Beijing is reportedly boosting domestic AI firms that have received overseas recognition. In its latest, the Chinese artificial intelligence startup Manus was featured for the first time in a state media broadcast. The company has recently registered its China-facing AI assistant.
Manus gained attention in the tech world when it released what it claimed to be the world’s first general AI agent. It stated that it could handle complex tasks with much less prompting compared to chatbots from DeepSeek or ChatGPT.
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Investors are celebrating the company as another breakthrough following the low-cost AI models from DeepSeek. However, its availability remained limited after launch. Users aiming to test Manus were frustrated since the product could only be tested with an invitation-only arrangement. Such was the scarcity that critics accused the Manus team of intentionally deploying scarcity marketing tactics.
“The current invite-only mechanism is due to genuinely limited server capacity at this stage.”
-Manus AI’s product partner Zhang Tao.
Nevertheless, Beijing has been supporting Manus’ rollout within China, much like its stance on DeepSeek’s success. On March 20, State broadcaster CCTV devoted television coverage to Manus for the first time. It published a video on the difference between its AI agent and DeepSeek’s AI chatbot.
The company has also completed the registration for its AI assistant Monica. Registration is required for generative AI apps in China, with Manus clearing an important regulatory hurdle.
All generative AI applications released in China are required to abide by strict rules. These rules exist to ensure that these products do not generate content considered sensitive or damaging by Beijing.
Despite its success, Manus has been publicly questioned for the originality of its technology. This is because the product is based on existing large language models (LLMs), whose details the team did not disclose. This is different from the foundation model innovation from DeepSeek.
For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds. The hedge fund data is as of Q4 2024.
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10. Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE:BE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE:BE) develops solid-oxide fuel cell systems for on-site power generation, helping meet the growing energy demands of AI data centers. On March 20, Morgan Stanley raised the firm’s price target on the stock to $35 from $28 and kept an “Overweight” rating on the shares. According to the firm, Bloom’s solid oxide fuel technology is going to be a key artificial intelligence enabler.
Anticipating a power grid shortfall of 42 gigawatts by 2028, the firm said that recent management meetings have given it confidence that Bloom’s technology can fill the 42GW power shortfall. Moreover, the firm is also hopeful that the company’s balance sheet, product innovation, and sales efforts investments should help the company realize revenues faster. The firm sees a path to its $60 bull case for the shares.
9. International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 60
International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) is a multinational technology company and a pioneer in artificial intelligence, offering AI consulting services and a suite of AI software products. On March 17, Erste Group analyst Hans Engel upgraded the stock to “Buy” from Hold. According to the analyst, IBM is poised to grow more strongly this year and next year than in the previous year. This growth is driven by the “solid” growth rates of Red Hat software and increasing implementations of AI applications for customers. The analyst further stated that operating profit is expected to grow slightly faster than revenue.
8. AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 95
AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) provides a leading marketing platform powered by AI technology. On March 20, Citi analyst Jason Bazinet reiterated a “Buy” rating and $600.00 price target on the stock.
“AppLovin has always used its Ads platform for its own game studios. However, the firm never recognized this internal expense as revenue for the Ads business. When the game studios are sold (due 2H25), we suspect the new owners will continue to use AppLovin’s Ads platform. This could provide a small revenue and Adj EBITDA tailwind in 2H25 and beyond. In our scenario analysis we estimate it could result in ~$75 million of incremental revenue per year (just below our estimate of the 4Q24 eCommerce revenue).”
Analysts have been bullish on AppLovin stock based on its strong growth potential and market resilience. The company responded strongly to bearish reports that claimed that it had misrepresented the benefits of its AI-powered platform, highlighting that its tools are effective. This is evidenced by the continued client usage despite overlaps with several other platforms such as Meta.
7. Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 126
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is an automotive and clean energy company that leverages advanced artificial intelligence in its autonomous driving technology and robotics initiatives. One of Tesla’s strongest backers on Wall Street believes Musk is having a “moment of truth” at his company due to a crisis that he has created by spending too much time in the Trump administration.
“Musk needs to change course here … Tesla’s future depends on it.”
-Dan Ives
In order to get the company back on track, Ives said that two things need to happen. First, Musk needs to formally announce that he will balance his role as leader of the White House Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) task force and CEO of Tesla so that it can “take the heat off Musk.”
“Musk needs to make a statement and his actions speak louder than words. We would expect this to happen either before or during the 1Q earnings conference call in early May.”
