Artificial intelligence
266 of 521 companies added a paragraph in Risk Factors that uses one of these words:
AI, artificial intelligence, machine learning, generative, large language model.
The paragraph is in the latest 10-K and nothing like it was in the one before.
It counts text; it does not say how serious a risk is. Words in capitals only (such as AI) must be in capitals.
By sector
Sector is the SEC's industry description of the company. Each count opens that sector's quotes below.
| Sector | Companies | Compared |
|---|---|---|
| Orthopedic, Prosthetic & Surgical Appliances & Supplies | 5 | 5 |
| Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies | 3 | 3 |
| Computer Peripheral Equipment, NEC | 2 | 2 |
| Men's & Boys' Furnishgs, Work Clothg, & Allied Garments | 2 | 2 |
| Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses | 2 | 2 |
| Rubber & Plastics Footwear | 2 | 2 |
| Services-Medical Laboratories | 2 | 2 |
| Transportation Services | 2 | 2 |
| Air Courier Services | 1 | 1 |
| Aircraft & Parts | 1 | 1 |
| Aircraft Parts & Auxiliary Equipment, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Apparel & Other Finishd Prods of Fabrics & Similar Matl | 1 | 1 |
| Bottled & Canned Soft Drinks & Carbonated Waters | 1 | 1 |
| Communications Equipment, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Drawing & Insulating of Nonferrous Wire | 1 | 1 |
| Electrical Industrial Apparatus | 1 | 1 |
| Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus | 1 | 1 |
| Electronic Components & Accessories | 1 | 1 |
| Engines & Turbines | 1 | 1 |
| Farm Machinery & Equipment | 1 | 1 |
| Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) | 1 | 1 |
| Gas & Other Services Combined | 1 | 1 |
| General Industrial Machinery & Equipment, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Grain Mill Products | 1 | 1 |
| Heavy Construction Other Than Bldg Const - Contractors | 1 | 1 |
| Insurance Carriers, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Leather & Leather Products | 1 | 1 |
| Meat Packing Plants | 1 | 1 |
| Misc Industrial & Commercial Machinery & Equipment | 1 | 1 |
| Miscellaneous Manufacturing Industries | 1 | 1 |
| Motors & Generators | 1 | 1 |
| Newspapers: Publishing or Publishing & Printing | 1 | 1 |
| Oil & Gas Field Machinery & Equipment | 1 | 1 |
| Ordnance & Accessories, (No Vehicles/Guided Missiles) | 1 | 1 |
| Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods | 1 | 1 |
| Paper Mills | 1 | 1 |
| Real Estate | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Computer & Computer Software Stores | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Drug Stores and Proprietary Stores | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Eating & Drinking Places | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Grocery Stores | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Home Furniture, Furnishings & Equipment Stores | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Radio, Tv & Consumer Electronics Stores | 1 | 1 |
| Retail-Retail Stores, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Rolling Drawing & Extruding of Nonferrous Metals | 1 | 1 |
| Services-Advertising Agencies | 1 | 1 |
| Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services | 1 | 1 |
| Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management | 1 | 1 |
| Services-Equipment Rental & Leasing, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) | 1 | 1 |
| Special Industry Machinery, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Sugar & Confectionery Products | 1 | 1 |
| Telephone & Telegraph Apparatus | 1 | 1 |
| Television Broadcasting Stations | 1 | 1 |
| Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) | 1 | 1 |
| Wholesale-Electronic Parts & Equipment, NEC | 1 | 1 |
| Wholesale-Medical, Dental & Hospital Equipment & Supplies | 1 | 1 |
| X-Ray Apparatus & Tubes & Related Irradiation Apparatus | 1 | 1 |
| Computer Storage Devices | 4 | 5 |
| Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. | 4 | 5 |
| Investment Advice | 6 | 8 |
| Retail-Eating Places | 3 | 4 |
| Services-Prepackaged Software | 14 | 19 |
| Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus | 7 | 10 |
| Finance Services | 19 | 28 |
| Semiconductors & Related Devices | 10 | 15 |
| Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service | 4 | 6 |
| Electronic Computers | 2 | 3 |
| Measuring & Controlling Devices, NEC | 2 | 3 |
| Retail-Auto Dealers & Gasoline Stations | 2 | 3 |
| Retail-Building Materials, Hardware, Garden Supply | 2 | 3 |
| Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research | 2 | 3 |
| Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design | 2 | 3 |
