pWC

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Resiliencefirst,innovationalways

AsAIandgeopoliticalshiftsreshapetheglobaleconomy,

investorsseekcompaniesthattransformthroughtechnology,competeacrosssectorboundaries,andoperatewith

transparencyabouttherisksaccompanyinginnovation.

Investorsarenotexpectingstrong

macroeconomicgrowthin2026;less

thanathirdanticipateglobalGDPgrowthabove2%.

Shareofrespondentswhothinkglobal

economicgrowthwillincreaseordecreaseinthenext12months

Improvesignificantly

Improvemoderately

Improveslightly

Staythesame

Declineslightly

Declinemoderately

Declinesignificantly

2%

26%

33%

18%

14%

5%1%

Improvesignificantly/moderately>2%:28%

Stayaboutthesame+/-2%:65%

Declinesignificantly/moderately>2%:6%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Instead,theywantcompaniestoreinventthemselvesthroughtechnologyand

protectcashflowsfrompersistent,interconnectedrisks.

Shareofrespondentswhothinkcompanieswillbehighlyorextremelyexposedtothefollowingthreatsinthenext12months

Cyberrisks

TechnologicaldisruptionInflation

MacroeconomicvolatilityGeopoliticalconflict

Climatechange

AgeingworkforceSocialinequality

55%

53%

44%

43%

42%

25%

19%

16%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC2

Investorsseecloseconnectionsbetweenriskexposureandinnovationopportunity.Cyberandtechnologydisruptionaren’t

justthreatstobemitigated.Investors

arealsocallingforexecutivestodouble

downontechnologicaltransformationandcybersecurity,whileboostingcommitmenttobusinessmodelagility.

Shareofrespondentswhothinkthecompaniestheyinvestinorcovershouldincreaseordecreasetheircapitalallocationtothefollowing

TechnologicaltransformationCybersecurity

Businessmodelagility

RegulatorycomplianceandadaptationSupplychainmanagement

Stakeholdermanagement

Humancapitalmanagement

Climateadaptation

64%

49%

48%45%

45%41%

41%

36%

27%

39%

22%

28%

29%

32%

7%1%

10%2%

4%0%

5%0%

5%1%

6%1%

21%

19%

19%

10%5%

11%1%

31%

25%

29%

15%

19%

IncreasesignificantlyIncreaseslightlyRemainthesameDecreaseslightlyDecreasesignificantly

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Giventhelikelihoodofpersistentmacroeconomicuncertainty,companiesthatpaircredibleriskmitigationwithvisibleinnovationwillbebestpositionedtoearninvestorconfidence.Themandatefrominvestorsisresiliencefirst,innovationalways.

Growthandreinvention

Asindustriesconverge,competingacrosstraditionalsectorboundariesbecomesanimportantpieceofthepuzzle.

Investorsfavourcompaniesthatpursuecross-sectorexpansionandpartnership-ledscale,seeinghighergrowthpotential

andlowerriskofdisruptioncomparedtothosethatremainnarrowlyfocused.

Respondentsweregivenascenariocomparingafocused,single-sectorbusinessmodelwithdeepexpertiseandexperience(Focused)toasimilar

companythatisalsoexpandingacrosstraditionalsectorboundaries(Cross-sector).

FocusedCross-sector

Bothareequal

Investorsexpectleaderstofocusaboutathirdoftheirtimemaintainingthe

currentbusinessmodel,andtherestonextendingintonewmarketsorcreatingnewcapabilities.

31%

36%

33%

Maintainingcurrentbusinessmodel

Extendingtonewcustomersormarkets

Creatingnewcapabilitiesandmodelstoseizeorcounterdisruption

Q:Whichhasmoregrowthpotential?

Q:Given$100toinvest,howmuchwouldyou

allocatetoeach?

$38$62

15%

74%

11%

Q:Whichismorelikelytobedisruptedbynewcompetitors?

