As I tweak my latest AI side project under the glow of my smart desk lamp in my San Francisco loft, I keep one eye on the latest GPU benchmarks scrolling across my dual monitors. Upgrading my rig has always been a thrill, but the recent RTX 5070 Ti drama threw me for a loop. Reports hit that ASUS called it “end of life,” sparking panic buys and price spikes. Then, backpedaling statements flooded in. If you’re eyeing a mid-range powerhouse for 1440p gaming or creative workflows, this RTX 5070 Ti end of life saga could dictate your next move. Let’s unpack the chaos, verify the facts, and chart your best path forward.

Caption: ASUS ROG Strix RTX 5070 Ti – the card at the center of the supply storm.

What Sparked the RTX 5070 Ti End of Life Rumor?

The firestorm ignited at CES 2026 when popular YouTube channel Hardware Unboxed requested review samples of the RTX 5070 Ti from ASUS. An ASUS PR rep responded: no samples available due to “supply constraints,” explicitly stating their models like Prime and TUF Gaming were “end of life” with no production plans. Retailers in Australia echoed this – zero stock from distributors, expected to last through Q1 2026.

Hardware Unboxed published a video, and the internet exploded. Prices jumped from $730 to $830 for base models, signaling scarcity. The RTX 5060 Ti 16GB was flagged next, “almost done” per ASUS, with similar halts looming.

This wasn’t baseless chatter. NVIDIA’s RTX 50 series launched strong, but mid-tier 16GB cards like these rely on scarce GDDR7 memory. Gamers hunting 1440p/4K hybrids or AI-accelerated editing felt the pinch first.

ASUS’s Shocking Initial Statement: “End of Life” Confirmed

Digging deeper, ASUS reps doubled down when pressed: RTX 5070 Ti production stopped, no resumption planned. Why? NVIDIA allegedly shifted allocations to higher-end like RTX 5080 as the “primary 16GB model.” Retailers couldn’t source from any AIB partners, effectively killing availability.

For context, the RTX 5070 Ti packs 16GB GDDR7 on a GB203 die, delivering RTX 4080-level rasterization with superior RT and DLSS 4. It’s a sweet spot for $800-900 builds – until supply vanished.

NVIDIA Weighs In: “All SKUs Still Shipping”

NVIDIA quickly countered: “Demand for GeForce RTX GPUs is strong, and memory supply is constrained. We continue to ship all GeForce SKUs and are working closely with suppliers to maximize memory availability.”

This suggests no official EOL from NVIDIA – just partner-level pain. But Hardware Unboxed’s timeline reveals ASUS got “streamlined” on lower-priority models.

ASUS Backpedals with Official Denial

Hours after the video, ASUS issued statements. First: NVIDIA clarified it’s not EOL; ASUS is “streamlining some models.” Then, the full press release: “The GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB have not been discontinued or designated as end-of-life (EOL). ASUS has no plans to stop selling these models.”

Blame? “Incomplete information from an ASUS PR representative.” Supply dips from memory constraints are “temporary,” affecting production/restocking – not retirement. Availability “limited in certain markets.”

Hardware Unboxed called BS: “Proof in the supply.” Their renewed sample request? Crickets.

Caption: NVIDIA’s RTX 50 series lineup – 5070 Ti caught in the crossfire.

The Root Cause: GDDR7 Memory Shortage Crisis

Here’s the tech crux: GDDR7 VRAM famine. AI data centers hoover high-bandwidth memory (HBM), starving consumer GDDR7. Micron axed its Crucial consumer line for AI focus. Prices soared; 16GB cards like 5070 Ti/5060 Ti hit hardest – costlier than 8GB siblings.

NVIDIA rumor: Partners now source memory independently. ASUS, prioritizing profitable 5080/5090, deprioritized mid-tier 16GB.

Result? “Effectively dead” per insiders, despite denials.

How RTX 5070 Ti Supply Crunch Affects Prices and Availability

Stock vanished post-CES. Australian retailers: no inbound Q1. US/EU mirrors: eBay scalps at $1000+. 5060 Ti 16GB jumped $400 to $500+.

Non-Ti 5070 holds, but tightening. Watch Newegg/Amazon – if listings dwindle, panic real.

RTX 5060 Ti 16GB: Is It Next on the Chopping Block?

Yes. ASUS flagged it “almost done,” mirroring 5070 Ti trajectory. Budget 1080p/1440p king with 16GB for modding/AI? Scarce soon. Grab 8GB if desperate.

Should You Buy RTX 5070 Ti Right Now?

If available under $900: yes. Blistering 1440p/4K entry, DLSS 4 crushes paths. Future-proof for 2-3 years.

Hunt Micro Center/Best Buy. Avoid scalps. Wait for Blackwell refresh? Riskier – supply worse.

Best Alternatives to RTX 5070 Ti in 2026

1. RTX 5080: Premium jump, pricier but stocked.

Caption: RTX 50 series family – alternatives abound.

2. RTX 4070 Ti Super: Last-gen steal at $700, similar perf.
3. AMD RX 7800 XT: 16GB raster beast, $500.
4. RTX 5070 (non-Ti): Safer bet, improving stock.

Benchmarks: 5070 Ti ~20% over 4070 Ti Super in RT.