| Wholesale-Drugs, Proprietaries & Druggists' Sundries | 2 | 3 |
| National Commercial Banks | 7 | 11 |
| Hospital & Medical Service Plans | 3 | 5 |
| Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, and Control | 3 | 5 |
| Laboratory Analytical Instruments | 3 | 5 |
| Services-Business Services, NEC | 9 | 16 |
| Real Estate Investment Trusts | 15 | 27 |
| Electric Services | 8 | 15 |
| Electronic & Other Electrical Equipment (No Computer Equip) | 2 | 4 |
| Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys | 2 | 4 |
| Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation | 2 | 4 |
| Aircraft Engines & Engine Parts | 1 | 2 |
| Arrangement of Transportation of Freight & Cargo | 1 | 2 |
| Cigarettes | 1 | 2 |
| Cutlery, Handtools & General Hardware | 1 | 2 |
| Fats & Oils | 1 | 2 |
| Industrial Organic Chemicals | 1 | 2 |
| Instruments For Meas & Testing of Electricity & Elec Signals | 1 | 2 |
| Optical Instruments & Lenses | 1 | 2 |
| Paperboard Containers & Boxes | 1 | 2 |
| Printed Circuit Boards | 1 | 2 |
| Pumps & Pumping Equipment | 1 | 2 |
| Radio & Tv Broadcasting & Communications Equipment | 1 | 2 |
| Retail-Auto & Home Supply Stores | 1 | 2 |
| Services-Computer Programming Services | 1 | 2 |
| Services-General Medical & Surgical Hospitals, NEC | 1 | 2 |
| Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings | 1 | 2 |
| Telephone Communications (No Radiotelephone) | 1 | 2 |
| Trucking (No Local) | 1 | 2 |
| Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products | 1 | 2 |
| Pharmaceutical Preparations | 5 | 11 |
| Crude Petroleum & Natural Gas | 3 | 7 |
| Electric & Other Services Combined | 5 | 12 |
| Retail-Variety Stores | 2 | 5 |
| Air Transportation, Scheduled | 1 | 3 |
| Computer & office Equipment | 1 | 3 |
| Computer Communications Equipment | 1 | 3 |
| Electrical Work | 1 | 3 |
| General Industrial Machinery & Equipment | 1 | 3 |
| Life Insurance | 1 | 3 |
| Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations | 1 | 3 |
| Plastic Materials, Synth Resins & Nonvulcan Elastomers | 1 | 3 |
| Soap, Detergents, Cleang Preparations, Perfumes, Cosmetics | 1 | 3 |
| Water Transportation | 1 | 3 |
| Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies | 2 | 7 |
| Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance | 3 | 12 |
| Motor Vehicles & Passenger Car Bodies | 1 | 4 |
| Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services | 1 | 4 |
| Beverages | 1 | 5 |
| Biological Products, (No Diagnostic Substances) | 1 | 5 |
| Hotels & Motels | 1 | 5 |
| Petroleum Refining | 1 | 6 |
| State Commercial Banks | 1 | 6 |
833 paragraphs · Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design show all sectors
•Our use, development, adoption, deployment and maintenance of AI and other new and evolving technologies may present significant risks, which could result in increased costs, litigation, reputational harm and liability.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
Our use, development, adoption, deployment and maintenance of AI and other new and evolving technologies may present significant risks, which could result in increased costs, litigation, reputational harm and liability.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
Technologies related to our customers' Identity and Presence, including domain names, websites, website building, social media, search engines, apps, mobile devices and AI-powered tools and services have rapidly evolved and continue to evolve. This evolution and continued evolution could negatively impact the demand for certain of our products and services, including domain names, aftermarket, websites and website building tools or email and productivity solutions. For example, the domain name registration market continues to evolve and adapt to changing technologies, which has, and may in the future include, changes in the administration or operation of the internet, including the creation and institution of alternate systems for directing internet traffic without using the existing domain name registration system, or fundamental changes in the domain name resolution protocol used by web browsers and other internet applications. Additionally, technological changes to web browsers or internet search could reduce demand for domain names. If internet users' preferences or practices shift away from recognizing and relying on web addresses or they were to significantly decrease their use of web browsers in favor of apps or AI-based tools to locate and access content, demand for domain names in the gTLDs we operate could be negatively affected.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
