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The research firm Citrini says hot inflation and jobs readings mask a more somber reality — and that’s good news for the stock market.

“I was married to my former husband for 23 years. After repeated instances of infidelity, we divorced.”

Cathie Wood, head of Ark Investment Management, has a history of buying stocks shortly after their IPOs. In recent years, Wood’s Ark funds have invested in newly public companies such as Tempus AI (TEM), Coinbase (COIN), and CoreWeave (CRWV), reflecting her strategy of gaining early exposure to high-growth businesses in artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency, and cloud computing.Now, Wood is making another IPO bet, buying more than $529 million worth of SpaceX stock.In 2025, the flagship Ark Innovation ETF gained 35.49%, far outpacing the S&P 500’s return of 17.88% in the same period. But so far this year, Wood’s flagship Ark Innovation ETF (ARKK) is down 2.85%, while the S&P 500 surged 8.56%, Yahoo Finance data shows.Wood gained a reputation after the Ark Innovation ETF delivered a 153% return in 2020. However, her style also brings painful losses in bearish markets, as seen in 2022, when the Ark Innovation ETF tumbled more than 60%.Those swings have weighed on Wood’s long-term gains. As of June 12, the Ark Innovation ETF has delivered a five-year annualized return of -8.06%, while the S&P 500 has an annualized return of 11.84% over the same period, according to data from Morningstar.Cathie Wood expects a “great acceleration” brought by technology developmentsWood focuses on high-tech companies across artificial intelligence, blockchain, biomedical technology, and robotics. She thinks these businesses have strong growth potential, though their volatility often causes fluctuations in the Ark’s funds.According to Morningstar analyst Bella Albrecht, two of Wood’s Ark funds were among the worst-performing ETFs in the first quarter of 2026. The Ark Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) ranked second on the list, while the ARK Innovation ETF placed fifth.

Over the past 12 months through June 11, the ARK Innovation ETF saw roughly $294.27 million in net outflows.Getty Images

From 2014 to 2024, the Ark Innovation ETF wiped out $7 billion in investor wealth, according to a March 2025 analysis by Morningstar’s analyst Amy Arnott. That made it the third-biggest wealth destroyer among mutual funds and ETFs in Arnott’s ranking. The analyst hasn’t updated her ranking.More SpaceX:Veteran hedge fund manager makes a brazen SpaceX betFranklin Templeton CEO sends strong message on SpaceX‘The Big Short’ investor describes SpaceX in three wordsWood said on the June 5 episode of “In the Know” that she is closely watching June 17, when Kevin Warsh, the new Federal Reserve chair, announces the next interest rate decision.“I do believe Kevin Warsh knows that interest rates have to come down, mortgage rates at least. And if inflation comes down as productivity is increasing, no matter how strong the economy is, I think he will cut rates,” Wood said.Related: Cathie Wood sells $16.2 million of tumbling megacap stockWood argued that productivity improvements brought by technology are helping drive the economy while reducing inflation. She added that oil prices already appear to be peaking and could fall further if the Iran war is resolved.In a March Bloomberg podcast, Wood says the global economy is not heading into a downturn, but into what she calls a “great acceleration” driven by AI and other breakthrough technologies.“We’re not going into the Great Depression, we’re going into the great acceleration,” Wood said. “These technologies are deflationary… AI training costs are dropping 75% per year, and inference costs are falling as much as 85% to even 98% annually.”But not all investors agree with Wood’s optimism. Over the past 12 months through June 11, the ARK Innovation ETF saw roughly $294.27 million in net outflows, according to data from ETF research firm VettaFi. Cathie Wood buys $529.7million of SpaceX stockOn June 12, Wood’s Ark funds bought a total of 3,291,184 shares of Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SPCX), more commonly known as SpaceX. Based on the latest closing price of $160.95, these stocks were worth about $529.7 million. June 12 was SpaceX’s first day of trading, and its shares surged 19%. The rally pushed Elon Musk’s net worth above $1 trillion, making him the world’s first trillionaire. Musk also serves as CEO of EV maker Tesla (TSLA).Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 as a reusable rocket company, but today its only profitable business is the Starlink satellite internet division. According to the company’s prospectus, SpaceX has an accumulated deficit of $41.3 billion as of March 31.Related: Goldman Sachs quietly resets oil price forecast for 2027Wood was already a SpaceX investor before the company’s IPO. Ark Invest first bought SpaceX shares in late 2023, and it later became the largest holding in the firm’s roughly $1 billion internal venture fund, according to Business Insider.Wood has long been one of Musk’s biggest supporters. During a 2023 CNBC show covered by TheStreet’s Moz Farooque, she said periods of turmoil often bring out Musk’s best work.“These difficult times, though, spur Elon’s creativity. He is a troubleshooter and a brilliant technologist,” Wood said.Still, many other investors and analysts are skeptical about SpaceX’s momentum, citing valuation concerns and a high retail investor allocation in the IPO.”The more immediate concern is the heavy retail allocation,” veteran technical trader James DePorre wrote in a recent post on TheStreet Pro. “The retail allocation is 30% of the offering, which is much higher than the typical 5 to 10%.”DePorre noted that retail investors who received an allocation at $135 have an incentive to sell their shares if the price moves meaningfully higher. “That will create some supply pressure,” he wrote.Other than buying SpaceX stock, Wood’s recent trades also included selling shares of Tesla (TSLA), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Rocket Lab (RKLB), Roku (ROKU), and Chinese tech firm Baidu (BIDU). Related: Goldman Sachs doubles down on stock market outlook for 2026