65%

20%

14%

FocusedCross-sector

FocusedCross-sector

Bothareequal

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

73%

thinkcompaniesshouldincreasetheircapitalallocationtowardsbusinessmodelagility.

8/10

expectcompaniestoincreasetheircapitalallocationtowardsR&Dandcapitalinvestmentoverthenext

threeyears,whencomparedtothelastthreeyears.

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC3

TheUSisthedominantdestinationforcapitaldeployment.Thisconcentrationunderscoresconfidenceinscaleand

innovationnetworks.Butitalsoposescrowdingandconcentrationrisksthatleadersshouldmanageexplicitly—

especiallyconsideringfast-changingpoliticalrealities.

Shareofrespondentswhothinkthesecountries/

territorieswillattractthemostinvestmentoverthe

nextthreeyears(respondentscouldselectuptofive)

US

India

ChineseMainlandUK

UAE

Germany

Japan

Brazil

Singapore

Canada

France

SaudiArabiaAustralia

VietnamMexico

67%

45%

32%

26%

26%

20%

17%

13%

12%

12%

11%

11%

10%

8%

7%

Note:Showingtop15responses.

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Apparentlyundauntedbyrampant

speculationofanAIbubble,themajority

ofrespondentsidentifytechnologyasthesectorlikelytoattractthemostinvestmentoverthenextthreeyears—wellaheadof

everyothersector.

Shareofrespondentswhothinktheseindustries/

sectorswillattractthemostinvestmentoverthenextthreeyears(respondentscouldselectuptothree)

Technology

Assetandwealthmanagement

Powerandutilities

Bankingandcapitalmarkets

Healthservices

AerospaceanddefencePrivateequity

Realestate

Pharmaandlifesciences

61%

25%

24%

19%

19%

19%

17%

16%

16%

Note:Showingresponsestotallingover10%.

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Sustainabilityandclimaterisk

Investorattentiontosustainability,compliance,andstakeholder

managementissuescontinuestoshiftfromcheckboxreportingtodecisionsaboutwhereandhowcapitalisdeployed.Companies

thatembedsustainabilityintocorebusinessmodels—andbackitwithverifiablemetrics—standtodifferentiatethemselveswithinvestors.

Anemphasisonenergyefficiency,climateresilience,andinfrastructureinvestmentsuggeststhatmanyinvestorssee

sustainabilityasadriverofoperationalefficiencyandlong-termvaluecreation,notjustreputationalinsurance.

Shareofrespondentswhowouldincreasetheirinvestmentincompaniestakingthefollowingactions

Managingenergydemandandinfrastructure

Usingsustainabilitydatatoimproveefficiencyandperformance

Buildingresiliencetoclimaterisksacrosssupplychains

Leveragingsustainabilitytaxcreditsandincentives

22%46%26%5%

21%40%26%12%

15%38%30%14%

13%35%34%16%

IncreasesignificantlyIncreasemoderatelyIncreaseslightlyNotatall

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

84%

ofinvestorsgloballybelievecompaniesshouldmaintaintheirinvestmentinclimateadaptation,orincreaseit.

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC4

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

AIandtechnology-enabled

transformation

Formany,AIisatthecentreofthegrowthstory.Investorsare

beginningtoseetangibleevidenceofoperationalandfinancial

gainsandwantcompaniestoscaleAIthroughouttheenterprise.

Technologyistheindustryexpectedtoattractthemostinvestmentoverthenextthreeyears–twotothreetimesasattractiveasthenextthreesectors.Withtechnologyracingahead,investorsalsowanttoseethecompaniestheyinvestinkeepup.

92%

arecallingforexecutivestoincreasecapitalallocationtotechnologicaltransformationwithinthecompaniestheyinvestinorcover.

78%

ofinvestorswouldatleastmoderatelyincreasetheirinvestmentincompaniespursuingenterprise-wideAItransformation.

