Moody’s Flags Uneven AI Gains Across Industries
Credit ratings agency says capital-heavy sectors from utilities to pharma will see slower AI adoption while cloud, chips and data services emerge as winners.
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Industries with long investment and research and development (R&D) cycles are unlikely to reap widespread benefits from artificial intelligence before the end of this decade, Moody’s cautioned in a new report.
The global credit rating agency said that while AI will sharpen the divide between winners and laggards, sectors such as utilities, oil and gas, heavy manufacturing, infrastructure and pharmaceuticals will face higher barriers to disruption as these industries depend on large upfront capital, operate under tight regulation, and have legacy assets that make rapid adoption difficult.
In pharmaceuticals, AI can speed up drug discovery, but lengthy clinical trials, regulatory clearances and patent disputes will keep timelines extended.
Moody’s pointed out that even when AI accelerates early stages of R&D, firms cannot escape oversight by regulators or the lengthy approval process.
In power and infrastructure, AI-enabled grid management and predictive maintenance may enhance efficiency, yet the initial investment burden could add to leverage before savings show up. Similar pressures exist in heavy manufacturing, where machinery, processes and supply chains are expensive to overhaul.
The report contrasted this with industries where AI can be layered onto existing operations more easily. Providers of computing power, advanced semiconductors, cloud platforms and networking services are set to benefit from rising demand for training and inference workloads.
Moody’s expects companies such as Nvidia, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud to see stronger credit profiles as enterprises lean on their infrastructure. Suppliers of industrial equipment and electrical systems that power data centers, including ABB, Siemens and Honeywell, also stand to gain from the build-out of AI capacity.
Telecom providers that offer fiber and bandwidth for high-volume computing workloads are positioned to benefit as well.
Software firms, Moody’s said, will largely integrate AI into their products. The impact will be broad across productivity tools, enterprise applications and consumer software. But intense competition is likely to limit pricing power, meaning most firms will benefit from volume growth rather than higher margins.
Data-rich and labor-intensive service sectors from insurance and logistics to business process outsourcing, finance, healthcare and media are expected to incorporate AI to cut costs, boost productivity and create more personalized offerings.
A major theme of the report is regional divergence. Moody’s said the US remains best placed to lead because of its deep capital markets, dense startup ecosystem, strong research-industry pipeline and dominant cloud providers.
It cited the US as benefiting from the close integration of universities and tech firms, which accelerates commercialization. Parts of the Asia-Pacific region are also well-positioned due to rapid expansion of cloud infrastructure.
Europe, by contrast, faces hurdles from a fragmented venture capital market and limited ability to scale startups into global players. Latin America and other emerging markets lag because of thinner funding channels, less developed compute infrastructure, and shortages of digital skills.
Moody’s warned that the uneven distribution of high-performance semiconductors and cloud capacity will widen the gap as demand for compute accelerates.
Energy costs are another dividing line. Training and running AI models requires large amounts of electricity, and jurisdictions with abundant, low-cost energy will enjoy structural advantages.
Regions such as Germany and Japan, where energy is expensive, will face greater challenges scaling AI profitably.
The International Energy Agency estimates that global electricity consumption by data centers, AI and cryptocurrencies could double by 2026, adding pressure to markets with constrained power supply.
Moody’s also stressed that regulatory clarity is key. Economies that combine guardrails with space for experimentation will foster adoption more effectively than those with rigid or fragmented rules.
Access to skilled labor is equally important: regions with strong pools of digitally trained workers will capture more productivity gains, while those facing shortages risk slower, partial adoption.
