Nasdaq, S&P 500 Futures Fall As Tesla, Alphabet Earnings Revive AI Spending Fears: Why TSLA, GOOGL, SPCX, NOW, INTC, AMD, SLS Are In Focus

• Alphabet and Tesla reignited concerns over soaring AI spending despite strong demand trends. 
• Investors are also watching jobless claims, Middle East tensions and another busy day of earnings.
• Focus shifts to the release of initial jobless claims today, as well as Intel earnings.

U.S. stock futures were in the red early Thursday as heavy capex plans and earnings misses from heavyweights such as Alphabet and Tesla continued to weigh on market sentiment. Investors also remain cautious amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which have driven up crude oil prices, as well as upcoming initial jobless claims data due later today.

As of 4:00 a.m. ET, Nasdaq futures declined 0.7%, Dow and S&P 500 futures fell 0.5%, and Russell 2000 futures were down 0.3%.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, has remained at ‘extremely bearish’, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, has declined to ‘bearish’ from ‘neutral’.

Rising U.S.-China technology tensions after reports suggest that U.S. authorities are investigating Chinese AI startup Moonshot over alleged unauthorized chip access. Additionally, reports from Shanghai indicate that Chinese regulators are hosting roundtables on tighter oversight of quant funds and the use of artificial intelligence.

Trending Stocks To Watch

Tesla Inc. (TSLA) stock fell 5% in early premarket trade as earnings missed estimates despite record deliveries. Investors focused on rising AI and robotics spending, with Deepwater Asset Management's Gene Munster saying Tesla’s capital expenditures could continue to outpace Wall Street forecasts. 

Archer Aviation (ACHR) & SpaceX (SPCX): In focus after Cathie Wood's ARK Investment disclosed significant stock purchases in both companies. Gene Munster also suggested management commentary strengthened the case for closer collaboration between Tesla and SpaceX. 

Alphabet (GOOGL): Shares slipped 4% in early premarket trading despite strong Cloud growth, as concerns remained about giant AI spending bills. The management has raised its FY26 capex guidance to $195B–$205B.

Memory stocks (MU, SNDK, SKHY, WDC): Gained ground after Alphabet boosted AI spending plans. Sentiment received another lift after Elon Musk said Tesla has secured a significant memory allocation from Micron for the coming years.

Intel Corp. (INTC): Remains on retail radar ahead of its Q2 earnings report today. 

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): The chipmaker is in the spotlight ahead of CEO Lisa Su's "Advancing AI" event in San Francisco, where investors expect new announcements around AI accelerators and enterprise products aimed at competing with Nvidia. 

ServiceNow (NOW): Stock rose 5% in early premarket trade as Jefferies raised its price target following strong quarterly results. CEO Bill McDermott also highlighted a 98% renewal rate and growing demand for AI-driven workflows. 

Sellas Life Sciences (SLS): Extended its July sell-off after Martin Shkreli raised concerns on the timing and design of its Phase 3 Regal trial in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Nokia Corp (NOK): Heading for its best day in two weeks as strong Q2 results showed its AI and Cloud sales doubled year-over-year. Retail sentiment has improved to bullish on Stocktwits.

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN): Under scrutiny following reports that the Senate Small Business Committee is probing the e-commerce giant regarding Chinese seller influence on its marketplace. 

Oil stocks (USO, BATL, TPET, XOM, CVX, OXY) remained in focus as crude oil prices surged to multi-week highs amid escalating U.S.-Iran military tensions. 

Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included Texas Instruments (TXN), UiPath (PATH), Salesforce (CRM), and Quantumscape (QS).

Other Catalysts To Watch

On the economic front, investors will be watching for the release of initial jobless claims data at 8:30 am ET.

On the earnings front, American Airlines Group Inc (AAL), Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT), Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (CLF), Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX), and Anavex Life Sciences Corporation (AVXL), among others, report before the bell. Beyond Intel, Invesco Mortgage Capital Inc (IVR), Newmont Corp (NEM), Summit Therapeutics Inc (SMMT), and Deckers Outdoor Corp. (DECK), are among the rest reporting after market close today.

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