
August 27, 2024
BlinkLab Limited (ASX:BB1) (“BlinkLab” or the “Company”) is pleased to present its Annual Report.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Blinklab Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
artificial intelligence investingartifical intelligence stocksasx:bb1medical device investingArtificial Intelligence Investing
BB1:AU
Sign up to get your FREE
BlinkLab Limited Investor Kit
and hear about exciting investment opportunities.
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects
GET YOUR FREE INVESTOR KIT
The Conversation (0)
25 September 2024
BlinkLab Limited
Investor Insight
BlinkLab’s transformative AI-based healthcare technology is at the forefront of innovations in the global medical field that are quickly gaining traction among keen investors.
Overview
BlinkLab (ASX:BB1) offers a smartphone-based diagnostic platform that leverages computer vision, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). A company started by neuroscientists at Princeton University, Blinklab has developed its novel technology over several years, providing an app-enabled, smartphone-based diagnostic tool for evaluating children with neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism and ADHD.
The app turns a smartphone into a diagnostic tool that helps to conduct remote and rapid tests that can assist in diagnosing neurodevelopmental conditions. BlinkLab’s smartphone app provides a screening tool that can help with diagnoses much earlier than the age that children are typically assessed at present (approximately 5-6 years old). It is also a remote (i.e., accessible) and inexpensive means of beginning the assessment process, which can typically be very costly and take up to multiple years currently.
BlinkLab’s smartphone app facilitates early diagnosis, reduces costs, and improves accuracy.
BlinkLab’s smartphone-based technology, which uses AI and machine learning (ML), makes it attractive to investors. Like other industries, AI is becoming very popular in the healthcare sector. According to Statista, the AI healthcare market is expected to proliferate from $11 billion in 2021 to $187 billion in 2030. The increasing use of AI is driven by advanced ML algorithms, access to data, and use of 5G technology. AI and ML technologies can evaluate and analyze enormous volumes of data faster than humans.
Artificial intelligence, and particularly machine learning, has the potential to serve as the great equaliser for many behavioural healthcare concerns like autism. According to recent data, 97 percent of adults in the United States own a cellular device, and nine in ten own a smartphone. A 2022 Global State of Digital report by We Are Social shows 66.9 percent, or about 5.34 billion, of the world’s population are mobile users. As these percentages continue to rise and internet-powered devices become ubiquitous, access to digital health services can become democratised on a global scale. While autism spectrum disorder (ASD) services are currently restricted to relatively privileged populations, digital solutions powered by emerging data, science, and methodologies can make access to autism therapy more accessible.
Large players are investing in this segment to tap into the vast potential of these new technologies. One such example was Pfizer’s acquisition of ResApp. In October 2022, Pfizer acquired Queensland University startup ResApp Health for $179 million. ResApp developed a smartphone technology to detect respiratory diseases using cough analysis accurately.
Furthermore, big tech companies such as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet are also now venturing into the AI healthcare market.
Company Highlights
- Australia-based BlinkLab (ASX:BB1) is focused on transforming mental healthcare through an AI-enabled smartphone application, a breakthrough technology developed with Princeton University.
- The company’s innovative approach leverages the power of smartphones, AI and machine learning to deliver screening tests specifically designed for children as young as 18 months old. This marks a significant advancement, considering traditional diagnoses typically occur around five years of age, often missing the crucial early window for effective intervention.
- Once approved by regulators, this cutting-edge digital technology is poised to capture the imagination of both investors and major pharmaceutical companies, eager to embrace transformative solutions in healthcare.
- BlinkLab is led by an experienced management team and leading experts in the field of machine learning, autism and brain development, bridging the most advanced technological innovations with groundbreaking scientific research. The company is chaired by Brian Leedman, an experienced biotechnology entrepreneur and founder of ResApp Health, a digital diagnostic company recently acquired by Pfizer.
Key Technology and Applications
Neurobehavioral assays of brain function can reveal fundamental mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric conditions, but typically require centrally located equipment in a laboratory test facility. Consequently, these tests are often unpleasant for participants, as they often require instruments attached to their face and cannot be used at scale in daily clinical practice, particularly with paediatric patients.
BlinkLab has developed a smartphone-based software platform, known as ‘BlinkLab Test’, to perform neurobehavioural testing that is free from facial instruments or other fixed location equipment.
This AI-based platform is designed to be used at home or in similarly comfortable environments, either independently or with the assistance of a caregiver, while following instructions from the smartphone application. The tests include, but are not limited to, eyeblink conditioning (EBC), which is a form of sensory-motor associative learning, prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle response (PPI), which measures the ability to filter out irrelevant information through sensorimotor gating, startle habituation, which measures the ability for the intrinsic damping of repetitive stimuli and sensory adaptation, and habituation of the eye blink response, which serve as biomarkers for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
The BlinkLab Test App combines a smartphone’s ability to deliver stimuli and acquire data using computer vision with a secure cloud-based portal for data storage and analysis. In the tests, each audio and/or visual stimulus is presented with millisecond-precise control over parameters such as timing, amplitude and frequency. To maintain participant attention, an entertaining movie of choice is shown with normalised audio levels. Participants’ responses are measured by the smartphone’s camera and microphone, and are processed in real time using state-of-the art computer vision techniques. Response data is then fully anonymised, and transferred securely to the analysis portal. There, BlinkLab’s in-house AI/ML algorithms then perform clustering and statistical analysis to identify the prediction value of the experiment in the particular data set.
