A snow removal machine is seen working while a Boeing 737 American Airlines passenger aircraft is parked at gate on the tarmac of LaGuardia airport in New York on January 25, 2026.

Charly Triballeau | Afp | Getty Images

American Airlines‘ promised turnaround is off to a rocky start this year.

Pilot and flight attendant unions have called CEO Robert Isom’s leadership into question as the airline’s performance has trailed its rivals by a wide margin, a trend that has translated to lower profit-sharing for American’s more than 130,000 employees. Adding to employee frustration, the airline struggled to recover from major winter storms in recent weeks and crews were left stranded — some without a place to sleep beside the airport.

Late Friday, the pilots’ union wrote to the airline’s board, seeking a meeting to discuss the carrier’s financial and operational challenges.

“Our airline is on an underperforming path and has failed to define an identity or a strategy to correct course,” the board of directors of the Allied Pilots Association wrote. The union called for “leaders who are willing, equipped, and empowered to get the house in order.”

Isom replied on Saturday that as board member and chief executive it is “most appropriate” to meet as soon as possible.

“The Board and I are aligned with you in the desire to make American the strongest airline possible in every respect,” he wrote.

American made $111 million last year, an amount eclipsed by profits from Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, which brought in $5 billion and more than $3.3 billion, respectively, even though American flew similar capacity in 2025.

“I know that it is a meager profit-sharing, a very small profit-sharing pool this year. Again, when you break even, that’s the kind of profit-sharing you have,” Isom told employees after releasing earnings results on Jan. 27, according to a recording of the event that was reviewed by CNBC. “I’m disappointed in that.”

‘2026 can’t just feel different’

American is trying to catch up to rivals with premium products that bring in higher fares, a bright spot in the industry as coach cabin revenue growth has been elusive. It has also worked to reverse the damage from a failed direct-to-traveler business-travel strategy, whose architect American ousted in May 2024.

2026 is crucial for the carrier.

The Fort Worth, Texas-based airline issued an upbeat outlook for the year on Jan. 27, and Isom told crews that he was optimistic about improvement this year. He also noted that many staff, like flight attendants, make more than their counterparts at United, where cabin crews and other employees are in contract negotiations.

Isom is leading what he has pitched as a major transformation of American. The strategy includes improving customer service, the network and revenue management.

This week, he took his message to about 6,000 leaders at a conference the airline held at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

“We’ve had conversations as a senior leadership team about how we can’t pass up any opportunity … how we need to hold ourselves accountable,” Isom said at the event, according to a transcript which was seen by CNBC. “It starts with us at the top, but it’s all of us here today and how you lead your teams. 2026 can’t just feel different. It has to be different.”

American issued its 2026 outlook as it was juggling the aftermath of a late January winter storm that walloped much of the U.S. with snow, ice and sleet and preparing for another storm that ended up hitting its major hub of Charlotte, North Carolina, while competitors dug out faster.

The financial results, coupled with the slow storm recovery, drew anger from both pilot and flight attendant union leaders, which together represent about 40,000 crew members.

This week, two American Airlines flight operations leaders met with the union to discuss recent problems, and the union told members, “Our pilots will not accept platitudes, empty words, and the absence of decisive action any longer.” 

Association of Professional Flight Attendants President Julie Hedrick said on Jan. 27 that Isom, who became CEO in 2022, “is missing the human factor” and that “many of us have been here for a very long time, and we don’t see an ending that puts us in a better place.”

Isom acknowledged the trouble American’s crew members faced during the late January storm that paralyzed a large swath of the United States and called the weather “probably the most impactful” during his decades-long tenure at the airline.

Robert Isom, chief executive officer of American Airlines Group Inc., speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview in New York, US, on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025.

Christian Monterrosa | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Tale of two Texas airlines

American had an especially difficult 2025, which started with the collision of an Army Black Hawk helicopter into one of the carrier’s regional jets that was arriving at Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, killing all 67 people on both flights. The airline and its rivals were also hit by the U.S. government shutdown late last year.

“We’re off to a fast start based on the booking trends we’ve observed in January, all-time records for the first three weeks of the year,” Isom told analysts on the Jan. 27 earnings call.

But investors also want to the airline to prove its progress.

