US stocks today: Nasdaq leads Wall Street higher as SpaceX, Super Micro lift AI sentiment

The Nasdaq outperformed the broader US equity market in the latest session, with gains led by SpaceX-related sentiment and a rally in Super Micro Computer shares that lifted expectations across artificial intelligence-linked names. The move reflects a risk-appetite channel, where investors rotate toward high-growth technology exposure when confidence in AI infrastructure demand strengthens and the market prices in continued capital spending by hyperscale data center operators. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX) and the technology-heavy components of the S&P 500 (SP500) carry the greatest sensitivity to this repricing, given their concentrated weights in semiconductors, server hardware, and cloud platforms. Super Micro, as a supplier of AI server systems, serves as a high-beta proxy for near-term demand expectations, while the broader index reaction depends on whether leadership broadens beyond a narrow group of megacap names. Traders should watch the next session's breadth readings and the performance of semiconductor peers to judge whether the advance is sustained or confined to a few stocks.

The Nasdaq-100 (NDX) is the US large-cap tech benchmark. NDX is more sensitive to rate decisions than SPX because of longer-duration cash flows, and heavily concentrated in Tech/Comms names — mega-cap earnings season dominates price action.

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