Building a Killer PC Around RTX 5070 Ti: Step-by-Step Guide

1. CPU: Ryzen 7 7800X3D – gaming god.
2. Motherboard: B650 for AM5 future.
3. RAM: 32GB DDR5-6000.
4. PSU: 850W Gold – headroom.
5. Case: Airflow king for cooling.

Test in Cyberpunk 2077: 150+ FPS ultra RT.

Pro tip: Use ergonomic laptop stand for planning – the exact one I use for late-night builds.

Future Outlook for RTX 50 Series Supply Chain

Memory easing mid-2026? Optimistic. NVIDIA pushes suppliers; Samsung/Micron ramp GDDR7. But AI demand rages – expect volatility.

RTX 5090/5080 prioritized; mid-tier suffers.

Essentials List for Your RTX 5070 Ti Gaming Rig

Gear up with these must-haves:

• Ergonomic Laptop Stand – Elevate your build station.
• Blue Light Glasses – Protect eyes during marathon sessions.
• Insulated Bottle – Stay hydrated grinding benchmarks.
• Portable Essential Oil Diffuser – Zen vibes for frustrating driver installs.
• Sunrise Alarm Clock – Wake refreshed post-overclock.
• Red Light Therapy Lamp – Recover from late-night tweaks.
• Massage Gun – Ease wrist strain from cable management.
• Oura Ring – Track recovery metrics.

Must-Read Books on GPU Tech and PC Building

1. PNY NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Epic-X User Guide: Step-by-Step Setup, Thermal Control, Overclock Tuning, and Blackwell DLSS 4 Performance Enhancements – Deep dive into Blackwell architecture.
2. Build Your Own Computer: The complete step-by-step manual to constructing a PC that’s right for you – Step-by-step rigs.
3. GPU Mastery: Advanced Architectures, Evolution, and Cutting-Edge Applications in Gaming & Machine Learning – Beyond gaming.
4. The Book of Overclocking: Tweak Your PC to Unleash Its Power – Push limits safely.

Frequently Asked Questions About RTX 5070 Ti End of Life

Is the RTX 5070 Ti really end of life?

No, per ASUS’s final statement – supply constrained, not discontinued.

Why can’t I find RTX 5070 Ti in stock?

GDDR7 shortages from AI demand limit production.

Will RTX 5070 Ti prices drop soon?

Unlikely – scarcity drives hikes; wait for memory ramp-up.

What’s better than RTX 5070 Ti right now?

RTX 5080 for power, RX 7800 XT for value.

Is RTX 5060 Ti 16GB affected too?

Yes, similar constraints; stock thinning fast.

P.S. Stay ahead of tech curves – grab my free Tech Innovation Guide for insider updates!

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Although artificial intelligence (AI) investing gets a ton of attention from the market, there’s a good reason for that. It’s where the majority of cash flows are being poured into, and following the money to where it’s being spent is a genius investing strategy.

Right now, most of the AI hyperscalers are still building their computing capacity, making companies that sell this equipment into great investments. I believe stocks like Nvidia (NVDA 0.27%), Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM -1.17%), and Broadcom (AVGO -0.48%) are among the best buys now, as they receive a boatload of this spending.

1. Nvidia

Nvidia has topped the list of best AI companies to invest in since the trend began in early 2023. Its graphics processing units (GPUs) are the computing muscle behind most of the AI technology people experience today, and show no signs of slowing down. Nvidia’s management projects that the AI hyperscalers will spend $600 billion on capital expenditures for AI data centers this year, but that figure could reach $3 trillion to $4 trillion globally by 2030. Nvidia captures a sizable chunk of that spending, as Wall Street analysts expect Nvidia to generate around $206 billion in revenue this year.

Time will tell if Nvidia can capture a large chunk of that projected spending, and a lot of it will hinge on whether its products are accepted back in China once the U.S. government grants Nvidia’s export license. However, I think that Nvidia still has the world’s best technology for general-purpose computing, making its products a no-brainer choice when building artificial intelligence computing capacity.

Nvidia remains a top stock pick in the AI realm, even if it has been a massive success over the past few years.

2. Taiwan Semiconductor

Nvidia is what’s known as a fabless chip company. It designs the products, but relies on other companies to manufacture the components that go into them. One of the most important companies in this setup is the chip foundry, which produces the microchips in the devices. Nvidia uses Taiwan Semiconductor for this work, and TSMC has made a name for itself in the industry by providing best-in-class technology and production yields.

Nearly all leading tech companies use TSMC’s chips. Often, two competitors both use chips produced by TSMC, such as Nvidia and AMD (AMD -1.05%). Because Taiwan Semiconductor is acting as a neutral party fabrication facility, this arrangement works great and allows it to capitalize on massive technology trends.

An investment in Taiwan Semiconductor is a bet that companies are going to use more advanced chips, and a greater quantity of them, in the future. I think that’s a very safe assumption, making TSMC a great stock to buy now.

3. Broadcom

Broadcom is challenging Nvidia’s dominance in the AI computing market by partnering with AI hyperscalers to design custom AI accelerator chips.

Nvidia GPUs are the undisputed leader of multi-purpose computing, and can handle many types of workloads, whether it’s AI training, cryptocurrency mining, or engineering simulations. However, if a client only uses an Nvidia GPU for one workload, these capabilities are wasted. By designing an AI chip with one workload in mind, Broadcom can achieve greater performance at a cheaper price.

