Mega-Trend Map — US Market (October 9, 2026)
Query: mega trends · data as of 2026-10-09
Built a 20-theme US mega-trend scorecard (ranked by avg 6M return) mapped from the catalog: Cybersecurity, Enterprise AI & Automation, Enterprise Cloud Apps and Datacenter Networking lead, while power/utilities, uranium & nuclear, GLP-1/obesity, space and defense have de-rated. Included a 29-row ETF map per theme and a breadth heatmap of ~390 member stocks grouped by theme/industry, sized by market cap with 1D/1M/6M and %-above-150D-SMA toggles. Fresh comments and narrative applied.
As of October 9, 2026, AI-adjacent themes dominate: Cybersecurity (+86% avg 6M), Enterprise AI (+57%) and Cloud Applications (+56%) lead, while power/utilities, uranium/nuclear, defense and space have de-rated despite intact long-term demand stories.
Mega-Trend Theme Scorecard — ranked by 6M return
| Mega-Trend Theme | Description | Avg 1M Return | Avg 6M Return | Avg % above 150D SMA | Avg Revenue Growth (YoY) | Members | Market Cap ($B) | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cybersecurity | Software and platforms defending enterprises against increasingly AI-driven attacks; security is now a core AI adoption enabler. | 15.28% | 86.47% | 26.30% | 20.66% | PANW,CRWD,FTNT,NET,CRWV,OKTA,ZS,RBRK,CHKP,GEN,SAIL,S,NTSK,QLYS,CVLT,VRNS,BB,TENB,YOU,NTCT,CLBT,ALRM,ATEN,RDWR,ODC,RDVT,RSKD,RPD,MITK,OSPN,CGNT,ALLT,TLS,GRRR | 1,156 | The rare theme where breadth matches the headline: roughly four out of five members sit above their 150-day average. Security budgets are becoming non-discretionary as agentic AI widens the attack surface, and platform consolidation (PANW, CRWD, FTNT) plus a wave of smaller identity/data-security names gives the theme both ballast and optionality. Main risk is valuation — leadership this extended is vulnerable to any enterprise IT spending wobble. |
| Enterprise AI & Automation | Platforms, models and automation software monetizing the enterprise AI build-out. | 7.81% | 56.68% | 14.87% | 19.12% | NVDA,GOOGL,AVGO,AMD,PLTR,ARM,ROK,CBRS,BIDU,SYM,IOT,VRSK,TEM,PATH,NICE,XMTR,MBLY,EXLS,OCTV,CCC,PENG,MNDY,INTA,APPN,SOUN,RAMP,PRLB,INOD,AMPL,ATS,AI,BST,PRGS,NBXG,BTX,STK,SSYS,SPT,GDYN,DDD,SMWB,CRNC | 1.362e+04 | The purest enterprise-spending expression of the AI cycle, but note the internal barbell: the accelerator complex (NVDA, AVGO) has gone range-bound while automation and vertical-AI software (PLTR, ROK, PATH) carry the momentum. Watch whether model-training capex converts into inference and licensing revenue — that handoff is what keeps this theme compounding rather than just re-rating. |
| Enterprise Cloud Applications | SaaS and cloud platforms converting AI features into recurring subscription revenue. | 8.61% | 56.49% | 19.51% | 14.32% | MSFT,ORCL,CRM,SAP,NOW,SNOW,ADBE,INTU,TEAM,ADSK,VEEV,WDAY,TWLO,ROP,MDB,ZM,PTC,SSNC,DT,GWRE,DOCU,FROG,FIG,MANH,TYL,HUBS,ESTC,GTLB,YMM,ZETA,DBX,NICE,GLBE,RNG,PEGA,DSGX,KVYO,OTEX,BOX,FSLY,WK,FRSH,BRZE,AVPT,SPSC,TDC,KC,FIVN,ASAN,PDFS,VERX,BLKB,BL,BAND,CXM,DFIN,NABL,YEXT,IIIV,OOMA | 5,843 | Software is acting as the 'AI landlord' trade — recurring revenue that captures adoption regardless of which model wins. Seat-based vendors face genuine disruption risk from agentic pricing, so the winners are the data-heavy platforms (MSFT, ORCL, SNOW, NOW) bundling AI into existing contracts. Cash-rich balance sheets make them defensive if the macro sours. |
