The push towards generative artificial intelligence from the so-called “Magnificent 7” companies: Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta and Tesla, has led market onlookers and commentators to believe that artificial intelligence is single-handedly propping up the United States economy.
While there’s certainly a lot of market investment in artificial intelligence right now, it’s actually doing very little to increase the United States’ gross domestic product (GDP) according to Jan Hatzius, chief economist of investment bank Goldman Sachs (nice spot, Tom’s Hardware).
In an interview with the economic think tank Atlantic Council, Hatzius revealed that Goldman Sachs doesn’t believe that artificial intelligence is conducive to economic growth.
AI Hasn’t Boosted The U.S. Economy At All
“One item that may be missing from this list is AI investment. We don’t actually view AI investment as strongly growth positive,” Hatzius says. “I think there’s a lot of misreporting of the impact that AI investment has had on U.S. GDP growth in 2025, and it’s much smaller than is often perceived because most equipment, most AI equipment, is imported. That means there’s a positive entry in the investment line, but it’s offset by a negative entry in the net exports line and a lot of the AI investment we’re seeing in the U.S. adds to Taiwanese GDP and it adds to Korean GDP, but it really doesn’t add much to U.S. GDP.”
Microsoft’s CEO Of AI Doesn’t Seem Capable Of Grasping Why Everybody Hates AI
Stop being cynical! Or something.
Hatzius then describes the impact of AI investment on U.S. GDP in 2025 as “basically zero.” A lot of the investment in artificial intelligence is speculative, based on the technology improving to a level where it becomes useful for businesses and consumers.
We’ve seen the consequences of the market’s focus on investing in artificial intelligence in the gaming industry. The massive memory requirements of the AI industry have made manufacturing consoles very expensive, leading to a rumoured delay in the release of the PlayStation 6 while Sony evaluates the memory market. Valve, too, has not yet revealed the price of the Steam Machine due to rapidly increasing manufacturing costs.
Microsoft—one of the biggest believers in artificial intelligence—has replaced long-time Xbox head Phil Spencer with Asha Sharma, an executive previously tasked with leading Microsoft’s CoreAI division.
Though some have speculated that Sharma has been put in place to sunset the Xbox brand, the new head of Microsoft Gaming seems to have other plans.
- Date Founded
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April 1, 1993
- CEO
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Jensen Huang
- Subsidiaries
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Mellanox Technologies, Cumulus Networks, NVIDIA Advanced Rendering Center
- Headquarters
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Santa Clara, California, United States
