AI tops CEO earnings calls as bubble fears intensify

Artificial intelligence overtook macroeconomic and geopolitical issues as the most discussed topic on earnings calls in the final quarter of 2025, according to a new analysis of chief executives' public remarks.

Research by Hamburg-based IoT Analytics examined around 10,000 earnings calls from about 5,000 global companies listed in the US. The firm's latest quarterly study found that AI rose to the top of CEO agendas for the first time in the period, while concerns about a possible AI-related asset bubble also increased sharply.

Mentions of an "AI bubble" climbed 64% compared with the previous quarter. IoT Analytics said executives often paired announcements of new AI investments with comments that questioned the sustainability of current market valuations and the pace of capital inflows into the sector.

References to the US government shutdown also rose steeply. The topic recorded nearly three times as many mentions as in the prior quarter. The firm said most executives flagged the shutdown as a risk factor and discussed contingency plans for potential disruptions to demand, regulation, or government contracting.

Tariffs and general uncertainty remained among the more frequently cited issues on calls, although discussion of those topics continued to decline. The analysis indicated that traditional macroeconomic and trade concerns were giving way to technology and policy themes in boardroom discussions.

AI moves to forefront

IoT Analytics publishes a recurring series tracking the themes that appear most often in listed companies' earnings calls over time. The Q4 2025 edition showed AI taking the top spot in aggregate mentions for the first time since the firm began monitoring the data in 2019.

The dataset covers a broad cross-section of sectors, including industrial, technology, telecommunications, consumer, healthcare, and financial services groups. The shift suggests that AI has moved from a specialist or sector-specific topic to a central issue across industries.

Knud Lasse Lueth, Chief Executive of IoT Analytics, said that executive interest in AI has now moved firmly into the mainstream.

"In Q4 2025, AI became the most discussed topic among CEOs for the first time, underscoring the rising importance of the digital agenda across sectors. At the same time, continued investment commitments are increasingly paired with explicit concerns about whether parts of the AI market are overheating," said Lueth.

The research found that AI mentions have risen steadily since 2019. The latest quarter marked the steepest year-on-year increase in references, as companies described new product initiatives, internal efficiency projects, and data infrastructure roll-outs linked to machine learning models.

Bubble worries rise

While the number of AI-related references reached a new high, comments that explicitly mentioned a "bubble" in connection with technology or financial markets grew even faster in percentage terms. The study recorded the strongest quarter-on-quarter jump in bubble-related language since it began tracking the metric.

Executives used the term "bubble" in several contexts. Some discussed venture funding and valuations for private AI companies. Others raised questions about the level of spending on compute infrastructure and the potential for overcapacity. A smaller group linked bubble concerns to individual asset classes such as AI-related equities.

The increase in bubble-related discussion came alongside continued announcements of long-term AI spending plans. The report indicated that many companies still described multi-year investment programmes in AI tools, data platforms, and automation projects, even as some leaders voiced caution about market exuberance.

Shutdown and policy

The US government shutdown emerged as another high-growth topic in Q4 2025. IoT Analytics said mentions nearly tripled quarter on quarter, which placed the issue among the fastest-rising subjects in CEO commentary.

Executives in sectors with direct exposure to federal spending, such as defence, infrastructure, and healthcare, often discussed potential delays in contract awards and payments. Leaders in consumer and financial services groups focused more on potential demand effects and shifts in household or business confidence.

Talk of tariffs and trade tensions remained common but declined from earlier peaks. The analysis suggested that while supply chain issues and trade policy still featured in management discussions, they no longer dominated calls in the way they did in earlier years.

Longer-term trends

The Q4 2025 findings form part of a time series that tracks the relative importance of different agenda items for CEOs from 2019 onwards. AI-related topics have risen steadily across that period. Traditional macroeconomic concerns such as inflation, monetary policy, and general uncertainty have fluctuated more with the economic cycle.

The study also highlighted the growing convergence of themes such as AI, cloud, and industrial automation. IoT Analytics said many industrial and manufacturing companies now reference AI projects in connection with broader digital transformation efforts, while software and telecoms groups discuss AI in relation to network management, customer service, and product development.

IoT Analytics makes a detailed version of the Q4 2025 analysis available as a commercial report. The company also publishes selected findings in a public research article that summarises the most prominent themes in CEO earnings call remarks.

The firm plans to continue its quarterly tracking of CEO discussion topics, including AI, bubble-related language, and policy issues such as shutdowns and tariffs, in the next edition of its series.