Apollo Economist Says AI Has Delivered Zero Financial Payoff to Most Companies

Apollo Global Management chief economist Torsten Slok published a note, reported by TechCrunch, stating that artificial intelligence has delivered zero financial payoff to corporate America outside the technology sector. He examined the S&P 493, which removes Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla from the S&P 500, and found that profit margins and revenue per worker have remained flat.

Slok argued that massive investments and widespread hype have not translated into higher revenue growth or higher profit margins for non-tech firms. He wrote that AI may be a great calculator, but in business, intelligence is mostly judgment.

Analysis of the S&P 493

The S&P 493 represents the broad market excluding the seven largest tech companies. According to Slok, the data show no evidence that AI is improving productivity for these firms. Profit margins and revenue per worker appear unchanged despite significant spending on AI tools and infrastructure.

He expressed skepticism that non-tech companies can turn increasingly cheap intelligence into stronger financial performance. The note highlights that AI does not understand accountability, trust, culture, unwritten rules, ethical trade-offs or fairness, all of which shape reputational risk and ultimately drive revenue growth and profit margins.

Broader Implications for Corporate AI Adoption

Recent studies have also found that AI has yet to deliver significant productivity gains across the economy. The findings suggest that many corporations may need to reassess expectations for AI-driven returns and focus on integrating human judgment with algorithmic output.

Sources: TechCrunch