September 21, 2026, (Inside AI) — Wall Street futures climbed on Monday morning, led by a sharp rebound in artificial intelligence stocks, as a 2% drop in oil prices pushed Treasury yields below a closely watched threshold and eased pressure on equity markets.
Dow E-minis rose 311 points, or 0.6%, while S&P 500 E-minis added 48.75 points, or 0.63%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis gained 327.25 points, or 1.09%, reflecting renewed appetite for technology names that had sold off sharply just one week earlier.
The recovery marks a notable reversal. Last week, warnings from executives at several leading AI companies triggered a broad sector rout, with investors fleeing chipmakers and infrastructure firms. By Monday, that anxiety appeared to have faded as market participants refocused on evidence that corporate spending on AI development continues to expand.
Intel rose 5.4%, Marvell added 2.6%, Meta climbed 2.4%, and Dell advanced 2.7%. Accenture gained 6% after announcing a partnership with Anthropic to invest $2 billion in AI evaluation, a move that signaled continued institutional commitment to measuring and improving model performance.
Read: AI Spending Slowdown Fears Rattle Investors After Industry Warnings
The broader market also drew support from a decline in crude prices, which pushed the 10-year US bond yield below the 5% mark. Energy-sensitive airline stocks benefited, with Delta and American each gaining about 1%.
Geopolitical developments added to the positive tone. Iran and the United States exchanged threats through the weekend, but President Donald Trump said he would be open to meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is expected in New York this week for the UN General Assembly. A diplomatic breakthrough between the US and Denmark over Greenland also helped sentiment, with US-listed shares of companies exposed to the territory surging. Critical Metals soared 30%, Greenland Mines shot up 70%, and Greenland Energy more than doubled.
Inflation remains a concern. A spike in consumer prices prompted the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates for the first time in three years. Markets now see a 53% chance of another rate hike next month, according to the CME Group's FedWatch Tool. Commentary from at least 10 policymakers is scheduled this week, starting with Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee on Monday, which could offer traders more clarity on the rate outlook.
Bitcoin, a key gauge of risk sentiment, added 3.5% to reach a more than seven-month high, lifting Coinbase up 4.6% and Strategy up 6.8%. Warner Bros rose 7.6% after a report that Paramount and California's attorney general discussed concessions in advanced settlement negotiations that could help close their proposed merger.
Diplomacy will remain in focus on Thursday at a China-US summit expected to touch on an extension of the trade truce, the Iran conflict, and regulation of AI advancement. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng concluded talks on Sunday, where Bessent proposed a new AI safety notification mechanism.
The proposal, if adopted, would represent one of the first formal bilateral frameworks for reporting AI safety incidents between the world's two largest economies. Details remain scarce, and Inside AI could not independently verify the scope or enforceability of the mechanism. But the mere discussion of such a channel suggests both governments recognize that uncoordinated AI development carries risks that transcend commercial competition.
For investors, Monday's rally reflects a familiar pattern: fears about AI overheating give way to optimism about spending cycles. The question now is whether this rebound can hold through a week packed with central bank commentary and high-stakes diplomacy.
