International Business Machines shares plunged by one-quarter of their value after CEO Arvind Krishna signaled deeper-than-expected weakness in the company’s infrastructure division. The downturn stems from a critical demand shortfall for a mainframe product marketed for AI workloads, forcing the firm to revise its revenue outlook to a 7% decline, a significant worsening from previous projections of a low-single-digit drop.

Contrasting the IBM slide, Nvidia shares gained 4% as investor anxiety regarding the longevity of the AI spending frenzy began to cool. On the global stage, Chinese firm Dongfang Suanxin escalated the hardware arms race by unveiling its proprietary AI chip, directly challenging U.S. competitors. Meanwhile, merger activity persists as Uber enters advanced talks to potentially acquire German food-delivery giant Delivery Hero. Governor Kathy Hochul’s decision to halt new data center construction for up to a year underscores the growing tension between AI infrastructure demands and regional regulatory oversight.