**Wall Street Doubts AI’s Promising Potential as Tech Stocks Tumble**
In 2026, sentiment on Wall Street has shifted dramatically regarding artificial intelligence (AI), with shares of major tech companies struggling. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) experienced a significant drop of 21%, Meta (NASDAQ: META) fell by 10%, and Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) saw a decline of 7% as of March 20, 2026. This downturn raises concerns over capital expenditures in the tech industry, particularly amid anticipated losses in sectors like cybersecurity and software-as-a-service.
Microsoft’s fiscal Q2 2026 sales reached $81.3 billion—an increase of 17% year over year—largely driven by its cloud computing division, which generated $51.5 billion. Microsoft reported a staggering $37.5 billion in capital expenditures for the quarter, escalating 66% from the previous year. Meta also plans to increase its capital expenditures to between $115 billion and $135 billion in 2026, with a 24% revenue growth to $59.9 billion in Q4 2026. Nvidia posted record revenue of $215.9 billion for its 2026 fiscal year, but market uncertainty persists due to rapid changes in AI technology and unpredictable future winners and losers.