| Data Center & Enterprise Networking | Servers, optics, custom silicon and switching that physically move AI workloads. | 4.35% | 53.10% | 6.90% | 46.91% | GOOGL,AVGO,CSCO,DELL,ANET,MRVL,IBM,HPE,VRT,NBIS,ALAB,CRDO,SMCI,HPQ,FFIV,NTNX,SMTC,DOCN,FPS,MAAS,APLD,GDS,BDC,IOND,FA,EXTR,CSQR,DGII,KD,ATEN,LIME,VNET,SHAZ,BRUN,RXT,NTGR,WYFI,EROC,NUAI,ALLT | 8,156 | Revenue growth here is the fastest of any theme in the table, a direct read on hyperscaler capex being spent on optics, custom silicon and switching. The catch is cyclicality — orders are lumpy and a single hyperscaler digestion quarter can reset the group. Networking and optical (ANET, MRVL, CRDO) are the higher-beta expression than server ODMs. |
| Life Science Tools & Reagents | Instruments, consumables and diagnostics underpinning drug discovery and bioprocessing. | 11.01% | 51.69% | 22.01% | 10.17% | TMO,DHR,KEYS,A,WAT,ILMN,IDXX,MTD,DGX,LH,RVTY,TECH,VIAV,RGEN,AVTR,TWST,TXG,BIO,BRKR,RAL,QGEN,LNTH,RDNT,DLB,BLLN,ADPT,ITRI,CDNA,MRVI,NEOG,WGS,ALMR,AZTA,QDEL,CYRX,DNA,FEIM,TRNS,CTKB,FLGT,MLAB,MASS,TECX,PRE,MYGN | 886.97 | A quiet but important beneficiary of biopharma re-stocking: instrument and consumable demand tracks R&D and bioprocessing budgets rather than any single drug. The group is levered to a healthcare M&A revival and to China/onshore lab capacity build-out, with a structural tailwind from GLP-1 and biologics manufacturing scale-up. Valuation is the main offset after a strong run. |
| Electrical & Electronic Distribution | Distributors supplying components and power electronics into data center and grid build-outs. | 6.70% | 38.10% | 13.91% | 14.24% | WCC,ARW,AVT | 37.59 | Only three members, so treat the aggregate with caution — but as a channel check, distributors are a real-time read on component and power-electronics demand, and lead times have been firming after two years of inventory destocking. Pricing power and working-capital leverage make this a solid, unglamorous way to play the electrification capex cycle. |
| Biopharma Drug Discovery Platforms | Novel modality platforms (gene editing, mRNA, radiopharma) feeding the next wave of pipelines. | -0.34% | 33.52% | 11.13% | — | JNJ,MRK,GSK,SNY,MRNA,RPRX,BNTX,HALO,PCVX,LGND,ABCL,PBLS,PGEN,BEAM,MBX,RXRX,NVAX,SDGR,VIR,SRPT,GENB,NTLA,BRVE,ANIP,STOK,QURE,TSHA,ALVO,AMPH,MGTX,GLUE,APMD,SLDB,FDMT,PRME,SGMT,IRWD,DRUG,RGNX,EOLS,CAPR,SCTX,EBS | 1,417 | The most heterogeneous theme in the list: mega-cap pharma sits alongside pre-revenue gene-editing and radiopharma platforms, so the average masks enormous dispersion. The setup is a healthcare M&A window — large-cap patent cliffs are forcing bolt-on deals at healthy premiums — which disproportionately benefits the clinical-stage names. Financing risk remains the key vulnerability if rates back up. |
| Semiconductor Capital Equipment | Wafer-fab equipment and chips enabling the AI compute and reshoring capex supercycle. | 8.32% | 33.00% | 1.23% | 8.67% | TSM,MU,SKHY,ASML,INTC,AMAT,LRCX,TXN,KLAC,SNDK,ADI,ASX,STM,MPWR,TER,UMC,NXPI,MCHP,TSEM,ON,GFS,MTSI,SITM,SWKS,LSCC,MKSI,ONTO,VICR,AMKR,RMBS,AEIS,NVMI,FORM,LFUS,QRVO,CAMT,SIMO,MXL,SLAB,ALGM,CRUS,VSH,ACMR,KLIC,DIOD,ACLS,COHU,VECO,UCTT,AMBA,NVTS,AEHR,POWI,IMOS,ICHR,PLAB,WOLF,AMBQ,AIP,CEVA,AOSL,NVEC,MRAM,SHMD | 8,568 | Equipment and memory names are riding the twin engines of AI-driven leading-edge capacity and government-subsidized reshoring. The critical detail is that this group is only modestly above its 150-day average despite strong returns — capital-intensive, export-control-exposed and historically cyclical, so it trades in violent swings. Memory pricing is the cyclical swing factor to watch. |
