Bankman-Fried’s Parents Seek Pardon

CRYPTO
Bankman-Fried’s Parents Seek Pardon

Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents are reportedly seeking a presidential pardon for their son, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for fraud. According to Bloomberg, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, both Stanford Law professors and part of FTX’s inner circle, have been engaging with individuals close to Donald Trump in hopes of securing clemency.

Bankman-Fried, once a leading figure in crypto, saw his exchange, FTX, collapse in November 2022 after reports revealed that Alameda Research, FTX’s sister firm, had major financial instability. Investigations later found that Alameda used backdoor code to siphon billions in customer funds—an operation led by Bankman-Fried and his associates.

His parents are reportedly leveraging Trump’s history of granting pardons, including to Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. However, unlike Ulbricht, Bankman-Fried lacks strong public support. While many FTX customers have recovered their losses, he argues his sentence is excessively harsh.

TECH
Microsoft Investors Worry Over AI Costs

Investors are growing wary of Microsoft’s costly push for enterprise adoption of AI. Despite strong quarterly earnings beating expectations, Microsoft’s stock dropped nearly 6% as concerns mounted over slowing Intelligent Cloud growth and rising operating expenses.

Additionally, excitement over Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s R1 model raised doubts about Microsoft’s reliance on OpenAI’s proprietary models. If R1 can operate with fewer specialized AI chips, Microsoft’s multi-billion-dollar data center investments could face scrutiny.

Azure’s cloud sales grew 31% year-over-year, slightly below last quarter’s 33% growth. Meanwhile, operating expenses in the cloud segment jumped 10%, and Microsoft reaffirmed its $80 billion data center investment, squeezing profit margins and unsettling investors.

CEO Satya Nadella announced plans to offer DeepSeek’s models on Azure, arguing they will drive wider AI adoption. However, since DeepSeek is open-source, competitors can also integrate it, potentially eroding Microsoft’s advantage and triggering price competition in the cloud market.

TECH
Musk Promises Tesla’s Biggest Year

Tesla entered earnings season in a weaker position than in previous quarters, reporting its first annual sales decline in a decade and failing to meet revenue and margin expectations. High AI investments and battery pack shortages added to its financial strain.

However, during Wednesday’s earnings call, Elon Musk shifted focus to Tesla’s future, calling 2025 “the biggest year in Tesla history” and predicting an “epic” 2026. He claimed Tesla’s Optimus robot alone could generate over $10 trillion in revenue and suggested Tesla could surpass the world’s top five companies in value.

Despite Tesla’s nine earnings misses in the past 10 quarters, shares rose over 3.7% on Thursday as investors rallied behind Musk’s vision, including a June 2024 robotaxi launch in Austin, expanded self-driving licensing talks, and new Model Y production across all factories.

Tesla also plans limited Optimus robot production this year and aims to begin semi-truck production in 2026, fueling further investor enthusiasm.

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