Connect with us

Published

on

Inspiration4 mission commander Jared Isaacman, founder and chief executive officer of Shift4 Payments, stands for a portrait in front of the recovered first stage of a Falcon 9 rocket at Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) on February 2, 2021 in Hawthorne, California. 

Patrick T. Fallon | Afp | Getty Images

Days after his nomination for NASA was pulled by President Donald Trump, Jared Isaacman told investors in his payments company Shift4 that his “brief stint in politics was a thrilling experience.”

Isaacman said in the letter that he was resigning as CEO of Shift4, which he founded in 1999 at age 16, and will assume the role of executive chairman. He had been planning to leave the company if his nomination was confirmed by the Senate. But it never got that far.

In a post on Truth Social over the weekend, Trump said that he was withdrawing Isaacman’s nomination “after a thorough review of prior associations.” The president didn’t indicate what those associations were, though some reports have suggested that it was a reference to Isaacman’s prior donations to Democrats.

“Even knowing the outcome, I would do it all over again,” Isaacman wrote in the letter.

In an episode of the All-In podcast that went live on Wednesday, Isaacman, who has close ties to Elon Musk, indicated that his past donations weren’t likely the reason for Trump’s decision. He noted that his donations were public long before he was nominated, and he described himself as “right-leaning” and a supporter of the president’s agenda.

“I don’t want to play dumb on this,” he said. “I don’t think the timing was much of a coincidence.”

The timing he was referencing was Musk’s official exit from his government service work at the end of May.

In addition to his career in finance, Isaacman has led two private spaceflights through Musk’s SpaceX, in 2021 and 2024, commanding crews on multiday trips around the Earth. Shift4 also invested $27.5 million in SpaceX, according to a 2021 filing.

Musk became one of Trump’s biggest backers and, until last week, was leading the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), tasked with slashing the size of the federal government. With Musk’s official time as a “special government employee” coming to an end because of the 130-day limit, the world’s richest person has quickly turned into a vocal critic of Trump’s massive tax-cut bill.

On Wednesday, Musk ramped up his attacks on the bill that Trump is pushing Congress to pass, claiming it will condemn America to “debt slavery” and urging lawmakers to “KILL the BILL.” A day earlier, Musk slammed what Trump has dubbed the “big, beautiful bill” as a “disgusting abomination.”

Trump’s decision to pull Isaacman’s nomination came before Musk’s latest tirade. But Musk had been distancing himself from the administration in recent weeks.

“You got one person,” Isaacman said on All-In, referring to Trump as the one making the call. He said he doesn’t “know what the trigger was or wasn’t” and said he doesn’t “fault the president for it.”

The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

At Shift4, Isaacman said in Wednesday’s letter that he’ll be succeeded as CEO by Taylor Lauber, who started at the company in 2018 and has been serving as president.

“I have been working since I was a teenager and not planning to stop now,” Isaacman wrote. “I love this company, the strategy and our team. As the largest shareholder, I am eager to continue contributing where I believe my efforts will have the most impact.” 

— CNBC’s Lora Kolodny and MacKenzie Sigalos contributed to this report.

WATCH: Elon Musk slams Trump’s spending bill

Elon Musk slams Trump's spending bill: Here's what to know

Continue Reading

Technology

Musk’s xAI raises $15 billion in latest funding round

Published

on

By

Musk's xAI raises  billion in latest funding round

Elon Musk announced his new company xAI, which he says has the goal to understand the true nature of the universe.

Jaap Arriens | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Elon Musk‘s artificial intelligence company xAI has raised $15 billion from investors, sources familiar with the matter told CNBC’s David Faber.

The funding adds another $5 billion to the $10 billion round CNBC reported on in September that valued the startup at $200 billion. Sources told CNBC that a lot of the money will fund graphic processing units that underpin large language models.

Artificial intelligence startups have reached sky high valuations in recent months as they raise massive amounts of capital to power seemingly endless demand for foundational models.

In September, AI startup Anthropic closed a $13 billion funding round that roughly tripled its valuation from March. Sam Altman’s OpenAI in October closed a $6.6 billion share sale at a $500 billion valuation.

Last last week, Tesla shareholders voted to approve Musk’s massive pay package worth nearly $1 trillion, and voted on a proposal for the company to invest in xAI.

Brandon Ehrhart, general counsel at Tesla, said there were more votes for than against, but noted the abstentions and said the company is considering next steps on the issue.

This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.

Continue Reading

Technology

Government shutdown ends, Disney earnings, Anthropic’s $50 billion AI investment and more in Morning Squawk

Published

on

By

Government shutdown ends, Disney earnings, Anthropic's  billion AI investment and more in Morning Squawk

U.S. President Donald Trump signs the funding bill to end the U.S. government shutdown, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., Nov. 12, 2025.

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

This is CNBC’s Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox.

Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

1. Opening time

President Donald Trump ended the longest government shutdown in U.S. history last night, signing into law a short-term funding bill passed by the House of Representatives earlier in the evening that funds the government through January.

