With Trump taking in the reigns soon, steps toward overhauling the US policy have begun. President-elect Trump said on Thursday that he is appointing former Pay Pal Chief Operating Officer David Sacks as his “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar”.
“David will guide policy for the Administration in Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency, two areas critical to the future of American competitiveness. David will focus on making America the clear global leader in both areas,”
-Trump said in a post on his social-media site Truth Social.
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Officials such as the crypto czar, a title that is not known to be official, along with other officials in Trump’s incoming administration such as the chairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission, are anticipated to reshape U.S. policy on digital currency along with a newly created crypto advisory council. lad Gil, an entrepreneur, stated that the choice of Sacks is a “strong move” in a post on X. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also congratulated him.
In other news, OpenAI has debuted a “research grade” version of its main artificial intelligence (AI) model. The ChatGPT Pro is a $200-per-month plan that includes unlimited access to the company’s smartest model, OpenAI o1, as well as to o1-mini, GPT-4o and Advanced Voice.
“As AI becomes more advanced, it will solve increasingly complex and critical problems. It also takes significantly more compute to power these capabilities”.
-OpenAI
ChatGPT Pro also includes o1 pro mode, a version of o1 that uses more compute for thinking harder and provides even better answers to the hardest problems. OpenAI also expects to add more powerful, compute-intensive productivity features to this plan in the future. Moreover, the company announced that it is awarding 10 grants of ChatGPT Pro to medical researchers at leading institutions in the U.S. to help drive meaningful progress in fields that benefit humanity.
Artificial intelligence is also shaping the healthcare industry. As per a recent study by Accenture, AI-driven healthcare has the potential to save up to $150 billion annually by 2026 in the US. This is done by reducing administrative costs, automating patient education, and improving adherence to care plans. In particular, AI-powered assistants can provide essential, 24/7 support. In the latest news, researchers from Germany and the US have developed a deep learning framework for automated volumetric body composition analysis using whole-body MRI. Published in eBioMedicine, the study validated this approach and demonstrated its potential to predict all-cause mortality in a large Western population.
For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds.
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15. Safe Pro Group Inc. (NASDAQ:SPAI)
Safe Pro Group Inc. (NASDAQ:SPAI) leads in artificial intelligence-driven drone imagery analysis for humanitarian mine-clearing efforts. On December 4th, the company announced a major achievement in detecting over 16,500 lethal explosive items. The detection was accomplished using imagery taken from everyday drones along with its recently patented Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered SpotlightAI™ software ecosystem. This increasing number of detections has been made possible due to customers and stakeholders including the United Nations, the Ukrainian government, and major humanitarian organizations currently conducting operations across Ukraine. SpotlightAI™ has the ability to rapidly detect hundreds of explosive items including newly approved anti-personnel landmines and cluster munitions.
“The scale and magnitude of the landmine crisis in Ukraine continues grow daily with the potential increased usage of anti-personnel mines and cluster munitions. Before the critically needed reconstruction of civilian infrastructure begins, the land will need to be surveyed for deadly landmines — a massive undertaking only possible with off the shelf drones and AI. That is why we are actively engaging with stakeholders in Washington and a wide range of international stakeholders to illustrate how novel technologies such as our SpotlightAI™ can accelerate global efforts, reduce costs and improve the safety of those denied their land”.
-Dan Erdberg, Chairman and CEO of Safe Pro Group Inc.
14. Lantern Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 3
Lantern Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRN) is an artificial intelligence (AI) company that develops precision oncology therapies. On December 3, the company announced that the FDA has granted Fast Track Designation for its investigational drug LP-184 to treat Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). This is the second Fast Track Designation received for LP-184 in 2024 after it received its first for Glioblastoma in October. Currently, LP-184 is in a Phase1A clinical trial for assessing the safety and tolerability of the investigational drug candidate in a broad range of solid tumors, including TNBC. Moreover, LP-184 has been developed with Lantern’s AI platform, RADR®, helping validate mechanisms that could be exploited in the clinical setting and that can target tough-to-treat cancers and improve outcomes for specific patient groups.
