During IF26, investor interest in the global humanoid robotics industry remained strong, but discussions have clearly shifted from understanding the technology/industry to evaluating commercialization, value capture and investment opportunities, CLSA said in a research report. The broker maintained a highly constructive view on the long-term prospects of the humanoid robotics industry.

Investors are increasingly focused on identifying potential winners, assessing supply chain beneficiaries, and monitoring key catalysts such as the roadmap for Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US) Optimus Gen3 and the industry's move toward mass production. Discussions are also placing greater emphasis on the commercialization timelines, production capacity ramp-up, and real-world deployment cases of leading US and Chinese developers, rather than debating whether the technology itself is feasible.

The broker said market expectations for catalysts are broadly in line with its views, including the listing of YUSHU TECHNOLOGY (688836.SH), the Tesla's Optimus Gen3 roadmap, and future funding rounds for leading private developers. More importantly, the transition from pilot deployments to mass production over the next 3-18 months may be the most important catalyst for boosting market confidence in commercialization.
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Chinese automakers are ambitiously expanding exports amid meager domestic sales and competition from more than 100 domestic rivals, CLSA said in a research report. At the CITIC investor forum, CLSA met with investors and mainly discussed how Japanese automakers can respond to Chinese competition outside China, the acceptance of Chinese imported vehicles across different countries, and how automakers operate under low-growth industry conditions and geopolitical pressure.

The broker noted that markets most vulnerable to penetration by Chinese automakers are countries without domestic automobile industries, such as Australia and Singapore, where Chinese automakers already have relatively high market share. This is followed by markets with domestic automobile industries, such as the US, the European Union and India, which have established high tariff barriers, while the EU Industrial Acceleration Act also poses risks.

CLSA's top picks in the global auto sector are Nissan Motor (7201.JP), Suzuki (7269.JP) and General Motors Company (GM.US). Nissan was rated High Conviction Outperform with a TP of JPY600, supported by cost reductions, attractive hybrid model launches and higher utilization at US plants. Suzuki was rated Outperform with a TP of JPY2,300, as the broker believed high growth in its India business could drive earnings above expectations.

General Motors Company (GM.US) was rated Outperform with a TP of USD105, with nearshoring production and new growth businesses expected to support re-rating. The broker rated Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US) Underperform with a TP of USD320, while Toyota (7203.JP) was rated Outperform with a TP of JPY3,700.
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Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD.US) CEO Lisa Su is expected to visit South Korea next month to meet with executives of South Korean semiconductor companies and government officials, South Korean media reported.

This will mark Lisa Su's second visit to S Korea in about seven months following her trip in March this year. She is considering attending a conference in Seoul on October 8, where participants are expected to include CEOs of major South Korean AI semiconductor companies.

She may also meet with South Korean Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon during the event.

The report added that Su is also arranging meetings with executives of major South Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics.
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Meta Platforms, Inc. (META.US) announced the establishment of Meta Enterprise Platform, a new business unit focused on bringing the company's AI capabilities to enterprise clients and developers, BofA Securities said in a report. CEO Mark Zuckerberg described this as the next major pillar of Meta's business. The broker maintained its Buy rating and USD810 TP on Meta.

The broker noted that the initial products include Muse agent, Meta Business Agent, Muse API and Muse Code. The company also hired MongoDB CEO Chirantan CJ Desai as Chief Enterprise Platform Officer, and the broker expects him to focus on driving product sales.

The new platform is not entirely unexpected, said the broker. Meta's launch of enterprise AI solutions could generate more sustainable monetization revenue that is less affected by macro conditions. The enterprise AI solutions market is expected to exceed USD1 trillion by 2028, while Meta's consumer data and communication applications may help it sell AI products to consumer-oriented enterprises.
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Counterpoint Research estimated Apple (AAPL.US) iPhone Duo sales to reach around 6 million units this year, close to the level of the niche foldable smartphone market in general. Final sales will hinge on Apple's progress in ramping up production capacity.

