- Stripe’s timing is no coincidence…
- I’m excited about Intel for the first time in a long time…
- Robotic servers are coming online…
Dear Reader,
Before we get to our insights today, I would like to thank everyone who tuned in for my Perceptron reveal last night.
As we adapt to the current market conditions, we’re now going to deploy bleeding-edge artificial intelligence (AI) in real time.
Despite the volatility… the geopolitical conflicts… and inflation fears… this AI will help us to earn amazing returns.
That’s because it runs on powerful computing systems every day… and analyzes an incredible amount of market data. It’s a “neural network” – an AI modeled on the human brain.
And it has one job: to identify cryptocurrency trades on the verge of surging higher.
We tested the AI extensively across a number of different trading timelines. And it’s best at spotting trades primed to make a big move within a 60-day window. That means we expect to be in and out of trades within that timeframe.
This is an active trading service, the first one that I’ve launched at Brownstone. And the Perceptron came right out of the gates with three very strong signals on three different digital assets.
And with each new trade, it will learn and improve to get better for the next one…
For those who would like to learn more about this project – including how to get access to the Perceptron’s trade recommendations – go right here to watch a replay of last night’s event. It’s unlike anything many of us have ever seen.
But please don’t delay. These trade recommendations are time sensitive, and the Perceptron has a way of getting us into a cryptocurrency days before it shoots higher. It’s not something we want to miss.
Stripe’s foray into crypto is a sign of things to come…
Financial technology (fintech) giant Stripe just launched support for cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
This is a major announcement from one of the world’s most valuable private companies. And major digital asset exchanges FTX, Blockchain.com, and Nifty Gateway each signed on to implement Stripe’s technology.
That’s a major vote of confidence… And I don’t think the timing is a coincidence here…
As regular readers know, Stripe is one of my favorite fintech companies. Its application programming interface (API) technology powers online payments for internet commerce.
Simply put, Stripe’s API provides the link between financial institutions and merchants that enables e-commerce transactions. Anyone who has purchased a product online has likely used Stripe’s services and not even known it.
So it’s not an exaggeration to say that Stripe is the backbone of the digital payments ecosystem. That’s why its support for crypto is so noteworthy.
And there’s another layer to this story…
Stripe first enabled support for Bitcoin (BTC) back in 2018. But it wasn’t long before Stripe pulled the plug on that project.
Stripe’s official announcement was that Bitcoin was not useful for e-commerce transactions and carried with it an elevated financial risk.
That came across as odd to me. Why would an API company take such a strong position against Bitcoin? It really shouldn’t care what currencies are used for any given transaction. Its role is simply to make the transaction happen seamlessly.
My gut tells me that Stripe was worried about attracting unwanted regulatory scrutiny. If we remember, the regulators and the mainstream press were very hostile towards Bitcoin back then.
So why the change of heart today?
Well, Stripe is going to support the wider digital asset universe this time around. This includes stablecoins – cryptocurrencies backed by a fiat currency like the U.S. dollar.
And that means Stripe would also be in a position to support a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the United States. I think that’s the big play.
The Federal Reserve (Fed) recently put out a working paper on its proposed CBDC, and it solicited feedback from the industry. This is something we have been meeting about weekly at the Chamber of Digital Commerce. We are putting together a formal reply to the Fed on its paper.
And I believe Stripe has had behind-the-scenes discussions with the Fed as well.
That’s what this is about. I suspect the Fed gave Stripe an implicit “OK” to roll out support for crypto in preparation for the Fed’s CBDC.
Now, this is just my suspicion. I have no inside knowledge of any background discussions taking place. But this would perfectly explain Stripe’s major about-face on crypto.
The prospect of a U.S. CBDC is something I’m tracking closely. If I had to guess, I believe we’ll see big developments later this year.
And I should point out that this is great news for digital assets.
Stripe’s tech will simplify the process of buying and selling cryptocurrencies and NFTs at a wide range of websites and merchants.
