High inflation, rising interest rates, and global uncertainties, resulting in softer consumer spending, reduced product demand, market capitalization declines, and workforce reductions made headlines in 2022. These headwinds continued into 2023, with a slight decline in global tech spending and increasing layoffs. Nonetheless, economists are now less concerned about the risk of recession, with analysts optimistic about modest growth potential in the tech sector for 2024. Despite ongoing global and economic uncertainties, Deloittesuggests that it is time to refocus on innovation and growth. Their 2024 technology industry outlook identifies key trends and strategies expected to shape tech leaders' priorities, including (1) Aiming for a comeback with support from cloud computing, AI, and cybersecurity technologies; (2) Balancing globalization with self-reliance to mitigate risks associated with geopolitical unrest, supply chain disruptions, and regulatory changes; (3) Preparing for growth opportunities with generative AI applications; and (4) Addressing regulatory challenges as governments worldwide assess the impacts of tech platforms on businesses and consumers.
“In 2023 the tech industry navigated global economic headwinds and geopolitical tensions, while building widespread expectation around the potential of AI. The opportunity for the year ahead is clear. By putting AI at the center of their strategies, tech businesses could leapfrog competitors who were previously ahead, not only by accelerating their transformation journeys but also repositioning operations to capitalize on rapidly emerging technologies and business models.”
Similarly, Olivier Wolf, EY-Parthenon Global TMT Leader, siad:
“Notwithstanding regulatory hurdles associated with AI deals, huge potential remains. The platform nature of today’s tech businesses means there will be many attractive companies with business models based on existing AI ecosystems. The optimal way to expand will be through a blend of small- to medium-sized acquisitions, corporate investments and partnerships, that will help companies access intellectual property and the skills needed to develop new propositions quickly.”
In 2024, the technology market offers numerous promising opportunities, including the rapid expansion of the Asia Pacific region, high demand for software, the potential of generative AI, and the increasing focus on green and digital innovation. Economic conditions are expected to improve with lower energy prices, stabilizing supply chains, and decreasing inflation. Forresterforecasts global tech spending to reach $4.7 trillion in 2024, marking a 5.3% growth compared to 2023's 3.5%. The IMF's World Economic Outlook highlights the Asia Pacific region as a leader in growth, with India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and China expected to see significant real GDP growth in 2024. India, a major exporter of technology services, is projected to experience a 9.5% growth in domestic and government tech spending. In China, the digital economy is anticipated to contribute 41.5% to GDP. North America is forecasted to grow by 5.4%, with financial services and healthcare leading tech spending growth. Software and IT services are expected to dominate US tech spending, capturing 60% by 2027. The US government is allocating $25 billion to emerging technologies in 2024 through initiatives like the CHIPS and Science Act agencies. Europe is expected to grow by 5.1%, rebounding from a challenging 2023. However, further acceleration of tech spending is needed to meet digital technology enterprise targets.
Forrester advises companies to prioritise investments in software, generative AI, and green and digital innovation. Software revenues, including custom and off-the-shelf solutions, are projected to grow at double-digit rates, fueled by robust demand for cloud services. Investments in generative AI software are forecasted to increase by 36% annually through 2030, reaching $227 billion, with major players like Microsoft and Google Cloud experiencing significant revenue growth in this domain. Large consulting firms are pivoting towards AI solutions delivery, with firms like Capgemini planning multi-billion-dollar investments in generative AI. Partnerships between generative AI companies and hyperscalers such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Oracle facilitate access to computing power. Additionally, companies are urged to focus on green and digital innovation, as initiatives like Europe's Climate Neutral Data Centre Pact aim for carbon neutrality in data centers by 2030. Innovative firms investing in green and digital initiatives experience accelerated revenue growth, while increased digital technology investment leads to enhanced productivity growth.
Cathie Wood's Latest Thoughts on Innovation Investing
Cathie Wood is always mentioned when the subject on hand is innovation. In an interview last month with OPTO, Wood commented that the technologies that are making waves today, their roots were laid down 20 years ago, at the end of the Telecom bubble. She referred to multiomic sequencing, robotics, energy storage, artificial intelligence, and blockchain technology, noting that these technologies are now ready for prime time, with growth rates ranging from 20%-50% per year. Cathie Wood expects a convergence of these five major technologies at one point, which will result in 'super exponential growth'. Already strong growth rates will speed up further, resulting in enormous productivity gains and potential for wealth generation. She stated that AI is a huge catalyst for productivity gains, and it is accelerating the efficiency of the other major market technologies. Wood also mentioned that robotics will lead to massive increases in productivity, especially humanoid robotics, as they take over dangerous and extremely mundane tasks from humans.
