AI bubble is popping, and big tech's wild stock swings show it

The AI bubble is popping; we just don't know it yet

Big tech's Q2 earnings reveal an AI bubble under strain: Apple's stock dropped 10% on a warning about component costs, IBM lost more value in a day than since Black Monday, and Meta's free cash flow collapsed due to massive data center spending. Investors are swinging wildly, with Amazon up 15% despite opaque accounting. The Register's editors dissect the numbers, noting that demand for AI is concentrated in a few labs, and advise IT teams to avoid going all in on frontier AI products.