Central Texas' car and chip nexus
Why it matters: The deal gives the Austin-based car company a steady supply of critical technology — and furnishes Samsung with the big dependable customer it had been seeking.
The chip manufacturer had paused construction on its massive Taylor plant — due to open next year — as it sought a buyer for its chips, Nikkei Asia reported in early July.
Taylor is 30 miles northeast of Austin.
The big picture: Samsung announced Saturday that it had struck a $16.5 billion supply agreement, but it didn't identify the company.
The announcement comes after Samsung, one of the world's largest memory chip makers, acknowledged last year that it had fallen behind in the AI chips war.
Driving the news: "Samsung's giant new Texas fab will be dedicated to making Tesla's next-generation AI6 chip," Tesla CEO Elon Musk then revealed on his platform X late Sunday. "The strategic importance of this is hard to overstate."
The intrigue: "Samsung agreed to allow Tesla to assist in maximizing manufacturing efficiency. This is a critical point, as I will walk the line personally to accelerate the pace of progress," Musk wrote.
"And the fab is conveniently located not far from my house."
What they're saying: Ryu Young-ho, a senior analyst at NH Investment and Securities, said that Samsung's Taylor factory "so far had virtually no customers, so this order is quite meaningful," Reuters reported.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
a few seconds ago
- Forbes
AI Boom Fuels San Francisco Party Scene As People Seek Connection
Secret salons, oyster happy hours, coffee raves--San Francisco is back and basking in idyllic weather as rent increases jump to the highest in the nation. Streets are teeming with people racing to events, despite tech season being weeks away, when conferences like Dreamforce, Disrupt, TedAI and SF Tech Week take over the city. Much of the frenzy is being attributed to the AI gold rush with people returning to town to get a piece of the action, so over the past week I popped into several happenings to hear what everyone is talking about. Finding your tribe At AGI House, a sprawling Hillsborough mansion just outside of San Francisco, known for hosting tech celebrities like Google cofounder Sergey Brin and Grimes, dozens gathered for a garden gala featuring talks with industry luminaries OpenAI's chief strategy officer Jason Kwon and former OpenAI interim CEO Emmett Shear. It was as insider as it gets with a pulsing DJ set by Twitch cofounder Justin Kan, meticulously curated by AGI House founder Rocky Yu and Icons podcaster Melanie Uno. In the mix was Poshmark cofounder Manish Chandra who shared with me his views on the AI transformation. I asked, what will people do with their lives as AI frees up time, and more importantly how will they pay for it. He replied, 'I feel like we're moving to more and more abundance, even though the path to abundance always feels a little uncertain and dark." "When the dot com boom was crashing, it was impossible to find a job. Highway 101 was emptier than Covid. There were see-through buildings, literally no jobs, and people were throwing in the towel.' Trying times, he recalled. "I remember it from a personal perspective, because I had young kids and had to figure out how to survive.' He expressed how hard times bring out things that can transform you, whether you discover superpowers or connect with new people. 'Human connections deepen when times are tough,' he said. 'When times are good, people just kind of ignore each other.' He also said there have been far crazier boom and bust cycles that have come before, with companies giving away BMWs and other outrageous perks to attract engineers. 'In the nineties, technology was changing so fast, it felt like everything you were doing was going to become obsolete, literally every day," he said. 'Every 10 years, we predict the demise of Silicon Valley, and we feel like whatever the technology is coming is dooming humanity, and is more severe than last time. Yet here we all are thriving, sitting here this lovely evening.' Emmett Shear, now cofounder of Andreessen-backed AI alignment lab, Softmax, sat down with me to discuss how people can best keep their head straight during these times. He explained that in the seventies there was a seminal work authored by Alvin Toffler, called Future Shock, that explored the psychological disorientation that can occur as a result of rapid technological change. 'This feeling of overwhelm, that if things keep changing, I can't learn fast enough to keep up with the system," he said. "But the way you keep up is actually by giving up on trying to understand everything at that level of detail.' He then shared his barbell strategy for surviving the next five years. 'In a high variance environment where things can change a lot in unexpected ways, you should just YOLO big things that might work, because even if you fail, your tried-and-true plan could also fail. So there's no point playing it safe, might as well be ambitious,' he advised. 