5 Things to Watch on
April 28, 2026

Stocks are down more than -0.7% today as geopolitical tensions remain in focus, with Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi arriving in Russia to meet President Putin after weekend negotiations with the U.S. reached a stalemate. President Trump convened his national security team to weigh Iran's proposal to end the third-month war, which has killed thousands and disrupted global energy supplies. Iran has signaled willingness to accept an interim deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for Washington lifting its blockade of Iranian ports, while postponing nuclear talks. Trump reportedly remains unsatisfied, insisting any agreement must curb Tehran's nuclear program.

Alphabet (GOOGL) signed an amended agreement with the Department of Defense allowing the Pentagon to use its AI models for "any lawful government purpose," including classified work. The deal arrives as hundreds of GOOGL employees petitioned CEO Sundar Pichai to block military use of its AI, just two months after Anthropic was dropped by the Defense Department for requesting a similar restriction. The agreement extends an existing contract and broadens GOOGL's footprint in government AI.

Amazon (AMZN) has struck a multi-year licensing deal with Oprah Winfrey, bringing twice-a-week video podcasts, Favorite Things and Book Club specials, and the full 25-season Oprah Winfrey Show library to Prime Video, Amazon Music, Fire TV, and Audible beginning this summer. The agreement is comparable in scope to the $100M deal AMZN signed with the Kelce brothers' podcast in 2024, underscoring the company's growing ambitions in video podcasting. Ad revenue will be shared between Winfrey and AMZN.

Spotify (SPOT) is down -9% in premarket trading despite reporting Q1 EPS of $3.45, beating estimates by $0.51, as monthly active users grew +12% YoY to 761M and premium subscribers rose +9% to 293M despite recent price increases across major markets including the U.S. and U.K. Gross margin hit a Q1 record of 33% and free cash flow reached €824M, also a Q1 record, as SPOT rolled out AI-powered personalization features and expanded audiobook discovery. For Q2, SPOT guided to €4.8B in revenue and 778M MAUs, though operating income guidance came in below expectations.

Elon Musk and Sam Altman face off in civil court today over Musk's claims that Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman betrayed OpenAI's founding nonprofit mission by pivoting the company toward profit. OpenAI, now valued at $852B, was co-founded by Musk in 2015; his August 2024 lawsuit alleges the shift to a commercial model was made behind his back. The outcome could meaningfully reshape the balance of power across the AI industry.