For much of the last three decades, investors have had a game-changing technology or hyped trend to capture their attention and capital. Some of these popular trends include the advent and proliferation of the internet, genome decoding, nanotechnology, 3D printing, blockchain technology, cannabis, and the metaverse.
But on rare occasions, two growth-altering trends have coexisted. Right now, investors are privy to the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and the rise of quantum computing.
Both technologies offer tantalizing addressable opportunities. Analysts at PwC foresee AI adding over $15 trillion to the global economy by 2030. Meanwhile, Boston Consulting Group believes specialized quantum computers can create between $450 billion and $850 billion in worldwide economic value come 2040. These are high-ceiling figures that can yield a laundry list of winners.
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While Wall Street's largest publicly traded company, Nvidia (NVDA 1.45%), is a logical choice to continue leading the AI revolution and spur advancements in quantum computing, there's another trillion-dollar stock that billionaire money managers would rather own.
Nvidia has set the stage, but may be priced for perfection
Nvidia's claim to fame is, undoubtedly, its AI hardware. The company's several generations of graphics processing units (GPUs) account for an overwhelming share of the GPUs currently deployed in enterprise data centers.
While nothing is guaranteed in the tech space, Nvidia's spot atop the GPU pedestal appears safe for the foreseeable future. No external competitors have been able to rival the compute capabilities of Hopper (H100), Blackwell, or Blackwell Ultra. When coupled with persistent AI-GPU scarcity, it's easy to see why Nvidia has been able to charge a substantial premium for its hardware.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is also making life challenging for its rivals. Huang is overseeing the introduction of an advanced chip annually, with the Vera Rubin GPU set to debut in the second half of 2026. If external competitors are struggling to keep pace with the company's prior-generation GPUs, the yearly debut of advanced chips should solidify its pole position in AI data centers.
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Data Points
Meanwhile, Nvidia has the potential to make waves in quantum computing through NVQLink. This hybrid AI-quantum infrastructure can link quantum processing units (QPUs) to Nvidia's GPU supercomputers to handle large workloads and reduce errors. While software plays an underrated role in Nvidia's AI success (via its CUDA platform), it would be a key catalyst for Nvidia in quantum computing.
Despite these advantages, billionaire investors have predominantly been net sellers of Nvidia stock for years. Though profit-taking likely explains some of this selling activity, there may be more to it than just Wall Street's savviest investors cashing in their chips.
For instance, history hasn't been all that kind to game-changing technologies. Over three decades, every next-big-thing trend has endured an early innings bubble-bursting event. These bubbles form and subsequently burst when investors overestimate the adoption or optimization of a new technology/trend. While AI adoption isn't an issue, we're likely still years away from companies optimizing this technology to increase their sales and profits.
In addition to a potential bubble-bursting event, Nvidia stock isn't cheap. Although it's not particularly pricey relative to its forward earnings potential, it had a trailing 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) ratio that exceeded 30 in early November. Historically, P/S ratios above 30 indicate the presence of a bubble.
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Billionaires can't get enough of this trillion-dollar AI and quantum computing stock
But while billionaires have been, collectively, paring down their exposure to Nvidia, they've been betting the farm on their favorite AI and quantum computing stock, Alphabet (GOOGL 1.46%)(GOOG 1.52%).
As of the end of September, Google parent Alphabet was the second-largest holding for billionaire Seth Klarman's Baupost Group, and the third-largest holding for billionaires Chase Coleman of Tiger Global Management, Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Capital Management, and Terry Smith of Fundsmith (aka "Britain's Warren Buffett").
During the third quarter, the now-retired Warren Buffett green-lit the purchase of 17,846,142 shares of Alphabet's Class A shares (GOOGL) for Berkshire Hathaway, and billionaire Philippe Laffont of Coatue Management bought 5,210,434 Class A shares and 2,091,564 Class C shares (GOOG).
One reason billionaire investors can't get enough Alphabet stock is its virtual monopoly on internet search. According to data from GlobalStats, Google has accounted for an 89% to 93% share of internet search, dating back over a decade. This affords the company exceptional ad-pricing power and makes it the logical go-to for businesses wanting to reach consumers with their message(s).
However, a strong argument can be made that Alphabet's AI-driven cloud infrastructure services platform, Google Cloud, is an even bigger dangling carrot for billionaire money managers.
NASDAQ: GOOGL
Key Data Points
Google Cloud is the world's No. 3 cloud infrastructure service platform by total spend. Incorporating generative AI solutions and large language model capabilities into Google Cloud has accelerated growth for this high-margin platform. Sales surged 47% in the recently reported fourth quarter, with Google Cloud pacing more than $70 billion in annual run rate revenue.
But Alphabet is also a potential force to be reckoned with in the quantum computing arena. It debuted its QPU, dubbed Willow, in December 2024, and successfully ran a quantum algorithm on it in October that was approximately 13,000 times faster than the quickest supercomputers.
In addition to demonstrating its innovative capabilities with Willow, Alphabet closed out 2025 with $126.8 billion in combined cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities. Factoring in the nearly $165 billion in net cash it generated from its operating activities last year, it's easy to see why Alphabet can aggressively spend on high-growth initiatives, such as AI and quantum computing.
Lastly, Alphabet was historically inexpensive relative to its long-term growth potential. This value proposition was likely the impetus that billionaire fund managers couldn't ignore.
