AI Delivers 0 Payoff Beyond Tech as S&P 493 Margins Stay Flat

3 articles · Updated · Apollo Global Management · Oct 24

Zero financial payoff is showing up outside tech despite heavy AI spending, with no evidence that artificial intelligence is lifting the broader corporate bottom line.
Revenue per worker and profit margins are rising for the Mag 7 but remain flat for the S&P 493, while productivity growth still shows no AI boost.
Mainstream corporate America is pulling back because token spending is increasingly seen as a cost center, even as VC-backed companies keep spending more on models and usage.
Macroeconomic effects will stay limited as long as agentic AI and token spending remain concentrated in a small slice of the economy rather than spreading across the S&P 493.
The next test is whether cheaper, commoditized models can raise revenue and margins beyond tech, though limits around judgment, accountability, trust and culture may slow that shift.