Warren Buffett readily admits that he doesn't understand artificial intelligence (AI). He has also said that he won't invest in businesses that he understands. So, does that mean the legendary investor doesn't own any AI stocks? Nope.

Actually, Buffett has invested roughly $90 billion in nine companies that are heavily focused on AI. Here they are -- and which one is the best of the bunch.

AI stocks in Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) ranks as the largest holding in Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) portfolio. Berkshire's stake in the iPhone maker is valued at close to $59.3 billion. Although Buffett significantly reduced the conglomerate's position in Apple last year, it still makes up 21% of Berkshire's total portfolio.

AI has been at the forefront of Apple's development strategy for years. However, the company was seemingly left behind in the generative AI race until it launched Apple Intelligence in 2024. So far, though, Apple Intelligence doesn't appear to be igniting the super-cycle of iPhone upgrades that some analysts predicted.

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is another top AI stock in Berkshire's portfolio, albeit a much smaller one. Berkshire owns around $2.1 billion of the e-commerce and cloud service giant's shares. Buffett didn't make the initial decision to buy Amazon; one of Berkshire's other investment managers (either Todd Combs or Ted Weschler) bought the stock.

Most AI models run in the cloud. As the largest cloud services provider in the world, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has been a big winner as organizations scrambled to build and deploy AI models in the cloud. Amazon is also using AI extensively internally to increase efficiency and provide more services to customers.

AI stocks in Buffett's "secret portfolio"

Apple and Amazon are the only AI stocks owned directly by Berkshire Hathaway. But I said that Buffett owned nine AI stocks. Where are the other seven? In Buffett's "secret portfolio."

General Reinsurance acquired New England Asset Management (NEAM) in 1995. Three years later, Berkshire Hathaway acquired General Re. NEAM continues to manage investments for insurance companies. Its holdings don't show up in Berkshire Hathaway's regulatory filings, but any stock owned by NEAM is also owned by Buffett.

Apple is the only AI stock in both Berkshire's and NEAM's portfolios. NEAM owns two other so-called "Magnificent Seven" stocks -- Google parent Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). Like Amazon, both Alphabet and Microsoft are major cloud service providers and are profiting from the strong AI tailwind.

NEAM also has stakes in a couple of tech pioneers that are investing heavily in AI. IBM (NYSE: IBM) made headlines in the past with the success of its Watson AI technology. Texas Instruments (NASDAQ: TXN) isn't exactly a shining star in the AI world. However, the company makes edge AI products (AI deployed on local devices) and is working with Nvidia to develop power management and sensing technologies for data centers.

The stocks of three AI chipmakers are also in NEAM's portfolio. Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) manufactures AI products, including Ethernet switches designed to accelerate AI workloads and custom AI accelerators. NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ: NXPI) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) sell products that support edge AI.

The best of the bunch

If you're an income investor, Texas Instruments is probably the best pick among Buffett's nine AI stocks. Its forward dividend yield stands at 2.73%.

Alphabet is arguably the most attractively valued AI stock in the group, with growth prospects factored in. The Google parent's price-to-earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio is 1.36.

I think the best Buffett AI stock all-around, though, is Amazon. The company is poised to profit as more organizations move their apps and data to the cloud. It still has significant growth prospects in e-commerce as well. Amazon is also expanding into new markets, including healthcare, autonomous ride-hailing, and satellite internet services.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Warren Buffett has $90 billion invested in these 9 artificial intelligence (AI) stocks. Here's the best of the bunch. appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The stock market has ridden the excitement for artificial intelligence (AI) to new heights. It's not all hype; according to McKinsey, AI could add as much as $13 trillion to the global economy by 2030. Sure, some stocks have risen faster than others, so perhaps some stocks have gotten too expensive.

However, there are still top-notch AI stocks worth buying today.

Three Fool.com contributors put their heads together and selected Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM), Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), and Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) as AI stocks that merit buying right now.

Here is the investment pitch for each.

