Nokia Stock Soars 18% as NVIDIA Makes Strategic $1 Billion AI and 6G Bet

The Once-Dormant Telecom Giant Awakens

Nokia stock exploded with a dramatic 18% surge on Tuesday, October 28, 2025, after artificial intelligence leader NVIDIA announced a strategic $1 billion equity investment in the Finnish networking company . The massive single-day gain for Nokia stock reflects investor enthusiasm for an unexpected partnership that pairs NVIDIA’s dominant AI technology with Nokia’s extensive telecommunications infrastructure expertise .

The collaboration signals a potentially transformative moment for Nokia, a company once synonymous with mobile phones that has spent recent years rebuilding itself as a specialist in 5G cellular equipment. The dramatic rise in Nokia stock to prices not seen since early 2023 demonstrates how forcefully the market is embracing Nokia’s strategic pivot toward artificial intelligence and next-generation networking .

“This isn’t just a financial investment; it’s a technological alliance that could reshape the future of both AI infrastructure and mobile networks,” said one market analyst familiar with both companies. “Investors are recognizing that Nokia stock now offers exposure to the AI revolution through the company’s deep networking expertise.”

The Mechanics of the Deal

Table: Key Details of NVIDIA’s Investment in Nokia

Deal Component	Specifics
Investment Amount	USD $1.0 billion (approximately EUR 0.86 billion)
Shares Issued	166,389,351 new Nokia shares
Price Per Share	USD $6.01
NVIDIA Ownership	2.90% of Nokia post-transaction
Expected Completion	November 2025

In a directed share issuance approved by Nokia’s Board of Directors, NVIDIA will purchase approximately 166.4 million newly created shares at $6.01 per share, injecting a full billion dollars directly into Nokia’s treasury . The transaction, expected to be finalized in November 2025, will give NVIDIA a 2.9% ownership stake in the Finnish company once registered .

Unlike purchasing existing shares on the open market, this directed issuance means NVIDIA’s capital goes directly to Nokia to fund its strategic initiatives rather than to previous shareholders . The companies emphasized that this equity partnership is an essential component of their broader strategic collaboration, creating what Nokia describes as “a weighty financial reason” for bypassing standard shareholder pre-emptive rights .

Beyond the Billions: The Strategic Partnership

While the dramatic movement in Nokia stock captured market attention, the underlying strategic partnership may prove more valuable than the capital infusion alone. The two technology companies announced plans to jointly shape and lead the emerging AI-RAN (Artificial Intelligence-Radio Access Network) market .

Nokia revealed that it will adapt its current 5G and future 6G radio access network software to run efficiently on NVIDIA’s architecture . This technical integration represents a significant commitment that could potentially accelerate the development of both AI-enabled networks and the next generation of wireless technology.

“The strategic partnership and investment are expected to create significant value for both companies,” Nokia stated in its official announcement . “Nokia will use the proceeds from the issuance to accelerate its strategic plans to advance trusted connectivity for the AI supercycle” .

The collaboration extends beyond telecommunications infrastructure into data center technology. The companies have agreed to explore incorporating Nokia’s data center switching and optical technologies into NVIDIA’s future AI infrastructure plans . This element of the partnership could position Nokia as a more significant player in the high-growth AI data center market, diversifying beyond its traditional telecom equipment business.

From Cell Phones to AI Infrastructure: Nokia’s Transformation

The spectacular rise in Nokia stock represents a remarkable moment of validation for a company that has undergone a substantial transformation. Long associated with the cell phones it once dominated, Nokia has spent years repositioning itself as a business-to-business technology provider specializing in networking equipment .

Recently, Nokia has been benefiting from increased demand for its optical networking solutions from cloud computing and AI data center operators . This trend positioned the company to potentially capitalize on the AI infrastructure boom, but the NVIDIA partnership dramatically accelerates that opportunity.

“Nokia’s revenue streams used to be a one-note affair, always focused on telecom-grade equipment for long-haul communications,” noted Anders Bylund, a contributing analyst at The Motley Fool. “The ongoing AI boom has diversified Nokia’s business, as ultra-fast networking solutions for data centers finally found an enthusiastic target market” .

The partnership represents a vote of confidence in Nokia’s strategic direction from the company at the very center of the artificial intelligence revolution. For NVIDIA, the collaboration offers access to Nokia’s extensive telecommunications industry relationships and expertise in building reliable, large-scale networks.

What the Market Is Saying About Nokia Stock

The 18% surge in Nokia stock reflected one of the company’s largest single-day gains in recent years . Trading volume skyrocketed to over 120 million shares, nearly four times the stock’s average, indicating massive investor interest .

This dramatic market response came despite what might otherwise have been considered a mixed third-quarter earnings report. Just days before the NVIDIA announcement, Nokia reported revenue that fell short of analyst expectations, though it highlighted strong incoming orders that suggested healthier future performance .

“Investors shrugged off the revenue issue in light of strong incoming orders—Nokia is setting itself up for richer revenue in the coming quarters,” observed The Motley Fool report . The NVIDIA investment appears to have validated this more optimistic view of Nokia’s future prospects.

The movement in Nokia stock has been building throughout October. Even before Tuesday’s explosive gains, the shares were already trading at prices not seen since January 2023, suggesting growing investor confidence in the company’s direction .

The Road Ahead for Nokia and NVIDIA

For Nokia, the NVIDIA partnership represents both validation and opportunity. The $1 billion investment provides substantial capital to accelerate research and development in critical areas without diluting earnings through debt financing. More importantly, the technical collaboration potentially positions Nokia at the forefront of integrating AI with telecommunications networks.

The partnership comes at a crucial inflection point for both the AI and telecommunications industries. As AI systems become more sophisticated and pervasive, they require increasingly advanced networking capabilities to function efficiently across distributed systems. Similarly, the development of 6G networks is expected to heavily incorporate artificial intelligence to manage network resources and optimize performance.

NVIDIA has taken several strategic equity positions in recent months, including a $5 billion commitment to Intel and a $100 billion investment in OpenAI . This pattern suggests a deliberate strategy of forming deep technological alliances rather than simply making financial investments.

For investors, the dramatic response of Nokia stock highlights how quickly market sentiment can shift when a company demonstrates a credible path to participating in high-growth technological trends. The challenge for Nokia management will be to execute effectively on the promise of this partnership and convert the enthusiasm behind Nokia stock into sustained financial performance.

A New Chapter for Nokia Stock

The remarkable ascent of Nokia stock following NVIDIA’s announcement represents more than just a temporary market reaction. It signals a potential rebirth of the Finnish company as a relevant player in the defining technological shifts of our time.

As Nokia and NVIDIA begin their collaboration in earnest, all eyes will be on how effectively they can integrate AI with telecommunications infrastructure. The success of this partnership will ultimately determine whether the current excitement around Nokia stock marks the beginning of a sustained transformation or merely a memorable single-day spectacle.

For now, the message to investors is clear: the company that once put mobile phones in every pocket is now betting that artificial intelligence and 6G networks can write its next chapter—and the market is enthusiastically endorsing that vision through the renewed strength of Nokia stock.

 Nokia stock surged 18% after NVIDIA announced a $1 billion strategic investment focused on AI-RAN technology and 6G development, signaling a major transformation for the telecom equipment maker.

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