Jeff Bezos Says AI Bubble Need Not Be Feared, Here’s Why

New York — Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, has said that concerns about an artificial intelligence (AI) bubble should not be exaggerated, arguing that hefty investments in the AI sector will accelerate technological development in the long term. In an interview with CNBC on the Squawk Box programme on Wednesday, 20 May 2026 local time, Bezos said that the bubble phenomenon in the tech industry is not new and can still yield major innovations that benefit society. ‘Even if this is indeed a bubble, you do not need to worry because the bubble drives investment, and much of that investment will eventually be very healthy,’ Bezos was quoted as saying on Thursday, 21 May 2026. Tech giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google continue to pour large sums into building AI infrastructure. Global AI investment is projected to surpass $700 billion this year. Meanwhile, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had previously warned that investors might be getting overexcited about AI. OpenAI itself now has a valuation of more than $850 billion after the success of ChatGPT triggered a surge in generative AI. Bezos acknowledged that market enthusiasm has led almost every AI project to receive funding, including ideas that may not necessarily succeed. ‘This happens because investors today have not yet learned to distinguish good ideas from bad ones, and that does not matter, because good ideas will offset the losses from all the failed ones,’ he said. He argued that from an industry and societal perspective, such a large investment cycle is healthy because it can push technological progress faster. Bezos then compared the current AI phenomenon with the biotech industry bubble of the 1990s. At that time, many investors lost money when the market crashed, but the industry still produced several lifesaving medicines. ‘Many investors lost money on a few things, but we still got lifesaving medicines discovered then,’ Bezos said. He noted that his focus today is on developing AI technology through Amazon, the space company Blue Origin, and his new startup Project Prometheus. Prometheus was launched last November with $6.2 billion in funding. The startup is led by Bezos along with former Google X executive Vik Bajaj. The company focuses on developing AI models for physical work such as engineering, manufacturing, and drug design. Bezos said Project Prometheus is developing an ‘artificial general engineer’, a system that can help engineers design physical objects more easily. He described this technology as a modern version of CAD (computer-aided design) software. Bezos noted that Project Prometheus was purposely formed as a separate company so it could have a stronger focus on development than if it were merged with Amazon or Blue Origin. ‘This is a big standalone idea, and Prometheus can gain a much greater focus by being a separate company,’ Bezos said.