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OpenAI Revenue Doubts Sink Chipmakers in Broad Tech Selloff
By @sharedot · · 7 pages
- Finance
- Stock Market
- Openai
- Semiconductors
OpenAI's annualized revenue trails prior signals by $20 billion, fueling a sharp Thursday selloff in chip and AI stocks.
What happened: chips and AI names led the market lower
Chipmakers and AI-infrastructure stocks were hammered Thursday after the Financial Times reported that OpenAI is on track for annualized revenue of roughly $50 billion, well below the nearly $70 billion trajectory previously reported. The S&P 500 closed down 0.47% at 7,765.36, the Dow edged up 0.1% to 51,231.64, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.25%. Coherent fell more than 9% to lead S&P 500 losers, Astera Labs dropped over 9% to lead Nasdaq 100 losers, ARM fell more than 6%, and Intel dropped more than 5%. The declines came just two days after the tech-heavy Nasdaq hit a record closing high.
Why it is surprising: a $20 billion revenue gap at AI's core
Investors are already looking for evidence that revenue can keep pace with the vast capital flowing into data centers and computing infrastructure, and elevated borrowing costs make those sums harder to justify. Bloomberg reports the worries spread overseas: Japan's Nikkei fell more than 1% with Softbank Group down over 5%, and the MSCI Asia Pacific index slipped 0.1% early Friday. Firmus Grid, an Nvidia-backed Australian data center company, is set to postpone its IPO, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg.
The evidence: related pressures piled on the same trade
The selloff was compounded by adjacent reports. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Broadcom is lining up $50 billion in financing for OpenAI, with Oracle also seeking an unspecified sum, spurring fears that massive debt issuance by technology companies could intensify competition for capital — Broadcom fell 4.4% and Oracle 5.5% on Thursday. Micron Technology dropped 4.8% even as rival Samsung Electronics' record quarterly profit forecast failed to lift sentiment. A gauge of US chipmakers slumped 3.4% on the day, per The Business Times, despite chips having soared more than 80% so far in 2026.
The stakes: a test for AI spending and Fed policy
TheOpenAI revenue questions arrive just as Q3 earnings season begins next week with US money center banks reporting. Bloomberg Intelligence data cited by Barchart show Q3 S&P 500 profits expected to climb 25% from a year earlier, up from a July estimate of 22% — a high bar for a market already jittery about AI returns. Meanwhile, hawkish Fed commentary added pressure: Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he anticipates additional rate hikes if data come in as expected, and St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem said more monetary policy firming will be required. Rising crude prices, up more than 3% on Middle East escalation fears, stoked inflation concerns.
What comes next: rebound or broader risk reduction?
Attention now turns to whether the tech weakness spreads. "For now, the focus remains on whether the selling in AI and semiconductors develops into a broader risk reduction, or whether investors use the pullback to rebuild exposure ahead of earnings," Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone, wrote per Bloomberg. So far the weakness has stayed concentrated in technology rather than spreading: more than two-thirds of S&P 500 members advanced Thursday, small caps were little changed, and investors rotated toward defensive sectors. Oil eased after President Trump said the US would not attack Iran before November's midterms, with WTI slipping to around $91 a barrel.