Chipmaker Nvidia became the first public company in history to scale a $4tn market value on Wednesday as its stock price continues a years-long stratospheric rise.

Shares of the top chip designer rose roughly 2.4% to $164, benefiting from the ongoing surge in demand for artificial intelligence technologies. Nvidia’s chips and associated software are considered world leaders for building artificial intelligence products.

Nvidia achieved a $1tn market value for the first time back in June 2023 and the surge continued unabated with its market value – the total value of its shares – more than tripling in about a year, faster than Apple and Microsoft, the only other US firms with a market value of more than $3tn. Apple was the first company to reach a valuation of $3tn, back in 2022.