Your 5 weekly reads:

  1. Anthropic investors are targeting $2T in an October IPO

  2. The S&P 500 closed at an all-time high on easing inflation

  3. Inflation fell to 3.4% in July, core CPI approaches Fed’s 2% target

  4. In plain English: The 1% AUM fee

  5. Watch: Range’s co-founders discuss how to get VC funding

1. MARKET ROUNDUP
Claude’s Big Break

  • Anthropic investors are targeting a $2T valuation for an October IPO, which would make it the largest listing ever.

  • Retail sales fell 0.6% in July, the biggest drop since May 2025, against forecasts of roughly +0.1%, as the boost from tax refund checks faded.

  • Annual CPI fell to 3.4% in July, and core CPI (which excludes volatile food and energy costs) dropped to an annual 2.5%, the lowest print since 2021, sending the S&P 500 to a record 7,799 close on Thursday.


Range Takeaway: Anthropic’s expected public debut will be a key read on how much appetite public markets have for AI and mega-IPOs. Investors have been demanding receipts from major AI spenders, and the latest major listing, SpaceX, is still trading below its IPO price. Fortunately for Anthropic, they’re a slightly different bet. Revenue is compounding extraordinarily fast, from $1B less than 2 years ago to a projected $100–120B annualized by year-end. While markets are tiring of paying for massive AI capex, Anthropic will soon unveil what they’ll pay for the real, quickly compounding revenues driven by that AI spend.

2. THE BIG TAKE
Stocks Cheer, Bonds Jeer

A heavy week of macroeconomic data set the stage for conflicting signals for stocks and bonds. The S&P 500 closed at an all-time high on Thursday, while the Treasury paid its highest 10-year and 30-year borrowing rates since before the 2008 Great Financial Crisis.

Core inflation rose only 0.2% MoM, pulling the annual rate down to 2.5%, its lowest rise since 2021. Energy remains the outlier: prices fell 1.5% for the month but are still nearly 15% above last year. This should continue to be constructive for markets, as it tells us the Iran-driven energy shock remains contained. Retail sales tell a tougher story, with their biggest drop in over a year; though some speculate the drop could be partially attributed to a spending hangover following June’s Amazon Prime Day and World Cup festivities.

The market’s response reflected the conflicting data. Near-term rates fell, as odds of the Fed hiking rates in September fell from about 50% to just over 30%. Traders are now pricing in just one rate hike this year, which is what the stock market wanted to hear.

But the long end of the bond market wasn’t celebrating. As the national debt approaches $40T and the uncertain backdrop of midterm elections and war abroad persists, 10- and 30-year yields have plenty of reasons to shrug off cooling inflation. As long as these factors continue, long-term rates (think mortgages and corporate loans) aren’t likely to come down.

3. BY THE NUMBERS
Outside of Energy & Food, Inflation Keeps Falling

  • 2.5%: Core inflation in July, down another 0.1 point from June and closing in on the Fed's 2% target.

  • 3.4%: July’s headline CPI, up just 0.1% MoM, and nearly a full point above core CPI.

  • 2.2%: What the bond market expects inflation to average over the next decade, per 10-year breakevens, barely above target.

4. FROM THE RANGE TEAM
Investment Strategies Explained: The Toll Booth on Your Wealth

This is the fifth and final entry in our series translating the strategies Range uses to manage member portfolios into plain English. This week, the one that can cost the most and gets explained the least: the 1% AUM fee.

Most traditional advisors charge roughly 1% of everything you’ve invested with them, every year.1 That’s called an assets under management (AUM) fee.

Here’s what that toll looks like in practice. On a $500,000 portfolio, a 1% AUM fee would cost $5,000 in year one. But when you pay it on a growing balance every year, it can compound against you. Think of a gym that raises your membership fee every time you get stronger. You did the work, but the bill goes up anyway.

Instead, Range charges a flat, transparent fee ranging from $3,950 to $12,500 per year, depending on your membership tier.1 Because your portfolio doubling shouldn’t double your bill. It’s that simple.

💬 What would you like our financial planning team to explain next? Join our community and help us pick next week’s topic.

5. THE DAILY RANGE
Hear From Range’s Co-Founders: How to Actually Get VC Funding

Co-founders Fahad Hassan and David Cusatis have raised over $100 million to build Range. In episode 4 of the Wide Range podcast, they get specific about what pitching VCs is actually like in 2026: whether early-stage investors are betting on founders or ideas, how to land a warm intro from a standing start, and how much traction a seed round really requires.

▶️ Subscribe on YouTube so you don’t miss episode 5

RAI PROMPT OF THE WEEK

One advantage of flat fee wealth management: opening another account doesn’t cost you more. So the only question left is which accounts actually serve your plan.

Ask Rai: “What types of investment accounts should I open with Range and why?” and our AI wealth advisor will look at your income, tax situation, and goals to walk through which accounts could benefit your plan (taxable brokerage, traditional or Roth IRA, joint or individual) and why each one earns its place.2

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1Brokerage fees, transaction charges, and other applicable platform fees imposed by our custodian are not included in your membership and will be passed through to you as the Member. Additionally, fund fees charged by third-party managers (such as mutual fund or ETF expense ratios) will apply; these fees are separate from your membership and are not received or shared by Range in any way.

2Please see Range Advisory’s ADV Part 2A for important risk disclosures and risks related to the use of AI. Recommendations depend on the accuracy and completeness of the information you provide to us. Recommendations based on incorrect or incomplete data may not be accurate.