3 AI Stocks I'd Be Happy to Hold Through Any Pullback

The tech sector has been volatile, and because some of my biggest holdings are artificial intelligence (AI) stocks, I've seen my portfolio go through some wild swings.

It's not exactly pleasant when the market moves against you, but pullbacks are normal. The best way to prepare for them is to pick stocks you believe in for the long haul. Three of my top AI stocks are companies I'll hold through any downturn, because each has a dominant position and a robust competitive moat that makes it difficult to displace.

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1. Broadcom

Demand for custom AI chips is growing rapidly. The hyperscalers spending the most on AI infrastructure need chips built for their specific needs and want to avoid dependence on Nvidia.

Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) is the market leader for custom AI accelerators. Estimates place its share of the custom chip market at roughly 70%, and with tech giants increasingly opting for custom silicon, Broadcom has reported significant revenue growth. The company's AI revenue jumped 106% to $8.4 billion in the first quarter of 2026, while total net revenue rose 29% to $19.3 billion.

Broadcom's clients include Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL), Meta Platforms, OpenAI, Anthropic, and two undisclosed hyperscalers. Alphabet and Meta are two of the four companies spending the most on data centers, according to recent research by The Motley Fool, a good indicator that Broadcom's revenue growth should continue. Broadcom Chief Executive Officer Hock Tan has also revealed that there is a "line of sight to achieve AI revenue from chips, just chips, in excess of $100 billion in 2027."

What deepens Broadcom's moat is that designing custom AI chips isn't a short-term commitment. These are multiyear deals (Broadcom and Meta announced an extension of their partnership through 2029 last month), and once a company uses Broadcom's technology, switching costs are high.

2. Alphabet

Few, if any, tech companies have dominant positions in as many markets as Alphabet. Google Search is the crown jewel, with a 90% market share and generating $60.4 billion in revenue in Q1 2026, a 19% year-over-year increase. Android has more than two-thirds of the mobile operating system market, as does Chrome in the web browser market.

For AI, Alphabet uses a full-stack approach, giving it greater control and less reliance on partners. Where other AI stocks may control one layer of the AI stack, such as infrastructure or models, Alphabet develops its own chips (with Broadcom's assistance), operates its own data centers, and has the perfect distribution layer with its existing products and services.

The fact that Alphabet is a financial fortress also gives me confidence in it in the event of a pullback. It has generated $64.4 billion in free cash flow during the past 12 months and has $126.8 billion in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet, more than enough to pay off all its long-term debt.

3. ASML

Based in the Netherlands, ASML (NASDAQ: ASML) specializes in a key part of the chip production process: It manufactures lithography systems that semiconductor companies use to mass-produce patterns on silicon wafers.

The most advanced AI chips require extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, and ASML is essentially the only game in town. It's had a near-100% share of the EUV lithography market since 2023, and this isn't a market a competitor could easily break into.

ASML's EUV machines are extremely complex. The most recent, called High NA, needs to be disassembled and transported to customers on seven partially loaded Boeing 747s, and each machine costs more than $400 million.

ASML reported net sales of 8.8 billion euros ($10.2 billion) in Q1 2026, with a healthy 53% margin. The sales figure was down from 9.7 billion euros in Q4 2025, but that's normal for ASML. Because of how much its machines cost, revenue can fluctuate significantly if just a few orders slip from one quarter to the next.

The highlight of the earnings report was ASML raising its full-year net sales projection to between 36 billion and 40 billion euros. It reported net sales of 32.7 billion euros in 2025, and the midpoint of 38 billion euros would represent a 16% increase.

Broadcom, Alphabet, and ASML each have a competitive moat that won't go away in a downturn. I've held them through pullbacks before, often using those periods as an opportunity to buy more shares, and I'll continue to do so during any future market turbulence.

Lyle Daly has positions in ASML, Alphabet, Broadcom, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends ASML, Alphabet, Boeing, Broadcom, Meta Platforms, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.