U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) stocks took a sharp dive after a shock from Chinese company DeepSeek, but Apple defied the trend, surging over 3% and reclaiming its position as the most valuable company by market capitalization.
On Monday, Apple’s stock jumped 3.18%, closing at $229.86 on the New York Stock Exchange. This boost brought its market value to a staggering $3.457 trillion, propelling the tech giant back to the top spot.
Interestingly, no major positive news drove Apple’s rally. Market analysts suggest that the stock’s impressive gain is largely due to the company’s historically cautious approach to AI investments.
Apple has been more reserved in the AI race, notably launching AI-equipped smartphones later than its competitors, like Samsung Electronics.
As a result, the company has had less exposure to AI than other Big Tech firms, which has, unexpectedly, worked in its favor.
In contrast, Nvidia—widely seen as Wall Street’s poster child for AI gains—saw its stock plummet by around 17%, taking a significant hit from the ongoing AI shockwaves originating from China.