BlackRock, America’s largest asset manager, says artificial intelligence has shifted from a technology theme to the primary force powering US business investment.
In a new post on X, BlackRock CIO Rick Rieder unveils new data showing AI-driven spending contributing the majority of business investment to GDP over the past two years.
The chart tracks a break in trend beginning in 2023, with AI-related investment climbing while traditional non-AI investment oscillates around zero or negative contribution.
Rieder sees the phenomenon as a regime shift, with AI acting as a structural growth pillar rather than a cyclical technology wave. The data highlights the degree to which corporate America is redirecting capital into compute, software and automation to secure advantages in efficiency, capacity and intelligence.
“AI-related spending isn’t just a tech story—it’s an economic engine. Since 2023, AI investment has consistently outpaced non-AI, driving the majority of business investment contribution to GDP. Even during the period of volatility and uncertainty, it remains pretty clear that AI will be a growth anchor, and expected payoffs could be quite large.”
Rick Rieder recently rejected AI bubble talks, noting that the largest US companies are generating unprecedented levels of cash that justify capital valuations. He highlighted that the free cash flow printed by AI titans enables them to invest in innovation while returning capital to shareholders.
“And by the way, we’re talking about is an AI bubble or is this a bubble? I mean, I’m actually going through a presentation where I’m presenting that the cash flow these companies throw off, the free cash flow they throw off, that allows them to do CapEx (capital expenditures), allows them to invest in R&D (research and development), but then buy back their stock. So you’re actually reducing your book equity outstanding and driving your stock higher. It’s pretty unbelievable.”
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