Over half of Fortune 500 companies consider AI a potential risk factor: report

Over half of Fortune 500 companies cited artificial intelligence as a potential risk factor for their businesses, according to a survey of annual financial reports by research platform Arize AI.

56% of the United States’ biggest companies view AI as a potential risk, a considerable leap from just 10% in 2022.

In comparison, only 31% of 108 companies that specifically mentioned generative AI in their annual reports, cited its benefits or use outside the risk factor section.

Since 2022, there has been a 473.5% increase in the number of Fortune 500 companies citing AI as a risk factor in their annual reports since 2022.

Looking at AI risk disclosure by industry, a staggering 91.7% of advertising, media, and entertainment companies see AI as a risk to their business.

Media giant Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) warned that “Rules governing new technological developments, such as developments in generative artificial intelligence, remain unsettled, and these developments may affect aspects of our existing business model, including revenue streams for the use of our IP and how we create our entertainment products.”

86.4% of software and technology firms view AI as a risk. Cloud and business software company Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) stated that “generative AI content creation will require additional investment in the licensing or development of proprietary datasets, machine learning models and systems to test for accuracy, bias and other variables, which are often complex, may be costly and could impact our profit margin.”

70% of telecommunications company cite AI as a risk factor, with telecom giant AT&T (NYSE:T) cautioned that “generative AI models, may produce output or take action that is incorrect, release private or confidential information, reflect biases included in the data on which they are trained, infringe on the intellectual property rights of others, or be otherwise harmful.”

The report demonstrates that the impact of generative AI is being felt across a wide gamut of industries, even those who have not yet embraced the technology.

“Given that most mentions of AI are as a risk factor, there is a real opportunity for enterprises to stand out by highlighting their innovation and providing context on how they are using generative AI,” noted Arize AI.