In an update on the bid by an Elon Musk-led consortium to buy the non-profit that controls OpenAI, Musk’s lawyers have reportedly stated in a court filing that they will withdraw the $97.4 billion bid if the AI startup drops its plans to become a for-profit entity.
Musk is trying hard to keep OpenAI from becoming a for-profit entity, even filing a case against Altman in August. Musk co-founded the artificial intelligence startup with Sam Altman but left the company in 2018 after a disagreement with Altman and other cofounders over OpenAI’s direction and funding.
The filing noted that Musk will withdraw the bid if the OpenAI board is “prepared to preserve the charity’s mission and stipulate to take the ‘for sale’ sign off its assets by halting its conversion. “
Otherwise, “the charity must be compensated by what an arms-length buyer will pay for its assets.”
-The filing in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, said, as reported by Reuters.
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In its filing with the same court on Wednesday, OpenAI said that Musk’s bid to buy OpenAI contradicts the arguments he is making in court that the startup’s assets cannot be transferred for private gain. It seems to be “an improper bid to undermine a competitor.” Even though Musk seemingly wants OpenAI to retain its non-profit structure, OpenAI noted that in his bid, he wants OpenAI to be sold to himself.
“In this Court, Musk argues that OpenAI, Inc.’s assets cannot be ‘transferred away’ for ‘private gain. But out of court, those constraints evidently do not apply, so long as Musk and his allies are the buyers. Musk would have OpenAI, Inc. transfer all of its assets to him, for his economic benefit and that of his competing AI business and hand-picked private investors.”
-OpenAI said in a legal filing.
It is to be noted here that OpenAI is under no obligation to consider the bid.
“The independent Board’s sole fiduciary duty is to the mission of ensuring AGI benefits all of humanity. Respectfully, it is not up to a competitor to decide what is in the best interests of OpenAI’s mission.”
-Andrew Nussbaum, counsel to the OpenAI Board at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.
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14. AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) provides a leading marketing platform powered by AI technology. On February 13, Bank of America Securities analyst Omar Dessouky reiterated a “Buy” rating on the stock and set a price target of $580.00. Dessouky’s buy rating is a testament to Applovin’s strong performance and future growth potential. Q4 was a surprising success for the company, largely driven by its Advertising segment. The segment reportedly outperformed expectations owing to its eCommerce pilot and continuous improvements in the model. As a result, eCommerce revenue significantly increased and there was a 7% quarter-over-quarter growth in net revenue from mobile game advertisers. Moreover, Applovin’s AI Engine also proved effective in various eCommerce categories which in turn positively impacted the company’s financials. Looking ahead, management provided conservative guidance for Q1 2025, but ongoing advancements in self-learning models for eCommerce and gaming suggest optimism for the company. Applovin also plans on launching a self-service solution by the first half of the year, expanding its reach to over 10 million global eCommerce merchants.
13. Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 60
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is an American technology company that provides information technology and networking services. On February 13, Rosenblatt analyst Mike Genovese upgraded the stock to “Buy” from Neutral with a price target of $80, up from $66. The rating, issued after the company’s earnings report yesterday, discussed positive factors related to the stock.
The analyst noted that Cisco exceeded consensus on both revenues and EPS, with an increase in revenues of 9% year-over-year to $14.0B and an EPS of 94c (up 8%). The analyst further highlighted that Cisco deserves multiple expansion due to growth in software subscriptions and also because artificial intelligence is driving more of Cisco’s total business. In Q2, AI infrastructure orders with Web Scalers were more than $350M, which brought the year-to-date total to $700M. This puts the company on track to exceed $1B of AI infrastructure orders in FY25.
“Other positives, supporting the upgrade, were triple-digit growth Y/Y in Web Scale orders and greater than 20% growth in Telco orders. Security revenues and orders more than doubled year-over-year. Cisco said it starting to see AI orders from Enterprise customers.”
12. 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 February 12, Mizuho raised the firm’s price target on the stock to $450 from $385 and kept an “Outperform” rating on the shares. The rating, issued ahead of the January quarter earnings preview for enterprise software, states that the market remains in a “risk on” mode, with improving sentiment for software stocks as backed by its checks.
These checks indicate demand for cybersecurity and software, including data analytics and software-as-a-service. On the same day, Truist analyst Joel Fishbein raised the firm’s price target on CrowdStrike to $460 from $385 and kept a “Buy” rating. The firm reported strong adoption of Crowdstrike’s AI-powered Falcon platform, along with gained traction for its Falcon Flex deals.
11. GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 89
GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE:GEV) is a leading global energy technology company that is dedicated to providing advanced solutions in power generation, electrification, and renewable energy. Baird initiated GE Vernova as “Outperform” with a $448 price target. The company’s strong leadership in power generation and likelihood to benefit from global electricity demand, driven by factors like electric vehicles and AI data centers, position it well.
The firm, in particular, noted three factors supporting long-term growth for the company: pricing power, a strong technology portfolio, and clean financials. Together, these factors form a “compelling investment thesis” for investors looking to capitalize on the forecasted rise in energy demand. There is also an additional upside from emerging technologies such as small modular reactors and carbon capture.
10. 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 February 13, Daniel Ives from Wedbush maintained a “Buy” rating on the stock with a price target of $550.00. Ives is bullish on the stock despite rising concerns that CEO Elon Musk has his attention divided to DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency). In particular, Ives is optimistic about near-term innovations like unsupervised self-driving tests and a low-cost model, implying that these advancements offset distractions.
9. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 107
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) develops semiconductors, providing processors and graphics technologies for gaming, data centers, and AI-driven high-performance computing. On February 12, Vivek Arya from Bank of America Securities maintained a “Hold” rating on the stock. The analyst, after reviewing Q4 and calendar year 2024 CPU trends based on Mercury Research data, told investors in a research note that it sees a continuation of AMD (AMD) share gains over Intel (INTC) “across the board”. Intel did regain some shares of desktop units in Q4 but continued losing value share as it likely implemented competitive pricing versus AMD.
Bofa may be a hold on AMD, but several analysts such as Wells Fargo are bullish on the stock. On February 10, Wells Fargo reiterated a “Buy” rating on the stock with an associated price target of $140.00. The analyst is particularly bullish on AMD’s focus on expanding its data center GPU offerings, which is likely to enhance AI training capabilities significantly. The firm also discussed AMD’s momentum in the server CPU market, backed by strong enterprise demand and recovery in the cloud sector. This, the firm said, continues to be a key growth driver.
8. 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. At Saudi’s global tech event, LEAP 2025, the company announced that it intends to invest $500 million in Saudi Arabia related to artificial intelligence, with more and more countries competing to secure investments in the technology.
Salesforce will be launching Hyperforce, the company’s platform architecture through its strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services, in the country. It will also partner with Capgemini, Deloitte, Globant, IBM, and PwC to expand the use of AI-driven Agentforce, the company’s comprehensive platform that enables organizations to build, customize, and deploy autonomous AI agents. The company also said it will provide support in Arabic language for its AI-related product suite.
“We are entering a new era where autonomous AI agents working with humans are transforming workforces and businesses across the globe. With Agentforce, Hyperforce, and our global partner ecosystem, we are empowering Saudi organizations to deliver unprecedented levels of productivity, growth, and customer success.”
-Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO, Salesforce.
7. Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 128
Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) is a technology company known for its custom chip offerings and networking assets. One of the biggest calls on Wall Street on Thursday, February 13, was for Broadcom. Morgan Stanley reiterated the stock as “Overweight”, stating that the stock is valued at $1.1 trillion but is backed by $3.2 billion in quarterly AI revenue.
“In the last six months, the momentum in the AI trade has clearly moved to custom silicon, as NVIDIA has tread water and AMD has sharply underperformed. NVIDIA’s $3 trillion of market cap is supported by over $32 bn of quarterly AI revenue while AVGOs’ $1.1 trillion comes from $3.2 bn of quarterly revenue.”
Analysts on Wall Street currently have a consensus Buy rating on the stock. The average price target of $250 implies a 7% upside, however, the Street-high target of $300 implies an upside of 28.6%.
6. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 158
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is a global technology company that has recently launched Apple Intelligence, its personal intelligence system. On February 13, Edison Lee from Jefferies maintained a “Sell” rating on the stock with a price target of $202.33. Lee’s sell rating comes from the strategic challenges and market conditions that Apple has been facing. In particular, the company is facing an anticipated weak demand for the upcoming SE4 model, even though it comes with major upgrades such as Apple Intelligence features and a full-size OLED display.
This is because its single rear camera and competition is limiting its appeal, the firm noted. Moreover, there are also concerns about Apple’s AI initiatives, such as its deal with Alibaba in China. The firm contends that even though such a partnership seems advantageous, there won’t be any significant differentiation in Apple’s offerings. Apple Intelligence will face difficulties in providing personalized services in China due to a lack of access to app data. Finally, the current smartphone hardware is believed to be inadequate for running advanced AI models. This may hamper Apple’s growth in AI-related endeavors.
5. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 193
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) specializes in AI-driven solutions, offering platforms for data centers, self-driving cars, robotics, and cloud services. One of the biggest calls on Wall Street on Thursday, February 13, was for Nvidia. Morgan Stanley reiterated the stock as “Overweight”.