'On the other hand, as things get riskier, you'll need to build up safety and reliability support to counterbalance.' He said hunter-gatherers lived in the same situation we're wandering into, a world of forces more powerful than themselves and beyond their control. Not only was it spiritually, emotionally and intellectually beneficial to be in a tight community, but also economically sound. When you store meat from the hunt in the bellies of friends, they'll be around to help when you find yourself in a tough spot. Futureproofing AI bets Back in San Francisco, at a Michelin starred restaurant where the meal was served community style making dining optional, AI unicorn Honeybook gathered the press to discuss how AI is birthing a new breed of one person startups and solopreneurs. It was here I had a chance to talk with Jeff Crowe, managing partner of Norwest Venture Partners, who told me the story of a 20-year old founder that landed seed funding to create text-to-sheets, text-to-deck apps right before ChatGPT made it a feature. This led to the question, how can VCs futureproof bets to prevent obsolescense in the age of AI. He said the first thing to look at is product. If it's a thin wrapper around a core, it's hard to futureproof as the LLMs eat their way further into the application layer. 'It's how venture capital looked at personal software in the nineties and said what's the differentiation if Microsoft moves into the space. Thirty-plus years later, it's a similar phenomenon in AI products, where OpenAI, Anthropic and others keep adding functionality." As far as defensible moats, he looks for product capabilities not easily disruptable like those with domain-specific data, integration with large enterprise systems, and bespoke distribution tied to supply chain. If it's a product that's been around longer, he looks for how fast it's pivoting to AI, driving into core functionality as well as operations including development, customer support, sales, marketing, HR and finance. Because if operations aren't futureproofed, competitors can gain a superior cost structure and become more capital efficient and profitable. He looks to see whether customers are adapting because some are going to get accelerated, and others obliterated, with risks that have nothing to do with the core business. Lastly, he looks for a culture that's nimble and can move exceptionally quickly. A fan of young talent, Crowe believes hiring AI-natives is the best way to transform an organization, because their rate of change is less than a worker whose baseline is pre-AI. Embracing AI workers Across town, Initialized Capital was hosting its own press dinner, introducing their portfolio of agentic startups deploying digital workers. Runway cofounder Siqi Chen told me from the moment he launched his startup in 2020, he knew they'd never have more than 100 people, because they had early access to GPT-3 and knew they could scale faster with AI, than headcount. In contrast to Crowe's hiring strategy, Chen said, Runway is hiring only senior talent. 'The profile of how we hire is quite different today than it was even three or four years ago. It's staff or principal level only at this point, because junior stuff can basically be done by LLMs today." 'We're seeing non-technical people contribute on a technical level like never before-- tagging a robot to write the code for a bug--that's just magic," he said. Runway uses bots for everything, from qualifying leads to reviewing documents. One of Initialized other portco commented that they deployed AI in Slack for IT support under the name of Paul, not AI Paul. A bit head-spinning to think you can be chatting with an AI colleague and not know it, even if they are funny. Initialized Capital's managing partner Brett Gibson said it's the natural progression of where we're heading. I asked him whether this was the end of the app economy. He replied, 'Software is going to trend towards being generatable. There are going to be a lot of apps you still want a relationship with for a variety of reasons, because they have other people on them and you're collaborating, or perhaps the AI itself has a personality you want to interact with. It's not going away, it's just going to have to adapt.' And what about humans, I asked, what's next for humans? 'The one thing that makes me very hopeful is that if there's anything AI is very good at, it's personalized education. And so hopefully, that will be the path for those feeling left out. People should follow whatever they're interested in and curious about because a high agency person using high leverage tools are going to do something cool and that's valuable," he said. AI gets the last word Back at AGI House, hanging out with hashtag inventor Chris Messina, I asked what advice he would give Gen Alpha on where to focus their energies, considering how pandemic losers have become AI winners, with ballet dancers, hair stylists and bartenders the few trades AI can't replace. 'VCs are over, SAS is over, everything that's been going on for the last 10 or 15 years kind of doesn't really make sense anymore,' he replied. 'If you really want to invest in the future, it's about having a perspective, being able to bring people into that and creating movements.' Echoing what Chen said: "There's only one Mr. Beast--and so if you develop relationship as a brand, that becomes sustainable value because AI cannot replace brand. Or can it? ChatGPT, may have no defensible moat as an AI assistant, but as a cultural icon with an estimated 1 billion followers, it remains pretty much untouchable. Just like the city from which it came.
