Nvidia Breaks $4 Trillion Barrier Just Months After DeepSeek Shock
Wall Street’s AI darling rebounds and stuns the market with an unmatched recovery and historic valuation
Nvidia (ticker NVDA, traded on the NASDAQ, sector: information technology) made history by becoming the first public company to surpass a $4 trillion market capitalization, driven by unstoppable demand for its AI chips. Shares rose approximately 2.5% to a new all-time high of $164, reflecting investor confidence in Nvidia’s foundational role in powering the artificial intelligence revolution.
This monumental milestone is even more impressive considering the context. Just six months ago, Nvidia shares plunged nearly 20% after Chinese startup DeepSeek rattled the tech world by claiming it could develop advanced AI models without using Nvidia chips. That event erased nearly $600 billion in market cap and temporarily dropped Nvidia’s value below the $3 trillion threshold. But today, Nvidia has rebounded by roughly 74% from its April lows—regaining not just its footing, but breaking new ground.
Nvidia’s meteoric rise began in mid-2023, when it crossed the $1 trillion mark. Less than a year later, it tripled its market cap, outpacing tech giants like Apple and Microsoft, both of which still hover around the $3 trillion range. Microsoft now ranks second, valued at approximately $3.75 trillion, trailing Nvidia by nearly $250 billion.
The company’s financial performance continues to impress. In Q1, Nvidia reported revenue of $44.1 billion, up 69% year-over-year, and delivered earnings of 81 cents per share. For Q2, the company projects revenue around $45 billion, with a 2% margin of flexibility. Nvidia’s stock is now up over 22% year-to-date, outperforming the broader Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
CEO Jensen Huang has been hailed by market strategists as the “Godfather of AI,” with Nvidia chips powering infrastructure at companies like Microsoft and Meta. Analysts credit Huang’s vision and Nvidia’s strategic partnerships as key drivers behind the surge. Dan Ives of Wedbush noted that Nvidia remains the backbone of global AI development, while Synovus Trust’s Dan Morgan emphasized that the DeepSeek episode only highlighted Nvidia’s long-term dominance, not weakness.
The DeepSeek scare, once viewed as an existential threat, now seems like a speed bump. The Chinese firm launched its V3 and R1 models at unexpectedly low costs, sparking fears that GPU-intensive AI training could become obsolete. But follow-up reports indicated that DeepSeek likely used Nvidia hardware in its own training pipelines, undermining its original narrative.
Despite ongoing geopolitical tensions—including export controls and tariff concerns—Nvidia’s momentum has proven unstoppable. Regulators in both the U.S. and Europe have begun scrutinizing DeepSeek for data handling and intellectual property concerns, while Nvidia continues to attract institutional capital and regulatory goodwill.
Today’s $4 trillion valuation is more than a headline. It’s a statement of resilience, innovation, and strategic execution. Nvidia now holds a 7.3% weighting in the S&P 500, making it the single most influential stock in the index. Whether it holds or climbs even higher, one thing is certain: Nvidia isn’t just riding the AI wave—it’s leading it.