Tech Stocks Post One of Worst Weeks as AI Costs Hit Consumers

Technology stocks suffered one of their worst weeks of the year as Wall Street confronted a question it had largely avoided: what exactly are investors getting for all this AI spending? The selloff was broad, with Asian markets leading declines as SoftBank Group fell sharply amid mounting concerns over rising AI infrastructure costs.

The pain extended directly to consumers. Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) both raised prices this week, with the AI-driven memory chip shortage cited as a key factor. The lone bright spot was Micron Technology (MU), whose revenue more than quadrupled year-over-year to $41.46 billion from $9.3 billion a year earlier, sending its shares up more than 16% in premarket trading Wednesday. Micron's windfall illustrated the dynamic rattling the rest of the sector. AI infrastructure demand is concentrating gains in memory suppliers -- and raising costs everywhere else.