ET Alpha Wealth Summit 2.0: Will the AI bet pay off? Nilesh Shah weighs in

The ET Alpha Wealth Summit 2.0 kicked off on Thursday with Nilesh Shah of Kotak Mutual Fund highlighting where institutional investors, family offices and long-term capital are finding opportunities, and how emerging investment trends could shape portfolios before becoming mainstream.

Speaking on global capital flows at the summit, Shah said the global economy has remained fragile over the past six years, beginning with the Covid shock and followed by an inflation surge. “First COVID came and hit, and then the inflation cycle went out of control,” he said.

The tariff war followed, and the Middle East conflict has added another layer of uncertainty, Shah said. Taken together, these disruptions have weighed on global growth.


Turning to the major economic powerhouses, Shah said American wealth has been driven in part by the AI boom, with the US and China emerging as the two leading players in artificial intelligence.

“As of today, everyone is putting massive sums of money into AI. What will be the payout of AI is fairly uncertain. Will it deliver money? Will it not deliver money? Who knows? “ Shah said.

According to Shah, total investment in the AI ecosystem is projected at around $8 trillion between now and 2030.

The ET Alpha Wealth Summit 2.0 is underway at the ITC Maratha in Mumbai, with discussions spanning global capital flows, smart money, private credit, family offices, GIFT City, SIFs, AI and the future of wealth creation.

Shah’s session examined the emergence of a new world order, changing routes of global smart money and where the next centres of infrastructure, energy, technology, manufacturing capacity and financial influence are likely to emerge. It also explored how these structural shifts are redirecting capital, reshaping investment strategies and creating new opportunities across markets.

With multiple sessions, the ET Alpha Wealth Summit 2.0 brings together investors, wealth creators and market leaders to examine not just where markets are headed, but how capital itself is evolving — and what that means for the next generation of wealth creation.

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