Transformative impact of AI on technology and the economy
Artificial intelligence (AI) is regarded as the most significant productivity boost since electricity, with AI chips projected to grow from US$45 billion in 2023 to US$500 billion by 20281. This growth could lead AI to surpass the historical impact of electricity on global GDP.
2025 Tech Tour: AI Forever
This year's annual Tech Tour saw our team of portfolio managers and analysts meet with the CEOs of the world's leading and emerging technology firms in Silicon Valley, including Tesla, ServiceNow, Broadcom, TSMC, Atlassian, Meta, Google, Crowdstrike, AMD, and Coinbase to name a few. Portfolio managers Dom Rizzo and Tony Wang, and portfolio specialist Jennifer Martin, reveal the highlights from their time on the road.
Key takeaways
So almost all of our GDP growth really needs to come from productivity. And if you go study electricity, what did the electricity do to global productivity? It added roughly 1% a year to the global GDP statistics for 32 years. I think AI is going to beat that handily. I mean, 1% a year for 32 years I actually think is a low bar for what AI can do. And why is that? It's because AI is a one-to-many technology, right? It leverages our capabilities.
The area that we're seeing it most right now is in digital semis, right? Where is this showing up in the stocks and the revenue? It's in digital semis. And why is that? It’s because the compute processing of AI—we've talked so much about it being so high and the compute intensity being so high.
AI sparks a new era of unmatched productivity
(Video duration: 59 seconds)
AI is poised to outshine electricity's historical productivity boost, potentially surpassing a 1% annual GDP increase over 32 years2. As a one-to-many technology, AI is revolutionising digital semiconductors, promising unprecedented economic growth.
Dominic Rizzo:
Look, I always take a step back with technology. I say, OK, where are we with valuations? The global technology universe is trading at roughly 25 times earnings today. Historically, that will peak at 26 to 28 times earnings. So we're at that upper end of the range, but we're not nearly at the extreme levels that we saw during the ’90s, where you would see over 30 times earnings. And you know, I have the saying internally: You know, AI has the potential to be the biggest productivity enhancer for the global economy since electricity. Productivity-enhancing technologies are usually accompanied by speculative bubbles.
Our job is to navigate speculative bubbles responsibly through an investment framework. I don't see a speculative bubble today. I see names that are at the higher end of historical ranges, but not absurdly expensive. When I look at demand drivers, software, we talked about agentic AI. When I look at semis, core auto industrial potentially bottoming, smartphone, PC potentially bottoming, accompanied by the strength of AI chip spend, internet getting very high ROI on this capex. You put it all together, and I actually think it’s a really nice outlook for technology for 2025.
Anthony Wang:
Yeah, I agree. I think that, you know, a lot of strength has been really driven by earnings growth and not valuation. So that's, you know, the “Mag Seven” looks reasonable to me. And then, I think that you've got the kind of bouncy compounders continuing to look good and grow. If we get a better accelerated economy, that should be a tailwind. As well as the stuff the Accenture’s, that IT services have been really kind of depressed because of weak economic data. As well as broad-based semis, that should also be good.
So, I'm optimistic. I know we're going on year three of a really strong tech rebound, but I think just given everything that's happening in AI, I do think that can prolong this cycle.
Tech's bright horizon as AI shapes 2025 growth
(Video duration: 2 minutes 11 seconds)
Tech valuations hover near historical peaks, yet remain below '90s extremes. AI emerges as a transformative force, akin to electricity, driving productivity without speculative bubbles. With robust earnings growth and AI advancements, what’s the outlook for tech in 2025?
We had a robust discussion on crypto.
And the first negative I always hear with crypto is it's used for illicit or negative activities. And I would say:
Number 1: The number one currency for illicit activities is the U.S. dollar today, and
Number 2: The dollar doesn't have a blockchain, which you could follow every single transaction. So actually, I think crypto is more secure over time rather than less.
The next thing I hear is that the government won't support crypto because it means the end of dollar dominance. I think that is actually completely opposite of the truth. I think that that's totally wrong. I think that crypto will accelerate the dominance of the dollar over time. And there's really two reasons.
One, we have all of these new assets in the world that are primarily priced in dollars. So look at Bitcoin, primarily priced in dollars. I think it's one of the top 10 largest assets in the world today. It's effectively like adding a whole other gold or new oil commodity base that is primarily priced in dollars around the world.
Second, I think the big use case for crypto overtime is stablecoins. And what is a stablecoin?
My name is Dominic Rizzo. I'm Italian American obviously, and I carry a lot of cash in my pocket. It literally burns a hole in my pocket every day because I'm not getting my 4% interest that I could be getting in the bag. With the U.S. dollar stablecoin, if I could just pay with the U.S. dollar stablecoin every day, I would be able to collect my 4% interest and pay. So I'd get all the benefits of cash, but I'd be able to be collecting interest along the way.
It's effectively like a money market fund that you can spend. And today, stablecoins are the eighth-largest buyer of U.S. Treasuries in the world. Think about that: the eighth-largest buyer of U.S. Treasuries of the world. The new secretary of commerce, former CEO—the CEO of Canner. Canner does all the custodialization for Tether, which is one of the two big stablecoins in the world.
So, I think we're going to see an explosion in stablecoin demand, and that's going to really all benefit the crypto ecosystem.
And the third benefit of crypto is just speed and low cost of transaction. Five years ago, you didn't have the benefits of something like Base, which is a layer 2 on Ethereum, or something like a Solana that sped up the transaction cost and bought them down dramatically. And now we bought basically internet scale speed to money.
And so I think that's why crypto should do really well over time.
Stablecoins paving the way for dollar's crypto reign
(Video duration: 2 minutes 49 seconds)
Stablecoins could bolster the US dollar's dominance in crypto, with assets like Bitcoin priced in dollars. As crypto evolves, stablecoins and blockchain technology promise to enhance transaction speed and cost, reinforcing the dollar's global influence.
About the 2025 Tech Tour
More than
40
T. Rowe Price portfolio managers & analysts
Met with
~40
Public and private tech companies
Generating
300+
Actionable investment insights
Why the rise of AI is not like the Dotcom Bubble
Earnings versus speculation
Unlike the dotcom bubble, this AI cycle has been driven by a surge in earnings rather than speculation
Sustainable funding
Nvidia’s sevenfold share price increase was almost entirely driven by earnings growth estimates rather than market sentiment alone
Funding source
AI growth driven by selling linchpin AI technology to cash flow generative companies versus the dotcom bubble primarily being debt-funded

