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It’s official: Nvidia is now worth more than the entire cryptocurrency market—combined.
On Wednesday, the chipmaker crossed the $5 trillion mark in market valuation, a first in history. That’s just three months after it hit $4 trillion. To put it bluntly, Nvidia is on a run like no other, and if you’ve been watching the AI space, this moment was probably coming.
The biggest push? A massive $500 billion in chip orders and some seriously strategic moves announced during Nvidia’s GTC conference in Washington, DC.
Inside Nvidia’s $500 Billion AI Play
At the heart of this surge is Nvidia’s focus on its AI chips—particularly the latest Blackwell and Rubin processors. CEO Jensen Huang shared that they expect to ship 20 million units of their new chips by the end of 2026, a huge leap from the 4 million units shipped in the lifetime of the earlier Hopper generation.
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That $500 billion in chip orders? It doesn’t even include possible sales to China, thanks to current export controls. And yep, that’s a significant chunk of potential revenue on the table.
Still, investors are digging in. After Tuesday’s announcement, Nvidia shares jumped 4.6 percent. The excitement is real, but it’s also raising eyebrows. Are we in an AI bubble?
“I Don’t Believe We’re in a Bubble,” Says Huang
With Nvidia’s stock climbing nearly 12 times since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, the AI boom has been a major force behind S&P 500’s surge. But it’s also sparked concerns from analysts who warn that enthusiasm might be outrunning the tech’s current economic value.
Jensen Huang, however, doesn’t buy it. In a Bloomberg interview, he pushed back on bubble talk: “All of these different AI models we’re using—we’re using plenty of services and paying happily to do it.”
That said, some experts remain cautious. Matthew Tuttle of Tuttle Capital Management pointed out that the industry is running on a few big players financing each other’s capacity. If investors start focusing more on actual cash flow instead of future potential, the momentum could slow down quickly.
Big Deals, Bold Politics, and Supercomputers
To keep investors confident, Nvidia rolled out some heavy-hitting partnerships and plans during the GTC keynote:
- A $1 billion investment in Nokia to help them scale up AI and 6G networking.
- A collaboration with Uber to support 100,000 self-driving vehicles. Stellantis is one of the first automakers to deliver the robotaxis.
- A partnership with Palantir to combine Nvidia chips with their Ontology platform. Lowe’s is already on board.
- Eli Lilly will build the most powerful supercomputer ever operated by a pharmaceutical company, running over 1,000 Blackwell AI chips.
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And then there’s the political angle. Huang didn’t hold back in praising Donald Trump and his policies, thanking the audience for “making America great again.” With U.S. restrictions blocking AI chip sales to China, Huang stressed that leaving China out of the ecosystem could mean cutting the U.S. off from half the world’s AI developers.
Why D.C. Was the Stage for This
It’s no accident that Nvidia brought its message to Washington. According to analysts like Bob O’Donnell of TECHnalysis Research, the move was about more than tech—it was about influence. “Nvidia clearly brought their story to DC to both educate and gain favor with the US government,” he said.
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In a market where government policy increasingly shapes global tech trajectories, aligning with U.S. interests—while pushing for broader access—is a smart, if risky, play.
So What’s Next?
Whether this is peak AI enthusiasm or just the start of something even bigger isn’t clear. But one thing’s for sure: Nvidia has positioned itself at the center of the AI universe, with momentum on its side and a CEO who’s betting the future is just getting started.
For now, investors are buying what Nvidia is selling. Time will tell if those $500 billion in chip orders turn into sustained growth—or if the bubble-watchers are right after all.
Either way, it’s going to be interesting to watch.
Keywords: Nvidia, AI, Valuation, Jensen Huang, Supercomputers, Partnerships, Washington DC
