AI Tech Selloff on October 22: AMD -8%, Intel -8%, SpaceX -9%, Nvidia -4% and Tesla -3%

A red day for the AI trade

On Thursday, October 22, 2026, AI-linked tech stocks had one of their worst sessions of the autumn. According to the Stock Tracker dashboard, AMD fell 8.04% to $508.13, Intel 7.98% to $84.75, SpaceX (SPCX) 9.03% to $145.24, Nvidia 4.34% to $212.27 and Tesla 3.09% to $374.70.

Exact figures vary slightly between sources depending on capture time; the ones in this article come from the Stock Tracker dashboard. The Nasdaq Composite lost between 1.4% and 2.6% depending on the source and the S&P 500 about 1%, which some outlets describe as the worst day since June (Yahoo Finance, HDFCSky).

The common thread: doubts over how AI is financed

• Meta earnings. Meta's negative free cash flow revived the question of whether AI infrastructure spending is sustainable (Yahoo Finance).
• "Circular financing." A Seoul newspaper reported that Nvidia and Tesla plan to invest about $2.8 billion in Samsung Electro-Mechanics. The news fed fears that companies fund partners who then buy their products, and chip stocks were already falling in premarket (TipRanks).
• Supply warning. Lam Research's CEO warned that supply constraints could limit chip output through 2027; the SOXX ETF fell as much as about 6% (Yahoo Finance).
• Macro. Oil (Brent above $110) and elevated bond yields, plus headlines about new strikes in the war with Iran, added pressure (Invezz).

What explains each decline

AMD (-8.04%)

It has the richest valuation in the group, so it reacts more sharply when appetite for AI cools. The price is hovering near the $500 psychological support that technical analysts are watching (FX Leaders). It reports on November 3.

Intel (-7.98%)

It fell with the sector after Lam Research's supply warning. Intel reports its third quarter on October 29.

Nvidia (-4.34%)

The smallest decline of the group. Several sources point to its $150 billion buyback program as a cushion, although the Samsung investment news affects it directly.

SpaceX / SPCX (-9.03%)

It had risen 7.8% on Wednesday after its results and gave most of it back. Investors focused on its fourth-quarter capex guidance of $35–40 billion (versus $19.6 billion in the third quarter), the upcoming release of additional shares and the potential merger with Tesla (Seeking Alpha).

Tesla (-3.09%)

Adjusted EPS was $0.48, above the $0.45 expected, and free cash flow turned positive (about $1.5 billion). But GAAP net income fell 43% to $787 million, revenue was flat (about $28.05 billion), energy revenue declined, and Musk was cautious on robotics and chips while giving no details on the SpaceX merger (Benzinga, Motley Fool).

What to watch

The next catalysts are Intel's results (October 29) and AMD's (November 3). If AI spending figures hold up, the market could reward the sector again; if financing doubts persist, volatility will likely continue.

Conclusion

The October 22 drop is not down to a single factor: it combines doubts over how AI is financed, a supply warning in the chip chain, mixed results from Meta, Tesla and SpaceX, and a macro backdrop of high oil and rates. AMD (-8.04%), Intel (-7.98%) and SpaceX (-9.03%) led the losses, while Nvidia (-4.34%) and Tesla (-3.09%) fell less.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice.