New York, January 6, 2026, 10:39 (ET) — Regular session
Key points:
- Alphabet’s non-voting Class C shares (GOOG) fell about 0.7% as the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose.
- A Reuters report detailed a $156 million legal-fee award tied to Texas’ $1.375 billion Google privacy settlement.
- Investors are also tracking CES headlines on AI chips and autonomous driving, where Alphabet’s Waymo remains a key reference point.
Alphabet’s non-voting Class C shares (GOOG) slipped 0.7% on Tuesday to $315.13, lagging a firmer tech tape in early U.S. trading.
The drift matters now because CES opens in Las Vegas with investors looking for clearer proof that Big Tech’s artificial intelligence spend is translating into products that can scale. “This year you will see more and more focus on AI and autonomous,” said C.J. Finn, PwC’s U.S. automotive industry leader, as the show leans into driverless systems and software. 1
Alphabet is also back under a legal spotlight after contract records showed Texas awarded Norton Rose Fulbright more than $156 million in fees tied to its $1.375 billion consumer-privacy settlement with Google. In a prior statement, Google said the agreement “settles a raft of old claims, many of which have already been resolved elsewhere, concerning product policies we have long since changed.” 2
The Texas attorney general sued Google in 2022, accusing the company of collecting biometric data, tracking users’ locations despite privacy settings and misleading users about Incognito mode, according to the settlement announcement by the state. 3
The broader market tone stayed constructive, with the Nasdaq 100 tracking ETF up 0.7% and the S&P 500 ETF up 0.4%, even as Alphabet underperformed other megacap names.
Chip headlines out of CES were a major driver. Reuters reported AMD used its keynote to show off new data-center and “enterprise” AI chips, while Nvidia introduced its next-generation Vera Rubin platform; CEO Jensen Huang said it was “in full production.” 4
Among large tech peers, Microsoft and Meta were little changed to lower, while Tesla fell nearly 3% as investors weighed the competitive landscape in autonomy and AI-enabled vehicles.
A key risk is that legal and regulatory costs remain a live variable for Alphabet even as investors push to price in AI-driven growth. Reuters has flagged 2026 as a year when disputes over AI, antitrust and privacy are set to accelerate, keeping headline risk high for large platforms. 5
Next up, traders will watch for CES deal chatter through Jan. 9 and for any follow-through in the AI-chip trade that has been buoying parts of megacap tech. Alphabet is also expected to report quarterly results on Feb. 3, according to earnings calendars published by Nasdaq and Yahoo Finance. 6