American’s stock is roughly flat this year. Its competitor, 20 miles away in Dallas, Southwest Airlines, is also trying to remake itself, and its stock is up more than 30% in 2026. Shares of United and Delta are up more than 3% and more than 8%, respectively, for the year.

Southwest’s forecast that it could quadruple earnings this year has had investors in a bullish frenzy. That carrier recently sealed the biggest transformation in its nearly 55 years of flying (to some travelers’ chagrin): assigning seats for the first time, adding its first-ever bag fees, and rolling out basic economy tickets and other changes. Investors’ confidence boosted Southwest’s stock to a nearly four-year high last month after it reported results.

Read more about American Airlines’ turnaround plans

All U.S. carriers are investing heavily in higher-end travel over standard coach, and even Southwest is considering opening its first airport lounge, its CEO told CNBC last year.

American is likewise revamping its wide-body planes with larger, single business-class cabins, putting in a three-class cabin on new Airbus narrow-bodies and expanding its airport lounges. The airline has also refreshed its food and beverage options, including offering Lavazza coffee and Champagne Bollinger. For its 100th anniversary this spring, it’s also adding caviar and beef Wellington for long-haul premium cabins.

Isom has said he expects half of American’s revenue to come from “premium offerings” toward the end of the decade.

Fight over Chicago

Several planes wait in line to taxi down a runway after a winter snow storm affected the area at O’Hare International airport on Nov. 30, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois.

Jim Vondruska | Getty Images

One major battle for American is at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, where United CEO Scott Kirby, whom American fired in 2016, has vowed to keep his old employer at bay.

Both carriers are ramping up their schedules there next summer. Deutsche Bank estimated in a note Monday that United generates about $10 billion in revenue at O’Hare and that American generates more than $5 billion.

Around the time American reported earnings, United posted a digital billboard in Chicago that read “More on time, less canceled flights. Aadvantage, United,” using the same spelling as American’s AAdvantage loyalty program. Bankrupt Spirit Airlines is also seeking to transfer two gates at Chicago O’Hare to United for $30 million, which would give United more ground at the airport.

But from Chicago to Charlotte, questions still remain for American.

“It’s unclear if the current strategy will close the margin gap to its peers,” Melius Research airline analyst Conor Cunningham said about American. “It will take a lot of time to execute. You can’t just turn premium revenue on.”

Cunningham added, “It took Delta over a decade to cultivate a premium image,” pointing to the U.S. profit leaders’ transformation.

Read more CNBC airline news

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People pose for pictures at the Wall Street Bull in New York’s Financial District on June 24, 2024 in New York City. 

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.84% Monday stateside as technology stocks were under pressure, with Apple, Meta and Oracle retreating more than 1% each.

Artificial intelligence lynchpin Nvidia performed worse, losing almost 2%. CEO Jensen Huang in October said the chipmaker had “half a trillion dollars” of business on the books for 2025 and 2026. When Nvidia reports its third-quarter earnings Wednesday stateside, investors will be combing through Huang’s comments for signs of strong 2026 growth, as suggested by that data point.

The problem with promises or expectations, especially for a company that is one of the two around which the artificial intelligence universe orbits (OpenAI being the other), is that any disappointment will be disproportionately painful.

“If they offer any even slightly muted guidance or forecast for demand for their chips, the market would take that poorly,” Baird investment strategist Ross Mayfield said.

Despite the recent sell-off in tech over concerns about high valuations and capital expenditure, some analysts think we could still end the year with a rally.

 “We continue to see a balance of bullish and bearish signals heading into year-end, but our stance remains that a year-end rally is likely,” Michael Graham, analyst at Canaccord Genuity, wrote in a Monday note.

Likewise, HSBC’s chief multi-asset strategist Max Kettner on Monday said the bank thinks “the probability of a melt-up into year-end – particularly in equities – is much greater” than a potential AI bubble popping.

If their predictions prove true, investors will have much to celebrate during the festive season — and we can worry about AI in the new year.

What you need to know today

Major U.S. indexes fall Monday stateside. Investors sold off technology names, furthering their downward trajectory. Alphabet shares, however, bucked the trend on news that Berkshire Hathaway has taken a stake in it. The pan-European Stoxx 600 lost 0.54%.

