Companies without direct A.I. link try to ride the Wall Street craze

cnbc.com:

In this article

The artificial intelligence craze has consumed Wall Street in 2023.

The madness found its roots in November of last year, when OpenAI launched the now infamous large-language model (LLM) ChatGPT. The tool touts some impressive capabilities, and spurred an AI race with rival Google announcing it's own chat box — Bard AI — only a few months later.

But the enthusiasm went even further. Investors started flocking to stocks that could provide ample AI exposure, with names like C3.AI, chipmaker Nvidia, and even Tesla, posting impressive gains despite an overall tense macroeconomic environment.

Just like «blockchain» and «dotcom» before it, A.I. has become the buzzword companies want to grab a piece of.

Now some with little to no historical ties to artificial intelligence have touted the technology on conference calls to analysts and investors.

Supermarket chain Kroger touted itself as having a «rich history as a technology leader,» and chief executive officer Rodney McMullen cited this as a reason for the company is poised to take advantage of the rise of artificial intelligence. McMullen specifically pointed to how AI could help streamline customer surveys and help Kroger take the data and implement it into stores at a more speedy clip.

«We also believe robust, accurate and diverse first-party data is critical to maximizing the impact of innovation and data science and AI,» McMullen told investors on the company's June 15 earnings call. «As a result, Kroger is well-positioned to successfully adopt these innovations and deliver a better customer and associate experience.»

Similarly, Tyson Foods, the second-largest global producer of chicken, beef and pork, thinks the company can benefit from the explosion of