This report examines how AI is moving beyond efficiency and cost savings to become a driver of real, top-line growth. It explores why optimization alone is no longer enough, what’s holding organizations back, and how leaders are rebuilding foundations, rewiring intelligence, and reimagining value creation to make AI work at scale.
Efficiency was table stakes. Growth is the goal.
AI delivered what it promised: faster workflows, lower costs, cleaner operations.
That advantage is now baked in.
What separates leaders from everyone else is growth. Not by layering AI onto old systems, but by rebuilding the foundations beneath them, rewiring how intelligence moves through the business, and reimagining how value is created.
This report shows why 77% of leaders have already shifted their AI focus from efficiency to growth and what it takes to make that shift work at scale.
What you'll learn
Why efficiency no longer differentiates
How nearly 40% of leaders say they’re average or behind at turning AI into real value, even after early gains.
Where AI is driving growth today
How AI-led innovation is driving 17% gains in customer lifetime value and 15% increases in new customer acquisition.
The real blockers to AI impact
Why 28% of organizations lack a clear AI strategy, and how skills gaps and fragile foundations stall progress.
What it takes to scale with confidence
What rebuilding systems and rewiring decision flows actually takes to move AI beyond pilots and into production.
Why trust shapes adoption and outcomes
What 74% fear misinformation and 64% fear bias mean for adoption, and why transparency matters more than speed.
“The next wave of growth won’t come from squeezing another percentage point out of a process. It will come from rebuilding what’s under the surface, rewiring how intelligence flows and reimagining what value itself looks like.”
Mike Sutcliff,
Chief Executive Officer, Thoughtworks
For leaders ready to move past efficiency. Stop optimizing. Start growing.
FAQs
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Early AI initiatives delivered faster workflows and lower costs. That advantage is now largely baked in. According to the research, many organizations are hitting diminishing returns, with nearly 40% of leaders saying they are average or behind at turning AI into measurable value. Growth, not efficiency, has become the real differentiator.
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The biggest barriers aren’t models or tools. They’re organizational. 28% of leaders cite a lack of clear AI strategy as the primary blocker, alongside skills gaps, fragile foundations, and unclear ownership. Without addressing these issues, AI initiatives struggle to move beyond pilots.
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Successful organizations treat AI as a core capability, not an add-on. That means rebuilding the systems AI depends on, rewiring how data and decisions flow, and reimagining how value is created across the business. Strong foundations, clear strategy, and quality data matter more than speed.
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Consumer skepticism is rising. 74% fear misinformation and 64% fear bias, and that trust gap directly impacts adoption and long-term value. The research shows that people-centered, transparent AI initiatives outperform cost-cutting approaches and are more likely to deliver sustainable growth.
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