Geopolitical fears shouldn't keep investors from owning this rockstar AI stock

Justin Pope (Taiwan Semiconductor): If you're looking for a surefire winner in the AI field, Taiwan Semiconductor is as good a bet as any. It's the world's largest semiconductor foundry, which manufactures chips for design companies like Nvidia, AMD, and others. Taiwan Semiconductor is the world's leading foundry, holding an estimated 62% of the global market as of Q2 2024. That positions Taiwan Semiconductor to capture explosive growth in demand for AI chips moving forward.

AMD CEO Lisa Su predicted during her company's Q3 earnings call that AI chip demand will grow by 60% annually to $500 billion in 2028, more than the entire semiconductor industry's size in 2023. It seems safe to say that end markets worldwide, AI and otherwise, will need increasingly more chips.

At this writing, Taiwan Semiconductor stock trades at a forward P/E ratio of just under 28. At the same time, analysts estimate the company's earnings will grow by an average of 31% annually over the next three to five years. That's a PEG ratio of 0.9, indicating the stock is a bargain for its expected future growth.

So, why is the stock so cheap? Taiwan is near China, which claims it is part of its territory and has threatened to invade the country. This is a legitimate risk that investors should consider before buying the stock. That said, it's impossible to know what will happen. A forceful invasion might spark retaliation from the U.S. and other countries because of Taiwan's importance to the world's chip supply chain. The U.S. and Taiwan Semiconductor have taken steps to derisk from China, including cutting back shipments of advanced AI chips to China and investing roughly $65 billion to build new foundries in Arizona.

Ultimately, Taiwan Semiconductor is too good a company to ignore the stock at this valuation, even with the geopolitical noise around it.

Tesla is still (mostly) a car company, but investors shouldn't overlook its AI investments.

Jake Lerch (Tesla): My choice is Tesla.

Granted, most investors know Tesla as an electric vehicle company, but there's more under the hood for those willing to look.

In its most recent quarter (the three months ended Sept. 30), Tesla reported total revenue of $25.2 billion. Some $20 billion, or 80% of the total, came from automotive revenue. The remaining $5.2 billion was split almost equally between Energy Generation & Storage ($2.4 billion) and Services ($2.8 billion). Those segments also grew significantly faster than Tesla's automotive division:

Data source: Tesla Q3 2024 quarterly update. YOY = year over year. 

Moreover, as Tesla's AI investments begin to bear fruit, AI will likely drive growth for the company.

Consider this: One could view Tesla's vehicles as more than simply products; they could also be platforms. Teslas are equipped with multiple sensors designed to capture video and data, then relay it to Tesla's Dojo or Cortex supercomputers. Those systems can then analyze the data to constantly improve what could become the company's crown jewel: its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system.

If Tesla can develop truly autonomous FSD, the company's market cap could expand by an entire order of magnitude -- which is astounding considering that Tesla is (as of this writing) valued at more than $1 trillion.

That's to say nothing of Tesla's other bets that rely on AI advancements: its Optimus humanoid robot, robotaxis, and perhaps unimagined (or at least unrevealed) uses for its massive supercomputer clusters.

In other words, yes, Tesla is an AI company. What's more, when all is said and done, Tesla's AI assets are so impressive that they may power the company to unforeseen heights over the next decades. AI-oriented investors should take notice.

AI should help this communications stock better connect with investors

Will Healy (Qualcomm): Of the major AI chip stocks, few appear better positioned for buyers than Qualcomm. It had become an afterthought for investors as the 5G upgrade cycle ran its course.

However, that changed thanks to AI, as smartphones equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or the Elite Mobile Platform chipsets delivered on-device AI to smartphone users. Moreover, Qualcomm has thought ahead to the day when smartphone use would fall. Hence, the company expanded into Internet of Things/industrial, automotive, and PC chips.

