03:23 PM EDT, 10/23/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Tech stocks advanced late Thursday afternoon with the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) rising 1.4% and the SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) jumping 4%.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor index added 2.7%.

In corporate news, Microsoft ( MSFT )-backed (MSFT) OpenAI acquired Software Applications, a startup developing AI-driven user interfaces for Mac computers, for an undisclosed amount, Bloomberg reported. Microsoft ( MSFT ) shares rose 0.4%.