2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks You Can Buy and Hold for the Next Decade

AI is driving a multi-year investment theme and the article highlights Microsoft and Meta as top picks: Microsoft benefits from a landmark OpenAI partnership (27% stake, IP rights to use OpenAI models through 2032 and a reported $250 billion OpenAI commitment for Azure services), market-leading cloud positioning behind Amazon with high switching costs, and a shareholder-friendly dividend that has risen ~153% over the past decade. Meta saw a near-term share pullback after third-quarter net income was weighed by a tax hit from a new U.S. law and management increased capex, but the higher spending aims to accelerate AI capabilities that are already boosting engagement and ad conversions; Q3 metrics showed MAUs up 8% to 3.54 billion, Facebook time spent up 5%, and revenue up 26% year-over-year to $51.2 billion. Together these factors underscore why both companies are positioned to outperform broader markets over the next decade if AI adoption continues to scale.

Analysis

Microsoft's strategic partnership with OpenAI and its cloud positioning are the central drivers highlighted in the article: Microsoft holds a 27% stake in OpenAI, retains intellectual-property rights to use OpenAI's models through 2032, and OpenAI has committed to buy $250 billion of Azure services, underpinning Azure's growth trajectory. The company is described as the clear cloud runner-up to Amazon with entrenched corporate relationships and high switching costs, and it has returned capital to shareholders via a dividend that has risen roughly 153% over the past decade.

Meta's recent third-quarter volatility reflects a near-term earnings headwind from a U.S. tax expense and a rise in capital expenditures, but the article frames capex as strategic investment for AI capabilities rather than a structural weakness. Operational metrics were strong: monthly active users rose 8% year over year to 3.54 billion, time spent on Facebook increased 5%, and revenue grew 26% year over year to $51.2 billion, with AI cited as lifting engagement and ad conversion.

Collectively, the piece positions AI as a durable multi-year tailwind with moderately positive sentiment for both names (MSFT sentiment 0.8, META 0.6), while noting execution and near-term tax/capex-driven volatility as the primary risks to monitor.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Consider overweight exposure to Microsoft to capture Azure/OpenAI upside and steady dividend growth, while monitoring Azure adoption metrics and progress on the OpenAI commercial commitment
• Accumulate Meta selectively on share-price weakness given strong user and revenue growth and capex targeted at AI, but size positions conservatively until tax and capex impacts on margins are clearer
• Monitor near-term indicators: Microsoft cloud revenue growth, confirmations of the OpenAI-Azure spend, Meta ad demand and time-spent trends, and any further tax or regulatory developments that could affect reported earnings
• Use position-sizing or hedges to manage execution risk—particularly around Meta's increased capex and the dependency of Microsoft on continued enterprise cloud adoption