It will also allow users to buy digital assets directly with U.S. dollars or other fiat currencies. We will no longer need to convert dollars to Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH) in order to buy other assets in the ecosystem.
So I see this as bullish for the entire digital asset space. I think we will see some big moves this year.
And like I mentioned above, if you’d like to learn more about making short-term crypto trades to profit from this rising asset class, just go right here to watch the replay of my recent event.
Semiconductor manufacturing is coming back onshore…
Semiconductor giant Intel is making more big investments…
We had a look last week at how Intel is spending $20 billion to build two semiconductor fabrication plants in Albany, Ohio. Intel claims that this will be the largest silicon manufacturing location on the planet.
Well, Intel isn’t stopping there… The company just announced that it’s spending about $90 billion over the next 10 years to increase manufacturing across Europe.
The first part of Intel’s plan calls for $36 billion to build two leading-edge chip factories in Germany. Construction will start in the first half of next year, and the plants will go into full production by 2027.
In addition, Intel plans to establish manufacturing facilities in France, Ireland, Italy, Poland, and Spain. This is a massive regional infrastructure plan.
This is the kind of bold action Intel should have taken over a decade ago. If it had, the company likely would not have fallen so far behind in the industry.
These investments will negatively impact the company’s financial performance in the short term, but they will set Intel up to remain a big player in the chip space for the foreseeable future. That would not be the case if Intel continued down its previous path.
So these are smart moves. I’m excited about what Intel is doing for the first time in a long time.
It’s noticeable as well that Intel’s investment focus is on the U.S. and Europe, not so much in Asia. This is all about reshoring manufacturing in the U.S. and Europe. It’s about having more control over supply chains and reducing geopolitical risk.
That’s more important today than ever before given the recent “shock” we’ve experienced around the world. (Learn more by going here.)
There are massive, industry-wide shifts taking place in the semiconductor space right now. Intel is finally stepping up, as have many others already. This is an industry-wide movement. And a multi-decade shift is underway.
We’re going to see a lot more reshoring announcements throughout 2022.
Bear Robotics is building two new robots…
Bear Robotics just leveraged its recent success into an $81 million venture capital (VC) raise. This money will fund the development of two new AI-enabled robots.
We first profiled Bear Robotics back in January. That’s when fast-casual restaurant chain Denny’s deployed Bear’s robot servers in two Pennsylvania locations.
For the sake of new readers, this was Denny’s solution to the ongoing labor shortages. Bear Robotics designed these robots to deliver food from the kitchen to the correct table as soon as it is ready.
Here’s one in action:
A Denny’s Server Bot in Action
Source: The Spoon
These robots have been busy since their launch earlier this year. Bear Robotics revealed that they have traveled more than 335,000 miles across 28 million deliveries. The tech is clearly mature. It’s now ready to roll out on a much larger scale.
And the first new robot under development will be a modified version of the server. This one will be able to navigate elevators. That instantly opens the door to its deployment in hotels, apartments, and office complexes.
And it makes perfect sense.
We know the labor shortage hit the hospitality industry hard. Here’s the solution. It’s easy to envision these robots delivering room service in busy hotels across the world. Or delivering a toothbrush and toothpaste to guests who left theirs at home. Or even a newspaper in the morning…
And I can see high-end apartments and offices investing in robots to make deliveries even more convenient. Walking to the lobby to pick up a delivery will be a thing of the past.
For the second new robot, Bear is taking an entirely different approach.
It will detect air quality as it moves around a facility. This has all kinds of industrial applications, including use in semiconductor fabs like those Intel is building in Ohio.
As we have discussed before, even small dust particles can cause imperfections in the semiconductor manufacturing process. Chip factories could deploy these robots to ensure that the air quality is perfect at all times.
So this is an exciting development. And it certainly lets us know that robots are going mainstream.
We shouldn’t be surprised to see them popping up in quick-service restaurants, office buildings, or hotels later this year.
And we’ll invest alongside these developments. Go right here for my top recommendations.
Regards,
Jeff Brown
Editor, The Bleeding Edge
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