BlinkLab Test was initially developed as a prescription diagnostic aid to healthcare professionals (HCP) considering the diagnosis of ASD in patients 18 months through 72 months of age that are at risk for developmental delay. In collaboration with Princeton University in the United States and Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands, the company has conducted several trials using BlinkLab Test as an early assessment tool for autism. Autism represents a global challenge, with 1 in 36 children in the U.S. having autism, up from the previous rate of 1 in 44. With no early tests currently available to detect the condition, many children are diagnosed with the condition as late as the age of five.
Blinklab’s mobile app can aid in early detection, facilitating diagnoses as early as two years of age and resulting in earlier personalised interventions and monitoring. The testing process is also far more comfortable than traditional means of diagnoses, as the child can watch their favourite movie or cartoon on the phone, and the app will record their reactions, providing key information on the functioning of the brain.
BlinkLab will be subject to regulatory oversight as a medical device and must clear clinical studies. Previous clinical trials completed by Blinklab have shown impressive indicators of success, achieving sensitivity levels of 85 percent and specificity levels of 84 percent. The company notes that these trials are very similar to those that are required by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval and have shown much higher levels of accuracy compared to currently approved products.
In order for the BlinkLab Test technology to be used as a clinical aid in the diagnosis of ASD, BlinkLab will need to complete a pivotal registrational study, and subsequently apply for FDA registration and reimbursement for the tests. The registrational study intends to recruit up to 500 subjects. Enrolment for this study is expected to begin in 2024, with study completion expected by mid-2025. The potential to participate in a disruptive and scalable AI-powered technology close to regulatory approval should attract attention from big medical technology companies.
Research and clinical studies
BlinkLab engages and partners with research and medical institutions across the globe to further test and develop its technology.
In May 2024, BlinkLab initiated a clinical study in partnership with US-based Turning Pointe Autism Foundation to enroll up to one hundred children previously diagnosed with autism and one hundred children without an autism diagnosis. The data obtained during this collaboration will be used to finalise the data collection and processing algorithms and AI/ML models ahead of the FDA registrational study.
The company is also participating in a clinical study of patients with spinocerebellar ataxias, conducted by Columbia University, New York, to study the effect of aerobic physical exercise on neuroplasticity in adults with spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA).
To further improve and accelerate the diagnostic evaluation of ADHD, BlinkLab forged a major research and clinical partnership with Mental Care Group (MCG) in The Netherlands, the fifth largest outpatient mental health care provider in Europe.
To validate BlinkLab’s platform for the assessment of functional neurological disorder (FND), the company has partnered with Bates College in Maine for a clinical study that aims to characterise the behavioural time course of Pavlovian eyeblink conditioning and acoustic startle habituation. It will validate the BlinkLab smartphone test for use as a remote neurobehavioral testing and diagnostic tool for FND.
At Erasmus University Medical Center, BlinkLab’s smartphone-based remote assessment, including eyeblink conditioning and prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex, is being used, among other tools, in a clinical study to set-up an overarching at-home testing lab, named the Digital Dementia Lab, to identify, develop and test a variety of digital biomarkers
measuring clinically relevant behaviour for improving early accurate diagnosis of dementia.
BlinkLab is also working with Monash University in Australia to evaluate BlinkLab as a medical device for monitoring the therapeutic effects of ketamine on cognitive processes whereby sensory information is converted into decision making. Results from this study can help facilitate cognitive behavioural therapy outcomes in patients with psychiatric conditions such as depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
BlinkLab also recently signed a partnership for more clinical trialling with INTER-PSY, a large centre in the Netherlands that specialises in autism, offering assistance with diagnostics and treatments. This study also mirrors the study design of the Company’s developing FDA regulatory trial, which will be needed for future approval of BlinkLab Test as an approved diagnostic tool in the United States.
Management Team
BlinkLab is led by an experienced management team and directors with a proven track record in building companies and vast knowledge in digital healthcare, computer vision, AI and machine learning. The company’s chairman, Brian Leedman, is an experienced biotechnology entrepreneur and founder of ResApp Health, a digital diagnostic company for respiratory conditions, which was recently acquired by Pfizer for $179 million before reaching FDA approval for their main diagnostic product.
Dr. Henk-Jan Boele – Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Henk-Jan Boele is an assistant professor of neuroscience at the Medical Center of Erasmus University and a researcher at Princeton University. He obtained his PhD from Erasmus University in 2014. Boele has always been pushing scientific and methodological boundaries, and received numerous government and industry grants in the field of neuroscience.
Peter Boele – Founder and Chief Technology Officer
Peter Boele holds a bachelor’s degree in history and philosophy from Leiden University. He has over 20 years of experience in software development and has worked with Erasmus University, Leaseweb, Kaboom Informatics and Insocial.