This makes Broadcom’s custom AI accelerators a potentially massive business, and it’s starting to show up in the company’s results. In third-quarter fiscal year 2025 (ended Aug. 3), Broadcom’s AI revenue soared 63% year over year, outpacing Nvidia’s 56% growth rate.

This shows that Broadcom is gaining market share in this area, and it could be a force to reckon with over the next five years. I think Broadcom will be a great investment over the next few years as a result, and investors should consider scooping up shares alongside Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor.

Keithen Drury has positions in Broadcom, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

For the better part of the last three years, nothing has captivated the attention and capital of investors quite like artificial intelligence (AI). The seemingly limitless possibilities of empowering software and systems with AI can be a game-changer for most industries around the globe. It’s why PwC pegged this global addressable opportunity at a jaw-dropping $15.7 trillion by 2030 in Sizing the Prize.

While there’s no denying that investor hype surrounding the potential for AI has sent dozens of stocks soaring, not everyone on Wall Street shares in this optimism.

In particular, the bar has been set especially low for two of Wall Street’s trillion-dollar AI stocks. Keep in mind, only 10 publicly traded companies on U.S. exchanges have reached the trillion-dollar valuation mark, and not all of these companies are focused on artificial intelligence.

Based on the price target prognostications of select Wall Street analysts, the following two trillion-dollar AI stocks can plunge by up to 95% over the next year.

Nvidia: Implied downside of 44%

The first trillion-dollar AI stock you might be shocked to see among possible plunge candidates is the world’s largest publicly traded company, Nvidia (NVDA -2.62%).

Bullishness on Wall Street for Nvidia is nearly universal. Out of the 65 analysts who’ve weighed in on the company, a combined 59 have it rated the equivalent of a buy or strong buy, as of September 2025, with another five chiming in with the equivalent of a hold rating.

The reason for this optimism has to do with Nvidia dominating the AI-graphics processing unit (GPU) space. It began with the Hopper (H100) and has continued with the next-gen Blackwell and now Blackwell Ultra GPUs. No external chip companies are remotely close to matching the compute capabilities of Nvidia’s AI hardware, which has led to a sizable backlog and enviable AI-GPU pricing power.

Nevertheless, Seaport Global analyst Jay Goldberg stands out as Wall Street’s lone wolf when it comes to Nvidia. He has a sell rating on the company with a price target of just $100, which would imply downside of up to 44%, if accurate.

Goldberg had a laundry list of warnings in his latest research note that maintained his and his firm’s $100 price target, including:

• Concerns about a sequential quarterly slowdown in data center sales growth.
• Unjustified optimism surrounding agentic AI, which has a rather small commercial market at the moment.
• Nvidia’s China exposure, with delays in shipments of AI chips to the world’s No. 2 economy giving external competitors in China the opportunity to gain ground.

But in my opinion, Goldberg might be missing the two biggest threats to Nvidia stock.

First, we haven’t seen a next-big-thing investment trend avoid an eventual early stage bubble-bursting event in more than 30 years. Investors consistently overestimate the early stage adoption and/or utility of game-changing technologies, which leads to lofty expectations not being met. Given that most businesses have yet to optimize their AI solutions or generate a positive return on their invested capital, there’s a very high probability, based on historical precedent, of an AI bubble forming and bursting.

The second concern for Nvidia is that many of its top customers by net sales are internally developing AI-GPUs for their data centers. Even though these chips won’t be sold externally, and they’re not a match for Nvidia’s hardware on a compute basis, they are notably cheaper and not backlogged. There’s a good chance Nvidia may lose out on valuable data center real estate going forward, or at the very least contend with delayed upgrade cycles from its top customers.

Tesla: Implied downside of 95%

But when it comes to implied downside, electric-vehicle (EV) maker Tesla (TSLA 0.98%), which integrates AI solutions into its EVs, takes the cake.

Unlike Nvidia, Tesla has its fair share of skeptics. More than 10% of the 45 analysts covering the company in September rate it as the equivalent of an underperform or sell. This includes GLJ Research founder and analyst Gordon Johnson.

Earlier this year, Johnson reduced his price target on Tesla to just $19.05 per share. Keeping in mind that Tesla stock closed out the previous week at nearly $396 per share, it implies downside of roughly 95%.

Although Tesla has been profitable in each of the last five years, Johnson, a longtime Tesla bear, has a number of critiques to offer.

To begin with, he’s been critical of Tesla’s ancillary projects beyond EVs and energy generation and storage products. For instance, the hype surrounding Optimus robots has added to Tesla’s valuation but provides minimal value to the Tesla brand and little hope of any near-term sales.

Gordon Johnson also pointed to Tesla’s operating structure as a reason to be skeptical of its stock. While most “Magnificent Seven” members are thriving off of high-margin software sales, the bulk of Tesla’s sales are coming from lower-margin hardware where it possesses less pricing power. The more than half-dozen price cuts Tesla has undertaken on its fleet of EVs over the last couple of years is evidence that its competitive edge in the EV space has shrunk.

