RESEARCHBRIEF

CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026

InsidetheC-Suite:

HowAIis

quietlyreshaping

executive

decisions

Tableofcontents

Introduction

Executivesummary

04

ChapteΓ03

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

36

ChapteΓ01

Withinthreeyears,

CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

09

ChapteΓ04

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

42

ChapteΓ02

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

25

ChapteΓ05

Appendix

57

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions2

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions3

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Thispublicationispartofourresearchbriefseries

Researchreport

Long-formpublicationswithdetailedactionablerecommendations.

?10,000to15,000words

?In-depthglobalsurveys

?15-30focusinterviewsofexecutives

?Detailedrecommendations

Researchbrief

Streamlined,data-centricpublicationwithaconcise,visual,anddirectpresentation.

?5,000words

?Shortsurveys

?Executivequotes

?Quickoverviewofrecommendations

Journal-Conversationsfortomorrow

Leadershipviewpointswithcurated,visuallyengagingcontentfromCXOs,Nobellaureates,andtopacademicviews.

?ExecutiveandCXOinterviews

?Multi-perspectiveessays

?Infographicsandvisualsummaries

?Trendoverviews

Executivesummary

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions4

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

C-suitedecision-makingisevolvingrapidlyasleadersnavigategrowingdatacomplexity,theneedforagility,andpressureforevidence-basedchoices.

ArtificialIntelligence(AI)isemergingasakeyenablerofthisevolution.

Oursurveyof500CXOs,including100CEOs,

revealsthatmorethanhalfofCXOsare

usingAItosupportorinformtheirstrategic

decision-makingtoday,either“actively”–a

trendexpectedtomorethandoublewithinthenextthreeyears–or“selectively”,withclose

toanotherthirdcurrently“experimenting”

withit.WhilemostCXOscurrentlyuseAI

forproductivitysupport–research,analysis

andsummarization–withinthreeyears,they

expecttouseAItoaugmentandchallengetheirstrategicthinking.However,AIisnotexpectedtomakeautonomousdecisionsanytimesoon.

Thebe∩e?tsaΓealΓeadyvisible.OveΓhalfofCXOsΓepoΓtsi9∩i?ca∩timpΓoveme∩tsi∩e代cie∩cy,

creativity,andforesightthroughAIuse.Those

alreadyleveragingAItostrengthentheirstrategicthinkingareseeingthegreatestgains.

Yet,manyleadersandorganizationsremainunderpreparedforthetransitionrequiredtocapturetheseadvantagesfully.

NearlyhalfofCXOsreportabove-averageco∩?de∩cei∩Al’sΓolei∩decisio∩-maki∩9jouΓ∩ey,ΓeHecti∩99Γowi∩9Γeco9∩itio∩

ofitspotentialtoaugmentstrategic

thinking.However,concernsaroundlegal

risks,explainability,datatransparency,and

governancepersist.Mostorganizationslacktheframeworks,systems,andprocessesneeded

tohelpleadersharnessAIresponsiblyand

co∩?de∩tly.AsaΓesult,ma∩yCXOsco∩ti∩uetouseAIcautiouslyandremainuncomfortableopenlydisclosingitsuse.

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions5

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Tohelporganizationsbridgethisgap,werecommendfivekeyactions:

Executivesummary

01

RevampAIgovernanceandaccountabilityframeworksfortheagenticera

04

02

BuildaframeworktoevaluatereadinessofdecisionsforAIsupport

05

03

Leveragehuman-AI

chemistrytounlocktruecompetitiveadvantage

BoostCXOconfidencetoleverageAIwithtargetedupskillingandmentoring

Giveaheadstarttoyour

CXOswithAIessentialssuchasaskilledtaskforce,robustdata,andsecuresystems

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions6

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Whoshouldreadthisresearchandwhy?

ThisresearchbriefisforCXOs,seniorleaders,boardmembers,andgovernanceprofessionalsoverseeingtheuseofAIinexecutivedecision-makingjourney.AsorganizationsacceptAIasastrategicasset,theymustalsounderstanditsreal-worlduse,governanceimpact,andtheimplicationsforleadership.

BOARDMEMBERSANDNON-EXECUTIVEDIRECTORS:

LearnhowAIisbeingappliedinboardrooms,fromscenariomodelingtostrategicvalidation,tostrengthenoversightandgovernance.

