TSMC's role as the biggest semiconductor foundry puts it in a terrific position to capitalize on the AI spending boom.
ASML makes the machines that help TSMC make advanced AI chips, and that could help the Dutch giant deliver better-than-expected results.
Spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure is showing no signs of slowing, as evidenced by the recent quarterly results of major U.S. hyperscalers. As it turns out, the four biggest hyperscalers in the U.S. -- Amazon, Meta Platforms, Alphabet, and Microsoft -- are on track to spend a whopping $700 billion to bolster their AI data center infrastructure in 2026.
That points to incremental spending of just over $300 billion from last year's levels. We will now take a closer look at two no-brainer companies -- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM) and ASML Holding (NASDAQ: ASML) -- that are poised to win big from this massive spending by top tech companies in the U.S. on data center infrastructure.
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Image source: ASML.
TSMC's position as the world's largest semiconductor foundry makes it the ideal bet to capitalize on hyperscalers' massive capital spending on AI infrastructure this year. That's because a whopping 60% of spending on AI data centers is allocated to chips and computing hardware, according to McKinsey.
TSMC manufactures those chips for all the major AI chip designers -- Nvidia, Broadcom, Marvell Technology, Intel, and AMD. Also, the chips manufactured by TSMC power consumer applications such as smartphones and personal computers. So, TSMC is more than just a play on the AI data center market, though it's undeniable that this niche is playing a key role in supercharging its growth.
TSMC management pointed out on the company's January earnings call that AI accelerators accounted for a high-teens percentage of total revenue last year. Management added that customers have reached out to request additional capacity to support their expansion plans, which isn't surprising as it controlled a whopping 72% of the global foundry market in the third quarter of 2025.
TSMC is way ahead of its rivals, as second-placed Samsung Foundry controlled just 7% of the global foundry market last year. The good part is that TSMC is undertaking efforts to support the robust demand from the hyperscalers discussed above. It intends to spend $52 billion to $56 billion as capital expenditure this year, well above last year's outlay of $40.9 billion.
Importantly, TSMC points out that it expects its AI accelerator revenue to grow at a "mid-to-high-fifties % CAGR" through 2029. So, the healthy AI infrastructure spending is poised to be a long-term tailwind for TSMC. Analysts are forecasting a 34% jump in earnings this year, and it can sustain such healthy growth levels for a long time to come, given the potential growth in AI accelerator revenue.
All this makes TSMC a top semiconductor stock to buy right now to capitalize on the $700 billion AI spending in 2026 and the long run.
TSMC's higher capital expenditures (capex) in 2026 is good news for ASML Holding. That's because the Dutch semiconductor equipment giant makes the machines that help TSMC manufacture its advanced AI accelerator chips.
ASML has a monopoly in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography market. These machines help manufacture chips with process nodes of 7 nanometers (nm) or lower.
What's worth noting is that TSMC's current flagship process node -- 2nm -- is in such strong demand that the company is having to build new plants to support customer demand. This seemingly bottomless thirst for chip-making equipment explains why ASML has been receiving orders for its machines at a healthy clip. The company's net bookings jumped by an impressive 48% in 2025 to just over 28 billion euros ($33 billion), exceeding the 16% growth in its annual revenue.
ASML anticipates its 2026 revenue to land between 34 billion euros ($40 billion) and 39 billion euros ($46 billion), with the midpoint indicating a 12% increase over last year. However, the company could do even better, as a significant increase in AI infrastructure spending is likely to help it land more orders.
An important point to note here is that ASML was sitting on an order backlog of almost 39 billion euros at the end of 2025. That coincides with the higher end of its 2026 revenue guidance. Throw in the potential for new orders the company may receive this year due to hyperscalers' big spending on AI infrastructure, and there is a good chance it will easily exceed its growth expectations.
As such, buying this AI stock now could be a profitable move for 2026. ASML's 12-month median price target of $1,675 points to potential gains of 13% from current levels, but it could significantly exceed that mark as the big jump in AI infrastructure spending could help it clock faster-than-anticipated growth in the coming quarters.
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Harsh Chauhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends ASML, Advanced Micro Devices, Alphabet, Amazon, Intel, Marvell Technology, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.