Nvidia, the most important stock in the world according to many on Wall Street, handily beat expectations this afternoon in an earnings report that reflects rising investments in AI across broad parts of the economy.

By the numbers: Demand for the company's AI products and services generated a record $30 billion in revenue in its latest fiscal quarter.

• That's up 122% over the same period last year.
• Earnings came in at $0.67 a share, up 168% from last year.
• Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting $28.72 billion in revenue and earnings of $0.65 a share.

The company also projects revenue for the current quarter to reach $32.5 billion, which is higher than analyst consensus.

The company's shares are slipping after hours, reflecting abnormal expectations and the stock's inherent volatility.

State of play: Nvidia has become synonymous with AI, but that doesn't mean it can relax. Peers, startups and even its own customers are increasingly trying to encroach on its territory.

• Nvidia's main GPU rival AMD just agreed to acquire ZT Systems for a boost in engineering brain power.
• Chip- and AI-design upstarts Cerebras, d-Matrix and Groq have been raising hundreds of millions of dollars in venture capital.
• And Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, Alphabet and OpenAI, which are buyers of Nvidia's forthcoming Blackwell platform processors, each have been working on their own homegrown chips.

What we're watching: Despite this stepped-up race in the AI chip game, Nvidia is reportedly under investigation from the DOJ related to whether it has abused its position of market dominance.

• Today's results may not help its case.

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Super Micro Computer today said its annual report filing with the SEC will be delayed so it can "assess some internal controls."

Why it matters: The announcement comes a day after a report from short-seller and financial research firm Hindenburg Research that accused the server equipment maker of "glaring accounting red flags," including around its revenue accounting.

Super Micro's shares plummeted 19% today, wiping out over $6 billion in market cap.

What they're saying: JPMorgan analysts said some of Hindenburg's allegations are "tough to verify" and that they believe there is "limited evidence of accounting mistreatments" beyond charges from the SEC in 2020.

• Super Micro "does not comment on rumors and speculation," the company said in a statement to Axios.

📈 Berkshire Hathaway became the first non-tech company in the U.S. to reach $1 trillion in market cap. (CNBC)

💸 OpenAI is in talks to raise several billion dollars in new funding that would value the company above $100 billion. (WSJ)

Ford today became the latest company to withdraw from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index amid pressure from a right-wing activist.

Zoom in: Ford CEO Jim Farley told workers in a letter that the automaker had withdrawn from the index and won't participate in other "best places to work" lists, saying Ford will still foster "an environment where all of us can do our best work anchored in respect and inclusion."

• Harley-Davidson and Jack Daniels owner Brown-Forman also confirmed they're no longer participating.
• Lowe's, which did not respond to requests seeking comment, has reportedly pulled out of the HRC index too.

Zoom out: A perfect 100 score on the HRC index — once something companies openly bragged about — is the gold standard for companies that want to prove they're committed to LGBTQ+ causes.

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SpaceX, the most valuable aerospace company in the world, has been on the brain a lot this week.

Catch up quick: The Elon Musk-led $210 billion startup has been tasked with picking up two astronauts from the International Space Station after their original ride — Boeing's Starliner spacecraft — was ordered by NASA this past weekend to return to Earth empty due to safety concerns.

• A separate SpaceX rocket launch scheduled originally for yesterday was delayed again for two days due to weather, which means we'll have to continue waiting to witness the first-ever space walk by private citizens.
• And overnight, Musk announced on X that SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet will be free for emergency services access.

The intrigue: All this, after a WSJ Opinion piece earlier this month argued for Musk to head NASA.