The April poll told us what you wanted: top-performing AI stocks, a deep analysis report, and a watchlist. The first AIIP Deep Dive Report delivers all three. Three AI stocks analysed in depth, each chosen from a different angle:

Plus the top-performing AI stocks list and the full AIIP Watchlist. Watch for the email tomorrow.

Q1 2026 earnings landed on 29 April. Since then, the analyst notes have moved fast, and the names being upgraded by Wall Street look nothing like the retail "top AI stocks" lists. Here is what Morgan Stanley, BofA, Jefferies, Stifel, Barclays, B. Riley, Raymond James and DA Davidson have actually been buying in the past seven days.

The retail-facing AI stock features published this May tend to centre on four names: TSMC, Broadcom, Nvidia and Alphabet. That part is well-known and broadly tracked.

The bank notes since Q1 earnings have leaned in different directions. Hyperscaler 2026 capex estimates from the major sell-side desks vary materially, ranging from around $600bn to $750bn depending on the source. Alphabet reported Q1 Google Cloud revenue of roughly $20bn, up 63% year on year. Meta sold off post-earnings on its raised capex guidance, and Microsoft and Amazon also traded lower despite headline beats. That suggests the market is starting to focus on AI revenue evidence rather than capex scale alone. Most of this week's upgrades sit one or two layers below the megacap names.

Following the OFC 2026 conference rally, Stifel raised price targets across the sector:

If GPUs and HBM get the headlines, the optical fabric connecting them is one of the sub-sectors where recent analyst notes have turned more constructive.

CoreWeave $CRWV ( ▼ 6.62% ): BofA raised its PT to $140 (from $120); Jefferies analyst Brent Thill raised his to $160 (from $120) ahead of Q1, citing the Meta, Anthropic and Jane Street deals announced in April. CoreWeave is widely described as one of the closest pure-play AI infrastructure stocks on the public market.

Micron $MU ( ▼ 2.99% ) : Up 5% on multiple bank PT hikes this week. AI servers consume vastly more high-bandwidth memory than traditional servers, and supply remains tight.

ServiceNow $NOW ( ▲ 5.1% ) : Barclays PT to $134 from $132 with an explicit note on "measurable AI monetisation". The rarer signal in the current cycle: visible AI revenue, not just promised.

The most interesting bank disagreement of the week: $AMD ( ▼ 3.07% )

Bull side: Morgan Stanley raised AMD's PT to $360 from $255. DA Davidson upgraded with a PT of $375 from $220 and a Buy rating. Bernstein raised on expected 50% growth in EPYC server CPU sales for 2026 plus a new Meta AI deal.

Bear side: HSBC downgraded to Hold from Buy on 4 May at $340, flagging 2026 semiconductor capacity worries after AMD's 77% YTD rally.

When two banks raise PTs by 30 to 60% in the same week another downgrades on capacity concerns, the dispersion is itself worth watching. AMD has moved from broad analyst agreement to active institutional debate.

Palantir $PLTR ( ▲ 2.44% ): Wedbush's Dan Ives published his "third-inning" note on 1 May, naming Palantir his favourite non-Magnificent Seven AI stock and calling for 15% further tech upside this year.

CrowdStrike $CRWD ( ▲ 8.04% ) and Palo Alto Networks $PANW ( ▲ 7.0% ) : also on Wedbush's preferred names. AI accelerates the attack surface as much as productivity, and security spending is one of the few enterprise budgets that grows when the macro slows.

Figma $FIG ( ▲ 6.58% ) and Atlassian $TEAM ( ▲ 4.02% ) : Goldman Sachs argued on 3 May that the AI software sell-off was overdone. Figma's 2026 sales guidance suggests continued double-digit growth before AI add-ons are priced in. Atlassian's Rovo AI is showing approximately 20% month-on-month credit usage growth, per the company's earnings commentary.

Alibaba $BABA ( ▼ 0.31% ) , Knowledge Atlas, MiniMax: Morgan Stanley's 3 May Chinese AI note named Alibaba its top China internet pick. Morgan Stanley also raised price targets on Knowledge Atlas and MiniMax ahead of upcoming index inclusion catalysts.

