About 75pc of the economic value of AI is captured by just 20pc of companies
PwC research has found that Irish companies are somewhat lagging behind their global peers where AI implementation and benefits are concerned.
Professional services company PwC released data that examines how organizational leaders are navigating the benefits of AI in multiple areas, such as growth, revenue, investment, workflow, autonomous decision making, business model innovation and governance, and analyzes where AI leaders are driving results.
PwC collected survey data from 1,217 chief executives around the world, including from Ireland, at director level or above, in companies across 25 sectors and in many regions around the world.
From that information, PwC found that almost three-quarters (74pc) of the economic benefits of AI are being used by just 20 companies. According to the findings, this is indicative of “a significant and growing divide between a small group of AI leaders and the majority of businesses still stuck in pilot mode”.
Commenting on the report, David Lee, PwC Ireland’s chief technology officer, said, “Many companies are busy rolling out AI pilots, but few are turning that work into measurable financial returns.
“Leaders stand out because they target AI for growth, not just cost reduction, and back that ambition with the foundations that make AI scalable and reliable.”
Can Ireland keep pace?
Ireland has been found to be lagging behind its global peers when it comes to AI implementation and benefits.
Lee said: “Based on our previous studies, Irish companies are making global peers where AI implementation and benefits are concerned.”
He added that “PwC’s 2026 Irish CEO survey reveals fewer Irish CEOs (8pc) report AI application in more business areas compared to their global counterparts (18pc), including demand generation, products, services, information and strategic planning”.
He commented: “Some of the benefits from AI are also taking a long time to emerge compared to global peers, with Irish organizations seeing opportunities from AI, but not yet having the power to transform.
“17pc of Irish CEOs say AI has delivered more revenue in the last 12 months, behind global peers (29pc). Almost a quarter (23pc) say AI has delivered cost reductions in the last 12 months, also behind global peers (26pc).”
Leading companies were found to be two to three times more likely to use AI to identify and pursue growth opportunities or reinvent their business model. They are also twice as likely to redesign workflows to include AI than to simply add new AI tools.
They are almost three times more likely to increase the number of decisions made without human intervention and are shown to be moving forward with regard to AI governance. In high-performing companies, trust in the scale models have been found to be effective.
The report said, “AI leaders are more likely than other companies to have mechanisms such as a responsible AI framework (1.7 times more likely than other companies) and a diverse AI governing board (1.5 times). Because of their efforts, their employees are twice as likely to trust the results of AI.”
It’s time for a change
The PwC report suggested that failure to change the current approach to the use of artificial intelligence could widen the performance gap between AI leaders and “laggards”, especially as leading organizations continue to learn, grow, and automate more securely and quickly.
Commenting on the research findings, Martin Duffy, head of AI and emerging technologies at PwC Ireland, said: “AI’s return on investment comes down to targeting deliverables – clear metrics, quick decisions to stop or scale and designs built for reuse. The value comes when AI is embedded in everyday operations, not isolated pilots.”
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