The controversial MMA event on the White House lawn had several high-profile attendees, including the President, athletes, billionaires, celebrities and political leaders.

Your look at what’s coming in the week starting June 15.

A few years ago, you could spot most financial scams by their broken grammar, misspelled logos, or generic language that felt nothing like legitimate correspondence.Charles Schwab’s financial crimes team says those distinctive signs have largely vanished, replaced by attacks driven by artificial intelligence and built around actual personal data.The brokerage published an article on June 5, 2026, in its Onward education series describing how AI has flipped fraud from a volume game into a precision operation. Its findings suggest that criminals no longer rely on casting a wide net, because the technology now helps them research and customize each attack individually.How Schwab says AI turned scams into a personal threatAmerican consumers lost a record $15.9 billion to fraud in 2025, up from more than $12 billion the prior year, the Federal Trade Commission associate director Lois Greisman told the U.S. Congressional Joint Economic Committee in March.Fraudsters used to play a numbers game, sending millions of identical messages and hoping a few people would fall for it. Now, artificial intelligence lets them build each attack around real information about the victim, making the scam far harder to recognize.More AI:Micron sits at the center of a red-hot chip rallyIBM CEO sends blunt message on AI and quantum computingAnthropic CEO makes shocking admission about AI“We’re seeing fraud that feels more personal, incorporates real information, and creates a sense of believability and urgency,” said Kim Bailey, a senior manager on Schwab’s Financial Crimes Risk Management team.The tactics extend well beyond email and now include deepfake video calls, cloned voices, and fabricated documents that can survive a quick visual check. Criminals are also impersonating employees and advisors at the very financial institutions that are designed to protect consumers, Zack Rosebrock stated.In Hong Kong in early 2024, a finance worker at a multinational firm transferred $25 million after joining what appeared to be a legitimate videoconference, CNN reported.Every person visible on the call, including the company’s chief financial officer and other staff members, was an AI-generated deepfake.Voice cloning poses a similarly serious risk, with specialized programs now capable of recreating speech patterns from just a few seconds of recorded audio. The Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a public service announcement in May 2025 after criminals used AI voice messages to impersonate senior U.S. officials.3 red flags that Schwab says still expose a scamThe traditional markers of fraud, such as awkward phrasing and odd formatting, are no longer dependable indicators of an illegitimate communication. AI-generated content now uses correct branding, professional language, and authentic contact information to establish credibility with potential victims, Schwab said in the article.Bailey identified three patterns that are common among fraudsters but virtually absent from legitimate communications between established institutions and their clients.Pressure to act immediately, especially when it involves transferring money, sending a wire payment, or making changes to your financial accountsAsking for your login credentials, passwords, or other sensitive account information through an unexpected phone call, text message, or emailUnexpected investment opportunities that promise unusually high or guaranteed returnsZack Rosebrock, director of eCrimes Research & Detection at Schwab, said the strongest defense remains what he describes as human judgment and verification.”AI can make people say things they’ve never said, but when the target knows the person supposedly speaking, the deception usually falls apart,” Rosebrock said.If something feels off during any call or message, hang up and contact the institution at a verified number to confirm, Rosebrock recommended. He also stressed that preserving suspicious communications and alerting your financial institution immediately after a suspected scam can improve recovery outcomes.

