The tech market has long been a haven for investors looking for reliable long-term stocks. The ever-developing nature of the sector has fueled substantial growth over the years, with the Nasdaq-100 index up about 330% over the last decade.
It's a smart move to consider tech stocks active in high-growth markets. In 2023, that means investing in industries such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR). These technologies have vast potential in the coming years, likely to affect the development of countless devices. The companies behind these markets could offer substantial gains as consumer adoption soars.
Here are three tech stocks that are building the future.
1. Advanced Micro Devices
As a leading chipmaker, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD -0.80%) develops the hardware necessary to run platforms across various technologies. And the company's stock has climbed around 47% year to date, primarily thanks to its prospects in the future of AI and the cloud market.
Despite Nvidia's current lead in AI as the main provider of graphics processing units (GPUs) to OpenAI's ChatGPT, AMD's long-term outlook in the industry is promising. According to a Bloomberg report from May 4, Microsoft (MSFT 0.43%) is working closely with AMD to expand its AI chip division to create an alternative to Nvidia. Microsoft is reportedly supporting the semiconductor company by supplying engineering resources and partnering with AMD to develop homegrown processors for AI workloads.
In addition to AI, AMD is one of the leading chip suppliers in cloud computing, with its data center chips powering platforms such as Microsoft's Azure, Alphabet's Google Cloud, and Oracle. As AI is likely to bolster the cloud market, demand for AMD's hardware could soar in the coming years.
AMD's potential is evident in its forward price/earnings-to-growth ratio of 0.14, which suggests its projected growth is not currently priced into its stock, making it a compelling investment right now.
2. Microsoft
Microsoft seems to have had the foresight of the century by investing $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019. The start-up's launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 led Microsoft to invest a further $10 billion in the company as the advanced chatbot kicked off an AI race among the biggest names in tech.
Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI has paid off considerably, allowing it to upgrade platforms such as its Office productivity suite, cloud service Azure, and search engine Bing with AI technology. These services already have substantial market share in their respective industries but could receive a massive boost alongside AI integrations.
Microsoft could be the company that prompts the mass adoption of AI services by consumers and businesses as it becomes the go-to for anyone looking to enhance their workflow through artificial intelligence.
Moreover, Microsoft's Azure was responsible for a 23% market share in the cloud industry in the first quarter of 2023, second only to Amazon Web Services. AI is projected to vastly expand cloud computing in the coming years, with Microsoft positioned to outperform the competition over the long term.
With a stock that has risen 217% in the last five years and 840% in the last decade, Microsoft has a history of consistent gains thanks to its near-constant focus on innovation. As a result, its stock is an incredibly compelling buy as it continues to build the future.
3. Apple
Apple (AAPL 1.00%) may not always be the first to develop a new technology, but it has a proven talent for releasing its own version of a device and boosting it into mainstream use. In doing so, the company has altered the future of many technologies, with a few including smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and Bluetooth headphones.
The company has attained a leading market share in each of these industries, which bodes well for its expected venture into a totally new market this year: virtual and augmented reality.
Multiple filed patents and related acquisitions over the years have all but confirmed Apple's VR/AR pursuits. However, many reports have suggested 2023 will be the year the company finally debuts its first virtual/augmented reality headset.
According to Statista, the VR/AR market is valued at $31 billion and is projected to see a compound annual growth rate of nearly 14% through 2027.
The sector is currently dominated by offerings from Meta Platforms and Sony, but still has a long way to go before consumers and professionals integrate the technology into their everyday lives. Apple's immense brand loyalty and history of quality products could be just what the market needs to expand further.
As a result, an investment in Apple could be an investment in the future leader of a market expected to hit $52 billion by 2027.