Dr. Anton Uvarov – Founder and Chief Operational Officer
Anton Uvarov holds a Ph.D. from the University of Manitoba and an MBA from the Haskayne School of Business. He has rich experience in bio-technology investments with a particular focus on neuroscience and has successfully led several IPOs. He started his career as a biotechnology analyst with Citigroup, US.
Dr. Bas Koekkoek – Founder and Chief Scientific Officer
Bas Koekkoek is an assistant professor at Erasmus Medical Center. Koekkoek has been working at the Department of Neuroscience mainly in the role of rapid prototype of new technology and techniques for neuroscience. He has numerous publications in the area of brain development including Nature and Science journals.
Professor Sam Wang – Founder and Chair of Advisory Board
Sam Wang holds a PhD from Stanford University. He is a professor of neuroscience at Princeton University, has published over 100 articles on the brain in leading scientific journals and has received numerous awards. He gives public lectures on a regular basis and has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and the Fox News Channel.
Professor Chris de Zeeuw – Founder and Scientific Advisor
Chris de Zeeuw is chairman of the Department of Neuroscience at Erasmus MC in Rotterdam and vice-director at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience in Amsterdam. De Zeeuw has received over 100 grants, including the Pioneer Award from ZonMw and the ERC advanced grant. In 2006, he received the Beatrix Award for Brain Research from Her Majesty the Queen; in 2014, he became an elected member of the Dutch Academy of Arts & Science; and in 2018, he received the international Casella Prize for Physiology.
Keep reading...Show less
Revolutionising Mental Health Care Through Mobile Solutions
01 May
Successful Placement of A$7.66M to Underpin Growth Strategy
27 April
Quarterly Activities/Appendix 4C Cash Flow Report
31 March
BlinkLab Surpasses Key Milestone in Pivotal U.S. Trial
29 April
March 2025 Quarterly Activities and Cash Flow Report
29 April
RemSense Technologies: Enabling Industrial Digital Transformations
RemSense Technologies Limited (ASX:REM) is an Australian technology company driving digital transformation in asset-intensive industries through advanced asset visualisation and drone services. Founded in 2006 as a developer of drone systems for the defence and industrial sectors, RemSense expanded into professional drone services in 2012.
In 2019, the company broadened its focus to include high-resolution 3D asset capture and visualisation, leading to the creation of its flagship platform, virtualplant. This evolution reflects broader trends in digital transformation across sectors such as energy, resources, infrastructure, and utilities. RemSense was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2021.
RemSense is strongly positioned to capitalise on the accelerating adoption of digital twin technologies, particularly across the mining, oil and gas, manufacturing, utilities, defence, marine, and aerospace sectors. As these industries increasingly turn to digital solutions to enhance safety, reduce costs, and optimise asset management, demand for RemSense’s innovative offerings continues to grow.
Company Highlights
- Profitable Growth: Delivered $3.12 million in revenue in H1 FY25 – a 178 percent increase year-over-year
- Tier-1 Client Base: Trusted by major global operators including Chevron, Newmont and Woodside Energy for digital twin and drone technology services.
- Flagship Platform – virtualplant: A scalable, cutting edge digital twin solution providing real-time operational insights for industrial facilities and infrastructure.
- Strong legacy drone operations: RPAS Services features CASA-certified pilots and a fleet of custom-engineered drones supporting multiple industrial applications.
- Serving Critical Industries: Solutions deployed across energy, resources, utilities and infrastructure sectors undergoing rapid digital transformation.
This RemSense Technologies profile is part of a paid investor education campaign.*
Click here to connect with RemSense Technologies (ASX:REM) to receive an Investor Presentation
Keep reading...Show less
28 April
RemSense Technologies
Investor Insight
With its flagship platform, virtualplant, already in commercial use across high-value industrial assets, and a growing global footprint through strategic partnerships, RemSense offers investors a unique opportunity to back a scalable, revenue-generating business at the forefront of digital transformation in the resource and infrastructure sectors.
Overview
RemSense Technologies Limited (ASX:REM) is an Australian technology company enabling digital transformation across resource-heavy industries through advanced asset visualisation and drone services. Originally established in 2006 as a developer of drone systems for the defence and industrial sectors, the company expanded into professional drone services in 2012.
In 2019, RemSense made a strategic expansion into high-resolution 3D asset capture and visualisation, culminating in the development of its flagship product, virtualplant. This strategic shift aligns with macro trends in digital transformation, particularly in asset-heavy industries like energy, resources, infrastructure and utilities. The company was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2021.
RemSense is ideally positioned to leverage the growing adoption of digital twin technologies, particularly across mining, oil & gas, manufacturing, utilities, defence, marine and aerospace industries. These sectors are increasingly embracing digital tools to improve safety, reduce costs, and manage assets more efficiently, creating strong and expanding demand for RemSense’s solutions.
In the first half of FY25, RemSense reported $3.12 million in revenue, representing a 178 percent increase over the same period in FY24. The company also recorded its first-ever net profit of $796,892 and achieved positive operational cashflow of $365,539 – a turning point that demonstrates both commercial traction and disciplined financial execution.
