During President Biden's tenure in the Oval Office, his administration made it a point to boost investment in domestic manufacturing. One of the administration's accomplishments came in 2022, when Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act -- a law that seeks to invest $280 billion into research and development and semiconductor manufacturing here in the U.S.

Over the last couple of years, Intel emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of CHIPS Act funding. Given rising investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure -- particularly in data centers and chipware -- I previously predicted that Intel could be a big-time winner under the new Trump administration -- which, like his predecessor, is focused on enhancing domestic manufacturing investments.

However, a recent announcement from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM) is making me reconsider my cautious optimism around Intel.

Let's explore Intel's latest fumble and assess why Taiwan Semi's latest announcement could be the ultimate checkmate move against its American foundry rival.

Intel can't seem to get out of its own way

Last year, Intel generated $53.1 billion in total revenue. While this represented only a 2% decline year over year, results from the company's foundry business were more alarming.

In 2024, Intel Foundry generated $17.5 billion in sales -- down 7% year over year. The foundry business competes directly with Taiwan Semi, which owns nearly 60% of the global foundry market. Given that Intel Foundry is decelerating at a faster rate compared to the company's overall business, I'm not too confident Intel is proving that it can catch up to its long-established rivals.

To add salt to the wound, Intel just announced that it is now delaying opening a new plant in Ohio until 2030. For reference, the plant was supposed to be operational between this year and 2026. Now, it's pushed off until next decade.

Taiwan Semiconductor's $100 billion move

On March 4, Taiwan Semi announced that it is investing $100 billion into the U.S. to build three additional fabrication plants, two packaging factories, and a research and development (R&D) center. This investment comes on the heels of an existing $65 billion project in Arizona, where TSMC is building additional manufacturing capabilities.

TSMC's investment in the U.S. is meant to help the company strengthen operational relationships with major customers including Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom, and Qualcomm.

What could this mean for Intel?

Over the last several weeks, several tech giants in the Magnificent Seven group have made public their respective plans to invest in AI infrastructure over the next several years. On the surface, you might think that Intel could benefit from rising capital expenditures (capex) from AI's biggest contributors. Instead, TSMC has taken note of Intel's struggles, and I see the company's new $100 billion investment in the U.S. as a move that could further strengthen its already-dominant pulse on the foundry market.

In a matter of years, the share price of Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has made it one of the largest companies in the world, with a market cap that currently exceeds $3 trillion. Nvidia isn't alone, either. Many other AI stocks are exploding in value.

But is Nvidia stock still a buy? According to new research by The Motley Fool on AI adoption rates, the answer is a resounding yes. The statistics cited below could be surprising to many.

The AI revolution is just getting started

You're probably well aware of the AI craze occurring right now. But what you might not realize is that the revolution is just getting started. This is going to be a decades-long process, creating huge buying opportunities for early investors who remain patient. Just take a look at some of the adoption statistics compiled by The Fool in its recent report.

The current adoption rate of AI for U.S. business stands at just 6.8%. But the technology's projected usage rate over the next six months is 9.3% That's a 37% increase in just six months!

Yet even after that expected growth, total adoption of AI would remain under 10%. "Those numbers might appear low given how AI is often discussed as a game changer for businesses," the report reads. But that's exactly the point. For as much as artificial intelligence is talked about today, its actual adoption remains quite low. Rapid growth should change that story quickly, but this will take many years, if not decades, to fully play out.

The Fool isn't alone in its findings. According to research from global consultancy McKinsey, the AI market in 2040 will be tremendously larger than it is today. The numbers aren't even close.

The firm's low-end estimate has AI software and services revenue jumping from $85 billion in 2022 to $1.5 trillion in 2040. On the higher end, the industry's revenue could eventually reach $4.6 trillion!

Looking at generative AI alone, McKinsey expects $2.6 trillion to $4.4 trillion in added economic growth stemming from the technology's adoption by businesses.

This is going to be a growth opportunity like few others in history. But does that make a stock like Nvidia a buy right now? The answer may be surprising.

Is now the time to buy Nvidia?

Identifying a growth market is different than investing in one. That's because stocks with big potential are priced accordingly. So, while the underlying growth rate may be impressive, the valuation you pay for it may offset most of that growth.

