Is The AI Bubble Popping?

Author: Gav Blaxberg | November 21, 2025 12:14pm

Nvidia's post-earnings pop evaporated, crypto is testing cycle lows, and the AI trade that carried the market all year is suddenly cracking.

Nvidia's Earnings Pop Didn't Stick

Despite a strong headline report, (NASDAQ:NVDA) was up 5-6% after hours on Wednesday, only to fade the entire day as the broader market sold off, eventually closing red.

The numbers were solid, but not strong enough to overpower macro fear and the aggressive unwinding in AI-linked names. When a market darling posts great earnings and still gets sold, that's a message. Investors are questioning whether datacenter margins have peaked and whether expectations simply ran too far ahead of reality.

Crypto Breaks Down, Testing Cycle Lows

Bitcoin is now trading around $86,000, far off its $126,200 ATH, putting it 31.9% below the peak. Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) has fallen to $2,800, down 43.5% from its $4,955 ATH, marking one of the sharpest drawdowns of the year.

The speed of this decline has traders openly debating whether this is the end of the cycle or just a violent mid-cycle reset. Liquidity is thinning, forced selling is happening across leveraged players, and risk appetite is evaporating. But long-term investors still see this as textbook DCA territory.

Major Sell-Off Across the AI Complex

The broader market was unloading the hottest AI winners of 2024-2025. (NASDAQ:MU), (NASDAQ:SNDK), (NYSE:PSTG) all saw heavy distribution, while speculative AI-infrastructure names (NASDAQ:NBIS), (NASDAQ:IREN), (NASDAQ:CIFR) got punished with sharp, high-volume selling.

This wasn't rotation; it was liquidation. When both high-beta and high-quality AI names fall together, the market is questioning whether the AI bubble is popping or simply resetting before the next wave of capex and compute demand. Either way, today's tape was a reminder that nothing goes up in a straight line, not even AI.

Thanks for reading! Catch you in the next one!

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Benzinga Disclaimer: This article is from an unpaid external contributor. It does not represent Benzinga’s reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy.

Posted In: $ETH CIFR IREN MU NBIS NVDA PSTG SNDK