C-SUITEEXECUTIVES:

SeehowAIistransformingleadershiproles,accelerating

decision-making,andreshapingaccountabilityframeworks.

GOVERNANCE,RISK,ANDCOMPLIANCELEADERS:

ExplorehoworganizationsarebuildingAIoversightthroughethicsboards,steeringcommittees,andreportingprotocols.

TECHNOLOGYANDDATALEADERS:

UnderstandhowleadersareoperationalizingAIanddefiningboundariesbetweenhumanandAIdecision-making.

Groundedinreal-worldexamples,thisbriefofferspracticalinsightsforresponsibleandstrategicAIadoptionatthehighestlevel.ThefindingscomingfromthesurveysandinterviewsforthisresearchbriefrepresenttheviewsofC-levelexecutivesregardingAI’sinvolvementinthestrategicdecision-makingjourney.

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions7

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Inthisresearch,“decision-making”referstohigh-impactstrategicchoicesmadebyC-suiteleaders.Thesedecisionsshapetheorganization’slong-termdirection.Theyinvolvethecommitmentofsignificantresources,carrysignificantrisk,andaffect

long-termperformance.Examplesincludemarketentryorexit,majorinvestments,budgetshifts,mergersandacquisitionsactivity,andcompetitiverepositioning.

Executivedecision-makingisevolving

Needfor agilitytocourse-correct

orpivotstrategically

Shifttowardevidence-based, data-drivendecisions

C

C

Rising

volumeandcomplexityofdata

Demandforreal-time

intelligence

“AI”referstothefullspectrumofartificialintelligencetechnologies,includingtraditionalAI/machinelearning(ML)models,generativeAI(GenAI),andemergingagenticAIsystems.

ThisincludesanyAItoolsorplatformsthatsupport,augment,orautomatedecision-makingprocesses.

TYPEOFAITraditionalAI/MLGenAIAIagents

PredictionandCreative,generative,orProcesshyper-automation,

optimizationlanguage-heavytasksautonomouscoordinationand

Example:ACFOusesExample:ACEOusesactionacrosssystems

ML-powereddashboardstoMicrosoftCopilottoExample:ACOOdeploysan

monitorfinancialKPIsandsummarizeinvestorreportsAIagenttomonitorreal-time

predictquarterlyearningsandgeneratetalkingpointsfactoryperformanceacross

variance.forearningscalls.regionsandrecommendstrategic

PURPOSEOFUSEshiftsinproductioncapacity.

SalesfoΓce’sEinsteinAlMicrosoftCopilotDevin

XGBoostGoogleGeminiGoogleGeminiAgentMode

Google’sTensoΓFlowChatGPTCopilotAgenticAI

EXAMPLESMeta’sPyToΓchLeChatbyMistralAIManus

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions8

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Stagesofdecision-making

6

5

HowCXOscanleverageAIacrosstheirdecision-makingjourney

Monitorandoptimize

Suggest

course-corrections

Decideandexecute

Trackreal-timeprogressand?agdeviations

4

CXOsmakethe?nalcallanddriveexecution

Collaborate

3

Analyzecon?ictsandsuggesttrade-o?s

Identifythemostoptimaldecision

Synthesizecollective

Validateperspectives

2

Modelandstress-testscenarios

Suggestdecisionpathways

Ideate

Challengeassumptions

·oBrainstormandproposenewideasQIdentifyblindspotsandgaps

1

Prepare

Researchandanalysis

Generateartifacts(briefs,actionitems,etc.)

WhereAIaddsstrategicvalue

Source:CapgeminiResearchInstituteanalysis.

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

1

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions9

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions10

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

OneinsixCXOsactivelyuseAIinstrategicdecision-makingjourney;thisisexpectedtomorethandoublewithinthreeyears

UseofAIinstrategicdecision-makingjourneyindividuallybyC-suiteleaders

Amongthose

selectively

usingAI,

Amongdecision-

makersactively

51%

Current

Next1–3years

usingAI,

42%

38%

2x

31%

82%

92%

17%

9%

10%

1%

dosoatleastdaily

dosoatleastweekly

Useselectivelybutnotasaconsistentpractice

Useactively

Interestedbutlackclarityonpracticaluse

Experimentingbutnotcurrentlyimplementing

Source:CapgeminiResearchInstitute,AIandthefutureofdecision-makingsurvey,August–September2025,N=500C-levelexecutives.

