More than $2 trillion is wiped off the US Nasdaq in October as investors balk at Big Tech's soaring AI spending
A Google DeepMind promotional screen introducing Gemini, the AI brand whose new Gemini 4 Carbon model Sundar Pichai unveiled just before Alphabet's earnings call as its shares tumbled over 10%.A two-week Alphabet share-price chart, sourced from Yahoo Finance, showing the plunge that wiped $500 billion from the company's value after profit collapsed 25% to $26.2 billion.
Amazon, Alphabet and Intel all reported earnings that came in below Wall Street expectations, sparking a two-day selloff that pushed the Nasdaq more than 5.8% lower for October. Alphabet recorded its steepest single-day percentage decline on record after its AI-generated search summaries began cannibalising core advertising revenue. Intel tumbled nearly 30% — approaching its worst daily performance since 1974 — after finance chief David Zinsner cautioned that negative free cash flow would continue and projected weaker fourth-quarter revenue.
The losses in total value exceed SpaceX's entire market capitalisation, with Meta's plan for a record $97.5bn fundraise amplifying concerns about shareholder dilution.
Microsoft and SpaceX moved against the broader trend, with results demonstrating that returns on AI investments are starting to materialise.
The rout was described as "absolutely brutal," wiping $500bn from Alphabet's market cap in a single Thursday session.
