The race toward artificial intelligence supremacy is intensifying, and it seems that independency is emerging as a key focal point. In the latest news, The Financial Times has reported that China chipmakers are fast-tracking their initiatives to triple the country’s output of artificial intelligence chips in 2026.
The main goal, as claimed by the report, is to reduce the country’s dependency on US chips. If China succeeds in this effort, it will be able to successfully counter the looming threat of US export controls, as well as alleviate national security concerns.
According to the report, Huawei is planning to begin production at a plant that will specifically make AI chips by year end. Moreover, there are two more facilities set to launch in 2026.
The report has highlighted that the combined output from the three potential plants may surpass the current production capacity at China’s chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC).
SMIC itself plans to double manufacturing capacity for 7 nanometre chips next year. According to the report, Huawei is its largest customer.
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 Q2 2025.
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10. Elastic N.V. (NYSE:ESTC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 59
Elastic N.V. (NYSE:ESTC) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, TD Cowen analyst Andrew Sherman lowered the price target on the stock to $85.00 (from $90.00) while maintaining a Hold rating. The lower price target comes ahead of the company’s print due on August 28.
The firm has updated its model ahead of its quarterly results, anticipating a beat and raise. Moreover, given the new CFO, the company will likely guide conservatively.
“Expecting Modest Beat & Raise; ESTC reports on 8/28. We expect a beat & raise given new CFO likely guided conservatively. Our partner checks remain mixed, citing fine renewals but competitive factors & AI risks. Our partner survey down-ticked w/ 67% met/beat vs. 86% last qtr, though pipelines looked better. At 4.3x EV/Sales we see low expectations but a return to Cloud upside is needed.
Shares are -14% since reporting 4Q (IGV +5%). Sentiment seems relatively bearish & valuations at ~4.3x EV/CY26E Sales & ~20x EV/FCF shares trade at a discount to 10-15% comps at ~5x. Reiterate Hold & lower PT to $85 (~4.5x EV/CY26E Sales).”
Elastic N.V. is a search AI company offering cloud-based solutions.
9. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 82
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 25, TD Cowen analyst Joshua Buchalter reiterated a Hold rating on the stock with a $20.00 price target following the announcement that the US government is taking a stake in the chipmaker.
According to the firm, the finalized agreement with the Trump administration on previously signed CHIPS Act and Secure Enclave funding is seen to be positive. This is because the company seems to be in a favorable political position now.
However, the firm pointed out that Intel isn’t receiving any meaningful net new capital, and that the company’s issues are technical and competitive. These issues aren’t such that funding alone can resolve them.
It also believes it is difficult to be confident about Intel’s future both in the short and long-term. The challenges weighing in on the company are going to take their due time to resolve, and solid proof such as earnings or cash flow will take time to show up.
“Net, it remains difficult for us to gain confidence in the immediate and long-term path forward. Roadmaps and customer confidence are not (re)built overnight, and the strategy seems very much in flux. That said, Intel’s market breadth and extensive intellectual property assets across compute, combined with now more closely aligned incentives with the White House, cannot be fully counted out yet, and there are likely ways to monetize its collection of assets for shareholders. We think the near-term and long-term overhangs on the narrative will likely be an overhang until more tangible metrics (e.g., earnings, FCF) begin to inflect to support valuation…which we think remains a long ways away.”
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) designs and sells computing hardware, semiconductor products, and AI-driven solutions for various industries.
8. Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 100
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Citizens JMP analyst Joe Goodwin reiterated a Market Outperform rating on the stock with a $260.00 price target. The rating affirmation comes ahead of the company’s earnings print due today, August 27th.
The firm collected 27 data points on the company, of which 85% were positive this quarter compared to the previous 50%. It also talked about the MIT Networked Agents and Decentralized AI (NANDA) report.
“We maintain our Market Outperform rating and $260 price target on Snowflake, which reports F2Q results after the close on Wednesday after: 1) we have collected 27 data points on the company (85% positive this quarter versus 50% positive last quarter; 2) the MIT Networked Agents and Decentralized AI (NANDA) initiative published a report titled “State of AI in Business 2025” finding that just 5% of integrated AI pilots are extracting millions in value, while the vast majority remain stuck with no measurable P&L impact; and 3) the stock has increased 26% year-to-date versus an increase of 9% for the S&P 500 and 9% for the Russell 3000.”
