Hard Numbers: Nvidia soars, Salesforce’s UK investment, step up for your eye exam, More millionaires (more problems?), Apple’s rebound

June 11, 2024

Nvidia logo in Taipei, Taiwan.

Reuters

3 trillion: Nvidia stock briefly surpassed $3 trillion in market capitalization this week ahead of a 10-for-1 stock split that’ll make their share price much cheaper. The chipmaker, which is the third most valuable company in the S&P 500 behind Microsoft and Apple, has become a major beneficiary of the AI boom because of its powerful GPU chips. Stock splits don’t affect the value of a company’s stock, but make the share price more palatable for retail investors.

4 billion: Salesforce is investing $4 billion in the United Kingdom and opening a 40,000-square-foot AI-focused office in London on June 18. The US-based software company said it’ll also run training and upskilling programs for professionals looking to gain AI-related skills.

6 million: Want a 90-second eye exam without interacting with a human? The startup Eyebot raised $6 million for AI-enabled kiosks that’ll do just that. The kiosks perform an eye exam, evaluate prescription lenses or contacts, and any recommended prescriptions are sent to a doctor for final review and approval. The company hopes that this telehealth initiative can be an affordable way for people to get their vision checked, especially those without easy access to professionals.

600,000: There are now 600,000 millionaires in the US, thanks to the AI boom. Atop an AI-fueled stock market boom, America’s number of millionaires jumped more than 7% year over year in 2023. Asia gained about 5% more millionaires while Europe saw a 4% increase.

471 billion: Apple’s stock has rallied since early April, gaining 20% — or $471 billion — in value on the back of investor anticipation of AI rollouts on its devices. The company kicked off its Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10, announcing Apple Intelligence, an AI upgrade to its iPhones that will prioritize certain messages and notifications, offer new writing tools, and boost Siri’s capability as a voice-powered assistant.

What We’re Watching: Gaza talks heat up at UN, Another coordinated drone move in Europe, Czechia’s Trump eyes comeback

President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas on pre-recorded video, addresses the UNGA 80 Plenary Meeting General Debate.

ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect

Denied a US visa, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas addressed the UN General Assembly remotely from Ramallah, accusing Israel of “war crimes” and “genocide” in Gaza while rejecting Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack and calling for the terrorist group to disarm.

Is the US set to terminate a 33-country trade deal?

Kenyan workers prepare clothes for export at the New Wide Garment Export Processing Zone (EPZ) factory operating under the U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), in Kitengela, Kajiado County, Kenya, on September 19, 2025.

REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi

The African Growth and Opportunity Act, a trade pact that allows many products from 32 sub-Saharan African states to have free access to US markets, is set to expire in less than a week. The White House still hasn’t said whether it will renew it.

Hard Numbers: Ex-French prez sentenced after Libyan corruption case, Taiwanese aides convicted of Chinese espionage, Anti-ICE sniper kills detainee, Australian film altered in China

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy talks to journalists, next to his wife Carla-Bruni Sarkozy and his lawyers, after the verdict in his trial with other defendants on charges of corruption and illegal financing of an election campaign related to alleged Libyan funding of his successful 2007 presidential bid, at the courthouse in Paris, France, September 25, 2025.

REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq

Four ex-staffers of Taiwan’s ruling DPP, including aides to President Lai Ching-te and security chief Joseph Wu, were convicted of spying for China.

Live from the UN: Rethink, Reset, Deliver Better with Data & AI

Watch the replay of our livestream from United Nations headquarters! Global leaders, policymakers, technologists, and frontline partners will convene for a UN-hosted live event during the General Assembly High-level Week. The event will examine how smarter use of data and technology, supported by renewed coherence and efficiency, can unlock new solutions to global challenges. Watch live at https://www.gzeromedia.com/unglobalstage.

Hard Numbers: Nvidia soars, Salesforce’s UK investment, step up for your eye exam, More millionaires (more problems?), Apple’s rebound

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Just order the pizza already. #PUPPETREGIME

Hard Numbers: Nvidia soars, Salesforce’s UK investment, step up for your eye exam, More millionaires (more problems?), Apple’s rebound

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

More from GZERO Media

“They’re not going to own it. They’re not going to make it. They’re going to be takers, not makers.” Ian Bremmer and Julia Chatterley discuss how the AI arms race is reshaping geopolitics, not just for the Global South, but also for Europe and beyond.

"India must leverage this technology to become a developed country by 2047. If not, we risk growing old without ever having grown rich," says Secretary S. Krishnan, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for the Government of India.

Denied a US visa, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas addressed the UN General Assembly remotely from Ramallah, accusing Israel of “war crimes” and “genocide” in Gaza while rejecting Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack and calling for the terrorist group to disarm.

The African Growth and Opportunity Act, a trade pact that allows many products from 32 sub-Saharan African states to have free access to US markets, is set to expire in less than a week. The White House still hasn’t said whether it will renew it.

Four ex-staffers of Taiwan’s ruling DPP, including aides to President Lai Ching-te and security chief Joseph Wu, were convicted of spying for China.

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

The UN General Assembly turns 80 this week, and the mood is grim. It’s not just the awful motorcade traffic in New York (do yourself a favor, walk or take the subway).

With electricity demand surging, a breakthrough is needed. Small modular reactors (SMRs) offer a potential solution, designed to be safer, more affordable, and provide zero-carbon power. Discover what sets SMRs apart by subscribing to Bank of America Institute..

Just order the pizza already. #PUPPETREGIME