Lenovo Group Limited and Intel Corporation Are Both Riding the AI Hardware Boom, but One Just Posted a Loss Anyway

August 13, 2026, marked a significant day for both Lenovo Group Limited and Intel Corporation as they capitalized on the AI hardware supercycle. Lenovo’s first-quarter revenue jumped 43% year over year to $26.94 billion on AI hardware demand, with the company expecting to hit its $100 billion annual revenue goal ahead of schedule, despite swinging to a net loss. Intel, on the other hand, raised $20 billion from an upsized stock offering to help fund its own AI-driven manufacturing buildout.

The Bull and Bear Case: Lenovo

Lenovo’s infrastructure-solutions segment, covering data-center hardware, saw revenue nearly double year over year on surging AI server demand, generating $777 million in operating profit. The company’s AI server order pipeline reached $54 billion, more than double a year earlier. CEO Yuanqing Yang described the business as ‘flying as fast as [a] Boeing 777.’

Adjusted net profit nearly tripled to $1.075 billion, despite a dip in shipments. Lenovo held its position as the world’s top PC maker with 24.2% market share. Counterpoint Research’s Ivan Lam said, ‘Lenovo’s AI story is compelling, with significant upside potential.’

However, Lenovo swung to a $609 million net loss, hurt by a nonrecurring fair-value loss tied to revaluing warrants issued in 2025. Worldwide PC shipments fell 4.9% year over year in the quarter, the first decline after nine straight quarters of growth, as the ongoing memory chip shortage pushed prices higher industry-wide. Lenovo’s Hong Kong-listed shares have already rallied roughly 150% in the June quarter alone and 275% for the year, raising the bar for what counts as good news at this point.

The Bull and Bear Case: Intel

Intel Corporation’s stock has nearly tripled this year, outperforming rivals AMD and Nvidia and the broader Philadelphia Semiconductor Index’s roughly 75% gain. The company won Tesla as a customer for its 14A manufacturing process. Intel raised its 2026 capital spending guidance from $18 billion to $20 billion in July.

AJ Bell’s Russ Mould noted Intel spent years ‘focusing on financial engineering rather than physical engineering.’ It was a reference to $82 billion in share buybacks during the 2010s that weakened its balance sheet. The new offering was priced at a 2.6% discount to the prior close, and shares still fell more than 4% the same day.

Insider Monkey’s Hedge Fund Data reported that Intel Corporation was held by 112 funds, up from 96.

Conclusion

Lenovo is proving the AI hardware boom is real through its own operating numbers, while Intel is still spending its way toward proving the same thing.

While we acknowledge the potential of Intel as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk.