ASML Holding NV, the Dutch company that holds a global monopoly on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines, reported fourth-quarter 2025 bookings more than double analyst expectations, driven by insatiable demand for advanced artificial intelligence chips. The company's tools are essential for manufacturing the most powerful semiconductors, including those designed by Nvidia, and its financial outlook underscores its critical role in the AI infrastructure supply chain.
In Q4 2025, ASML's total net bookings reached €13.2 billion, with EUV systems alone accounting for €7.4 billion of that figure. For the full year 2025, the company sold 48 EUV systems, generating €11.6 billion in revenue. Analysts note that ASML controls approximately 90% of the global lithography market, a dominance Bank of America analyst Didier Scemama believes is set to grow. "ASML has industrialized next-gen EUV lithography technology, which we believe will underpin many of the disruptive trends of this decade," Scemama stated.
The company's technology is foundational to modern computing. Morningstar equity analyst Javier Correonero explained that machines built by ASML have been involved in producing about 99% of all semiconductors made worldwide. "Lithography was the building block of any chip," Correonero said. EUV systems are particularly crucial for AI, with low numerical aperture EUV used to manufacture current AI chips like Nvidia's Blackwell processors, and the more advanced high numerical aperture EUV being developed for future designs.
ASML's customers are the world's leading chip foundries—Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Intel, and Samsung—who purchase the multi-million-euro machines to build chips for designers like Nvidia. Analysts estimate the most advanced high NA EUV machines sell for between €320 million and €400 million each, while low NA EUV systems cost around €220 million. These foundries are already testing high NA EUV tools, with Intel expected to be the first adopter for high-volume manufacturing by 2027-2028.
Financially, ASML's trajectory remains strong. The company forecasts 2026 net sales between €34 billion and €39 billion, up from €32.7 billion in 2025. Its share price reflects this optimism, having risen 36% in 2025 and an additional 32% since January 1, 2026. Earlier in January, ASML became only the third European firm to reach a valuation above $500 billion.
Separately, semiconductor giant Broadcom was highlighted for its own AI-related growth, reporting a $73 billion backlog of custom AI chip orders slated for delivery over the next 18 months. The company's AI-related semiconductor revenue surged approximately 74% year-over-year in fiscal 2025 and is projected to grow about 100% year-over-year in the coming quarter. Broadcom's strategy focuses on designing custom application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) for hyperscalers like Google, Meta, and Microsoft, including a multi-year collaboration with OpenAI announced in October 2025.
