After several rough sessions for technology stocks, AI and chipmakers bounced back, helping lift markets that had recently stumbled.
The recovery followed a sharp pullback. According to Yahoo Finance and CommBank, Wall Street's record-setting run had halted as AI stocks slumped, oil prices rose, and "AI disruption fears" pushed the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq lower. Even gold and bitcoin fell during that stretch.
The mood shifted on strong signals from chipmakers. Benzinga reported that S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures gained as AI stocks rallied on Micron's strong outlook, alongside Qualcomm. Yahoo Finance noted that Micron and Qualcomm "helped boost confidence in the AI trade" ahead of the closely watched PCE inflation reading, while CommBank said markets steadied as AI stocks recovered before an OpenAI announcement. Barron's went so far as to run the headline "Micron is the new Nvidia," adding that Qualcomm hiked its sales target. The optimism spread overseas, with Business Standard reporting Japanese stocks rebounding as AI enthusiasm lifted technology shares.
Nvidia remained central to the story. The Motley Fool and Yahoo Finance noted Nvidia's market cap had slipped below $5 trillion, framing it as a possible buying opportunity. According to The Motley Fool, Nvidia guided for roughly $91 billion in fiscal second-quarter revenue, which at the midpoint would be up about 95% from a year earlier. Barron's reported Nvidia shares rose even as rivals announced custom AI chips, signaling intensifying competition.
Not everyone is convinced. One source, Let's Data Science, framed the recent volatility as an "AI rout" that "exposes Wall Street speculation machine," and Yahoo Finance ran a piece weighing whether investors should sell AI stocks.
Why it matters: AI and chip stocks now carry enormous weight in major indexes, so their swings ripple across retirement accounts and global markets far beyond Silicon Valley.