IBMInstituteforBusinessValue|ResearchInsights

Theenterprise

in2030

Engineeredforperpetualinnovation

HowIBMcanhelp

IBMhasbeenprovidingexpertisetohelporganizationswin

inthemarketplaceformorethanacentury.ClientscanrealizethepotentialofAIandbetternavigateachangingworldusingIBM’sdeepindustry,functional,andtechnicalexpertise;

enterprise-gradetechnologysolutions;andscience-basedresearchinnovations.

IBMisalsoagloballeaderinquantumcomputing,ready

toaidclientsastheyembarkontheirownquantumjourneys.

FormoreinformationaboutAIservicesfromIBMConsulting,

visit

/services/artificial-intelligence

.

FormoreinformationaboutAIsolutionsfromIBMSoftware,

visit

/watson

.

FormoreinformationaboutAIinnovationsfromIBMResearch,

visitresearch.

/artificial-intelligence

.

FormoreinformationaboutquantumcomputingfromIBM,

visit

/quantum

.

1

About

theauthors

AndyBaldwindrivesprofitablegrowththroughAI-enabledofferings,ecosystemcollaboration,andmarketexecution.Withthreedecadesof

AndyBaldwin

leadershipexperience,hebringsdeepexpertise

GlobalManagingPartner,OfferingsandGrowth

inlarge-scaletransformation,multiculturalteam

IBMConsulting

leadership,andbuildingsolutionsthatdeliver

/in/andybaldwin12/

measurableclientvalue.

NeilDharhas30yearsofconsultingexperience,guidinggrowth,strengtheningstrategicclient

relationships,andadvancingindustry-led

NeilDhar

transformation.Hebringsdeepexpertisein

GlobalManagingPartner,Americas

commercialstrategy,valuecreation,andapplying

IBMConsulting

hybridcloud,AI,andemergingtechnologiesto

/in/neildhar/

helporganizationstransformatscale.

RitikaGunnarbringsmorethanadecadeof

IBMleadershipexperiencebuildingproducts,leadingtechnicalservices,anddrivingclientoutcomesindata,AI,andautomation.With

RitikaGunnar

GeneralManager,Data

IBMSoftware

/in/ritika-gunnar/

astrongbackgroundinproductdevelopmentandcustomer-focusedinnovation,shehelpsorganizationsadoptdata-drivensolutionsthataddresstheirmostcomplexchallenges.

RahulKalia

ManagingPartner

IBMConsulting,UKandIreland

/in/rahulkalia-ibm/

RahulKaliaoverseesend-to-endbusinessand

technologyconsultingacrossamajorglobal

market.Withextensiveexperienceleadingglobaltransformationprograms,cloudandenterprise

applicationservices,andhigh-performingteams,hehelpsclientsacceleratechangethroughhybridcloud,data,andAI-poweredworkflows.

2

3

JamesKavanaughleadsglobalfinancial

management,corporatestrategy,andenterprise

JamesJ.Kavanaugh

transformation.Withnearlythreedecadesat

SeniorVicePresidentand

IBM,hehasheldseniorrolesacrossfinanceand

ChiefFinancialOfficer

operations,helpingsteerthecompanythrough

IBM

majorshiftsintechnology,operatingmodels,and

/in/james-j-kavanaugh-780629b2/

marketdynamics.

SalimaLinleadsconsultingstrategy,acquisitions,andtheIBMInstituteforBusinessValue.

SalimaLin

ManagingPartner,Strategy,Transformation,

Shehasmorethan25yearsofexperiencein

MergersandAcquisitions,andThought

strategyandtransformationandbringsdeep

Leadership(IBV)

expertiseininnovation,businessmodeldesign,

IBMConsulting

andguidingorganizationsthroughcomplex,

/in/salima-lin-b17bb71/

technology-drivenchange.

JoanneWright

SeniorVicePresident,

TransformationandOperations,

IBM

/in/joanne-wright4/

JoanneWrightdrivesIBM’senterprise

transformationasthecompany’s“Client

Zero”—deliveringUSD4.5billioninsavingswhile

simultaneouslyprovinghowAIandhybridcloud

unleashproductivity,innovation,andgrowth

atglobalscale.LeadingIBM’soperations,

procurement,CIO,ChiefDataandAnalyticsOffice,andGlobalRealEstateorganizations,Joannehastransformedhowthecompanyworks.

