QQQ Enters the Open Trapped Below Its 731.91 Gamma Flip

The wire spent the premarket debating whether big tech can carry the freight of its AI balance sheet. TipRanks carried an Oppenheimer note warning that Meta's mounting infrastructure costs are sparking EPS reset debates and potential equity raises, while The Motley Fool noted hyperscaler capital expenditures are running toward $745 billion this year. Seeking Alpha reported KeyBanc downgraded Cirrus Logic on Apple concerns, while TechCrunch covered Amazon rolling out its $75 Bee wearables on a $12 monthly plan. That conversation lands on an equity book that has completely lost its padding. QQQ enters the open at 719.82, sitting twelve points beneath its gamma flip at 731.91. That keeps dealers short gamma, and spot is hovering right above the 717 put wall. In positive gamma, dealers sell rips and buy dips to keep their books balanced. In short gamma, that mechanical stabilizing stops: as the underlying falls, dealers have to sell into the weakness to stay hedged, accelerating ranges instead of buffering them. The expected move on the session sits at ±1.65%, with skew stretched to 3.7. It is not just tech feeling the drag. The entire index complex has crossed into short gamma territory this morning. SPY is pinned at 767.15 against a 774.34 flip, just two dollars clear of its 765 put wall with an expected move of ±1.73%. IWM is similarly positioned at 271.77, well south of its 281.35 flip and pressing against its 270 put wall. VIX is up 3.73% on the session to 17.50, reflecting the premium being demanded across the front. The crypto book mirrors that retreat from liquidity. BTC is down 2.06% at 80,559.41, sitting beneath its own 83,294.34 flip with dealer net GEX deeply negative at -$65.99 million. Investing.com noted traders watching the $81,000 zone as spot slipped below it, while Benzinga highlighted the broader channel between $80,000 and $88,000. ETH is off 4.08% at 2,351.08, trailing its 2,416.70 flip with -$1.87 million in net GEX. Across equities and crypto, the setup is uniform: spot is below the line where dealers act as a cushion, leaving the tape exposed to whatever order flow hits the open.