AI Adoption Survey

HumanX, the #1 AI conference for today’s business leaders, has partnered with market research firm HarrisX to release a groundbreaking study into US business leaders’ perceptions, expectations, and approach to adopting AI. The largest of its kind, the AI Adoption Survey reflects the experience of 1,109 U.S. business leaders across multiple industries. 

To properly address the multifaceted effects of AI adoption, the survey categorized its findings into four distinct areas: the current state of AI; hopes, fears, and expectations surrounding AI; perceptions of the early stages of AI strategy and implementation; and the commitment to AI investment. 

The State of AI

Despite a resounding 81% of business decision makers (BDMs) responding favorably about AI’s future impact, more than half (56%) admitted that they understand a little, not much, or nothing at all about how AI works. What’s more, the most desired use cases of AI were improved customer experience, operational efficiency, and revenue growth–suggesting that today’s BDMs are overarchingly optimistic, but there are strategic and knowledge-based gaps that need to be addressed when implementing AI. Similarly, 1 in 3 surveyed executives cited concerns over lack of expertise, integration within preexisting systems, and data privacy as the top organizational challenges in AI deployment, suggesting an overall concern with the knowledge and understanding of how AI operates. 

Hopes, Fears, and Expectations Surrounding AI

4 in 5 BDMs believe that AI will positively impact the quality of their work, with the top 3 most anticipated opportunities being improved efficiency, enhanced customer service, and predictive analytics. Additionally, two-thirds of BDMs expect the integration of AI will boost their future earnings, suggesting high levels of optimism in the realms of productivity and performance. However, 31% of BDMs worry that AI will replace jobs, and 62% believe that AI will lead to increased spread of misinformation.

Still, expectations surrounding AI remain generally hopeful, with science and technology, entertainment, education, and healthcare believed to be the industries most positively impacted by AI and among the most likely to have ethical use cases in place. 

Early Stages of AI Strategy & Implementation

Nearly 3 in 4 BDMs say their organizations have a dedicated AI strategy, with the vast majority reporting that their strategy is in the development phase. As far as AI decision making, over 2 in 5 BDMs reported that division leaders have the final say. Among C-suite BDMs, the majority attribute the decision making process to the CEO. Lastly, over half of BDMs stated that improving data management and overall quality is their top AI priority in the coming year, with 2 in 5 reporting that they measure success of AI projects by revenue growth, improved efficiency, employee productivity, and cost savings. 

Commitment to AI Investment

1 in 5 BDMs reported that less than 5% of their budget is allocated to AI, with the majority hoping to invest in external resources. Furthermore, 3 in 4 BDMs are satisfied with their current AI investment levels and expect this level of investment to increase over the next three years. 

These results paint a complex picture of AI adoption in business: while the disruption of AI is expected to bring meaningful and even valuable changes to the workforce, today’s business leaders anticipate growing pains like job cuts and knowledge gaps that require major reskilling. Overall, the responses suggest that much work is still needed to align strategy, execution, and business goals in order to successfully adopt AI in the workforce–but hope remains in knowing that there is room to capture value.