“Receiving a second FDA Fast Track Designation for LP-184 reinforces the significant potential of this drug candidate to address critical unmet needs in aggressive cancers, especially those like TNBC where patients have limited therapeutics options. Recent data presented at the Immuno-Oncology Summit demonstrated LP-184’s ability to sensitize TNBC tumors that are non-responsive to checkpoint inhibitors, potentially expanding treatment options for patients with limited therapeutic choices”.
-Panna Sharma, President and CEO of Lantern Pharma.
13. Upland Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPLD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 10
Upland Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPLD) is a leader in AI-enabled cloud software for digital transformation. On December 4th, the company announced that Upland Altify, a sales optimization software, is now powered by Altify MaxAI, Upland’s AI-powered tool that manages account planning and deal management, providing sellers with actionable insights to drive results. The move aims to enhance sales productivity with its innovative account planning and deal management software. Sales professionals can maximize their efficiency and performance with these AI-powered solutions.
“At Upland Altify, we’re committed to simplifying complex sales for B2B organizations by streamlining best practices in account planning and deal management. Altify MaxAI-powered solutions help automate time-consuming tasks, giving sellers valuable insights that drive success—allowing them to focus more on building relationships with prospects and customers, while driving revenue growth.”
– Toby Hottovy, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Sales Effectiveness solutions at Upland Software.
12. Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE:BE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25
Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE:BE) develops solid-oxide fuel cell systems for on-site power generation and is helping meet the growing energy demands of AI data centers. On December 6, Susquehanna raised the firm’s price target on Bloom Energy to $33 from $20 and kept a “Positive” rating on the shares. The move reflects the company’s growing success in providing fuel cells to power data centers and other large industrial facilities. The momentum further reflects that Bloom’s technology is becoming popular for large-scale energy solutions, driving optimism toward the stock.
11. Samsara Inc. (NYSE:IOT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 30
Samsara Inc. (NYSE:IOT) is an AI stock and the pioneer of the Connected Operations® Cloud, a platform enabling organizations that depend on physical operations to harness Internet of Things (IoT) data to develop actionable insights and improve operations. On December 3, Samsara announced Samsara Intelligence, an expanded suite of AI offerings intended to help customers make smarter decisions and run safer, more efficient operations. Samsara Intelligence is trained on the world’s largest Connected Operations data set and integrates cutting-edge AI technologies with real-world use cases that tend to address challenges that operations teams face globally.
“Samsara Intelligence combines AI with an unprecedented scale of data and brings it to the people who do the hard jobs that power the world. Whether its identifying risk to keep drivers safer on the road, replacing tedious data entry with a photo, or helping mechanics reduce asset downtime, Samsara Intelligence helps our customers operate smarter.”
-Kiren Sekar, Chief Product Officer at Samsara.
10. Zeta Global Holdings Corp. (NYSE:ZETA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 31
Zeta Global Holdings Corp. (NYSE:ZETA) is an AI-powered marketing cloud company that’s leveraging AI and trillions of customer signals to help companies acquire, grow, and retain customers more efficiently. On December 4th, Zeta announced record engagement on its Zeta Marketing Platform, its cloud-based and AI-powered system, during the Cyber Five shopping period spanning Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday.
Usage on the platform surged 108% year-over-year, with more and more brands relying on Zeta to deliver personalized messages for better results during the shorter holiday season. Even though the Thanksgiving shopping period is over, a Zeta survey notes that many customers are only beginning their holiday season. The survey of 6,000 consumers discovered that 53% of shoppers plan to start their holiday purchases in December—an 8% upsurge from last year. In turn, Zeta expects strong demand for its tools that will help marketers achieve ROI-driven digital marketing throughout the remainder of the season.
“With the holiday season being five days shorter, marketers are under increasing pressure to execute strategies that drive both value and high-impact results. The Zeta Marketing Platform continues to empower brands to engage high-intent shoppers where they want to be reached, delivering exceptional efficiency and more effective outcomes during the most critical shopping days of the year.”
-David A. Steinberg, Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of Zeta Global.
9. Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 31
Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG) offers advanced data storage solutions that have the potential to support artificial intelligence workloads. On December 4, Piper Sandler upgraded Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) from Neutral to “Overweight” with a price target of $76, up from $56. The advisory told investors in a research note that the company’s fiscal Q3 results were better than expected given traditional sales, but lead metrics struggled.
