The big picture: Nvidia briefly overtook Apple as the world’s most valuable company last monthbut this week he consolidated this position for the second time in a more definitive way. The meteoric rise of the GPU manufacturer and the deposition Intel’s presence on the Dow Jones index signifies a major shift towards AI in the technology sector. However, uncertainty still surrounds new technology.

Ending Wednesday with a market capitalization of $3.57 trillion, Nvidia surpassed Apple to become the world’s most valuable company. Over the past two years, the AI ​​boom has multiplied Nvidia’s market capitalization, stock price and revenue, with no signs of slowing down.

Since generative AI began to gain popularity, companies around the world have been rushing to acquire GPUs for AI models, with Nvidia’s products leading the way. most research After from afar. This trend has increased the company’s market capitalization by 218 percent over the past year and more than 3,000 percent over the past five years.

The most valuable companies in the world

Source: companymarketcap.com

Nvidia first overtook Apple to capture the top spot in June, when its market capitalization reached $3.34 trillion. However, a brief oscillate in the AI ​​sector in September caused a loss of $279 billion – the largest one-day drop in U.S. history.

This shift has sparked fears that the AI ​​boom, arguably the tech industry’s biggest trend since the advent of the internet, is heading towards a collapse reminiscent of the dot-com bankruptcy. While this outcome remains possible – given AI’s uncertain financial returns and lukewarm customer interest – Nvidia has since recouped all of its September losses, and then some.

With Nvidia firmly positioned at the top of the tech world alongside giants like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon and Google, its position relative to former Intel chip leader is another sign of the impact of generative AI. Chipzilla has faced numerous serious problems recently, leading to thousands of layoffs, buyout negotiations, and likely the company’s first annual net loss in nearly four decades.

Many observers believe that the failure of the AI ​​boom was one of Intel’s major missteps. Another stark indicator of the companies’ divergence is Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s $104 billion net worth, which briefly surpassed Intel’s total market capitalization last month, although Intel has since rebounded to 107 billion dollars.