Alphabet: The AI Leader Best Positioned to Dominate 2026

Core Insights - Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) is outperforming the broader market in 2025, surpassing many peers and AI competitors, with a significant stock increase of 70% year-to-date and 130% from its 52-week low [2][4] - The sentiment around Alphabet has shifted from caution to conviction, largely due to its execution in AI advancements and a notable endorsement from Berkshire Hathaway [3][6] - The release of Google's Gemini 3 AI model has reinforced its market position, outperforming benchmarks and showcasing advantages over competitors like NVIDIA [5][7] Company Performance - Alphabet's stock has seen a remarkable increase, with a 70% rise year-to-date and a 130% increase from its 52-week low, indicating strong investor interest [4] - The company has flipped its sentiment from negative to overwhelmingly bullish, driven by record earnings and expanding cloud profitability [6] AI Advancements - The launch of Gemini 3 on November 18 has been pivotal, with analysts issuing upgrades and highlighting its superiority in various benchmarks [5][6] - Gemini 3 was primarily trained on Google's in-house TPU chips, providing a competitive edge in pricing and scalability over NVIDIA's GPUs [7] Market Reactions - The release of Gemini 3 has generated positive reactions across the tech industry, with notable figures like Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff expressing that it feels like a significant change in the AI landscape [8]