British bosses appear united in their quest to put data and technology investment at the heart of their 2026 business planning, with 81% of UK CEOs saying it is their top priority compared to 60% in 2025, but getting the stars to align to drive material outcomes remains a major challenge.
That is according to a new report by PwC, based on a survey 4,454 CEOs in 95 countries and territories, which reveals that tech investment has shifted from important to indispensable, especially for UK CEOs.
In fact, 52% are already investing in tech to drive growth and competitive advantage, while 43% say these investments are focused on delivering efficiency and cost savings.
However, internal organisational barriers are putting this transformation at risk, with half of UK CEOs surveyed worrying that their organisation is not transforming fast enough to keep pace with AI and emerging technologies.
A further 33% say bureaucracy is holding back performance, while 29% acknowledge technological constraints are actively slowing the business. Adding to this concern, only 25% of UK chiefs believe they can attract high quality AI talent – compared to 42% of CEOs globally.
Even so, nearly a third (30%) of UK CEOs, in contrast to just a quarter (26%) of bosses globally, have seen revenue increase from AI implementation, even though only 33% of UK CEOs believe their existing AI investment is sufficient to meet their goals.
UK bosses also recognise that successful AI adoption requires solid foundations; half (49%) are actively building internal skills, infrastructure and governance to support AI solutions, with a further 29% progressing and optimising these capabilities.
Similarly, 36% are progressing their data foundations, and another third state they are in the early stages of establishing their data foundation. Meanwhile, 30% are advancing their approach to ethics, compliance and security with 39% already in the early stages of developing this.
The study reinforces concerns about moving from pilot to full implementation, noting that while the foundations for AI scaling are being laid, expanding AI across the organisation remains a significant hurdle.
In fact, just 9% have reached a stage where scaling efforts are delivering value or being optimised, while half are in the early stages and a further fifth (19%) are still in the planning phase.
PwC maintains that this underscores the complexity of moving from isolated pilots to enterprise wide deployment, while also suggesting that for most organisations, the journey from experimentation to concrete impact is still very much ongoing.
Agentic AI is also firmly on the agenda, with 81% of British bosses revealing they are actively exploring or developing its application, and only 16% ruling it out entirely. However, despite its potential, the level of adoption in businesses remains relatively nascent.
Just 8% of leaders have deployed agentic AI to a point where it is delivering value. As agentic AI promises greater autonomy and decision-making capability, UK businesses appear keen to explore its potential; however, right now most are proceeding cautiously.
PwC UK chief technology officer Umang Paw said: “Technology is central to CEOs strategy, but outcomes are what count. With global competition intensifying, UK businesses must turn technology investment into real results. AI needs to be a core part of that strategy, driving efficiency today while building for long-term growth. Those with clear goals and the agility to adapt will shape the competitive landscape ahead.
“CEOs investing in both AI and skills adoption are positioning themselves for long-term advantage. As AI moves beyond ‘chatbots’ to being an active part of how business operate via agentic tools, we are already seeing greater value from organisations using AI as a catalyst for business-led transformation, rather than treating it as a technology project.”
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