Full recap
The Kansas City Fed's Schmid wandered up to the microphone today and told the world that inflation is 'stubborn and sticky' and that policy rates aren't actually restrictive. He stopped just short of calling for a hike, which is the monetary policy equivalent of standing at the edge of a diving board and going back inside to get a snack. The Fed keeps discovering that printing money has consequences. Shocking stuff. Meanwhile, Nvidia is moving in premarket, after hours, and presumably in your dreams at this point. Salesforce, HP, Dollar General, and CrowdStrike are also shuffling around like contestants who wandered onto the wrong game show. The market's premarket movers list is starting to read like a roll call at a tech support conference. The real headline though: Z.ai surged 8% after revealing it built a globally deployed AI model running entirely on Chinese chips, and apparently had it running in stealth mode for a week before anyone noticed. That is either impressive engineering or a reminder that 'export controls' is a phrase with a statute of limitations. Either way, the AI arms race just got another plot twist. On the field, the Rams are holding the top spot in NFL roster rankings, which means something for about 72 hours until someone tears an ACL in a walkthrough. Jonathan Kuminga also finally ended his free agency odyssey, proving that even in a sport built on speed, some decisions move at the pace of a Federal Reserve rate decision. NFL injury updates are rolling in like bad earnings reports. Ashton Jeanty avoided a major injury, which is the sports equivalent of a soft landing: everyone is relieved, nobody is fully convinced it's real. Other running backs remain questionable for Week 1, which is the NFL's polite way of saying 'we have no idea.' Fantasy baseball managers are now debating whether to drop Bryan Woo and other struggling starters. This is the same energy as institutional investors quietly rotating out of positions they hyped on CNBC two months ago. Nobody rings a bell at the top of the rotation. And then there are the 20 NFL veterans staring down roster cut day, former Pro Bowlers and first-round picks included. No one is immune to cutdown day, which is the one place in American life where meritocracy and cruel efficiency actually coexist. The Fed could learn something from an NFL general manager, frankly.
Highlights
- The Kansas City Fed found inflation 'sticky and stubborn,' which is what happens when you spend years insisting it was transitory and then act surprised when it isn't.
- Z.ai deployed a global AI model on Chinese chips in stealth mode for a week before announcing it. Export controls: working exactly as intended.
- NFL cut day is the one arena where past reputation means absolutely nothing, and honestly it is more honest than most performance reviews happening in corporate America right now.
Original source links
- CNBC: Kansas City Fed's Schmid says inflation 'stubborn' and 'sticky,' policy rate not restrictive
- CNBC: Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Nvidia, HP, Salesforce, Dollar General, Everpure & more
- CNBC: Z.ai shares surge 8% after releasing new AI model running only on Chinese chips
- CBS Sports: Rams hold top spot in NFL roster rankings | Previewing 2026 Tour Championship
- CBS Sports: Latest NFL injury updates: Ashton Jeanty avoids major injury, other running backs uncertain for Week 1
- CBS Sports: Are we dropping Bryan Woo, other struggling starters?