29261: chapter 5

Person reviewing code on computer monitors in a modern workspace with purple and blue lighting

Why AI investment and employee enablement remain stuck in neutral

Select budget options below to learn more

Organizations must be intentional about which initiatives they take on and driving them through financial value, or else they end up running in place.

Total AI Investment budget:

Team members reviewing data displayed on a wall during a collaborative meeting in a purple-lit office.

Download the report

Explore the data, insights, and executive perspectives shaping the future of enterprise AI adoption.

All this is playing out against dynamics that haven’t changed much at all after years of the EY US AI Pulse Survey: Respondents signal high interest in AI investment and employee training, but actual follow-through remains at a plateau.

Dan Diasio

EY Global AI Consulting Leader

Person monitoring computer systems in a dimly lit operations room with blue lighting.

Senior leaders whose organization is investing in AI also say the time their organization will spend on training employees on how to use AI responsibly will increase over the next year (67%) and already has increased over the past year (66%).

Yet these numbers have remained largely unchanged: a year ago, they were 64% and 59%, respectively.

Abstract purple and gold lattice pattern glowing against a black background.

50%+

$10M+

For the past two years, senior leaders whose organization is investing in AI have projected high AI spend, both as a percentage of their total AI investment budget and in specific dollar allocations. In reality, investments remain at a plateau. While this signals a continuously high interest in AI investment, actual follow‑through of funding remains constrained.