A Divided $377 Billion Tech Giant Reveals the Perils of AI
Siemens AG CEO Roland Busch expects the German manufacturer to profit from industrial AI. But investors are fretting about the software part.
Photographer: Bridget Bennett/BloombergImagine that Siemens AG and Siemens Energy AG were still one company. On paper it would be Europe’s third-most valuable firm with a combined market value of €320 billion ($377 Billion) or so.1 Only Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML Holding NV and pharmaceuticals giant Roche Holding AG are worth more.
Yet even as both these former industrial laggards benefit from massive capital spending by technology firms, their appeal in the eyes of investors has begun to diverge. The debate is whether they’ll continue to profit from the artificial intelligence boom, or be disrupted by it. The shift in sentiment underscores the challenges of capital allocation in the AI era, and the pitfalls for investors.