Q2 2026 ETF themes: AI, chips, South Korea, space

An AI-driven rally dominated U.S. ETF flows in the second quarter of 2026, with investors moving into funds tied to AI infrastructure, semiconductors and related markets. The largest individual gain was Roundhill’s DRAM ETF, which rose 161.5% from its April 2 launch and reached nearly $23 billion in assets by June 30.

Roundhill’s DRAM ETF concentrates on memory producers and provided investors with exposure to non-U.S. leaders such as Samsung and SK Hynix. SK Hynix completed a Nasdaq ADR listing during the quarter with a reported valuation of $26.5 billion.

Other AI infrastructure and chip-focused ETFs posted strong returns. The VistaShares Artificial Intelligence Supercycle ETF rose 103.6% in Q2. The Invesco AI and Next Gen Software ETF reported significant gains and holds about 52% of its portfolio in semiconductor and equipment stocks.

Industry estimates put hyperscaler spending on AI infrastructure at more than $600 billion in 2026, a factor market participants cite as increasing demand for memory and server chips.

South Korea-focused equity ETFs also outperformed as major chipmakers make up a large share of local market indices. The Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF gained 66.51% in Q2 and the iShares MSCI South Korea ETF rose 64.13%. Each fund allocates more than 20% of its portfolio to technology hardware and semiconductors.

Space-themed funds attracted investor interest around a June 12 IPO by SpaceX. The Tema Space Innovators ETF gained 20.68% for the quarter and was the only ETF that held SpaceX pre-IPO as a special purpose vehicle. The ARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF rose 16.25% and the Procure Space ETF climbed 13.21%. Some space funds recorded roughly $500 million of outflows after the IPO as inflows were used to secure allocations rather than held long term.

Thematic ETFs drew substantial capital in the first half of 2026. Thematic products had collected about $23 billion the prior year; the DRAM ETF alone attracted a comparable amount in the first six months of 2026. U.S.-listed ETFs have taken in roughly $1 trillion year-to-date, placing the industry on pace to exceed last year’s total of about $1.5 trillion, according to industry data.

Roxanna Islam, head of sector and industry research at VettaFi, noted, ‘Every year, more investors are appreciating the benefits of the ETF wrapper.’ Market analysts highlighted memory as a technical bottleneck for AI servers and expect the shift to agentic AI to increase demand for compute, storage and networking at cloud data centers and on personal devices.