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Superstar tech investor warns over AI boom
Rush to own largest US tech stocks leaving markets at risk, warns Cathie Wood
![Cathie Wood](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/business/2024/08/02/TELEMMGLPICT000385151050_17226245637720_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqpVlberWd9EgFPZtcLiMQf0Rf_Wk3V23H2268P_XkPxc.jpeg?imwidth=680)
Influential investor Cathie Wood has sounded the alarm over the artificial intelligence (AI) boom in US tech stocks warning the stampede to own them risked burning investors.
Ms Wood, a bullish supporter of Silicon Valley, said the rush to own the six largest US tech stocks had left the market at its most concentrated “since the Great Depression in the 1930s”.
A global sell-off roiled markets this week because of mounting scepticism over how much “big tech” can benefit from its vast spending on artificial intelligence.
She said the six largest US tech stocks – Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta – were “taking up so much oxygen from the investment room” that the market “knows that the increased concentration is developing into a risk”.
“History books will be written about this,” she said.
“Investors are concerned about this concentration and the risk that the concentration is introducing into their own system.”
Ms Wood runs the Ark Invest, which manages $11.1bn (£8.67bn) of investor money. Ark is a major backer of Elon Musk’s Tesla and also owns a stake in OpenAI, the world’s biggest AI company.
Fears have grown on Wall Street about whether big tech can reap the benefits of the AI boom. Hedge fund Elliott Advisers on Friday warned clients Nvidia was a “bubble” and AI was “overhyped”.
Ms Wood said there were better stocks to choose to play the AI theme and the benefits would ripple down to more than just six companies.
Ms Wood warned that heavy regulation of artificial intelligence risks driving tech companies out of Britain.
She urged the Government not to follow the heavy-handed approach of the EU, saying imposing strict AI rules would be “like regulating the internet heavily in the early 90s”.
She said: “These are very early days and so early that we don’t even know what we have here.
“[In the early 90s] they thought we should regulate the internet the same way we regulate television and newspapers, but that would have prevented the scaling of the internet.”
It comes as Labour prepares to draw up rules for the industry, amid fears in some quarters that AI could run amok and cause large amounts of damage. The King’s Speech promised that the Government would “establish the appropriate legislation to place requirements on those working to develop the most powerful artificial intelligence models”.
Excitement about the potential for AI has driven a huge recent rally for US tech stocks connected to the industry.
However, detractors have concerns about the risks posed by the untrammelled development of the powerful technology.
AI is already being used to create deepfakes, which can be employed for both abusive purposes and scams. This is just one of ways the technology can be misused.
Ms Wood downplayed the risks, saying companies developing in AI would be unlikely to roll out dangerous products.
She said: “Any technology can be used for nefarious purposes. If there’s an unsafe product out there and they’re spewing out hatred, that’s just bad business.”
The EU last week rolled out a law banning or restricting the use of AI for applications such as facial recognition.
Ms Wood urged Britain not to follow suit, saying the country risked missing out on business if it did.
She highlighted Facebook owner Meta’s decision not to release its latest AI model in the EU and a move by big data group Palantir Technologies to move its regional AI base to the UK as a result of Europe’s crackdown.
“Because of what Europe is doing now, we’re seeing some companies say we’re not going to release this product in Europe,” she said.
“They’re saying … if it’s too onerous, we just won’t go there.”
The US has so far taken a lighter touch approach to regulation.
Ms Wood is a famed investor and enjoys a cult-like following but has faced criticism over claims she has created a frenzy around risky tech stocks. Billionaire hedge fund figures such as Dan Loeb and Cliff Asness have criticised her investment style for creating a “mania” around tech stocks.
Ms Wood rose to prominence almost overnight during Covid after her main fund, Ark Innovation Exchange-Traded Fund, delivered a 152pc return for investors. However, performance has lagged since then.
The US investor, who lived in Britain for five years as a child, said Ark was “the closest thing to a venture fund that you’ll find in the public equity markets”.