The AI Bubble: From Boom to Burst

The financial journey of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has resembled a rollercoaster ride, with the expected pattern of growth and decline akin to other innovative technologies.

The AI wave kicked off with the displacement phase, jumpstarted by ChatGPT’s debut in November 2022. The world was mesmerized at its capability to communicate with a machine that could provide coherent responses – similar to when Mosaic, the first web browser, premiered and individuals grasped the competency of the internet.

The stage of booming followed in when major tech enterprises unveiled their previously concealed AI projects because the technology’s unpredictable nature had restrained them. Investment by Microsoft into OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, granted it exclusive entry to the potent GTP-4 large multimodal model hence stirring up commotion within the technological industry.

The emergence of these “foundation” models caused a proliferation of startups, similar to when entrepreneurs viewed the Internet as a fundamental platform. These emerging companies secured investments from venture capitalists and corporations such as Nvidia that were producing the necessary hardware for constructing an AI-driven future.

The euphoric stage of the AI bubble appears to be approaching its culmination. The hype surrounding AI has instilled a sense of fear among individuals, resulting in quick decisions and probable errors. For example, Google’s Bard chatbot was launched prematurely, generating widespread disapproval.

Although the profit-taking stage has not yet arrived, it appears that the panic phase is approaching as expected. The AI bubble’s trajectory mirrors those of previous bubbles, leading towards a potential burst. The ultimate concern remains: what will be the ramifications for both the tech industry and future developments in artificial intelligence?

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Read more at: www.theguardian.com