One of Canada’s top venture capitalists believes the hype surrounding artificial intelligence is calming down, but a few factors could have it ramping back up soon.

John Ruffolo, founder and managing partner of Maverix Private Equity, told BNN Bloomberg the investment in AI infrastructure – OpenAI for example – are less exciting because only a few companies will succeed.

But firms using that are actually using the AI infrastructure have investors interested, he said, despite their infancy.

“The interesting area for me is at the application layer, this is the layer where they’re actually doing things for companies and making their businesses more effective,” he said in the television interview.

“This is what’s going to really change the world.”

While Ruffolo believes there will only be a handful a big players in AI infrastructure, there could be “hundreds and thousands” of AI application companies.

Additionally, Ruffolo believes AI investment could expand again soon as companies pull out of “sensitive areas” such as Asia.

“As they pull away from their investment, particularly in China, you’re going to see more and more companies stateside that are going to be investing in this space,” he said.

Last week, OMERS Ventures closed its venture capital arm in Europe as technology investing dwindled on the continent. It will now focus on North American investment, which Ruffolo believes could soon be a trend.

“Where perhaps you might be looking at your markets and expansion in Europe or Asia, I think what you’re going to see is a refocusing back in the Americas,” he added.