Chip Stock Investor Podcast

IBM just unveiled NanoStack, its take on the CFET transistor architecture that succeeds gate-all-around as the next step in chip scaling — and it could turn IBM's patent portfolio into a real semiconductor royalty business.
IBM claims NanoStack delivers up to a 50% jump in compute performance or a 70% gain in energy efficiency versus its 2021 two-nanometer IP. IBM sold its chip manufacturing business to GlobalFoundries back in 2015, yet it still holds one of the largest patent portfolios in the industry, and IP licensing and custom development income made up nearly 10% of IBM's GAAP net income in 2025. We break down IBM's 2025 revenue, R&D spend, and licensing income, then identify who benefits most across the supply chain, including ASML, Lam Research, Tokyo Electron, and Screen Holdings as advanced lithography, etch, deposition, and wafer-cleaning suppliers to Rapidus, the Japanese foundry startup aiming to ramp production by 2027.
This is part of our ongoing coverage of the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain and the next 15 years of chip advancement.
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Content in this video is for general information or entertainment only and is not specific or individual investment advice. Forecasts and information presented may not develop as predicted and there is no guarantee any strategies presented will be successful. All investing involves risk, and you could lose some or all of your principal.

Marvell (NASDAQ: MRVL) stock has surged since Jensen Huang called it the next trillion-dollar company — we ran a reverse DCF on the Q1 FY2027 earnings to see if the rally is justified.
Marvell just posted record Q1 fiscal 2027 results, with revenue up 28% year-over-year to $2.4 billion and guidance pointing to 35% growth next quarter. As a fabless chip designer and IP licenser, Marvell is riding two major tailwinds: hyperscaler demand for custom AI chips (ASICs and XPUs) and networking systems that interconnect GPUs across data centers, including a growing partnership with NVIDIA via NVLink.
We break down the earnings report, the CFO transition to Dan Durn (formerly of Adobe and Applied Materials), the balance sheet impact of the Celestial AI acquisition, and rising share dilution from recent deals. Then we run a reverse discounted cash flow analysis on Marvell at its current price to determine what growth rate is already priced in, and whether the semiconductor cycle and AI infrastructure buildout can realistically support it.
If you're weighing whether Marvell is still a buy after this rally, or looking for better value elsewhere in the semiconductor supply chain, this one's for you.
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Content in this video is for general information or entertainment only and is not specific or individual investment advice. Forecasts and information presented may not develop as predicted and there is no guarantee any strategies presented will be successful. All investing involves risk, and you could lose some or all of your principal.CSI doesn't own shares of Marvell.

Memory and optical semiconductor stocks have been the standout trade of 2026, with holdings like Micron, SK Hynix, and SanDisk up well over 100% year-to-date on tight supply and rising pricing. In this mid-year portfolio review, we break down six months of real performance across our memory holdings (Micron, SK Hynix, SanDisk, Western Digital, Seagate, NVE Corp, GSI Technology) and optical networking positions (Lumentum, Coherent, Applied Optoelectronics, Broadcom, Viavi Networks), explain why we're maintaining our allocation despite outsized gains, and walk through the risk management conversation every investor should be having right now.

We also dig into the looming supply-side risk from CXMT's IPO in China, how the "Fab Five" equipment makers (ASML, Applied Materials, Lam Research, Tokyo Electron, KLA) and Chinese players like ACM Research fit into the memory cycle, and why Lumentum and Coherent remain our top optical picks for the second half of 2026, backed by NVIDIA's direct investment in both companies. This is a research-backed, data-driven portfolio update built for long-term fundamental semiconductor investors — not stock picking hype.
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Content is for general information and entertainment only and is not investment advice. CSI owns shares of the companies discussed.

Rubrik (RBRK) stock is down near $70 after peaking above $89 — but its subscription ARR is still growing over 30%. Here's the reverse DCF and margin math behind why the recovery has stalled.
Rubrik (NYSE: RBRK) is one of the smaller names in the cybersecurity sector, operating in the data storage and backup security niche — a category distinct from network security players like Palo Alto Networks and Fortinet, or endpoint security leaders like CrowdStrike. In this excerpt from our Semiconductor Insider Live session, Nick and Kasey Rossolillo break down why Rubrik has lagged the broader cybersecurity recovery even as subscription ARR growth stays above 30% and reported revenue grows nearly 40% year-over-year.
We dig into the free cash flow story to explain why it has stalled sequentially even as it grows year-over-year. We also explore what that margin compression means for a smaller, AI-infrastructure-dependent company, and how Rubrik's balance sheet ($1.7B cash vs. $1.1B long-term debt) holds up. Finally, we run a reverse discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis to see what growth assumptions are baked into the current stock price and discuss how small and mid-cap software stocks fit into a diversified, long-term portfolio strategy.
This is educational content for self-directed investors evaluating semiconductor-adjacent software and cybersecurity plays in 2026.
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Related Episode: We called this back in June — Listen/Watch here

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Content in this podcast is for general information or entertainment only and is not specific or individual investment advice. Forecasts and information presented may not develop as predicted and there is no guarantee any strategies presented will be successful. All investing involves risk, and you could lose some or all of your principal.
CSI owns shares of Rubrik.

The memory chip industry has historically been plagued by vicious boom-and-bust cycles, but Micron is taking aggressive steps to rewrite the rules. In this episode of Chip Stock Investor, we discuss Strategic Customer Agreements (SCAs).
We break down the "take-or-pay" contracts, explaining how they protect Micron from the sudden order cancellations and double-booking panics that burned the industry in 2022 and 2023. With competitors like Samsung and SK hynix also completely sold out of capacity, Micron is actively leveraging its position to lock in upfront cash deposits and secure its long-term financial runway.
The Take-or-Pay Mechanism: How Micron's new agreements force customers to either take delivery of the product or pay a pre-agreed minimum cancellation charge to protect Micron's bottom line.

A $100 Billion Backlog: Exploring the massive pipeline generated by these SCAs, which are expected to make up about 40% of Micron's total revenue over the next five years.

Locked-In Terms: A detailed look at the five-year contracts for hyperscalers (running from calendar 2026 through 2030) and three-year contract terms for automotive customers.

Pricing Safeguards: How these contracts are structured using floor prices, ceiling prices for existing products, and fixed rates to stabilize revenue against market volatility.

$22 Billion in Upfront Cash: Why tech giants and hyperscalers are depositing billions directly onto Micron's balance sheet to guarantee their spot in line for memory chips.

The Albemarle Blueprint: What Albemarle's long-term lithium contracts can teach us about how Micron's SCAs might help them weather future oversupply environments and market downcycles.

Resources Mentioned:For a growing library of tools for your analysis of semiconductor companies, visit chipstockinvestor.com. Don't forget to hit follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode!