is capitalizing on global SBOM mandates, with CEO Justin Leger highlighting the transition of cybersecurity from a regulatory hurdle to a foundational enterprise layer.

Last week, Dow Jones gained 2.5%, and hit a record high 50,000 Friday, S&P 500 was down 0.1%, Nasdaq composite fell 1.8%. Software stocks are facing a brutal reckoning as short sellers pocketed US$24 billion in paper gains this year, betting on AI-driven disruption of traditional SaaS models. The rout intensified following Anthropic’s release of Claude Opus 4.6, which specifically targets legal and financial workflows, sending shares of Snowflake, Salesforce, and S&P Global tumbling. The “AI arms race” reached an unprecedented scale, with Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft forecasting a combined US$650 billion in 2026 capital expenditures. Amazon (US$200 billion) and Alphabet (US$180 billion) are leading this surge. Oracle is seeking up to US$50 billion in fresh funding to build data centers for clients like OpenAI and xAI. SpaceX consolidated acquiried xAI for US$250 billion, valuing SpaceX at US$1 trillion, and filing for 1 million satellites to host orbital data centers. While AWS CEO Matt Garman expressed skepticism regarding the near-term viability of space-based compute. Waymo raised $16 billion at a $126 billion valuation. Nvidia is delaying its new gaming GPU release to prioritize AI-grade memory. Cerebras raised US$1 billion following a massive US$10 billion compute deal with OpenAI. Uber is aggressively expanding its robotaxi footprint to Hong Kong and Madrid following a 20% revenue jump. In Canada, the federal government signaled a strategic shift by backing the new Defence, Security and Resilience Bank to support industrial scale-up and supply-chain stability. BeWhere launched a $4 million offering for European expansion. Sophic client, Plurilock announced $1.19 million in cybersecurity renewals, deepening its integration into high-stakes national security and enterprise “Insider Risk” programs.

Last week, Dow Jones fell 0.4%, S&P 500 rose 0.3%, Nasdaq composite fell .2%. Markets had a mixed week, fading mid-week highs. With a few MAG 7 companies reporting Q4, “big tech” remains a story of massive AI capex. Meta forecasted a 73% jump in 2026 capex to US$135 billion. Microsoft’s revenue backlog hit US$625 billion, fueled by a US$281 billion commitment from OpenAI. OpenAI is reportedly eyeing a Q4 IPO to beat Anthropic to market, even as Anthropic scales toward US$18 billion in 2026 revenue. High training (US$12 billion) and inference (US$7 billion) costs have pushed Anthropic’s cash-flow-positive target to 2028. Apple signaled its AI ambitions by acquiring “silent communication” startup Q.ai for ~US$2 billion, following a holiday quarter where iPhone 17 sales drove a 23% revenue jump. SpaceX recorded a US$8 billion profit in 2025 and is reportedly weighing a merger with Tesla or xAI to consolidate assets ahead of a potential US$50 billion IPO. Tesla margins remain under pressure, with net income falling 61% amid a US$2 billion reinvestment into xAI. Fidelity announced its “Fidelity Digital Dollar” (FIDD) to capture the institutional stablecoin market. In Canada, after a four-year new issue drought and high delisting volumes, bankers signal a robust go public pipeline in tech and natural resources. Waabi raised US$1 billion for autonomous trucking and robotaxis. Calian launched a $100 million platform to bolster domestic defence SMBs. Sophic client Legend Power Systems reported Q4 (Sept) Fiscal 2025, which highlighted SmartGATE traction, currently engaged in active sales cycles for 196 buildings in the Commercial Real Estate space. The Company recently closed a Private Placement, raising Gross Proceeds of ~$1.6 million.

Last week, Dow Jones fell 0.5%, S&P 500 was down 0.35%, Nasdaq composite lost 0.1%. Stocks bounced back from lows in a very volatile week. Next week, earnings from Microsoft, Meta, Apple will provide investors insight on where we are in the AI trade. Defense, and AI infrastructure remain the clear winners, for now. Thoma Bravo signaled PE appetite to buy quality software assets amidst the ongoing software valuation reset. The defense sector saw its largest IPO ever with Prague-based Czechoslovak Group (CSG) debuting at a €25 billion valuation. BitGo led the crypto sector’s return to public markets, with its stock opening up 25% on its NYSE debut. OpenAI is reportedly seeking US$50 billion at a valuation nearing US$830 billion, even as OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar notes that revenue—now hitting US$20 billion—is scaling 1:1 with compute consumption. Anthropic reportedly trimmed 2025 gross margin expectations as inference costs came in higher than forecast, underscoring that “AI is a COGS story” as much as a product story. Apple is reportedly developing an AI wearable pin for 2027, and pivoting Siri toward a Google Gemini-backed chatbot. Tesla launched limited unsupervised robotaxi rides in Austin. Blue Origin is targeting the enterprise satellite market with TeraWave, aiming for 6 Tbps speeds by 2027. In Canada, the “sovereign capability” trend is gaining massive traction. General Fusion is set to become the first publicly traded pure-play fusion company via a US$1 billion SPAC deal. Dominion Dynamics secured $21 million to build a Canadian “defence neoprime”. Shopify signaled a shift in commerce, integrating native checkouts into ChatGPT and Gemini, with OpenAI taking a 4% cut of merchant sales. Sophic client, Boardwalktech launched its “Verity” platform, leveraging agentic AI to automate complex financial controls for top-tier banks.