Evolving Past AI Hype: The Next Sectors Powering "AI 2.0"

The AI trade has owned markets for the last two years. Chipmakers, cloud giants, and model leaders have ridden a wave of exponential growth that can't continue forever. Eventually, even breakthrough technologies settle into more modest, incremental gains.

So investors are understandably asking: What comes after AI?

Two themes keep surfacing in that conversation: robotics and quantum computing. But here's the twist they're not really "after" AI at all. They're the next layer built on top of it.

Robotics: From Software Intelligence to "Physical AI"

Robotics stocks jumped this week after reports that US policymakers are looking to ramp up support for the industry. Names like iRobot (IRBT), Richtech Robotics (RR), Serve Robotics (SERV) and WeRide (WRD) caught a bid on optimism that Washington wants to position the US as a leader in next-gen automation.

Under the hood, this is less a pivot away from AI and more an expansion into "physical AI". AI models embedded into machines that move through the real world: factory arms, warehouse bots, delivery robots, autonomous vehicles.

SoftBank's Masayoshi Son has framed this as the real transformational phase: not just smarter software, but AI embodied in robots that can see, move, and act. Chip leaders like Nvidia are already positioning themselves at the center of this "brains plus body" stack: GPUs + perception + control systems.

ETFs like the First Trust Nasdaq Artificial Intelligence and Robotics ETF (ROBT) and the Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF (BOTZ) provide exposure to many of these players. Both funds have become proxies for the "AI with embodiment" thesis, the idea that the next phase of AI's growth will move from digital models to physical machines capable of autonomous action.

Quantum Computing: The Next Tectonic Shift

While robotics takes AI into the physical world, quantum computing may become the next computing revolution behind the digital curtain. Shares of D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) surged after Evercore ISI initiated coverage with an "outperform" rating and a striking $44 price target — implying upside of nearly 76%. Analyst Mark Lipacis framed quantum technology as a "leading play" in the next Tectonic Shift of computing, citing D-Wave's commercial revenues, full-stack ecosystem, and capital strength. Sherwood

If this thesis plays out, the Defiance Quantum ETF (QTUM) could become a prime vehicle for investors seeking diversified exposure to early-stage quantum computing, AI hardware, and edge technology. QTUM's holdings bridge software, semiconductor, and quantum infrastructure companies — an ecosystem poised to benefit if Lipacis's "100x-to-1,000x" projections for industry leaders prove prescient.

Are These Really "Post-AI" Trades?

The tempting narrative is that robotics and quantum are what you buy after the AI story peaks. In reality, they're more likely to be extensions of the same structural trend:

Robotics = AI leaving the data center and entering the factory floor, the warehouse, and the street.

Quantum = a potential future accelerator for AI workloads and optimization problems that today's chips can't efficiently handle.

Even the policy and corporate messaging reflects this continuity. The reported White House focus on robotics isn't a hard pivot away from AI; it's about applying AI to productivity in the real economy. And quantum pitches increasingly highlight how it may super-charge domains like AI, cybersecurity, and complex simulations.

Investor Takeaway

Think in themes, not tickers. Robotics (ROBT, BOTZ) and quantum/next-gen compute (QTUM) are ways to express long-term theses without relying on one or two speculative stocks.

Size positions for uncertainty. These are early-stage, high-volatility areas. Treat them as satellite positions around a core portfolio, not the core itself.

See them as AI 2.0, not the replacement. Robotics and quantum are likely to augment the AI trade rather than replace it outright. If AI is the operating system, robotics and quantum are the hardware and accelerators that extend its reach.

The AI story isn't over. It's evolving, from pure software to robots in the real world and, possibly, quantum machines under the hood. For investors, that means the opportunity set is getting broader, but also more complex.

Quickly compare ETFs BOTZ, ROBT, QTUM side by side with our ETF Compare Tool