Thatprobablyisn’tsurprising,given

investorperceptionsoftheimpactofAIsofar,withthemajorityreportinggainsfromGenAIinparticularacrossthecompaniestheyinvestinorcover.

ShareofrespondentswhothinkgenerativeAI

Increase(NETsignificantly/moderately/slightly)LittletonochangeDecrease(NETsignificantly/moderately/slightly)

hasdecreasedorincreasedthefollowinginthepast12months

Productivity

ProfitabilityRevenue

Costs

Headcount

86%11%1%

71%22%5%

2%

66%31%

47%21%31%

23%40%35%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

InvestorexpectationsforAI-drivenvaluearespecific...

ShareofrespondentswhothinkthefollowingareaswillbewhereAIwillcreatemostshareholdervalue

Costreduction

Operationalagility

NewbusinessmodelsRevenuegrowth

CustomerengagementCapitalexpenditure

ESG/impactalignment

64%

54%

42%

41%

38%

21%

16%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

...andpointtoexecutiveadvocacyandAI

fluencyascriticalforAIsuccess.Backed

bystrongdataquality,securearchitectures,anddisciplinedchangemanagement.

ShareofrespondentswhothinkthefollowingarecriticalforAIsuccess

LeaderswithAlexpertisewhoactively

advocateforAl’simplementationGenAloperatingmodels

Centraliseddataarchitecture

FrameworksforResponsibleAlTalentstrategy

Regulatorycompliance

Openecosystems/APIstrategies

50%

43%

40%

40%

39%

32%

31%

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC5

Trustand

transparency

Tobuildtrust,companiesshouldbeopenandhonestabouthowtransformationandtechnologywillaffectcostcurvesandgrowthanddisclosetheguardrailsthatwillkeepthoseprogrammesresilient.

InvestorsarecallingforgreaterInnovationstrategies47%

transparency.

Al-relatedinvestments

42%

Shareofrespondentswhowantcompaniestoprovidemoretransparencyontheseareas

Al-relatedreturns/costsavings

42%

(respondentscouldselectuptothree)

Competitiveposition

37%

Resiliencestrategies

29%

Datagovernanceandprivacyrisks

27%

Actionplanstomanageclimaterisk

25%

Humancapitalobjectivesandstrategies

23%

Communicationwithcustomers

16%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Manyinvestorssaythey’realready

Competitiveadvantage

51%

embeddingnon-financialdataintheirvaluationmodels.

Industrytrends

44%

Shareofrespondentswhoarelikelytoincorporate

InnovationandR&D(researchanddevelopment)

40%

thefollowingareasintheirvaluationmodels

Managementquality

36%

(respondentscouldselectuptothree)

Newmarkets/productspotential

34%

Businessmodelagility

31%

Brandreputationandcustomerloyalty

23%

Corporategovernance

20%

Employeemorale/engagement

10%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Investorswanttoseecompaniescreate

valueandcontrolrisks,especiallyinAI.

Butherethedisclosuregapispronounced.

Shareofrespondentswho

thinkthesetopicsare

importantorveryimportant

whenevaluatingacompany’s

AIuse

Shareofrespondentswho

thinkcompaniesareproviding

sufficientinformationabout

theiruseofAIintheseareasto

alargeextentorcompletely

HowthecompanyisleveragingAItoreinventitsbusinessmodel

87%

36%

TheAI-relatedimpactonperformance

85%

35%

Thecompany’sAIstrategies,policiesandrelatedrisks

84%

37%

Reportedcostofinvestment

77%

33%

Theimpactoffast-changingAIregulations

75%

28%

Thecompany’sethicalguidelinesorgovernanceframeworksfortheuseordevelopmentofAI

72%

34%

TheAI-relatedimpactonheadcount

65%

23%

WhetherthecompanylicensedAIordevelopeditsown

56%

31%

Theestimatedreturn/hurdlerateontheAIinvestment

8%

32%

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Inthemidstofrapidlyevolvingmegatrends,investorsareintentlyinterestedinindicationsoffutureperformance.Companiesthatprovideuseful

non-financialmetricsalongsidefinancialshelpinvestorsbridgethegapbetweenambitionandvalue.Thosemostsatisfiedwithtransparencyarealsomorelikelytoexpectglobaleconomicgrowth—confirmingthatclear,forward-lookingcommunicationnotonlybuildstrustbutshapessentiment.

