U.S. stock futures pointed to a mixed open on July 23, with the spotlight squarely on earnings from Google parent Alphabet and Tesla. Alphabet shares slid over 3% in premarket trading despite topping second-quarter revenue estimates, as the company sharply raised its full-year capital expenditure guidance to $195–$205 billion, prompting investors to reassess returns on AI spending. Tesla also headed lower, falling more than 5% premarket. Super Micro Computer (SMCI) surged nearly 20% to lead the tape, while Nvidia (NVDA) gained over 2%.

Tech names traded in a divided fashion, with the tug-of-war between earnings beats and ballooning capex budgets emerging as the session's defining theme. Chip stocks held relatively firm, while EV makers and select AI software names weakened.

Alphabet Beats on Revenue but Capex Surge Rattles Investors; Google Drops Over 3% Premarket

As of writing, Alphabet (GOOGL) was down 3.63% premarket. The company posted second-quarter revenue of $119.8 billion, exceeding consensus, with cloud momentum standing out. However, Alphabet lifted its full-year capex forecast to $195–$205 billion from a prior range of $180–$190 billion, and free cash flow swung to a negative -$5.9 billion. Notably, quarterly profit reached $112.1 billion, of which roughly $98 billion stemmed from investment gains tied to SpaceX and Anthropic, leaving core operating profit with a limited contribution. Noah Holdings' CIO Office noted that the market is increasingly repricing AI capex through the lens of free cash flow, distinguishing high-return spending as assets while treating pure cash burn as a liability.

Tesla Tumbles Over 5% Premarket as Execution Risk Takes Center Stage

As of writing, Tesla (TSLA) was down 5.49% premarket. On its second-quarter earnings call, the company disclosed an Optimus V4 production target of 10 million units per year, while its AI5 chip is expected to enter production by mid-next year. Despite the ambitious long-term roadmap, markets remain cautious about whether near-term profit growth can keep pace with the aggressive spending trajectory. Echoing the Alphabet dynamic, the focus has shifted from the AI narrative to free-cash-flow returns.

Super Micro Surges Nearly 20%; Nvidia Extends Gains

As of writing, Super Micro Computer (SMCI) was up 19.84% premarket at $30.56 on heavy volume. Nvidia (NVDA) added 2.30% to $212.06. On the catalyst front, recent analyst commentary highlighted Nvidia's expansion from dominance in AI GPUs toward the $200 billion CPU market, with the new Vera Rubin platform expected to launch this autumn and a CPU sales target of $20 billion this year. Sustained demand for AI infrastructure continues to underpin related hardware suppliers.

Elsewhere, UiPath (PATH) sank 11.13% premarket to $10.70; Palantir (PLTR) fell 6.10% to $124.57; and Intel (INTC) declined 2.68%. Chinese ADRs saw relatively muted moves. In the bond market, the 30-year Treasury yield touched 5.15%, with macro researcher Jim Bianco arguing that the Federal Reserve needs to hike rates at the July meeting to stabilize bond market confidence.