Nvidia surpasses $3 trillion market cap, overtakes Apple

Nvidia has achieved a significant milestone by surpassing a $3 trillion market cap and overtaking Apple to become the second most valuable public U.S. company as of Wednesday, June 5.

Following a 5% rise in shares, Nvidia’s market value reached $3.019 trillion at market close, while Apple stood at $2.99 trillion, according to CNBC.

Nvidia is now second only to Microsoft, which has a market value of $3.15 trillion. Microsoft surpassed Apple earlier this year to become the most valuable U.S. company.

Apple had long held the title of the most valuable company and was the first to reach a market cap of $1 trillion and then $2 trillion. However, its growth has slowed this year due to issues such as demand in China, manufacturing challenges, and the reception of its mixed-reality headset, Vision Pro.

Investor interest in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure has significantly boosted both Microsoft and Nvidia. Nvidia, which produces AI chips, holds about an 80% share of the market for data center chips.

Nvidia’s shares have risen 24% since it reported first-quarter earnings in May and have surged 3,290% over the past five years, driven by the AI boom.

The company’s earnings report on May 22 exceeded Wall Street expectations and reassured investors and analysts. Nvidia reported an 18% increase in revenue for the quarter ending April 28 compared to the previous quarter and a 262% increase from the same period a year earlier.

Nvidia’s founder and CEO, Jensen Huang, attributed the company’s revenue growth to partnerships with companies and countries transitioning from traditional data centers to “AI factories” aimed at delivering productivity gains across various industries.

On June 2, Huang announced Nvidia’s plans to update its AI accelerators annually, with the Blackwell Ultra chip expected in 2025 and a next-generation AI platform set for 2026. This expansion is anticipated to drive more companies and government agencies to adopt generative AI.