Bank of America CEO says AI economic impact is accelerating as US growth forecast rises to 2.4%

Bank of America Forecasts AI's Growing Economic Impact

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Monday that AI is starting to deliver measurable economic benefits across the United States 1

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. "AI is kicking in more and more, and so it's not all attributable to AI, but that's having a marginal impact that's pretty strong," Moynihan explained 2

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. The bank projects US GDP growth of 2.4% for 2026, up from approximately 2% in 2025, with AI investments expected to become a bigger contributor next year and beyond 1

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AI Investments Drive Capital Expenditures and Growth

AI's economic benefit has been building throughout the year, according to Moynihan, who has led Bank of America for nearly 15 years 3

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. The Bank of America Institute reported in October that AI-related capital expenditures, particularly in software and computing, were key drivers of GDP growth 2

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. After a slight decline in Q1, GDP growth rebounded in Q2 with 3.8% for an annualized rate of 1.6% in the first half of the year, with technology and AI-related categories showing resilience 2

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. Companies like OpenAI have pulled in billions of dollars in recent months as investors bet heavily on the industry 1

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Limited Risk Despite Bubble Concerns

While executives such as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have warned that AI spending represents an "industrial bubble" that could lead to lost investment, Moynihan sees relatively limited risk to the economy 1

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. The Bank of America CEO noted that potential impacts on consumers and job losses would be minimal if the AI industry became overheated and had to pull back, given that the sector consists of a narrow group of companies 3

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. "As a lender we look at the leverage on these projects and make sure we're comfortable with that and the duration of the contract by the person who's going to commit to use the data center," Moynihan explained 1

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Bank of America's Integration of AI Shows Practical Benefits

Bank of America itself demonstrates how AI increasingly contributes to US economic growth through its own operations. The bank launched Erica, its virtual assistant, in 2018, and the platform has now handled 3 billion customer interactions since launch 2

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. The number of questions Erica can answer has expanded dramatically from 200 to 700 questions, according to Moynihan's interview, though one source reported the figure as 800 1

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. In November, Moynihan said the bank has embedded AI in day-to-day operations, helping personalize client experiences, streamline capabilities, identify new opportunities, and make efficiency gains across underwriting, audit, legal, and finance functions 2

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Employment Outlook Remains Stable

Contrary to fears about widespread displacement, the Bank of America Institute found little sign that AI was causing steep job losses 2

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. While the labor market has softened somewhat, Moynihan characterized this as more of a normalization in employment rather than AI-induced disruption 3

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. The CEO emphasized that Bank of America will apply more "automated intelligence -- or augmented intelligence, as we call it, with a person using AI, using that to be more effective" across all businesses 1

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. This approach suggests AI's growing economic impact will manifest through enhanced productivity rather than wholesale replacement of workers, positioning the technology as a tool that amplifies human capabilities in the financial sector and beyond.