Apple's stock just hit a record high, putting the tech giant on the brink of a $3 trillion valuation

• Apple's stock closed at a fresh high on Tuesday.
• The iPhone maker's shares are up 45% this year, as Big Tech continues to benefit from the AI boom.

Apple stock climbed 1.5% to close at just over $188 on Tuesday, extending its gains for the year and putting the technology giant on the brink of a $3 trillion valuation.

The iPhone maker's market capitalization now sits at $2.96 trillion. If its stock price climbs another 1.4% and stays there, it will become the first public company to be worth $3 trillion at the market close.

The California-based firm has taken a huge step towards that milestone in 2023 thanks to its stock's 45% jump year-to-date.

That run has coincided with investors also piling into other Big Tech stocks like Nvidia and Meta Platforms, with the explosion of interest in artificial intelligence and ChatGPT sparking a sensational rally.

Tech stocks have also benefited from the Federal Reserve pausing its interest-rate hiking campaign for now. When interest rates rise, it becomes more attractive for investors to own bonds or keep their money in a high-yielding savings account, instead of risking it by buying stocks.

Apple's enormous market value puts it about $500 billion ahead of rival Microsoft. Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco, Google parent Alphabet, and Amazon round out the list of the top five most valuable companies.

Read more: Big-name investors are going all-in on AI