Microsoft Tops Apple As Most Valuable Public Company Thanks To AI

Microsoft has surpassed Apple to become the most valuable public company, driven by its AI assets. Microsoft's market value ended the week at $2.88 trillion, compared to Apple's $2.86 trillion. Microsoft's shares closed at $388.47, up 1%, near an all-time high. The company's value has increased by about $1 trillion in the past year, partly due to its investment in OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, and the growing interest in generative AI.

In contrast, Apple, which lacks a fully developed presence in AI, has seen its shares drop by about 4% in recent weeks due to concerns about its Q4 results and potential weakness in its flagship iPhone. AI is seen by Wall Street as a way for Microsoft to narrow the gap with Google in search revenue. Microsoft's search revenue in 2023 was about $3.2 billion, compared to Google's $43 billion.

Key takeaways

Microsoft has surpassed Apple to become the most valuable public company, with a market value of $2.88 trillion, largely due to its investments in artificial intelligence.
OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT and partly owned by Microsoft, has contributed to the tech giant's success. Microsoft invested $10 billion in OpenAI last year.
Microsoft's AI investments are seen as a way to close the gap with Google in search revenue. In 2023, Microsoft made about $3.2 billion in search revenue, compared to Google's $43 billion.
Apple, in contrast to Microsoft, does not have a fully developed presence in AI and its shares have dropped about 4% in recent weeks due to concerns about its fourth-quarter results and potential softness in its flagship iPhone.

Microsoft Tops Apple As Most Valuable Public Company Thanks To AI

Key takeaways

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