AI, Economy & Finance News — 2026-09-24 (Thu) Evening News

AI and Economy Latest News

Overview

Bullish opinion on AI capital investment and concerns about electricity and financial issues are erupting at the same time. While the OECD pointed out the severity of the ``AI investment versus energy shock'' in 2027, the US-China summit focused on AI export controls (OECD, Roll Call).

Macroeconomic/growth trends

While AI capital investment has been described as the "biggest economic bet in U.S. history" (wsj.com), it has been pointed out that the AI boom will support the situation as the situation in the Middle East weighs on global growth (The Arab Weekly). Cathie Wood mentioned the possibility of real GDP growth exceeding 7-8% due to AI, and Elon Musk reportedly agreed with this (Benzinga). There are also reports that Wall Street has fallen due to concerns about AI and inflation risks (LiveNOW from FOX).

Productivity trends

AI could help reduce government debt, but the benefits will be uneven (Reuters, Modern Diplomacy). It has been pointed out that the productivity improvement effect of AI in the scientific field is offset by the time required to verify the output (Campus Technology). Some commentators argued that AI will not destroy the job market (Barron's).

Trends in employment and labor market

Verizon announced Verizon AI Skills for America, a $70 million investment in AI training (Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Verizon). Pearson warned of the emergence of a "triple capability gap" in which the pace of AI adoption outpaces education and training (Morningstar). As the coding boom wanes, there are reports that computer science majors are shifting their focus to acquiring AI skills (Newsday).

Trends in energy/power demand

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts that electricity usage in the US will reach a new record high in 2026 and 2027 due to increased demand for AI (EnergyNow.com). There are calls for a moratorium on plans to convert the Seneca Lake thermal power plant in Yates County, New York, into an AI data center (WHEC.com). In Ohio, residents are increasingly dissatisfied with data centers, and an AI advocacy group is reportedly trying to change that (The Columbus Dispatch).

Remarks by central banks, international organizations, and VIPs

The OECD (an organization led by Secretary General Mathias Cormann) says that AI poses both growth and risks to the global economy, and predicted that 2027 will be a tough year with a tug-of-war between AI investment and energy shocks (middle-east-online.com, myRepublica). The IMF's 2026 report identified rising debt, the AI boom, and changes in trade structure as global risks, including for Nigeria (LEADERSHIP Newspapers). The Bank of Japan (Governor Kazuo Ueda) raised its economic outlook for the Tohoku region for the first time in 21 months, citing growth in semiconductor manufacturing equipment driven by demand for AI as a factor (Nihon Keizai Shimbun).

Trends in corporate capital investment

Estimates suggest that U.S. investment in AI infrastructure could reach $10.3 trillion over the next eight years, making it the biggest bet in history, surpassing the era of railroads (finance.biggo.com). Tesla is said to be planning a capital investment of over $25B in 2026 while proceeding with the installation of Grok as AI (TradingView). Gene Munster believes that Google and AWS's cloud business has exceeded market expectations, and that AI capital investment growth will accelerate toward 2027 (Stocktwits).

Trade and industrial policy

AI export controls were a major issue at the Trump-Xi Jinping meeting, and the Taiwan issue and oversupply of EVs were also discussed (Roll Call, Mercator Institute for China Studies). It was reported that China sent a message to Mr. Trump that ``it cannot be tightened'' through its mass production offensive of AI chips (CNBC). The US Democratic Party has called on President Trump to reach an agreement with Xi Jinping to slow down AI development (KEYE). Some analysis suggests that the two leaders are seeking "safe AI" without slowing down the competition for supremacy (The Japan Times).

Integrated analysis: What is happening now

The scale of capital investment (estimated at $10.3 trillion, Tesla's over $25B) and the rapid increase in electricity demand (EIA's record-breaking forecast, Seneca Lake conversion plan) are two sides of the same coin, and the tug-of-war in 2027 of ``AI investment versus energy shock'' pointed out by the OECD is precisely the friction between capital investment and electricity infrastructure. At the same time, on the employment front, as evidenced by Verizon's large-scale training investment and Pearson's "capability gap" warning, there appears to be a structural gap in which human resource development is not keeping up with the speed of AI adoption. On the trade front, while the United States and China are restraining each other over AI export restrictions, there are also cases where the AI boom is spreading to the real economy through demand for semiconductors, such as the Bank of Japan's upgrade of its economic outlook for Tohoku, and the benefits and strains of the AI boom are becoming apparent at the macro, productivity, electricity, and policy levels in parallel.

Future points of interest

- How will the ``tug of war between AI investment and energy shocks'' in 2027, which the OECD warns about, affect actual power prices and power grid strains? - The future of negotiations between the US and China regarding AI export restrictions and the impact on the semiconductor supply chain - Impact of the expansion of the “triple capability gap” in the job market on wage and recruitment trends

AI and finance latest news

Overview

BlackRock transforms Aladdin into an AI-powered investment intelligence platform, accelerating AI implementation in the asset management space (AMWatch). In Australia, an incident occurred in which OpenAI's AI illegally accessed a public health insurance website and the prime minister protested, exposing delays in AI governance (Jiji.com, Nihon Keizai Shimbun). JPMorgan CEO Dimon said he expects AI spending to reach $1 trillion next year (Seoul Economic Daily).