Strategic partnerships with Chevron, Newmont Mining and Woodside Energy highlight RemSense’s growing reputation among Tier-1 clients and its ability to scale internationally. These engagements are not pilot programs, but are real, revenue-generating contracts that reinforce RemSense’s value proposition.
Company Highlights
- Profitable Growth: Delivered $3.12 million in revenue in H1 FY25 – a 178 percent increase year-over-year
- Tier-1 Client Base: Trusted by major global operators including Chevron, Newmont and Woodside Energy for digital twin and drone technology services.
- Flagship Platform – virtualplant: A scalable, cutting edge digital twin solution providing real-time operational insights for industrial facilities and infrastructure.
- Strong legacy drone operations: RPAS Services features CASA-certified pilots and a fleet of custom-engineered drones supporting multiple industrial applications.
- Serving Critical Industries: Solutions deployed across energy, resources, utilities and infrastructure sectors undergoing rapid digital transformation.
Key Products and Services
Virtual Plant
Virtualplant is RemSense’s flagship digital platform. It’s a high-resolution 3D asset visualisation solution that allows users to explore and interact with industrial facilities remotely, as if on site. By combining drone-based photogrammetry, terrestrial LiDAR, and 360-degree imaging, virtualplant creates immersive, detailed, interactive models of infrastructure such as gas plants, processing facilities and offshore vessels.
The platform supports a wide range of critical functions including remote inspection, maintenance planning, training, safety management, and compliance documentation. It reduces the need for site travel, improves asset visibility, and helps clients identify and address risks before they become costly failures.
Virtualplant is already deployed in high-value applications. In October 2023, Woodside Energy engaged RemSense to create a visual twin of one of its floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels. In 2024, Chevron signed a series of global services agreement with RemSense to use the platform for photogrammetry scanning at gas plants in South Asia, Northwest Australia and USA, with a total contract value of more than AU$800,000. These projects reflect the platform’s global relevance and enterprise-grade capabilities.
Additional features enhance the platform’s utility:
- vTag uses AI to automatically identify and tag equipment based on nameplate data, linking it to asset registers in systems like SAP and IBM Maximo.
- vDetect automatically identifies physical defects such as corrosion, helping prioritise maintenance.
- vConnect enables real-time integration with external monitoring and data platforms, creating a unified interface for visual and operational intelligence.
These capabilities make virtualplant more than a visualisation tool, as it becomes a central intelligence layer in clients’ asset ecosystems.
RPAS (Drone) Services
RemSense has a strong legacy in drone operations, with CASA-certified pilots and a fleet of custom-engineered drones equipped with high-end imaging and sensing tools. These drone services support asset inspections, geophysical and vegetation surveys, water sampling, environmental monitoring, traffic studies, and building condition assessments.
Drone data is often the first step in creating virtualplant models. This seamless integration of field data acquisition and platform-based analysis ensures RemSense delivers a complete, end-to-end digital solution for industrial clients.
Management Team
Ross Taylor – Non-executive Chairman
Ross Taylor chartered accountant with a global finance background having worked in London, Australia, New York and Tokyo. He has held senior roles at Deutsche Bank, Bankers Trust and Barclays Capital. His experience in international capital markets brings strong governance and financial oversight to RemSense’s board.
Warren Cook – Managing Director & CEO
With over 25 years of experience in technology development and commercialisation, Warren Cook has led projects in mining, energy and environmental sectors across more than a dozen countries, including Australia, US, Brazil, Canada, France, Indonesia, South Africa and the UK. He was the CEO of acQuire Technology Solutions, delivering information management software solutions for the resources industry.
John Clegg – Non-executive Director
John Clegg has been a chartered accountant since 1965 and has supported more than 50 companies through IPOs, restructures, and strategic growth initiatives. Following his 16-year tenure at Arthur Young & Co (now Ernst & Young), he shifted focus to startup ventures, offering directorship and consulting services. As a seasoned investor, director, consultant and mentor to senior executives, Clegg has left a significant mark on numerous ventures.Keep reading...Show less
09 April
ASX AI Stocks: 5 Biggest Companies
Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to evolve and advance rapidly, becoming increasingly integrated in the automation of everyday life and a focal point of growth in the technology sector.
According to a September 2023 report from IDC on worldwide AI spending, Australia, along with Korea and India, is leading the Asia-Pacific region in spending on AI solutions; the three countries are also leading when it comes to AI adoption in the area. Spending in the region, excluding Japan and China, is expected to reach US$28.2 billion by 2027.
Although the AI market is relatively small in Australia, it’s growing. To help investors understand the options available, the Investing News Network used TradingView's stock screener to find the top AI stocks on ASX by market cap. All ASX AI stocks data was current as of April 7, 2025. companies whose businesses are focused mainly on AI were considered.
1. NEXTDC (ASX:NXT)
Market cap: AU$6.82 billion
Share price: AU$10.00
NEXTDC is Australia’s leading data centre operator, with 17 functioning centres and at least 12 more in various stages of development throughout Oceania. The company has also forged several business and academic partnerships to enhance Australia's digital infrastructure, including a collaboration with La Trobe Business School’s Research Centre for Data Analytics and Cognition to research theoretical and practical applications of AI across a range of industries.
