The Morning Download: Unbridled Enthusiasm for AI Sweeps Davos

Here's what's up for Jan. 23, 2026.
• The AI Vibe at Davos
• Intel Shares Swing to Loss
• TikTok Finalizes a U.S. Deal

Good morning. An historic week of meetings in Davos reflected what Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described as a rupture of the post-World War II global order of institutions and rules. There was however, one area of consensus, and that’s over the power and significance of AI.

WSJ Leadership Institute President Alan Murray has been in the thick of it all week, in constant conversation with CEOs including Uber’s Dara Khosrowshahi and HPE's Antonio Neri. (Click here to find links to each of those interviews.)

I asked Alan to share his understanding of what global corporate leaders really think about AI, which will have major consequences for the way we all work and live. Here are his insights, informed by deep experience covering earlier tech cycles:

Unbridled optimism. The storefronts of the Promenade had been transformed into corporate pavilions for consultants and tech providers all touting the benefits of AI. Top tech executives swarmed the streets.  At a dinner with 60 CEOs that the WSJ Leadership Institute hosted Thursday, I asked the tables to debate the biggest opportunities and risks of 2026. There was spirited debate around the risks - geopolitics, job displacement, social unrest. But there was a clear consensus on the opportunity: AI.

I couldn’t find anybody who didn’t believe the potential was substantial - and not just for 10 to 20% productivity improvements inside companies, but for fundamentally reinventing how they create value for customers. The only question is time. Corporations are inherently slow to change, one CEO told me. But those who move too slowly risk being left behind.

That was acknowledged as a problem that required CEO leadership. Several said CEOs need to be candid with their employees. Is there a risk AI could displace jobs? Sure. But there is also a risk that failure to embrace AI could cost the company even more jobs.

I was in Davos in January of 2000, right before the Internet bubble burst, and the mood was similarly ebullient. I remember seeing Masayoshi Son gushing about his purchase of Buy.com, saying the company was going to “sell you anything you want at a price less than they paid for it.”

But most of the CEOs I spoke with this week shrugged off the risks of a bubble. The stock market may get ahead of things and have to correct. But the push toward widespread AI adoption was unstoppable. And the benefits for both business and society, they believe, will be enormous.

Have you been following the AI conversation at Davos? Let us know what you think.