New Delhi, Jan. 29 -- Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday (local time) appeared more upbeat about the US economy, saying it was on a "firm footing", but was more equivocal about artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on jobs and growth.

"The US economy expanded at a solid pace last year and is coming into 2026 on a firm footing. While job gains have remained low, the unemployment rate has shown some signs of stabilization and inflation remains somewhat elevated," Powell on Wednesday.

However, when asked about the impact of AI, the Fed chair offered a classic Powell response, which essentially boiled down to "hard to say".

"So everyone of course is watching AI and the deployment and, you know, trying to understand exac...