For years, Apple and Microsoft had been the top two most valuable companies in the world. On Tuesday, Nvidia rose above both. With a value of more than $3 trillion, the tech company de-throned Microsoft, after having overtaken Apple's value earlier in June. For the average person, Nvidia is a name that has seemingly appeared out of nowhere. The company, which makes specialised microchips, was not well known just a year ago.
Demand for Nvidia’s top-of-the-line processors has this year far outstripped supply as Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Google-owner Alphabet race to build out their AI computing capabilities and dominate the emerging technology. Virtually all artificial intelligence applications, including OpenAI's ChatGPT, rely on Nvidia's high-end chips, which are manufactured in Taiwan.