If 2024 was the 12 months of hype and 2025 the 12 months of constructing, then 2026 shall be remembered for one thing way more brutal: the 12 months of accountability. For the previous two years, markets rewarded spending. Say “AI,” “GPU clusters,” or “knowledge centre growth,” and Wall Road handed out premiums. Corporations weren’t judged on profitability; they had been judged on how briskly they might deploy capital. The defining query then was easy: “What number of GPUs did you purchase?” However after final month’s price lower, a tougher query has taken over: “How a lot revenue did these GPUs generate?” Whereas traders have a good time simpler cash, the “capex cliff” has quietly arrived. Have a look at Oracle, Broadcom, and Astera Labs: simply weeks earlier than 2026, all three reported document earnings pushed by AI, but their inventory costs received hammered by double digits instantly after. Not as a result of AI is over, however as a result of they delivered progress whereas exposing the fee….