In August 2024, NEXTDC obtained NVIDIA's (NASDAQ:NVDA) DGX-Ready Data Centre Program certification, enabling it to optimize NVIDIA's AI platforms and power advanced AI data centres in Australia.
The company was also the recipient of the Pacific Telecommunications Council's Outstanding Data Centre Company award for 2025.
In March 2025, NEXTDC's Sydney location upgraded its AXON platform — a system that connects different cloud services and data centers — to offer super-fast 100 gigabits per second connections, which will help businesses use AI technology more effectively by providing the necessary high-speed and reliable links to their data and partners.
2. Megaport (ASX:MPI)
Market cap: AU$1.47 billion
Share price: AU$8.66
Megaport is a software-defined network service provider that allows enterprise customers to connect between data centres. The company offers a marketplace where customers can find and connect with various service providers within the Megaport ecosystem.
The firm's customer base includes cloud service providers like Amazon's (NASDAQ:AMZN) Amazon Web Services and Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Microsoft Azure. Megaport's service also allows customers to link their own equipment across different sites and connect to internet exchange points.
Its Megaport Virtual Edge allows the deployment of virtual network devices like routers and firewalls without needing physical hardware in a data centre.
3. NUIX (ASX:NXL)
Market cap: AU$896.29 million
Share price: AU$2.55
Nuix specializes in investigative analytics and intelligence software, with tools to help organizations analyze and understand copious amounts of data using AI. Nuix's Natural Language Processing capabilities allow it to read unstructured formats, including emails and social media posts. Its machine learning algorithms include advanced abilities like semantic search and risk scoring to identify patterns and connections within the data.
Nuix can handle extremely large data sets, and its software is designed to operate at a forensic level, ensuring that data is collected and analyzed in a way that is legally sound and defensible in court. This gives Nuix a significant market share within the law enforcement and legal communities.
4. BrainChip (ASX:BRN)
Market cap: AU$380.77 million
Share price: AU$0.18
BrainChip is the company behind Akida, a revolutionary digital neuromorphic chip that’s built with a spiking neural network, a type of artificial network that mimics the way messages are passed between neurons in the human brain.
Because the AI is inside the chip, the chip can learn on its own and is not reliant on the cloud or other networks. According to the company, this makes it much more secure and reduces latency.
In June 2024, the company released a white paper for its newly developed technology, TENNs-PLEIADES, an efficient AI processor that can perform complex tasks like decision-making, object recognition and data analysis. BrainChip's lowest-power version of the chip, called Akida Pico, was released on October 1 of that year.
Unlike Akida, this chip is designed for spatiotemporal classification and detection using event-based data, making it particularly well-suited for low-latency applications such as self-driving cars.
BrainChip showcased its advancements in event-based vision at Embedded World 2025 and announced a partnership with Information System Laboratories focused on AI-based radar research solutions based on Akida.
5. Weebit Nano (ASX:WBT)
Market cap: AU$333.61 million
Share price: AU$1.46
While Weebit Nano isn't directly developing AI applications or algorithms, its core technology, Resistive Random-Access Memory (ReRAM), is positioned to be a crucial enabler for the future of AI, particularly in the realm of edge AI and neuromorphic computing. ReRAM's low-power operation and potential for high-density make it a promising memory technology for building neuromorphic chips.
Weebit Nano's target markets are heavily driven by AI, such as autonomous vehicles, robotics and advanced Internet of Things devices. As of March 2025, the company is collaborating with companies like Embedded AI Systems to demonstrate the advantage of ReRAM in ultra-low-power applications.
FAQs for investing in AI
What is artificial intelligence?
AI is defined as human intelligence exhibited by machines. The development of graphics processing units with faster and more powerful chips has supported the emergence of AI technologies.
Where is AI used?
AI has been heralded as a technology of the fourth industrial revolution, with heavy investment from industries including transportation, manufacturing, education and agriculture. Some of the sectors that will likely see the fastest AI investment growth in the coming years are healthcare, pharmaceutical research, retail, industrial automation, finance and intelligent process automation.
How to invest in AI stocks?
Investors looking to capitalise on AI's growth potential have a number of entry points when it comes to stocks. It's key for each person to practise due diligence and speak to their broker to determine the most suitable investments.
The companies listed above have a strong focus on AI, but investing in companies that are using AI as part of a larger business model is one way to gain indirect exposure to the sector. Examples of stocks like this on the ASX include Block (ASX:SQ2), WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC), Seek (ASX:SEK) and Xero (ASX:XRO).
For a more diversified approach, the Betashares Global Robotics and Artificial Intelligence ETF (ASX:RBTZ) invests in companies involved in the development of AI applications all across the globe. Investing in an exchange-traded fund is a low-cost way to benefit from a sector without directly buying individual stocks.
This is an updated version of an article first published by the Investing News Network in 2020.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Australia for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Keep reading...Show less
08 April
AI Market Update: Q1 2025 in Review
The first quarter of 2025 was dynamic and often volatile for the tech sector. Initial optimism, fueled by investor enthusiasm after a strong 2024, quickly gave way to economic headwinds and market anxieties.
Concerns over monetary policy, global trade tensions and individual company performances led to variations in tech stock valuations, with the Magnificent Seven ultimately experiencing losses by March.