“In the last six months, the momentum in the AI trade has clearly moved to custom silicon, as NVIDIA has tread water and AMD has sharply underperformed. NVIDIA’s $3 trillion of market cap is supported by over $32 bn of quarterly AI revenue”
Analyst Joseph Moore has been defending Nvidia’s stock during this period of “excessive” excitement for companies like Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) and Marvell Technology Inc. (MRVL) that make ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits).
There’s a “wide range of potential outcomes, but our view is that the presumption should be that the incumbent – Nvidia – retains dominant share unless something changes”.
Analysts on Wall Street currently have a consensus Buy rating on the stock. The average price target of $175 implies a 29% upside, however, the Street-high target of $220 implies an upside of 62.5%.
4. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 202
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is an American multinational technology conglomerate holding company wholly owning the internet giant Google, amongst other businesses. On February 13, Mizuho Securities reiterated an “Outperform” rating and reduced the price target from $235 to $230. The analyst’s buy rating stems from several factors. First, the company’s advertising revenues have exceeded expectations. Robust growth in insurance, retail, and political advertising has led to strong performances in both Search and YouTube.
Advertising strength has boosted overall revenue for the company, exceeding market consensus. Moreover, the company’s demand for Core GCP products and AI infrastructure remains high, despite capacity constraints leading to Cloud revenue growth below expectations. This implies that potential revenue may grow for the company as capacity issues are resolved. The company’s strategic capex investments in AI and custom ASICs further echo management’s confidence in long-term growth.
3. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 235
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is a global technology company. On February 11, Bloomberg reported that the company made a minor tweak last month that will help it reap billions of dollars in profits this year. The change by the company is on an accounting formula that measures the depreciation of its expensive artificial intelligence infrastructure. This was disclosed in the company’s earnings materials on Jan. 29 and allows the extension of the useful life period of certain servers and networking assets to five and a half years. Previously, it was four to five years. The shift is anticipated to reduce the company’s depreciation expense by $2.9 billion in 2025. Considering that Meta plans on spending as much as 75% more this year on capex to build out its AI capabilities, the effect is going to be even bigger in 2026.
The company is making efficiency gains “by extending the useful lives of our servers and associated networking equipment.”
– Meta’s chief financial officer, Susan Li, said on the most recent earnings call.
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 279
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) provides AI-powered cloud, productivity, and business solutions, focusing on efficiency, security, and AI advancements. On February 13, WSP Global Inc., a leading engineering and science-based professional services firm, announced a multi-year, global strategic partnership with Microsoft Corporation to bring digital opportunities to the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. The 7-year partnership involves a potential investment exceeding $1 billion. As part of the collaboration, Microsoft will be designated as the preferred partner for digital and AI transformation services, while it will be turning to WSP to be its preferred partner for engineering and science consultancy. Three key initiatives will be addressed under the collaboration, namely: leveraging WSP’s engineering data and knowledge, enhancing Microsoft’s ability to deliver mission-critical facilities such as data centers, and combining the expertise of both partners to deliver new digital solutions.
“As our customers accelerate their AI transformation efforts, the demand for advanced AI and digital capabilities continues to grow. With its leadership in engineering, advisory, and science- based services, WSP is uniquely positioned to help us scale the mission-critical facilities required to support our customers efficiently, effectively, and sustainably. By combining our world-class technologies and innovative solutions with WSP’s expertise, we will also co-develop comprehensive solutions to drive transformative business gains across the AEC industry.”
-Judson Althoff, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Microsoft.
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 286
Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) is an American technology company offering e-commerce, cloud computing, and other services, including digital streaming and artificial intelligence solutions. As reported on February 13, Morgan Stanley managing director Brian Nowak told Yahoo Finance that Amazon’s seemingly unnoticed robot push is widening its competitive lead in retail. This could boost its profit margins significantly.
“This is, I think, the most underappreciated part of Amazon’s story — the potential retail leverage to come [from its robot investments]”.
-Nowak on Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid podcast
Nowak revealed that Amazon has developed six significant next-generation fulfillment centers and has industrial robots that can increase efficiencies across storage, inventory management, and other processes. Forbes reported that these robots are powered by complex AI systems that empower them to navigate complex warehouse environments. According to Nowak, considering 30% to 40% of Amazon’s US units are fulfilled through next-generation robotics-enabled warehouses by 2030, the company could avail $10 billion-plus savings. Nowak from Morgan Stanley has an “Overweight” (or Buy equivalent) on Amazon’s stock with a $280 price target.
While we acknowledge the potential of AMZN 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 AMZN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stock To Buy Now and Complete List of All AI Companies Under $2 Billion Market Cap.
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