In fact, its automotive segment was the fastest-growing segment in fiscal 2024 (ended Sept. 29), increasing revenue by 55%. Still, it only makes up just over 7% of the company's revenue. For now, handsets were 64% of the company's revenue, and that segment's revenue grew 10% yearly amid an AI upgrade cycle.

Admittedly, Qualcomm's handset business faces notable challenges, and it is in a legal dispute with Arm Holdings, which Qualcomm depends on for some chip designs. The dispute dates back to 2019, though Qualcomm has continued to thrive despite that legal battle.

Also, Apple has tried for years to best Qualcomm's designs only to extend the supply agreement.

For now, Qualcomm benefits from an upcycle. In fiscal 2024, the company's $39 billion in revenue increased by 9%. However, in Q4, revenue rose by 18%, signaling an upward move in the cycle is benefiting the company. Also, costs and expenses rose by only 3%, allowing Qualcomm's $10 billion in net income for fiscal 2024 to surge 40% higher compared with year-ago levels.

Amid this growth, Qualcomm trades at a P/E ratio of about 18, far below other chip industry competitors. While the dispute with Arm carries some risk, Qualcomm's diversification into other areas will make it difficult for such challenges to stand in the way of its long-term success.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post The Artificial Intelligence (AI) boom isn't over. 3 AI stocks to buy right now. appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The launch of an Apple iPhone always garners a lot of attention. After all, the company has sold over 200 million of the devices each year for the past three calendar years.

With the latest generation of the smartphone supporting a number of new artificial intelligence (AI) features, expectations for iPhone 16 sales are high. J.P. Morgan, for example, is expecting iPhone sales to rise more than 12% to 250 million units for Apple's fiscal 2025.

While this should help Apple, some of its suppliers could benefit even more.

Arm Holdings

One of the big winners from strong iPhone 16 sales will likely be Arm Holdings (NASDAQ: ARM). With its technology in 99% of smartphones, Arm benefits from any increase in global smartphone sales.

The iPhone 16's new A18 chip is based on Arm's newest V9 architecture. The iPhone 15 launched last year, meanwhile, was powered by its A16 chips and A17 chips for its Pro models, which were both based on Arm's older V8 architecture. This is important because Arm has said that its V9 architecture carries almost double the royalty rate compared to its V8 architecture.

As such, Arm is set to benefit from not only increased iPhone unit sales, but also from much higher royalties. This makes it one of the biggest iPhone 16 winners.

Broadcom

While investor attention around Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) has mostly been around its data center networking equipment and customized AI ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) chips, the company is also set to benefit from the iPhone 16. This is good news for Broadcom as much of its business outside of AI and its recent VMWare acquisition have struggled.

However, the entire iPhone 16 lineup will incorporate the new Wi-Fi 7 standard, which will be powered by Broadcom's integrated RF modules. Broadcom also provides other wireless components to Apple, so any increase in iPhone sales should benefit Broadcom's sales.

Broadcom will likely remain more of an AI infrastructure story than a smartphone story, but an improvement in some of its other struggling businesses could go a long way in helping its stock as well. Its wireless revenue grew only 1% last quarter to $1.7 billion and is expected to be flat year over year in the current quarter, but the iPhone 16 looks poised to power this part of the business soon.

Qualcomm

Apple and Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) have not always had the best relationship, with the iPhone maker deciding at one point back in 2017 to stop paying it royalties. Meanwhile, there has been speculation of Apple looking to replace some of the Qualcomm's G5 modems next year. The two companies signed an extension to use its modems until 2027, and there have been reports of Apple struggling to produce its own 5G modems, so at this point that is still just speculation.

For now, though, Apple is using Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X75 modem in its iPhone 16 Pro models and reportedly its X70 modem in its regular models. Tech blogs have already praised the improved download speeds that stem from the new modem. Analysts also believe that the company took some share in providing RF content to the iPhone 16 at the expense of Skyworks Solutions.

