Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) is making its own chips. What kind? Why now? And could this make Alphabet – not NVIDIA – the ultimate winner in the AI race?
In this Australian Investors Podcast episode, Owen Rask and Drew Meredith break down why Alphabet could be the big AI winner, dissect the ASX meltdown, and deliver a comprehensive fixed income masterclass. Alphabet (Google) is making its own chips. What kind? Why now? And could this make Alphabet – not NVIDIA – the ultimate winner in the AI race? While NVIDIA grabs headlines with another massive earnings beat, Alphabet’s vertical integration strategy might be the smarter long-term play. By controlling the entire AI stack – from custom chips to Search, YouTube, and Cloud infrastructure – Google could dominate AI economics in a way that pure chipmakers can’t. This changes everything about the Magnificent 7 calculus.
Meanwhile, the ASX just wiped $40 billion in value as the market selloff continues. What’s driving the crash and what should investors do? Major news: Macquarie Asset Management just made its largest-ever Australian infrastructure bet – an $11.6 billion takeover offer for Qube Holdings at $5.20 per share. Qube shares rocketed 19.4% to $4.86. Then comes the bond ETF deep dive. They compare passive vs active bond ETFs (OZBD, AEBD, VBND, FLOT, HBRD, ICOR, AAA, MMKT), explain different risk levels, break down debt structures (senior, subordinated, mezzanine), and cover key terms like security, LVR, yield and valuation. When should you own bonds? Which products work best for different market conditions? With Betashares, VanEck and Global X all offering competing products, how do you choose? The Future Fund is warning of “permacrisis” and ditching fixed-rate bonds while buying gold. Are long-short hedge fund strategies dead, or just cyclical? Owen shares his calendar and time management secrets.
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Topics covered today
- Why Alphabet could be the big AI winner
- Making chips, vertical integration, and beating NVIDIA at the long game
- ASX crash wipes $40bn – Market meltdown continues, what’s driving the selloff
- Qube $11.6bn takeover bid – Macquarie offers $5.20/share, shares jump 19.4%
- Fixed income deep dive – Passive vs active bond ETFs, when to own bonds, portfolio role
- Bond ETF comparison – OZBD, AEBD, VBND, FLOT, HBRD, ICOR, AAA, MMKT explained
- Debt structures explained – Senior, subordinated, mezzanine and the balance sheet hierarchy
- Are long-short strategies dead? – Cyclical, style-dependent, or is cash just better?
- Future Fund’s “permacrisis”
- Why they’re buying gold and dumping fixed-rate bonds
