Non-tech firms waste money on AI that doesn’t pay off
An economist says AI isn't helping, but companies keep spending.
The story
An Apollo economist claims AI has delivered no financial benefit to non-tech companies, citing flat profit margins and no productivity gains despite heavy investment.
Source: techcrunch.com
Our reading
The economist says AI hasn’t improved profits for non-tech companies, but he doesn’t mention whether they’ve stopped buying it. It’s like saying a diet doesn’t work, but people still buy the shakes.
Maybe the real issue is that companies are using AI like a fancy calculator for problems that don’t need solving. It’s not that AI fails, it’s that the problems are already solved—by humans, or by not doing anything at all.
The economist’s report is a reminder that sometimes the most expensive solutions are just the ones that make you feel like you’re doing something, even if you’re not.
