Business

Yum Brands and Nvidia are teaming up to bring artificial intelligence to Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC restaurants.
Restaurant companies such as McDonald’s and Wendy’s have been investing in AI to save on labor and improve their operations.
Yum has used a series of acquisitions to build up its internal tech operations, now integrated under its Byte platform.

A Taco Bell fast-food restaurant and drive-thru at dusk in Gastonia, North Carolina.
Jeff Greenberg | Universal Images Group | Getty Images

Two chipmakers are teaming up.
Yum Brands is partnering with tech giant Nvidia to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence in its restaurants.

The restaurant company, which owns Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut, said on Tuesday that the collaboration will allow Yum to roll out AI order-taking, Nvidia-powered computer vision and restaurant performance assessments fueled by AI.
As tech giants compete in an AI arms race, restaurant companies have also been using the technology to stay ahead of rivals by improving their operations and saving money on labor. Fast-food chains have been testing AI to take drive-thru orders, check the accuracy of orders, decide how to schedule workers effectively and place supply orders.
Many restaurant chains besides Yum have sought partnerships with tech giants. McDonald’s teamed up with Google Cloud and Wendy’s supply chain co-op partnered with Palantir, among other deals. But not all partnerships have been successful. McDonald’s ended its collaboration with IBM on voice AI in June, although the burger giant said IBM remained a “trusted partner.”
The partnership is Nvidia’s first with a restaurant company. It also marks a shift in strategy for Yum, which has used a slew of acquisitions to build up its internal tech operations, now housed under its Byte platform. Yum will own the intelligence from the partnership, allowing the company to customize it as needed, like integrating more advanced AI models.
Yum has already been piloting Nvidia technology in some Pizza Hut and Taco Bell locations. A broader rollout of the technology is expected to hit more than 500 restaurants across Yum’s portfolio during the second quarter.

The terms of the Nvidia partnership were not disclosed, but Yum said it was “subject to mutually agreeable definitive agreements.”
Shares of Nvidia have climbed 35% over the past year, while Yum’s stock has risen 14% during the same period. Investors have largely remained bullish on AI, although Nvidia’s stock has lost some steam over concerns about competition and the broader economy.
Nvidia’s market cap of $2.9 trillion dwarfs that of Yum, which has a market cap of $43.8 billion.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO More

General Motors and Nvidia agreed to a strategic collaboration that includes the automaker utilizing several products and artificial intelligence services.
GM has been using Nvidia graphics processing units, or GPUs, for training AI models across various areas, including simulation and validation. The new business expands to in-vehicle hardware, automotive plant design and other operations, the companies said.
GM declined to disclose a cost for the new tools with Nvidia, which has been attempting to diversify its automotive business.

Jensen Huang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Nvidia Corp., speaks during the Nvidia GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in San Jose, California, US, on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. 
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

General Motors and Nvidia have agreed to a strategic collaboration that includes the automaker using several products and artificial intelligence services from the tech giant for its next-generation vehicles, advanced driver-assistance systems and factories.
The companies on Tuesday announced that the new initiatives include building custom artificial intelligence systems using Nvidia compute platforms, including “Omniverse with Cosmos,” for optimizing GM’s factory planning and robotics.

The Detroit automaker also said it will use “Nvidia Drive AGX” for “in-vehicle hardware for future advanced driver-assistance systems and in-cabin enhanced safety driving experiences.”
GM declined to disclose a cost for the new tools with Nvidia. The tech company has been attempting to diversify its automotive business, which has notably included substantial work in data centers and GPUs.
“The era of physical AI is here, and together with GM, we’re transforming transportation, from vehicles to the factories where they’re made,” Jensen Huang, Nvidia founder and CEO, said in a release. “We are thrilled to partner with GM to build AI systems tailored to their vision, craft and know-how.”

GM has been using Nvidia graphics processing units, or GPUs, for training AI models across various areas of its business, including simulation and validation. The new business expands to in-vehicle hardware, automotive plant design and operations, the companies said.
The automaker also had been testing Nvidia’s Omniverse since at least 2022. Some of GM’s testing was in designing a “digital twin,” or replica, of its new design center and processes to assist virtual vehicle development. It also acted as a single digital environment for employees to work and collaborate in, according to a video last year featuring GM for Nvidia’s GTC developer conference in 2023.

