Goldman CEO says markets in greed mode as AI giants seek $80B

Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon declared markets have shifted decisively into "greed" mode, saying the financial system has ample liquidity to absorb what could be the largest wave of equity offerings in history from artificial intelligence giants.

"We are definitely in a moment where there's more greed than there is fear," Solomon said Tuesday at the Economic Club of New York in an interview with CNBC's Leslie Picker.

The S&P 500 set 11 new closing record highs in the past month, while the Nasdaq Composite has surged 30% since late March, driven by an AI investment frenzy. SanDisk has gained about 630% year to date, with Micron, Dell and Intel rising 265%, 250% and 191%, respectively.

The comments come as markets prepare for initial public offerings from OpenAI, Anthropic and SpaceX — which Solomon called the largest IPOs in history — at a time when companies are also seeking vast sums to fund data centers and AI infrastructure. Alphabet's announcement of an $80 billion equity raise, the largest follow-on offering ever, saw its shares decline only about 2%, a data point Solomon cited as evidence of market capacity.

Solomon, whose bank is playing a lead role in several of the deals, said the fundraising wave is unprecedented in size but justified by record levels of wealth and liquidity. Goldman Sachs was named as private placement agent for Alphabet's equity raise and landed the lead spot for SpaceX's listing, which involves 22 other banks and is expected to complete next week. The bank is also vying for lead roles in the public offerings of Anthropic, which filed confidential IPO paperwork Monday, and OpenAI.

"When capital's available, if you're capital consumptive and it's available, take the capital," Solomon said.

Solomon acknowledged that sentiment can shift quickly but said the current cycle may have room to run. "It can turn into fear very quickly, but that doesn't mean it will," he said. "Exuberance can go on for big periods of time. There's a good chance that we're earlier in the cycle than later."

Goldman Sachs, which posted $17 billion in profit last year, is positioned for potentially another banner year as the AI gold rush drives dealmaking and market volatility. Analysts forecast 2026 will rank behind 2021 as the bank's second-highest year ever for profits, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Solomon cautioned that demand for AI infrastructure "is not going to go in the straight line that everybody's now currently projecting," citing potential speed bumps from technological changes and shifting costs. He also noted that enterprise adoption of AI will likely be slower than current expectations, with higher-margin businesses better positioned to invest than lower-margin ones.

The ability of markets to absorb the coming wave of mega-IPOs will depend on whether the current optimism persists. The last time equity capital markets saw a comparable surge in issuance was 2021, when a record $594 billion was raised in U.S. IPOs and follow-on offerings, according to Dealogic data.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.