Consumers Are Now Worried About an AI Bubble, Michigan Survey Says

Quick Read

• QQQ plunged 13% over the past month while SPY slid 5%, leaving the AI-heavy Nasdaq fund far more exposed to bubble fears.

• Wealthy stockholders soured on the economy as sentiment among top stock owners fell 5%, while lower- and middle-wealth households grew more upbeat.

• NVIDIA alone makes up about 8% of QQQ, while SPY holds Berkshire Hathaway and other companies that do not depend on AI spending.

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Average households have started using a phrase once reserved for professional traders. The University of Michigan released its preliminary November 2026 consumer survey on November 6, 2026. It found comments showing what survey director Joanne Hsu called “growing anxiety over a possible AI bubble.”

The headline Index of Consumer Sentiment rose to 51.0 from 48.0 in October. That 6.3% gain only brought it back to the November 2025 reading of 51.0.

Consumers with the most money in stocks moved the other way. Their sentiment fell 5%, while lower- and middle-wealth households became more upbeat.

That split matters if you own the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ), which closed November 6 at $656.10, up 1.4%. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) closed at $735.36, up 0.32%. Over the past month, though, QQQ fell 13.41% while SPY fell 5.39%.

Big Stockholders Soured While Everyone Else Improved

Hsu said most of the small increases in expected personal finances and business conditions came from political independents. The current conditions index rose to 51.0 from 46.7, and expectations rose to 50.9 from 48.8.

The AI-bubble finding comes from open-ended comments, and the survey attached no percentage to it, showing the idea has reached average households but not how many people hold it.

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