Cramer warns Wall Street's AI craze may be peaking

• CNBC's Jim Cramer told investors to be wary of companies pitching AI to the consumer.
• Cramer said he sees AI as hugely meaningful for companies that deal with large amount of data, not those with consumer-oriented goals.

CNBC's Jim Cramer on Monday suggested that Wall Street's artificial intelligence craze may be reaching its peak.

Cramer wondered if AI is having a GoPro moment as he compared companies touting AI offerings to the action camera fad years ago. He suspected that GoPro had jumped the shark when he saw an image of a goat riding a surfboard with a camera attached to its head. Soon enough, the company's stock tumbled from its highs, never to return.

"We've seen tons of CEOs and analysts try to shoehorn AI into their bullish narratives. And that's going on for awhile now, and it worked," Cramer said. "But I think those days will soon be numbered, unless they've got a legitimate way to make lots of money off AI, rather than [be] the equivalent of watching a goat surf, admittedly with great form, off the coast of Hawaii."

Cramer said he doesn't doubt that AI is going to have a huge impact, and will be a huge factor in the success of many companies, especially those that deal with large amounts of data.

But he questioned companies advertising AI directly to the consumer, cautioning investors that many may be hyping AI to raise their stock's valuation. Some companies may be running out of "legitimate use cases" when it comes to AI. According to Cramer, AI is intended to save businesses money, not serve individual consumers.

"Unless there's a return on investment that's tangible and visible, generative AI may not be all that valuable," he said. "I'm beginning to believe that a lot of companies have embraced AI for show. And if they can't deliver a real return, the hype will peak and the whole notion of AI as a transformative business to consumer, to consumer, will fizzle. So, the stocks of companies that pushed that story will fizzle with them."

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