Nvidia continues to serve as the primary reference point for the artificial intelligence investment thesis, according to CNBC host Jim Cramer, who emphasized the company's enduring centrality to the sector despite recent share price underperformance.

Cramer’s comments highlight a divergence between Nvidia’s market valuation trajectory and its fundamental role in the AI supply chain.

While the stock has trailed broader technology indices in recent sessions, the host argued that the underlying demand for Nvidia’s hardware remains intact, positioning the company as the critical node in the ongoing AI infrastructure build-out.

This perspective arrives as the semiconductor sector faces scrutiny over valuation multiples and competitive dynamics.

Recent coverage has noted that rivals such as DeepSeek are developing custom inference chips to reduce reliance on Nvidia and Huawei, signaling a potential long-term shift in customer dependency.

However, Cramer’s assessment suggests that near-term substitution risks have not yet materialized into a structural threat to Nvidia’s market position.