Jensen Huang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Nvidia Corp., speaks during the Nvidia GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in San Jose, California, US, on Tuesday, March 18, 2025.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Nvidia anticipated it would strike a deal with GM mid-last year for Omniverse, according to an internal company email viewed by CNBC. At that time, two sources with GM signaled the automaker wasn’t sure Nvidia’s software and GPUs were worth the high cost compared with other companies.
It wasn’t immediately clear what sealed the deal for GM. But since that time, both companies have experienced increased competition from China and uncertain regulatory changes such as tariffs. GM’s stock is off roughly 8% during in 2025, while Nvidia is off about 12% this year.
“AI not only optimizes manufacturing processes and accelerates virtual testing but also helps us build smarter vehicles while empowering our workforce to focus on craftsmanship,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in Nvidia’s release. “By merging technology with human ingenuity, we unlock new levels of innovation in vehicle manufacturing and beyond.”

Stock chart icon

GM and Nvidia stock prices

The companies announced the new initiatives in connection with Nvidia’s GTC AI conference this week in California.
Nvidia describes Omniverse as a platform for “developing and deploying physically based industrial digitalization applications.” It’s essentially connecting a physical environment with a digital, or software, world to optimize processes using a “digital twin” of a physical environment such as a GM design facility or plant.
Users of Nvidia’s Omniverse have included BMW, Amazon Robotics and Samsung, Rev Lebaredian, Nvidia vice president of Omniverse and simulation technology, said during a media briefing a year ago. He said the company was licensing Omniverse for $4,500 per GPU, per year.
It’s unclear how many GPUs GM will need. But given the amount of robotics, sensors and other systems needed to operate a modern assembly plant, it would likely be quite a bit.
More than 20 other automakers have used Nvidia’s “system on a chip” hardware in the central computing units of their smart vehicles, including Mercedes Benz, Volvo, Audi, Volkswagen and BYD, according to an industry equity research note from Jeffries in November 2023.
In recent years, Nvidia has seen soaring demand for its GPUs, which are used for everything from bitcoin mining to AI inference and training. More

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are heading home after about nine months at the International Space Station.
The two veteran NASA astronauts were only supposed to be in space for a little more than a week.
The pair arrived at the ISS on a troubled Boeing Starliner capsule that returned empty without them.
Wilmore, Williams and two other crew members are expected to splash down back on Earth on Tuesday evening.

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore, left, and Suni Williams pose inside the hatch connecting Boeing’s Starliner to the International Space Station on

The two U.S. astronauts who had been at the International Space Station for nine months after their faulty Boeing Starliner capsule returned without them are finally heading home.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams — as well as fellow NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov — are set to splash down on Earth at about 5:57 p.m. ET, roughly 19 hours after closing the hatch on the SpaceX capsule that’s carrying them, according to NASA’s estimated schedule.

Wilmore and Williams left Earth in June on a test flight that was originally intended to last about nine days.
But their stay was extended after thrusters on Boeing’s Starliner capsule “Calypso” failed during docking, raising concerns about the ship’s ability to carry them home. NASA ultimately sent the capsule back empty after it was docked for about three months at the space station, saying it wanted to “further understand the root causes” of the spacecraft’s issues.
NASA also announced that Wilmore and Williams, who are both veteran astronauts and retired Navy test pilots, would return on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft instead. The agency adjusted its rotation of astronauts as a result, removing two people from SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission — which is returning to Earth this week — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.
That capsule carrying the two people on Crew-9 arrived at the ISS back in September. Crews rotate on the ISS, which means that each group of astronauts works until the next arrives at the space station, when a ceremonial “handover” occurs.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off, carrying NASA’s Crew-10 astronauts to the International Space Station at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., March 14, 2025. 
Joe Skipper | Reuters

NASA had originally planned for SpaceX’s Crew-10 mission — which needed to arrive before the Crew-9 members could come back down — to launch in February, but it was delayed by about a month.

The rocket carrying the four new crew members launched on Friday evening, and its capsule docked at the space station about 29 hours later.
The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to check a final box for Boeing and deliver a key asset for NASA. The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk’s SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.
Instead, it’s unclear what Boeing’s future crewed space plans are. The company has lost more than $2 billion on its Starliner spacecraft.

This image taken from video posted by NASA shows, from left, Butch Wilmore, Nick Hague and Suni Williams speaking during a news conference, Tuesday, March 4, 2025.

Wilmore and Williams’ journey became entangled in politics once President Donald Trump took office. Trump and Musk, who has become a close advisor to the president, urged a quicker Crew-10 launch and said without evidence that the two astronauts were “stranded” on the space station and that the Biden administration had kept them up there for political reasons. NASA had delayed the Crew-10 launch in December to allow more time to process a new Dragon capsule, but decided to use a reusable capsule to cut down on wait time.
NASA’s plans for returning the two astronauts have remained consistent since the agency announced them in August.

