AI’s productivity-boosting impact will “ultimately prevail,” ushering in an era that produces its own leaders, with those who deploy the technology effectively reaping increasing gains over time, according to Pravina Ladva, Group Chief Digital & Technology Officer at Swiss Re.
Ladva noted in a new risk perspective blog post that investment in AI and its supporting infrastructure is surging, prompting comparisons to the early dot-com-era internet.
“People are wondering if the AI boom also sits on a knife’s edge: will this technology’s adoption and monetisation diffuse smoothly, or will it fracture?” Ladva observed.
She continued, “The dot-com legacy is still going strong. It rewired how people interact and created the infrastructure, business models, and risk-taking mindset that define our century. Without it, digital commerce, cloud platforms, and the connected world as we know it wouldn’t exist.”
Ladva suggested that dominant AI firms today differ fundamentally from dot-com start-ups, with AI investment being driven by well-established companies with strong margins and cash flow. Still, competing views abound over the sustainability of AI spending.
“So, what will it be: AI revolution or illusion? The answer is unfolding, but I believe AI’s productivity-boosting substance will ultimately prevail, much as the dot-com era’s winners have transcended the late-1990s hype,” Ladva explained.
She went on, “Then as now, the real story is the foundations being laid for long-term impact. After all, for every pets.com or boo.com that failed, there’s an Amazon, a Google, or an Alibaba that have demonstrated real staying power. Even Netscape’s innovations live on, including in web scripting language that makes our digital lives possible.
“Despite some inevitable irrational exuberance, AI will likely follow a similar path. Investments in chips, software, data centres, and the energy to run them are laying the groundwork for the next technological and economic transformation.
“At Swiss Re, AI is a key pillar in our efforts to advance re/insurance and create lasting value. As adoption accelerates and use cases scale, we’re building the momentum necessary to thrive in an AI-powered future.
“Among milestones, ClaimsGenAI helps our Corporate Solutions claims handlers detect recovery opportunities and fraud, while Underwriting Ease streamlines Life & Health Reinsurance clients’ underwriting of complex applications. We have additional AI initiatives that have similar promise.”
Ladva concluded, “Not coincidentally, dot-com winners followed guiding tenets that weren’t so different from those I’ve described. The companies that combined technology with real business and consumer needs while earning the trust of customers, investors, and regulators are still going strong.
“They understood data was fundamental and that real success required scaling beyond experiments. After all, the big winners didn’t stop at selling books; they reinvented global logistics.
“Likewise, the AI era will produce its own leaders, with those who deploy the technology well reaping increasing gains over time.”
