According to a global survey by professional services group PwC released on Monday, only three in 10 chief executives are confident about their companies’ prospects for revenue growth over the next year, the lowest level in five years.
In an annual survey of more than 4,000 CEOs in 95 countries and territories late last year, they faced uncertainty over global political developments, increased cyber threats and what technological change means for their businesses.
One in five CEOs said their companies had experienced losses from trade-offs, and a third cited cyber risk as a major threat. An even greater share – 42% – were worried about what the pace of technological change meant for their companies.
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The survey concluded that “the biggest question on the minds of CEOs is whether they are changing fast enough to keep pace with technological changes, including artificial intelligence.”
The survey revealed a sharp divide between those who already see benefits from AI adoption and those who don’t: while 56% say they haven’t seen any financial benefits to date, 33% report either cost or revenue gains, while the rest say AI has delivered both cost and revenue wins.
PwC said that a separate analysis showed that companies that were applying AI extensively to products, services and customer experiences were benefiting the most, with the opposite being the least benefited by those experimenting as well.
“It (AI) is working and it’s here to stay. It’s imperative that companies around the world adopt now – that’s the question,” PwC global chairman Mohammad Conde told a news conference on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
(Writing and reporting by Mark John; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