Market research firm IDC estimated that after the launch of the iPhone Duo, overall foldable smartphone shipments this year will hike 13% YoY to 22.9 million units.

Counterpoint said Apple's iPhone 18 Pro series launched this month manifested a strong start in the China market, with sales hiking 12% compared with the initial sales of the iPhone 17 Pro series.
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NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) entered talks with insurers to discuss sharing the risks of loans backed by its chips as collateral, Financial Times, citing sources, reported. Nvidia proposed various structural arrangements to insurers to transfer part of the risk of capital-intensive semiconductor financing to insurers and other investors.

One of the proposed structures would provide insurance for loans extended to emerging cloud computing companies, sources divulged. If these companies default and the resale value of NVIDIA chips pledged as collateral is insufficient to repay lenders, the insurance would provide compensation.

Nvidia's approach shows the company is leveraging Wall Street, private capital and the insurance industry to explore different financing structures to help broaden the customer base purchasing its chips.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang previously said chips should be viewed as an "investable asset class" similar to other expensive and durable technology equipment such as aircraft, which support sophisticated financial structures that transfer risks and costs between users and investors.
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Microsoft Corporation (MSFT.US) has gained broader market recognition for its cloud and software businesses, potentially driving its share price toward its best quarterly performance in nearly three decades.

Microsoft shares have leaped 36.4% so far in the third quarter, on track for their strongest quarterly performance since a 38.5% gain in 1Q98. According to market data, the stock had slipped 23.5% in 1Q26, marking its worst quarterly decline since the 2008-2009 financial crisis.

StoneX analyst Yi Fu Lee said the market has recently shown greater recognition of the value of Microsoft's diversified businesses, while the company has also benefited from capital flows seeking high-quality assets. Investors seeking artificial intelligence investment opportunities are increasingly viewing Microsoft as one of the highest-quality platforms in the technology sector.
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US President Donald Trump said after meeting with technology industry executives at the White House that senior tech executives agreed to establish voluntary AI standards, and reiterated support for rapidly expanding data centers.

According to the agreement text released by Trump on his social media platform, the companies agreed to work with independent auditing bodies to assess whether AI systems operate according to the intentions of their designers. The companies also stated that they would strive to ensure AI tools would not intrude into or access technical systems in unintended ways.

Executives attending the meeting hosted by Trump included OpenAI President Greg Brockman, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, Meta Platforms, Inc. (META.US) CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL.US) CEO Sundar Pichai, and NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) CEO Jensen Huang.

Trump also said he is considering establishing a 10-member committee to oversee AI safety, and will soon appoint a new official to lead the White House's AI policy.
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Meta Platforms, Inc. (META.US) announced the launch of the enterprise platform Meta Enterprise Platform, which CEO Mark Zuckerberg described as Meta's next major pillar. In a research report, Citi said Meta Enterprise will commercialize products including the company's Muse agent, Meta Business Agent, Muse API and Muse Code, and has hired MongoDB CEO CJ Desai for the initiative.

Citi noted that Muse is scaling up and its model API is now generally available. Together with the company's development of the next-generation flagship LLM Watermelon, Citi believed the launch of Meta Enterprise Platform reflects that the company will still have sufficient computing power capacity through 2027.

The broker forecast Meta's computing power capacity will expand drastically to around 14GW by 2027. Although capacity constraints remain at present, Prometheus, third-party partnerships and broader infrastructure investments should unlock incremental capacity to support both internal product development and external monetization plans.

Citi reiterated its Buy rating on Meta with a TP of USD800.
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NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) shares rose on Monday (28th) after the chip giant announced the largest share buyback plan in its history.

The company said it increased its share repurchase authorization by USD150 billion. As NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) still has a substantial remaining balance under its previous authorization, management can now deploy USD235 billion through the repurchase program.

NVIDIA plans to execute the remaining repurchase quota by the end of FY2028, which ends in January 2028.

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang said in a statement that their cash generation capability enables them to invest in the technologies driving this transformation while returning capital to shareholders. This authorization reflects their confidence in the long-term opportunities ahead.
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