“The consumer experience fundamentally changed with the web browser in the ‘90s. It changed again in the 2000s with the smartphone. Generative AI is another step function in the consumer experience.”
Cameron Lester, Global Co-Head of Technology, Media and Telecom Investment Banking at Jefferies
Just two months after its release, ChatGPT became the fastest-growing consumer application in history, reaching an estimated 100 million monthly users. Instagram took more than two years to reach that mark. Facebook took nearly five.
Today, more than a year later, ChatGPT and the wave of gen AI platforms that followed have transformed not just the consumer experience but the global economy.
Venture capital is flooding into the AI sector, even as it cools elsewhere. Companies everywhere are racing to integrate AI into their operations and business models. And whispers of a potential IPO from early leaders like OpenAI have everyone paying attention.
Despite the hype, questions remain.
Can these technologies meaningfully impact businesses, given their unclear enterprise applications?
Will young companies like Perplexity and Anthropic emerge as winners, or will they be overtaken by large tech incumbents with their robust user bases and distribution advantages?
How will the race for AI infrastructure and the resulting surge in power demand disrupt industries like raw materials and oil and gas?
In April, at Jefferies’ 2024 Private Internet Conference, “In The Age of AI,” tech leaders, investors, and bankers gathered from around the world to discuss these questions and more. In this video, you’ll hear key insights from the conference’s organizers and participants on how AI is reshaping everything from human productivity to B2B ecommerce.
