On January 6, Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities appeared on CNBC’s ‘Closing Bell’ team to discuss the state of the tech bull market and the keynote address by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at CES. Ives referred to Huang as the Godfather of AI and predicted that the CEO would specifically lay out a vision for the next chapter of AI, which would focus on robotics and autonomous technology. Ives explained that this shift would mark the beginning of a new layer in the AI revolution. He argued that the potential of robotics and autonomous systems is not yet factored into Nvidia’s stock price, nor is it reflected in the valuation of other tech companies. Ives also highlighted a multiplier effect and claimed that every dollar spent on an Nvidia chip generates $8 to $10 of spending across the rest of the tech sector. He stated that the tech bull market is only in the ‘top of the third inning of a nine-inning game with one out’, and emphasized that the entire cycle starts with Jensen Huang.
Earlier on December 30, Phil Palumbo of Palumbo Wealth Management appeared on ‘Closing Bell’ on CNBC to talk about the technology trends and AI investment strategies for 2026. Investors could no longer view the tech space as a monolithic group where any selection will perform well — rather, investors must identify companies capable of producing a return on investment from their CapEx components. Despite the sector becoming trickier, tech is expected to account for almost 50% of EPS growth in 2026. Phil Palumbo expressed confidence that investments in AI implementation will make a tremendous difference in 2026 and 2027. He cited Jensen Huang’s claim that AI tools can increase employee productivity by 2x to 3x.
That being said, we’re here with a list of the 13 hot tech stocks to invest in.
Our Methodology
We sifted through the Finviz stock screener to compile a list of tech stocks that have gained at least 30% over the past 6 months. We then selected 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 their 6-month performance. We have also added the hedge fund sentiment for each stock, as of Q3 2025.
Note: All data was sourced on January 7.
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 427.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 264 percentage points (see more details here).
13 Hot Tech Stocks to Invest in
13. Lantronix Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 15
6-Month Performance as of January 7: 97.07%
Lantronix Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRX) is one of the hot tech stocks to invest in. Earlier on December 11, Lake Street raised the firm’s price target on Lantronix to $8 from $6 with a Buy rating on the shares. The firm believes that Lantronix is gaining traction as a hidden gem within the drone industry. This growth, combined with steady demand from a Tier-1 wireless provider for cell site monitoring and strength in the out-of-band management market, is expected to fuel revenue growth through next year.
On the same day, Lantronix Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRX) announced a collaboration with Trillium Engineering to integrate its Edge AI technology into gimbaled imaging systems for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems/UAS. Lantronix will provide NDAA/TAA-compliant solutions and engineering services to power Trillium’s military and commercial drone platforms.
The collaboration centers on the use of Lantronix’s Open-Q 5165RB System on Module/SOM, which is powered by Qualcomm Dragonwing processors. This hardware enables Trillium’s GD-Loc and NyxCore products to perform advanced on-device AI functions, including real-time edge processing for actionable insights and AI-driven object detection and tracking. The technology is specifically designed for Size, Weight, and Power/SWaP optimization, ensuring high performance in compact uncrewed platforms while maintaining precision targeting and low latency, even in environments where GPS or networks are restricted.
Lantronix Inc. (NASDAQ:LTRX) develops, markets, and sells industrial and enterprise IoT products and services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific Japan.
12. nLIGHT Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 34
6-Month Performance as of January 7: 100.95%
nLIGHT Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) is one of the hot tech stocks to invest in. On December 17, Roth Capital initiated coverage of nLight with a Buy rating and $44 price target. The firm highlighted nLIGHT’s strategic advantage as a specialized provider of directed energy lasers. Roth MKM anticipates that a convergence of market forces will fast-track the adoption of laser-based weaponry over the next ten years. By supplying both laser and sensing tech to major defense contractors, nLIGHT is positioned to lead the current wave of military investment and innovation.
For its Q3 2025 earnings, nLIGHT Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) reported that its total revenue climbed to $67 million, which was a 19% increase compared to the $56.1 million reported in the same quarter last year. This growth was anchored by the A&D segment, which reached a record $45.6 million, rising 50% and representing 68% of the company’s total revenue. Specifically, defense product sales skyrocketed by 71%, driven by the ramp-up of directed energy and laser sensing programs.
For Q4, nLIGHT projected revenue between $72 and $78 million. Management expects the A&D segment to maintain its momentum, forecasting full-year growth for the division to exceed 40%. Furthermore, despite the major “Healthy 2” contract ending in 2026, executives believe that new directed energy and laser sensing projects will offset that revenue loss.
nLIGHT Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications.
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