2026年AI落地与新兴技术洞察报告：AI 驱动变革与新赛道

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing

AIadoptionandemergingtechnologies2026

Agenda

1Keyfindings

2TheAIadoptionillusion

3Thetransformationgap

4Thenextbigthing

5Callforaction

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

Strategy&2

Keyfindings

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

Strategy&3

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing1)CoE=CenterofExcellenceMay2026

Strategy&Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)–ThisOnlineSurveywasconductedwithtechleadersfromvariousindustriesacrossGermanyinFebruary20264

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OurrecentCIOtrendstudyshowsthatasAImatures,differentiationshiftsfrommodelchoicetoarchitecturalsovereigntyandresilience

Executivesummaryandstrategiccontext

ThetrendsidentifiedinourrecentGermanCIOstudy(interviews

with50techleaders)are

transferablefromGermanyacrossEurope

Techleadersareina“tough

spot”:risingdemandsforspeed

andsovereigntyvs.budget/talentconstraints

Context:GermanyandEurope

Centralization

CoEs1focusingonAIemerge

Experimentation

Teamsexplore

Execution

Focusonsecurity,

potentialAIusecases

structure,sovereignty

Criticalriskofscalingonaninadequatebasis:50%oforganizationsbuildAIondatanotreadyforautonomousdecisions,creatingunscalablesystems

AIadoptionmaturitycurveandcriticalrisk

Cybersecurity

Whole-systemprotectionforAIassets

Privacytech

Datausedasan

enabler,notablocker

Zerotrust

Identity-basedvalidationforeveryinteraction

Thenextbigthing:Composableresilience

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AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing

Strategy&

1)Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)Slide7;2)Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)Slide5;3)Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)Slide8

4)Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)Slide12|Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)

AIisnotatechnologychallenge;itisastructural,cultural,andinvestmenttransformation

Hypothesesoverview

AIiswidelydeployed,butrarelydecisive,withonlyoneinthreehavingAIstructurally

embedded1;mostuseitasatool,notadriverofbusinessmodels

Perceivedprogressmasksstructural

stagnation;pilotsscalevisibility,notimpact,

withGermanyandEUlaggingbehindinrevenueupliftandcostreductionpotential2

Therealdivideisorganizational,not

technological,andGermany'spositionin

theglobalAIracemakesthisgapexistential,nottheoretical

Theadoptionillusion

AIiseverywhereexceptwhereitmatters

MostorganizationsarescalingAIinto

structuresthatwereneverdesignedforit,

withonly~22%havingtheAI-readydatasetupsrequiredforadvancedusecases3

Thebottleneckisnotintelligence,but

integration;datareadiness,sovereigninfrastructure,anddedicatedfundingremainunresolved

OnlythosewhohavestructurallyabsorbedAIcanmovebeyondit,whiletherestremain

lockedincatch-upmode

Thetransformationgap

AIdoesntfailorganizationsdo

Leadershipfearsthepaceofinnovation(32%astopconcern4),butisfailingtoinvestininternaladaptability.Executivesarewatchingthestorm

insteadofbuildingtheship

Europe’sfixationonresilienceisnota

strategy,itisasymptom.Whileothersaredefiningwhatsnext,Europeisbuildingwallsaroundwhatalreadyexists

Winnerswillnotbethemostadvanced,butthemostadaptive;thosewhotreatspeedasaninternalcapability,notanexternalthreat

Thenextbigthing

Thenextbigthingisnotinnovationitisreaction

TheAI

adoptionillusion

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Strategy&6

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ThereisaglobaldivideinAI’simpactonrevenueupliftandcostreduction,withGermanylaggingbehind

AIimpactonrevenuesandcosts

29%

Global

26%

51%

China

26%

21%

USA

38%

14%

EU

22%

11%

Germany

16%

IncreaseinsalesCostreduction

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

Strategy&Sources:29thGlobalCEOSurveyofPwC(2026),Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)7

Keyfindings

ChinaandUSAleadtheAIrevenueandcostrace

China(51%)andtheUS(38%)showthehighestAI-drivensalesincreasesandcostreductions,fueledby

fasterinnovationcyclesandlighterregulatoryframeworks

Europeisfallingbehindonbothdimensions

EUandGermanylagbehindin

revenueupliftandcostreduction

potentialcomparedtoothermarkets

Regulationasadouble-edgedsword

StricterdataprivacyandsecurityrequirementsprotectcitizensbutconstrainthespeedofAI

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Over60%ofCIOsforeseeadominanceofAI-drivendecision-makingwithininthenextfiveyears

DominanceofAI

32%

62%

38%

24%

18%18%

6%

2%

Short-term

(within2

years)

Medium-term(3-5years)

Long-term(6-10years)

Later

(10+years)

