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<p>U.S. technology and AI giants’ stocks, such as Meta, Microsoft, and NVIDIA, crashed after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened military action against their regional bases.</p>
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   <li>U.S. tech stocks, including Meta, Microsoft, and NVIDIA, dropped sharply after Iran designated 18 American companies as potential military targets.</li>
   <li>Disruptions at AWS data centers in the Middle East impacted AI and cloud services, raising concerns over operational risks to critical infrastructure.</li>
   <li>AI-linked crypto tokens such as TAO, NEAR, and ICP declined 4–6% as geopolitical tensions spilled into digital asset markets.</li>
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<p>On April 1, 2026, the IRGC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/01/iran-irgc-nvidia-appple-attack-threat.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">officially designated</a> 18 U.S. companies as “legitimate targets” described by Tehran as retaliation for the targeted assassination of major Iranian leaders by the U.S. and Israeli forces. These include Alphabet (Google), Apple, Microsoft, Meta, NVIDIA, Intel, IBM, Oracle, Cisco, Dell, HP, Palantir, Boeing, Tesla, GE, JPMorgan Chase, G42, and Spire Solutions</p>
<p>Following the announcement, Meta shares dropped by 13.31% while Microsoft and NVIDIA shares dropped by 8.34% and 6.00%, respectively.</p>
<p>The threats have translated into immediate operational risks with reports of drone activity causing power failures at two Amazon Web Services data centers in the Middle East, which have disrupted AI and cloud services in the region, affecting banking payment processors and consumer apps. Notably, Anthropic’s Claude AI platform reportedly went offline for a period because it relies on AWS infrastructure.</p>
<p>You might also like: <a href="https://crypto.news/blockchain-forum-2026-top-reasons-to-attend-in-moscow-on-april-14-15-2/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Blockchain Forum 2026: Top reasons to attend in Moscow on April 14–15 </a></p>
<p>Iranian officials allege that these ICT and AI companies are complicit in tracking and identifying targets for “terrorist operations” against Iranian leaders.</p>
<p>For its part, the U.S. administration has dismissed the threats, with White House officials stating the U.S. military is prepared to thwart any potential aggression. Meanwhile, companies like Intel and Boeing have already implemented safety protocols for regional staff amid the escalating geopolitical and kinetic risk to critical infrastructure.</p>
<h1 class="wp-block-heading" id="ai-cryptos-feel-the-heat-as-market-jitters-spread">AI cryptos feel the heat as market jitters spread</h1>
<p>The news of the attack on AI-focused companies also rippled onto AI-focused crypto assets, which rely on the hardware and cloud ecosystems of NVIDIA and other giants that have come under fire.</p>
<p>According to data from crypto.news, <a href="https://crypto.news/can-chainlink-price-rally-to-10-as-whales-accumulate/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Chainlink</a> (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/chainlink/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">LINK</a>), currently the largest AI coin with a market cap of over $6 billion, has fell 5.8% over the past 24 hours. Bittensor (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/bittensor/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">TAO</a>), Near Protocol (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/near-protocol/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">NEAR</a>), and Internet Computer (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/internet-computer/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">ICP</a>) also recorded nearly similar losses between 4% and 5%. Together, the negative sentiment in the AI market led its market capitalization to drop over 3% to $0.59 billion at last check.</p>
<p>While these assets remain at risk of further losses if Iran starts carrying out more strikes, a sector-wide rebound could be in the cards if the U.S. manages to de-escalate the situation.</p>
<p>Read more: <a href="https://crypto.news/why-is-the-crypto-market-crashing-today-april-2/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Why is the crypto market crashing today? (April 2) </a></p>
<p>Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.</p>

AI giants Meta, Microsoft, NVIDIA stocks slip amid Iran threat, AI cryptos crash

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