Time Business News
16 minutes ago
- Time Business News
Unlocking the Future: Why You Need an AI SEO Agency in 2025
As digital landscapes evolve rapidly, traditional SEO tactics are no longer enough to stay ahead. Enter the AI SEO Agency—a next-gen solution for businesses looking to dominate search rankings using artificial intelligence. These agencies leverage cutting-edge algorithms, automation tools, and data-driven insights to craft strategies that scale. Whether you're a tech startup or a well-established brand, partnering with an AI-powered SEO firm ensures more efficient optimization, faster results, and real-time adaptability in a constantly changing online ecosystem. An AI SEO agency utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning to optimize websites more effectively and accurately. Unlike conventional agencies that rely heavily on manual research and human judgment, AI-driven firms employ automated tools that analyze massive datasets in seconds. This means better keyword targeting, smarter content suggestions, and faster audits. From competitor analysis to predicting algorithm changes, AI SEO agencies are equipped to provide high-impact strategies that evolve with Google's ever-changing algorithms and user search behavior. AI doesn't replace traditional SEO—it supercharges it. By integrating artificial intelligence into keyword research, content creation, and on-page optimization, SEO agencies can deliver more refined and scalable campaigns. AI tools like natural language processing (NLP) analyze search intent better, enabling you to rank for not just keywords but entire topics. Predictive analytics, real-time ranking feedback, and content scoring make campaigns more targeted and result-oriented. This hybrid approach allows an AI SEO agency to deliver ROI faster and with greater consistency. When choosing an SEO agency for AI and ChatGPT, you're tapping into the synergy of two powerful forces. ChatGPT, with its advanced natural language capabilities, can generate human-like content tailored to search intent, while AI-driven SEO tools ensure that content ranks well. Agencies that combine these technologies offer unmatched value—they create content that's both engaging and optimized. Whether you're building a blog, product page, or knowledge base, this combo ensures your brand's message resonates while climbing search engine ranks. Partnering with an AI SEO agency comes with a host of benefits. First, automation cuts down manual tasks, saving both time and money. Second, AI-driven analysis minimizes guesswork and uncovers ranking opportunities your competitors may miss. Third, it provides real-time insights into traffic, performance, and ranking shifts. Most importantly, these agencies offer data-backed decisions that evolve with user behavior and search engine updates, ensuring your SEO efforts remain effective long-term. With AI in the mix, you're always one step ahead. An SEO agency for AI and ChatGPT uses AI not just for technical audits but also to fuel content strategies that convert. With ChatGPT's advanced language modeling, agencies can generate keyword-rich articles, meta descriptions, and ad copy at scale without compromising quality. AI tools also ensure content gaps are filled, intent is matched, and content freshness is maintained. This synergy allows for rapid scaling of content marketing efforts while maintaining consistency and accuracy—a crucial factor in ranking high on Google. The digital marketing landscape is heading toward full automation and hyper-personalization. Working with an AI SEO Agency ensures you're ready for what's next. These agencies are always on top of emerging trends, such as voice search, AI-generated search results, and semantic indexing. By embracing machine learning and advanced analytics now, you're investing in a future-proof strategy that adapts to user trends, algorithm updates, and new platforms. It's not just SEO anymore—it's intelligent SEO built to last. Not all AI SEO Agency For Ai And ChatGPT are created equal. The best ones will combine technical expertise with creative strategy. Look for agencies that offer full-service solutions: from AI-powered keyword research and competitor analysis to ChatGPT-generated content and technical audits. A strong portfolio, transparent communication, and a data-driven approach are key. Ask potential agencies how they integrate AI into their workflow and how that benefits your specific industry. The right partner will make your SEO smarter, faster, and more profitable. TIME BUSINESS NEWS
Business Upturn
19 minutes ago
- Business Upturn
How Eckhart Tolle Turned Stillness into a Multi-Million Dollar Empire
