TLDR
- Nasdaq 100 futures fell sharply, dropping as much as 2.6% in premarket trading Tuesday
- Nobel Prize-winning AI scientist John Jumper left Google’s parent company Alphabet to join Anthropic
- South Korea’s KOSPI index plummeted 10%, dragging down Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix by over 10%
- Bitcoin dropped 2% to around $62,883, reflecting broader market risk-off sentiment
- FedEx and AI chip firm Cerebras Systems are due to report earnings Tuesday, with Micron set for Wednesday
Tech stocks are heading for another rough session on Tuesday after a Nobel Prize winner’s job change and fears about AI chip demand rattled investors across global markets.
Nasdaq 100 futures dropped as much as 2.6% in premarket trading. S&P 500 futures fell 1.5%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slid about 350 points, or 0.7%.
The selloff follows a difficult Monday for large-cap technology stocks. The main trigger: John Jumper, a Nobel Prize-winning AI research scientist at Alphabet’s Google, announced he was leaving to join AI startup Anthropic. That news sent Alphabet shares lower.
Jumper is known for his work on protein structure prediction. His departure to a rival AI lab spooked investors who watch top talent as a sign of where momentum in artificial intelligence is heading.
Korean Chip Stocks Add to the Pain
The tech troubles didn’t stop in the US. South Korea’s KOSPI Composite index fell 10% on Tuesday, one of its sharpest drops in recent memory.
Memory chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both fell more than 10%. These companies are closely watched as indicators of AI hardware demand, since they supply memory chips used in AI servers.
Their steep drop raised doubts about whether AI infrastructure spending will continue at the pace markets had assumed. That concern then fed back into US tech futures, hitting sentiment heading into the US open.
SpaceX, traded on secondary markets under a special purpose vehicle, fell for a third straight day.
Eyes on Earnings and Inflation Data
Tuesday brings two closely watched earnings reports. FedEx will release results alongside Cerebras Systems, the AI chip company that went public in May. It will be Cerebras’ first earnings report as a public company.
Investors are also preparing for Micron’s earnings on Wednesday. Micron makes memory chips and its results will be a key test of whether AI-related chip demand holds up after the Korean sell-off.
The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, the PCE index for May, is due Thursday. Markets are already jittery about the possibility of more than one rate hike in 2026.
US-Iran talks continued in the background. Crude oil prices fell on hopes that a deal could restore supply flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude dropped 1.9% to $76.45 a barrel.
Bitcoin fell 2% to around $62,883, following the broader risk-off mood in markets. The 10-year Treasury yield slipped 3 basis points to 4.48%, and the dollar reached a one-year high against a basket of peers, driven by safe-haven demand and bets on higher US interest rates.
With Cerebras and Micron both reporting this week, the next 48 hours could reshape how markets feel about the AI trade heading into summer.
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