Samsung prints record profits, AI chips get the Monday blues 📉

Samsung Electronics (005930) reported record second-quarter profit on July 7, 2026, yet shares fell nearly 7% as revenue estimates disappointed, dragging semiconductor and memory stocks lower and signaling that expectations for AI chipmakers may have outrun fundamentals. Micron Technology (MU) and Sandisk (SNDK) came under heavy pressure on the same session, extending a broader selloff across AI-linked names.

The weakness follows a year of outsized gains in AI infrastructure plays, with Sandisk up more than 525%, Micron gaining over 120%, and SK Hynix climbing roughly 225% in 2026. SK Hynix, meanwhile, is down 25% from its all-time high as it prepares for a U.S. listing this week, with the deal also drawing capital away from existing chip stocks.

Adding to the changing narrative, China's Zhipu AI is exploring a custom AI chip to support its fast-growing open-source GLM models, reinforcing the view that more efficient AI and lower-cost infrastructure built around domestic hardware could challenge the dominance of U.S. frontier models. The shift comes just weeks after SpaceX's blockbuster IPO and amid elevated valuations across AI-related equities.

Investors are increasingly reassessing whether the next phase of AI will require ever more GPUs and high-bandwidth memory, or whether more efficient models will reduce demand for the infrastructure that has powered the AI rally. Over the past year, $BTC and the broader crypto market have moved inversely to AI-linked equities, and any sustained rotation away from the AI trade is being monitored for its potential impact on digital-asset flows.