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2025-01-10   

9 dollar gaming mouse No. 22 Iowa State still has a chance to play for a Big 12 title as Cyclones prepare to face UtahPM Modi praises surge in 'Made in India' products in Kuwait, emphasises trade as important pillar of bilateral relationship

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! viewers were left seething after they felt hosts Ant and Dec crossed a line during the latest trial. On Friday 22 November, fans watched as McFly's Danny Jones and radio presenter Dean McCullough took on the most recent challenge. They were joined by Love Island's Maura Higgins and musician-turned-priest Reverend Richard Coles for a task named The High Street of Horrors. Maura and Richard, who arrived first at the trial, received a quick briefing from Ant and Dec . As regular viewers will know, Maura and Richard have been tasked with deceiving their fellow campmates this week. The main camp believes that the pair are enduring harsh conditions in a Junk Yard, sleeping on the floor, oblivious to the fact that they actually have access to a fold-down bed, hot running water, and various other comforts. When participating in trials, they must convince the others that they're having a terrible time, despite not really taking part in the task, reports the Mirror . In Friday night's highlights, Ant and Dec revealed to Maura and Richard that they had tricked Danny and Dean into believing they had already participated in The Deadly Department Store challenge for a chance to win 2 stars for their dinner, but were unsuccessful. Maura confessed she was "loving" the deception, while Richard admitted he felt "consumed with guilt" over the constant lying. When Dean and Danny arrived, Ant and Dec informed them they needed to visit three shops to find stars - which would secure luxury meals for their camp. During the challenge, the boys managed to find eight stars while dealing with fish guts and pigeons. A final twist revealed that one of them would have to move to the junkyard, and it was up to Richard and Maura to decide who. They chose Dean - leaving the radio star deflated, unaware that the junk yard was actually filled with luxuries rather than hardship. However, during the trial, viewers speculated that hosts Ant and Dec were giving Dean hints on where to find stars. They seemed to repeatedly mention the items that should be searched to increase the chances of finding a meal-worthy reward. They kept referencing the fish guts in one part of the trial - only for Dean to fail to search the area properly. Viewers took to social media to suggest that hosts Ant and Dec were showing favouritism. One fan tweeted: "Could @antanddec be giving Dean anymore hints ... this guyyyyyy #ImACeleb." Another added: "Ant and Dec are dropping a few hints there #ImACeleb #ImACelebrity." However, not all fans were impressed with Dean's performance, as one viewer commented: "Danny is amazing.. dean is rubbish #ImACeleb."Waterless Printing Plate Market Outlook and Future Projections for 2030GUWAHATI: Manipur's 10 Kuki legislators, including seven from BJP, urged the Centre and state govt Thursday to initiate a political dialogue to restore peace in the violence-hit state. Their call came in response to an eight-point resolution passed Monday during a meeting of NDA ministers and legislators convened by CM N Biren Singh. The Kuki MLAs boycotted the meeting. They accused state govt of escalating tensions for political motives. "The misdemeanour seems emanating from certain quarters to save the shaky chair of CM," they said. Addressing the Centre's reimposition of Afspa on Nov 14, the Kuki legislators said it "needs immediate review." The 1958 law gives special powers to soldiers during counter-insurgency/terrorism operations. The Kuki MLAs advocated for extending Afspa to the remaining 13 police jurisdictions in Imphal valley to "facilitate the recovery of more than 6,000 sophisticated weapons looted by Meitei militia since May 3" last year when ethnic violence erupted in the state. "This is a long overdue action required to contain the violence," they said. Monday's meeting had earlier resolved to request the Centre to review Afspa's reimposition in areas under six police stations. The MLAs criticised the resolution to conduct "mass operations against Kuki militants responsible for the killing of six innocent women and children in Jiribam," calling it "biased" for targeting a single community. "Mass operations must be conducted throughout the state to recover all illegal arms from all militia groups," they insisted. They also opposed the resolution to declare the alleged perpetrators in the Jiribam killings as an unlawful organisation. "This must be preceded by the declaration of the Arambai Tenggol and Meitei Leepun as unlawful organisations under relevant laws," they said. They reacted to the killing of 10 Hmar men during a CRPF operation on Nov 11 in Jiribam. While the forces labelled them as militants, the Kuki-Zo community asserted that the men were village volunteers.