Schwab warns that urgency, credential requests, and guaranteed returns remain the biggest scam red flags, despite increasingly convincing AI fraud tactics today.Witthaya Prasongsin/Getty Images

How Schwab deploys AI technology to defend client accountsSchwab and other financial institutions now deploy the same underlying technology that criminals exploit, but for protective and fraud-detection purposes. The brokerage has invested in systems capable of identifying suspicious behavioral patterns across millions of data points in seconds, Rosebrock confirmed.Technology is accelerating the evolution of fraud, making it more sophisticated and harder to detect.One key defensive tool is Schwab Voice ID, which creates an encrypted voiceprint from hundreds of unique vocal characteristics, such as cadence, frequency, pitch, and tone. The system also monitors carrier data, device information, and background noise during calls to distinguish live voices from synthetic recordings.Schwab uses AI to monitor transactions, detect suspicious activity, and block potential fraud before funds leave customer accounts. Its systems also verify user behavior, validate documents, and identify networks that may indicate coordinated fraud schemes.Older adults and families face a widening vulnerability gapThe increasing personalization of AI fraud creates elevated risks for older adults and family members who may not recognize rapidly evolving scam techniques. People age 50 and older reported $4.3 billion in fraud losses during 2025, nearly double the $2.3 billion reported by younger adults, AARP reported.“AI has forever altered the threat landscape, but there’s no substitute for common sense,” Bailey said. “When something seems off, don’t hesitate to slow down, verify the details, and ask for help from someone you trust.”Bailey recommended that families openly discuss recent fraud cases, designate trusted contacts on brokerage and bank accounts, and create personal verification phrases. Those shared code words allow relatives to confirm identities during unexpected calls, an additional verification step recommended by both Schwab and the FBI.Schwab also urged consumers to preserve all communications after a suspected scam and to promptly report incidents to both their financial institution and law enforcement. That single moment of pause, the report noted, could be the difference between losing your savings and keeping them entirely safe.Related: Equifax exposes AI fraud threat hitting modern business

Many say that generative AI only produces bland homogenized slop. This overlooks the use of good prompts. Prompt your way to creativity. An AI Insider analysis and scoop.

UFC Freedom 250 paid fighter bonuses in USD1, the stablecoin issued by the Trump-linked crypto venture World Liberty Financial, at a contest held at the White House.

