Investors are paying an "AI premium": stocks of future technology beneficiaries are growing 0.64% faster per week
The market has already begun rewarding companies that investors believe will benefit from the adoption of artificial intelligence — even if those companies themselves are not yet using these technologies. This is the conclusion reached by economists after analyzing one of the largest datasets on real-world AI consumption.
How the "AI Premium" Was Calculated
The study is based on an analysis of 380 trillion tokens collected by the OpenRouter platform from January 2024 to April 2026. This dataset covers over 400 models, including GPT, Claude, and DeepSeek, and represents approximately 2% of global monthly AI consumption.
To accurately assess the impact of the technology on asset values, economists developed a special indicator — the so-called "AI factor." It records weekly changes in global neural network consumption. Companies were then divided into two groups: those whose stocks are sensitive to the rise in AI popularity, and those whose value barely reacts to these changes.
The results are striking: stocks of potential beneficiaries yield investors approximately 0.64% more per week than the rest. It is this difference that economists have dubbed the "AI premium."
Who Benefits?
The key finding of the study is that the AI premium has extended far beyond the technology sector. Higher returns are not limited to IT giants but also include retailers, consumer goods manufacturers, and even heavy industry. Investors are betting on a broad increase in labor productivity across all business sectors.
Another unexpected factor is geography. The bulk of the premium is concentrated in the United States and Europe, where infrastructure and the construction of modern data centers are centered. In China and emerging markets, this effect is significantly weaker.
Finally, the structure of AI consumption proved decisive. Contrary to expectations, the premium is driven not by the mass user but by the professional segment — complex, lengthy queries and paid subscriptions. Investors value the depth of technology integration rather than mass reach.
From an analyst's perspective, 0.64% per week is not merely a statistical anomaly. Over the long term, such a difference creates a massive gap in market capitalization. The market is essentially advancing capital to companies that it believes will be able to use AI most effectively in the future. This is a classic example of how investor expectations outpace actual financial performance, laying the groundwork for both explosive growth and potential bubbles.