Volatility has returned to the center of the investing debate, and Apollo co-President John Zito argues many investors still miss where relative safety may lie.

Speaking with Bloomberg’s Dani Burger at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, Zito pointed to a market mindset he sees as incomplete. He said investors broadly accept that a higher-volatility regime has arrived, but they do not fully recognize private credit as a place that has typically offered more protection. That view cuts against the instinct to retreat broadly when uncertainty rises.

“Everyone is acknowledging we will be in a higher-volatility regime, but they are not acknowledging credit is actually the typical safer place to be.”

Zito also tied the conversation to artificial intelligence, which now influences how investors think about opportunity, risk, and capital allocation. Reports indicate AI has become more than a technology story inside finance; it now shapes judgments about where growth will emerge and which strategies can hold up as the market shifts. In that setting, private credit enters the discussion not as a flashy trade, but as a defensive one with renewed relevance.

Key Facts

  • Apollo co-President John Zito discussed private credit and AI at the Milken Institute Global Conference.
  • He said investors expect a higher-volatility regime across markets.
  • Zito argued that credit is often overlooked as a typically safer place to be.
  • The remarks came during an interview with Bloomberg’s Dani Burger in Beverly Hills.

The significance of Zito’s comments goes beyond one firm’s market call. Private credit has drawn intense attention as traditional lenders pull back in some areas and investors search for yield without taking on the full shock of public-market swings. Sources suggest the next phase of that search will hinge on whether investors treat volatility as a reason to hide or as a reason to rethink which assets actually absorb stress better.

What happens next matters because the argument over private credit now sits inside a larger reset in investing. If volatility stays elevated and AI keeps redirecting money and attention across sectors, investors will face harder choices about defense, return, and patience. Zito’s message is clear: in a noisier market, the safer trade may not be the one drawing the loudest headlines.