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The AI race is wide open, creating a world of opportunities

The AI race is wide open, creating a world of opportunities

by Willem Sels, Global Chief Investment Officer, HSBC Global Private Banking and Wealth
 
  • Anecdotal evidence indicates that AI adoption is already here
  • AI adoption will be further spurred by recent developments, which have opened the door to affordable, flexible, scalable and intelligent problem-solving by AI across a wider range of real-life applications
  • We believe AI promotes economic growth while capping inflation, countering the potentially stagflationary effects of trade tariffs
  • We take a broad-based approach to investing in AI, focussing on AI adopters and themes such as Intelligent Automation, Digital Infrastructure, Cybersecurity and Next Gen Medicines. From a geographical perspective, we see opportunities beyond the US, in particular in China

AI adoption is already here

AI is helping companies increase efficiencies and launch new products and services. A major oil company has cut maintenance costs by 20 per cent using AI; a global consumer goods company saved USD 200 million by optimising logistics; and an industrial company saved 20 per cent in electricity costs. AI is being used in precision agriculture to monitor crop health through satellite imagery and sensors, enabling farmers to maximize yields with fewer resources. In healthcare, AI-driven diagnostics tools are analysing medical images with unprecedented accuracy, aiding early detection of diseases.

Adoption and innovation further spurred by two key recent developments

AI has recently seen two major catalysts. Firstly, there is a move towards reasoning models, which allow for the creation of AI agents for flexible, scalable and intelligent problem-solving, vastly broadening the range of potential real-life applications where AI could make a difference. Secondly, DeepSeek has awakened the possibility that these reasoning models could be affordably trained and used.

With greater affordability and versatility, we see AI as a democratiser, helping SMEs and private sector companies to compete with larger rivals.

Positive economic impact of AI counters trade tariff impact 

From a macro-economic perspective, we believe AI promotes economic growth while capping inflation, which is great news for investors who are currently concerned about the potentially stagflationary effects of trade tariffs. From a growth perspective, AI is beneficial because it helps create new business models and enables workers to complete tasks more quickly. Clearly, it is also providing a significant boost to investment spending, especially in infrastructure (data centres, IT hardware, electricity) and increasing R&D. While some individuals worry about the effect on the labour market, history tells us that, in general, job losses due to automation tend to be offset by newly created jobs.

Investment focus has moved towards AI adopters

DeepSeek has triggered volatility in the Mag7 stocks and illustrated that the AI race is wide open. We continue to see AI as a new ecosystem, where potential beneficiaries can be found around the world, across sectors, in large and small caps, and in both public and private markets.

Our focus has shifted from AI enablers towards AI adopters and themes such as Intelligent Automation (including the automation & robotics sector), Digital Infrastructure (including data centres and related activities), Cybersecurity (not forgetting about energy security) and Next Gen Medicines (and other healthcare innovation areas).

From a geographical perspective, we see opportunities beyond the US, particularly in China, where internet leaders, e-commerce and AI-related tech are clear beneficiaries.

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