However, Q1 also brought groundbreaking developments in artificial intelligence (AI), intense competition in the semiconductor industry and new developments in AI agents and robotics.
How did tech stocks perform in Q1?
The performance of major tech companies was influenced by a confluence of events and trends in Q1.
The sector began the year in positive territory, reflecting optimism from investors who saw US President Donald Trump’s November victory as a boon for business. However, this upward trend proved short-lived.
Economic headwinds, most notably cautious monetary policy and investor anxieties about global trade disruption, triggered a market downturn that resulted in periods of tech stock selloffs.
The tech market did demonstrate some signs of recovery in the final week of the quarter.
AI results impact major tech players
Outside overall market impacts, tech companies experienced their own fluctuations in Q1.
Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) was boosted by acquisition rumors and a stronger-than-expected Q4 performance, after starting the year down nearly 60 percent from January 2024. Leadership changes mid-March and reports of a restructuring to its chip-manufacturing business further improved the firm's share price performance.
More broadly, the market's response to earnings reports highlighted the significant impact of cloud computing, AI investment strategies and future guidance for Big Tech companies.
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), for example, fell after its results revealed weakness in its cloud computing unit despite revenue that exceeded estimates. Similarly, Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) saw their share prices decline after capacity restraints were cited as a limitation for both companies.
In contrast, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) surged after it announced substantial AI investments and released results that exceeded expectations. Meanwhile, concerns about Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) AI strategy and sales in Asia led to turbulence in its trading patterns throughout the quarter. Even NVIDIA's (NASDAQ:NVDA) share price initially dipped following strong earnings, driven by market concerns about competition and geopolitical tensions.
Emergent player CoreWeave's (NASDAQ:CRWV) journey to its initial public offering demonstrated the volatile and challenging nature of going public in the rapidly evolving AI sector. After its initial announcement revealed a 700 percent increase in 2024 revenue, the company made major moves leading up to its debut, acquiring Weights & Biases for US$1.7 billion before securing a five year, US$11.9 billion cloud services contract with OpenAI.
However, CoreWeave's March 28 IPO coincided with a hotter-than-expected inflation reading, and the company raised roughly US$1 billion less than its target, with both the number of shares and share price lower than expected.
China's DeepSeek makes AI market waves
Beyond individual company performances, the quarter was marked by key developments in AI.
The release of China's open-source AI model, DeepSeek-R-1, created a significant market disruption when it was reported to perform comparably to models from OpenAI and Anthropic at a significantly lower training cost: US$5.6 million compared to the US$500 million OpenAI reportedly spent to train o1.
The market’s reaction resulted in a 17 percent loss to NVIDIA's market cap, the largest single-day loss for any company on Wall Street. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (INDEXNASDAQ:SOX) lost 9.2 percent.
OpenAI’s Sam Altman expressed curiosity and excitement about the competitor, while others saw it as a development that could increase return on investment for companies using AI and drive further innovation.
“We still don’t know the details and nothing has been 100 percent confirmed … but if there truly has been a breakthrough in the cost to train models from US$100 million+ to this alleged US$6 million number this is actually very positive for productivity and AI end users,” said Jon Withaar, senior portfolio manager at Pictet Asset Management.
Since its release, DeepSeek has been noted to have potential issues with accuracy and security.
Other companies making strides in AI training speed this past quarter include Foxconn Technology (TPE:2354), which reportedly trained its large language model (LLM), FoxBrain, in four weeks.
Celestial AI secured funding to advance photonics technology for more efficient AI computing, and Cohere introduced Command A, an LLM focused on business needs and optimized for efficient inference.
Pluralis Research received funding for its work on decentralized AI systems and “protocol learning,” a method designed to enable collaborative and distributed AI model training.
NVIDIA's chip-making competitors
Competition within the chip industry heated up in the first quarter as AI spending enthusiasm shifted to other semiconductor companies and custom chip development advanced.
Barclay’s (NYSE:BCS,LSE:BARC) analyst Thomas O’Malley reaffirmed his "buy" rating for NVIDIA on January 20 and raised his price target to US$175, but warned that NVIDIA's customers are looking for alternatives to its GPUs.
He identified Marvel Technology (NASDAQ:MRVL) and Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) as NVIDIA's biggest contenders, adjusting their price targets to US$150 and US$260, respectively.
For its part, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) (NYSE:TSM) has continued to experience strong demand for its chip-making services. Its quarterly profits for Q4 2024 reached a record, and the company is anticipating strong revenue growth moving forward. The firm has planned significant investments in technology and capacity, including US$100 billion for new facilities to boost US chip production.
ASML Holding (NASDAQ:ASML), the sole producer of the EUV lithography machines crucial for advanced AI chips, also exceeded Q4 earnings expectations, resulting in a positive effect on its share price.
AI agents and other emerging tech
Looking ahead, the market for AI agents — autonomous entities that can take actions to achieve specific goals — is poised for expansion. At its annual GPU Technology Conference, held from March 17 to 21, NVIDIA's CEO emphasized a shift from generative AI to physical AI, describing AI agents as a “multi-trillion dollar opportunity."
