Nvidia becomes the first public company to reach a $5 trillion market capitalization on Wednesday, with shares rising as much as 5.6% to $212.19. The milestone lands three months after the chipmaker became the first company to cross $4 trillion, and fewer than three years after the launch of ChatGPT set off the boom.

The immediate catalysts come from Washington. At Nvidia’s GTC conference on Tuesday, Jensen Huang says the company holds roughly $500 billion in cumulative orders for its Blackwell and Rubin processors through the end of 2026, a figure that excludes China. He also announces seven new supercomputers for the U.S. government in areas including security, energy and science, a $1 billion investment in Nokia to build AI-native 5G-Advanced and 6G platforms, and partnerships spanning Uber, Palantir, CrowdStrike and Eli Lilly. President Trump says he expects to raise the Blackwell export question with Xi Jinping on Thursday.

Huang uses a Bloomberg Television interview at the event to push back on bubble talk, arguing that people are using AI services and paying for them. Not everyone is convinced. Analysts who spoke to Reuters point to circular financing among a few large players, and the IMF and Bank of England have already flagged the risk of a sentiment reversal.

With $5 trillion on the board, Nvidia is now worth more than the combined stock markets of every country outside the U.S., China and Japan.