Apollo economist says AI has not boosted profits for most big US firms

In short: A new analysis from Apollo Global Management says most large U.S. companies outside the tech sector are not seeing measurable financial gains from AI.

What's going on

Torsten Slok, the chief economist at Apollo Global Management, wrote that AI has delivered “zero financial payoff” for corporate America outside of tech. In plain terms, he argues that the money companies are spending on AI is not showing up in higher profits.

Slok looked at what he calls the “S&P 493.” This means the S&P 500 stock index, minus seven major tech-focused companies: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. For the remaining companies, he said profit margins and revenue per worker look flat, which suggests AI is not increasing productivity (how much work gets done per employee).

He also questioned whether non-tech companies are simply behind and will catch up later. Slok said it may be hard to turn “increasingly cheap intelligence” into faster revenue growth and higher profit margins. He compared AI to a strong calculator, but argued that running a business depends heavily on judgment, along with things like accountability, trust, culture, and ethical trade-offs.

TechCrunch notes that other recent studies have also found that AI has not yet produced big, clear productivity gains.

What to watch

Companies will likely keep investing in AI, but investors and employees may ask for clearer proof that it saves time or increases sales, not just that it can write text or answer questions. Watch for future earnings reports and workforce data that show whether AI is actually changing output per worker outside the tech industry.

Source: TechCrunch AI