It should also be worth noting that while Qualcomm is most associated with smartphones, the company has been making nice strides in other areas, including autos, IoT (Internet of Things), XR (extended reality) glasses, and in the PC (personal computer) market with the launch of Copilot+ PCs. The company is also collaborating with Saudi Arabia's national oil company Aramco on connectivity, AI, and advanced computing solutions for industrial and enterprise use cases.

Cirrus Logic

Perhaps no company is more tied to Apple than Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ: CRUS), which derived 87% of its revenue from its largest customer last fiscal year. The company provides a number of components to the iPhone in the areas of audio, haptics (sense of touch), camera, and battery.

Given its ties to Apple and the iPhone, the more devices Apple sells, the better it is for Cirrus. Meanwhile, analysts believe the company will benefit from a number of new iPhone 16 features, including the new camera control buttons as well as the tetraprism lens now incorporated in its Pro model after only being available on the Pro Max model last year.

While an investment in Cirrus carries a risk given its huge concentration in one single customer, the company has been able to continually get new components into the iPhone, proving itself to be one of Apple's most valuable suppliers.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Apple's semiconductor and component suppliers aren't the only ones set to benefit from potential increased iPhone sales. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM), or TSMC for short, has already been benefiting from the huge buildout of chips being used in the AI infrastructure, but its largest customer remains Apple.

Apple used TSMC's latest 3-nanometer technology to produce chips for its iPhone 15 Pro models, but this year it will use the technology in the production of the chips for all of its iPhone 16 models. While the new technology is initially a negative for margins, TSMC benefits as it scales the process. Meanwhile, the company is already looking to add 2nm production capacity next year.

As TSMC is able to shrink the size of chips, it can help boost the power of the chips while also lowering their power consumption. It can also fit more chips on a wafer, helping increase its capacity. The company remains one of the best-positioned in the chip sector given AI demand, and it should get a further boost from increased iPhone sales as well.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post These 5 US stocks could be the biggest iPhone 16 winners, and none of them is Apple appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The generative engine ChatGPT opened in November and has quickly caught the imagination of the public.

There is even talk that Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT), which is a major investor in the startup behind ChatGPT, could challenge Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL)'s two-decade domination of internet searches by injecting AI into Bing.

Already "a veritable rainforest of new AI startups is being freshly funded", according to Frazis Capital Partners portfolio manager Michael Frazis.

"While it won't be clear for some time which will win and which will fall…, one thing is certain: they will all [need] immense amounts of computing power," he said in a memo to clients.

"Power that, absent this revolution, may not have been required for many years."

As such, some investors are looking to gain exposure to companies involved in manufacturing computer chips or, their key ingredient, semiconductors.

The best semiconductor stocks in the world

Shaw and Partners portfolio manager James Gerrish was recently asked which are the best ASX shares of businesses involved in the semiconductor industry.

"When I think semiconductors, my first thoughts are international companies such as Qualcomm Inc (NASDAQ: QCOM), NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA), Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ: TXN), Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ: AVGO), Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), Taiwan Semiconductors Mfg Co Ltd (NYSE: TSM), Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KRX: 005930), etc," he said in a Market Matters Q&A.

"Unfortunately there are no companies of this magnitude on the ASX."

So Gerrish suggested the next best option could be exchange-traded funds. But again, they are overseas shares.

"Two of our preferred ETFs to gain exposure to the semiconductor markets are the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ: SOXX) and the VanEck Semiconductors ETF (NASDAQ: SMH)," he said.

"Locally, at this stage, there aren't any companies on the Market Matters radar."

Frazis took the example of Nvidia to demonstrate how critical computer chips are to power an AI-driven future.

"Nvidia is partnering with Mercedes Benz Group AG (ETR: MBG) to power their next generation of cars from 2024, including level 4 autonomy, over-the-air updates, and best-in-class safety and convenience applications," he said.

"Nvidia is a small position for us, bought at lower prices, but their 81% market share in AI processing is now more relevant than ever."

The post What are the best ASX shares to buy for semiconductor exposure? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

If you stayed away, then you've managed to save yourself from watching your wealth go up in smoke as the semiconductor company's shares dropped from a high of $2.34 to 62 cents today.

