A chatbot can plan your holiday in seconds. Letting it approve an insurance claim is a different type of adventure. Suddenly, the answer needs to be accurate, the information needs to be current, and someone needs to know who approved what.
That gap is where I see an appealing investment opportunity. Businesses don’t just need clever artificial intelligence (AI). They need AI that can work with their information without creating a much bigger problem.
Source: Getty Images
Beyond the chat
Imagine an employee asking an AI assistant whether a customer qualifies for a refund. A useful answer requires the correct purchase, the current policy and permission to see the customer’s details. A convincing answer pulled from an old policy won’t do anyone a favour.
Putting those pieces together takes software, integration and ongoing support. Investors considering Canadian AI stocks can benefit from looking at how AI can undertake such tasks alongside the companies building the models. It creates a different way to invest in AI.
Already inside
OpenText (TSX: OTEX) helps organizations manage, connect and protect business information. Its customers use that software across documents, supply chains and other operations. AI gives the company another way to make those existing services useful.
At OpenText World, I was able to ask chief sales officer Todd Cione about its relationships with Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and Google. He explained that OpenText’s systems run on their infrastructure when customers choose those deployments. Customers can also keep workloads in private clouds or on their own premises.
That flexibility appeals to me as an investor. OpenText doesn’t need one model provider to win every account. It can help customers use AI within the environments their businesses require, although supporting several environments also takes investment.
The financial starting point is encouraging. Fiscal 2026 cloud revenue rose 5.5% to US$2 billion. This is cloud revenue across the business, not a separately disclosed measure of AI sales. Still, it gives the AI strategy an established source of recurring business to build upon.
Paid to wait
The shares also offer income while that opportunity develops. The latest declared quarterly dividend was US$0.28, equivalent to US$1.12 annually if maintained. At writing, a $1,000 budget illustrates the payment.
| COMPANY | RECENT PRICE | NUMBER OF SHARES | ANNUAL DIVIDEND | ANNUAL TOTAL PAYOUT | FREQUENCY | TOTAL INVESTMENT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OTEX | $39.14 | 25 | US$1.12 | US$28.00 | Quarterly | $978.50 |
It’s a modest payment, but it means this investment doesn’t rely entirely on investors paying more for the same shares later. That’s a useful distinction when buying stocks in Canada.
Room to grow
Competition is the clear risk. The same cloud partners that help OpenText reach customers can develop competing capabilities. Existing customer relationships help, but they aren’t permanent protection. Dividend payments can also change.
Even with those limits, I like buying into an established business that can sell useful AI capabilities alongside its current products. Customers have a practical reason to spend when the tools help them find information, automate work and maintain control.
Cione put the competitive logic simply: “No one can do it alone.” For shareholders, that means OpenText can participate in customers’ spending without supplying every component. I like owning a useful part of several business systems rather than assuming one model will provide every advantage. OpenText still has to win the sale, but it already knows many of the buyers.
Bottom line
I’d buy OpenText as a patient position in the business use of AI. The next big model will attract plenty of attention. The companies helping customers put it to work have an opportunity to collect revenue long after the demonstration ends.
