U.S. stock futures were largely subdued on Friday as investors assessed renewed uncertainty surrounding the artificial intelligence trade and a leadership upheaval at Nvidia. The technology sector remained under pressure after a week of sharp losses, while monetary-policy expectations and geopolitical risks added to the cautious tone across global markets.

Nvidia Turmoil Keeps AI Investors on Edge

Nvidia shares rose 2.6% in premarket trading after losing roughly 11% through Thursday. The stock remained on course for its longest streak of weekly losses since October 2012, highlighting how quickly sentiment has shifted around one of the central companies in the AI investment cycle.

The leadership change has added another layer of uncertainty. Colette Kress was named interim chief executive after Jensen Huang’s resignation, while scrutiny surrounding Huang’s relationship with a Chinese businesswoman suspected of spying for Beijing has raised concerns about the potential impact on Nvidia’s business relationships and financing arrangements.

AI Weakness Threatens Broader Equity Recovery

The developments at Nvidia are significant because of the company’s central position in the AI industry. Investors are increasingly questioning whether concerns affecting Nvidia could spread across other companies tied to AI infrastructure, particularly where financing arrangements and capital spending are involved.

Several semiconductor stocks reflected the cautious mood. AMD and Broadcom both fell more than 1.5% in premarket trading, while broader technology sentiment remained fragile. The weakness also threatens the recovery in equities following last week’s selloff after the U.S. midterm elections, when concerns over technology regulation and data-center development added to market uncertainty.

Fed Expectations Add to Market Pressure

Investors are also awaiting October’s producer-price inflation data, which could influence expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision. Markets are fully pricing a rate increase next month, while some policymakers have recently raised the possibility of a 50-basis-point hike rather than the more widely expected 25-basis-point move.

The probability of a 50-basis-point increase stood at about 12%, according to the CME FedWatch tool. A stronger inflation reading could reinforce concerns that interest rates may remain restrictive for longer, potentially placing additional pressure on growth-oriented technology valuations.

Microsoft Outage Adds to Technology Risk

Microsoft shares fell 2.1% in premarket trading after an outage affecting Outlook, Teams and Copilot extended beyond 12 hours and disrupted communications for businesses and governments globally. Microsoft was the only decliner among the Magnificent Seven stocks in premarket trading.

Still, corporate earnings are providing some support. Of the 450 S&P 500 companies that had reported results by Thursday, 83.6% exceeded expectations, according to LSEG Data and Analytics. Cerebras also gained more than 17% after raising its 2026 revenue forecast and naming Microsoft as a customer.

Markets now face several competing signals, from resilient corporate earnings to renewed pressure on AI valuations, elevated rate expectations and geopolitical uncertainty. Investors will be watching Nvidia’s ability to stabilize, the response of other AI-linked stocks and the incoming inflation data to determine whether the latest technology selloff is a temporary disruption or part of a broader reassessment of the sector’s growth and valuation outlook.