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The adoption–return gap: what the research shows
Every figure we use comes from the publishing organisation's own report, attributed by name and year.
We do not cite blogs, aggregators, social posts or vendor marketing. Samples differ and some are small, so we state the sample where it matters. The figures we use describe the market. They are not results achieved by InnovaStrata, and we do not present them as such.
Where the value sits
Finding | Source and year | Sample |
|---|---|---|
Roughly 10% of the value of AI comes from algorithms, 20% from technology and data, and 70% from people and process. Only about 5% of organisations have achieved substantial financial gains from AI. | BCG, AI Transformation Is a Workforce Transformation, 2026 | |
Nearly nine in ten respondents report regular AI use in at least one business function. 44% report scaling across the enterprise; 37% attribute at least some EBIT impact to AI; about 6% report significant impact (5% or more of EBIT). | McKinsey & Company, The State of AI: Global Survey, 2026 | 1,719 respondents, 97 countries, May–June 2026 |
56% of CEOs report no significant financial benefit from AI to date. 12% report both cost and revenue benefits. | PwC, 29th Annual Global CEO Survey, 2026 | 4,454 CEOs, 95 countries and territories |
20% of companies capture 74% of AI-driven returns. | PwC, AI Performance Study, 2026 | 1,217 senior executives; 76% at companies with US$1bn+ revenue |
84% of companies have not redesigned jobs around AI capabilities. | Deloitte AI Institute, State of AI in the Enterprise, 2026 | 3,235 director- to C-suite-level respondents, 24 countries |
Adoption is happening unmanaged
Finding | Source and year | Sample |
|---|---|---|
66% of employees rely on AI output without evaluating it; 44% have used AI in ways that contravene organisational policies; more than half do not disclose their AI use; only 34% report organisational policy or guidance on generative AI. | KPMG International with the University of Melbourne, Trust, Attitudes and Use of AI: A Global Study, 2025 | 48,340 respondents, 47 countries; fieldwork Nov 2024 – Jan 2025 |
13% of employees reported using generative AI for 30% or more of their daily work; C-suite leaders estimated 4%. | McKinsey & Company, Superagency in the Workplace, 2025 | US sample |
88% of employees use AI at work to some degree; 37% use it daily; only 5% are advanced users. | EY, Work Reimagined Survey, 2025 | 15,000 employees and 1,500 employers, 29 countries |
36% feel properly trained. 28% of frontline employees see strong alignment between what leaders say about AI and what the organisation does. | BCG, AI at Work, 2026 | 11,749 respondents, 14 markets |
The Gulf
Finding | Source and year | Sample |
|---|---|---|
93% of frontline employees in the Middle East use AI at least several times a week, against a 74% global average. | BCG, AI at Work, 2026 | Middle East group (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar): 355 respondents |
63% of respondents would use AI tools even without company authorisation. | BCG, From Pilots to Progress: AI at Work in the GCC, 2025 | 1,000+ respondents, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE |
84% use AI in at least one function; 31% have scaled it; 11% attribute at least 5% of earnings to it. | McKinsey & Company with the GCC Board Directors Institute, The state of AI in GCC countries, 2025 | 139 senior executives and board directors, six GCC countries |
39% of GCC organisations are AI leaders. Laggards struggle significantly more with missing AI metrics and ROI measurement, and with aligning AI initiatives to firm-wide strategy. | BCG, Unlocking Potential, 2026 | 196 organisations, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE |
70% of Middle East CEOs report a clearly defined AI roadmap, against 51% globally; only 22% confirm their AI tools can access all relevant documents and data. | PwC, 29th Annual Global CEO Survey, Middle East findings, 2026 |
People and change capacity
Finding | Source and year | Sample |
|---|---|---|
79% of employees have low trust in organisational change. Organisations that adapt change plans based on employee responses are four times more likely to achieve change success. | Gartner, 2025 and 2026 press releases | 2,850+ employees (2025); 313 senior respondents (2026) |
Trust in top management fell from 51% to 44%. | PwC, Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey, 2026 | 49,364 workers, 48 countries and regions |
63% of employers identify skill gaps as a major barrier to business transformation over 2025–2030. | World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, 2025 | 1,000+ employers, 55 economies |
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