AI stocks fall after midterm results as Nvidia CEO faces investigation
Nasdaq is down 2.64% since Election Day, while oil prices and gas prices have also dropped
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Artificial intelligence stocks have fallen the most on Wall Street since Tuesday’s midterm election results, when the Democratic Party won control of both chambers of Congress.
Markets tend to be volatile during election season. The market movement since Tuesday is concerning for artificial intelligence.
AI stocks react to election results
The AI race of data center building, chip production and cloud computing has raised the stock prices of Nvidia, Tesla, Microsoft, Google and Meta.
There is concern that Democratic-led legislation could halt the AI boom and add guardrails and stricter regulation.
The Nasdaq, a major technology index, dipped 5% on Thursday. The president called that day one of the worst in stock market history.
Nvidia has pulled back about 14% since Tuesday night’s midterm results.
Nvidia CEO investigated
Another factor is contributing to Nvidia’s decline. The CEO of the American tech company, Jensen Huang, is being investigated over concerns he was the target of a foreign intelligence effort.
The concerns center on China and an extramarital affair Huang recently admitted to having.
Several U.S. outlets are reporting that the woman at the center of the affair reportedly works for a Singapore-based tech company and fed information about AI chips to China.
In a note to Nvidia staff, Huang did not name the woman but admitted to being unfaithful.
Where the markets stand
Ahead of Monday’s 8:30 a.m. Central opening, the Dow has dropped 1.64% since Election Day.
The S&P 500 has fallen 2.33% in that time, a larger drop than the Dow.
The Nasdaq, which measures top-performing tech companies, has fallen the most, at 2.64%. Thursday was its sharpest dip since April 2025.
Oil and gas prices drop
Crude oil has been below $90 a barrel since last Tuesday. The national average price for gas dropped 12 cents last week, according to AAA.
Much of the oil price dip can be attributed to diplomatic discussions between the U.S. and Iran and post-election political optimism.
Volatility is not out of the ordinary this time of year. As the U.S.-Iran discussions continue, the rise and fall of oil prices has tended to be a key indicator of where the conversations stand.
Brent crude oil has dropped 6.76% since Election Day. That follows a 16% drop the week prior, its largest decline since the beginning of COVID.
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