WSJ says U.S. public pensions are deeply reliant on AI stocks, while regulators are turning against them
WSJ reports that since late 2022, 13 large U.S. public pensions have gained $138 billion in paper gains from AI stocks. These 15 stocks include hyperscale cloud providers and chipmakers, and in June accounted for 27% of these funds' U.S. domestic stocks, up from 12% when ChatGPT was released, contributing about 57% of U.S. equity returns, and excluding AI exposure in overseas stocks, private equity, or private debt. The report also cites cases such as New York pausing new data center construction, Pennsylvania's treasurer opposing data center expansion, and California unions demanding pension managers assess AI's impact on workers, noting that these regulators simultaneously oversee funds profiting from AI companies.
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The original article contrasts pension holdings with local policy stances, presenting the tension between economic interests and regulatory attitudes in AI expansion.
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WSJ: America’s public pensions now depend on the AI industry that the politicians who run them are turning against.
13 large US public pensions booked $138B in paper gains from AI stocks since late 2022.
Those 15 stocks, including hyperscalers and chipmakers, made up 27% of the funds’ domestic equity in June, up from 12% when ChatGPT launched.
That concentration drove roughly 57% of their US stock gains, without counting AI exposure through foreign shares, private equity or private debt.
> New York paused new data centers while its retirement fund’s AI holdings kept climbing. > Pennsylvania’s treasurer fights data-center growth while overseeing a pension holding billions in AI assets. > California union leaders want pension managers to weigh AI’s harm to workers while the state’s $650B fund backs data-center providers with $500M. > New York’s comptroller pressed tech firms over residents’ power, land and water fears while overseeing a fund profiting from those firms.