Trillion-Dollar Tech Meltdown: AI Turbulence Rocks Global Markets

Historic Value Loss for Tech Giants

Despite three years passing since ChatGPT became a global phenomenon, the potential deflation of the artificial intelligence (AI) bubble has created a serious shock effect in the markets. The collapse witnessed this week, which hit stock and credit markets in successive waves, has been recorded as one of the sharpest corrections in recent times. According to compilations by financial data and analysis company Bloomberg, technology companies with a total value exceeding a trillion dollars faced a massive erosion of market value in a short period. This decline affected not only pure AI players but every link in the artificial intelligence ecosystem, from semiconductor suppliers and cloud computing giants to software companies and hardware manufacturers.

Analysts emphasize that while AI-themed sell-offs have been seen in previous periods, the current collapse is unique in both its depth and speed of contagion. Markets are reassessing the profitability and sustainable growth expectations of AI companies trading at high valuations. This situation has caused losses expressed in double-digit percentages in the shares of companies, particularly those that have risen rapidly with AI investments over the last two years.

Anxiety Spills Over into Credit Markets

The shock was not limited to stocks. The sudden deterioration in risk perception quickly spilled over into credit markets, where technology companies' debt securities (corporate bonds) and private financing instruments are traded. Investors began a shift from companies taking high risks with the promise of high growth towards firms with more stable balance sheets. This flight risks bringing with it the threat of unexpectedly rising financing costs for many AI startups and technology companies.

Financial circles report that global investment banks like Citi and Goldman Sachs have intensified their warning and strategy notes to clients in the face of this volatility. The pressure is particularly evident in high-yield bond segments and private credit markets that had aggressively financed speculative AI ventures. Experts warn that if the sell-off deepens, it could trigger a broader liquidity crunch, forcing even fundamentally strong companies to postpone expansion plans or fundraising rounds.

The scale of the sell-off has prompted regulators to monitor the situation closely, concerned about systemic risk given the concentration of AI investments in recent years. Market participants are now bracing for potential earnings revisions and guidance downgrades in the upcoming quarterly reports from major tech firms, which could determine the trajectory of the recovery or further decline.