| Oncology Therapeutics | Cancer drugs and precision oncology — the largest, most durable R&D spending pool in pharma. | -3.19% | 28.76% | 6.86% | 135.77% | ABBV,MRK,AZN,AMGN,GILD,PFE,BMY,SNY,REGN,CL,TAK,NTRA,RVMD,ONC,HLN,KVUE,INCY,GH,GMAB,EXEL,SMMT,IBRX,CAI,IOVA,GRAL,LGND,CGON,ERAS,COGT,TNGX,RLAY,VCYT,LEGN,IDYA,CELC,RCUS,ELVN,ZLAB,PGEN,SLS,NRIX,IMNM,PBH,NEO,PRGO,LKFT,ZYME,NBTX,GENB,XNCR,BHVN,URGN,NUVB,PSNL,SNDX,IMCR,INBX,TYRA,DRTS,REPL,ORIC,BCAX,IMTX,JANX,CSTL,AKTS,CGEM,KURA,CRVS,ANL,AVBP,IMMX,CADL,VSTM,OLMA,AURA,CBIO,DCTH,MNPR,ARVN,EIKN,CCCC,RLMD | 2,549 | The numbers look extreme because the theme mixes royalty-like large-cap pharma with pre-commercial developers, so dispersion is enormous. The real storyline is scientific: radiopharmaceuticals, ADCs and bispecifics are the hottest clinical areas, and deal-making for those assets has been aggressive. Small-cap funding and trial-readout risk stay the dominant variables. |
| Power & Electronic Components | Connectors, sensors and power components — the 'picks and shovels' of electrification and AI hardware. | 3.33% | 27.86% | 8.13% | 14.27% | APH,TEL,Q,BELFB,CTS,VREX,MEI,MPTI | 311.63 | A niche but high-signal group — connectors, sensing and power components are content-per-unit plays that grow with data-center density, EV electrification and grid hardware. Fewer than ten pure plays in the universe means limited capacity and high volatility; earnings are leveraged to a small handful of large OEM programs. |
| Fintech & Digital Payments | Payments networks, neobanks and digital lending scaling with cashless and embedded-finance adoption. | 0.33% | 18.62% | 7.56% | 21.50% | V,MA,SHOP,NU,SE,PYPL,XYZ,CPAY,GPN,BR,KSPI,FIS,WSE,CHYM,PAYP,JKHY,FIGR,WEX,ACIW,DLO,SEZL,PAY,BILL,QTWO,FOUR,PAGS,STNE,PAYO,EEFT,INTR,FLYW,NCNO,MQ,EVTC,PICS,ALKT,PGY,LSPD,VTEX,PSFE | 1,866 | Structurally advantaged by the shift from interchange to software and embedded finance, but this is the most macro-sensitive theme of the top half: consumer credit quality, cross-border volumes and rate expectations all feed straight through. Stablecoin and real-time-payments regulation is the wildcard that could re-rate or disrupt the incumbent networks. |
| Medical Devices & Surgical Technologies | Surgical robotics, monitoring and implants benefiting from procedure growth and tech content gains. | -0.80% | 15.35% | 3.30% | 14.83% | ISRG,MDT,SYK,BSX,BDX,EW,MDLN,RMD,GEHC,PHG,STE,ZBH,SOLV,SNN,BAX,PEN,GMED,HAE,TFX,MMSI,HTFL,ITGR,LIVN,ICUI,PLSE,NVST,IRTC,ATRC,TMDX,BFLY,AXGN,INSP,LMAT,XRAY,NVCR,ATEC,KMTS,CNMD,IRMD,PRCT,IART,AORT,ENOV,LMRI,CBLL,SIBN,INMD,MDXG,AVR,KIDS,TCMD,ANGO,SENS,NPCE,OFIX,CLPT | 846.89 | Procedure volumes are the durable driver, and device makers are adding tech content (robotics, sensors, digital surgery) that supports pricing. The group has lagged despite solid fundamentals, making valuation more reasonable than med-tech pricing historically implies. Regulatory approval cadence and hospital capex budgets are the swing factors. |
| Industrial Sensors & Automation | Factory sensing and automation gear tied to reshoring and labor-substitution capex. | 4.90% | 15.02% | -1.08% | 2.50% | AME,FTV,CGNX,ST,NOVT,VPG | 97.33 | Small and mixed, but the theme captures the labor-substitution argument behind reshoring: factory automation and sensing demand accelerates precisely when labor is scarce and manufacturing is being repatriated. Six members limit diversification, and the group's average sits slightly below trend — a contrarian, capex-cycle-dependent setup rather than a momentum trade. |
