Microsoft became the second publicly traded company to reach a $3 trillion market capitalization in January 2024.
Microsoft briefly crossed the threshold during trading on January 24, 2024. The achievement followed a major rise in the company’s share price, supported by growth in cloud computing, enterprise software, and investor interest in artificial intelligence.
Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975. It became dominant in personal-computer software through MS-DOS and Windows, then expanded into productivity software, gaming, cloud infrastructure, search, and professional networking.
The company’s valuation is often compared with Apple’s because both have repeatedly occupied the top positions in global market-cap rankings. Such rankings are not permanent league tables: they can reverse within hours as share prices respond to earnings, economic data, and investor expectations.