Norway's $2 trillion oil fund, one of the world's largest investors, announced on Thursday that it is now utilizing artificial intelligence to screen investments and identify potential reputational and ethical risks.
Established in the 1990s and managed by Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the fund's purpose is to invest the revenue from Norway's petroleum sector. As a global investor, the fund holds stakes in over 7,200 companies across 60 countries, owning approximately 1.5% of all listed shares worldwide.
The Norwegian oil fund has long played a pivotal role in global markets and within the realm of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing. It leverages its influence and voting rights to set expected standards for the companies and markets it invests in, covering impacts on people, the environment, and society. In its annual responsible investment report, the management team stated it is currently using AI to provide portfolio managers with insights on governance and sustainability.
NBIM indicated that this technology enables the fund to expand the scope and scale of information it can analyze, thereby achieving "quicker identification of material risks."
A spokesperson for NBIM revealed that the institution's ESG risk monitoring team pioneered the integration of Anthropic's Claude AI model into its daily operations in November 2024. They stated that since its implementation, the model has become "an indispensable tool in our monitoring of ESG risks across the entire portfolio."
In Thursday's report, NBIM noted that it formally deployed a large language AI model in 2025 to screen each company on the very first day it is included in its equity portfolio. The report stated: "These tools help us quickly scan a wide array of public information, covering a far greater range than traditional data providers can offer. When signs of risk on key issues emerge, the large language model conducts a deep search and provides a summarized analysis with contextual background."
NBIM receives a daily AI-generated risk assessment report focused on investments made the previous day. Fund management stated this allows the team to immediately begin researching measures to address and mitigate risks. The report highlighted: "Within 24 hours of completing an investment, the AI tool can flag potential risk associations for newly added companies in the fund's equity portfolio, such as issues like forced labor, corruption, or fraud. Often, this type of information is not covered by international media or data providers. We always verify relevant information before making investment or risk decisions. In several instances, we identified and divested these investments before the broader market reacted to the risks, thereby avoiding potential losses."
NBIM said this application of AI is particularly valuable when researching small companies in emerging markets, as reporting on these firms is often limited to small media channels using local languages.
Nicolai Tangen, Chief Executive Officer of NBIM, stated in the report: "Artificial intelligence is transforming how we operate as investors." He noted that sustainability and governance are "inseparable from financial performance," and emphasized that "the world will remain complex and uncertain."
The fund's current assets under management are approximately $2.2 trillion. In 2025, the fund generated an annual return of 2.36 trillion Norwegian kroner (approximately $246.9 billion).
Nearly 40% of NBIM's investments are concentrated in U.S. equities, with its highest-valued holdings including Nvidia (a 1.3% stake), Apple (a 1.2% stake), and Microsoft (a 1.3% stake). Additionally, NBIM invests in fixed income, real estate, and renewable energy infrastructure. However, some ethics-related decisions made by the fund last year drew criticism, particularly from the White House.
Until November 2025, the executive board of Norges Bank was responsible for deciding whether to exclude a company from the fund's portfolio or place it on a watchlist. These decisions were based on recommendations from the Council on Ethics, an independent body appointed by the Norwegian Ministry of Finance. However, following controversy surrounding some of its divestment actions last year, interim guidelines were introduced. A government-appointed committee is expected to submit a review of NBIM's ethical framework later this year.
Under the interim guidelines, Norges Bank no longer has the authority to decide on placing a company on a watchlist or excluding it from the fund, but it can reverse previous decisions to exclude companies or place them on a watchlist. Simultaneously, the Council on Ethics has been stripped of its power to recommend placing companies on a watchlist or excluding them, a restriction that will remain in place at least until the review of the ethical framework is completed.
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