2026年首席财务官报告 As AI enters a new phase,CFOs gather useful intelligence

March19,2026

AsAIentersanewphase,

CFOsgatherusefulintelligence

Nowthatartificialintelligence(AI)has

madetheleapfromafuturisticcapabilitytoanoperatingreality,CFOsmaymakethedifferenceastowhetherthetechnology

stallsorscales.

ThecompaniesthatthrivewillbethosethatgobeyondmerelydoingmoreAI.

Theywillbetheonesthatredesigntheiroperatingmodelstoaccelerateadoptionandfocusonbusinesspartnering.

Deloitte’s

TechTrends2026

report—the17thannualedition—describesleading

organizationsas“anchoringAIinitiativestomeasurablebusinessoutcomes,designingmodulararchitecturesforflexibility,

andredefiningtalentstrategiesaround

human-machinecollaboration.”1Financeleadersareincreasinglyco-architects

ofthatorganizationaltransformation,

centraltowhatTechTrendsframesasa

“triumvirate”leadershipmodel.Insuch

aset-up,thechiefinformationofficer

integratestechnology;thechiefstrategyofficeralignsittocorporatepriorities;andtheCFOensurestheinvestmentproducesmeasurablereturnoninvestment(ROI).2

Inasurveyconductedfor

FinanceTrends

2026

,357%offinanceexecutivessay

theyarenowamongthetopleaders

influencingstrategydevelopmentacrosstheorganization.Drivinganorganization-wideinitiativeislikelyafarcryfromtheirpreviousroleofapprovingAIspend.

Nolongeradiscretionarytechnology

project,AIisnowpositionedasacore

budgetaryallocation.Thepercentageof

techbudgetsallocatedtoAIisexpectedtorisesignificantlyoverthenexttwoyears,from8%to13%onaverage.4Assuminga6%annualincreaseeachyearthereafter,

organizationswouldseetheirdigital

budgetsreach32%ofrevenueby2028.That’s2.3timesthisyear’slevelifgrowthremainssteady.5

AsinvestmentinAIrises,financeleaderscomeface-to-facewiththedifficultyof

calculatingROI.SomeofAI’sbenefits

canbehardtomeasure—suchas

improvedvendorrelationsorstronger

customerties6—whilethetechnology

alsoevolvesataspeedwhichcanoutstripCFOs’metrics.CapturingtheprecisevalueofAI,apartfromotherorganizational

changesitrequires,canbeastruggle.

InthiseditionofCFOInsights,we’llexaminesomeofthechallengesCFOsencounterasAIadoptionrampsuptoproduction-scaledeployment.WhathaveCFOslearnedsofaraboutmanagingcosts,mitigatingrisks,andensuringareturnonAIinvestments?

Costs:TheendofpredictableITbills

Flashbacktothreeyearsago,and

manyCFOs’viewedAIasaconceptinneedofproof.Infact,nearlysevenintenCFOs(69%)intheQ32023

CFOSignals™

surveyindicatedthattheirorganizationswere

stillexperimentingwithGenerativeAI—orjustreadingaboutit.7

CuttotheQ42025NorthAmerican

CFOSignals

surveyandAIisnolonger

merelyconceptualtoCFOs.Inthatsurvey,87%saythatAIwillbeextremelyorveryimportanttotheirfinancedepartment’soperationsin2026.8

Intheirroleascapitalallocators,many

CFOsneedtomanagetherisks,balancingexuberancewithinternalcontrolsand

governance.Doesthisusecaseinvokethequestionofwhetherprocessesneedtobefundamentallyre-imagined?Doesthestep

AsAIentersanewphase,CFOsgatherusefulintelligence

ofmovingfromusecasetore-engineeredprocesshavethepotentialtodramaticallyimprovethebusinesscase?Doesithavethepotentialtoenhancecashflowand

capabilities—exposingapreviouslyunseenworldofopportunity?Togetanswers,

theybuildperformancemetrics,createAI-specificprofit-and-loss(P&L)views,

allocateinvestmentbudgets,andworkwiththebusinessandtechnologyleadersonvendorandcontractdecisions.9

ComplicatingmattersisthefactthatAI

scramblescostvisibility.TraditionalIT

spendingwasoftenstable:softwarelicenseswerefixed,timeframesknown,andownersidentifiable.AIisdifferent.Usage-based

pricingriseswitheverydraftedemailand

everysummarizedmeeting.Prototyping

andotherexperimentationnowbecomes

necessaryresearchanddevelopment(R&D).Costsshiftawayfromfixedbudgetbucketsandtowardpay-as-you-gospendingspreadacrossteamsandvendors.

AsthequalityofAIoutputimproves,

companiesmayfindthemselvesrethinkingfundamentalissues:Howdotheycreate

sustainablecompetitivedifferentiationin

theirproductsandservices?Howbestcantheybuildmarginaccretivestrategies

thatdelightcustomers?Somecompaniesmayconcludethattheyneedtoshifttheirconsumptionmodels,fromsellingproductstoofferingsubscriptions.Orthedata

mayfuelaspecificandtailoredmarketingstrategy.Suchbusinessmodeldisruptionsmaycascadebackthroughtheoperatingmodeloftheenterprise.