‘Half a trillion dollars’ of business for Nvidia. CEO Jensen Huang said in October that the chipmaker has $500 billion in orders for 2025 and 2026 combined. Analysts think Huang is signaling a strong forecast for 2026 sales.

Divided outlook on a December rate cut. In prepared remarks on Monday, Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he is focused on the labor market “after months of weakening.” But Vice Chair Philip Jefferson said there is a “need to proceed slowly.”

India announces energy deal with the U.S. Nearly 10% of New Delhi’s liquified petroleum gas will be imported from the U.S., said Hardeep Singh Puri, Indian union minister of petroleum and natural gas, on Monday. It’s a move to shore up ties with the White House.

[PRO] Bitcoin’s downward trend could portend trouble. The price of the cryptocurrency, which has been under pressure, is a “leading indicator” for U.S. stocks, an analyst told CNBC. But others think bitcoin still has tailwinds behind it even in the near term.

And finally…

A Swiss national flag on a ferry on Lake Geneva in Geneva, Switzerland, on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025. The Swiss president dashed to the US capital Tuesday in a last-minute attempt to prevent her American counterpart from imposing the highest tariff of any developed nation on Switzerland.  Photographer: Andrew Kravchenko/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

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The logo of SoftBank is displayed at a company shop in Tokyo, Japan January 28, 2025. 

Issei Kato | Reuters

Shares of Japan’s SoftBank Group resumed their slide on Friday, following a broader slump in AI-related stocks as investors once again grew wary of the sector’s lofty valuations.

The group, which holds a wide range of AI investments across infrastructure, semiconductor, and application companies, saw shares close 6.87% lower, recouping some losses from earlier in the session.

This comes after SoftBank gained nearly 3% in the previous session, having plunged 10% on Wednesday to clock its worst day since April. It saw almost $50 billion in market cap wiped out this week and its worst weekly loss since March 2020, down nearly 20%.

“SoftBank Group’s shares are falling as many bought it as the only listed proxy for OpenAI,” said David Gibson, senior research analyst at financial services firm MST Financial.

The pullback reflects growing caution around the AI sector and a realization that many of OpenAI’s partnerships are still potential rather than confirmed, with funding prospects uncertain, he told CNBC.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly said the company has spoken with the U.S. government about potential federal loan guarantees to encourage chip factory construction. His comments came after OpenAI’s CFO suggested the firm hoped for federal help in securing chip financing.

Stock Chart IconStock chart icon

Shares of SoftBank Group fall following renewed pressure on AI-linked stocks

SoftBank holds a controlling stake in U.K.-based semiconductor designer Arm Holdings, whose chips help power mobile and AI processors globally. Shares of Nasdaq-listed Arm slid 1.21% overnight.

Separately, Bloomberg recently reported citing people familiar with the matter that the group considered acquiring U.S. chipmaker Marvell Technology Inc. earlier this year.

Broader decline

Other Japanese tech stocks also declined. Semiconductor testing equipment maker Advantest dropped 5.5%, chipmaker Renesas Electronics fell nearly 4%, Tokyo Electron, a chip production equipment maker, declined 1.35%.

Shares of the world’s largest chipmaker, TSMC, fell 0.34%.

Nvidia-supplier SK Hynix was down 2.2% and South Korean peer and memory chipmaker Samsung fell 1.3%.

The declines in Asian tech stocks also come after AI-related companies in the U.S. fell overnight

Qualcomm dropped almost 4%, despite strong quarterly results, after warning it could lose future Apple business. AMD, a strong performer Wednesday, slipped 7%, while Palantir and Oracle were down about 7% and 3%, respectively. Nvidia and Meta Platforms also finished lower.

The excitement surrounding AI has raised worries that markets might be experiencing a tech bubble. Some experts argue that the valuations of AI companies are starting to resemble the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s, with stock prices rising well beyond realistic profit forecasts.

The economic impact of artificial intelligence is undeniable and market bumps are inevitable, said Laura Cooper, global investment strategist at Nuveen.

“Still, it’s too soon to call a bubble. Today’s AI capex is being funded largely by cash-rich firms with solid balance sheets, not cheap credit or speculation,” she said. “The greater risk isn’t a bubble bursting, but valuation fatigue — investors tiring of paying ever-richer premiums for AI returns that don’t materialize quickly enough.”

