According to 9to5Mac, Apple is now within just a few percentage points of overtaking Nvidia as the world’s most valuable company after Nvidia’s stock dropped 5% earlier today. This follows a report from The Information claiming Meta may strike a multi-billion-dollar AI chip deal with Google rather than Nvidia. Nvidia’s stock had skyrocketed more than 1,000% since early 2023, allowing it to definitively overtake both Apple and Microsoft in the first half of 2025. Apple closed today with a $4.124 trillion market cap, while Nvidia stands at $4.234 trillion. The shift comes amid mounting pressure over accusations that circular deals in the AI sector have allegedly inflated Nvidia’s revenues, which the company has categorically denied while dismissing comparisons to the Enron scandal.
The AI bubble question
Here’s the thing about Nvidia‘s wild ride – everyone’s waiting for the other shoe to drop. The company reported a stellar financial quarter last week, and initially investors cheered. But then reality set in. The very next day, the stock started dropping alongside the broader tech sector. Basically, the market is looking for convincing evidence that this AI boom isn’t about to turn into a bust.
And that’s where the irony gets really interesting. Apple has taken so much heat for being late to the AI party. Remember all those articles questioning whether Apple had lost its innovative edge? Well, turns out being fashionably late might have been the smartest move. If the AI bubble does burst, Apple is way less exposed than companies that went all-in from day one.
The circular deal problem
So what’s really spooking investors about Nvidia? It’s not just the potential loss of a massive Meta deal to Google. There’s this growing narrative about “circular deals” throughout the AI sector. The accusation is that companies are essentially trading money back and forth to inflate revenue numbers. Nvidia says this is nonsense and the Enron comparisons are ridiculous. But when you’re sitting on a 1,000% stock gain, even whispers can cause a 5% drop.
Think about it – how sustainable is this AI gold rush really? Companies are spending billions on chips to build AI capabilities that may or may not generate real revenue down the line. It’s starting to feel a bit like the early internet days, where everyone knew there was potential but nobody was quite sure which business models would actually work.
What happens next?
If current trends hold – and that’s a massive if in today’s volatile market – we could see Apple and Nvidia trading the “world’s most valuable company” title back and forth in the coming days and weeks. Apple’s been on a steady climb for months, while Nvidia’s been on this insane rollercoaster.
The real question is whether Apple will overtake Nvidia through its own growth or Nvidia’s continued decline. Personally, I think we’re witnessing a market correction that was probably overdue. When a stock jumps 1,000% in just over two years, some pullback is almost inevitable. Meanwhile, Apple keeps chugging along with its massive installed base and diverse revenue streams. They might not be the AI darling, but they’re definitely the steady hand.
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