Johnson has been critical of Tesla’s mind-numbing valuation, as well. Whereas most automakers are valued at high-single-digit or low-double-digit price-to-earnings (P/E) multiples, Tesla shares are valued at an estimated 234 times forecast earnings per share in 2025. Worse yet, more than half of Tesla’s pre-tax income has originated from non-innovative and/or unsustainable sources, such as automotive regulatory credits and interest income on its cash.

Though a decline to $19.05 per share seems highly unlikely, there are other reasons to believe Tesla stock can head notably lower. Specifically, CEO Elon Musk hasn’t given investors much reason to be optimistic of late. Cybertruck sales have been a disappointment and the robotaxi launch event in Austin, Texas, was underwhelming.

These disappointments speak to a broader issue with governance at Tesla. Namely, Musk has a habit of overpromising and underdelivering. Whether it’s promising Level 5 autonomy is “one year” away for 11 straight years or projecting 1 million robotaxis would be on public roads by 2020, Musk consistently misses the mark.

The issue from an investment standpoint is that these lofty promises are being baked into Tesla’s stock. If these unfulfilled promises are backed out, it becomes very possible for Tesla shares to lose a significant percentage of their value.

The 10 largest growth-focused U.S. companies now make up 38% of the S&P 500. Known as the “Ten Titans,” the list includes Nvidia (NVDA -3.38%), Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Broadcom, Tesla, Oracle (ORCL -5.97%), and Netflix (NFLX -1.87%).

Oracle, Netflix, and Nvidia have been the best performers of the Titans year to date. Let’s determine if these growth stocks have what it takes to continue outperforming next year.

Oracle has innovative ideas, but they come at a price

Oracle has been the standout among the Titans. With a year-to-date total return of more than 40%, it vaulted its market cap above $660 billion.

ORCL Total Return Level data by YCharts.

Oracle was close to dead money in the five years between 2015 and the end of 2019 — gaining just 17.8% compared to 56.9% for the S&P 500. But since the start of 2020, Oracle is up 345% compared to a 100.6% gain in the S&P 500. A big driver of the outperformance is the build-out and adoption of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).

Oracle transformed from a database-first company to a fully fledged ecosystem. Not long ago, companies were using Oracle’s database software on third-party clouds. Oracle decided to capture that revenue by building out its own cloud services.

Oracle Integration Cloud hosts software-as-a-service offerings for financial reporting, automated workflows, human resources operations, marketing, personalization, and more. Oracle also offers artificial intelligence (AI)-powered database services. And OCI has been shown to be much more cost-effective for data-intensive operations than Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud. It’s an especially ideal offering for industries like financial services and healthcare that have complex regulatory frameworks and sensitive information. On its earnings calls, Oracle often discusses how industries are choosing OCI for its security and compliance capabilities.

Oracle was already a leader in enterprise software solutions. And now, it is a major player in the cloud business. The main downside of Oracle is that its valuation is expensive, and it is spending extremely aggressively. Oracle is arguably among the higher-risk, higher-potential-reward Titans. If its investments translate to bottom-line earnings growth, it could continue to be one of the best performers in the group. If not, it wouldn’t be surprising if the stock underwent a sizable sell-off.

Netflix is an entertainment giant that is raking in the cash flow

Netflix’s outsized returns in recent years are partly due to how beaten down the stock was going into 2023. Netflix fell over 50% in 2022, outpacing the broader sell-off in the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) that year. At the time, other streaming platforms were gaining traction, and Netflix was still inconsistently profitable.

The business model has remained largely unchanged over the past decade. So it’s not a transformational story like Oracle. Rather, Netflix has perfected its craft.

The biggest change has been its content slate — what it spends on, how it markets that content (like the global success of “KPop Demon Hunters,”) and basically just boosting its overall content success rate. The second major change was cracking down on password sharing. This was a resounding success because a lot of new accounts opened up — showing that customers were willing to pay for Netflix because they value the service (again, despite a lot of competition). And finally, Netflix’s ad-supported tier is driving new signups, which accelerates revenue growth.

Netflix is an industry-leading cash cow with high margins. It has become a near-perfect business. The only issue is that the valuation reflects that, as Netflix trades at 52 times trailing 12-month earnings. Netflix could still be a winning long-term stock, but it may need a year or two to grow into its valuation. Therefore, it may not be a standout performer in 2026.

Nvidia just delivered another blowout quarter

Nvidia reported exceptional second-quarter fiscal 2026 results on Aug. 27 despite the company’s China business being hindered by export restrictions to China.

Even with difficult comps from the second-quarter fiscal 2025, Nvidia grew revenue by 56% and adjusted earnings per share by 54%. Arguably, the most impressive aspect of Nvidia’s results is that it continues to sustain ultra-high gross margins over 70%. Nvidia’s high margins allow it to convert a substantial amount of sales into profit, which is a testament to its edge over the competition and technological leadership on the global stage.

Nvidia gets a lot of attention for its data center business — and rightfully so, as it made up 88% of revenue in the recent quarter. But it’s worth noting that the rest of the business is doing well too. Nvidia’s non-data center revenue, which includes gaming and AI PC professional visualization, automotive, and robotics, was collectively $5.49 billion — up 48% compared to $3.7 billion a year ago.

Nvidia is in its third year of what has been an uninterrupted masterclass of exponential growth on a scale unlike any business the world has ever seen. And somehow, the company still has its foot on the gas with no signs of slowing down.