Hyperscaler 2026 capex estimates from sell-side desks span a wide range, broadly $600bn to $750bn, with Wedbush at the higher end of that range in its published research. The Tema Electrification ETF $VOLT ( ▼ 2.61% ) is up roughly 40% year to date against around 5% for the S&P 500. Vertiv $VRT ( ▼ 5.27% ) carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for AI data centre power and cooling. Post-earnings commentary across the sell-side has increasingly framed power infrastructure, rather than chip supply, as the binding AI buildout constraint.

Three names from this week's analyst upgrades clear the AIIP Watchlist threshold of a combined Total plus Relative Strength score above 175/200.

All three sit in our AIIP Watchlist, and each has been the subject of a fresh bank raise or Buy rating in the past two weeks.

The pattern across this week's analyst notes is fairly clear. Bank conviction has rotated away from the megacap headlines and into the supplier stack: optical networking, memory, semiconductor packaging and AI-data-centre power.

Whether that translates into a near-term pullback or simply a rotation between AI sub-themes is genuinely debated. The momentum is intact; the asymmetry has narrowed. What stands out is the dispersion: banks split on the same name (AMD), prices that have run hard, and a smaller pool of stocks where independent scoring still supports the bull case.

That said, a near-term pullback could be on the cards. Both the QQQ and SPX are currently trading notably above their 50-day moving averages, a classic technical signal of stretched conditions and the kind of extension that often draws mean-reversion attention from technical traders.

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^{Not Investment Advice: This content is provided by AI Investing Pulse for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice, a personal recommendation, or an invitation or inducement to engage in any investment activity. Not Regulated: AI Investing Pulse is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom, is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or any state securities regulator in the United States, and is not registered with the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) or any provincial securities commission in Canada. Methodology Disclosure: The AIIP Index scores and rankings mentioned in this article are generated by a proprietary quantitative methodology based on publicly available financial data. Our full methodology is explained in the "About AIIP" section below. These scores are objective system outputs, not recommendations or endorsements. Risk Warning: Investing in stocks involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance of stocks, scores, or rankings is not indicative of future results. Stock prices can decline as well as rise, and you may lose some or all of your invested capital. Third-Party References: References to analyst opinions, bank research, media publications, or the term "picks" refer to third-party selections, not AIIP recommendations. We aggregate this information for educational analysis only. Seek Professional Advice: Always consult a qualified, regulated financial professional who understands your personal circumstances before making any investment decisions. Consider your individual financial situation, risk tolerance, investment objectives, and time horizon.}

^{About AIIP - The AIIP Index tracks 173 AI-focused public companies across the full AI stack, serving as our benchmark for sector performance. All scores are proprietary and calculated using data from Finbox (powered by S&P Global Intelligence). AIIP Total Score (0–100) combines metrics for sales and EPS growth, financial quality, and valuation to assess overall business strength. AIIP Relative Strength (RS) Score measures a stock’s price performance relative to the AIIP 173 AI stocks. Ranking Status is based on score combinations: Fundamental: Total Score ≥ 70, RS < 80. Momentum: RS ≥ 80, Total Score < 70. Watchlist: Total Score ≥ 70 and RS ≥ 80}

TSMC and Broadcom: Next $3 Trillion Candidates – The Motley Fool

TSMC and Broadcom are positioned to cross the $3 trillion mark by the end of next year. TSMC expects mid to high 50% AI chip CAGR through 2029, while Broadcom has roughly 50% upside on 2027 analyst earnings forecasts.

Broadcom and Alphabet: Long-Term Generative AI Picks – The Globe and Mail

Broadcom's AI chip revenue jumped 65% to $20 billion in fiscal 2025 and could reach $60 to $90 billion by fiscal 2027. Alphabet is highlighted as a full-stack AI player spanning chips, models, cloud, and consumer reach.

Rare Earth Stocks Riding the AI Buildout – Zacks

Zacks highlights American Resources (AREC), MP Materials, USA Rare Earth, and IperionX as plays on the US rare earth supply chain.

Europe's AI Adapters: SAP, Siemens, ASML in Focus – Morningstar

Morningstar argues European winners will be "AI adapters" rather than pure infrastructure plays. SAP, Siemens, ASML, RELX, Amadeus, Capgemini, and Sage are flagged as candidates whose business models can be enhanced by AI integration.