4

Contents

Foreword5

Executivesummary6

Prediction1:Competitivepressurewill

makebigbetsnon-negotiable.12

Prediction2:Today’sproductivitygainswillfund

tomorrow’sindustrytransformation.20

Prediction3:ThebestAIwillbeone-of-a-kind.Yourkind.30

Prediction4:AIwon’tdoallyourthinkingforyou.38

Prediction5:Quantumwillcausethenextseismicshift.48

5

|Foreword|

Summary|

Prediction1|

Prediction2|Prediction

3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Foreword

AI-firstadvantagedemandstailoredtechnology

MohamadAli

SeniorVicePresidentIBMConsulting

AIisn’tjustenhancingthebusinessmodel.By2030,itwillbethebusinessmodel.

Acrossindustries,thepatternisthesame:AIischangingwhatcompaniesdo

andhowtheydoit.Yetastrikingblindspotremains.79%ofexecutivessayAI

willsignificantlycontributetotheirrevenueby2030,butonly24%canclearlyseewherethatrevenuewillcomefrom.Thatgapbetweenexpectationsandoutcomespresentstheleadershipchallengeofthisdecade.

Withnocleardestinationinsight,winningCEOswon’tchasecompetitiveadvantage.They’llcodeitintoexistence.

Thatrequirestailoredtechnology—digitalagents,AImodels,anddatathatcapturetheessenceofeachorganization’sbusinesslogic.Genericalgorithmsandoff-the-shelfagentsalonewon’tdifferentiate.Therealadvantage(andROI)comesfromAIcapabilitiesthatnocompetitorcanreplicate.Whenyouencodeyourorganization’sintellectualpropertyandproprietarydataintoeveryproduct,service,andprocess,youcancreateentirelynewmarketsandrevenuestreams.That’showyoudisruptyourbusinessquarterafterquarter.

It’snotaboutboltingAIontoexistingwaysofworking.It’spivotingto

anAI-firstenterprise.Mostexecutives—57%—nowsaytheircompetitive

advantagewillcomeprimarilyfromthesophisticationoftheirAImodelsby2030.Whilepeoplewillremainessential,organizationswillneedtobuilddifferentiatingtechnologyforeventhebestteamstodeliveranedgeinanAI-firstworld.

Acrossindustries,leadersarerecognizingthatthefutureofbusinessisahybridofpeopleandsoftware—alotofsoftware.Everyprocessthatcanbeautomatedwillbe.Everyrolewillbeenhancedbyintelligentsystemsthatlearnandadapt.ButtherealadvantagewillcomefromhoworganizationsdesignandorchestratethousandsofAIagentsthatworkalongsideemployees,eachonetunedtothe

company’spurpose,culture,andcompetitiveedge.Leaderswillneedtoask:

WhereshouldAIaugmentpeople—andwhereshouldpeopleaugmentAI?

Themostsuccessfulorganizationswillreimaginehowhumansandmachinescollaboratetoachievemorethaneithercouldontheirown.

It’sthisdynamicthatwilldefinethewinnersofthenextdecade:notdeployingthemostpowerfultechnologyandmakingthebiggestcutstoheadcount,butbuildingAIthatknowsthebusiness,reflectsitsvalues,andamplifiesthe

expertiseofitspeople.

Whatdoesthatlooklikeinpractice?Thefollowingpagesdetailfivepredictions

aboutwhatwilldefinethemostsuccessfulenterprisesin2030—andthesteps

leaderscantaketoturnanAI-firstadvantageintoatransformationsuccessstory.

6

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Executivesummary

Thedawnofthe

smarterenterprise

Today,mostorganizationsareplayingafamiliargame:boltingAIontoexistingprocessestoautomatetasksandoptimizeworkflows.Ityieldsincrementalgains.

It’snottoodisruptive.Andit’smissingthepointentirely.

Theenterpriseofthefuturewon’twinbyfine-tuningtoday’soperations.

Intomorrow’sAI-poweredglobaleconomy,successwillflowfrom

lightning-fastdecision-makingandreal-timecourse-correction.Gettingthererequiresrewiringtheenterprisetomakeitlessmonolithic,more

modular—lesslikehardware,morelikesoftware.

Thinkaboutwhatmakessoftwarepowerful:Youcanrewriteanypart

ofitwithoutrebuildingfromscratch.Improvementscanberolledout

atscaleinminutesorhoursratherthanmonthsoryears.AsAIembedsthesecapabilitiesintoorganizations,staticdesignbecomesdynamicintelligence;rigidstructuresgivewaytofluidadaptation.