Nvidia’s outlook for the third-quarter fiscal 2026 calls for $54 billion in revenue even if it ships zero H20 chips to China — all while maintaining a 73% gross margin. That would mark a 54% increase in revenue and just slightly lower gross margins than third-quarter fiscal 2025 and a near three-fold increase in revenue in just two years.

Despite the impeccable results, Nvidia’s valuation isn’t cheap, as investors are pricing in a sustained breakneck growth rate. But Nvidia just keeps delivering, so its 58.4 price-to-earnings ratio is reasonable.

If Nvidia’s stock price remained unchanged for a year but the company grew earnings by 50%, the P/E would drop to 38.9. So even now, with the stock on track to crush the S&P 500 for the third consecutive year, Nvidia remains a top AI stock to buy now.

I expect Nvidia to continue leading the Ten Titans higher in 2026, especially if trade policy with China eases. However, if for whatever reason there’s a slowdown in AI spending from key Nvidia customers, Nvidia could drag down the Ten Titans and the broader market with it.

Daniel Foelber has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, Oracle, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company with a market capitalization of $4.39 trillion at the time of writing, beat revenue expectations for its fiscal second quarter, reporting sales of $46.74 billion on Wednesday after market close.

Nvidia posted that data center revenue was up 56% from a year prior, reaching $41.1 billion.

The company’s longtime CEO, Jensen Huang, told Fox Business Network’s The Claman Countdown on Thursday that AI, which Nvidia is advancing, would cause “some jobs” to disappear but result in new jobs becoming “invented.”

Related: Nvidia Pulls Ahead of Apple and Microsoft to Become the World’s First $4 Trillion Public Company

“One thing for sure, every job will be changed as a result of AI,” Huang said.

^{Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Photo by Wan Quan/VCG via Getty Images}

Huang also told Fox Business that he expects the economy to be doing “very well” in the future due to AI and automation, and stated that the quality of life for humanity would improve.

Huang’s remarks add to what he said last month on an episode of The All-In Podcast. On the podcast, Huang stated that the “one thing we know for certain” is that people who use AI will replace those who don’t. He predicted that AI use will lead to more millionaires in the next five years than the Internet produced in two decades.

Related: How Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Transformed a Graphics Card Company Into an AI Giant: ‘One of the Most Remarkable Business Pivots in History’

Huang also called AI the “greatest technology equalizer of all time” because it allows anyone to program by simply using plain English prompts (a practice known as “vibe coding,” which even Google CEO Sundar Pichai has dabbled in).

“AI in my case is creating jobs,” Huang said on the podcast, adding that the technology enables people to “create things that other people would like to buy.”

AI allows creative people to act on their ideas by providing technical services. In turn, it enables technical people to use it for creative endeavors, Huang pointed out.

Nvidia held 92% of the market share for AI chips in the first quarter of the year. Its chips power ChatGPT, an AI chatbot with more than 700 million weekly users as of this month, up from 500 million users in March.

Related: Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang Says He’s ‘Created More Billionaires’ Than Anyone Else — Adding Two More This Week

Nvidia’s stock was up over 30% year-to-date at the time of writing.

This comes at a time when new tariffs are bringing in enough money to slow the growth of America’s $37 trillion national debt, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

If, as Bessent argues, the White House chips deal passes muster because there are no national security concerns that necessitate export controls on these particular products, another issue remains: Article 1, Section 9, of the U.S. Constitution, otherwise known as “the export clause,” states plainly that “No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.”

When efforts to impose excise taxes have gone before the Supreme Court in the past, such as the United States v. IBM or the United States v. United States Shoe Corp., the Court ruled in favor of business. In the first instance, IBM successfully fought a tax on insurance for goods bound for export. In the second, the United States Shoe Corp. was spared a fee on exports going through U.S. ports. 

In both instances, the Supreme Court cited the export clause as grounds to bar the government from collecting money on goods destined for sale abroad. But those decisions were rendered in 1996 and 1998, respectively. Today’s court could take a different stance, especially when it comes to the power of the Executive branch.

With Beijing and Washington weaponizing exports and policies around tariffs and export controls shifting on a daily basis, what’s next is unclear. I’m curious to get thoughts from business leaders on how the current policy environment is impacting their strategy for global growth. Send your thoughts to the email below and thanks for joining the conversation.

Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com.

Top news

Trump warns Putin of “severe consequences” prior to Ukraine talks

The two leaders will meet in Alaska on Friday. Trump wants a ceasefire and warned Moscow of “very severe consequences” if he does not get one. 

Putin has little to lose

The Russian leader will likely try to expand the talks by offering various trade deals to Trump, experts say, and asking for sanctions to be lifted. Ukraine and Europe will not accept any kind of “swap” which results in Russia permanently occupying more Ukraine territory; and Russia is unlikely to agree to retreat—making a ceasefire deal difficult. Some experts say Putin is skilled at manipulating Trump.

The president is unhappy with media coverage so far

He posted on Truth Social: “Very unfair media is at work on my meeting with Putin. Constantly quoting fired losers and really dumb people like John Bolton, who just said that, even though the meeting is on American soil, ‘Putin has already won.’ What’s that all about? We are winning on EVERYTHING. … If I got Moscow and Leningrad free, as part of the deal with Russia, the Fake News would say that I made a bad deal!”

