The Federal Reserve has for the first time listed AI investment as one of the three key inflation risks.

BlockBeats News, July 9th – The Federal Reserve released the minutes of its meeting on Wednesday, with Fed officials widely believing that if the high inflation rate persists this year, they will have to raise interest rates. However, at the same time, they also agreed that if the upward pressure on prices subsides quickly, they can maintain the interest rate. In the minutes, a notable detail was observed by the renowned journalist Nick Timiraos, often referred to as the "Fed's newswire." Fed officials are increasingly focusing on an inflation source that was hardly mentioned in a debate a few months ago: the boom in AI investment. According to the minutes, it was listed as one of the three major forces, alongside the Middle East conflict and tariffs, driving inflation higher. These forces could keep prices elevated and prompt the Fed to shift towards rate hikes.

The minutes, released with a three-week lag, revealed a growing concern about the inflation outlook. More officials pointed out that the robust business investments in AI development are a new force that could sustain price pressures. The minutes stated, "Several participants remarked that price pressures had become more broadly based, with a sizable part of goods and services experiencing significant upward price pressures."