Goldman Sachs Unveils $9.3 Trillion AI Holdings: Hedge Funds and Mutual Funds Take Different Paths, Chips and Software See Extreme Divergence

According to news from Zhitong Finance APP, Goldman Sachs’ latest holdings analysis report reveals a clear signal of divergence: although both hedge funds and mutual funds are doubling down on the AI sector, the two are moving in completely different directions in their stock selections. As of the beginning of Q3 2026, Goldman Sachs’ analysis of the holdings of 991 hedge funds (with total stock holdings of about $5.4 trillion) and 504 large actively managed mutual funds (with total stock assets of about $4.6 trillion) indicates that hedge funds overall still have substantially deeper exposure to AI trades than mutual funds, but have taken exactly the opposite approach when it comes to large-cap tech and semiconductor stocks.

Overall Landscape: Hedge Funds "All in AI", Mutual Funds Still Deeply Underweight

According to Goldman Sachs’ quarterly “Hedge Fund Trend Monitor” and “Mutual Fund Fundamentals” reports, as of early Q3 2026, the reports covered 991 hedge funds (with total stock holdings of $5.4 trillion) and 504 large actively managed mutual funds (with stock assets of $4.6 trillion), analyzing a combined holdings size of about $9.3 trillion.

Overall, hedge funds’ exposure to AI trades remains much higher than mutual funds, but both types of institutions made significant adjustments to their AI stock positions in Q2 2026.

Hedge fund portfolios remain tightly correlated with AI trades; in recent months, the returns of hedge funds and their top positions have been highly correlated with the volatility of AI trades. Mutual funds have increased their holdings of AI infrastructure stocks but the magnitude is still insufficient to keep pace with the weighting in benchmark indices, resulting in a significant underweight in the AI sector. This divergence is most clear among major tech giants. In recent months, hedge fund returns, their main holdings, and the volatility of AI trades have been highly correlated.

Large-Cap Tech: Four Giants "Going Their Separate Ways"

In Q2, hedge funds bought Microsoft (MSFT.US) and Amazon (AMZN.US), while mutual funds reduced their holdings in these two stocks. Microsoft and Amazon were the only two large-cap AI tech stocks in which hedge funds increased their positions in Q2.

Meanwhile, hedge funds reduced their holdings in several other large AI companies, including Alphabet (GOOGL.US), Meta Platforms (META.US), Nvidia (NVDA.US), Broadcom (AVGO.US), Lam Research (LRCX.US), Marvell Technology (MRVL.US), Cisco Systems (CSCO.US), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE.US), and Applied Materials (AMAT.US).

In Q2, hedge funds increased their positions in Lam Research, Applied Materials, and ASML (ASML.US), while mutual funds increased their exposure to Intel (INTC.US) and SiTime (SITM.US).

Semiconductors and Storage: Mutual Funds "Bottom Fishing", Hedge Funds "Exiting"

In the field of semiconductors and storage, the two types of institutions are also moving in opposite directions. Mutual funds bought shares of AMD (AMD.US), Micron Technology (MU.US), and SanDisk (SNDK.US), while hedge funds sold all three during the same period. This divergence is particularly notable: AMD, Micron, and SanDisk were all highly volatile stocks during the Q2 AI hardware correction, with mutual funds stepping in to buy the dip and hedge funds opting to take profits or reduce exposure.

Notably, Goldman Sachs data shows that among all AI-related stocks tracked, Nvidia (NVDA.US) is the stock with the biggest underweight by mutual funds, averaging about 100 basis points underweight. AMD’s underweight is around 60 basis points.

Biggest Consensus: AI Infrastructure as the "United Front"

Despite significant differences at the individual stock level, the two types of institutions have reached broad consensus in the field of AI infrastructure.

Goldman Sachs has identified 12 AI infrastructure stocks that were simultaneously increased by both hedge funds and mutual funds in Q2: American Electric Power (AEP.US), AXT (AXTI.US), Bloom Energy (BE.US), CoreWeave (CRWV.US), Flex (FLEX.US), Lion Electric (LGN.US), NiSource (NI.US), Sanmina (SANM.US), SiTime, Seagate Technology (STX.US), Talen Energy (TLN.US), and Xcel Energy (XEL.US).

Both sides also bought Bloom Energy, Flex, and Seagate Technology, becoming the most definite overlap in the AI sector for the two types of institutions. Bloom Energy and Flex provide electricity and manufacturing infrastructure for AI data centers, while Seagate Technology directly benefits from the explosive growth in demand for AI storage.

However, despite mutual funds making significant increases in AI infrastructure stocks this year, the pace of additions is still lagging behind the growth of the benchmark index weights, resulting in substantial underweight positions in the overall AI sector. Nvidia is the most prominent example of this underweighting trend.

Capital Outflows: Which AI Stocks Are Being Simultaneously Abandoned by Both Institutions?

Both sets of investors have also reduced their holdings in a series of AI-related stocks, including Viavi Solutions (VIAV.US), Digital Realty Trust (DLR.US), Argan (AGX.US), MasTec (MTZ.US), Corning (GLW.US), and EQT (EQT.US). Comfort Systems USA (FIX.US) is a typical example of mutual funds buying while hedge funds reduce exposure.

The "United Front" Beyond AI: Historical Overweight in Financials

Away from AI, Goldman Sachs’ data reveals an even more historically significant signal: hedge funds and mutual funds are both currently overweight the financial sector—only the third time this has occurred in Goldman Sachs’ historical data.

In Q2, hedge funds’ net overweight in the financial sector increased by more than 300 basis points, reaching the highest level since before the global financial crisis; mutual funds’ overweight in financials also rose to the highest since at least 2012. Large-cap financial stocks jointly accumulated by both types of institutions include: Capital One Financial (COF), Corpay (CPAY), Fiserv (FI), and Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR).

Goldman Sachs has also screened six “Shared Favorites” stocks — top holdings in both hedge fund and mutual fund portfolios: Boeing (BA), Capital One Financial (COF), Mastercard (MA), SpaceX (SPCX), Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO), and Visa (V). These “Shared Favorites” have returned 29% year to date, outperforming the S&P 500 equal-weighted index’s 16% return.

Both types of institutions are also substantially overweight healthcare, but are in disagreement on the consumer sector: hedge funds are overweight consumer discretionary and underweight consumer staples, while mutual funds are positioned in the exact opposite direction.

Conclusion

Goldman Sachs’ positions analysis reveals a new market order in the making: on the main AI trading axis, hedge funds and mutual funds are increasingly “on the same path but in different vehicles” — mutual funds are actively building positions in AI infrastructure, while hedge funds are taking profits in large-cap tech and semiconductors; their disagreement intensified in the AI hardware correction, but consensus was unusually reached in financials.

With Nvidia’s earnings report and the Jackson Hole Symposium approaching, the $9.3 trillion capital reshaping the AI positioning map is setting the stage for the next phase of the market. AI trading volatility is now highly tied to hedge fund returns, while mutual funds remain heavily underweight in the AI sector—meaning that, whether the next stop for AI trades is a continued uptrend or a sharp correction, it will trigger an unprecedented wave of institutional portfolio rebalancing.