On June 23, according to CCTV Finance, at the fourth Chain Expo, the original "Digital Technology Chain" was upgraded to the "Smart Technology Chain." This change in wording reflects that artificial intelligence is becoming the main character in the industrial chain. A newly established AI zone at the event gathered leading AI companies from both domestic and international markets, showcasing the entire chain from data and computing power to applications. Various AI products were on display, including AI glasses, smart cars with digital chassis, and humanoid robots that can play soccer. CCTV Finance reporters observed that the integration of artificial intelligence into the physical world is transitioning from mobile phones and computers to various new smart terminals. This year, the application of AI agents has also experienced a full explosion. Qian Kun, Senior Vice President of Qualcomm, stated that the empowerment of AI agents is leading to a significant upgrade cycle for existing terminal devices. China's industrial chain is very complete, and through continuous collaboration with Chinese partners, their products can quickly reach the market and gain global acceptance. Liu Xiangwen, Vice President of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group, noted that AI has evolved from mere chatting to becoming a productive force. The development of all stacks, whether GPU cloud or CPU, is progressing rapidly, and there is still greater potential ahead.

On June 23, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.07%; the S&P 500 index narrowed its decline to 0.77%, having previously fallen over 1.5%; the Nasdaq Composite index also reduced its drop to 1.17%, after having been down more than 2.3% at one point.

On June 23, Vitalik Buterin revealed that the Ethereum Foundation (EF) will reduce its budget by approximately 40% this year. According to its previously announced financial management plan, EF is transitioning from a model where it spends about 15% of its remaining funds annually to a model where it will spend about 5% annually after 2030, moving towards a long-term donation-oriented organization. To this end, EF will adjust its multi-client model, relying more on AI-assisted formal verification. The PSE privacy and scalability exploration team will shift from 'exploration' to a focus on building around zero-knowledge proofs. The scale and losses of Devcon events will be reduced, and large projects beyond Ethereum itself will also decrease. EF's institutional work will focus on smaller-scale, replicable CROPS-friendly deployment cases.

On June 23, according to CCTV Finance, Huo Qigang stated that over the past year, the topic of AI has been overwhelming, shifting from 'not using AI' to 'having to use AI,' making him acutely aware that 'not participating will lead to elimination.' As a father, Huo Qigang candidly expressed the dilemma of whether parents should 'control' or 'assist' when their children use AI. He mentioned that he has already begun to assist with AI in his work, but emphasized that using AI does not mean bypassing the thinking process; one must rely on their own experience, thought, and logical judgment, and cannot simply replicate AI outputs.

On June 23, NVIDIA (NVDA.O) saw its market value drop below $500 billion, with a latest decline of 2.6%.

Driven by companies placing orders in advance to prevent shortages and price increases, U.S. manufacturing activity expanded again in June. However, factory employment fell to a six-year low, primarily due to rising operational costs influenced by conflicts in the Middle East. The preliminary S&P Global Manufacturing PMI for June rose to 55.7 from 55.1 in May, marking the highest level since May 2022, while economists surveyed by Reuters had previously expected the index to drop to 54.8. The increase in the manufacturing PMI, combined with a rise in the services PMI from 50.7 in May to 51.3, contributed to a composite PMI output index increase from 51.5 last month to 52.2. The rebound in the services PMI is partially attributed to the World Cup events jointly hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

Microsoft (MSFT.O) announced the completion of its first data center construction in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, USA.

On June 23, Goldman Sachs' Alberto Ramos stated that the Brazilian Central Bank may alternate between pausing rate cuts and lowering its benchmark Selic rate. Last week, the Brazilian Central Bank reduced the Selic rate from 14.5% to 14.25%, and its next steps remain unclear. Amid sticky inflation and risks of economic slowdown, the meeting minutes provided some insight into the central bank's thinking. Ramos noted that intermittent rate cuts 'will lead to milder output fluctuations, with inflation converging to target levels by the first quarter of 2028.' He added, 'Overall, in the short-term trade-off between growth and inflation, Copom is more inclined to protect economic activity rather than adopt a more aggressive inflation-focused strategy.'

On June 23, U.S. quantum computing concept stocks saw a broad rise, with Infleqtion up over 14%, SEALSQ up over 8%, D-Wave Quantum up over 7%, Quantum Computing up nearly 5%, and Rigetti Computing, IBM, and IonQ Inc each up over 4%.

On June 23, optical communication stocks in the U.S. experienced a widespread decline, with Tower Semiconductor and Credo Technology falling over 11%. Corning dropped more than 10%, while Applied Optoelectronics, Marvell Technology, Coherent, and AXT all saw declines exceeding 8%. Astera Labs and Lumentum fell over 7%, and GlobalFoundries and Nokia dropped more than 5%.