Cathie Wood has spent much of 2026 rotating among artificial intelligence winners, trimming some positions while adding to others as investors pile into the sector.The Ark Invest chief just bought shares of a megacap tech firm.In 2025, the flagship Ark Innovation ETF gained 35.49%, far outpacing the S&P 500’s return of 17.88% in the same period. So far this year, Wood’s flagship Ark Innovation ETF (ARKK) is up 5.24% year to date, while the S&P 500 surged 10.73%, Yahoo Finance data shows.Wood gained a reputation after the Ark Innovation ETF delivered a 153% return in 2020. But her style also brings painful losses in bearish markets, as seen in 2022, when the Ark Innovation ETF tumbled more than 60%.Those swings have weighed on Wood’s long-term gains. As of May 29, the Ark Innovation ETF has delivered a five-year annualized return of -5.92%, while the S&P 500 has an annualized return of 12.51% over the same period, according to data from Morningstar.Cathie Wood expects a “great acceleration” brought by tech developmentsWood focuses on high-tech companies across artificial intelligence, blockchain, biomedical technology, and robotics. She thinks these businesses have strong growth potential, though their volatility often causes fluctuations in the Ark’s funds.According to Morningstar analyst Bella Albrecht, two of Wood’s Ark funds were among the worst-performing ETFs in the first quarter of 2026. The Ark Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) ranked second on the list, while the ARK Innovation ETF placed fifth.
In the 12 months through May 28, the Ark Innovation ETF saw roughly $768 million in net outflows.Getty Images
From 2014 to 2024, the Ark Innovation ETF wiped out $7 billion in investor wealth, according to a March 2025 analysis by Morningstar’s analyst Amy Arnott. That made it the third-biggest wealth destroyer among mutual funds and ETFs in Arnott’s ranking. The analyst hasn’t updated the 2025 ranking.In a March Bloomberg podcast, Wood says the global economy is not heading into a downturn, but into what she calls a “great acceleration” driven by AI and other breakthrough technologies.“We’re not going into the Great Depression, we’re going into the great acceleration,” Wood said, pointing to how past technological revolutions reshaped economic growth.She noted that global real GDP growth averaged just 0.6% between 1500 and 1900, before the Industrial Revolution lifted it to around 3% for more than a century. Now, she argues, a new wave of innovation could push growth much higher.“We think [technologies] are going to take growth into the 7 to 8% range,” Wood said, adding that the number may actually be conservative.Wood also noted that AI is driving down costs across industries.“These technologies are deflationary,” she said. “AI training costs are dropping 75% per year, and inference costs are falling as much as 85% to even 98% annually.”Related: Cathie Wood buys $32 million of popular semiconductor stockIn a letter published in January, Wood rejects the “AI bubble” talk, saying it “is years away” and “the most powerful capital spending cycle in history” is coming.”What once was the cap in spending seems to have become a floor now that the AI, robotics, energy storage, blockchain technology, and multiomics sequencing platforms are ready for prime time,” she said.But not all investors agree with Wood’s optimism. In the 12 months through May 28, the Ark Innovation ETF saw roughly $768 million in net outflows, according to data from ETF research firm VettaFi. Cathie Wood buys $6.5 million of Amazon stockWood’s Ark Innovation ETF bought 24,186 shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN), on May according to Ark’s daily trade information. These shares are valued at approximately $6.5 millionbased on the latest closing price of $270.64. Shares of Amazon have gained 17.25% year to date, making it the second-best-performing Magnificent Seven stock, behind only Alphabet (GOOGL).Magnificent Seven Stocks Ranked by 2026 Performance:Alphabet (GOOGL): +21.51%Amazon (AMZN): +17.25%Apple (AAPL): +14.79%Nvidia (NVDA): +13.21%Tesla (TSLA): -3.10%Meta Platforms (META): -4.18%Microsoft (MSFT): -6.90%The gains were driven by growing optimism around Amazon Web Services (AWS), the company’s AI hub, as well as a broader rally in technology stocks.Related: 5-star analyst sets jaw-dropping Nvidia stock price targetOn April 29, the e-commerce giant reported better-than-expected first-quarter 2026 earnings and revenue, with earnings of $2.78 a share on revenue of $181.52 billion, topping Wall Street estimates of $1.64 a share and $177.30 billion in revenue.Amazon Web Services revenue rose 28% from a year earlier to $37.59 billion, its fastest growth rate in more than three years and above Wall Street’s $36.64 billion expectation. Like other Big Tech companies, Amazon has been ramping up spending on artificial intelligence. CEO Andy Jassy said in February that the company expects capital expenditures to reach $200 billion in 2026. The company has already expanded its AI investments this year, announcing plans to invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic in April after revealing a $50 billion investment in OpenAI in February.Amazon is also looking to turn its AI technology into a business of its own. On May 27, the company said it would package its “Alexa for Shopping” AI assistant for other retailers, allowing them to launch AI-powered shopping assistants tailored to their own stores and products.Bank of America estimates Amazon’s AI shopping tools could generate more than $200 billion in incremental gross merchandise volume and profits by 2035, making AI a key growth driver for its retail business. “As usage increases, AfS should benefit from a flywheel effect in which better personalization drives higher conversion and incremental engagement,” the analyst wrote in a recent research note. “We believe AfS can ultimately drive higher conversion rates than Rufus alone, making AfS a Retail sales driver as usage scales.”Bank of America reiterated its buy rating and $310 price target on Amazon stock.Amazon is not a top 10 holding in either the Ark Innovation ETF.Top 10 holdings of the Ark Innovation ETF as of May 29, 2026:Tesla (TSLA) 10.55%Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) 5.60%CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) 5.02%Tempus AI (TEM) 4.92%Robinhood Markets (HOOD) 4.68%Circle Internet Group (CRCL) 4.33%Shopify (SHOP) 4.28%Roku (ROKU) 4.26%Coinbase Global (COIN) 3.84%Twist Bioscience (TWST) 3.13%Other than buying Amazon shares, Wood’s recent trades included adding to positions in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (KTOS) and Futu Holdings (FUTU), while trimming stakes in Robinhood Markets (HOOD), Teradyne (TER), Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), and Kaspi.kz (KSPI).Related: Fidelity, Charles Schwab deliver major message on 401(k)s, IRAs