Nvidia's shares plummeted nearly 3.4 per cent on Thursday, relinquishing its status as the world's most valuable company to Microsoft.
Nvidia, whose market capitalisation soared past Microsoft's earlier in the week, saw its value drop to USD 3.34 trillion after losing approximately USD 91 billion. This decline positioned Microsoft back on top, despite a minor 0.4 per cent dip in its shares, which settled at USD 444.8, bringing its market capitalisation to USD 3.30 trillion.
Apple, another major player in the tech industry, remains a close contender. Under the leadership of Tim Cook, Apple's market capitalisation stands at USD 3.22 trillion, with shares down by 2.2 per cent to USD 210.10.
Adding to the market's turbulence, Elon Musk's recent announcement on his X social media platform regarding server supplies for his xAI startup's supercomputer had a notable impact. Dell Technologies and Super Micro Computer, the companies providing these server racks equipped with Nvidia chips, experienced share declines of 1 per cent and 0.7 per cent, respectively.
Musk revealed that the Grok 2 model training required around 20,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs, with future iterations like Grok 3 expected to demand up to 100,000 Nvidia H100 chips. This high demand for Nvidia's AI hardware has been a significant driver behind the tripling of its stock price this year. Similarly, Super Micro's shares have also tripled, while Dell's stock has surged by nearly 95 per cent.
Reflecting broader market trends, the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index has risen by nearly 34 per cent since April, reaching a lifetime high on Tuesday.
(Inputs from Reuters)
