SEC Filings Show AI And Agentic Buzzwords Surging As DEI Declines
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An interesting trend in forecasting where the world is going is by looking at SEC filings for the overuse of buzzwords. When buzzwords peak, the value of those terms usually deflate. It is one of the cleanest examples of how corporate America rapidly changes its language in response to shifts in technology, culture and regulation. Right now everyone is glomming onto AI like it’s a life raft. But no wnd-customer has yet shown auditable verifiable ROI even tho their CapEx and OpEx are increasing. This has happened before. DEI was the defining investment and disclosure trend from 2020-2022, then declined rapidly. “AI” began a sustained climb after late 2022 and is now nearly ubiquitous in large-company filings. “Agentic” is now following an even steeper adoption curve, albeit from an almost nonexistent base. It appears to be becoming the newest “must-have” AI descriptor. Now, to be clear, AI is real and will be. It is the defining change of our lifetime. But the path to spending money to see value is still largely uncharted. We are in the early phase where a few companies are making all the money from our largesse. This needs to be reset for everyone to win.
An interesting trend in forecasting where the world is going is by looking at SEC filings for the overuse of buzzwords. When buzzwords peak, the value of those terms usually deflate. It is one of the cleanest examples of how corporate America rapidly changes its language in response to shifts in technology, culture and regulation. Right now everyone is glomming onto AI like it’s a life raft. But these same folks have not yet shown repeatable, audited, verifiable ROI even as their CapEx and OpEx are increasing with token costs on all things AI. This has happened before. DEI was the defining investment and disclosure trend from 2020-2022, then declined rapidly. “AI” began a sustained climb after late 2022 and is now nearly ubiquitous in large-company filings. “Agentic” is now following an even steeper adoption curve, albeit from an almost nonexistent base. It appears to be becoming the newest “must-have” AI descriptor. Now, to be clear, AI is real and will be. It is the defining change of our lifetime. But the path to spending money to see value is still largely uncharted. We are in the early phase where a few companies are making all the money from our largesse. This needs to be reset for everyone to win.