Whatemergesisthesmarterenterprise.Wheretraditionalenterprisesare

builtaroundfixedprocesses,lineardecision-making,andperiodicexecutive

reviews,theenterpriseofthefutureembedstransformationintoits

operationalDNA.Ituseseveryinteraction,transaction,andoutcometocontinuouslybecomesmarter,faster,andmoreresponsive.

“Theconceptof‘resourceoptimization’isalreadyoutdated.IbelievetheadventofgenerativeAIisasimpactfulastheemergenceoftheinternet.”

AkiyukiUi

OperatingOfficer,MizuhoBank

7

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

“By2030,insightwillbeeverywhere.Interfaceswillberadicallydifferent,andAIwillactasthebusinessintelligencesystem,decisionengine,andaparticipantinoperations.”

ChadGates

ManagingDirector,ProntoSoftware

ThisisthedifferencebetweenAI-enabled

andAI-first.Insteadofusingquarterlystrategysessionstoanalyzemarketchanges,the

smarterenterpriseprocessesmarketsignalscontinuouslyandadjustscourseinrealtime.

Insteadofrelyingonannualperformancereviews,itassessesanddeploystalent

dynamicallybasedonprojectneedsand

individualperformancemetrics.Insteadof

stickingwithestablishedbusinessmodels,itexperimentswithnewrevenuestreams

automatically,scalingwhatworksand

discontinuingwhatdoesn’t.Insteadof

operatingonafixedschedule,it’s‘a(chǎn)lways

on’andreadytoadapt.

Thisisn’tjustanidealisticvisionofthefuture.

IBMInstituteforBusinessValue(IBMIBV)

researchshowsthistransitionisalready

underway.InpartnershipwithOxford

Economics,wesurveyed2,000executivesinthethirdandfourthquartersof2025abouthowthey

expecttheirorganizationtoevolveoverthenextfiveyears.Responsesfromleadersacross33

geographiesand23industriesrevealaseismicreconfiguringofoperationalpracticesand

strategicassumptions(see“Researchmethodology”onpage56).

Amongthedramaticfindings:by2030,

technologywillhaveremovedmanyofthemostpersistentchallengesenterprisesfacetoday.

Forexample,67%ofexecutivesexpectAIto

eliminatetheresourceandskillsconstraintsthatcurrentlyholdtheirorganizationback.And64%saycompetitiveadvantagewillcomefrom

innovationratherthanresourceoptimization(seeFigure1).

“Mymarketingteamssitwithengineeringtobuildgrowthintotheproductratherthanjust

advertisingit.In2030,everyeffectivegrowth

leaderwilloperatethisway,managingcross-

functionalsquadswherethedistinctionbetween‘building’and‘selling’isblurred.”

AlexSchultz

VPAnalyticsandCMO,Meta

8

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

FIGURE1

By2030,technologywillremovesomeofthemost

persistentchallengesenterprisesfacetoday

67%

ofexecutivesexpectAItoeliminatetheresourceandskillsconstraintsthat

currentlyholdtheirorganizationback.

And

64%

will

saycompetitiveadvantagecomefrominnovationratherthanresourceoptimization.

9

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

“Inaworldthatisincreasinglydigital,theluxuryconsumerisgoingtoexpectmorehuman

connection—becausethatisgoingtobealuxury.”

TinaEdmundson

President,Luxury,MarriottInternational

Executivesexpecttoshiftfundingaccordingly.Between2025and2030,they

predictAIinvestmentwillsurgeapproximately150%.1Whilealargeportion

ofAIspend(47%)isfocusedonefficiencytoday,executivesexpectalmost

two-thirds(62%)tobededicatedtoproductandserviceandbusinessmodelinnovationby2030.Thismayreflectthefactthat,inasmarterenterprise,

efficiencyandinnovationshouldbeoneandthesame.

Inthisvein,productandserviceinnovationisthetoppriorityfororganizations

between2026and2030,risingfromthirdplaceinour2025CEOStudy.2

Businessmodelinnovationandmarketsharegrowthareloweronthelist

offuturepriorities,buthaveinchedupascomparedwith2025(seeFigure2).

