Chief executives must improve their skills like the rest of their workforce if they are to make the transformation to AI more than just a buzzword.
That was one of the pieces of advice from PwC's top leaders on the release of its annual survey of nearly 4,500 chief executives in 95 countries.
The auditing giant charted a difficult and expensive journey for most businesses, although the companies that cracked it are far better placed to see strong growth.
Only three in 10 chief executives are confident about revenue growth in 2026 as most struggle to turn money spent on AI into real results.
And just one in eight leaders said AI has delivered cost and revenue benefits, although companies that have scaled up AI with "strong foundations" have got ahead.
The annual survey, one of the largest of its kind, was unveiled at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Monday night.
"Agility is key. Can we run businesses today the way we ran them in the past? The answer is no, we can't," PwC global chairman Mohamed Kande told The National.
"Things are trending so fast and it's a different environment, technology-wise and geopolitically."
Marco Amitrano, PwC's senior partner for the UK and the Middle East, said chief executives must take a look at the scale of the challenge ahead and plan properly.
"CEOs need to upskill like everybody else. And I think some will make that journey effectively, some will find it harder, some may give up," he said.
"There's never been a more important time for teams leading organisations, not individuals."
The best thought-out AI transformation plans will go "more broadly into the organisation, deeper, they've gone past the pilots", Mr Amitrano said.
The biggest question on the minds of most chief executives is whether they are transforming fast enough to keep pace with technological change, including AI. Forty-two per cent said this was their top concern.
Last year, it was estimated that companies worldwide spent $1.5 trillion on AI.
Despite widespread use, one in eight say it has delivered cost and revenue benefits, 33 per cent report gains, and 56 per cent say they have seen no significant benefit so far.
The PwC survey charts a growing divide between companies testing AI and those using it at a significant scale.
Bigger problems
Chief executive confidence has softened further amid rising exposure to risk. One in five say their company is highly or significantly exposed to significant financial loss from tariffs over the next year.
The breakdown included 6 per cent across the Middle East – where tariffs were low – and 28 per cent on the Chinese mainland. The figure for the US was 22 per cent.
Concern about cyber security and the risk of breaches has risen "sharply", with a third of chief executives now saying it is a major risk.
Just over half (51 per cent) of the 4,500 chief executives plan to make international investments in the year ahead.
The US remains the top destination, with 35 per cent ranking it in their top three markets. The UK and Germany (both 13 per cent) and China (11 per cent) follow that.
Interest in India has nearly doubled year on year to 13 per cent of chief executives.