Market Outlook: AI’s “easy money” era is over, but an abundance of opportunities remain
- Identify key linchpin companies innovating in growth markets with improving fundamentals (revenues, margins, cash flows) and reasonable valuations.
- Consider the semiconductor industry for AI applications and improvements in chip design and manufacturing processes.
- Focus on software and fintech sectors where AI advancements benefit data infrastructure, vertical applications, cybersecurity, and personalized banking.
AI market risk and considerations
1. Macroeconomic uncertainty
Inflation remains a potential headwind, particularly in light of potential policy changes under a Trump administration that may favor pro-growth strategies but which risk increased inflationary pressures.
2. Company valuations
While not considered to be at bubble levels, current valuations, hovering around 25-26 times forward earnings, warrant some caution. Close scrutiny of earnings estimates and a focus on improving fundamental business performance are crucial.
Podcasts: The power of AI
items
The rise of artificial intelligence
The speed of innovation and acceleration of the AI cycle has taken the market by storm. Learn how a diversified portfolio manager is navigating the AI investment cycle.

The new electricity?
We explore how AI is already disrupting markets and why it may prove to be the biggest boost to human productivity since the harnessing of electricity.

Harnessing AI's potential
Beyond the tech sector, how is AI being used in broader market areas? Host Jennifer Martin and guests discuss within the context of the basic resources and real estate sectors.

AI in investment research
We explore how asset managers could use AI to boost investment research and discuss the risks of this new technology and what steps you can take to mitigate them.

AI and the global economy
How could AI impact the broad economy and what are the implications of AI on growth, employment, and productivity? We uncover emerging trends and opportunities.

AI's impact on sustainable development
AI can play an important role in sustainable development but also poses some unique risks. T. Rowe Price's Director of Research for Responsible Investing discusses some of the key challenges.
Insights: Our thoughts on AI
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Are we partying like it's 1999 again?
AI versus Dotcom: There are some similarities, yet also key differences.

AI and fixed income: Booming demand for data center ABS and CMBS
Artificial intelligence drives demand for data center ABS and CMBS investments.

How AI’s impact is reaching into areas that might surprise you
Discover how rising AI energy demands are reshaping independent power producer credit ratings.

Growing pains and opportunity: Analyzing what's next in the AI boom
David Giroux explains why AI is likely to be deflationary over time and why he likes software.

Navigating the AI cycle
After meeting with more than 50 tecnology companies across the US. Asia, and Europe, Dom Rizzo answer three burning questions on AI.

Where are we in the AI cycle?
The reasons why Dom Rizzo thinks we remain relatively early in the AI infrastructure build out

Investment implications of generative artificial intelligence
In our analyst's view, Generative AI is genuine breakthrough capable of unlocking interesting areas of global tech in 2024 and beyond.
Funds with AI exposure
Our approach to investing is truly global. With one of the most extensive and experienced buy-side global research engines in the industry, our investment teams discover investment opportunities you can be confident in.

T. Rowe Price
Global Equity Fund
A truly global equity portfolio targeting companies from developed, emerging and frontier markets.

T. Rowe Price Concentrated Global Equity Fund
A high conviction global equity portfolio that seeks to thrive in all market environments without favouring any one style of investing.

T. Rowe Price
Global High Income Fund
Aims to deliver high income and capital appreciation by investing primarily in global high yield bonds.

T. Rowe Price
Global Impact Equity Fund
A dual mandate fund that pursues stocks with clear impact and financial return markers to deliver long-term capital appreciation.
1 AMD Q3 2024 earnings call, October 2024
2 T. Rowe Price Internal Estimates, November 2024
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