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PwC · January 2026

29th Annual Global CEO Survey: Leading through uncertainty in the age of AI

PwC's 29th Annual Global CEO Survey: Leading through uncertainty in the age of AI (January 2026; n=4,454, fielded Sep 30–Nov 10, 2025) found that 56% of CEOs say AI delivered neither higher revenue nor lower costs in the past 12 months.

Read the original report ↗Cite2 min read · Summary updated
Most CEOs have not yet seen revenue or cost gains from AIPercent of CEOs, AI impact in the last 12 months (categories overlap), 2026
Neither higher revenue nor lower costs
56%
Higher revenue
30%
Lower costs
26%
Both higher revenue and lower costs
12%
Source: PwC, 29th Annual Global CEO Survey, 2026, p. 5–6.

Key findings

  1. 01
    Only 12% of CEOs report AI delivered both revenue gains and cost reductions.
  2. 02
    30% report increased revenue from AI; 26% report lower costs, while 22% say costs went up.
  3. 03
    Only 30% are very or extremely confident about revenue growth over the next 12 months, down from 38% in 2025.

By the numbers

56%of CEOs say AI delivered neither higher revenue nor lower costs in the past 12 months
12%of CEOs say AI delivered both higher revenue and lower costs
30%of CEOs are very or extremely confident about revenue growth in the next 12 months, down from 38% in 2025 and 56% in 2022
Few CEOs apply AI to a large extent in any business areaPercent of CEOs applying AI to a large or very large extent, by area, 2026
Demand generation
22%
Support services
20%
Products, services and experiences
19%
Direction setting
15%
Demand fulfilment
13%
Source: PwC, 29th Annual Global CEO Survey, 2026, p. 6.

What it means for you Draft

For executives at $10–100M companies

This is one of the few big surveys where most CEOs lead firms of our size or smaller, and more than half say AI has not yet moved revenue or cost. That makes it reasonable to ask for a clear, measurable business case before expanding AI spend. PwC's own read is that the few getting both benefits built foundations first: a roadmap, data, and responsible-use rules.

Limitations

High trust.Very large CEO sample, size mix and method disclosed, 30% under $100M. PwC sells AI services.

About the publisher: Sells AI strategy and implementation consulting.

The headline figure measures the “Pays off” stage of adoption (measurable profit impact).Why adoption numbers disagree

Cite the original

PwC. "29th Annual Global CEO Survey: Leading through uncertainty in the age of AI." January 19, 2026. https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/ceo-survey/2026/pwc-ceo-survey-2026.pdf

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