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Becoming a unicorn business is challenging, but reaching a trillion-dollar valuation is exceptionally rare. In today’s business world, your number game needs to be strong to be successful. In today’s article let’s explore how these 6 US-based firms have made their spot in the trillion-dollar club!

What is a trillion-dollar company?

A trillion-dollar company is used to describe a firm that has achieved a market capitalisation or valuation of over $1 trillion. This is a tremendous milestone that shows the global impact and influence of a business. In the business world, reaching $1 trillion is a huge deal. A fun business fact is that PetroChina was the first ever company to reach a $1 trillion valuation in 2007 but the valuation was short-lived.

Why some US tech firms dominate the trillion-dollar club

1. Apple: Emerging and innovative technology

Market capitalisation: $3.54 trillion

Apple is known for its unique iOS devices iPhones and innovative digital products with a strong position in the smartphone industry. In 2023, Apple hit $200 billion in iPhone sales and its total sales reached a whopping $383 billion. This was also the year, it reached a new milestone of reaching $3 trillion market value. Despite the slump in 4% revenue in the first 3 months of 2024, Apple’s focus on AI and solid customer base is helping the company steer towards success. When it comes to AI, the company handled it the best.

2. Microsoft: Software king

Market capitalisation: $3.37 trillion

Microsoft is a big tech player in the trillion-dollar club. In fact, the software giant has retained its lion’s market share in desktop operating systems which is 72% as of February 2024 according to Statista. With the growing popularity of smartphones, the firm shifted its direction to providing cloud services with Microsoft Azure.

Staying relevant despite dynamic changes in the tech market is precisely what has made Microsoft reach the remarkable 3 trillion dollar milestone in 2024.

3. Nvidia: AI chipmaker

Market Capitalisation: $3.18 trillion

Chipmaker powerhouse Nvidia surprised the world after surpassing renowned tech firms like Microsoft and Apple. It joined the trillion-dollar club in May 2023 and successfully bagged $27 billion in revenue in the same fiscal year.

Since Nvidia produces AI chips used by businesses in data centres to train their LLM models its growth has sharply increased in the last 2 years. According to data, the firm’s shares have soared over 170% as the demand for advanced chips used for AI systems has significantly risen as of June 2024.

4. Alphabet: The search engine giant

Market Capitalisation: $2.30 trillion

Online search = Google, this equation has stayed pretty strong so far. In the age of the internet, Google’s search engine became a go-to option for users. In short, the company earned billions from online advertising from its search engine and YouTube.

However, the firm did not just want to dominate one market so it created Alphabet which helped them expand and diversify their services. They started Google services and their cloud business to compete with big players Microsoft and Amazon. Google’s parent company Alphabet joined the $1 trillion club in 2020 and became the fourth company to do so.

5. Amazon: E-commerce disruptor

Market Capitalisation: $2.02 trillion

You cannot mention e-commerce without talking about Amazon. The firm is one of the biggest online retailers across the globe. Last year, Amazon generated $574.8 billion in net sales and while its primary focus is e-commerce, the firm has expanded to cloud computing, digital streaming, advertising, artificial intelligence, etc. CNBC’s report suggests that Amazon Web Services (AWS) accounts for 17% of its revenue

6. Meta: Social media giant

Market Capitalisation: $1.26 trillion

Meta is known as the social media giant owning Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads. While the firm has a strong hold on digital advertising, it has also explored various domains such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence. Moreover, social media apps are not just platforms to engage with internet users but do business as well. Most companies leverage these channels to build their brand and market their products to a target audience.

Important Note: The market capitalisation values mentioned are as of 15th July, 2024 and could vary.