The ongoing artificial intelligence boom is continuing to have unexpected ramifications for Wall Street stocks, and the news that Apple CEO Tim Cook expects products to become more expensive as component parts grow in price could have a lasting impact on chip makers.
Cook warned that price rises are “unavoidable”, having claimed that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) had been attempting to shield consumers from the soaring costs of component parts.
In a fresh series of supply chain challenges, US import prices rose significantly in May due to the rising costs of tech equipment, plastics, and air travel, as long-standing disruption from the war in Iran was met with strains from growing AI data center demand.
The import index increased 1.9% in May after similar growth in April, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The annual growth rate has rallied to a near four-year high of 6.7%.
Managing Data Center Demand
The sheer volume of components and energy costs associated with data centers are set to disrupt many industries in a way that will play out across Wall Street.
According to Goldman Sachs insight, the power demands of US data centres are forecast to more than double to 66 GW in 2027, up significantly from the 31 GW recorded last year. This major shift is down to the rapidly accelerating buildout of AI infrastructure.
“Data center projects are creating a demand squeeze for component parts like servers, solid-state drives (SSDs), hard disk drives (HDDs), and storage area networks (SANs), as wells as high-speed switches, routers, and load balancers to manage traffic,” explained Vsevolod Smirnov, Head of Marketing at Just2Trade.
“While there’s an inflationary impact to keep in mind, it will also ensure the long-term revenue streams needed to grow equipment makers over the years ahead. This is likely to support ‘pick and shovel’ stocks that manufacture the chips that are seeing sustained growth in demand.”
Although stocks like Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) have emerged as market leaders during the AI boom, the semiconductor giant doesn’t actually make its own chips. Instead, we may see some major opportunities in the following three manufacturers in the mid-term future:
1. ASML Holding ()
One of the more understated stars of the AI boom, ASML Holding has rallied more than 150% in the past 12 months as demand for the chips needed to drive artificial intelligence adoption has soared.
The reason that ASML is a strong stock to consider is that the company has a monopoly on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography systems needed to print the world’s most advanced microchips. This means that the manufacturer is in a uniquely strong position when it comes to full order books and the ongoing period of high demand for chips.
ASML reported a 13% increase in Q1 2026 revenue, with the Amsterdam-listed company reporting €8.8 billion ($10bn) versus €8.5bn ($9.74bn) expected. The firm also beat Zacks Consensus Estimates on earnings per share (EPS) by 8.4%.
There’s also plenty of evidence that ASML is seeking to broaden its global footprint, having partnered with Tata Electronics to support India’s advanced chip ambitions.
2. Applied Materials ()
Another stock to track is Applied Materials, which is a leader in materials engineering solutions that can be used to modify and analyze silicon wafers, helping to support the manufacturing of edge computing components and supporting high-bandwidth memory (HBM) technology.
The stock has soared more than 260% over the past 12 months, making it one of the largest beneficiaries of the rapid rise in AI adoption and infrastructure initiatives.
Applied Materials reported record revenue of $7.91 billion for Q1 2026, up 13% on the previous quarter and 11% year-over-year, showcasis the high momentum that the stock is experiencing amid high demand for data centers.
3. Lam Research ()
The best performer in this selection over the past year is Lam Research Corp, which is an important player in the fabrication of 3D memory architectures and advanced packaging. The stock has grown more than 325% over the last 12 months.
Lam directly benefits from the massive capital expenditures that are currently being funnelled by AI leaders into data center memory, and some of the stock’s biggest innovations have been secured thanks to its significant customer investments in high-bandwidth memory.
Lam Research is also pioneering its Aether dry-resist technology, which was recently selected as the production tool of record for a key DRAM customer, further expanding its industry presence.
Riding the AI Wave
The artificial intelligence market rally has shifted its focus on data centers and infrastructure projects designed to support the technology’s long-term adoption.
As demand creates new supply chain challenges within the industry, it’s more likely that the manufacturers of component parts will rise to the fore as major beneficiaries in the years to come.
Although it’s uncertain just how sustained the AI boom will be, it would be incapable of growing any further without the component parts supplied by the stocks listed above, making them an excellent collection of firms to track for investors.
