Google-parent Alphabet raised its AI data center investment to $190 billion this year while reporting stronger-than-expected earnings. The company's revenue jumped 22% year-over-year, convincing investors that massive capital expenditures are justified. Alphabet's AI products and cloud computing businesses are making a meaningful difference to its bottom line, causing shares to surge 6.3% in premarket trading.

South Korean entertainment company HYBE appears attractive to Nomura analysts despite governance concerns. The firm behind BTS has seen its shares underperform the Kospi benchmark year-to-date, but Nomura maintains a buy rating, expecting earnings from concerts and album releases to improve in the second quarter. HYBE's shares closed 4.2% higher at 263,000 won.

China's AI sector continues to benefit from algorithmic innovation according to Morgan Stanley analysts. Chinese labs are exploring innovation in model architecture design and post-training efficiency, helping narrow the gap with U.S. AI models despite having just 15% of American hyperscalers' capital expenditure. The bank believes cost optimization headroom remains substantial through algorithm-level innovation.