India and Kuwait Forge Strategic Partnership Amidst Historic Visit

ATLANTA (AP) — Deliberations are underway in Atlanta after a year of testimony in the gang and racketeering trial that originally included the rapper Young Thug. Jurors are considering whether to convict Shannon Stillwell and Deamonte Kendrick, who raps as Yak Gotti, on gang, murder, drug and gun charges. The original indictment charged 28 people with conspiring to violate Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Opening statements in the trial for six of those defendants happened a year ago . Four of them, including Young Thug, pleaded guilty last month. The rapper was freed on probation. Stillwell and Kendrick rejected plea deals after more than a week of negotiations, and their lawyers chose not to present evidence or witnesses. Both seemed to be in good spirits Tuesday morning after closings wrapped the previous night. Kendrick was chatting and laughing with Stillwell and his lawyers before the jury arrived for instructions. Kendrick and Stillwell were charged in the 2015 killing of Donovan Thomas Jr., also known as “Big Nut,” in an Atlanta barbershop. Prosecutors painted Stillwell and Kendrick as members of a violent street gang called Young Slime Life, or YSL, co-founded in 2012 by Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams. During closings on Monday, they pointed to tattoos, song lyrics and social media posts they said proved members, including Stillwell, admitted to killing people in rival gangs. Prosecutors say Thomas was in a rival gang. Stillwell was also charged in the 2022 killing of Shymel Drinks, which prosecutors said was in retaliation for the killing of two YSL associates days earlier. Defense attorneys Doug Weinstein and Max Schardt said the state presented unreliable witnesses, weak evidence and cherry-picked lyrics and social media posts to push a false narrative about Stillwell, Kendrick and the members of YSL. Schardt, Stillwell's attorney, reminded the jury that alleged YSL affiliates said during the trial that they had lied to police. Law enforcement played a “sick game” by promising they would escape long prison sentences if they said what police wanted them to say, Schardt said. He theorized that one of those witnesses could have killed Thomas. The truth is that their clients were just trying to escape poverty through music, Schardt said. “As a whole, we know the struggles that these communities have had,” Schardt said. “A sad, tacit acceptance that it’s either rap, prison or death.” Young Thug’s record label is also known as YSL, an acronym of Young Stoner Life. Kendrick was featured on two popular songs from the label’s compilation album Slime Language 2, “Take It to Trial" and “Slatty," which prosecutors presented as evidence in the trial. Weinstein, Kendrick’s defense attorney, said during closings it was wrong for prosecutors to target the defendants for their music and lyrics. Prosecutor Simone Hylton disagreed, and said surveillance footage and phone evidence supported her case. “They have the audacity to think they can just brag about killing somebody and nobody’s gonna hold them accountable,” Hylton said. The trial had more than its fair share of delays. Jury selection took nearly 10 months , and Stillwell was stabbed last year at the Fulton County jail, which paused trial proceedings. Judge Paige Reese Whitaker took over after Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville was removed from the case in July because he had a meeting with prosecutors and a state witness without defense attorneys present. Whitaker often lost patience with prosecutors over moves such as not sharing evidence with defense attorneys, once accusing them of “poor lawyering.” But the trial sped up under her watch. In October, four defendants, including Young Thug , pleaded guilty, with the rapper entering a non-negotiated or “blind” plea, meaning he didn't have a deal worked out with prosecutors. Nine people charged in the indictment, including rapper Gunna , accepted plea deals before the trial began. Charges against 12 others are pending. Prosecutors dropped charges against one defendant after he was convicted of murder in an unrelated case. ___ Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Kramon on X: @charlottekramon Charlotte Kramon, The Associated PressIt was supposed to be the gender-gap election. In Iowa, pollster Ann Selzer had Vice President Kamala Harris beating former president Donald Trump by more than 20 points among women, which wouldn't have been that far off the 15-point margin President Joe Biden won them by in 2020 . And Seltzer's margin was largely in line with the predictions of news outlets—with CBS