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AI is entering a new phase — and these are the stocks investors should be watching

News | 2026/07/11 20:11

AI is entering a new phase — and these are the stocks investors should be watching

Investors should pay attention to the new phase of AI

In this Club Check-in, Investing Club's Paulina Likos and Zev Fima discuss Wall Street's shift from AI euphoria toward rationalization and what it means for investors.

After years of rewarding companies for announcing ever-larger artificial intelligence spending plans, the conversation is beginning to change.

  • Showing return on investment: Hyperscalers — including Club names Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta Platforms — are starting to feel the heat to justify their capital expenditure plans.
  • Shift from 'token maxxing' to token optimization: The focus for companies deploying AI is moving away from maximizing usage at any cost toward maximizing productivity.
  • Most users don't need the most advanced AI: Frontier models may only be truly essential for highly specialized applications like scientific research and software engineering.

Watch the video above for an in-depth look at the three buckets and how the ripple effects of each may help or hurt the AI-related stocks in the CNBC Investing Club portfolio.

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