Oracle’s stock surged over 42% on Wednesday, marking its largest single-day gain since the dot-com boom, driven by a stunning earnings report that, despite missing revenue and earnings estimates, sent investors into a frenzy over the company’s AI-driven cloud growth. The rally propelled Oracle to a market capitalization of $950 billion, putting it on track to reach $1 trillion. At the heart of the surge was Oracle’s forward-looking guidance, which revealed an extraordinary $455 billion in remaining performance obligations (RPO)—a 359% increase from the prior year—far exceeding analysts’ expectations of around $180 billion. This massive backlog reflects soaring demand for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), fueled by the artificial intelligence boom. CEO Safra Catz highlighted that Oracle has secured multi-billion-dollar contracts with major AI players, including OpenAI, Meta, Nvidia, AMD, and Elon Musk’s xAI. The company projects OCI revenue to grow from $18 billion in the current fiscal year to $32 billion, $73 billion, $114 billion, and $144 billion over the next four years, underscoring its aggressive expansion in AI cloud computing. The AI infrastructure race is intensifying, with cloud providers like Oracle, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, and Google Cloud vying for dominance. Oracle’s success stems from its strategic access to Nvidia’s GPUs—essential for training large AI models—and its focus on high-performance computing. The company is also investing heavily in infrastructure, reportedly planning to spend over $1 billion annually to run a new Texas data center powered by gas generators, bypassing traditional grid approvals to accelerate deployment. The stock surge has dramatically increased the wealth of Oracle’s co-founder and chairman, Larry Ellison. With roughly 1.16 billion shares, Ellison’s net worth jumped by over $100 billion in just one day, reaching an estimated $389 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. This briefly made him the richest person on Earth, surpassing Elon Musk’s $384 billion. Ellison’s fortune has more than tripled since October 2022, when it stood at about $80 billion, as Oracle’s shares climbed from under $70 to over $240. Despite Ellison’s current lead, Musk remains a strong contender. He could reclaim the top spot if shareholders approve a massive $56 billion pay package for Tesla, which could propel him toward becoming the world’s first trillionaire. Musk also briefly surpassed $400 billion in net worth in December 2023. Analysts called the Oracle report “staggering,” “blown away,” and a “momentous confirmation” of the AI investment trend. The market’s reaction underscores the pivotal role cloud infrastructure plays in the AI revolution. While Oracle faces fierce competition, its aggressive growth trajectory, strategic partnerships, and focus on AI-first computing have solidified its position as a key beneficiary of the AI boom. Oracle’s success highlights how cloud computing is emerging as one of the clearest winners in the AI era, with companies racing to secure the computing power needed to train and deploy advanced models. As demand soars, Oracle’s trajectory suggests it is not just keeping pace—it is leading the charge.