Robo Global Aims To Profit From AI Revolution

As a technology and business concept, AI is beginning to feel very similar to the type of euphoria towards the internet in the mid to late ‘90s. This time, however, AI has way more hype, promise, confusion, mystery, and even fear—depending on your view of it—than the internet ever did.

Recently, Financial Sense Newshour discussed this topic with William Studebaker, President of ROBO Global, creator of the robotics and automation ETF, ROBO, on why this truly represents the next greatest revolution impacting the world economy.

AI Is Already Here

We’re already seeing AI applications taking form in smart appliances, online search algorithms, recession forecasting, autonomous weapons systems, and data collection and analysis. While many still think of AI in sci-fi terms, the reality is, AI is here and companies have embraced it, particularly in the financial industry.

Consider The Massive Hedge Fund Betting on AI

Man Group, which has about $96 billion under management…has gone from viewing AI with skepticism to making it a cornerstone strategy. Among the company’s biggest expenditures now is computer equipment—along with hiring engineers to keep up with the technological change and the ensuing growth. AI is now not only out of the nuclear bunker but on a pedestal. “It went from total isolation to ‘OK, you are allowed to sit at dinner with the rest of us, but don’t talk’ to the point where it’s become a part of the family,” Ellis says.

Man Group’s embrace of artificial intelligence puts it at the forefront of a seismic change that’s not only reshaping global finance but also raising profound questions about an industry in which self-altering algorithms are making multibillion-dollar decisions with little human involvement. Even as Man embraces the revolution, its CEO is awestruck by the speed of the transformation—cautious that it can live up to the hype, nervous about what the new tools say about the future. “My hope is always that there will be parts that humans do that AI doesn’t do,” Ellis says. But, he adds, “I wouldn’t bet my life on it.”