As artificial intelligence (AI) technology flourishes, it is gradually permeating every sector of American society and exerting profound impacts on the global economy. However, Jay Barney, a scholar at the University of Utah's David Eccles School of Business, argues in his new paper that despite AI's promising prospects, companies should not expect it to deliver long-term competitive advantages.

Barney believes that AI technologies, such as generative chatbots, will be equally available to all participants in a given field and thus will not serve as a source of competitive edge. He states: "AI will fundamentally change how we do business, and all firms must respond to this shift. But AI itself will not be the key to standing out."

This perspective is well-grounded. According to a study published in the MIT Sloan Management Review, differentiation among companies using AI depends more on human drivers—originality, creativity, and passion. The research highlights that true innovation lies in how AI is applied and in discovering new ways to connect with customers through it.

Barney further explains that most current AI technologies are not proprietary; generic generative AI outputs like those from ChatGPT can be widely accessed at low cost. This means AI often provides collective rather than unique information. Therefore, competitive advantage between firms stems not from whether AI is used, but from how it is used.

Barney illustrates this with an example: querying AI for a list of seven innovative toothbrush ideas yields essentially the same aggregated existing information in roughly the same way across queries—underscoring the enduring human need for creativity and imagination.

In a companion paper published in the Harvard Business Review, Barney examines historical transformative technologies—such as the steam engine, electric motor, and personal computer—and notes that only a relatively small number become direct sources of sustained competitive advantage for firms. He is currently writing an upcoming paper arguing that AI will "commoditize" many tasks currently handled by educated individuals, while deeply human-centric work will continue to be performed by people.