The AI boom is threatened by an epidemic of unreliable numbers
Conflicting revenue reports for AI firms like OpenAI and Anthropic show unreliable numbers are distorting markets, threatening the AI boom as investors navigate blindly.
Investors can no longer put their trust in data
On Oct 14, Anthropic reportedly told investors that it had revenues of US$16.8 billion in the third quarter and that, on its own adjusted measure, it was profitable. PHOTO: REUTERS
THE Financial Times wrote on Oct 8 that OpenAI’s revenue was nearing US$50 billion. A massive number, though massively lower than the US$70 billion reported by Axios the week before.
Tech stocks fell. Journalists were not on top of their figures, cried investors. Tech stocks rose. If investors could be swayed so easily, they were not on top of their investments, cried Hock Tan. The boss of chipmaker Broadcom compared markets to a casino, reported Bloomberg.
Tech stocks fell, and have continued to do so. Markets may have been flying. But when it comes to the numbers that matter, they have been flying blind. Radical change has always been hard to count.
Source: The Business Times https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion-features/ai-boom-threatened-epidemic-unreliable-numbers
