HotCopper's forums attract more than 600,000 average monthly users, and each discussion on Australia's largest stock forum has the potential to move markets. In this daily HotCopper Trends column, The Market Online breaks down the ASX stocks generating the strongest trader interest through the trading day. Monday's session placed the spotlight on three gold-focused explorers — Mount Hope Mining, Meeka Metals and Hamelin Gold — while a softer open for the broader index showed the market's attention was still spread across both stock-specific catalysts and wider index moves. Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs Research released a new global estimate of AI investment that attempts to capture spending beyond the usual US hyperscaler focus.

Mount Hope Mining (ASX: MHM)

Mount Hope Mining was sharply higher after revealing it had received firm commitments for a $1.82 million placement to the fund of respected Western Australian gold discovery specialist Simon Lawson and former Spartan executives Craig Jones and David Coyne. The fund has become a new major shareholder of the company.

The raising will accelerate regional exploration of the multi-million-ounce potential of the broader Mt Hope project, with the fresh capital arriving as the company begins its Phase 3 drilling program.

"Completing this financing as we commence our Phase 3 drilling program significantly strengthens our balance sheet and gives us the flexibility to pursue the broader Mt Hope project more aggressively," managing director and CEO Fergus Kiley said.

MHM jumped 25.0% to 20.0 cents.

Meeka Metals (ASX: MEK)

Meeka Metals was another heavily discussed stock on HotCopper after confirming it had completed the acquisition of the Blue Vein, Bushpig and Razorback gold deposits and surrounding tenure near Mt Holland in Western Australia.

Managing director Tim Davidson said the acquisition adds a quality gold growth pipeline comprising three known gold deposits, granted mining leases and a largely under-explored tenement package in the Forrestania greenstone belt.

"Having historically produced 1.2 million ounces of gold, this fertile Archaean greenstone belt is a compelling growth opportunity for us," Mr Davidson said.

"The belt has received very little modern exploration for gold over the past 15 years despite significant past production and strong evidence there is more gold to be found. We intend to systematically drill test the ~24km of north-south striking, gold-hosting BIF units within the acquired tenure over the next 12-18 months."

MEK rose 17.5% to 11.8 cents.

Hamelin Gold (ASX: HMG)

Hamelin Gold is set to accelerate exploration programs across a range of assets after receiving total firm commitments from sophisticated, professional and experienced investors for a placement to raise $8 million.

The company's two largest shareholders, Gold Fields and Vault Minerals, subscribed for approximately $1.5 million and $600,000 in the placement respectively.

"We greatly appreciate the ongoing support from our existing shareholders and welcome new shareholders at an exciting time for the company," managing director Peter Bewick said.

"Drilling activities are in progress at our Day Dawn gold project and plans are well advanced to complete programs at the Venus project near Cue and in the West Tanami."

HMG was up 16.2% at 21 cents at the time of going to press.

Broader market opens lower

Looking beyond the day's most-discussed names, the S&P/ASX 200 opened lower, dropping 28.40 points, or 0.31%, to 9,086.80. The index's bottom-performing stocks were JB Hi-Fi and Aurizon Holdings, down 11.57% and 9.62% respectively. The benchmark has lost 1.58% over the last five days and sits 2.26% below its 52-week high.

Goldman Sachs Research: global AI investment being underreported

Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs Research believes global investment in artificial intelligence is actually being underreported. The American multinational investment bank has adjusted the widely used measures of US hyperscaler capital expenditure to produce a more comprehensive estimate, reflecting that AI-related spending is not limited to a single sector or market.

That projection points to US$1.019 trillion of AI-related investment around the globe in 2026, including US$581 billion in the US, Joseph Briggs, who co-leads the firm's Global Economics team, wrote in a report.

The most common estimate for investment in AI is the projection for capital expenditures by US hyperscalers. These technology companies are forecast to spend about $800 billion this year, according to the consensus of analyst estimates.

According to Goldman Sachs Research, those estimates have several drawbacks. They do not include investment in AI by private companies or by companies outside the US. Not all capex by hyperscalers is necessarily related to AI. And the major US tech companies operate globally, indicating some of their investment takes place outside the US.

Reporting by Colin Sandell-Hay.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult a certified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.