Top AI Stocks to Buy in 2026: Infrastructure Winners Outpace General Market

The Nasdaq-100 index delivered solid 20% returns throughout 2025, riding a wave of optimism around generative artificial intelligence. Yet this expanding field remains largely unprofitable, with emerging AI leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic burning through billions quarterly to fund the expensive hardware infrastructure that makes large language models possible. As we head into 2026, the smartest investors are recognizing a crucial truth: the real money lies not in the AI software companies struggling for profitability, but in the semiconductor and memory firms providing the foundational infrastructure.

Two companies stand out as particularly compelling investments for capturing this opportunity: Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) and Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO). Both are positioned to benefit enormously as enterprises scramble to build out AI data center capacity, yet each offers a different risk-reward profile for investors seeking exposure to the semiconductor boom.

Why Broadcom Could Dominate Custom AI Chip Manufacturing

Graphics processing units and AI accelerators represent the operational heart of large language model systems—they’re the chips that actually train and execute AI workloads. Nvidia currently dominates this space, but Broadcom is rapidly capturing market share through a fundamentally different approach.

While Nvidia designs chips and outsources manufacturing, Broadcom manufactures custom chips that other companies design. These application-specific integrated circuits, or ASICs, offer customers dramatic advantages in cost efficiency and performance optimization. Rather than buying expensive, standardized solutions, enterprises can now work with Broadcom to build chips tailored precisely to their needs.

The competitive advantage is compelling. Custom chips give AI companies greater control over supply chains and unlock substantial cost-saving opportunities. As the software side of the AI industry hemorrhages money, enterprises will grow increasingly focused on improving efficiency throughout their infrastructure. OpenAI’s September partnership with Broadcom to develop custom AI chips—scheduled for deployment this year—signals how serious major players have become about this strategy.

Broadcom’s financial momentum supports this narrative. Fourth-quarter 2025 revenue climbed 28% year-over-year to $18 billion, with AI semiconductor revenue alone surging 74% to $6.5 billion. That said, Broadcom shares trade at a forward price-to-earnings multiple of 33, placing them above the S&P 500 average of 22. This premium valuation reflects justified optimism about growth, but represents a steeper entry point than alternative AI infrastructure plays.

Micron Technology: The Overlooked Value Play

Memory chips power everything from smartphones to automotive systems, but the current generative AI buildout is creating unprecedented demand for Micron’s specialized high-bandwidth memory hardware. Remarkably, this explosive growth opportunity hasn’t yet translated into a comparable spike in Micron’s valuation—presenting a genuine mismatch between fundamentals and market pricing.

Micron has spent four decades establishing itself as a leader in DRAM and NAND flash memory design and manufacturing. These memory products are traditionally commoditized, producing thin margins and intense competitive pressures where differentiation relies primarily on pricing. However, the artificial intelligence transition is fundamentally reshaping this dynamic.

Mizuho Financial Group projects that NAND memory prices could surge as much as 330% year-over-year in 2026, with an additional 50% increase anticipated in 2027. These projections assume cloud computing giants continue their aggressive data center expansion to meet ravenous AI infrastructure demand. Meanwhile, Micron’s valuation remains remarkably restrained. At just 13 times forward earnings, Micron trades at roughly 40% below the S&P 500’s typical multiple.

The price appreciation already underway—shares have climbed approximately 400% over the past twelve months—reflects growing recognition of this opportunity. Yet even after this run-up, the valuation gap between Micron and the broader market suggests the consensus has still underappreciated the company’s positioning in the AI buildout cycle.

Choosing the Right Stock for Your Portfolio

Both Micron and Broadcom offer legitimate paths to profiting from AI infrastructure investment, but they suit different investor profiles and risk tolerances.

Broadcom appeals to investors comfortable with higher valuations in exchange for proven custom-chip momentum and established relationships with major AI enterprises. The 74% surge in AI semiconductor revenue demonstrates tangible current execution. However, paying 33x forward earnings means the company must deliver exceptional growth to justify its premium to the market.

Micron targets value-conscious investors seeking meaningful upside at an attractive entry point. The company’s 13x valuation offers genuine margin-of-safety protection, particularly given the forecasted memory price surge and anticipated continued data center hardware shortages through 2026 and beyond. The primary risk lies in execution—Micron must capitalize on this favorable window before competitors catch up and margins normalize.

The near-term environment favors Micron’s combination of valuation discount and industry tailwinds. The far-term landscape remains more uncertain, where the outcome depends on Broadcom’s ability to maintain custom-chip market share gains and Micron’s capacity to defend margins once supply constraints ease.

For most investors building an AI infrastructure position, Micron represents the more attractive risk-adjusted opportunity. The company’s rock-bottom valuation alongside global memory hardware scarcity expected to persist through 2026 positions Micron for potentially explosive near-term appreciation—particularly compared to Broadcom’s already-elevated entry point.