AI Skeptics Trigger Market Jitters & California Will Vote to Tax Billionaires

SPEAKER_1 (0:01)

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Neal Freyman (0:34)

Good morning Brew Daily show. I'm Neal Freyman.

Toby Howell (0:37)

And I'm Toby Howell.

Neal Freyman (0:38)

Today, the Elizabeth Holmes movie has changed the game for documentaries.

Toby Howell (0:42)

Then California's richest are spending $1 million a day to kill a billionaire tax. It's Monday, October 19th. Let's ride.

Neal Freyman (0:56)

I'm gonna need you to strap on some elbow and knee pads before telling you about Diego Poncele. The 27 year old Spaniard has just set the world record for fastest skateboard achieved in a standing position, hurtling down a road in Canada at a top speed of 94.3 miles per hour. And I can barely do a kickflip. Poncele says, going that fast on a wooden board with four wheels, unsurprisingly, makes the field completely out of control. Telling the athletic, the wind becomes stronger than you. Think of going over 90 on a highway and putting your arm out of the window. It's this, but it's a full body experience. No thanks, but I'm happy for him.

Toby Howell (1:33)

Poncele made 15 attempts at the record this year before finally nailing it last month. He says he pours over Google Maps looking for the right road to make his attempts, but ultimately settled on the exact same stretch of road that the previous record was set nine years ago. It's in Charlevoix, region of Quebec. The reason he was looking elsewhere though is because that road has deteriorated over the past nine years. I have hit a crack on a skateboard going two miles an hour. I can't imagine what would happen if you hit one going 90, but he said that he mapped the route out in his head and he watched film on himself to visualize every single inch. In his mind, he says it's like high consequence meditation. Feel like the emphasis is on consequence there and less emphasis on meditation. But what a record.

And now a word from our new sponsor, Liberty Mutual. Neil, help me with this crossword. Seven letters, the state of being free within society from control restriction or oppressive legal limits imposed by authority.

Neal Freyman (2:31)

Liberty.

Toby Howell (2:32)

Okay. New York women's basketball team. Last letter is Y.

Neal Freyman (2:35)

Liberty.

Toby Howell (2:36)

Yes. Wow. You are so good at this. Now this is a toughie, a way to customize your home and car insurance.

Neal Freyman (2:42)

Liberty.

Toby Howell (2:42)

See, I knew those glasses weren't just for show. You really are smart. So that's liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. Hey, that reminds me.

Neal Freyman (2:50)

That's right. Liberty Mutual customizes your car and home insurance to save you money. Who say my glasses were just for show?

Toby Howell (2:56)

Not important. Start your quote at Liberty mutual.com. That's Liberty mutual.com.

Neal Freyman (3:03)

Whether you like it or not, the AI data center build out has been the engine of the US economy and the stock market this year. But last week brought signals that, like every top-ranked college football team on Saturday, it's at risk of being upset. The S&P 500 had its worst weekly loss since June, and the NASDAQ posted its worst week since April 2025, as Wall Street soured on companies that supply and operate data centers, the same companies lifting markets to record highs this year. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, home to big chip makers like Micron, AMD and NVIDIA, has now fallen for eight straight trading sessions, its longest losing streak since 2006

Much of the anxiety has been directed at one company, CoreWeave, the central player that rents out computing power to AI giants. CoreWeave's stock and bonds have collapsed in the past few days, with Wall Street growing increasingly concerned it won't be able to pay back its large amount of debt. And that's pretty much crystallizes the main problem here. American corporations are expected to spend $9 trillion to create the data center infrastructure needed to power your chat addiction, and since no one has that kind of money in the bank, they're loading up on debt to fund the build out. However, as you've heard us talk about many times on the show, borrowing costs have jumped rapidly this summer because inflation has heated back up, and now the entire proposition is being called into question hammering AI names. Toby, stocks are dropping faster than the leaves.