Right now, Nvidia is in a curious position. For a multitrillion-dollar company, it's surprising to see its price-to-sales multiple (P/S) so high at 21.6. Yet its revenue is clearly on a huge growth trajectory. And given the statistics discussed above, it's reasonable to expect Nvidia to continue this for decades to come.

Listen and subscribe to Living Not So Fabulously on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

In the first months that President Trump has been in office, his administration has made multiple moves affecting the rights and protections of LGBTQ people.

Though some of Trump's executive actions have been blocked by courts, most LGBTQ people in the US remain wary of Trump's policies, including LGBTQ entrepreneurs seeking funding for their business ventures.

“With the anti-LGBTQ+ legislation that's already been put in place and what Trump has already said that he wants to do, or is hinting towards, I think there may be more investors that are a little bit nervous to put into LGBTQ+ startups — especially those that are in the media space,” Elliot Tomaeno, an angel investor and the founder of Astrsk PR, said on an episode of the Living Not So Fabulously podcast that aired Feb. 12.

Tomaeno shared his advice for LGBTQ founders, saying that though things may seem bleak, he believes that not all hope is lost to get your startup off the ground.

For starters, Tomaeno cautioned business owners to “stay out of politics” if it’s not an integral part of one's company.

“If you don't have to be political, don't be right now,” Tomaeno said. “I think we do need a lot of LGBTQ+ founders out there championing and making sure that we don't see some of this legislation go through. But I do think if you're in a space that doesn't have anything to do with politics, maybe stay out of politics for the moment.”

Though Tomaeno admitted this may be “disempowering” to some, he recommended “not courting any controversy” in the current political climate.

“Nobody wants to hear the same thing that everybody else is saying out there in the media,” Tomaeno continued. “If you don't have something unique to say, maybe don't say anything at all.”

This isn't a hard-and-fast rule, though. He found that with some clients, publicly sharing a value that’s “a little bit left of center, if you really believe it,” has shown positive results.

“I saw that some of our clients that did the best were those that weren't afraid to take risks, weren't afraid to say something that maybe was slightly unpopular,” he said. “But it was something that was really true to the core of their business and what they believed in.”

For the most part, Tomaeno said the investment outlook will likely be muddied until venture capitalists and angel investors see how proposed legislation pans out, as their investing habits tend to go hand in hand.

US stock futures fell solidly Sunday evening as investors took the weekend to process the February jobs report and prepared for a busy week of economic data, headlined by a report on inflation amid concerns over its resurgence under President Trump's unpredictable trade policy.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) saw a 0.5% slip. Futures attached to the benchmark S&P 500 (ES=F) dropped 0.7% after the index posted its worst week since September, while futures tied to the Nasdaq (NQ=F) saw a 1% dip. All three major indexes looked set to build on losses of more than 2% last week.

March's market struggles continue to be fueled by trade war concerns, as ongoing tariff negotiations between the US, Mexico, and Canada dominate the headlines. In a Sunday interview on Fox News, President Donald Trump addressed concerns about a potential recession, describing the economy as undergoing “a period of transition.”

Meanwhile, Mark Carney is set to become Canada's new prime minister in the middle of a tough economic situation for his country amid Trump's persistent tariff threats.

The political uncertainty is expected to persist into this week, with key economic data adding to the mix of potential market-moving factors. The Fed's survey of consumer inflation expectations is set for release Monday, followed by the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment report on Friday.

Meanwhile, updates on the inflationary picture will be in focus, with the February Consumer Price Index scheduled for release on Wednesday and the Producer Price Index set to follow on Thursday.

Read more: Trump pauses tariffs on most imports from Mexico, Canada

Earnings continue to come, although this week does see a quieter set of corporate releases. Oracle (ORCL) and BioNTech (BNTX) report Monday, and Adobe (ADBE) is set to report Wednesday.

Concerns over valuations, tariffs, and slowing economic growth triggered an ugly week for stocks.

A sell-off in the Magnificent Seven trade pushed the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) into correction territory. The index closed the week down 3.6%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) recorded its worst weekly performance since September.

