TrueShares Technology, AI & Deep Learning ETF (LRNZ)

The TrueShares Technology, AI & Deep Learning ETF (LRNZ) is an exchange-traded fund designed to track the universe of public companies engaged in the development, manufacture, or deployment of artificial intelligence and deep learning technologies.

Artificial intelligence has become a serious commercial reality rather than a speculative theme, but the ecosystem of AI-focused companies is young and dispersed across multiple industries. LRNZ exists to give investors exposure to that ecosystem in a single, tradeable fund. It holds companies that build AI chips, write AI software, provide cloud computing infrastructure that powers AI, and operate AI-dependent businesses. The fund’s breadth means it captures exposure to the full value chain rather than betting on any single layer.

The range of AI exposure

AI is not a single industry but a cluster of related technologies and applications flowing through semiconductors, cloud computing, enterprise software, and consumer-facing applications. LRNZ casts a wide net.

At one end sit the semiconductor designers and manufacturers — companies that build the chips that train and run large language models and other AI systems. The computing power required to train modern AI is immense, and the chips that enable that computing are central to the value chain.

In the middle are the cloud infrastructure providers that own the data centres and computing capacity that customers rent to train and deploy AI. These firms benefit from AI adoption because the more AI models proliferate, the more cloud computing power is needed.

At the other end are enterprise software companies that embed AI into their existing products or offer AI-as-a-service platforms — databases that incorporate AI search, office software with AI writing assistants, and standalone AI tools that help businesses automate tasks.

By holding across all three tiers, LRNZ avoids being a single-layer bet. A portfolio concentrated only on chip makers might soar if computing demand explodes but suffer if innovations make the current chips obsolete. A software-only portfolio avoids that hardware risk but picks up execution risk in software. LRNZ spreads the risk across the value chain.

A young theme with long runway

AI as a commercial technology has a short history, measured in years, not decades. The largest-scale AI deployments are recent — large language models only became widely available to the public in late 2022 — so the universe of profitable AI businesses is still forming. This creates a structural difference from established sectors like energy or banking, where the competitive landscape is stable and predictable.

For an investor, this cuts both ways. The upside potential is significant because AI is genuinely early in its adoption curve; countless businesses and workflows have not yet been AI-enhanced, so future revenue growth in AI-adjacent companies is plausible. The downside is equally significant: because the technology is so young, it is hard to predict which companies will win and which will become obsolete. A firm that is essential today might be disrupted by a new approach or superseded by a larger technology company pivoting into AI.

The concentration question

LRNZ holds considerably fewer stocks than a broad market index fund — typically 50 to 100 companies — because the universe of pure-play AI companies is smaller than the universe of all publicly traded companies. This concentration is inherent to the theme, not a choice by the fund manager. Every holding in LRNZ is selected specifically because it has material exposure to AI; there are no ballast positions just to diversify.

That means LRNZ is more volatile than the broad market. In years when AI enthusiasm runs high and chip makers post record earnings, the fund can outpace everything else. In years when AI hype cools or competition intensifies and margins compress, it can fall harder. An investor in LRNZ is making an explicit bet that the AI theme will persist and that the companies selected to play it will remain at the centre of AI’s commercial development.

Tracking the AI cycle

The most important question for any AI-focused fund is whether it will hold up when the hype inevitably recedes. Right now, AI is near the peak of the hype curve: conference talks are dominated by AI, corporate earnings calls mention AI, and venture funding chases AI startups at escalating valuations. This enthusiasm is not irrational — AI is genuinely transformative — but it does mean valuations are stretched relative to current earnings. When reality checks expectations, usually high-flying thematic funds suffer.

LRNZ’s prospectus and fact sheet should be the first place to look for actual holdings, fees, and how the fund has performed in the inevitable down markets for technology stocks. Because the fund is thematic and concentrated, downturns hit harder; the same applies in upturns.

Who owns what

TrueShares is a subsidiary of Horizons ETFs, a Canadian-based ETF sponsor. The fund is listed on US exchanges and operates like any other ETF, trading throughout the day with an expense ratio typically competitive with other thematic funds. Because the theme is popular, trading volume and liquidity are solid, meaning you can buy and sell without the bid-ask spreads that plague thinly traded funds.

LRNZ is, fundamentally, a lens through which to own the AI value chain without picking individual stocks or trying to time the AI cycle. Whether that lens is clear, and whether the companies selected are the right ones to own for the next decade, is a question only each investor can answer for themselves.