reporting 12 points, NBC 16, and USA Today 17. But all of these prognostications turned out to be horribly wrong. The overall gender gap actually narrowed in 2024, with just 53 percent of women choosing Harris and 45 percent favoring Trump. But focusing on gender alone obscures a bigger picture, a story that not only explains the most recent election, but the leftward drift of the Democratic Party generally, and possibly future electorates to come. While women overall moved towards Trump, his support among unmarried women fell from 46 percent in 2020 to just 38 percent in 2024. He was saved by winning married women, extending his lead among married men, and flipping unmarried men to his side, 49 to 47 percent. By holding his ground among married women and adding to his lead among married men, Trump was able to expand his lead among all married voters from just seven points in 2020 to 13 points in 2024. Donald Trump is president thanks to the votes of married Americans. This was the marriage-gap election. As strong as Trump was among married Americans, and despite his gains among unmarried men, the exit polls did contain some troubling news for the Republican Party . For the first time ever, unmarried women outnumbered married women at the polls. Not only are unmarried women the nation's fastest-growing voting demographic, they are also the only demographic moving further to the Left. Unless Trump does something to stop our nation's falling marriage rate, the Left-leaning politics of unmarried women will only grow in strength at the ballot box. From the first census of the United States in 1790 through 1960, about 80 percent of households were led by a married couple. That percentage started falling in the 1960s. It dipped below 50 percent in 2010, and has fallen to near 45 percent today. Culture and technology are both culprits in the decline of marriage, but public policy is as well. While the number of households receiving direct cash benefits through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program has waned, the percentage of working-class families that use other means-tested safety-net programs—like Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, Food Stamps, and Section 8 housing—has grown dramatically. All together, federal and state governments spend over $1 trillion a year on programs that punish marriage through means-testing. It is exactly among these families that marriage has declined the most. The federal government is perfectly capable of ending the marriage penalties built into its programs. Another reason marriage rates have fallen among the working class is the relative decline in wages for non-college educated men. While wages for all American workers have risen since 1970, women and college-educated men have benefited the most. The bottom 10 percent of male earners saw their wages decline more than 7 percent . Since women tend to seek men who make as much or more than they do, this decline in low-skill male wages means fewer men will be considered marriage-eligible by working women who have seen their income rise. The answer to this problem is obviously not lower pay or less work for women, but rather policies that boost the wages of lower-skilled male workers. Trump's efforts to secure the border and deport illegal immigrants will help do that. But even more can be achieved. Trump needs to make America a country that builds again. That means working with Congress on real permitting reform, including a thorough rewrite of the National Environmental Policy Act, which adds costs, delays, and uncertainty to every infrastructure project in the country that requires federal-agency approval. More construction projects means more construction jobs and therefore higher pay for more men. More men with higher-paying jobs means more marriages. More marriages means more married women voting Republican and in turn fewer unmarried women voting for Democrats . Partisan electoral advantage is not the primary reason Republicans should build an agenda around addressing the decline of marriage in the United States, however. Marriage is good in itself. It benefits not just husband and wife, not just the children of a stable marriage, but entire communities and ultimately the whole country. To reverse rising income inequality, the disintegration of civil society, and falling birth rates—all issues rooted in the decline of marriage—we must change course on public policy. Fortunately, it appears Trump intends on doing exactly that. Conn Carroll is commentary editor for Washington Examiner. He is the author of Sex and the Citizen: How the Assault on Marriage is Destroying Democracy. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.

EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Vikings linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. has been placed on injured reserve after hurting his hamstring Sunday in a 30-27 overtime victory over the Chicago Bears. The move announced Tuesday means that Pace must miss at least the Vikings next four games. The Vikings also activated outside linebacker Gabriel Murphy from injured reserve and signed linebacker Jamin Davis off the Green Bay Packers practice squad. Pace, 23, had started each of the Vikings nine games this season. The 2023 undrafted free agent from Cincinnati had 56 tackles — including six for loss — and three sacks. Murphy, 24, signed with the Vikings as an undrafted free agent this spring. He was placed on injured reserve Aug. 27. Davis had joined the Packers practice squad Oct. 29 after getting released by the Washington Commanders a week earlier. Washington selected him out of Kentucky with the 19th overall pick in the 2021 draft. The 25-year-old Davis has 282 tackles, seven sacks, one interception, two forced fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles in his NFL career. He led the Commanders with a career-high 104 tackles in 2022. The Vikings (9-2) host the Arizona Cardinals (6-5) on Sunday. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL The Associated Press

Avon did not have to dig deep in its toolbox to win games in the regular season. In the playoffs, it has unleashed quarterback Nolan Good to his full potential. Soon after Good received the 2024 Lorain County Golden Helmet award, it was announced on Nov. 25 that he was crowned the winner of The Morning Journal’s Matt Wilhelm Award. “I am blessed,” he said. “I am trying to stay as humble as possible through all of this. I still have a lot to accomplish, in terms of my high school season. I have two weeks left and am really trying to buckle down to win these last two weeks.” Even with the inclusion of underclassmen and teams from outside Lorain County that aren’t part of the field for the Golden Helmet, Good maintained his separation from the pack. “I think that when our offense is looking in that huddle, they get a sense of confidence in what we are about to do and know that if we do our job, he is going to make a play,” Avon coach Mike Elder said. Avon quarterback Nolan Good wins 2024 Lorain County Golden Helmet award /*! This file is auto-generated */!function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i

With just 63 more votes than his opponent, former Cupertino Planning Commissioner Ray Wang has won a spot on the City Council, ending a lengthy contest — that included a recount — against Rod Sinks to fill the second open seat. Wang finished the contest with 7,641 votes, or 18.5% of the vote while Sinks got 7,578 votes or 18.4% of the vote. The numbers come as a recount by the Santa Clara County Register of Voters ended on Monday, the county confirmed. The final results will be certified on Friday. “We’re super excited, it shows how every vote counts,” Wang said. “We do the hard work, we read the stuff. I’m really looking forward to working with (Moore). Our goal is to bring the community together.” Sinks said he is disappointed by the loss, but looks forward to serving on other nonprofit boards and “contributing to the community in different ways.” A recount is triggered when the margin of victory between two candidates is less than 0.25% of all ballots cast, or less than 25 votes. A candidate only needs to win by a simple majority once a recount is finished. The Cupertino candidates were previously separated by 65 votes, which the Register of Voters recognizes as meeting the 0.25% requirement. Wang will join incumbent Councilmember Kitty Moore in leading the city for the next four years. Moore won the first seat with 10,344 votes or 25.14% of the vote. Moore and Wang ran on a joint platform to promote a “resident first” council by advocating for more fiscal accountability and responsible development in the city. Moore refers to herself as a “smart watch dog” when it comes to dealing with council affairs and proposed new city developments. Sinks ran a campaign aimed at expanding transportation services and eco-friendly practices in the city. He also advocated for turning The Rise, the site of the former Vallco Mall, into a vibrant business-friendly downtown for Cupertino. Sinks and Councilmember Hung Wei closely supported each other during the race, which was complicated by Wei’s stage four lung cancer diagnosis. “We ran a very strong campaign,” Sinks said. “Unfortunately for two people, we’re running against five people for the two seats.” Sinks said he is concerned at how the newly-elected leaders will impact the city’s developments plans for The Rise and downtown areas. Mayor Sheila Mohan, Vice Mayor J.R. Fruen and Wei have favored pro-development. But with the addition of Moore and Wang, who have been more critical of council approval of large projects, the city’s leaders could embark on a less development-friendly route. Aside from Sinks, Moore and Wang, four other candidates were in the race to fill Cupertino’s two open council seats this election season, including incumbent Wei, former mayors Gilbert Wong and Barry Chang and political newcomer Claudio Bono.

