Momentum in artificial intelligence is reshaping market leadership, and Alphabet has now firmly placed itself at the center of that shift as investor confidence continues to build around its long-term AI strategy.
Alphabet Inc. crossed a $4 trillion market capitalization on Monday, joining a small group of companies to reach the milestone. Shares ended the session up 1% at $331.86, lifting the Google parent’s valuation just above the threshold. The move positions Alphabet as the 2nd-largest company globally, behind Nvidia Corp., after briefly overtaking Apple Inc.
Only Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft Corp. have previously crossed the $4 trillion mark, with Nvidia remaining the only firm to have reached $5 trillion. Monday’s gains followed news of a multiyear partnership with Apple to support the iPhone maker’s AI capabilities, including the Siri voice assistant. Apple shares rose 0.3% on the day.
Alphabet’s stock is up 6% so far in 2026, building on a rally of more than 65% last year. That earlier surge made it the top performer among the Magnificent Seven and added nearly $1.5 trillion to its market value during 2025 alone.
Improving investor sentiment reflects Alphabet’s perceived strength across key AI segments. Strong feedback on its latest Gemini AI model has eased concerns about rising competition from players such as OpenAI. At the same time, the company’s tensor processing unit chips are viewed as a potential long-term driver of revenue growth.
“The company’s competitive advantages are not only intact but growing, and no other player has the models, compute, applications, talent, and data to succeed in AI,” said Divyaunsh Divatia, research analyst at Janus Henderson Investors. “It is certainly being seen as a big AI winner, and that strength helps investors feel more comfortable giving it a more-premium valuation than it previously got.”
Alphabet shares now trade at around 28 times estimated earnings, close to their highest level since 2021 and well above the 10-year average of 20.5. The multiple had fallen to nearly 14 in mid-2025. Despite the surge, the stock still trades at a slight discount to the broader Magnificent Seven Index.
Additional validation came in November, when Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. disclosed it had built a stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter, signaling rare confidence from an investor known for limited exposure to technology stocks.
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