NVIDIA, a major AI chip manufacturer, saw its market value surpass the $3 trillion mark for the first time on Wednesday, setting a new record high and overtaking Apple to become the world’s second largest company by market capitalization, trailing only behind Microsoft.
Starting from July 7, NVIDIA will implement a 1-for-10 stock split, making it more favorable for investors to increase their holdings. This move has also driven NVIDIA’s stock price to new highs for consecutive days, with a 5.16% surge on Wednesday, closing at $1224. The market value reached $3.011 trillion, making it the third company in U.S. stock history to join the $3 trillion club.
At the same time, NVIDIA also surpassed Apple to become the second largest company in the world by market capitalization. On Wednesday, Apple only saw a slight increase of 0.78%, with a market value of approximately $3.003 trillion. The current market value of the world’s largest company, Microsoft, is around $3.151 trillion, meaning that NVIDIA only needs to rise by 5% to surpass Microsoft and become the world’s largest company.
NVIDIA has made significant progress this year, with demand for AI chips soaring. The company’s market value has increased by approximately 147% so far this year, adding about $1.8 trillion. The last time NVIDIA’s market value surpassed Apple was in 2002 when both companies had market values of less than $10 billion, five years before the first generation iPhone was launched.
NVIDIA shows no signs of slowing down or letting competitors catch up. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang stated that the company plans to upgrade its AI accelerator every year. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Huang’s wealth increased by over $5 billion on Wednesday, reaching $107.4 billion.
In a recent keynote speech at National Taiwan University, Huang pointed out that the rise of generative AI is a new industrial revolution, with NVIDIA expected to play a crucial role as AI technology shifts towards personal computers.
While NVIDIA’s market value still lags behind Microsoft, the gap between NVIDIA and Microsoft’s market capitalization is not significant. Wall Street believes that NVIDIA surpassing Microsoft is only a matter of time.
Concerns over cooling demand for iPhones in China and pressure from EU fines have made this year challenging for Apple. However, with improving investor sentiment towards Apple recently, the outlook for Apple in 2024 has turned positive, with a 5% increase in stock price so far this year.