Goldman Sachs believes the massive wave of artificial intelligence investment in the United States is still likely to generate strong returns, even as cheaper open-source AI models from China continue to gain global attention.
The comments come amid growing debate over whether US technology companies are overspending on AI infrastructure while Chinese rivals rapidly expand their capabilities.
Speaking at a technology conference in Hong Kong, Goldman Sachs executive Eric Sheridan said the AI industry is approaching a major turning point driven by rising demand for “agentic AI” — systems designed to complete tasks with greater autonomy and efficiency.
According to Sheridan, demand for advanced AI tools is now growing faster than the available computing power needed to run them.
AI Demand Continues to Outpace Supply
Sheridan argued that the current AI boom is not showing the signs of a traditional market bubble. Instead, he said companies remain limited by shortages in computing infrastructure such as data centres and advanced semiconductors.
Large US tech firms including Alphabet and Amazon recently reported stronger-than-expected growth in their cloud businesses, fueled by rising demand for AI services.
Goldman Sachs believes that continued infrastructure spending will eventually lower the cost of AI usage, encouraging businesses to adopt AI tools more aggressively.
As AI becomes cheaper and more accessible, analysts expect demand for AI-generated services and digital agents to increase sharply over the next several years.
Chinese AI Rivals Still Create Pressure
Despite optimism around US companies, competition from China remains a major factor in the global AI race.
Chinese firms have increasingly released low-cost open-source AI models, leading some analysts to question whether US companies will be able to maintain high profit margins in the long term.
However, Sheridan said concerns over Chinese AI disrupting the Western market may be overstated. He noted that US companies still lead in advanced enterprise AI adoption and continue to generate stronger revenue from large-scale AI products.
At the same time, he acknowledged that China has moved quickly in areas such as AI applications and autonomous technology deployment.
The comments highlight how artificial intelligence has become one of the biggest battlegrounds in global technology and investment markets.
As both the US and China continue pouring billions into AI infrastructure, investors are closely watching whether the enormous spending will deliver sustainable long-term growth.