During their extended stay, Wilmore and Williams became part of a normal rotation, conducting scientific experiments and routine maintenance as any other astronaut on rotation at the ISS would. Williams also conducted a spacewalk.
Williams has said repeatedly that the pair doesn’t feel “abandoned” at the ISS, but that she was looking forward to returning home to see her family and her two dogs.
“It’s been a roller coaster for them, probably a little bit more so than for us,” she told reporters earlier this month.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO More

Frontier is temporarily selling economy bundles that include seat assignments and a carry-on bag.
It is also offering free checked bags for summer travel, a swipe at Southwest Airlines.
Southwest shocked customers by ending its two free checked bags policy this May.

Frontier Airlines took a swipe at Southwest Airlines’ plan to start charging for seat assignments and checked luggage by doing the opposite.
Budget carrier Frontier said customers can receive a bundle that includes a seat assignment and a carry-on bag without an upcharge if they book Tuesday through March 24 for travel through Aug. 18. The promotion applies for nonstop trips booked on Frontier’s website or app.

For flights departing May 28 through Aug. 18, Frontier said it would include a free checked bag.
The change comes a week after Southwest shocked customers by announcing, starting May 28, it will get rid of its long-standing policy of allowing customers to check two bags for free. Southwest was an outlier with that policy among airlines, and executives there had repeatedly said they didn’t plan to change it.

Read more CNBC airline news

“We’ve always had heart,” CEO Barry Biffle said in a news release, an apparent swipe at its rival. Southwest, whose home airport is Dallas Love Field, has a love-and-hearts motif as part of its branding and its stock ticker is LUV. “Some airlines are walking away from what travelers love, but we’re running towards it. Think of this as the ultimate ‘divorce old airline’ deal. If travelers show us the love, we’ll make these perks permanent.”
Frontier and fellow discount airline Spirit Airlines have been offering fare bundles and easing some of their stricter policies, like on change fees, to attract more customers. Meanwhile, larger carriers like Delta, American, United, and most recently, Southwest, have been adopting a la carte fees and no-frills ticket options that the budget carriers have long offered.
Last week, executives at United, Delta and Spirit said Southwest’s policy changes could be good for their carriers. Airlines are also grappling with a recent drop in domestic travel demand that has weighed on first-quarter estimates.
Southwest didn’t immediately comment on Frontier’s new promotion. More

Cadillac expects between 30% and 35% of its U.S. sales this year to be EVs, as the automaker continues to expand its lineup despite industrywide slower-than-expected adoption.
The General Motors luxury brand is expected to offer five EVs by the end of this year, including its recently launched Escalade IQ and Optiq entry-level crossover.
Cadillac’s U.S. sales last year increased 8.8%, led by more than tripling sales of the Lyriq, which first went on sale in late 2022.

2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ
Michael Wayland / CNBC

SAN FRANCISCO — Cadillac expects roughly one of every three vehicles it sells in the U.S. this year to be all-electric models, as the automaker continues to expand its EV lineup despite industrywide slower-than-expected adoption of the vehicles.
The General Motors luxury brand is expected to offer five electric vehicles by the end of this year, including its recently launched Escalade IQ and Optiq entry-level crossover. They join the Cadillac Lyriq, which will be followed later in the year by the three-row Vistiq crossover and the bespoke, $300,000-plus Celestiq car.

“The momentum is really there,” Brad Franz, Cadillac’s director of marketing, told CNBC. “We’re going to ride that momentum and we’re not launching the vehicles to redistribute the business among [internal combustion engines] and EV portfolio. It’s to grow the business.”

Read more CNBC auto news

Cadillac is targeting EVs to make up between 30% and 35% of its total domestic sales in 2025, Franz said. That would be a notable increase from 18% of U.S. sales, or 29,072 vehicles, in 2024.
EVs represented 8.1% of the roughly 16 million vehicles sold last year in the U.S., according to Cox Automotive. That was lower than the 10% analysts expected to begin the year.
The additional EVs and expected sales increase follow Cadillac walking back plans to exclusively offer all-electric vehicles by 2030. Instead, the company said the elimination of gas-powered vehicles will be determined by customer demand, but that it would still offer a full lineup of EVs.

Cadillac Optiq crossover
Michael Wayland / CNBC

Cadillac is one of several brands to abandon plans to exclusively sell EVs in the years to come, as consumer adoption of the vehicles has not occurred as quickly as previously expected. There’s also increasing concern for EV sales amid President Donald Trump’s lack of federal support for the vehicles.

