Friday's options tape stayed busy through the close. Mark Longo breaks down the most active names, with $TSLA taking the top spot ahead of $NVDA. He looks at Tesla's intraday swings, $AAPL calls that finished in the money, and $MSFT calls that fell just short of their strike. Plus: reversals in $META and $MU, options activity in $INTC, $AMZN and $MSTR, and recent congressional purchases on the House Yay Scan.

Want to dig into the data yourself? Explore more options data and run your own scans at TheHotOptionsReport.com.

What exactly is the VIX? How is it calculated? Why doesn't it always move opposite the market? And what's really driving VIX futures, options and volatility ETPs?

This week on Options Boot Camp, Mark Longo welcomes back the legendary "Dr. VIX" himself, Russell Rhoads, for an extended deep dive into the world's most popular volatility index.

Whether you're new to volatility trading or looking to sharpen your understanding of advanced VIX concepts, this episode is packed with practical insights, common pitfalls, and actionable ideas.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• What the VIX actually measures (and what it doesn't)
• How the VIX is calculated using SPX options
• Why VIX can sometimes rise alongside the stock market
• The mechanics and risks of VIX settlement
• Spot VIX vs. VIX futures—and why the difference matters
• Contango, backwardation and the infamous "negative roll yield"
• How VIX options are priced and what futures drive them
• Common mistakes new VIX traders make
• The pros and cons of VXX, UVXY, UVIX and SVIX
• How Russell uses volatility products as hedges and trading tools
• Listener questions on volatility products, risk reversals and today's market environment

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the financial industry—but could it eventually become your options broker?

In this exclusive interview from the Options Industry Conference 2026, Mark Longo sits down with Jim Swartwout, CEO of Prosperum Fintech Holdings, to discuss how AI is being integrated into brokerage services, options trading, customer support, education, and portfolio management.

Jim brings decades of experience from some of the biggest names in the brokerage industry, including Schwab, Fidelity, E*TRADE, TradeMonster, Scottrade, Ally, and Robinhood. He shares how Prosperum is developing AI-powered tools that can assist traders with options strategies, account monitoring, education, and eventually even trade execution.

They also discuss:

• The future of AI-powered brokerage services
• Building "Alex," Prosperum's AI trading assistant
• Can AI help traders manage complex options strategies?
• The role of education in successful options trading
• 24-hour options trading and market access
• 0DTE options and evolving market structure
• Prediction markets and their growing popularity
• Crypto, tokenization, and the future of financial markets
• What traders should expect from Prosperum in the months ahead

In this episode of OIC 2026 Conversations, Mark Longo sits down with Matt Fox, Co-Founder & CEO of SpotGamma, to discuss how options flow is increasingly driving today's markets.

The conversation explores the explosive growth of 0DTE options, the role of gamma in shaping intraday price action, and how traders can use support and resistance levels derived from options positioning to better understand market behavior.

Mark and Matt also dive into:

• The rise of 0DTE trading
• Positive vs. negative gamma environments
• Why options volume is growing faster than stock volume
• Gamma scalping and dealer positioning
• Intraday volatility versus end-of-day market stability
• The GameStop phenomenon and the origins of "Diamond Hands"
• Real-time options analytics and market structure
• The growing debate around 24/7 options trading
• Why Matt believes more options products are good—but nonstop markets may not be

Host Mark Longo takes you through a high-velocity, respectable day on the tape as options volume bounces back.

We kick things off with a trip to the political side of trading via our House Nay Scans, highlighting the stocks our representatives are unloading this week—including Rick Larsen selling Abbott Labs (ABT), John McGuire dropping BlackRock (BLK), and Susie Lee letting go of Full House Resorts (FLL).

Then, we countdown the top 10 most active names on the tape, featuring a wild day of zero-day-to-expiration (0DTE) pinning action:

• Apple (AAPL): Back on top of the world, setting a new all-time high of $328.73 before a massive 204,000-contract pin exactly on the $327.50 strike.

• NVIDIA (NVDA): Dominates the number one spot with 4.03 million contracts, leading to an incredible 425,000-contract pin on the $212.50 line.

• Micron (MU): Tanks 8% to close at $904.28, leaving short sellers of the $900 par puts sweating through an intraday low of $873.

• Tesla (TSLA): Battles at the $400 par strike with a whopping 276,000 contracts on the board.

• Plus updates on: IREN (Sep $65 calls), Alphabet (GOOGL), Intel (INTC), Meta (META), Microsoft (MSFT), and Amazon (AMZN).

Inform your next trade with the latest analytics and scans at http://www.TheHotOptionsReport.com

In this episode, Mark Longo, Russell Rhoads (Dr. VIX), and Scott Nations dive deep into a massive divergence brewing under the surface of the equity indexes. While S&P 500 volatility is sitting quietly at seasonal lows, Nasdaq 100 volatility tells a completely different story as tech and AI anticipation ramps up ahead of Microsoft's pivotal earnings report.

Key Topics Covered:

• The Volatility Review: Breaking down a massive two-week crush that dragged VIX cash down nearly 4 points, alongside drops in VOLY and the VVIX.

• The Nasdaq vs. S&P Divergence: Scott explains how VolDex measures show completely different volatility regimes for tech vs. broad market index options.

• The Tech "Canary": Why Russell has Microsoft's upcoming July 29th year-end earnings report circled as the ultimate reality check for the AI boom.

• VIX Futures & The Return of Volume: June options volume just put up a historic 1.6 billion contracts. Why are traders suddenly piling back into VIX futures?

• The "Dark Web" of Vol Trades: Analyzing a bizarre, deep-in-the-money August put spread and a massive November VIX call strip paired with a 1x6 put ratio spread.

• Crystal Ball: Predictions for where VIX and VOLI land by next week.

The options market came roaring back after the holiday break, with AI stocks once again dominating the tape.

On this episode of The Hot Options Report, Mark Longo breaks down the biggest options movers of the session, including a massive surge in NVIDIA options volume, Broadcom's rally after its Apple partnership announcement, Tesla's active put trading, and continued speculative interest in SpaceX options.

You'll also discover what unusual activity surfaced in the latest 10K Club scan, featuring VIX, the iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), and SpaceX.

Inside this episode:

• The latest 10K Club unusual options activity
• NVIDIA explodes back to the top of the options volume rankings
• Tesla traders battle around the 390 strike
• Apple and Broadcom rally on major news
• SpaceX speculation reaches another level
• Micron call buyers aim for the $1,000 strike
• VIX and ETHA return to the unusual activity spotlight
• The biggest options trades and unusual flow from today's market

Check out more tools, scans, and premium data at TheHotOptionsReport.com.

In this episode, Mark Longo and Dan Passarelli hold a crucial discussion on the realities, logistics, and hidden dangers of trading while traveling. They break down their personal rules of thumb for managing risk on the move, why 24-hour trading might eliminate our last remaining "mini-vacations," and how to handle your portfolio so you can actually enjoy your time off.

Plus, the drill instructors open up the mailbag to answer your burning questions about market health, the role of monthly vs. weekly expirations, and a special look at the historical spikes in the Cboe Dispersion Index.