| Defense Technology & Communications | Primes plus defense-tech challengers riding higher global defense budgets and munitions restocking. | -1.85% | 14.88% | 1.22% | 37.19% | GOOGL,META,AVGO,ABBV,CSCO,DELL,MRK,ANET,GEV,MRVL,AZN,AMGN,LIN,IBM,GILD,ETN,NEE,PFE,BMY,SPGI,PWR,CEG,DDOG,SNY,SO,HPE,VRT,APP,DUK,BE,MCO,NGG,REGN,SLB,MFC,CL,AEP,APD,MET,NBIS,TAK,ALAB,NTRA,BKR,RELX,D,VST,SRE,ETR,XEL,TRI,SLF,EXC,MSCI,CRDO,RVMD,ONC,HLN,PCG,ED,PRU,ODFL,PEG,EME,KVUE,WEC,PUK,BIDU,FTS,AEE,SMCI,ATO,FTI,HPQ,FFIV,HAL,NVT,DTE,FE,PPL,AWK,CNP,HUBB,ES,SBS,INCY,NRG,GH,JBHT,EIX,OMC,GMAB,CMS,NTNX,NI,EVRG,TLN,SMTC,LNT,RGA,KEP,DOCN,EMA,LDOS,CRBG,LAMR,EXEL,EQH,FICO,SMMT,CACI,FPS,GL,IESC,AEG,PINS,IT,KNX,CSGP,PNW,IBRX,WTRG,AES,SNAP,ELPC,FDS,OGE,ENLT,ORI,SAIA,BAH,JXN,VOYA,PRI,CAI,MAAS,UGI,IDA,LNC,SEI,NFG,CWEN,APLD,POWL,NE,NOV,IOVA,TXNM,ENIC,GRAL,GDS,BEPC,RIG,SWX,LGND,WEX,VAL,BKH,TTD,CGON,SAIC,ERAS,WFRD,SNDR,WPP,ORA,KGS,COGT,POR,AROC,OUT,NJR,PSN,AMTM,HASI,PAM,SR,NWE,OGS,OII,WHD,AQN,TAC,PTEN,BDC,GEO,FRVO,TNGX,HP,MDU,RLAY,FCN,WBI,OTTR,MGNI,VCYT,LEGN,IOND,GNW,IDYA,CELC,EXPO,AVA,FA,AWR,CPK,ATKR,EXTR,LBRT,AGO,RCUS,ELVN,EFXT,CSQR,SDRL,DGII,CWT,WTTR,DNOW,ZLAB,PGEN,BHF,MMS,HURN,MGEE,LFTO,KD,FG,RNW,HTO,SLS,CEPU,NRIX,IMNM,NESR,PBH,VVX,ATEN,FLOC,STGW,CTRI,DV,NEO,PRGO,NWN,INVX,WERN,LKFT,ZYME,NBTX,GENB,XNCR,LIME,BHVN,XPRO,URGN,NUVB,PSNL,VNET,ICFI,OPRA,SNDX,HE,IMCR,AMSC,BORR,FCEL,INBX,MRTN,TYRA,SHAZ,DRTS,RES,REPL,ORIC,NBR,EDN,BCAX,SPH,IMTX,JANX,PUMP,CRAI,PDS,CSTL,BRUN,AKTS,MSEX,IBTA,RXT,FET,CGEM,KURA,TBLA,UTL,QNST,CRVS,ANL,DSP,HTLD,PUBM,ACDC,AVBP,CVLG,KRNT,IMMX,CRTO,MNTN,CADL,VSTM,GRPN,BWMN,OLMA,AURA,HNRG,NTGR,WYFI,EROC,NUAI,CBIO,DCTH,MNPR,NGS,NEXN,ARVN,OIS,CWCO,ONT,CLB,YORW,ALLT,EIKN,CCCC,RLMD,RNGR,PERI,SUPX,CDZI | 1.681e+04 | By far the broadest grouping here, and the average understates the dispersion between primes, munitions restockers and new defense-tech challengers. Budget growth is durable and multi-year across NATO and the Indo-Pacific, but the group has de-rated on program-timing delays and political noise around supplemental funding. Autonomy and counter-drone names carry the growth premium. |
| Crypto & Digital Asset Platforms | Exchanges, miners and treasury vehicles levered to digital-asset adoption and regulation. | -2.03% | 9.78% | -5.18% | 66.69% | MSTR,COIN,CRCL,BMNR,IREN,HUT,WULF,RIOT,CIFR,CORZ,BLSH,XXI,MARA,PURR,CLSK,BTDR,SECZ,KEEL,SBET,BTGO,GEMI,FWDI,DGXX | 222.34 | A high-volatility proxy for digital-asset adoption that has convincingly broken down relative to the broader market. The composition matters: exchange and stablecoin-infrastructure names (COIN, CRCL) are fundamentally different businesses from bitcoin miners whose economics hinge on hash price and power costs. Regulatory clarity is the biggest re-rating catalyst. |
| Quantum Computing | Early-stage quantum hardware and software — long-dated optionality on a post-classical compute shift. | -10.85% | 6.90% | -14.30% | 107.23% | IONQ,QNT,QBTS,IQMX,RGTI,XNDU,INFQ,QUBT,HQ | 51 | Early-stage, cash-burning, headline-driven — the classic long-dated option profile where equity value rests on multi-year technical milestones rather than near-term revenue. Recent weakness reflects a shift in speculative appetite rather than any fundamental setback, and any credible error-correction breakthrough would reintroduce a large premium to the group. |
| GLP-1 / Obesity & Metabolic Health | Incretin drugs and oral/next-gen metabolic pipelines — the largest new drug class in pharma history. | -13.96% | 6.14% | -10.33% | 68.58% | LLY,NVO,MDGL,HIMS,RYTM,VKTX,MBX,GPCR,KLRA,IVA,WVE,SGMT | 107.9 | The demand story is intact — incretins remain the largest new drug class in pharma history, with oral formulations and next-gen mechanisms expanding the addressable market. The pullback is about competition and pricing: second-source entrants, Medicare negotiation, and pipeline disappointments have compressed the leaders' premiums. Manufacturing capacity and payor coverage are the pivotal variables from here. |
