Trump’s new AI initiative, Stargate, has sparked a major stock market surge, with $500 billion invested by OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and others. This news boosted tech stocks, especially data centers and computer companies. Despite some doubts, the market remains optimistic about the potential of AI-driven investments.
Author: Phil Rosen
Three days into his new term, Donald Trump is living up to his reputation as the guy who makes everyone rich.
Putting aside his vexing meme-coin launch before his inauguration, the president’s new artificial intelligence initiative, Stargate, has made waves across financial markets. Announced Tuesday, the move captures a $500 billion investment from OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and MGX, a firm tied to the sovereign wealth fund of the UAE.
“We’re starting off with tremendous investment coming into our country at levels that nobody’s really ever seen before,” Trump said at a White House press conference.
To be fair, Trump has previously characterized AI as both a risk and as “the oil of the future.” He’s since signaled that he intends to do whatever possible to make the U.S. the leading nation in AI.
In any case, tech stocks subsequently rallied and the S&P 500 touched an intraday high on Wednesday. Data center and computer-related stocks were among the notable standouts:
- Arm Holdings, +15.93 percent
- SoftBank, +10.97 percent
- Monolithic Power Systems, +7.98 percent
- Oracle, +6.75 percent
- Nvidia, +4.43 percent
- Microsoft, +4.13 percent
- Vertiv, +3.81 percent
- Dell Technologies, +3.61 percent
“Project Stargate is providing the lift to a wide range of tech stocks,” said Interactive Brokers chief strategist Steve Sosnick.
In total, the S&P 500’s Information Technology sector closed 2.49 percent higher the day after the announcement, outpacing the broader index’s 0.61 percent climb.
That said, the benchmark index still maintains a slight edge so far in 2025.
Tech momentum held through the doubts Elon Musk cast when he wrote on X that SoftBank, OpenAI, and Oracle did not have sufficient funding.
“SoftBank has well under $10B secured,” wrote Musk, who helms the White House’s government efficiency agency, dubbed DOGE. “I have that on good authority.”
OpenAI’s Sam Altman replied directly to the post, saying it was incorrect.
The interaction didn’t spook Wall Street. While the scope and the details of Stargate remain murky, investors seem to believe it’s at least directionally correct.
“The promise of a huge pool of money funding AI investment,” Sosnick said, “whether fully funded or not, is enough to have investors enthusiastic once again about artificial intelligence and almost anything related to it.”
Credits: TCA, LLC.