Snowflake Inc. (NYSE:SNOW) is a cloud-based data storage company providing a data analysis, storage, and sharing platform.
7. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 113
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Truist Securities analyst William Stein upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy with a price target of $213.00 (from $173.00).
The rating upgrade reflects the booming demand from data centers and the accelerated momentum in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. According to Stein, hyperscalers are increasingly considering AMD as a genuine partner instead of considering it as merely a “price check” against rival Nvidia.
The company is no longer a secondary player in the AI hardware race, noted Stein, anticipating that it will secure close to 10% of GPU market share overtime.
Stein has also increased his earnings per share (EPS) estimates, now anticipating a calendar year 2027 EPS of $7.89. Moreover, the company’s newly launched MI355 chip is likely to be a key driver of growth in the coming quarters.
“Constructive view from the field. For the last several years, our industry contacts (component buyers/sellers) have told us that hyperscale customers deploying AI were experimenting with AMD’s technology as a “price check” to NVDA (Buy), nothing more. Over the last month or so, contacts have increasingly noted that hyperscalers are working with AMD in a partnership manner, expressing true interest in deploying AMD at scale. We fine tune our model, establish CY27 EPS at $7.89, set our PT to $213 (up fr. $173), and upgrade to Buy.”
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) develops and sells semiconductors, processors, and GPUs for data centers, gaming, AI, and embedded applications.
6. Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 115
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Baird reiterated Tesla as “Neutral,” stating that Tesla earnings estimates are still too high.
“Acknowledging the increased patience, we remain cautious with volume and financial estimates for 2H25 too high and the Automotive business continuing to show signs of weakness. We are lowering our delivery and regulatory credit estimates for the remainder of 2025, and look for details on robotaxi/Optimus timeline in the meantime.”
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is an automotive and clean energy company that leverages advanced artificial intelligence in its autonomous driving technology and robotics initiatives.
5. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 121
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, BofA Securities analyst Brad Sills lowered the price target on the stock to $325.00 (from $350.00) while maintaining a Buy rating.
The firm conducted discussions with nearly a dozen key partners which have revealed that second-quarter deal activity has been merely in line with expectations. The firm has discussed the reasons for the lacking upside.
“Recent discussions with nearly a dozen key Partners suggest that deal activity leaned more “in line” with expectations during Q2. Partners noted that lacking upside was driven by customers pausing digital transformation projects to evaluate with Agentforce, versus a deterioration in the fundamentals. As such, we expect 2Q revenue/cRPO to be largely in line with our estimates for $10.1bn (+7.4% y/y cc)/$19.2bn (+9.0% cc). We expect FX to be a 1% tailwind to reported growth, consistent with guidance.”
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) is a cloud-based CRM company that has gained popularity after it unveiled its AI-powered platform called Agentforce.
4. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 156
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Goldman Sachs analyst Michael Ng reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $266.00 price target.
The firm asserted that even though September product events have had “nominal impacts” on day-of stock price performance in the past, the reports are encouraging this time.
The factors it has highlighted for the turnaround are form factor updates to iPhone 17 models, potential price increases to the iPhone 17 Pro, and sustained carrier competition driving device-related promotions.
“Apple will host a special event “Awe-Dropping” on September 9th, 2025, when it is expected to announce new products including the iPhone 17 series, and an updated Apple Watch portfolio (Series 11, Ultra 3, SE 3). Though in the past AAPL’s September event has had nominal impacts on day-of stock price performance, we are encouraged by reports surrounding (1) form factor updates to iPhone 17 models (17 “Air” model, larger base screen size); (2) the potential for a price increase to the iPhone 17 Pro; and (3) continued carrier competition driving device-related promotions. We reiterate our Buy rating on AAPL and forecast iPhone revenue to grow +5% yoy in F2025E before accelerating to +7% yoy growth in F2026E.”
