UII UPDATE 503 | JUNE 2026
Intelligence Update

A culture of token abundance collides with financial reality

23 Jun 2026
7 min read

Over the past year, many of us — operators, end-users and analysts — have struggled to distinguish widespread AI hype from AI reality. AI vendors, that have a vested interest in amplifying this hype, optimistically talk about adoption, use-cases and successes. But understanding how enterprises are deploying AI in practice, and how successful these initiatives are, has been more tricky.

A recent FinOps X event in San Diego (US) provided an opportunity to hear from those directly responsible for understanding the costs and value of AI. The overall theme from the attendees was that AI is being used in production applications, but that the cost of AI — and the value of investments — is hard to quantify.

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