Futurum Equities
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The semiconductor build-out is still widening as AI spending rotates between constraints: memory, power, compute and now capital itself. Futurum's new estimate puts cumulative AI capex at $12.7 trillion, with chips alone near $5 trillion by decade end. Applied Materials revenue rose 15% sequentially to a record $9.1B, with spending growing slower than revenue; front-end equipment is an early read on fab capacity. x.com x.com
Semiconductors should see a bid across the whole stack, driven by $10T of cumulative AI capex through 2030 and a 190 GW capacity build-out. The new semis initiation models every layer through 2030, from datacenter capex through GPUs, CPUs, memory, foundry and semicap, built bottom-up from unit economics rather than top-down extrapolation. @danielnewmanUV called it "an era of abundance" on CNBC while discussing Nvidia earnings, and the initiation carries a $320 target on Nvidia. x.com x.com x.com
TSMC's capex plans suggest the AI chip trade is not over for semiconductors, Nvidia, AMD and Micron. CFO Wendell Huang cites robust multi-year demand, including agentic AI, behind $60-64 billion of 2026 capex; TSMC expects 2026-28 spending to be even more significantly higher than in the prior three years. Hyperscaler earnings should reinforce the higher AI capex trajectory. CoreWeave-driven fears feel overdone, though the neocloud model does not appeal long term. x.com x.com
Semiconductors could capture scarce spot compute's value if its forward curve holds. Compute trades in deep contango, while chip stocks price in little of that value; near-term moves are unpredictable. That makes the sector very bullish. The earlier lab-funding risk looks less acute: Anthropic should hold nearly $200B cash after its IPO and is operating-cash-flow profitable. Even with 2029 capex cuts, chips look cheap if future buyers do not default. x.com x.com x.com x.com x.com
Semiconductor trade faces a capex growth ceiling even if AI delivers what bulls expect. Spending cannot compound at 70-100% a year indefinitely, and compute per dollar roughly doubles every two years, so the same budget buys more capacity later. Today's chip valuations also demand years of 20% AI earnings growth beyond 2028: roughly 10.9 extra years for AMD, 8.9 for ASML, 7 for Marvell and 6.4 for TSMC, versus 1.6 for Broadcom and 0.8 for Nvidia; Micron needs none under the chart's assumptions. … Show more
Semiconductors could stay undersupplied for a long time as more capable AI per dollar creates more uses and drives compute demand. Micron and NVIDIA trade at low forward P/Es because investors fear peak cyclical earnings, yet current earnings show no slowdown. Shortages may worsen as AI adoption spreads, though the industry could remain cyclical; a reversal of the forced rollover trade is hoped for, not assured. x.com x.com x.com
Financing announcements point to more accelerator demand, supporting semiconductors. About $200bn in announced Meta, Anthropic/Broadcom and SpaceX/Nvidia financing likely drives $400bn in XPU purchases. Data centers burn cash until lit, then cash flow 20-40% annually; AI spend rising from 0.1% to 0.5-1% of current payroll could balance the buildout if agents replace roles. Sustainable token demand is the bet, but smaller local models are the bigger risk, though not an immediate concern. x.com … Show more
Semiconductors face a negative signal from the first call of peak AI capex. Per Wallstengine, Oracle expects its AI data-center spending to peak in FY27-FY28 and decline in FY29. Oracle's FY27-FY28 runs from June 2026 through May 2028. x.com
Next-generation AI systems could double wafer demand, keeping the long-term outlook compelling for semiconductor equipment makers. Applied Materials targets more than $12 billion in services revenue and roughly 40% operating margins by 2030; management expects over two points of share gains and potentially more than $5 billion in advanced-packaging revenue, driven by HBM and AI demand. Bullish on Applied Materials, Lam Research, ASML and KLA. x.com
Semiconductors are more likely to go up than down from here at current valuations, since 2028 is probably a 20-30% capex growth year. AI capabilities and model revenue are ramping at an unprecedented pace and chip spending drives earnings growth for the whole market, while multiples stay reasonable on cyclical fears. The risk: model revenue added about $170 billion in 2026 against $780 billion of capex, and if capex flattens after an expected $1.1 trillion in 2027, multiples may stay low. x.com
Slowing AI capital spending keeps the semiconductor growth scare in play. Meta's cash flow is negative and Lam Research's capex is slowing, further evidence as the sector faces a growth-to-value rotation and a Fed pause next week. x.com
TSMC's latest results point to AI chip demand still running ahead of supply, supporting the semiconductor and equipment trade. Cantor says TSMC raised its 2026 revenue outlook again, guided December-quarter sales above consensus and held 65-67% gross-margin guidance through the N2 ramp; its bullish sector read names Nvidia, Broadcom, AMD, ASML, Applied Materials, Lam Research and KLA. Jensen Huang says AI labs need not reach trillions in revenue to justify the buildout. x.com x.com