Soccer-Outstanding Arsenal thump Sporting 5-1 in Lisbon

Real vs. fake: Can you spot AI-generated images?FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Jalen Jackson scored 23 points as Purdue Fort Wayne beat Robert Morris 82-77 on Sunday. Jackson had six rebounds and three steals for the Mastodons (6-4, 1-1 Horizon League). Corey Hadnot II scored 13 points, shooting 4 of 11 from the field and 5 for 6 from the free-throw line. Rasheed Bello went 4 of 11 from the field (2 for 4 from 3-point range) to finish with 12 points. Alvaro Folgueiras finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals for the Colonials (6-5, 0-2). Robert Morris also got 19 points, four assists and four steals from Kam Woods. Ryan Prather Jr. finished with 14 points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

Ousted Syrian leader Assad flees to Moscow after fall of Damascus, Russian state media say DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Russia media say ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad has fled to Moscow and received asylum from his longtime ally. The reports came hours after a stunning rebel advance swept into Damascus to cheers and ended the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule. Thousands of Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire, joyful after a stifling, nearly 14-year civil war. But the swiftly moving events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region. The rebels face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country still split among armed factions. One rebel commander said “we will not deal with people the way the Assad family did." Analysis: Collapse of Syria's Assad is a blow to Iran's 'Axis of Resistance' MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — For Iran’s theocratic government, it keeps getting worse. Its decadeslong strategy of building an “Axis of Resistance” supporting militant groups and proxies around the region is falling apart. Hamas has been batttered by Israel's campaign in Gaza. In Lebanon, Israeli bombardment has crippled Iran’s most powerful ally, Hezbollah, even as Israel has launched successful airstrikes openly inside of Iran for the first time. And now Iran’s longtime stalwart ally and client in Syria, President Bashar Assad, is gone. Who is Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the leader of the insurgency that toppled Syria's Assad? BEIRUT (AP) — Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the militant leader who led the stunning insurgency that toppled Syria’s President Bashar Assad, has spent years working to remake his public image and that of his fighters. He renounced longtime ties to al-Qaida and depicts himself as a champion of pluralism and tolerance. The extent of that transformation from jihadi extremist to would-be state builder is now put to the test. The 42-year-old al-Golani is labeled a terrorist by the United States. He has not appeared publicly since Damascus fell early Sunday. But he and his insurgent force, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, stand to be a major player in whatever comes next. Trump says he can't guarantee tariffs won't raise US prices and won't rule out revenge prosecutions WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says he can’t guarantee his promised tariffs on key U.S. foreign trade partners won’t raise prices for American consumers. And he's suggesting once more that some political rivals and federal officials who pursued legal cases against him should be imprisoned. The president-elect made the comments in a wide-ranging interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday. He also touched on monetary policy, immigration, abortion and health care, and U.S. involvement in Ukraine, Israel and elsewhere. Trump often mixed declarative statements with caveats, at one point cautioning “things do change.” The hunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO's elusive killer yields new evidence, but few answers NEW YORK (AP) — Police don’t know who he is, where he is, or why he did it. As the frustrating search for UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s killer got underway for a fifth day Sunday, investigators reckoned with a tantalizing contradiction: They have troves of evidence, but the shooter remains an enigma. One conclusion they are confident of, however: It was a targeted attack, not a random one. On Sunday morning, police declined to comment on the contents of a backpack found in Central Park that they believe was carried by the killer. Thompson was shot and killed Wednesday outside of a hotel in Manhattan. Trump calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and says a US withdrawal from NATO is possible WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is pushing Russian leader Vladimir Putin to act to reach an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine. Trump describes it as part of his active efforts as president-elect to end the war despite being weeks from taking office. Trump also said he would be open to reducing military aid to Ukraine and pulling the United States out of NATO. Those are two threats that have alarmed Ukraine, NATO allies and many in the U.S. national security community. