Monday, October 12, 2026 · 11:20 AM ET
M&A · WSJ
IonQ struck an all-stock deal to acquire cybersecurity firm Elisity in a transaction valuing it at up to $1.3 billion. CEO Niccolo de Masi framed it as a bet that cybersecurity becomes more critical as quantum computing and AI systems grow more powerful; IonQ shares fell sharply on the news.
AI Infrastructure · Bloomberg
Microsoft said it will stock multiple gigawatts of its homegrown Maia AI chips in its server farms, with the newest Maia 300 starting to roll out next year to power its AI software mostly on in-house hardware. The chips are designed for inference workloads such as summarizing calls and answering research questions.
AI · Bloomberg
Broadcom CEO Hock Tan said the AI boom has drawn investors whose strategies resemble gambling, with little understanding of what they are betting on. He questioned whether businesses are wasting money on AI initiatives and raised doubts about the long-term economics of money-losing AI labs.
AI Infrastructure · Bloomberg
Tencent told fixed-income investors that its planned bond offering of about $5 billion will help finance AI-related capital expenditures, as it doubles down on the sector. The deal, which could price as early as Tuesday, includes $1.5-2 billion in dollar tranches plus 20-25 billion yuan ($3-3.7 billion) of offshore yuan notes.
AI · Bloomberg
DeepSeek has agreed to lead a seed funding round for Winverse AI, a stealth startup building AI for robots founded by a former top Tencent scientist, deploying capital from its own $12 billion-plus war chest. Other backers including Meituan's Long-Z Investments value the firm at about $400 million post-money.
IPO · Bloomberg
SoftBank-backed African fintech OPay Digital Services plans to raise about $500 million through a New York IPO combined with a private placement, people familiar said. The total includes a $200 million parallel private placement with Standard Bank Group, with the listing targeted for this year.