Big tech boss tells delegates at Davos that broader global use is essential if technology is to deliver lasting growth

Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella has warned that artificial intelligence (AI) risks becoming a speculative bubble unless its use spreads beyond big tech companies and wealthy economies.

Mr Nadella on Tuesday said that the long-term success of the fast-developing technology would depend on it being used by a broad range of industries as well as on uptake outside of the developed world.

“For this not to be a bubble by definition, it requires that the benefits of this are much more evenly spread,” said Mr Nadella. He noted that a “telltale sign of if it’s a bubble” would be if only tech groups were benefiting from the rise of AI, rather than companies in other sectors.

However, Mr Nadella said he was confident that AI would prove to be transformative across industries, such as helping to develop new drugs.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2026/01/20/ai-boom-could-falter-without-wider-adoption-microsoft-chief-satya-nadella-warns/