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AI delivers 'zero financial payoff' to most companies, Apollo economist says
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Artificial intelligence has delivered no measurable financial benefit to major U.S. corporations outside tech, according to Apollo Global Management. Chief economist Torsten Slok examined the S&P 493—the S&P 500 minus Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla. He found flat profit margins and revenue per worker, with no AI-driven productivity gains.
The note arrives amid massive corporate spending on AI tools and infrastructure. Companies across industries have rushed to deploy generative AI, hoping to cut costs and grow revenue. Yet Slok’s analysis suggests the promised returns have not materialized outside the tech giants building and selling AI.
Slok concluded that AI has delivered “zero financial payoff to corporate America outside of tech.” He doubted firms can turn cheap intelligence into higher revenue growth and profit margins. Recent studies also show AI has yet to produce significant productivity gains, he noted.
The findings matter because companies have invested billions in AI data centers, software and training. If productivity remains flat, those outlays may not translate into shareholder value. Slok argued that business success depends on more than computation. “AI may be a great calculator, but in business, intelligence is mostly judgment,” he wrote.
Slok elaborated that AI does not understand accountability, trust, culture, unwritten rules, ethical trade-offs or fairness. Those factors shape reputational risk and ultimately drive revenue growth and profit margins, he said. His perspective contrasts with executives who tout AI as a general-purpose technology. The note adds to evidence questioning AI’s near-term economic impact.
Whether non-tech companies will eventually capture AI’s benefits remains uncertain. Slok’s analysis suggests the gap between tech leaders and the rest may persist. Firms may need to prioritize organizational judgment and human accountability over reliance on AI alone. For now, data reveals a stark divide between AI hype and measurable results.
