Futures Step Back Tuesday

Nvidia's Arm-based RTX Spark N1X chip, launching in October 2026, combines a Grace CPU with a Blackwell GPU, offering 5,120 or 6,144 CUDA cores and up to 128GB shared memory. It will be used in laptops and compact desktops from multiple OEMs, aiming to compete with Apple, Qualcomm, AMD, and Intel. The chip's high memory usage raises cost concerns amid GPU shortages and rising memory prices, impacting Intel and AMD shares.

Nscale, a two-year-old neocloud company backed by Nvidia, filed for a New York IPO with a valuation of up to $35 billion. The company reported a net loss of $1.02 billion in the first half of 2026 and relies heavily on Nvidia for financing and contracts. Nvidia is a major investor and supplier, raising questions about circular financing. Nscale's IPO could set a benchmark for other AI infrastructure companies.

Basecamp Research raised $140m in a Series C round led by S32, with NVIDIA, Anthropic, and Roche among investors. The company focuses on AI-designed therapeutics, using its Trillion Gene Atlas dataset to develop personalized treatments. Investors highlight the potential to transform drug manufacturing and innovation.

NVIDIA reported record Q2 2027 revenue of $96.2B, up 106% YoY, driven by AI infrastructure demand. Key customers AWS, Meta, Microsoft, and OpenAI are deploying millions of NVIDIA GPUs, with AWS planning 2M additional GPUs by 2028. NVIDIA expects Q3 2027 revenue of ~$108B, highlighting ongoing AI boom.

The Fed raised interest rates by 25 basis points, with all FOMC members voting in favor. Initially, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq showed little reaction, but later slumped. Markets recovered in the last hour, except for the Dow Jones, which fell 1.2%. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh suggested a 25 bps hike in November, less than markets expected. Tech stocks Lumentum, Coherent, Intel, and Nvidia saw gains.

IonQ (IONQ) announced a quantum error decoder, boosting shares 12% last week but still down 45% year-over-year. Rival stocks fell, highlighting IonQ's specific breakthrough. Analysts caution about IonQ's cash burn and losses, while Nvidia (NVDA) is seen as a safer bet with strong AI infrastructure and cash flow. NVDA is down 1.18% premarket but up 25.19% year-over-year.