Nvidia Crosses $5.5 Trillion Market Cap for First Time

Nvidia crossed the $5,500 billion market capitalization threshold on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, a peak no one had ever reached before. The California-based maker of chips for AI and graphics cards for gamers is now worth more than one and a half times France’s annual GDP.

France’s annual GDP stands at roughly $3,600 billion in 2026 according to the IMF. Apple and Microsoft, its two direct rivals atop the global valuation rankings, have been hovering around the $4,000 billion mark since autumn 2025.

The NVDA share touched $227.16 intraday on Wednesday, up roughly 3%. Since the end of 2022 and the arrival of ChatGPT, the stock has multiplied more than fourteenfold, adding nearly $4,500 billion in value.

According to Fortune, Nvidia crossed the $1,000 billion mark in June 2023, the $4,000 billion mark in July 2025, then the $5,000 billion mark at the end of October 2025. Seven months later, it has reached $5,500 billion. Over the past 12 months the stock is up more than 84%, five times the performance of the S&P 500 over the same period.

The timing of the record is tied to a very specific news item. Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of Nvidia, is ultimately accompanying Donald Trump to a summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing, where the reopening of the Chinese market to Blackwell chips, the company’s latest generation of AI accelerators, is openly on the table. China accounted for up to 95% of Nvidia’s market share before the U.S. restrictions, against zero today.

Vivek Arya at Bank of America has raised his price target to $320 according to Investors.com, implying 45% upside. He sees 2026 as a year of clear acceleration and projects a data center systems market worth more than $2,000 billion in 2030. First-quarter fiscal 2027 results are due on May 20, with guidance centered on roughly $78 billion in revenue, up 77% year-on-year.

Nvidia remains the reference name of the AI cycle. If the China deal materializes, the $6,000 billion mark cited by retail investors is not unrealistic. If demand slows, the correction will match the scale of the party.