Nvidia’s surge to a $5.05 trillion valuation is being hailed as the marker of the biggest “tectonic shift” in technology since Steve Jobs unveiled the first iPhone 18 years ago. The chipmaker became the world’s first $5 trillion company on Wednesday, riding a wave of AI investment.
Just as Apple rode the iPhone’s success to become the first $1T, $2T, and $3T company, Nvidia is now charting a new course with AI. Its chips are the essential engine of this new era, and the insatiable demand for them has propelled the company’s value by $1 trillion in just three months.
This new tech era is being built on Nvidia’s hardware. The company recently announced a $500 billion order book, a $100 billion partnership with OpenAI, a robotaxi deal with Uber, and a 6G deal with Nokia.
This shift has also captured the attention of President Donald Trump. A shareholder himself, Trump praised CEO Jensen Huang and is even pushing to open up the Chinese market for Nvidia’s chips.
However, unlike the iPhone’s clear consumer-driven revenue, the AI boom’s profitability is being questioned. Regulators are warning of a bubble, and analysts are concerned about “circular” investments and the fact that “nearly all AI pilot programs in businesses fail,” suggesting this shift may not be as stable as the last.