The AI trade has powered this market for the better part of two years, but the past couple of weeks have served as a reminder that no trend moves in a straight line. As volatility has crept back into high-flying AI and technology names, a quiet rotation has been underway beneath the surface. Capital has begun flowing toward areas of the market largely ignored during the AI frenzy, and the relative strength emerging in certain corners warrants close attention.
If the AI sell-off deepens, history suggests and has often shown that money does not simply leave the market entirely. It rotates. It moves toward sectors with defensive characteristics, durable earnings, reliable dividends, and businesses that do not live or die by the next GPU shipment.
