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# Inklings #024 📧
- URL: https://spyglass.org/inklings-nvidias-profit-crown-nvidias-hugging-face-deal-hugging-faces-robot-metas-openclaw/
- Published: 2026-08-28T19:54:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-28T19:54:58.000Z
- Description: NVIDIA's Profit Crown • NVIDIA's Hugging Face Deal • Hugging Face's Duck Robot • Meta's 'OpenClaw for Normies'
- Author: M.G. Siegler
- Tags: newsletter, inklings

Tim Cook's watch over Apple officially ends this coming Tuesday. And while I'm [no OneRepublic](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/apple-ceos-farewell-tributes-unusually-personal-tim-cook?ref=spyglass.org), I will just commend and congratulate him on one hell of a run. He had perhaps the most [impossible](https://techcrunch.com/2011/10/28/what-would-steve-do/?ref=spyglass.org) task [imaginable](https://techcrunch.com/2011/01/17/steve-jobs-apple-tim-cook-2011/?ref=spyglass.org) in [succeeding](https://techcrunch.com/2011/08/26/one-more-thing/?ref=spyglass.org) Steve Jobs and he [executed](https://techcrunch.com/2013/06/12/mavericks-indeed/?ref=spyglass.org) what will undoubtedly be a new textbook example/case study of [how to follow up](https://spyglass.org/tim-cook-steps-down-as-ceo-of-apple/) a beloved founder/literal savior of a company. And now his watch has ended. ✌️🍎

****Inklings** is a [newsletter](https://spyglass.org/newsletter/) featuring links and commentary from ****M.G. Siegler** on timely topics found around the web.

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### I Note...

**💰** [**NVIDIA's Regains the Profit Crown**](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/technology/nvidia-profit-ai-doubles-earnings.html?ref=spyglass.org) **–** While some [headlines](https://www.theverge.com/tech/985387/nvidia-hundred-billion-dollar-quarterly-revenue?ref=spyglass.org) focused on the company closing in on $100B in revenue a quarter, plenty of companies do that – Walmart is nearly *double* that number, Amazon actually is. A far bigger deal is the $60B in *profit* NVIDIA just posted for the quarter. It has been [bonkers](https://thoughts.spyglass.org/i/189374007/nvidias-43b-profit?ref=spyglass.org) for a while now, but it keeps getting [more bonkers](https://spyglass.org/nvidia-profit/). And while Samsung briefly [surged ahead](https://spyglass.org/samsung-profit/) last quarter due to the memory chip boom, these results puts NVIDIA back on top. And it's almost entirely *actual* profit, money NVIDIA gets to keep, [not the silly](https://x.com/mgsiegler/status/2092717900159127686?ref=spyglass.org) (GAAP) net income figure which includes moment-in-time [paper gains on investments](https://spyglass.org/buyer-beware-big-tech-gains-and-losses-boosted-by-big-ai/) – accounting which pushed Google's "profit" to a comically stated *$112.2B* last quarter. Their actual profit? Again, the money they keep? Closer to $30B. Roughly half of what NVIDIA just took home. **\[**[**NYT**](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/technology/nvidia-profit-ai-doubles-earnings.html?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**

**🤗** [**NVIDIA's $12.9B Hugging Face Deal**](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/nvidia-agrees-buy-open-source-model-repository-hugging-face-12-9-billion?ref=spyglass.org) **–** [Poolside](https://spyglass.org/inklings-newfangled-hackquisitions-epic-v-apple-meta-v-states-openai-v-apple-stripe-of-ai-vision-pro-pickle/#:~:text=%F0%9F%92%B8%20Yet%20Another%20New%20Flavor%20of%20Hackquisition). [Perplexity](https://spyglass.org/thoughts-on-nvidia-perplexity-fables-stalled-growth/). And now this. If you wanted a hint of how much profit NVIDIA was about to post, these deals – even if just rumored – were a good sign. I joked that NVIDIA clearly can't spend their cash quickly enough, but also, they *clearly* can't. Between [bankrolling](https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/nvidias-279-billion-supply-chain-gamble-cbe316d2?ref=spyglass.org) and [backstopping](https://spyglass.org/openai-nvidia-stake-ai/) data centers and [investing](https://www.businessinsider.com/nvidia-q2-2027-earnings-bets-big-ai-18-billion-investment-2026-8?ref=spyglass.org) in [seemingly every](https://spyglass.org/big-tech-ai-investments/) company even tangentially related to AI at the moment, NVIDIA is essentially a bank. Yes, so was Cisco back in the day, but I digress... This particular deal actually makes quite a bit of strategic sense. I'm not sure the price does but again, does that really matter when you're making $60B in profit a quarter? Not if there was competition for the deal and you could keep it out of the hands of others to further [your "open" AI narrative](https://spyglass.org/open-weight-ai-models/) – not to be confused with OpenAI, which is also tied [closely](https://spyglass.org/nvidia-openai-100-billion-deal/) to NVIDIA, but is not open, and seems hell-bent on [competing](https://spyglass.org/the-race-for-ai-independence/) with NVIDIA in chips with the [apparently quite spicy 'Jalapeno'](https://newsletter.semianalysis.com/p/openai-jalapeno-better-than-nvidia?ref=spyglass.org). Or maybe you better know them as the company [which just](https://openai.com/index/hugging-face-incident-and-the-road-ahead/?ref=spyglass.org) [inadvertently hacked](https://spyglass.org/open-vs-closed-ai/)... Hugging Face. Wild times. **\[**[**Information**](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/nvidia-agrees-buy-open-source-model-repository-hugging-face-12-9-billion?ref=spyglass.org) **🔒\]**