“Our EV portfolio will complement our gas power side of the portfolio and bring new customers to the brand,” Franz said during a media event to launch the Escalade IQ and Optiq. “It’s our commitment to choice and offering those customers choice.”
Cadillac’s U.S. sales last year increased 8.8%, led by more than tripling sales of the Lyriq, which first went on sale in late 2022.

The Escalade IQ, including a larger “L” version, and Optiq are important new “bookend” vehicles for the carmaker, which aims to be the top-selling luxury EV brand in the country. The company does not include Tesla, which is the top-selling EV brand in the U.S. and has some vehicles at similar price points to Cadillac, in its definition of “luxury.”
“Optiq and Escalade IQ are going to ramp up very fast,” Franz said. “We’re taking everything that Escalade means today in the marketplace and now offering it as an EV halo that customers will recognize and trust.”
The Escalade IQ, starting at roughly $130,000, is the largest all-electric SUV offered by any automaker. It is set to test the large SUV market for EVs, while expanding the lineup of Cadillac’s best-known and highly profitable vehicle. The vehicle features similar design cues to Cadillac’s other EVs, as well as the gas-powered Escalade.
The Optiq will act as the “gateway” entry-level EV, starting at about $55,000 — roughly $4,000 less than the larger Lyriq. It enters an increasingly competitive electric crossover segment, which is currently led by the Lyriq.

Interior of the 2025 Cadillac Optiq with GM’s Super Cruise hands-free driver-assistance system.

The Optiq will also debut a new partnership with Dolby Laboratories for the audio company’s “Atmos,” a surround sound technology that initially debuted for theaters. The system will grow across Cadillac’s lineup.
Cadillac expects the Lyriq — produced in Tennessee — to continue to be its top-selling EV despite the Optiq being less expensive, Franz said.
The Optiq is being produced at one of GM’s plants in Mexico. Franz declined to comment on how potential 25% tariffs being threatened by Trump on vehicles from Mexico are expected to impact the vehicle’s sales.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO More

For Global companies, there is no place quite like America. As growth in China and Europe has slowed, its economy has continued expanding at a decent clip. America remains by far the world’s biggest consumer market, accounting for almost 30% of total spending, and is home to the largest stock of foreign direct investment (FDI), at around $5trn. More

Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy protection for a second time and is expected to close all U.S. stores, after it faced steep competition from Chinese-founded e-tailers like Shein and Temu.
The fast-fashion retailer has already started going out of business sales at more than 350 locations, but is still holding out hope a buyer could materialize and take over operations.
The operating company’s U.S. business is headed for outright liquidation, but the brand name will live on under its owner, Authentic Brands Group.

Shoppers enter a Forever 21 fashion retail store at the King of Prussia mall in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, U.S. September 30, 2019.
Mark Makela | Reuters

Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in six years on Sunday and blamed fast-fashion e-tailers Shein and Temu for its demise. 
The retailer’s operating company is expected to cease all operations in the U.S. and has already begun liquidation sales at its more than 350 locations, but it’s still open for bids if a buyer is willing to take on its inventory and keep running its stores, court filings show. 

Forever 21 has been seeking a buyer for several months and made contact with more than 200 potential bidders, 30 of which signed confidentiality agreements, but no viable deal has come together, court papers say. CNBC previously reported the operating company was in talks with liquidators and would have a hard time finding a buyer for its business.
The company’s bankruptcy comes six years after it emerged from its first filing only to face the Covid-19 pandemic, the highest inflation in decades, and new competition from Chinese-founded upstarts like Shein and Temu. 
In a court filing, Stephen Coulombe, the operating company’s co-chief restructuring officer, said Forever 21 was “materially and negatively impacted” by Shein and Temu’s use of the de minimis exemption, which “undercut” its business. The exemption is a trade law loophole that has historically allowed goods valued under $800 to be shipped into the U.S. without import duties. President Donald Trump is trying to end it.
“Certain non-U.S. online retailers that compete with the Debtors, such as Temu and Shein, have taken advantage of this exemption and, therefore, have been able to pass significant savings onto consumers,” Coulombe wrote. “Consequently, retailers that must pay duties and tariffs to purchase product for their stores and warehouses in the United States, such as the Company, have been undercut.”
“Despite wide-spread calls from U.S. companies and industry groups for the U.S. government to create a level playing field for U.S. retailers by closing the exemption, U.S. laws and policies have not solved the problem,” he added.