In an era where noise equals value and attention is currency, Eckhart Tolle's quiet empire stands as a paradox: a low-key spiritual teacher who turned stillness into scalable revenue. The German-born, Vancouver-based author is best known for his transformational bestsellers The Power of Now and A New Earth , but few realize the depth and structure of the Eckhart Tolle business model behind his serene public presence. This article peels back the layers of a multimillion-dollar operation that monetises presence, awareness, and peace — not through mass consumerism, but via publishing royalties, digital subscriptions, high-ticket retreats, and a strategically limited brand ecosystem. Here's how Eckhart Tolle built one of America's most financially efficient spiritual businesses without ever appearing overtly commercial. The Foundation of Eckhart Tolle's Business: Books, Brand, and Digital Presence Eckhart Tolle's rise to fame began with the self-published release of The Power of Now in 1997. It was quietly passed from hand to hand until Oprah Winfrey featured it on her book club in 2000, turning the title into an international sensation. His follow-up, A New Earth (2005), cemented his place in the upper echelon of global self-help literature. The real engine here wasn't just sales — it was brand crystallisation. Tolle's persona became inseparable from the experience of the books: minimalist covers, philosophical prose, and his calm media appearances all built a recognisable brand asset. By focusing on timelessness and simplicity, Tolle didn't just write spiritual books—he created a lifestyle identity, turning his name into a marketable intellectual property in the U.S. personal growth ecosystem. He never diluted his message through excessive appearances or rapid releases. This calculated scarcity made his content — and by extension, his brand — feel more premium and essential. Monetising Awareness: How Tolle's Publishing and Royalties Model Works Tolle's publishing contracts, initially with Namaste Publishing and later with Penguin Group and New World Library, are reportedly based on above-standard royalty agreements — a likely outcome of Oprah-backed demand and consistent best-seller performance. In traditional U.S. publishing deals, authors earn about 10–15% in royalties from hardcover sales and 7–10% from paperbacks, but high-performing titles like The Power of Now , which has sold over three million copies in the U.S. alone, can trigger escalator clauses, enhanced royalty splits, or even profit-sharing models. Given his status, it is reasonable to estimate that Tolle's U.S. royalty earnings exceed seven figures annually just from books alone. Moreover, his titles have become evergreen staples in the $10.5 billion U.S. self-help publishing market, which continues to grow annually at 5–6%. Tolle's position in the spiritual/self-realisation subcategory ensures not only consistent sales but recurring passive income from reprints, translations, and audiobook versions. Beyond the Bookshelf: Eckhart Tolle TV and the Subscription-Based Content Model Perhaps the most strategically sophisticated aspect of the Eckhart Tolle business model is his digital platform, Launched as a proprietary content hub, the site offers exclusive video teachings, guided meditations, and discussions with Kim Eng (his teaching partner). Rather than relying on YouTube monetisation or open-access content, Tolle's team positioned the site as a premium subscription service, offering monthly access to digital stillness for a fee. As of mid-2025, subscription pricing sits at: $19.95/month $149/year (a ~38% discount) Content is released monthly, creating evergreen media assets with high retention potential. Monthly Membership Dynamics and Digital Scalability This subscription model offers a masterclass in high-margin, low-overhead business operations. Unlike book publishing, which includes printing, distribution, and retailer margins, digital content has virtually zero unit cost after production. Let's assume a conservative estimate of 50,000 active U.S. subscribers — which aligns with mid-tier subscription benchmarks for niche spiritual platforms. At $19.95/month, that alone equates to $1 million monthly recurring revenue or $12 million annually, with minimal infrastructure costs. More importantly, the lifetime value of a subscriber—typically measured as customer longevity × monthly payment—is far higher than that of a casual book buyer. If the average subscriber stays for just one year, that's $149, compared to a one-time $15 book sale. This model allows Tolle's business to scale quietly yet powerfully, leaning into digital infrastructure rather than celebrity tours or mass-market merchandise. Partnership with Oprah Winfrey: Turning Thought Leadership into Cultural Capital The single most pivotal inflection point in the Eckhart Tolle business model came through his collaboration with Oprah Winfrey. In 2008, they launched a 10-week live webcast series dissecting A New Earth , drawing over 35 million views globally — a media milestone in both spiritual and internet history. More than just exposure, the Oprah alliance turned Tolle into mainstream intellectual