ASX Runners of the Week: Hubify, Besra, European Resources & Cosmos Lead Market Gains
This week's Bulls N' Bears ASX Runner of the Week is Hubify Limited, highlighting a standout performance in a turbulent market. A viral Substack post titled "The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis" sparked fears on Wall Street, depicting a fictional scenario where AI adoption accelerates rapidly, leading to widespread white-collar job losses, collapsed consumer spending, and a deflationary doom loop. While not a prediction, the post resonated deeply, causing software stocks like Workday, CrowdStrike, and Salesforce to plummet by over 7% and 4%, respectively, as AI disruption fears intensified.
The tech sector has been hit hard this year, with the info tech index down 15% in a month and the ASX tech sector falling 40% in less than six months. Amid this backdrop, an Australian AI innovator emerged as a top performer, joined by exploration companies in gold and critical minerals.
Hubify Ltd (ASX: HFY) Up 275%
Hubify Limited secured the Bulls N' Bears Runner of the Week title after raising $250,000 via a strategic placement at a 425% premium to its closing price of 0.8 cents, finishing at 3 cents. Despite a strong debt-free position exceeding $3 million, the company accepted funds to enhance its AI capabilities through HubLab, an Australian AI framework powered by US-based regulatory tech platform Labyrinth AI. HubLab serves as a safe operating layer for AI in regulated enterprise and government systems, avoiding boardroom paralysis.
Hubify signed a master services agreement with HubLab, gaining an equity stake and an option to increase its interest, positioning it as a managed services partner for global AI providers. This deal enables upfront deployment fees and high-margin recurring revenue streams. Concurrently, Hubify reported robust half-year results: EBITDA surged 84%, net operating cash flows jumped 191% due to an 8% drop in expenses, and high-margin recurring revenue rose to 91% of total mix, despite a 7% revenue dip to $8.3 million from shedding low-margin clients. Debt-free and cash-rich, Hubify thrived while the tech sector struggled.
Besra Gold Ltd (ASX: BEZ) Up 121%
Besra Gold claimed second place after receiving conditional approval from the Sarawak government in Malaysia for a mining lease at its Bau Gold project. This milestone de-risks the company's flagship asset, which has been in development since its 2021 listing. The lease covers the Jugan deposit, with a resource of 13.5 million tonnes at 1.7 grams per tonne for 721,000 ounces of gold. The broader Bau project in East Malaysia holds 53 million tonnes at 1.3g/t for 2.28 million ounces, plus an exploration target of 4.9 to 9.3 million ounces.
With gold prices near $7200 an ounce, the timing is favorable for Besra to accelerate exploration. The Jugan lease is conditional, and other renewal applications are pending, but market optimism suggests this could propel the project amid gold's strong performance.
European Resources Ltd (ASX: ERE) Up 94%
European Resources rounded out the podium with outstanding results from its Korsnäs rare earths project in Finland. The company reported its best intersection yet in diamond drilling, highlighting strong magnet rare earths grades. A standout hole delivered 31.5 metres grading 4902 parts per million total rare earth oxides, including higher-grade slices of 8.5m at 10,414ppm and 4.5m at 14,003ppm. These results confirm NdPr-enriched apatite-monazite mineralisation, with additional intervals like 5.0m at 5707ppm.
The company noted that widths above 1% TREO and processing-friendly mineralisation validate passive seismic as an effective targeting tool, giving the project an edge. An orientation survey has identified another target, with more seismic and drilling planned in the Southern Zone. Assays for remaining holes are pending, but the program has already proven near-mine continuity and added significant tonnage at solid grades, addressing Europe's tight rare earths supply.
Cosmos Exploration Ltd (ASX: C1X) Up 87%
Cosmos Exploration made a back-to-back Runners inclusion, with eight consecutive days of gains. The company recently partnered with Bolivia's state-owned Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos and EAU Lithium group to develop lithium production facilities for Bolivia's salt flats. The ASX intervened, requesting an explanation for the share price surge, prompting Cosmos to plan a capital raise and response by Monday.
The development relies on Vulcan Energy's VULSORB direct lithium extraction technology, exclusively held by EAU, which has been proven on Bolivian brines. This could unlock an estimated 23 million metric tonnes of lithium in flats like Uyuni and Coipasa, representing 22% of global supply. The Bolivian government is committed to developing these assets as lithium prices rebound. Cosmos, which holds an option to fully acquire EAU, has seen its shares more than double, integrating the asset into its lithium portfolio.
