BUZZ Investing: AI Fervor and Geopolitical Fatigue Fuel a Record Run

Key Takeaways

• Semiconductors and AI infrastructure names led the rebound, reasserting leadership after bearing the brunt of the March selloff.
• Micron, Intel, and AMD rallied on accelerating AI infrastructure demand, while AST SpaceMobile lagged following a satellite launch failure and rising competitive pressure in direct-to-device.
• Autonomous freight company Aurora Innovation was added as a new constituent on commercial deployment momentum, while ServiceNow regained investor enthusiasm as the market reassessed the "SaaSmageddon" thesis.

U.S. equity markets staged a powerful and sustained recovery during the recent period between selection dates (April 9, 2026 - May 14, 2026, the “Period”) as a confluence of geopolitical de-escalation, resilient economic data, and renewed enthusiasm for AI-related capital spending drove major indices to fresh all-time highs. The Period opened in the immediate aftermath of a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire between the United States and Iran, announced on April 7, which included a conditional commitment from Tehran to allow safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices fell sharply on the announcement, with Brent crude dropping below $100 per barrel, helping ease the inflation anxiety that had weighed on sentiment through much of the prior Period. While the ceasefire remained fragile throughout, and late-Period headlines saw President Trump describe the truce as being on "life support" after rejecting Iran's latest counterproposal, equity markets proved increasingly willing to look through the geopolitical noise and focus instead on corporate fundamentals and the durability of the expansion.

The rally was led decisively by semiconductors, AI infrastructure, and large-cap technology names, which reasserted leadership after bearing the brunt of the March selloff. A strong first-quarter earnings season provided the fundamental underpinning, with broad upside across the technology complex reinforcing the view that AI-related capital spending remains durable and accelerating. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index posted extraordinary gains during the Period, while names tied to data centre buildout, networking, and memory benefited from renewed conviction in the multi-year AI investment cycle. Improved market breadth early in the rally, which extended into select cyclicals, small caps, and energy-related equities, gave way to a more concentrated leadership profile by late April and into May, as mega-cap technology increasingly drove index-level returns.

The Federal Reserve added a layer of complexity at its April 29 meeting, holding the target range for the federal funds rate at 3.50 to 3.75 percent in what was likely Chair Powell's final meeting at the helm. The vote featured four dissents, the most since 1992, with one member favoring a rate cut and three others opposing the inclusion of an easing bias in the statement, underscoring the degree of internal division over the appropriate policy stance. On May 13, Kevin Warsh was confirmed by the Senate as the next Federal Reserve Chair, adding a further dimension to the evolving policy outlook.

Against this backdrop, the S&P 500 gained 10.0%, and the Nasdaq Composite rallied 16.8% during the Period, with both indices closing at all-time highs. The BUZZ NextGen AI US Sentiment Leaders Index (the "BUZZ Index") materially outperformed, gaining 26.3%, as its higher-beta, sentiment-sensitive constituents participated disproportionately in the rebound. This represented a sharp reversal of the prior Period's underperformance, when many of the same holdings had been among the hardest hit during the March liquidation phase. The Period therefore reflected not simply a broad market recovery, but a decisive re-rating of growth-oriented and AI-linked leadership. While the rally ended with equities at elevated levels and investor confidence substantially restored, the underlying macro backdrop, including unresolved geopolitical risk, elevated energy-driven inflation, and a Federal Reserve constrained by firm price data, suggests that the path forward may prove less linear than the Period's headline returns imply.

The BUZZ Index returned 17.35% during the month of April compared to a return of 10.49% for the S&P 500 Index during the same period. Year-to-date, the BUZZ Index lags the S&P 500 with returns of 4.19% and 5.70%, respectively, as of the end of April.

Semiconductors Pace BUZZ Gains as AI Infrastructure Theme Accelerates

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: MU), Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) were among the leading contributors to BUZZ Index performance during the Period, rising 84.1%, 87.8%, and 90.0%, respectively, as investors rotated aggressively back into semiconductor names viewed as direct beneficiaries of the accelerating AI infrastructure buildout. Intel's advance was supported by several company-specific developments, including its agreement to repurchase Apollo's stake in its Ireland fabrication facility, its participation in Elon Musk's Terafab initiative, and an expanded partnership with Google focused on AI and cloud infrastructure. Micron benefited from surging demand for high-bandwidth memory, which has become the critical bottleneck in AI data centre deployments, with industry supply constraints supporting pricing power and fueling enthusiasm around what many view as a multi-year memory supercycle. AMD participated strongly as confidence improved around the durability of AI-related capital spending and the company's positioning as a credible scaled alternative in high-performance computing.

Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: APLD) was also a notable contributor during the Period, rising 82.7%. The company reported fiscal third-quarter revenue up 139 percent year over year, driven by its first fully operational high-performance computing data centre, and subsequently announced a 15-year lease with a new investment-grade U.S. hyperscaler representing approximately $7.5 billion in contracted value. These developments reinforced the view that Applied Digital is successfully scaling from a niche hosting provider into a material participant in the physical layer of the AI buildout.

Top BUZZ Index Contributors: April 9, 2026 – May 14, 2026

Source: BUZZ Holdings ULC, Bloomberg. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Index performance is not illustrative of fund performance. Not intended as a recommendation to buy or to sell any of the securities mentioned herein.

AST SpaceMobile Leads BUZZ Detractors as Execution Risks Mount

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) was the leading detractor from BUZZ Index performance during the Period, declining 13.94%. The stock faced a series of setbacks that collectively weighed on investor confidence in the company’s near-term execution. In mid-April, Blue Origin placed AST’s BlueBird 7 satellite into an incorrect orbit during launch, forcing the company to write off the asset and raising questions about the feasibility of its target of 45 satellites in orbit by year-end. The launch failure was compounded by significant insider selling, including large dispositions by Rakuten, and growing competitive concerns following Amazon’s acquisition of Globalstar, which signalled the emergence of a well-capitalised third entrant in the direct-to-device satellite market alongside SpaceX. Late in the Period, AST reported first-quarter results that missed expectations by a wide margin, sending shares sharply lower in after-hours trading. While management reaffirmed its full-year revenue guidance and highlighted progress on its vertically integrated manufacturing platform, the combination of execution risk, competitive pressure, and a still-nascent revenue base may have left investors less willing to extend the benefit of the doubt in what was otherwise a strongly risk-on environment.

Bottom BUZZ Index Contributors: April 9, 2026 – May 14, 2026

Source: BUZZ Holdings ULC, Bloomberg. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Index performance is not illustrative of fund performance. Not intended as a recommendation to buy or to sell any of the securities mentioned herein.

BUZZ Index May 2026 Rebalance Highlights

Aurora Innovation, Inc.

Aurora Innovation (NASDAQ: AUR) is an autonomous driving technology company focused on trucking and freight transportation. Founded in 2017, the company was established by several prominent figures in the autonomous vehicle industry, including CEO Chris Urmson, one of the original leaders of Google’s self-driving technology division. AUR went public through a merger with the SPAC Reinvent Technology Partners Y in 2021. After declining as much as 90% from its highs, shares have rallied more than 700% since 2023. While the widespread adoption of autonomous passenger vehicles has progressed more slowly than many initially expected, investor optimism has increasingly shifted toward freight transportation applications, where highway driving environments are generally more structured and operationally simpler. Earlier this month, Aurora announced major partnerships with Volvo and McLane, alongside the expansion of its autonomous freight corridor between Dallas and Houston to include Oklahoma City. The developments reinforced the view that Aurora is beginning to transition beyond testing and research into meaningful commercial deployment. Investor sentiment rose sharply following the announcements, and the company’s shares have doubled since the start of April. This month, AUR enters the BUZZ Index for the first time with a 0.5% weight.

ServiceNow, Inc.

Earlier this year, a sharp selloff across software-as-a-service companies gave rise to the term “SaaSmageddon.” Investors grew increasingly concerned that agentic AI could replicate many of the workflows and pipelines underpinning traditional SaaS business models, triggering steep declines in shares of companies such as Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE), and ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW). Much of the functionality delivered through large human workforces was suddenly being viewed as vulnerable to replacement by AI agents. On April 22, ServiceNow reported Q1 earnings. While shares initially declined following the release, the company delivered strong revenue growth and raised guidance, helping to stabilize sentiment around the name. Since then, investor sentiment towards NOW has been steadily increasing, as the market appears to be reassessing the probability of the more extreme “doomsday” scenario. Instead, investors may be increasingly betting that leading SaaS platforms may successfully integrate and monetize AI capabilities rather than be displaced by them. This month, ServiceNow experienced one of the largest increases in weight within the BUZZ Index, rising from a 0.9% weight in April to 2.85% in May.

For more on rebalancing results and a full breakdown of index constituents added and removed for the month, view the BUZZ Index reconstitution report.

Definitions: The S&P 500 is a stock market index of 500 of the largest companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. The Nasdaq Composite Index is a stock market index that consists of the stocks that are listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) is a Nasdaq-listed index composed of 30 of the largest U.S.-listed companies primarily engaged in the design, distribution, manufacture, and sale of semiconductors. S&P Banks Select Industry Index comprises stocks in the S&P Total Market Index that are classified in the GICS asset management & custody banks, diversified banks, regional banks, other diversified financial services and thrifts & mortgage finance sub-industries. Markit CDX North America High Yield Index represents one hundred liquid North American entities with high yield credit ratings as published by Markit. COBE VIX Index is a real-time market index representing the market's expectations for volatility over the coming 30 days.