AI Summary
5 min read“You can't short this market and wake up the next day to a truther that has the market up thirteen hundred Dow points.” That line from Jason Ware, chief investment officer at Albion Financial, captures the central tension of Q1 2026: a market that has absorbed a war in Iran, a software stock bloodbath, and a hawkish Fed pivot, yet sits just 2.5% off all-time highs. Ware joined The Rundown to explain why the selloff in AI and software names is overblown, why he’s more bullish on the Magnificent Seven now than he was three months ago, and why the “taco trade” — the belief that Trump will back down from disruptive policies — remains the market’s dominant safety valve.
The Software Panic Is Overdone
The most painful market action has been in enterprise software. Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Adobe have all hit 52-week lows, with some names trading at P/E multiples not seen in a decade. The narrative driving the selloff is that AI tools like Claude Code and vibe-coding platforms will let companies rip out their CRM systems and build their own — reducing software seats to zero.
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What you'll learn
- 1 Timestamped Navigation Outline
- 2 (00:00) **Episode Introduction** - Host sets up a conversation with Jason Ware, CIO of Albion Financial, covering Q1 market review and Q2 outlook
- 3 (01:14) **Volatility as a Feature, Not a Bug** - Jason explains why the current chaos is normal and puts it in historical context
- 4 (03:31) **The Rotation Out of Tech Has Legs, But Valuations Now Look Interesting** - Jason explains why the broadening trade feels more durable this time, yet tech is getting cheaper
- 5 (05:11) **Why Microsoft Is Bleeding Every Day** - Jason diagnoses the two main factors behind Microsoft's worst quarter since 2008
- 6 (07:05) **The Software Bloodbath: Fear vs. Reality** - Jason dissects the panic over AI destroying software companies and why he keeps buying the dip
- 7 (09:58) **Valuation Has Discounted the Worst-Case Scenario** - Jason argues the market has overcorrected on software fears
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
Markets feel shaky, but the S&P 500 is still near all-time highs. Zaid sits down with Jason Ware, Portfolio Manager at Albion Financial, to break down the disconnect—from the software selloff and AI fears to the rotation out of Big Tech. They debate whether the panic around AI “killing software” is overblown and whether this dip is actually a buying opportunity. Plus, they discuss what Meta’s AI push, the “Trump put,” and a more hawkish Fed could mean for stocks from here.
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