AI Is the Biggest Tech Investing Theme for 2024

It may have been a breakout year for generative artificial intelligence (AI) in 2023. But in 2024, the technology is likely to reach untold heights and to affect nearly all areas of the investing world, according to technology experts.

AI emerged in the public consciousness in 2023, but many business leaders expect it to expand and proliferate dramatically in 2024. According to iShares, 70% of executives anticipate increasing AI resourcing next year, primarily motivated by efforts to cut costs.

Indeed, many tech companies already have integrated AI into pre-existing offerings, like Microsoft's (MSFT) Office 365 Copilot. But some experts say that this is only the beginning for AI adoption in the business world.

Emerging AI-Focused Roles

AI in 2024 has the potential to impact organizations and companies from the Fortune 500 down to the regional or local level. Cliff Jurkiewicz, technologist and vice president of global strategy at human resources (HR) tech firm Phenom, said that a host of AI-focused roles are likely to emerge across industries and sectors.

New AI-focused positions could include in-house AI ethicists, curators, policy makers, legal advisors, trainers, auditors, and interpreters, among others, Jurkiewicz says. The creation of an entirely new team devoted to these and other AI-related considerations could spell major shifts for a company's financials and structure.

Companies failing to create these roles could find themselves up against lawsuits and regulatory hurdles. Germany, France, and Italy are the latest examples of countries making moves to set up new AI regulations.

Issues of Trust

Although government regulation for AI is just beginning to emerge, the technology itself appears likely to outpace legislation. This means that companies will need to convince customers and investors that they can be trusted to deal with AI responsibly on their own.

Jurkiewicz added, "Investors would be wise to look at organizations that are keeping humans at the helm. In the absence of federal legislation, organizations need to self-regulate." A company that creates roles around AI ethics and curation may demonstrate to investors that it is taking this responsibility seriously.

The Rise of the Personal Co-Bot

Jurkiewicz also sees generative AI-based personal assistant bots as inevitable in the near future, adding that these will become "as routine an accessory as a phone." These co-bots are likely to quickly replace automated assistants like Siri and Alexa.

New businesses could emerge as a fight for dominance in this space continues, and co-bots are likely to have an immediate impact on HR. According to Jurkiewicz, "Recruiters, hiring managers, employees, and candidates are going to use a co-bot to easily navigate a plethora of hiring tasks."

AI-Augmented Software Development to Accelerate

Software developers including Ipek Ozkaya of the Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute have been skeptical about the capacity of AI tools to assist in the development process. "Despite the availability of potentially improved tools, it will be the humans who will use and guide these tools in their purposeful application," Ozkaya noted.

There are others who believe that AI could transform the tech space in particular in 2024 by streamlining much of the development work done by humans. More likely, perhaps, is that companies positioning themselves to harness the power of AI to speed up traditionally slow processes while keeping humans in control will reap the greatest benefit.

Investors in tech companies may want to monitor not just whether these firms use AI in their software development, but more specifically how AI and humans interact to enhance the process.

Real-Time Language Translation

AI tech has the potential to make real-time language translation truly useful in the business world. Jurkiewicz acknowledges that even the most popular language translation software products currently on the market are, at best, "only 60% accurate."

However, with natural language processing and machine learning tools, automated language translation capabilities likely will accelerate rapidly. "Imagine colleagues from all over the world, college professors and students, researchers and physicians being able to truly collaborate simultaneously in any language," Jurkiewicz said.

AI-Powered Investing

AI could revolutionize the way that retail investors make and execute their investing decisions. Jeff Shen, co-CIO and co-head of systematic active equity at BlackRock, said he believes that the "AI-empowered investor who blends 'big' data and 'big' models with human insight ... [is] the future of asset management."

Like with software development discussed earlier, turning all investment decisions over to AI may backfire. Rather, the most successful investors in the short term are likely to be those able to harness the vast power of AI to analyze and sort through data while also maintaining a human touch.

The Bottom Line

ChatGPT, one of the first generative AI systems to reach widespread global usage, launched just a year ago, on Nov. 30, 2022, and reached 100 million users in just months.

Even in the short time since then, AI has evolved at an astonishing pace. This isn't likely to change in the new year, and investors in the tech sector as well as the broader market should be prepared for the ways that AI is likely to affect businesses of all kinds.