Dem KI-Boom sei Dank: Der Chip-Gigant Nvidia verdoppelt seinen Umsatz

Despite strong growth in revenue and net profit, Nvidia investors were initially unimpressed by the company's quarterly figures. (dpa) The unrelenting demand for computing power for AI applications continues to drive the global dominant AI-chip giant Nvidia. In the second business quarter ending on July 26th, the company reported a revenue of $96.2 billion, which is more than double the amount from the same period a year ago.

Net profit grew by 126 percent to $59.7 billion. BloombergNEF (BNEF) requires JavaScript for essential functionalities. Your browser or ad blocker currently prevents this. For the ongoing third quarter, revenue is expected to grow to $108 billion, plus or minus 2 percent. Even the lower end of this range slightly exceeds the average analyst estimate.

Operating profit attributable to shareholders is expected to remain at 74 percent, plus or minus 0.50 percentage points, after it was 75 percent in the second quarter. However, investors, accustomed to rapid revenue growth and high margins, are now only hard to please: Nvidia's stock price fell by nearly 1 percent in after-hours trading.

Nvidia's products for data centers are the central engine of the AI boom. The company, previously known primarily in the gaming scene for its graphics cards, provides key technologies for training large AI language models and operating them with its chips and chip systems. Investors who invested 1,000 euros in Nvidia shares at the end of 2019 now have nearly 36,000 euros.

The company's stock value is now at 5.07 trillion dollars, making it the most valuable worldwide. The financial results of Nvidia are as crucial for the global economy as a rate decision by the US Federal Reserve. The quarterly results must show a positive result, otherwise, there is a threat of a stock market crash. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang needs fresh money for AI expansion.

For this, financial institutions such as Goldman Sachs, Blackrock, or KKR are supposed to collect a lot of money from external investors. Given the feared AI bubble, the risks are high. The IMF economist Tobias Adrian says that debt sustainability could become a risk in many countries, which could increase pressure on central banks to lower interest rates for political reasons. He also sees dangers from the profit growth of AI companies.