The owner of Forever 21′s operating company, Sparc Group, which recently reorganized to form a new company dubbed Catalyst Brands, tried to counteract Shein’s competitive threat in 2023 by partnering with the upstart. But the deal didn’t do enough to stem the company’s losses or lead to any changes in de minimis rules, said Coulombe.
“The ability for non-U.S. retailers to sell their products at drastically lower prices to U.S. consumers has significantly impacted the Company’s ability to retain its traditional core customer base,” wrote Coulombe. 
While Forever 21’s operating company is headed toward outright liquidation in the U.S., it doesn’t mean that the brand will cease to exist. Its international stores and website are expected to keep operating, and its brand name and other intellectual property owned by brand management firm Authentic Brands Group are not up for sale, CNBC previously reported. 
The firm could still find new operators that are willing to run the business in the U.S., either now or in the future. 
“We are receiving lots of interest from strong brand operators and digital experts who share our vision and are ready to take the brand to the next level,” Jarrod Weber, global president of lifestyle at Authentic Brands Group, said in a statement. “Our U.S. licensee’s decision to restructure its operations does not impact Forever 21’s intellectual property or its international business. It presents an opportunity to accelerate the modernization of the brand’s distribution model, setting it up to compete and lead in fast fashion for decades to come.”
After its first bankruptcy filing, Forever 21 enjoyed a period of respite where the business performed well. It had been bought by a consortium including Authentic Brands Group and landlords Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners and had new capital and a trimmed down store fleet.
In fiscal 2021, it generated $2 billion in revenue and $165 million in EBITDA. But as competition and inflation increased, compounded by supply chain challenges and shifting consumer preferences, Forever 21’s performance began to sputter. In the last three fiscal years, the company lost more than $400 million, including $150 million in fiscal 2024 alone. The company projects it will lose $180 million in EBITDA through 2025. 
Last year, Authentic Brands Group CEO Jamie Salter said at a conference that buying the business was “probably the biggest mistake I’ve made.” A few months later, CNBC reported that the company was asking landlords to cut its rent by as much as 50% as it looked to reduce costs and stave off a second bankruptcy filing. While those efforts generated $50 million in savings, it wasn’t enough to counteract the company’s losses.
The operating company currently owes $1.58 billion in various loans, and more than $100 million to dozens of clothing manufacturers, primarily located in China and Korea.
Founded in 1984, Forever 21 has long been credited as a leader in the fast-fashion movement. At its peak, the company employed 43,000 people and generated more than $4 billion in annual sales.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO More

PepsiCo is buying prebiotic soda brand Poppi for $1.95 billion, which includes $300 million of anticipated cash tax benefits.
Poppi’s founders Allison and Stephen Ellsworth launched the brand back in 2018, the same year that rival Olipop was founded.
Pepsi’s rival Coca-Cola recently launched its own prebiotic soda brand, called Simply Pop.

Super Bowl ad of Poppi.
Source: Poppi

PepsiCo said Monday that it is buying prebiotic soda brand Poppi for nearly $2 billion.
While soda consumption has broadly fallen over the last two decades in the U.S., prebiotic sodas, fueled by industry newcomers Poppi and Olipop, have won over health-conscious consumers over the last five years. The category’s growth makes it attractive for Pepsi and its rival, Coca-Cola, which recently launched its own prebiotic soda brand, Simply Pop.

Pepsi said it plans to acquire the upstart Poppi for $1.95 billion. The deal includes $300 million of anticipated cash tax benefits, making the net purchase price $1.65 billion.
Pepsi will also have to make additional payments if Poppi achieves certain performance milestones within a set time frame after the acquisition closes.
Pepsi did not say when the deal is expected to close, pending regulatory approval.
Poppi’s founders Allison and Stephen Ellsworth launched the brand back in 2018, the same year that Olipop was founded. Poppi’s formula includes apple cider vinegar, prebiotics and just five grams of sugar.
The company recently made its second straight Super Bowl appearance with an ad during the big game, demonstrating both its deep pockets and a desire to reach an even wider audience.

But as Poppi’s sales have grown, it has also attracted backlash for its health claims. The company is currently in talks to settle a lawsuit that argued Poppi’s drinks are not as healthy as the company claims, according to court filings.
For its part, rival Olipop was valued at $1.85 billion during its latest funding round, which was announced in February. In 2023, Olipop founder and CEO Ben Goodwin told CNBC that soda giants PepsiCo and Coca-Cola had already come knocking about a potential sale. More