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC6

Inaneraofinformationoverload,investorsareclearaboutwheretrustbegins.

Financialstatementsandinvestor-focusedcommunicationsremaintheanchorsof

decision-making.

Shareofrespondentswhousethefollowingsourcesofinformationinassessinghowcompaniesmanagerisksandopportunities

Informationsources–companypublished

20%

40%30%

1%

9%

Financialstatementsandnotedisclosures

25%10%2%

21%

43%

Investor-focusedcommunications

29%

22%

31%

14%4%

Dialoguewiththecompany

12%

35%

33%

16%3%

Narrativereportingasidefromsustainabilitydisclosures

13%

38%

32%

15%2%

Materialityassessmentdisclosures

12%

31%

28%

21%9%

Sustainabilitydisclosures

30%

20%3%

41%

7%

Pressreleases/mediastatements/companynews

ToaverylargeextentToalargeextentToamoderateextentToalimitedextentNotatall

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

Sustainabilityreportingspotlight:

Eventhoughonlyaroundfourintenrespondentssaytheyrelyheavilyonmaterialityassessments(45%)andsustainabilitydisclosures(39%)toevaluateriskandopportunity,78%believethatprovidingthisinformationhasaveryormoderatelypositiveimpactoninvestorengagement.

Informationsources–third-partypublished

Traditionalsourcesstillmatter.Many

investorsrelyonanalystreportsand

Analystreports

Ratingsandscoresfromcreditratingsagencies

Third-partydatasources

RatingsandscoresfromESGratingsproviders

Alternativedata

creditratingsorotherthird-partydata,

21%

38%

29%11%2%

thoughGenAIandalternativedataare

30%14%4%

18%

34%

18%

29%15%3%

34%

usedselectively.Themessageisnotanti-innovation—it’spro-credibility.Investorswantnumberstheycantest,governancetheycanunderstand,andanarrativethatconnectsstrategytocashflows.

28%

13%

29%

17%13%

Shareofrespondentswhousethefollowingsourcesofinformationinassessinghowcompaniesmanagerisksandopportunities

30%

8%

28%

25%9%

25%

9%

28%

31%8%

GenerativeAl

4%

44%

24%

23%5%

Newsmedia

4%14%29%

38%15%

Socialmedia

ToaverylargeextentToalargeextentToamoderateextentToalimitedextentNotatall

Source:PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurveypointstoaninnovation-ledinvestmentthesisfor2026.Capitalisflowingtotechnology,enterprise-wideAI,andbusiness-modelagility,withstrongsupportforcross-sectorexpansionandpartnerships.Atthesametime,investorswantevidencefortheirdecisions:clearmetricsforAIandsustainability,robustgovernance,andtransparentstrategiesfor

resilience.Companiesthatconvertambitionintomeasurableoutcomes—andcommunicatehowinnovationtiestocashflows,competitiveness,andrisk—willearninvestortrustandbebestpositionedtocapturegrowthinachangingworld.

PwC’sGlobalInvestorSurvey2025PwC7

Research

methodology

ConductedbetweenSeptember1andOctober6,2025,thesurveyreflectstheviewsof1,074

investmentprofessionalsacross26countriesandterritories,drawnfrominvestmentfirms,banks,privateequityandventurecapitalgroups,hedgefunds,pensionfunds,sovereignwealthfunds,

andotherfinancialinstitutions.Therespondentstotheonlinesurveywerespreadacrossarangeofindustries,roles,and