Swiss National Bank (SNB) governing board member Petra Tschudin stated in an interview published on Friday that artificial intelligence (AI) could drive inflation higher in the short term, citing potential shortages in components like chips. She noted that the central bank is closely monitoring AI's impact on prices, which could have effects in both directions. While AI might lower prices in the long term by boosting productivity, Tschudin cautioned that for this to have a sustained deflationary effect, price declines would need to repeat regularly, which is not guaranteed. She also clarified that the SNB's latest forecast, which shows inflation within its target range, is based on interest rates remaining unchanged, and does not preclude policy adjustments if new information emerges.