Idonot

expectthiswillhappen

Wehavealreadyreachedthispoint

Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing

Strategy&

Keyfindings

AIdominanceisanear-termreality

62%ofCIOsexpectAItodominateorganizationaldecision-making

withinfiveyears—with32%

alreadyanticipatingthisshiftintheshortterm

Fromenablingtooltocentraldriver

AI-drivendecision-makingisevolvingrapidlyfromasupportfunctiontothecoreofstrategicandoperatio-naldecisionsacrossindustries

AIadoptionisnon-negotiable

LeadingcompaniesarealreadypursuingfullyautonomousAI-controlledplants;inFinance,AIhedgescurrencyrisksin

globalsales

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ManycompaniesinEuropehavenotyetstarted

Keyfindings

embeddingAIintoworkflowsandbusinessmodels

AdoptionofAI

4%

StructuralintegrationofAIremainstheexception

Only~1/3ofCIOsreporthaving

formalizedtheirAIorganization

andstructurallyembeddedAIintocoreworkflowsandbusinessmodels

12%

Pre-adoption:WebarelyuseAItools;strictlytraditionalworkflowsdominate

24%

20%

Experimental:Individualuses(shadowAI)exist,butwithnoformalintegrationintodailyprocesses

38%

Earlyscaling:AItoolsareformally

32%

integratedtosupportspecifictasks;humansremaininfullcontrol

rpA

28%

Structuralintegration:AIis

34%

embeddedincoreworkflows;significantdecision-makingisAI-supported

6%

2%

Commoditization:WorkflowsaredesignedaroundAIcapabilities;theteamoperatesprimarilyas"AIorchestrators"

OwnteamIndustrysector

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Strategy&Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)9

The

transformation

gap

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Withoutasoliddatafoundation,AIremainsstuckinpilotmode

DatareadinessforAIintegration

Organization’sdatareadinessforAI

1

Lowestdatareadinesstohighest

Businessmeaningistrappedincode,dashboardorindividualexpertise

Somedomainsaredocumented,butdatameaningisinconsistentacrosssystems

6

▲2

2

1

3

550%50%

Basicdatastandardsexist,butlackaunifiedbusinesslogic

4

ofof

3

organizationsorganizations

haveAI-don’thaveAI-

readydatareadydata

Sharedsemanticmodelsexistacrossallcorebusinessdomains

5

KnowledgegraphsandAI-readystructuresactivelydriveautomation

6

4

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Strategy&Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)11

AIsystemsandautonomousagentsarebuiltaroundexplicitmachine-readablebusinessmeaning

Keyfindings

Truedatareadinessremainsrare

Only~22%areachievingthe

formalizedorAI-readydatasetups

requiredtoscaleadvancedusecases

Semanticstandardizationisthetippingpoint

Introducingsharedsemantic

modelsisthekeyinflectiontowardusableAI

Datafoundations,notAI

models,arethebottleneck

Themainconstraintisdataquality,structureandaccessibility,notAItechnologyitself

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AI-readydataservesasacatalystforcing

strategicpositioningsacrossthreedimensions

Balancingdigitalsovereignty

Relevanceforinvestmentdecisions1)

Geopolitics

Geopolitics

Cybersecurity

Cloud

infrastructure

64%80%

56%84%

Risk

Data

management

64%72%

RiskInnovation

Organizationsmustchooseasovereigntystrategytofitwiththreecriticaldimensions

Innovation

Softwareandapps

AImodelselection

48%

56%

52%

68%

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing

Strategy&

1)Participantswhoratedigitalsovereigntyintheareaslistedasvery/extremelycriticalforinvestmentdecisionsSource:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)

Non-AI-readyorganizationsAI-readyorganizations

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12

Keyfindings

Resilienceorefficiency?

80%ormoreofexecutivesview

Cyber/Cloudasthecriticalbottleneckforinvestingindigitalsovereignty.

HighAI-readinessforcesapivotfromGlobalSourcingtoStrategicAutonomy

Protectionoraggression?

72%emphasizedigitalsovereignty

whenitcomestodatamanagement

investments.ReadinessmeansshiftingthemindsetfromDataasariskto

Dataasacompetitiveasset

Pioneeringorpragmatism?