Thisshowsthat,inthenearterm,leadersarefocusedonchangewithin

theproductandserviceportfolio.Butthey’redelayingthemoresignificantdisruptionthatbecominganAI-firstenterprisewillrequire.Isthatbecauseorganizationslackthebandwidthneededtotransformatscaletoday?Orareexecutivessimplyunclearaboutwhatthefuturebusinessmodelshouldlooklike—sothey’rekickingthecandowntheroad?Eitherway,delaysarenota

luxurythatenterprisescanafford.

Leadersalsoexpectafewoftoday’stopprioritiestobelessimportantin

2030.Ecosystemsandcybersecurity,forexample,bothdroppedinranking.Thatdoesn’tmeanthesefocalareasareunimportant—infact,theywillbe

essentialtomakethemostofemergingtechnologies.Rather,executives

expectthemtobecometablestakes.Ifthey’vealreadybeenwell-handled,theywon’tneedtobetopprioritiesin2030.

“By2030,competitionwillbedilutedinthefaceof

collaborativeecosystemsthatdefineglobalstandardsandaccelerateinnovation.Ecosystemswillwin—notisolatedcompanies.”

SusanaMeseguer

ExecutiveManagingDirectorofDigitalizationandServices,Repsol

10

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

FIGURE2

TopC-suitepriorities

2025

Forecastaccuracy

Productivityoref?ciency/pro?tability

Productandserviceinnovation

Cybersecurityanddataprivacy

Constituent/Customerexperience

Talentrecruitingandretention

AIandtechnologymodernzation

Environmentalsustainability

Ecosystemandpartnerships

Supplychainperformance

Scalabilityofservicedelivery

Marketingorsaleseffectiveness

Diversityandinclusion

Marketsharegrowth

Businessmodelinnovation

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

2026-2030

Productand

serviceinnovation

Productivityor

ef?ciency/pro?tability

Speedofexecution

Constituent/Customerexperience

AIandtechnologymodernzation

Scalabilityof

servicedelivery

Forecastaccuracy

Marketsharegrowth

Talentrecruitingandretention

Businessmodelinnovation

Marketingorsaleseffectiveness

Cybersecurityanddataprivacy

Supplychainperformance

Environmentalsustainability

Diversityandinclusion

Ecosystemandpartnerships

Sourcefor2025priorities:IBMInstituteforBusinessValue2025CEOStudy.

|Foreword|Summary

|Prediction1|Prediction2

|Prediction3|Prediction4|Prediction5

“We’llneedmoreproblemsolverswhounderstandboththebusinessandthemodels—peoplewhocanmarrytechnicalcapabilitywithbusinessinsight.

That’sthefutureofeverycompany,includingours.”

UmangDharmik

SVPandHeadofIT

Mercedes-BenzResearchDevelopmentIndia(MBRDI)

It’sdifficulttoimaginetherevolutionarycapabilitiesAIwilldevelopoverthenextfiveyears.Buildinganorganizationthatcansucceedinthefuturemeanspreparingforcontinualtech-drivendisruption—abandoningthecomfortof

incrementalchangeandembracingconstantevolutionthatmatchesthepaceofalgorithmicinsight.Everythingelseisjustplayingcatch-up.

Inthispaper,drawnfromourproprietaryquantitativeresearchaswellasin-depthqualitativeinterviewswithselectC-suiteexecutives,wehighlightfivepredictionsfor2030thatleaderscanactontodaytobringthesmarterenterprisetolife.

1.

Competitivepressurewillmakebigbets

non-negotiable.

2.

Today’sproductivitygainswillfund

5.

Quantumwillcausethenextseismicshift.

tomorrow’sindustrytransformation.

4.

AIwon’tdoallyourthinkingforyou.

3.

ThebestAIwill

beone-of-a-kind.

Yourkind.

1111

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Prediction

3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Prediction1

Competitivepressurewill

makebigbetsnon-negotiable.

12

13

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

In2030,successwon’tbemeasuredbysteadyprogresstowardlong-termtargets.Itwillbedefinedbyhowmuchanenterprisedisruptsitsindustryquarterbyquarter.Thebiggestriskwon’tbemakingthewrongbets—butmakingbetsthataretoosmall.

Whatdoesittaketoturnincrementalprogressintoexponentialgains?It

startsbyembracingtheunknown.By2030,79%ofexecutivessayAIwill

contributesignificantlytotheirrevenue,upfromjust40%whosayAIdrivesrevenuetoday.Butonly24%canclearlyidentifywhattheirmainsources

ofrevenuewillbein2030(seeFigure3).

