Saad Ullah
⬤ Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research just dropped some eye-opening numbers on AI adoption across American corporations—and the picture looks way different than most people think. Here's the thing: while everyone's been laser-focused on infrastructure plays, the real story is how quickly AI is spreading throughout the broader market. Companies are finally starting to show actual financial results from their AI investments, which means we're moving past the hype phase into something more tangible.
⬤ The adoption numbers tell a compelling story. Census Bureau data shows 33% of large companies are already using AI tools in their operations. Goldman's own investment banking survey puts that figure at 37%, and when you look at S&P 500 earnings calls, a whopping 47% of companies are actively discussing AI-driven productivity gains. This isn't just talk anymore—AI has moved from the experimental stage into day-to-day business operations across multiple sectors.
⬤ But market performance reveals a stark divide. Infrastructure stocks have absolutely crushed the equal-weight S&P 500 since late 2023, riding the wave of near-term capital spending on AI systems. Meanwhile, companies focused on revenue enablement and productivity improvements have seriously lagged behind. Investors have been playing it safe, betting on the picks-and-shovels approach rather than pricing in longer-term efficiency benefits that are harder to quantify right now.
⬤ That imbalance might not last much longer. Goldman expects companies to start putting real numbers behind their productivity gains over the next few quarters, which could dramatically shift where the money flows. Their S&P 500 earnings forecasts for 2026-2027 already factor in modest productivity boosts from AI adoption. If that plays out, we could see market leadership expand beyond infrastructure providers as more companies prove they're actually capturing value from AI—not just spending on it. That kind of broadening would reshape sector performance and potentially extend the AI-driven rally across a much wider slice of the market.
Saad Ullah
