Huawei Tops China Smartphone Market for First Time in Years
The hardware giant held on to a roughly 18% share of the market in the June quarter, while other leading competitors like Vivo and Oppo slumped, according to IDC data. The Shenzhen device maker showed greater resilience than rivals as overall shipments in China fell 4% to 69 million units.
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Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
What the China export easing means for Nvidia, AMD, and other chips stocks
Nvidia (NDVA) and AMD (AMD) may soon get the green light to sell AI chips to China again, potentially reviving a key growth market. The US government is reportedly considering loosening export restrictions, which could allow the tech giants to resume sales of some lower-end AI chips to China. This policy shift comes after April's export ban blocked chips such as Nvidia's H20 AI accelerator and AMD's MI308. 'This is a game changer,' Dan Ives, managing director of Wedbush Securities, told Yahoo Finance. 'Nvidia stands to gain billions in annual revenue from China, and every Nvidia supplier is going to benefit, as well as second and third derivative plays.' Bank of America (BAC) raised its price targets for Nvidia and AMD to $220 and $175, respectively, in anticipation of license approval. Favorable regulation could boost Nvidia's earnings per share by 5%-7% and AMD's by 3%-5%, its analysts estimate. But it's not just Nvidia and AMD that stand to gain. "It's a silver bullet positive for the AI buildout sector,' Ives said. If China's cloud and data center buildouts ramp back up, companies like Broadcom (AVGO) and Marvell Technology (MRVL), whose custom chips support AI infrastructure, could benefit. Credo Technology Group (CRDO), a high-speed interconnect supplier, may also see demand rise alongside broader server deployments. All three stocks carry a Buy rating from BofA. The clearest beneficiaries may be at the heart of chip manufacturing. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which produces Nvidia and AMD's chips, and Samsung Electronics (SSNLF), a key supplier of high-bandwidth memory, are well-positioned to capture a rebound. Read more: How does Nvidia make money? 'If I'm pointing to derivatives, I'm pointing to Samsung and TSMC,' Matt Bryson, managing director of research at Wedbush Securities, told Yahoo Finance. 'They're literally working on the parts Nvidia and AMD are shipping.' Bryson said that before April's export ban, Chinese server build activity was the 'number one positive inflection' the industry was watching. The momentum stalled in the second quarter, but could quickly return if policy changes are confirmed. The semiconductor market is rapidly expanding as AI advances. Gaining approval and reopening the key Chinese market, even partially, shifts sentiment across the sector. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang estimated the Chinese AI market is worth $50 billion. Still, the exact effect on balance sheets will be hard to pin down in the near term. Nvidia's first quarter earnings reported a $2.5 billion drop in China revenue and a $4.5 billion inventory write-off. An additional $8 billion loss is anticipated in the second quarter. The semiconductor market is rapidly expanding as AI advances. Gaining approval and reopening the key Chinese market, even partially, shifts sentiment across the sector. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang estimated the Chinese AI market is worth $50 billion. 'China is one of the best areas they [AMD] could break into,' Ives said. Bryson pointed out that even if the chipmakers get the green light to resume shipments and see some revenue bounce back, it's a big question mark whether the demand is even still there. Chinese customers might have already found other suppliers or simply moved on. Francisco Velasquez is a Reporter at Yahoo Finance. He can be reached on LinkedIn and X, or via email at Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CNET
27 minutes ago
- CNET
Why Android-Makers Should Focus on the Phone and Leave AI to Google
If you've bought an Android phone in the past year, you've likely noticed that it's packed with AI features. Maybe you knew about them before you hit purchase, maybe you assumed (safely as it turns out) that there would be some kind of AI on your new phone, or maybe they took you totally by surprise. If you bought a Samsung Galaxy S25, for example, you'll have had Gemini, Circle to Search, Bixby and Galaxy AI at your fingertips -- all before you even thought about downloading the ChatGPT app. It reminds me of the early days of Android, when phone-makers tried to load devices with their own apps, services and overwrought UIs in the name of differentiation. Which sparks the question: Is AI the new Android bloatware? It's easy to understand why Android phone-makers have latched onto the idea that AI might be a useful tool to set them apart from rivals. After all, most flagship Android phones share the same DNA: a high-end processor (usually the top Snapdragon chip from Qualcomm), the latest Android software, a competitive camera system and a battery that will last for a day or more. The truth is that we're often splitting hairs when trying to recommend one over another. When generative AI arrived on the scene, offering the potential to bring new experiences to mobile devices, Android phone-makers were keen to tap into those possibilities. Here was a new opportunity to differentiate themselves, and give people a fresh reason to choose them over a competitor. (And over the iPhone, as Apple slow-walks Apple Intelligence into being.) In reality, it's not quite playing out that way -- and for a few different reasons. First, research conducted by CNET and supported by the findings of independent industry analysts consistently shows us that people aren't upgrading their phones due to the availability of AI features. Instead, the things they care about, in order of importance are price, longer battery life, storage, cameras. In other words, the same exact things they've prioritized for years when choosing a new phone. The second issue is that in spite of some manufacturers' best efforts, AI isn't the differentiator they thought it would be. At the heart of this problem is that there's barely an Android phone hitting the market right now that doesn't already have the most cutting-edge tech built into it thanks to Google Gemini. Every Android phone maker has its own flavor of AI, but more often than not, this means a bunch of gimmicky features added onto the existing software in a haphazard fashion, creating something of a Frankenstein effect. Early-mover advantage: Galaxy AI Of all the Android phone-makers trying to make their own AI brand stick in our minds, it's perhaps Samsung that's in with the best chance. Compared to rivals, it was relatively early to jump onto the AI bandwagon, launching Galaxy AI in January 2024, giving it a strategic headstart that it's built on ever since. Last week it followed the launch of its latest foldables with an AI forum, during which it revealed that 70% of Galaxy S25 owners were using Galaxy AI features. More than half, it added, were using Circle to Search. This year it will bring Galaxy AI to more than 400 million devices. Android's Circle to Search feature originally launched on Samsung Galaxy S24 and Pixel 8 phones in January 2024. Samsung/Screenshot by CNET This all sounds positive, until you remember that Circle to Search is a Google feature, not a Samsung feature. Google, which makes the Android OS, often hands out temporary exclusives to Android phone-makers on new Gemini features, as it initially did with Circle to Search for Samsung in 2024. It did it again this year with an image-to-video generator, which debuted with Honor. It's surely a nice sweetener for Google's relationships with phone-makers to be able to offer them these exclusives. But most of the standalone AI mobile tools we've seen grab the headlines are ultimately Gemini features made by Google, not the work of individual phone-makers, and it's only a matter of time before they become available on other Android devices – including Google's own Pixel phones. To Google, "nothing is more important than Gemini," said Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight. It is a "strategic pillar of the future of Google." And how better, he adds, to ensure its success than getting it into people's hands through the 3 billion Android phones in the marketplace (which puts Samsung's 400 million into perspective)? Samsung might have the largest market share of any Android phone maker, but when you look at its reach compared to Google's, it's clear that Galaxy AI, which sits on top of Gemini, is at a competitive disadvantage. Bonus AI Of course Samsung and other Android phone-makers will say their own flavors of AI don't compete with Gemini, but complement it. And there is some validity in this idea. It's rare that a phone maker attempts to replicate something Google has already done. Instead they look for opportunities to add their own AI twist -- often in the form of camera features. But whether they do this well enough for it to make any kind of meaningful impact on people's decisions to buy their phones is another question entirely. This week, OnePlus began rolling out its own suite of AI features, announced back in May, to the OnePlus 13 and 13R. These include some photo tools and an AI content hub called Plus Mind to act as your memory for important information. OnePlus' natural language search within "Mind Space" worked well for me. Katie Collins/CNET It would be a waste of time for OnePlus to replicate features in house that have already been developed by Google, said Arthur Lam in an interview at the software launch. A central part of the company's AI strategy is to "embrace and integrate [Google AI features] as fast as possible," he said. "At the same time, we should have our own proposition, our own idea about what OnePlus AI should stand for," added Lam. This is where Plus Mind comes in. It's an interesting first step from the company, although perhaps not quite as compelling as a company such as Motorola, which is investing in a LAM (large action model) -- as opposed to an LLM, or large language model -- that will respond to questions with actions, not just words. The idea is that it will use its understanding of your environment and reduce the number of interactions you need to have with your phone to order a coffee or an Uber, for example. All roads lead to Gemini As for Google, the company thinks it's "great" that phone makers are developing their own AI to complement the suite of tools it's providing them. That's what Sameer Samat, president of Android, told Tech Radar this week. "If the features are great, it's more value for the consumers and more innovation," he said. "But I think for us, as Google, we want to make sure those two pieces [Circle to Search and Gemini] are very clearly accessible, very clearly identifiable across all the different devices that consumers are considering." It's a revealing statement from Samat, supporting the theory that Google's ambition is to be the final boss of the AI smartphone experience. As Wood puts it: "All roads lead to Gemini." Ultimately, it's not only Google's reach that is going to allow Gemini to be the dominant AI tool on Android phones, but the budget and talent the company has to dedicate to AI, which individual phone-makers just can't