3 AI Stocks Under $50 That Could Be This Year's Biggest Surprises

It can be challenging to find an artificial intelligence (AI) stock trading under $50 that's worth taking a small stake in, as the hype around these companies can often outrun reality.

Still, they exist, and three that I view as promising options to consider are SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN), Aurora Innovation (NASDAQ: AUR), and Serve Robotics (NASDAQ: SERV). All of these companies are still unprofitable, and two are in the very early stages of generating any kind of revenue. They are speculative stocks, to be sure, so if you choose to invest in them, these positions should make up only a small portion of your overall portfolio.

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Still, if they can deliver unexpected revenue growth, land large clients, or announce any other bullish business developments, they could also close out 2026 as significant winners in the AI space.

As an audio AI company, SoundHound AI builds tech that enables AI agents to turn vocal interactions into actions. For example, it has partnerships within the restaurant industry, where its AI agents take drive-thru orders from customers. SoundHound's AI agents are also being used to handle customer interactions across a host of industries, including retail, healthcare, and financial services.

The company recently announced an agreement to acquire LivePerson, a company that specializes in AI messaging. With LivePerson's range of messaging solutions, from phone calls to social media interactions, SoundHound could boost its cross-selling potential.

Of the three companies on this list, SoundHound has the most meaningful revenue generation so far, and it's furthest along in proving its business use case. In 2025, it reported revenue of $168.9 million, a 99% increase from 2024. For 2026, it expects revenue to land in a range between $225 million and $260 million. SoundHound's stock price is down year to date so far, but if it can boost its forecast and surprise markets at some point, the stock could regain its footing and march higher.

AI is coming to the trucking industry in the form of self-driving vehicles. According to the researchers at Fortune Business Insights, the autonomous truck market is expected to be worth $46.5 billion globally this year, but they forecast it will grow to $107.7 billion by 2034. Still, it's a relatively new market, and there aren't a ton of pure-play investments to consider in it.

One of the few is Aurora, which aims to address the pain points of the freight industry. According to the American Trucking Associations, the driver shortage in the industry is on pace to grow in the coming years, and the number of hours a person can drive in a given day is legally capped for safety reasons. Moreover, the industry faces higher fuel and insurance costs.

Aurora is still small, but by the end of 2026, it expects to have over 200 autonomous trucks in operation. The company reported revenue of just $3 million in 2025 but expects it to grow to between $14 million and $16 million in 2026. Aurora is already having a strong 2026, so it has the opportunity to keep carrying that momentum into the end of the year.

Serve Robotics describes itself as an "industry leader in physical AI." Its robots use AI to help them navigate the world around them, and their models are continuously refined with new real-world data. This may sound a little futuristic, but it is a rapidly expanding sector: Fortune Business Insights forecasts the global AI robot market will grow from $7.4 billion in 2026 to $60.6 billion by 2034.

Today, the company is mainly involved in the delivery industry through partnerships with DoorDash, as well as Uber Technologies through Uber Eats.

It's also planning to acquire privately held Diligent Robotic, which is building robot assistants for the healthcare industry. Its Moxi robots have been deployed in more than 25 hospital facilities.

Serve Robotics CEO Dr. Ali Kashani said in his company's press release:

We've proven we can deploy robots safely and reliably at scale in complex urban environments. By extending our platform beyond sidewalks and into hospitals, we're expanding where our Physical AI can operate, learn, and create value. Over time, Serve and Moxi will share one autonomy stack, one data flywheel, and one operating system for robots that work alongside people across city sidewalks and critical institutions. This is how autonomy becomes infrastructure.

The growth potential is there, but this company is still in the very early stages of proving its business model, with 2025 revenue of $2.7 million and projections for revenue of $26 million in 2026. Its stock price is slightly down on the year, but there's still plenty of time for the company to make some moves or announcements that can change its trajectory.

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Jack Delaney has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends DoorDash, Serve Robotics, SoundHound AI, and Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

3 AI Stocks Under $50 That Could Be This Year's Biggest Surprises was originally published by The Motley Fool