News
The Bot Brief
POSTED 11/05/2022
"There is no force on earth more powerful than an idea whose time has come."
- Victor Hugo
Bots In the News:
In an unusual aberration from beta statistics, the high beta robotic stocks fell by 50% less than the broad-based S & P 500. The Bot Index declined 1.55%, with three companies in double-digit declines, versus the S & P 500’s 3.35% slide. One of the interesting features of trading this week is the dramatic swings in the performances between this week and last week experienced by several stocks. For example, NIO Inc. was the worst performer in the prior week with a decline of 13.5%. That weakness was reversed with a 20.53% jump by the stock in this week’s trading.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, one of the prior week’s better gainers was Azenta Corp. with its 8.66% gain, only to be a weaker performer this week, falling 7.64%. Likewise, Tesla’s 6.5% increase for the October 28 week was replaced by a 9.21% drop. 3D System went from a gain of 4.44% to a double-digit decrease.
Joining 3D Systems in double declining territory were Google, off 10.23%, and Apple who slid 11.15%.
Of the gainers, clearly NIO Inc.’s 20.54% was the Index’s best gainer. Hiwin Technology rose 6.44% to be the Index’s second highest returner.
On Energy:
A couple of articles we have recently noted explore the opportunities to tap alternative sources of energy. The first was in the Science Magazine regarding the potential for harvesting solar power from satellites and ‘beaming’ the resulting energy back to earth. Airbus engineers successfully collected energy from sunlight, converted the solar energy into microwaves and transmitted the power to a receiver that reconverted the beams into usable energy. While this was just a test case, the engineers are so convinced that the process could work by larger satellites in space that could harvest the energy from the sun and beam it back to earth, that both the European Space Agency and NASA are launching test programs on the feasibility of the venture. A former NASA researcher was quoted as saying, “Once someone makes the commercial investment, it will bloom. It could be a trillion-dollar industry.”
In a Bloomberg Magazine feature, ‘Drilling 12 Miles Down to Tap Geothermal Energy’, Quaise Energy Corp. of Boston is hoping to develop drilling technique that will use a gyrotron core designed to dig deeper than conventional drilling. The gyrotron will provide super-heated energy from the earth’s core. If successful, the venture will access steam as hot as 500 degrees centigrade. The company hopes to have an initial harvest by 2026 that will generate 100 megawatts of power. The MIT spinoff has already raised $75 million. By 2028, the firm seeks to generate geothermal power for the replacement of an entire fossil fuel power plant. However, the ambitious project is estimated to cost $1 billion before reaping any return of capital.
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Member: American Economic Association, Society of Professional Journalists, United States Press Association. Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts, Robotic Industries Association, Member IEEE.
The Bot Brief is a weekly newsletter designed for economists, investment specialists, journalists, and academicians. It receives no remuneration from any companies that may from time to time be featured in the brief and its commentaries, analysis, opinions, and research represent the subjective view of Balcones Investment Research, LLC. Due to the complex and rapidly changing nature of the subject matter, the company makes no assurances as to the absolute accuracy of material presented.