Generative AI is being heralded as one of the most transformative innovations in human history,

and AI optimism has become one of the market's biggest drivers.

Companies are estimated to devote to over $1 trillion to AI-related spending in the coming years.

So will the benefits and returns of the technology justify the cost?

We're a couple years into this, and there's not a single thing that this is being used for

that's cost effective at this point.

I'm Allison Nathan and this is Goldman Sachs exchanges.

Every month I speak with investors, policymakers, and academics about the most pressing market

moving issues for our top of my report from Goldman Sachs research.

This month I looked at Generative AI.

I think we're all familiar with the Bull case by now.

My colleague Joseph Briggs from our Global Economics research team estimates that generative AI could ultimately

automate a quarter of all work tasks and boost US productivity by 9% and US GDP growth by 6.1% cumulatively over the next decade.

And investors have certainly bought into the theme

with the big tech firms at the center of it all,

accounting for over 60% of the S&P 500 indexes year-to-date return.

But given the enormous cost to develop and run the technology with no so-called killer

application for it yet found, questions about whether the technology will ever

sufficiently deliver on this investment have grown.

I spoke to two people who are skeptical.

Darren Asamoglu, an Institute professor at MIT,

is the author of several books,

...