Tops one list but doesn't even qualify for the other

According to sources such as the Fortune Global 500 and other financial analyses, the ten largest companies in the world by revenue, based on the most recent information (primarily fiscal year 2023 or 2024) are:

Walmart (United States, Retail), revenue: ~$648 billion  

Amazon (United States, Retail/Technology), revenue: ~$574 billion  

State Grid Corporation of China (China, Energy), revenue: ~$530 billion  

Saudi Armco (Saudi Arabia, Oil & Gas), revenue: ~$495 billion  

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) (China, Oil & Gas), revenue: ~$430 billion  

ExxonMobil (United States, Oil & Gas), revenue: ~$413 billion  

Apple (United States, Technology), revenue: ~$394 billion  

UnitedHealth Group (United States, Healthcare), revenue: ~$371 billion  

CVS Health (United States, Healthcare), revenue: ~$357 billion

Volkswagen (Germany, Automotive), revenue: ~$348 billion

If we instead choose to list the ten largest companies in the world by market capitalization as of early April 2025, based on the latest available information, the list changes. Market capitalization figures are given in trillions of USD and reflect values ​​from sources such as Forbes, Statista, and posts on X, with data primarily from the first quarter of 2025. We get a different result.

Apple (United States, Technology) - ~$2.96 trillion 

Microsoft (United States, Technology) - ~$2.73 trillion  

Nvidia (United States, Technology) - ~$2.47 trillion 

Alphabet (United States, Technology) - ~$1.85 trillion 

Amazon (United States, Retail/Technology) - ~$1.83 trillion 

Meta Platforms (United States, Technology) - ~$1.27 trillion 

Berkshire Hathaway (United States, Conglomerate) - ~$0.97 trillion

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) (Taiwan, Semiconductor) - ~$0.93 trillion

Tesla (United States, Automotive/Technology) - ~$0.89 trillion

Broadcom (United States, Semiconductor/Software) - ~$0.82 trillion

Of the ten companies with the largest market capitalization, 40% of them produce only Ones and Zeros. Simply selling a service, such as advertising on their platforms, creates nothing but money for its owners. After the desired “click,” there is no product to sell on a secondary market or pass on to the next generation. The fact that manufacturing companies do not dominate the list of companies with the largest market capitalization is a clear sign of our times.

AI generated image with Grok