Questionasked:DoyouuseAItoolsinyourroletosupportorinformstrategic,C-leveldecision-making?*“Activeusage”referstousingAIatmultiplestagesacrossstrategicdecision-makingasastandardpractice.“Selectiveusage”referstousingAIonlyinisolateddecisionsorscenarios.**“Individual-levelAIusage”referstoaCXOusingAIinindependentorteamdecision-makingprocesses.

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

CEOsareembracingAImoreactivelythan“otherCXOs”

UseofAIinstrategicdecision-makingjourneyindividually,byCXOroles

Interestedbutlackclarityonpracticaluse

SelectivelyuseExperimenting

55%

41%

37%

0%

5%

10%

CEOs

48%

41%

22%

5%

0%

5%

TechCXOs

57%

40%

34%

15%

14%

1%

OtherCXOs

Activelyuse

In1–3years

35%

26%

10%

Current

27%

53%

17%

CMO,GEHealthcare

Source:CapgeminiResearchInstitute,AIandthefutureofdecision-makingsurvey,August–September2025,N=500C-levelexecutives.Note:TechCXOsincludechiefinformationofficer,chiefdataofficer,chieftechnologyofficer,andchiefAIofficer.OtherCXOsincludechiefoperatingofficer,chieffinancialofficer,chiefhumanresourcesofficer,chiefmarketingofficer,chiefstrategyofficer,chiefriskofficer,andchiefsalesofficer.

CurrentactiveuseofAIamong

CEOsisnearlytwicethatofotherCXOs(excludingtechleaders).

Twoinfive(41%)CEOsare

experimentingwithAIindecision-making–thehighestamongall

leadershipgroups.

"Settingthestrategicdirectionusedtobeastaticexercise.Thatmodel

doesn’tholdanymore.Now,real-

timeAIintelligenceenablesusto

continuouslyreviewdecisionsagainstreal-timeKPIs,course-correctwhenneeded,andevenpivotwithout

losinglong-termvision.”

SimonRost

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions11

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions12

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Here’showsomeleadersarealreadyusingAItoidentifyandmanagestrategicopportunitiesandrisks

Gerhard,aboardchairfromAustria,

usedalargelanguagemodel(LLM)to

assistwithscenarioplanningforastrategicinvestmentdecision.

Juho,theboardchairofaprivate

companyinFinland,usedChatGPTduringboardmeetingstotestassumptionsandgeneratealternativestoproposalsmadebymanagement.

Alexander,thechairoftwoboardsinSwitzerland,usedChatGPTtogeneratediscussionquestionsanddecisionoptionsfromboardmaterialsbeforemeetings.

Casestudy

SalesforceCEOMarcBenioffusesAIinstrategicplanning

MarcBenioff,CEOofSalesforce,exemplifieshowgenerativeAIcanbeintegratedintostrategicleadership.In

hisplanningprocess,BenioffconsultsAItoassessmarkettrends,technologicaldevelopments,andcustomer

positioning.Onceadraftstrategyisdevelopedcollaborativelywithotherexecutives,heusesAItobenchmarktheplanagainstcompetitors,receivealetter-gradeevaluation,andgatherrecommendationsforimprovement.AIhelpsidentifystrengths,weaknesses,andoverlookedopportunities,ultimatelyenhancingthequalityand

precisionofdecision-making.1

Source:HarvardBusinessReview,“HowPioneeringBoardsAreUsingAI,”July–August2025.*Basedonfocusgroupdiscussionswithmorethan50boardchairs,vicechairs,andcommitteechairsfrompublicandprivatecompaniesinEurope,Asia,andNorthAmerica.

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions13

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

AIisbecomingpartofthecollectivedecision-makingprocess

ActiveusageofAIingroupmeetingsisanticipatedtotriplewithinonetothreeyears,albeitremainingbelowindividualuselevel

UseofAIinstrategicdecision-makingingroupsettings

ActivelyuseinallgΓoupmeetings

7%

24%

3x

SelectivelyuseinceΓtaingΓoupmeetings

23%

53%

2x

CurrentNext1–3years

Group-levelAIusagereferstothecollectiveuseofAItoolsinleadershiporteamsettings–e.g.,executivecommittees,boardmeetings,governancecouncils–toaugment

strategicthinking,challengeassumptions,andco-createdecisions.