| Power Generation & Utilities | Independent power, utilities and grid equipment serving surging AI-datacenter electricity demand. | -2.34% | -3.49% | -3.87% | 9.79% | GEV,ETN,NEE,PWR,CEG,SO,DUK,NGG,MFC,AEP,MET,D,VST,SRE,ETR,XEL,SLF,EXC,PCG,ED,PRU,ODFL,PEG,EME,WEC,PUK,FTS,AEE,ATO,NVT,DTE,FE,PPL,AWK,CNP,HUBB,ES,SBS,NRG,JBHT,EIX,CMS,NI,EVRG,TLN,LNT,RGA,KEP,EMA,CRBG,EQH,GL,IESC,AEG,KNX,PNW,WTRG,AES,ELPC,OGE,ENLT,ORI,SAIA,JXN,VOYA,PRI,UGI,IDA,LNC,NFG,CWEN,POWL,TXNM,ENIC,BEPC,SWX,BKH,SNDR,ORA,POR,NJR,HASI,PAM,SR,NWE,OGS,AQN,TAC,FRVO,MDU,OTTR,GNW,AVA,AWR,CPK,ATKR,AGO,CWT,BHF,MGEE,FG,RNW,HTO,CEPU,CTRI,NWN,WERN,HE,AMSC,MRTN,EDN,SPH,MSEX,UTL,HTLD,CVLG,KRNT,HNRG,CWCO,YORW,CDZI | 2,821 | The thesis — AI datacenters straining the grid, driving demand for generation, transmission and equipment — is intact, but the trade has de-rated hard on rate sensitivity, rising bond yields and disappointment over how quickly new load actually connects. The divergence is instructive: regulated utilities and independent power sit alongside high-multiple equipment names, so this is really several different trades under one label. |
| Satellite & Space-Based Services | Launch, satellites and optical links building out a recurring-revenue space infrastructure layer. | 3.53% | -12.77% | -12.16% | 188.49% | SPCX,GLW,LITE,CIEN,COHR,MTSI,ASTS,GSAT,VSAT,AAOI,PL,IRDM,AXTI,IPGP,TSAT,LASR,POET,VTOL,GILT,BKSY,SATL,LWLG,LPTH,CLFD,SPIR,OPTX | 2,610 | Falling launch costs and direct-to-device connectivity remain a genuine multi-year opportunity, but the near-term price action has been brutal as speculative capital rotated toward AI software. Business mix ranges from launch providers to optical component suppliers, so the average hides sharply different risk profiles. Government and defense contract awards are the main catalysts. |
| Uranium & Nuclear Energy | Fuel-cycle miners, SMR developers and nuclear operators tied to firm, carbon-free baseload demand. | -653.31% | -13.64% | -14.60% | 15.40% | CCJ,SMR,OKLO,NNE,UEC,LEU,BWXT,UUUU,CEG,VST,TLN,URNM,LTBR,SMRT | 120 | The datapoint for row 19 appears corrupted in the source data and should be treated as unreliable — use the 6M and 150-day columns for context instead. Underneath, the structural case for firm carbon-free baseload is as strong as ever, but the sector has been a funding source as capital rotated into software; fuel-contract renegotiations and SMR licensing milestones are the catalysts that would revive it. |
Mega-Trend ETF Map — most relevant funds per theme
| ETF | Fund Name | Mapped Mega-Trend | 1M Return | 6M Return | Top Holdings | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CIBR | First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF | Cybersecurity | 16.83% | 81.26% | PANW,CRWD,FTNT,CSCO,AVGO,NET,OKTA,ZS,FFIV,RBRK | The single best-performing thematic ETF on the board and the purest security-spend proxy. Concentration in the platform leaders is a feature, not a bug — those are the names winning consolidation budgets — but it makes the fund vulnerable to multiple compression in high-multiple software. |
| IGV | iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF | Enterprise AI & Automation / Software | 11.33% | 50.92% | PLTR,PANW,MSFT,CRWD,CRM,ORCL,NOW,ADBE,FTNT,INTU | Broad software beta with meaningful cyber and data-platform weight; effectively a bet that enterprise IT budgets keep expanding into AI features rather than being cut to fund them. |
