Market sentiment towards artificial intelligence (AI) is currently mixed. While it was a major investment sector from 2023 to 2025, investors will become more selective and skeptical in 2026. They see AI hyperscalers spending record amounts on capital improvements, but the returns on this spending (if they come at all) are yet to come.
Investors considering AI stocks need to be patient. The reality is that most companies have not even started using AI on a daily basis. Once realized, it will require far more computing power than is currently available. Those bullish on the AI trend should view this short-term skepticism as a long-term AI buying opportunity.
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Less than 20% of companies use AI
Although the use of AI is rapidly increasing, the majority of the population still does not use it. The business situation is even worse, with only 18% of companies currently using AI, according to Motley Fool research. This number is expected to rise to 22% in the coming months, marking rapid adoption. But businesses are still a long way from the AI-first approach we hear so much about.
Larger companies are a bit more tech-savvy, with a usage rate of 27%, but still well below half. The scope for leveraging AI is clearly increasing. AI computing resources remain constrained at this time despite their relatively low usage in the business community. As a result, there remains a significant investment opportunity in AI.
We will need more infrastructure. That reminds me of three stocks with growth potential.
There are several ways to benefit from this massive increase
McKinsey & Company predicts that approximately $7 trillion in data center capital investment will be required by 2030 to meet the demand for AI computing. For reference, AI hyperscalers are expected to spend around $650 billion this year, and there is still a long way to go to meet the standards needed to reach this goal.
Two companies that are growing through continued expansion are: Nvidia (NVDA 1.58%) and taiwan semiconductor manufacturing industry (TSM +0.47%). Nvidia manufactures graphics processing units (GPUs). GPUs have become the computing unit of choice for powering AI workflows. There are alternatives, but none have the full stack capabilities of Nvidia’s GPUs or the ability to move workloads between providers. Investing in Nvidia is a bet that we will need more GPUs to handle all the AI workloads that come online. This is a pretty safe bet.
Today’s changes
(-1.58%) $-2.89
current price
$180.25
Key data points
Market capitalization
$4.4 trillion
daily range
$179.94 – $186.09
52 week range
$86.62 – $212.19
volume
161M
average volume
175M
gross profit
71.07%
dividend yield
0.02%
So does TSMC, which makes most of the logic chips that go into advanced computing devices commonly deployed in AI applications. TSMC is Nvidia’s main chip supplier, but it also makes chips for competitors. This makes TSMC the ultimate neutral investment destination in the AI field. That’s because spending is expected to continue to rise, and another compute unit provider could emerge as a better option than Nvidia, although that’s not the case right now.
Another stock I’m bullish on is microsoft (MSFT 1.57%). Microsoft offers a number of different software applications that include AI capabilities, and its platform will naturally provide a means for many companies to increase their use of AI. It also features Azure, one of the top cloud computing platforms. Azure is a place where developers can build AI models and host them via the cloud, and this business unit has provided Microsoft with impressive growth over the years. The company’s stock is a great stock as we don’t see its momentum slowing down anytime soon due to the growing demand for AI.
Today’s changes
(-1.57%) $-6.32
current price
$395.54
Key data points
Market capitalization
$2.9 trillion
daily range
$394.24 – $404.80
52 week range
$344.79 – $555.45
volume
1.4M
average volume
34M
gross profit
68.59%
dividend yield
0.88%
Businesses and consumers are not yet ready to take full advantage of AI, which bodes well for some AI investments. I think investors should take advantage of the current lull in AI investing to buy more shares. Because there is rarely a better time to buy stocks that are currently discounted.
Keithen Drury has worked at Microsoft, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Microsoft, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
