Nvidia opens new tab was set to make history by becoming the first company to notch $5 trillion market value, extending a powerful rally that has cemented its place at the center of the artificial intelligence boom.
According to Reuters, shares of the Santa Clara, California-based company jumped 3.1% in premarket trade after CEO Jensen Huang announced $500 billion in AI chip orders and plans to build seven supercomputers for the US government.
The milestone marks Nvidia's transformation from a niche graphics-chip maker into the backbone of the global AI industry, vaulting past Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab, Microsoft, opens new tab and Alphabet, opens new tab and turning Huang into a Silicon Valley icon.
A $5 trillion valuation would also mean Nvidia's market value will exceed that of the entire cryptocurrency market and equal about half the total value of the pan-European Stoxx 600 index opens new tab.
The company hit a $4 trillion valuation in July, marking a pace of growth rarely seen in modern markets.
"In many ways, everything that could have gone right for the firm, has gone right over the last ... 24 hours," said Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone.
Analysts say its surge reflects faith in relentless AI spending, though some warn of overheated valuations.Â
Its massive weighting in the S&P 500, opens new tab and Nasdaq 100, opens new tab gives it outsized sway over global markets, while its towering valuation also raises expectations and leaves little room for disappointment.
The company is scheduled to report quarterly results on November 19.
