The 'TACO trade' reappears, will the main theme of the US stock market return to AI? GTC and OFC conferences are coming next week, these core sectors are a must-know!

Overnight, the US stock market once again witnessed a TACO trade.

"I think this war has been very thorough, it's almost over." With this statement and expectation from Trump, the previously runaway oil price that was rushing towards $120 was forcefully brought down to $85. Meanwhile, the three major US stock indices surged violently, and almost all assets staged a reversal.

As the Middle East conflict eases, market risk appetite is expected to gradually recover, and the trading focus is likely to return to the AI sector. This article will summarize some recent developments in the AI circle for fellow investors, upcoming key events, and companies worth paying close attention to.

What major events in the AI circle are worth noting?

When it comes to AI, the hottest topic recently is undoubtedly OpenClaw, referred to as 'Crayfish'.OpenClaw's data has skyrocketed in almost a vertical line. Just two months into this year after its explosive growth, it surpassed many ultra-large infrastructure projects that have been continuously updated for more than a decade, such as Linux and React.The market believes that OpenClaw has the potential to become a Q&M Dental-level AI application.

Notably, $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$there are also reports suggesting preparation is underway to launch an open-source platform for AI agents.Called NemoClaw, this platform will allow companies to deploy AI agents to perform tasks on behalf of their employees.

What major events are coming up next? Which companies should be closely watched?

First, large operators of artificial intelligence data centers, $Oracle (ORCL.US)$ will announce their third-quarter earnings after today's market close,which could serve as a significant reference for decision-making among AI investors.

Analysts will pay close attention to how the company manages its massive capital expenditure plans amid negative free cash flow and whether its planned financing channels can sustain operations.

In addition to Oracle’s earnings results,Next week's NVIDIA GTC Conference (March 16-19, 2026) and the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC) (March 15-19, 2026) are crucial.

NVIDIA is expected to unveil a new chip architecture and accompanying multi-dimensional technological innovations at GTC 2026. A research report by Guolian Minsheng Securities pointed out that following the confirmation of mass production for the Vera Rubin platform at CES 2026,GTC 2026 is expected to mark the official debut of its enhanced version, Rubin Ultra, and may also reveal preliminary details of the technical roadmap for the next-generation Feynman architecture ahead of schedule.

In addition to the new architecture and supporting technologies,NVIDIA plans to introduce a new inference chip that integrates Groq LPU technology,to meet the high-performance, low-cost demands of AI inference and address industry competition.

Beyond the above content, Nomura Orient International Securities noted thatinvestors will be looking forward to NVIDIA disclosing more roadmap details of its Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) technology,while also paying attention to related information on its co-packaged optical switches designed for scale-out networks—Quantum-X for infinite bandwidth and Spectrum-X for Ethernet—as well as potential announcements regarding supply chain partners.

Additionally,The Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC) is expected to define several key trends in the optical communication industry for the coming years.Including the mass production and evolution of traditional optical modules at 1.6T and 3.2T, co-packaged optics (CPO) and optical I/O, optical circuit switching (OCS), as well as next-generation fiber and space communications.

Focus on March! NVIDIA GTC & OFC: Two Major Tech Conferences Are Set to Make Waves – Where Are the Opportunities in Optical Communications? Check Out This Forward-looking Strategy Guide.I previously provided a detailed analysis of the key highlights from these two conferences; interested fellow investors can click to view.

Over the past two years, the focus of the AI supply chain has been concentrated on GPUs and computing power servers. However, as model sizes continue to expand, with both computing density and data traffic exploding simultaneously, network infrastructure is becoming a new critical bottleneck.Based on these two conferences, the market also widely anticipates that optical interconnects will become a major theme.

At the beginning of the year,Outlook 2026 | Don’t Just Focus on NVIDIA! By 2026, the Optical Communication Industry May Become the Strongest Growth Area—What Opportunities Should You Watch?It was also noted that with rapid iteration and upgrades of GPUs and ASICs, the marginal effectiveness of computing power is increasingly constrained by the physical limits of network bandwidth.The 'scissors gap' between computing power and transmission capacity is shifting the industry’s focus toward interconnection technologies.

In addition to optical interconnects,the NVIDIA GTC conference will also highlight opportunities in storage, LPUs, 800V high-voltage DC power supply, and liquid cooling within related industry chains.

Mark your calendars for March 16-19! The NVIDIA GTC Conference Is Approaching: Are These Three Under-the-radar Trends About to Explode?I’ve also written an article providing a detailed interpretation of the upcoming changes in these industry chains; interested fellow investors can click to view.

Key companies to watch in the Hong Kong and US optical communication industries: $Corning (GLW.US)$、 $Coherent (COHR.US)$、 $Lumentum (LITE.US)$、 $Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI.US)$、 $YOFC (06869.HK)$。

Key companies in the LPU architecture for Hong Kong and US stocks:

PCB: $TTM Technologies (TTMI.US)$ ; Liquid cooling: $Vertiv Holdings (VRT.US)$ ；

High-density AI server power modules: $Vicor (VICR.US)$ ；

IP & EDA: $Synopsys (SNPS.US)$ 、 $Cadence Design Systems (CDNS.US)$ ；

Memory: $CSOP Samsung Electronics Daily (2x) Leveraged Product (07747.HK)$ 、 $CSOP SK Hynix Daily (2x) Leveraged Product (07709.HK)$ 、 $Micron Technology (MU.US)$ 、 $Western Digital (WDC.US)$ 、 $SanDisk (SNDK.US)$ 、 $Seagate Technology (STX.US)$ ；

AI inference chip foundry and advanced packaging: $Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM.US)$ 、 $Intel (INTC.US)$ 、 $ASE Technology (ASX.US)$ 、 $GlobalFoundries (GFS.US)$ 、 $Amkor Technology (AMKR.US)$ 、 $CSOP Samsung Electronics Daily (2x) Leveraged Product (07747.HK)$ 。

Key opportunities in the HVDC industry chain include:

Silicon wafer suppliers: $Analog Devices (ADI.US)$ 、 $Alpha & Omega Semiconductor (AOSL.US)$ 、 $Monolithic Power Systems (MPWR.US)$ 、 $Navitas Semiconductor (NVTS.US)$ 、 $ON Semiconductor (ON.US)$ 、 $Power Integrations (POWI.US)$ 、 $STMicroelectronics (STM.US)$ 、 $Texas Instruments (TXN.US)$ 、 $INNOSCIENCE (02577.HK)$ 、 $INFINEON TECHNOLOG (IFNNY.US)$ 、 $Renesas Electronics (ADR) (RNECY.US)$ 、 $Rohm (ADR) (ROHCY.US)$ , EPC, and Richtek Technology;

Power system component suppliers: $Flex Ltd (FLEX.US)$ 、 $GE Vernova (GEV.US)$ 、 $Shenzhen Megmeet Electrical (002851.SZ)$ , BizLink Group, Delta Electronics, $BYD ELECTRONIC (00285.HK)$ subsidiary Lead Wealth and Lite-On Technology;

Data center power system suppliers: $Eaton (ETN.US)$ 、 $GE Vernova (GEV.US)$ 、 $Vertiv Holdings (VRT.US)$、 $Mitsubishi Electric (ADR) (MIELY.US)$ 、 $SIEMENS AG (SIEGY.US)$ , ABB, Hitachi Energy, Heron Power, Schneider Electric.

Summary

Overall, AI remains the main investment theme for 2026, but caution is needed regarding geopolitical risks, which remain uncertain. Trump also noted overnight that Iran’s conflict would end “soon” but “not” within this week, indicating that the situation could still fluctuate in the short term.

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