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says any deal would have to pave the way to a lasting peace. The Kremlin's spokesman says Moscow is open to talks with Ukraine. Gaza health officials say latest Israeli airstrikes kill at least 14 including children DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinian health officials say Israeli airstrikes in central Gaza have killed at least 14 people including children, while the bombing of a hospital in northern Gaza has wounded a half-dozen patients. Israel’s military continues its latest offensive against Hamas militants in northern Gaza, whose remaining Palestinians have been almost completely cut off from the rest of the territory amid a growing humanitarian crisis. One airstrike flattened a residential building in the urban Bureij refugee camp Sunday afternoon. That's according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby city of Deir al-Balah, where the casualties were taken. South Korea's democracy held after a 6-hour power play. What does it say for democracies elsewhere? SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A short-lived martial law decree by South Korea's leader last week raised worries about budding authoritarianism around the world. In the end, though, democracy prevailed. President Yoon Suk Yeol announced that he was declaring martial law and giving his government sweeping powers to crack down on protesters, ban political parties and control the media. Members of the military blocked lawmakers from using the legislature's constitutional power to cancel the power grab. But the National Assembly within hours unanimously voted to do so. Trump's return may be a boon for Netanyahu, but challenges abound in a changed Middle East TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is jubilant about President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House. Trump's first term policies skewed heavily in favor of Israel, and he has picked stalwart Israel supporters for key positions in his administration. But much has transpired since Trump left office in early 2021. The turmoil in the Middle East, the lofty ambitions of Netanyahu’s far-right governing coalition and Netanyahu’s own personal relationship with the president-elect could dampen that enthusiasm and complicate what on the surface looks like a seamless alliance. First 12-team College Football Playoff set, Oregon seeded No. 1 and SMU edges Alabama for last spot SMU captured the last open spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff, bumping Alabama to land in a bracket that placed undefeated Oregon at No. 1. The selection committee preferred the Mustangs (11-2), losers of a heartbreaker in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, who had a far less difficult schedule than Alabama (9-3) of the SEC but one fewer loss. The first-of-its-kind 12-team bracket marks a new era for college football, though the Alabama-SMU debate made clear there is no perfect formula. The tournament starts Dec. 20-21 with four first-round games. It concludes Jan. 20 with the national title game in Atlanta.

The year is almost over, and it's time to make some bold predictions for 2025. In this article, three Motley Fool contributors draw on their experience to forecast what may be in store for the stock market next year. Here's what they have to say about Artificial Intelligence (AI) software stocks , Ark Innovation ETF , the Magnificent Seven , and more! Prediction: AI software stocks will rock and roll in 2025 Jake Lerch (AI software stocks): My prediction is that 2025 will be the year of software stocks. Think about it: Hardware stocks were some of the top-performing stocks of 2024. Semiconductor companies like Nvidia , Broadcom , and ARM Holdings saw their stocks skyrocket as demand for high-powered chips went through the roof. However, as the calendar turns from 2024 to 2025, I predict that the stock market may begin to shift its attention away from chip stocks and toward software stocks like SoundHound AI and Palantir . Indeed, over the last few months, a shift has already started, with the stocks of application-makers like SoundHound and Palantir outpacing semiconductor stocks like Nvidia and AMD. NVDA data by YCharts What's more, some of these software companies remain relatively small in terms of market cap. As of this writing, SoundHound AI sports a market cap of about $8 billion. That makes it a potential acquisition target for deep-pocketed tech mega-caps . For example, Meta Platforms has over $70 billion in cash on hand -- more than enough to snap up SoundHound with tens of billions in cash left over. But it's not just the upstarts that could benefit from the