There is still no financial payoff from artificial intelligence outside the tech sector, according to Torsten Slok, partner and chief economist at Apollo Global Management. In a note titled "No Signs of AI Payoff Outside the Tech Sector," he writes that despite massive investments and widespread hype, AI has delivered zero financial benefit to corporate America beyond technology companies.
The argument rests on three indicators: revenue per worker is rising for the Magnificent 7 but flat for the S&P 493, profit margins are rising for the Mag 7 but flat for the rest of the index, and there are still no signs of AI lifting productivity growth. With no impact on the bottom line, Slok says mainstream companies are pulling back.
What the Apollo data shows
The note, published on Apollo's Insights & News page and dated October 24, 2026, draws on data from Bloomberg, Macrobond, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The charts compare the Magnificent 7 with the S&P 493 — the roughly 493 companies left when the seven tech giants are excluded.
Across those charts, the pattern is consistent. AI spending is concentrated in a small part of the economy, and the macroeconomic effects remain limited as long as agentic AI and token spending stay confined there.
- She says: revenue per worker rising for the Mag 7, flat for the S&P 493
- She says: profit margins rising for the Mag 7, flat for the S&P 493
- She says: no signs of AI boosting productivity growth
- She says: mainstream firms now see token spending as a cost center that weighs on margins
