Apple has officially joined the exclusive ranks of trillion-dollar tech giants, becoming one of only a handful of publicly traded companies to surpass a $4 trillion market valuation.
The milestone follows similar achievements by Nvidia and Microsoft earlier this year, underscoring how Wall Street’s enthusiasm has shifted toward companies positioned to benefit from the ongoing artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
Shares of Apple (AAPL) edged higher on Tuesday, completing a sharp rebound that was largely fueled by stronger-than-expected iPhone 17 sales, particularly in China — a market where the company had previously faced sluggish demand.
The recovery marks a striking turnaround from earlier in the year, when Apple’s stock fell sharply amid tariff pressures under President Donald Trump and delays in the company’s anticipated AI initiatives. In April, Apple lost more than $310 billion in market value in a single trading day.
Despite the record-breaking valuation, Apple’s stock is up just over 7% in 2025, lagging both the broader market’s 17% gain and the 30.7% surge it posted in 2024. Still, analysts say the company’s performance highlights the enduring power of the iPhone brand — even as Apple races to catch up in the AI space.
The fact that Nvidia, the world’s leading AI chipmaker, and Microsoft, a key cloud and AI software player, reached the $4 trillion mark ahead of Apple reflects how central AI has become to investor sentiment. Many analysts now compare AI’s transformative potential to that of the internet or the smartphone revolution.
Apple, meanwhile, is no stranger to rewriting market history. It became the first publicly traded company to reach a $1 trillion valuation in August 2018, hit $2 trillion in August 2020, and crossed $3 trillion in January 2022 before closing above that level in mid-2023.
For now, the iPhone continues to anchor Apple’s momentum. Dan Ives, a senior analyst at Wedbush Securities, said, “(CEO Tim) Cook & Co. have finally found success with iPhone 17, and now the Street is waiting for Apple’s grand strategic AI roadmap to be unveiled.”
