AI Trade Splits: Hardware Names Rally While Adobe, Palantir Fall

AI-linked hardware stocks climbed in recent trading even as Adobe and Palantir, two software names tied to AI product rollouts, fell. Intel was among the hardware gainers, helped in part by strong revenue growth reported by Dell, which investors read as a positive signal for the broader semiconductor supply chain. The divergence highlights a debate over where AI value is actually accruing. Hardware suppliers benefit directly from capital spending on chips and servers, a trend visible in large backlogs at companies like Cerebras. Software companies depend on convincing enterprise customers to pay for AI features, a slower and less certain process that shows up faster in stock price swings when adoption disappoints. Not every hardware name got equal treatment. Mizuho cut its price target on Intel this week even while acknowledging the company's AI tailwinds are real, arguing the stock's move had outrun near-term fundamentals. That mixed signal — a price target cut paired with a bullish narrative — captures the uncertainty still surrounding which part of the AI trade is more durable.