?MicrosoftCopilotlaunchedanewfeature,Groups,

inOctober2025.Groupsenablereal-timecollaborationwithupto32people,turningCopilotintoasharedspacewhereteamscanbrainstorm,co-write,plan,andworktogether.2

?OpenAIhasbeenpilotinggroupchatsinChatGPT

sinceNovember2025,aimingtobringfriends,family,orcoworkersintoasharedspacetoplan,makedecisions,orworkthroughideastogether.3

Source:CapgeminiResearchInstitute,AIandthefutureofdecision-makingsurvey,August–September2025,N=500C-levelexecutives.

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

AItoframethedecisioncontext

AIhelpsleadershipteams

definewhattodiscussandwhy

?Identifyingpriorities

?Structuringagendas

?Summarizingrelevantdata

?Aligningeveryoneonsharedgoalsbeforethemeetingbegins.

AItoconvergeonadecision

AIsupportsteamsintranslatingdiscussionsintoaction

?Synthesizingviewpoints

?Outliningscenariosortrade-offs

?Stress-testingpossibledecisionstohelpthegroupreachmore

balancedoutcomes.

Source:CapgeminiResearchInstituteanalysis.

HowleaderscanuseAIingroupsettingstosupportthedecision-makingjourney

AItostrengthen

collectivereasoning

Duringthediscussion,AIactsasafacilitator

?Mappingcollectiveideas

?Surfacingblindspots

?Testingassumptions

?Keepingtrackoftheevolvingconversation.

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions14

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions15

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

OrganizationsthathaveintegratedAIintotheirexecutivedecision-makingprocesses

InternationalHoldingCompany(IHC),

anAbuDhabi-basedglobalinvestmentcompany

InternationalHolding

Company(IHC)has

appointedAidenInsight,anAIentity,toitsboard

asanon-votingobserver,

tohelphumanboard

membersmakebetter

strategicdecisions,

assessrisks,andmonitorcompliance.AccordingtoIHC,Aidenwillbeableto

“continuouslyprocessandinstantlyanalyzedecadesofbusinessdata,financialinformation,markettrends,andglobaleconomic

indicators.”4

MGX,aninvestmentcompany

In2025,MGXintroducedAin,itsproprietary

AI-powered,voice-

enabledboardobserver.Ainprovidesdeep,real-

timeinsightsbypulling

datafrominternaland

externalsourcestosupportinvestmentdecisionsandriskassessments,furthersupportingstrategicboardfunctions.5

GeneralAtlantic,

anAmericangrowthequityfirm

GeneralAtlantichasaddedanon-votingAItoitsfive-personinvestingcommittee.Adaanalyzes45yearsof

dealdataandagreeswith

theteam80–90%ofthe

time.CEOBillFordsaysAdalackshumanperspectivebutcouldseeitbecominga

votingmemberwithin10years.6

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions16

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOsworry

mostaboutlegalrisks,explainability,

dataqualityinAIdecisions

HowAIcanempower

CXOs'decision-makingjourney

Appendix

Startupschangingthelandscapeofdecision-makingAI

01

?AgentimiseAIprovidesdecision-supporttoolsforseniorexecutives.

?Itusesdataanalysisandscenariomodelingtohelpleadershipteamsevaluateoptionsandaligndecisionswithbusinessobjectives.7

02

?CantDecide.AIoffersadecision-makingprocessthatcombinesrandomselectionwithAI-generatedreasoning.

?Usersshareoptions,thesystempicksonerandomly,andthenprovidespros,cons,andperspectivestoassistinmovingforward.8

03

?AstutisanAIplatformdesignedtohelpbusinessesaddresscrisesandmakedecisionswithoutrelyingonhistoricaldata.

?ItusesgenerativeAItosimulateoutcomesandguideleadersthroughuncertainsituations.9

58%

CXOsΓepoΓtasignificantgap

betweenthepotentialandactualuse

ofAIingroupsettings,10whereas

only28%feelthisappliestotheir

individualuseofAI.

10"Groupsettings”referstocollaborativedecision-makingenvironments

involvingmultipleseniorexecutives,suchasleadershipmeetings,strategysessions,orboardroomdiscussions.

Researchbrief-CapgeminiResearchInstitute2026InsidetheC-Suite:HowAIisquietlyreshapingexecutivedecisions17

Executivesummary

Withinthreeyears,CXOs'useofAIwilldouble

MostCXOsrealize

noticeablegainsfromAI

Despitegrowinguse,CXOswor