General Overview

Advancements across diverse hi-tech sectors continue to drive groundbreaking, disruptive innovation.

From the increasing reliance on cloud services and AI integration demonstrated by cloud computing giants Alphabet and Microsoft reporting significant growth in their cloud divisions, to the rising demand for robust EV infrastructure shown by ChargePoint’s expansion to over one million EV charging points in North America and Europe, to significant leaps in robotics and industrial design facilitated by NVIDIA’s generative AI models—these developments exemplify the multifaceted nature of disruptive innovation, driving efficiency, enhancing user experiences, and shaping the future across various industries. As these technologies continue to evolve, their integration promises to unlock new possibilities and redefine industry standards.

Sector Specific Updates

Automobile Innovation

ChargePoint announced in July that it now offers EV drivers access to over one million charging points across North America and Europe through its network of public, private, and roaming ports. This expansion reflects the growing demand for EV charging infrastructure as electric vehicle sales rise.

Through the ChargePoint app, drivers can conveniently locate, use, and pay for charging stations. ChargePoint’s network has supported over 10 billion electric miles, equivalent to more than 400,000 driving trips around the globe. Impressively, nearly four billion of these miles were driven in the past year, indicating a significant increase in demand.

The company’s network has helped drivers avoid more than 410 million gallons of gasoline and reduced over 2.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, underscoring both the environmental and business benefits of transportation electrification.¹

Cybersecurity

A routine software update by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike caused a significant IT outage on July 19, disrupting businesses globally. The update, which affected Windows hosts, led to widespread technical issues, including the notorious “blue screen of death” for many Microsoft users. Airlines, hospitals, financial services, and media outlets were among the sectors hit hardest by the outage.

CrowdStrike promptly addressed the situation, identifying the issue and deploying a patch. It was not a security breach but a defect in a single content update. Cybersecurity experts described the outage’s scale and impact as unprecedented, highlighting the challenges of managing privileged security software. Full recovery was slated to take several days, as the solution requires manual intervention for each affected endpoint.²

Cloud Computing

Cloud news in July was dominated by quarterly earnings reports from some of the major players in cloud, including Alphabet and Microsoft.

Alphabet’s revenue rose 14% year over year, fuelled by robust search performance and significant growth in its cloud division. Google Cloud achieved $10.35 billion in revenue for the quarter (exceeding forecasts of $10.20 billion) and surpassed $1 billion in operating profit for the first time.³

Microsoft Corp.’s Azure cloud-computing service saw an accelerated contribution from AI, which accounted for 8% of the growth, up from 7% last quarter. Sales from commercial cloud products, including Azure and Office applications, increased 21% to $36.8 billion, aligning with Wall Street estimates. This reflects a growing adoption of Microsoft’s higher-tier Office 365 products that incorporate generative AI features, which are poised to generate significant recurring revenue.⁴

E-Gaming

Despite the decrease in playing time since the pandemic, the annual Global Gamer released by Newzoo in July shows that video games continue to dominate the media and entertainment landscape, engaging over 80% of global consumers. Despite a competitive entertainment market, dedicated PC and console gamers remain a significant audience, continually seeking new experiences.

Key findings reveal that 85% of 73,000 surveyed consumers across 36 markets engage with games, with 64% watching gaming content and 35% participating in gaming communities, listening to podcasts, and enjoying other game-related activities.

Generational analysis shows that gaming is most prevalent among younger generations. Millennials and Gen Alpha, who have grown up in a digital-first environment, interact with games not just by playing but also by consuming related content and media and participating in gaming culture. Adventure games are particularly popular among Gen Alpha, Gen Z, and Millennials, while older generations prefer puzzle games.⁵

Genomics

The weight-loss drug market is heating up as pharmaceutical giants scramble to capture a share of this lucrative healthcare sector. Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, long-time leaders in obesity treatments, now face formidable competition from Roche. Recent developments signal a potential shakeup in market dominance, promising a dynamic landscape for investors and patients alike.

Roche, a relative newcomer in the weight-loss arena, has made significant strides and announced promising advances in their obesity drug trials in July. CEO Thomas Schinecker announced that Roche’s multiple experimental obesity drug candidates demonstrated “best in disease potential” in early-stage trials. The company’s acquisition of Carmot Therapeutics has bolstered its position, with trial data showing a 6.1% weight loss within four weeks for its once-daily pill, CT-996. This oral alternative could appeal to patients averse to injections, further intensifying the competition.⁶

Fintech

Jordan Kuwait Bank (JKB) has teamed up with Mastercard and UAE fintech firm FOO to launch eliWallet, a prepaid digital wallet supporting multicurrency transactions. The wallet offers both virtual and physical cards for seamless payments online and in-store. JKB highlights that eliWallet will allow swift cross-border money transfers.

With assets totalling $7.3 billion, JKB asserts that eliWallet leverages advanced technology for secure, effortless transactions, tapping into Mastercard’s global digital payment network. FOO, a B2B SaaS provider, oversees the development, customization, and deployment of the wallet, ensuring integration with third-party services.