Typically,CFOscontroltheleversneededtoevaluateifanygivenbusinessmodel

isaffordableandcreatesvalue.Only1%ofsurveyedITleadersreportedthatno

majoroperatingmodelchangeswere

underway,accordingtotheTechTrends

report,10suggestingwidespreadredesignsinprogress.AchallengeforCFOs:KeepingtrackofAIinvestmentandreturnswhileteams,assignedowners,andbudget

allocationsremaininflux.

Inaddition,CFOsmayconfrontan

awkward—andpotentiallycostly—reality.

Muchoftoday’sinfrastructurewasdesignedforthepre-AIera.

Thecloudoffersanalternative,butthepricecanbecomeprohibitiveforhigh-volume

workloads.Thecostsofinference—whichreferstoAI’songoingoperationalexpenses,suchascomputingpowerandenergy—

havedropped280-foldovertwoyears,11yetincreasingusagemayoutpacesavings.Asaresult,manyorganizationsmaystartgettingheftymonthlybills.AccordingtoTechTrends,leadingorganizationsareimplementing

athree-tierhybridarchitecture:cloudforelasticity,on-premisesforconsistency,andedgeforimmediacy—allofwhichneedstobeaccountedforandjustifiedintermsofhowitdrivestheoverallstrategy.

TheincorporationofAIintoproductsandserviceswilllikelydrawITintotheheart

ofthebusiness,continuingitsvalue-chainascentandconceivablyraisingcostsin

areaslikecapitalsoftwareandSaaSspend.Aswiththecloud,AImayactuallycreatetheneedforalarger,morecomplexITfunction,asitacceleratesareasrangingfromR&D

tosupplychain.Byexpandingcapacity,AIcanenablevalue-addedworkthatwasnotpossiblebefore.

AsinvestmentinAI

rises,financeleaders

comeface-to-facewiththedifficultyofcalculatingareturn.SomeofAI’s

benefitscanbehardtomeasure,whilethetechnologyevolvesataspeedwhichcan

outstripmetrics.

2

AsAIentersanewphase,CFOsgatherusefulintelligence

3

Asstewardsforenterpriseriskmanagement,CFOs

needtobethoughtful

aboutinvestingincyber

defenseatapacethat

matchestheorganization’scoreAIinvestments,

neitherlaggingrecklesslybehindnorexpandingwithoutdiscipline.

Risks:CybersecurityisnolongeradjacenttoAI—it’sinsideit

IfAIischanginghowcompaniesdo

business,it’salsodoingthesameforbadactors.Therealityis,artificialintelligencemaymakeorganizationsmorevulnerabletocyberattacks.Thetechnologyaddsnewsystemsandadditionaldataflows,thus

wideningattacksurfacesbeyondtraditionalappsandAPIs.Threatslikeoff-the-booksAItoolsandjailbreaking—AIdeceivingitsowncreatorstobypasssafetyfiltersor

otherguardrails—giveattackersmorepotentialentrypoints.

AIraisesthestakeswhenitcomesto

breaches.Deepfakeinvoices,generatedusingAI,cantargetfinanceteams.

Companiescanflipthescript,however,bydeployingAItodefendthebusiness.TheapproachentailsusingAItoolstostress-testthecompany’sdefenses,training

modelstoresistattacks,andspottingandrespondingtothreatsinstantly.ForCFOs,apracticalconsiderationistodevelop

asharedlanguagewiththeirCISOs.In

doingso,financechiefscangainaclearerunderstandingofsecuritycontrols,andthereforebetterunderstandtherisks.

Thatknowledgecanbeusedtodetermine

ifmoreefficientcapitalallocationisneededforsafeguards,aswellasnewgovernanceandcontrols.

Meanwhile,agenticAIhasalreadybeguntoreshapehowmanyCFOsthinkaboutinvestments.InDeloitte’sQ42025NorthAmerica

CFOSignals

survey,54%ofCFOssayintegratingAIagentsintheirfinancedepartmentswillbeatransformation

prioritythisyear(seeFigure1).

Astheseautonomoussystemsgetputinplace,CFOswilllikelyhavetooverseerevampedpoliciesandinternalcontrols.

Financechiefsmayalsowanttoincrease

governanceregardingshadowAI,the

unauthorizeduseofAIsystemsby

employeesseekingtoboosttheirproductivity.

Asstewardsforenterpriseriskmanagement,itisimportantforCFOstobethoughtful

aboutinvestingincyberdefenseatapacethatmatchestheorganization’scoreAI

investments,neitherlaggingrecklesslybehindnorexpandingwithoutdiscipline.

Lookingahead,companiesmayneedtofortifythemselvesagainstcyberattacksthatcanplanandlaunchthemselves

withlittlehumanassistance.Inaddition,

Figure1.AgentTalent:MorethanhalfofsurveyrespondentsplantointegrateAIagentsintofinancethisyear.Whichofthesefinancetransformationeffortswillyouprioritizein2026?

