Data storage firms Western Digital, Seagate soar on AI-driven demand spike

Shares of data storage companies such as Seagate and Western Digital have sharply outperformed the broader market this year, powered by the staggering demand for hard drives in the global race to scale up AI-related infrastructure.

Both Seagate and Western Digital stocks are trading near record highs, having surged more than 200% this year on the artificial intelligence boom.

Western Digital gained 10.5% in premarket trading on Friday after it forecast second-quarter earnings above Wall Street estimates.