match. This means that when it comes to differentiation, AI is unlikely to be the factor that sets brands such as Samsung and OnePlus apart. "Handset manufacturers are in danger of being left to compete more on brand and industrial design than AI features and capabilities," said Wood. True differentiation: The Nothing story One company that seems to have realized this is UK-based Nothing. Over the past year or so, I've attended, either in person or virtually, almost every major Android phone launch. One thing most of them have in common is a Google representative on stage espousing the many benefits of Gemini. At the launch of the Nothing Phone 3 in London earlier this month, the company bucked this trend. Nothing still has a tiny market share -- around 0.2% as estimated by founder and CEO Carl Pei. But since its inception in 2022, it's managed to thrive and grow in a competitive, mature phone marketplace thanks largely due to its focus on design. Nothing's focus on design sets it apart. Andrew Lanxon/CNET That's not to say it's ignored AI, but it has taken a different approach. Earlier this year it launched "Essential Space," an AI-powered portal for storing and organizing everything important on your phone, from screenshots to calendar invites. It was a unique feature that's already been effectively copied by some other phone-makers (see OnePlus' efforts above). Nothing does use Gemini, but it's not reliant on it in the same way its competitors are. "We don't want to do the model side," Pei explained to me at its Phone 3 launch earlier this month. "There's companies that are really good at it. They're very well funded and they're all competing against each other." Instead, Nothing has built its AI platform to be "model agnostic," he said. "When the models get better, we just switch to the best one. Right now, I think it's powered by Gemini, but there's no stopping us from changing to the latest and greatest." The uphill battle ahead A flexible approach to AI seems like the safest bet at this time when the technology is changing minute by minute. It'll be an uphill battle for Android phone-makers to keep up, and hope their own efforts will remain relevant and prove useful as Google charges ahead offering best-in-class mobile AI experiences. The real fight here is the same one we've seen play out for the past decade and a half: It's Apple versus Google. The true differentiation we're seeing in mobile AI right now is between Google Gemini and Apple Intelligence, with the former leading the field and the latter trailing in its wake. For as long as Google attempts to aggressively build upon its early AI lead while holding the Android ecosystem in the palm of its hand, phone-makers will need to do more than just rely on AI to persuade us that their Android offering truly is the best of the best.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
PepsiCo posts Q2 beat, GE Aerospace lifts outlook
PepsiCo (PEP) topped second quarter expectations, helped by international sales while maintaining its full-year outlook. GE Aerospace (GE) raised its full-year earnings guidance after reporting better-than-expected Q2 results. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Morning Brief: Market Sunrise here. We're taking a look at some key market movers this morning, Pepsico and GE Aerospace reporting earnings ahead of the open. Let's start first with Pepsico. Second quarter results hitting the wire a short time ago, beating estimates on the top and bottom lines. Core earnings per share coming in at $2.32, that was versus estimates for $2.03. As for net revenue that came in at $22.73 billion, strong international numbers helping drive sales growth there. The company, which also owns Gatorade and Quaker brands, maintained its annual outlook. So Pepsi coming out and maintaining its annual outlook here perhaps another sign that the consumer continues to hold up. We've heard that earlier this week from several large banks. That's been a key theme for the week across earnings releases, but sort of zeroing in on Pepsi here and sort of what the story has been. Stock has entered this release down about 10% year to date coming in. You can see on your screen there, down over 18% over the last year. Pepsi is one of many consumer staples companies that has been under pressure as the new Trump administration has been making this push for healthier foods. Pepsi trying to figure out new solutions for that, that's been a key discussion going on with the company. Will be interesting to hear what they have to say about that on the call. As well as last night, President Trump coming out on Truth Social saying that Coke had agreed to use real cane sugar in its drinks. That will also likely be a focus on this Pepsi call. But again, shares are higher right now. I want to move on to our other earnings mover, GE Aerospace. That stock jumping after better than expected second quarter results, and the company also raising its full-year guidance. The company seeing a rebound in demand in the aviation market, that offsetting some softness due to the global trade war. And and demand to fix older airplanes also driving the company's increased guidance. Airlines are holding onto planes longer because of delivery delays from Boeing and Airbus. GE shares up over 60% so far this year. This has been one of the top stocks in the market that we have been keeping our eye on. So looks like that rally continuing at least in the pre-market right now. Related Videos GE Aerospace, Abbott Labs, Elevance: Trending Tickers Powell isn't the only Fed hawk: Williams keen to hold rates Earnings highlights & Fed rate cut odds: What to know Trump vs. Powell, earnings, retail sales data: 3 Things Sign in to access your portfolio