IntegratingAIagentsintofinanceImprovingdataquality,access,and/orusability

Automatingand/oracceleratingfinancialprocesses

Investingintechnologyinfrastructure(e.g.,newtools,

cloudsolutions,etc.)tosupportthefinancefunctionCreatingself-servicemodelsforinternalusersoffinancedataDeployingadvancedscenarioplanningtechnology

54%

52%

50%

48%

42%

37%

Notes:n=200.Respondentswereaskedtoselectuptothreechoices.

Source:Q42025NorthAmerican

CFOSignals

survey,USCFOProgram,DeloitteLLP.

AsAIentersanewphase,CFOsgatherusefulintelligence

4

quantumcomputingandspace-basedsystems—stillintheworks—willlikelybringtheirownsetofrisks.

Accountability:Managinginvestments

TheriseofAI—fromwhatseemedlikeatechnologyupgradeatfirsttoastrategicimperativenow—putspressureonCFOstodeploymorecapitalsmartly.Formany,thegoalistoembedAIincoreoperations,changinghowthebusinesscreatesvalue.

GettingtheremayrequireCFOstoconceivenewstagesofcapitalallocationandapplyagovernancestructuresimilartothe

frameworkusedforR&D.Likewise,CFOs

mayneedtofigureoutappropriatehurdleratesforinvestmentsinartificialintelligence,whichisnoeasytask.

Thekeymaybedevelopingatolerance

bothforexperimentationandfailure.Somedepartmentheadsfocustoomuchtimeonshapingtheirbusinesscasestowinaninitialapproval.Ifaproposalgetsthego-ahead,

CFOstypicallycontinuetoallocatecapitaltotheproject.Theproblemhereisthatsomedon’tgobacktoseeiftheprojectismeetingoriginalexpectations.Failingtodosocan

leadtoover-spending.

SimilartotakinganAgileapproachto

softwaredevelopment,CFOscanbenefitfromamechanismforquicklyexploringAI-relatedideas,assigningdiscrete

amountsofbothhumanandcloud

resourcestotests,thenevaluating

anydeliverablestodeterminewhethertoproceed.Astheprojectpasses

throughseparatestagegates,a

CFO-ledgroupcanrigorouslyseek

clarityastohowthisopportunity

mightaffectthecompany’sfinancials.

WhileCFOsneedtotrackprogress,the

processshouldn’tbesobureaucraticor

slowthatitkeepsothersfromaccessing

dedicatedinfrastructureorcloudservices.Inthe

FinanceTrends2026

survey,only17%offinanceleaderssaythatAIinvestments

havealreadydeliveredclear,measurablevalue.Thatproportionrisesto37%amongthosewhoconsiderthemselvesina

strategy-influencingposition,suggesting

perhapsthattheyhaveabroaderpurview.(FormoreonROI,seeaccompanyingstory,“AIROI:Risinginvestment,elusivereturns.”)

HowwillAIultimatelyaffectthestructureoforganizations?Atwhatpointwillacompany’soperatingmodelbeseenaslimitingitsabilitytorealizeadvancesandcapabilities?CFOs

wouldprobablyprefernottodwellonfutureshiftsinfinance,suchasreorganizingthewaytheirfunctionsupportsbusinesspartners.

Suchsweepingchangesarelikelytoresult

fromtippingpointsofAIembeddingitselfintheorganization.Butgivenfiercecompetitivepressures—andtheenormouspotentialofAI—thewinnersmaybethosewhobegin

thinkingaboutitnow.

TheriseofAI—fromwhatseemedlikeatechnologyupgradeatfirsttoa

strategicimperativenow—putspressureonCFOstodeploymorecapitalsmartly.

AsAIentersanewphase,CFOsgatherusefulintelligence

AIROI:

Rising

investment,elusive

returns

Formany,AI’svaluecouldcomefrom

reinvention,notintegration.Ultimately,

thetechnology’simpactonproductivity

andefficiencymaydependonrethinkingprocessestoaccommodateAI’scapabilities.

Thisisnosmalltask.EmbeddingAIinto

acompany’scoreoperationsrequires

substantialplanning,long-terminvestment,andoftenbroadorganizationalchange.

Ofcourse,theendgamehereistoactuallygenerateareturnonanAIinvestment.Toassesshowfarcompanieshave(orhaven’t)gottenonthatmission,DeloitteUKsurveyed1,854executivesacrossEuropeandthe

MiddleEast,supportedby24in-depthinterviews.Amongthesurvey’sfindings:

GenerativeAIisalreadystartingtodelivermeasurableproductivitygains.Infact,15%ofrespondentsusingGenerativeAIreporttheirorganizationsalreadyachievesignificant,measurableROI.Another38%expectit

withinoneyearofinvesting(seeFigure2).

ImplementingagenticAI—autonomous“agents”thatcanproactivelyplan,act,andmakedecisions—involvesalongertimeline.Ofthe57%ofrespondents

alreadyusingagenticAI,only10%saytheyarenowrealizingsignificantROIfromit.AmongtheseagenticAIusers,halfexpecttoseereturnswithinthreeyears.Anotherthirdanticipatethat

ROIwilltakethreetofiveyears.

Amongthesurvey’sotherfindings:

1.Acrossindustries,investmentinAIisup.Inthesurvey,85%