AI Spending: It’s Happening. (And It’s Annoying.)

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So, everyone’s talking about AI, right? Like it’s some kind of revelation. And the spending… six trillion dollars by 2026? It’s… a lot. Honestly, it’s just a lot. And the thing that really gets me is the expectation. Everyone expects this AI thing to just… work. Seamlessly. Like we’re all supposed to be thrilled about algorithms predicting our every move. It’s unsettling. And now the market’s getting all worked up about a “bubble.” A bubble! Like these companies aren’t just responding to demand. It’s not a bubble; it’s people finally realizing they need… stuff. And it’s irritating that it took this long.

The earnings reports are coming out, and, fine, companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and Amazon are reporting “soaring demand.” Soaring! What does that even mean? It means they’re selling more chips, obviously. But it’s the language. It’s always the language. Gartner says IT spending will be up over 10%. Ten percent! It’s just… aggressive. It feels like they’re trying to force excitement. And now I’m supposed to invest? Because everyone else is throwing money at this? It’s just… predictable.

Okay, so let’s talk strategy, because that’s what I do. You’ve got your “aggressive” investors, who are just going to pile into everything AI-related. They’re probably the same people who leave their shopping carts abandoned online. Then you have the “cautious” investors, who are going to pick one or two “safe” bets. As if there are safe bets in this whole mess. It’s all a gamble. And the worst part? They all think they’re smarter than everyone else. The key, they say, is diversification. Diversification! Like spreading your risk somehow makes it less risky. It doesn’t. It just means you’re losing money in more places.

If you’re going to be aggressive, you’re looking at chip designers like Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. Fine. But the competition is fierce. It’s a free-for-all. And then there’s TSMC, which actually makes the chips for everyone else. It’s like they’re the Switzerland of the semiconductor world. Neutral, and profiting from everyone else’s conflict. That’s smart, I’ll give them that. But it’s still… unsettling. And the cloud companies need these chips, of course. It’s a whole ecosystem of dependence. It’s exhausting just thinking about it.

The Memory Problem

And then there’s Micron Technology. Memory and storage. Apparently, AI needs a lot of memory. Who knew? It’s like they’re discovering basic principles of computing. And now Micron’s reporting “record revenue.” Record revenue! It’s just… a lot of numbers. The fact that they attribute it to “AI momentum” is insulting. It’s not momentum; it’s demand. And it’s all driven by this insatiable need for more data. It’s a vicious cycle.

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And don’t even get me started on Corning. Optical fiber for data centers. It’s like they’re building a digital nervous system for the planet. And they’re creating “new fibers” and “connectors.” It’s all so… technical. And it all has to work perfectly, or everything falls apart. The pressure! And they’re doing it all to support this AI infrastructure. It’s just… a lot.

Look, the semiconductor industry is cyclical. Everyone knows that. Demand goes up, demand goes down. It’s been that way for decades. But AI… maybe it’ll change things. Maybe it’ll extend the periods of high demand. Or maybe it’ll just create a bigger crash. Who knows? The point is, these companies are going to have their ups and downs. They’re going to slip up. They’re going to disappoint. It’s inevitable. But the smart ones will survive. The ones who can adapt. The ones who can… tolerate the constant pressure.

So, yeah, IT spending is heading for record levels. And it’s all powered by AI. It’s happening. It’s annoying. And it’s probably a good time to invest. But don’t expect it to be easy. Don’t expect it to be predictable. And don’t expect it to make any sense. Because, frankly, it doesn’t.

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2026-02-25 14:13