Nvidia has shattered another record, becoming the first company in history to reach a $5 trillion market valuation, fueled by explosive demand for its artificial intelligence (AI) chips and optimism over potential re-entry into the Chinese market.
Shares of the Silicon Valley-based semiconductor giant surged 5% in early Wall Street trading on Wednesday, adding more than $200 billion to its market capitalization in a single session.
The stock closed with a total valuation of $5.13 trillion, cementing Nvidia’s position as the undisputed leader of the AI revolution.
Half a Trillion in Orders Secured
The milestone comes just one day after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang revealed that the company has already locked in $500 billion in orders for its AI chips over the next five quarters.
Speaking at a company event on Tuesday, Huang described the figure as unprecedented visibility for any technology firm in history.
“I think we are probably the first technology company in history to have visibility into half a trillion dollars in revenue,” Huang said.
Analysts at Bernstein interpreted the statement as a signal that Nvidia is on track for **more than $300 billion in chip sales in calendar year 2026** — significantly above Wall Street’s current consensus of $258 billion.
From $1 Trillion to $5 Trillion in Under Three Years
Nvidia’s meteoric rise began in earnest following the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in late 2022. The company:
– Surpassed $1 trillion in market value within months of ChatGPT’s debut
– Hit $2 trillion in February 2024
– Reached $3 trillion in June 2024
– Crossed $4 trillion just three months ago
Today, Nvidia’s market capitalization exceeds the combined value of the main stock indices of Germany, France, and Italy. Its shares have risen **over 85% in the past six months alone**.
AI Infrastructure Spending Drives Growth
The company’s dominance stems from its near-monopoly on graphics processing units (GPUs) used to train and run large language models. A handful of tech giants — including Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta — have poured hundreds of billions into data center infrastructure to power generative AI, with Nvidia capturing the lion’s share of hardware spend.
Long-term, multibillion-dollar contracts for AI data centers across the globe have further bolstered investor confidence in Nvidia’s sustained growth trajectory.
China Access and U.S. Policy in Focus
Adding fuel to Wednesday’s rally was a statement from U.S. President Donald Trump, who said he plans to discuss Nvidia’s Blackwell chip with Chinese President Xi Jinping during an upcoming meeting. The comment raised hopes that U.S. export controls — which currently block sales of Nvidia’s most advanced chips to China — could be eased.
Nvidia’s current-generation GPUs remain unavailable in China due to restrictions imposed over national security concerns. Regaining access to the world’s second-largest economy would open a massive new revenue stream.
Competitors and Circular Investments
Despite its dominance, Nvidia faces growing competition from customers and rivals alike. Companies like Amazon, Google, and even OpenAI are developing custom AI chips to reduce reliance on Nvidia’s hardware.
In a notable move, Nvidia announced a $100 billion investment in OpenAI last month — one of several large-scale funding commitments to its own customers.
These circular financing arrangements have sparked debate about the sustainability of the AI investment cycle.
Nvidia now stands alone atop the global corporate landscape, a symbol of AI’s transformative power — and the concentrated wealth it has created in Silicon Valley.
Whether its growth can outpace rising competition and geopolitical risks remains the trillion-dollar question.