According to Cathie Wood, robo taxis or autonomous taxi platforms are likely to experience the largest revenue boom as three technologies converge, which are robotics, energy storage, and artificial intelligence. She highlighted that autonomous vehicles have a tremendous revenue opportunity of $8-$10 trillion globally over the next 5 to 10 years. In this context, she sees huge profit margins for Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) as a platform provider for autonomous vehicles. Among the Magnificent 7, Wood sees positive outcomes for Tesla due to autonomous vehicles and Meta Platforms since it is well-integrated into the AI ecosystem and is big on social commerce. However, for Amazon and Google, Wood sees trouble since she noted that AI will disintermediate data aggregators at point. She further pointed out the boom in Bitcoin and blockchain technology, noting that Bitcoin rose 40% last year when Silicon Valley Banks and others banks collapsed. The SEC's green light with the crypto ETFs also helped the industry. This will also impact Coinbase positively in the long run, as per Cathie Wood. Coinbase is Wood's largest portfolio holding as of Q4 2023.
Some of the top tech stocks to buy include Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA). However, we discuss the best tech ETFs in this article, which offer investors exposure to the aforementioned stocks in a single fund.
Investing in Innovation: Best Tech and Disruptive ETFs
Cathie Wood of ARK Investment Management Our Methodology
We curated our list of the best tech ETFs by choosing consensus picks from multiple credible websites. We have mentioned the 5-year share price performance of each ETF as of March 20, 2024, ranking the list in ascending order of the share price. We have also discussed the top holdings of the ETFs to offer better insight to potential investors.
Investing in Innovation: Best Tech and Disruptive ETFs
10. Robo Global Artificial Intelligence ETF (NYSE:THNQ)
5-Year Share Price Performance as of March 20: 73.75%
Robo Global Artificial Intelligence ETF (NYSE:THNQ) is an investment fund that focuses on companies worldwide leading the advancement of artificial intelligence. It invests in companies involved in developing AI technology and infrastructure like computing, data, and cloud services, as well as those applying AI across e-commerce, healthcare, and business processes. Robo Global Artificial Intelligence ETF (NYSE:THNQ) tracks the ROBO Global Artificial Intelligence Index and has net assets of $175 million, a portfolio comprising 59 stocks, and a net expense ratio of 0.68% as of March 19, 2024. Robo Global Artificial Intelligence ETF (NYSE:THNQ) is one of the best tech ETFs to buy.
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is the top holding of Robo Global Artificial Intelligence ETF (NYSE:THNQ). On March 19, NVIDIA stock rebounded after CEO Jensen Huang expressed confidence in the company's prospects in the $250 billion data center market during the annual GTC event. He stated that NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is poised to capture a significant portion of the accelerated computing market, surpassing competitors like AMD and Intel. Additionally, Huang highlighted the growth potential of Nvidia's software business, particularly with its CUDA platform.
According to Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 173 hedge funds were bullish on NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), compared to 180 funds in the prior quarter.
Orbis Global Equity Strategy stated the following regarding NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Never before has following the crowd made so much money. Nor, in our estimation, so little sense. But just look at the opportunities the crowd has left for those of us willing to take a different view. We could wax lyrical about the glaring difference in value between Korean banks priced at 4 times earnings, versus Apple at 28 times, despite diverging fundamentals—Apple is increasingly at risk of bans in China, while Korean banks could double their dividends.
5-Year Share Price Performance as of March 20: 93.85%
Innovator Deepwater Frontier Tech ETF (NYSE:LOUP) ranks 9th on our list of the best tech ETFs. Innovator Deepwater Frontier Tech ETF (NYSE:LOUP) aims to mirror the performance of the Deepwater Frontier Tech Index, which focuses on companies shaping the future of technology, such as artificial intelligence, fintech, robotics, autonomous and electric vehicles, and virtual/augmented reality. The ETF holds a portfolio of 31 stocks as of March 20, 2024, with an expense ratio of 0.70%. The fund was launched on July 25, 2018. Innovator Deepwater Frontier Tech ETF (NYSE:LOUP) is one of the best tech ETFs to invest in.
HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE:HUBS) is the largest holding of the Innovator Deepwater Frontier Tech ETF (NYSE:LOUP). HubSpot offers a cloud-based customer relationship management platform for businesses across the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. On February 14, HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE:HUBS) reported a Q4 non-GAAP EPS of $1.76 and a revenue of $581.91 million, outperforming Wall Street estimates by $0.21 and $23.16 million, respectively.
According to Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 57 hedge funds were bullish on HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE:HUBS), compared to 50 funds in the last quarter. Henry Ellenbogen’s Durable Capital Partners is the largest stakeholder of the company, with 1.12 million shares worth over $653 million.
Like Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE:HUBS) is one of the best tech stocks to buy.
Here is what Baron Technology Fund has to say about HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE:HUBS) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
“Despite near-term macro uncertainty, it’s important to frame that we find ourselves in the early innings of both the AI investment cycle and overall cloud penetration. We estimate cloud penetration to be between 25% and 30% versus the likely 70% to 75% level over time, if not even higher. AI deployments are literally just getting off the ground.Infrastructure and development platforms for securely storing and curating data, training and fine-tuning large-language and other AI models, and developing and delivering AI applications. Beneficiaries include Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services. Integration of generative AI capabilities, such as AI agents and copilots, directly into existing product offerings and customer workflows. Software vendors capitalizing on this opportunity includes HubSpot, Inc.”
