On May 8, Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities joined CNBC’s ‘Squawk on the Street’ to discuss his bullish outlook on the AI sector and tech. Ives used the metaphor of technology speeding down the highway at 100 mph in a Ferrari, while regulation lags in the slow lane at 35 mph. He emphasized that, given this disparity, much of the oversight will be self-regulatory, as the use cases for AI are expanding rapidly. He predicted continued consolidation in the sector and stated that regulatory efforts would not halt this trend. The discussion also touched on international trade, particularly regarding the UK, China, India, and Vietnam. Ives described any progress with the UK as a small but positive step, but stressed that the real focus for tech companies remains on China. He explained that while the UK relationship is notable, it does not have the same impact as China, and tech companies are closely monitoring developments in Asia because of their significance to larger deals. He also predicts that major tech players would acquire smaller or emerging private companies and argued that the ongoing AI revolution, unstoppable even in the face of tariffs, will drive companies to position themselves advantageously for the future, with consolidation playing a key role.
Ives acknowledged the current regulatory uncertainty and unexpected moves from major tech partners but maintained his bullish stance on big tech overall due to accelerating use cases and spending in the sector. Ives also discussed the enterprise adoption of agentic AI, or AI agents, and when their impact on business efficiency and margins would become evident. Ives emphasized that the AI revolution is spreading across software, cybersecurity, and the internet, and that tariffs will not impede this fourth industrial revolution. In fact, Ives thinks that tariffs might even accelerate AI adoption by increasing price pressures and driving companies to seek efficiencies, highlighting that this earnings season was pivotal, with accelerated spending on AI. He observed that AI-related budgets have surged from 1% to 2% a year ago to about 15% now, and argued that neither regulatory hearings nor tariffs can slow this momentum. He likened the current AI revolution to a decisive last-second play in basketball, as it’s delivering unexpected and transformative results for the tech sector.
That being said, we’re here with a list of the 13 best artificial intelligence stocks under $50 to buy now.
A scientist at a computer station, surrounded by a neural network of artificial intelligence code.
Our Methodology
We first sifted through ETFs and financial media reports to compile a list of the top AI stocks under $50. We then selected the 13 stocks that were the most popular among elite hedge funds and that analysts were bullish on. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of the number of hedge funds that have stakes in them, 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).
13 Best Artificial Intelligence Stocks Under $50 to Buy Now
13. POET Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:POET)
Share Price as of May 12: $4.48
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 4
POET Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:POET) offers photonic integrated packaging solutions based on the POET Optical Interposer. This platform allows the integration of electronic and photonic devices onto a single chip. It’s also capitalizing on the demand for photonic solutions within the AI and data center markets, which the CEO also highlighted, anticipating a multi-year growth cycle.
POET is rapidly building the infrastructure and securing the partnerships necessary to meet the demand for its photonic solutions in AI data centers. Q4 2024 revenue for the company declined year-over-year and totaled $29.16K due to the ongoing investments and partnerships for the AI and data center markets. However, even under only the existing collaborations with industry leaders like LuxshareTech, Foxconn, and Mitsubishi Electric, POET projects revenue acceleration in H2 2025.
In April, POET Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:POET) partnered with Lessengers, which provides optical solutions based in South Korea, to offer a differentiated 800G DR8 transceiver. This transceiver will include POET’s transmit and receive optical engines and Lessenger’s Direct Optical Wiring technology for a cost-effective solution for AI and data center applications. Lessengers expects to have transceiver samples ready for review in H2 2025.
12. Serve Robotics Inc. (NASDAQ:SERV)
Share Price as of May 12: $7.46
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 10
Serve Robotics Inc. (NASDAQ:SERV) designs, develops, and operates low-emission robots that serve people in public spaces for food delivery activity in the US. These delivery robots are autonomous and AI-powered for increased sustainability and efficiency.
In the company’s Q1 2025 earnings call, the CEO highlighted that the technology stack developed for Serve’s autonomous robot fleet represents ‘exciting new business opportunities.’ This fleet included AI for navigation, APIs for robot interaction, fleet management software, safety protocols, and remote intervention tools.
Q1 saw the primary revenue drivers as fleet revenues at $212K (which now includes delivery and branding) and software services at $229K (related to the existing delivery operations). The CEO also announced that Serve will begin recognizing recurring software platform revenues starting in Q2 2025. While this revenue stream is projected to be small initially, the expectation is for it to grow over the coming quarters.
