PwC

Discussion is focusing on how US consumer spending is splitting along a K-shaped pattern: higher-income households continue to spend freely on travel, dining and goods, while lower-income households cut back as prices and borrowing costs strain budgets. Analysts at PwC are among those highlighting the divide, arguing retailers and policymakers can no longer treat American consumers as a single group, with implications for the holiday season and the wider economy.

PwC warns that companies risk losing their most AI-capable employees while failing to bring the majority of their workforce along with new AI tools. Firms that focus AI investment and training only on a small tech-savvy group may see those workers leave, while the wider workforce remains undertrained and disengaged from AI adoption.