There are endless statistics we could give you that prove why tech is everything we do. Companies are investing billions of dollars into future innovation, with artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers seeming to be the current focus. For example, data predicts Meta, Amazon, Alphabet, and Microsoft intend to spend roughly $320 billion on AI and data center builds.
According to McKinsey and Company, enterprise technology spending in the US has steadily increased by 8% annually since 2022. A recent Gartner article also stated forecasts of global IT spending reaching $5.61 trillion in 2025, a potential increase of 9.8% from 2024.
We don’t need to keep feeding endless statistics for it to be clear that global innovation is tech-focused, and at the heart of it is the US Tech 100 index. It’s defining the future of global tech innovation. Read on to find out why.
How the US Tech 100 Index Works
The US Tech 100 Index refers to the Nasdaq-100 Index, one of the most accessible trading markets through companies such as Exness. It’s a stock market index of the 100 largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq exchange.
Launched in 1985, it was created as a gauge for the biggest Nasdaq-listed firms outside the financial sector. The index is weighted by market capitalization. That means companies with the highest market value- share price times shares outstanding- have the biggest influence on the index’s movement.
And the indexes with the highest market value are always tech. Giants like Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Alphabet (Google’s parent), Meta, and Tesla consistently outperform the rest of the market. These titans, known as the ‘Magnificent Seven’, are mostly worth over a trillion dollars each.
The Nasdaq-100 is not limited to tech-sector-classified companies. It’s a unique mix of companies that are often tech-oriented. Companies across the following industries are common:
- Computer hardware and software
- Telecommunications
- Retail and wholesale trade
- Bitechnology
What they share in common is a focus on innovation and growth. The index is reconstituted annually every December to ensure it reflects the current top 100 by market cap.
For example, in the December 2024 rebalancing, Palantir Technologies, MicroStrategy, and Axon Enterprise were added to the Nasdaq-100, replacing companies like Illumina and Moderna.
It’s the Benchmark of Competition
The Nasdaq-100 has earned a reputation as “the benchmark of the 21st century,” thanks to its track record of outperformance and innovation. It’s a collection of the market’s most dynamic large-cap companies.
The Nasdaq-100 is often the benchmark to beat for growth-oriented investors, even people who do simple copy trading (according to Exness, copy trading meaning copying the account movements of a successful investor profile). Over the past 10 years, it has significantly outpaced the broader market. Within that timeframe, it has delivered more than double the returns of the S&P 500 Index.
This superior performance shows the index follows the success of tech and other high-growth sectors. As Nasdaq itself states, the Nasdaq-100 is composed of “fundamentally sound and innovative” companies and has a long record of outperforming other large-cap indexes.
Competitors and investors track the Nasdaq-100 constantly as a barometer of tech-sector health. When the Nasdaq-100 is on a bullish run, it signals optimism about technological innovation and economic growth.
In Q4 2024, for example, the Nasdaq-100 (and Nasdaq Composite) was the best-performing major index, easily outperforming the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Russell 2000. This influx was driven by earnings-fueled enthusiasm for AI and other tech breakthroughs. It proves how the index sets the pace that others strive to follow.
The index’s annual reconstitution (mentioned above) also shows this competitive dynamic. Only companies at the forefront of their industries earn and retain a place among the top 100.
Performance Drives Innovation
One of the defining features of Nasdaq’s tech giants is the virtuous cycle between market performance and innovation.
The companies in the Nasdaq-100 achieve incredible stock performance precisely because they innovate relentlessly. That strong performance provides the capital to invest even more in innovation. These firms allocate billions into research and development to stay at the top of – or simply on it – the Nasdaq-100.
We’ve seen clear evidence of innovation fueling performance. In 2024, excitement around artificial intelligence breakthroughs generated a major rally in tech stocks. The anticipation – and later, realization – of strong earnings from AI-related businesses drove the Nasdaq-100 sharply higher.
For example, AI chipmakers such as Nvidia reported booming results, extending the index’s gains in Q4 2024 and continuing into 2025. Nvidia’s stock soared nearly 50% in the first half of 2025 as the demand for its AI processors is almost out of control.
This type of market performance reflects investors rewarding innovation leaders.
There’s also a broader ecosystem effect. The stock performance of Nasdaq-100 leaders drives investment into new innovation across the economy. Seeing giants like Microsoft or Google succeed with AI encourages venture capital and startups to follow.
In North America, venture funding for AI-related ventures reached $63.1 billion by Q3 2025. Huge investments such as the $13 billion funding round for OpenAI competitor Anthropic are a sign that the market’s enthusiasm for AI is spurring further innovation efforts.
The Most Innovative Companies Globally Are on the Nasdaq-100 Index
If you list the world’s most innovative, influential tech companies, you’ll end up naming many Nasdaq-100 stocks.
All six of the US companies valued above $1 trillion are part of the Nasdaq-100—Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Nvidia, and Meta Platforms, holding more than 40% of the Nasdaq-100 value.
These giants consistently rank at the top of global innovation indices, whether measured by R&D spending, patents, or innovative products.
For example, Amazon and Alphabet each invest tens of billions annually in R&D on everything from cloud computing to autonomous systems. Microsoft is merging AI copilots into Office software. Apple is developing next-generation devices (like AR/VR headsets) that again redefine consumer tech. The sheer scale and impact of these firms’ innovations underscore why the Nasdaq-100 is seen as the future of global innovation.
But, we have to say, the Nasdaq-100 isn’t only about a few mega-cap names. There’s a long list of innovators across industries. In fact, over one-third of the index consists of companies outside the traditional information technology and communications sectors. These include pioneers in industries such as:
- Healthcare
- Consumer products
- Industrial tech
For instance, Intuitive Surgical has revolutionized surgery with its robotic systems that enable minimally invasive procedures.
Other innovative and leading companies outside of the top seven include:
- Netflix
- Adobe
- Broadcom
- Costco
- ASML (Netherlands)
- Atlassian (Australia)
The Current Focus of Global Tech Innovation
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index is driven by massive momentum in AI and chip stocks. Investor inflows into tech sectors hit records in Q3 2025 as enthusiasm for artificial intelligence continues to grow almost out of control.
Artificial intelligence is, without a doubt, the central focus. In 2024 and 2025, we’ve seen an AI revolution sweeping across industries—and the Nasdaq-100 companies are leading this charge.
By October 2025, the Nasdaq Composite (and Nasdaq-100) had closed at all-time highs, powered by a confluence of factors. The massive earnings from semiconductor giants such as NVIDIA and Broadcom, and a broader shift toward artificial intelligence infrastructure, have led the market surge.
In fact, nearly 42% of the Nasdaq-100’s 2025 year-to-date gains have come from AI and chip stocks alone. Every major company in the index is investing heavily in AI. Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI is bringing GPT-powered features to its products, Google is deploying generative AI in search and cloud, Amazon is expanding AI offerings on AWS, and Meta is using AI to improve its platforms. The list could go on.
Beyond AI, several other innovation arenas are in the spotlight:
- Advanced Semiconductors and computing hardware
- Cloud infrastructure
- Cloud computing and software
- Electric vehicles and clean tech
- Digital media and consumer tech
- Biotech and healthcare technology
Across all these areas, the common thread is that Nasdaq-100 companies are at the forefront of the innovation curve. They are continuously setting global standards.
The current focus of global tech innovation is heavily centered on AI and the technologies enabling it. And the Nasdaq-100 Index is a clear mirror of that trend. Whatever the future holds, the companies in this index are likely to be the ones defining it.