FIGURE3

Executivesarebanking

ontheunknown

By2030,

79%

<

Butonly

ofexecutivessayAIwillcontributesigni?cantlytotheirrevenue.

24%

clearlyseewhat

theirmainsourcesofrevenuewillbe.

14

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

“In2030,Ithinkwewillbebringingofferingsandsolutionstomarketthatwecan’tevenenvision

todaybecausethetechnologyisn’tthereyet.Iwouldsay50%ofourrevenueswillcomefromnewofferings.”

MaureenPowerSweeny

ChiefRevenueOfficer,RapidScale

Thislackofvisibilityisn’tduetoalackofimagination.It’sasymptomoftheAIparadox.Whenusedtoitsfullpotential,AIpromisestoprovidedifferentiatedvalue.Whenusedasacrutch,itfuelshomogenization.Already,two-thirds

ofexecutivesareconcernedthatAIiscreatingconformity,leadingmanyorganizationstomakethesamedecisions,basedonthesamedata.

Ourresearchindicatesthatwinningin2030willdependonacombinationofcreativity,confidence,andspeed:55%ofexecutivessaycompetitive

advantagein2030willdependmoreonspeedofexecutionthanmakingperfectdecisions.Theseleadersknowthey’llhavetomakebiggerbetsfaster—withlesscompleteinformationattheirdisposal.

Unliketoday’scalculatedrisks,tomorrow’sbetswillprioritizeentering

unchartedmarkets,creatingentirelynewrevenuestreams,andchallengingtraditionalbusinesslogic.Theairlineindustryoffersanascentcaseinpoint:astheworld’sfirstAI-nativeairlinetakesflight,traditionalorganizations

mustbegintoadapttheirbusinessmodelstocompete.3Ifconsumerssee

onecompanyofferingproductsandservicesthataremorealignedtotheir

preferences,thatpressurecouldquicklycompound—pushingcompaniestorethinkeverything.

“AIneutralizestheclassicadvantageoftheincumbent.Astartupcannowoperateatthesamescaleasalargeenterprise,butmoveatamuchfasterspeed.That

meanssmallercompaniescanreallydisruptthemarketsthey’regoingafter.”

AaronLevie

CEOandCo-founder,Box

15

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Organizationsthathaveembracedtheunknownexpecttoacceleratemuch

fasterthantheirpeers.Ouranalysisshowsthatorganizationsleaninginto

AI-firstoperationsanticipate70%greaterimprovementinproductivity,74%greaterreductionsinprocesscycletimesand,67%greaterimprovementinprojectdeliverytimesthantheirpeersby2030.TheyaremoreconfidentthatAIcaneliminatetraditionalresourceandskillconstraints,theyprioritize

innovativegrowthoverresourceoptimization,andtheyplaceagreater

emphasisondevelopingnewrevenuefromproductsandservicesthattheyarenotdeliveringtoday.

Thisisasmuchofanoperationalchallengeasastrategicone.Tomove

atspeed,organizationsneedtofosteracultureofoutcomes-focused

experimentation:rapidlydeployingminimumviableproducts(MVPs),iteratingandtrackingperformance,anddecidingwhichMVPstoscaletodeliverthe

mostbusinessvalue.Theyalsoneedastableecosystem,withpartnersthatcansupporttheagilityAI-firstorganizationsrequire.AndtheyneedAI

capabilitiesandmodelsfine-tunedwiththeirorganization’sproprietarydata,

coupledwithagentsthatcanaccessthemostup-to-dateinformationasdataisprocessedandflowsacrosstheorganizationinrealtime.

Organizationsthatgetitrightaren’tjustbeatingcompetitorstomarket.

They’reoperatingondifferentprinciples.Inthetimeittakesslower

organizationstocompleteonefullcycleofdevelopment,testing,anddelivery,theseleadershavecompletedmultipleiterations—learning,adapting,and

improvingwitheachround.Thiscreatesacompoundingeffectthattraditionalenterprisescan’tmatch;anadvantagethatcompoundsexponentiallywith

eachacceleratedcycle.

“Themoreweusetechnologytogetclosertopeople,themorecompetitiveweare.”

EstrellaBotas

COO,Unicaja

16

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Everyfasterdeliverygeneratesfreshcustomerfeedback.Eachshortenedprocessrevealsoperationalinsights.Andchangewillbecomeevenmore

dramaticasAIadvancesoverthenextfiveyears.Thesmarterenterprise

transformsthisvelocityintowisdom,usingeveryinteractionasadatapointtorefineitsunderstandingofwhatworks,whatdoesn’t,andwhat’snext.

