September 28, 2026

Presented By

’Sup. After 21 MLB seasons, Detroit Tigers legend Justin Verlander pitched his final game on Saturday, a 4–3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. When it was time for the 43-year-old to walk off the mound, his seven-year-old daughter ran out to give him a big hug, causing him to break down in tears. It was also an emotional moment for many fans, who were grateful to have a nice reason to cry, instead of the usual Detroit Tiger reasons.

—Brendan Cosgrove, Holly Van Leuven, Neal Freyman

In today’s newsletter, we’ll get into:

Institutional investors out-trading retail investors
The terror probe involving a UK air base
Ford’s employee of the month being a hawk (Literally.)

Markets: Year-to-Date

Nasdaq

27,068.72

+16.46%

S&P

7,743.41

+13.12%

Dow

51,828.62

+7.83%

10-Year

5.184%

+102.1 bps

Bitcoin

$83,704.66

-4.35%

Turning down the volume

Retail investors—who tend to lack the sophisticated expertise and fleece vests that professional traders possess—are often referred to as “dumb money,” and, historically, they didn’t account for huge proportions of trading volume. But things changed during the pandemic, when zero-commission trading, social media coordination, and home-baked sourdough fueled a retail revolution, thanks in part to the rise of meme stocks.

Most experts thought the dumb money trend would fade away, but it proved resilient. By 2025, it was looking smarter than ever, thanks to the TACO trade, where individual investors bought market dips on the assumption that President Trump would roll back policy proposals, while institutional investors watched the volatility from the stands.

But things have started to flip back this year, and the so-called smart money is at the front of the parade again. According to a CNBC report:

Retail investors’ share of S&P 500 trading volume is now more than three percentage points below the five-year average, according to Goldman Sachs.
Meanwhile, institutional investors’ options flow is three times higher than it usually is in September, according to data from Vanda Research.

Where have all the retail investors gone?

Some are handing their decision-making over to AI agents, which, with the right prompts, can act like ~~boring~~ dispassionate hedge fund managers that might be more content to ride out long-term waves (and, theoretically, make fewer trades).

Others are stepping away from stocks and taking advantage of the highest bond yields in more than a decade. Through August, $625 billion net flowed into US bond funds so far this year—the highest that number’s been since 2010, according to research firm Morningstar.

Meanwhile, in an uncertain macro environment, institutional investors are still finding horses to bet on. They’re just being more selective and sticking to specific AI stocks, like Meta, according to Viraj Patel, global market strategist at Vanda.—BC

Not-so-niche application

While skeptics fear for early adopters loading their personal information into Muse for help with tasks, the app’s popularity is growing. It’s overtaken ChatGPT as the No. 1 free app on the Apple App Store and Google Play charts for US downloads.

Among other functions, Muse can successfully identify and cancel unwanted recurring charges for everything from fitness streamers to electrolyte supplements. And a lot of people have them:

Subscription spending rose 7.7% year-over-year in July, faster than overall credit card spending, according to payment data from Bank of America.
Research cited by CNBC showed that many people won’t cancel unwanted recurring subscriptions unless they are forced to.

Zoom out: Investors are eyeing companies that will be negatively impacted by these developments. A Goldman Sachs note quoted by Bloomberg said that as Muse improves “at price comparison, trip booking, and dealing with customer service…industries that rely on recurring bills, negotiable pricing, and add-ons could come under pressure.”—HVL

Reader Poll

Would you use Muse or another AI agent to cancel subscriptions on your behalf?

I’m already doing it and I love it.
I would like to do it.
I am never, ever, ever giving my data to an AI agent.
I’m undecided.

Neighborly trivia

On National Good Neighbor Day, we’re going to give you a country that borders one (1) other on land. Name these countries’ only other land neighbors.

Haiti
Portugal
Qatar
Monaco
Brunei
The Gambia

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Answer

Dominican Republic
Spain
Saudi Arabia
France
Malaysia
Senegal

Word of the Day

Today’s Word of the Day is: logy, meaning “sluggish.” Thanks to Melody from Missouri for the low-key great suggestion. Submit another Word of the Day here.

✢ A Note From DealMaker

This is a paid advertisement for DealMaker. Investments in private placements, and startup investments in particular, are long-term, illiquid, speculative, and involve a high degree of risk, and those investors who cannot afford to lose their entire investment should not invest in startups.

✳︎ A Note From T-Mobile

*Best Mobile Network: Based on analysis by Ookla of Speedtest Intelligence® data 1H 2026. Ookla trademarks used under license and reprinted with permission.

If you cancel entire account before receiving all bill credits, credits stop and balance on required finance agreement is due (e.g., $1,199.99 – Apple iPhone 18 Pro 256GB). Bill credits end if you pay off device early. Tax on pre-credit price due at sale. Limited-time; subject to change. Qualifying credit and service ($100+/mo. plan w/AutoPay, plus taxes & fees), & eligible trade-in (e.g., Save $1,200: iPhone 16; Save $930: iPhone 14; Save $500: iPhone 6) required. Trade-in terms and conditions apply. $35 device connection charge due at sale. Up to $1,200 via bill credits; line with promo must be active and in good standing to receive credits; allow 2 bill cycles. Max 4 discounted devices/account. May not be combinable with some offers, discounts, or promotions.

Written by Brendan Cosgrove, Holly Van Leuven, and Neal Freyman

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