Nasdaq 100 Plunges Over $1 Trillion as AI Spending Fears Deepen
US tech stocks suffered a severe sell-off on Friday, October 30, 2026, with the Nasdaq 100 on track to lose over $1 trillion in value. The decline was triggered by disappointing earnings from Amazon and Intel, which raised concerns about the return on massive artificial intelligence infrastructure spending. Intel shares dropped approximately 30% after issuing weak fourth-quarter guidance, while Amazon fell 3% to 4% following a report of record negative free cash flow. The broader market also reacted to Alphabet’s previous day crash, with the S&P 500 dropping 1.2% and the Dow Jones falling 0.3%. Investors are increasingly skeptical that the hundreds of billions of dollars being spent on AI data centers will generate sufficient profits, leading to a flight to safety in US Treasuries.