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Good Morning,

OpenAI’s newest AI lets users create their own GPTs, WeWork filed for bankruptcy, Bumble shares fell on news that its CEO is stepping down, Google’s app store power is being challenged in court, millions of retired Americans are not re-entering the workforce, Citi is considering deep job cuts, and Nike sued New Balance and Skechers.

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Let’s dive in.

Before The Bell

Markets

• US stocks rose slightly as investors await guidance from a host of Fed policymakers later this week 

  • The Nasdaq led indices with a 0.3% gain

• Oil edged higher with WTI futures settling near $81 after Saudi Arabia and Russia reaffirmed that they will continue their oil supply curbs through end of year (BBG)

Earnings

• What we're watching this week:  

  • Today: Uber, Bumble, Rivian, Datadog, Realty Income

  • Wednesday: Disney, Arm Holdings, Roblox, AMC, Warner Bros Discovery, Affirm

  • Thursday: Li Auto, Unity

• Full calendar here

Headline Roundup

• Microsoft-backed OpenAI announces GPT-4 Turbo, its most powerful AI yet (CNBC)

• Google’s app store power goes on trial (WSJ)

• Millions of retired Americans aren’t coming back to work as predicted (BBG)

• Bumble shares drop as founder Whitney Wolfe Herd to step down as CEO (RT)

• Citigroup considers deep job cuts for CEO Jane Fraser’s overhaul (CNBC)

• Intel in lead to get billions for secure defense-chip facilities (WSJ)

• Nike sues New Balance, Skechers for patent infringement over sneaker tech (RT)

• Hollywood actors’ union notes disagreements with studios’ offer, including AI (RT)

• S&P warns about subprime auto bonds from Flagship, CarFinance (BBG)

• Grindr working with JPMorgan to refinance Fortress-led term loan (BBG)

• Turning empty offices into apartments is getting even harder (WSJ)

• Argentina’s next president will face an economy in crisis (WSJ)

• Flights to Europe are becoming cheap again (WSJ)

• US wheat exports plunge to 20-year low as Mississippi river dries up (BBG)

• India’s toxic smog season shuts down schools, revives ‘odd-even’ vehicle limits (CNBC)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

• Abu Dhabi National Oil and Austria’s OMV are putting the final touches on a deal to create a $32B+ petrochemical firm; officials may reach a breakthrough as soon as mid-November (BBG) 

• FTC requested more information from Coach owner Tapestry and Michael Kors owner Capri Holdings on their planned $8.5B deal (RT)

• Abcam shareholders approved Danaher’s proposal to acquire all outstanding shares of the company in a $5.7B deal, including debt, despite Abcam founder Jonathan Milner calling offer price too low (RT)

• Bain Capital will acquire government and business consulting firm Guidehouse in a $5.3B deal (RT)

• US health insurer Cigna Group is exploring the sale of its Medicare Advantage business, which manages government health insurance for people aged 65 and older; Cigna entered the Medicare Advantage business in 2011 with a $3.8B acquisition of HealthSpring (RT)

• Energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan will buy NextEra Energy Partners’ South Texas natural gas pipeline assets for $1.8B cash (BBG)

• China-focused PE firm Ascendent Capital Partners made a $1.6B takeover offer to automation company Hollysys Automation Technologies (BBG)

• Driller Crescent Point Energy agreed to buy Hammerhead Energy in a ~$1.5B cash-and-stock deal to expand its presence in the Western Canadian shale and gas fields (BBG)

• Vacation property operator Hilton Grand Vacations will acquire peer Bluegreen Vacations in a $1.5B deal, including debt (RT)

• Carlyle Group is planning to sell Japanese cosmetics supplier Tokiwa Corp in a deal that could fetch $1B (RT)

• Riddell is exploring a sale in a deal that could value the US maker of football helmets and gear at ~$800M (RT)

• Cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks agreed to buy Talon Cyber Security in a $625M deal (BBG)
  PE firm EQT will acquire UK battery storage firm Statera Energy from InfraRed Capital Partners in a $617M deal (BBG)

• Canadian pension plan OMERS will acquire a 5% indirect stake in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and NBA’s Toronto Raptors, for $400M (RT)

