BlackRock expands AI push with new robotics ETF as investor enthusiasm cools
The global asset manager launched the iShares Future Robotics and Related Technologies ETF on Wednesday, targeting companies that use intelligent machines to automate repetitive tasks across industries including transportation and manufacturing.
Robotics seen as next leg of AI adoption
BlackRock sees robotics as an important part of the next phase of AI adoption, with intelligent machines potentially extending the technology’s reach beyond software and data centres into a wider range of industries.
The new fund comes as investors’ enthusiasm for AI has encountered bouts of volatility. BlackRock US head of equity ETFs Jay Jacobs said the recent swings showed that AI exposure is becoming a more complicated investment theme, Reuters reported.
“Recent volatility is a reminder that AI is not a single trade and that investors need to be deliberate about where and how they take exposure,” Jacobs said.
He added that the volatility had not changed BlackRock’s conviction in the broader AI theme.
AI ETF market keeps expanding
The new fund also adds to an increasingly crowded market of ETFs built around the AI investment story. Investors already have access to scores of ETFs explicitly tracking AI, alongside technology focused funds with significant exposure to major AI linked companies such as Nvidia and Micron, according to Reuters.At least six AI linked ETFs have launched over the past month, with several targeting specific corners of the industry rather than taking a broad approach.
Global X recently introduced the LLM ETF, focused on companies developing large language models, while Defiance launched an ETF targeting bonds issued by AI infrastructure companies, Reuters reported.
Jacobs said expectations around AI can change quickly, while adoption may develop unevenly and market risk remains concentrated among a relatively narrow group of companies.
“Expectations can shift quickly, adoption can develop unevenly and market risk remains concentrated in a relatively narrow group of companies,” he said.
(Disclaimer: This article is based on inputs from agencies. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)