Here’s what to know:

  • While the deal does not include the extension of enhanced Obamacare tax credits that Democrats wanted, it does include a guarantee from Republicans that the Senate will vote on a health care bill of Democrats’ choosing next month.
  • The agreement also ensures funding for food stamps, the reversal of shutdown-related layoffs and backpay for government employees.
  • As he signed the legislation ending the 43-day shutdown, Trump said “people were hurt so badly” and that “we can never let this happen again.” He blamed Democrats for the closure, saying “Republicans never wanted a shutdown.”
  • Earlier on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said key inflation and labor data for October may never be released because of the shutdown. Without these reports, Leavitt said Federal Reserve policymakers will be “flying blind at a critical period.”
  • The Department of Transportation also halted the flight cuts it imposed last week as disruptions to air travel eased. The cancellations would have risen from 6% to 10% on Friday.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied to its first-ever close above 48,000 yesterday as Wall Street hoped that the shutdown’s end was imminent.
  • Follow live markets updates here.

2. Testing the magic

A shot of Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

RandomEye Photography | Twenty20

Mickey Mouse may be joining Pluto in the dog house. Disney missed Wall Street’s revenue estimates for the fiscal fourth quarter this morning, sending shares down more than 4% in premarket trading.

While the company’s Disney+ streaming service grew, the entertainment giant was hampered by its linear TV business and its its theatrical film slate. But Disney’s quarterly earnings came in higher than analysts anticipated.

“Overall we’re leaving the year with a lot of momentum,” Disney CFO Hugh Johnston told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this morning, referring to the company’s streaming and experience businesses.

3. Personnel matters

U.S. President Donald Trump and Lisa Cook, governor of the U.S. Federal Reserve

Annabelle Gordon | Reuters | Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Mark your calendar: The Supreme Court said it will hear arguments on Trump’s attempt to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook on Jan. 21. The court in October allowed Cook to keep her job while the case plays out.

Meanwhile, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic announced yesterday that he will leave his position when his term expires in February. Bostic, the first Black and openly gay regional Fed president, said in a statement that he was proud of efforts “to turn the lofty goal of an economy that works for everyone into more of a reality.”

4. Inside the AFP business

Jgi/jamie Grill | Tetra Images | Getty Images

Get Morning Squawk directly in your inbox

5. Electric slide

Samuel Boivin | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Anthropic announced yesterday that it plans to spend $50 billion to build out infrastructure tied to artificial intelligence. As CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos notes, the move makes the technology company a major U.S. player in physical AI infrastructure. The project will start with custom data centers in Texas and New York and is expected to create 800 permanent jobs and more than 2,000 construction positions.

But there’s growing political backlash to the AI industry’s data centers, with voters angry over rising electricity prices. Abigail Spanberger, who won last week’s governor race in Virginia, promised to make the industry pay “their fair share” of higher costs.

The Daily Dividend

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released more than 20,000 documents obtained from sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s estate yesterday, among which were emails referencing Trump. The president has denied knowing about Epstein’s sexual abuse of underage girls and young women and has never been charged with wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said the House would vote next week on releasing files related to Epstein.

I know how dirty donald is

Jeffrey Epstein in a 2018 email thread

CNBC’s Dan Mangan, Jeff Cox, Emily Wilkins, Sean Conlon, Lillian Rizzo, Scott Zamost, Paige Tortorelli, Melissa Lee, MacKenzie Sigalos and Spencer Kimball contributed to this report. Josephine Rozzelle edited this edition.

Continue Reading

Technology

Uber will start taking skiers to the slopes at over 40 resorts across U.S. and Europe

Published

on

By

Uber will start taking skiers to the slopes at over 40 resorts across U.S. and Europe

Omar Marques | Lightrocket | Getty Images

With ski season approaching, Uber wants to take you to the slopes.

The ride-hailing company on Thursday announced Uber Ski, which will allow users to book a ride to and from nearly 40 mountains in the U.S., Canada, Switzerland, and France, according to a release. The services is available through March.

Uber is partnering with Vail Resorts to let riders book an Uber Reserve directly to the mountain resort company’s various destinations. Users can buy an Epic Pass, which grants access to over 90 ski and snowboarding resorts, directly on the app.

Riders can reserve an UberXL or UberXXL up to 90 days in advance, with the larger vehicles offering more trunk space to fit extra gear.

Uber Ski landing page.

Courtesy: Uber

The launch is a part of a series of updates Uber is offering ahead of the holiday season.

Pradeep Parameswaran, Uber’s global head of mobility, said that new features will help “people spend less time stressing about logistics and more time enjoying the moments that matter” during the festive months.

The company is also rolling out Uber Share at three airports as flight delays and cancellations continue to pile up across the country from the government shutdown. President Donald Trump late Wednesday signed into law a funding bill to end the longest shutdown of the federal in U.S. history.

At John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport, and Orlando International Airport, riders can use Uber Share to save up to 25% by pairing up with another traveler headed in the same direction.

Additionally, Uber released a new “Send a Ride” in-app feature that lets users cover the expense of someone else’s ride by sending a voucher link that will be automatically applied to the person’s next trip. The company already has a gifting option for its Uber Eats platform.

When using the “Send a Gift” feature, customers will be able to include a video that could be personalized or picked from a selection of celebrities, including Megan Thee Stallion, the Jonas Brothers, and Tracee Ellis Ross.

WATCH: Cramer on Uber’s quarter

I thought Uber's quarter looked good, but Wall Street disagreed, says Jim Cramer

Continue Reading

Trending