LONDON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The sharp sell-off in tech

stocks has created opportunities to buy into profitable

companies at a cheaper price, the chief investment officer of

HSBC's private bank said on Tuesday.

The tech-focused U.S. Nasdaq 100 index dropped 3% on

Monday, as investors fretted about the U.S. economy. It has slid

12% from a record high in July, with some investors also

worried that artificial intelligence has been overhyped.

"In technology, the froth has been removed from the

valuations," Willem Sels, CIO for Global Private Banking and

Wealth at HSBC, said in an interview on Tuesday, referring to

the price investors must pay for the earnings companies deliver.

"We do believe that AI and technological innovation more

broadly will endure, will continue to create productivity

gains... We don't flee from it," he said. "There are

opportunities in technology, and technology is not just the

Magnificent 7."

The so-called Magnificent 7 group of stocks include those of

the U.S. market's most valuable companies, such as Apple ( AAPL )

, Amazon and Microsoft ( MSFT )

Many of the companies closest linked to AI were hit hard on

Monday, with chipmaker NVIDIA ( NVDA ) down 6% and Microsoft ( MSFT )

falling 3%. Markets regained some ground on Tuesday, with the

Nasdaq up 1%.

Sels said he expected moderate, but positive economic growth

and that he favoured broadening out into medium-sized companies,

including in the tech sector, that can continue to deliver

earnings.