Apple is a technology company known for its consumer electronics, software, and services.
3. Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 156
Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Citigroup reiterated the stock as “Buy” with a $315 price target, stating that it’s bullish on the stock heading into earnings on September 4.
“We expect AVGO to report results above Consensus, driven by continued AI strength.”
Broadcom is set to report fiscal third-quarter earnings after the closing bell on Sep. 4., with Citi anticipating sales to come in above its own estimate of $15.8 billion. This reflects a sequential gain of 6%.
The analysts further noted that Broadcom’s guidance for fourth-quarter sales will probably also come in higher than the estimated $17 billion.
The company is noted to be strengthening its ties to Meta, Alphabet’s Google, and ByteDance, and the “management expects each of these three customers to scale to about one million AI accelerator clusters by 2027.” Not only this, the analysts cited four more prospects including OpenAI, xAI, and Apple in the pipeline.
Despite these positives, the firm did highlight one concern regarding the company. It noted that Broadcom’s higher revenue linked to AI, offering lower margins, will have an impact on its overall gross margins. Nevertheless, it is likely that other area improvements will offset them.
Broadcom’s wireless segment is poised to perform well, while its non-AI semiconductor business is also on the road to recovery.
Broadcom is a technology company uniquely positioned in the AI revolution owing to its custom chip offerings and networking assets.
2. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 235
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. One of the biggest analyst calls on Tuesday, August 26, was for Nvidia.
CFRA reiterated the stock as “Buy” and raised its price target on the stock. The firm is bullish on Nvidia heading into earnings on Wednesday after the bell.
“We lift our target price to $206 from $196, on P/E of 29x our CY [calendar year] 27 EPS view.”
Analyst Angelo Zino spoke in an interview with AInvest’s Adam Shapiro, stating how he is anticipating another strong set of numbers for the AI chipmaker.
“Yeah, I mean, we’re expecting another set of good results here, Adam, as far as Nvidia on the top line. We’re looking at north of 50% growth, both here for the July quarter as well as for the October quarter.”
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) specializes in AI-driven solutions, offering platforms for data centers, self-driving cars, robotics, and cloud services.
1. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 260
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is one of the 10 AI Stocks Hit with New Analyst Ratings. On August 26, Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik gave his thoughts on digital ad winners, battleground stocks, and the major question of whether Meta can close the gap with Google. The firm has an Outperform rating on the stock with a $900 price target.
The firm is bullish on the stock considering its robust AI efforts. The tech giant’s core AI investment is paying off, but they come at a cost.
Nevertheless, it believes that Meta is the only publicly traded Consumer AI play that’s delivering real results, and that its believes that “core AI gains continue.”
“Meta’s revenue grew 22% Y/Y in Q2, and the Q3 revenue guidance of $47.5-50.5B, or 17-24% Y/Y (16-23% FxN), was far beyond the most bullish bogey. Impressions and price growth were both strong as AI efforts to drive deeper consumer engagement and improvement advertiser efficacy paid off. Meta’s Core AI investment is clearly paying off, but these investments come at a cost, with 2025 expense/CapEx guidance up by ~$1B/$2B, at the top end, respectively. Management also commented that expenses are likely growing 20%+ Y/Y in 2026 tied to all those AI hires and server depreciation, while CapEx is set to grow another $30B Y/Y to ~$100B. If core performance can continue at this level and there’s visible progress towards Superintelligence with traction across any of Meta AI, Business messaging, or Wearables, there’s no telling what the ceiling is for Meta. Right now, in our view, Meta is really the only publicly traded Consumer AI play that’s delivering real results, and we’re believers core AI gains continue. The risk of overinvestment with Meta is an understandable risk, however Meta’s steep cuts to staffing and spending levels in 2022 when market conditions dictated are the market for a company’s response when required – we trust them to do the same if things stall out on the GenAI side. We remain Outperform.”
When asked about when Meta will catch Google in search, the firm stated that “Meta is on pace to catch Google Search in ad revenues by the end of 2026.”
While we acknowledge the potential of META as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than META and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 10 AI Stocks in the Spotlight Today and 10 Must-Watch AI Stocks for Investors.
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