**🦆** [**Hugging Face's $400 Duck Robot**](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/hugging-face-unveils-400-singing-skating-duck-like-robot?ref=spyglass.org) **–** Speaking of... while I don't think the 'Microduck' is contributing much to the $13B price tag here, it's also pretty fun and clever! Given the focus on robotics as a next logical extension of AI, I'm surprised nearly everyone seems focused on either the [humanoid](https://spyglass.org/signal-the-perpetual-money-machine/#:~:text=%F0%9F%A6%BE%20All%20Hands%20on%20Deck%20for%20Optimus) or warehouse variety. Why not just have a little fun while igniting some imaginations? Clearly they are [over in Asia](https://spyglass.org/we-will-be-replaced/), and Amazon tried this to some extent – but [as always](https://spyglass.org/alexa-ai/), they were too early – but I bet there's a growing market in the US now too for people [who want](https://daringfireball.net/linked/2026/07/15/gurman-io-product?ref=spyglass.org) a *Star Wars* droid-like device, not an Ultron or Terminator-like robot – [at least not yet](https://spyglass.org/signal-pumpkin-spice-iphone-day/#:~:text=%5BTHR%5D-,I%20Quote...,-%22My%20prediction%20is). Especially [as voice AI](https://spyglass.org/vocal-computing-ai/) keeps [leaping forward](https://spyglass.org/gpt-live/). Start [small and fun](https://spyglass.org/openai-chat-robot/). What's the old saying about big things that start out [looking like toys](https://cdixon.org/2010/01/03/the-next-big-thing-will-start-out-looking-like-a-toy/?ref=spyglass.org)? What if they *actually* start out looking like toys? Apple [should be](https://spyglass.org/apple-pixar-lamp-robot/) all [over this](https://spyglass.org/apples-wall-e-robots/). If for no other reason than it now seems like their [longtime nemesis](https://spyglass.org/nvidia-3-trillion/) NVIDIA will be! **\[**[**Bloomberg**](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-27/hugging-face-unveils-400-singing-skating-duck-like-robot?ref=spyglass.org) **🔒\]**

**🐣** [**Meta's 'OpenClaw for Normies' Nears**](https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-hatch-personal-ai-agent-capabilities-employees-memo-2026-8?ref=spyglass.org) **–** I [mentioned](https://spyglass.org/meta-ai-context-watermelon-hatch/) 'Project Hatch' earlier today as Meta's big bet on productizing AI for consumers. AI "Personal Assistants" are so hot right now – [at least in the eyes of VCs](https://www.newcomer.co/p/amid-personal-assistant-investor?ref=spyglass.org), which, speaking from personal experience, at best doesn't mean much and at worst is *negative* signal. Everyone [obviously wants](https://spyglass.org/openclaw-versus-closed-claude/) agentic AI to work [in consumer](https://spyglass.org/bring-your-own-ai/), but we need actual killer use cases beyond sorting your desktop icons or drafting email responses. Again, I would focus more on fun. What can these things do that is actually a delightful experience? Sure, easing the nightmare of booking travel sounds great, but, at least in my experience, that's also incredibly bespoke given various family requirements. Which is to say, I'm honestly not sure I'd ever trust AI to do that, even if it could. I realize that's a dangerous thing to say, but really I just want some obvious use cases for regular people and I have yet to hear any. [Meta can shove](https://spyglass.org/inklings-metas-openclaw-killer-xbox-vibe-shift-apples-choose-your-own-ai-amc-live-concerts/#:~:text=%F0%9F%A6%9E%20Meta%20Hatches%20an%20OpenClaw%20Competitor) this in front of 3 billion people, but without those use cases, [it won't matter](https://spyglass.org/meta-many-bets/). Certainly if Meta is really going to *charge money* for [this](https://spyglass.org/meta-one-premium/). Though I will say, being able to [leverage WhatsApp](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/meta-plans-launch-hatch-ai-agent-platform-coming-weeks?ref=spyglass.org) as the potential UI here is interesting... Perhaps that's the real play for 'XChat' – [Xitter's superflous chat app](https://spyglass.org/inklings-googles-anthropic-money-openaiphone-xchat-elon-vs-openai-china-blocks-manus/#:~:text=%40mingchikuo%5D-,%F0%9F%92%AC%20XChat,-%E2%80%93%20While%20I). Maybe it can be the Grok Bot interface? They just need to gain about 3 billion users first. **\[**[**BI**](https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-hatch-personal-ai-agent-capabilities-employees-memo-2026-8?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**