Suhail Al-Salman, JKB’s head of retail business, describes eliWallet as a significant step towards financial empowerment, enhancing user convenience with diverse features. FOO’s managing partner, Ghady Rayess, adds that the wallet will streamline payment processes to meet modern demands.⁷

Robotics & Automation

NVIDIA announced significant advancements in Universal Scene Description (OpenUSD) at SIGGRAPH in July, enhancing its application in robotics and industrial design. The new generative AI models and NIM microservices, integrated with the NVIDIA Omniverse platform, will expedite the development of industrial digital twins and robotics.

Key offerings include NVIDIA NIM microservices for generating OpenUSD language, code, and 3D material applications. These tools accelerate the creation of highly accurate virtual worlds, which are crucial for designing and simulating robotics and industrial environments.

Foxconn has already adopted these technologies to develop a digital twin of a factory, leveraging Omniverse and NIM microservices for faster, more efficient manufacturing processes. WPP, a leader in marketing services, utilizes NVIDIA’s AI tools for innovative content creation pipelines, demonstrating the versatility of these technologies.

NVIDIA’s collaboration with Siemens integrates OpenUSD with Siemens’ Simcenter portfolio, enhancing real-time visualization and simulation for industrial applications. Additionally, new USD connectors and developer tools will facilitate seamless integration of robotics data and advanced 3D content streaming to Apple Vision Pro.⁸

5G

Nokia has partnered with Telecom Egypt to introduce 5G technology to Egypt, marking a significant upgrade to the nation’s telecom infrastructure. This collaboration aims to revolutionize Egypt’s connectivity landscape by bringing 5G services to major cities including Alexandria, Aswan, Cairo, Giza, and Luxor.

Nokia will supply its extensive AirScale equipment, which includes Massive MIMO radios, baseband units, and remote radio heads. This deployment will enhance network capacity, speed, and performance, providing an exceptional experience for Telecom Egypt’s customers.

The initiative, set to roll out later this year, will leverage Nokia’s energy-efficient ReefShark System-on-Chip technology, ensuring comprehensive 5G coverage and easy deployment. Nokia will also offer assistance with deployment, integration, and network optimization.

Telecom Egypt, having secured the country’s first 5G license earlier this year, will utilize this technology to support various services, including faster downloads, smoother streaming, and improved network performance. This advancement is expected to drive innovation and efficiency across multiple sectors in Egypt’s digital landscape.⁹

EDGE ETF: Investment in Innovation

The Evolve Innovation Index Fund (EDGE ETF) is an 8-in-1 innovation fund that invests in disruptive innovation themes across a broad range of industries, including: cloud computing, cybersecurity, egaming & esports, automobile innovation, 5G, fintech, genomics, and robotics & automation. For more information on EDGE ETF, visit our website at https://evolveetfs.com/edge/. Give your portfolio an EDGE.

Portfolio Strategy and Activity

For the month, Evolve E-Gaming Index ETF made the largest contribution to the Fund, followed by Evolve Automobile Innovation Index Fund and BeiGene Ltd. The largest detractors to performance for the month were CrowdStrike Holdings Inc, followed by Evolve Cloud Computing Index Fund and Evolve Cyber Security Index Fund.

 

Sources

1. “ChargePoint Reaches Milestone of Providing More Than One Million Places for EV Drivers to Charge,” ChargePoint, July 25, 2024; https://investors.chargepoint.com/news/news-details/2024/ChargePoint-Reaches-Milestone-of-Providing-More-Than-One-Million-Places-for-EV-Drivers-to-Charge/default.aspx
2. Bishop, K. & Kharpal, A., “CrowdStrike issue causes major outage affecting businesses around the world,” CNBC, July 19, 2024; https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/19/crowdstrike-suffers-major-outage-affecting-businesses-around-the-world.html
3. Elias, J., “Alphabet meets earnings expectations but misses on YouTube ad revenue,” CNBC, July 23, 2023; https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/23/alphabet-set-to-report-q2-earnings-results-after-the-bell.html
4. Bass, D. & Ford, B., “Microsoft’s Azure Growth Slows, Testing Investors’ Patience,” Bloomberg, July 30, 2024; https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-30/microsoft-reports-slower-azure-cloud-growth-shares-drop
5. Brune, M., “Our new gamer research shows that 80% of consumers play video games,” Newzoo, July 2, 2024; https://newzoo.com/resources/blog/our-new-gamer-research-shows-that-80-of-consumers-play-video-games
6. Gilchrist, K., “Wegovy rival to be part of a suite of weight loss drugs, Roche CEO says following positive trial results,” CNBC, July 25, 2024; https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/25/roche-wegovy-obesity-rival-to-be-part-of-a-suite-of-weight-loss-drugs.html
7. Pathe, T., “Jordan Kuwait Bank partners Mastercard and FOO to launch multicurrency prepaid wallet offering,” FinTech Futures, July 16, 2024; https://www.fintechfutures.com/2024/07/jordan-kuwait-bank-partners-mastercard-and-uaes-foo-to-launch-multicurrency-prepaid-wallet-offering/
8. “NVIDIA Announces Generative AI Models and NIM Microservices for OpenUSD Language, Geometry, Physics and Materials,” NVIDIA, July 29, 2024; https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-announces-generative-ai-models-and-nim-microservices-for-openusd
9. “Nokia and Telecom Egypt bring 5G to Egypt for the first time,” Nokia, July 15, 2024; https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2024/07/15/nokia-and-telecom-egypt-bring-5g-to-egypt-for-the-first-time/

 

Header Image Source: Getty Images Credit: gremlin

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