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Tech might not be the first thing that comes to mind when one pictures Phoenix. The city is better known for its golf courses, Major League Baseball’s Spring Training, retirement appeal and scorching heat. 

But its growth into an innovation hub has been quietly playing out over several decades. Arizona’s largest city has, for a variety of reasons, become the epicenter for semiconductor manufacturing, and testing self-driving cars and drones.

“If we look at cities that really do end up becoming these, you know, important technology hubs, there are really four things that we usually see, and Phoenix really has all of them going,” said Anne Hoecker, global head of technology at Bain Global. “The first is a favorable business environment. The second really is that ecosystem of other companies. The next is really close proximity to a university that has a strong engineering program. And then finally it is that availability of talent.”

Technology companies have flocked to the city to capitalize on those perks. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, is among the biggest.

TSMC makes the most advanced chips in the world, and has pledged to invest $65 billion in the greater Phoenix area. The chipmaker initially held discussions with the city of Phoenix in 2016, when it was looking to grow its advanced chip manufacturing beyond Taiwan. In order to secure the bid, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council spent three years conceptualizing a science and technology park to meet the needs of the company. The project, once complete, expects to bring in about 62,000 jobs surrounding and including TSMC.

“They’re basically duplicating the science park concept that was pioneered in Taiwan,” said Rick Cassidy, chairman of TSMC Arizona. “It solves lots of problems for our smaller suppliers. They can actually rent space and just plug in.”

Self-driving cars are another hallmark of the city’s tech scene. Uber, Cruise and Alphabet‘s Waymo have all tested autonomous vehicles in the city. The infrastructure in Phoenix, with its gridded streets and consistent weather, made it an “optimal” place to roll these out, according to Bain’s Hoecker.

Arizona’s policy has been welcoming to self-driving technology. Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey enacted several executive orders to reduce barriers for autonomous testing. Waymo began testing in Phoenix in 2017 and is the biggest player in the market. The company’s robotaxi service now operates across 315 square miles in the city.

Drones have been another technology putting the city on the map. In November, Amazon received regulatory approval to launch its Prime Air drone program in Tolleson, a suburb in west Phoenix. The plan is to scale the program to 500 million deliveries per year, according to Amazon. The company says thousands of packages have been delivered so far. 

“It’s about scaling around the U.S. and around the world, said David Carbon, vice president and general manager of Amazon Prime Air, adding that more is coming in 2025. “This is just the beginning.”

Watch the video as CNBC’s Kate Rooney gets a behind-the-scenes look at Amazon’s cutting-edge drone operation and explores how Phoenix became a hot spot for tech.

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The Street’s bad call on Palo Alto – plus, two portfolio stocks reach new highs

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The Street's bad call on Palo Alto – plus, two portfolio stocks reach new highs

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Govini founder Eric Gillespie released on $1 million bond with Pentagon probe ‘ongoing’

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Govini founder Eric Gillespie released on  million bond with Pentagon probe 'ongoing'

Mug shot of Eric Gillespie, Govini Founder and Chairman.

Courtesy: Pennsylvania Attorney General

Govini founder Eric Gillespie, who is charged with four felonies, including multiple counts of unlawful contact with a minor, was released on bail.

Gillespie, who lives in Pittsburgh, posted a $1 million bond after his court appearance Thursday. He is not allowed to travel, and his passport has been revoked.

He was initially denied bail following his arrest on Nov. 7, with the judge citing flight risk and public safety concerns.

David Shrager of Shrager Defense Attorneys, who represents Gillespie, insisted that his client did not break any laws.

“Mr. Gillespie has never contacted a minor, either online or in person, and the facts clearly prove that,” Shrager said after the hearing on Thursday.

“Completely false statements, including the use of artificial intelligence between adults made in the context of an online fantasy chat, are not illegal,” he added.

Gillespie’s next court date is Dec. 18.

The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office said Gillespie sent lewd photos to an agent posing as a father offering his daughter to be abused, and made graphic comments about sexual acts with children.

Gillespie, 57, commented on the security of the encrypted platforms being used in the chats between him and the undercover agent, according to a criminal complaint obtained by CNBC.

Gillespie is the founder of defense contractor Govini.

He was listed on the company’s website on the leadership page as a board member as recently as Aug. 17, according to an archived version of the page available on the Wayback Machine.

The company terminated Gillespie on Nov. 12.

Earlier this year, Govini landed a nearly $1 billion contract with the Department of Defense. The company’s suite of artificial intelligence-enabled applications is used by every department of the U.S. military and other federal agencies.

Following his arrest, Pentagon officials said they were looking into Gillespie and possible security issues.

CNBC has repeatedly asked the Department of Defense about updates on the status of the probe and potential security concerns with Govini or Gillespie.

“We don’t comment on ongoing investigations,” a Pentagon spokesperson said Thursday.

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Tech stocks set for big losing week as AI names get rocked after Nvidia earnings

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Tech stocks set for big losing week as AI names get rocked after Nvidia earnings

Jensen Huang, NVIDIA founder and CEO, has a Q&A session at a press conference during the APEC CEO summit on October 31, 2025 in Gyeongju, South Korea.

Woohae Cho | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Even Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang couldn’t save the tech and artificial intelligence trade this week.

The chip giant’s talismanic leader trumpeted “off the charts” chip sales and dismissed talk of an “AI bubble,” and for a while, the tide lifted all boats.

“There’s been a lot of talk about an AI bubble,” Huang said during an earnings call this week. “From our vantage point, we see something very different.”

The buzz from the blowout report quickly reversed, sending the AI winners deeply into the red — and few beneficiaries were left unscathed.

Every member of the Magnificent 7, except for Alphabet, was tracking for a losing week, with Nvidia, Amazon and Microsoft staring down the biggest losses.

Amazon and Microsoft have led the group’s drop lower, falling about 6% this week. Meanwhile, Alphabet has gained nearly 8%. The search giant is also the only megacap of the group on pace for November gains thanks to a boost from the launch of Gemini 3.

Oracle, which is another major Nvidia customer, slumped about 10%. The chipmaker also supplies major model developers such as OpenAI and Anthropic.

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Chip stocks have also declined amid the broader tech market turmoil. Advanced Micro Devices and Micron were on pace for 17% losses. Marvell Technology has slumped about 10%. Quantum computing stocks Rigetti, IonQ and D-Wave have dropped at least 10%

CoreWeave, which buys and rents out Nvidia’s chips in data centers, initially soared on the chipmaker’s earnings report, but swiftly reversed course. The company’s stock is looking at an 8% blow this week.

AI fever was cooling in the runup to Nvidia’s earnings report on Wednesday, and investors looked to the print to alleviate fears that the AI bubble was on shaky ground. Since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, the stock has helped power the market to new all-time highs.

But concerns have mounted in recent weeks as tech stocks hit stretched valuations.

Major investors, including Bridgewater’s Ray Dalio told CNBC Thursday that the market is definitely in a bubble.

Much of the worries have stemmed from a boom in capital expenditures spending to support AI, with few signs of a payoff in view for many of the players.

Investor Michael Burry recently accused some of the biggest cloud and infrastructure providers of understating depreciation expenses and estimating a longer life cycle for their chips, calling it “one of the more common frauds of the modern era.”

Earlier this month, Burry revealed bets against Nvidia and Palantir.

Shares of the software analytics company, which supplies AI tools to the government and businesses, are down 11% this week. The stock has shed nearly a quarter of its value this month.

WATCH: Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio: We are definitely in a bubble, but that doesn’t mean you should sell

Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio: We are definitely in a bubble, but that doesn't mean you should sell

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