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The logo for the Food and Drug Administration is seen ahead of a news conference on removing synthetic dyes from America’s food supply, at the Health and Human Services Headquarters in Washington, DC on April 22, 2025.

Nathan Posner | Anadolu | Getty Images

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday published a warning letter addressed to the wrist wearable company Whoop, alleging it is marketing a new blood pressure feature without proper approvals.

The letter centers around Whoop’s Blood Pressure Insights (BPI) feature, which the company introduced alongside its latest hardware launch in May.

Whoop said its BPI feature uses blood pressure information to offer performance and wellness insights that inform consumers and improve athletic performance.

But the FDA said Tuesday that Whoop’s BPI feature is intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent disease — a key distinction that would reclassify the wellness tracker as a “medical device” that has to undergo a rigorous testing and approval processes.

“Providing blood pressure estimation is not a low-risk function,” the FDA said in the letter. “An erroneously low or high blood pressure reading can have significant consequences for the user.”

A Whoop spokesperson said the company’s system offers only a single daily estimated range and midpoint, which distinguishes it from medical blood pressure devices used for diagnosis or management of high blood pressure.

Whoop users who purchase the $359 “Whoop Life” subscription tier can use the BPI feature to get daily insights about their blood pressure, including estimated systolic and diastolic ranges, according to the company.

Whoop also requires users to log three traditional cuff-readings to act as a baseline in order to unlock the BPI feature.

Additionally, the spokesperson said the BPI data is not unlike other wellness metrics that the company deals with. Just as heart rate variability and respiratory rate can have medical uses, the spokesperson said, they are permitted in a wellness context too.

“We believe the agency is overstepping its authority in this case by attempting to regulate a non-medical wellness feature as a medical device,” the Whoop spokesperson said.

High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is the number one risk factor for heart attacks, strokes and other types of cardiovascular disease, according to Dr. Ian Kronish, an internist and co-director of Columbia University’s Hypertension Center.

Kronish told CNBC that wearables like Whoop are a big emerging topic of conversation among hypertension experts, in part because there’s “concern that these devices are not yet proven to be accurate.”

If patients don’t get accurate blood pressure readings, they can’t make informed decisions about the care they need.

At the same time, Kronish said wearables like Whoop present a “big opportunity” for patients to take more control over their health, and that many professionals are excited to work with these tools.

Understandably, it can be confusing for consumers to navigate. Kronish encouraged patients to talk with their doctor about how they should use wearables like Whoop.

“It’s really great to hear that the FDA is getting more involved around informing consumers,” Kronish said.

FILE PHOTO: The headquarters of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seen in Silver Spring, Maryland November 4, 2009. 

Jason Reed | Reuters

Whoop is not the only wearable manufacturer that’s exploring blood pressure monitoring.

Omron and Garmin both offer medical blood pressure monitoring with on-demand readings that fall under FDA regulation. Samsung also offers blood-pressure-reading technology, but it is not available in the U.S. market.

Apple has also been teasing a blood pressure sensor for its watches, but has not been able to deliver. In 2024, the tech giant received FDA approval for its sleep apnea detection feature.

Whoop has previously received FDA clearance for its ECG feature, which is used to record and analyze a heart’s electrical activity to detect potential irregularities in rhythm. But when it comes to blood pressure, Whoop believes the FDA’s perspective is antiquated.

“We do not believe blood pressure should be considered any more or less sensitive than other physiological metrics like heart rate and respiratory rate,” a spokesperson said. “It appears that the FDA’s concerns may stem from outdated assumptions about blood pressure being strictly a clinical domain and inherently associated with a medical diagnosis.”

The FDA said Whoop could be subject to regulatory actions like seizure, injunction, and civil money penalties if it fails to address the violations that the agency identified in its letter.

Whoop has 15 business days to respond with steps the company has taken to address the violations, as well as how it will prevent similar issues from happening again.

“Even accounting for BPI’s disclaimers, they do not change this conclusion, because they are insufficient to outweigh the fact that the product is, by design, intended to provide a blood pressure estimation that is inherently associated with the diagnosis of a disease or condition,” the FDA said.

WATCH: Watch CNBC’s full interview with FDA commissioner Dr. Marty Makary

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