Amazon founder Jeff Bezos downplayed concerns over a potential artificial intelligence (AI) bubble, saying the surge in investment across the sector is likely to produce lasting technological gains even if some ventures fail.
Speaking to CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin on “Squawk Box,” Bezos said the scale of capital flowing into AI should not alarm investors or policymakers.
“Even if it does turn out to be a bubble, you shouldn't worry about it because the bubble is driving investment and a lot of the investment is going to turn out to be very healthy,” Bezos said.
ALSO READ: AI Can Reduce Specialists' Roles | The Reason Why
The comments come amid rising debate over whether soaring valuations and aggressive spending on AI infrastructure are creating unsustainable market conditions. Technology giants including Amazon, Microsoft and Google are collectively expected to spend more than $700 billion on AI infrastructure this year.
Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, has also cautioned that investors may be “overexcited about AI,” even as the company's valuation has surged and spending on data centre expansion accelerates.
Bezos acknowledged that the rush into AI funding means weak business models are also attracting capital.
“It's because investors at this moment haven't learned yet how to discriminate between good ideas and bad ideas, and that's OK, because the good ideas will pay for all of the losers,” he said.
“So from a point of view of civilization, of society, these kinds of industrial cycles can actually be very healthy because they drive the technology forward.”
Drawing parallels with the biotechnology boom of the 1990s, Bezos said market excesses may hurt some investors financially but can still leave behind meaningful innovation.
“A lot of investors lost money on certain things, but we still got to keep all the life-saving drugs that they had invented,” he said.
Bezos said artificial intelligence now occupies a significant share of his focus across Amazon, Blue Origin and his latest venture, Project Prometheus.
ALSO READ | AI Will Destroy Some Jobs, Create New Roles: HSBC CEO Amid Banking Shake-Up
The startup, launched in November 2025 with $6.2 billion in funding, is being developed alongside former Google X executive Vik Bajaj. According to Bezos, the company is building AI systems capable of handling physical engineering and manufacturing tasks, including product design and drug development.
He described the company's goal as creating an “artificial general engineer” that could significantly enhance computer-aided design capabilities.
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