Only52%prioritizedigitalsovereigntywhenchoosingAImodels.The

absenceofcompetitiveEuropean

modelsisforcingastrategic

resignation:Sovereigntyisfoughtforinthe“pipes”(Cloud),butsurrenderedinthe“brain”(Model)

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AI-ficationandscalewillrequiredecentralized,embeddedcapabilities

Shiftinorganizationalstructure

AIexpertiseintheorganizationalstructure

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

Strategy&Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026)13

Centralization

BuildandstandardizeAIcapabilities

Typicalsetup:

Huborganization,CenterofExcellence

~1/3

arebuildingdecentralstructuresandmovingAIexpertiseintotheteams

Decentralization

EmbedexpertiseandscaleAIinthebusiness

Typicalsetup:Spoke

organization,productteams

arestillfocusingoncentralizationandconsolidationofdataandAIteams

~2/3

AIorganizationmaturity

Keyfindings

Centralizationdominatesintheearlystages

MostorganizationsestablishAI

hubs/CentersofExcellencetobuildcapabilities,ensuregovernance,andaccelerateadoption

Shifttodecentralizationasmaturityincreases

AIcapabilitiesmoveintobusinessunitsandproductteams

(e.g.,spokeorganization)toenablespeed,relevance,andownership

AIagentsacceleratedecentralization

IncreasinguseofAIagentsdrives

distributeddecision-makingand

createsroleslikeAIprocessownersclosertothebusiness

Thenextbigthing

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Thenextbigthingiscomposableresilience-builtoncybersecurity,privacyandzerotrust,andenabledthroughportfoliodiscipline

ThenextbigthingbesidesAI

MediumStrategicrelevanceHigh

Innovationbudget

Only6%ofAIadoptionleadersareshiftingfundsawayfromAItodiversifythetechstack

while

50%ofAIadoptionlaggardsareincreasingAIfunding,includingbycannibalizingothertechfunds

OnlyorganizationswithAIstructurallyabsorbedintoportfoliomodelscanmovebeyondAI

Othersremainstuckincatch-upmode,reallocatingorcannibalizingbudgets

TechnologyrelevancebesidesAI

Priorities

Toppriorities(nextthreeyears)

Cybersecurity

1.Cybersecurityandresilience(84%)

2.Privacy-enhancingtech(80%)

3.Zerotrustsecurity2)(76%)

BlockchainLow-Code

Robotics

BiotechXR/MetaverseEssentials

AreGermanyandEuropealreadyfallingbehind?

OrganizationsneedtolaythefoundationforAInow,andfundingisrequired

LowLevelofmarketconsensus1)High

●

SustainableTech

PrivacyTech

ZeroTrust

Edge/IoT

Emerging

Quantum

AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthing

Strategy&

1)Marketconsensusdescribesthestatisticstandardderivationandquantifiesthedegreeofagreementordisagreementamongsurveyedparticipants(high=strongconsensus;low=greaterdivergenceamongparticipants)

2)Zerotrustsecurityisaframeworkthatenforcesstrictidentityverificationandleast-privilegeaccessforeveryuseranddevice

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AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

Strategy&Source:Strategy&CIOTechandAIStudy(2026);Multipleselectionsallowed(max.3)16

Tech-drivendisruptionkeepseverythirdexecutiveupatnight,whiletheyarelessconcernedwiththeforcestheycancontrolinternally

ThebiggestCIOconcernsforthecomingyears

Tech-drivendisruption

Topconcernsforthenext4years

Speedoftechnologicalinnovation

32%

IP,data&cybersecurity

30%

Complexityoftechrequirements

22%

Talentshortages

22%

Geopoliticaluncertainty

20%

LackofdigitalandAIeducation

18%

Lackofadaptability

12%

Futurerelevanceofdigitalskills

12%

Futureofthenextgeneration

12%

FearoflosingcontroloverAI

12%

Concernsaboutownteam

10%

Immigrationconcerns

8%

LossofcompetenciesduetoAI

4%

Strategicsynthesis

TheVelocityGap

Thetopthreeconcernsareexplicitlytech-driven.CIOs

perceivetechnologyitselfastheprimarysourceof

strategicrisk,nottheorganizationalchallengesitcreates.

TheReadinessParadox

Tech-drivendisruptiondominatestheagenda,yetconcerns

aboutinternalcapabilities(e.g.,lackofadaptability,ownteam)rangebetweenjust4-12%.CIOsarewatchingthewaves,

notbuildingtheboat.

Thediscrepancysuggestsastrategicmisalignment:

investmentinorganizationalresilienceisnotkeepingpace

withtheperceivedspeedofexternaldisruption.Theriskisnotthetechnology,butthefailuretoadoptit.

Callforaction

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AI-drivenchangeandthenextbigthingMay2026

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CIOsshouldscaletheimpactofAI,strengthendatafoundations,andbuildsecure,future-proofoperatingmodelswithAI

Callforaction

1.DefineaboldAIvisionandenterprise“NorthStar”

›EstablishanAIvisionalignedwithbusinessstrategy,customerimpact,andlong-termvaluecreation›TranslatethevisionintoacoherententerprisechangenarrativeforAI

›MakeAIaboard-levelcapability,withbusinessdecisivelyinthedriverseatforoutcomes

2.FocusAIinvestmentsonafewhigh-impactdomains

›Movefrom