Artificial intelligence is reshaping every corner of the economy – but what does it really mean for private markets, an industry built on dense documents, human judgement and long-term relationships? In this episode, Professor Ludovic Phalippou of University of Oxford Saïd Business School joins us to explore the tension between “limited partners and unlimited technologies,” arguing that private markets are not opaque so much as overwhelmed by unstructured, non-standardized information.

The discussion also examines the risks and realities of AI in private equity – from data bias, model hallucinations and adversarial formatting to the marketing hype surrounding so-called “AI-powered” tools. Phalippou discusses his research showing how natural language processing and qualitative data can track private-equity exposures and even help forecast fund outcomes, and identifies where AI may offer the most immediate value, including co-investment analysis. He also reflects on how technology may reshape investor skill sets, widen performance gaps among LPs and transform back-office work, while highlighting the human judgement that remains essential in a more automated future.