| SKYY | First Trust Cloud Computing ETF | Enterprise Cloud Applications | 11.67% | 57.09% | NTNX,ANET,P,MSFT,MDB,AMZN,TEAM,GOOGL,NET,IBM | Captures the 'AI landlord' trade — recurring cloud revenue that captures adoption regardless of model winners, with infrastructure-software names providing the momentum. |
| IGPT | Invesco AI and Next Gen Software ETF | Enterprise AI & Automation | 6.28% | 55.77% | NVDA,META,AMD,MU,GOOGL,INTC,SNDK,STX | Hybrid exposure to AI software plus the accelerator/memory complex, so it behaves more like a high-beta AI basket than a pure application-software fund. |
| CHPX | Global X AI Semiconductor & Quantum ETF | Semiconductors & Quantum | 7.38% | 52.65% | MU,TSM,NVDA,AVGO,ASML,AMD,ANET,CSCO | A cross-asset semiconductor and quantum basket; the quantum sleeve is speculative optionality, while the semi core is the real return driver. |
| SMH | VanEck Semiconductor ETF | Semiconductor Capital Equipment | 7.68% | 38.10% | NVDA,TSM,AVGO,MU,AMD,ASML,LRCX,AMAT,ADI,TXN | The benchmark semiconductor exposure — dominated by a handful of mega-caps, so it is really a concentrated bet on the leading-edge accelerator and foundry complex rather than the broad chip cycle. |
| SMHX | VanEck Fabless Semiconductor ETF | Semiconductor Capital Equipment | 10.49% | 46.16% | NVDA,AVGO,AMD,SNPS,QCOM,MRVL,CDNS,ALAB,MPWR,ARM | Fabless-only exposure tilts the fund toward design and IP names, giving it a higher-margin, less capital-intensive profile than the full semiconductor index. |
| AIQ | Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF | Enterprise AI & Automation | 5.58% | 34.90% | PLTR,MSFT,ORCL,NFLX,TSLA,AMZN,GOOGL,NVDA | Diversified AI and technology basket with meaningful software and platform weight — a broader, lower-concentration alternative to the semiconductor-heavy funds. |
| IVES | Dan IVES Wedbush AI Revolution ETF | AI & Technology | 6.96% | 42.11% | MSFT,NVDA,PLTR,AMZN,AAPL,TSM,CRM,MU,AVGO,GOOGL | Actively managed AI basket with a strong software and platform tilt; active positioning means it can deviate materially from index-based AI peers in a rotation. |
| AIQ | Global X AI & Technology (dup) | AI | 5.58% | 34.90% | — | Duplicate listing in the source map; use the primary row above for reference. |
| QTUM | Defiance Quantum ETF | Quantum Computing | 4.75% | 30.92% | ESTC,PLTR,NET,SNOW,NTNX,RDNT,MDB | The only liquid quantum proxy, and its holdings are largely data, analytics and enterprise-software names rather than pure quantum hardware — so it trades as a speculative-tech basket, not a quantum-purity play. |
| ARKG | ARK Genomic Revolution ETF | Biopharma Drug Discovery | 13.05% | 92.28% | TXG,TWST,TEM,CRSP,PSNL,ABSI,NTRA,ILMN,LLY,CDNA | The strongest genomics vehicle and the cleanest read on the healthcare-innovation bid, but it is concentrated in pre-commercial platforms with binary clinical outcomes. |
| IBB | iShares Biotechnology ETF | Biopharma Drug Discovery | 1.91% | 21.94% | AMGN,VRTX,GILD,REGN,ARGX,MRNA,NTRA,RVMD,ILMN,ALNY | Large-cap biotech with commercial products and cash flows — the defensive, lower-volatility way to hold the biopharma innovation trend versus equal-weight or small-cap peers. |
| XBI | State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF | Biopharma Drug Discovery | -1.94% | 18.91% | MRNA,TWST,APGE,KYMR,HALO,NTRA,PRAX,ORKA,RVMD,TVTX | Equal-weighted small and mid-cap biotech: maximum leverage to M&A premiums and clinical catalysts, and maximum exposure to financing risk if capital markets tighten. |
