The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has historically delivered total returns averaging about 10% per year. At that rate, you’d just about double your money every seven years. For investors who want to outperform the market, that’s the hurdle you’re trying to clear.

I usually try to invest in stocks that I think can double within five years, solidly outperforming the market. However, there are a handful of stocks that may be able to double much quicker than that.

One that Wall Street has its eye on is SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN). Currently, the stock trades for about $8.15 per share. However, the average Wall Street analyst has a 12-month price target of $14.62 on it, and the highest target is $20. Another analyst is looking for $16. Clearly, some firms believe SoundHound AI has what it takes to double within the next year.

So, is this a stock worth investing in?

SoundHound AI has major potential

SoundHound AI’s products combine two technologies: generative AI and audio recognition. These two combined have nearly unlimited potential and can be used to automate many interactions that previously required a human employee to handle. Right now, SoundHound AI’s software is being widely deployed in the retail space to automate order-taking at drive-thrus. While that’s a relatively small market, it gives SoundHound AI a solid revenue base from which to fund further investments.

The real gold mine will be if SoundHound AI can automate customer service centers. These operations are used widely in a host of industries, from insurance and healthcare to the financial sector. If SoundHound AI can provide an AI agent that can handle most of those verbal interactions, it will hit the jackpot.

It is already signing contracts with clients in those industries and has offerings suited to their needs. Many established clients have already been expanding their original contracts with SoundHound AI, so they clearly view its service as having some potential.

During 2025’s fourth quarter, the company’s revenue growth was 59%. We’ll have to see how strong its product adoption is in 2026, but if SoundHound AI can make further inroads in these important industries, its stock has the potential to double within a year.

As another potential tailwind for the stock, SoundHound AI doesn’t trade at as much of a premium as it once did.

SoundHound AI now changes hands at 20 times sales, which isn’t cheap, but it’s nowhere near its peak of around 111, nor its 3-year average of about 28. Given its more reasonable price tag, its rapid growth, and its major potential, SoundHound AI is a solid candidate to double over the next year. While there are no guarantees on Wall Street, I think the company has everything necessary to provide that kind of stock performance, especially if its revenue growth starts to rapidly accelerate, which makes it a buy today.

Should you buy stock in SoundHound AI right now?

Before you buy stock in SoundHound AI, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and SoundHound AI wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $496,797!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,282,815!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 200% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 30, 2026.

Keithen Drury has positions in SoundHound AI. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends SoundHound AI. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

1 Genius AI Stock That Wall Street Thinks Could Double Your Money Within a Year was originally published by The Motley Fool