Amazon’s Dave Limp, who runs the e-retailer’s hardware division, said the company’s jump into home robots this week started with a focus on security and then developed into a product that can also deliver a drink or take a video call.
“We wrote a document where we thought customers especially would like the security aspects of a home robot,” Limp told CNBC’s Jon Fortt in an interview that aired Friday on “TechCheck.” “It since has evolved to cover much more surface area than that, but that was the original kind of idea.”
Amazon has built an array of hardware devices over the years, from its early Kindle e-readers to modern tablets, voice-activated smart speakers and a smart TV. But its latest device, an Alexa-powered robot called Astro, may be its most ambitious yet.
Amazon unveiled Astro on Tuesday at its annual hardware event. The company started experimenting with robots in its own warehouses before eventually developing a consumer product. Limp said Amazon spent the past four years working on the device.
Astro is packed with sensors that allow it to navigate smoothly throughout the home and around objects. It includes two Qualcomm chips that power features like visual ID, which enables it to recognize one user from another. Astro can patrol your home autonomously, answer commands and serve up reminders.
While Amazon has typically targeted the thrifty with its lower-cost Echo speakers and TV streaming sticks, the Astro starts at $1,000 for users who get an invitation for early access and will cost $1,500 for those who buy it at launch.
“We still find some of our highest volume products are the ones that are around $50,” Limp said. “That being said, some of these brands have been around for a while, and as that happens, customers ask us to add more features.”
Recent upgrades in smart-home technology like sensors and processors allowed Amazon to consider launching an Alexa-powered robot, Limp added.
“The combination of that sort of got us excited about, well, we should get started on this,” he said.
Amazon still counts on e-commerce, cloud computing and now advertising for the bulk of its revenue, and it doesn’t break out device sales. The company generally views devices as a way to get consumers to use other services, like Prime shipping or music and video streaming.
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Klarna, a provider of buy now, pay later loans filed its IPO prospectus on Friday, and plans to go public on the New York Stock Exchange under ticker symbol KLAR.
Klarna, headquartered in Sweden, hasn’t yet disclosed the number of shares to be offered or the expected price range.
The decision to go public in the U.S. deals a significant blow to European stock exchanges, which have struggled to retain homegrown tech firms. Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski had hinted for years that a U.S. listing was more likely, citing better visibility and regulatory advantages.
Klarna is continuing to rebuild after a dramatic downturn. Once a pandemic-era darling valued at $46 billion in a SoftBank-led funding round, Klarna saw its valuation slashed by 85% in 2022, plummeting to $6.7 billion in its most recent primary fundraising. However, analysts now estimate the company’s valuation in the $15 billion range, bolstered by its return to profitability in 2023.
Revenue last year increased 24% to $2.8 billion. The company’s operating loss was $121 million for the year, and adjusted operating profit was $181 million, swinging from a loss of $49 million a year earlier.
Founded in 2005, Klarna is best known for its buy now, pay later model, a service that allows consumers to split purchases into installments. The company competes with Affirm, which went public in 2021, and Afterpay, which Block acquired for $29 billion in early 2022. Klarna’s major shareholders include venture firms Sequoia Capital and Atomico, as well as SoftBank’s Vision Fund.
Docusign rose more than 14% after reporting stronger-than-expected earnings after the bell Thursday.
“We’ve really stabilized and I think started to turn the corner on the core business,” CEO Allan Thygesen said Friday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “We’ve become much more efficient.”
Here’s how the company performed in the fourth quarter FY2025 compared to LSEG estimates:
Earnings per share: 86 cents vs. 85 cents expected
Revenue: $776 million vs. $761 million
The earnings beat was boosted in part by the electronic signature service’s new artificial intelligence-enabled content called Docusign IAM, a platform for optimizing processes involving agreements.
“It’s tremendously valuable,” Thygesen said. “It’s opening a treasure trove of data. … We’re seeing excellent pickup.”
Looking to fiscal year 2026, Thygesen said Docusign expects IAM to account for low double digits of the total growth of the business by Q4.
