New data strengthens our faith in a TJX comeback. Plus, the Nvidia-Microsoft PC is here

Nvidia launched RTX Spark AI laptops in Korea, starting at 5.8 million won. The SoC combines an Arm-based CPU and GPU, enabling local AI model processing. Partners like Asus and Dell began sales on Oct. 16. Nvidia cites high memory costs for the price. The chip supports AI, content creation, and gaming, with up to 128GB of shared memory.

Microsoft and Health-ISAC seized domains linked to three Chinese-language cybercrime services, YAM Store, CoGUI, and Iron Man, which sent over 1 billion phishing messages. The services targeted 75,000 organizations, including Microsoft customers, in 150+ countries, generating millions for operators. The investigation involved multiple global partners and led to the disabling of 20,000 accounts and blocking 100,000 fraudulent domains.

NVIDIA launched the RTX Spark N1X SoC, its first Arm-based chip for Windows systems, with Microsoft's Surface Laptop Ultra as the flagship device. The chip, developed with MediaTek, features 10 Cortex-X925 and 10 Cortex-A725 cores, a 16-channel LPDDR5X memory bus, and a Blackwell GPU architecture. Several laptops and a mini-PC based on the RTX Spark were released, targeting developers, content creators, and consumers.

NiSource and Microsoft agreed to a 20-year power deal for Microsoft's data center in La Porte, Indiana. Starting in 2028, the agreement will add 1,100 megawatts of power and 600 megawatts of battery storage. Microsoft will fund new power generation and transmission equipment. NiSource estimates $1.75 billion in savings for existing customers over the contract's lifetime.

SpaceX may rebrand its AI division to SpaceXSI, according to Elon Musk's posts. The focus is on its massive GPU data center, Colossus, expected to house 1.44M Nvidia GPUs by late 2026, backed by tens of billions in financing. The project involves advanced Nvidia GPUs and significant power infrastructure.

Taiwan plans to criminalize shipping AI servers and advanced chips to China, adding them to its controlled goods list. NVIDIA (NVDA), Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM), and Super Micro (SMCI) may be affected. NVDA closed at $214.13, TSM at $412.61, and SMCI at $31.63. The move aligns with US trade policies and could impact gray-market demand.