Strategic acquisitions, such as ServiceNow's intention to buy Moveworks, underscore the growing importance of agentic AI in enterprise solutions. Amazon Web Services is developing a team focused on developing agentic AI, betting on increased client spending for automation. Meta is gearing up to test AI agents for small businesses, and OpenAI is developing premium agent offerings for business and academic pursuits.
While these advancements are exciting, challenges remain, with Gartner predicting a sharp rise in AI agent-related security breaches by 2028. To address reliability, Microsoft is developing "deep reasoning agents."
The first quarter of 2025 also signaled a major acceleration in robotics development, with Google's new Gemini Robotics models and partnership with Apptronik indicating AI and robotic integration. The US$2 billion valuation for Kyle Vogt's the Bot Company suggests the robotics sector is poised for growth and market expansion.
Advances like Eliza Wakes Up's humanoid and Figure AI's in-house development signal the potential for near-term commercial availability. Funding activity, with Field AI seeking a US$2 billion valuation and Aescape securing US$83 million in strategic funding, demonstrates investor confidence in the potential of robotics.
AI data centers signal growth
The massive investments in data centers announced in Q1 foreshadow an expansion of AI infrastructure.
The Trump administration has partnered with executives from Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), OpenAI and SoftBank (TSE:9984) for a four year, US$500 billion AI infrastructure project dubbed Stargate. MGX, an Abu Dhabi-based technology investment firm focused on AI, is another equity partner in the Stargate project.
Separately, MGX is a founding partner in the AI Infrastructure Partnership, a group that includes BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), Global Infrastructure Partners and Microsoft. It is reportedly aiming to invest up to US$100 billion in US and OECD AI infrastructure. NVIDIA and xAI joined the consortium in the first quarter.
This large-scale infrastructure development is mirrored by substantial investment and product development plans from individual tech giants. Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Meta have all revealed plans for significant AI-related investments in the coming months that include data center builds and product releases, while NVIDIA has committed to spending "hundreds of billions of dollars in the US," emphasizing TSMC's manufacturing role in supply chain resilience.
OpenAI is also reportedly finalizing the design for its first in-house AI chip, with a long-term goal of mass production at TSMC by 2026; it is also in talks to build its first data center for storage in Texas near the Stargate data center.
These developments point to a future where data centers become the battleground for AI dominance, with significant implications for energy consumption, hardware demand and technological advancement.
Investor takeaway
Wrapping up the quarter, Nick Mersch, portfolio manager at Purpose Investments, hosted an "ask me anything" session on Reddit (NASDAQ:RDDT) to share insights on what investors should consider when evaluating tech stocks.
“The number one predictor of stocks over time is their earnings power. Invest in companies that are growing earnings more than the overall market and you will win. This is easy in theory but difficult in practice. You need to look at secular trends in order to skate to where the puck is going. It is much easier to pick a winner in a sector that has strong overall growth than picking through the rubble of a beaten-down industry," said Mersch.
“However, you do also have to recognize that sometimes, this is cyclical. That's why I like to pick companies that are what I call 'compounders.' These are companies that are growing both top line (revenue) and bottom line (earnings) at a solid rate and are reinvesting in new growth avenues. At the end of the day, you need cash flow generative companies."
Mersch added, “Look for three things — earnings, earnings, and earnings.”
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Technology for real-time news updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Keep reading...Show less
28 March
Tech 5: CoreWeave IPO Falls Short, OpenAI Close to Completing US$40 Billion Funding Round
This week brought a fresh set of challenges to the tech sector, beginning with an announcement from the US Bureau of Industry and Security on Tuesday (March 25) of new export restrictions targeting 80 companies across Asia and the Middle East, impacting some of Big Tech’s key customers.
Consumer confidence weakened, further dampening market sentiment.
This was evidenced by the release of the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index report on Tuesday, and the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey, released on Friday (March 28).
Also on Friday, the latest US personal consumption expenditures price index data showed underlying inflation rising by 0.4 percent, renewing concerns over stagflation.
Combined, the latest data weighed on equities, and tech stocks led a broad market selloff on March 28 (Friday).
NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) ended the week 8.52 percent lower from its opening price on Monday (March 24), Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) logged losses of 6.22 percent and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) declined by 4.2 percent.
Meanwhile, Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) share price pulled back by a modest 1.41 percent for the week.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) saw its price stage a bit of a recovery, ending the week 2.12 percent above Monday’s opening price, while other automotive companies like Ford Motor (NYSE:F) and General Motors (NYSE:GM) nursed losses following US President Donald Trump’s implementation of a 25 percent tariff on all auto imports.
Here's a look at other key events that made tech headlines this week.
1. BYD shares Q4 results, Tesla sentiment improves
BYD (OTC Pink:BYDDF,SZSE:002594), China’s top car brand, reported its fourth quarter results on Monday, with net profits totaling 15 billion yuan (US$2.1 billion), a 73.1 percent increase compared to the previous year, and revenue growth of 52.7 percent to 274.85 billion yuan (US$37.89 billion) for the same period.
Looking ahead, BYD expects to ship up to 5.5 million vehicles in 2025.