### I Wrote...

[Meta’s Poke on the WristWhy Meta is quitting their legal fight…![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings-----Multi-bbb41ce9-6787-4f72-98cb-92bb4f666a3d.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/ChatGPT-Image-Aug-27--2026--02_35_18-PM-ec3e52a7-a609-457b-9a0d-2db302d2a010.png)](https://spyglass.org/metas-poke-on-the-wrist/)

[So Much For the ‘PervPods’Apple may aim to combat any ‘surveillance tech’ backlash with comically low AirPod AI camera resolutions…![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings-----Multi-06ddfb85-e436-4124-81e9-31fed31e9936.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/ChatGPT-Image-Aug-23--2026--03_40_19-PM-662842fc-96ec-4d70-a2d1-d700569cf2ab.png)](https://spyglass.org/pervpods/)

[Meta’s Complicated AI ContextMeta is back in the AI discussion, but are they actually at the table?![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings-----Multi-f476f993-1d79-4083-bac4-63a113cb6423.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/ChatGPT-Image-Aug-28--2026--12_36_05-PM-2-42d2c40b-2d28-4cff-8bef-e8f263ca8376.png)](https://spyglass.org/meta-ai-context-watermelon-hatch/)

### I Quote...

> "I’m very pro-A.I. in music creation. I don’t see the downside at all. There will be some crappy music. There’s crappy music now."

– **Jimmy Iovine**, [with his assessment](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/23/business/jimmy-iovine-dr-dre-beats-usc.html?ref=spyglass.org) of the AI [backlash](https://spyglass.org/ai-steve-jobs/). At which point in the interview, **Dr. Dre** enters the room to drop: *"I don’t see it as a threat. I think the only people that see it as a threat are the people who have trouble creating."*

### Thoughts On...

[Thoughts On: NVIDIA & Perplexity • Fable’s Stalled GrowthWhy might NVIDIA want to buy – sorry, “hackquire” – part of Perplexity? And why might Fable’s growth be stalling for Anthropic? Read on for thoughts on…![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings-----Multi-190dccba-2bbe-4f8a-b4b6-a0a6e9a204db.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/mgs_thoughts_on_nvidia_chips_16x9_--ar_43_--profile_frkb6cv_-_71c44cc1-0cdb-4116-9262-6588e1221d03_3-1-8185422e-a90f-4adf-872e-4232fe041bd7.png)](https://spyglass.org/thoughts-on-nvidia-perplexity-fables-stalled-growth/)

[Thoughts On: Bill Gates, Doomer • The Mac Mini MorphsUh, Bill Gates sounds a lot like... Dario Amodei in writing up his thoughts on where he thinks the world is headed with regard to AI. It’s a good essay, worth the read, but it’s certainly not going to help the AI perception problems! (And it’s also![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/icon/Spyglass-Rings-----Multi-eef53c14-7dd3-47f7-a9f1-01acb9412ea6.png)SpyglassM.G. Siegler![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/thumbnail/ChatGPT-Image-Aug-26--2026--03_56_25-PM-1-aac2c5f0-5201-46a1-8105-f33bb70e9562.png)](https://spyglass.org/thoughts-on-bill-gates-doomer-the-mac-mini-morphs/)

