Many tech companies have seen earnings and stock performance soar in recent years. But Apple (AAPL 1.25%) stands out as a company that's not only done that -- but it's also become a household name. Thanks to the company's strong leadership, from co-founder Steve Jobs to current chief executive officer Tim Cook, and wildly popular products like the iPhone and Mac, Apple took the spotlight, and importantly, has stayed there.
Could another company possibly follow in those footsteps? One already is a significant way there, and my prediction is this artificial intelligence (AI) stock will be the next Apple of the 2030s. Let's check out this amazing growth story.
Image source: Getty Images.
A $4 trillion giant
It's important to note that this player already is a market giant and even surpasses Apple when it comes to market value -- it's worth more than $4 trillion, while Apple is valued at about $3.7 trillion. But, in my opinion, this player still has room to run in other areas, such as products and services, and steps taken now and in the coming years should secure its spot as a long-term leader. The company I'm talking about is Nvidia (NVDA +3.97%).
You probably already have heard a lot about Nvidia thanks to its role in the ongoing AI boom. The company designs the graphics processing units (GPUs) -- or chips -- that power crucial AI tasks, and it sells a variety of other related offerings as well. On top of this, Nvidia has a long history in the market of video games, selling GPUs to power the images and action on the screen -- this, in fact, was Nvidia's first big business.
The foray into AI has been a particularly wise move as it's helped Nvidia's earnings soar in the double- and triple-digits quarter after quarter. Since Nvidia put its focus on this area early in the AI story, it established the first-to-market advantage -- and this has helped it stay steps ahead of rivals when it comes to innovation.
Though Nvidia's path so far may seem incredible, with a 1,200% gain in the stock price over the past five years, the company is on track for what may be a broader market position in the years to come. So, its dominance and presence across technology may be even greater in the 2030s.
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
Use of AI in the real world
Here's what I mean. Right now, the AI infrastructure buildout is happening, and this spending may total as much as $4 trillion by 2030. Nvidia should benefit greatly from that as tech giants need its GPUs to power data centers. The 2030s then may bring greater use of AI in the real world, including AI in explosive growth areas such as robotics, as well as the use of AI in quantum computing -- which may be a major growth area in the coming decade.
Nvidia will be a key player in these next growth phases since the company's chips power not only the training of models but the actual use of these models, the "thinking" processes as these models do their jobs.
Meanwhile, Nvidia today is making key moves to broaden its position across the computing market. To ensure its position in quantum computing, it's establishing a quantum research center -- so it's involved in this area as of now. And, importantly, earlier this month it announced an investment in Intel that would bring its chiplets to Intel's personal computer (PC) systems and incorporate Intel's top central processing units (CPUs) into Nvidia's leading AI platforms. This strengthens Nvidia's AI offerings and expands its presence in the PC market.
Maintaining gaming leadership
At the same time, Nvidia hasn't neglected its position in the gaming market. In the most recent quarter, gaming revenue jumped 49% to more than $4 billion. This is a smaller market than its overall AI business -- which brought in more than $40 billion in revenue -- but still represents a significant growth driver.
So, as Apple has dominated in consumer and business tech products in recent years, Nvidia is well positioned to do the same in the AI world -- from personal computers to data centers. Apple has been immediately linked to communication and computing over the past several years -- in the 2030s, Nvidia may be looked to as a general communication and computing giant too.
It's also important to note that, like Apple, Nvidia is driven by a leader with a strong vision. Jensen Huang co-founded Nvidia, and as CEO, he has what it takes to help the company take the next leap in its growth story. So, my prediction is Nvidia will be the Apple of the 2030s -- a company everyone is talking about and one that should continue to deliver solid growth to investors.
