The next AI winners may look nothing like Nvidia or Micron: One Big Investment Idea

The next wave of AI investment opportunities may not be limited to chipmakers like Nvidia (NVDA) or data center providers like Micron (MU). As the AI industry expands, companies leveraging AI to reduce costs, increase sales, and boost productivity could be the next targets for investors. The travel industry provides a noteworthy example.

While airlines initially led the market rally, travel stocks, particularly Airbnb (ABNB), Booking Holdings (BKNG), and Expedia (EXPE), have outperformed, with AI playing a role in customer service, search, personalization, and productivity. Airbnb reported that nearly 45% of customer issues resolved by its AI assistant, and customer support cost per booking fell 16% since the previous year.

Booking Holdings also saw a positive return on AI investments, with customer service cost per booking falling at a double-digit rate. However, other companies, such as Choice Hotels (CHH) and Wyndham (WH), have also begun to show measurable AI-driven gains. Choice Hotels reported a 360 basis point increase in group-request conversion through an AI-enabled sales tool, while Wyndham's AI Concierge boosted direct contribution by over 500 basis points at participating hotels, resulting in higher average daily rates.

Despite these promising developments, both stocks have declined since May 19. Investors should look beyond buzzwords and focus on the tangible benefits AI brings to businesses. Industries with large amounts of repetitive tasks, such as insurance, banking, retail, restaurants, logistics, and healthcare services, are ideal candidates for AI implementation.

By identifying companies that are effectively turning AI into better numbers before Wall Street catches on, investors can find potential opportunities that others may have overlooked.