The AI slowdown that isn’t
Companies may be frustrated by AI’s growing pains—but they’re still spending like believers
A reporter looked for companies pulling back on AI after recent disappointments and market jitters—and couldn’t find any willing to say so. The picture that emerges is less about abandonment and more about slower timelines, execution gaps, and continued pressure to invest.
Key takeaways
- Hype cool-down, spend persists: Despite underwhelming product releases and headlines about failing pilots, companies aren’t openly cutting AI budgets.
- Bubble or staying power: Ongoing investment amid warning signs can look like classic bubble behavior—or simply reflect confidence that setbacks are temporary.
- Economists’ longer clock: Experts note it would be “historically shocking” for a technology to transform jobs or productivity as fast as AI boosters predicted, implying adoption will take time.
- Failures framed as execution issues: Many executives blame pilot failures on data quality, speed, or strategy—not on AI’s core capability—so they continue experimenting.
- Notable pullbacks exist, but are partial: Examples like Klarna’s hiring reversal and QSR drive-through voice pilots being shelved show course corrections without wholesale retreat.
- Unspoken caution: If firms are rethinking the size or timing of their AI bets, they’re largely not saying so publicly—leaving the true level of corporate skepticism unclear.
Get the full story at MIT Technology Review