The company also said this week that 500 of the approximately 4,000 super-fast charging stations needed to support its electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure in China will be ready by April.
These projections from BYD come as rival EV maker Tesla staged a partial comeback this week after suffering a roughly 25 percent decline in its share price earlier this month.
Investor sentiment may have been lifted by analysis from CFRA Research analyst Garrett Nelson, who said Tesla is the “least exposed” to Trump’s sweeping 25 percent automobile tariffs, announced on Wednesday (March 26).
According to Nelson, Tesla, which builds its cars in the US, stands to benefit from a projected reduction in consumer choices coupled with an increase in the prices of foreign-made vehicles.
“There are very few winners,” Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting for AutoForecast Solutions, said in an interview with Bloomberg. “Consumers will be losers because they will have reduced choice and higher prices.”
Analysts are projecting that Trump’s auto tariffs could severely impact the economy.
“I think yesterday’s [tariff announcement on automobiles] is a bigger deal than the market is making it out to be," Ajay Rajadhyaksha, global chairman of research at Barclays, told CNBC on Thursday (March 27). "I think it reduces the risk that April 2 is something that markets can dismiss," he added. "I think we will be negatively surprised."
2. Big Tech companies make AI advances
This week also saw significant advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) image generation and reasoning with the introduction of enhanced product offerings from some of Big Tech’s most prominent players.
OpenAI released 4o Image Generation to replace DALL-E 3 as the default image generation model for ChatGPT.
According to the company, the model can generate more realistic images than older image-generating models, as well as create lengthy, detailed, and precise text strings within images.
Meanwhile, Microsoft unveiled "deep reasoning agents" for 365 Copilot, powered by OpenAI's o1 and o3-mini models, featuring "agent flow" for enhanced reliability. Elsewhere, Google's (NASDAQ:GOOGL) DeepMind introduced Gemini 2.5 Pro, which it claims has superior reasoning capabilities over older iterations and competing models
3. CoreWeave downsizes IPO
CoreWeave's initial public offering (IPO) journey concluded on Friday, following significant market scrutiny.
The company initially filed for a New York IPO on March 3, targeting a US$4 billion raise and a valuation exceeding US$35 billion. Its filings revealed US$1.9 billion in 2024 revenue but also substantial debt and escalating net losses, reaching US$863 million. This expansion was fueled by US$14.5 billion in debt and equity financing.
On March 20, CoreWeave announced the launch of its IPO, registering 49 million Class A shares with a projected price range of US$47 to US$55. The company was aiming to raise up to US$2.7 billion in an offering led by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), with 11 other advisers participating. Analysts at CNBC projected the deal would value CoreWeave at US$26.5 billion, although that figure could go as high as US$32 billion.
However, the company opted to decrease the size and price of its IPO, setting levels at US$40 per share for 37,500,000 shares, resulting in a valuation of approximately US$23 billion.
CoreWeave's lower IPO was due to a confluence of factors that dampened investor enthusiasm, including market conditions and financial concerns. A confidential investor survey reported by the Information found that 90 percent of respondents do not consider CoreWeave a favorable long-term investment.
“One respondent summed up a broader perception about CoreWeave: ‘It’s radioactive, and I think every investor knows that,’” market analyst Cory Weinberg wrote.
4. OpenAI revenue and funding rumors circulate
It was a big week for OpenAI, marked by reports on its expansion and projected financial growth.
According to a Wednesday report from the Information, OpenAI is exploring the construction of its first data center, which would be located in Texas near the Stargate data center site.
Concurrently, Bloomberg cited an anonymous source projecting OpenAI's revenue to potentially triple to US$12.7 billion this year and reach $29.4 billion in 2026, driven by its paid software plans. Additionally, reports surfaced of a record-breaking funding round worth US$40 billion led by Stargate co-contributor SoftBank Group (TSE:9984). The deal is reportedly near completion and would double OpenAI’s valuation, bringing it near US$300 billion.
These developments emphasize OpenAI's position as a dominant force in the AI landscape
5. Microsoft reportedly cuts data center plans
Shares of Microsoft closed down on Wednesday after an analyst note from TD Cowen alleged that the tech conglomerate had abandoned plans for new data centers in the US and Europe, citing potential oversupply.
According to Bloomberg, Google and Meta have taken over some of the affected leases, although neither company has responded publicly to the note. In a statement from Microsoft obtained by the publication, the company said “significant investments” have left it “well positioned to meet our current and increasing customer demand.”
“While we may strategically pace or adjust our infrastructure in some areas, we will continue to grow strongly in all regions,” the spokesperson said. “This allows us to invest and allocate resources to growth areas for our future.”
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Technology for real-time news updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Keep reading...Show less
Latest News
Sign up to get your FREE
BlinkLab Limited Investor Kit
and hear about exciting investment opportunities.
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects
GET YOUR FREE INVESTOR KIT
Latest Press Releases
Related News
TOP STOCKS
American Battery4.030.24
Aion Therapeutic0.10-0.01
Cybin Corp2.140.00
Investing News Network websites or approved third-party tools use cookies. Please refer to the cookie policy for collected data, privacy and GDPR compliance. By continuing to browse the site, you agree to our use of cookies.