Companies have significantly increased their spending on artificial intelligence, with a doubling of investment in under a year. According to Boston Consulting Group (BCG) research, corporate AI spending has risen from 1.7 percent of revenue in late 2025 to 3.3 percent. This shift indicates that AI is moving from an experimental technology project to a broader business investment. The research, based on a survey of 1,330 C-suite executives and senior leaders, highlights the growing importance of AI in business operations.
The majority of AI spending is now taking place outside enterprise IT budgets, with over 80 percent of investment occurring in other areas. This change is driven by companies recognizing the potential benefits of AI and allocating resources accordingly. Michael Grebe, managing director and senior partner at BCG, notes that companies treating AI solely as an IT expense are underestimating both the amount being spent and the potential returns. As a result, companies are reevaluating their approach to AI investment.
The BCG research also found that nearly half of companies are generating meaningful value from AI, challenging the view that corporate AI investment has yet to translate into returns. This suggests that AI is becoming a more integral part of business operations, with companies seeing tangible benefits from their investments. The shift in spending is also changing where companies are building AI capabilities, with non-technology companies increasingly developing capabilities that were previously concentrated in technology businesses.
Companies are developing new capabilities, such as product management and workflow design, to support AI adoption. These capabilities require people who can determine which processes should change and what AI agents should be built to perform them. Jeff Walters, managing director and senior partner at BCG, emphasizes the importance of the agentic and software toolkit in various industries. This change is evident across industries, including mining and offshore oil, where AI capabilities are becoming relevant despite these companies not being traditionally technology-driven.
The growing investment in AI is expected to alter corporate workforces, with companies surveyed by BCG expecting overall headcount to decline by 10-15 percent by 2030. However, the share of workers in dedicated AI-related roles is expected to rise from seven percent in 2026 to 22 percent. Walters notes that these figures should not be interpreted as a forecast of job losses, but rather as a reflection of companies' current expectations based on their experience with AI.
The rapid deployment of AI is creating governance challenges, with 42 percent of companies expecting to give AI agents genuine decision-making authority by 2030. However, only five percent currently have the full set of controls needed to deploy such systems safely. Walters emphasizes the need for companies to strengthen controls around autonomous AI without allowing governance requirements to become a bottleneck for deployment.
The findings indicate that AI is increasingly being treated as an enterprise-wide investment rather than a technology function. Companies are changing how they allocate capital, organize work, and build capabilities around AI. As AI continues to play a more significant role in business operations, companies must navigate the challenges and opportunities presented by this technology. The pressure will be concentrated more heavily on coordination and middle-management tasks, while demand grows for workers who can design AI workflows, build AI agents, and manage the architecture and controls around them.
Key points
- Corporate AI spending has more than doubled in under a year, rising from 1.7% to 3.3% of revenue.
- Over 80% of AI spending is now taking place outside enterprise IT budgets.
- Companies expect overall headcount to decline by 10-15% by 2030, while AI-related roles are expected to rise from 7% to 22%.