That's a decline of approximately 73%, which would have turned a $10,000 investment into approximately $2,700.

Given BrainChip shares have fallen so heavily, some investors may now be considering picking up a parcel "on the cheap". However, I believe this would be a mistake and would suggest investors avoid this meme stock.

Listed below are five key reasons I would stay away from BrainChip's shares.

BrainChip share price valuation

The first reason I would avoid BrainChip shares is the company's valuation. Although its shares have pulled back materially from their highs, that doesn't necessarily make them good value. In fact, with a market capitalisation of $1.1 billion and next to no revenue, I would argue it remains vastly overvalued.

For example, Life360 Inc (ASX: 360) has a similar market capitalisation but with US$174 million of annualised recurring revenue. Furthermore, Life360 is bordering on being profitable and has a hefty cash balance. Whereas BrainChip is burning away at its cash and has six more quarters of funding before another capital raising will be required. Raising more capital, whether it be through LDA Capital or the market, will dilute shareholders further.

Competition

BrainChip focuses on edge artificial intelligence (AI). This is the deployment of AI applications in devices throughout the physical world. However, the computation is done near to the user at the edge of the network rather than centrally in a cloud computing facility or data centre.

Competition in edge AI is fierce, with major players such as Nvidia and Qualcomm all pursuing dominance in the market. US$360 billion tech behemoth Nvidia recently unveiled the Jetson Orin Nano series of system-on-modules (SOMs). Nvidia highlights that Jetson Nano has "set the new standard for entry-level edge AI and robotics applications".

Whereas US$130 billion semiconductor giant Qualcomm's Snapdragon has been winning plaudits. Dave Altavilla, a semiconductor expert writing for Forbes, recently commented:

Qualcomm's previous-gen Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 platform led the field with respect to the various smartphone AI workloads, and its Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 platform is currently unmatched across the board.

And with both Nvidia and Qualcomm pouring billions into their research and development (R&D) activities each year, I have serious doubts over BrainChip's ability to compete. In my opinion, big users of these technologies are more likely to go with a brand they can trust than a small player with no track record of success.

No takeover?

This brings us neatly to the next reason I would avoid BrainChip shares. When a small company has a game-changing technology that is going to disrupt an industry, the incumbents will often acquire it.

However, BrainChip has received no takeover interest from its larger rivals. That's despite them spending billions on R&D each year. Nvidia spent US$1.82b on R&D during the last quarter, which is enough to buy BrainChip twice. If the big boys really feared BrainChip's technology, they would surely acquire it. Particularly while the Australian dollar is so weak versus the US dollar.

We've been here before

If you've followed the BrainChip story long enough, you'll know that the company has been talking up its growth potential for many years. For example, back in 2016, the company projected the "neuromorphic chip market alone to be $4.8bn by 2022 [and] consist of abundant opportunities".

Anyone reading that presentation six years ago would likely have imagined that BrainChip would now be commanding a decent share of this huge market. Particularly given the list of its partnerships, which were supposed to create "significant" license opportunities and related revenues. A quick look at its income statement is enough to see that these partnerships didn't deliver the goods.

Fast forward and BrainChip has a number of new partnerships which open up "new global opportunities for the Akida technology". Yet, there is little revenue to speak of.

Announcements going nowhere

This leads on nicely to the final reason I am staying away from BrainChip shares. The bulls will point to its NASA announcement as a testament to the supposed quality of its product. That announcement revealed that BrainChip was collaborating with VORAGO Technologies. The ASX tech company was to support a Phase I NASA program for a neuromorphic processor that meets spaceflight requirements.

However, since the announcement of an evaluation kit order several months later in December 2020, the company has said no more. And neither VORAGO nor NASA are mentioned in its latest annual report. Furthermore, as far as I can see, the work with NASA appears to have ended after just three weeks on 18 January 2021 based on NASA data without comment from BrainChip.