### Asides...

- Was '**Ox Alpha**' made by Google's big AI [comeback](https://spyglass.org/google-deepmind-hassabis-dean-gemini/)? SpaceXAI [taking the lead](https://spyglass.org/spacex-tesla-xai-cursor-mistral-ai/)? A surprise new entrant? No, it was just the codename for **Z.ai's 'GLM-5.3-Flash'**. Which anyone who watches movies in China would have known? **\[**[**Bloomberg**](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-26/china-s-z-ai-made-ox-alpha-stealth-model-that-rivals-deepseek?ref=spyglass.org) **🔒\]**
- I mean, '**Claudeforce**' is better [than 'Agentforce'](https://spyglass.org/whopper-of-a-week/#:~:text=And%20I%20Quote,the%20phrase%20%22Agentforce%22.), only just. But hey, [McConaughey](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZMj7C41AuQ&ref=spyglass.org)! "Now you can just aaaasssk." (This is honestly a pretty good ad – kudos to **Salesforce** for the confidence to outsource the "UI for AI" to **Anthropic**!) **\[**[**VentureBeat**](https://venturebeat.com/orchestration/salesforce-just-put-its-entire-crm-inside-claude-and-says-youll-never-need-its-app-again?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**
- A **resume** that looks like Google -> OpenAI -> Thinking Machines -> OpenAI -> Google is just perfect in an age of circular AI concerns. [Weirdness aside](https://spyglass.org/thought-machine-lab/), just a generational run by **Barret Zoph**. **\[**[**WSJ**](https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/thinking-machines-lab-co-founder-barret-zoph-joins-google-49f594e6?ref=spyglass.org) **🔒\]**
  - Meanwhile, Google ->OpenAI -> Thinking Machines -> OpenAI -> Meta – **Luke Metz** with the zag there at the end! **\[**[**Axios**](https://www.axios.com/2026/08/24/meta-hires-openai-luke-metz?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**
- Cleanup of ice on aisle Hell, as **Apple Pay** comes to **Walmart**! **\[**[**Verge**](https://www.theverge.com/tech/983336/walmart-apple-google-pay-launch?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**
- Come for the news that **Ridley Scott** is at work on completing the '[David](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David%5F8?ref=spyglass.org)' ***Alien*** prequel trilogy (!!), stay for the quotes on AI. **\[**[**LATimes**](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-08-26/ridley-scott-director-dog-stars-alien-blade-runner-gladiator-artificial-intelligence-ai?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**
- And then there were six? (Actors supposedly in the final states of screen testing [to be](https://spyglass.org/denis-villeneuve-james-bond-movie/) [the next](https://spyglass.org/back-to-basics-bond/) ***James Bond***. With my [original](https://x.com/mgsiegler/status/1055682957157920769?s=20&ref=spyglass.org) [picks](https://x.com/mgsiegler/status/1457094316468289540?ref=spyglass.org) [apparently](https://spyglass.org/aaron-taylor-johnson-james-bond/) out, I'm pulling for [River Cartwright](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack%5FLowden?ref=spyglass.org) – you-know-who was also Scottish...) **\[**[**Page Six**](https://pagesix.com/2026/08/26/hollywood/unknown-actor-is-shock-favorite-to-be-new-james-bond-with-string-of-a-listers-set-for-screen-tests-in-days/?ref=spyglass.org)**\]**

### I Spy...

Ah yes, [billboards that look like disclaimers](https://www.theverge.com/tech/985851/meta-privacy-loophole-fix-marketing-campaign?ref=spyglass.org) are really going to resonate with people. Especially the intended audience. Nothing to *see* here, why do you ask? At least they double as an eye chart, I guess? This is [not](https://spyglass.org/meta-ray-ban-hypernova-glasses/) [trending](https://spyglass.org/i-am-the-great-glassholio/) [well](https://spyglass.org/airpods-vision/) [for Meta](https://spyglass.org/pervpods/)...

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/af/ca/afcaa655-46e2-45b8-889a-2881de5cce69/content/images/2026/08/Capture-LED-Education-Campaign-Los-Angeles-Billboard.webp)](https://www.theverge.com/tech/985851/meta-privacy-loophole-fix-marketing-campaign?ref=spyglass.org)

🎶 Listening to [****"Release" by Pearl Jam**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA3TXNwiCvQ&ref=spyglass.org) **(**[****happy 35th to** ***Ten**](https://x.com/carlquintanilla/status/2092932715288932853?ref=spyglass.org)****)**  
🍺 Enjoying a [****Meantime Pizza Pale**](https://untappd.com/b/meantime-brewing-company-pizza-pale/4514360?ref=spyglass.org)  
🇬🇧 Sent from ****London, England**