Measuring Up Could Mean Paying Off Big

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Noah Zelvis
October 03, 2025

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Wearables

Forget the Headset, Apple Wants Glasses That Think

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is reportedly shelving its Vision Pro overhaul to push full throttle into AI-powered smart glasses.

Teams that were working on a cheaper, lighter headset are now being reassigned to the company’s next big wearable experiment.

Apple has at least two projects in the pipeline. The first, code-named N50, will connect to an iPhone and skip the built-in display.

Apple could unveil it as soon as next year, but the release target is 2027.

Racing Toward Display Glasses

A second version in development includes its own display, setting up a direct clash with Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses.

Apple had once pegged this model for 2028, but the timeline is being pulled forward as the company tries to close the gap.

Meta already has a head start, having launched its first pair back in 2021. Apple’s move signals it does not want to watch another product category slip away while rivals rack up early market share.

Why It Matters in Wearables

Smart glasses are shaping up to be the next battleground in consumer tech, blending AI with everyday hardware.

By pivoting resources now, Apple is betting its future isn’t on bulky headsets but on devices you would actually want to wear in public.

Defense

Big Tech Meets Boots: General Dynamics Scores $1.25B

General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) just scored a $1.25 billion contract to wire up the U.S. Army’s Europe and Africa operations with fresh IT support.

The deal comes barely a week after the defense giant snagged another $1.5 billion agreement tied to U.S. Strategic Command.

The new contract kicks off with a five-month transition window and stretches across seven optional years.

Through the deal, General Dynamics Information Technology will handle enterprise IT, communications, and mission command systems not just for the Army but also NATO allies and regional partners.

Tech Backbone for the Battlefield

The task order, called EMITS 2, sounds bureaucratic, but the mission is anything but.

It’s about giving soldiers in the field a secure, modern tech backbone so they can coordinate across continents without lag or downtime.

That means everything from high-stakes communications to mission command tools will run on the infrastructure GDIT sets up. In other words, warfighting meets enterprise-grade IT.

Defense Dollars Go Digital

The $1.25 billion haul signals how much the Pentagon is leaning on contractors to keep its networks sharp. Last week’s STRATCOM deal even added artificial intelligence into the mix.

For General Dynamics, these back-to-back wins show that the real battlefield isn’t just land, air, and sea anymore, as now it adds servers, clouds, and code.

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Ecommerce

Amazon Goes Full Budget Mode With $5 Grocery Line

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is officially in the bargain grocery game with a new private-label brand called Amazon Grocery.

Nearly everything lands under $5, from pantry staples like olive oil to fresh seafood and produce, plus new additions like cinnamon rolls, pizza dough, and bottled water.

The launch merges Amazon Fresh and Happy Belly into one budget-friendly line.

Think over 1,000 essentials designed to go head-to-head with Walmart’s Great Value and Target’s Favorite Day.

Cheap but Not Basic

Amazon says the brand is all about stretching wallets without skimping on taste.

That means frozen pasta meals, deli meats, pie fillings, and even loaf cakes are on deck in the coming months.

It’s a mix that screams “weekly staples” with just enough treats to keep your cart fun.

With prices hovering below $5, Amazon is clearly eyeing shoppers who are watching every dollar.

And given the company’s reach, it’s not just about value — it’s about making “cheap” feel mainstream.

The Grocery Wars Heat Up

Private labels are booming, and Amazon claims its own-brand sales grew 15% last year across Amazon.com, Whole Foods, and Fresh.

By rolling all its grocery bets into one line, Amazon is sharpening its edge against retail rivals.

The new message to shoppers is simple: skip the price shock, fill the cart, and maybe grab those cinnamon rolls while you’re at it.

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Recent Tech Movers

Seagate Technology (NASDAQ: STX)
HAMR Time, and the Beat Goes On
Seagate’s riding the AI storage wave like it stole a surfboard.

Multiple price-target hikes (Morgan Stanley up to $265, Rosenblatt to $250) say the stronger-for-longer cycle in high-capacity HDDs isn’t a fad.

The kicker is HAMR drives, with higher densities, better pricing, fatter margins. 

Shares have ripped triple digits YTD and are camped near highs, which means expectations are spicy.

But as cloud and AI workloads hoard data like it’s pumpkin spice season, Seagate keeps looking like the right can of beans in the bunker.

American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC)
Grid Upgrades with a Side of Momentum
AMSC has been jogging uphill all year and somehow not winded, up ~130% YTD as investors warm to the electrify everything theme.

The story is part grid resiliency, part clean-energy backbone, and part “hey, operations are actually improving.”

Financials aren’t perfect (valuation is lofty and profits still choppy), but revenue growth, a strong balance sheet, and talk of new partnerships are keeping the trend pointed north.

This means higher highs until the next catalyst, or until the market decides to check its Fitbit.

Zscaler (NASDAQ: ZS)
Zero Trust, Plenty of Believers
RBC nudged its target to $350 and basically said the opportunity is bigger than most folks model.

That tracks with the demand backdrop, more Zero Trust Everywhere, more modules per customer, and gross margins flexing in the high-70s. 

Yes, the last print had an EPS wobble, but top line beat and platform adoption keep the thesis intact.

When budgets get tight, security still gets fed first, and ZS remains one of the fancier knives in that drawer.

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Metrology Mojo in a Market Finally Looking Down-Cap

Onto Innovation (NYSE: ONTO)

ONTO isn’t building the chips, it’s the microscope, ruler, and detective kit making sure chips actually meet spec.

That’s metrology and inspection, which is unsexy to civilians, mission-critical to fabs.

After a bruising year, the stock just vaulted ~29% in a month, but it’s still down meaningfully YTD, which sets up a classic “good company, better entry?” debate. 

The bull case is earnings growth outpacing the market, secular tailwinds from advanced nodes, and a toolbox that gets more valuable as geometries shrink and yield matters more than your morning coffee.

Under the hood, ONTO’s mix leans into front-end control (think CD/overlay, macro defect, and process control software) plus advanced packaging, two places where AI-era complexity is exploding.

Analysts see ~20% EPS growth over the next few years, which helps explain the above-market P/E. 

If fabs keep spending on capacity, ONTO sells more gauges, cameras, and brains to keep lines humming.

If we hit a capex sneeze, the stock can catch a cold, but the long arc of nodes getting smaller and packaging getting smarter tends to be a friend.

What we like: clean balance sheet, sticky customer relationships, and leverage to multiple foundry roadmaps rather than one marquee design win. 

What we’re watching: valuation drift after the rebound and whether orders broaden beyond a handful of big programs.

Net-net, ONTO is the lab coat at the chip party, nobody calls it glamorous, but everyone needs a test before they ship.

Everything Else

  • 💸 OpenAI just touched a $500 billion valuation after a fresh share sale, cementing its place in Big Tech’s weight class.

  • 📈 Intel stock jumped after reports that President Trump himself has been scooping up shares.

  • 🌐 Perplexity’s new Comet browser launched free to all users, betting that AI-first search can win over Chrome converts.

  • 💬 Meta wants to plug its AI business chat tools into third-party websites, expanding its reach beyond Messenger and WhatsApp.

  • 🎮 EA’s $55 billion buyout deal is turning the spotlight on just how valuable gaming IP has become.

That's our coverage for today; thanks for reading! Reply to this email with feedback or any tech stocks you want me to check out.

Best Regards,
—Noah Zelvis
Tech Stock Insider