Nvidia said it won’t be sending graphics processing unit plans to China following a report that the artificial intelligence chipmaker is working on a research and development center in Shanghai in light of recent U.S. export curbs.

“We are not sending any GPU designs to China to be modified to comply with export controls,” a spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC.

The Financial Times was the first to report the news, citing two sources familiar with the matter. CEO Jensen Huang discussed the potential new center with Shanghai’s mayor, Gong Zheng, during a visit last month, the FT reported.

The center will assess ways to meet U.S. restrictions while catering to the local market, although production and design will continue outside China, according to the report.

AI chipmakers such as Nvidia have been hit with major China roadblocks since 2022 as the U.S. began cracking down on sending advanced chips to China because of concerns of possible military use.

Last week, the Trump administration said it would replace restrictions put in place under President Joe Biden with a “much simpler rule that unleashes American innovation and ensures American AI dominance.” Nvidia said last month that it would take a $5.5 billion charge tied to selling its H20 GPUs in China and other countries.

Huang has previously commented on the significance of China, which is one of the company’s major market after the U.S., Singapore and Taiwan. He told CNBC this month that getting shut out of the world second-largest economy would be a “tremendous loss,” estimating that China’s AI market could hit $50 billion over the next two to three years.

“We just have to stay agile,” Huang told CNBC’s Jon Fortt, in an interview alongside ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott. “Whatever the policies are of the government, whatever is in the best interest of our country, we’ll support,” he added.

Cava on Thursday reported better-than-expected sales in its latest fiscal quarter, shaking off the malaise the broader restaurant industry has felt as consumers have cut back on dining.

The Mediterranean chain said its same-store sales grew 10.8% in the three months that ended April 20, lifted by traffic growth of 7.5%. Analysts surveyed by StreetAccount were projecting same-store sales growth of 10.3%.

“When we look at our consumers in the quarter, we saw an increase in premium attachment on higher priced items, like our pita chips or amazing housemade juices. We also saw that our per person average continued to increase, and then when we look at our results, there’s positive traffic across all of our geographies, across all of our income cohorts, as well as the different formats of our restaurants and dayparts,” Chief Financial Officer Tricia Tolivar told CNBC.

She added that diners have been trading up from fast food and down from casual-dining restaurants into Cava’s bowls and pitas, a trend the company has seen for several quarters.

Elsewhere in the restaurant industry, companies have been reporting very different behavior from consumers, although many companies’ results did not include any time in April, when the industry’s sales and traffic performance improved.

Fast-casual rival Chipotle said its transactions fell 2.3% in the first quarter as consumers pulled back their spending in February, spooked by economic uncertainty. Sweetgreen reported its first quarterly same-store sales decline since it went public in 2021. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said fast-food industry data showed both low- and middle-income consumers spending less. The burger giant said U.S. same-store sales declined 3.6% for the first quarter.

Despite the strong quarterly performance, Cava reiterated its same-store sales forecast, sticking with its projections of a 6% to 8% increase. The chain said last quarter that it is expecting slower growth in the back half of its fiscal 2025.

The stock fell 5% in extended trading. As of Thursday’s close, Cava shares have slid 11% so far this year, hurt by investor concerns over its conservative outlook for the fiscal year and the economic fallout from the Trump administration’s tariffs.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

The company reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $25.71 million, or 22 cents per share, up from $13.99 million, or 12 cents per share, a year earlier. Cava reported an income tax benefit of $10.7 million related to stock-based compensation, which boosted its earnings this quarter.

Net sales climbed 28% to $332 million. On a 12-month trailing basis, Cava’s revenue has surpassed $1 billion, representing a major milestone for the company.

The company did raise some of its projections for the fiscal year.

Cava now anticipates adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $152 million to $159 million, up from its prior forecast of $150 million to $157 million. The company also plans to open between 64 and 68 new locations, higher than its previous outlook of between 62 and 66 restaurant openings.

Netflix said Wednesday its cheaper, ad-supported tier now has 94 million monthly active users — an increase of more than 20 million since its last public tally in November.

The company and its peers have been increasingly leaning on advertising to boost the profitability of their streaming products. Netflix first introduced the ad-supported plan in November 2022.

Netflix’s ad-supported plan costs $7.99 per month, a steep discount from its least-expensive ad-free plan, at $17.99 per month.