| IHI | iShares U.S. Medical Devices ETF | Medical Devices & Surgical Technologies | — | — | ISRG,ABT,BSX,SYK,MDT,BDX,EW,RMD | Surgical robotics and device exposure where procedure volume growth and rising tech content per procedure support pricing; returns unavailable in the current dataset. |
| ROBO | ROBO Global Robotics and Automation Index ETF | Industrial Sensors & Automation | 4.42% | 10.14% | ILMN,ZBRA,IOT,NDSN,EMR,AMBA | Robotics and automation index tilted toward industrial and healthcare automation; has lagged the AI software complex, making it a potential catch-up trade if manufacturing capex revives. |
| BOTZ | Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF | Robotics & AI | 2.07% | 0.19% | NVDA,ISRG,CGNX | Heavily Japan and industrial-automation weighted, so it functions as a global factory-capex play rather than a US AI proxy — a different and largely uncorrelated exposure. |
| POWR | iShares U.S. Power Infrastructure ETF | Power Generation & Utilities | 0.04% | -2.54% | GEV,ETN,PWR,NEE,EQT,SO,DUK,HUBB,NVT,FSLR | The purest listed expression of the power-infrastructure thesis, combining regulated utilities with the equipment names that build transmission and generation. Rate-sensitive, so it lives and dies by the long bond. |
| GRID | First Trust Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure ETF | Power Generation & Utilities | 2.26% | 2.30% | ETN,JCI,PWR,NVT,HUBB | Grid-equipment focused, with heavy non-US industrial weight; a leveraged play on transmission and electrification capex rather than on utility earnings. |
| XLU | State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF | Power Generation & Utilities | -1.89% | -10.60% | NEE,SO,DUK,CEG,AEP,D,SRE,ETR,XEL,EXC | Defensive regulated utilities with growing datacenter load exposure; currently out of favor as investors favor growth over duration and bond proxies. |
| URA | Global X Uranium ETF | Uranium & Nuclear Energy | -13.56% | -23.67% | CCJ,NXE,OKLO,UEC,PDN,EFR,LEU | Uranium miners, the highest-beta expression of the nuclear fuel cycle — the fund is effectively a spot-uranium proxy and has been a funding source for AI software. |
| NLR | VanEck Uranium and Nuclear ETF | Uranium & Nuclear Energy | -12.29% | -24.42% | CEG,CCJ,PEG,UEC,NXE,BWXT,LEU | Blends nuclear utilities and fuel-cycle names, giving a more balanced exposure than pure miners but still rate- and contract-sensitive. |
| ITA | iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF | Defense Technology & Communications | -5.24% | -9.84% | GE,RTX,BA,GD,LMT,NOC,HWM,TDG,LHX,AXON | The diversified defense prime basket — durable budget support but limited upside optionality on autonomy and munitions restocking. |
| SHLD | Global X Defense Tech ETF | Defense Technology & Communications | -3.09% | -17.38% | PLTR,RTX,GD,LMT,NOC,LHX | Defense-tech focused, tilting toward software, autonomy and non-traditional contractors that carry growth premiums and higher headline risk. |
| ARKX | ARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF | Satellite & Space-Based Services | 1.69% | 2.65% | SPCX,LHX,KTOS,DE,RKLB,AMZN,NVDA,AVAV,AMD,GOOG | Space plus defense exposure, combining launch and satellite names with traditional primes — a hybrid of two currently out-of-favor themes. |
| NASA | Tema Space Innovators ETF | Satellite & Space-Based Services | 4.60% | -15.47% | RKLB,ASTS,VSAT,LUNR,FLY | Pure space innovators basket, heavily weighted to launch and direct-to-device names with binary contract and capital-raising risk. |
