NVDA 180 Calls Dominate Options Flow—26,580 Contracts Traded as Jetson Thor News Lifts Sentiment
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Major Options Activity: Aug-29-25 $180 Calls Trade Heavily on Jetson Thor News
NVIDIA shares traded at $181.26, up 1.45 points (0.81%) by late morning, but it’s the options market that truly stands out. The most active contract so far is the Aug-29-25 $180 call, which has changed hands 26,580 times—making up 5.9% of all NVDA options activity. This outsized volume arrives just as NVIDIA announces the general availability of its Blackwell-powered Jetson Thor developer kits, a launch that’s energizing both investors and robotics leaders across multiple sectors.
Order Flow Reveals a Clear Bullish Lean—78.2% of Contracts Bought
Diving deeper, about 78.2% of the Aug-29-25 $180 calls were bought (versus 21.8% sold), revealing that traders are leaning bullish. Interestingly, activity is split evenly between professional and retail traders, highlighting broad market interest rather than just one group piling in.
| Contract | Volume | % of Total NVDA Option Volume | VWAP ($) | Percent Bought | Percent Sold | Large Trades | Small Trades |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug-29-25 180 Call | 26,580 | 5.9% | 6.20 | 78.2% | 21.8% | 50% | 50% |
Implied Volatility Trends Show Only Modest Uptick Despite Excitement
The VWAP implied volatility for these calls sits at 67.1—barely above the prior day’s 66.8 (+0.5%). Even at session highs, IV touched just 68.8. This muted IV response, despite headline-grabbing news and brisk call activity, suggests that while traders expect higher prices or volatility, there isn’t yet a rush to aggressively price in major moves. That may signal that institutional traders are buying, but not panicking.
| Previous Close IV | Open IV | VWAP IV | Session High IV | Session Low IV | Last IV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66.8 | 67.4 | 67.1 | 68.8 | 61.4 | 67.5 |
Jetson Thor Announcement Provides Immediate Catalyst
Behind the options activity is NVIDIA’s headline-grabbing Jetson Thor news. With up to 7.5x more AI compute and 3.5x greater energy efficiency over its predecessor, Jetson Thor is drawing attention from industry leaders including Amazon Robotics and Boston Dynamics. Traders appear to be betting this product could unlock new demand streams and push NVDA to fresh highs—an outlook reflected in the bullish option flows.
Open Interest Trends Suggest Positions Are Growing
Yesterday’s open interest for the $180 call jumped by 7,023 contracts to 62,762, but it won’t be until tomorrow’s open interest update that we see whether today’s high volume means further new positions. Even so, the consistent growth suggests traders are accumulating exposure in anticipation of more volatility ahead.
What’s the Takeaway for Traders?
NVIDIA’s $180 calls aren’t just popular—they’re seeing a strong bullish skew, reasonable premiums (with volatility not exploding), and big institutional interest as a game-changing AI product rolls out. While it’s impossible to know if these trades are new longs or hedges, history shows that such surges in call activity can precede meaningful price action—especially when paired with transformative product news.
If you’re watching NVDA, keep an eye on tomorrow’s open interest updates for the $180 calls and whether this bullish tilt persists. This might be the early signs of bigger bets ahead of a robotics-driven AI boom—or simply the first move in a much longer chess game.
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