Nvidia becomes first company to reach $4 trillion market cap. What are the top 5?
- - - Nvidia becomes first company to reach $4 trillion market cap. What are the top 5?
Rachel Barber, USA TODAYJuly 11, 2025 at 2:54 AM
Nvidia became the first public company to reach a $4 trillion market capitalization on July 9, outpacing other well-known giants as the artificial intelligence boom fuels demand for its chips.
Market capitalization, or market cap, is of interest to investors and observers, but it is different from a company’s overall valuation, which considers market cap but also includes a broader assessment of its worth.
Nvidia briefly sat at the $4 trillion mark, and its market cap mellowed slightly to $3.98 trillion on July 10. The chipmaker’s high market value signals Wall Street’s confidence in AI expansion and the chipmaker overall.
To reach the historic milestone, Nvidia outpaced other major companies that have more common household names.
Here are the current top 5 companies with the highest market caps:
1. Nvidia
FILE PHOTO: Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration created on January 27, 2025.
Nvidia currently has the highest market cap of $3.98 trillion.
Founded by Jensen Huang, Chris Malachowsky, and Curtis Priem in 1993, the company first focused on producing multimedia processors and graphics chips. Its graphic processing units (GPUs) improved the look and feel of gaming and transformed video editing.
Things changed when Nvidia started using its technology to design chips specifically for artificial intelligence. Today, other top companies depend on this hardware as they continue to invest in new technology._
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2. Microsoft
Founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975, just one year before Apple, Microsoft now has a $3.73 trillion market cap.
Often best known for its Windows operating system, the company has a long list of products. White-collar workers know the sound of a Microsoft Teams’ notification well. The company also produces hardware, Xbox consoles, and the Edge web browser.
Over the years, it has acquired LinkedIn, GitHub, and Skype, in addition to having a strategic partnership with and stake in OpenAI.
3. Apple
Founded by Steve Jobs, Ronald Wayne, and Steve Wozniak, Apple launched promotion for its first computer in 1976. In the decades since, it’s taken the world by storm with its personal electronics and familiar products: iPhones, MacBooks, and AirPods, to name a few. It’s also launched iTunes, Apple Music, the App Store, iCloud, and AppleTV+.
With significant reliance on foreign labor markets to manufacture its products, investors watch closely as it adapts to a new tariff environment. Still, the company remains highly profitable and has a current market cap of $3.17 trillion.
4. Amazon
Amazon’s market cap has climbed to $2.36 trillion, landing it at number 4 on this list.
What started as an online bookstore operating out of Jeff Bezos’ garage, turned into a global marketplace where consumers can buy almost anything. In terms of market capitalization, it has outpaced Walmart to become the world’s largest retailer.
The company also became known for its cloud computing, digital streaming, book publishing, and consumer electronics including Kindle, Echo, and Alexa. It owns several other companies such as Whole Foods Market and Audible. It’s even expanded into health care.
5. Alphabet
Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, sits at number 5 on this list, with a current market cap of $2.16 trillion.
The company’s story begins in 1998 when Larry Page and Sergey Brin created what became the world’s most popular search engine. Over the years, Google expanded and began offering email, Android mobile phones, and cloud computing services. It also acquired YouTube in 2006. The company restructured into Alphabet Inc. in 2015.
It is also investing in AI development and pushing its own model, Gemini.
Reach Rachel Barber at [email protected] and follow her on X @rachelbarber
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nvidia reaches historic $4 trillion market cap. The top 5 companies
Source: AOL Money