It’salwaysonandcontinuouslyadapting.

In2030,itwon’tbeenoughtosimplybeagileorlean—conceptsthatassumeyouknowwhatyou’reoptimizingfor.Instead,successwillcomefrombuildingorganizationalintelligencewithclearaccountabilitystructuresthatcan

recognizepatterns,anticipateshifts,andcultivatetheconfidenceleadersneedtoplacebigger,smarterbetsaheadofcompetition.ThisalsoinvolvesaskinghowAIwillredefineleadership.Forinstance,executivesexpectthat

25%ofenterpriseboardswillhaveanAIadvisororco-decisionmakerby

2030.HowwillleadersdefinetheroletheseAIboardmembersshouldplay?Howwillthedecision-makingprocessneedtoevolve?Thesearesomeofthebigquestionsbusinessleadersface.

Makingbigbetsdoesn’tmeandoingawaywithsafetymeasures.Risk

mitigationanddiversificationstrategiescontinuetobeessential.Butasking

therightquestions—andbeingabletorelyonAIforreal-timeresponse—is

whatwillgiveleaderstheclaritytheyneedtoaccelerateintherightdirection.

Whenentireindustriescanberedefinedinquartersratherthandecades,

movingatmachinespeedisn’trecklessgambling—it’sintelligentrisk-takingpoweredbyreal-timemarketlearning.Thewinningenterpriseof2030won’tjustadapttochange;itwillcreatethechangesothersmustadaptto.

Thesmarterenterprisetransformsvelocityintowisdom,usingeveryinteractionasadatapointtorefineits

understandingofwhatworks,whatdoesn’t,andwhat’snext.It’salwaysonandcontinuouslyadapting.

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

“By2030,wewilldothingsthatwerepreviouslytooexpensivetobeROI-positive.Wewillalso

buildproductsthatsimplycouldn’texistwithoutAIsemanticunderstanding.”

AlexSchultz

VPAnalyticsandCMO,Meta

17

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Prediction

3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Whattodo

Betbigonpromisingbutunconventionalideas

thatmaybetangentialtoyourcorebusinesstoday.StartwithAI-poweredmarketscanningsystems—settingalertsforspecificsignalsthatcouldrevealfuturegrowthdrivers.

Surfaceinsightsthatletyouanticipate—andcounter—competitorstrategiesbeforetheylaunchpublicly.Thenactivelydeconstructyourexistingbusinessmodelandlegacyrevenuestreamstouncoverbothvulnerabilitiesandopportunitiesforreinvention.

Stress-testnewideasthroughrapidexperimentation,

identifyingopportunitiesforimprovement,re-designing

processes,developingMVPs,anddeployingthemina

controlledwaytoidentifytheopportunitiesthatshouldbescaled.Fosteracultureofexperimentation—wherefailuresarenotproblemsbutlearningopportunities.

18

19

|Foreword|

Summary

|Prediction1

|Prediction2|Predictio

n3|Prediction4|Prediction5

Industryshowcase

Telecom

Embracingspeed

overcertainty

Thetelecomindustrystandsatacrossroadsthatwilldefinethenextdecade.

Ononesideliesincrementalprogress—optimizingnetworks,automatingcustomerservice,andsqueezingefficiencygainsfromexistingoperations.Ontheothersideliestransformation—newbusinessmodels,cross-industrypartnerships,andrevenuestreamsthatdon’texisttoday.

Telecomexecutivesaren’tconfusedaboutwhichpathtotake:67%expectAItodisruptexistingbusinessmodelsorcreatenewones.They’realso20%morelikelythanleadersinother

industriestosaytheyalreadyseewhattheirmainsourceofrevenuewillbein2030.

Speedtrumpsperfectionfortelecomleaders,withalmosttwo-thirds(64%)sayingsuccess

dependsmoreonexecutionvelocitythangettingeverydecisionright.Today,46%ofAI-relatedtelecomspendingfocusesonefficiencyplays—networkoptimization,predictivemaintenance,automatedsupport.By2030,productinnovationandbusinessmodelinnovationwillclaim

roughlytwo-thirdsofprojectedAIspend.Themessageinthatmath:telecomsaremovingfromcost-cuttingtorevenue