BlockBeats News, May 8th, Artificial Intelligence Driving U.S. Economic Growth: Investment in Software and IT Equipment contributed +134 basis points to the first quarter 2026 U.S. GDP growth, growing by 2.0%, marking the largest quarterly contribution in history. This means that 67% of the economic growth in the previous quarter was driven by artificial intelligence.

In other words, without tech investment driven by artificial intelligence, first-quarter GDP growth would have been close to flat. This contribution is also about 10 basis points higher than the record set in 1999. Over the past five quarters, investment in software and IT equipment has averaged a contribution of +90 basis points per quarter, marking the highest contribution over any consecutive five quarters on record. The U.S. economy is now heavily reliant on artificial intelligence.