shifting focus to software. Companies in the digital advertising and digital learning spaces could also benefit as stock market participants look beyond AI hardware to some of its practical applications. Reddit is testing an AI-powered answering tool that could help the company draw more users -- and ad dollars. Learning app Duolingo is expanding beyond language learning by incorporating music and math lessons. Those new lessons -- powered by AI -- will help Duolingo attract more users and subscribers. In short, the everyday uses of AI are nearly limitless -- and they're just starting to roll out. Because of that, I predict 2025 will be the year that AI-powered software shines bright. Prediction: The broadening of the tech rally will boost this ETF Will Healy (Ark Innovation ETF): Although many investors profited from the latest bull market, the rally was not broad-based. Instead, most of the benefit went to the top stocks. One can see this when comparing the performance of the S&P 500 over the last two years to that of the Russell 2000 . ^SPX data by YCharts This has worked against Cathie Wood's Ark Innovation ETF ( ARKK 2.11% ) , as most of its holdings are not S&P 500 stocks. The ETF is up by just over 20% this year, and all of that gain occurred following the U.S. presidential election. Fortunately for Ark Holdings, many of these stocks left behind by the current rally seemed to move off their lows in recent weeks. As interest rates fall and post-election optimism rises, this should bode well for Cathie Wood's flagship ETF. To see this, one only has to look at its holdings. Of its top 10 positions, only Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) and Palantir (NASDAQ: PLTR) are S&P 500 stocks. However, the recovery is now trickling down to the non-S&P holdings. For example, its second-largest holding, Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) , makes up more than 9% of the fund and appeared to miss most of the current tech rally. While Roku is still more than 80% lower than its 2021 high, its stock has risen by over 60% from its August low, an improvement helping the Ark Innovation ETF. The improvement is more profound for fourth place holding Roblox (NYSE: RBLX) , which is around 6% of the Ark Innovation ETF. Although that stock has stagnated since the 2022 bear market, it has doubled in value from its May low. The rally started even earlier for a stock that is 5% of the fund, Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ: HOOD) , which is up over 240% this year! Such improvements are indicators that the tech rally has finally moved beyond the Magnificent Seven and other top stocks. As we move into 2025 and the rest of the tech sector finally begins to rally, a long-awaited recovery for the Ark Innovation ETF appears to be at hand. Prediction: Valuations in some of the popular mega-cap technology stocks will start turning over Justin Pope (Magnificent Seven): Anyone with investment exposure to the Magnificent Seven stocks, including Apple , Alphabet , Amazon , Meta Platforms , Microsoft , Nvidia, and Tesla, has likely enjoyed the past two years. The Magnificent Seven represents approximately 32% of the S&P 500 index, so their widespread outperformance has helped carry the stock market. My 2025 prediction is that some of these names will start running out of steam. These companies lead or compete in a handful of high-growth end markets, including e-commerce , digital advertising , cloud computing , semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics , and more. If you're investing for the long term, the Magnificent Seven should still be a winning choice. However, some of these companies have risen so much that their valuations have gotten ahead of the underlying businesses, which could lead to a down year for some big names in 2025. For example, Apple's AI tech, Apple Intelligence, may not be the home run investors hoped for. Yet, the stock trades at 34 times earnings despite analysts forecasting under 10% annualized long-term growth. That's a pretty steep valuation. Tesla has rallied hard since the presidential election but trades at 177 times its earnings despite soft sales in its core vehicle business. Analysts estimate Tesla will grow earnings by 8% annually over the next several years, which is nowhere near enough to justify such a high price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. Some Magnificent Seven names could keep running next year. Alphabet and Meta trade at P/E ratios of 24 and 27, respectively. Meanwhile, analysts believe they will each grow earnings by 16% to 18% annually over the long term. That's far more growth at a better price than you're getting from Apple and Tesla. The bottom line? Investors should pay close attention to the growth they're getting and the price they pay for it. Indiscriminately buying the Magnificent Seven has worked for two years, but that trend may soon end.

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