This is another case of déjà vu if you've followed the BrainChip story as long as I have. Remember the French National Police evaluation of its SNAPvision technology? The countless major casinos trialling its Game Outcome solution? The "large market opportunity" for BrainChip Studio?

I suspect in a few years we could be asking the same about Akida.

The post 5 reasons I would avoid BrainChip shares at all costs appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Do you remember the heady days of 2021, when Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) surged past $60,000, and the entire crypto market was hitting new heights? There were plenty of people saying that they wish they had bought Bitcoin when it was $20,000 or that they wish they had bought Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) below $2,000. After 2022's sell-off, patient, risk-tolerant long-term investors can do just that as prices have returned to these levels. Here are three cryptos that I would regret not buying during the dip. 

1. Bitcoin

Bitcoin has shown some signs of life as of late, rallying 33% off the 52-week low of $17,664 that it hit in June. Bitcoin is still a long way off from its all-time high of over $68,000 last November, and I like the fact that investors don't have to try to "catch a falling knife" now that the largest digital asset by market cap has stabilized and looks like it is building momentum again.

As the original cryptocurrency and the largest digital asset with a market cap of nearly $450 billion, Bitcoin is a blue chip cryptocurrency that I would buy during this pullback. When the stock market is down, it is a great time to start or add to discounted positions in top global companies, and the crypto market is no different -- during this downturn, investors can accumulate a position in Bitcoin at a discounted price rather than gambling on smaller altcoins with questionable utility that are down 95% from all-time highs they are unlikely to ever approach again. 

Bitcoin's Lightning Network has made using and transacting in Bitcoin easier and more accessible than ever before. Companies like Block (NYSE: SQ) are leveraging Lightning to allow their customers to be paid in Bitcoin and to round up credit and debit card purchases for Cash Card users. These services are making Bitcoin more widely available to the general public than ever before and can help it reach even further adoption. 

I like the idea of all investors holding at least a small amount of Bitcoin in their portfolios. The hard cap of 21 million Bitcoin that will ever exist stands in stark contrast to the inflationary nature of all other global currencies. Bitcoin is a worldwide network that anyone on the planet with an internet connection can participate in, so it remains an attractive asset to individuals in countries that have seen their currency suffer from serious inflation over the years, such as Turkey and Venezuela. The increasing ease of using Bitcoin and its global appeal as a decentralized asset with a capped supply make it an attractive investment to allocate at least some investment toward, especially during the current market weakness.

2. Ethereum 

Ethereum has rallied over 100% from its cycle low in June, but the second-largest cryptocurrency is still down 60% from its all-time high. Ethereum is also benefiting from a major upcoming catalyst in The Merge, its long-awaited switch from the proof-of-work consensus to proof of stake. After completing a successful trial run on its Goerli testnet, The Merge is now expected to take place between Sept. 15th and Sept. 16th. The transition will make Ethereum less energy-intensive and thus more climate-friendly. It will also make Ethereum more decentralized, which proponents say will make it more secure. Furthermore, Ethereum will no longer be an inflationary asset and will instead become deflationary in nature, which will make it more scarce over time and should add to its value as demand increases. Some observers also point out that Ethereum will become more scalable as sharding is implemented. Lastly, more users will be able to earn staking rewards by participating in the Ethereum network. With this array of improvements in the wake of a major catalyst, Ethereum is another blue chip cryptocurrency that I have been adding to on the dip. 

3. Solana 

With a market cap of $15 billion, Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) is much smaller (and much newer) than Bitcoin and Ethereum but is also worthy of a position during the current downturn for investors who are looking to diversify and are comfortable moving a bit further down the risk curve. Solana is down 84% from its all-time high but is starting to catch some momentum as well, with a 56% increase since hitting its cycle low in June. 