But before investors hightail it, strategists told me it’s not time to panic and pile into the recession trade just yet. Rather, they see the recent sell-off as a buying opportunity, as long as investors are willing to look past uncertainty out of Washington, D.C.

“We get a correction once every 12 months, and this time, it's spurred by the tariffs,” Nancy Tengler of Tengler Investments told me. “If they're short-lived, then this is just an opportunity to buy stocks for the long term.”

And according to Tengler, technology and financials are among the two trades that stand out.

“The defensive trade is just that, a trade," she remarked. "We like financials ... And the use cases for AI are exploding. This is an industrial revolution like we haven't seen for 100 years ... Use the weakness to add to your holdings."

Valuation corrections paired with strong earnings make the group more compelling too. Market cap losses from Nvidia's (NVDA) record high in January reached $1 trillion in value during Friday's trade. Recently, the chips giant announced fourth quarter earnings that included an 82% year-over-year jump in earnings per share.

“Tariffs add uncertainty but it doesn't change the demand cycle,” Wedbush's Dan Ives told me on Yahoo Finance’s Morning Brief. “This is not going to end the tech bull market; it's a scare, but I see more opportunity than a reason to head for the hills.”

Ives reiterated his stance that Mag Seven stocks Nvidia, Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG), Amazon (AMZN), and Tesla (TSLA) remain companies to own, along with Palantir (PLTR) and Salesforce (CRM), arguing “any weakness is a buying opportunity given the fundamental demand picture.”

Another underperforming sector drawing attention this week is financials. The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index (^BKX) erased its post-election rally, falling nearly 13% from its recent peak as concerns around a weakening economy and sluggish dealmaking weighed on the sector.

However, strategists argue that beyond the headline worry, key catalysts for the sector remain intact: deregulation, attractive valuations, and the prospect of lower interest rates.

Truist’s Keith Lerner, who recently downgraded equities from Attractive to Neutral, maintains his "attractive" outlook on Financials (XLF). In a note to clients, Lerner wrote the group “should benefit from pro-growth policies, deregulation and a pickup in mergers and acquisitions.”

The stock market has gotten off to a rough start in 2025. As of March 4, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were down by 1.5% and 5.2%, respectively.

Broadly speaking, when the stock market is performing poorly, investors may shift their funds into alternative assets such as commodities or cryptocurrency. However, so far this year the crypto markets haven't been too lush, either. The top two cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum, have dropped by 7% and 36%, respectively, and others have followed in their wake.

Joining its cohorts in the crypto sell-off is Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE). After surging by 251% in 2024, its price has tanked by 36% so far this year.

But is buying the dip in Dogecoin now a smart idea?

What fueled Dogecoin in the first place?

Even though Dogecoin's price rose significantly last year, the chart below should help paint a clearer picture as to what really went on with the cryptocurrency. As you can see, the vast majority of Dogecoin's gains in 2024 occurred during the last two months of the year.

Dogecoin's rising price action can be traced to the presidential election. During then-candidate Donald Trump's campaign, Tesla CEO Elon Musk emerged as a major surrogate for and massive donor to the Republican nominee. One of the factors influencing Musk's relationship with Trump was their shared view that the federal budget had become too bloated. As a result, Musk floated the idea of creating a team focused on identifying wasteful spending that could be cut.

The name that he and Trump bestowed on that initiative: the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Is now a good time to buy Dogecoin?

If you take a close look at its price chart, you'll notice that the price of Dogecoin actually started to fall toward the end of 2024. It has declined by 53% since Dec. 1.

If you've followed Musk at all prior to the election then you may know that the entrepreneur has jokingly endorsed Dogecoin on several occasions in the past. It's likely that Musk's comical affinity toward it played a role when a name was picked for the cost-cutting initiative. But at the end of the day, DOGE is no more than a clever acronym. It has no tangible relationship with the cryptocurrency.

Moreover, Dogecoin remains a meme coin with little to no utility in the real or digital worlds. In my opinion, the sell-off that started in December was the first domino to drop. As investors began to reflect on the fact that the coin had risen on pure hype unrelated to any actual worthy catalysts, its bubble began to deflate.