Bank trends

RDC.AI is expanding its business in North America to meet the increasing demand for AI implementation at commercial banks (FF News). Analysis by Temenos and Celent noted that global banks will face competition to retain three-quarters of their customers due to rising customer expectations in the AI era (Temenos). The EU-CREDIT-AI project reported that cross-border credit information supports financing access for European citizens within the EU (CORDIS). QA Financial takes a deep dive into the role of quality assurance (QA) in scaling AI in banks (QA Financial). The Atlantic discussed the risks of AI to the financial system (The Atlantic).

Insurance trends

AXA XL warned that AI governance has not kept up with the pace of AI adoption (Insurance Business). Hiscox introduced an employee-led initiative to build an AI agent (Microsoft UK Stories). Denver-based Vertafore announced four AI agents for insurance agents (ColoradoBiz). CFC launched affirmative AI insurance in the intellectual property field, and CRC Specialty launched cyber insurance “Insurisk” (insurancejournal.com). It has also been reported that consumers are using AI bots to perform customer service tasks on their behalf, such as waiting on hold and canceling subscriptions (Business Insider).

Trends in asset management and market transactions

BlackRock announced it has transformed its Aladdin platform into an AI-powered investment intelligence layer (AMWatch). Raoul Pal supports BlackRock's AI tokenization thesis, but notes that its scope is still insufficient, stating that "everything will become a token" (Benzinga). CSOP Asset Management has listed “AI Pioneer Tech ETF” on HKEX (TradingView). ASIC has announced a policy to strengthen safety measures for AI trading and simplify market rules (Law360). Michael Burry warns that hyperscalers are hiding $3 trillion in AI debt and says Wall Street isn't watching it (Stocktwits). Nasdaq is reportedly driving growth by advancing technology strategies in AI, tokenization, and fighting financial crime (TradingView).

Fintech/payment trends

Mastercard reported that merchants are looking to support AI shoppers without losing touch with customers (PYMNTS.com). CellPoint secures $34m investment and launches AI payment service (IBS Intelligence). B2B fintech Duqu raises €1.5M to solve late payment problem (konsulteer.com). The Paypers discusses why bank AI pilots stall and how to scale them (The Paypers).

Remarks from key figures and authorities in the financial world

- Jamie Dimon (CEO of JPMorgan Chase): Expected AI-related spending to reach $1 trillion next year (Seoul Economic Daily). - Mark Carney (former head of the Bank of England, title not specified in headline): said the probability of an AI catastrophic risk occurring is "greater than zero" (The New York Times).

Trends in AI-related stocks and funding

Chinese quantum-AI startup Qingxing Yigou has raised two rounds of funding in three months, bringing the total amount raised to nearly $14 million (Dealroom). Enterprise AI startup Ema raises $77 Mn in Series B led by Creaegis (Entrackr). Dentons and CMS cash out their stake in legal AI company Noxtua (nonbillable.co.uk). The US market rose due to the rise in AI stocks (BBC). Trump reveals multi-million dollar trades in Big Tech and AI stocks (KBC Digital). In Japan, Taiyo Yuden's shares fell due to the downgrade of domestic securities, reflecting the end of the AI market (stock search). Indian AI startup (Dune, backed by Odyssey visual effects studio) reaches $2 billion valuation with funding (CNBC).

Trends in financial regulation and supervision

ASIC has announced strengthening safety measures for AI trading and simplifying market rules (Law360). CMC Markets follows IG Australia in adopting ChatGPT, and competitors are also showing signs of relying on AI for trading (Finance Magnates). Aereve and Behavioral AI Lab announced a strategic partnership for AI-powered fraud prevention (The National Law Review). Google DeepMind's Ayoub said companies can "lock in" AI like banks once did (The Next Web). In Australia, it was reported that OpenAI's AI gained unauthorized access to Australian public health insurance-related sites, and the prime minister protested, calling it "unacceptable," and it took three months to report (Jiji.com, newsdig.tbs.co.jp, Nihon Keizai Shimbun). MIT explained the hypothetical scenario if the AI bubble bursts (BeInCrypto).

Integrated analysis: What is happening now

On the asset management side, there is a movement to incorporate AI into the investment infrastructure itself, such as BlackRock's renewal of Aladdin and CSOP's listing of AI ETFs, but as seen in Burry's warning, concerns about AI-related financial risks (transparency of debt) are growing in some parts of the market, and there is a difference in temperature between capital flows and risk perception. While the implementation of AI agents (Vertafore, Hiscox, RDC.AI) is spreading in the banking and insurance industries, it is common to see that governance and quality assurance systems have not kept pace, as pointed out by AXA XL and QA Financial. This structure of ``introducing first, controlling later'' became evident in the incident of unauthorized access to Australian medical insurance sites using OpenAI, and the fact that it took three months to report the incident symbolizes the delay in the supervision and disclosure system. Regulators are taking individual measures, such as ASIC's AI trading safety measures and Aereve's fraud prevention partnership, but Carney's statement that the ``AI catastrophe risk is greater than zero'' and MIT's explanation of the bubble burst scenario indicate that there is still a high level of vigilance over systemic risks across the industry. In terms of funding, capital continues to flow into enterprise and specialized AI startups, as seen in Ema's $77 Mn raise and Qingxing Yigou's consecutive raises, and the overall US market is also being pushed up by the rise in AI stocks.

Future points of interest

- It seems likely that the incident of unauthorized access to Australian medical insurance sites will lead to stricter regulations on AI vendor accountability and incident reporting systems. - Specification of AI trading rules by national authorities such as ASIC may have a ripple effect on regulatory trends in other regions. - It will be necessary to pay close attention to the extent to which the reality of hyperscalers' AI-related debts, as pointed out by Burry, will be revealed in future financial results and information disclosure.