AI industry needs to rake in $6 trillion in sales by 2031 to sustain its global build-out: Report

The AI industry will need to generate as much as $ 6 trillion in revenue by 2031 to sustain its ongoing global infrastructure build-out.

But according to a report by Bain & Company , AI products across the consumer and enterprise markets are projected to generate between $1.2 trillion and $1.8 trillion by then, leaving the industry with a potential shortfall of $4.2 trillion.

To address that, David Crawford, chair of Bain's global technology, media, and telecommunications practice, told Yahoo Finance that companies will need to find new ways to take advantage of AI, though he added that the revenue deficit isn't exactly bad news.

"I think it's very rare to have line of sight to all of these sources of value of an innovation," Crawford said, adding that even recognizing 40% of that $6 trillion is a positive.

If the industry manages to establish those new revenue sources sooner than 2031, it could increase capital expenditures to meet demand. If, however, AI firms don't develop the products necessary to fund their spending, they could be forced to slow the build-out.

"We're not calling it. We're saying the obvious implication is there's a need for a Cambrian explosion of innovation," Crawford said.

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For now, though, it's difficult for some companies to even keep up with the rapid pace of change in the AI space .

Bain said that some 10% of companies have managed to keep up and make use of AI, with startups leading the way, while another 90% are struggling to keep up.

Now hyperscalers are stepping in to provide organizations with insights into how to leverage AI services and platforms.

"You see big, multibillion-dollar investments from OpenAI ( OPAI.PVT ), Anthropic ( ANTH.PVT ), Google ( GOOG ), Microsoft ( MSFT ), etc., all in either directly [helping] their partners absorb the technology," Crawford said.

"And so this idea of absorption being a bottleneck and a core strategic variable is pretty interesting and emerging in a way we didn't expect," he added.

The AI boom has driven huge growth for infrastructure companies. As of Monday, Nvidia's market capitalization stood at $5.7 trillion , while memory maker Micron ( MU ) last week reported that its quarterly revenue soared 379%.

AI labs Anthropic and OpenAI, meanwhile, are targeting initial public offerings that could value them at up to $2 trillion.

But to hit those levels and keep the AI trade moving, AI companies will have to ensure they can develop the products necessary to drive higher revenue numbers without overwhelming their customers.

Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on X at @DanielHowley .