“When you compare us to our competitors, attention starts higher and ends much higher,” Netflix president of advertising Amy Reinhard said in a statement. “Even more impressive, members pay as much attention to mid-roll ads as they do to the shows and movies themselves.”

Netflix also said its cheapest tier reaches more 18- to 34-year-olds than any U.S. broadcast or cable network.

Bombas founder David Heath is stepping down from his role as CEO as the socks and apparel company looks to expand beyond its direct-to-consumer roots.

Bombas President Jason LaRose, a former Under Armour and Equinox executive, will take over as the company’s next CEO effective Thursday. Heath said he realized it was necessary for a retail veteran to lead the company through its next phase of growth.

“We’ve reached a size and scale that is beyond my expertise. I didn’t come from a big apparel company before … I found myself more so over the last 18 months saying, ‘I don’t know what to do next,’” Heath, who is staying at Bombas as its executive chair, told CNBC in an interview. “So then, when I looked at someone with Jason’s background … having that tried and true experience is what will set Bombas up to succeed for the next chapter and I think I feel more comfortable having someone with Jason’s experience in the driver’s seat.” 

LaRose, who spent six years at Under Armour and oversaw its North America business, takes the helm at a critical point in Bombas’ growth story. 

Bombas’ revenue has grown 22% in its current fiscal year through April, it’s reached more than $2 billion in lifetime sales and its EBITDA is at a “super healthy, double digit” margin, LaRose told CNBC. The company’s footwear segment, such as its ultra-popular Sunday Slipper, is expanding the fastest. The company expects footwear revenue will soar more than 70% this year, but socks are still growing steadily, with sales up 17% in April compared to the prior year. 

But in order to reach its goal of growing from a “Shark Tank” startup into a multibillion dollar company over the next five-to-10 years, Bombas needs to expand its wholesale presence. Retailers that primarily sell online like Bombas tend to reach a growth ceiling and need to turn to other channels to keep scaling profitably.

Under LaRose’s direction, Bombas is looking to grow its wholesale revenue from around 7% of sales to between 10% and 20%. The company also wants to test out physical stores. 

“More than 60% of socks in this country are sold in physical locations, you know, whether that’s stores we could open, or stores that we fill with our partners … the wholesale opportunity is big for us,” said LaRose. “It’s also a billboard for us, right? It’s a chance to tell our story. When the customer walks by, we have a chance to tell them about the mission every time, why we’re here, let them touch and feel the product, which is always important when you’re introducing somebody to a new apparel brand.” 

Bombas currently sells in Nordstrom, Scheels and Dick’s Sporting Goods, and unlike some of its peers, it isn’t considering Amazon as a wholesale channel. Instead, it’s looking to expand its assortment offered by its current partners, try out its own stores and perhaps bring on some new wholesalers — if they’re the right fit. 

Digitally native brands that have long enjoyed the benefits of a direct model, such as customer data and the ability to stay close to customers, are often wary about expanding too deeply into wholesale because it’s less profitable and it’s harder for brands to tell their stories. For a company like Bombas, which spent years developing what it calls the “most comfortable socks, underwear, and T-shirts” on the market, that storytelling is extremely important — especially at a price point of around $15 per pair of socks. 

However, it’s that very attitude that has led some to criticize the direct selling model because of how it can stymie growth and lead to unsustainable business models. Many of the early direct-to-consumer darlings have seen their valuations shrivel up as they chase profitability years after they were founded. E-commerce has become harder to do profitably, and at a certain point, stores and wholesale are a more effective and profitable customer acquisition tool for some companies than marketing online. Selling goods through wholesale channels allows brands to scale and acquire customers more profitably than just selling online.

Brands like Bombas that were early to move to wholesale — Heath joked that the company “focused on profitability before it was cool” — understand the need for expansion but have looked to be strategic about who they partner with. Growth is important, but so is maintaining a brand, which is critical to staying ahead of rivals. 

“As a DTC brand, we care so much about our brand and our story, it has to be somebody who’s going to do an excellent job taking care of our brand. We’re not out there to be out there,” said LaRose. “We’re looking at some other partners. We’ll continue to always look for people who we think strategically give us access to the right customer, you know, nothing to announce yet on that front, but we’ll keep looking.” 

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank.”