Poland’s GDP has just crossed the symbolic threshold of $1 trillion, a milestone moment for the country’s economy. Yet on the global stage, such figures pale in comparison to what unfolded yesterday on Wall Street. Shares of Oracle surged as much as 41% during the session, closing up 36%. As a result, the company’s market capitalization expanded by $236 billion to $922 billion in a single day. That increase alone is nearly equivalent to one-quarter of the entire Polish economy. It highlights the extraordinary power of artificial intelligence in today’s financial markets and how quickly it can reshape the valuations of the world’s largest companies.
The dramatic rise also propelled Larry Ellison, Oracle’s co-founder, past Elon Musk to become the world’s richest man. Ellison’s net worth jumped by $101 billion in just one day, reaching $393 billion—the largest single-day increase in history.
From Databases to AI Infrastructure
Ellison founded Oracle in 1977, initially under the name Software Development Laboratories. The company later adopted the name Oracle from a database project it developed for the CIA. Over time, Oracle became a global leader in database software, supplying solutions to the world’s largest corporations and institutions.
In the following decades, the company expanded into business applications, ERP systems, and cloud services. Today, AI infrastructure has become the cornerstone of Oracle’s strategy, transforming it from a database provider into one of the key players in the global AI race.
The AI Factor Behind the Rally
The stock surge came after the company’s quarterly earnings release. Revenues of $14.9 billion and earnings per share of $1.47 came in slightly below analyst expectations. However, investors focused on a different part of the report: Oracle revealed a massive $455 billion order backlog, representing a 359% year-on-year increase.
The company also announced four new multi-billion-dollar contracts, securing its position as a cloud infrastructure provider for leading AI players such as OpenAI, xAI, and Meta.
It is this AI-driven growth potential that fueled the rally. Oracle projects its cloud revenues will rise from $18 billion today to $144 billion by 2030. This ambitious forecast coincides with a sharp increase in capital expenditures, which are expected to reach $35 billion in 2026, up from $21 billion in 2025.
Despite currently trading at a price-to-earnings ratio near 80, investors expect that explosive growth in orders will bring future valuations down to more attractive levels.
Oracle Joins the Big League of Cloud Giants
With this surge, Oracle is cementing its position alongside Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet as a dominant force in the cloud race. Its nearly 100% stock price increase in 2025 reflects investor confidence that Oracle is becoming one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom.
Yesterday’s market move serves as a reminder of the volatility inherent in financial markets. Just as shares can soar on AI optimism, they can also decline sharply. For investors, it underscores the importance of balancing enthusiasm with caution.
Author: Paweł Majtkowski, Analyst at eToro Poland
Source: CEO.com.pl
