AI will create more jobs, MarketPsych founder says

Dr Richard Peterson, founder of MarketPsych, said in a recent interview that artificial intelligence will create more jobs. He pointed to data showing companies that adopt AI often expand headcount and to an increase in job openings for software engineers.

MarketPsych collects sentiment data across roughly 1,000 news sources and dozens of investment-focused social platforms in 28 languages, creating a record of investor mood dating back to 1998. Peterson uses that data to track how optimism and worry change during technology cycles.

Peterson contrasted the current AI rally with the dot-com era. He cited companies such as Nvidia, Broadcom and Micron as examples of firms generating large revenues and strong cash flows, unlike many internet companies in the early 2000s. He added that high profits tend to attract competition over time, which can put pressure on margins.

He listed several emerging sources of competition: rival chipmakers, custom chips developed by large cloud and internet firms, and increasingly capable alternatives from China. Peterson said investors should consider whether current valuations allow room for margin compression if competition intensifies and capital floods AI opportunities.

Peterson did not label the whole AI trade a bubble but identified market behaviors that appear in late-stage rallies. He pointed to greater use of leveraged single-stock ETFs and a pipeline of AI-related initial public offerings that could absorb substantial speculative capital. Potential listings from high-profile private companies could reduce the pool of funds available to existing public leaders.

On sentiment, Peterson said optimism often peaks early in a cycle while prices keep rising. He said social media sentiment can turn skeptical before traditional financial coverage shows the change. He recommended using sentiment data alongside company fundamentals, not as a sole forecasting tool.

For investors, he advised looking beyond headline names. Peterson highlighted networking companies, optical infrastructure providers and semiconductor equipment makers as likely to benefit from AI infrastructure growth. He warned that some memory makers and server manufacturers are showing elevated sentiment associated with late-stage rallies and may warrant caution.

On employment, Peterson cited data that he says contradicts widespread fears of mass AI-driven layoffs. “I think AI will create more jobs, and I think that’s what we’re seeing,” he said, pointing to rising software-engineer vacancies and research indicating firms adopting AI often add roles in other areas. He noted the main challenge will be how quickly workers and companies adjust to new skill requirements.

Peterson’s market outlook included a constructive view on networking infrastructure, caution on overheated parts of the AI supply chain, and increasing optimism about long-term beneficiaries such as nuclear power, solar and battery storage. He said investors should expect separate cycles across different segments of the AI ecosystem rather than a single uniform trade.