NVIDIA Reclaims Global Valuation Crown with AI-Driven Stock Surge

NVIDIA, the AI chip giant, recently saw its stock price hit an all-time high of $154.31, propelling its market cap to $3.76 trillion, reclaiming the top spot as the world's most valuable company.

This surge is fueled by NVIDIA's strategic push in the AI sector and the burgeoning demand for its AI chips. The Blackwell chip architecture, known for its exceptional performance, has significantly contributed to this achievement by providing robust computing power that appeals to tech companies.

Earlier in 2025, NVIDIA faced substantial market pressure. In January, criticism arose when Chinese AI startup DeepSeek launched a high-performance open-source model, challenging NVIDIA's dominance in the GPU sector. This led to a dramatic 17% stock drop in late January, with the market cap losing $589 billion, marking a record single-day loss. By April, NVIDIA's stock had hit a low of $86.61, down 37% from the beginning of the year.

Complicating matters, new U.S. export restrictions on AI chips to China, including the H20 model, were expected to eliminate approximately $80 billion in potential revenue, intensifying market apprehensions.

Nevertheless, NVIDIA made a strong rebound in June. As of June 25, the stock jumped 4.3% to $154.31, with its market cap soaring to $3.76 trillion, surpassing Microsoft's and Apple's.

The remarkable performance of its new Blackwell AI architecture played a pivotal role in this recovery. Analysts like Ananda Baruah from Loop Capital have highlighted Blackwell as a key beneficiary of the generative AI wave, upgrading NVIDIA's target price to $250. Similarly, Barclays has raised its target price to $200, citing unprecedented feedback from supply chains and projecting Blackwell's influence on the next phase of global AI infrastructure development.

Despite export challenges, NVIDIA's latest earnings report bolstered market confidence, with fiscal 2026 Q1 revenue reaching $440.6 billion, up by 69% year-over-year. The data center division alone recorded $391 billion in revenue, a 73% increase, maintaining a gross margin above 61%.

In response to export constraints, CEO Jensen Huang emphasized NVIDIA's strategic global balance efforts. While adapting its chip offerings for the Chinese market, NVIDIA is intensifying its presence in the Middle East and Europe, forming deep partnerships to enhance supply chain resilience.

Tech stocks are experiencing renewed investor interest, with NVIDIA leading this resurgence, buoyed by the climb of the Nasdaq index to near record levels.

Yet, NVIDIA faces numerous challenges. U.S. restrictions on high-performance chips have caused an $80 billion revenue shortfall, affecting its market share in restricted regions, which now represent about 13% of total global revenue.

High valuation remains a concern, with NVIDIA's forward price-to-earnings ratio standing at about 30 times, underlining potential pressures from geopolitical dynamics and regulatory changes. Moreover, heavy reliance on key suppliers like TSMC could expose NVIDIA to broader supply chain vulnerabilities.

On the technological front, Jensen Huang has acknowledged the rapid progress of Chinese AI companies, indicating that export limitations might accelerate domestic innovation. Analysts from Rhodium Group caution that U.S. control measures may inadvertently boost China's capacity to bypass international tech restrictions.