Big Tech and A.I. face a cloudy forecast as the Nasdaq composite index is expected to open lower on Wednesday. Microsoft and Alphabet, two tech giants, released their quarterly earnings reports, revealing mixed results in their efforts to profit from artificial intelligence (A.I.). Microsoft exceeded expectations, with shares up 3.9%, driven by strong sales in its Azure cloud business and growth in generative A.I. Alphabet, however, reported weaker-than-expected results in its cloud computing division, leading to a 6.2% drop in share prices. Concerns are rising about Alphabet falling behind in the cloud computing market compared to Microsoft and Amazon. Alphabet’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, emphasized the company’s commitment to A.I. despite the challenges. Meta, another tech giant, will report its earnings later in the day, and investors will be looking for evidence of A.I.’s impact on its core ad business. Meanwhile, General Motors (G.M.) faced more struggles as its stock price fell due to falling profits, a targeted strike by the U.A.W., and slower growth in electric vehicle sales. G.M. also abandoned its goal to build 400,000 electric vehicles by mid-2024 and faced setbacks with its Cruise autonomous vehicle division, which was ordered to halt its driverless taxi service in California. In addition, land purchases in the U.S. by companies potentially tied to the Chinese Communist Party are becoming a point of contention between the U.S. and China. Lawmakers are raising concerns about Chinese-owned facilities near sensitive locations, such as an Air Force base, and are introducing legislation to address the issue.