The number of S&P 500 companies mentioning AI on earnings calls hit a record high.
In fourth-quarter earnings calls, 36% of companies mentioned AI, per Goldman Sachs.
A basket of AI tech stocks has outperformed the equal-weight S&P 500 since January 1, 2024.

Corporate America's obsession with artificial intelligence has shown no sign of slowing down, egged on by investors' frenzy for anything related to the burgeoning tech. 

After a slight dip in the third quarter, the proportion of S&P 500 companies that mentioned AI on earnings calls in the fourth quarter hit an all-time high of 36%, Goldman Sachs analysts wrote in a note Wednesday.

Tech titans like Microsoft, Amazon, and IBM talked up the technology, but other companies outside the tech sector like Bank of New York Mellon and UnitedHealth Group said they expect AI technology to enhance productivity, reduce costs, and improve products.

Others like Google and Advanced Micro Devices have seen an uptick in demand for AI goods and services, while executives at Meta, General Motors, Automatic Data Processing, and Franklin Resources mentioned the need for further investment in AI. 

AI mentions on earnings calls have skyrocketed.




Goldman Sachs

The surge in AI mentions reflects "enthusiasm over the technology," the bank's analysts maintained.

Companies in the energy sector saw the sharpest increase in AI mentions, while real estate firms saw the biggest drop-off.

"Equity prices have reflected this management enthusiasm, as a basket of companies pursuing or enabling AI technology....has outperformed the equal-weight S&P 500 by 19 pp since the start of the year," Goldman analysts said. 

Shares of popular AI names like Nvidia, TSMC, Arm, and SoundHound have all surged in 2024.

Broadly, S&P 500 earnings have come in stronger than forecast. As of February 14, companies that comprise 80% of the index's market cap have reported earnings, and 58% of those names beat expectations by at least one standard deviation of analyst estimates, according to Goldman Sachs.

With earnings season winding down, the expected earnings per share growth compared to a year ago is 7%. 

As far as AI's potential, Goldman economists predict that investment in AI will approach $100 billion in the US by 2025.