Dan Ives Says Apple Stock Is Headed To $300, Tim Cook Could Claim 'Godfather Of AI' Title: 'It's Their Castle'

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives often refers to Nvidia Corp NVDA CEO Jensen Huang as “the Godfather of AI.” The tech analyst may have to adjust his phrasing as he believes Huang could end up sharing the title with Apple Inc’s AAPL Tim Cook.

What To Know: Monday on CNBC’s “Power Lunch,” Ives made the case that Apple is on the brink of an AI supercycle that will make it the face of the AI revolution for the consumer.

“I think for Apple right now, they’re at the top of the mountain because it’s their castle,” Ives said.

Apple unveiled a slew of new AI-powered features at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at the beginning of the month. Several analysts lifted price targets on Apple stock following WWDC, highlighting the company’s massive active installed base of more than 2.2 billion iOS devices.

Ahead of the event, many viewed Apple as being well behind in the AI race, but it seems most analysts now believe Apple’s new AI-powered devices will drive a large upgrade cycle this year. Ives is in that camp. He told CNBC Apple is “playing chess while others play checkers.”

AI is going to be delivered to the consumer through Apple. The company is likely going to sign deals with multiple leading AI companies and act as a gatekeeper for AI technology, he said, adding that Apple also owns the App Store which is where anyone building an AI tool is going to make it available.

“Because right now you are on the outside of this party that Apple is really going to run, and when you think about the AI revolution … it’s 9 p.m. in an AI party that we see going to 4 a.m.,” Ives said.

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Why It Matters: Ives believes that Apple’s “golden” installed base combined with its App Store dominance is worth between $30 and $40 per share alone.

“This is the start of a renaissance of growth … A year from now, I think we are looking at a $4 trillion market cap for Apple,” the Wedbush analyst said.

Ives believes Apple stock is on its way to somewhere between $275 and $300 per share as more and more companies pick up the phone and call Cupertino, looking to integrate AI tools into Apple devices.

“There’s the Godfather of AI in the enterprise, that’s of course Jensen Huang and Nvidia. On the consumer side, it could be Cook,” Ives said.

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AAPL Price Action: Apple shares closed Monday up 0.31% at $208.14, according to Benzinga Pro. The stock has gained 8.11% since the start of the year.

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