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1. Leader industry as of 6:30 pm

Medical-Hospitals related stocks: HCA Healthcare Inc(HCA.US), Tenet Healthcare Corporation(THC.US), Universal Health Services(UHS.US), LifeStance Health(LFST.US), Surgery Partners, Inc.(SGRY.US), Ardent Health, Inc.(ARDT.US), Nutex Health Inc(NUTX.US), Oncology Institute, Inc.(TOI.US), Community Health Systems, Inc.(CYH.US)

Oil&Gas-Field Services related stocks: SLB Limited(SLB.US), Halliburton Company(HAL.US), Kodiak Gas Services, Inc.(KGS.US), Oceaneering International, Inc.(OII.US), USA Compression Partners LP(USAC.US), Tidewater Inc(TDW.US), Liberty Energy, Inc. Class A(LBRT.US), National Energy Services Reunited Corp.(NESR.US), Expro Group(XPRO.US)

Daily US Equity Brief: AI Capex Super Cycle Accelerates – Chips, Cloud, and Power Grid Take Center Stage

Core Thesis

As of July 24, the market remains firmly anchored by the AI capital expenditure super cycle. Despite macroeconomic crosswinds, retail momentum unwinding, and mixed earnings from consumer tech, robust Q2 results from tech giants and unprecedented demand for AI infrastructure continue to drive capital into semiconductors, cloud providers, and power grid sectors. The market narrative is shifting from pure demand growth to supply-side constraints, execution, and the tangible monetization of AI workloads.

 

1. AI Infrastructure and Semiconductors Reaccelerate

Semiconductor and AI hardware names regained market leadership as earnings and forward guidance underscored structural AI demand.

Intel Corporation(INTC.US) delivered a strong Q2, with revenue surging 25% YoY to $16.1B, driven by its Data Center & AI segment (up 59% YoY). The company raised its 2026 capital expenditure to $20 billion and launched its next-generation Xeon 6+ processors to meet AI-driven compute needs. Simultaneously, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.(AMD.US) significantly updated its long-term TAM, projecting the AI accelerator market to reach $1.4 trillion by 2030. AMD CEO Lisa Su noted that AI inference will soon consume 60% of global AI capacity, highlighting a massive surge in agentic AI workloads. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Sponsored ADR(TSM.US) also provided upward revised guidance, while NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US) continued to expand its global footprint, with Japan procuring 27,500 Rubin GPUs for national AI factories.

 

2. Hyperscalers Double Down on AI Capex

Cloud providers are aggressively expanding capacity to keep pace with AI demand, though investors are closely monitoring the impact on profit margins and free cash flow.

Alphabet Inc. Class A(GOOGL.US) reported a 24% YoY revenue increase, with Google Cloud revenue skyrocketing 82% YoY. Consequently, GOOGL raised its 2026 capex guidance to a staggering $195B–$205B. However, the massive infrastructure spending temporarily pushed Google's free cash flow into negative territory. Meta Platforms(META.US) highlighted that AI demands for inference and recommendation systems are outpacing supply, requiring multi-year lead times for 1GW data center projects. Amazon.com, Inc.(AMZN.US) advanced its network topology to improve compute efficiency, while Oracle Corporation(ORCL.US) maintained a bullish outlook with a $400 target price. Meanwhile, emerging AI cloud players like CoreWeave(CRWV.US) and NEBIUS(NBIS.US) reported massive backlogs of ~$31B each, though their risk profiles hinge on financing costs and GPU depreciation.

 

3. Power Grid and Data Center Bottlenecks Emerge

As AI data center buildouts face community resistance and grid limitations, capital is rotating into power infrastructure and industrial equipment.

GE Vernova Inc.(GEV.US) saw a remarkable 134% YoY surge in power orders, signaling that grid and energy capacity are becoming the primary bottlenecks for AI expansion. Morgan Stanley research highlights that an estimated $156B in data center projects has been delayed or canceled due to political and power constraints. This supply-side friction is pushing hyperscalers to front-load capacity construction and pivot toward on-site power generation, making utility and power equipment stocks a distinct leadership group.

 

4. Market Divergence and Momentum Unwinding

While AI infrastructure thrives, the broader market exhibits significant divergence.

JPMorgan noted a sharp unwinding in momentum factors and broad weakness in retail ETFs. Consumer tech and highly valued software faced scrutiny; Tesla Motors, Inc.(TSLA.US) reported a massive profit decline and negative free cash flow due to aggressive price cuts and elevated capex, causing its stock to lag. Conversely, select hardware and networking components within the "Huang Selected" portfolio—such as Corning Inc(GLW.US), Marvell Technology(MRVL.US), Coherent Corp.(COHR.US), and Lumentum Holdings, Inc.(LITE.US)—showed resilience. However, Amazon's new network architecture threatens to reduce optical transceiver usage by 40-50%, creating a critical tracking point for the optical communication supply chain.

 

Summary: AI Remains the Dominant Market Theme

July 24 can be characterized as an "AI Capex Validation Day." Capital continues to concentrate heavily on the beneficiaries of the AI infrastructure buildout. However, the focus has matured; investors are no longer just chasing AI concepts but are actively verifying order backlogs, power grid readiness, and the actual conversion of AI compute into recurring revenue.

Key Takeaway:

AI capital expenditure remains the market's dominant engine. As hyperscalers and enterprises commit hundreds of billions to infrastructure, investors should maintain preference for AI-related sectors—particularly semiconductors, power equipment, and cloud infrastructure—while closely monitoring supply-side constraints, capex return cycles, and potential margin pressures from heavy depreciation.

2. Breaking Out Today as of 6:35 pm

3. Near Breakouts as of 6:35 pm

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Notable Stock Movers as of 4:46 pm

• American Express Company(AXP.US) shares fell around 6% on Friday after the company reported mixed second-quarter financial results and narrowed its FY26 sales guidance slightly below estimates.
  • American Express reported quarterly earnings of $4.53 per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $4.40 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $19.637 billion which missed the analyst consensus estimate of $19.694 billion.
• Ohmyhome Limited Class A(OMH.US) shares shot up 95% to $0.83.
• Shares of LiveWire(LVWR.US) got a boost, surging 68% to $1.29 after the electric motorcycle maker posted second-quarter results, in which consolidated revenue increased 55%.
• Vivakor, Inc.(VIVK.US) shares were also up, gaining 50% to $3.18. Vivakor said it surpassed $1 billion in annualized physical crude transactions.
• Robin Energy Ltd.(RBNE.US) shares dropped 35% to $3.69 after the company announced the pricing of its $3 million offering of 750,000 shares at $4.00 per share.
• Shares of Radiopharm Theranostics Limited Sponsored ADR(RADX.US) were down 26% to $3.19 after announcing $4.1 million U.S. direct offering of shares and warrants along with A$12.7 million ($8.9 million) Australian placement.
• Codexis, Inc.(CDXS.US) was down, falling 24% to $1.51 after the company announced the pricing of its $23.1 million public offering of 16,666,667 shares at $1.50 per share.

Disclaimer: The content is provided as general information only and should not be taken as investment advice. All the contents shall not be taken as a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instruments. Any action you take resulting from information, analysis, or commentary on this article is your responsibility. Please consult your investment advisor before making any investments.