Top HSBC strategist has a warning for retail investors chasing the AI rally

Maxx Kettner, HSBC's chief multi-asset strategist, is cautioning retail investors who have been piling into the artificial intelligence trade. His core point is that the goal posts in AI investing are constantly moving — the technologies, competitive leaders, and business models that define the theme are shifting rapidly, which makes it difficult for investors to rely on a fixed set of assumptions.

That matters because the AI rally has drawn substantial retail participation, often concentrated in a handful of prominent names. When the underlying landscape evolves quickly, yesterday's winners are not guaranteed to remain tomorrow's, and valuations can adjust sharply as expectations reset. Kettner's warning is less a call to exit than a reminder that thematic momentum is not the same as a durable investment case.

For observers, the takeaway is to watch how AI business models mature and how leadership within the theme rotates, rather than treating the rally as a single, static bet. Understanding that the parameters keep changing is a useful discipline for anyone assessing exposure to the trend.