The AI investment boom is expected to continue. PwC: The technological complementarity between China and the U.S. is beneficial for the growth of the chip market

The market is concerned about the artificial intelligence (AI) bubble. Joe Atkinson, Global Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer at PwC, believes that to some extent, the direction of this debate may be misguided, suggesting that the focus should be on the opportunities created by AI rather than worrying about the valuations of individual companies. He also mentioned that in any market, there are companies that may be overvalued and those that may be undervalued. He pointed out that the current high level of interest and excitement in AI among market participants is driving opportunities to emerge. Vishy Narayanan, Partner and Head of Digital and AI for the Asia-Pacific region at the company, noted that both China and the U.S. have their strengths and weaknesses in AI technology, and there has been progress in chip development. With the increasing demand for chips and computing power, he believes that both countries are exploring a market with absolute growth potential. Joe Atkinson stated that the current market sentiment towards AI is high, and therefore, the pace of investment related to AI is likely to be sustained. As breakthroughs in AI applications and robotics continue to increase, the investment pace in certain AI-related industries and fields may accelerate. He pointed out that funding will continue to flow into the AI sector, including data centers, infrastructure providers, and computing and model providers, while the application layer is just getting started. Some companies currently using AI to solve specific problems have attracted significant funding. Currently in the First Stage of AI Investment Vishy Narayanan believes that we are currently in the first stage of investing in AI, which involves creating and providing AI, while there are many other aspects of AI applications yet to explore. He mentioned that a year ago in Hong Kong, discussions with clients about AI were more experimental and in the early stages, with clients expressing an understanding of AI but being uncertain about "how far I want to go." Now, clients are expressing a desire to embrace AI and push for large-scale implementation, but the question is what is needed in the process. Almost all clients are now using AI, focusing on how to leverage AI to reshape their businesses and discussing how to work differently with AI. When asked about the gap in AI technology between China and the U.S., Joe Atkinson stated that such discussions cause everyone to miss the potential and opportunities that collaboration could bring. In fact, the skills and capabilities in different regions are complementary, describing how the U.S. has made significant progress in model development and cutting-edge models, as well as in the enterprise applications of AI; China leads in robotics and industrial applications of AI, and clients need all of that technology (our clients need all of that). Therefore, he believes that as collaboration strengthens, opportunities will arise. He also noted that in the foreseeable future, the demand for chips will exceed supply, which presents opportunities for both China and the U.S. Both countries are currently making progress in chip development to meet the potentially limitless demand for chips and computing power in the coming years, and they are exploring a market with absolute growth potential