VAT Group Q3 Orders Surge 193% on AI Demand

Key Takeaways

• VAT Group's Q3 orders surged 193% year on year to 697 million francs on AI-driven demand
• VAT now expects 2027 sales to exceed its prior 1.5–1.7 billion francs forecast
• About 150 fabs are under construction globally, with some observers projecting over $200 billion in wafer fabrication equipment spending by 2027
• CoreWeave's bond yields spiked to 15%, raising concerns about AI demand sustainability
• Ramp reached a $60 billion valuation after raising $1.85 billion, with annualized revenue crossing $2 billion
• ServiceNow launched AI Passport, a runtime governance tool working with NVIDIA OpenShell
• Tesollo expects robotic hand sales to exceed 1,000 units by end of 2026
• Robots & Pencils acquired Tiger Pistol to accelerate AI product development for businesses

VAT Group expects 2027 sales to surpass guidance on AI demand

Swiss valve maker VAT Group expects 2027 sales to significantly exceed its prior forecast of 1.5 to 1.7 billion francs. The company reported record third-quarter order intake of 696.6 million francs, up 193% from a year earlier. Sales rose 46% year on year to 376.4 million francs. VAT is expanding production capacity to meet strong demand for advanced semiconductors and AI infrastructure.

VAT reports highest quarterly orders and sales amid AI chip demand

VAT reported Group orders of 697 million francs in the third quarter, up 193% year on year. Net sales reached 376 million francs, up 46% year on year. Demand was driven by data center spending and high-volume production of Gate All Around semiconductors. VAT added 450 full-time employees in Q3 and aligned its supplier base for continued growth into 2027.

VAT sees strong growth phase with about 150 fabs planned

VAT said the market remains in a strong structural growth phase as about 150 fabs are under construction or planned over the next three years. Market observers have upgraded wafer fabrication equipment estimates, with some expecting over 200 billion dollars in 2027. VAT reiterated its 2026 guidance and expects orders, sales, net income and free cash flow to exceed 2025 levels.

ServiceNow launches AI Passport to govern AI agents

ServiceNow introduced AI Passport, a cryptographically signed credential that gives enterprises runtime control over what AI agents can do. The tool works with NVIDIA OpenShell and includes kill switch capabilities at machine speed. ServiceNow also announced the Super Intelligence Control Tower to keep audit records behind AI agent actions. AI Passport is built on open specifications for third-party use.

ServiceNow adds tools to build AI agents and verify identities

ServiceNow expanded its AI governance tools with shadow-AI detection, over 400 connectors for AI discovery, and cost management features. The AI Passport gives every agent a verifiable identity checked at runtime. ServiceNow also launched ToolSmith, a developer environment trained on over 75,000 APIs. AI Passport, Shadow AI detection and AI Cost Management are expected to be available by year end.

Global AI stock selloff deepens as investors flee to Treasurys

A global selloff in AI-linked stocks has worsened, pushing the Nasdaq down 12% this month. Investors are moving money into Treasurys to avoid risk. New expectations for tighter monetary policy in the US and Europe are fueling the sell-off. The rout reflects growing worry about how much companies are borrowing to build out AI infrastructure.

Mortgage servicers must prepare for borrower AI agents

Consumer AI agents are now handling customer service tasks, including in mortgage servicing. Servicers need clear rules on what these agents can do and how to verify their authority. The article recommends focusing on disclosure, authentication, and ongoing fitness of the agent. Human involvement should remain for sensitive decisions that affect someone's home.

CoreWeave bond yield spike signals potential AI slowdown

Cloud computing firm CoreWeave saw its bond yields spike to 15%, raising concerns about a slowdown in AI demand. CoreWeave leases high-end NVIDIA GPUs to AI developers. Investors worry the company may struggle to repay short-term debt. The rising yield also questions whether companies will keep paying high prices for AI computing power.

Ramp reaches $60 billion valuation with new AI push

Expense management company Ramp raised $1.85 billion in a new funding round, valuing it at $60 billion. Its annualized revenue has crossed $2 billion. Ramp is expanding into payments, fraud detection, accounting, and other areas while embedding AI agents into its products. The company has now raised about $5 billion in total funding and competes with Rippling and Anthropic.

AI agents need data guardrails beyond sandboxing

AI coding agents running in Docker Sandboxes are isolated but can still leak sensitive data. An agent might read a credential from a project file and send it to an external model without breaking the sandbox. Mend AI Guardrails adds a second security layer that checks data before it reaches the AI model. The Mend Guardrails SBX Kit works as a mixin for existing Codex sandboxes.

Tesollo robotic hand sales expected to pass 1,000 units in 2026

Tesollo, a South Korean robotics company, expects cumulative sales of its robotic hands and grippers to exceed 1,000 units by the end of 2026. The company expanded its production facilities in 2026 to meet growing demand from humanoid robotics, Physical AI and industrial automation. Shareholders include Samsung Venture Investment, POSCO Technology Investment, HL Mando and Daesung Hi-Tech. Tesollo offers articulated end-effectors ranging from one-finger mechanisms to five-finger dexterous robotic hands.

GesBench benchmark tests how multimodal AI models perceive social meaning

Researchers introduced GesBench, a human-grounded benchmark for measuring how multimodal language models perceive social meaning. The benchmark uses over 6000 utterance-level clips from scripted and unscripted conversations to test when models form interpretations of speaker intention. It also evaluates whether regions humans focus on are important for model judgments. Results show humans form predictive understandings earlier than models, which tend to hedge or repeat across clips.

Robots & Pencils acquires Tiger Pistol to build AI products

Robots & Pencils, an applied AI engineering firm founded in 2012, acquired Tiger Pistol, a marketing technology company founded in 2010. The acquisition will help Robots & Pencils turn AI patterns into products and make it easier for businesses to adopt AI solutions. The deal terms were not disclosed and the acquisition is expected to close in the coming weeks. Tiger Pistol gains access to Robots & Pencils' AI engineering expertise while Robots & Pencils gains Tiger Pistol's marketing technology products.

Sources

• VAT Group sees 2027 sales well above its guidance as AI demand surges
• Highest QUarterly order intake and sales ever as strong AI and technology driven semiconductor demand continues
• Highest QUarterly order intake and sales ever as strong AI and technology driven semiconductor demand continues
• ServiceNow gives AI agents a passport, and limits on what they can do
• ServiceNow makes it easier to build AI agents, gives them verifiable identities
• Global AI Stock Rout Deepens as Investors Seek Safety in Treasurys
• Before your borrower’s AI agent calls mine: Three questions mortgage servicers aren’t asking yet
• CoreWeave's 15% bond yield spike signals potential AI growth slowdown
• Ramp reaches $60B valuation as it pushes deeper into AI
• Your AI agent is sandboxed. Its data still needs guardrails.
• Tesollo Expects Cumulative Robotic Hand and Gripper Sales to Surpass 1,000 Units in 2026
• GesBench: When and Where Do Multimodal Language Models Perceive Social Meaning?
• Dealroom.co | Robots & Pencils buys Tiger Pistol to turn AI patterns into products