| BITQ | Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF | Crypto & Digital Asset Platforms | -4.46% | 23.28% | COIN,MSTR,IREN,CRCL,GLXY,MARA,RIOT,HUT | Crypto-industry equity beta spanning exchanges, miners and infrastructure; the business models within it differ dramatically, so dispersion runs high. |
| ARKK | ARK Innovation ETF | Crypto & Fintech / Innovation | 7.90% | 29.34% | TSLA,SPCX,CRCL,TEM,COIN,CRSP,TWST,HOOD,SHOP,PLTR | A broad innovation basket where crypto, genomics and private-market proxies now sit alongside AI — useful as a risk-appetite gauge for speculative growth rather than a clean theme play. |
| XLK | State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF | Broad Technology | 7.45% | 39.71% | NVDA,AAPL,MSFT,AVGO,MU,AMD,INTC,CSCO,PLTR,LRCX | The sector benchmark, heavily concentrated in a few mega-cap technology names — a low-effort way to take broad AI-cycle exposure with less idiosyncratic risk than thematic funds. |
Mega-Trend Breadth Map — member stocks by theme and industry
[heatmap: Mega-Trend Breadth Map — member stocks by theme and industry]
Mega-trend read-through
Mega-trends: what the market is currently paying for
The six-month ranking is not ambiguous. Capital has concentrated in the AI-adoption layer — cybersecurity, enterprise AI software, cloud applications and datacenter networking — while every theme tied to physical capital spending has de-rated: power generation, uranium and nuclear, defense, and space. This is a market paying for secular revenue visibility and asset-light cash flows, not for industrial capex or commodity leverage.
The three most important observations:
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Cybersecurity is the standout. It is the only theme topping the table on returns and on trend participation, with the vast majority of members above their 150-day average. Security spend has become non-discretionary as AI deployment widens the attack surface, and the theme benefits from consolidation — platform leaders absorbing point solutions. It is the cleanest toll-booth on AI adoption.
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The AI trade has rotated within itself. Earlier leadership came from the accelerator complex; today it comes from software, security and networking — the AI landlords rather than the AI builders. That is a healthier sign for durability, since these businesses monetize adoption regardless of which model or chip vendor wins, but it also means the theme is now more valuation-sensitive and more exposed to enterprise IT budget cycles.
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The physical buildout has gone from leadership to funding source. Power and utilities, uranium and nuclear, defense and space all sit at or below their long-term trend lines despite unchanged structural demand stories. Grid strain from datacenter load growth and firm carbon-free baseload requirements are multi-year realities — the drawdown reflects rate sensitivity, positioning cleanup and disappointment over the pace at which new load actually connects. These are contrarian setups that need a catalyst, not broken theses.
Breadth matters as much as the ranking. The heatmap shows top themes are narrow: gains cluster in a handful of large-cap software and semiconductor names, while a long tail of small caps drags each theme's equal-weighted performance and converts many of these groups into high-dispersion baskets rather than clean plays. Size positions accordingly, and read the 1M and 150-day columns as timing signals relative to the 6M trend confirmation.
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