Slowdown, climbdown or meltdown, Asia sits on AI’s fault line

TOKYO – After two years of near-vertical capital spending, euphoric earnings calls, and GPU shortages that became their own economic indicator, the mood toward AI has dramatically shifted. Hyperscalers, model makers and investors are now asking the same uncomfortable question: did the future arrive too fast?

The recent wave of slowdown warnings isn’t just caution — it’s the first real test of whether the artificial intelligence trade is a revolution, a slow-motion bubble or something in between.