Bullish IPO soars

The crypto exchange’s stock popped 84% when it went public yesterday, and its stock was temporarily paused from trading. The expectation was for a rise of around 30%. The stock closed at $68, with a market cap of $10 billion. 

Crypto is eating banks’ lending assets

Banks are rushing to offer stablecoins to consumers. Payments for those crypto tokens must be used to buy the bonds that keep the coins value pegged 1:1 with the dollar. That means deposited cash that would normally sit on the banks’ books and be available for loans is shrinking, the NY Times reports. “You don’t need a lot of deposit flight to really buckle the banks,” said Mike Cagney, head of the digital lender Figure. 

AI search race

Perplexity rolled out its new Comet search engine to Pro users on Wednesday — here’s how it measures up against Google.

The benefits of AI keep not showing up

Companies are expected to spend $62 billion this year on AI but 8 in 10 companies report  “no significant bottom-line impact” from the new technology. In fact, 42% of companies dropped their AI efforts last year, according to S&P Global. The AI hype cycle may be entering “the trough of disillusionment,” the low point in the evolution of new tech that precedes a long, slow climb into actual productivity, according to research firm Gartner.

Goldman Sachs doubles down on tariff research

On Wednesday, Goldman Sachs economist David Mericle doubled-down on the bank’s research that American consumers will bear the majority of tariff-related costs, following criticism of the bank from President Trump. “If the most recent tariffs, like the April tariff, follow the same pattern that we’ve seen with those earliest February tariffs, then eventually, by the fall, we estimate that consumers would bear about two-thirds of the cost,” Mericle explained to CNBC’s Squawk on the Street.

The markets

S&P 500 futures were flat this morning, premarket, after the index closed up 0.32% yesterday. STOXX Europe 600 was up 0.2% in early trading. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was flat in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 1.45%. China’s CSI 300 was flat. The South Korea KOSPI was flat. India’s Nifty 50 was flat. Bitcoin rose to $121.7K.

Around the watercooler

How Binance’s Yi He became ‘the most powerful woman in crypto’—and steered the company past its biggest ordeal by Jeff John Roberts

Elon Musk broadens his long-running feud with OpenAI’s Sam Altman by bringing in a third party: Apple by Beatrice Nolan

Ray Dalio was so broke early in his career he had to borrow $4,000 from his dad—and learned 2 key lessons that set him on the road to billionaire status by Nick Lichtenberg

Switzerland warns its companies that no, they can’t dodge Trump’s tariffs by routing goods through the tiny neighboring country of Liechtenstein by Sasha Rogelberg

CEO Daily is compiled and edited by Joey Abrams and Jim Edwards.

This is the web version of CEO Daily, a newsletter of must-read global insights from CEOs and industry leaders. Sign up to get it delivered free to your inbox.

Nvidia (NVDA -0.44%) and fellow graphics processing unit (GPU) maker Advanced Micro Devices, or AMD, have agreed to give the U.S. government 15% of their revenue from sales of their respective artificial intelligence (AI) data center chips designed for the China market in exchange for obtaining export licenses for these chips, according to the Financial Times, which first reported the story on Sunday night.

The 15% AI chip revenue deal

The U.S. Commerce Department began issuing export licenses for Nvidia’s H20 chip and AMD’s MI308 chip on Friday, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Friday.

Nvidia provided a statement to the FT after it broke the government deal story on Sunday night that included the following: “We follow rules the U.S. government sets for our participation in worldwide markets.”

Background on Nvidia’s H20 chip

Nvidia had designed the H20 AI-enabling GPU specifically for the Chinese market after earlier U.S. export controls, enacted under the administration of President Joe Biden, meant it couldn’t sell its more advanced data center AI chips to China.

In mid-April, the Trump administration expanded the restrictions to include the H20. Nvidia immediately halted its sales and took a charge of $4.5 billion on its Q1 results for H20 inventory and purchase commitments.

Then in mid-July, Nvidia emailed investors who subscribe to the company’s news and said it was “filing applications to sell the Nvidia H20 GPU again. The U.S. government has assured Nvidia that licenses will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon.”

At the time, there was no mention of giving the government a 15% cut of H20 revenue as a condition for obtaining export licenses.

How will Nvidia’s revenue be affected by this deal?

We can get an estimate as to how this deal will affect Nvidia’s financial results by looking at the company’s fiscal first quarter, which ended on April 27.

In that quarter, Nvidia sold $4.6 billion in H20 chips to China prior to the start of the export controls in mid-April. It said it was unable to ship $2.5 billion in H20 chips that it had already produced due to the export controls. So, had the restrictions not existed, Nvidia would have sold $7.1 billion in H20 chips to China customers in Q1. This amounts to 15.2% of $46.6 billion, which is what its total revenue would have been, absent the export controls.

Over 15% of its total revenue is significant, so you can see the importance of Nvidia’s China data center business.

For its fiscal Q2 (which ended July 27), investors should expect Nvidia to report no sales of its H20 chip, because the export restrictions were in place the entire quarter. However, H20 sales should fully rebound in fiscal Q3 (late July to late October).

