How Europe’s biggest tech company ASML may have played key role in Nvidia becoming world’s most valuable company

Nvidia is currently the world's most valuable company. The US-based chipmaking giant achieved this feat through its advanced chips, which are powering the AI revolution. However, the company’s success depends a lot on ASML. The Dutch semiconductor equipment maker, which is also Europe's largest technology company, produces lithography machines used to print extremely fine patterns on silicon wafers. This technology is essential to manufacturing the advanced chips that power Nvidia's AI processors.ASML is the only company in the world that makes extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines used to produce the most advanced semiconductors, and it holds a 90% share of the wider lithography market. This monopoly position has made ASML an indispensable partner in the global semiconductor supply chain, enabling companies such as Nvidia to produce advanced AI chips. In a recent note (seen by CNBC), Bank of America analyst Didier Scemama said the company is likely to dominate next-generation EUV lithography. He wrote, “ASML has industrialised next-gen EUV (Extreme Ultraviolet) lithography technology, which we believe will underpin many of the disruptive trends of this decade.”His note came after ASML’s earnings report revealed bookings were more than double analyst expectations in the fourth quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, Javier Correonero, an equity analyst at Morningstar, told CNBC that lithography is ‘the building block of any chip’, and said ASML machines have been used in the production of 99% of semiconductors. EUV systems are particularly important for the ongoing development of AI infrastructure.ASML produces two categories of EUV machines: low-numerical-aperture systems, used to manufacture the current generation of AI chips, including Nvidia’s Blackwell, and high-numerical-aperture systems, used in research and development by companies developing next-generation semiconductor technologies.Both systems operate by firing high-power lasers at molten tin droplets in a vacuum chamber, generating a plasma that emits EUV light. This light is directed through highly precise mirrors and reflected off a mask that contains the circuit pattern for a single chip layer. The pattern is then reduced in size and transferred onto a silicon wafer.These machines are purchased by semiconductor foundries, such as Taiwan-based TSMC, which manufactures chips on behalf of designers such as Nvidia.Correonero said companies such as Japan’s Nikon and Canon, which supply some lithography tools for non-advanced process nodes, were “far-away competitors”.“They are large conglomerates which have invested only a tiny fraction of what ASML has invested over three decades. At this point, catching up is virtually impossible,” he said.EUV systems accounted for a large share of ASML’s booking value, contributing 7.4 billion euros ($8.8 billion) out of total net bookings of 13.2 billion euros (15.7 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2025. Over the full year, ASML sold 48 EUV systems, generating 11.6 billion euros ($13.8 billion) in revenue.ASML does not publicly disclose pricing for its machines. However, analysts told CNBC that the company’s high-NA EUV systems are priced between 320 million euros ($382 million) and 400 million euros ($478 million), while its low-NA EUV systems sell for around 220 million euros ($263 million), according to Correonero.He added that companies, including TSMC, Intel, and Samsung, are currently testing high-NA EUV systems in laboratory environments.“Once customers are accustomed to the tool, it is gradually introduced into high-volume manufacturing. High NA is expected to reach high-volume manufacturing by 2027-2028, with Intel as the first adopter,” Correonero noted.ASML’s share price increased 36% last year and is up a further 32% since January 1. Earlier this month, the company became the third European firm to reach a market valuation of $500 billion, a level it has maintained.Analysts expect further gains in the stock, citing continued demand for advanced chips tied to AI-related investments. ASML forecasts net sales of between 34 billion euros ($40.5 billion) and 39 billion euros ($46.6 billion) in 2026, compared with 32.7 billion euros ($39 billion) reported in 2025.