Got $5,000? 3 Tech Stocks to Buy and Hold for the Long Term

Finding stocks that you can buy and hold for the long term without worrying about day-to-day trends is a smart move for individual investors. Often, you don't have time to check the markets daily, so picking stocks that have an incredible long-term outlook is a smart move.

I've got three that fit the bill, and investors should consider scooping them up right now.

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1. Alphabet

Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) used to be the laughingstock of the artificial intelligence (AI) world, but that's no longer true. The company has emerged as one of the top generative AI model producers, with its leading Gemini model. Its latest launch had ChatGPT's maker, OpenAI, so worried that it declared a "code red" at the company. This bodes well for Alphabet's future, as it may be able to secure itself as the go-to model to build upon.

Alphabet is also exploring a new business option: selling computing hardware. This would place Alphabet directly against Nvidia and its graphics processing units (GPUs). Alphabet designed a custom computing unit in tandem with Broadcom, known as the Tensor Processing Unit (TPU).

Originally, Alphabet only used these for internal computing or made them available to rent through its Google Cloud cloud computing service. However, it's reportedly considering selling them to Meta Platforms. If it does this, it will open up a new revenue stream investors haven't accounted for.

Alphabet has several more business units trending higher, making this an excellent stock to buy now and forget about.

2. Taiwan Semiconductor

The race to build the best computing unit for the AI hyperscalers is intense, and several companies have strong offerings. This could shift which company is the go-to computing unit provider over the next few years.

Yet, one thing won't change: where they get their chips from. Companies like Nvidia, Broadcom, and Alphabet are all fabless chip firms, which means they design the chip, but don't manufacture it. There are several companies involved in this process, but the most critical is Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM).

Taiwan Semiconductor is one of the few advanced chip foundries in the world, and is the largest by revenue. It got to that level by continuously innovating and having strong production yields. Additionally, Taiwan Semiconductor is a neutral party in the chip world, so customers don't have to worry about their designs being reverse-engineered by TSMC.

Demand for chips will only rise in the future, and because TSMC is the primary supplier of them, its stock will continue to do well.

3. Amazon

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is an absolute stalwart in every industry it operates in. While it has achieved dominant e-commerce status in the U.S., it also has a thriving cloud computing business in Amazon Web Services. AWS holds the largest market share in this important industry, and it is also growing quickly, with AWS revenue rising 20% in Q3. Furthermore, it accounted for 66% of Amazon's operating profits in Q3.

One of the biggest up-and-coming stars in Amazon's business is its advertising services. Because Amazon gets traffic from consumers looking to buy a specific item, it has some of the most valuable advertising real estate on the internet. This has allowed Amazon's ad segment to grow rapidly, and it continued that trend in Q3 with 24% growth to $17.7 billion -- about half the size of AWS.

Amazon has had a consistent track record of starting new business units and growing them to massive success. I have no doubt that Amazon will continue that trend in the future, making it a great stock to buy and hold. You never know what Amazon is going to launch next, but it will likely have a good degree of success.

Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Broadcom, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.