When Nvidia provided Q2 guidance, it estimated that it would lose about $8 billion in H20 chip sales due to the export controls. So, keeping with roughly the same sequential quarter growth, let’s assume Q3 H20 sales will be about $9 billion. In this case, Nvidia would pay the U.S. government $1.35 billion, which is 15% of $9 billion.

While $1.35 billion seems like a huge number, it’s only a small percentage of Nvidia’s overall quarterly revenue. In Q1, Nvidia’s total revenue was $44.1 billion — and it would have been $46.6 billion, had it not “lost” sales of $2.5 billion due to the export restrictions. That $1.35 billion is only 2.9% of $46.6 billion. But the actual Q3 percentage will be smaller because Nvidia’s revenue will be higher in Q3 than Q1.

A revenue loss of somewhere between 2% to 3% of total sales is a very minor speed bump. Moreover, it’s a much better situation than having no H20 sales.

How will Nvidia’s profitability be affected by this deal?

Data by YCharts. Nvidia is much more profitable than other major chipmakers. It can easily absorb giving the government a 15% cut of its H20 revenue. All numbers are generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) numbers.

Giving the government a 15% cut of H20 sales revenue should also negatively affect Nvidia’s bottom line. But it should be an extremely minor dent, because Nvidia’s data center platform is amazingly profitable. On that note, Nvidia overall is amazingly profitable.

Nvidia doesn’t break out its profitability by platform, so we’ll have to use its overall numbers. In Q1, Nvidia’s adjusted gross margin (gross profit divided by revenue) absent the $4.5 billion H20-related charge was 71.3%. The company provided its adjusted earnings per share (EPS) absent the charge, so I could calculate adjusted net income absent the charge and then from that calculate adjusted net profit margin (net income divided by revenue) absent the charge — which would have been 56.1%.

In other words, Nvidia converts more than half of its revenue into adjusted profits in a typical quarter, which is just phenomenal. It can easily absorb slightly less profitability on its H20 chips, which, again, account for roughly 15% of its total revenue in a typical quarter.

In short, Nvidia stock’s strong upward trajectory should not be hurt by the company having to give the government a slice of its H20 sales.

Nvidia (NVDA 4.08%) shares surged 4% to close at $170.70 on Tuesday, outpacing broader market indices as investors responded positively to news about graphics processing unit (GPU) exports to China resuming. The chipmaker received assurances from the Trump administration that it can once again export its H20 GPU to the Chinese market.

While Nvidia rallied, major indices showed mixed performance. The S&P 500 fell slightly, dropping 0.4%, while the Nasdaq Composite remained relatively flat with its 0.18% gain, highlighting Nvidia’s strong individual performance against market headwinds. Among competitors, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 6.55%) showed even stronger performance, jumping 6.4% to $155.61, while Intel (INTC -1.59%) declined 1.63% to $22.92, highlighting the diverging fortunes within the semiconductor sector.

Nvidia’s trading volume reached approximately 229 million shares, below its 200-day average of approximately 253 million shares, according to Barchart data. Technically, the stock has established positive momentum by reclaiming its 200-day moving average of around $131.40, with the shares now trading nearly 30% above this key technical indicator.

The company’s renewed access to the crucial Chinese market, combined with ongoing sector rotation into artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure investments, appears to be solidifying Nvidia’s position as the premier semiconductor manufacturer in the rapidly expanding AI space.

JesterAI is a Foolish AI, based on a variety of Large Language Models (LLMs) and proprietary Motley Fool systems. All articles published by JesterAI are reviewed by our editorial team, and The Motley Fool takes ultimate responsibility for the content of this article. JesterAI cannot own stocks and so it has no positions in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: short August 2025 $24 calls on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Over the last two years, semiconductor powerhouse Nvidia (NVDA 1.74%) has emerged as the biggest force fueling the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution. The company’s industry-leading graphics processing units (GPU) and CUDA software platform have helped Nvidia build a substantial lead over its competition in the chip market.

While Advanced Micro Devices has carved out an impressive pocket for itself in the AI data center landscape, recent reporting suggests that the company is still far behind Nvidia.

Let’s explore the dynamics behind Nvidia’s lead over AMD, and assess if the king of the chip realm just made its checkmate move against its top rival.

Nvidia continues to dominate the competition

During the early phases of the AI megatrend, Nvidia benefited from having a first-mover advantage over other semiconductor companies when it comes to GPUs specifically. While being a first mover can help companies experience outsized growth relative to the competition or form strategic partnerships with leaders in adjacent industries, there’s no guarantee that these businesses can sustain their leads.

In the case of Nvidia, however, trends suggest that company’s lead over AMD may only be getting bigger.

Beth Kindig, who serves as a technology research analyst and CEO of I/O Fund, recently shared a data point from SemiAnalysis that pointed out that Nvidia’s market share in AI accelerators increased by roughly two points during the first quarter — now hovering around 88%. By contrast, AMD’s share shrunk by about one point, now comprising roughly 4% of the market.

Why these trends could spell trouble for AMD

The chart illustrates AMD’s revenue and operating income by reportable segment during the first quarter. One of the more notable takeaways is that AMD’s data center operation is its fastest-growing business, all while remaining highly profitable.

However, a more subtle idea is that sales from the data center business shrunk by 5% quarter over quarter. To be fair, there could be a number of reasons for this.