Solana is establishing itself as a smaller but viable competitor to Ethereum in the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), with leading Solana marketplace Magic Eden recently achieving unicorn status with a valuation of over $1 billion in a private funding round. OpenSea, which is viewed as the bellwether for the NFT market, recently opened up its platform to Solana NFTs after previously exclusively featuring Ethereum and Polygon (CRYPTO: MATIC) NFTs. Solana is now the second-largest protocol for NFTs as measured by secondary sales, trailing only Ethereum. Solana is home to a talented team of developers, and its uses are not limited to just NFTs or DeFi applications like many other cryptos -- Solana developers are even working on a phone that will make it easier to interact with decentralized applications when using a mobile device. This phone is scheduled to launch in early 2023 with a price point of $1,000. While this may seem a tad esoteric to some observers, I'm loath to count Solana out because co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and other key figures from Solana all have prior experience at Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM), which creates semiconductors for the mobile phone industry.

The crypto bear market has created the opportunity to start or add to positions in the top two assets that drive the entire industry, Bitcoin and Ethereum, as well as emerging challengers like Solana, at steep discounts to where they traded just a few months ago. For risk-tolerant investors, this could be the right time to allocate a percentage of their portfolios toward cryptocurrency with some smart buys. 

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post 3 cryptos I would regret not buying on the dip appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

If you're in the market for an investment in the chip industry, you've likely considered powerhouse players Qualcomm Inc (NASDAQ: QCOM) and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA). The former has a long history dominating the cellular chip space, and the latter is currently a leader in the graphics processing unit (GPU) market. 

Both tech companies are positioning themselves to benefit from long-term chip trends, but which is a better buy right now? Let's take a closer look at what each is doing to grow its business to find out. 

The case for Qualcomm 

Qualcomm's bread and butter for many years has been the company's long list of 3G and 4G patents that it collected royalties on from device makers. Qualcomm was involved in several years-long battles with other tech companies over how much it receives for its patent royalties, but much of that has been settled now. 

The company's chip business is still alive and well and sales to device makers, including Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi, account for about three-quarters of the company's total revenue. The rest of the company's sales come from its licensing business, which still brings in most of Qualcomm's profit. 

Qualcomm is banking on the next wave of cellular devices, 5G smartphones, as a potential catalyst for its business. While 5G could take a few years to fully take off, Qualcomm already has 110 5G agreements with smartphone makers and all of the major handset manufacturers for its 5G licensing. 

Qualcomm is optimistic that 5G could boost its business because it estimates that the number of 5G-enabled smartphones will grow 150% this year. 

The case for NVIDIA

NVIDIA's core business is designing graphics processors for gaming and data centers. The company's GPUs do a fantastic job of processing images and graphics quickly, which makes them great for gaming and for artificial intelligence processing as well. 

Tech companies are increasingly needing to use GPUs to help assist other processors and, as a result, NVIDIA's data center sales grew an astonishing 162% in the most recent quarter (reported on Nov. 18). Meanwhile, NVIDIA's GPU sales in the gaming market continue to grow as well. The company's gaming segment revenue grew 37% in the most recent quarter and still represents 48% of the company's total sales.

The long-term opportunities for NVIDIA come from the ways its chips can be used by other tech companies and its current market position over competitors like Advanced Micro Devices. Not only is NVIDIA a GPU leader, but its chips are tapping into long-term growth trends in gaming, AI cloud computing, and 5G data centers. 

The global GPU market was worth an estimated $19.8 billion in 2019 but will balloon to $200 billion by 2027. With NVIDIA already tapping into key markets and leading its rival in the GPU space, the tech giant is well-positioned to continue growing. 

The verdict: Buy NVIDIA 

While Qualcomm certainly has some potential to be a good investment, NVIDIA's diversification of its GPU business across data centers, gaming, and future tech (think driverless cars) makes the company a better long-term bet. On top of that, NVIDIA's core businesses are performing well and providing stability for the company as it pursues new revenue opportunities. All of this gives NVIDIA an edge over Qualcomm in this match-up.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Better buy: NVIDIA vs. Qualcomm appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.