The second thing Musk must do is provide a “roadmap” for the lower-priced EVs Tesla has been promising since last year. These are slated for production in 2025.
Considering how autonomous is a major factor in most analysts’ bull cases for the stock, he also wants to know more about the unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) Robotaxi rollout coming to Austin, Texas, in June.
While there has been news that Tesla has received an initial permit to begin ride-hail testing with Tesla employees in piloted cars, the news came from California regulators rather than the company.
“With a Model Y refresh, inventory issues, and a host of demand issues with Musk brand damage a worry … there is one person Tesla investors need to hear from … Musk.”
6. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 162
Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) is a cloud-based CRM company that has gained popularity after it unveiled its AI-powered platform called Agentforce. On March 20, Steven Koenig from Macquarie maintained a Hold rating on the stock with a price target of $320.00. Koenig is optimistic that the traction with Agentforce is real, but believes mass market adoption of agentic AI will take time.
5. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 223
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) specializes in AI-driven solutions, offering platforms for data centers, self-driving cars, robotics, and cloud services. With the GTC Conference taking center stage in the news in the past few days, most analysts seem entirely focused on it.
On March 20, Morgan Stanley reiterated Nvidia stock as “Overweight” with a $162 price target. Morgan Stanley came away positive on the stock in a recap note following a Q-and-A with CEO Jensen Huang at the company’s Global AI Conference, where the firm clarified that Nvidia has provided better visibility for investors.
Reminding investors of the strong demand for its products, the company revealed how four biggest cloud providers namely Amazon Web Services, Azure, Google Cloud, and Oracle Cloud have already ordered 3.6 million Blackwell GPUs for 2025; nearly 3 times the Hopper GPUS bought in 2024. The company also anticipates solid cloud spending through 2025.
“Nvidia made a compelling case as to why efficiencies that have made the market skittish in recent weeks should drive higher demand over time. … Physical AI is starting to feel more tangible, with a notable rate of change around robotics.”
4. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 234
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is an American multinational technology conglomerate holding company wholly owning the internet giant Google, amongst other businesses. On March 20, Gmail, Google’s free web-based email service, rolled out a smarter search feature powered by AI to show users the most relevant results, faster.
The new system will incorporate factors such as recency, click behavior, and frequent contacts to generate “most relevant” search results. “Most relevant” search results are being rolled out globally for users with personal Google accounts. They can be accessed on the web and in the official Gmail app for Android and iOS, where users can toggle between “most relevant” and “most recent” results.
3. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 235
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is a global technology company. On March 20, Reuters reported that Meta will be asking advertisers if they have used artificial intelligence or other digital techniques to create or alter a political or social issue ad. The move comes ahead of the Canadian federal elections and aims to curb misinformation.
The disclosure requirement applies to ads that contain photorealistic images, videos, or realistic-sounding audio, digitally created or altered to portray a real person saying or doing something they did not actually say or do. It is also applicable to ads that show a person who does not exist or a realistic-looking event that did not happen, as well as altered footage of real events or event depiction that allegedly occurred, but is not a true image, video, or audio recording of the event.
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 317
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) provides AI-powered cloud, productivity, and business solutions, focusing on efficiency, security, and AI advancements. One of the most notable analyst calls on Thursday, March 20, was for Microsoft Corporation. Scotiabank initiated the stock as “Buy”, stating that its shares are poised to ‘Excel’. Analysts at the firm consider 2025 to be a “paradigm-shifting year during which customer investments accelerate in AI on Azure and Microsoft 365 Copilot.” The firm considers Microsoft to be a “leading horseman of the AI revolution,” anticipating AI to generate sustainable growth for the company.
“We have initiated coverage on the common shares of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT or Microsoft) with a Sector Outperform rating and a one-year target of $470 per share.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 339
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. On March 20, Citizens JMP analyst Nicholas Jones reiterated a Market Outperform rating and $285.00 price target on Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN). The rating follows news that Amazon is eyeing an expansion in the used car market.
While Amazon is reportedly going after an expansion in the used car market space, its AI-powered self-driving subsidiary, Zoox, has simultaneously encountered a setback. A probe had been opened by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into Zoox’s self-driving system in May due to a braking issue that caused two rear-end collisions, injuring motorcyclists. In response, the company has agreed to recall 258 vehicles due to issues with its automated driving system. Even though a software update fixed the issue, Zoox agreed to the recall “in light of NHTSA’s position and in the interest of promoting transparency.”
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