First, the semiconductor industry is cyclical — which makes quarterly trends tougher to predict and gauge when it comes to the overall health of the business. In addition, AMD’s latest accelerator architectures are expected to ship later this year. This timeline could be playing a role in the slight deceleration of the data center business compared to the fourth quarter.

While these ideas may make some sense in theory, I find them hard to believe, given Nvidia actually gained ground in the AI accelerator market during the first quarter.

Since AI developers raced to buy Nvidia’s newest Blackwell chips, factors such as cyclicality or new competitive chipsets from AMD didn’t seem to be enough to persuade customers from waiting on AMD’s products over those of Nvidia.

In the long run, these dynamics could spell trouble for AMD. Despite the company’s ability to win impressive data center customers such as Oracle, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft, AMD’s innovative efforts do not appear to be enough to outmaneuver Nvidia at this time.

Is this a checkmate move by Nvidia?

As of this writing (June 25), shares of AMD have risen by 18% so far in 2025. Per the chart, these gains are slightly ahead of Nvidia stock’s increase.

NVDA data by YCharts

I think it’s hard to justify AMD’s gains over Nvidia, given the company’s lack of market share and apparent decelerating growth (at least for now).

While I suspect AMD’s growth profile could turn around following the release of new chipsets during the second half of the year, I also think it will be challenging for the company to gain any meaningful momentum back from Nvidia — as Nvidia also has new architectures releasing later this year, too.

To me, Nvidia may have put AMD in a checkmate position for the time being. I think these figures reported could imply that Nvidia will remain the leader in AI data center chips and could be on its way to a new, prolonged, and sustained wave of growth.

Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Adam Spatacco has positions in Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Oracle. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Nvidia (NVDA 4.26%) stock has lost some of its momentum this year after gaining 1,400% over the past five years. It’s lost some investor confidence for a number of reasons, including fears that new artificial intelligence (AI) models won’t need its powerful chips and regulations that limit what the company can ship to China.

But many investors still see its incredible long-term opportunities, and 90% of the 67 Wall Street analysts that cover it still call it a buy. Let’s see where Nvidia is holding, where it’s going, and whether or not investing in Nvidia stock today can make you a millionaire.

The linchpin for AI platforms

For all the talk about how much more Nvidia can grow, it delivered a blowout report for the fiscal 2026 first quarter (ended April 27). Revenue increased 69% year over year, and non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings per share were up from $0.61 last year to $0.81 this year. That included a charge it had to take for not being able to fulfill orders to China, resulting in a $0.15 loss per share. Nvidia is a profit machine with a 52% net profit margin.

Nvidia is easily the leader in its field, with as much as 95% of the total AI chip market, depending on who you ask. It has deals with pretty much all the major players in AI, who rely on its powerful graphics processing units (GPU) to make the generative AI magic happen. The companies who are out there offering AI platforms, like Amazon and Meta Platforms, need huge data centers to create the power necessary to drive the technology, and they need Nvidia as a partner. Data centers are Nvidia’s highest-growth business right now, increasing 73% year over year in the first quarter.

Amazon, for one, is creating its own chips to offer budget options for some of its clients. However, it will maintain its relationship with Nvidia because it needs Nvidia’s highest-quality products for its own largest clients.

Staying ahead of the curve

The market was concerned when Chinese LLM DeepSeek came out a few months ago, and it seemed to offer excellent results without needing the power of chips like Nvidia’s. Even at the time, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang welcomed the news and said advances in AI were good for the whole industry, including Nvidia, and that he wasn’t worried.

Those concerns have since died down as Nvidia continues to roll out industry-leading products and stellar results. The company recently replaced its previous AI generation, called Hopper, with its improved technology under the Blackwell name. It’s releasing the next iteration of that, called Blackwell Ultra, and it has the next generation of even more powerful chips, called Rubin, in the works for release next year.

Huang said that the need for inference, which is how generative AI takes its data collection and turns it into results, has surged over the past year and that agentic AI will generate higher demand for AI computing. He added, “Countries around the world are recognizing AI as essential infrastructure — just like electricity and the internet — and Nvidia stands at the center of this profound transformation.”

The AI opportunity is simply enormous, and Nvidia is poised to maintain its dominant position and keep delivering shareholder wealth.

Can Nvidia make you a millionaire?

There are reasons to envision Nvidia continuing to grow at a fast pace and for its stock to reflect that. However, as fast as it is growing, Nvidia isn’t going to be able to replicate its earlier stock gains. The company is just too big. It’s already expecting its growth rates to decelerate, even though it’s also expecting the business to keep growing. It’s just harder to report high double-digit growth on an increasingly large base.

That’s partially why, from an earnings perspective, Nvidia stock is looking very reasonably priced. It trades at a forward, one-year P/E ratio of only 25.

Investing $10,000 today could be a great idea, but it isn’t likely to make you a millionaire on its own. Turning $10,000 into $1 million implies a 10,000% increase, and Nvidia stock isn’t likely to achieve that feat at this stage, even over the long term.

However, the company still has incredible opportunities and should reward investors well in the coming years. If you’re looking for a strong candidate for an AI stock to add to your portfolio and don’t own Nvidia stock yet, it could be a valuable part of a millionaire-maker portfolio.

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Jennifer Saibil has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.