Good morning. Don’t you just love a good rivalry?
U.S.-China. Coke-Pepsi. Drake-Kendrick. Yankees-Red Sox. Katy Perry-Earth.
But one of the hottest feuds around lately? That goes to JD.com-Meituan. In a battle fit for a business school case study, the two Chinese tech giants are inflicting so much damage on each other in a bid to win food delivery market share that analysts have cut price targets for both their stocks, which are both down by 30% from last month.
It’s a lose-lose, in other words. A race to the bottom. A slugfest. Which one’s Rocky and which one’s Apollo? We’ll soon find out. Today’s news below. —Andrew Nusca
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Bezos-backed Slate Auto takes the wraps off its $25,000 EV truck
Ever wonder what an electric truck would look like if it was branded AmazonBasics?
Michigan-based Slate Auto, which is in fact backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, unveiled its first vehicle in Long Beach, Calif. on Thursday night in a buzzing aircraft hangar packed with people.
There’s one model (blank). One trim level (basic). A footprint—175 in. in length, less than a Toyota Corolla—that’s nothing like today’s steroidal pickup trucks. A price point ($25,000) that’s half as much as the average price of a new car in the U.S.
Want to customize it? Its paintless composite panels are designed for vehicle wraps. Expecting a new member of the family? It’s made to be reconfigured into an SUV at or after sale. Prefer to use your phone or tablet for infotainment? You’ll have to, because it has none by design.
The Slate, as its maker calls it, is an ode to techie first principles—a minimum viable product for the automotive category.
“We looked at what the auto industry was doing and pivoted,” said head of engineering Eric Keipper, a veteran of General Motors, Chrysler, and Karma.
The electric vehicle is also, thanks to its assembly in the U.S. state of Indiana and its low price point, a product especially suited to the current poli-economic climate.
“This truck will be made in the USA as part of our commitment to reindustrialize America,” said CEO Chris Barman, another Chrysler veteran.
Slate says the truck will begin shipping in the fourth quarter of 2026; new vehicle reservations are $50. That’s about the price of an AmazonBasics tarp to cover over your old wheels, in case you were wondering. —AN
Google wows Wall Street with strong Q1
If the economy is heading into a downturn, Google hasn’t felt it—at least not until March 31.
The internet search giant reported strong Q1 results on Thursday that sent its stock up as much as 5% after hours as its key advertising and cloud businesses delivered healthy growth.
But those results apply to the period before the Trump-triggered global trade war began in earnest.
Google executives didn’t let on about the business conditions they’re currently experiencing, despite analysts’ questions. (“We wouldn’t want to speculate about potential impacts,” chief business officer Philipp Schindler said.)
Still, the company’s strong Q1 report card—along with the news that it would bump up its dividend by a penny a share and repurchase another $70 billion of stock—was more than enough reason for investors to celebrate.
Google grew its topline 12% year-over-year in Q1 to $90.2 billion, beating the average analyst expectation of $89.2 billion, while earnings per share came in at $2.81 versus the $2.01 expected by Wall Street.
Revenue from ads on video site YouTube grew 10% from the prior year to $8.9 billion, while Google’s cloud business increased 28% to $12.3 billion.
As for AI, Google re-affirmed its previously announced plan to spend $75 billion in capital expenditures for its cloud and AI infrastructure this year, signaling that it remains bullish on the business. —Alexei Oreskovic
Intel CEO gives Wall Street a reality check about a turnaround
On Thursday, Intel’s new CEO dispelled hope for a quick solution to the chipmaker’s problems.
“There are areas we need to improve and there are no quick fixes,” Lip-Bu Tan warned during his first earnings call as chief executive.
Tan didn’t come to the call armed with a detailed turnaround plan. But he did give some broad strokes of what he thinks will help get Intel back on track.
Tan said that he would slash operating expenses, including $500 million this year, to a total of $17 billion. Next year, the company expects to reduce those expenses to $16 billion.
Capital spending, which includes any new factories, is slated to be cut by $2 billion this year, to $18 billion.
Meeting those goals will require job cuts, Tan said, part of what he called a push to eliminate bureaucracy and speed up decision making.
Earlier this week, news reports said the company would cut 20% of its workforce. But on Thursday, there was no confirmation about the scope of the layoffs.
“We need to fundamentally transform our culture and the way we operate,” Tan said.
One analyst on the call tried to press Tan about how long he thought his turnaround would take: One year? Two? More?
He deflected. “There is no quick fix,” Tan said, “as you describe.” —Verne Kopytoff
More tech
—Apple relocates iPhone assembly. U.S. device manufacture will reportedly move from China to India by the end of 2026.
—U.S. investigates TP-Link. An alleged criminal antitrust probe into the Chinese router-maker’s pricing strategies and security risks.
—Investors go with Adam Neumann’s Flow. The WeWork founder’s latest real estate venture keeps moving.
—Netflix rolls out simpler subtitles. A new option that drops names and cues for the not-so-hard-of-hearing who still like watching with CC turned on.
—Ziff Davis sues OpenAI. One of the biggest media companies in the U.S. takes on the wealthiest AI startup over allegations of content theft.
—Chrome by Yahoo? In the latest from the U.S. v. Google hearing, Yahoo’s search chief acknowledged the Silicon Valley would bid with Apollo backing.
—Huawei: Denied in Europe. European Commission bans officials from meeting with lobbyists acting on Huawei's behalf.
—Uber, VW collab on robotaxis. Electric microbuses hit Los Angeles streets by the end of 2026.
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