The recently imposed US sanctions on chip use have angered China. In recent news, the country has stated that it may take legal action against any individual or organization who are found assisting or implementing U.S. measures that advise companies against using their advanced semiconductors.
According to the U.S. published guidance, companies risk violating export controls if found using Ascend AI chips from Shenzhen-based Huawei. In response, China’s commerce ministry said there could be “corresponding legal liabilities” against those involved in implementing U.S. measures and that it constitutes “discriminatory restrictive measures” against Chinese firms.
READ ALSO: 10 AI Stocks Investors Are Watching Today and 15 AI Stocks Surging on News and Analyst Ratings.
The sanctions are seemingly a new strategy adopted by the US to curb China’s progress in the AI arms race. The world is yet to watch the success of this strategy as opposed to the AI diffusion rule imposed earlier, which the world came to know had failed miserably after the arrival of DeepSeek.
Even Jensen Huang has deemed the AI diffusion rule to be a failure.
“All in all, the export control was a failure. The fundamental assumptions that led to the AI diffusion rule in the beginning, in the first place, has been proven to be fundamentally flawed.”
In fact, the sales block advanced AI chips to China, forcing companies to buy semiconductors from Chinese designers. It also pushed the country to invest aggressively in a robust supply chain that doesn’t rely on manufacturers outside the country.
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.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
12. Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 20
Pony AI Inc. (NASDAQ:PONY) deals in the commercialization of autonomous vehicles. Analyst Ming-Hsun Lee from Bank of America Securities recently reiterated a “Buy” rating on the stock and increased the price target to $21.00 from $17.70. Lee’s optimism in Pony AI stems from the company’s growth potential and strategic advancements. In particular, its impressive Q1 2025 performance, driven by a 200% year-over-year growth in robotaxi services, proved to be convincing of its strong demand and market presence.
Gross profit margin did record a decline, but operational improvements tend to offset this concern. The company is also planning to expand its robotaxi fleet to 1,000 units by the end of 2025. Another key catalyst for the company has been key partnerships with companies such as Uber and a leading Singaporean transportation firm. These moves are positioning the company for global reach. The firm is also looking forward to the expected mass production of Gen-7 vehicles. These vehicles will be more cost-effective due to reduced autonomous driving kit and LiDAR costs, enhancing profitability. All of these developments reinforce a positive outlook toward the stock.
11. Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:KEYS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:KEYS) is a global technology company that provides electronic design and test solutions. On May 21, JP Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee maintained an “Overweight” rating on the stock and increased the price target to $177 from the previous $172. Keysight announced strong second fiscal quarter performance, beating revenue and earnings estimates.
The company also delivered third-quarter guidance that exceeded market forecasts, upgrading its full-year outlook for fiscal year 2025. These factors imply how the company is capable of reaching its long-term revenue growth targets despite challenging macroeconomic conditions. In particular, Keysight has witnessed strong growth in the Wireline segment on the back of advanced equipment deployment. This growth is further helping offset challenges in areas such as General Electronics and Autos. Tariff-related cost headwinds do remain, but strategic pricing actions and the acquisition of Spirent are seen as a positive move supporting future growth.
Other analysts have also highlighted Keysight’s diversified supply chain and strategic investments in AI infrastructure playing a strong role against such tariffs. Analyst firms such as Barclays are also bullish on the stock, particularly its continued momentum in Keysight’s AI and defense sectors.
Hedge Fund Resource Center