Chipmaking giant Nvidia has surpassed Microsoft to become the world’s most valuable company in a race to take over the market for artificial intelligence.

Its shares soared 3.5% to $135.58, pushing its market capitalization to $3.34 trillion only days after surpassing Apple.

Stocks rose around 180% this year, as opposed to the increase of about 19% in Microsoft shares, as Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Google-owner Alphabet are competing to establish their AI-computing capabilities and dominate the field. 

Nvidia recently split its stock 10-for-one, which was effective June 7, inflating the appeal for its highly valued stock among individual investors. 

Sam North, market analyst at investment platform eToro, said, "A stock split can reduce the price per share, making it more affordable for individual investors to buy. With Nvidia doing a 10-to-one stock split, retail investors are the real winners here."

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Increased demand for the company's chips made the price per unit rise to almost $30,000 and drove a surge in the company's revenue and profits.

This power made the 61-year-old CEO, Jensen Huang, one of the richest men in the world, as his net worth rose over the past year and a half and increased a staggering $93 billion, making him worth more than $100 billion in total.