Wall Street's artificial intelligence chip stocks looked set for another weak session on Wednesday, with US pre-market trading indicating fresh selling pressure across the semiconductor space as escalating developments surrounding Iran dampened broader market sentiment.
Intel Corp. was down 4.57% in pre-market trading at $105.34 after ending Tuesday's session 9.66% lower at $110.39. Micron Technology Inc. slipped another 4.13% to $899.60 in pre-market after tumbling 4.71% in the previous session.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. fell 2.35% to $504.00 before the opening bell, extending Tuesday's 6.51% decline, while Nvidia Corp. traded 1.68% lower at $193.63 in pre-market after managing to close Tuesday marginally higher by 0.71%.
The weakness comes as investors continue to reassess lofty AI-related valuations while turning increasingly risk-averse following fresh geopolitical developments involving Iran, which weighed on sentiment across global equity markets. US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran is "over" and described Tehran as "dirty players" while speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara.
He said the US strikes overnight were retaliation for Iranian rocket attacks on commercial vessels, adding, "Iran shot rockets at ships, that's why US hit back."
The latest decline also follows Tuesday's broad-based selloff in semiconductor stocks after reports suggested Chinese AI startup DeepSeek is developing its own AI inference chips, potentially reducing its dependence on Nvidia's processors. The report triggered concerns over intensifying competition in the AI hardware space and prompted investors to book profits after the sector's recent rally.
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Adding to the cautious mood, investors have also been questioning whether massive AI-related capital expenditure on data centres can continue to justify elevated valuations across chipmakers.
The combination of geopolitical uncertainty and renewed concerns over the AI trade has put pressure on the tech-heavy semiconductor segment, with traders closely watching whether the pre-market losses translate into another weak Wall Street session.
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