Got $3,000? 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks to Buy and Hold for the Long Term.

Artificial intelligence (AI) are two words many people have heard countless times over the past few years. AI isn't new; it has been around for decades. However, the growth and popularity of generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Google's Gemini have brought it mainstream.

It seems most companies -- especially technology companies -- are rushing to introduce AI to its products and services, but not all companies will execute or benefit from the progression of AI similarly. The following two companies are notable exceptions.

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If you have $3,000 available after meeting all essential expenses, and want to invest in AI stocks, look no further. A $1,500 investment in each can expose you to two leaders leveraging AI in different but game-changing ways.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. Alphabet

Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL) is one of the more important AI players because of the research and infrastructure it has contributed to its development. One of its subsidiaries, DeepMind, isn't a household name like Google and YouTube, but it's behind some impressive AI advancements over the years.

Google Search is Alphabet's bread and butter, and there have been some concerns that introducing AI Overview to it could be counterproductive because Google makes money when users click on ads, and AI Overview answers many questions people would usually have to click on a webpage for.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, Google search made $54 billion, up 13% year over year (YOY). That's 56% of Alphabet's total revenue, so you can see why there are some fears about Alphabet cannibalizing itself and interrupting its proven business model. However, the benefits of AI for Alphabet's business will far outweigh any potential losses.

GOOGL Revenue (Quarterly) data by YCharts.

To start, Alphabet has a vertical approach to AI. It handles research, infrastructure, AI training, and app-building in-house. This is different from other big tech companies that rely heavily on third parties, which can limit their flexibility and ability to move at their own pace.

Search aside, one of Alphabet's biggest businesses that stands to benefit from AI is its cloud platform, Google Cloud. It's the third-largest cloud provider in the world (and will likely stay third for a while), but the cloud services pie is large enough and growing fast enough for even it to flourish and scale impressively.

After falling by over 11% this year through March 24, Alphabet's stock is as attractive as it has been in some months. There's no telling how the stock will play out in the short term, but it's well positioned to be a rewarding long-term investment.

2. CrowdStrike

Cybersecurity has become an essential part of the modern business world, and CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD) is one of the main leaders in the industry.

CrowdStrike is the pioneer of AI-native cybersecurity solutions, having led the charge since the 2011 release of its Falcon platform. Plenty of cybersecurity companies had traditional, on-premises products at the time, but CrowdStrike was the first to go at it from a pure cloud and AI approach.

The company has admittedly had a rough nine months after causing the biggest IT outage in history back in July 2024, but its core cybersecurity products have attracted tens of thousands of customers, including being the preferred cloud security platform for over 60% of the Fortune 100.

CrowdStrike's growth has also translated well to its financials. Its annual recurring revenue (ARR) grew 23% YOY to $4.24 billion, with $1.07 billion in free cash flow. These are signs that the company's subscription-based business model, which allows companies to choose specific solutions (identity, endpoint, cloud, etc.), is scaling effectively.

CRWD Free Cash Flow (Annual) data by YCharts.

CrowdStrike says its total address market (TAM) for its AI native solutions is currently around $116 billion, and it expects to grow to $250 billion by 2029. That's a compound annual growth rate of over 20%, so the growth chances are there.

One leg up CrowdStrike has regarding AI and cybersecurity is the first-mover advantage. For AI to be as efficient as possible, it needs lots of data to be trained on, and CrowdStrike has been collecting relevant data for much longer than other competitors.

The cybersecurity industry is here to stay, and so is CrowdStrike. It's an investment I'd feel comfortable holding on to for the long haul.

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Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Stefon Walters has positions in CrowdStrike. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet and CrowdStrike. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.