The recent reading of two documents caught my attention on the topic of AI.
The first is a publication by Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and now head of the Gates Foundation. In his essay titled “Optimism with Footnotes,” Gates writes: “Of all the things humans have ever created, AI will change society the most.”
That is a statement that gives pause for thought, especially coming from Bill Gates. In this view, AI will have a greater impact on society than the invention of agriculture, the wheel, electricity, or the Internet!
He adds: “There is no upper limit on how intelligent AIs will get or on how good robots will get, and I believe the advances will not plateau before exceeding human levels.” He also anticipates that, as AI develops, society will be able to reduce the number of hours worked per week.
However, as the title of his piece suggests, Gates is ambivalent about the technology, as it could be exploited by malicious actors and disrupt the labor market. Clearly, strict oversight by governments and regulators will be necessary.
The second publication I read on AI is the 2025 annual letter from Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase. Here is an excerpt from what Dimon writes:
“The importance of AI is real — and while I hesitate to use the word transformational — it is. The pace of adoption will likely be far faster than prior technological transformations, like electricity or the internet. Those took decades to roll out, but this implementation looks likely to accelerate over the next few years.”
Like Gates, Dimon therefore believes in the potential of AI in the years ahead.
“AI will affect virtually every function, application and process in the company. And in the long run, it will have a huge positive impact on productivity. I do not think it is an exaggeration to say that AI will cure some cancers, create new composites and reduce accidental deaths, among other positive outcomes. It will eventually reduce the workweek in the developed world. And people will live longer and safer.”
However, like Bill Gates, Jamie Dimon also sees risks associated with the technology. He also believes that it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict how AI will evolve:
“We do not yet know exactly how AI will unfold. The landscape will change rapidly, with shifting assumptions about power consumption, costs, chip technologies and the speed at which data centers are deployed. There will be a wide variety of AI models — open and closed, large and small — and no single tool will dominate. Overall, the investment in AI is not a speculative bubble; rather, it will deliver significant benefits. However, at this time, we cannot predict the ultimate winners and losers in AI- related industries.”
I conclude that the potential of AI is enormous and that an investor should remain alert to opportunities to invest in it. At the same time, it is likely still too early to identify which companies will emerge as winners in the sector. Moreover, governments should be expected to step in to better regulate this technology.
Philippe Le Blanc, CFA, MBA
Chief Investment Officer at COTE 100
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This article is also published on 
(in French)