currency. He became a recurring guest on SuperSoul Sunday and co-created online courses that blended Oprah's audience reach with Tolle's conceptual gravity. This strategic alignment gave Tolle access to: Oprah's vast email marketing and CRM channels Global brand legitimacy beyond 'new-age' circles Immense traffic to his digital products and courses It was a cross-platform partnership, not a one-off appearance — a vital distinction in modern media monetisation. Selling Transformation: Tolle's Online Courses and Certification Revenues Tolle's team capitalised on the post-Oprah momentum by launching a suite of premium online courses, including: The Power of Presence ($197) Being the Light ($297) Living a Life of Presence (bundle packages up to $499) These courses are hosted on his website and third-party platforms like Sounds True, offering high-definition video teachings, downloadable workbooks, and multi-week learning journeys. While there is no official certification program akin to Deepak Chopra's wellness coaching franchise, affiliate commissions for resellers and partners suggest an informal influencer ecosystem. This lean approach allows Tolle to monetise transformation without commodifying his image through licensing or training programs. Event Economics: From Quiet Retreats to High-Ticket Mindfulness Gatherings Tolle's live appearances are few and far between — and that's by design. His in-person retreats are positioned not as motivational seminars, but as luxury immersive experiences, often hosted in upscale venues across California, Hawaii, or Europe. A typical retreat includes: 3–5 days of teachings Meditation and silent reflection sessions Premium accommodation and meals Ticket prices range from $895 (early bird, basic access) to over $2,500 for premium packages. Limited to a few hundred participants, these events function more like private masterminds than general public lectures. The Role of Scarcity and Exclusivity in Pricing This model hinges on scarcity economics. By offering few events, avoiding overexposure, and limiting ticket availability, Tolle maintains a high perceived value around his presence. This also shields the brand from dilution. Instead of turning teachings into mass-market spectacles (à la Tony Robbins), the exclusive access principle keeps demand high and costs manageable — no arenas, no giant production crews. It's minimalism as monetisation. E-Commerce and Merchandise: Silent Expansion Through Branded Calm Tolle's e-commerce presence is subtle but structured. His official store features: Guided audio meditations (avg. $15–$25) Journals and mindfulness prompts Digital downloads of past retreats Limited branded apparel and gift bundles Rather than flooding the market, his product strategy mirrors his teachings: less is more. Though merchandise is not the core revenue engine, it enhances average order value for website visitors and serves as an onboarding path for deeper offerings like subscriptions or courses. Affiliate Ecosystem and Cross-Brand Collaborations Interestingly, the Eckhart Tolle business model has largely eschewed commercial brand partnerships with wellness apps, meditation startups, or corporate sponsors — a notable divergence from peers like Sam Harris or Deepak Chopra. This may be a deliberate choice: to maintain brand purity and avoid the trap of over-commercialisation, which could compromise the trust of his philosophically-inclined audience. Yet the absence itself is telling — and strategic. By not monetising every opportunity, Tolle creates an aura of authenticity, reinforcing the value of what is offered. Stillness as a Service: The Paradox of Monetising Presence in America's Capitalist System The Eckhart Tolle business model may be one of the most counterintuitive case studies in modern entrepreneurship. It monetises silence, yet not cheaply. It preaches presence, yet thrives on subscription economics. It builds brand equity not through mass marketing, but through intentional digital scarcity and psychological alignment with its audience. In a hyperstimulated American attention economy, Tolle's model proves that stillness itself is a luxury—one that people will gladly pay for if packaged with care, consistency, and calm. His empire isn't spiritual capitalism in disguise. It's capitalism redesigned around non-urgency. And that, perhaps, is its most revolutionary feature. Final Takeaway: In a world of noise, Eckhart Tolle didn't sell enlightenment. He sold access to silence—strategically, sustainably, and profitably. That's not just a spiritual movement. That's a business model for the future of mindful commerce. This article is intended for informational and editorial purposes only. It does not constitute endorsement or promotion of any individual, company, or entity mentioned. Business Upturn makes no representations or warranties regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information provided.
