Amazon.com Inc. shares plunged in a historic selloff, erasing approximately $450 billion in market value as investors recoiled from the company's massive AI infrastructure spending plans. The stock has dropped roughly 18% since February 2, marking its worst losing streak since 2006 with nine consecutive days of declines.

Amazon announced it expects to spend $200 billion in capital expenditures this year, a nearly 60% increase from last year that exceeded Wall Street forecasts by more than $50 billion. Most of this spending will fund AI-related initiatives including data centers, chips, and networking equipment. The sell-off began following Amazon's fourth-quarter earnings report earlier this month, as concerns mounted about whether these investments would reduce or eliminate free cash flows.

CEO Andy Jassy defended the massive expenditure during an analyst conference call, stating he is confident it will "yield strong returns on invested capital." If the stock closes negative Tuesday, it would mark a 10th consecutive day of losses, matching Amazon's longest losing streak on record set in 1997. The market's reaction underscores growing investor skepticism about large technology companies' AI spending strategies and their potential impact on profitability.