These days, every company seems to be obsessed with artificial intelligence, from how the technology will transform industries to how it will impact employees and customers.
But the extent to which companies leverage AI tools internally and adapt to rapidly changing realities varies widely. A new study by the AI-Driven Enterprise Institute (AIDE) analyzes just how good AI is. S&P500 Companies and their leaders are adopting AI more than their peers.
Not surprisingly, the top performers are concentrated in the tech industry, according to data shared with CNBC. When considering four areas: Literacy, Advocacy, Orientation, and Implementation, AIDE gave each company a maximum score of 100 in four categories to provide an overall index score.
In the technology sector, the only highest company score (averaged across the Direction and Implementation pillars) of 100 went to a chipmaker. Nvidiahas become the world’s largest company by selling chips and systems that drive the development of AI models and services. meta and Amazon Also received a score of 100 in the S&P 500, these companies are considered Telecom Services and Consumer Discretionary names, respectively.
Scores for the other 100 companies were given only to energy producers S.L.B.formerly Schlumberger. Retailers had the next highest scores. walmartfollowed by AES and NextEra Energyboth are classified as utilities.
The new open-source index uses public data such as earnings call transcripts, job postings, and patent applications to measure how much executives know and say about AI, and the extent to which companies prioritize and incorporate AI technologies into daily operations.
Paul Cheek, CEO of AIDE and senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said the data does not measure whether AI is delivering economic benefits, but is intended to give leaders an objective way to compare their strategies to their peers without relying on self-reported surveys.
“When a board asks a CEO, ‘How does our performance compare to our peers?’ — we don’t want it to be speculative,” Cheek said in an interview. “I want data that I can use to back up what I have to share.”
Cheek said there is “significant room for improvement” for board members and executives to increase their own AI literacy, adding that boards need to better understand AI “as it relates to organizational risk management and strategic investments that create value for all of us.”
The top 20 companies with the highest scores based on Direction and Implementation scores are:
Nvidia (100)schlumberger (100)Amazon (100)meta (100)walmart (95.84)AES (95.46)NextEra Energy (95.44)ecolab (95)digital realty (94.74)chevron (94.74)alphabet (94.72)Equinix (94.59)IQVIA (93.75)Dow (93.34)halliburton (92.83)broadridge financial solutions (91.66)microsoft (91.37)block (90.91)duke energy (90.91)pepsico (90.62)
These companies were at the top of their respective sectors based on the ‘AIDE Index’.
WATCH: Meta reshapes the workforce as AI disrupts entry-level hiring
