New York, July 10, 2025 – Nvidia Corporation (NVDA) made history on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, becoming the first publicly traded company to reach a $4 trillion market capitalization, briefly hitting a peak of $4.03 trillion during intraday trading before closing at $3.97 trillion with a share price of $162.88. This milestone positions Nvidia’s valuation just 5% shy of India’s estimated GDP of $4.2 trillion, as per the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with projections suggesting India’s GDP will reach $4.27 trillion by year-end. Fueled by the global artificial intelligence (AI) boom and the launch of the Nvidia-backed Comet browser by Perplexity AI, Nvidia’s stock surged nearly 3% on the Nasdaq, hitting a 52-week high of $164.
What’s Driving Nvidia’s Rise?
Nvidia’s meteoric ascent, with a 24% stock gain over the past year and 18% in 2025 alone, is driven by its leadership in AI chip design, particularly its high-performance graphics processing units (GPUs) like the H100 and upcoming Blackwell series. These chips power generative AI applications, from large language models to robotics, meeting insatiable demand from tech giants like Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Google. Analyst Ananda Baruah described this as a “Golden Wave” of AI adoption, with Nvidia at the forefront of a new surge in demand. The company’s market cap has grown eightfold since 2021, from $500 billion to nearly $4 trillion, tripling from $1 trillion in June 2023 to $4 trillion in just over a year—a pace unmatched by Apple or Microsoft.
The Wednesday rally was catalyzed by Perplexity AI’s unveiling of Comet, an AI-powered web browser backed by Nvidia, Jeff Bezos, and SoftBank. Comet challenges Google Chrome’s 68% market share by integrating Perplexity’s AI search engine and an assistant that handles tasks like product comparisons, content summarization, and scheduling. This launch signals Nvidia’s expanding influence beyond hardware into AI-driven software ecosystems, reinforcing investor confidence. Posts on X reflect this sentiment, with @Gusfrin92486024 noting that Nvidia’s $4 trillion valuation symbolizes AI’s new era, shifting tech giants’ focus from platforms to AI infrastructure.
Nvidia vs. India’s GDP
Nvidia’s $4 trillion market cap is a staggering figure, nearly matching India’s GDP of $4.2 trillion, the world’s fifth-largest economy. A mere 5% stock increase—equivalent to a share price of $171.02—would push Nvidia’s valuation past India’s GDP, a feat highlighting the scale of AI-driven wealth creation. India’s GDP growth, projected at 7% for 2025, is robust, yet Nvidia’s market value growth has outpaced it, driven by global AI demand. This comparison underscores the transformative economic impact of AI, with Nvidia’s GPUs enabling advancements in data centers, autonomous vehicles, and robotics.
Comet Browser and Perplexity AI
Perplexity AI’s Comet browser, launched on July 9, 2025, is a Chromium-based, privacy-focused browser with a conversational AI interface. Available initially to Perplexity Max subscribers ($200/month), Comet integrates search, task automation, and content analysis, aiming to disrupt Google Chrome’s dominance. Features include:
- AI Assistant: Summarizes emails, manages tabs, and automates tasks like booking hotels.
- Privacy-First Design: Stores data locally, avoiding training on personal information.
- Market Context: Challenges Chrome’s 68% share, competing with Safari, Edge, and Firefox.
Perplexity, valued at $14 billion with 700 employees, processed 780 million queries in May 2025, reflecting 20% month-over-month growth. Nvidia’s backing, alongside investors like Jeff Bezos, positions Comet as a strategic move to reshape web navigation, amplifying Nvidia’s role in AI software. However, Perplexity faces criticism from publishers like Forbes and The New York Times for alleged content scraping, prompting a publisher partnership program to share ad revenue.
Broader Market Impact
Nvidia’s surge has bolstered broader market indices, with the Nasdaq Composite up 0.59% to 20,538.10, the S&P 500 up 0.31% to 6,244.92, and the Dow Jones up 0.20% to 44,328.20 on July 9. The tech sector’s 6% gain in 2025 reflects AI-driven optimism, with Nvidia’s performance outpacing the Nasdaq’s 6.5% year-to-date rise. However, skeptics like Jim Chanos warn of an AI bubble, comparing it to the dot-com era, noting that capital expenditure cuts could impact Nvidia’s revenue if AI projects stall.
Critical Perspective
Nvidia’s $4 trillion milestone reflects its unrivaled position in the AI ecosystem, but its valuation—approaching India’s GDP—raises questions about sustainability. The Comet browser launch highlights Nvidia’s strategic diversification, yet Perplexity’s content disputes underscore ethical challenges in AI development. While Jensen Huang’s vision for AI infrastructure, including real-time digital twins and robotics, drives growth, geopolitical risks like U.S.-China chip restrictions and potential tariff hikes under President Trump could pose challenges. Posts on X, like @EZE3D’s claim that Nvidia’s valuation is propped by a “tech oligarch coalition,” suggest skepticism about its long-term dominance, though bullish analysts like Dan Ives predict Nvidia could hit $5 trillion by 2027.
For Indian investors, Nvidia’s rise signals opportunities in AI-related stocks, but its high valuation (lacking a PE ratio due to forward-looking earnings focus) demands caution. The interplay between Nvidia’s hardware dominance and innovations like Comet could reshape global tech, but regulatory and competitive pressures warrant close monitoring.
Last Updated on Thursday, July 10, 2025 2:41 pm by Lok Ram
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