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This is an abridged transcript of the podcast:
Our top story so far, the Trump administration is intensifying its focus on robotics as a part of its broader initiative to accelerate the development of artificial intelligence, Politico reported Wednesday.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is actively engaging with leaders of the robotics industry and is considering an executive order to advance this sector’s growth, the report said. This push aligns with efforts to compete with China, which leads the world in industrial robotics deployment with 1.8 million robots — four times the U.S. total.
Apptronik CEO Jeff Cardenas says: “It’s important that we lean in, think about a national robotics strategy and support this burgeoning industry in the U.S. so that we can remain competitive.”
Also on the future front, Archer Aviation (ACHR) unveiled plans for an air taxi network to service the Miami metropolitan area.
The network will see air taxi flights connecting Miami, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton and Fort Lauderdale.
The network will also run connecting air taxi flights between the region’s three major international airports, along with strategic general aviation airports in the area.
Among active stocks, Okta (OKTA) is choppy as investors weighed Q3 numbers that beat estimates against the absence of fiscal 2027 guidance. Jefferies analyst Joseph Gallo said while a revenue forecast was lacking, management endorsed its historical framework, getting to 9%+ annual growth.
Pure Storage (PSTG) is plunging despite beating on the top line. Wells Fargo analyst Aaron Rakers stuck with his Overweight rating, though, and said shares are trading lower on missed the upside bogey expectations and no incremental hyperscale announcements, but that “the company’s hyperscale opportunity/traction is progressing.”
And Microchip Technology (MCHP) is rallying after the company’s revised revenue and EPS outlook came in above estimates.
The company now expects fiscal Q3 net sales and EPS to be at the high end of its previously provided guidance, representing sequential growth of roughly 1% instead of a decline.
Looking to the economy, ADP said private sector employment fell by 32,000 in November, compared with expectations for a rise of 5,000 and October’s gain of 47,000. Hiring was particularly soft in the manufacturing, professional and business services, information and construction sectors.
Pantheon Macro economists, who are very skeptical of ADP methodology, say other real-time hiring indicators point to an official rise of 75,000 to 100,000 when the official figures are eventually released.
In other news of note, the UK’s advertising watchdog has banned ads from Nike (NKE), Superdry (OTCPK:SEPGF) and Lacoste for greenwashing.
The Advertising Standards Authority said the paid-for Google Ads used the terms “sustainable clothing” or “sustainable materials” without backing the claims with evidence.
The ASA said: “We considered that without qualification, the claim ‘sustainable’ was ambiguous and unclear. The claim was absolute and therefore a high level of substantiation in support needed to be produced.”
And in the Wall Street Research Corner, political focus on affordability could lift some of the economy’s most beaten-down segments into 2026, according to Evercore ISI strategist Julian Emanuel.
He says both politicians and policymakers are now aligned on addressing what he calls the “K-shaped” economy — where lower-income households are facing weak wage growth despite the AI-driven boom in the S&P 500 (SP500).
“Affordability isn’t everything, it’s the only thing,” he added.
Fed easing will also be a factor and with that backdrop, he recommends investors look at stocks “crushed by the K” — specifically consumer names that are down year-to-date, trading below their five-year average P/Es, and with net margins below five-year averages.
Among the picks: Mondelez (MDLZ), Colgate-Palmolive (CL), Constellation Brands (STZ), Darden Restaurants (DRI), Lithia Motors (LAD), PVH (PVH) and Energizer (ENR).
See the full list here.
Editor’s Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.