5-Year Share Price Performance as of March 20: 103.75%
Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF (NYSE:RSPT) tracks the S&P 500 Equal Weight Information Technology Index, which equally weights stocks within the information technology sector of the S&P 500 Index. The ETF's portfolio currently comprises 67 stocks, and both the fund and the index are rebalanced quarterly. As of March 18, 2024, it maintains an expense ratio of 0.40%. Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF (NYSE:RSPT) ranks 8th on our list of the best tech ETFs.
Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) is the biggest holding of Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF (NYSE:RSPT). On March 11, Oracle announced its fiscal 2024 Q3 results, reporting a non-GAAP EPS of $1.41, beating market consensus by $0.03. The revenue of $13.28 billion came in line with Wall Street estimates.
According to Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 100 hedge funds were long Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL), up from 88 funds in the prior quarter. Jean-Marie Eveillard’s First Eagle Investment Management is the biggest stakeholder of the company, with 18.5 million shares worth $1.95 billion.
Madison Sustainable Equity Fund stated the following regarding Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) reported a disappointing second quarter due to supply constraints. Cloud revenue was below expectations as Oracle made planning decisions to accommodate some large-scale Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) clients that take longer to bring online. We continue to believe that Oracle has a unique position in Generative AI workloads and continue to like its position and strategy.”
7. Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF (NASDAQ:AIQ)
5-Year Share Price Performance as of March 20: 113.53%
Next on our list of the best tech ETFs is Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF (NASDAQ:AIQ). The ETF aims to track the performance of the Indxx Artificial Intelligence & Big Data Index. It invests in companies poised to benefit from the advancement and application of artificial intelligence technology in their offerings, as well as those providing hardware for big data analysis. As of March 19, 2024, Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF (NASDAQ:AIQ) holds net assets totaling $1.55 billion and maintains an expense ratio of 0.68%. Its portfolio consists of 84 stocks.
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is one of the top holdings of Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF (NASDAQ:AIQ). On March 18, Mizuho Securities upgraded Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) to a top pick with a Buy rating and a $575 price target. Analyst James Lee expects upside surprises in fiscal 2024 revenue, driven by improvements in Reels monetization, geographic expansion, Amazon partnership with Shops, and enhanced video placement optimization. Long-term investments in WhatsApp, generative AI, and the language model Llama could boost revenue per user by up to 65%, according to Lee.
As per Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 242 hedge funds were bullish on Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), compared to 234 funds in the prior quarter.
Artisan Value Fund stated the following regarding Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Netflix and Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)—both categorized in the communication services sector—rounded out our top five contributors in Q4 as well as for 2023. Both stocks suffered sharp declines in 2022, each losing more than 50% of their market capitalizations. In 2022, we purchased Netflix and added to our position in Meta on weakness as both stocks were selling significantly below our estimates of fair value. Meta’s challenges were more self-inflicted as a ramp-up in spending caused free cash flow to plummet. We saw Netflix’s slowing subscriber growth as a normal feature of a maturing streaming market.
6. Franklin Intelligent Machines ETF (CBOE:IQM)
5-Year Share Price Performance as of March 20: 139.09%
Franklin Intelligent Machines ETF (CBOE:IQM) is an actively managed fund aiming for capital appreciation through investments in companies advancing automation and task enhancement technologies. It tracks the Russell 3000 Index and targets firms developing machine learning technologies and utilizing automated processes. Employing bottom-up fundamental research by specialized analysts, the fund identifies disruptive business models for investment. As of March 19, 2024, Franklin Intelligent Machines ETF (CBOE:IQM) holds net assets worth $20.08 million, featuring an expense ratio of 0.50% and a portfolio of 57 stocks.
Semiconductor giant ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) is one of the top holdings of Franklin Intelligent Machines ETF (CBOE:IQM). On March 11, ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) and other semiconductor equipment firms saw a boost in 2023 due to heightened demand from China, but potential domestic substitutions may impact future gains, according to Bernstein Research. Bernstein raised ASML's price target to $1,072 from $963 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares.
According to Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 62 hedge funds were bullish on ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML), compared to 57 funds in the prior quarter. Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management is the largest stakeholder of the company, with nearly 5 million shares worth $3.76 million.
In addition to Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) is one of the best tech stocks to invest in.
Polen International Growth Strategy stated the following regarding ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Netherlands-based ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) and Japan-based Lasertec play dominant roles within different segments of the global semiconductor industry. In both cases, shares rallied significantly in the fourth quarter of 2023, prompting our positions to grow as a percentage of the overall portfolio. We believe both companies will see demand for their products as extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography and soon high-numerical aperture lithography must be utilized to manufacture the world’s smallest chips. However, in our estimation, 2024 could deliver a year of less exciting growth for the semiconductor industry, which prompted us to trim these positions back.”