In addition, advances in AI, including tools that enable customers to create, modify, and deploy websites, applications or digital experiences using AI-powered platforms, including those that utilize natural language or other high-level inputs rather than traditional development workflows, may alter customer expectations and behavior with respect to website creation, hosting and management. If customers increasingly rely on third-party AI platforms, closed ecosystems or other competing services, including those that offer automated or natural-language-driven website creation and hosting capabilities, demand for our website building tools, hosting products, domain names or related services could decline or pricing pressure could increase, which could materially and adversely affect our business.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
The widespread acceptance of any alternative system, such as mobile applications, AI-powered products and tools or closed networks, could eliminate the need to register a domain name or to establish an online presence and could materially and adversely affect our business. These and other evolving technologies, including AI, and changes in customer behavior may have an adverse effect on our business and growth prospects. For further information concerning the risks posed by our competitors' use of AI, please refer to the Risk Factor "We face significant competition for our products, which we expect will continue to intensify, and we may not be able to maintain or improve our competitive position or market share." For further information concerning the legal and other risks arising from the development, adoption, use, deployment and maintenance of AI and AI-powered tools and solutions, refer to our risk factor "Our use, development, adoption, deployment and maintenance of AI and other new and evolving technologies may present significant risks, which could result in increased costs, litigation, reputational harm and liability."
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
•rapid technological change, including as a result of developments in AI adoption and integration;
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
•changes in laws, rules, regulations or policies, including those concerning AI, domain name registration, content control and other matters;
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 25, 2026 ↗
Additionally, if any of our employees, contractors, consultants, vendors or service providers use any third-party AI-powered software in connection with our business or the services they provide to us, it may lead to the inadvertent disclosure or incorporation of our confidential information into publicly available training sets, which may impact our ability to realize the benefit of, or adequately maintain, protect and enforce our intellectual property or confidential information, harming our
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 17, 2026 ↗
competitive position and business. Further, any output created by us using AI tools may not be subject to copyright protection, which may adversely affect our intellectual property rights in, or ability to commercialize or use, any such content. In the U.S., a number of civil lawsuits have been initiated related to the foregoing and other concerns, any one of which may, among other things, require us to limit the ways in which our AI systems are trained and may affect our ability to develop our AI-powered products and solutions. If we do not have sufficient rights to use the data or other material or content on which the AI tools we use rely, we also may incur liability through the violation of applicable laws and regulations, third-party intellectual property, data privacy, or other rights, or contracts to which we are a party.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 17, 2026 ↗
As the utilization of AI becomes more prevalent, we anticipate that it will continue to present new or unanticipated ethical, reputational, technical, operational, legal, competitive and regulatory issues, among others. We expect that our incorporation of AI in our business will require additional resources, including the incurrence of additional costs, to develop and maintain our products and solutions and features to minimize potentially harmful or unintended consequences, to comply with applicable and emerging laws and regulations, to maintain or extend our competitive position, and to address any ethical, reputational, technical, operational, legal, competitive or regulatory issues which may arise as a result of any of the foregoing. As a result, the challenges presented with our use of AI could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Read in the 10-K filed Feb 17, 2026 ↗