May 04, 2026
A rally in stocks tied to artificial intelligence today helped Asia’s stock benchmark erase the losses caused by the Iran war and climb to an all-time high. It’s part of a growing trend of AI-related stocks buoying stock markets despite the Iran war sending oil markets through the rough and spiking inflation in parts of the world.
Whether AI can offset the conflict’s shock to the global economy, however, is far from certain. At the same time, there are signs AI could ripple through the economy much faster than past innovations. At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, GZERO’s Tony Maciulis asked Microsoft's Vickie Robinson what it will take to prepare economies for the age of AI and how quickly it needs to happen.
Microsoft’s Vickie Robinson was direct: “Yesterday.” But beyond urgency, she laid out what readiness actually requires: coordinated action across governments, development finance institutions, and the private sector, starting with clear policy signals that unlock investment at scale.
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