There are a huge number of people involved in AI outside of the major AI companies both in smaller AI companies and lots of independent developers. They aren't having much success bringing AI to the masses and this is because they don't care enough about money and they aren't selling their ideas aggressively enough. There is this odd tendency to undersell achievements because they weren't motivated by the Right Stuff.

The AI companies are as much being pushed along by investors as they are in the driving seat, but the push is in the direction of getting real products in front of people and experimenting with this miraculous tech everywhere it could possible work.