OpenAI’s Altman Unveils Astra as a New Step Toward AGI | The Close 9/3/2026

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  September 03, 2026 at 22:01  |  1:35:43  |  Bloomberg Markets
Speakers
Trevor Slaven — Head of Multi-Asset Solutions, Barings
Gary Smith — CEO, Ciena
Chris King — Chairman, Skyworks Solutions
Daniel Sandberg — Global Head of Quantitative Research and Solutions, S&P Global
Alli McCartney — Managing Director of Wealth Management, UBS Alignment Partners
Stacey Widlitz — President, SW Retail Advisors
Ed Ludlow — Co-Host, Bloomberg Technology
Poonam Goyal — Senior Retail Analyst, Bloomberg Intelligence
Christine — Anchor, Bloomberg Television

Summary

Bloomberg's The Close covers a broad risk-on day, with AI infrastructure and semiconductor demand as central themes. Ciena's CEO argues optical networking is the critical bottleneck and winning AI infrastructure, while Skyworks' chair sees the semiconductor boom as early innings. UBS's Alli McCartney stays bullish on equities and gold while buying short-duration bonds, and retail analyst Stacey Widlitz details why Lululemon's product problems remain a short. Sam Altman discusses OpenAI's Astra model, safety guardrails, pricing, and long-term mission.

  • S&P 500 closes up more than 1% as the bond selloff pauses and yields fall across the curve.
  • Barings' Trevor Slaven warns valuations are tight and hyperscaler debt issuance could create a September/October speed bump.
  • Ciena CEO Gary Smith says optical networking is a critical, underinvested AI infrastructure layer with strong multiyear demand.
  • Skyworks Chair Chris King sees the AI/memory semiconductor boom as early innings and U.S. leadership as durable.
  • S&P Global's Daniel Sandberg frames the AI capex cycle in build/stretch/overshoot/digest phases and sees little earnings/capex disconnect yet.
  • OpenAI's Sam Altman unveils Astra as a step toward AGI, with cyber guardrails and lower pricing for abundant intelligence.
  • UBS wealth's Alli McCartney remains bullish on S&P 500 and global equities, buys gold, and favors short-duration bonds.
  • Lululemon drops after weak results and a second straight guidance cut; Stacey Widlitz argues product problems and competition keep a sell on the stock.
Ideas
Trevor Slaven Head of Multi-Asset Solutions, Barings 6:41
AI-centric corporate bonds face supply pressure.
Massive hyperscaler and AI-tangent investment-grade issuance has hit the market. About $400 billion of hyperscaler debt since early last year is mostly underwater as credit spreads widen and Treasury yields rise, making lenders demand more clarity or margin of safety, a likely speed bump for AI-centric credit into September and October.
AI-centric corporate bonds MED
Trevor Slaven Head of Multi-Asset Solutions, Barings 7:39
Cautious equities until margin safety improves.
He sees tight valuations, elevated P/E multiples, tight credit spreads and bullish sentiment against risks from massive Treasury and corporate supply, AI capex concentration, and a softening labor market. He wants a bigger margin of safety in credit spreads and equities before deploying capital, so he is cautious into September and October.
SPY MED
Gary Smith CEO, Ciena 9:52
Ciena is long-term AI infrastructure winner.
Ciena is part of the winning AI-infrastructure group because optical networking is a critical enabler of AI and the network is now the critical path. Demand is not the problem; supply is. Ciena has secured supply for the next couple of years, has visibility and large backlog, and expects baseline revenue growth next year of about 30%, potentially higher if it can secure more supply.
CIEN HIGH
Gary Smith CEO, Ciena 10:28
Optical networking capacity build is multiyear.
Optical networking is the critical path for AI as data moves out of data centers. Networks are underinvested globally, and compounding waves of cloud connectivity, training, inference, agentic AI and robotics will drive a multiyear massive buildup of optical capacity with few waning moments.
FIVG HIGH
Chris King Chairman, Skyworks Solutions 14:43
Semiconductor AI boom is early innings.
She has seen many semiconductor cycles and believes the AI and memory chip boom is early innings, not near a peak. Demand drivers now include processors, GPUs, memory, and ancillary areas like power management and connectivity, with durable U.S. leadership and no sign yet of excess capacity that would mark a top.
SMH HIGH
Daniel Sandberg Global Head of Quantitative Research and Solutions, S&P Global 23:23
AI capex boom still supported by earnings.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 are in an unprecedented AI capex boom, with annualized capex around $1.7 trillion and 42% year-over-year growth. Visible Alpha consensus sees almost $1 trillion more from here, and the big hyperscaler spenders still have earnings to back up the spending with little disconnect so far.
GOOG MSFT META ORCL MED
Alli McCartney Managing Director of Wealth Management, UBS Alignment Partners 47:58
International earnings aided by weak dollar.
U.S.-style earnings strength is also showing up in Europe, emerging markets and China. A weaker dollar helps U.S. investors in local-currency assets when repatriating, and deglobalization, reshoring and a capex wave are supporting those markets.
VGK EEM FXI MED
Alli McCartney Managing Director of Wealth Management, UBS Alignment Partners 48:53
Gold benefits from de-dollarization trend.
Gold is partly defensive portfolio ballast but also a direct play on a waning dollar, de-dollarization, and reduced foreign appetite for U.S. debt and dollar-denominated assets, driving a bid for gold.
GLD HIGH
Alli McCartney Managing Director of Wealth Management, UBS Alignment Partners 49:24
Lock in high short-duration yields.
She believes the Fed's next move is lower, not higher, though not until 2027. Buying short-duration bonds now lets clients lock in high yields and provides ballast despite interest-rate volatility.
SHY HIGH
Stacey Widlitz President, SW Retail Advisors 64:15
Lululemon product problems still unresolved.
She put a sell on Lululemon two years ago at $500 and remains bearish: two years of product mistakes, heavy discounting, margin pressure, rising competition, an unfocused brand, and now a global comparable-sales problem. A turnaround under the new CEO will take six to twelve months.
LULU HIGH
Ed Ludlow Co-Host, Bloomberg Technology 73:57
Adobe faces AI disruption risk.
Adobe chose an internal CEO, but the stock is down after hours because its broader AI story is difficult. The company is under pressure from the concern that generative AI will eat into software companies like Adobe.
ADBE MED
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This Bloomberg Markets video, published September 03, 2026, features Trevor Slaven, Gary Smith, Chris King, Daniel Sandberg, Alli McCartney, Stacey Widlitz, Ed Ludlow discussing AI-centric corporate bonds, SPY, CIEN, FIVG, SMH, GOOG, MSFT, META, ORCL, VGK, EEM, FXI, GLD, SHY, LULU, ADBE. 11 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Trevor Slaven, Gary Smith, Chris King, Daniel Sandberg, Alli McCartney, Stacey Widlitz, Ed Ludlow  · Tickers: AI-centric corporate bonds, SPY, CIEN, FIVG, SMH, GOOG, MSFT, META, ORCL, VGK, EEM, FXI, GLD, SHY, LULU, ADBE