By Nell Mackenzie

LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Hedge funds' exposure to artificial intelligence-related tech hardware reached its highest in October since Goldman Sachs GS.N started tracking the data in 2016, the U.S. bank said in a client note.

Hedge fund buying in semiconductor and related chip industry stocks, considered to be sensitive to economic and business cycles, suggests speculators believe rising markets have further to go, Goldman said in the note on Thursday, seen by Reuters on Friday.

Hedge fund stock buying centred on long positions, betting these equities would rise, in Asia and U.S. companies, said Goldman.

BCA Research's Chief U.S. Investment Strategist Doug Peta said in a research note on Tuesday, that companies poised to benefit from prospective AI profits or investment are thriving while those without an AI link are lagging.

Communications services .SPLRCL, technology .SPLRCT and utilities .SPLRCU are among the best performing S&P sub-sectors so far this year, far outperforming the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX.

But for hedge funds, tech stock fervour has shifted, Goldman Sachs said. Speculators have downsized their trades in U.S. power companies, which are also considered part of the sector behind the servers that power artificial intelligence as well as its research and development.

The funds also moved on from a general focus in the biggest tech companies, the so-called Magnificent Seven, the note said.

The shift toward semiconductors and their related equipment began in September, Goldman Sachs said.

Buying in Asia tech companies drove overall inflows in emerging markets apart from China, where positioning has reached "fresh multi-year highs," the bank said.

(Reporting by Nell Mackenzie; Editing by Dhara Ranasinghe and Jacqueline Wong)

((nell.mackenzie@thomsonreuters.com))