Nvidia becomes most valuable company in the world at $4tr

Nvidia’s shares could be bought for just 14 dollars each at the start of 2023 (Alamy/PA)

Chipmaker Nvidia has become the first public company to top $4tr (€3.1tr) in value after a two-year investor frenzy.

Nvidia shares rose 2.5%, or $3.97 (€3.39), in early trading on Wednesday, topping $164 (€140) each. At the beginning of 2023, Nvidia shares were around $14 (€12) each.

The poster child of the AI boom, Nvidia has grown into the largest company on Wall Street, surpassing Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Google.

Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang (Sarah Meyssonnier/Pool via AP)

The stock’s movement carries more weight on the S&P 500 and other indexes than every company except Apple. Two years ago, Nvidia’s market value was below $600bn (€512bn).

Nvidia and other companies benefiting from the AI boom have been a major reason the S&P 500 has climbed to record after record recently, with the latest coming last week.

Their explosion of profits has helped to propel the market despite worries about stubbornly high inflation and possible pain coming for the US economy from tariffs and other policies of President Donald Trump.