Despite widespread concerns, the asset manager has said it rejects claims of an artificial intelligence (AI) bubble.
Although questions about AI valuation and concentration risk persist, American Century has argued that investors will continue to pour money into the sector next year.
In its 2026 Outlook, co-chief investment officer of global growth equity at the firm, Keith Lee, said while concerns are valid, the asset manager broadly disagrees with conclusions about an AI bubble.
“Bubbles are usually marked by excess, such as excess capacity and excessive debt, which are two clear examples,” Lee said, adding that the firm currently sees neither issue.
Unlike past bubbles, he argued that the current spending environment shows little speculative excess, with the sector’s growth driven more by real innovation and profitability. For his part, he said the companies that are investing significantly in the technology report “significant bottom-line improvements”.
“So, the largest AI spenders and most advanced AI users are seeing a contribution to profitability from the technology.”
At the same time, while American Century maintained a bullish view on AI, it also acknowledged that not all opportunities in the sector show equal promise. To combat this, it argued that active management can help separate true value creators from riskier, less substantiated ventures.
“Investments that are debt-financed and have uncertain use cases are right to be questioned. We’re continuing to seek more evidence of a return on AI investment by asking pointed questions of corporate management teams,” Lee concluded.
Similar to American Century, online trading and investment platform CMC identified AI breakthroughs and bubbles as one of five megatrends set to define the coming year in its 2026 Outlook.
Having spent nearly US$400 billion ($600 billion) on AI investment this year, CMC pointed to Morningstar data which found big tech is expected to extend its spending spree into 2026 – with industry leaders planning to allocate up to 35 per cent of annual revenue toward AI-related investments.
However, unlike American Century, CMC’s head of markets, Kurt Mayell did not dismiss bubble concerns. Instead, he argued that the technology carries “both promise and risk” but that history shows bubbles rarely burst on schedule.
“AI bulls would argue that this isn’t 1999 – unlike the dot-com era, today’s AI boom is led by profitable, cash-rich big tech firms that don’t rely solely on AI to drive earnings,” Mayell said.
He urged investors to view AI not as a single technology story, but as a landscape of opportunities spanning chipmakers, fabricators, infrastructure providers, semiconductor suppliers, and cloud platforms which requires careful selection.
Following this logic, the firm identified energy to power the AI revolution as another 2026 megatrend, alongside robotics growth, new defence opportunities, and the ongoing “debasement trade” in gold and Bitcoin observed this year.
Meanwhile, InvestorDaily’s sister publication, Money Management, this week reported that GQG Partners – one of the most vocal critics of the AI trend – has recorded outflows for the fifth consecutive month.
While overall funds under management (FUM) for the firm still increased over the year, part of the reason for the outflows was attributed to fund underperformance due to bucking market trends and betting against AI.
A recent whitepaper from the firm critiquing OpenAI’s long-term business viability outlined GQG’s firm resistance to the AI trend. It argued that the company’s economics are fundamentally unsound despite rapid revenue growth, mass user adoption and its central role in the global AI infrastructure boom.