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Thygesen said the company is also partnering with Microsoft and Google, which the company does not view as competitors because they’re “not looking to become agreement management specialists.”
Despite consumer sentiment and demand dipping across the board due to tariff uncertainty, Thygesen said the company has not seen anything yet in its transactional activity to indicate a slowdown in demand or growth.
“More and more people are going to want to sign things electronically,” Thygesen said.
The company reported subscription revenue at $757 million, marking a 9% year-over-year increase. Docusign said it expects first-quarter revenue between $745 million and $749 million and projects full-year revenue between $3.129 billion and $3.141 billion.
Docusign reported net income of $83.50 million, or 39 cents per share, compared to net income of $27.24 million, or 13 cents per share, a year ago. Fourth-quarter revenue of $776 million was up 9% from the year-ago quarter.
DocuSign went public in 2018 at a $6 billion valuation. The company’s share price soared during the pandemic as demand for remote services boomed during lockdowns and social restrictions, hitting record highs in 2021 before plummeting. Thygesen, who previously worked at Google, joined the company in September 2022 after DocuSign’s massive slide.
Less than two months ago, the tech industry’s top leaders flocked to Washington, D.C., for the presidential inauguration, part of an effort to strike a friendly tone with President Donald Trump after a contentious first go-round in the White House.
Thus far, they’ve avoided any nasty social media posts from the president. But their treatment by investors has been anything but warm.
Over the last three weeks, since the Nasdaq touched its high for the year, the seven most valuable U.S. tech companies — often called “the Magnificent Seven” — have lost a combined $2.7 trillion in market value. The sell-off has pushed the Nasdaq to its lowest level since September.
As of Thursday, the tech-heavy index was down 4.9% for the week, heading for its worst weekly performance in six months. If it ends up down more than 5.8%, it would be the steepest weekly drop since January 2022.
Sparking the downdraft was President Trump’s promise to slap high tariffs on top trading partners, including China, Mexico and Canada, along with mass firings of government workers. The combination of a potential trade war and rising unemployment is particularly troubling news for consumer and business spending and has raised fears of a recession.
Additionally, many technology companies import key parts from abroad, and rely on trade partners for manufacturing.
This isn’t what Wall Street was expecting.
Following Trump’s election victory in November, the market jumped on prospects of diminished regulation and favorable tax policies. The Nasdaq climbed to a record close on Dec. 16, capping a more than 9% rally over about six weeks after the election.
Since then, electric car maker Tesla has lost close to half its value, despite — or perhaps because of — the central role that CEO Elon Musk is playing in the Trump administration.
The Nasdaq’s high point for the year came on Feb. 19, about a month into Trump’s second term. But it finished that week lower and has continued its precipitous decline.
Here’s how the seven megacaps have fared over that stretch:
Apple, the world’s most valuable company and the only remaining member of the $3 trillion club, has lost $529 billion in market cap since the close on Feb. 19. The iPhone maker is down 17%.
Microsoft, which was previously worth over $3 trillion, has fallen by $267 billion in the past three weeks, a drop of close to 9% for the software giant.
Nvidia, the chipmaker that’s been the biggest beneficiary of the artificial intelligence boom, also slid below $3 trillion over the course of losing $577 billion in value, the biggest dollar decline in the group. Like Apple, the stock is down 17% since the Nasdaq peaked.
Amazon is down by $347 billion, falling by 14%, while Alphabet is off by $275 billion after a 12% decline. Meta has shed $286 billion in market cap, a 16% drop.
Tesla has seen by far the biggest percentage decline at 33%, equaling $386 billion in value.
Goldman Sachs on Wednesday referred to the group as the “Maleficent 7.” Chief U.S. equity strategist David Kostin noted that the basket now trades at its lowest valuation premium relative to the S&P 500 since 2017. Goldman cut its price target on the benchmark index to 6,200 from 6,500. The S&P 500 closed on Thursday at 5,521.52.
“We believe investors will require either a catalyst that improves the economic growth outlook or clear asymmetry to the upside before they try to ‘catch the falling knife’ and reverse the recent market momentum,” Kostin wrote.