The Real AI Trade Is Power Equipment – Yahoo Finance

The Tema Electrification ETF (VOLT) is up 40% year to date against 5% for the S&P 500, riding hyperscaler demand for substations, transformers, and turbines.

Jassy Stands Behind Amazon's $200bn AI Capex – Tekedia

Andy Jassy framed Amazon's 2026 capex as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," citing OpenAI's $100bn+ commitment and customer pre-bookings against a substantial portion of the spend.

Alphabet Closes Gap on Nvidia for Top Spot – Economic Times

Alphabet's market cap pushed past $4.6 trillion after a 10% post-earnings jump, with Google Cloud growing 63% to over $20bn. The gap to Nvidia is now around $200 billion.

Meta's AI Is Working, But Two Red Flags Remain – The Motley Fool

Meta's 2026 capex guidance has been raised to $125 to $145 billion. Costs grew 35% versus 33% revenue growth in Q1 and Reality Labs lost another $4 billion in the quarter.

eleQtron Raises €57m for Trapped-Ion Quantum Computers – Unite.AI

Germany's eleQtron closed one of Europe's largest quantum Series A rounds, led by Schwarz Digits with the EIC Fund participating.

Indian AI Startups Push Beyond Application Layers – BW Education

Around 75% of Indian AI startups are still building at the application layer, attracting nearly 80% of funding. Enterprise SaaS rose from 14.1% of the ecosystem in 2024 to 25.5% in 2025.

AI in Education Market Heads Toward $42bn by 2030 – Vocal Media

The global AI in education market is set to grow from $7.5 billion in 2025 to $10.6 billion in 2026, with longer-range forecasts pointing to $42 billion by 2030 at a 40% CAGR.

Future Tech Wins Fourth Northrop Grumman Award – Brief Glance

Future Tech Enterprise picked up Northrop Grumman's Supplier Excellence Award for the fourth straight year, recognised for support on mission-critical AI infrastructure projects.

Schwab Rolls Out Generative AI for Retail Investors – Traders Magazine

Schwab's first generative AI tool gives retail clients personalised summaries of the five biggest movers in their portfolio, plus relevant market and Schwab Center for Financial Research commentary.

Jensen Huang on Leading in the Age of AI – Milken Institute

Nvidia's Jensen Huang in conversation at the Milken Institute Global Conference 2026, covering AI leadership, sovereign chip demand, and the productivity case for accelerated computing.

^{IMPORTANT LEGAL DISCLAIMER}

^{Not Investment Advice: This content is provided by AI Investing Pulse for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice, a personal recommendation, or an invitation or inducement to engage in any investment activity. Not Regulated: AI Investing Pulse is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom, is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or any state securities regulator in the United States, and is not registered with the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) or any provincial securities commission in Canada. Methodology Disclosure: The AIIP Index scores and rankings mentioned in this article are generated by a proprietary quantitative methodology based on publicly available financial data. Our full methodology is explained in the "About AIIP" section below. These scores are objective system outputs, not recommendations or endorsements. Risk Warning: Investing in stocks involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance of stocks, scores, or rankings is not indicative of future results. Stock prices can decline as well as rise, and you may lose some or all of your invested capital. Third-Party References: References to analyst opinions, bank research, media publications, or the term "picks" refer to third-party selections, not AIIP recommendations. We aggregate this information for educational analysis only. Seek Professional Advice: Always consult a qualified, regulated financial professional who understands your personal circumstances before making any investment decisions. Consider your individual financial situation, risk tolerance, investment objectives, and time horizon.}

^{About AIIP - The AIIP Index tracks 173 AI-focused public companies across the full AI stack, serving as our benchmark for sector performance. All scores are proprietary and calculated using data from Finbox (powered by S&P Global Intelligence). AIIP Total Score (0–100) combines metrics for sales and EPS growth, financial quality, and valuation to assess overall business strength. AIIP Relative Strength (RS) Score measures a stock’s price performance relative to the AIIP 173 AI stocks. Ranking Status is based on score combinations: Fundamental: Total Score ≥ 70, RS < 80. Momentum: RS ≥ 80, Total Score < 70. Watchlist: Total Score ≥ 70 and RS ≥ 80}