However, its “significant” design win with a top-four cloud hyperscaler “removes risk and creates a catalyst for upside ahead”. The firm said that the “game changer” opportunity with the hyperscaler alone represents a $500M opportunity in 2026, with a potential for more hyperscalers coming in the future. Piper further said that flash storage is gaining momentum, particularly in the cloud and AI sectors. The company’s offerings are carving out a competitive edge here. “The narrative shifts to Cloud&AI over STaaS”, and that Pure Storage’s shift away from its Storage-as-a-Service (STaaS) transition has effectively eradicated a revenue headwind.
8. SentinelOne, Inc. (NYSE:S)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
SentinelOne, Inc. (NYSE:S) is one of the leading artificial intelligence-powered cybersecurity providers. The company’s primary offering is its Singularity Platform, an AI-powered enterprise cybersecurity platform that offers unified prevention, detection, and response across a security estate. On December 3rd, SentinelOne announced its third-quarter fiscal 2025 results. Its third-quarter revenue of $210.65 million slightly beat the consensus estimate of $209.72 million.
Analysts at Bernstein ended up lowering the firm’s price target on the stock, citing “mixed messaging” signals for the move. The revenue beat was the smallest Bernstein has observed since macro challenges emerged, but the company offset this with a $3M full-year raise and a nearly $2M increase in the implied Q4 guidance. Despite this, the company’s Singularity platform took center stage, which was highlighted by Tomer Weingarten, CEO of SentinelOne. The Singularity platform continues gaining traction, with noteworthy growth in customer adoption and a high attachment rate for new solutions like Purple AI and Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform.
“Enterprises are increasingly selecting Singularity Platform for real-time, autonomous security. With our industry-leading innovations and broadening platform capabilities, Singularity is setting the standard for the future of AI-powered cybersecurity”.
-Tomer Weingarten, CEO of SentinelOne.
7. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 64
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE), an American multinational technology company, provides high-performance computing (HPC) systems, AI software, and data storage solutions for helping to run complex AI workloads. On December 6, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE) was revisited by a Wall Street analyst Toni Sacconaghi from Bernstein who maintained a “Hold” rating along with a $21.00 price target. Sacconaghi has given a hold rating due to mixed signals in its financial outlook.
Even though Q4 results slightly exceeded expectations, there remains a cautious outlook due to the pending Juniper acquisition and the modest projection for IT spending in 2025, also leading to a lack of full-year guidance. Moreover, AI server revenues did meet expectations, but there were weak net bookings and a declining AI backlog suggesting challenges ahead. Moreover, HPE had “debooked” a significant portion of server orders, implying potential risks in its order book concentration and customer creditworthiness. Lower R&D spending and weak cash flow compared to income are some more factors for the firm’s cautious approach.
6. Marvell Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 70
Marvell Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVL) engages in the development and production of semiconductors and is focusing heavily on data centers. On December 4, JPMorgan analyst Harlan Sur raised the price target on Marvell Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVL) to $130.00, from $90.00, and maintained an “Overweight” rating. The rating follows Marvell’s impressive October quarter results which exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. The company reported sales of $1.52 billion, surpassing the $1.46 billion consensus forecast for its fiscal third quarter. Chief Executive Matt Murphy revealed that the quarter’s growth was largely driven by sales of new custom AI accelerator chips for Amazon and other builders of the so-called hyperscale data centers running today’s huge AI software models.
Harlan Sur’s rating is based on this very impressive performance and promising outlook, driven by strong growth in the company’s data center business, particularly in AI ASICs and AI optical DSPs. Not only has the company achieved better-than-expected results, but has also achieved partnerships with major clients like Amazon and Google which strengthens its market position. Moreover, the company’s positive trajectory in its cyclical businesses, along with its anticipated revenue growth from AI, places it for continued earnings growth heading into 2025.
5. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 74
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) is a leader in AI-driven endpoint and cloud workload protection. On December 4th, the company announced an expanded integration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) at the AWS re:Invent 2024. This integration aims to secure end-to-end AI innovation in the cloud. Customers will be able to use the CrowdStrike Falcon® cybersecurity platform, Crowdstrike’s AI-powered, unified cybersecurity platform. Customers will be able to confidently innovate with AI on AWS, achieving full visibility and security across the entire AI ecosystem that includes everything from large language models to applications.
In order to protect workloads, AI models, and sensitive data from risks, Crowdstrike will be delivering capabilities that protect every stage of the software development lifecycle — from build, to runtime, to posture management, protecting AI deployments and sensitive data on AWS. Similar to AWS relying on the Falcon platform, CrowdStrike secures the infrastructure with solutions such as AI Security Posture Management (AI-SPM), Falcon Data Protection and AI Red Team Services.
“Global organizations increasingly build their cloud business and drive AI innovation using AWS – and secure it all with CrowdStrike. As AWS’s cybersecurity platform of choice, we’re advancing protection across every attack path in the cloud, accelerating secure AI innovation and stopping identity-based attacks.”
-Daniel Bernard, chief business officer, CrowdStrike.
4. Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 99
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is an automotive and clean energy company that leverages advanced artificial intelligence in its autonomous driving technology and robotics initiatives. On December 5, Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi assigned a Sell rating on Tesla and set a price target of $120.00. Sacconaghi considers Tesla’s robotaxi project as a risky move, and said that the plan works too much on assumptions. The assumption is that self-driving technology will work perfectly, gain regulatory approval, and consumers will end up favoring robotaxis over owning cars. Moreover, even though there is a potential for robotaxis to be valuable, he said that there are many hurdles that Tesla must overcome, such as regulatory challenges and technological advancements. He also said Tesla’s current valuation doesn’t match the risks and sees no strong short-term growth drivers, leading to his negative outlook.
3. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 116
Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) is a cloud-based CRM company that has gained traction after the launch of its AI-powered platform called Agentforce. On December 5, Needham analyst Scott Berg raised the firm’s price target on Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) to $375 from $345 and kept a “Buy” rating on the shares. The analyst told investors in a research note that Salesforce had delivered strong Q3 results with 10% cRPO growth, clearing buyside expectations, and provided Q4 guidance at 9%. The firm further added that Agentforce was the limelight of the earnings call, with 200 deals signed in a single week and thousands more in the pipeline.
2. Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 128
Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) is a technology company engaged in the design, development, and supply of a broad range of semiconductor, enterprise software, and security solutions. Its custom chip offerings and networking assets position it uniquely in the AI space. On December 6, Wells Fargo analyst Aaron Rakers maintained a “Hold” rating on the stock and a $170.00 price target.
Rakers rating stems from various factors, but mainly considers Broadcom’s AI revenue potential and conservative guidance for FY25. The company is expected to report positive F4Q24 results, and investors are keen on its AI silicon expansion and diversification. AI semiconductor revenue is also poised to demonstrate substantial growth, even though there is an air of uncertainty due to investors hoping for even higher figures.
Broadcom’s non-AI semiconductor business is also stabilizing, reducing overall risk. Additionally, the company’s anticipated dividend increase and potential share repurchase authorization indicate strong fundamentals and together, all the factors lead to a balanced outlook for Broadcom. All in all, the Hold rating signifies steady performance without major short-term price changes, urging caution in investment decisions.
1. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 158
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is a technology company that has reinforced its mark in the AI space with the launch of Apple Intelligence, its personal intelligence system. On December 5th, prominent news sources The Information and Reuters reported how Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Baidu are working together to add AI features to iPhones sold in China. However, they are facing obstacles that could potentially hurt the tech giant’s phone sales in the country. Baidu’s large language models are being used for iPhone users, but the companies are struggling with issues such as the LLMs’ understanding of prompts and accuracy in responding to common scenarios. Apple’s launch of the iPhone16 in China was met with scorn due to the lack of AI features in them. This is because the government has mandated that generative AI-based chatbots need to be vetted before their public release. The hashtag “iPhone 16 Chinese version doesn’t support AI yet” garnered 11.33 million views and over 1,500 comments on Weibo.
While we acknowledge the potential of AAPL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than AAPL but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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