The first mistake investors can make with SpaceX is thinking the payday happened all at once.It didn’t.SpaceX’s initial public offering gave retail investors a rare chance to invest in Elon Musk’s rocket, satellite and artificial intelligence enterprise. But for the company’s first believers, the IPO didn’t mark the beginning. It was the end of a bet that had demanded years of patience, illiquidity, and faith in a business plan that had once seemed practically unachievable.SpaceX (SPCX) set its record IPO price of $135 a share, raising $75 billion from the sale of 555.6 million shares. Reuters said the IPO valued the company at about $1.75 trillion before shares began trading. The stock rose 19% in its Nasdaq debut, finishing at $160.95 and bringing SpaceX’s market cap above $2 trillion, Reuters reported.That made for a huge payoff for early investors, employees and venture firms.But it also taught a crucial lesson to everyone else: By the time a world-changing enterprise becomes evident, a lot of the biggest money has already been made.SpaceX IPO shows why early risk can pay offSpaceX didn’t reach a trillion-dollar valuation because investors suddenly discovered rockets.The innovative startup spent years creating a position in space launches, Starlink satellite internet and, after its merger with xAI, artificial intelligence. SpaceX’s IPO pitch was based on businesses that still need considerable execution, such as Mars missions and AI data centers in orbit, Reuters said.That’s why the early investor’s reward is so remarkable.Founders Fund first invested in SpaceX in 2008, to the tune of $20 million, Fortune reported. DFJ Growth made an initial $10 million investment in 2009 and has spent more than $800 million to date. Sequoia’s investment was upwards of $2 billion across funds, while Valor Equity Partners’ stake might be more than $90 billion.Related: Dan Ives spills the beans on SpaceX futureThose stats are simple to admire in retrospect.It was harder to underwrite when SpaceX was private, less proven, and not available to most regular investors. Early backers didn’t buy the clean earnings story. They were buying execution risk, regulatory risk, launch risk, founder risk and years of no easy liquidity.That is the trade-off that investors tend to ignore.Public investors typically have more disclosure and greater liquidity. Private investors may have more upside, but that’s only because they accept the risk before the market believes that the narrative is legitimate.“When you’re the most anticipated IPO ever, you can ask investors to adapt to your process rather than the other way around,” former Bank of America capital markets executive Craig Coben said, according to Reuters.SpaceX stock still comes with a valuation warningThe pop on its first day made SpaceX look like an instant winner in the public market.That doesn’t mean the stock is inherently inexpensive.In 2025, SpaceX reported $18.7 billion in sales and a $4.9 billion net loss, according to Via Satellite’s assessment of SpaceX’s S-1 form. Starlink accounted for $11.4 billion of that revenue, or almost 61% of the company’s total revenues. SpaceX also had long-term debt of $29.1 billion at the end of March 2026.More Tech Stocks:Morgan Stanley sets jaw-dropping Micron price target after eventNvidia’s China chip problem isn’t what most investors thinkQuantum Computing makes $110 million move nobody saw comingThat makes the investor lesson more complicated than “buy visionary founders.”It’s become very challenging to assess SpaceX on a price-to-earnings ratio, since it lost money in 2025. It also noted that SpaceX was trading at around 93.7 times trailing revenue on a $1.75 trillion valuation, an expensive multiple, even in a market prepared to reward dominant growth tales.Eventually, SpaceX might justify that price.It has reusable rockets, Starlink scale, a big brand, and a founder with a lengthy history of persuading markets to accept ambitious claims seriously. Starlink subscribers had risen from 2.3 million in 2023 to 8.9 million in 2025, and the corporation said it had 10.3 million subscribers at the end of March 2026.

SpaceX IPO exposes the price of waiting too long.Spencer Platt / Getty Images

SpaceX gives investors a timeless IPO lessonThis scenario explains why IPOs generate so much emotion.IPOs give investors access to companies that many investors have been watching from the outside for years. SpaceX is an extreme case of that dynamic. Institutional investors, employees and early venture backers had been in on the tale for years, while retail investors got a disproportionate piece of it, Reuters said.The difference counts.The first SpaceX investors were compensated for believing before the evidence emerged. The proof was in the pudding, and public investors are paying. Both groups aren’t necessarily incorrect, but they are betting extremely differently.Key takeaways from the SpaceX IPOSpaceX raised $75 billion in a record IPO and initially valued the company near $1.75 trillion, Reuters confirmed.Shares closed up 19% in their first Nasdaq session, pushing the company above $2 trillion in market value, Reuters noted.Early investors won because they accepted years of private-market risk, not because they bought a popular ticker on debut day.Public investors still need to weigh SpaceX’s growth potential against losses, debt, valuation, and governance risk.The cleaner lesson for long-term investors is not to chase every hot IPO.The problem is that the biggest rewards sometimes come from owning excellent enterprises before everyone agrees they are terrific. That happens in private markets, but it happens in public markets, too, when investors buy great companies during periods of doubt.Those early backers of SpaceX got the rarest variant of that result.They embraced uncertainty when the company was still demonstrating reusable rockets, creating Starlink, and asking investors to believe in markets that didn’t yet exist. The profit was enormous, but so was the risk.For everyone else, the SpaceX IPO is a reminder that investing is about more than spotting a huge story. It is about knowing where you are entering that story.Early believers get paid for fear.Late buyers pay for confidence.Related: Morningstar drops bombshell message on SpaceX IPO

The purchases were likely funded by selling other positions, data shows. ARK is also one of the loudest bitcoin bulls, with a million-dollar target for 2030.