AI stocks to watch, Apple TV tries free, and the Chips Act scramble: Tech roundup

Investors to AI firms: ‘Show me the money’—Why ROI will dominate 2025

Big Tech stocks could have another big year in 2025.

Nvidia (NVDA), Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL), and Apple (AAPL) could continue to be some of the biggest winners of the artificial intelligence-driven stock boom, David Dietze, senior portfolio strategist at Peapack Private Wealth Management, said in the latest episode of Quartz AI Factor, a video series set at the Nasdaq MarketSite.

From left, Steve Carell, Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston speak at the Steve Jobs Theater during an event to announce new products Monday, March 25, 2019, in Cupertino, Calif.

Apple (AAPL) announced Monday that its video streaming service, Apple TV+, will be free worldwide this upcoming weekend, allowing anyone with an Apple ID to access the platform’s shows.

digitally generated image of neon AI chat bubbles — Image: Andriy Onufriyenko (Getty Images)

Big Tech is spending billions on artificial intelligence as demand grows for computing power and more advanced capabilities.

Microsoft (MSFT), Meta (META), Google (GOOGL), and Amazon (AMZN) spent a combined $125 billion on investing in and running AI data centers between January and August 2024, according to a JPMorgan (JPM) report citing New Street Research. The research shows both total AI capital expenditures and total data center operating costs, which include “cash operating expenses, software, depreciation, and electricity.”

Apple flagship store in Shanghai, China on September 22, 2024.

Photo: Costfoto/NurPhoto (Getty Images)

Apple (AAPL) is giving its Chinese customers a discount on iPhones as it competes with homegrown rivals such as Huawei.

The iPhone maker is offering a discount of up to 500 Chinese yuan, or $68.50, on its latest iPhone models when customers use “eligible payment methods,” according to the Apple website. The 500 yuan discount applies to the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max, while the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus will be discounted by 400 yuan during the promotion, which runs from January 4 to 7.

Plaintiffs in the 2019 lawsuit argued that consumers who purchased devices with Siri enabled did not consent to have conversations where they didn’t intentionally activate the assistant recorded.

Tech giant Apple (AAPL) has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a proposed cash action lawsuit over allegations that it used its virtual assistant to eavesdrop on iPhone users.

CES signage on the building of the Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall — CES 2024 at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 9, 2024.

Just when you thought your toaster couldn’t get any smarter, CES 2025 is about to prove you wrong. The world’s biggest tech show returns to Las Vegas from January 7-10, promising to stuff artificial intelligence into literally everything that has a power button.

Joe Biden is blurry in the foreground standing at a mostly cut off podium, a sign that says — U.S. President Joe Biden at Intel’s Ocotillo Campus on March 20, 2024 in Chandler, Arizona.

As the Biden administration prepares to pass power to President-elect Donald Trump, U.S. chipmakers are rushing to finalize federal funding.

In 2022, President Joe Biden signed the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act to boost semiconductor manufacturing, research, and development in the U.S. The $280 billion package includes $52 billion in subsidies for chips.

Elon Musk’s Starlink is set to give Ukraine “uninterrupted” service through its satellite network through a partnership with Kyivstar (VEON), the country’s largest mobile operator.

AI investors will demand returns on their investments in 2025, analyst says