• Troubled Indian edtech Byju’s is in advanced talks to sell its US-based kids’ digital reading platform Epic for ~$400M to technology buyout firm Joffre Capital (BBG)

• Bristol Myers Squibb acquired Orum Therapeutics’ experimental blood cancer therapy for up to $180M (RT)

• PE firm CapVest Partners agreed to acquire Recochem, a specialty chemicals manufacturer focused on the automobile industry, from rival buyout firm H.I.G. Capital (BBG)

• Swiss PE firm Partners Group Holding is in advanced talks to acquire Rosen Group, a European engineering firm specializing in testing oil and gas assets (BBG)

VC

• German AI startup Aleph Alpha raised a $500M Series B led by Schwarz Group and Bosch Ventures (TC)

• Nowsta, a startup building operating systems for gig workforces, raised a $35M Series C led by VMG Partners (FN)

• Data observability platform Kloudfuse raised a $23M Series A led by Newlands (TC)

• Renewable energy infrastructure company Talus Renewables raised a $22M Series A led by Material Impact and Xora Innovation (VC)

• Finkargo, a Mexico City-based startup providing an international trade platform, raised a $20M Series A led by QED Investors (FN)

• Princeton NuEnergy, a startup focused on recycling and commercializing lithium-ion battery materials, raised a $16M Series A led by Wistron Corporation (FN)

• Aclarity, a startup helping eliminate PFAS from the environment, raised a $15.9M Series A led by Aqualateral (VC)

• Luxury clothing distributor Zelig raised a $15M Series A at a $100M valuation led by Hilco Global (TC)

• Radius Agent, a provider of a technology-centric agent-centric real estate brokerage platform, raised a $13M Series B led by AXA Venture Partners (FN)

• Llama, an access control and governance platform for smart contracts, raised a $6M seed round led by Founders Fund and Electric Capital (PRN)

• Dreamfarm, a startup out of Italy’s Food Valley, raised a $5M pre-seed round from Giampaolo Cagnin and Francesco Mutti (TC)

• NYC-based independent insurance platform CoverForce raised a $5M seed round from Nyca Partners, QED Investors, and more (FN)

• Airloom Energy, a Wyoming-based energy company focused on wind energy generation, raised a $4M seed round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (FN)

• AgTech startup Tupu raised a $3.2M seed round led by FoodLabs and Zubi Capital (FN)

• Daytona, a startup aiming to be an enterprise-grade GitHub Codespaces, raised a $2M pre-seed round from 500 Global, Tiny VC, Silicon Gardens, and more (TC)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

• Shares of Indian kitchenware products maker Cello World rose as much as 29% on their trading debut, valuing the company at $2.1B (RT)

• Payments company Ebury, which is majority-owned by Santander, is seeking to IPO as soon as 2025 (RT)

Debt

• RTX raised $6B through a five-part bond sale to help repay a short-term loan that will cover the cost of its $10B share-buyback (BBG)

• Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche Holding raised $5.5B through a five-part bond sale in the US corporate debt market to help fund its acquisition of Telavant Holdings (BBG)

Bankruptcy

• Former high-flying coworking space startup WeWork filed for bankruptcy, with the firm listing assets and liabilities in the $10B to $50B range in its Chapter 11 petition filed in New Jersey (BBG)

Fundraising

• PSG Equity raised over $2.8B for its PSGE II fund that will make investments in European software and technology-enabled companies (BBG)

• Blue Owl Capital’s Dyal Capital Partners plans to raise at least $2B for a new fund dedicated to buying minority stakes in mid-sized alternative asset managers (BBG)

• Galapagos Capital, a $4B Brazil investment firm, is planning to raise a fund to invest $2B in US real estate in the next three to four years (BBG)

Crypto Corner

• Investment firm Proof Group, which is one of crypto lender Celsius’ new owners, is one of multiple bidders looking to relaunch bankrupt crypto exchange FTX (BBG)

• Bank of England told lenders to avoid any risk that may confuse customers between stablecoins and standard deposits (RT)

Exec’s Picks

• Byrne Hobart explained how LLMs are expanding the dimensions through which we can understand different texts.

• Evan Osnos wrote a great piece on China’s age of malaise and how the country has plateaued and declined under Xi.

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